4. Battlefield Functions and Activities

The battlefield and battles can be viewed as a collection of tactical activities. It can be helpful, both in planning and execution, to categorize these activities.

4.1 Intelligence

Intelligence has been defined as "gathering information." A view more helpful to the Player is the result of considering the meaning of data provided by the game. These data include ground unit spotting reports, radio intercepts, and radar detections.

The Player's task here is to use that data with knowledge about the enemy's composition, organization, and likely objectives to "paint a picture" of the battlefield at any instant.

Some data is beyond the Player's ability to control or influence (radio intercept and radar detection). There is a lot the Player can plan to do and execute to enhance data collection. The Player uses units to do this. At first blush, one's attention goes to the reconnaissance units in the Player's forces. The reality is that any maneuver unit should be viewed as an asset to accomplish this crucial task.

4.2 Reconnaissance

Closely related to Intelligence is Reconnaissance, which provides data for the Intelligence staff to turn into actionable information for the Commander. Recon is probably the most challenging aspect of playing this game, let alone in the real world.

4.2.1 Combat Reconnaissance

First, as a Player, don't limit your thinking of Reconnaissance to "where do I move/place my Recon units." In addition to your dedicated recon units (recon companies, scout platoons, etc.), the Player needs to think about Combat Recon. That is, the use of front-line combat units to perform reconnaissance tasks.

A prime example is a template the Warsaw Pact used when advancing to contact. The Advance Guard for a regiment, one of the regiment's battalions, used the basic concept of reaching the enemy using only a single subordinate element. This detachment provides the commander with the option to attack the contact or bypass it, and this pattern is common to all modern armies. The Soviets thoughtfully provided an easy-to-understand template for this.

The use of a single subordinate element to make contact is carried down to the platoon level: the Advance Guard Main Body (AGMB, battalion strength) detaches a Forward Security Element (company strength), which detaches a Combat Recon Patrol (platoon strength). This last level is the recon part of the force.

4.2.2 Recon Composition and Strength

We can broadly classify recon units into Light patrols and Heavy Patrols. Light means less than platoon strength and is often equipped with machine guns for armament. Heavy patrols will be either IFVs or tanks in platoon strength.

Compared to the parent formation, a recon formation is typically 10% or less of total strength. The recon element is often two levels of command down from the owning formation. A Brigade/Regiment has a recon company, and a battalion has a recon platoon.

4.2.3 Recon Use

Heavy patrols are used for route recon of the axis of advance of a force. These have enough lethality and survivability to eliminate enemy recon forces and prevent them from detecting the leading elements of the friendly formation. Another use of a heavy patrol is as a recon reserve. It follows the line of light patrols and can be used to overcome the enemy's light resistance or counter-recon efforts.

Light patrols should be used to discover potential infiltration or bypass routes or to find enemy rear area assets. This action means using paths that are through high cover and concealment.

Do not use recon assets to find the enemy front-line trace. You will find it and mark it with casualties.

Also, remember that not finding the enemy is incredibly useful for your recon forces.

4.3 Security

There are two fundamental missions at the level of this game. These are Screen (not to be confused with the Screen order. Which is the order to give units doing a Screen type mission. That is a unit posture.) and Cover/Guard (We'll use Cover here. The nuance is Cover means the protected unit does not support, either logistically or by artillery, and Guard means the protected unit provides both).

A Screen is simply a chain of observers that provides early warning. It's an everyday use of recon elements to provide flank security. A screen need not be static. Having the patrols move laterally while screening can give significantly more width of coverage at the expense of timeliness of reporting. Combat patrols are not often used for screening, as the geometry usually does not allow prompt re-purposing of those patrols to a pure combat role.

Cover is typically used to provide time for the covered formation to prepare for the upcoming fight. This will usually be the focus of an entire scenario in the game. The covering force executes its mission using defense, delay, or attacks to cause the enemy to have to deal with the covering force, thus delaying the enemy's attack or advance to contact with the friendly main body.

A subset of Cover is Counter-Recon. These are actions designed to purposely hunt and destroy enemy recon elements to prevent the discovery of the friendly main body.

4.4 Maneuver

Maneuver is about positioning forces and using their direct fire on the enemy. It's not about "moving" units. There will be situations where the Player needs to have a unit at a particular location. That could mean getting a unit back at that location or another unit taking its place if forced off it. Think geometry or shaping.

