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Hasty AAR: Rahadnak Valley Search (USMC)


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Sitrep @ 9:43

So far so good. For the most part of the mission, my Marines were able to achieve local fire superiority upon enemy contact. Almost each time. I intend to keep this trend until the end of the scenario. The pockets of resistance here and there that I encounter are quickly dealt with, all thanks to Marine TO&E and target area isolation. I can target most of the buildings from multiple sides at the same time, and most of the outer ones with heavy weaponry. So as soon as the enemy is spotted, there's little chance for it to escape.

Elements of the 3rd Platoon on point:

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Encounter with survivals of the previous firefight:

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In the mean time, 1st Platoon is seconds away from storming Obj Vasquez:

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2nd Platoon assembled and lined up along the Obj Rick:

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Fire & maneuver of the 3rd Platoon continues:

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LAR Platoon's LAVs create an additional entry point in preparation before storming one of the Obj Jones compounds:

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Sitrep @ 9:46

Wow, I am amazed by what's happening right now. The way my Marines handle the firefights is just majestic! Even though quite a lot of them are regular level troops, and many being morally depressed (cautious or scared, borderline panic).

1st Platoon entered the Obj Vasquez compound without any resistance. No contacts so far. But their AAV was attacked by an RPG guy from the Obj Phelps. The RPG gunner missed though, and was killed by AAV's quick return fire. The vehicle commander was up on the turret, unbuttoned.

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2nd Platoon meets very small resistance as it moves through Obj Rick.  Just a couple of guys that were dealt with surprisingly well at a disadvantageous situation for my Marines (they were out in the open, while the enemies were inside the building and fired at them at almost black range. But the Marines killed both and then cleared the house completely.

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Remember that compound at Obj Jones that my LAR Platoon dismounts were about to storm? The one where I created additional entry points in the walls. I am specifically forbidden to fire indiscriminately at the buildings if I'm not fired upon from them. So I was not firing at the buildings, just made some holes in the walls, nothing dangerous, let me assure you.

However, the enemy might not even be aware of this. He opened up early and fired at one of my LAV-25s. It was a near hit (not direct). Small damage to LAV's wheels, but everyone's OK. LAV commander was unbuttoned when the RPG hit nearby, and he immediately closed the hatch afterwards and directed the gunner to open up on the building with 25mm. And I think we've killed the guy who fired the RPG.

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Also, now I can freely hose the building with lead before entering.

Now unto the most action heavy part. 3rd Platoon's adventures. Remember the plans I wrote on the previous page? So far I'm sticking to it.

2nd and 3rd Squads have reached the northern end of the planned route, the one with a burning car in the yard. They've uncovered multiple enemy groups and are in the middle of a vicious firefight. They are to stay there and will cover 1st Squad's movement.

1st and Assault Squads are crossing the road, moving to the southern side of the Obj Phelps. They will blow a hole in the wall and will proceed clearing the southern side of the Obj Phelps. It might take a while, and I'm afraid that I'd need additional manpower to be sent to the southern side, but we'll see.

The fighting is going very well so far. I'm proud of my little pixeltruppen.

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2nd & 3rd Squads of the 3rd Platoon exchange lead with the enemy:

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Edited by L0ckAndL0ad
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Sitrep @ 9:50

Alright, it's the final stretch!

1st Platoon has finished securing Obj Vasquez! Overall, starting from the entry point, there were no enemy units at all. Which is great, because 1st Platoon has suffered enough already.

2nd Platoon has finished securing Obj Rick! There were also very few enemies during the assault. I suspect that most of the enemy southern force have died at Obj Morty. Was there something in USMC MOUT docpub/manual about defense that said you should not have lots of troops in forward positions? They are needed there only to force the enemy to deploy his forces earlier and to stall him. Oh well.

There's a lowland area to the north of 2nd Platoon, called "Green Zone". I will send a couple of squads there to keep increasing the pressure on the Objs Phelps and Jones from SE direction.

3rd Platoon is doing great so far. But as I suspected, there are too many buildings on the southern side of the road, and I need additional manpower to clear them. For that, I'm deploying a smokescreen to let one more squad move across the road. Additionally, I will move up parts of the 1st Platoon there to relieve defensive line (overwatch/BoF units), which will allow the 3rd Platoon to continue moving as a whole unit.

LAR Platoon took 5 WIA casualties storming the compound I talked about earlier. Damn hand grenades are deadly. This is totally my fault, because I've failed the fire & maneuver principle.  I was not firing at the building. I was relying on my troops to fire by themselves upon contact. Very dumb on my part, especially after I specifically said that "now I'm free to hose this house with lead". Yeah... 

Screenies time. 1st Platoon exercises "Top to Bottom assault" by moving over the roof into the adjacent building (just as in @IanL example from the previous page). There were no enemies there though, but still, just wanted to show you how I use this method myself:

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3rd Platoon's adventures:

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LAR Platoon dismounts assault the compound:

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Some other enemy at Obj Jones tried to fire LMG at LAV-25's unbuttoned commander (but missed and will get whacked on the next turn):

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My current situation and imaginary (not 100% guaranteed to be accurate, as in with blown up AAV earlier) front line/line of control. 1st Plt is to move up to 3rd. 2nd to continue move north into the Green Zone:

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Edited by L0ckAndL0ad
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Sitrep @ 9:53

Multiple enemy units tried withdrawing further NE through the alleys, and pretty successfully. LoS in MOUT is rather limited at ground level. Oh well.. 

