ArmA 2: Meet the USMC Fire Team (Part 3)

Summing up the situation at hand:

• The insurgents at Kamenyy are 3-4 men strong and they have one DShK. This heavy machine gun packs a lot of punch for both its ground and anti-aircraft role.
• Under my command, a USMC fire team.
  
• Our mission: neutralize the defenders at Kamenyy

In the map below (make sure to click it for a better view), the courses of action (CoAs) I came up with.

• (Arrow labelled 1 in the map) This is a "Hey diddle diddle, straight up the middle" type of frontal assault. I tried it a couple of times and all I achieved is getting my Marines chopped to pieces by the DShK. My attempts to move the AR into a position from which he could suppress the enemy position always ended in him being spotted and killed. Without the fire support of the AR, moving down with the AAR and R as a sort of assault buddy-pair was impossible.

• (Arrow labelled 2 in the map) The insurgent enemy position has an inviting dead space provided by the high ground on its south flank. I managed to get my fire team as close as tens of meters of the enemy position by using this covered and concealed approach. But I lacked the commanding skills to surprise the enemy: every time they spotted us, the situation degenerated into a chaos fueled by minimal ranges of fire, the insurgents' unintended tactical savvy of not staying put when their position is under fire and that damned DShK which can shoot through flesh, sheds and un-clever plans.

The two plans above were conceptually flawed. Although my fire team has the guns and the guts, four men fire teams rarely can provide themselves with enough security and support for an assault. That's why fire teams are not really intended for independent assault. The real Marines know well about the fire team shortcomings and they sometimes cannibalize some fire teams to provide extra guns to another. There are even advocates for six-men fire teams within the Corps.

• (Arrow labelled 3 in the map) Put some distance from the enemy position and attack by fire. No frills, no thrills, just get the enemy position out. Please check below for more details about how it worked out.
  

I pulled back my fire team and moved NW, hidden from the enemy by a steep hill that crests at a dirt road. Then we pivoted NE and stopped just short of the hill's crest.

The uphill battle is actually on the other side of the hill, Marines! Click the image for an expanded view.

I ordered the fire team to hit the dirt, hold fire and wait behind me. I crawled forward to get a visual on the enemy position.

Not getting noticed. The enemy position is behind those bushes. Image is clickeable.

There is something funny in ArmA 2: even when your physical eyes cannot see something up front, your virtual eyes can. It is slightly disturbing to hear your virtual character say "Enemy man at Kamenny" when actually you cannot see it in the monitor with your own eyes. I like to call these spottings "faith-based" (thou who believe without seeing ...) but I'm not complaining about them because they are loaded straight into your fire team's list of targets. Which is great given what I discussed in a previous entry: your responsibility as a fire team leader is to control the fires of your team. The Marines deem fire control drill to such importance that they gave it its own tongue-twister: ADDRAC.

1. Alert, prepares the crew to receive and execute a fire mission
2. Direction, when it is not obvious
   
3. Description, what is the target
4. Range in meters
5. Assignement, who fires what onto which target
6. Control, when to start firing
   

Besides not being in the receiving end of a real DShK, we virtual Marines have an advantage over the real life Marines: most of the ADDRACing is done automatically by the computer. Of the list above, only 1, 2 (to a certain extent), 5 and 6 need real input from us. Once your virtual character declares a target, all the info about it is automatically available to the other fire team members. "Faith-based" spotting turned out to be a blessing.

Back to the battlefield, I was prone in the crest of the hill with all the targets spotted. I was really thrilled that the enemy was not aware of my presence. Putting some distance between the enemy and us appeared to be paying off. I alerted my fire team on the other side of the hill ("all, danger"), gave them a direction ("all, look in that direction") and ordered them to hold fire so they wouldn't give away our position. I ordered the fire team to crawl forward ("all, stay low") and assigned each fire team member with a target. The AR and the AAR were assigned the DShK (just to make sure) and the R got one insurgent. When the fire team came back to me with their "target acquired" messages, I felt a mixture of joy (for the fire team working as a well oiled machine) and fearful anticipation (what would happen if our volley fails? It was good to be far from the enemy, but we were still in the open!)

