[swaghauler]

Originally Posted by CDAT

If I had a real complaint with the game, it would be how they simplified down so many of the Military Occupations/skills. I understand on some level why they did, but some of the things just scream to me that they had no idea what they were talking about.

Some examples of things that they simplified down that I understand. Driving tracked, just because I can drive a tank does not mean that I can drive a Bull Dozer, but you either have to make it one skill or you end up with hundreds and that does not work. Same with the weapons, At Basic (OSUT to be 100% accurate) I was trained on the M240 (Mag MG), when I went to PLDC later I was put on the M60 for a time, this was the first time in my life I had ever seen one, and it was beat up had lots of issues. When I had to ask for a block of instruction on how to use it as I was not familiar with it, even though it was a US weapon and some units still had them. It was close to the M240 so I could fumble my way though if I had to, but some things were different enough that I would be hard pressed to do so under the stress of combat.

But then some of the things that they did that are head scratchers, US Army Support Arm Enlisted (V2.2). "This category is a combination of a number of noncombat arms (ordnance, quartermaster, etc.)" First term skills: Ground Vehicle (Wheeled)-2, Mechanic-2, What were they thinking this sounds like a mechanic at best not a support troop. When I was in for a lot of the support jobs you did not need to know how to drive, as that was not part of the job, then when you go on to the subsequent term skills they are Computer, Electronics, Ground Vehicle (Wheeled) [what about all the tracked cargo vehicles in use?], Gunsmith, Hovercraft [really], Instruction, language, machinist, mechanic, metallurgy, scrounging, small watercraft [one more really], Warhead. What about I don't know any of the ordnance [at least in the US this is where EOD falls] skills besides Warhead like Demo? What about the other unit skills? Things that they list as MOS [mostly infantry], but everyone in the unit is trained for, examples I know a cook who was part of Ranger Bat, guess what he was Ranger, and Airborne qualified but as a support troop in game can not happen.

This occurs quite often and I just correct it with the appropriate skills in the MOS Skill lists. Your example of Warhead is ironic since there really is NO "warhead" skill. In SPECIAL WEAPONS, we learned how to PROGRAM the warhead (Computer Ops?) as well as Demolitions to destroy it and some Electronics to repair any damaged "connectors" on the fuse. All of these skills would be combined into the Warhead skill in game but are different skills in real life. The protocols for Chemical warheads were entirely different and focused more on identifying damaged or defective rounds and assembling "binary" rounds to make them lethal (binary rounds have their payloads stored separately for safety). We also learned things like ALWAYS store White Phosphorous rounds vertically AND WITHOUT A FUSE (a wise idea with ALL rounds) to prevent spontaneous combustion of the round if it is jostled (because it is a base-ejection round).