[Sun] 07 November 2010 (MARSOC)

[fer]

Missions:

• Milk Run
• Warlords
• Swept LE (adversarial)
• Swept LE (coop)

Thank you to everyone who came along, and for your good-natured patience when Milk Run and Swept LE (adversarial) didn't go exactly to plan. We played for nearly 4 hours, with almost 30 people on the server. That's a big win for everyone.

However, from the perspective of the revolution, I fear we have less than perfect news for our comrades in Moscow. Those capitalist lap dogs from MARSOC were pretty effective at killing us. Therefore, all good comrades are urged to re-imagine their recollections of the evening, and write AARs that reflect the true revolutionary glory of our actions. Anyone saying we lost a mission will be sent to the gulag.

[LiddleFeesh]

We are victorious. Do not believe the lies.

I'm sure I speak for everyone in saying that we all had a lot of fun. It was a good change of pace and hopefully next time we can see the peoples republic of Folk'i'stan assaulting an awaiting BluFor position (base?)

[mort]

Apologies comrades for crashing my motorbike at the start of the first mission

They really kept us guessing on that Warlords mission. Their sniper was very effective. I was Alpha FTL and after DM went down at the start of the action we were rendered ineffective as a fireteam because their sniper took out the tyres of my pick up truck. They were hard to see and I think managed to disable all the vehicles. After that it seemed like we were just pinned down in the centre of the village.

We did much better on the Swept adversarial but they had fewer choices about the direction of their attack. I was at the Bravo rally point at the end and had 2 of them in my sights from an upstairs window when the mission got pulled I think I would have nailed them.

Interesting way to spend a Sunday evening.

[Tigershark]

We are victorious. Do not believe the lies.

I'm sure I speak for everyone in saying that we all had a lot of fun. It was a good change of pace and hopefully next time we can see the peoples republic of Folk'i'stan assaulting an awaiting BluFor position (base?)

Awesome.....just awesome

[fer]

Milk Run

- DC: Fer

We did nearly everything we were supposed to: Alpha, under Mort, got two Stinger launchers to the hilltop North of the crash site within minutes; Bravo, under Headspace, went off to scout for a fall-back ambush point on the road to the UN HQ; and Charlie, under Tigershark, set up our primary ambush at the mountain pass through which the BLUFOR rescue convoy would likely have to move.

Moving with Alpha, I soon had the crash site in my view (using binoculars): the AH-6 had arrived, but mysteriously set down next to some buildings close to the crash site. We saw some figures heading for the buildings. I made the assumption that BLUFOR had dropped-in extra people with the intent of going firm in the buildings and waiting for the rescue convoy. Confident that Tigershark's fireteam would delay or destroy the supposedly inbound vehicles, I sent mort and Xiathorn forward with an RPG to shake-up (but not assault) the buildings where I believed the enemy was holed-up. In tandem, Deadmeat got ready to destroy the AH-6 on the ground with his Stinger.

My first clue should have been the ease with which mort and Xiathorn covered open ground, and the complete lack of response to our rocket attack. mort demolished the upper storey of a building, and deadmeat's missle hit home to decent (if not complete) destructive effect. But nobody was firing back, and disturbingly Bravo fireteam's most southerly scout, Oakley, was reporting audio contacts that suggested enemy vehicle movement on the road to the UN base. Hastily, all of Alpha (and myself) converged on the crash site, discovering only empty buildings.

And this is why we - or rather I (as commander) - did only nearly everything we were supposed to do. At no point did I seriously consider the possibility that the enemy would simply walk south over the mountains, and bypass all of our positions. Comrades, I led by map, not by looking. I apologise profusely, and will of course have myself interrogated, shot, and airbrushed from the history of folk. Just after I get done with the rest of this AAR. But take nothing away from MARSOC - well for successfully evading us, and not unthinkingly falling into the movement pattern suggested by the map.

[fer]

Warlords

- CO: Headspace
- DC: Fer
|-- Medic: Banshee

Headspace, or comrade Herdspice as he was styling himself that evening, pushed all three fireteams out of the town to create a good 360 degree observation, whilst he and I remained in the main compound doing paperwork (with the medic, banshee, loitering nearby).

Over comms we all listened as Alpha's mort and Xia played a game of cat-and-mouse with some contacts to the south-east, with Oakley providing oversight from a different position. It was tense stuff, particularly for those of us holed-up in buildings far from the action, made worse when we heard the rattle of gunfire as mort and Xia's technical eventually engaged a passing MH-6. Although the bird was not downed, fire from the technical appeared to chase it away over the horizon. mort and Xiathorn were disciplined enough not to be drawn too far away in pursuit, returning instead to hunt over the same high ground to the south-east. More contact reports, more gunfire, then silence. Xiathorn was gone, and mort was driving to save his own life.

