The phrase "by any means necessary" comes to mind when fighting a war. This means using terrain, cover, guns, and grenades to wipe out the opposition.
Once you have assessed the entire map, you can decide which enemies have the most vulnerable positions. The objective is not to wage an open war on the entire map but to remove foes as you would in chess, with precision and planning.
Specific techniques have already been covered in the combat tactics section, but now it is time to investigate how your squad should tackle various enemy situations.
Patrols
The general plan is to have your team work from the outside in eliminating the opposition. The first step is to scan the map and look for any straggling guards.
They often roam far away from the safety of their comrades and can be picked off easily because your team will outnumber them.
Wiping them out is pretty simple, but make sure they are not within range of their pals or use stealthy methods to eliminate them.
A Single Problem
Enemy placement is somewhat random but many times a single enemy stands in the way of your master plan. If you find a spot that makes you think “if only that guy wasn’t there,” use stealth to correct the problem.
This is where a merc with silent movement and good blending skills should be able to get in range to take out this pest quickly. A silencer in the hands of a stealthy merc can remove a guard even if he is close to his pals. Use a quiet kill to take out any foe who is not in the line of sight of his allies.
Outnumber/Outgun
Whenever possible, don’t engage in a fair fight. Always try to outnumber and outgun your foes. Use your entire team to focus on attacking a smaller number of enemies and removing them as quickly as possible. Don’t tackle a superior number of enemies. If you get outmanned, retreat to a safe spot and remove any pursuers.
Prioritize
When looking for the battlefield, check for enemies that are heavily armed and armored. Save them for last, if at all possible. However, if you engage a group and they enter the fray, focus your team on eliminating the biggest threat first.
Depending on the level of the threat, it might be wise to double or triple team a lethal enemy to avoid taking substantial damage. Also prioritize taking over a key position that might give you a tactical advantage over the rest of the enemies.
Cluster of Enemies
Small tight groups of enemies can be hard to deal with if they all have cover and are facing in different directions, preventing any easy angle of attack. Splitting up your team to attack from multiple angles may not be enough to divide and conquer.
The first option is to draw them out by manually firing and trying to get them to scramble. If that doesn’t work, use a grenade to nullify their combined threat. Even with superior numbers don’t go toe to toe with well-fortified enemies because you will end up taking too much damage.
Slow and Tactical
Be patient and take your time. Although it is more exciting to allow all the action to unfold in real time, it can be a bad idea to allow a large firefight to occur that quickly. Utilize the Plan and Go system to place each merc in the best position and let them do their jobs.
Allow them to execute their orders in real time, but return to Command Mode when you need to make adjustments. Don’t simply leave your squad members to fend for themselves when you can pause the action and decisively make adjustments based on the entire squad.
Element of Surprise
Surprise is one of the best elements to have on your side. This can occur with a sneaking covert op or you can create your own surprise with an ambush. Stealthily removing enemies is a very effective way to open up areas to new tactics.
You can create your own surprise attacks but tricking the enemy to coming to you. Create a disturbance that gets their attention, such as setting off an explosive, and have your waiting squad spring as they are running to check it out.
If you can catch them off guard, they will still be running, which will drastically lower their accuracy and should give you a significant advantage.
Chess Match
War can be looked at like a chess match. You have several soldiers who can perform specific types of moves. The path to victory is not overpowering your opponent but using your mercs to the best of their ability to put the opponent at a disadvantage.
Then, one by one you eliminate their resources. Use the mercs with the best advantage to tackle each foe, such as using melee fighters up close or to deal with their charging horde. Likewise, use superb range or cover to force them into a disadvantage.
Try to take them down while giving up as little as possible. Each encounter is a process of taking one more piece from their side and making them more vulnerable with each step.
Reload/Reshuffle
There might be times when the battle goes really poorly despite your best intentions. In those cases, simply reload and rethink your plan. Don’t try the same thing over. If you can make subtle adjustments, give them a try to figure out why your original tactics didn’t work.
Learning on the job is a part of any new task, but in war it is a lot more deadly. Luckily, if the situation is that bad you can just reload a prior save and not get into that predicament.
One very important thing to remember is that when you go to the World Map, the enemies reshuffle to some extent. Many have set spots that they will stick to, but even changing a few that are randomly placed foes can have a huge impact on each situation.
Enemy Squads
Do your best to assault the enemy squads on the World Map before they get to a location. The militias have very limited skill and lack the numbers to repel an attack. If you try to join the fight too late, the enemy squad will simply retake the area and force you to do that section over.
Whenever you notice one of those squads, make a bee-line for it and try to intercept it before it reaches its target. If you are successful, the enemies will be clustered together, usually out in the open.