The Conservative Cave
The Bar => The Lounge => Topic started by: SSG Snuggle Bunny on July 10, 2012, 08:37:24 PM
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No, I'm not going to be an ossifer. m r medic.
They're doing what is known as lanes: practicing various skills, tactics, and doctrines. They're mostly supposed to be practicing how to receive an operations order, glean what is relevant for their particular element, formulate a plan and execute. Eighty percent of what they get graded on will occur before they ever hit their line of departure.
The lane I'm parked at 5 OpFor (Opposing Forces personnel) are supposed to meet the OCs (Officer Candidates). Hostilities are supposed to escalate and once it turns into a firefight the OCs are under orders to break contact; the skill they are supposed to be practicing.
Sunday, the first iteration ended with a handshake. So much for the scenario objective. Being part Irish I consider myself an expert on how to start a fight. So...
...I talked the OpFor into summarily executing the young medic who was accompanying me. It created the requisite level of tension and became so popular it is now the scenario for that lane.
In fact, the OCs were so discombobulated the 5 OpFor dominated a squad of 12.
Today was different.
Today me and my medic were both on the chopping block. The responses are always different but you learn real fast want constitutes dominance and what doesn't. What tweaks people mentally and what they will shrug off.
In 2 of the 4 iteration, 1 or both of the hostages bolted for the Americans. In the earlier iterations once the hostages died the OCs had no compunctions about assaulting but if a hostage was suddenly in their care they were willing to fire but mostly to cover a retreat to get the hostages to safety.
One time after being executed I took a stray paint ball to the right eye. I was wearing a mask but even then it takes a while for the ringing in your ears to subside. Once the scenario indexed (ended) an OC came up to me and asked if I had been hit during the firefight. I showed her my mask with the big green splooge over the right lens and then asked her, with a knowing glower, how she knew I had been hit.
"I'm a really bad shot, sergeant," she offered sheepishly.
I told her to push and not stop until she makes O-4 (Major).
In another iteration we saw the effects of too many chiefs and not enough indians.
OpFor approached with their weapons slung and were trying to be relatively friendly (intel said they should be friendly local police). As they approached one of the OCs leveled his weapon. The OpFor stopped dead in their tracks and complained to the squad leader, showing their hands were empty. I don't know where it came from and the offender never admitted it but someone on the OC side fired a round. All hell broke loose. That was the iteration where the OpFor dominated. It is amazing how a force outnumbered 2:1 facing an enemy that had the drop on them could still roll them up so decisively.
[youtube=425,350]Ff5DlpZiMZ0[/youtube]
The last 2 iterations today the OCs dominated before the first shot was ever fired. They had the spacing. They held the flanks. They kept OpFor at a distance. They communicated. When the shooting started it wasn't a staccato response but a singular wall of projectiles filling the air.
My young private was hyper-charged on the drive back to the billets. She had a blast and wanted to give up her day-off tomorrow just to go back out.
We're trying to bring 'em up right for y'all.
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It's good to hear that the Officer candadates are picking it up.
Paint balls? don't they use Miles gear anymore?
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Paint balls? don't they use Miles gear anymore?
For smaller schools and such paintballs are cheaper and easier to maintain.
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Not to hijack your thread but when I was a part of the 1313th engineer corp we were participating in an exercise that included some armoured infantry folkes...M-103 AFVs I think, I don't recall what unit it was or what strength.
It was at Atterbury, I think they were gearing up for operation Iraqi freedom, anyway a couple of other mechanics and me got back to our camp a little too late (we missed chow and the rest had moved out).
We were in Miles gear, I don't know if the Armoured Infantry types were but we decided to go cross country to get back to our "line".
We didn't see a damn thing that whole night and that is about how long it took to get back but it sure was exciting.
Correction: Not operation Iraqi freedom but Desert Storm.
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Not to hijack your thread but when I was a part of the OPFOR Bn (1/4 Inf Regt at Hohenfels) we got tasked with providing COB (Civilians On Battlefield) practice for USAREUR units headed into the catfight in ex-Yugoslavia.
