Thread: Talkos' Manual of Arms for Arma

So inspired by Dyslexi's tactical guide, I figured I'd write out my own take and observations on things, oriented more towards our TPG style play and situation. (e.g. A lot of veterans of Wasteland and DayZ who have developed....well, bad habits for playing anything other than small sniper teams)


Talkos’ Arma 3 Manual of Arms and Table of Organization



Purposes of this Document
1. Create a database of unit practices to improve the combat potential of the Arma community at TPG.
2. Establish standard organizational structures for mission makers to create “TPG ready” missions
3. Give personal observations and comments on best practices for co-op and adversarial missions.

Individual Loadouts
This may come as a shock to those used to Wasteland or Dayz, but a good battle loadout for a regular rifleman going into heavy contact is around 300 rounds, or 10 magazines. The Sandbox style of Arma has trained us to all be guerilla snipers and very stingy on ammo usage. Why is this? Several reasons: 1. Ammo is scarce. Each magazine is likely to have meant a good amount of time and risk in finding. And while you can loot dead bodies it often comes with substantial risk or incompatible magazines. 2. Fights are between very small units. It is a rarity to have a fight between more than three or four individuals on each side at one time. 3. Most fights are actually ambushes. With the possibility of action all around you, and no set lines of battle, most firefights start with an alerted group firing on an unaware group. More bullets fired from the ambushers often only allows the ambushed to get a bearing on their position, if they survived the initial attack. 4. Gunfire attracts unwanted attention. Whether it is zombies or other bored players wanting a piece of the action, often the site of a gunfight will flood with third parties which are more than willing to attack those involved.

Why this does not apply to Arma beyond the Sandbox mode.
1. Ammo is scarce: A crate at base, a helicopter flying in supplies, an APC along with the ride, or enemy corpses. Ammo is no longer scarce, most Blufor and Opfor will be carrying their respective ammunition types, and resupply is highly probable. Ammo is plentiful, and it’s better to send 30 or 100 rounds out than to receive accurate return fire.
2. Fights are between very small units: Often times during missions one will find themselves in a firefight with a whole squad of enemies, as elements of a larger platoon or company. The engagements are bigger, longer, and with more possibility of reinforcements that are not third party individuals that may attack all present.
3. Most fights are actually ambushes: With larger units, there is a greater chance of reaction and moving on from the ambush stage of battle. Also, if there is a stated objective such as a base to capture or a stockpile to destroy, the defenders know the attackers are coming, and the attackers know the defenders are there.
4. Gunfire attacks unwanted attention: Gunfire does focus non-engaged units attention in the direction of gunfire, but one can assume that your enemy is in radio contact with the rest of their side. Also, other units may have their own objectives that they must pursue over simply engaging in a firefight out of boredom.


It is easy to burn through four or five magazines in a short but intense firefight, and be expected to continue the fight after that. Generally my rule of thumb is that one can easily run through two rifle magazines in a minute of intense fighting where rounds sent out counts more than accurate aim. Covering fire and suppression fire are things that are essential in skirmishes larger than two or three people running into each other in the woods. I generally find 6 magazines a minimum that one should enter a battle with, and often this ‘light’ loadout is going to be carried by the AT soldier. I have seen numbers as high as 20 magazines given to riflemen on longer missions. Ideally, the rifleman is carrying an excess number of reloads for his fireteam, that AT soldier who is loaded down with a full backpack and 3 extra rockets is going to need rifle reloads, the medic as well, who is likely loaded down with a medpack and first aid kits(not to mention smokes).

Real world military gear loadouts echo this to an extent, with somewhere around 200 rounds of 5.56 as standard. Once we include the other elements of a fireteam, this number ends up being adjusted upwards. Again, as ideally the rifleman will be carrying excess ammunition to be shared around as needed. Additionally smokes, GPs, grenades, and first aid kits will fill the available space.

A uniform and lite carrier rig will be filled to capacity with about 9 magazines in storage, 4 GPs, 3 Smokes, 2 frags, 2 chemlights, and 3 first aid kits. This fills up the load bar about 30-40% and allows just about 90 meters of full sprint before the player is winded(a fully unloaded soldier with only uniform and map makes about 200 meters of full sprint).

