OTHER EQUIPMENT

Fortifications

     Barbed Wire, Antipersonnel: Concertina wire consisting of strips of metal with razor-like blades. This is in common use by NATO forces.  It is often called “razor wire” by troops. They are often interlaced with tripwires, flares, grenades and other explosives, and cans with a small amount of metal bits or rocks in them.  You can also use it to tie someone up, if you want to inflict more pain.

     Barbed Wire, Concertina: Spring-like coil of barbed wire, with interlaced strands of normal barbed wire, also known as a "combat slinky."  The enhancements that GIs add to the Antipersonnel Wire also apply to this wire (and any other barbed wire used by soldiers).

     Barbed Wire, Concertina/Antipersonnel: Essentially a combination of the two wire barbed types above, this version of “razor wire” usually also has a horizontal razor wire strand going in and out through each coil.  Just a note: I found out the hard way that barbed wire is virtually invisible at night, when I walked into a triple-concertina perimeter that I didn’t know had been put up.  A friend of mine had a constant disconnect between razor wire and his brain; he was constantly falling into it, and we gave him the nickname “The Ripstop Kid.” Normal issue is 50 meters and no poles, usually carried on the front of APCs/IFVs and command post vehicles.

     Barbed Wire (Straight): Normal lines of heavy wire with knots of barbs.  Though used in warfare, they are much more likely to be used on cattle farmers’ fields.  Farmers normally put up strong wooden posts to attach their wire, metal poles as on the chart are normally only found on military installations, and used where cattle roam and troop training take place on the same fields.

     Camouflage Netting: Modern camouflage netting is typically infrared- and radar-scattering, and impose a one level penalty on such detection attempts. Eastern-Bloc nets are normally square; NATO nets are a modular set of hexagons and diamonds. They typically are held up by a variable length of modular poles tipped by “spreaders” – five blades with wide disks on the end to, as might be thought, spread the net and raise them above the place to be hidden at the same time.  Poles are composed of three sections; spreaders fold open into their five sections. Camouflage nets have a different pattern on each side (normally summer/spring and fall; other patters include winter/snow, sand/scrub, jungle, and others are certainly available). Weight and price is for an arbitrary 10x10m hexagon and two diamonds, and includes the poles and spreaders for erection.  Clips are at the edges to assemble large nets. These are normally used to hide vehicles, command posts, and other high-value installations; however, many soldiers, particularly infantrymen, use them as ad hoc helmet cover breakups and ghillies, or to break up the outline of weapons.

     Sandbag: These are generally slightly rectangular or square bags of burlap or plastic; analogues may be made out of whatever bag material is available.  (The sandbag presented here is for a manufactured bag, which is generally stronger than ad hoc bags.)  A sandbag has the sole function of soaking up bullets, shrapnel, and blast damage, and are usually deployed in walls composed of several layers of sandbags.  It you have time, these sandbag fortifications can become quite elaborate.

Containers

     Bucket: Holds 10 liters; may be plastic, wood, or metal.

     Body Bag, Standard: An all-too-common necessity.  These usually have a 12-mil thickness (about four times that of a standard lawn/leaf bag you buy at the store) and hold in everything 200 microns or larger.  They are reasonably waterproof, but not totally. They come in a variety of colors and have 2 handles on all four sides.  They come with a plastic pocket for carrying body tags; two other tags are also provided. Note that body bags are excellent protection for a variety of things, but the stigma attached to them usually prevents such use.

     Body Bag, HAZMAT:  These were first designed to evacuate and store those who have died of serious infectious diseases.  They come in a kit of three layers, with the inner layer 200 micron/8 mil, the middle layer 200 micron/7.9 mil, and the outer layer 500 micron/20mil.  The bag comes with a small heat sealer to create an airtight and snug closing on the middle layer, and the middle layer is also impregnated with special metalized plastic.

     Underwater Carrier: A sealed container to transport weapons, ammunition and equipment underwater.  This cylindrical container is 1.5 meters long and about 0.4 meter in diameter. It opens like a clamshell for ease of access, and contains several straps and lashing rings to secure gear inside. When sealed, the container will protect its contents from water damage. By inflating or deflating several internal flotation/ballast bladders, its buoyancy can be adjusted to enable it to float, sink, or be neutral (preferable for hauling gear long distances underwater). Pulling a lever will inflate several emergency bladders, making the loaded container capable of supporting the weight of an average person as well. The carrier has sever rings as well as straps to pull the carrier underwater (or carry over land).

     The container can carry up to 50 kilograms of equipment, and when neutrally buoyant, has the same effect on a swimmer as light personal equipment. The weight given below is empty. The carrier weighs this plus the weight of any contents when out of the water..

     FLEXCEL Liquid Container: This is the large rubber fuel bladder so often seen slung underneath Chinook helicopters during Gulf War footage. These bladders can be parachuted without using a pallet or any sort of padding, can survive a fall of 100 meters without a parachute, or a fall of 12 meters from an aircraft moving at 170kmh  (ComMov 137). Fuel is pumped by putting a heavy weight on the bladder (normally, the vehicle receiving the fuel runs lands on or over the bladder), and the bladder can typically be emptied in 25 seconds. A FLEXCEL comes in two sizes, a large (2.6x0.36m) and a small (1x0.2m). Large FLEXCELS hold 250 liters; small ones hold 45 liters. Weight and cost include hoses and valves.  These bladders may also hold water or other liquids.

