Making the infantry of Arashi

[Charon]

"In sand dune like desert you can dig small man sized trenches in the sand then cover them with a tarp then put sand back over the top."

This'll do against most air-observation, really solid for that. You just have to be extra vigilant with hydration, because those tarps will create a sort of microwave effect for whomever is in them. A Marine in 29 palms was separated from his unit and tried this with a tarp to keep the sun off of him, and it had the kind of effect putting a rabbit in a greenhouse would. He was mostly bones and decomp fluid when they finally got to him.

The trapped encampment is a definite for these guys, I think. With all that modern insurgents can do with mortar shells, they'll have several caches of IEDs to set up when they find a lumberjack. Nasty.

[Lord Dick Tim]

Oh god I hadnt even considered the idea of rapid retreating and trapping downed enemy positions.
This is a complete game changer in my brain, it fits more in line with the Arashi are scrap collectors mentality several other players have reasoned.

Ok, just with some of the ideas as they stand I think I need to do a new opener for Desert Asp next to the original, to get a fresh comparison of some of the many changes that have come up.

[Ofiach]

Another thought I had was dune destabilization. Big clunky armored vehicles are traveling through sand dunes so you induce a sandslide to bog these down. It can take hours to dig one out at worst and destroy the inner workings at best. Probably just an intelligent use of explosives.

Also to expand on the sand over tarp idea go back to looney tunes. Big armored vehicle is driving over a hole that is covered by a tarp, sand, and some sticks, now the Guild is spending yet another few hours digging their vehicle out. This goes well with the idea of bogging the guild down and making it extremely costly for them to fight.  This forces the guild to have to check for booby traps in the sand everywhere they go, severely limiting their ability to move.

Oh Charon I believe that microwave effect comes more from the use of plastic and not from how the shelter is built, I picture the Asps using animal hides or cloth and not plastic. At least that's how I see them, maybe I'm wrong.

[Machiavelliest]

I hate to diminish the discussion with a short post, but the loose coalition and desert warfare environment really reminds me of the Fremen from Dune.

[Clara Skyborn]

I have a question for you, is this a Sahara like desert with shifting sand dunes and Oases or more of an Arizona desert with clay a few feet down? That would effect what a digging machine would be capable of and how fast.

I can answer that, since I'm interested in seeing where this goes. The Dunes, in the Burren, is more like the Sahara (you've all seen it), whereas the Arashi Desert is rockier and more resembles deserts of the American southwest.

ETA: I should also clear up a misconception that might be coloring things a bit: while there's not much love lost between the League and the Guild, they're not bitter blood enemies at full-scale war, although there are certainly conflicts in their history (and the present day). I think in one of the Kickstarter videos Eric said the Dunes war was between these factions, but he misspoke. The war in Battle on the Dunes is between the cities of Nalm and Sylka (from Guns 1), which are both independent.

[Lord Dick Tim]

Thanks for the clearing up Jess, that helps a ton.  I was thinking this might have initially been a full scale war effort, but turned into a unpopular war that diminished to a conflict that petered into nothing but saber rattling because of the vastness of the wastelands and the unpreparedness of Guild forces to fight an insurgency.
I'm of the opinion the Guild had several motives at play, thinking that the loose Arashi would fold in front of sufficient force, cities surrendering to their armies after sacking one or two of them like classic European conflicts.

[Ofiach]

Ahhh that makes thing's a little different in their tactics I suppose.

If the desert they like in has more animal life the Asps are probably trappers and hunters naturally. Think about that going into a fight against a better equipped but undisciplined army. I don't know if anyone has seen a Raccoon trap(the non humane kind) but I could see the Asps modifying those to use against enemy infantry. basically the trap is a little drum that is anchored to a tree with a ring of spikes facing toward the bottom and inward. The Raccoon reaches in for the bait then cant pull its hand back out because of the spikes, apparently they're too dumb to let go of the bait and slip the hand back out. modify the trap a little spring load the spikes and put a thin layer over the top then bury it an inch down. Then make the enemy chase you right into an area where you have these buried right below the surface and you've just caused heavy casualties to the enemy force. They have to tend the wounded and now these wounded cant walk because either their feet and/or calves are shredded.