That same uniform and carrier rig for the autorifleman will hold about 600 rounds, 2 smokes, 2 frags, 2 chemlights and 2 first aid kits.

What gets interesting is when we have the AT soldier, an essential part of a fireteam if one is expecting vehicle contacts. They MUST carry a backpack for rocket reloads, their load bar goes up to 60-70% with the standard loadout of about 5 magazines, 2 rocket reloads, and sundry other items. Their run goes down to about 50 meters of full sprint.

Similar results are seen from other classes that more or less require a backpack to complete their jobs, the Medic, the Explosives specialist and the Repair specialist. While they can carry a few more magazines, their sprint range is under 100 meters and sometimes have a soft limit of about 6 magazines before they end up lagging severely behind their teammates.

What is the solution to this discrepancy? Distributing the load. By offloading one missile the AT soldier almost catches up with the march capacity of the rest of the squad. A rifleman picking up a backpack containing one rocket and a few magazines for the LMG will still be able to make about 80 meters of full sprint before having to slow.


Squad and Fireteam Organization

There are essential roles that make up an effective squad or fireteam, with primary roles and secondary roles. We will start with the fireteam.

Primary roles:

1. Fireteam leader : Provides leadership to the fireteam, leads assaults, coordinates with the other fireteams and squad leadership(if applicable). Directs the deployment of smoke to cover advances and retreats.

2. Autorifleman - Armed with a Light Machine Gun with the ability to deliver weight of fire upon enemies, they provide long range support with overwatch and covering fire for assaults, as well as suppression fire on targets.

3. Anti-Tank - Carries a launcher and rockets. Provides a way to destroy enemy armored vehicles, from light armored trucks to APCs and Tanks.

4. Medic - Carries a medpack and extra first aid kits in order to treat wounded soldiers and revive downed soldiers(if applicable, depends on mission settings).

Secondary Roles

5. Grenadier - Employs an underslung grenade fire to provide indirect fire upon enemies, and the ability to engage entrenched enemies in cover. Also allows for the deployment of smoke screens.

6. Assistant Autorifleman - Carries additional ammunition for the autorifleman as well as provides spotting support with magnified optics.

7. Designated Marksman - Provides accurate long range fire as well as covering fire for the fireteam.

8. Demolitions - Carries explosives in order to destroy fixed targets.

9. Repair - Carries a toolkit in order to repair vehicles

10. Assistant Anti-Tank - Carries extra rockets for the AT soldier.

Now, these roles can be combined in certain cases, and some are incompatible. Almost any of the roles can also assume designated marksman status with the addition of a high powered optic, for instance, and additional ammunition can be distributed throughout the team.

The Fireteam is generally the smallest autonomous fighting unit. Generally one wants it to be an even number, so that it may be split into a fire and advance team, additionally it should be able to absorb casualties and return its men to fighting order without being combat ineffective. Too small and it becomes fragile to casualties, too large and it becomes too unwieldy to control. 2 people could constitute a fireteam, but have a very low tolerance for casualties, and a lack of ability to escape being pinned. Additionally the roles it can fulfill become limited. 4 people to a fireteam is better, if one member is down, another member can treat while the others provide smoke and cover, but all forward momentum is stopped in an advance. It is however not a terrible set-up. 6 people to a fireteam allows a larger variety of roles and allows half the fireteam to continue to push on an objective even if one member is downed, letting 2 others of the fireteam heal and cover for that individual respectively. 6 members is probably the size limit before the fireteam becomes unwieldy. Secondly, 6 members is the maximum amount of people that can fit into the littlebird while still having an independent pilot and copilot(or empty seat). Any more than that and the squad is going to need to be split up in littlebird insertions. However do note that the 6 man fireteam does need to take multiple vehicles of the 4 seat variety(e.g. Hunters or Ifrits).

Some argue that medics should be a squad level asset, however in my experience, having medics as a fireteam level asset makes much more sense. Fireteams are often separated by a significant distance, and a squad level medic will mean that casualties will often go for some time without being treated, and that the squad medic will often need to cross dangerous territory in order to get in the right position.