      Rifle/Shotgun Butt Cuff: This is a sort of canvas or leather “sock” that straps or slips over the stock of a rifle or shotgun.  (They are not normally made for submachineguns, rimfire rifles, or pistol-caliber rifles since the rounds for them are so short.)  The cuff may be fitted to the right side or left.  The cuff carries additional ammunition for the weapon in a ready-use manner, and generally carries six rifle rounds, or for shotgun cuffs, five shotgun shells.  The effect of this ready supply of ammunition is that, as long as the rounds in the cuff remain, the shooter may reload one extra round per phase.

      Rubber Fuel Bladder, 50-liter: Collapsible fuel bladder. It may be drum or blivet-shaped. Fuel may be pumped by placing a heavy weight on the bladder (squashing it with a vehicle is the normal method), but it also comes with a hose and valve. These bladders can be safely airdropped from a height of 100 meters without a parachute.  May also hold water or other fuels and liquids.

     Rubber Fuel Bladders, NATO: This is a generic category of fuel bladders, used by many countries since they take up far less space than the usual assortment of jerry cans and 200-liter fuel drums found at other fuel dumps. These are normally shaped like a giant rubber pillow (unlike the drum-shaped FLEXCELS), and do not have the strength of a FLEXCEL; the bladder will need a pallet for a parachute drop, and can be free-dropped only 50 meters, or from aircraft moving at a maximum of 80kmh without preparation.

     Many sizes are generally available. All of these bladders will collapse to 15% of their normal size when empty. Weight and cost include hoses and valves, and fuel is pumped by squashing (requiring 3 phases per liter to empty).

     Rubber Fuel Bladder, Warsaw Pact/Eastern Bloc:  Similar to the NATO fuel bladders above, the size of these bladders is based on metrics instead of gallons (which is the reason for the odd sizes of NATO bladders – they are made in gallons, and I have converted them to liters).  They are often used to convert flatbed trucks to makeshift fuel tankers.

Tactical Lights

      Chemlight: Also known as glowsticks, these are small tubes filled with chemicals which produce light when combined.. Chemlights are available in red, green, yellow, orange, and blue. A chemlight glows at maximum intensity for 3 hours (visible at 100 meters, or at the maximum range of a night vision device) and half intensity for 9 hours. (Merely putting the chemlight in a pocket will stop the light.)

     Another variety of chemlight, the Brightstick, will produce very bright light for 30 minutes (visible at 250 meters, or twice maximum night-vision gear range).  Brightsticks come only in white or yellow.

     High-intensity chemlights are used by police and special operations, and are sometimes issued to pilots. A high-intensity chemlight produces 5 minutes of extremely bright light, the first minute of which is actively blinding.  They are available only in red.

     Infrared chemlights function as normal chemlights, but are visible only to individuals using night-vision gear. They glow for 6 hours.

     Chemlights are generally sold in boxes of 12.

     Lightdiscs are simply disc-shaped chemlights. They may be written upon and are most often used as markers. They glow for 4 hours, and are available only in green. A lightdisc is 100mm wide if circular, but they also come in a variety of other shapes. 

     Chemlight Case: A plastic tube used to hold a chemlight. Twisting the endcap turns a shutter which blocks as much of the chemlight's glow as desired.  A lightdisc will not fit in one of these. Weight: Negligible; Price: $3 (C/S)

     Krill Light: These are basically electronic versions of chemlights.  They are powered by AA batteries and have LED bulbs.  They come in red, green, orange, yellow, blue, and white, and come in the standard version, the Krill 180 (where the luminosity is variable), and the Extreme Krill (twice as bright as the standard Krill Light).  The Krill and Krill 180 last 120 hours on a single charge, while the Extreme Krill lasts 50 hours.  The standard Krill Light is slightly brighter than a chemlight.

     Flashlight, “4-Battery”: An adjustable flashlight often carried by police and private security guards. It also makes a very effective club.  The name comes the fact that the original flashlights of this type used four D-cell batteries, though today flashlights with three or even two batteries through just as much light and almost as much use as a weapon.  They are typically made of black anodized aluminum which are impact and heat-resistant, though polymer and rubber-coated bodies are also common. Most can use normal or rechargeable batteries, with a battery life of 8 hours.  A very few have attachments to recharge the batteries inside the flashlight, particularly in some police departments.  They typically clip to a belt by a folding D-ring at the rear, and this can also be used to hand the flashlight.  Typical 4-battery flashlights have an output of 150 lumens, and an adjustable beam from a sharp, narrow, bright beam to a wide-angle, though much reduced, illumination.  Typical width of illumination is the normal 45/60 degrees, though they can be focused down to 15/25 degrees and up to 85/125 degrees.

