NS Military Realism Consultation Thread #4

[The Nuclear Fist]

So confusing. So company anti-tank squads should have a mix of recoilless rifles and Spike missiles? I mean, I maybe could just issue them the Spikes, since there are already 2 RPG-32s per squad.

PROTIP: You're not going to be able to make a magical super-squad that will perform perfectly under every conceivable condition. Rain will do the same thing to your enemy.

Ah, I usually forget that.

[Immoren]

Of course there are medics at company level, but you asked about company HQ ;-)

Wouldn't medics be attached to company HQ?

I have tmen part of supply and service platoon of the company, but you can do what you want.

I'd think dumb rockets and recoilless rifles wouldn't care about rain.

So confusing. So company anti-tank squads should have a mix of recoilless rifles and Spike missiles? I mean, I maybe could just issue them the Spikes, since there are already 2 RPG-32s per squad.

spikes are enough for company level. what at weapons company has boils to budget and tactics and terrain. And etc

[The Nuclear Fist]

Thanks, everyone. I appreciate the help.

[New Vihenia]

I think I remember critiquing it.

But anyways, is radar beamriding really up to the job? While there is no doubt monopulse tracking is accurate enough to track the target, the beamrider doesn't benefit from that. Which raises the question of how the beam is modulated, historically conescan radar was the method of choice because the conical scanning modulated the beam on transmission, but is conescan radar really accurate enough for this purpose?

http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/c954460.pdf

Yes, though i'm still not have a clear indication on how.. Thus i'm looking for reference like Iron Fist.. But none so far in my search.

The paper does outline some important problem related to the missile. However that is made before the era of phased array radar, it clearly outlines problem related to the multipath which affects accuracy of the missile. However this can be reduced through careful design, and minimization of sidelobe. (though not all and i haven't touched multipath yet though apparently it's been adequately solved with Iron Fist and emergence of some SAM's like Pantsyr, granted that they're command guidance instead of beamrider, nonetheless they have similar tracking problem.)

And phased array can emulate conical steering if necessary by its beamsteering (As it has practically no inertia due to lack of mechanical devices) and still get into monopulse for accuracy.

Furthermorewith phased array the beam can be prevented from "going below the horizon" to reduce error tracking associated with multipath and to prevent loss of track.


Nonetheless this might need better modeling which i don't have right now.

Another problem encountered historically with beamrider missiles was the difficulty of capture, especially at low angles. In the 1950's it was determined that missiles would end up as much as +/- 5-7 degrees off center at the end of their boost from the rail, and that a capture beam wide enough to cover this area would be too wide to function when engaging low-angle targets. The inclusion of an INS seems to be mandatory, if you want to be able to be able to capture the interceptor at very low angles with a narrow beam.

We may have compromise in this case. Another thing in mind is to use laser, though this is essentially make thing looks ugly.

And finally, manual mode seems kind of superflous. Is any crewman really going to be able to command detonate an interceptor accurately enough to kill an ATGM in flight, let alone an APFSDS?

obviously this is not for engaging ATGM. but basically some sort of "self defense" mode against other form of threat.

As iron fist.. i do consider loading other form of munitions in the APS container.

[Primordial Luxa]

How long do usually snipers operate for?
Im trying to judge how much food and supplies I should have my squads carry.
Does anyone have any advice on this sort of thing?
I was thinking a 5 man squad of two marksmen, two rifle men, and a sergeant, that would either be deployed via drop or small personal vehicle.

[Dewhurst-Narculis]

Depends on mission usually, could be a few days to a few weeks

[Anacasppia]

Is the Visby's composite hull material ('a PVC core with a carbon fibre and vinyl laminate') a viable one in general, and would there be any difficulties in using it for a far larger ~10,000 ton ship?

Bump.
*looks at Akasha*

[The Nuclear Fist]

So at company level, I've got this so far:

HQ:

1x Company Chief w/radiotelephone
1x Company Assistant w/radiotelephone
1x Provisions Commissar (Equivalent of Quartermaster)
1x Forward Observation Commander w/radiotelephone
2x Medics w/radiotelephone

3x 52-man platoons
1x anti-tank squad
1x HMG squad
1x Sniper team

Does that sound alright?

[The Nuclear Fist]

Playing with the idea of using biological warfare as an area denial weapon. Thought process being that if my forces are being kicked out of an occupied area and we stand little chance of getting it back soon, spreading disease infected pests or some other thing amongst the area might be an idea worth considering. Or if an offensive is bogging down and it is unlikely an area will be taken, doing the same thing. Or perhaps dropping them on enemy headquarters/food supplies when there isn't a great chance of wiping it out in one blow.

