Hoth: Blood and Ice

[Dapper Dog]

Imperial Intelligence

The shadowy arm of the Imperial war machine Imperial Intelligence is a powerful if misunderstood entity within the Empire. They are a vast but nimble organization that exists outside the Imperial military structure. In general there are field agents and support staff, field agents were either classified as Agent or Cipher Agent, or Cipher for short.

Support staff was made up of Informers, Minders, Fixers, and Watchers. The top of the active ranks is the Keeper who oversees Imperial Intelligence and knows all the secrets and then above them is the Minister of Intelligence who speaks directly to the Dark Council making them one of the most powerful non-Sith positions outside of the military.

In general Imperial Intelligence acts as a counter intelligence agency, counter insurgency, internal threats, and active intelligence in the Republic. There are as many operations within Imperial space as there are outside the borders of the Empire. Imperial agents are trained from young ages in most cases or even deliberately bred through breeding programs to produce loyal and capable agents. Retirement from Intelligence usually accompanies a funeral; secrets are best kept by the dead.

Informers

Informers are the lowest active rank within Imperial Intelligence and is less a rank and more just a title given to disposable assets in the field. Informers are just that professional informants, often converted by Imperial Intelligence for a specific purpose. It is rare for any Informer to ever move beyond this position, and most are decommissioned after their mission is complete.

Minders

The lowest official rank is that of a Minder, these are functionaries, clerks, and basic support staff that maintain the equipment. They provide a host of support roles across the Empire but are rarely deployed to the field and tend to be stationed at listening posts, bureaus, and other official locations. There is some ability from the position and those that wish to specialize may become Fixers or even Watchers; this path rarely leads to field work but it is not impossible.

Fixers

Specialists, Fixers are the next step up from Minders. Fixers tend to be technical specialists from hackers to engineers, to even historians and linguists. They sometimes deploy into the field but are usually at the best behind the scene supporting Agents and Ciphers with their unique skill sets. Fixers tend to be very well trained in their field of study and have access to some of the best technology the Empire can provide. Fixers are invaluable to the mission and are often subject to loyalty tests at regular intervals.

Watcher

On the support side the Watcher is one part analyst, one part specialist, another part team leader. Watchers tend to be selected for the role from a young age and then groomed and conditioned for the position. It is not uncommon for Watchers to be the product of Imperial breeding programs and genetic enhancement. Watchers tend to oversee large scale missions and are often akin to human computers with vast intellect, implants, and conditioning. Every Watcher is an intellectual genius capable of vast multi-tasking and pattern recognition. Watchers tend to interface with field agents constantly feeding them information. Keepers are normally drawn from the ranks of Watchers, almost exclusively and usually after decades of service.

Keeper

Keeper is a singular position, they are the head of Imperial Intelligence, who answer to the Dark Council directly, although nominally under Darth Jadus. It is perhaps one of the most powerful roles in the Empire short of the Grand Moff that is in the hands of a non-Sith. A Keeper is a career Intelligence agent and specialist often with more secrets rattling in their minds than any single person in the Empire. It is a position of extreme trust and loyalty. While the Military suffers division from Sith meddling a Keeper is beyond their grasp and thankfully Imperial Inteligence has never had to deal with the infighting or division the military has to endure much due to the skill and intellect of the Keeper.

Cipher Agents

Cipher agents are the elite among field agents and while there are countless field agents and informers, Cipher agents, known as Ciphers are few in number. Highly capable agents they are trained in various forms of close combat, small arms, personal intelligence, and psychological warfare. They are subjected to grueling tests and trials of emotional, mental, and physical endurance. They are loyal and fully dedicated to the cause, some are extreme professionals others play fast and loose with the law, but all are dedicated to the mission of Intelligence.

Ciphers have a great deal of autonomy in their missions and tend to be proactive instead of reactive. Ciphers are chameleons, they can blend in to any situation and are trained to deceive and charm with ease. Some form their own teams of specialists others work solo, all are deadly. When an agent becomes a Cipher all identifiable personal information is purged from the databanks and they exist only as a designation of Cipher [Number], i.e. Cipher 5. Cipher agents never retire, they either become Watchers or they are decommissioned.