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Urban Nightmare – the megagame pt.2

Shortly after lunchtime (when I ate my lunch, megagames don’t have breaks, they run continuously until the end) I changed role. The trigger for this was that the Emergency Services didn’t really need two players (and Geoff had clearly got the hang of megagames even though it was his first time). Also Federal assistance was invoked, and there wasn’t a player team at Federal level (because it was always uncertain if it would be required and carried too much risk of boredom to be staffed before it was required).

Combat Service Identification Badge of the 101...
Combat Service Identification Badge of the 101st Airborne Division (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So I ended up as a Major General in charge of the 101st Airborne Division and in command of the Federalised State National Guard forces. I also had a special forces team attached. The direct Federal team was lead by a (female) Presidential Envoy who had a direct line to the White House and was told to get the situation under control. Me and the Special Forces Colonel were the other two players in this team, although effectively I had all the National Guard players in my team too.

First steps were to work out a containment plan to stop this spreading, and then to deal with rules of engagement for the soldiers under my command. I observed that what we were dealing with were (virus infected) US Citizens on US soil and that just shooting them all wasn’t an acceptable position. I also observed that preventing innocent citizens from leaving an area could be seen as an unlawful arrest without charge, and was effectively suspending habeas corpus. What we really needed was an appropriate Executive Order to ensure that none of my soldiers could be held liable for civil action. It turned out White House counsel agreed, and I got the following as my rules of engagement (endorsed by the Deputy Attorney General)

[– start ROE –]

Rules of Engagement – Romero Virus Outbreak

Within the specified area all US Military forces are authorised to use reasonable force to detain people within the specified area and to direct them to appropriate medical and/or containment facilities.

Lethal force is authorised to prevent people leaving the specified area, or where they refuse to obey clear instructions to go to a medical or containment facility. Before opening fire at least THREE WARNINGS of “ARMY! HALT OR I FIRE!” (or similar words to the same effect) must be given. Only individual small arms, firing single, aimed shots may be used. Artillery, rockets, bombs or other explosive weapons are not authorised for use unless on the direct express order of a Colonel or more senior officer.

[– end ROE –]

This, however, was only the first of the philosophical discussions that I was involved in. Like all good generals, mine was a political game, not one of issuing orders (although I did some of that too, largely by giving mission objectives to the National Guard General and the SF Colonel). So I made sure that not only the military, but also the political and police players knew what our ROE were and our intent to cordon a wide area before moving in to eradicate the problem. However I was careful to deploy some regular troops to Romero City so that we could truthfully state that we were directly assisting the city authorities and that we were providing humanitarian aid to those made refugees by the outbreak.

 

Other Player Viewpoints

If you want to read what other players in this game thought about it then here are some more links:

http://toweroftheoctopus.com/2012/11/urban-nightmare-a-live-action-thirty-player-asymmetric-team-zombie-outbreak-simulation-game/

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Urban Nightmare megagame

The Urban Nightmare megagame, is a political crisis management game of a zombie outbreak in Romero City. I played the Deputy Chief of the Emergency Services. (A combined paramedic and firefighter service). We had 20 fire appliances and 8 emergency ambulances to service the city. During the megagame I posted tweets of what we were doing, remembering not to start talking about zombies at any point. This was my attempt to keep it realistic. It meant that some of our decisions weren’t optimal for the zombie apocalypse. They did make sense for major emergencies though.

The Start of Urban Nightmare

Overnight we’ve had four emergency calls for paramedics at Sin Street, Cass Tech High School, Elmwood Park & the Water-works Park. All four incidents have had their casualties taken to City General Hospital (which is the closest).

Live Tweets from Urban Nightmare

I live tweeted during the megagame (until it overwhelmed us, see pt.2 for my follow on role)

 

PS no idea why it locates me in Luton, we were playing the game in Anerley Town Hall in South London!

 

Urban Nightmare megagame pt.2

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Megagame: Invasion from Mars – the end

Dateline 3127.160

General Buck’s HQ, BRADLEY

It’s all over bar the talking.

Army Group West is now all back on the East Continent. With due pomp and ceremony (we got a band in) the Mech Brigade left by sea and then my HQ flew out. I was the last member of the DRC forces to leave the East Continent having handed over FAREAST to the MAFC Marines I got on the last flyer out and flew back to BRADLEY.

Troops evacuated from the West Continent have been deployed into our cities in the western part of the East Continent. If the negotiations break down then all forces have been withdrawn to defend the homeland, and most of the losses have been made good using the Repair and Maintenance Points (RMP).

As a conclusion, the DRC are all very surprised at where we got to with this game. We always thought that we would be well and truly stomped into the ground by the Martians using their standard ‘Plan A’, i.e. ‘drop a GF division on it’. ‘Plan B’ of course being ‘repeat Plan A until it works’!

