Combat lorebook (4)

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1. #1

   Keys: Backblast area, Backblast · Secondary: Rocket launchers

   Backblast area is a jet stream that occurs when firing a rocket launcher, where hot gases are expelled from it's back. The backblast area is dangerous to people behind it, who may be burned by the gases or exposed to overpressure. In confined spaces, it's dangerous to the operator itself since the backblast may bounce off the wall behind the operator and hit them in the back.

   Solution? Don't stand behind the rocket launcher and take few steps away from the wall (or any other possible solid obstacle for that matter) behind you if firing in a room. The backblast can also accidentally start a fire if not careful.

2. #2

   Keys: Knife throwing, Throwing knife

   Knife throwing is the practice of using a knife as a projectile. Throwing knives are compact, designed and weighted so that they can be thrown effectively. They are a distinct category from other knives. In theory, any knife can be thrown, but it requires practice and training to use them as efficiently as throwing knives.

3. #3

   Keys: Armor vest, Bulletproof vest, Ballistic vest, Body armor

   There are many types of body armor, some of the most important ones are:

   1. Concealed body armor. It can be worn under everyday clothes without being noticeable and unlike typical police and military-grade body armor, it only protects against blunt trauma, sharp objects and pistol rounds since extra protection is sacrificed in exchange of it being, well, concealed.
   2. Police body armor. Regular police body armor protects from pistol rounds, buckshot, shrapnel and maaaaybe Intermediate cartridges. Special police units wear military-grade body armor.
   3. Military-grade body armor. Protects against Intermediate cartridges, shrapnel and gives a chance of surviving against rifle cartridges.
   4. EOD suit. Created for bomb disposal, can withstand absurd amounts of kinetic energy. No body armor guarantees 100% chance of survival, and it's mostly about increasing said chances. Even without penetration, kinetic energy of a bullet still needs to go somewhere, so even if the body armor stops a bullet successfully, the kinetic energy will disperse and make it feel like a blunt, physical strike, strength of which is dependent on the bullet's velocity.
4. #4

   Keys: Pistol-whipping, firearms as melee, butt-stroking

   Pistol-whipping is a practice of striking someone with a handgun, not via gunshot, but rather via punching someone with the said handgun like a melee weapon.

   The same practice exists for two-handed firearms, and it's called "Buttstroke". It's also possible to use a barrel of a two-handed firearm to strike someone with a muzzle in a thrusting motion (Like a spear). In extreme situations, a jammed/empty two-handed firearm may be used as a club.

   Jammed/empty handguns and other single-handed firearms may also be used as projectiles in extreme cases.

   It is common for characters who follow a "No-kill rule" (Batman, for example) to use firearms this way.

5. #5

   Keys: Flamethrower · Secondary: Incendiary

   Flamethrowers, despite their name, actually fire a stream of burning fuel rather than literally flame itself. Flamethrower is connected with a hose to a fuel tank, which is worn on the back like a backpack. The stream is ignited by a pilot light — a tiny, constantly burning flame at the nozzle. It's this light that sets fuel on fire, as it doesn't come out already burning.

6. #6

   Keys: Fragmentation grenade · Secondary: Explosives, Grenade

   The main danger of a fragmentation grenade are the fragments themselves rather than the blast wave. The blast wave is harmful too, but it's a less dominant danger of the two. Fragmentation grenades don't create a big ball of fire like Hollywood depicts it. Instead, it looks like a small puff of black smoke and nearby particles (dust/sand/snow/others depending on the location) rising from the explosion. Pulling the pin alone does nothing if the safety lever is held in place. When a soldier wraps their hand around a grenade, they also inevitably hold this lever in place. It's the release of pressure from the lever that starts the fuse. This also gives a soldier an option to cancel a grenade throw by simply putting a pin back in as long as lever is still held in place.

7. #7

   Keys: Anti-tank mines, Naval mines, Landmines, Mines · Secondary: Explosives

   There are the three main kinds of mines: Anti-personel landmines, Anti-tank landmines, and naval mines. Anti-personel landmines split into three subtypes: Blast, Bounding and directional. Anti-personnel blast mines are triggered when the victim steps on them, and their main danger is explosion itself rather than shrapnel. Blast mines are the most common type of Anti-personel landmines and sometimes simply referred to as "Anti-personel landmine" as a sort of "default" one in comparison to the other two anti-personel subtypes.

   Bounding mines are triggered by tripwires protruding from it's top in various directions. Upon activation, bounding landmine jumps up and explodes, sending shrapnel flying at all directions.

   Directional landmines are placed vertically and are activated via tripwires in front of it. They send concentrated blast of shrapnel at a specific direction. Unlike the other two types, Directional landmines can only face one specific direction, which means that they can only attack that specific direction. It is important to keep in mind to understand how it works in 3D space; Blast and bounding mines are dangerous regardless of the direction they're approached from due to how they activate, but if a soldier flanks a directional landmine and approaches from the opposite direction then it will not activate.

   Compared to anti-personnel landmines, anti-tank landmines have a much larger explosive charge, and a fuze designed to be triggered by a bigger pressure. An average human weight is not enough to activate an Anti-tank landmine.

   Naval mines are big, spherical, moored to a seabed by chain or cable, can be on water surface or underwater, and are activated via multiple sensor rods (known as "horns") protruding from it. When the rod is pushed inside the naval mine, it detonates.

