HALO/HAHO operations and paratroopers

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Coffe
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HALO/HAHO operations and paratroopers

Post by Coffe » 19 Jul 2014, 13:06

Some thoughts occurred to me after reviewing some opinions and reports from different factions at the latest game.

It seems that the Raven and Orlov truce gave the enemy factions a very hard time added with the fact that the Ravens and Orlovs both had substantial access to mechanized support, making it difficult for mostly infantry based units among the GCT and PMC's to complete their missions (and during some days: even get out of their basecamps due to Raven and Orlov prescence just outside the camps).

BE made a very hamfisted and decision to remedy this. Gamemasters forbade the Ravens to deploy as much forces in Guyana as they might have wanted to.

Frankly I don't think the Guyana forces or the Lerando forces enjoy such solutions. I mean if I was with the PMC forces or the GCT I would feel like I was being treated like a defenceless baby if GM's gives me "crutches" like that. It's as if the GM's would say: "Oh well you plainly suck so bad that we have to go and stack the deck in your favor in order for you to succeed with anything." (insulting to say the least). And naturally Raven command didn't like getting their hands tied over how they could deploy their own forces.

I think a more fun approach would be to bolster the capabilities of factions who aren't doing too well rather than hogtieing their opponents in order to establish some kind of "easy mode" for them.

I don't know if it was actually implemented this year (I only heard rumours and speculation), but one way for the GM's to do this would be simulated HAHO/HALO-jumps for the factions who are having trouble with leaving their basecamp in order to complete missions. Gather up a platoon in some GM trucks, drive the "jumpers" to their chosen dropsite and let them dismount with deathrags on and allow them to spawn there in x number of minutes. (to symbolize that it's a HAHO-jump, enemies shouldn't be able to shoot the jumpers while dismounting since in reality they would be jumping out of an aircraft at high enough altitude that no infantry could reasonably engage, hence the deathrag+spawn time procedure)

This way the struggling factions will probably have more fun (nothing is more fun than doing operations smack in the middle of enemy territory after all), and the dominating factions will have to divert forces in order to adapt to circumstances where entire enemy platoons or even companies just "pop up" in areas of the map thought to be secure, so they can't as easily sit outside enemy basecamps and "spawncamp" other factions into submission.

The HAHO/HALO-concept could also form the basis for interesting objectives on the map (airfields, AA-missile silos/turrets that prevents drops in a certain area etc.).

We might not have access to real aircraft, but that shouldn't prevent us from PRETENDING that we do, if it could make the game more fun, right? :)

I don't know if the concept has been used much before. I've been to 4 berget-games in total, and I remember we got "airdropped" last year, but we had to use vehicles from our own factions mechanized vehicle pool to do it. It would be good if BE could supply the vehicles only used as off-game taxis for this purpose so that a factions HAHO/HALO-capabilities doesn't require player-owned vehicles to pitch in.

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MrMedic
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Re: HALO/HAHO operations and paratroopers

Post by MrMedic » 21 Jul 2014, 12:12

I kind of like this idea.

However, if paratroopers drop in behind the line and no one knows about it they will be pretty much just walk around unopposed, which is basically kind of boring, no opposing players means no fights, no risk, no excitement etc. The alternative would be for the "dominating force" to post sentries all over the map, which means a lot of guard duty and we're back to boring.

If we go with the airdrop but then also supply all sides with "radar", meaning that GM's will inform of either flight paths or dropzones so that forces can be sent to the right spot when (or actually shortly after) needed then this would turn a bit more usefull. Do three drop simultaneously, one with only a squad each and one with a company, the enemy won't know which drop is the real one and will have to send forces either by mech or by foot to investigate.

When you get airdropped you can expect opposition and when you are out looking for parachutist you have a decent chance of actually finding something, but you have no idea of what you will find.

More fights equals more fun, right?
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Coffe
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Re: HALO/HAHO operations and paratroopers

Post by Coffe » 21 Jul 2014, 14:38

MrMedic wrote:I kind of like this idea.

However, if paratroopers drop in behind the line and no one knows about it they will be pretty much just walk around unopposed, which is basically kind of boring, no opposing players means no fights, no risk, no excitement etc. The alternative would be for the "dominating force" to post sentries all over the map, which means a lot of guard duty and we're back to boring.

If we go with the airdrop but then also supply all sides with "radar", meaning that GM's will inform of either flight paths or dropzones so that forces can be sent to the right spot when (or actually shortly after) needed then this would turn a bit more usefull. Do three drop simultaneously, one with only a squad each and one with a company, the enemy won't know which drop is the real one and will have to send forces either by mech or by foot to investigate.

When you get airdropped you can expect opposition and when you are out looking for parachutist you have a decent chance of actually finding something, but you have no idea of what you will find.

More fights equals more fun, right?
I'm glad you brought all of this up because I was itching to adress it. :)

It will of course fall on the GM's responsibilities to act as "radar", BUT in order to have access to radar you need what? Why a radar station of course! Boom! There we have ANOTHER potential location/objective to put on the map to make the game more interesting :)

The good thing about a radar station is that it's location can be pretty arbitrary due to radar technology needing higher groundand such, so while the GM might give reports from the radar station in the basecamp, the radar station itself can be located pretty far away, making HQ having to consider what to do with it. Do they send forces to guard it or abandon it? Will the enemy make it their priority to destroy it in order to send HAHO-jumpers more covertly?

Of course, drop-aircraft can be spotted as it travels along the roads (I think the trucks ferrying the jumpers to their dropsite should have signs displaying that they are acting as drop aircraft, so troopers in the field can report which direction they are travelling) but having an intact radar station should give complete coverage making it a valuable asset and target as well.

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Re: HALO/HAHO operations and paratroopers

Post by Tiger_1 » 21 Jul 2014, 22:14

Not for me to be against more military missions. But remember that to many locations means places to attack and take out, that means a lot more guard duty, that the average airsofter does not enjoy....so most such strategic locations must be close to a main base (so can be guarded by main guard unit, redusing guard force)

AirDrop has been a part of the game since b9 right? By that I mean being able to drive attacking units to a location off game and then jump out and start your mission. (If not my reporting of helicopters moving around the airspace during B12 makes no sense)
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Coffe
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Re: HALO/HAHO operations and paratroopers

Post by Coffe » 22 Jul 2014, 05:01

Tiger_1 wrote:Not for me to be against more military missions. But remember that to many locations means places to attack and take out, that means a lot more guard duty, that the average airsofter does not enjoy....so most such strategic locations must be close to a main base (so can be guarded by main guard unit, redusing guard force)

AirDrop has been a part of the game since b9 right? By that I mean being able to drive attacking units to a location off game and then jump out and start your mission. (If not my reporting of helicopters moving around the airspace during B12 makes no sense)
There's been some use of it, but to what extent I don't know. I remember being airdropped once during B11, but A. We had to use our own vehicles for the purpose (if airdrops is an in-game feature I think it would be better if BE did the driving with the vehicle used as taxis) and B. We were playing as Ravens and didn't really "need" to do the airdrop (we just did it for the heck of it and dropped down behind the GCT basecamp and attacked them).

I felt that during certain times in B12 the PMC and GCT factions should've gotten a few airdrop opportunities in order to complete some missions in Lerando, rather than trying to drive or footslog all the way (which many had trouble doing seeing as how they had Ravens or Orlovs waiting right outside their basecamps some of the time). It would've been a better way to handle an "underdog-situation" from BE's side, rather than forcing the Raven players not to deploy anything more than a company inside Guyana. Or in other words: give the underdogs more toys and opportunities rather than taking away toys and opportunities from the dominating factions.

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