At some point we foolishly taunted MARSOC for their apparent inactivity, to which they responded with a promise to unleash hell shortly (or similar). And they weren't kidding.

The assault, when it came, was absolute and from all directions. Carefully and quietly, the MARSOC fireteams had managed to create a loose cordon around the town, so that when they opened up, almost nowhere was safe from their fire. In the compound, Headspace and I very quickly found ourselves pinned in a building, rounds from a .50 cal or some sniper weapon pinging off the plasterwork. Realising we stood no chance as static targets, regardless of hard cover, we bolted. Zig-zagging as I ran through the streets, it seemed like fire was coming from every direction. The vehicles with which we might have effected our escape were being systematically disabled, and with chilling inevitability a round took me out clean before I could find shelter in another building.

In death, I watched as Headspace and Housemaster made a brave and final break in a vehicle, only for it to take multiple hits and catch fire on a hillside. Housemaster went to the aid of a crawling Headspace as long range rifle shots impacted on the earth all around him, but there was no miracle. Again, MARSOC had completed its mission superbly, whilst we could only take comfort from the fact that Headspace and Housemaster died epic, almost cinematic deaths on that hillside. Which is, after all, what Folk is all about, right?

[fer]

Swept LE (adversarial)

- DC: Fer

Given the number of times we've been massacred by the AI on the coop version of this mission, I was keen to play it conservatively. Key to my plan were two factors:

1. Not allowing the enemy the luxury of a single front of engagement
2. Not staying in any place long enough to allow the enemy to fix our positions

So, as the enemy helicopters disgorged their dangerous cargo, I bravely volunteered Alpha fireteam to go forward and hide in houses to the south-west. Everyone else took up positions on a north-south line just west of our starting point. Crucially, I also designated a second line, further east, and gave instructions for how the four fireteams on the line would fall back in bounds (the fifth firteam, Alpha, would remain in position). The intent was this: once the majority of enemy troops were in the space between Alpha and the first line, fireteams on the first line would engage for 10-15 seconds and then begin falling back to the second line. Alpha would hit the enemy from behind / amidst them, causing enough confusion to distract them as our other fireteams fell back.

Unfortunately, Alpha was spotted, and poor Nedfox was left in a nasty position of eyeballing the enemy whilst I kept asking him to hold fire. My mistake - and I apologise unreservedly to comrade NedFox - was failing to order him to hide or shift position. I didn't want the firefight to start west of Alpha, and was even willing to allow the enemy to envelope Alpha's position before allowing our main line to open up. As it happened, we were forced to engage sooner than I'd wanted, but we were still able to inflict damage before falling back as planned. There then came a lul in the fighting as the enemy crept forward, far slower and more cautiously than our own forces (surviving elements of which had fallen back to the second line). Frustratingly, both Tigershark and I found ourselves slightly isolated in (separate) buildings on the north side of the valley, and I was aware that sooner or later the enemy would be upon us at close quarters. I managed to spot and shoot at (but probably not hit) some troops as they approached, but was eventually caught out as they stormed my building from two entrances.

In death, we watched as both sides were whittled down until only 2-3 people remained on the enemy side, whilst on ours the count was nearer to 5. Given the amount of cover, the consensus in the dead channel was to call the mission. An honourable draw, I think. Well done to MARSOC for assaulting under difficult circumstances, and to the folk players who once again demonstrated that disengagement is a viable tactic in TvT.

[DM]

Bit late and somewhat unrelated, but I recorded this bug after being shot in the face:

you of the tubes

Scary

[fer]

[nedfox]

Swept LE (adversarial)

As very very new recruit of the awesome FOLK warriors, my noobness got me killed on every mission.

The only one I had a chance was in above mission, where I was laying flat on my meager belly on the roof of a house, looking at 2 hostiles nearing our town. As there was a hill to the left side of me, I realized too late that they could get a good visual on me, so instead of getting back in the house I held my breath and hoped they wouldn't spot me.

But they did. 1 of them proned, and aligned up to me, while the 2nd one was stumbling over rocks , circling me from 12 o'clock to 9 o'clock to get a 2nd line of fire. At that moment I cried out I could take out both, but was ordered to hold fire. As the 1st one already had me in his sights, getting back in the house was not longer an option.
As commanders have the last word, I held, and died horrible deaths with bullets penetrating head and limbs..

Lesson learned

OOC : I had fun, I really will try to play more on Sundays.