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Greetings, this is Dslyecxi from the Arma community group ShackTactical.
In co-operation with Bohemia Interactive, I'm creating a series of videos to explain
some of the basics of Arma 3. Today we'll be talking about the principles of combined arms warfare.
The fundamental element of Arma's combat environment is the infantryman.
Everything else in the battlespace - be it armor, air, artillery, or other assets - is there to
support the infantryman in accomplishing their assigned mission.
When infantry and other elements work together, this becomes combined arms warfare. It creates limitless tactical
options, which we can only touch upon in this video. So let's cover some of the basics
and introduce you to combined arms warfare in Arma 3.
Infantry are the focal point of military operations. If you need to take and hold ground,
clear buildings and urban areas, or work in dense terrain, the infantry are who you turn to.
While they carry limited capabilities to defend themselves from armored and aerial threats,
it's always a dicey proposition to pose squishy, bullet-permeable soldiers against
well-armed and armored opponents. While footmobile infantry are slow, they're also capable
of being very quiet and stealthy - something vehicles generally can't match.
In contrast to infantry, vehicles are noisier, more heavily armed and armored, and have better
optics and far faster speeds. They make up for their lack of stealth by being extremely
mobile and hard-hitting.
When it comes to mission design with combined-arms scenarios, the best thing to remember is that
every element - be they infantry or a vehicle - should play a role. Keep it fun and engaging
for the whole team. Having one powerful element destroy everything may be fun for that element,
but it will be at the expense of the rest of the team. Be familiar with the strengths
and weaknesses of different types of assets, and place threats that require teamwork to defeat.
Finally, avoid single points of failure. If a vehicle is destroyed, the infantry should have
other options to continue the mission.
We'll go over several different aspects of the combined arms fight, starting with
the matter of simply getting to the fight: transportation. There are three basic methods
to use for this - either via ground, through the air, or at sea.
Ground vehicles come in a variety of forms, from armored or unarmored trucks, to armored
personnel carriers or infantry fighting vehicles, wheeled or tracked. A good infantry transport
will protect the passengers from small-arms fire and provide some protection against mines
or anti-tank weapons, while being armed sufficiently to defend itself as well as support the troops
once they've dismounted.
Ground transportation is used whenever the infantry needs greater mobility. While a short-range
attack probably won't require such transportation, covering large terrain areas is much more
viable with it. Having the transport vehicles armed with machineguns and grenade launchers
helps to give more punch to the unit overall, increasing their capabilities and effectiveness
against comparable threats.
Aircraft take the form of helicopter transports. These will generally be able to transport
a squad or more infantry, using their speed, mobility, and range to drop troops in locations
the enemy might not expect, or that could not otherwise be reached through ground transportation.
Helicopters generally have door guns for basic defensive purposes, though they can often
find themselves accompanied by dedicated helicopter gunships to support the transport aircraft
both during the flight and at the landing zone.
Aerial transportation is best used when the threat environment permits it. Flying through
an area with heavy anti-aircraft capabilities is to be avoided, as it only takes one good
missile strike to knock a helicopter out of the sky. Aerial transport allows troops to
bypass enemy strongpoints on the ground and strike from unexpected directions, as well
as rapidly reposition across large areas of terrain.
Whether working with helicopters or ground transportation, a few simple guidelines help
to keep things moving smoothly. First, leaders must keep accountability of their troops and
work to quickly load or unload vehicles when the time arrives. It's up to the senior member
of each infantry element to let the vehicle crew know that his troops are loaded
and ready to go, or have fully unloaded, freeing the vehicle to maneuver or leave the area.
Next, it's important for the overall infantry leader to choose landing sites or
dismount positions that are comfortably beyond the expected enemy threat range. It's better
to approach the enemy positions with infantry dispersed and moving tactically through the
terrain, rather than have everyone bottled up inside of transports, risking entire elements
being wiped out from a transport's destruction.
Seaborne transportation comes in the form of raiding and assault craft. Whether armed
or unarmed, these can rapidly drop soldiers onto coastal locations, permitting troops
to strike from the sea and quickly withdraw back to the ocean. It's best not to be taken
under fire in these, as the sea offers no concealment and a boat's hull is extremely
vulnerable to any enemy weaponry.
Moving past transportation, there are many different assets that can combine forces with
infantry during a battle. These fulfill a range of roles primarily relating to
fire support and reconnaissance.
On the ground, armored support - such as infantry fighting vehicles and tanks - are
significant force-multipliers for an infantry unit. Armored vehicles are capable of using
their powerful sensors to see things the infantry might otherwise miss, and can put fire on
targets well beyond the infantry's effective range, via cannons, missiles, and machineguns.
