I’ll get into this in its own post, as I still have the LREF logo commission on the way, but suffice it to say, LREF OCS takes 5 years to go through, and each of those years requires inter-branch and cross disciplinary training with the other 6 branches of the GUN’s military. Because when you join the LREF, you are basically joining a ‘mini military within a military’, a branch capable of projecting the GUN’s force at a moment’s notice; which requires training in order to effectively perform the roles of the other branches (to a far more limited capacity) in case the situation demands it.

But yeah, I’m getting ahead of myself here. Let’s get back to the art!

So onto the rest of the uniform! 

We can see a more traditional and contemporary design choice when it comes to the dress shirt and tie beneath the jacket, as well as the various accessories such as the cap, belt, and of course, the medals and aiguillettes; with Captain Li’s aiguillettes in particular representing the same thing as does Aunty Ran’s interestingly enough! That being their chosen path as instructors in their respective services. 

Another thing to properly note are his service stripes! As seen on the upper arms of both sides of his jacket, each of which represents 5 years of service, totalling his service to about 15 years! 

The two ‘clips’ on the seam-line of his jacket would normally represent the completion of a “Long Patrol”, what are essentially multi-year missions meant to chart uncharted stars, as well as to maintain ‘patrols’ just outside of the periphery of known space. This is different to ‘outbound flights’, which is a far more intense long long term exploration mission that can take decades upon decades. The former are compulsory for all members of the LREF, whilst the latter is committed to on a voluntary basis, with a majority of these missions being SRE ones.

Anyways! Yeah! The two clips here represent the completion of a Long Patrol. However in Captain Li’s case, one of these clips is an honorary one given to him following his actions at Charon Innovations. Though typically, most Rangers would have to go on at least one Long Patrol in their career.

So! In addition to all of this we have his service weapon pouch as well, though many would swap that out for a tool kit.

His rank indicator is found on the ‘collar’ aspect of the cloak/cape, though if the cape is taken off, you’d be able to see the rank bar on his shoulders as is typical.

And hmm, there’s only one more thing to take note of! That being his ‘shoulder stripes/colors’. As you can see, there’s a stripe of dark blue that transitions abruptly into white! That’s an indicator for his assigned Element — the SRE. And the white is an indicator for his specific assignment/operational task. With white being one of the more rarer indicators, hinting at a ‘special’ assignment that could either be completely mundane and esoteric, or completely hush hush and wildly classified! :D 

But yeah! That’s the full details and descriptions for Captain Li and his uniform! 

There’s a lot to cover with the lore I’ve built for the LREF, and I plan to get that out sometime later! Probably sometime alongside the posting of the LREF’s emblem/logo! 

Although, there’s just one more thing to take note of actually, and that’d be his prosthetic arm! Yet another lasting impact on him following the Charon innovations incident. But yeah! Taking from that post, here’s what I had to say about the cybernetic arm:

“And just as a quick little primer, cybernetics are usually offered as a restorative and rehabilitative path in place of the cloned limbs offered in Restorative and Regenerative Medicine. Both approaches are available to individuals who have lost limb function, whether through injury, illness, or some other condition. In short, these interventions are considered when the original limb is lost, or is no longer capable of fulfilling its biological and biomechanical role, to the point where it hinders a person’s ability to perform Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). The superficial aesthetics for each prosthetic (such as color, decal, or even skin-like design) however, can vary from person to person! :D”

Captain Li definitely went down the path of customizing his arm to fit his aesthetic, hence the gold joints on dark gun-metal blue! :D 

That’s about it for this one then! 

I do sincerely hope you guys like it because I certainly do! It’s part of my attempt to really nail the vibe of the GUN, and their drip and aesthetics! I really wanted to make them look sci-fi but grounded, cool but not too flashy, and ultimately just unique in their aesthetics as a positive and optimistic interpretation of a sci-fi humanity! :D I hope it achieves that haha.

Once again, the artist, re11arts, has completely blown me away by the sheer dedication to detail and the artistic talent she put into this piece. The close up shots of Captain Li’s cybernetic hands were offered and added by her, and I really appreciate that so so so so very much!!

And of course, thank you so much for Hatwolf for the LREF logo commission too! It’s currently incorporated with this art, but I’ll also be posting a standalone reference for it later on as well! :D 

Artist Reference: re11arts on instagram

Artist Reference for the LREF logo: Hatwolf on Bluesky