8. #8

   Keys: Makeshift weapons, Homemade weapons, DIY weapons, Improvised weapons

   Homemade pistols (both mag-fed or single-shot). Homemade revolvers. Homemade SMGs. Homemade shotguns (usually single-shot or double-barreled). Homemade Anti-materiel rifle (usually single-shot). Homemade rocket launchers, grenade launchers and ammunition for them. There's no such thing as a "Homemade assault rifle" since the construction of an average assault rifle is much more complex than that of an SMG or a shotgun. Homemade flamethrowers. Homemade muscle-powered ranged weapons, such as bows, crossbows, sling and slingshots. Homemade explosives of all kinds: Grenades, IEDs, landmines, mortar rounds, artillery shells, unguided missiles, etc. Homemade smoke bombs. Homemade rifle grenades and grenade dischargers. Homemade mortars and artillery. Homemade melee weapons. Homemade traps. Homemade chemical and incendiary weapons.

   3D-printed pistols, pistol-caliber carbines and SMGs are also a thing.

   Homemade weapons can be both made from scratch or with usage of something factory-made (a practice known as "cannibalizing"). For example: Homemade firearm can be made both from readily available materials or with a usage of parts from a defect, broken, yet originally factory-made firearm. Same with explosives since they can be made from unexploded ordnance.

   Quality of homemade firearms depends on available materials, equipment and skill. Some of them may be really impressive for something that has "homemade" in it's name.

9. #9

   Keys: Suppressive fire · Secondary: Tactics

   Suppressive fire is a military tactic of firing at enemy's direction with an intent to force them to cover and restrict their movement. Suppressive fire is usually provided with machine gun, although it can also be provided with assault rifles or sniper fire. Actually killing an enemy is a secondary goal during a suppressive fire (although still welcome).

10. #10

    Keys: Militias and Partisans · Secondary: Civilian, Partisan, Militia

    While there's an overlap between between "Militia" and "Partisans" since both of them are essentially civilians doing military stuff, they still are distinct entities. The specific differences are:

    Militia is a conventional fighting force composed from civilian population. They are usually bigger than partisan movements, better equipped and fight as a regular army via regular military tactics and strategies.

    Partisan formations are usually smaller than militias, equipped with whatever they can get their hands on and fight behind enemy lines. Partisans usually avoid conventional fighting with an enemy force and instead do ambushes, sabotage of communication, power lines and roads, individual assassinations and small-scale mischief like popping car tires and secretly spreading propaganda posters.

11. #11

    Keys: Narco tank, Technical, Improvised fighting vehicle, Gun truck · Secondary: Vehicle, Improvised

    Technical is an improvised fighting vehicle outfitted with such weaponry as a machine gun, automatic grenade launcher, anti-aircraft gun, rotary cannon, ATGM, mortar, recoilless gun, or other weapon. Technicals are used by irregular forces (rebels, insurgents, militias, terrorists, etc). Any motor vehicle can become a technical, and the pickup trucks are the most common ones due to big amount of space in the back to mount weapons. Due to being based on regular, unarmoured civilian vehicles, optional add-on hardware like ballistic glass, turret gun shields and improvised vehicle armor are common for technicals.

    Technicals made from trucks are also a thing, and they have their own term - "Gun trucks". Due to their bigger base and more powerful engines, Gun trucks are able to host more armor and armaments.

    Technicals used by criminal organisations (especially drug cartels) have their own term - "Narco Tank". Narco Tanks usually put much bigger emphasis on armor due to nature of their operations (urban warfare and shootouts rather that quick hit-and-run attacks), with some not even having a turret and instead acting as a homemade APC.

    It's worth noting that some official law enforcement and military structures also use the "civilian vehicle with gun on top" formula, and they are, undoubtedly, also technicals in nature, but there's differences. 1: Higher quality. 2: Purpose, since these are used to fill a specific niche rather than out of crucial necessity like with irregular forces.

    Factory-made military vehicles with DIY modifications (e.g. a fighting vehicle with some scrap armor added to it) are not technicals.

    Truly, the variety of technicals is great, and it's only limited by one's imagination.

12. #12

    Keys: 2 to body 1 to head, Mozambique drill

    Mozambique drill is a close-quarters shooting technique that requires the shooter to quickly fire twice into the torso of a target, and follow up with a shot to the head. This technique is intended for handguns. In theory, Mozambique drill can also be performed with a two-handed firearm, but it's usually redundant since their stopping power is enough as-is.

13. #13

    Keys: Military dummy, Military decoy

    Military decoys are the mockups of vehicles and positions used to deceive an enemy by making it appear as a genuine military hardware. Military decoys can be handmade mockups or factory-made inflatable dummies. There's several applications for military decoys, such as:

    1. Deceiving one's enemies that use aerial reconnaissance or a satellite view.
    2. Baiting enemies to fire at decoys, thus revealing their presence.
    3. Making enemies waste expensive armaments, whose cost is often higher than the decoy itself.

    During World War 2, it went as far as having entire fake air bases with fake planes and fake hangars.

14. #14

    Keys: Playing dead · Secondary: Tactics

    Playing dead is a tactic that revolves around pretending to be dead for various purposes. It can be used defensively, for example: An unfortunate civilian caught in a middle of a terrorist attack or a gang quarrel may lay down amongst bodies and maybe even cover themselves in their blood for more plausibility. Or offensively: In a war, playing dead while enemy soldiers walk over a "dead" soldier, only for him to jump up and mow them down from behind.

