Decades after the shattering, amidst the chaos caused by famines and the long winter, a few soldiers from the 20th Guards Motor Rifle Division attempted to revive the Soviet Army with the objective of protecting survivors and defeating "the enemy". Centuries later, the militia had devolved into almost a perverted mimicry of what it once was.
Their objective: to re-establish the Soviet Union, no matter the cost. To maintain a sense of tradition, the members still wore the green uniforms (although the means used to produce the fabric were much more primitive), they still ordered soldiers by ranks (but the meaning of these ranks had long since been lost to time), and even continued some semblance of the ceremonies and rituals practiced by the Red Army in the old times.
Spread throughout many military bases in the North Caucasus District, the Militia have a very loose structure, but the head commander of the forces is traditionally stationed in the Marinovka Air Base, in the outskirts of the ruins of Volgograd, now turned to a permanent settlement under their protection.
Chief Marshal Aleksandr Markov runs the base and commands the rest of the Militia sending telegrams through various salvaged cables stitched and buried, connecting the various bases established in the region. Despite the resemblance to the old world military structure, Volgograd’s hierarchy resembles more of a nepotist monarchy.
You’d think that one thing you wouldn't have to worry about in the post-apocalypse would be taxes, but that's where you’re wrong. Bringing back the soviet union is no small task and requires the collaboration of every settlement, and anyone that doesn't agree is a traitor to the motherland and deserves to our wrath.
Every recognized settlement within the jurisdiction of a Volgograd Militia run military base has to pay tributes in either food, scraps or whatever they can muster to appease the soldiers. Sometimes, the militia has been known to accept “voluntaries” for their army as payment form the tribute. Failing to deliver these payments can result in forceful takeover, having the leader of the settlement replaced by a local high ranking officer.
Even though a few factories were left in somewhat decent conditions, few people have the knowledge required for running the manufacturing process. For this reason, most weapons deployed by the militia are either restored old world guns, most notably AK-74s, or somewhat primitive imitations made with scraps.
Ammunition, on the other hand, is simpler to produce with the right equipment, but require scarcer resources. Gunpowder is rarely found well preserved enough to be reliable, making it's production a requirement. Luckily for them, a few known settlements are still able to produce the substance.
Metal, on the other hand, is easier to come by. Anything not useful for the army is turned to scraps, and the metal is especially useful for this. Sometimes cast-metal armor is also used, but rarely covers more than the essential.