Doctor Microwave
Member
This is a more radical suggestion towards the orientation of already established training, so take it as you will. It is just something that has been experimented with in my battalion and I thought would be a boon to the community, as friendly fire and other, more ludicrous incidents occasionally occur during events and/or sims.
On Spacing and Communications:
I believe that a lot of incidents that occur could be remedied with constant but basic communication amongst units while in combat.
One basic example is when a trooper is moving in front of another trooper engaging the enemy.
If there is no room to move behind the trooper, then common sense would dictate that you inform your comrade that someone is going to be moving in front of them and that, if they do not wish to be responsible for grievously injuring a fellow Clone they should immediately hold fire until the trooper(s) are on the other side of him.
This can be easily communicated by saying "<name>, crossing! Hold fire!".
If there are multiple troopers having to cross, you could say "<name>, <number of troopers> crossing!"
As well, on the note of spacing, while firing lines are essential for initial contact, it generally becomes chaotic once the force has to advance, thus both communication and spacing become key.
In a large, open environment, troopers should stick to their squads and/or battalions while maintaining space in between each trooper so that, if the need to engage arises, they are at less of a risk of friendly fire.
In an enclosed, compact environment, troopers should be sent out in designated groups (either formal battalions/fireteams or impromptu forces). For example, when proceeding inside a ship/base corridor, a smaller advance unit should be sent down ahead of the rest of the force. If encountering enemy forces, a designated unit should reinforce the advance unit and assist in engaging them. This ensures that there isn't a huge wave of troopers flooding an extremely cramped space.
It becomes extremely crucial when explosives or enemy vehicles are involved. Often troops are still bunched up even when an enemy tank is firing its cannon, artillery is hitting their position or someone threw a grenade near them. While someone is going to get hurt, it's more logical to minimize the potential damage, thus troops should stay on the move and be as spread out as possible if they are at risk of getting hit by ordinance.
A big factor in this would be when a medic is healing someone. This should take place behind and away from the main force, and medics should only actively seek wounded themselves when the force is on the move (on another note, I believe that medics should only be sought when the injured person is considerably injured, like at 50% health). This would ensure that the wounded are safe from the firefight and that treatment can be administered without being much of a hindrance on the entire force (because nobody enjoys shooting droids only to be blinded by a bacta grenade).
Another concept that should be implemented on a wide-scale would be the use of "runners". As we do not have a radio script, there needs to be a method for different elements to communicate with one another. The basic concept of "runner" is a member of an element chosen to, in the middle of the battlefield, go to the position of another element or supporting force and communicate with them directly on the situation of their unit.
This allows unit commanders to coordinate with each other effectively and allows for units to support one another. A good example of this would be a scouting/advance unit running into sizable contact. The unit commander can send a runner to a specific unit to inform them of the situation, based on their specific needs (i.e. if the commander needs artillery or armored support, they can send a runner to a specific friendly unit and inform them of the situation).
While we have comms, they are mainly just general messages and are extremely easy to ignore or miss in in-game chat.
On Small Unit Tactics:
While GAR forces often function as large, massive armies, units should also know how to function in situations where they will not be in a massive formation or have to separate from a large group.
A smaller unit, while having much less firepower, is also much more maneuverable and can react more effectively to contact.
The unit commander should, in the event of contact, react by having their troops get to cover immediately. Afterwards, the unit may properly asses the situation and the commander may order them appropriately to capitalize on any potential advantages.
When moving from cover to cover, one element should engage the enemy while the rest of the unit moves to the next set of cover. Once they are in cover, the moving element becomes the covering element, so as to allow the troopers covering them previously to move on their position to relative safety (this is generally known as 'bounding overwatch' or 'leapfrogging').
If moving within a structure or an environment surrounded by structures (i.e. city street, wilderness path), the unit must maintain full awareness and consider all potential angles of attack. Is there a structure allowing the enemy height advantage? Can the enemy easily appear and surround you? Each trooper should be covering a specific sector as they move. It is also advisable to stick to any available cover not susceptible to ambush and move along it, such as a wall.
If moving in an open area, while not in contact the unit should stay spread out and in a column formation, in the case of minefields. Any potential cover should be taken into consideration. If the unit suddenly comes under attack or if the unit is alerted to enemy presence, they should begin to move from cover to cover, avoiding staying out in the open.