Got ADDRAC? Image is clickeable

I then gave the "open fire" order to the fire team. A USMC fire team worth of hot lead headed down the hill. Unscatched by the first few rounds, the DShK turned towards us sputtering some rounds which fell short of our position. I could see the SAW rounds peltering around the DShK until destiny catched up with the soul manning it. The enemy heavy machine was gone and finally I could breathe with ease. The insurgents around the DShK tried to move away, but were cut down by our fire. One of them took refuge behind a metal shed and never came out of it. I'd bet he was shot-through by the SAW.

Being a FTL doesn't mean you can't have fun. Do some shooting! Image is clickeable

Fireteam rush down the hill. Mission accomplished.

It all happened in a matter of seconds and in certain ways felt like sucker-punching. Who said wars were supposed to be fair, anyway?

Cheers,

UPDATE: I left one image out in the original post. Added now.
UPDATE 2: I miss-named an arrow. Corrected now. Thanks Greg!

ArmA 2: Meet the USMC fire team (Part 2)

Before taking out the insurgents in Kamenyy, what I needed first was a crash course on the organization and employment of the USMC fire team.

I consulted mainly two sources: (i) Dslyecxi's Tactics, Techniques and Procedures Guide for ArmA 2, and (ii) FMFM 6-5, Marine Rifle Squad, the doctrinal publication available elsewhere in the web.

• Mission of the USMC Rifle Squad:

The mission of the Marine Rifle Squad is to locate, close with, and destroy the enemy by fire and maneuver, or to repel the enemy's assault by fire and close combat.

Note those are the missions of the squad, not the fire team. The mission of the fire team is to execute the squad leader's orders, which are issued with the squad's tactical mission in mind. Nonetheless, note the words "close with" and "fire and maneuver" in the quote above. Eventually, are we supposed to move out from the security of cover until we see the "white of the eyes" of the enemy? Euphemisms apart, this scares the hell out of me.

The USMC fire team is composed of the following personnel.



Fire Team Leader (FTL)

-Executes the orders imparted by the squad leader

-Positions himself where he can control the fire team

-Controls the fire discipline of the fire team

-Exercises fire control over the fire team

-Positions himself near the automatic rifleman so he can effectively control his fire

-He is also the fire team grenadier, using the M203 grenade launcher to cover the dead space/s in the principal direction of fire (PDF)












Automatic Rifleman (AR)

-Under the direct control of the fire team leader (FTL)

-Responsible for the squad automatic weapon (SAW)

-The automatic rifleman carries the weapon with the highest firepower and rate of fire in the fire team

-The foundation and bedrock of the ability that the fire team has to destroy the enemy. Ignore this guy at your own cost and peril.

-Assumes the role of fire team leader if the later becomes a casualty



















Assistant Automatic Rifleman (AAR)

-Primarily a rifleman, he also carries extra barrels and ammunition for the SAW

-Trained to assume the role of automatic rifleman









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.
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Rifleman (R)

-The rifleman is usually trained in the point man and scout roles



















To be continued ...

Cheers,

ArmA 2: Meet the USMC Fire Team (Part 1)

(I apologize for the lack of entires since Wednesday ... my work days have been intense this week. Thanks for following this blog anyway!)

It's time for ArmA 2!

As I said before, one of the things I really appreciate from simulations with editors as good as the one in ArmA 2 is that they make it possible to throw in some units and start to play around in a jiffy. In this case I edited a fictional situation where I command a USMC fire team approaching a small town defended by a small team of insurgents.

The town of Kamenyy. Image is clickeable.

Insurgents defending Kamenyy. Image is clickeable.

Another view of the same insurgents defending Kamenyy. This DShK absolutely rules the road, but the high terrain in its left flank masks most of its field of fire. Image is clickeable.

At the other end of the road, the USMC fire team I'm commanding. Image is clickeable.

The purpose of this micro-scenario is to get used to command a USMC fire team and to learn how to use it in the "Marines way".

Moving towards Kamenyy.

I know this have been mentioned to death, but I just couldn't resist posting it. Is that GW Bush? :) Image is clickeable.

To be continued.

Cheers,

Combat Mission Shock Force: British Module Near Completion?

At least it looks like.

We have seen a variety of sources showcasing their previews of the upcoming module. Screenshot features are coming out more often.

And then, in the official forums, Moon says:

Yes, we're going to release the manual just ahead of the module. I've just about wrapped it up today actually and it goes into final proofreading now. There will be no pre-orders for the BF module, it's going to be a straight release.

