Waves of the Apocalypse – Character Profile

I’m working on a new novel series, which will consist of a total of six books. I’m on the third draft of Book One. I am a pantser, so I don’t do deep outlines. I’m currently working on three things for the book series (Book Two through Six).

• Basic outline (of the highlights)
• Progressive changes in the zombies (called Shadows) from book to book.
• Basic character mapping for personalities.

The MC has a huge family (multiple kids and a wife). I wanted to share the character profile for Samson, he’s the main character of this specific novel.

SAMSON CRAWFORD — FINAL FOUR-STAR DOSSIER (REALISM-LOCKED)
(All dates and figures align with U.S. promotion statutes, joint-duty requirements, and documented Tier-1 mission tempo.)

CORE FACTS

• Born: 6 Apr 1967
• Age in 2025: 58
• Highest Grade: General (O-10) — Commander, U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), 2019-2022
• Service: 1984 – 2022 (38 yrs)
• Status at Collapse: Three years retired; lives with family in rural Georgia
• Security Clearance: TS/SCI with multiple SAP read-ins

1 | Background & Early Formation

• Legacy household: son of an Army Ranger master-sergeant and an Army nurse.
• Accelerated homeschooling: finished high-school coursework at 14; dual-enrolled and CLEP-tested to a B.S. Physics at 17.
• Youth regimen: weekdays of calculus tutoring, weekends of “field-craft drills” (land-nav, small-arms, edged-weapon kata) on family acreage.
• Nicknamed “the pine-barrens professor” by local media after delivering his college valedictory address.

2 | Education Path

• 1984 (17): B.S. Physics, Univ. Maryland (summa) — Dual-enrollment + CLEP sprint
• 1995 (28): M.S. Engineering, Naval Postgrad School (distance) — Completed while Delta troop leader
• 2007-2010 (40-43): Ph.D. Systems Engineering, NPS (resident) — Thesis on broadband RF jamming versus explosively formed-penetrator (EFP) IEDs
• 2015 (48): Honorary Ph.D. Engineering Physics, Johns Hopkins APL — Award for DARPA quantum-survivability work

3 | Career Timeline & Combat Highlights

• 1984 (17): Commissioned 2LT* (*age-waiver granted by SecDef*), Infantry (3rd Inf Div) via “College-Option” ROTC scholarship — arrives at Fort Stewart already holding a B.S.
• 1985-87: 1/75 Ranger Regt; earns Ranger tab — Completes first combat-coded jump training cycle
• 1991 (24): Desert Storm — platoon leader — 7 confirmed EKIA
• 1992-94 (25-27): Detachment Commander, 5th SFG(A) — finishes Somalia ’93 raid (+18 EKIA) and Kuwait overwatch
• 1994 (27): Passes Delta Force assessment & selection — Tier-1 career begins
• 1994-2004: Delta troop cmdr → squadron XO — ≈120 raids; personal EKIA climbs toward 175
• 2003-06: Sheep-dipped to CIA SAD-Ground Branch — 24 wet-work contracts (contributed to 30–50 high-value eliminations – Specifics classified)
• 2007-10: Ph.D. sabbatical — Only three escort sorties
• 2010-11 (43-44): Deputy J-5 (Strategic Plans), Joint Staff — Meets statutory joint-duty requirement
• 2011-12 (44-45): U.S. Army War College (resident) — attends while on Joint Staff duty
• 2012-13 (45-46): Cmdr, 1st Bn / 75th Rangers (LTC) — nine battalion night assaults; personal EKIA tally stabilises around 175
• 2013 (46): ★ Brigadier General — JSOC Director of Ops — Oversees ~120 raids per year
• 2015 (48): Major General — CG 75th Rangers & SOJTF-Iraq — Directs Mosul-prep strikes
• 2016-17 (49-50): Deputy Commander, NATO Special Operations HQ (Brussels) — Purple-time tour prior to 4th star
• 2018 (51): Lieutenant General — CG JSOC — Raid tempo ~250/yr; cumulative enemy EKIA under command passes 6 000
• 2019 (52): General (4-star) — Commander, USSOCOM — Smooth Senate confirmation (bipartisan praise)
• Authority note: As USSOCOM commander, he operated under Title 10 (military) and Title 50 (intelligence) authorities, with Presidential “findings” that enabled cross-agency lethal action. Operated across multiple theaters
• Aug 2022 (55): Manila hostage rescue; acute PTSD flare → voluntary retirement — Hands SOCOM colors to successor
• 2022-25: Civilian hiatus — Consults local sheriff’s office; maintains CQB/PT regimen
• Note: Throughout his military career, Samson incrementally constructed a fortified bunker on his family’s Liberty County land, beginning in the late 1980s during leave periods between deployments. Leveraging his engineering expertise and income from Army service and later CIA contracts, he oversaw design and construction, hiring trusted local contractors to continue work remotely while he was on duty. By retirement in 2022, the bunker was a robust, self-sustaining refuge, tailored to protect his family in any crisis.

4 | Combat Statistics

• Personal confirmed kills: ≈ 175 personal confirmed; official DA 268-1 cites 128 (all pre-brigadier; CIA wet-work and black-ops tallies undisclosed)
• Tier-1 raids physically on target: ~97
• CIA wet-work contracts executed: 24
• High-level compartmentalized black-ops strikes: 50

Enemy EKIA under his command: 6,000+ enemy EKIA under command (2011–2018), from JSOC raids, coalition airstrikes, and air-ground packages under Title 10/50 authorities. Figure includes estimated totals from after-action reports; Samson’s personal kills (~128) are separate.

As I mentioned, I do basic outlines sometimes, but nothing deep, and nothing set in stone. However, I do try to flesh out certain characters quite deeply. Currently working on the third draft. I plan to publish this specific novel well before finishing books 2-6, but I want to ensure it’s as close to perfect as I can get it, because I need to make sure historical lines up with everything I’m going to do in the next 5 books.