The Anla'Shok are an elite fighting force, originally founded by Valen during the First Shadow War to stand apart from the feuding Warrior Clans of the age. In Valen's words, they were to be "a military group dedicated to nothing less than preserving the future and all life. Even our enemy's life, if possible." The word "Anla'Shok" is loosely translated into English as Rangers.
The Rangers from the Bab'lonin Universe played a role after the Alliance of Nations came into their universe in 2258 (1453 NE), when Jeffrey Sinclair was made leader of the Rangers, he made certain both their forces and the Alliance work together for the coming threats such as the Shadows and the First Multiverse War. By the time the Interstellar Alliance was formed, they became the main force to maintain the peace between the races and worlds, and also worked alongside other peacekeeping forces from the Alliance for missions.
History[]
Organization[]
Membership[]
The Anla'Shok were originally a purely Minbari organization, with its members made up of only those born into or called to the Warrior Caste. Like most Minbari cultural institutions, the Anla'Shok conformed to societal norms and initially had no members of the Worker Caste, though the caste still made ships and weapons for them, and no dealings with the Religious Caste at all, although the leader of the Anla'Shok was known to seek counsel from its members. According to some Minbari, later in the Shadow War Valen opened the Anla'Shok to recruits from the Religious and Worker castes as well. After his departure, only warriors were allowed to join.
When Jeffrey Sinclair became the new Anla'Shok Na in 2259 (1454 NE), he did so on the condition that along with allowing humans to join, members from all three Minbari castes would also be allowed to join. This was a condition that many Warriors refused to accept, causing many long-serving Rangers to resign under orders from their military clans.
With the Minbari membership of the Anla'Shok diminished by the long decline of support for the organization on Minbar, more than half of the Rangers of 2259-2261 (1456 NE) were human, and many of the remaining Minbari were of the Religious Caste. Over time, this was overcome and Minbari warriors would again join the ranks of the Rangers, as would those of the Worker Caste. Following the founding of the Interstellar Alliance, membership became open to all Alliance members, and within a year, there were Ranger trainees from Abbai IV (Abbai), Zhabar (Drazi), Pa'ri (Yolu), and even Pak'ma(pak'ma'ra). This forced centuries-old Anla'Shok training programs to adapt and evolve, to which many Minbari Anla'Shok - being a very conservative and traditionalist race - were opposed, especially for those among the Warrior Caste.
Unlike the early human recruits, it took some years before the new races recruits were fully assimilated into the Anla'Shok, with some help and counsel from Entil'Zha Delenn. It wasn't until 2265 (1460 NE) that Anla'Shok Tirk and Anla'Shok Na'Feel - each the first recruits from Zhabar and Narn Prime, respectively - were given a shipboard assignment and then only at the insistence of Shok-na Martell. By the time the Rangers took part in missions with other races from the Alliance of Nations during the First Multiverse War, they have recruited other members from other realities to expand their numbers and branches when they became adapted with the support of the Jedi such as Krogans, Asari, Quarian from the Riz'ro Universe, Quarians, Mon Calamari and Wookiees from the Filo and the Viau Universes, including the Arle from the Golmar Universe.