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At this point I suspect that Obj Phelps (older boundary reference) is free of enemy forces, but I'm yet to actually finish clearing every single building. 3rd Platoon:

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2nd Platoon got eyes on the Green Zone and starts clearing it. One contact immediately pops up and gets neutralized. Enemy MG was hidden among the trees, ready to ambush my Marines. My positioning was better though:

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LAR Platoon dismounts tried using the compound they've captured to get a glance at nearby buildings. Bad idea. Kind of. They were immediately fired upon from a nearby building. Were suppressed and unable to return fire. All vehicles in the vicinity are tasked with providing support for them.

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Sitrep @ 9:54

1st Platoon reinforced the 3rd. It took defensive positions but also sent one squad across the road to help clearing the buildings. All the enemy forces I'm in contact with are in Obj Jones area. Elements of the 3rd Platoon who are currently advancing NE on the northern side of the road are valiantly crossing the open area under enemy fire while being supported by other Marines. Fire & maneuver is the name of the game.

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Overview:

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At this point, I've pretty much isolated the Obj Jones and gained a foothold there. Unfortunately, as I suspected, I will not be able to clear the Obj Jones in time. Therefore, from this point on, I'm focusing on force preservation. LAR Platoon dismounts are unable to capture the second compound as planned due to casualties. But even so, I was able to identify several enemy positions and can target them with fire from multiple directions. Coy HQ with FO team have set up at Obj Vasquez, but I won't be calling in neither Cobras nor the mortars. No time for that. One of the key points in the briefing was ammo preservation, so there's that too.

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Ha-ha! I totally forgot about Ellen's cat! But, unfortunately, no. Nice try though!

 

Jones and Phelps in question are not parts of the Alien franchise. And are not related to each other directly. But do have something strong in common. Oh, alright, and one of them is a fictional US Marine. They are both fictional characters, from completely different franchises. That's enough hints for today :)

Edited by L0ckAndL0ad
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Really digging this AAR man!  Entertaining and I'm learning some too.  I kind of struggled with marines in SF1 at first but they were always one of the most fun to play due to the massive firepower available at platoon level.  I think I have this scenario and may give it a go soon.  Good luck With the rest.

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1 hour ago, homewrecker said:

Really digging this AAR man!  Entertaining and I'm learning some too.  I kind of struggled with marines in SF1 at first but they were always one of the most fun to play due to the massive firepower available at platoon level.  I think I have this scenario and may give it a go soon.  Good luck With the rest.

Agreed it's an excellent AAR. Interesting to see how players tackle this one.

I reworked this one for CMSF2 bit larger map, rejigged BLUEFOR OOB and totally revamped RED AI plan using triggers. So might be worth considering keeping your powder dry for the revised one?

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41 minutes ago, George MC said:

Agreed it's an excellent AAR. Interesting to see how players tackle this one.

I reworked this one for CMSF2 bit larger map, rejigged BLUEFOR OOB and totally revamped RED AI plan using triggers. So might be worth considering keeping your powder dry for the revised one?

Glad to hear this, George! I’ve been toying with playing this like home wrecker, but I’ll wait for the updated one.

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1 hour ago, George MC said:

Agreed it's an excellent AAR. Interesting to see how players tackle this one.

I reworked this one for CMSF2 bit larger map, rejigged BLUEFOR OOB and totally revamped RED AI plan using triggers. So might be worth considering keeping your powder dry for the revised one?

Thats awesome!  But i may now have an itch that must be scratched.  But perhaps on a different scenario seeing as there are many in my scenarios folder i simply never got into.  Had fun with the SF2 demo marines scenario, really looking forward to your reworked version.

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Sitrep @ 9:56

Force preservation. Right. Little did I know...

3 WIA, 1 KIA. My Marines, who were advancing over an open field. The field with quite a few dead enemies lying around. Who tried to do the same thing. Oh dear...

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Scout Sniper fired a shot from M40A3 rifle at not fully visible contact. Units do that sometimes. But that's the first time I'm seeing a sniper do that. Wonder if he actually hit anyone.

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New hint: Phelps is from California. Jones is from NYC. 

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Sitrep @ 9:58

It's not over yet! As soon as the message about our recent Marine losses hit the net, every local commander of what seems to be the United States Amphibious Demolitions Corps gave the order to increase the volume of fire upon the enemy. The guys that I haven't used that much in this battle in their direct fire role, the SMAW gunners of the assault teams, targeted enemy HQ in the building.

ON MY COMMAND! BACKBLAST AREA SECURE! ROCKET!

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I haven't forgotten about my TOW humvees! 

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Work of the wrecking crew:

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New hint: Phelps is male, Jones is female. Oooh. What a mystery. 