One particular week I was "Mayor" of "Ubungsdorf", one of the better MOUT 'dorfs on HTA.
First few days we spent smokin'-n-jokin' while the OCs (For us, that was "Observer Controllers"- umpires, if you will) watched the BlueFor to see if they would twig to our presence and check us out. We were instructed not to observe noise and light discipline, or make any use of cover and concealment; the second day I had a couple of the guys taken back to change into more colorful civvies. About the only thing we didn't-- couldn't-- do was light campfires. BlueFor did doodly.
When the OCs got tired of this they "suggested" to the BlueFor leadership that the village over there might be hiding some combatants, or just be a bunch of hungry scared "Danubians" in need of rations or rescue. So, we got boxes of MRE's and rides in and on Bradleys until the OC's called Change of Mission, and told that particular batch of BlueFor to eff off somewhere else. Then told me to line everybody up into a gaggle and stagger non-tactically back to Ubungsdorf, because there was another bunch of BlueFor doing a motor march across our path in a bit.
That's when somebody did a major no-no. (BTW we had MILES body harnesses over our civvies.) As we approached the crossroads, about 200m ahead, a BlueFor Bradley came across from our right and lit us up with the turret gun. Ever hear +/-20 sets of MILES all go off at once? Yeah.
Another day and a half sitting around the 'dorf, and then ENDEX.
Good times.
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Ever hear +/-20 sets of MILES all go off at once? Yeah.
That's awesome, I was so hoping that an M-103 with its 50 cal and its disembarked troops would come over the next ridge or out of a tree line and engage us.
It didn't happen, I imagine everybody was in the rack but us three dufusses out walking around in the woods.
Heh...seriously though we were trying to be real tactical and would probably have died a glorious death.
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FTX's and such are always fun for somebody. You just never know what will happen. When I was still in the National Guard we went to Ft. Chaffee one year to take on the Arkansas Guard for the first time. After we had set up about nine fighting positions and foxholes the OC's had the Ark Guard come at us at dawn's early light. They hit the wire and got bunched up(big no no that) and they only managed to take out the majority of the squad I was with because the SAWs jammed or they got hit with MILES shots. I was on the backside of the objective and had an M-16 with my 3-9X variable powered scope on it. They still bunched up at the breaching point so I started taking them out one at a time including a British exchange soldier that was part of their group. When all was said and done I got credit for taking out only 8 of them out of a platoon that attacked. I shot twice that many but they had rigged the miles gear not to go off. Still the OC.s made them redo the whole thing the next day but the Head OC took me out before it even started. Ass.
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I always watch a soldier's gait if they've been on their feet for a while. Today I see this one walking funny.
Sgt SB: How're those knees doing, candidate?
OC: Just fine sergeant.
Sgt SB: Really?
OC: Yes, sergeant.
Sgt SB: 'Cuz I see you walking funny.
OC: It's because my knees hurt, sergeant.
...
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Yep, he'll make a fi-i-i-ine lieutenant.
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I always watch a soldier's gait if they've been on their feet for a while. Today I see this one walking funny.
Sgt SB: How're those knees doing, candidate?
OC: Just fine sergeant.
Sgt SB: Really?
OC: Yes, sergeant.
Sgt SB: 'Cuz I see you walking funny.
OC: It's because my knees hurt, sergeant.
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Yep, he'll make a fi-i-i-ine lieutenant.
At least he's not a whiner.
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At least he's not a whiner.
They start their final 2 week phase on Friday. They're scared shitless of getting bounced. They can finish Phase III within 12 months and still commission but they've chewed through so much already they just want ot over with.
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Whenever one of the instructors wants to summon an OC they call out that candidate's name and the rest of the OCs repeat that name in unison until the summoned replies.
Instructor: Dixon!
All OCs: Dixon!
Medics: Dicks out!
All OCs: Dixon!
Medics: Dicks out!
Instructor: ****ing medics.