Looks like almost everything is ready.

Cheers,

DCS Black Shark: My Lame Attempt to Toss Bomb

In a previous blog entry, I compiled some information about different weapons-delivery methods of attack helicopters. One of the methods that struck me was the so-called "attack from the climb", AKA "toss bombing".

Here is a graphic showing this attack method:


I've done some toss bombing in Falcon 4 Allied Force but the weapons delivery computer of the F-16 does all the work for you. I remember doing some toss bombing with WWII-era airplanes (IL-2 series) and I only recall hitting a target once.

My question for this entry is: how does toss bombing feels like using an attack helicopter?

Using DCS Black Shark's mission editor, I armed my helicopter with 2xFAB500 (free-fall bombs) and placed a group of fuel tracks as targets.

Huge bombs, tiny wings. Click the image for an expanded view.

After some troubles with finding/locking the targets and aligning my flight path with the targets, I went down to 120+ meters of altitude and pushed the cyclic forward until my speed was ~220 km/h.

The "easy" part the attack run. Note my poor piloting skills as judged by the convoluted flight path in the ABRIS (black lines in the map). Click on the image, otherwise you won't see anything.

At ~2.4 km from the objective, I start a 20 degrees climb and the first thing I notice is that my speed drops dramatically (note to self: this is no airplane, dude). Occupied with watching my airspeed and other parameters, I find myself too close to the targets.

Climbing and too close to the enemy. Click on the image for an expanded view.

I drop the two bombs and to my dismay they just fall down like heavy rocks. I was expecting to see the bombs to continue in an arc, but alas they just went down, with some forward inertia the flight path of the helicopter gave them.

Bloody Fugasnaya Aviatsionnaya Bomba! Click on the image for an expanded view.

I couldn't hit @#$#$ with my bombs, but sure they look pretty when they go off. Click on the image for an expanded view.

Precision bombing is just not my thing. Click on the image for an expanded view.

In closing, I think that these bombs are too heavy for toss-bombing from an attack helicopter. If this attack method is possible at all, I should try to increase my forward speed before the climb.

Cheers,

DCS Black Shark 1.0.1 Patch Includes New Skins

Chizh, an Eagle Dynamics team member, has announced here that the 1.0.1 patch will include 29 new fictional skins for the Black Shark attack helicopter. The new paint schemes are from Russia, Canada, Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Belgium, Denmark, Georgia, United Kingdom, USA, France, Ukraine and Israel.


Very nice ... but where's the patch? Just kidding, patch is still scheduled for August.

Cheers,

ArmA 2: First Impressions

After struggling for two days to get my ArmA 2 DVD to work, I finally could get some time to play.

Having neither enough patience nor time to play, I dived straight into the editor and scrambled a little something to both get my bearings and see what's new in ArmA 2.

Some assorted impressions follow.

• The editor continues to be one of the best out there. Easy to use, incredibly flexible and powerful. I found at least one exciting new addition to the editor: linked waypoints (you can make one unit at a waypoint to wait until other arrives to a linked waypoint). This will make editing coordinated computer-controlled units a piece of cake.

• In my aging computer (far from a gamer's rig), ArmA 2 runs better than ArmA. As noted elsewhere, ArmA 2 is using my two processor cores. Off course I had to make compromises like disabling post-process effects, putting everything to "normal" settings and lowering the resolution down to a 1024x768 pixels resolution. The majority of graphics-related options can be changed on the fly while playing a mission, which made finding my sweet spot relatively easy. Keep in mind, though, that graphics options are very scalable and tweaking settings to a comfortable level may take some time.
  

• Visually, ArmA 2 is stunning. I'm not a graphics kind of guy but I have to confess I was floored. I really liked how my virtual Marine's vision blurred a bit while sprinting or while being suppressed by enemy fire. As noted by a fellow gamer who commented in my previous blog entry, some visual effects look more like the computer monitor is showing the virtual battlefield as seen through a camcorder rather than from human eyes.

