Ranks
1-1E-4 Mafia, stripes and who actually runs the shop.
The Army, briefed in plain English.
Comics and parody videos about Army life, each one with the real regulation, rank or badge decoded underneath. Pick a subject below. We will skip the 42-slide build.
Field decoderSLIDE 0-1 // SELECT TOPIC
The E-4 Mafia, and the Command Specialist Major
A Specialist (E-4) can manage lower-ranking Soldiers, but is not an NCO. A Corporal is the first NCO rank and leads the smallest team. The "Mafia" is the folklore around the career Specialist who has outlasted three first sergeants, memorized every technical manual and is somehow never on the detail roster.
The parody:the Command Specialist Major, an imaginary rank above Command Sergeant Major (E-9), with 16 traits. Number one is knowing where everything is.
Read the comic- E-4 SPCSpecialist. Manages lower enlisted, does not lead NCO-style.
- E-4 CPLCorporal. Base of the NCO ranks, runs a team.
- E-5 SGTNeeds the Basic Leader Course (BLC).
- E-9 CSMSenior NCO of a battalion or larger command.
- RCP 82011: retention control point for SPC and CPL cut from 10 years to 8.
CIB, CMB, CAB: three combat badges, three different jobs
AR 600-8-22 authorizes three combat badges. The CIB is for infantry and Special Forces Soldiers personally present under fire in ground combat. The CMB is the medical equivalent. The CAB covers everyone else who is personally engaged by, or engaging, the enemy in a hostile fire or imminent danger pay area.
The parody:the Combat Kitchen Badge, honoring 92G Culinary Specialists who feed units in the field. Master Combat Badges, a real thing, go to Soldiers holding both a combat badge and an expert badge.
Read the badge explainer- CIBCombat Infantryman Badge. Infantry or Special Forces MOS, brigade-size or smaller unit in active ground combat.
- CMBCombat Medical Badge. Medical personnel under fire while treating Soldiers.
- CABCombat Action Badge. Approved 2 May 2005, open to non-infantry Soldiers.
- MCBMaster Combat Badge. Combat badge plus matching expert badge. Applied for through IPPS-A.
Cutoff scores: the number between you and the next stripe
Enlisted promotion to SGT and SSG is points-based, and each MOS gets a monthly cutoff score. If your points meet or beat your MOS cutoff, you are promotable. If your MOS is overstrength, you can max out your points and still wait.
The parody:an elderly veteran with a cane and a gray beard, thrilled to see "CUTOFF SCORES FY 2039" on the cover of Army Times.
Read the comic- 798Maximum promotion points, per a 2008 DVIDS report.
- 775The SSG cutoff one finance NCO said had not dipped below that in five years.
- 24On the June 2026 HQDA memo: not enough eligible Soldiers.
- HRCPublishes monthly cutoff memos. Check AR 600-8-19 and your promotion work center.
Body armor and the alphabet it comes in
Army torso protection went from the Interceptor Body Armor (IBA) to the Improved Outer Tactical Vest (IOTV) to the lighter Modular Scalable Vest (MSV). Load-carriage kit, from LBV to MOLLE, is where the arguments start. Managed by Program Executive Office (PEO) Soldier.
The parody:wearing a Load Bearing Vest over quick-release armor adds heat and bulk, and can get in the way of the emergency release.
Read the gear guide- IBAInterceptor Body Armor. MOLLE-compatible.
- IOTVImproved Outer Tactical Vest. Fielded from late 2007. Gen II averages about 26 lb.
- MSVModular Scalable Vest. About 25 lb fully configured.
- NCOANCO Academy, home of ALC and SLC. Also, how to hold a coffee mug.
SLIDE 0-2
Figures from the comic file
Built in PowerPoint between 2011 and 2013, the way doctrine intended. Shown whole, uncropped, with the original typos under seal.
Command SPC Major
The imaginary rank above Command Sergeant Major. Sixteen traits, starting with knowing just where to hide.
Cutoff Scores
A veteran with a cane finally makes Staff Sergeant. The Army Times cover reads FY 2039.
NCO Academy
Teaching the best way to hold a cup of coffee for more than 30 years.
Mandatory Classes
Eight hours of slides, reviewed by the one attendee with nothing to lose: the military working dog.
Priorities
An American under fire, a British soldier, and a kettle that has not boiled yet.
Jack of All Trades
A 19K tanker with 12 years in, several deployments and no time on an actual tank.
SLIDE 1-0
Browse by subject
Seven lanes, from rank to bookshelf. Every post has the joke first and the regulation second.
Badges
1-2What the metal on the chest means, and what it takes.
Promotions
1-3Points, cutoffs, and the Army's version of waiting rooms.
Gear
1-4Vests, loads, and the sustained weight of tradition.
Army life
1-5Classes, spouses, tea and the human side of it.
Videos
1-6Parody clips, no slide transitions required.
Books
1-7Fiction from the same desk.
Reference
REFSlang, and the plain-English guides behind the jokes.
SLIDE 2-0
Why the Army runs on PowerPoint
Annual Training Requirements
- Mandatory classes (AR 350-1)
- Delivered by slide
- Attended by hope
- Promotion eligibility (AR 600-8-19)
- See slide 3, then slide 31
- Questions to be held until the end
Recorded: nobody reads the footer either.
Every real Army process arrives as a briefing: ranks, points, gear fielding, training. The slide became the standard unit of explanation, and the unit of suffering.
PPT Ranger started in 2011 as comics about exactly that. The jokes land because the details are true: a Specialist who has seen it all, a cutoff score that never moves, a vest with more letters than a staff section.
So each post here keeps the joke, then does what the briefing never did: says it in one paragraph, with the regulation to check it against.
SLIDE 3-0
Tools, not slides
Practical calculators for when the joke has run out.
AFT24HABC
AFT score calculator
Five events, one score. Points by age and sex column, checked against the 300 and 350 standards.
Military time converter
12-hour, 24-hour and Zulu time, with a full hour-by-hour chart.
Phonetic alphabet translator
Spell any text in Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, and see how each digit is said.
SLIDE 4-0
About & sources
PPT Ranger is satire from inside the culture, aimed at soldiers, veterans and military families. It teases the paperwork and the process, never the people doing the job.
Every explainer links to the primary source it leans on: army.mil, GoArmy, DVIDS, the Code of Federal Regulations. Regulations change, so confirm anything career-affecting with your S1 or promotion work center.
- ARMYarmy.mil ranks and fielding releases
- GOARMYLeadership training (BLC, ALC, SLC)
- DVIDSPromotion point reporting
- CFRCombat badge eligibility text