In the age of Interstellar travel, personel assaults are rarely called for, or at least on the scale they once were known for. Ground combat has given way to orbital bombardments.
The Terran Marine Corps are now used mainly for boarding parties. Advances in personal weaponry and armor have allowed a single squad to carry the same firepower once found only in entire platoons. As the need for Marines declined, the qualifications became stiffer. The training period for Marines grew from a few months in Boot Camps to several years in hard training all over the Galaxy.
The Marines became the super soldiers of the GTA.
The present state of inter-Galactic War requires a Marine to be more than physically fit and intelligent.
The Terran Assault Armor is the GTA's way of protecting the investment they make with every Marine.
Light TAA encase most of the soldier in a reinforce kevlar cacoon. Under the three layers of increasingly thick kevlar, a brittle pliable steel shell is positioned to absorb solid round impacts. This inner shell breaks when impacted, thus taking the full force of the blast.
Several hits in the same area can tear Light TAA into shreds. The current standard TAA is the next grade up, the Medium Skirmish TAA. In the Medium Skirmish TAA, the layers of kevlar are themselves layered by a light weight titanium alloy shell. This shell is ionized, offering protection from not only solid rounds but energy weapons as well. Beginning with the Medium Skirmish TAA, Independent Power Generators are harnessed to the Marines back.
These generators supply power to personal energy weapons, and in some cases serve as ammo feeds to solid round weaponry. Latches on the outside of the titanium alloy shell allow for additional supplies and equipment to be carried. Situations calling for Medium Skirmish TAA are not extended battles and Marines usual forgo carrying more weight into combat.
The next phase in TAA is the Heavy Infantry. HI is the choice armor of Marine Boarding Parties. A light flak suit is worn against the skin under the kevlar present in all other TAA. Several pieces of ionized titanium alloy are fitted together over the kevlar, similar to midieval armor suits.
At this stage, TAA is no longer simple armor. The HI incorporates hydrolic gears to increase the strength of the Marine. Hydrolics in the HI are not powerful enough to add to offensive attacks, instead they allow the Marine to carry the HI without being hindered by it's immense 753.6kilogram weight.
The HI is a capable weapons platform, being the first TAA able to carry the personal TMC-18 calibre Gatling Gun. Wrist mounts firmly support almost all Terran personal weapon types, allowing all strength to go to aiming and fireing, relieving the strain of the 200 kilogram average weapon.
The onboard sensor package of the HI far exceeds the simple targeting scanner of lower models. HI contains full spectral analysis scanners, heat sensors, motion trackers, infra-red, density compinsators, and Intelligent Target Tracking systems.
It is only on very rare occasions that more than the HI is needed, but the GTA plan for every event.
The Self Contained Full Assault Armor carries firepower equivalent to a light bomber. FAA completely encases the Marine in a one ton shell of titanium and reinforced armor plating of the same type used in the GTB Medusa. The FAA allows Marines to operate under any condition, even in the void of space. This heaviest of Terran Assault Armor fully contains the Marine inside, including internal air supply and food/water supplies. In extreme circumstances, a Terran can live in the FAA for up to four days.
The Hydrolics of FAA increase the Marines strength by as much as 4.3 times. This allows the FAA to carry weapons of mass destruction (WMD). The Terran Marine Corp classifies WMD's as any weapon that can be measured in Megatonnes. Obviously, a single Marine capable of carrying WMD's is a force to be reckoned with.
Standard in all TAA models are medical bio-read outs that constantly moniter the Marines vital signs. Boots carry powerful magnetic clamps for zero gravity combat. In zero gravity conditions, all TAA models after the Light initiate Vertigo Dampeners, so the Marine does not suffer from the ill-effects on internal organs.