15. #15

    Keys: Riot shield, Ballistic shield

    Riot shields are made from a durable transparent plastic and they protect against blunt force, sharp objects, projectiles and fire. Riot shields are not bulletproof.

    Ballistic shields are bulletproof and not transparent (with an exception of an armoured glass window). Both riot and ballistic shields vary in size, with some being designed to protect only the torso and head and others designed to protect the whole body.

16. #16

    Keys: Drugs in combat, Combat stimulants

    Indeed, being high on certain substances may increase combat efficiency due to their stimulant and analgesic effects. Examples:

    1. German soldiers using Pervitin during World War Two.
    2. Criminals on drugs being able to take a whole magazine of pistol bullets and still keep moving.
    3. Final scene in Scarface where Tony Montana takes on multiple enemies and keeps fighting despite being shot multiple times, all thanks to him being high on cocaine. But of course, drugs don't grant invisibility against wounds. They merely help to ignore them to keep moving for a few more precious minutes.
17. #17

    Keys: Sabotaged ammunition · Secondary: Project Eldest Son, Sabotage

    Sabotaged ammunition is intended to blow up when used in a firearm, causing a destruction of weapon at least or injury/death of a shooter at most. Sabotaged ammunition isn't limited to small arms, it's just the most widespread type due to being easy to make. It's also possible to make sabotaged artillery and mortar shells, missiles and hand grenades. Sabotaged ammunition also doubles as a method of psychological warfare due to the feeling of uncertainty over one's own ammunition.

18. #18

    Keys: Rifle grenade, Cup discharger, Grenade discharger · Secondary: Explosives

    Rifle grenades look like miniature mortar shells (incompatible with actual mortars) and are attached on a rifle's muzzle. They were used from WW2 onward.

    Rifle grenade discharger is a cup-shaped device mounted on a muzzle that's intended to fire regular hand grenades without any modifications required, and these were used from WW1 onward. Grenade dischargers can also be mounted on a shotgun as well.

    After the invention of underbarrel grenade launchers (UBGL), the need in rifle grenades have reasonably shrunk.

19. #19

    Keys: Corkscrew and Blowtorch · Secondary: Tactics

    Corkscrew and Blowtorch is a tactic against fortified positions that was created and used by USMC in a Pacific theater of WW2.

    1. Multiple soldiers begin to fire at enemy's position to suppress it.
    2. A soldier with a flamethrower crawls up-close to this position and fires his flamethrower right inside.
    3. Several grenades or even satchel charges are thrown inside for a good measure.
20. #20

    Keys: Shotgun ammo types, Shotgun cartrdiges, Types of shotgun shells, Shotgun ammunition, Shotgun rounds

    1. Buckshot - "Default" shotgun shell, so to speak. Small balls/spheres inside buckshot are called "pellets".
    2. Birdshot - Like buckshot but with more numerous and smaller pellets. It's not as lethal as buckshot to humans (unless fired at a really close range) and thick-skinned animals like moose or boars can just shrug it off.
    3. Slug - One big, solid projectile. Can't cover big areas due to lack of dispersion (That's a single round after all) yet it has bigger range, penetration and can be used to disable cars by firing at engine compartment.
    4. Rubber bullets - Both slugs and buckshot.
    5. Beanbag - A small rough cloth sack filled with birdshot.
    6. Flechette - Loaded with the eponymous flechette.
    7. Dragon's breath - Fires a directed blast of fire. It is purely a pyrotechnic round, e.g. there's no projectiles coming out along with the fire.
    8. Flashbang shell - Doesn't have any projectiles but rather creates a big flash coming from the muzzle that's similar in effect to a flashbang grenade.
    9. Various homemade shells - Small, sturdy objects like nails and coins. It's also an option to load a shell with rock salt as a homemade less-lethal shell. (And just to let imagination run wild, it can also be marbles, air gun pellets, individual chain links, teeth, crushed bone bits, small seashells, fishing hooks, small rocks, clothes buttons, needles, nuts, screws, bolts, small toy cars, jewelry, bottle caps, fired bullets and spent pistol casings, razor blades, dice, chess pieces, poker chips and pretty much anything else that can fit inside a shell).
    10. Flares - It is possible to use a shotgun to fire flare cartridges originally intended for flare guns.
    11. Bird scarer - This cartridge contains a firecracker. Fire it at birds' general direction and the explosion will scare them away.
    12. Taser - These shells fire a small, self-contained Taser device. This projectile has two main sections. The first section is at the top of a shell, which is a cap that has tiny spikes on it. The second section, which located deeper into the shell is a battery with folded fins for stabilization for when it flies out of the shotgun as well. Wires that connect cap and battery are coiled between them in the shell.
21. #21

    Keys: Harassing fire · Secondary: Tactics

    Harassing fire is a military tactic of causing small-scale random, unpredictable and irregular small arms or artillery fire in order to constantly keep enemy forces on high alert. It's usually done not with intent to kill (although that's still welcome) but rather to constantly keep enemy forces on the edge as a form of a psychological warfare.

22. #22

    Keys: Objects that can be used as weapons, Everyday objects

    While weapons themselves are also physical objects in nature, this list only contains objects that weren't originally created to be weapons yet still can be used as such.

