Planning in Combat Mission: Mission Analysis

 

Edited June 17 to include link to Combatintman's excellent writeup on planning in CM

Introduction

Planning is critical to success in Combat Mission. Reading the mission briefing (something a surprising amount of people proudly admit to never doing) and understanding the briefing are extremely important but are only the first steps to succeeding. Combat Mission, much like real life, does not hold your hand.

There are a bunch of great resources out there that I highly recommend checking out. Bil Hardenberger’s blog should be mandatory reading for any CM player. It contains examples of tactics, techniques, and procedures from the real world applied to great effect in CM. There are also historical applications, AARs, and even collected anecdotes. It is a fantastic resource.

As previously mentioned in my Key Terrain Vignette, the Armchair General videos on YouTube are a fantastic resource as well. Done by a former US Army Infantry officer, they walk through basic tactical fundamentals and use real world tactics to fight and win battles against human opponents. Highly recommended for a visualization of how its all supposed to look, done by someone who has been there and done that.

At the end of this writeup I include a bunch of additional resources and examples, so stay tuned!   

Planning Procedures

Planning procedures are guides, or frameworks, used to aid commanders and their staffs in developing and executing plans. Put another way, they are procedures that are used to determine what specific missions need to be conceived and executed in order to accomplish some larger goal. I’ll briefly cover just two here to give the reader insight into the structure of what helps develop a plan.

The first planning procedure is employed by the US Marine Corps and is known by the acronym BAMCIS. BAMCIS stands for Begin planning, Arrange reconnaissance, Make reconnaissance, Complete the plan, Issue the order, and Supervise. Begin planning means asking questions. What is my commanders intent? Where are the bad guys? What do they have? What type of terrain is present in my area of operations? Etc. Arranging recon seeks to develop ways of answering those questions. Things like establishing patrols, making contact with the enemy, and building an intelligence picture. Make recon is carrying out those actions. Complete the plan is compiling the information collected by making recon to make a clear, coherent plan that reflects the reality of the situation on the ground. Issue the order simply means briefing your subordinates on the completed plan, and supervise means making sure everyone is doing the right thing while executing the plan.

The second planning procedure is employed by the US Army and is known simply as Troop Leading Procedures (TLP). It is a list of steps that is designed to help leaders develop a plan quickly and efficiently. It shares a lot in common with the Marines’ BAMCIS.

Troop Leading Procedures:

1. Receive the mission

    1a. Being told what the mission is, usually in the form of a warning order (WARNO), fragmentary order (FRAGO), or operation order (OPORD)

2. Issue a WARNO

    2a. This is where the commander lets his subordinates know there is a new mission. It is a brief description of what the mission is and other relevant information.

3. Make a tentative plan

    3a. This can be summarized as making initial preparations that will be necessary to finish a complete plan

4. Start necessary movement

    4a. Self-explanatory

5. Reconnoiter

    5a. Begin developing the intelligence picture of the battlefield (IPB) and answer critical questions (Where is the enemy? What can he do? Etc)

6. Complete the plan

    6a. Compiling the information collected by making recon to make a clear, coherent plan that reflects the reality of the situation on the ground.

7. Issue the completed plan

    7a. Brief your subordinates on the completed plan.

8. Supervise

    8a. Make sure everyone is doing the right thing while executing the plan.

Generally speaking, these planning procedures have already been done. The player enters the scenario at step 8 in TLP, or Supervise in BAMCIS. You have been issued a mission briefing (TLP step 7/BAMCIS I) and are now tasked with supervising (playing the game). These planning procedures are what generates the information present in the scenario briefing. Put another way, the scenario designer does TLP when he comes up with the concept for the scenario he designs. So what is the player responsible for?

Planning Framework for Combat Mission

The workflow for planning how to play a scenario in Combat Mission can be broken into four parts and are done in order. They are:

1.      Receive OPORD/WARNO/FRAGO

2.      METT-TC

3.      OKOCA

4.      Enemy Course of Action (ECOA)

Receive OPORD/WARNO/FRAGO:

This is the mission briefing. Ideally, it tells the player what his mission is (goals and commanders intent) what he can expect to fight against (intel on the enemy present) what type of troops and support he has, perhaps some supporting information or how the mission fits into the big picture, and any special considerations that should be kept in mind. Mission briefings are not always perfect. Sometimes they are incomplete on purpose, whether it is to simulate a FRAGO (a mission briefing that has been hastily thrown together, for example in a scenario where the player starts by being ambushed) or simply to increase the difficulty on the player by restricting the amount of information he starts with. With all things, there are examples where the mission briefing is simply poorly written and does a bad job of explaining what the player is supposed to do and/or what he may be up against. While not ideal, this does happen in the real world. Best to take this in stride and indulge in a bit of roleplaying. Besides, the following steps in the planning workflow help mitigate a bad briefing.