     Flashlight, Cyclops Nexus HID:  In a way, this may more properly called a spotlight, due to the intensity of illumination is produces.  However, it produces wide-angle illumination like a flashlight, and so I have called a flashlight here.  The Nexus HID (High Intensity Discharge) is a rechargeable flashlight which produces an incredible 3200 lumens of light from a new type of 25-watt HID bulb.  Charging may be done using a vehicle receptacle, a wall plug (which can be plugged into other similar receptacles) or a 12V 300mA AC charger.  The internal batteries are a pair of 6V lead acid batteries.  An LED on the side let the user know how much charge is left – green for full battery, yellow for half battery, and red for low battery.  (No LEDs light if it is dead.)  Construction is of heavy polymer, capable of withstanding most abuse, dust, and dirt.  The Cyclops HID throws a beam 40 degrees wide, with a secondary beam area of 80 degrees.  It should be noted that this item is no longer on Cyclops’s web site, though it is still available from some dealers and stores.

     Flashlight, Fellhoelter Mini Bolt Light: This penlight is the result of a collaboration between Fellhoelter, FourSevens, and Tuff Writer, though it is sold exclusively through Fellhoelter.  The “Mini Bolt” refers to a miniature bolt-handle-like latch on the side, which controls illumination levels of the light.  Two other buttons in combination with the bolt switch control the other modes of operation.  The bolt switch may remain unlocked for signal flashing, or be locked in one of its three illumination levels.  The illumination levels are High (100 lumens for one hour), Medium (20 lumens for three hours) and Low (5 lumens for 20 hours.  The other modes of operation are Strobe (50 lumens for two hours), SOS Flasher (20 lumens for three hours), Beacon High (Wide angle, 60 lumens for 7.5 hours), and Beacon Low (Wide angle, 2.5 lumens for 40 hours).  The configuration buttons and bolt handle are deliberately somewhat difficult to change to prevent accidental activation and setting changes. Angles of Illumination are a spot with an angle of 22/37 degrees, or a wide-angle, lower illumination flood (half-strength in lumens) with an angle of 84/121 degrees.  The Mini Bolt Light uses one AAA battery, alkaline or rechargeable. Construction is largely of aircraft-quality anodized aluminum; color is charcoal gray.  There is a pocket clip on the side, which is made from stainless steel.  Like most penlights, the body is narrow at 13 millimeters.

     Flashlight, Fenix UC35: This is a small, yet high-performance flashlight able, at its maximum brightness setting, to throw 1000 lumens.  The UC35 can be powered by a single 18650 Rechargeable Li-ion battery or two non-rechargeable CR123A batteries.  It can be used in six modes; Turbo mode is the brightest, producing 1000 lumens in a 30/45-degree arc, and able to run at that level for three hours.  High power produces 350 lumens in the same arc for eight hours.  Medium power produces 150 lumens in the same arc for 19 hours.  Low power produces 50 lumens in the same arc for 56 hours. Moonlight mode produces 1 lumen for 200 hours.  A special mode, Strobe mode, produces 1000-lumen signal flashes over a 180-degree arc for eight hours.  The rechargeable battery is recharges via a cable that has a conventional plug on one end and a mini-USB2 connector on the other end, and the UC35 also comes with a cable with a standard USB2 connector on one end and a mini-USB2 on the other end.  If a rechargeable battery is used, the UC35’s battery-level indicator is functional and also gives a low-voltage warning (when down to 10% of battery power).  Regardless of batteries, a digitally-regulated output mechanism maintains the same level of brightness for the entire life of the batteries.

     Flashlight, Krypton: This light has an output of 120 lumens, and uses a special rechargeable lithium-ion battery that lasts only 6 hours, with a plug-in recharger.  It is constructed more like a small version of a 4-Battery flashlight.

     Flashlight, Military: This is a battery-powered flashlight of rugged construction, such as the US "angle" flashlight.  This flashlight comes with red and blue lenses to allow for use in the dark without letting too much light out and to allow map reading and other such materiel, along with a spare bulb. Some also include green and yellow lenses. Every country seems to have a different flashlight it issues to its troops; this one is based on the US military flashlight.  Military Flashlights use a sliding switch at the middle of the body; above this is a button for use when transmitting Morse Code (something, incidentally, most soldiers do not know these days, so soldiers make up their own codes).  The switches have a high raised plastic guard on either side to prevent accidental switching on. Construction is of tough plastic, though I have seen them crack when dripped a long distance, like off an APC/IFV to a rocky surface or road.  Nonetheless, they are of rugged construction and can take most abuse.  Color varies; I have seen green (the standard issue in the US military), camouflage, gray, tan, and black, though I have heard of metallic-color plastic bodies for military use, and otherwise several colors for civilian use. Switches are normally black anodized aluminum. The joints (such as access to the battery compartment, lenses, bulbs and reflector, etc) have rubber O-rings to weather-seal them.  In the base is a folding D-ring for hands-free use, and there is also a “loop” which allows it to be tied to paracord or other narrow cords.  Most military flashlights use two D-cell alkaline batteries, and do not function well with rechargeable batteries, light produced is 45 lumens, with a standard angle of illumination, typical battery life is 18 hours. A diffuser lens is also available which increases the width of illumination to 100/125 degrees, but decreases intensity to 30 lumens.  LED bulbs can be substituted, which increase battery life to 60 hours, increase illumination intensity to 100 lumens, but decrease illuminated angle to 30/45 degrees.