    Crowbar, Hammer, Sledgehammer, Screwdriver, Dumbbell, Barbell, Kettlebell, Golf club, Hockey stick, Shovel, Pitchfork, Axes and Hatchets that weren't originally made to kill unlike Battle axes, Tomahawks, etc, Knives that weren't originally made to kill (Kitchen Knife, Scalpel, Box cutter, etc), Scissors, Awl, Ice axe, Pool cue, Clothes iron, Brick, Cinder block, Rebar, Wooden plank, Pipe, Umbrella, Power drill, Chainsaw, Concrete saw, Circular saw, Fire extinguisher, Fire axe, Frying pan, Meat cleaver, Bowling ball, Blowtorch, Paddle, Microphone stand, Sickle, Scythe, Chains, Glass objects, Natural objects (Branches, bamboo sticks, rocks, animal horns and bones, etc.), Nail gun, Flare gun, Firecrackers, Fireworks, Pipe wrench, Table leg, Chair leg or chair as a whole, Walking stick (a.k.a. Cane), Crutch, Machete (yes, machetes were invited as tools first), Pitchfork, Fork, Skewer, Kettle, Pickaxe, Captive bolt pistol (a.k.a. Cattle gun), Rolling pin, Cutting board, Meat tenderizer, Candle holder, Traffic sign, Exhaust pipe, Luggage (such as suitcases, purses and briefcases), Can (preferably unopened for more weight), Can opener, Billiard ball, Horseshoe, Ski, Ski pole, Skateboard, Toilet tank lid, Fireplace poker (a.k.a. Fire iron), Pen, Pencil, Hoe, Rake, Trowel, Ladder, Manhole cover, Steel tray, Car battery, Grater, Frozen food, Tent stake, Handsaw.

23. #23

    Keys: "Anti-Materiel" or "Anti-Material" Rifle? · Secondary: Anti-material, Anti-materiel

    The correct spelling is "anti-materiel", not "anti-material"; "materiel" specifically denotes military supplies and equipment, while any rifle intended to be used against a target made of physical matter could be argued to be an "anti-material rifle".

24. #24

    Keys: Mouse-holing · Secondary: Tactics

    Mouse-holing is a tactic used in urban warfare in which soldiers create access to adjoining buildings or rooms by blasting, tunneling, ramming, or in any other way making a hole in a wall. It is useful for buildings that stand closely to each other yet share no entrances since soldiers don't have to go out in open streets and expose themselves in order to switch between buildings. The denser urban area is, the better it is for mouse-holing since, if applied, allows soldiers to cross big distances without going outside once.

25. #25

    Keys: Bounding overwatch · Secondary: Tactics

    Bounding overwatch, also known as "leapfrogging" is a military tactic. Group 1 runs to cover while group 2 stays and covers them. After that, groups switch roles and now group 1 provides cover while group 2 runs either to group 1 to reunite with them or to other cover. A variation may be chosen depending on the size and equipment available. Variations of this technique may employ more than two teams (or even just one person).

26. #26

    Keys: Jezail, Afghan musket

    Jezail is a long-barrelled musket used in Central Asia, British India, Iran and Afghanistan. Jezails are one of the longer and heavier of muskets, which made it a very accurate weapon for its time. While a great long-range weapon, its size is rather a downside when it comes to a conventional closer-range fighting within enemy muskets' range. Jezail production is not industrialized but rather handmade, so they often feature intricately decorated stocks due to their handmade nature.

27. #27

    Keys: Thermal scope, Thermal sight

    Thermal sights can't see through glass because, unlike visible light, infrared radiation does not pass through glass. Instead, the glass creates a reflective image of the surroundings on the camera's screen instead of revealing the heat signatures of objects behind the glass. So if a person looks at the glass through a thermal sight then they'll only see their own reflection in a form of a heat signature as well as heat signatures of other warm objects around themselves.

28. #28

    Keys: Trench club · Secondary: World War One

    Trench club is a one-handed weapon that was first used during World War One. They weren't a standard issue equipment but rather handmade, which means that there is a great variety of them. Some have improvised metal ends such as a big gear, sprocket, barbed wire or a dud grenade (just remove the explosives first). Some have spiky protrusions like nails, rivets, screws or wooden stakes. And some have medieval-style metal heads made specifically for these clubs. They are usually rough in quality, but in a good way. The exact kind of rough you'd want in such environment.

29. #29

    Keys: Coal torpedo, Coal bomb · Secondary: Explosives, Sabotage

    The coal torpedo is a weapon of sabotage. A hollow iron casting shaped like a piece of coal, filled with explosives, and coated in coal dust. It was first created and used by the Confederates during the American Civil War. When shoveled into a firebox along with regular coal, it would explode, damaging the boiler at least, and causing a catastrophic boiler explosion that could kill crewmen and passengers, start a fire, or even sink the vessel (if we're talking about steam-powered vessels and not locomotives) at worst. The torpedo's walls are usually slightly less than an inch thick, which are also dipped in melted beeswax and rolled in coal dust, giving it the proper appearance of a lump of coal. In use, the coal torpedo leaves little evidence that an explosion was due to sabotage.

30. #30

    Keys: Rappelling from a helicopter · Secondary: Tactics

    Rappelling from a helicopter is a technique for descending a thick rope, allowing troops to deploy from a helicopter in places where the aircraft cannot touch down. The person holds onto the rope with gloved hands (gloved and only gloved to protect hands from friction) and slides down it. Several people can rappel down the same rope simultaneously, provided that there is a sufficient timing so that each one has time to get out of the way when they reach the ground.