METT-TC:

Put simply, METT-TC is an acronym that leads a person through the process of analyzing the mission. METT-TC stands for:

M: Mission
E: Enemy
T: Terrain and weather
T: Troops
-
T: Time available
C: Civilian considerations

Mission is the distilled essence of the mission briefing. Specific objectives (take hill 123 or occupy objective red) and commanders intent (be on objective red, with no enemy present, without taking more than 40% casualties). It is very important that you know and understand what is being asked of you in the scenario, and that you orient your planning and analysis towards accomplishing the tasks given to you.

• An example of this is a counter reconnaissance scenario in which you have to preserve your force against an enemy attack while also preventing the enemy from spotting the majority of your units. It might be easy to just set up a series of battle positions and engage the enemy in direct fire engagements, but that would result in a failed mission because the enemy would be allowed to spot your forces. Defeating the enemy without using your direct fire assets in an overt way defines how you accomplish the mission.

Enemy is what you are up against and what capabilities the enemy has. What do you anticipate to come into contact to and where. It is very important to remember that this is a constantly evolving variable. It starts as an educated guess based on initial intel given in the mission briefing, and is filled in throughout the duration of the scenario as you develop the battlespace (come into contact with the enemy). 

Terrain and weather is somewhat self-explanatory. This is a basic understanding of the environment you have to fight in. Things such as rain, muddy fields, rivers or waterways, and build up areas are all important to note as they will have a fundamental impact on how a mission can or cannot be accomplished.

• Note: Technically, OKOCA can be done as part of this step. Personally I prefer to split it out into its own step, as terrain analysis is so vitally important to success in Combat Mission. But for brevity sake OKOCA can be done here if you so choose.

Troops is an understanding of your entire combat formation. Not only is it knowing what unit you are commanding and when your reinforcements arrive, it is an understanding of the capabilities you have under your command. What is a Bradley Fighting Vehicle? What weapons does it have? How can those weapons be employed against the enemy? What is the job of the Bradley, and what is the Bradley vulnerable to? Understanding the specific capabilities and limitations of your weapons and equipment is critical. Further, understanding the morale, training, motivation and leadership of your men is just as, if not more important than equipment and capabilities. The best equipment in the world can end up being useless if manned by an inexperienced, badly led, and unmotivated conscript. In short, know the quality and capabilities of the men and equipment you are leading. 

Time available is very important to Combat Mission as it is a time-based game. All scenarios have a time limit that the player must work within to accomplish the mission objectives. A good plan that accomplishes the mission objectives in the given amount of time is always better than a perfect plan that fails to come to fruition before the clock runs out.

Civilian considerations are generally only present in Combat Mission Shock Force 2. They appear as things such as preserve objectives on religious buildings, where the player is punished for firing on/destroying a protected building. This can also affect how well enemy combatants blend into populated areas. Missions with a high civilian density will make it harder to spot enemy combatants and assets such as car bombs. Unless otherwise stated, civilian considerations generally do not apply to Combat Mission.

By completing a METT-TC analysis the player should have a full understanding of the mission and its objectives, the larger context, as well as friendly troops and at least some understanding of enemy capability.

For a good resource on METT-TC, check out this website.

Bil has a great writeup of how he conducts METT-TC, complete with his signature map graphics and a number of examples he pulls from AARs he has done in the past.

OKOCA

OKOCA (also known as OAKOC and KOCOA) is similar to METT-TC. It is an analytical tool used to analyze and understand terrain, but in a military context. OKOCA stands for:

O: Observation and fields of fire
K: Key terrain
O: Obstacles
C: Cover and concealment
A: Avenues of approach

Observation and fields of fire are open, easily observed areas that can also be covered by fires. Things like an open field, a forward slope, or a long wide street are all examples of terrain features that are easy to observe down and cover with direct fire weapons.

Key terrain is defined by the US Army as “Some terrain feature (natural or manmade) which, if controlled, will give a marked advantage to whoever controls it.” For a more detailed breakdown of what key terrain is, its significance, and a practical example of how important it can be on a battlefield, check out this post I did a few months ago.

Obstacles are both man-made (minefields, tank ditches, barricades, barbed wire, etc) and naturally occurring (a wide river, a cliff, a canyon). They are objects and terrain features than inhibit or prohibit freedom of movement. Some obstacles only apply to certain assets, such as tank traps stopping armor but not infantry.

Cover and concealment range from single pieces of terrain (such as bushes, rocks, trees, etc) to entire terrain features (such as hills, valleys, wadi’s, rivers, etc) Cover is anything that prevents the enemy from being able to shoot you directly. A sandbag wall between two soldiers is cover because, if covering behind it, it blocks bullets (generally speaking). Cover also tends to block line of sight (observation) as well. Concealment generally only blocks line of sight. Hiding behind a bush or drywall is concealment because an observer cannot see you, but if the observer knows you are there he can still fire through those objects and strike you. It is possible to be both covered and concealed, a good example being infantrymen crawling down a ditch that keeps them both out of direct fire of enemy weapons as well as out of line of sight. But it is important to remember that concealment is generally not cover. A bush, or tall grass, or even a shadow will not stop bullets.