[Velkanika]

Playing with the idea of using biological warfare as an area denial weapon. Thought process being that if my forces are being kicked out of an occupied area and we stand little chance of getting it back soon, spreading disease infected pests or some other thing amongst the area might be an idea worth considering. Or if an offensive is bogging down and it is unlikely an area will be taken, doing the same thing. Or perhaps dropping them on enemy headquarters/food supplies when there isn't a great chance of wiping it out in one blow.

Anthrax spores can persist in the soil in a dangerous state for decades. It's also a bastard to get rid of them once they're there unless the weather and natural climate cooperates perfectly.

Use denser than air oil-like chemical weapons for enemy supply depots. VX is pretty much optimal for this.

[The Nuclear Fist]

Playing with the idea of using biological warfare as an area denial weapon. Thought process being that if my forces are being kicked out of an occupied area and we stand little chance of getting it back soon, spreading disease infected pests or some other thing amongst the area might be an idea worth considering. Or if an offensive is bogging down and it is unlikely an area will be taken, doing the same thing. Or perhaps dropping them on enemy headquarters/food supplies when there isn't a great chance of wiping it out in one blow.

Anthrax spores can persist in the soil in a dangerous state for decades. It's also a bastard to get rid of them once they're there unless the weather and natural climate cooperates perfectly.

Use denser than air oil-like chemical weapons for enemy supply depots. VX is pretty much optimal for this.

I already use VX heavily for things like that. Rustonian (that's my nation) doctrine calls for unrestrained use of chemical weapons in wartime; VX, mustard gas, phosgene, and sarin being the most commonly used.

I was just thinking of using bioweapons, such as anthrax or perhaps pneumonic plague infected fleas or rats as a way to deny an enemy an area long term.

[The Nuclear Fist]

Thought: Is a specialized anti-air squad at the company level possible? I'm imagining a squad divided into teams equipped with MANPADS.

[Krazakistan]

Thought: Is a specialized anti-air squad at the company level possible? I'm imagining a squad divided into teams equipped with MANPADS.

It'd be much easier to simply issue MANPADS to your company HQ and have them use it.

[The Nuclear Fist]

Thought: Is a specialized anti-air squad at the company level possible? I'm imagining a squad divided into teams equipped with MANPADS.

It'd be much easier to simply issue MANPADS to your company HQ and have them use it.

So issue individual MANPADS to the Company Chief, Assistant, both Medics, the Provisions Commissar, and the Forward Observation Commander?

[The Nuclear Fist]

Well which MANPADS would you suggest equipping HQ with?

[The Akasha Colony]

Thought: Is a specialized anti-air squad at the company level possible? I'm imagining a squad divided into teams equipped with MANPADS.

Strictly speaking, you shouldn't really need it, but otherwise issuing it to company HQ with the possibility of authorizing it for use at lower levels is best if it must be issued. But normally, it's just carried by the company command and only pulled out as needed, since it's rather hard for other officers to go about their jobs when lugging a MANPADS around. This is normally what you have dedicated anti-air units and actual air cover for, though.

Well which MANPADS would you suggest equipping HQ with?

Pick one. At this point, we're basically writing your military for you. The differences between types aren't extreme so just pick a reasonably modern one.

Playing with the idea of using biological warfare as an area denial weapon. Thought process being that if my forces are being kicked out of an occupied area and we stand little chance of getting it back soon, spreading disease infected pests or some other thing amongst the area might be an idea worth considering. Or if an offensive is bogging down and it is unlikely an area will be taken, doing the same thing. Or perhaps dropping them on enemy headquarters/food supplies when there isn't a great chance of wiping it out in one blow.

Bioweapons are even more unpredictable than chemical weapons, which are already of limited utility on the battlefield. If you infect the local fauna and they happen to start moving outward pushed by war or natural migration, then you have a problem. Someone or something crosses a border or gets on a plane with an infection and starts infecting a neutral country and now you've pissed off the entire international community.

And if you can drop something like that on an enemy position with a wide enough spread to ensure contamination, you could deploy something much more deadly, like conventional ordnance instead. Why wait a few days for the enemy staff to start feeling the effects when you can take them out now?

[The Ashkenazi]

I already use VX heavily for things like that. Rustonian (that's my nation) doctrine calls for unrestrained use of chemical weapons in wartime; VX, mustard gas, phosgene, and sarin being the most commonly used.