There's another trap that I learned when hunting Javelinas. Basically you dig a foot deep 2 foot wide trench, when the boar is going full speed it will most likely hit the trench and break its legs making the kill easier. Once again adapt it a little bit and get the enemy (seeing as how you described them I believe they would break ranks pretty regularly) to come charging through a wash or some scrub. They now have to deal with sprained and broken ankles, knee injuries, and maybe even broken legs.

After a while they would stop chasing the Asps every time they ambushed so the Asps could hit and run with impunity.

Those rocky type deserts offer plenty of poisonous plants and animals that could be used to incapacitate or kill enemy troops. Anything to wear the enemy down and send him home. HQ's and observation points would also be easier to establish because rock outcroppings are everywhere and usually offer great protection from the heat and cold.

Also the fast retreating and boobytrapping of military camps would still be a viable tactic. Deserts can seem flat but there are always washes and small rises that a native force could use to hide their movements from the enemy.

Just some ideas there, I know the raccoon traps are particularly brutal but hey in a you kill me or I kill you type situation why not fall back on tried and true trapping methods.

Another great use for your digging machine is undermining roads. Guile over brute force. 

[The Churrosaur]

Hmn... similarly, if the asps are too primitive/resource poor to construct airships on the same level or amount as, say, the guild, (the vibe I seemed to be getting- correct me) they would need some kind of cost-effective solution to negate the tactical advantage they'd offer- like insurgents utilizing a relatively cheap RPG to suppress a million-dollar tank.

Makes me think of the ewoks busting ATSTs with logs in Return of the Jedi.

[Lord Dick Tim]

There was a concept charon and I went back and forth on about using downed ships as ambush locations, along with natural cliffs or even city ruins.
In many instances the ships would have to pass close to these points making their crew prime targets for small arms fire.  So ya, your general idea Churrosaur is correct, cheap yet versatile weapons used to maximize the advantage against a superior foe.

So far I've written a two new openings for Desert Asp, having to pare them down and correct some errors.  Ones a city scape idea, the other in the desert itself.  I'm liking the desert one more, the city scape one is very "Enemy at the Gates".

[Lord Dick Tim]

Made the second post for desert asp, using a completely different set of ideas and combat discipline.  I'm not overall pleased with the piece as a story, but it gets the idea across of the kind of insurgency I'm thinking the Arashi would have.

[Javrak]

Explosive devices hidden in the sand. Sand makes one hell of a mess when it's used as shrapnel. Salt an oasis along the incoming path? Booby-trapped bottlenecks, perhaps boulders, explosives, steam devices? Night raids centered around damaging rations and water only. Cripple their resources for travel, and they will slowly starve. Something to the tune of puncturing water supplies. Greatest weapon in the desert is the desert.

[Keon]

Arashi...

Honestly though, if you were to take anything from the picture, that cape. I see every infantryman carrying a cape for camouflage and shelter. If you could hide on sand dunes as well as use it for shelter in the night, you're pretty much set.

Also, the Arashi are supposed to be some of the most technologically advanced. I wouldn't put it ahead of them to be carrying tesla weaponry, ground-mounded Hwatcha, etc, though probably as a squad. Imagine the way cannons would be used, but somehow tesla. We talked a bit about IEDs. I'm also thinking traps buried in the sand, tripwires, barbed wire, maybe even electric fences. I also get the feeling that if anybody would get that ship on Dunes working again it would be these guys.

I feel like each soldier would carry some rudimentary tools for salvaging old scraps, seeing as that's how Arashi make their money and food.

[Piemanlives]

What about deployment? I feel the Arashi infantry would be more guerrilla fighters like discussed, so I would assume they have a sturdy yet easily collapsible tunnel system should they feel the need to cover their tracks.

[Charon]

We kinda discussed the tunnel bit a little earlier in the thread. We think they would have mobile drills that are only used between firm positions, most likely the wreckage of downed airships. The mobile drills will utilize their fuel only to move between downed ships, and refuel for drilling on-site, utilizing whatever remaining fuel might have survived on the airship. Create a tunnel system around the wreckage for shelter from the harsh sun, and for moving between dug-in fighting positions, and use any workable weaponry on the airship to ambush other ships in the area.

[Piemanlives]

Ahh, interesting concept.