     Flashlight, Military Krypton: This flashlight is in common use by special ops forces. It is very tough, and has a light intensity of 130 lumens, with the standard illumination width of 45/60 degrees.  They usually have similar construction and accessories as the standard military flashlight.  Battery life is only 6 hours, or 24 hours with an LED bulb; LED bulbs increase illumination intensity to 150 lumens, with an illumination angle of 30/45 degrees and a battery life to 18 hours.

     Flashlight, Mini Mag-Light: Popular flashlight carried instead of the normal flashlight by many US soldiers since it is every bit as bright as the angle flashlight. The light can be focused.  I carried one of these in the Army, as did many of my fellow soldiers, instead of the angle flashlight.  Mini-Maglites were some of the first flashlights to use LED bulbs instead of incandescent bulbs, allowing the bulb and its power draw to be much smaller than most flashlights of the time, and this translated to a much smaller flashlight which was handier and needed only two AA batteries to function for 32 hours, though only alkaline batteries can be used.  The Mini-Maglite has a brightness of 97 lumens, with a standard lighting angle on normal settings.  The front can be twisted to increase angle of illumination to 75/90 degrees at a brightness of 60 lumens, or to an angle of 20/35 degrees at a brightness of 117 lumens in the primary area, or any position in between.  (I can say from experience that if one twists too far towards wide illumination, the front will twist off, inadvertently exposing the bulb and causing one to fumble the reflector.)  It is a compact flashlight, only 18 millimeters wide.  Construction is mostly of hard-anodized aluminum, finished in one of a rainbow of colors (I generally carried a black or green one).

     This entry is for a basic mini-Maglite.  There are many variations and improvements.

     Flashlight, Penlight: This tiny flashlight is issued to pilots and other aircrews in field medical kits (I carried one in my medical kit as a Combat Lifesaver).  They are also found in NATO vehicle first-aid kits, and quite common on medical personnel pockets, even in civilian settings. It can easily be put with the end in your mouth to free up your hands for work, as they are light and short. Not especially bright, but enough for closeup work.  Most have a pocket clip on the sides, and also have a lanyard ring.  Older versions have a brass body and a shutter to vary the amount of light shown, but modern versions have an aluminum or stainless steel body and the end twists to adjust illumination intensity.  The penlight, as the name would indicate, is about the size and shape of a higher-end writing pen.  The penlight will produce a light intensity ranging from 0.4 lumens for 137 hours to 300 lumens for 51 minutes.  The angle of illumination, however, is only 10/15 degrees. The lowest setting is often called “firefly mode” by troops and the penlight turns on in this mode when first switched on.  The typical penlight is quite tough and can withstand repeated impacts like being dropped from two meters onto concrete floors or road surfaces. Most are also able to be submersed in water for short times without compromising them.

     Flashlight, TerraLUX Lightstar 80 LED Penlight: This is about the size of a penlight, but much brighter. It is designed primarily for electrical, electronics, and engineers, since the beam is designed not to wash out color and the true color of wires and other components can be easily seen. It is in fact designed for use by biting and holding it in the mouth, as it has a wide rubber strip[ on the end for just such a purpose. It has a clip for attachment to a pocket or gear.  It comes in gray, blue, orange, and white.  Operation is by a pushbutton in the rear, which produces an 85-lumen beam in a tight focus of 8/12 degrees. It only runs for 5 hours on two AAA batteries, but the LED bulb lasts for 25 years.  However, the inside electronics ensure that the penlight will give off the same 85 lumens until the batteries are completely exhausted.  The Lightstar is O-ring-sealed, and almost totally resistant to weather, dust, and water, including immersion of up to five meters.  Construction is largely of anodized aluminum.

     Flashlight, Surefire P2X Fury: This is an advanced flashlight that automatically adjusts the strength of the beam to suit the area you are scanning (to a maximum of 103 meters).  It can also be manually adjusted to a given luminosity desired.  This saves battery life, and is called by Surefire Intellibeam Technology.  The Fury is in wide use by NATO special operations personnel, and is also bought as alternate flashlights by many other military members as an alternate to the standard military angle flashlight, as well as having found acceptance by several police forces worldwide.  The Fury is well-known for its dust, mud, and water resistance, and the buttons are rubberized for this purpose.  There is also a quick-illumination push-button switch on the rear, which activates the Fury with medium-level illumination. The maximum illumination is 600 lumens, with a run-time of 1.5 hours at that level of use.  Batteries, however, are not standard; they are rechargeable in a recharger able to recharge D-Cell batteries, but they will take three times normal to fully recharge.  The Fury uses two 123A batteries, which are in most Western countries’ supply chains and can also be bought at places like military surplus and outdoor outfitters.  If not used, they will hold a charge for 10 years, and also last under normal circumstances for a little over 10 years before they cannot be recharged anymore. The illumination may be “dialed” down to as low at 60 lumens, with lower illumination leading to a commensurate increase in battery life. The bubs used are variable-output white-light LEDs, though the flashlight comes with red and blue lenses.  Width of light is standard, a 45-degree primary angle and a 75-degree secondary angle.  A diffuser lens (not issued with military-issue flashlights. Construction is of Mil-Spec hard anodized dark gray aircraft aluminum.

