Squad Leader Archive

Strategy is an art form. There are no hard and fast rules. There is no sure wining method. there are tried and true principals. So long as you are dealing with living people, those principals remain the same, no matter the environment. Krayts are a different matter...You have to adapt especially to each unique situation and put in the right pieces for that situation. For this reason, no regular method with always work.

Here are some things to chew on.

I. Logistics: The support of your forces and how to move supplies in and out. In SWG this is in terms of availibility of medics and doctors or Jedi who can heal, providing combatants iwth powerups and food, grenades, etc. If you have a guild and your guild owns some factories, imagine the possibilities. This is also in terms of how to get supplies to players. I am addressing large PVP battles and extended campaigns here, not short missions or skirmishes between groups.

II. Attack planning

-define area of operations. this can be done with overheard screenshots, waypoints and /notepad. This is a good task for your Scout Professions and Rangers.

-Define routes in an out. "You got in here, did you have a plan for getting out?!" This shuld be using terrain that affords cover and protection for moving in, and speed of travel for moving out. You are vulnerable when withdrawing, so you might have a plan to put a small squad on hold to cover your escape if the attack is repelled.

-Designate firing positions. Again do this with waypoints and email them to fire teams like Comandos and Riflemen.

-Declare Primary and Secondary objectives and any Targets of Oppurtunity.

-Set "drop dead time" for attack-window during which it must be done to be vialble. For example in SWG bases are only vulnerable for a two huor window, etc.

-Attack at a time most beneficial to your objective. If your objective is to take down their base and replace it with one of your own, then your attack shuold be when the bases is not defended.. "For unfailingly successful attack, attack where there is no defense. For unfailingly secure defense, defend where there is no attack." -Sun Tzu

If you objective is just to fight and make a mockery of the opposition, (ie the objective is to disorganize, demoralize and destroy your opposition's wil to fight) then plan your attack for a time when you can leave the most impact, like gettig witnessed by others.

Defense planning

-Impair enemies path of approach.

-limit the number of entry points into area.

-clear lines of fire, or pick firing positions and protect these like pawns with cover positions.

-establish perimeter or safe zone.

-Assign patrols and rotation schedule

-place nearby supporting forces on standby to come to your aid if possible.

Again, Strategy is your plan. Tactics are teh means to execute your plan. Securing all city gates and placing ambush teams in the starport lobby and landing areas and covering the shuttle ports is a plan for defending a city, so thus your Strategy. using profession specials, cover of weather events like storms, night, shadows, whatever is your tactics for holding those positions.

Use of Weaponry

-AOE weaponry is best used in places where spaces are close and confined. Look in the Commando forum or serch my profile for this post "Horseshoes and Handgrenades, or Here, Jedi, hold this..."

-Pistols are best used in close ranges like in bases, courtyards, inside rooms or on ships. Great against melee fighters and if they get to close pistol whip them i the face!

-Rifles are best used outdoors in large open areas where you get multiple shots at approachng or fleeing targets. This weapon is designed for the range advantage, don't use it like a pistol.

-Heavy Weaponry-only use in groups in a support role. Do not use as primary weapons against targets or the Commando will draw unwanted fire o himself and die pityfully. The profession is designed as a fire support role anyway.(?)

For more on player roles and organization see my post in the GCW forum called "Joint Warfighting Proceedures and Guidelines" or search my profile for it.

Formations

There are fire formations or attack formations. These maximize the field of fire and leave the least chance of escape for the target. There are cover formations (like echelon left/right, etc) which provide a support tier and cover for key roles i a team. there are movement formations which allow for ease of movement without compromising security. These will work in SWG because attacks are no by line-of-sight post CU. Some examples are staggeered Ranger formations, wedge, inverted V, star, roman phaelynx (still used in armor formations when parked, still used by SEAL teams, etc) Firing lines (one row prone, one row kneeling, one row standing, supported by polearm fighters and melee fighters as protectors with healers directly behnd the line, out of line-of-sight, there are many others. A little research could yield a lot of ideas. Playing with this could create good scenarios for SL's to hold exercises for their guilds. Imagine an anbush setup in a base courtyard or the pass to a valley with two firing lines set in an inverted wedge and a flanking skrmisher team capturing an unsuspecting motley crew of base raiders. Imagine the volumn of fire you'll cut 'em down with.

A little exploration on the SL's part and if they are successful at organizing players to follow their lead and we would have all the glory of REAL real time strategy. I recommend picking up a couple of books. The Art of War is great for starters, but it was written during the Warring States period and it's primarily Taoist perspective is best suited to guerilla action and hence would make great source material for Rebel SL's. The Empire is closer to Soviet and Roman methodologies like the huge block formations you see in AOTC and huge formations of TIE fighters, etc.