31. #31

    Keys: Booby trap gun, Door gun trap · Secondary: Traps

    Booby trap gun is a gun that's rigged to fire when a string or other triggering device is tripped by contact of sufficient force to push the trigger so that anyone stumbling over or treading on it would discharge the gun. Booby trap guns can be set to protect property. For this purpose, a booby trap is placed facing the door from the inside of the room. Shotguns are the most common choice for such booby traps due to dispersion, which increases the chance of hitting someone compared to just one bullet. Although, any kind of firearm (or maybe even a crossbow) can be used to make this booby trap.

32. #32

    Keys: Anti-tank rifles

    An anti-tank rifle is a type of weapon designed to penetrate the armor of armored vehicles. It was invented during World War 1 when armored warfare have first became a thing. Anti-tank rifles are the predecessors of anti-materiel rifles. Anti-tank rifles have also saw service in World War 2 and Korean War until being fully replaced in it's original role due to both better armor of newer tanks as well as a development of more efficient anti-tank weapons. Despite this, however, Anti-tank rifles were still far from useless as they were also used against less armored targets, essentially acting as anti-materiel rifles even before the invention of anti-materiel rifles as a class.

33. #33

    Keys: Rat shot, Snake shot · Secondary: Ammunition

    Snake shot, also known as Rat shot is a type ammunition for firearms loaded with tiny pellets instead of a single bullet (yes, like in a shotgun). It is made against small targets like snakes, rats, and birds at close distances, with its effectiveness decreasing rapidly as range increases. This type of ammunition exists for both handguns and rifles. Loading such ammunition to a weapon essentially turns it into a shotgun purpose-wise. This type of ammunition is not as lethal to bigger creatures, unless fired at a really close, near point-blank range.

34. #34

    Keys: Vietnam War traps · Secondary: Traps

    1. Punji sticks. "Punji sticks" is a actually a colloquial term for traps that use such sharpened wood or bamboo sticks, such as: 1.1 Punji stick pit. A classic one. Just a camouflaged pit with stakes at the bottom. 1.2 Punji stick pit with a hatch. A more sophisticated one. Instead of just foliage this trap is hidden with a spinning hatch that's camouflaged on both sides. When a soldier steps on it, the hatch opens under their weight, making the soldier fall inside, after which it does a full spin around it's axis before snapping back into a closed position. 1.3 Vertical punji stick pit. Same as a regular stick pit, except the stakes are placed along pit's walls and not at the bottom. When a soldier's foot falls into it, flexible stakes first bend under leg's weight, letting it fall lower, and then spring back, impaling the leg from the sides. This technique makes the leg harder to pull out. This variant requires flexible bamboo, young wood or thin steel spikes to bend properly. 1.4 Rolling punji pit. This variation has two spiked cylinders inside the pit at opposite sides. When a soldier falls into it, the cylinders begin to spin from soldier's weight affecting them, thus acting like a meatgrinder.
    2. Cartridge trap. A cartridge is placed in a tiny pit with a nail at the bottom. When a soldier steps at this cartridge, it pushes down, pressing it's primer against the nail, thus causing it to fire. It is impossible to detect such trap without a metal detector since it's only a single cartridge in the ground. Any firearm cartridge is suitable. It is essentially a landmine purpose-wise.
    3. Spike board. It consists of two boards on different ends a long stick: The lower, treadle one and the upper one with spikes or nails. It is same mechanically as stepping on a rake; When a soldier steps on a lower board, it acts as a lever that brings upper board up at soldier's stomach/chest/legs/depends on the individual trap.
    4. Tiger trap. A large board with spikes hangs above, often with added stones or bricks for more impactful fall. This trap is connected with tripwire below. No helmet? Guaranteed death. With a helmet? Death chance is lower but still not zero.
    5. Mace trap. A large wooden or metal ball with long wooden or metal spikes protruding from it. Instead of falling straight from above like a tiger trap, it swings across the booby-trapped area.
    6. Swinging door trap. These traps are suspended above the door and vary in size: Some are small and intended to hit at the head level, some are medium-sized and intended to hit at the torso level, and some are big and intended to hit at the whole body. These traps are tripwired to a closed door. For smaller ones, the space above the doorframe is enough, while bigger ones need to be set right at the celling.
    7. Bamboo whip trap. A bamboo pole with spikes is bent horizontally and held at arched position by a stick dug into ground, which in turn is connected to a tripwire. When the tripwire is triggered, the trap would spring into action, hitting soldier's leg/stomach/chest/depends on the individual trap.
    8. Arrow trap. A wooden plank with a bamboo tube that hosts an arrow inside which is pressed against a taut string which in turn is connected to a tripwire. The specific part of soldier's body that gets hit depends on the position of the trap.
    9. Bucket trap. A metal bucket with nails at the sides. Same in function as vertical punji pit except that it's portable. It is buried in the ground, awaiting for someone's leg to be caught in it.

    All the spikes, stakes, nails and other pointy things in these traps are often covered in natural poisons, feces or corpse secretions to cause infection. Some of these traps (those that harm legs) are not mainly intended to kill but rather to render a soldier incapable of fighting and divert manpower for their evacuation.

