[Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

How we died
Aqarius
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by Aqarius »

Fulcrum
INDFOR B1 AT
"Despite our superior numbers, we have inferior armament". Superior numbers? I must've missed something. The choppers died quickly, but not before letting some rockets loose, and the first part of the mission was made up of potshots and APC spotting. Our numbers dwindled soon, though, and we were ordered to move. While low on weaponry, our glorious leader Aziz managed to equip us with state of the art NVGs. Unfortunately, he also saw fit to equip us with searchlights randomly spotting the landscape, rendering NVG use a quite disorienting option for yours truly. Still, A1 moved in, but soon found ourselves under fire. I snuck outside and tried going wide east to flank OPFOR.
Apparently, not wide enough, eh Moon Moon?

Forest Gateau
BLUFOR A1 AT
The entire mission went swimmingly, until the first mortar emplacement was clear. As soon as that happened, Alpha squad moved on east and was engaged by Thor, God of Lightning. At first, I thought we were lucky, as A1 and ASL element were close together, and only A1 FTL was screaming for morphine. I soon realized, however, that this was mostly because everyone else was stone cold dead. We consolidated what was left from A1 and what was left from A2 with A3, and pushed on up Hamburger Hill, slowly climbing and slowly losing it, until the mission was called.

Beach Boys
BLUFOR A1 AAR
By the looks of it, the yanks got themselves a beach party going on, and they were having it without us. This was, of course, unacceptable, so we loaded in our boats, and hit the beach stocked with sunscreen, sandwiches, and high explosives. Well, mostly high explosives. Storming the gas station, we moved along the railway, taking down what opposition we found. Soon enough, we had taken the factory complex and held firm, while swatting away an enemy Hind that appeared to be flicking in and out of reality for me. In retrospect, I'm guessing that's when the acid kicked in. Ammo was slowly running out, there were tanks rumbling around us, and rockets were scarce. Actually, no, I had rockets, and was scrambling like a...well, a marine on acid trying to find an RPG tube that didn't turn out to be a python when I picked it up. The HUGE flying crocodile kept coming back, so we resorted to just chucking stuff at him, and trying not to get landed on when it hit. And hit it did, and landed it didn't, and the voice from the heavens commanded us to go forth to the beach, for we are free to leave, and we rejoiced, and ran to the sea, and the very land beneath out feet carried us to safety.
At least that's how I remember it.

Holy Stones
House Tyrell B1 FTL (Red vs green, green being in the south. How you got the Starks involved I'll never know)
In a recreation of the classic zergrush that had become so popular lately, we ran headfirst into town, mingling with the civilian populace. Too late, I noticed one of the civilians was carrying an AKM, followed by one with an RPK. After a moment of confusion, I squeezed the trigger and didn't let go until it stopped mattering. From spectator screen, I was greeted with the view of the entire market erupting in a blaze, people running and dying in complete chaos. It was awesome :D .

Halted
Indfor Bravo RM
We formed a loose line, repelled the first attack, and from there basically went nuts on the town. They didn't stand a chance. But there was no celebration to be had, for the platoon held a grim lamplight vigil for our one(1) fallen comrade, Moon Moon.
[/allegedly]

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Pr3sario
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by Pr3sario »

Wasn't around for long this session. Missed out on some epic missions it sounds like.

I make videos starring you lot. To see yourself live or die just click here

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fer
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by fer »

As comrade SuperU observed when the session was over, 60 is something of a magic number for us. FA is, rightly I believe, an infantry-focused ArmA community; but having 60 comrades on the server means we can venture into combined arms territory whilst still fielding a full platoon and many attachments. That often makes missions epic. Similarly, such high playercounts mean adversarial missions feature multiple squads per side, giving us the flexibility to fight more complex or geographically large scenarios. However, what 60 also does is touch - but not break through - the practical upper limit of our comms structure. It's a sweet spot, and I for one am very grateful to everyone who made it along last night. It was a pleasure to host and play in the session.

