The following is a re-post of a great artical written by Javier aka "Darkhorse" of "One Grunts Opinion" https://www.facebook.com/OneGruntsOpinion
"Today's
opinion is a little less controversial and a little more informative. I
hope you enjoy and share it. It's how we get the good word out.
"So you want to start a team"
Before you can even begin to look at how to build a team, you need to
ask yourself what kind of team you want. The definition of a team is as
vast and open to interpretation as is the word Milsim itself. You've got
your buddy teams, your casual big op teams and your hardcore big op
teams. Within those three quick examples you have a hundred different
shades and other types of teams. So, today we will look at building a
national op team on the one grunt templet.
Now, within my
templet you can choose how hardcore you want to take your team. I will
say that it will take more dedication then just a group of buddies that
decided they would come up with a team name. These teams may have fun
but that shouldn't be it. They should have fun at the ops but, also be
proud of their achievements. Winning isn't everything in the sport but
you can't deny it feels that much better when you are. Let's get started
with a foundation of the right kind of players.
Resist the
urge of just getting your buddies together and saying, lets be a team
guys. You have to assess the commitment and dedication of all the
members of your team. My magic number is a minimum of 8 good guys ready
to be on a national op team. You need to outline your teams goals,
direction and expectations. Because if everyone isn't on board with
these basic concepts of the team then you will quickly start to lose
guys or have conflict. With everyone on board and a solid direction that
you all agree on, it will make it easier when you recruit since guys
will know what they are getting into.
Now that you have your
solid core of guys ready to grow the team and are in agreement with your
direction. It is time to build your SOPs( Standard Operating
Procedures). You will need a gear/uniform SOP and a training/doctrine
SOP. Uniformity is not just about looking good and matching. There are
very real tactical purposes and psychological reasons for this. For your
team having uniform gear helps break down the concept of an individual
and solidifies the team concept. You are no longer alone out there and
your team mates are counting on you to perform on the same level. The
very tactical consideration for uniform/gear uniformity is an
understanding that you know that everyone in the team has the minimums
needed for the event. What you carry exactly will vary from team to team
but everyone should carry the same minimums in the same place on their
gear for easy access by any team member. On the flip side your
organization and uniformity is its own psychological weapon. It can be
an intimidating factor for the opposing team that is not as prepared.
One big consideration in your gear SOP, is what weapons platform your
team is going to use. You need to keep it as close a possible, like
keeping everyone or almost everyone on an M4 so you can share mags in a
tough spot. Obviously, support gunners with SAWs will be an exception.
Too often, teams are so mix matched in weapons that no one can share a
mag in a fire fight. Some other minimums are to set a number of mags you
expect carried, if and where everyone carries a first aid kit, how much
water should be carried, a utility pouch of some kind with potentially
mission specific items, and then there are coms. These are just some of
the minimum gear considerations that you can build on for your team
that should be carried close to if not in the same way by all members of
your team. Remember, the exact details on what is needed must be
tailored to your team but the fact that you should have minimum
standards and uniform setup is a must for all teams.
You now
have your team on the same page and they are equipped uniformly. You are
going to need a team training/doctrine SOP. There's a hundred ways to
clear a building, all kinds of schools of thought on weapons
manipulation, and tons of text on how to wage warfare. It is time to
decide how your team is going to do it and train on it for national ops.
Individuals will always do things a little different but there has to
be a foundation of training and how your going to fight that everyone
knows. Since Airsoft and real combat are very different, I can't say
just read the Ranger handbook cover to cover and make that your SOP.
There is a vast amount of knowledge in that book that you can
incorporate into your team specific training/doctrine SOP. Some of the
nuts and bolts to consider are hand signals, breaching procedures, and
special signaling techniques.
When it comes to training your
team, many folks have practice and training confused. Practice is when
you hit the local field and play against other teams. Training is
working on skills in a classroom environment. Training can happen at
home with a dry erase board or at the field working through drills.
Teams underestimate the usefulness of just sitting down and talking
through their techniques on the dry erase board. This visual
representation and walk through gives you a stronger grasp for when you
hit the field putting it in action. Drills and rehearsals are important
also because they build the muscle memory that will take over in the
heat of the op.
You now have a solid team of guys, your gear
is uniformed, your tactics are on the same page, and everyone's training
to the same standard. It's time to look at the details people forget
and the details people rush to think about. Teams need funding of some
kind to help pay for expenses. Unless you have a rich benefactor that
funds you, then you will need to collect team dues. Team dues are
critical to affording special team equipment like a large supply of
smoke, helping pay for travel to expensive events, and buying extra gear
for new members transitioning into the teams SOP requirements. You can
not have few on the team paying extra to help fund the team. Everyone
needs to put in their part to support the team, spreading out the cost.
Notice that I have yet to mention anything about a team name or patch.
Before you can come up with those, you need something to name. Too
often, it is where guys start when forming their teams. You need that
foundation, the core that is what your team really is before you go
naming it. Look at it this way, what's more valuable? A group of guys
with a cool name and patch that can not perform in game or a group of
organized and prepared players that kick ass, but, have no team name. If
you want that ideal team of your dreams that can truly succeed in game
play, then you need to rethink how you build a team. It has to be a
ground up project that takes time and effort.