The relationship between armor and infantry is a mutually-beneficial one. The infantry
provide protection and security at close range, while the armor does the same at longer distances
or against heavier threats. Infantry can locate threats without exposing the armor to danger,
only calling them forward when a particular target is discovered and requires engagement.
Personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles can provide mobility to their troops, allowing
forces to be rapidly drawn out of dangerous areas or re-deployed to take
advantage of enemy weaknesses.
The heavy weapons of armored vehicles can be used to destroy hard points such as bunkers
or enemy-occupied buildings, as well as create breaches in walls to permit infantry to attack
from unexpected directions. Having armored vehicles over-watching the movement of infantry
can make for extremely responsive and accurate fires in the event that threats prevent themselves
against the infantry. Bringing an anti-aircraft vehicle along for a mission can act as a major
deterrent to enemy air forces.
Armored support is best employed to defeat comparable enemy threats, or when infantry
need significant overmatch capabilities to accomplish their mission. In short,
it's better to bring heavier guns than the enemy whenever possible. Armor must be carefully
considered against the capabilities of the enemy. If the enemy has numerous anti-tank
guided missiles, it might be better to hold back friendly armor until those missiles can
be neutralized by friendly infantry.
Aerial support offers the same basic capabilities of fire support and reconnaissance, but from
a unique vantage point that is able to see things that ground units may be unable to detect.
When the enemy threat permits it, helicopters can orbit friendly positions,
providing security to forces on the ground and giving early warning of any threats closing
in from a distance. These same helos can do route reconnaissance, flying along the path
that friendly ground units will be using and trying to locate any threats that might be
positioned in the way. Aircraft with doorguns can use these to scatter and harass enemy
infantry, or disable soft vehicles. When something with more punch is needed, having attack helicopters
in the area is a fantastic resource to draw from. Aircraft like the Blackfoot can use
their missiles to destroy even heavy enemy vehicles, while their turret-mounted cannons
can wreak havoc on lighter targets and enemy personnel. Rocket strikes can be employed
to destroy or suppress enemy forces and relieve pressure from friendly ground forces.
When operating with attack aircraft, infantry can use colored smoke to indicate both friendly
and enemy positions, helping aircraft direct their fire more accurately. At night, laser
designators can be used for the same purpose. Assigning an infantryman as the forward air
controller allows a single person to co-ordinate airstrikes and communicating friendly positions
to the aircraft, which helps to avoid friendly-fire and keeps both sides aware of what the
other one is doing.
Artillery support comes in two basic forms - that of man-portable mortars that the
infantry can bring with them, and that of larger cannon or rocket artillery that operates
from greater distances. Artillery allows for infantry to call in powerful munitions from
long range, striking targets from the sky with very little warning. These munitions
come in a variety of forms designed to destroy ground-based vehicle or personnel threats
as well as provide screening via smoke, illumination through flares, or deliver anti-tank or anti-infantry
mines on demand.
Artillery requires that someone on the front lines acts as a forward observer. This person
will be responsible for calling in artillery fire, communicating adjustments back to the
gun crews, and relaying damage assessments after each strike.
Due to the distances artillery rounds fly, it takes some time for the gun crews to determine
the correct settings, dial them in, and for the rounds to fly to their target. This requires
that the forward observer takes that into consideration. Targeting moving troops, for
instance, requires a good amount of forward-looking.
It's also important that forward observers keep a wide margin of safety around their
own troops. Calling fire should be done at a safe distance from friendly ground forces
whenever possible, to allow room for errors without having rounds fall on friendlies.
The bigger the munition, the larger that safety margin should be.
Artillery can be used to outright destroy enemy positions, but it can also be used to
suppress and mask them in order to allow infantry to maneuver. By carefully co-ordinating artillery
fire with troop movements, the enemy can be kept under suppression until just before the
assaulting troops arrive -- allowing them to make their final attack while the enemy
is still recovering from the shock of a shelling.
If you'd like more in-depth reading about combined arms, and other tactical concepts,
check out the official Arma 3 Tactical Guide - part of the Deluxe Edition and the available
standalone as well. For more Community Guide videos, be sure to subscribe to the official
Arma 3 YouTube Channel. For other Arma 3 updates, keep track of the official website, Facebook and Twitter pages.
If you'd like more in-depth tutorials on multiplayer gameplay of Arma 3,
and the previous Arma games, I'd also recommend you to check out my Channel here.
This is Dslyecxi and I'll see you on Altis.