Talkos’ Proposed Fireteam Structures for 4 man and 6 man fireteams.

4 Man fireteam
1. Team Leader / Grenadier - Good synergy with the ability to lay down smokes and HE rounds
2. Automatic Rifleman - Provides fire support and covering fire
3. Medic / Designated rifleman - Will be part of a buddy team with the Automatic Rifleman, hanging back to revive anyone that goes down.
4. AT / Demolitions - Carries limited AT capability, or satchel charges depending on the mission. Will form a buddy team with the Team leader to be close enough to engage any spotted armor.

6 Man Fireteam
1. Team Leader / Grenadier
2. Automatic Rifleman
3. Medic
4. AT
5. Assistant Automatic Rifleman / Designated Marksman
6. Wildcard - depending on mission parameters, can be an additional Grenadier, provide Demolitions, Repair capability if fireteam is mechanized, or carry additional ammunition for the specialists.


Squad Level organization
Generally infantry squads are composed of 8-12 individuals, however a certain element of the Arma community popularized the 15 man infantry squad, with a 3 man command element providing the medical needs for the fireteams. With the medical needs provided within each fireteam, this element becomes somewhat superfluous. Squad level command can now be given by a senior fireteam leader. This requires a good amount of autonomy and initiative on the part of the individual leaders, however it is my believe that the community here generally displays these qualities. Veterans of Battlefield 2 or similar are well used to moving to contact, and using their own initiative over small units to assault and take objectives.

Thus we have 2 options if we want a squad to be around 12 individuals. The 3 teams of 4, with a senior fireteam leader assuming command. It allows a double envelopment maneuver and the ability to assume a wedge type formation on the march. Or the 2 fireteams of 6, with a senior fireteam leader in overall command of the squad. While there is slight loss in maneuverability, the volume of fire and resilience to casualties are considerable boons.


Formation Fighting
1. Column or Ranger file - A simple follow the leader formation that allows people to get where they need to go. Not recommended for combat, provides very little firepower at the front, and is vulnerable to be ambushed. However it does have its uses, for example in following a small ditch or riverbed and maximizing cover.
2. Line - provides full firepower towards the front, but generally hard to maintain at anything greater than a tactical walk. Also may leave soldiers out of cover. A line is what a fireteam will usually naturally produce after coming into contact.
3. Wedge, provides a decent amount of firepower to the front. Greater leeway in positioning and making use of cover. Allows people to know very specifically which sectors they are going to cover. The wedge is what I use by default when leading a fireteam. It allows each teammember to have visual contact with another, and is easy to explain.


Platoon Assets
Platoons are formed when two or more squads worth of players are involved in a mission. Personally, I feel that if a mission is to have any more than 16 players, it should have platoon level assets, because playing with extra toys makes it FUN.

At the most basic, we have attached weapons teams. These can include things like a sniper/spotter team, or a 2 man static emplacement team(why 2? Because in Arma you need 1 person to carry the tripod and 1 to carry the actual weapon for the static guns and mortar). Next we have vehicle teams, an APC, armed truck providing fire support, or even an MBT. This can be a 2 or 3 man team, if one has a commander for the vehicle as well as a gunner and driver. But given the scale of engagements, I suggest that an MBT would likely be overkill, and to keep it to APCs or less. Which fits well with the 2 man combo. Close air support teams follow the same rule of thumb, usually with a gunner and copilot. Otherwise two pilots transporting the squad and then converting to pilots for the small armed helicopters or UAVs.

Note that there are some positions that some of you may be familiar with that weren't mentioned. Such as Forward Observer units, headquarters units, Anti-tank teams and Anti-air teams. With the availability of the various coms channels in Arma, I find that the forward observer duty can easily be taken over by any individual with some optics and a little bit of know-how. Having a dedicated slot for it is a bit superfluous at platoon level numbers. AT and AA capability is taken over at the fireteam level, much like the medic positions.

Once two or more squads are involved, then that is when I would suggest mission makers include a platoon level command element.

Coming soon:
Platoon+ level assets and deployment.

Good read Talkos very well thought out.