Avenues of approach are areas that are conducive to maneuver. They are generally relative to the type of force you have (mechanized vehicles or dismounted light infantry as one example) and relative to the mission. A mission relying on speed with require an avenue of approach that facilitates hasty maneuver, whereas an infiltration will need an approach that provides cover and concealment. A very obvious example of an avenue of approach is a roadway through woods, or a highway through a town. Of course this is relative to both you and your enemy’s capabilities. If you primarily have a dismounted force, then moving through woods is likely a preferred avenue of approach because it provides you with some level of concealment, as opposed to walking down an open road. A long wadi can also provide a good, covered avenue of approach for both vehicles and infantry. On a larger scale, an avenue of approach would be a valley through a mountain range.

By completing a OKOCA analysis the player should have a full understanding of the terrain. This understanding should inform your most likely Course of Action (COA) as well as the most likely disposition of enemy defenses. It is my opinion that executing a proper OKOCA analysis and developing a full understanding of the terrain is the most important skill required to play Combat Mission successfully.

For a good resource on OKOCA, check out this website.

Enemy Course of Action (ECOA)

With the mission and terrain analyzed and understood, it is time to “flip the map” and look at everything from the enemy’s perspective. Putting yourself in the shoes of the enemy and trying to imagine what they might do given the mission, terrain and bigger picture can give you critical insight. By understanding what the enemy is likely to do (or more appropriately what the enemy must do given terrain restrictions) you can come up with a better plan. This method is commonly referred to as “looking at the chessboard from the other side.” If the enemy has to attack you but the only avenue of approach is over an open field, then you know where to position your defense. Conversely, if the enemy is defending and you see obvious pieces of terrain that make ideal defensive positions, you can devote artillery and/or air support to strike these positions and orient your attack so that it is not caught off guard by them.

It is important to remember that you will not always be right. Determining ECOA’s is the delicate art of making an educated guess. A sensible opponent will know you are doing this and will attempt to catch you off guard by not taking the most obvious COA. Regardless, always remember that terrain dictates. If the entire battlefield is one big open field, you probably do not need to worry about some bold flanking maneuver utilizing a concealed route. Understanding the larger picture can also help determine what you are up against. If the mission is a breakthrough against a fortified enemy, you can expect a dug in enemy, obstacles, and fortifications. A mission that occurs after a breakthrough might be much more fluid, against an unprepared and possibly weak enemy force. 

Practical Application

To summarize, the planning process should start with reading and understanding the mission briefing. Do a METT-TC analysis to understand the mission and its objectives in context as well as your own forces and capabilities. Then do OKOCA to analyze and understand the terrain you are fighting over. Finally, look at the map from the enemy’s perspective to determine his most likely COA.

Doing these four steps should result in a thorough understanding of the mission, the terrain, the troops and equipment you have available to accomplish your objectives, and an educated guess on what the enemy will try to do to stop you.

The next step is to make your maneuver plan and fires plan (which should be mutually supporting). Maneuver and fire plans deserve their own writeup and thus are beyond the scope of this writeup. However, once you understand your mission, your troops (including supporting assets) and the terrain, you should have both a good idea of how to maneuver and where to direct your supporting artillery/air support.

For some practical examples, check out these AARs I have done in the past, here and here. Bil Hardenberger is arguably the pioneer of both analytical AARs and the fantastic graphics that go along with them. He has done multiple public beta AARs preceding the release of a new CM title. A collection of those AARs can be found here. Rinaldi (who I affectionately refer to as Bizarro Miller) runs his own blog that is chalk full of great, analytical AARs. They are well written and contain both excellent analysis and graphics. Both Rinaldi and I are very much following in the footsteps of Bil and attempt to emulate his style in our own ways. A newcomer to both Combat Mission and AARs is Beeron. He has made a few very high quality AARs that include some of the best screenshots of CM I’ve ever seen. His two most recent AARs can be found here and here. Combatintman from the CM forums also has a fantastic writeup on the planning process. For video AARs I would recommend checking out Josey Wales and Usually Hapless on YouTube. They both have high quality content that is both enjoyable and educational to watch. Another relative newcomer who is making great content is YouTuber BlueBallZ, who I recommend checking out as well. Finally, another plug for the Armchair General videos.

All of these are great places to look to see how missions can be planned for and analyzed to produce successful outcomes. It is by no means a complete list. If you think I have omitted anyone, it was not on purpose! There are a ton of great AARs and resources out there, including many that involve other tactical level simulators such as Steel Beasts. If there is an AAR or writeup out there that really helped your understanding of how to plan for a mission, feel free to leave a comment with a link to it!