I was just thinking of using bioweapons, such as anthrax or perhaps pneumonic plague infected fleas or rats as a way to deny an enemy an area long term.

Bacteria and viruses have this nasty habit of ignoring borders, frontlines, etc. If given the opportunity, these will spread into the local civilian populace, which will disperse it as they flee from your advancing enemy. This makes them fickle weapons, and ones that are not ideally suited for use anywhere near your homeland. Anthrax is particularly troubling, because it could survive long after the war's end - even a protracted conflict. IMHO, biological weapons should only be used against population centers in your enemy's homeland, where they pose minimal threat to your own people.

If you did still want to go the terrain denial route with your bioweapons, anthrax is probably your best bet. Vaccines are possible for anthrax, and it would thus be conceivable to inoculate large portions of your population (ideally everybody) against your weaponized strain of anthrax, making it possible to use with lower risk on your own territory. In its dormant state, anthrax does not do much reproducing and therefore shouldn't mutate to the point of rendering your vaccine ineffective very quickly. Anthrax also survives for a really long time in this dormant state, making it quite persistent. Of course, even if you inoculate your entire population with 100% efficacy, it will still be a huge threat to livestock. Plus a nation-wide inoculation campaign is a big intelligence risk, and would cost a ton of money.

I wouldn't consider other bio-weapons for this role, because they don't generally survive long enough without a host to be a long-term terrain denial weapon.

[The Nuclear Fist]

I already use VX heavily for things like that. Rustonian (that's my nation) doctrine calls for unrestrained use of chemical weapons in wartime; VX, mustard gas, phosgene, and sarin being the most commonly used.

I was just thinking of using bioweapons, such as anthrax or perhaps pneumonic plague infected fleas or rats as a way to deny an enemy an area long term.

Bacteria and viruses have this nasty habit of ignoring borders, frontlines, etc. If given the opportunity, these will spread into the local civilian populace, which will disperse it as they flee from your advancing enemy. This makes them fickle weapons, and ones that are not ideally suited for use anywhere near your homeland. Anthrax is particularly troubling, because it could survive long after the war's end - even a protracted conflict. IMHO, biological weapons should only be used against population centers in your enemy's homeland, where they pose minimal threat to your own people.

If you did still want to go the terrain denial route with your bioweapons, anthrax is probably your best bet. Vaccines are possible for anthrax, and it would thus be conceivable to inoculate large portions of your population (ideally everybody) against your weaponized strain of anthrax, making it possible to use with lower risk on your own territory. In its dormant state, anthrax does not do much reproducing and therefore shouldn't mutate to the point of rendering your vaccine ineffective very quickly. Anthrax also survives for a really long time in this dormant state, making it quite persistent. Of course, even if you inoculate your entire population with 100% efficacy, it will still be a huge threat to livestock. Plus a nation-wide inoculation campaign is a big intelligence risk, and would cost a ton of money.

I wouldn't consider other bio-weapons for this role, because they don't generally survive long enough without a host to be a long-term terrain denial weapon.

Oh, I wasn't planning on using bioweapons anywhere close to my own nation. That would be a horrible idea. But in a faraway land with dirty, uncivilized foreigners Rustonians don't care about? Fair game.

[Arkania 5]

Ebolapox gogogogogogogo

[The Nuclear Fist]

Well which MANPADS would you suggest equipping HQ with?

Pick one. At this point, we're basically writing your military for you. The differences between types aren't extreme so just pick a reasonably modern one.

Eep, didn't mean to cause any offense, friend. I just don't know much about military matters, unlike you fine folk, so I thought I'd ask. I know even less about equipment.

[The Akasha Colony]

Oh, I wasn't planning on using bioweapons anywhere close to my own nation. That would be a horrible idea. But in a faraway land with dirty, uncivilized foreigners Rustonians don't care about? Fair game.

In relative close proximity to your own troops, who will probably be returning home at some point?

The problem here is that it is basically just turning into WMDs for WMDs sake, and no longer because they are tactically or strategically useful. What suddenly rendered the simple minefield ineffective as an area denial weapon? In fact, the enemy could conceivably simply stroll through your anthrax field by donning NBC gear, whereas they would have to slowly clear corridors in a minefield at great time and expense.

Eep, didn't mean to cause any offense, friend. I just don't know much about military matters, unlike you fine folk, so I thought I'd ask. I know even less about equipment.