We have been amazed at the relative non-aggression of the MAFC forces (despite the bluster and politicking, it remains that the MAFC didn’t really try hard to defeat us militarily). I expected the MAFC force to try and decapitate us, landing on our home continent and forcing a withdrawal by directly attacking our cities. I also expected them to be a bit more mobile, using shuttles to flit about from place to place rather than landing somewhere and then moving on the ground like the rest of us.

From a political perspective we’ve gone from being cast as the bad guys to being seen as having a legitimate grievance that is generally acknowledged, and which the INN reported much more favourably than we had expected. That said, we went to some effort to ensure that the two press players got plenty of material from us, and most turns I personally briefed them about what my troops were doing before I carried out the orders. I also made sure when I spoke to them that I knew exactly what the message I wanted them to get was. Classic press briefing techniques, which I’ve been taught for my day job.

As Jim Wallman said at the start “no game survives contact with players”, and at the end “you’ve all done terribly well” (insert punctuation as appropriate).

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Megagame: Invasion from Mars 11

Dateline 3127.150-154

General Buck’s advanced HQ, FAREAST

The political negotiations continue, there is much discussion of setting up a supra-national bode to co-ordinate trade, although I do not believe that our government is terribly keen on this idea unless there are appropriate safeguards in place.

Close-Air Support
Image by The National Guard via Flickr

I have done another deal and persuaded the New Cydonia Station head of security to help me evacuate a tank brigade (3rd, at full strength) by providing an additional shuttle unit to supplement my transport flyers. The Brigade is flown to BRADLEY which now means that we have a Division plus there (three brigades, and AIR support).

Another Mech Brigade and a Tank Brigade get shipped out of FAREAST back to the East Continent, leaving only my HQ and the last Mech Brigade (which I could have shipped out as well, but thought I’d string it out a little longer). Also I needed some time to arrange the departure ceremony and invite the INN news crews to film it.

 

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Megagame: Invasion from Mars 10

Dateline 317.145-149

General Buck’s advanced HQ, FAREAST, West Continent, Cydonia

Having brokered a deal via the Earther Military Attaché the Infantry Brigade near ENSEMBLE is flown to BRADLEY (the DRC capital city) by the shuttles of the North Continental Company. This happily bolsters the defences in the capital just in case there is any unpleasantness if negotiations break down. No danger of an internal coup or revolution though, the people seem delighted by our performance and (rightly) credit the President’s leadership for this.

A Mech Brigade and Logistics Base A are evacuated by sea, the remaining forces are converging on FAREAST. My HQ is set up in FAREAST. All available air assets are covering the port to ensure evacuation continues to go smoothly.

 

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Megagame: Invasion from Mars 09

Dateline 3127.140-144

General Buck’s Advanced HQ on West Continent, Cydonia

The cease-fire holds and the politicals keep on talking, apparently the discussions have been focussed on the acts of terrorism against the DRC and that this was a legitimate casus belli. The NCC and DMC have been taken to task over their refusal (so far) to outright condemn these actions.

The sea logistics base has completed its move back to SOLENT so we can start the sea evacuation across the narrow FREEDOM STRAITS. Logistics base B flies back to the West Continent too. We abandon the front line and move almost 2,000km to the East, also handing back the cities of BLACKBERRY and FOSTER. The Infantry Brigade in FAREAST is evacuated. At this stage all the remaining forces on the West Continent (other than the Infantry Brigade near ENSEMBLE and logs base A near FAREAST) are mechanised. Air cover is supplied over FAREAST and the two furthest West columns.

At this stage the MAFC pull a stupid stunt that nearly de-rails the whole ceasefire. They land a Starship Marine Regiment in each of BLACKBERRY, FOSTER and FAREAST. Our rules of engagement specify only harsh language is to be used, and fortunately the MAFC Marine colonel at FAREAST sees sense and orders his men back into the shuttles. The threat that two DRC Armoured Divisions were coming to kill him if he continued to block their passage home probably assisted his speedy decision making…

 

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Megagame: Invasion from Mars 08

Dateline 3127.135-140

General Buck’s advanced HQ on West Continent, Cydonia

The politicians have agreed the cease-fire. The terms are that we need to evacuate the West Continent and the Martians will occupy behind us. A political conference has started on MITLAND island to come to a negotiated end to the war (although this is expected to take some time).

I hold the front line for a little longer, with air cover over it just in case. The transport flyers move logs base B back to the west continent, logs base A moves towards FAREAST. The sea flotillas land 2 Tank Bde on the West continent and it moves into SOLENT where there are 2 RMP to make good some of its losses.

