Tactics Primer

Your "Raiders 2020" Tactics Primer - Your METT-T Analysis.

Team Leaders in Raiders 2020 must guide their men through combat conditions which are more realistic than any computer game to date. Real combat tactics are derived from five basic factors, referred to as METT-T: Mission, Enemy, Terrain and Weather, Troops Available, and Time. In order for realistic combat resolution within the framework of a computer game all of these factors must be addressed.

Mission. There are missions in Raiders 2020 aside from the driving requirement to raid a triton site by getting there “firstest with the mostest.” Where that is impossible, or imprudent, the mission may change to pursuit or search and destroy. Raider teams also conduct raids that are even more covert than “snowball retrieval” missions into another country. Raids can be conducted against another Raider team compound to try to intercept triton shipments before they are sent off to the corporate labs (triton’s price, per pound delivered, increases with the size of the delivery, because processing a large batch is more efficient than processing a series of small ones). Similarly, a raid my be conducted against another player who is holding one of your soldiers (who refuses to join someone else’s team) for ransom, or simply to augment your military supplies at his expense.

Enemy. The “seven P’s of military operations” (Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance) demand that you know your enemy. Of what caliber are his troops in experience, skill levels, natural abilities? How many does he have? Are most of them with him in the field, or are many of them left behind guarding his compound? What weapons does he have available? How does he prefer to operate? How far can you trust him in a battlefield alliance? You pay the corporate intel guys to gather this info. When they can get it, you need to use it!

Terrain and Weather. A combat system is only as good as its ability to handle terrain, which is arguably the most important aspect of tactical decision making once the battle is joined. Raiders 2020 uses fractally generated 3d terrain and a realistic line-of-sight engine to accurately reproduce an environment where soldiers can take advantage of terrain for cover, concealment, fire and maneuver. Every object in the environment possesses properties which have tactical impact: height, width, and two key tactical references. The first is cover, which is a measure of how much protection that object provides from direct fire of various calibers. The second is concealment, which is a measure of how well that object a) hides something that is behind it, and b) allows (or disallows) somebody next to it to see through it. An example to illustrate this would be a stand of palm fronds behind which a soldier is hiding. The stand provides almost no cover—just about any projectile will penetrate with enough force to wound or kill the person behind it. Conversely, it offers excellent concealment—someone hiding behind the barrier is sheltered from view from any distance downrange, yet if he’s right up against the barrier, he can see through it, perhaps to conduct an ambush.

Other tactical considerations of terrain which are used to provide a realistic environment are its trafficability with respect to the different needs of men and vehicles, and obstacles (natural and man made). From these characteristics come avenues of approach (used for troop movement and reacting to, or planning, fields of fire), and identification of key terrain and decisive terrain.

Weather is of tactical importance in the game because it affects visibility, and troop morale. Weather also affects how quietly troops can move (is the ground soft, wet and quiet, or do dry leaves crackle with every step?). Naturally, the flammability of foliage is significantly affected!

Troops Available. Tactical considerations related to manpower for mission execution in Raiders will never be routine! No two missions will ever be the same because you will always have to account for the human element—your opponents on the battle field. Your troop deployment will be based on both “front end” and “back end” considerations.

On the “front end,” are the factors relating to your offensive effort—who else might you run into out there, how many teams could be sent in to snatch the same triton you are after, who do you have who is combat worthy and a myriad number of other variables that might affect which course of action you select for your attack.

“Back end” considerations are the factors relating to defense. How much triton do you have stored in your home compound and who can you afford to guard it? Who knows where your compound is, or who might have found your compound without your knowing? What are the chances that another player will choose to attack your compound rather than send their raider team after the triton? How well-trained and well-armed are the troops you need to leave behind? Will they be able to react effectively in your absence? How secure is your compound, and what automated defenses have you been able to install? How far away is the triton site you are raiding; will your extraction vehicle be able to snatch you back home rapidly if things at home began going badly, or are your stay-behinds on their own?

Time. Often the most precious and most demanding resource of all in tactical planning. Are you even ready to take your troops on a triton raid, where the delay of a couple minutes might be the difference between getting to the triton site, extracting it, and getting away, with getting to the site only to get caught in a deadly crossfire. Five minutes can make the difference between being an ambusher and being an ambushee. Will you use precious minutes to reorganize or re-equip your troops if the “snowball down” alarm rings and it turns out to be in an environment different from the one you prepared for, or will you send them as is and hope for the best? Will you take time to establish different rules of engagement using lessons learned from the last mission or try to change them on the fly when you get on the ground and hope no one stumbles into your perimeter before you can sort your SOPs out?