35. #35

    Keys: Dogs in Warfare, Role of dogs in war · Secondary: Rescue dog, Messenger dog, Sniffer dog, Attack dog, Guard dog, Explosive dog

    Dogs were used by humans ever since they were domesticated. In antiquity, Greeks and Romans used dogs for guard and patrol duties. During American Civil War, Confederates trained some of their hounds to hunt for escaped slaves. The specific dog roles are:

    1. Attack dog. Pretty self-explanitory.
    2. Guard dog. Pretty self-explanitory too. Difference from attack dogs is that Guard dogs' primary role is detection and deterrence rather than immediate charge and engagement.
    3. Messenger dog. Can be used not only for letters but for any object that a dog can carry. Strapped with pouches.
    4. Sniffer dog. Used to detect explosives, drugs, weapons, electronics, living beings and other things depending on what exactly a specific dog was trained to search for.
    5. Rescue dog. First this concept was Invented during WW1. These dogs are sent to the battlefield's aftermath to seek out wounded soldiers. These dogs wear pouches with medical supplies.
    6. Explosive dog. A more extreme variant of an attack dog. Trained as suicide bombers to run at enemy troops/vehicles while carrying explosives on themselves.
36. #36

    Keys: Anti-motorcycle wire trap, Cable trap, Wire trap · Secondary: Traps

    Wire trap - not to be confused with a tripwire - is a trap used against people driving in motorcycles, quad bikes, or any other vehicle without any sort of protection in the front. A wire is stretched taut between two trees or any other fitting objects, each at their own side of the road. When a person drives into the taut wire trap, the following result depends on the speed, position of the wire and a protection on driver's body (if any); It may just push him down from their motorcycle and only leave them with some bruises, it may break some bones, or it may snap the neck or even decapitate the driver clean off. The protection measure against this simple trap is equally simple - A vertical metal bar is wielded to the front of the vehicle, which in turn gets into contact with the wire first and then snaps it. Driver is (mostly) safe from the wire trap not only if the vehicle has a windshield, but also if the driver is simply too short to reach wire's height with their body.

37. #37

    Keys: Cannon projectiles · Secondary: Chain shot, Heated shot, Cannonball, Canister shot

    1. Round Shot/Cannonball: A solid spherical projectile originally made by carving it from stone before switching to cast iron in 17th century. Round Shot does not explode — its destructive power comes solely from its mass and high velocity. 1.1. Heated Shot: Not a different projectile but rather the special way of shooting cast iron cannonballs after heating them red for the purpose of setting fire to enemy wooden warships buildings, or other equipment. It was rendered obsolete in the mid-19th century when vessels gradually began to have more and more iron on them, as well as invention of new ammunition. The use of heated shot was mainly confined to stationary roles like shore batteries and forts, due to the need for a special furnace to heat the cannonball, which would be a great hazard if placed on then-wooden vessels.
    2. Molten iron shells: These hollow shells were filled with molten iron from a cupola furnace and were intended to break up on impact, splashing molten iron on the target, setting fire and increasing area affected by a cannonball in general. After filling, the shells were left for a few minutes before firing, which allowed the metal in the filling hole to solidify and seal the hole. The shells remained effective even if an hour elapsed between filling and firing as, by this time, the filling would have solidified and the shell casing heated, making them equivalent to conventional heated shot. If even more time passes with cannonball still not being fired for some reason, then it fully solidifies and becomes just a regular cannonball by that moment. Molten steel shells were introduced to British Navy in 1860 and declared obsolete in 1869.
    3. Canister shot: An anti-infantry ammunition which is a closed metal cylinder filled with small round pellets (such as musket balls), essentially acting as a giant shotgun. This projectile had been used since at least the 16th century. Nails, scrap iron or lead, wire, and other similar metal objects can also be used instead of pellets. A variation of Canister shot that uses such metal objects is known as "Langrage shot".
    4. Shell: A hollow cannonball filled with explosives. The use of exploding shells from field artillery became relatively commonplace from early in the 19th century.
    5. Chain shot: Two smaller cannonballs, or two halves of a regular cannonball, both connected by chain. When fired, the chain shot extends wide open. Chain shot was created to be used against sailing ships by damaging their masts, sails and other rigging. The military usefulness of chain shot died out as wooden sail-powered ships were replaced with armored steam ships.
38. #38

    Keys: Tachanka · Secondary: World War One

    A tachanka is a horse-drawn cart or an open wagon (just to clarify, cart has two wheels while wagon has four) with a heavy machine gun mounted on the rear side. A tachanka requires a crew of two (one driver and a machine gunner) and must be pulled by two to four horses. A regular civilian horse cart could be easily converted to military use and back. Tachankas were first used by Imperial Russian Army during World War 1 and then by pretty much all sides of the subsequent Civil War.

    Hm... "Civilian means of transportation which are converted to military use by mounting a machine gun on it" sounds familiar?

39. #39

    Keys: Camouflage tree, Fake tree, Obserbation tree · Secondary: World War One

    Camouflage trees (also known as fake trees, false trees, and observation trees) are the observation posts that are camouflaged as trees. Invented during World War 1, dead trees were a common sight on the western front, which had led to the idea of creating observation trees. When a specific tree is chosen for this task, an exact replica of this tree gets built. After which, under the cover of night, a real tree is cut down and replaced by a replica. Cutting down and replacing has to be done in the same night specifically, because otherwise enemies would notice a tree disappearing and then somehow reappearing a day/few days later. As for the construction of a camouflage tree, it is a huge steel cylinder/pipe with a "tree" façade built over it. Inside of this hollow construction is a ladder for climbing to the periscope above. As for entering such a tree, there's a hole at the lower part of the tree trunk which is used by a soldier to get inside the observation post. "But how is the soldier supposed to get inside without enemies seeing it?" well, the tree is deliberately positioned in such a place where it's lower part can't be seen from enemy's direction. As a final note, it has to be a pre-made replica specifically, because trying to turn an actual tree into a such observation post is a really bad idea.