     Surefire’s web site says that the Fury is currently back-ordered (as of September 2018) and priority for delivery goes to special operations forces, other military, and police, in that order.  Batteries, however, are not standard; they are rechargeable in a recharger able to recharge D-Cell batteries, but they will take three times normal to fully recharge.  The Fury uses two 123A batteries, which are in most Western countries’ supply chains and can also be bought at places like military surplus and outdoor outfitters.  If not used, they will hold a charge for 10 years, and also last under normal circumstances for a little over 10 years before they cannot be recharged anymore.

     Lantern: Lights a 10-meter radius.  Fueled by propane or butane. Fuel consumption is 1 liter per four hours.

     Lantern, Coleman Quad LED: This electric lantern is powered by three AA-cell batteries per panel.  It consists of a charging base, a handle on top, and a base with the batteries.  On all four sides are panels with 6 LED lights; each one produces about 190 lumens.  They can be detached from the base and used apart from each other, either to spread out the light or use as a flashlight or work light.  Each panel has a useable light range of about 8 meters and lights in about a 45-degree arc. The panels can be adjusted for luminosity and arc of lighting. The AA-cells power the panels for about 75 hours each.  The base also may be equipped with four D-cell batteries, allowing the panels to be recharged (with appropriate batteries) up to eight times.

     Lantern, Electric: These lanterns run off batteries, ranging from the large rectangular “lantern batteries” to multiple D or C cells. Somewhat brighter, these will illuminate a 15-meter radius, and variable in brightness. Weight and cost are with one set of batteries.

     Lantern, Pelican 3310 ELS: The ELS (Emergency Lighting Station) is designed to be a fairly bright (at short range) tactical light, with an output of 378 lumens for 190 hours (after which it will suddenly go out).  It can also produce 234 lumens for 307 hours in low-intensity mode. It uses green light panels which do not spoil night vision (that much). The ELS comes in a hard clear plastic case; though the ELS will itself float, the case is also watertight and allows immersion of up to 1 meter for 30 minutes.  In addition to being a standard lantern, it can also function for 434 hours in flashing signal mode.  The lantern in its case may be hung in a number of field-expedient ways, or the case may use mounting hardware to secure it to a building wall.  The unit uses six LED light bulbs, three on each side.  The body and lenses are made from polycarbonate, and the lamp has a simple push button switch, with one push producing high mode, two pushed producing low mode, and three pushes producing the signal flashing.  The lantern is powered by an internal Lithium ion battery, and a space in its base contains a recharging cord.

     Lantern, Streamlight Super Siege: The Super Siege is a more modern type of lantern that runs off of a rechargeable battery for 5 hours of 1100 lumens of white light on the high setting, 10.5 hours at 550 lumens on the medium setting, and 35 hours at 125 lumens on the low setting.  There is also a setting in which the lamp puts out a flashing SOS signal at 2.7 lumens for up to 230 hours, or uses red illumination at 2.7 lumens on high for up to 110 hours on high, or at 1 lumen on low setting on 288 hours.  The lantern itself is made of advanced plastics, polymers, and lens material and can be immersed into up to one meter of water for five minutes or dropped repeatedly from a two meter height, without damaging it.  The lantern also floats when dropped in water. The base itself is of wide rubber, and is very stable; the lantern may also be hung from a D-ring which folds into the base when not in use.  The light bulbs consist of a bright white LED and a four dimmer red-light LEDs.  There is a small watertight compartment in the base which can be used to store small items – it includes clips for spare LEDs, a space for the charger cord, and a space for a USB cable.  The battery is internal and is rechargeable, though it can be removed by the user and replaced with a new battery.  Battery indicators show what the battery capacity and charging levels are.  Most buttons are recessed to prevent accidental activation.  The USB cable may be used for recharging, or to recharge other items, providing some four full charges for cell phones or two for tablets, for example.

     Solight LightCap 300:  This is an interesting blend of water container and lantern.  The lid has a circular solar panels across the top of it, which charges power for four white and one red LED.  With the lid screwed on and switched on, and water in the container (two-thirds full will produce about the most amount of light), the LightCap 300 will give off about a quarter of the light of an electric lantern, enough to light the interior of an M113 or similar-sized APC, for example.  One can use the white LEDs for the most light or the red LED to save your night vision.  On a full charge, the light lasts eight hours; the lid does not need to be attached to the bottle to charge the battery.  A full charge takes about two hours to develop, under a sunny of lightly cloudy sky or under a decent lightbulb, or near the light of a lantern.