Negotiations continue on the air evacuation of the infantry brigade near ENSEMBLE. However I realise at this point that we are no longer capable of doing this ourselves as our shuttles have been shot down and the air logs base has moved back to the East Continent. I don’t tell the MAFC/NCC this, but I do suggest that either then provide the transport, or that we get someone neutral to do so. Eventually the MAFC get told by the politicians to allow this.

Elsewhere the NCC and MAFC move up into contact with our rearguard, but take care not to engage us.

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Megagame: Invasion from Mars 07

Dateline 3127.130-134

General Buck’s advanced HQ on West Continent, Cydonia

It is looking increasingly likely that there will be a cease-fire to allow political negotiations, but this is not yet fully agreed.

More negotiations with local commanders about the evacuation of the Infantry Brigade near ENSEMBLE. The MAFC General still cannot give assurances.

I order my transports to move the air logistics base back to the West Continent and relocate all my air assets to there as well. The ground logistics bases also move West as do the sea flotillas.

The Martians shoot down both our shuttles in orbital space, this shocks the other nations as they were conducting trade rather than directly engaged in military action. It also isn’t clear whether the Martians fired without giving a warning first.

On the ground the Martians move to conform closer to our positions, but are still out of contact with the front line. NCC forces re-occupy DEANVILLE but take no further offensive action.

My other forces use up the last remaining RMP, so less to evacuate.

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Megagame: Invasion from Mars 06

Dateline 3127.125-130

General Buck’s advanced HQ on West Continent, Cydonia

Political negotiations are proceeding at a fast pace, with the Earther Attache appearing to be playing the key role of middleman. From reading the news we appear to be coming out well, MAFC are attacked for causing needless civilian deaths and throwing their weight around. We continue to press for a ceasefire and a negotiated settlement and INN report that these overtures are being rebuffed.

My orders are to withdraw to my start line as at 3127.100. As well as doing this I re-position troops to cover all the cities in my area, including flying in another infantry brigade to secure FAREAST. Logs base A (in blackberry) starts its move towards FAREAST.

Air cover is split between the Northern and Southern coast roads (our front is the narrowest it can be across the base of the isthmus). The 3rd Tank Brigade (now back at full strength having absorbed two RMP over the last few turns) retires from DEANVILLE back onto the front line as it was at 3127.100. Logs base B is with it at that point.

The sea flotillas move East along the north coast back towards home. The MAFC agree not to attack the Infantry Brigade to the north

Soldiers from Alpha Company, 1-18 Infantry Bat...
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of ENSEMBLE, but refuse to give guarantees that would allow it to be flown out. Even when the NCC commander points out to him that this is what the NCC government want to happen he is recalcitrant. The INN have a reporter present and it is very clear that the Martians are ignoring the wishes of their local allies.

So much for being in favour of freedom and self-determination, these guys just want to kill people!

 

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Megagame: Invasion from Mars 05

Dateline 3127.120-124

General Buck’s advanced HQ on West Continent, Cydonia

Having made sure that the INN reporters were fully briefed on what we had offered (and been rebuffed) we then offered to withdraw completely from the West continent and for that part of it held by us on 3127.100 to be declared a DMZ. We also made sure that it was clear that we started this war because of state sponsored terrorism committed by the NCC and DMC. That we had processed most of those arrested at the start of the war and released the majority as innocent, convicted a significant minority after due process and in open trials where the evidence could be reviewed and had a small number still under investigation who would be released or charged soon.

I asked both the NCC and the MAFC to allow my forces in ENSEMBLE to be allowed to fly out. While the NCC agreed that we could leave unmolested the MAFC General (Brigadier Arthur, AKA the butcher of KUTCHI) refused to give any assurances.

Accordingly, to avoid needless civilian casualties I declared ENSEMBLE an open city and my infantry brigade moved to the north on the only road away from the city we had. The sea marine force also there dispersed as guerrillas because they were unable to move without Shock diamond

transport and I couldn’t be sure that the transport flyers could get them out unmolested. At the same time I put all available AIR and flyers on a combination Cover/Support over ENSEMBLE (the decision to pull out being a last minute one). This gave us temporary local air superiority, and if we’d chosen to fight would have made the enemy pay dearly.

Elsewhere I started to prepare an evacuation plan. The logistics base in DEANVILLE started to move along the road back to where the sea logs base was located. 2nd Republican Tank Brigade (now at 1/3 original strength) was loaded onto ships to be taken back to the East continent. Other units were brought back up to strength using remaining RMP. The Mech Brigade on the Southern coast road fell back to the neck of the peninsula (just to the west of BLACKBERRY).

Lastly I made sure that INN were fully aware of our unilateral actions to avoid unnecessary civilian casualties and that our retirement was in good order and of our own choosing rather than as a result of enemy action.

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