Training, organization, and goals need to come first. The team name, Facebook and YouTube can come later. "
Just one grunt's opinion
Javier "Darkhorse"
I hope that you enjoyed this as much as I did!
Padre' out...
"So you want to start a team"
Before you can even begin to look at how to build a team, you need to ask yourself what kind of team you want. The definition of a team is as vast and open to interpretation as is the word Milsim itself. You've got your buddy teams, your casual big op teams and your hardcore big op teams. Within those three quick examples you have a hundred different shades and other types of teams. So, today we will look at building a national op team on the one grunt templet.
Now, within my templet you can choose how hardcore you want to take your team. I will say that it will take more dedication then just a group of buddies that decided they would come up with a team name. These teams may have fun but that shouldn't be it. They should have fun at the ops but, also be proud of their achievements. Winning isn't everything in the sport but you can't deny it feels that much better when you are. Let's get started with a foundation of the right kind of players.
Resist the urge of just getting your buddies together and saying, lets be a team guys. You have to assess the commitment and dedication of all the members of your team. My magic number is a minimum of 8 good guys ready to be on a national op team. You need to outline your teams goals, direction and expectations. Because if everyone isn't on board with these basic concepts of the team then you will quickly start to lose guys or have conflict. With everyone on board and a solid direction that you all agree on, it will make it easier when you recruit since guys will know what they are getting into.
Now that you have your solid core of guys ready to grow the team and are in agreement with your direction. It is time to build your SOPs( Standard Operating Procedures). You will need a gear/uniform SOP and a training/doctrine SOP. Uniformity is not just about looking good and matching. There are very real tactical purposes and psychological reasons for this. For your team having uniform gear helps break down the concept of an individual and solidifies the team concept. You are no longer alone out there and your team mates are counting on you to perform on the same level. The very tactical consideration for uniform/gear uniformity is an understanding that you know that everyone in the team has the minimums needed for the event. What you carry exactly will vary from team to team but everyone should carry the same minimums in the same place on their gear for easy access by any team member. On the flip side your organization and uniformity is its own psychological weapon. It can be an intimidating factor for the opposing team that is not as prepared.
One big consideration in your gear SOP, is what weapons platform your team is going to use. You need to keep it as close a possible, like keeping everyone or almost everyone on an M4 so you can share mags in a tough spot. Obviously, support gunners with SAWs will be an exception. Too often, teams are so mix matched in weapons that no one can share a mag in a fire fight. Some other minimums are to set a number of mags you expect carried, if and where everyone carries a first aid kit, how much water should be carried, a utility pouch of some kind with potentially mission specific items, and then there are coms. These are just some of the minimum gear considerations that you can build on for your team that should be carried close to if not in the same way by all members of your team. Remember, the exact details on what is needed must be tailored to your team but the fact that you should have minimum standards and uniform setup is a must for all teams.
You now have your team on the same page and they are equipped uniformly. You are going to need a team training/doctrine SOP. There's a hundred ways to clear a building, all kinds of schools of thought on weapons manipulation, and tons of text on how to wage warfare. It is time to decide how your team is going to do it and train on it for national ops. Individuals will always do things a little different but there has to be a foundation of training and how your going to fight that everyone knows. Since Airsoft and real combat are very different, I can't say just read the Ranger handbook cover to cover and make that your SOP. There is a vast amount of knowledge in that book that you can incorporate into your team specific training/doctrine SOP. Some of the nuts and bolts to consider are hand signals, breaching procedures, and special signaling techniques.
When it comes to training your team, many folks have practice and training confused. Practice is when you hit the local field and play against other teams. Training is working on skills in a classroom environment. Training can happen at home with a dry erase board or at the field working through drills. Teams underestimate the usefulness of just sitting down and talking through their techniques on the dry erase board. This visual representation and walk through gives you a stronger grasp for when you hit the field putting it in action. Drills and rehearsals are important also because they build the muscle memory that will take over in the heat of the op.
You now have a solid team of guys, your gear is uniformed, your tactics are on the same page, and everyone's training to the same standard. It's time to look at the details people forget and the details people rush to think about. Teams need funding of some kind to help pay for expenses. Unless you have a rich benefactor that funds you, then you will need to collect team dues. Team dues are critical to affording special team equipment like a large supply of smoke, helping pay for travel to expensive events, and buying extra gear for new members transitioning into the teams SOP requirements. You can not have few on the team paying extra to help fund the team. Everyone needs to put in their part to support the team, spreading out the cost.
Notice that I have yet to mention anything about a team name or patch. Before you can come up with those, you need something to name. Too often, it is where guys start when forming their teams. You need that foundation, the core that is what your team really is before you go naming it. Look at it this way, what's more valuable? A group of guys with a cool name and patch that can not perform in game or a group of organized and prepared players that kick ass, but, have no team name. If you want that ideal team of your dreams that can truly succeed in game play, then you need to rethink how you build a team. It has to be a ground up project that takes time and effort.
Training, organization, and goals need to come first. The team name, Facebook and YouTube can come later. "
Just one grunt's opinion
Javier "Darkhorse"
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