May 27, 2022
WARNO - [EUG] Gal Marcel Bigeard
Hello commander!
We hope you are well. Though we were officially off for a couple of days, we haven’t been sitting on our hands - and neither have you!
Let’s get to it. Today’s post will all be about the next WARNO milestone, LANNES, and the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division.
We turn away one minute and a whole brouhaha explodes about units that should be included WARNO, units that shouldn’t be included, prototypes, more rocket launchers, fewer rocket launchers, Humvees. Guys… relax!
Let’s take a breather together. WARNO’s development continues at pace, and lots of the improvements, suggestions, feedback, or comments are being taken into account. We kindly ask you to keep it calm, cool, and collected - to us, and your fellow players. And keep in mind: certain units. mechanics or features make the grade, while others may not. At the end of the day, we aim to make a kick-ass World War III battle simulator that is realistic, authentic AND fun to play.
But for those clamoring for AT-4s and Humvees... we got you covered. Let’s welcome to the stage the daring-do troops of the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division.
Up to the release of the (excellent) Band of Brothers series placing the 101st under the spotlight, the 82nd Airborne Division was THE American airborne formations to wargamers and History buffs.
Raised for WW1, 82nd Infantry Division fought with distinction at St-Mihiel & the Argonne. Not disbanded, it was placed in reserve after WW1, but only really reconstituted in 1921. It was therefore among the few professional standing divisions of the USA when it entered WW2 in late 1941. For six months, it trained back to war shape under command of Omar Bradley, future American field commander in Europe right under Eisenhower. On August 15th, 1942, the 82nd Infantry Division was converted to 82nd Airborne Division, the first of its kind in the US Army.
From then on, 82nd AB will perform almost all American combat jumps in the European ETO: Sicily, Italy, Normandy & Netherlands. The only one it missed was Operation Varsity in March 1945, performed by the less-known 17th Airborne Division. It also took part in the battle of the Bulge where it famously turned German weapons against their former owners. By all account, 82nd AB was the best American division in the entire ETO. Its assault crossing of Rhine river at Nimjegen was regarded by many witnesses as the single greatest feat of arms on the Western front.
After WW2, its was briefly deployed in the Dominican Republic, then sent its 3rd Brigade in Vietnam. Aside from this detached brigade, 82nd AB was almost the only combat ready division left in the USA during the Vietenam War, alongside a few understrength divisions, while the rest were deployed in Korea, Vietnam or Europe. It was basically the USA’s last reserve stateside.
With the 101st Airborne being reorganized as an Airmobile, then Air Assault (meaning heliborne) division from 1968, 82nd AB was also the last true US airborne division.
It is in that role that the 82nd AB made its last two combat jumps in Granada (1983) & Panama (1989).
We all know that the U.S. divisions in the late 80s were in the process of replacing their LAW rocket launchers and M151 jeeps with the newer, superior AT-4 and Humvee respectively. The big question remains the actual scale of this replacement in WARNO’s timeline of 1989.
As a result, we have decided to make a clear distinction between light and rapid reaction forces, such as the 82nd and 101st Airborne, 10th Mountain, and 9th Motorized, based in the U.S. and mechanized formations in West Germany. The former received a higher priority in new equipment, while the latter were at the tail of the replacement programm.
From a gameplay perspective, it allows us to classified all Humvees as “para” regarding the Forward Deployment trait (see below).
This means that the new 82nd Airborne Division will be lavishly equipped with both AT-4 and Humvees. Our boxy light utility vehicle will come in many shapes and sizes, including:
Another unique feature of 82nd Airborne Division was that it was the last formation to retain the light M551 Sheridan tank. This armored vehicle could be airdropped, last used in this role during the U.S. invasion of Panama in 1989. During this short conflict, ten Sheridan were delivered by parachute (one failing to open!), and four others were airlifted by a C-5 Galaxy.
With barely any armor, only designed to withstand 20mm rounds, it came with a low-velocity 152mm gun. Perfect for infantry support, this gun was much less effective against tanks. As a solution, the problematic Shillelagh ATGM was developed, which could be fired, much like Soviet tanks, from the gun barrel.
As a parachute and airdroppable formation, the 82nd Airborne Division also relies on light towed weapon systems for support. These include:
Like most U.S. divisions after 1986, the 82nd Airborne Division featured its own small, organic helicopter wing, deploying the usual OH-58, AH-1 and AH-64 helis.
We have included a few original load-outs to these helicopters, in the form of the AH-1 Heavy Hog (with Zuni 127mm rockets) and the AA AH-1 ATAS (which stands for Air-To-Air Stinger), as well as the lightly armed AH-6 Little Bird.
