Table of Contents

Fireteam Leading

Being a fireteam leader is the first role that requires a degree of leadership. As a fireteam leader you are in charge of a fireteam that will typically consist of 3-5 other players. It is also one of the few leadership positions were you directly focus on soldiers rather than subordinate groups. Recommended prior reading:

Responsibility of the FTL

As a fireteam leader you are responsible for anything your fireteam does or does not do. As a fireteam leader you should aim to keep your squad leader and your fireteam members happy. They both have different expectations of you. The squad leader will act as your direct commander. They will issue you with tasks and directions which they expect you to complete. Ideally they will not overly micromanage and will give you directions to make your own decisions. They should not be burdened with the all details of how you are managing your fireteam. For instance they don’t need to know the direction that everyone is facing but they might like a rough idea as to what area your entire fireteam is covering. Ultimately the squad leader expects that you to perform these tasks as best as possible. A squad leader expects the following of you:

Your fireteam members expect the following of you:

Leadership 101

As a fireteam leader you are the most basic leader in the platoon however you are also the most important. As you will be closest to the front. What are the core principles of effective leadership?

Your squad leaders and platoon leader should also be employing all of the above.

Managing your fireteam

Manging your fireteam well requires understanding the composition of your fireteam and some basic tactical knowledge. If you haven’t already read it you should fully understand everything in the basic infantry skills page before you continue. You should always be assigning arcs of fire to your fireteam and a suitable formation where applicable. Remember formations aren’t to look pretty but are used to get the best out of any potential situation.

Your automatic rifleman (AR) will have the most amount of firepower and you should do your best to assign him to the arc that be the most useful to your fireteam. This will most likely be the arc with the highest concentration of enemies or the most vulnerable flank.

The rifleman ani-tank (RAT) will typically have a single shot AT launcher. You should be cautious with its employment. If it is known the enemy will have a lot of enemy armour you should save this until it is needed against armour. If the enemy in a mission is solely infantry without armour you may wish to use this as an explosive weapon against buildings and infantry.

Communication

As a fireteam leader you are expected to do a lot of communicating please read the radio communications page. In particular you should be familiar with the standardized reports as a squad leader may ask for them. You should also be proactive with your communications, keeping your squad leader informed when you complete tasks and periodically check in with your progress.

Appendix

Examples

Dslyecxi of the community Shacktac has created some amazing hindsight videos. Where he pulls apart some gameplay and studies it in a tactical way. These should provide some interesting insight into the sorts of things you should be considering as an FTL.

Episode 1: Riverside ambush. This is taken from the perspective of an FTL

Episode 2: Airfield Assault. If you enjoyed the first this is an extra bonus but is aimed more at a platoon level.