Will I be ordered to go active if I don't ship to basic?

*dont

NO......Your NOT in a DEP program. You really need to research what the difference is between the National Guard RSP and the Army DEP program. Here is a link for you to do what you should have done before signing a Enlistment Contract. Your a full time member of the National Guard now, you have a military obligation there is no DEP for the National Guard.......

https://www.army.mil/aps/08/information_papers/sustain/ARNG_Recruit_Sustainment_Program.html

Note this sentence in particular: "ARNG Soldiers are accessed during the initial MEPS processing and are on active, paid drilling status while awaiting their IET ship date. They drill with their state’s RSP until they depart for basic combat training (BCT), and then join their actual unit of assignment when they are qualified for their military occupational specialty (MOS)." Accessed means your a National Guardsman for your state right now. I used to work for HQ USAREC (Army Recruiting Command) as a contractor a while back. The Recruiting process has changed since then.......the Accessions process has not. Your first contract is with the National Guard, your second contract is with the Regular Army for training in your MOS. For an Active Duty bound Future Soldier the First Contract is for the DEP, the second contract is for Active Duty. See the difference now? You miss SHIP DATE and it is up to the Recruiting Command in conjunction with your state NG command what to do with you. Nobody can predict what will happen there. Typically with a Regular Army DEP LOSS (person who misses ship date) they write the person off and ban them from ever enlisting again. National Guard is different as it is via both the state and Regular Army both. Someone has to pay for the training slot you burned if they do not fill it.

It is different now. New NG Recruits go into the NG RSP which is a special unit where they are really not assigned to a NG unit and where they drill with other new recruits until after they return from Basic Training. After Basic Training they are sent to a real NG unit. Reason for this change was the NG Soldiers were sometimes scaring off new recruits with their "war" stories (not always related to war) and recruiting losses were high for the NG. Other major reason why is some NG units did not prepare or lead their new recruits properly prior to shipping to basic training. So this was an attempt to reduce recruiting losses and training losses by keeping the new soldiers out of the units until they were trained in their MOS.

Here is how it works for ARNG:
https://www.army.mil/aps/08/information_papers/sustain/ARNG_Recruit_Sustainment_Program.html

I don't want them to say yes just to scare me into staying

Other option take a copy of your contract to a lawyer.

PVT (Join to see) - Do you really think the National Guard wants you if you don't want to be there? If they do it is a pretty messed up NG. You should tell your Recruiter that your no longer interested before you burn a training slot..........which tends to pizz people off.

I'm in a similar boat, haven't left for basic but want to cancel my contract to go active duty and am being threatened with arrest.