40. #40

    Keys: Pen gun

    A pen gun is a firearm that looks like an ink pen. They are made to fire a handgun cartridge and are single shot. Pros: Inconspicuous at the first glance. Cons: For very close range only due to lack of sights, heavier than an actual pen which might raise suspicions, can't write since the internal space for ink is replaced with a firing mechanism. Pen guns can be both homemade and factory-made.

41. #41

    Keys: Anti-tank grenades · Secondary: Explosives, Grenade

    Anti-tank grenades are a specialized hand-thrown grenades used to defeat armored targets. Hand-thrown anti-tank grenades became redundant with the introduction of newer anti-tank weapons. Anti-tank grenade are made using the stick grenade layout, which means that they consist of a "stick" handle with a pin and a warhead on top, as opposed to a "grenade body with a fuse on top" layout. Anti-tank grenades use a shaped charge, which means that unlike with fragmentation grenades, which can just land near the target and still do damage upon detonation, anti-tank grenades have to hit a target directly. Not only that, but it also has to hit a target with it's top part specifically since that's how shaped charges work. To ensure that, there is a miniature drogue parachute tucked into a handle. After pulling the pin and throwing the grenade, it unfurls mid-flight and thus stabilizes an anti-tank grenade, ensuring that it lands with it's top against the target.

42. #42

    Keys: Dual-use technology

    Dual-use technology is the term used to describe technologies that can be used for both civilian and military purposes. Some examples of Dual-use technologies are:

    1. Means of transportation: All of them. Anything that drives, swims, flies or in any other way can transport men and materiel.
    2. Everything electricity-based, including but not limited to: Computer parts, phones, cameras, radios, smartwatches, Unmanned vehicles (Ground, Waterborne, Aerial, etc.), satellite dishes, navigation devices, proximity sensors, metal detectors, flashlights, power tools, power cables, data storage devices (discs, flash drives, floppy disks, memory cards, etc.) batteries and even lightbulbs.
    3. Recreational gear: Tents, sleeping bags, portable stoves, backpacks, climbing equipment, diving gear, parachutes.
    4. Basic Tools: Tools like knives, axes, machetes, sledgehammers and others can obviously serve as weapons apart from their original purpose.
    5. Camouflage clothing: pretty self-explanatory. What stops a soldier from wearing a camo jacket originally made for hunters, wildlife photographers or just people who like camouflage?
    6. Personal protection gear: Not things like body armor and ballistic helmets, which are more military-leaning, but rather pretty much anything that can protect person's body, including but not limited to; hazmat suits, fireproof suits, gas masks, life jackets, welding masks, goggles, gloves, motorcycle helmets, knee and elbow pads, etc.
    7. Means of production: Means of production of what? Of Anything. Sewing machines, 3D printers, lathe machines, lab equipment, etc.

    But how should one deal with dual-use technology? The protocol for purely military materiel is straightforward: if you see an enemy aircraft, pillbox, or radar station, you just destroy it. However, this aggressive approach fails when applied to dual-use items because of their sheer ubiquity. It would be an absurd waste of time and resources for an army to hunt down every knife, backpack, bicycle, and phone just because they might have tactical utility. But despite that, on the other hand... it still would be nicer if enemy had less knives, backpacks, bicycles and phones, right? Instead, the most effective way to deprive an enemy of these assets is through economic warfare rather than a direct warfare. Rather than attempting to destroy what the opponent already possesses, it is far more efficient to prevent them from having new ones with the use of sanctions, embargoes, blockades and other such economic measures.

43. #43

    Keys: Vietnam helmet art, helmet graffiti, Helmet writings · Secondary: Vietnam War

    While the idea of adding a personal touch to one's gear isn't novice, it's the Vietnam War that saw an en-masse helmet writings phenomenon done with black marker pens, such as:

    1. "Make love, not war" or reversed "Make war, not love", universal "make love AND war" or more poetic "love and war - Yin and Yang"
    2. "Born to..." variations. "Born to kill", "Born to die", "Born to love", "Born to live", "Born to raise hell", "Born by accident", "Born to... i don't know" and others.
    3. "War is good business, invest your son!"
    4. "Hear all evil. See all evil. Kill all evil."
    5. "War is hell"
    6. Names of Wives and Girlfriends.
    7. Names of Hometowns and/or Home States.
    8. Deployment calendars. A standard tour of duty in Vietnam was 12 months for a regular soldier (13 months for marines), so it was common to write all the upcoming months in a small column somewhere on a helmet, starting with the month of arrival and ending with the expected month of rotation, eventually crossing out months as time passes.
    9. Names of bands/songs/musicians of the era (By the way, there's A LOT of Vietnam-era music besides Fortunate Son. Just saying).
    10. "Short-timer" (Context: "Short-timer" is the term for a person who's got less than 100 days of service left in Vietnam)
    11. "The Lord is my pointman" (Context: "Pointman" in Vietnam is a person who walks in front of infantry unit, leading the way and detecting traps. Naturally, pointmen are chosen from more skilled and competent ones.)
    12. "Caution: Vietnam may be hazardous to your health!"
    13. "Shit happens"
    14. "I am become death"
    15. "kill them all and let God sort them out"
    16. Patriotic slogans: "In god we trust", "Democracy harbinger", "God bless America"
    17. Self-aware ones: "What are you reading here?", "Sorry for wasting good pen, sarge", "Hey, eyes on the battlefield!", "Can we have pink markers next?"
    18. Nicknames of soldiers.