I didn't either but the internet is a wondrous place, with all sorts of information out there. I use my library's databases for NS research more often than for actual academic research.

[The Ashkenazi]

Bacteria and viruses have this nasty habit of ignoring borders, frontlines, etc. If given the opportunity, these will spread into the local civilian populace, which will disperse it as they flee from your advancing enemy. This makes them fickle weapons, and ones that are not ideally suited for use anywhere near your homeland. Anthrax is particularly troubling, because it could survive long after the war's end - even a protracted conflict. IMHO, biological weapons should only be used against population centers in your enemy's homeland, where they pose minimal threat to your own people.

If you did still want to go the terrain denial route with your bioweapons, anthrax is probably your best bet. Vaccines are possible for anthrax, and it would thus be conceivable to inoculate large portions of your population (ideally everybody) against your weaponized strain of anthrax, making it possible to use with lower risk on your own territory. In its dormant state, anthrax does not do much reproducing and therefore shouldn't mutate to the point of rendering your vaccine ineffective very quickly. Anthrax also survives for a really long time in this dormant state, making it quite persistent. Of course, even if you inoculate your entire population with 100% efficacy, it will still be a huge threat to livestock. Plus a nation-wide inoculation campaign is a big intelligence risk, and would cost a ton of money.

I wouldn't consider other bio-weapons for this role, because they don't generally survive long enough without a host to be a long-term terrain denial weapon.

Oh, I wasn't planning on using bioweapons anywhere close to my own nation. That would be a horrible idea. But in a faraway land with dirty, uncivilized foreigners Rustonians don't care about? Fair game.

Ah. I misunderstood when you said terrain-denial. In that case, my vote is for weaponized Shigella and Cholera. Release it into the water supply of any densely-populated area, sit back, and watch the shitstorm as it unfolds. Pun definitely intended.

EDIT: Anthrax is far more likely to escape the filtration process, and isn't susceptible to chlorine and other typical decontaminants. Source if your interested.

[The Nuclear Fist]

In relative close proximity to your own troops, who will probably be returning home at some point?

The problem here is that it is basically just turning into WMDs for WMDs sake, and no longer because they are tactically or strategically useful. What suddenly rendered the simple minefield ineffective as an area denial weapon? In fact, the enemy could conceivably simply stroll through your anthrax field by donning NBC gear, whereas they would have to slowly clear corridors in a minefield at great time and expense.

Alright, good point. I suppose I hadn't thought it out thoroughly, I had some half formed idea about using them in urban areas or against enemy crops and cattle. You know, making folks sick so the enemy has to expend resources keeping people from dying. I guess I should have realized there were better ways to deny an area.

I didn't either but the internet is a wondrous place, with all sorts of information out there. I use my library's databases for NS research more often than for actual academic research.

I can't really go my local library with any sort of ease. I guess this just seemed easier than hunting for the information myself. Look, I didn't mean to annoy or anything. You all shouldn't have to do all the work, I should try and use the thread a bit more sparingly. I get it.

[The Akasha Colony]

Alright, good point. I suppose I hadn't thought it out thoroughly, I had some half formed idea about using them in urban areas or against enemy crops and cattle. You know, making folks sick so the enemy has to expend resources keeping people from dying. I guess I should have realized there were better ways to deny an area.

Deployed against enemy population centers, they may serve a purpose. But as it was being described, it was being used as a tactical or even strategic area denial weapon, meant to impede the progress of enemy military forces presumably by rendering an area impassible. WMDs won't do that since NBC gear can be brought out relatively easily (most modern AFVs have some level of NBC protection), so a minefield that has to be manually cleared is more of an obstacle. Against civilians with no defense, it can be effective over time, but won't really 'deny' the area to the enemy if they simply need to move through it. They can't sit there and chillax very easily without enacting decontamination procedures, but moving through it temporarily to assault your flanks wouldn't be a problem.

I can't really go my local library with any sort of ease. I guess this just seemed easier than hunting for the information myself. Look, I didn't mean to annoy or anything. You all shouldn't have to do all the work, I should try and use the thread a bit more sparingly. I get it.

I use my university library, so I can log in anywhere online to access the databases. I've only been to the library once to actually do research (been there a number of other times to use it as a general-purpose workspace though). I wasn't necessarily saying that you should stop asking questions, simply that the questions should be a bit more targeted toward complex issues for which things like Wikipedia do not really suffice.

[The Ashkenazi]

TNF! Ricin coated bullets! Do eet.