Nightlight
Deployed as Alpha Squad Leader
Okay, we've been assigned to work the high ground on the south of the valley. A1, you're going to take the building itself, A2 will spread out downslope to screen against anyone assaulting us from below. We'll bound to the next hilltop once Bravo is securely in the rocks, hooah? Hooah.
GAME START
...Fuck it's pitch black.
Oh, there's illumination arty! That... isn't always on, lasts but a few seconds, and apparently doesn't like player counts north of, I'd guess, five.
Host note: Every mission-maker goes through their "twilight" phase. This is a prime example of a clever game mechanic that leaves the game nigh unplayable when it isn't working, and works inconsistently because the multiplayer environment is very different from stress-less single player or low-player-count testing. This host would like to kindly remind people that there is a reason that we strongly strongly command you to not make missions that involve no NVGs and no moonlight. "Atmospheric" quickly turns into "Not fun" when you can't navigate in the dark, and there were significantly more "Not fun" periods in this mission than we like.
Anyways. I herded Alpha around the southern hillside for a good number of minutes before a Mora erased us from the map. The night-vis and thermals were disabled for those vehicles, right? Do I need to start Mak'ing people around here?
There's extra ire in this particular section of the AAR because one of my real-life friends was attending by my invitation and could only stick around for the Altis / Stratis portion of the session. If
Nightlight had been the only mission I could play during my first foray into FOLK all those years ago, I can't say I would have stuck around. We have mission standards for a reason.
Communication Breakdown
Deployed as Bravo 2 Fire Team Leader
Significantly more fun. Bravo landed some minutes after Alpha due to taking the indicated long way around for a better approach like the CO requested.
Another host note: If you're a pilot, please follow the route plotted by your CO. If you think you have a better route, ask the CO about it when he prompts for questions. If you still don't want to fly the route the CO indicated, then too bad - next time take the CO slot and you can pick whatever route you like.
Acting as security, Bravo 2 plodded through the forest and then murderized a few Syndikat trying to sneak up on us from downslope at the objective. Mounting back up in our choppers, we landed near Comms Bravo where we crept through the jungle, Bravo 2 murderizing a patrol that stumbled onto our sister Fire Team. Upon reaching the compound itself, we raked the place with fire, set some ludicrously powerful charges, and blew the West radio tower to smithereens at the same time as Bravo 1 took down the East radio tower.
Success, and not even a single casualty in Bravo 2! Many thanks to a very responsive, yet humorous fireteam!
Wetwork
Deployed as an AttackFor rifleman
We surfed in on boats. We grenaded the crap out of empty shacks and I got one-shot from a building we were working on clearing. Oops.
That did mean I could bear witness to an interesting turn of events, where suddenly Syndikat was controlling the secret blacksite server, and CTRG had to assault the comms center. It didn't end well for CTRG, as the last surviving Syndikat gunned down the two CTRG survivors, finishing off the last one with a shot to the knee-cap because bullets magically disappear when they hit water, and the CTRG dude's knee was the only thing sticking up.
Pincer
Deployed as Alpha Squad Leader
A long slog of a mission, but one that definitely made me stretch some muscles I haven't used in a while. Alpha took point as we slowly paced through the jungle. During the first twenty minutes, Alpha seized our first objective with moderate losses, but as we were setting off to our next task, Bravo was overrun by swarms of Syndikat. "Press on or rescue?" I asked the CO. "Rescue," he said, so Alpha pulled an abrupt about-face. 100m later, we were stalking through the woods, blowing away Syndikat goons as they attempted to interrogate what was left of Bravo. I got my only kill of the mission... when my suppressive fire punched through the wrong bush and finished off a wounded Bravo trooper behind my target (sorry!).
At the end of the engagement, I had lost my A2 FTL and two other folks, but picked up three Bravo survivors and the CO in return. A net gain, and we had exterminated the last of Syndikat in the forests. Now all that was left was to clear the entire second half of the AO - nbd.
I had Folk ARPS 2012-Platoon flashbacks as I arranged a squad wedge, with A1 on point, A2 to the left, and Bravo to the right, all 3-man elements, with myself and the CO pulling rear security in the center. Very appropriately for the weekend, like zombies with guns we inexorably marched towards the enemy, dispassionately eating away at the surviving Syndikat and absorbing our own casualties with aplomb.
By the end, we were six strong, with the last survivor from Alpha folding into Bravo just before we killed the last Syndikat and toasted to a hard-fought victory!
~ Ferrard