Heavier aircraft support includes F-111F bombers, most of the F-16C family (including SEAD), F-15C and F-4E fighters, as well as the new A-10A with rockets.
As an airborne division, the formation’s infantry and some of its crew-served weapons will be available in Forward Deployment. This means you will be able to push fast and grab some ground ahead of the enemy.
With most divisions of this type being lightly equipped, they will have a hard time pushing forward. As such, with Forward Deployment, they start out with an advantage but might find it more challenging holding the ground, or even pushing forward.
The few heliborne paras of the division are classified as Aerorifles much as the mechanized divisions. This avoids having these units access to Forward Deployment with helicopters - which we all agree is a recipe for unsportsmanship behaviour. All units that can Forward Deploy will be identified by a parachute symbol in their labels.
Like recon units, this is a deployment-only advantage: once the game is launched, any remaining airborne units will come as reinforcement as any other.
Please note that due to recent feedbacks with the previous milestone, recon units’ forward deployment has been reduced, leaving only paras units able to deploy as far away as recon could before.
The quick reaction force XVIIIth Airborne Corps of which the 82nd Airborne Division was part of had two “separate” heavy brigades attached to it, the 194th Armored Brigade and the 197th Infantry Brigade (Mech.).
In order to give the 82nd Airborne Division some armored teeth, we’ve attached a few elements from the former. The 194th Armored Brigade was (alongside the U.S. Berlin Brigade) one of the few outfits identified as transitioning from M1 to IPM1 (uparmored M1 Abrams, but retaining the original 105mm gun) instead of directly to M1A1.
As such, the 82nd Airborne Division will have access to a handful (rarely more than a single card) of IPM1, M125 mortar, M109 SPG and mechanized infantry in M113. None of these heavy units will have access to forward deployment.
That’s all for this week.
Join the passionate WARNO community. Check the latest news on the Steam News page or visit the Steam Forums. Get to together with other players on either the excellent Discord server, Reddit page, or our Instagram.
See you on the battlefield, commander!
We hope you are well. Though we were officially off for a couple of days, we haven’t been sitting on our hands - and neither have you!
Let’s get to it. Today’s post will all be about the next WARNO milestone, LANNES, and the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division.
A whirlwind of feedback
We turn away one minute and a whole brouhaha explodes about units that should be included WARNO, units that shouldn’t be included, prototypes, more rocket launchers, fewer rocket launchers, Humvees. Guys… relax!
Let’s take a breather together. WARNO’s development continues at pace, and lots of the improvements, suggestions, feedback, or comments are being taken into account. We kindly ask you to keep it calm, cool, and collected - to us, and your fellow players. And keep in mind: certain units. mechanics or features make the grade, while others may not. At the end of the day, we aim to make a kick-ass World War III battle simulator that is realistic, authentic AND fun to play.
But for those clamoring for AT-4s and Humvees... we got you covered. Let’s welcome to the stage the daring-do troops of the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division.
A little history
Up to the release of the (excellent) Band of Brothers series placing the 101st under the spotlight, the 82nd Airborne Division was THE American airborne formations to wargamers and History buffs.
Raised for WW1, 82nd Infantry Division fought with distinction at St-Mihiel & the Argonne. Not disbanded, it was placed in reserve after WW1, but only really reconstituted in 1921. It was therefore among the few professional standing divisions of the USA when it entered WW2 in late 1941. For six months, it trained back to war shape under command of Omar Bradley, future American field commander in Europe right under Eisenhower. On August 15th, 1942, the 82nd Infantry Division was converted to 82nd Airborne Division, the first of its kind in the US Army.
From then on, 82nd AB will perform almost all American combat jumps in the European ETO: Sicily, Italy, Normandy & Netherlands. The only one it missed was Operation Varsity in March 1945, performed by the less-known 17th Airborne Division. It also took part in the battle of the Bulge where it famously turned German weapons against their former owners. By all account, 82nd AB was the best American division in the entire ETO. Its assault crossing of Rhine river at Nimjegen was regarded by many witnesses as the single greatest feat of arms on the Western front.
After WW2, its was briefly deployed in the Dominican Republic, then sent its 3rd Brigade in Vietnam. Aside from this detached brigade, 82nd AB was almost the only combat ready division left in the USA during the Vietenam War, alongside a few understrength divisions, while the rest were deployed in Korea, Vietnam or Europe. It was basically the USA’s last reserve stateside.
With the 101st Airborne being reorganized as an Airmobile, then Air Assault (meaning heliborne) division from 1968, 82nd AB was also the last true US airborne division.
It is in that role that the 82nd AB made its last two combat jumps in Granada (1983) & Panama (1989).