Obviously, maneuvering involves moving units, too. How much depends entirely on the situation, both from a mission aspect and the reaction to enemy contact. Attack a discovered enemy or bypass it? That depends on the mission, and there is no general "rule of thumb" to consult.

Attacks will involve a lot of movement and decisions about what to do upon enemy contact. The defense will likely require less movement of units as part of the primary plan, but the employment of the reserve, as well as contingency plans, will introduce movement. Static defenses overwhelmingly fail.

While there are many mission types (Hasty Attack, Deliberate Attack, Breakout from Encirclement, etc.), this being a Primer, we will focus on three fundamental missions. The more nuanced mission types are either basic ones done under particular circumstances or have a limited and desired outcome.

4.4.1 Advance to Contact

Also known as Movement to Contact or Attack from the March, is defined as the following actions:

• This mission has an objective to seize

• Enemy contact is expected

• The enemy's location is unknown

• You will likely need to react to enemy contact by maneuver

The above characterization of this kind of fight drives planning to a set of principles:

• Make initial contact with the smallest force possible

• Preserve your freedom of maneuver. A battalion bumping into a platoon does not warrant a battalion-level attack. Maintain the option to bypass disruption forces.

• Keep in mind that disengaging from contact often results in casualties.

4.4.2 Defend

Defense is much more than simply piling forces on a piece of ground the enemy wishes to seize. An attack is very complex and affords a defender many opportunities to wreck the attack plan. First, an attacker must approach the objective(s). Making an attacker fight en route to his attack before all his pieces are set in place will disrupt the plan and timetable. Some points to keep in mind are:

• This mission has one or more objectives to defend

• Once your enemy spots your defensive positions, artillery will rain down

• A competent enemy attack will be preceded by reconnaissance. Kill it. Make a counter-recon plan.

• Infantry is tenacious in complex terrain. They are simply targets if you select a beet field to dig in.

• Small arms are in-the-same-hex weapons. An excellent technique is the "reverse slope". This means your defending infantry is not visible until the enemy is adjacent.

• Unspotted units that open fire have fire superiority. It may make perfect sense, especially when using the reverse slope, to set infantry to fire at point-blank range (meaning in the same hex). This can be devastating to enemy infantry and armored vehicles when your infantry has light AT weapons and is in complex terrain.

4.4.3 Attack

This is the most complex mission for several reasons. First, there are more units you need to engage. Second, there will likely be situations to deal with as the attacking forces approach the objective before making the assault. And probably the hardest is synchronizing reconnaissance, various maneuver elements, and fire support efforts. Some areas to give particular attention to:

• Attack from multiple directions at the same time

• Perform reconnaissance of the approach as well as the objective itself.

• Find and destroy defender reconnaissance elements before spotting the attacking maneuver forces.

• Select assault positions for ground elements that will seize objectives. These are close to the objective, but not within line of sight.

• Use artillery preps to degrade defenders' effectiveness.

4.5 Fire Support

We stress again that the most helpful contribution by artillery is the degradation of effectiveness a target undergoes. It's not about simply racking up kills, though that will happen. It's about supporting the other two Arms in their missions, whether breaking up an enemy attack or suppressing enemy defenders.

The standard ratio of artillery to its supported unit is a battery (6 to 8 tubes) per maneuver battalion. Specific missions may see more artillery assets, particularly deliberate attacks against a well-prepared defense.

In that mission, where minefields and counter-mobility obstacle belts are to be breached, it is common to see an artillery battery firing missions in support of a company-sized element. So, an entire artillery battalion may be tasked with supporting a single maneuver battalion during the break-in.

Time and space need to be considered when planning fire support. Many systems will not cover the entire map, necessitating repositioning. Another thing to prepare for is ensuring your artillery units are full of ammo when the heavy fight begins.

4.6 Air Defense

Air Defense is an area where there is quite a bit of difference from nation to nation. Even so, some generalities at the NATO vs. WP level are relevant.

High to Medium Range Air Defense (HIMAD): These are the medium to long-range (>10 km) SAM systems. NATO's primary air defense across the theater was its air forces. NATO HIMAD SAM systems were positioned in belts extending as far forward as the rear of Corps sectors and aren't portrayed in the game. WP had HIMAD systems at the Division level, but even these would not be so far forward as to appear on the game map. HIMAD capabilities are part of the Air Superiority setting for each side.