    As a final note, helmet writings phenomenon is not Vietnam-exclusive, but rather just popularized by Vietnam war. They can also authentically fit in other scenarios if these writings are adapted for the current context. (e.g. It won't make sense to make writings about Vietcong during Iraq War, will it?)

44. #44

    Keys: Troops on tanks, Tank desant

    Tank desant is a combined arms tactic where infantry soldiers ride to the battle on top of tanks and then dismount to fight on foot during the battle itself.

    After the invention of the newer types of military vehicles, this tactic became rare in well-equipped armed forces, with front-line troops usually riding in armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles, or other armored vehicles, which provide the same function of defending and fighting alongside tanks but with more firepower and protection. The important point here is "well-equipped", since tank desant is still quite useful if there's not enough vehicles.

    It is important to note that tank desant doesn't stay on tanks during the battle itself since a tank obviously draws enemy attention. They only arrive to the battle like that, after which they disembark and act like an infantry.

45. #45

    Keys: Human shield

    A human shield is a non-combatant who is used to shield a military target in order to deter the enemy from attacking it due to the risk of civilian casualties.

    While it's obviously not desirable to become a living shield during a conflict, there is also such thing as voluntarily human shields. If a civilian supports a certain cause yet doesn't want to fight for it, then they can instead help by using their non-combatant status such an extreme way.

    Using human shields for protection is useless if the enemy isn't bound by rules of war anyway i.e. if they just don't care.

46. #46

    Keys: Punt gun

    A punt gun is a type of extremely large, single-shot, muzzle-loading shotgun used in the 19th and early 20th centuries for shooting large numbers of waterfowl. With an average weight of about 50kg and overall length spanning from 2 to 3 meters, it was obviously taller than a person using it back then. Due to this, these weapons are too large for an individual to fire from the shoulder. In theory, it IS physically possible to grab, raise and shoot it like a regular shotgun, but that's a bad idea in practice. A punt gun has to be braced against something for adequate shooting, such as punt boats, hence the name. Punt guns could kill about 50 waterfowl with a single shot due to firing approximately a pound of pellets at a time. Punt guns were outlawed for hunting by the second half of the 19th century due to a genuine threat of waterfowl extinction.

47. #47

    Keys: Reconnaissance by fire · Secondary: Tactics

    Reconnaissance by fire is a tactic in which military forces fire at the direction of a possible enemy presence in order to provoke a response and thus confirm the said presence. If a regular reconnaissance is "go over there and see if anyone's there." Then reconnaissance by fire is "Shoot over there to see if anyone's there to react to it." This way of reconnaissance is not suitable for operations where secrecy is important since it implies that you would need to reveal your own presence first.

48. #48

    Keys: Bangalore torpedo · Secondary: Explosives

    A Bangalore torpedo is an explosive charge invented in 1912, which is a 1.5m pipe filled with explosives. Despite being an explosive device, it's original purpose is not that of a weapon but rather as a device to clear obstacles, such as minefields and barbed wire specifically. Bangalore torpedoes are modular since each such pipe is threaded at both ends, so they can be joined into one longer torpedo. This design not only allows to affect greater lengths at once, but also to be pushed from greater lengths as opposed to directly approaching an obstacle. As for detonation: When a torpedo is assembled, a friction igniter is inserted into a free end of the very first pipe in the line (the one that a soldier is holding). Then, a wire of this igniter gets pulled and a torpedo pushed at the obstacle.

49. #49

    Keys: Artillery spotter, Artillery observer

    An artillery observer, a.k.a. artillery spotter is a soldier responsible for directing indirect fire (artillery, mortars, MLRS, etc.) onto a target. The need for an artillery spotter comes from the very name of a fire they're supposed to guide - "indirect". Artillery crew cannot see how and where their shells land. (The exception to this is if they're using direct fire, but usually it's not artillery's main purpose, and... at that case, there's not really a need for an artillery spotter if they're using direct fire). An artillery observer has to see the exact place indirect fire hits, and just to clarify to avoid possible confusion - to see the exact place, one does not need to stand close to this exact place themselves. An artillery spotter then sends information back to indirect fire weapon crew, helping them correct their shots to hit more accurately as well as providing general updates on the area they hit.

50. #50

    Keys: Encirclement

    Encirclement is the situation when a force or a specific target is completely surrounded by enemy forces and thus isolated. The term "encirclement" isn't bound by size; it can be a house, a street, a town, an entire planet, and so on and so on. If there is at least one way out, no matter how small and inefficient it is, then it does not constitute as a true encirclement (although it's still unfavorable). There are 4 main outcomes of an encirclement.

    1. Destruction - Encircled force gets eradicated.
    2. Surrender - Encircled force surrenders.
    3. Breakout - Encircled force manages to breach a gap in an encirclement and thus escape the encircled place.
    4. Relief - An external friendly force successfully defeats the encircling enemy force.

    Although, there is also a 5th outcome... Let's call it a "miracle" or "unforeseen factors". These can include: 5.1. Peace Treaty. 5.2. Political causes in the state whose forces hold the encirclement: Regime change, Mutiny, Anti-war sentiment, etc. 5.3. Encircling force's withdrawal due to broader strategic causes, when an encirclement is just not the top priority anymore. 5.4. A catastrophic event: Natural disaster, disease, simultaneous heart attack of all encircling forces, etc.

    All these outcomes are hypothetically possible but in reality they are not stable enough to rely on them as much as the main 4 outcomes.

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