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On 12/1/2018 at 6:36 AM, L0ckAndL0ad said:

Scout Sniper fired a shot from M40A3 rifle at not fully visible contact. Units do that sometimes. But that's the first time I'm seeing a sniper do that. Wonder if he actually hit anyone.

Love using experienced snipers.  You can check his kill results if this was a campaign.  (Not sure if one can in a scenario.)  With a Crack or Elite sniper unit it's a lot of fun to give it waypoints with 5-10 second pauses then have him crawl away to a 2nd firing position.  The guy will usually get a kill, then move away, then at the next waypoint and pause he kills again, then crawls away etc.  

Good DAR - thanks...

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  • 2 weeks later...

Sitrep @ 10:02

So, the battle rages on. I can surely use some additional time to move my forces around. Despite the casualties.

Enemies on both sides of the main street opened up on my forces. I mean, I think pretty much all of them. I have no contacts outside of the built up area. Not in the Green Zone (or even NE further from it), nor on the NE corner of the map, which is still in enemy's hands. Because there are trenches there I will not even think to assault with my LAR Platoon. More so, I don't even need to  do anything in that area. Only the village is my concern and responsibility. I do have the road leading out of it in my sights, so anyone trying to sneak out would have a hard time doing so.

2nd Platoon's fire from the south have forced most known enemy units on the southern part of the road to run away north. I guess they're simply doing this in panic.

The guys that smacked my LAR Platoon dismounts simply refuse to die. I leveled ALL the buildings in their compound. And they're still alive and kicking. I managed to maneuver some units into position to deal with them, but it's not 100% to succeed, given their track record. Also, there are enemies right in the street who I also need to deal with, so my forward-most units have their hands full. Will see how it goes in the next minute or so.

Survivors still resist and fight back:

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SMAW guys opened up on an enemy contact and made a big bada boom:

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Further maneuvering:

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Do you own the entire SF1 collection? If so, the SF2 upgrade with everything is only 35 bucks. SF2 upgrade + 1 title (Marines in the case of this AAR) is only 25 bucks. But I get it if you are broke. Trust me. Things are incredibly tight for me right now. SF2 was actually given to me as a gift (I won't embarrass the gifter unless they want me too LOL.). I wouldn't have been able to acquire it for quite a while, otherwise. I wish I had the money, I'd set you up, as a Christmas gift! Anyway, hope you can get it soon.

 

Mord.

Edited by Mord
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Like I've said, it's kind of complicated. Yeah, I've got SF1 with all the modules, but they were published by a local, Russian, publisher. So it's not compatible with recent upgrades, and probably won't ever be. So I need the full new package now to get the upgraded version. And although it costs a small fortune in my local currency, and I got recently fired while still trying to save money to get off from this em... sierra hole island I still reside on, Steve kindly offered to help me with this by promising a copy. He seems to be really busy lately, so I wanted to wait for some time before actually bothering him and following through with his offer. And I'm not yet done with this AAR anyway. We're 2 minutes past the mission end time, so it's supposed to end any turn now, but my opponent is also really busy and the turns flow very slowly.

So, I'm gonna get there eventually. No worries.

And while we're getting over RL stuff here, I'd like to tell you folks that I chose to go back and refresh my programming skills, took several online course of Game Design and C# in an attempt to try out if I can become an independent game developer. Together with my long delayed escape attempt from the peninsula, it seems as hard as climbing Everest, but at least it's what I find true enthusiasm for. Oh, and 10 years after the last attempt, I revived my board and came back to skating. I suck at it, but it's a fun way to stay in shape, which is essential for people who sit in front of a PC all the time.

Oh, and happy holidays, folks!

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Sitrep @ 10:04

There seem to be a difference in morale of various enemy groups. Some desert under pressure, some won't even move away under heavy crossfire. I think I've dealt with all of the enemies in the rubble pile. But it's impossible to say for sure without clearing that particular compound. Which I am unlikely to do any time soon.

I was wrong about the enemy presence on the southern side of the street. There are still some units present. And elements of the 2nd Platoon, who made it there through the Green zone, are about to storm their positions. The approach is made from reverse slope (+ low wall somewhat masks my Marines), so I'm not sure how visible they were while running up. I am rather hesitant about giving direct firing orders in that area for any of the units, because it can very easily result in friendly fire or my units firing at the wrong area, both of which will lead to a catastrophic result, so I'm simply going to "step back and allow the Marines to do their job" ((c) some RL USMC AAR, I think).

The most distant enemy walled compound, which I knew was occupied from the very first minutes of the mission, became active part of the firefight. Four men appeared on the rooftop at the same time, and were immediately greeted by a wall of fire. Even 3rd Platoon's SMAW team which I moved up closer to the frontline fired a shot at them (with little result, though, but I think it at least suppressed them). I do certainly win the firefights due to superior unit count. At this point enemy simply cannot mass fires from more than a couple of teams at the same time. Also, there's nowhere for him to withdraw now, which makes the whole situation much more dangerous for advancing Marines.

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3rd Platoon's SMAW team reacts to enemy contact:

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Marines of the 2nd Platoon approach enemy positions from the southern flank:

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Edited by L0ckAndL0ad
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