Bringing new weaponry to the Americans
We all know that the U.S. divisions in the late 80s were in the process of replacing their LAW rocket launchers and M151 jeeps with the newer, superior AT-4 and Humvee respectively. The big question remains the actual scale of this replacement in WARNO’s timeline of 1989.
As a result, we have decided to make a clear distinction between light and rapid reaction forces, such as the 82nd and 101st Airborne, 10th Mountain, and 9th Motorized, based in the U.S. and mechanized formations in West Germany. The former received a higher priority in new equipment, while the latter were at the tail of the replacement programm.
From a gameplay perspective, it allows us to classified all Humvees as “para” regarding the Forward Deployment trait (see below).
This means that the new 82nd Airborne Division will be lavishly equipped with both AT-4 and Humvees. Our boxy light utility vehicle will come in many shapes and sizes, including:
- Command
- Transport
- Recon with HMG
- Recon with Mk.19 automatic grenade launcher
- ATGM carrier (TOW-2)
- ... and a SAM variant in the form of the M998 Avenger (equipped with a quad Stinger launcher and a .50 cal). Although not part of any TO&E in 1989, the Avenger had been in production since 1987 and was in operational testing in 1989. Right on time for our “two years of march to war” timeline that we have laid out in WARNO.
And even more weapons!
Another unique feature of 82nd Airborne Division was that it was the last formation to retain the light M551 Sheridan tank. This armored vehicle could be airdropped, last used in this role during the U.S. invasion of Panama in 1989. During this short conflict, ten Sheridan were delivered by parachute (one failing to open!), and four others were airlifted by a C-5 Galaxy.
With barely any armor, only designed to withstand 20mm rounds, it came with a low-velocity 152mm gun. Perfect for infantry support, this gun was much less effective against tanks. As a solution, the problematic Shillelagh ATGM was developed, which could be fired, much like Soviet tanks, from the gun barrel.
As a parachute and airdroppable formation, the 82nd Airborne Division also relies on light towed weapon systems for support. These include:
- M102 105mm howitzer
- M30 107mm (4,2-inch) mortar
- M167 Vulcan AA. This is basically an M163 PIVADS’ turret on a trailer.
Airborne’s air support
Like most U.S. divisions after 1986, the 82nd Airborne Division featured its own small, organic helicopter wing, deploying the usual OH-58, AH-1 and AH-64 helis.
We have included a few original load-outs to these helicopters, in the form of the AH-1 Heavy Hog (with Zuni 127mm rockets) and the AA AH-1 ATAS (which stands for Air-To-Air Stinger), as well as the lightly armed AH-6 Little Bird.
Heavier aircraft support includes F-111F bombers, most of the F-16C family (including SEAD), F-15C and F-4E fighters, as well as the new A-10A with rockets.
Forward Deployment
As an airborne division, the formation’s infantry and some of its crew-served weapons will be available in Forward Deployment. This means you will be able to push fast and grab some ground ahead of the enemy.
With most divisions of this type being lightly equipped, they will have a hard time pushing forward. As such, with Forward Deployment, they start out with an advantage but might find it more challenging holding the ground, or even pushing forward.
The few heliborne paras of the division are classified as Aerorifles much as the mechanized divisions. This avoids having these units access to Forward Deployment with helicopters - which we all agree is a recipe for unsportsmanship behaviour. All units that can Forward Deploy will be identified by a parachute symbol in their labels.
Like recon units, this is a deployment-only advantage: once the game is launched, any remaining airborne units will come as reinforcement as any other.
Please note that due to recent feedbacks with the previous milestone, recon units’ forward deployment has been reduced, leaving only paras units able to deploy as far away as recon could before.
Some heavy-hitting support
The quick reaction force XVIIIth Airborne Corps of which the 82nd Airborne Division was part of had two “separate” heavy brigades attached to it, the 194th Armored Brigade and the 197th Infantry Brigade (Mech.).
In order to give the 82nd Airborne Division some armored teeth, we’ve attached a few elements from the former. The 194th Armored Brigade was (alongside the U.S. Berlin Brigade) one of the few outfits identified as transitioning from M1 to IPM1 (uparmored M1 Abrams, but retaining the original 105mm gun) instead of directly to M1A1.
As such, the 82nd Airborne Division will have access to a handful (rarely more than a single card) of IPM1, M125 mortar, M109 SPG and mechanized infantry in M113. None of these heavy units will have access to forward deployment.
See you on the battlefield
That’s all for this week.
Join the passionate WARNO community. Check the latest news on the Steam News page or visit the Steam Forums. Get to together with other players on either the excellent Discord server, Reddit page, or our Instagram.
See you on the battlefield, commander!
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