Tactical Smoke Generators

     Tactical Smoke Generator: This is a device to produce a massive volume of thick smoke that is opaque to certain optical frequencies. There are several types available, based on when they are made:

     Pre-1970s: The smoke blocks vision and image intensification.

     1970-1980: The smoke blocks vision, image intensification, and lasers.

     1981-1985: The smoke blocks vision, image intensification, infrared, and lasers.    

     1986-1993: The smoke blocks vision, image intensification, infrared, thermal imaging, and lasers.

     1994-2000: The smoke blocks vision, image intensification, infrared, millimetric imaging (such as the guidance of fire and forget missiles), and lasers.

     When vision is blocked, all tasks related to the vision or aiming (if lasers or millimetric waves are blocked) become three levels more difficult.

     A tactical smoke generator weighs 1.2 tons, and may be transported in any vehicle or trailer capable of supporting its weight.  The smoke generator produces a cloud equal to three smoke grenades in volume every phase, and typically runs for 90 minutes on a tank of fuel (about 650 liters, 7.2 liters per minute). It is basically a pulse jet engine that injects special oil into its exhaust to produce the smoke.  The fog oil also lasts for 90 minutes on a tank (about 450 liters, 5 liters per minute).  The jet engine runs on almost any type of military fuel except alcohol, including diesel, jet fuel, gasoline, AvGas, etc.

     Fog oil is not acceptable for use as motor oil or transmission fluid without refining. 

    Certain armored vehicles can lay a smokescreen by injecting diesel fuel into their exhaust.  Such smoke screens are equivalent to tactical smoke generators from the period 1970-1980, but are only the equivalent to two smoke grenades per phase of generation.  Such smoke screens cost the generating vehicle one liter of fuel per phase of laying.

     Conventional smoke grenades are also equivalent to 1970-1980 tactical smoke generators.  More advanced smoke grenades exist; these cost quadruple for 1981-1985 equivalent, and 8 times normal cost for 1986-1995 equivalent. 

Miscellaneous

     Bullhorn: Also called a megaphone, this makes a human voice distinctly audible at 600 meters and indistinctly audible at 1000 meters. Powered from external batteries or by a vehicle.  May be operated using a microphone or by speaking directly in the rear end. Requires 15w to operate.

     Bungee Cord: 1 meter long (stretches to 2 meters).  Made of highly stretchable tightly interwoven high-strength rubber and bits of cloth. These are in common use by soldiers to attach gear and build shelters; very long, very high-spec ones are in use by bungee jumpers.  Normal ones have high-strength hooks on the ends, woven into the bungee cord material. Weight: (per 4) 0.17kg; Price: (per 4) $8 (C/C)

     Cigar: Average quality, per 10.  More quality cigars will cost more (up to 20 times or more the base price).  Cuban cigars in Europe will be very rare, while European cigars will cost much more in the US, etc. Weight: 0. 1lkg; Price: $50 (R/R)

     Cigarettes: Any brand, per carton of 240.  As with cigars, more quality will dictate a higher price (quality can be crap, too, fetching a lower price).

     Cigarette Lighter: Total 500 seconds of flame (approximately 250 lights). This is for a permanent, Zippo-type lighter. Most require butane or propane, but some can be fueled by motor fuels or alcohol.  They also require changes of flint periodically. (Tinkering might help.) Lighters can be found in the pockets of most soldiers, even those who don’t smoke, as they are a useful tool.

     Disposable lighters may also be available; these are cheap, and give about 250 seconds of lighting time.  They cannot be used to provide long-term lighting, as the bulk of the lighter is plastic, even the working parts, and the bracket for the thumbwheel will melt in about 20 seconds of lighting, making the lighter useless from those points.

     Compass, Lensatic: Reads in degrees or mils, and is luminous for night use.

     Cord: Such as "550 Cord'' parachute line.  Per 15 meters.  Weight: 0.1kg; Price: $3 (V/V)

     Field Washstand:  This is a small washstand for field use, able to be used by four people at once.  The faucets are pumped manually using a foot pump, and the stand has a paper towel holder and soap dispenser. The stand is fed by an 83-liter water tank and a 10-liter soap tank, and has another tank for capture of wastewater.

     Dictionary, Language: An extensive translation of one language to another, including idiomatic phrases. Unfortunately, it takes some time to use in a conversation.  (And sometimes, they’re just flat wrong.)

     Dictionary, "Pointee-Talkee": Small booklet consisting of basic phrases on one and the equivalent phrase in two other languages on the opposite page. The use points to the desired phrase and asks the other person to point to his reply (the instructions are the first set of phrases). Phrases are simple ("Where is food?"  "Does anyone speak English''  “Glad to meet you", etc.) and contain phrases in the following subjects: finding an interpreter, courtesy phrases, food and drink, comfort and lodging, communications, injury, hostile forces, and friendly forces.  There are approximately 5-20 phrases per subject (as necessary). These dictionaries are normally issued to aircrews.

     Drum, Storage: Normal steel or aluminum drum, though plastic is becoming available.  Normally used for shipping or storage, they can be used for smuggling if the interior is modified or set up right. (Cut in half and with a few modifications, you can also make a barbecue out of them.)

