RE: [SG2] [DS2] A list of questions on TOE and logistics

Michael spake thusly upon matters weighty: 
 
> Anyone in logistics got a suggestion? I'd take the following guesses:
> 1. Initial operting supplies should be at least a month of operations 
> (this represents depoting for a bad outcome, not supplies one expects 
> to use because supplies should start arriving immediately). 
> 2. Some tentative numbers: 
>	Initial supply: Multiply all CP of the force x2. This represents
all 
> the Kit not seen on the battlefield. For examplemy 1450 Batallion 
> would have another 1450 in tents, etc. etc. This includes the  
> month depoting of supplies. 
>	Resupply: Each month, consumption will be 
> 
> In Hot/High Tempo situation: 50% (lots of expendables plus 
> replacements)
> 
> Maybe 75%
> 50%?
> 33%

Wow. A modern army eats a lot of stuff... (burns it, whatever). Now I 
know why Napoleon said an Army moves on its Stomach. That will demand 
a big logistics commitment. Makes fleet to fleet actions seem 
somewhat pointless compared with attacking supplies. Makes attacking 
a planet much nastier as SDBs and such can hide in the outsystem or 
gas giants and pop out to attack your weakly defended shipping.... 
goodbye supplies, hello world of hurt on the ground...

> You are staring to talk like a Pro.

Thanks. Although I did make a mistake in quoting about 1450 Cap 
Points for a Batallion. If I add in your logistics info, and remember 
we probably want 10% of our force awake to plan and to get the 
other up at the destination (the other 90% can be shipped as 
fishsticks for 1 CP per body), they eat 4 CPs per guy for space. So a 
more realistic figure for the men and gear of an infantry batallion 
is about approx 850 men (includes engineers, medics, logistics, air 
defence, EW, snipers, arty, and vehicles and guns) and also recalling 
that vehicles take 8/5ths their capacity to ship, the real figure is 
about  2750 CPs. 

That means you should look at shipping (If we figure a month of 
high-tempo supplies is 75% of that mass, and we add in another 50% 
for other gear like tents and all the crap I haven't accounted for) 
2842... call it 2850 CP for an entire infantry (mechanized) batallion 
with organic add ons (minus air and anti-armour of the vehicular 
type which might be present). And montly supply ships for a high 
tempo war would have to carry 2131 points worth of supplies to keep 
replacement levels up in a hot war (or 1425 in regular operations, or 
938 CP in conservative operations). That translates to 

Initial Deployment (10% awake to plan, 90% fishsticks, 1 month high 
tempo supplies): 114 FT Mass.
Resupply: Hot War: 86 FT Mass, Normal 57 MP, and Low 38 MP. 

I don't know what a standard freighter carries (in cargo mass) but 
this should give you some idea how many are needed to move a 
battalion (I can, if asked, provide my composition figures roughly). 
It should also let you know how many ships/runs are needed a month to 
resupply this force or how much of a force in orbit you will want to 
keep as a 'floating supply depot (but this is a tempting target for 
SDBs or raiders)". 

Just my 0.02 on campaigns. Goes to show that only a small percentage 
of the total mass required is spent shiping line troops and APCs. The 
rest is spent on the logistics and other special requirements of war. 

Tom. 

> "Amateurs talk of tactics, Professionals about Logistics"  
> I can't remember who said this.

Someone had a good one from a German WW2 general about the 
'realities of war' which had little to do with battles, weapons 
and tactics and more with morale, hunger, lack of supplies, fear, etc 
 
/************************************************
Thomas Barclay		     
Voice: (613) 831-2018 x 4009
Fax: (613) 831-8255

 "C makes it easy to shoot yourself in the foot.  C++ makes
 it harder, but when you do, it blows away your whole leg."
 -Bjarne Stroustrup
**************************************************/