This is essentially the base of what I wanted to discuss. Despite the wording, all of this is just a suggestion and take it for what it is. I don't mind if its rejected (typing this past midnight), just a suggestion I would like to make. I apologize if this post is too long.
On Spacing and Communications:
I believe that a lot of incidents that occur could be remedied with constant but basic communication amongst units while in combat.
One basic example is when a trooper is moving in front of another trooper engaging the enemy.
If there is no room to move behind the trooper, then common sense would dictate that you inform your comrade that someone is going to be moving in front of them and that, if they do not wish to be responsible for grievously injuring a fellow Clone they should immediately hold fire until the trooper(s) are on the other side of him.
This can be easily communicated by saying "<name>, crossing! Hold fire!".
If there are multiple troopers having to cross, you could say "<name>, <number of troopers> crossing!"
As well, on the note of spacing, while firing lines are essential for initial contact, it generally becomes chaotic once the force has to advance, thus both communication and spacing become key.
In a large, open environment, troopers should stick to their squads and/or battalions while maintaining space in between each trooper so that, if the need to engage arises, they are at less of a risk of friendly fire.
In an enclosed, compact environment, troopers should be sent out in designated groups (either formal battalions/fireteams or impromptu forces). For example, when proceeding inside a ship/base corridor, a smaller advance unit should be sent down ahead of the rest of the force. If encountering enemy forces, a designated unit should reinforce the advance unit and assist in engaging them. This ensures that there isn't a huge wave of troopers flooding an extremely cramped space.
It becomes extremely crucial when explosives or enemy vehicles are involved. Often troops are still bunched up even when an enemy tank is firing its cannon, artillery is hitting their position or someone threw a grenade near them. While someone is going to get hurt, it's more logical to minimize the potential damage, thus troops should stay on the move and be as spread out as possible if they are at risk of getting hit by ordinance.
A big factor in this would be when a medic is healing someone. This should take place behind and away from the main force, and medics should only actively seek wounded themselves when the force is on the move (on another note, I believe that medics should only be sought when the injured person is considerably injured, like at 50% health). This would ensure that the wounded are safe from the firefight and that treatment can be administered without being much of a hindrance on the entire force (because nobody enjoys shooting droids only to be blinded by a bacta grenade).
Another concept that should be implemented on a wide-scale would be the use of "runners". As we do not have a radio script, there needs to be a method for different elements to communicate with one another. The basic concept of "runner" is a member of an element chosen to, in the middle of the battlefield, go to the position of another element or supporting force and communicate with them directly on the situation of their unit.
This allows unit commanders to coordinate with each other effectively and allows for units to support one another. A good example of this would be a scouting/advance unit running into sizable contact. The unit commander can send a runner to a specific unit to inform them of the situation, based on their specific needs (i.e. if the commander needs artillery or armored support, they can send a runner to a specific friendly unit and inform them of the situation).
While we have comms, they are mainly just general messages and are extremely easy to ignore or miss in in-game chat.
On Small Unit Tactics:
While GAR forces often function as large, massive armies, units should also know how to function in situations where they will not be in a massive formation or have to separate from a large group.
A smaller unit, while having much less firepower, is also much more maneuverable and can react more effectively to contact.
The unit commander should, in the event of contact, react by having their troops get to cover immediately. Afterwards, the unit may properly asses the situation and the commander may order them appropriately to capitalize on any potential advantages.
When moving from cover to cover, one element should engage the enemy while the rest of the unit moves to the next set of cover. Once they are in cover, the moving element becomes the covering element, so as to allow the troopers covering them previously to move on their position to relative safety (this is generally known as 'bounding overwatch' or 'leapfrogging').
If moving within a structure or an environment surrounded by structures (i.e. city street, wilderness path), the unit must maintain full awareness and consider all potential angles of attack. Is there a structure allowing the enemy height advantage? Can the enemy easily appear and surround you? Each trooper should be covering a specific sector as they move. It is also advisable to stick to any available cover not susceptible to ambush and move along it, such as a wall.
If moving in an open area, while not in contact the unit should stay spread out and in a column formation, in the case of minefields. Any potential cover should be taken into consideration. If the unit suddenly comes under attack or if the unit is alerted to enemy presence, they should begin to move from cover to cover, avoiding staying out in the open.
This is essentially the base of what I wanted to discuss. Despite the wording, all of this is just a suggestion and take it for what it is. I don't mind if its rejected (typing this past midnight), just a suggestion I would like to make. I apologize if this post is too long.
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