• OPFOR AI appears to be better than before. I edited a few small missions featuring a squad of insurgents against a fire team of Marines. The insurgents always tried to flank my Marines, this time apparently with wider maneuvers than the ones seen in ArmA 1. I still have to patch my game to version 1.02, which allegedly brings some changes into the computer controlled attack routines. I liked how the surviving OPFORs pull back when almost all their teammates have been neutralized. At least in my hastily-edited scenarios, the OPFOR refuses to take full-advantage of the cover offered by buildings in built-up areas. But compared to ArmA, at least they don't stand in the middle of the street. Don't take this as set in stone, as I have to explore more the options for waypoints available in the scenario editor.

• As for the friendly AI, I was able to command my Marines fire team quite nicely. I've seen a lot complaining back in the ArmA days about the friendly AI being rather useless and eager to get killed. IMHO, the two most important things you have to recognize in commanding computer-controlled soldiers in ArmA/2 are: (1) computer controlled soldiers are not able to read neither your mind nor the OPORD and (2) tactically speaking, you are in charge (i.e. don't expect your computer-controlled subordinates to solve YOUR tactical problems). So, keep yourself busy with those command keystrokes and tell your subordinates what's going on ("All, danger"), what position relative to you to occupy ("Formation, column"), and where to look at ("All, watch at 2 o'clock"). And speaking of the "watch at" command, in ArmA I remember pointing with my mouse for the direction to watch at. Is that possible in ArmA 2? I liked the convenience of pointing with my mouse better than using cardinal points (my spatial orientation is less tha stelar).
  

• Saving Marine #4: half-way cleaning up a town with my Marine fire team and, still not very handy with the command controls, I order Marine #4 to "Close doors at that house" some 30 meters in front of us. I was trying hard to find the damn keystrokes to stop the poor fellow going right into an enemy-held block when he comes back to me with "Men, dangerously close, front!". I pull out the virtual map and I could see how close he was to the danger with only a few meters plus a wooden fence between him and the certainty of being shot. I found the key commands to order him to hide and he went inside a house (closing the door behind him I would guess?). I then order Marines #2 and #3 to come through the flank of the enemies while I shot that fence with almost all the ammo I had on me. The flanking maneuver payed off handsomely, Marine #2 (machinegunner) mowed down the enemies with a thick curtain of fire. Marine #4 was saved. What's a "close doors" command useful for anyway?

Cheers,

ArmA 2 DVD Problems

Oh man, my DVD drive doesn't recognize my ArmA 2 DVD.

Funny thing, my wife's ancient laptop (4 years older than mine) can read the DVD perfectly. So, using my wife's laptop I transferred everything from the DVD into a portable hard drive and installed ArmA 2 into my computer from there. But then of course ArmA 2 doesn't start because the executable looks in vain for the DVD which is not recognized by my computer.

I have three options

1. Forget about the DVD and get ArmA 2 from Steam
2. Get a new DVD drive or computer
3. Wait until the issue is solved, patched or whatever. After 1 patch I remember ArmA not needing the CD in the drive. I doubt this is going to be the case here.
   

Ah, the joys of DRM!


UPDATE: I got my DVD drive to recognize/read the damn DVD. I had to update the drive's firmware.

Cheers,

DCS Black Shark Printed Manual

A study flight simulator without a printed manual is almost like a party without alcoholic beverages. Either if you want to quickly browse some important data during your virtual flight or if you are trying to extend your enjoyment while away from the computer, printed manuals have always been one of those objects flight simulator enthusiasts consider as important as a good HOTAS.

A printed version of the manual for DCS Black Shark was supposed to be widely available for some time. Amazon is listing it as "out of print", so here is a link for the manual at GoGamer.com if you are interested in purchasing it from the US.

• DCS Black Shark Printed Manual from GoGamer.com

Given the complexity of this simulation, my first reaction to the availability of a printed manual was to run and get it. But on second thought, I find DCS Black Shark's manual a bit difficult to follow and I may pass on this offer. Information in the manual is often dispersed and organized in a strange way.

Do you remember the printed manual of Falcon 4? It had the technical info at the beginning of the section and then a hands-on, switch to switch description of what you had to do to get the bombs and missiles on target. I'm not saying that DCS Black Shark's manual is bad. I'm just saying is a bit strange.

Cheers,

ArmA 2 Review at Out of Eight!

James Allen has an ArmA 2 review at his "Out of Eight PC Game Reviews" blog.

ArmA II is better off when released than ArmA I was, so the large contingent of gamers looking for a realistic military simulation should not be disappointed.

Great review. Thanks, James!

Cheers,