Advanced Infantry Tactics.

[Captain_Wolf]

This thread is intended to teach new tactics and ideas to serious PR players only. If you haven't mastered the basics or don't work in a team with lots of communication stop reading now.

After the original idea of an advanced infantry tactics guide back in March 2007. This idea has been further developed into the Wolf Company SOP. The following is actually an excerpt from what has now become the official Wolf Company SOP guide.


SQUAD COMPOSITION:

The squad leader SHOULD HAVE an officer kit. An officer kit is very useful as it has a pistol, grenades, SOFLAM, and scoped rifle. The exception to this rule is if you have a good rally point set up that will not be destroyed easily and you could really use another kit (medic, heavy AT, crewman etc.)

You will need 1 MEDIC, and 1 RIFLEMAN at all times. This leaves 3 squad members free to adapt to the situation though I highly recommend having a light support gun and/or a light AT.

ORDER OF ATTACK:

The order of attack is basically a list of who is more or less expendable.
1. Direct combat infantry (Rifleman, Officer, Combat Eng)
2. All limited kits (Except HAT and Sniper)
3. Medics, HAT, Snipers
Use this as the order that your soldiers engage in battle as well as an indication of who should stay back in cover. Don't waste your HAT by leting your HAT guy run into a gunfight keep him safe until you come up against an armored target. For example the HAT should always be the safest, the last to engage the enemy, and the first to be revived by medics.

FORMATIONS:

While there are many formations, try to keep it simple and relevant to the game. Don't use formations when you don't need to as they tend to lower your squads combat effectiveness because keeping a good formation takes a lot of attention while moving around the battlefield. Some of the most useful formations include.

Line- 1.....2.....3.....2. ....1
.................... ..3

File- 1
.......1
.......2
.......2
.......3
.......3

Open file- 1.......1
..............2..... ..2
..............3..... ..3

Arrow-...............1
..................1. ...........2
............2....... ....3...........3

The numbers in the above formations correspond to the value of each member of an average squad according to the order of attack above.
Line provides excellent for firepower to the front, File is useful for moving quickly while keeping a low profile, Open file is good in urban environments with one file on each side of the street, and Arrow is a good formation for cautious advancement with good firepower to the front and sides.

IFF:

IFF stands for Identification Friend or Foe. Always identify your target before you open fire on it. This is particularly important for desert maps where the US and MEC wear very similar uniforms. Always stay aware of where nearby friendly units are and check your map regularly. If it’s not on the map, it is not friendly. If possible it is a good idea to look at the weapon the enemy is holding for easy identification of which side he belongs to.

FIRETEAMS:

A squad can be split up into 2 elements called Fireteams one is the Rifle team the other is the Assault team. The primary purpose of fireteams is to allow one squad to do two jobs at the same time. In straight up combat the Rifle team should contain the Squad leader and engage the enemy head on and hold them in place while the Assault team flanks around and attacks from the side. The rationale here is that the enemy will take cover from the Rifle team and will have no cover to the sides and rear so the Assault team can attack from the sides where they have cover and the enemy has none. Rifle teams work best with rifles, sniper rifles, and most importantly an LMG to suppress. Assault teams work best with automatic weapons and grenades.

SCOUTING:

It is always a good idea to send a scout ahead of the squad to minimise unpleasant surprises. If the scout is attacked by the enemy he should suppress and find cover until the rest of the squad can engage. The Scout should be one of your most capable infantrymen, and preferably have a scoped weapon. A scout also needs to be quite verbal as he needs to call out any enemies he spots to his squad leader.
A Scout may die a lot, however most of the time he will be revived by medics in the squad he is scouting for and is well worth it for all the lives he will save.

SUPPRESSION, FIGHTING RETREAT AND PANIC MAGS:

Suppressing fire is RAPID, SUSTAINED, ACCURATE FIRE which will result in the enemy theoretically being pinned down by overwhelming firepower. While under heavy fire the enemy can not think, move, or return fire effectively. When engaging enemy infantry from range or from cover to cover suppressing fire will give you an insurmountable advantage over your enemies and allow you to advance, flank and overrun your enemy.

The Fighting retreat is basically suppressing fire in reverse. If you need to fall back DO NOT TURN AND FLEE or you will get shot in the back. Instead suppress the enemy, then run back then suppress then run back some more. If the whole squad does this it will result in constant fire on the enemies so that they have no chance to get a good shot at you.

Panic Mags are magazines of ammo that are used primarily by scouts to produce short term one man suppressing fire. Once contact is made empty one mag rapid fire in the direction of the enemy to keep his head down. This should buy you enough time to fall back or grab some cover until the rest of your squad can engage.

Don't be afraid to burn off some ammo. Most classes come with 6 or more mags USE IT that's what it's for.
Suppression can be VERY ammo consuming this is why you must have a Rifleman to resupply at all times (this is VERY important for AT as they only get one shot)
The LMG (light machine gun) was designed for suppression and AP duty it is a must have for the most effective suppression.

COVERING FIRE AND SMOKE:

You WILL have to move through open terrain, across streets and in front of APCs, tanks etc.

Covering fire is a short period of suppression used to make the enemy find cover and stay there. This will provide a few moments of distraction for your allies to move to a better position. The enemy can't shoot you if they are busy taking cover. Use this to make dangerous runs across the street and open terrain safer.

Smoke will eliminate the enemies' line of sight and if they can't see you at most they can blind fire at you and hope. Most enemies will just hold fire. Use smoke to blind tanks by throwing it in front of their guns, and smoke the enemy so that you can run through and surprise them by engaging at point blank range.
Smoke is most useful in eliminating the enemy's defensive advantage and line of sight while assaulting, but can also be used to confuse the enemy and to cover a retreat or high value friendly target (VIP, APC, repairing tank, etc)

Try not to deploy smoke on your allies as you will destroy their line of sight and decrease their combat effectiveness the best place for smoke is 3/4 of the distance between you and your enemy on a line directly between you and your enemy

40mm or 'launched' smoke is very fast to deploy but does not last long, whereas smoke grenades take a while to deploy but are much more effective once down.

[Aus Sniper01]

Very Nice mate very nice, everyone read that when you get the chance.

[AncientMan]

Good work on the diagrams of the formations, because I'm sure some people don't have a clue, and don't understand our explanations. Other than that, everything you stated should be known and used by the "vets" of PR, and hopefully with your easy to understand explanations, fireteams/gun groups and scouting ahead will be seen in future rounds.

[Decafe]

Very good work,..as long as you know who is point all the time and the SL puts down a move marker all the time so we know which direction our squads and therefore our formations are heading.

[workingrobbie]

Good stuff... and thanks for defining the basic formations

[Captain_Wolf]

The Guide has been updated for 0.7.

This guide has been undergoing changes/updates since its creation, after the formation of Wolf Company the guide was moved there. But since this post is still here I felt I should update it and keep it current for the community.

This guide is now an excerpt of the first few sections of the official Wolf Company SOP (Standard Operating Procedures) guide. Obviously the only way to view the complete SOP is to join Wolf Company. The complete guide covers other subjects including; Urban tactics, Tanks/APCs, Helicopters, Assault, Defence, just to name a few.

I hope this helps other PR players and clans in training, and on the battlefield.