The troops, members of the 218th Infantry Brigade, which includes the 178th Engineer Battalion of Rock Hill, spent the day at McCrady National Guard Training Center near Eastover.

They went from station to station, stopping for shots, dental exams, legal advice and even some counseling from chaplains.

"It helps you get your paperwork in order," said Lt. Andrew Lewis. "You don't want to wait until the last minute."

Not waiting until the last minute is the aim of the process called the Soldier Readiness Program.

Guard members will go through a similar process when they reach Camp Shelby, Miss., early next year. They'll train there for about two months before deploying in April for Afghanistan.

The advantage of running the troops program now is that it will make the process at Shelby smoother and curb the number of Guard members who might not be found fit enough to deploy and sent home, said Lt. Col. Scott Hogan, the Guard's mobilization readiness officer.

"Our return rate is less than 1 percent," Hogan said. "The national average is 8 to 10 percent."

While every soldier goes through medical exams and has his papers checked annually, Hogan said occasionally something pops up during the screening.

For example, he said a soldier might develop diabetes between his last exam and the screening process. While diabetes won't necessarily prohibit a soldier from deploying, the screening gives doctors a chance to prescribe medication to control the disease.

To ensure all slots will be filled for the mission, commanders tack on another 10 percent to the number of soldiers called for in the Pentagon's orders, said Col. Greg Batts, brigade deputy commander.

Commanders also need to figure that at the last minute some soldiers may not be able to go because of family emergencies, illnesses or injuries suffered in training, Batts said.

About 1,620 soldiers will go through the process at McCrady, Hogan said. The program is designed to handle 150 to 170 soldiers a day.

At that rate, it will take 13 days to process all the 218th's troops, Hogan said. Tuesday was the first day.

The troops eventually will join another 200 members of the brigade, who are undergoing training at Camp Shelby and headed to Afghanistan. Those soldiers, members of the 1st Battalion, 263rd Armor, left South Carolina in mid-October.