Short Range Air Defense (SHORAD): Short-range systems were used by both NATO and WP and included both SAM and gun systems. Not all nations used both types throughout the Cold War. NATO tended to have SHORAD units at the Division level and parcel them out according to mission needs. These systems were to be used to help ensure the Brigade/Regiment/Battalion Commander's freedom of maneuver. NATO did not deploy SHORAD in sufficient density to provide an "umbrella" effect. WP had SHORAD platoons organic to motorized rifle battalions (MANPADS SAMs) and a battery of both gun and SAM systems at the regiment level.

Air Defense assets are a scarce battlefield resource, and no one, not even WP formations, can always protect everything. Both factions recognized that, and the driving principle for air defense is to preserve the commander's freedom of maneuver. And this does not necessarily mean "protect the only line units." The Player needs to apply METT-T (Mission, Enemy, Terrain, Troops available, Time, and Civilian considerations) to this decision.

4.7 Combat Engineering

There are three crucial ways combat engineering (as opposed to construction engineering, which is building facilities) contributes to the fight:

• Mobility – This is gap crossing (rivers, ditches, obstacles, and minefields).

• Counter-mobility – This is "obstacles" and bridge demolition. Professionally speaking, both the in-game "obstacle" and "minefield" are classified as obstacles. These are used to shape the battlefield to enhance terrain to the commander's advantage.

• Survivability – Combat engineer assets in the real world can significantly shorten the time needed to prepare a defensive position. Digging positions are not within the time scope of a scenario, so this capability is not in the game.

4.7.1 Bridging

Engineer units have bridging assets for wet gap (river) crossing. The WP realized they would have to bridge a wet gap on average every 25 km. Thus, WP battalions had bridging equipment as part of the line battalion kit. At the regiment level, there was more, but not the hardened kind. Line battalions would bridge, cross, and then recover bridges. Regimental-level bridges would be emplaced to establish a supply route.

NATO bridging requirements were much less and were more focused on deciding when to demolish east-west bridges after NATO was done using them to move westward. NATO recognized the need for crossing the Rhine by REFORGER reinforcements at non-highway points, so there were units dedicated to that mission (often ferry units of the Bundeswehr).

4.7.2 Obstacles and Minefields

Obstacles in the game are to be viewed as reinforced triple-strand concertina wire. In actual practice, these can be breached with wire cutters, explosives, or blades (engineer dozer type or tank-mounted mine plows).

Obstacles and minefields can be breached by combat engineers, infantry, and tanks (with the appropriate plows installed). WP tank companies are nothing but tanks, so each tank platoon had one tank with a mine plow. The reason for this is described below.

There are two styles of this: In Stride and Deliberate. "In Stride" does what it sounds like – a unit breaches using assigned assets without pausing to wait for another unit (infantry or engineer) to move forward to breach. This form of breaching imposes the slightest delay and is why WP tank platoons carry one plow per platoon. The downside is that only the breaching unit may use the resulting lane.

Deliberate breaches are more involved and are planned as part of a mission. Any unit may use a deliberate breach. This is a result of not only other units being notified of the breach location, but the lanes are handed over to each crossing unit, meaning a guide is present on the ground, and units coordinate for the transfer of "ownership". The downside is that executing a Deliberate Breach consumes more time.

Typically, a battalion requires two breach sites (meaning two separate breach hexes in a belt) to pass through an obstacle/minefield belt with a minimal delay once the lanes are established.

4.7.3 Defensive Structures

Engineers are also responsible for constructing defensive structures used to protect troops and vehicles from enemy fire or reduce the number of losses taken when fired on. These structures are placed by the scenario designer and are in place when the scenario starts. Currently, engineers cannot create them during a scenario. The following structures can be seen in the game.

• Improved Positions – These are positions for troops or vehicles that provide improved protection from direct fire coming from the front or flanks of the unit. It does not protect from artillery fire, as there is no top protection in this type of construct. These locations are placed on the battlefield as needed in cases of defense.

• Fortifications – These positions are a more dedicated defensive location that provides much better protection from both direct and indirect fire, protect from all directions, and have a roof compared to improved positions. Fortifications are well-established positions that were built some time before hostilities broke out. Being fixed, they are also easy to target with artillery or air strikes.