     Fishing Line: Includes a hook and a lead sinker.

     Fishing Net: This net is weighted with eight removable weights, and also has four removable plastic or glass bobbers.  They are normally round. They have many more uses than simply fishing.

     Fishing Pole: This is an average-quality rod-and-reel, with a weight and hook.  Special lures do not come with this pole, and it is not for fly fishing.

     Folding Stove: Pioneered by the British SAS, this is a stove with a bottom just large enough for storing a pack of eight fuel tabs and is designed to use them, It is more commonly called a tommy cooker or a blackie, and was first issued to British troops in the First World War. It is still in common use in most of the world’s armies. The stove opens into two blades that are used to hold the canteen cup, and therefore boils water and cooks rations and fresh food.

     Fuel Tabs: Generally made of Hexamine, these are generally issued in foil packages of eight that break apart.  They have been issued since the First World War for use with the tommy cooker. One will heat a canteen cup of water to boiling in 5 minutes.  They float, and are water resistant; they will even burn while floating down a stream. They can be extinguished by dousing it with water or covering with dirt or sand, which does not waste the tablet and it can be used again.

     Grapple: This is a multiple-pronged hook to be used at the end of a length of rope to assist in climbing walls, etc. It can be thrown as any other object, but counts as two kilograms instead as one (because of the rope also attached).  Some models are designed to fold, collapse, or otherwise dismantle for ease of transport.

     Handcuffs: Used to restraining appendages. There are two types—metal and plastic. Metal cuffs are reusable and open with a key, while the plastic cuffs are disposable and must be cut off. (They are typically called zip ties.) Zip ties have the virtue of being usable for a wide variety of things. Applying handcuffs counts as an action and takes five seconds.

     Jumar Ascender: This is a special climbing rig consisting of a pair of foot loops attached to clamps, which lock on a hanging rope when downward pressure is applied. The climber uses the Jumar Ascender to literally walk up the rope, almost as efficiently as climbing a ladder, at a speed of 2 1/2 meters per phase.  This may be doubled (AVG: Climbing or DIF: Agility) or tripled (DIF: Climbing or FOR: Agility). 

     Note that a field-expedient version can be made of shoestrings or certain types of cord; this is a DIF: Climbing task, and two rolls must be made (the first only once in the PCs career) – the player must roll once to see if his PC knows how to do it, and then to actually do it. Making a Jumar Ascender takes 5 minutes. Hooking up a ready-made Jumar Ascender takes only two minutes.  Base rate of climb with an ad hoc Jumar Ascender is only 2 meters.

     Lock, Average: Key or combination.  Key-opened locks usually come with two keys.

     Lock, Quality: Key or combination. Key-opened locks usually come with two keys. Will withstand most blows and gunshots (gunshots and very heavy blows will ruin the lock, but it will not open.)

     Maturing Theatre Latrine (MTL):  This is a very fancy name for a Porto-potty made to military specifications.  It is the normal sort of outdoor toilet common at open-air events and construction sites throughout the US and other countries, but in addition to the wastes being carted away or disposed of in sewers systems or other ways, the bowl for the wastes can be removed from the toilet, flammable liquid placed within, and the wastes burned.  Though popular at command posts of higher echelons, they were generally considered too big for elements of maneuver units and even if issued to them, they were generally discarded or traded to rear elements for more desirable items. 

     Modular Initial Deployment Latrine (MIDL):  Somewhat more robust then the personal commode, this is used to service units up to platoon size in the first stages of deployment or when the unit will not be long in one place.  It consists of a collapsible fiberglass or plastic commode with hangers for a plastic bag below the opening. Wastes are deposited into the bag, and then the bag is sealed and burned or buried.  A frame for supporting a privacy screen is provided with the MIDL.  Enough bags are provided with the kit for 25 soldiers for 30 days, assuming normal bowel functions during that time. Alternatively, it can be placed over a slit trench and wastes buried as you go as the MITL is moved over the trench.

     Paint: Any color, one liter.  Comes with two paintbrushes of average size.

     Rope: This is milspec 11mm rappelling line.  Generally a nylon or hemp rope.

     Skyhook (Ground Unit): A specialized ground/air pickup rig for extraction by aircraft when ground conditions do not permit a landing, which was originally designed for military and civilian air/sea rescue units. The ground unit consists of a personnel harness (very similar to a parachute harness), a coil of cable, and an inflatable helium balloon large enough to carry the cable several hundred feet into the air. The unit can be used for either personnel or cargo. Skyhook requires a specially modified multiengine aircraft, usually provided by patron (few merc groups can afford to maintain them).

     Skyhook aircraft will be detailed elsewhere and elsewhen due to space constraints.

     Using Skyhook: The passenger dons the harness, inflates the balloon (upon arrival of the pickup aircraft), and prepares himself for the shock of pickup. A specially modified cargo aircraft snares the balloon/cable with a specially fitted V-shaped "blimp-catcher" on its nose, and reels in the passenger until the passenger is close enough to a specially installed cargo door on the bottom of the aircraft. The aircrew snares the passenger/cargo, hauls him/it aboard the plane, and prepares for another pickup if necessary.