Fulcrum

CO: Kefirz
|- M: Fer


Pressed into service by an unfeeling Party, comrade CO Kefriz nevertheless devised a simple but effective plan: Alpha and Bravo would seize the army base and use it as a base-of-fire (hurr) against the fortified positions to the north, whilst Charlie swept around to the right and took the Shapur-2 complex. With luck and a little co-ordination, the squads would then be able to provide mutual support as the platoon moved northwards.

The first phase went according to plan, but Charlie - as anticipated by CSL - got into a firefight in Shaprur-2. As the spare (platoon) medic, I received permission from Kefirz to go forward and provide extra help to Charlie. Hooking up with comrade Ferrard Carson's fireteam, I hugged a wall and thought about the final act of Full Metal Jacket (which was filmed, improbably, in East London). We darted about from cover to cover, slowly pushing our way northwards until almost on-line with the main objective. I took pot-shots at targets of opportunity (one enemy fighter was standing upright on a balcony), but killed only one enemy. Standing in an upper storey window of a small building, a watched a lone enemy fighter emerge from behind some ramparts and raise his rifle to shoot me. My AK was already pointing in his direction, enabling me to strike first. Goodbye, comrade Bodge. After healing CSL Lord Penney, the action entered its final phase as we turned and closed in on the objective. Effective fire from west of the compound meant the final attack was no cakewalk, but eventually we prevailed. Nice work, comrades!

Forest Gateau

CSL: Fer
|- M: Daf


Charlie had to wait for comrade Nitram's Chinook to return from ferrying the first lift, so we were the last squad to reach its staging point (with our MMG team, led by comrade Kale, in tow). Oriented eastwards, my standard squad wedge (with MMG at the rear) was to sweep down a wooded hillside, cross a track and then climb another wooded slope, up to the top of a hill in the south-eastern quadrant of the search area. Along the way, we were looking for enemy mortar positions and bad guys. That was the plan. Then the plan went to hell.

Halfway down the slope, with the track in sight, C3 made contact, and very soon the whole of Charlie was engaged. To different degrees, each fireteam skirmished forward, C3 actually crossing the track in the process. A minute or two into the firefight, it seemed, and to the staccato of automatic fire was added the crashing sound of mortar rounds exploding about us. We might have beaten off the enemy infantry, but their comrades' mortars had stopped Charlie in its tracks. Strewn out across the slope, my fireteams needed time to patch up the wounded and regroup; though for C2 it was almost over already. Comrade Daf went to work, whilst I attempted to communicate with HQ.

No sooner had our medic gone to work, than comrade CO SuperU was informing me of contacts to our north-east in an open field beyond the treeline. Unwilling to give the enemy time to make it to cover, I exhorted all walking squad members to join me at the edge of the field, from where we poured deadly fire onto the hapless enemy squad. It wasn't pretty, or particularly co-ordinated, or even 100% effective (I'm confident 1-2 insurgents escaped), but under the circumstances I was happy that we'd been able to hold our position and do harm to the enemy. Daf continued to patch up the wounded and I ordered us to concentrate on C3's position at the track.

Again, the tempo of the enemy's attacks was higher than my own attempts to marshal Charlie. Infantry once again engaged us from the east, but C3 and C1 mounted a sturdy defence and appeared to be driving them off. However, by this time HQ was ordering me to withdraw north to a rally point just behind Bravo's position, and with the onset of further mortar rounds I didn't need persuading. Ordering everyone to break contact, we hoofed it north. Someone in the squad correctly observed that crossing the open field where we'd recently shot up an enemy patrol was silly, so I changed the orders and had everyone hook left (west), using woodland for basic cover as we converged upon the rally point. Behind us, comrade Bodge had gone down - wounded - and as Daf went to save him I was the ruthless SL, telling Kale to abandon his assistant. I needed that MMG with the bulk of my squad, and Bodge would understand. More explosions behind me, in the direction of Bodge and Daf. I hoped Bodge would understand.

