Normandy Squad
From FABT
- "You are more than a squad. More than just a team I happen to command. We're a family. And having a bond like that in combat? I honestly hope you don't think our success is measured purely on our unique skill sets."
- — Marcus to his squad, II: Prophecy.
The Normandy Squad, military designation Joint Counter-Reaper Task Force - SSV Normandy, known during the Collector campaign as the Suicide Squad and historically as the First Normandy Squad and Old Normandy Squad, was a multi-species improvized and unofficial unit formed by Marcus L. Shepard during the Eden Prime War. Famously known for being composed of members of many species, the squad had grown in size since its initial formation, going from six members to well over twelve by the Collector campaign. By the Reaper War, while no longer in its prime, the squad was bigger than ever, filled with many members of numerous skill sets, from well-trained military soldiers to former civilian specialists. The team splintered after the Reaper War but continued to "exist" regardless, only reforming to join the DDF during the Dominion Civil War, where it was effectively wiped out. A spiritual successor to the squad, known as the New Normandy Squad, was formed twelve years later by Thane'Shepard as part of Operation: Andromeda Descent.
The Normandy Squad went through five "generations", with these generations being characterized by shifts in the squad's purpose and directive, as well as its members. The first generation was founded during the Eden Prime War, and consisted of the original six members, who were tasked with taking down Saren Arterius. The second generation began after Shepard's resurrection at the height of the Collector campaign, with the purpose of taking down the Collector threat. The third began during the Reaper War, and was tasked as an official special operations task force of the United Galactic Confederacy with spearheading the fight against the Reapers. The fourth generation was characterized by the squad's splintering after the Reaper War, and isn't really considered a generation as such, with the squad's purpose to aid the Galactic Dominion. The fifth and final generation was largely centered around those who would go on to form the New Normandy Squad, and was formed by Shepard during the Dominion Civil War.