This was a great mission. I was FTL in Charlie squad, and later took over squad lead. Alpha and Bravo preceded us to secure the LZ, but it was still hot when we landed. Charlie took light fire on insertion, neutralized the threat, and headed north from the LZ. We advanced to contact, encountering an enemy squad in open ground. My fireteam was designated base of fire, and we engaged the enemy while the maneuver element advanced. We were joined by the weapons team who added some 50-cal notes to the music. We eliminated the enemy and continued north into heavy trees.

Charlie made contact with another enemy force of unknown strength, and again my fireteam engaged while the maneuver element advanced on the left flank. We encountered heavy resistance, our maneuver team ran into a previously unseen enemy squad. An intense firefight ensued, and charlie put up good fight until our ammo ran dry. At some point I believe the 2 squads we were facing were joined by a third. We were forced back with heavy casualties, and regrouped at LZ Victor.

While regouping, LZ Victor came under assault from the north. Charlie defended, killing 3-4 enemy respawns. During the defense, another friendly squad advanced on the left flank to ambush the incoming respawns. Unfortunately, at the same time CAS fired rockets into the trees and caused a few friendly fire casualties. I was leading the squad at that time, and did not hear a call for CAS on command channel. We advanced north, clearing camps until the enemy HQ was located. We then proceeded to the HQ, which was on an exposed hilltop. We engaged an enemy squad with rifles and captured RPG's, while CAS and arty was called in. The enemy HQ was destroyed, and all mission tasks were completed.

Charlie squad's teamwork and communications were excellent throughout. There was good coordination between the fireteams. Expert advice was provided by filson, who led the maneuver fireteam. Cody also did a great job as squad leader.

Observations:

-Fire discipline: On the initial advance, charlie encountered an enemy squad in open ground. My fireteam engaged at 300+ meters to provide cover for the maneuver team. My team, myself included, expended excessive ammo during this engagement. This really hurt us later, as we ran out and were either killed or forced to retreat. I should have used better fire discipline, and when the weapons team brought their M2's online I should have ceased fire and advanced while they used their range advantage.

-Better use of smoke: When we were forced to break contact we should have used smoke grenades to obscure our retreat. I don't know if the AI can see through smoke the way it can see through bushes, but we should have popped smoke anyway. It might have saved us some unnecessary casualties.

-Marking targets for CAS: When on veteran mode, it becomes especially important to mark positions with smoke when calling CAS. This could have avoided friendly casualties during the defense of LZ victor.

All in all a great mission. I learned a lot about leading a squad in veteran mode, and about coordinating artillery and air assets. Thanks to everyone who participated.