At the first rally point C1 and C3 were again exchanging fire, this time with contacts to our south-east. Once again, just as I felt close to having the squad fully effective again, the enemy mortar teams had us dialled-in. Comrade CO SuperU had given me a new rally point to the north-east, and I knew anybody who didn't move now was liable to buy it. The immediate challenge was that we had wounded, and like the good comrades we are, the walking were attempting to help the injured. This was no good, I thought, and forcefully exhorted anyone capable of walking to make for the second rally point. They were my last words before a mortar round ended my command.

Note 1: This was a great mission, and one that I'd like to see us attempt again. It was particularly enjoyable to play a coop in which the platoon could not dictate the pace of the attack completely - enemy mortar rounds forced us to stay mobile.

Note 2: I shall ask comrade Ferrard Carson to turn his brilliant teaching mind to the topic of casualties, and how we deal with them in a squad. It's unlikely the Politburo will validate my general order authorising Makarov wielding element leaders to euthanise the immobile wounded, but we need to find ways to prevent fireteams and squad becoming static when 1-2 comrades are down, as well as conveying more specific requests to medics.

Beach Boys

MAT2 Gunner: Fer
|- Asst. Gunner: Victor


For a horrible minute it looked like I was trapped on a boat without a human driver, and no means of taking control of the driving seat. Thankfully someone - I have no idea whom - worked out how to grab the steering wheel, gun the engine and send us hurtling across the inky black waves, towards the dark grey smudge that was the coast.

When we made landfall it was clear that Delta had been hit hard whilst still at sea, but thankfully we were not even under fire at the beach. Assigned to Charlie, under comrade SL Bodge, my MAT2 team was supposed to be helping the sweep of the village to our south. To our north, Alpha would screen the road, whilst Bravo punched out west to high ground and an overwatch position. In don't know what Delta was left to do in its depleted state, and who knows what the HS/LD types inland were up to. Probably taking Instagram pictures of themselves and their awesome costumes. Anyway, comrade Victor wouldn't get out of the boat, or respond to comms. After a while I had to give up my assistant for a disconnect, and ran after Charlie alone.

Bodge put me to work immediately, moving with C2 down the main coast road. Between us, we put a BMP and a T-34 to the sword, either side of a comedy spell in which comrade Kale and I ran about a yard full of enemy supplies trying to work out how we'd use them in sequence to blow themselves up. When the threat from the south seemed over, Charlie was called back to the west-facing T-junction and told to expect a counter-attack coming down that valley.

I could hear some kind of enemy armour approaching us from the west, but even after I'd climbed halfway up the slope at the corner of the quarry, the fog prevented me from getting any kind of lock with my NLAW. Then, out there in the valley, I saw and heard the vehicle explode - presumably Bravo had got a bead on it? Some members of Charlie moved past me through the trees, seemingly headed for even higher ground, and I opened up my map to see how the rest of the platoon was doing, wrongly assuming the counter-attack had been halted. A bullet to the head disabused me of that notion.

Note: Again, another great mission - and nice to see two distinct formations at work on parallel tasks that eventually came together in a combined extraction.

Holy Stones

OPFOR B2 FTL: Kale
|- AR: Fer


Comrade CO SuperU's plan was for both squads to rush to the square, with Alpha taking up overwatch positions on the south-west corner, whilst Bravo went for the bunker. With comrade Kale, I sprinted towards the south-east corner of the square, but as I crossed an alleyway I saw a lone gunman raising his rifle. Bullets pinged around me (I was winged), so I rushed through the nearest doorway and fled into a small building. Steps led to the rooftop, but halfway up I realised I'd be exposed up there. I spun round and saw too late the feet of my pursuer entering the room below. I was riddled with bullets by comrade IceRaiser (who'd kill me again later, during the after party run of Cholo).

