Re: Platoon Leaders in SG2

Allan spake thusly upon matters weighty: 

> On Thu, 23 Apr 1998 13:04:57 +1000, "Glover, Owen"
<oglover@mov.vic.gov.au>
> wrote:
> 
> >The 6" distance for commands is in scale to 60 meters, which is a
> >reasonable distance to shout commands. 12" to 24" is 120 to 240
meters.
> >So outside of this distance all communications are by radio; so why
does
> >the distance reduce the number of squads the Pl Comd can communicate
to?
> 
> It's just a game thing. 24" is pretty easy to remember, it's a
multiple of 6,
> and it represents about 250 metres. It's an attempt to push the
commanders
> closer to the front. It's within radio range, but the entire
battlefield is
> within radio range. After 100 metres, seeing what's happening to your
troops
> is difficult. 
> 
> I suppose another option would be to say that low tech troops must be
within
> 12" in order to transfer actions on a 1:1 ratio, but do away with the
24"
> limit. It's just a thought...

Also, curiously enough, if you look at "Aliens" and the like, it may 
well be that units are linked by .1 to .3 Watt digital radios, which 
means anything up to a couple of kms could be within normal comms 
range. We don't currently harness this level of comms, but it is 
becoming more feasible (technically - perhaps not operationally, but 
I suspect that will change) by the day. 

Note that 'Warzone' (or was that 'Killzone'?) took this into effect 
by giving initiative modifiers to the units in 'headset' contact. Now 
they weren't so much concerned with intersquad comms, but that isn't 
a far stretch of the imagination (nor is the digital exchange of 
tacdata from helmet gear). 

I suspect that a 'comms roll' should almost not be necessary in most 
normal EM environments. I realize there is radio proceedure to be 
executed between squads, and that it isn't just a random blather, but 
I think this is pretty straightforward with modern comms and even 
half trained squad leaders. (Although it does add neat elements to 
the game....)

Tom. 
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