Halted

Echo FTL: Fer
|- AR: Nutty Tec
|- R: Terminal Boy
|- R: Wolfenswan


It was good to be the Third International Fighting Brigade of Takistan in the name of Che Guevara again. Comrade Ferrard Carson's plan was simple: the flank fireteams would dominate the west and east roads, whilst everyone else formed a line that would push north and gradually squeeze the enemy out of the main part of the village. Echo, my fireteam, would attempt to control the west road, and from the start the enemy proved to be very obliging: sending a technical right up to us so that we could have heavy automatic fire support (after duly killing the original crew). Comrade Terminal Boy manned the technical's gun, mowing down soldiers at the far end of the west road whilst I took pot-shots with my Enfield (and later FN Fal) and comrade Nutty Tec squeezed off bursts from his AK. Eventually, Charlie's men began to appear in our lane of fire, so we stopped shooting and waited for the rest of the platoon to mop up stragglers at the far end of the village. As Charlie and the other fireteams returned, there was a nasty moment of friendly fire, resulting in an injury to comrade Terminal Boy, but we were all patched up and extracted without further incident.

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Ferrard Carson
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by Ferrard Carson »

I come bearing videos! Videos for the Video god! Actually, the Video God has been getting far too many sacrifices as of late compared to the AAR God. The AAR God was beginning to feel despondent, but then you fine folk came along and started writing again! Write moar! Moar I say!

In other news:

Mission suggestions from my point of view (keep in mind, I'm only one dude seeing it from one perspective)

Fulcrum - Start players outside of the choppers so as to avoid the Seatbelts of Relentless Gripping. Enforce slotting of more Takistanis than Russians to properly balance the mission. Get rid of pilots after choppers get shot down, so as not to scare poor Daf :zoidberg:

Forest Gateau - Moar EI, maybe one less mortar? Not really sure how to avoid the "unavoidable death from above" issue, which, while novel at first, is sure to wear thin rather quickly. I didn't find this mission too terribly fun, to be honest. Bolts from the blue aren't very sporting, and air support was a little too powerful - Given the two miniguns circling around, the Apache was just icing (really cool sounding, friendly-firing icing, but icing nonetheless).

Beach Boys - Moar EI. No emplacements where they can take the boats under fire. Maybe put them slightly inland such that they can shoot people cresting the seawall / beach, but not the boats themselves. This mission was really fun, though I must give credit where credit is due and say that I had awesome squad leaders to help the intact squads, and Delta was able to recover well enough from its evisceration to carry on.

Holy Stones - I still need to put in a hint for people to put on tags. I should also re-mix this mission into other locations, shouldn't I?

Halted - Awesome

Cholo - Acid-trip Awesome

~ Ferrard
"Take a boat in the air you don't love, she'll shake you off just as sure as the turnin' of the worlds. Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down, tells you she's hurtin' before she keels... makes her home."

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dancemoox
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by dancemoox »

fer wrote:Note 2: I shall ask comrade Ferrard Carson to turn his brilliant teaching mind to the topic of casualties, and how we deal with them in a squad. It's unlikely the Politburo will validate my general order authorising Makarov wielding element leaders to euthanise the immobile wounded, but we need to find ways to prevent fireteams and squad becoming static when 1-2 comrades are down, as well as conveying more specific requests to medics.
I would second this, the workshopping of casualties not the Makarov part.

In missions where I've taken medic I'm often baffled to see two people from the same fireteam patching up a wounded comrade when I get to the scene. Or worse when I have the casualty under my healing hands and someone without the clip art self laminated medical licence I've got decides to pitch in and add some healing.

Some people seem to go utterly silent once they are wounded, I know the sudden introduction of bullets to the internal organs can be an upsetting experience but you need to tell the Maester you require a healing poultice to be prepared along with where you currently are. It's difficult to find you wounded lot on the battlefield at the best of times, a map marker on side is often what will keep you alive!
ramming speed!

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Tigershark
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by Tigershark »

@Ferard re: Forest Gateaux.

I was one of those casualties to the mortar being hit not once BUT TWICE. The second time being fatal as I bled out.

However, having said that, I have to say this was in large part to my fire team being stationary more than mobile. Whilst getting mortared will get tiring, it doesn't need to be as lethal if we just moved more.

If I could change one thing about how FA fights it would be that we move more and do less stationary fighting and engaging at distance of 500m-800m. We train in fix and fire but we fail to use it in mission at just about every opportunity. We did a bit in Alpha in Beach Boys...with A1 or A2 fixing and the other flanking...but it needs to be a practiced skill.
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Wilson
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by Wilson »

Regarding feedback from Forest Gateau:

As much as I loved watching Daf's video and seeing all those rounds go off around you, I have increased the time between each salvo. Not by much as I think the tension it created was good.

More EI have been added, I don't know why but the amount I added from the start was ridiculously low, I've just about doubled the number and that still doesn't included the EI you didn't get to see.

Someone mentioned on Skype chat to make the mortar positions more visible, that is the last thing I'll be doing I'm afraid as the whole idea I had for this mission was to have the squad sweep the forests in order to find them. I know it's an Airborne Assault, but as Fer mentioned we are predominantly infantry focused, having them easier to spot would result in the choppers having a field day from above.

Which brings me to my last point, someone mentioned the Apache having a field day....remove thermals?

All in all though I am happy with how the mission turned out, there is always a sense of pride that comes over me when a mission I've developed is played so thanks for giving it a go and enjoying it somewhat.

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fer
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by fer »

dancemoox wrote:In missions where I've taken medic I'm often baffled to see two people from the same fireteam patching up a wounded comrade when I get to the scene. Or worse when I have the casualty under my healing hands and someone without the clip art self laminated medical licence I've got decides to pitch in and add some healing ... a map marker on side is often what will keep you alive!
Tigershark wrote:If I could change one thing about how FA fights it would be that we move more and do less stationary fighting and engaging at distance of 500m-800m. We train in fix and fire but we fail to use it in mission at just about every opportunity. We did a bit in Alpha in Beach Boys...with A1 or A2 fixing and the other flanking...but it needs to be a practiced skill.
Comrades Moon Moon and Tigershark make excellent (and somewhat related) points. As a rule, we need to worry less about casualties - this isn't RL, they can communicate with the squad medic, mark the map etc. themselves - and focus on remaining effective, mobile fighting elements. I'm sure it's in Dsly's TTP2 somwhere, but the principle of 'win the firefight before you attend to the wounded' is worth keeping in mind. As a rifleman, assuming your squad medic is available, the very best thing you can do for your fallen comrades (and their medical helpers) is neutralise the bad men shooting at them/you.

Black Mamba
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by Black Mamba »

That. Another thing that can help is the use of smoke. If your element is moving but somebody gets wounded, a simple smoke can both mark his position for either the medic or an second wave of friendlies, and conceal his movement to the closest bit of cover.
Smoke really makes it easy for the medic, as he usually doesn't have a GPS, and it can be hard to find that one dude in the Chernarussian forest.
The point being, knowing that your buddy will be able to crawl to cover, is easy to be found by other friendlies, your element can then resume it's movement. It also means, getting your teammate up is not the priority if your FT has been tasked with something (of course, this is to be judged in situ), especially if you know other friendlies are behind you.

We coukld imagine a drill involving calling a man down, two dudes provide suppressive fire, the third pops smoke (popping smoke is actually quite a long process in arma). As soon as the smoke appears, the FT resumes it's movement towards the objective and calls the casualty on the squad net.

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Tigershark
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Re: [Sun] 23 Jun 2013 (A PTSD experience)

Post by Tigershark »

BM brings up a good point. Should we maybe also equip medics with GPS?
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