     The shock involved is no more severe than an opening parachute, provided that the pickup aircraft does not fly too fast.  The process is dangerous, but no more so than a parachute jump if done properly.

     The pickup plane must fly straight and level a few hundred feet off the ground. The whole operation needs suitable terrain (no nearby obstructions) and reasonable privacy.  The blimp can be equipped with IR/white light strobes (activated at the last moment) for a night pickup. The weather must be reasonably clear, with no excessive wind conditions.  Skyhook can also be used at sea. A skyhook ground unit may not be reused.

     Small Unit Shower (SUS): This is a hollow collapsible metal frame with rubberized fabric walls to provide four shower stalls.  The shower units are similar to those aboard naval vessels, with push button controls that spray only when the button is pushed.  Hot water is provided by a 75-liter water heater that can provide 16 showers to soldiers before the tank is exhausted.  The tank requires 50 minutes to fully heat the water, and is powered by diesel or aviation fuel (30 liters per period), an external generator (45kW), or vehicle power.  The unit packs into two canvas bags.  It may be set by two soldiers in 15 minutes.

     Solar Radio:  This is for all intents and purposes a civilian radio; it is able to receive FM and AM commercial radio broadcasts, as well as National Weather Service broadcasts or their equivalent (if available).  It operates with dials, and up to seven presets may be set and accessed with a separate dial.  Tuning is some with a dial, with the frequencies read on a linear scale. The Solar Radio may be powered by conventional batteries (usually three AA cells), but what gives the radio its name is the solar panel on the back that can charge a set of lithium-ion batteries inside.  It left in the sun turned off, it will run for as many hours as it was left to charge, up to a maximum of 16 hours.  (If left on, it will run off the solar power, but not charge up the Li battery.) An external battery pack can also be plugged into the radio to run it.  It can be plugged into electrical power, if available. Finally, if it is dark or the day too cloudy or otherwise dark, a hand crank may be unfolded on the side or rear (depending on the radio) to crank a dynamo; 90 seconds of hard turning will run the radio for 45 minutes.  Power source is selected by a switch. And just to top the whole thing off, there is a small flashlight in the handle.

     UV Water Purifier: Shaped like a pen-type thermometer, the UV Water Purifier is dropped into a canteen cup or other container and purifies the water.  Sunlight is a requirement of the use of this, the brighter, the better.  (Flashlights of suchlike cannot be used as a substitute.) It can only be used once, and cannot be used in boiling water. Purification takes 48 seconds, and it will filter harmful organisms, minerals, and chemicals.

     Vehicle Low-Altitude Extraction Kit (LAPES System): This consists of a drogue parachute and a shock-absorbing pallet strapped to the bottom of the vehicle. The aircraft must have a rear cargo ramp to utilize this kit. The aircraft flies at extremely low altitude (three to five meters) at minimum speed and deploys the drogue chute out the back. The drogue chute opens; the vehicle is yanked out of the aircraft; and the pallet absorbs most of the shock of landing.  Vehicles larger than 25 tons cannot be dropped in this fashion.

     Crew may not ride in the vehicle while this goes on. It requires 10 minutes to make a vehicle or equipment operational after landing.

     Spray Paint: Any color.  Try not to get high.

     Vehicle Parachute Kit: This consists several parachutes (depending on the weight of the vehicle to be dropped), a retrorocket assembly, and a shock-absorbing pallet strapped to the bottom of the vehicle. After the vehicle is dropped from the aircraft and the chute deployed, a contact sensor on a cord drops three meters below the vehicle and the retrorocket package deploys below the vehicle. When the sensor touches ground, the retrorocket package fires and slows the vehicle's descent even further.  Vehicles larger than 15 tons cannot be dropped in this fashion.

     Crew may not ride in the vehicle while this goes on. It requires 10 minutes to make vehicle operational after landing: disconnecting the chute and the pallet, freeing everything that had to be tied down for air transport, screwing down everything that was jarred loose during the landing, and—last but least—a quick inspection, which is not something to have to do in a hot DZ.  The Russians are well known for this version of deploying vehicles and equipment, and the vehicle’s driver and commander ride inside the vehicle during the drop.

     Water Desalination Unit:  This unit is capable of desalinating 300-700 liters per hour, depending on the raw salt content of the water.   No chemicals are needed for the operation of the unit (a permanent filter unit does the work), though a tank is provided to add chlorine, if desired.  The unit requires that an external 1.5 kW generator be hooked up during operation.  A disinfecting unit is also provided, but other pollutants such as fallout, sand, and mud cannot be removed by this device.  Water can be siphoned from containers, or directly from a natural water source.

     Water Purification Unit, Medium:  This is a machine carried in a backpack.  It eliminates organic, mineral, and bacterial pollutants by using a set of mechanical filters.  Filters last for 1,200 liters.  Water is purified at the rate of 200 liters per hour.  The unit runs from internal batteries and can purify up to 7 liters of water from internal tanks while being carried, or siphon water from containers or directly from a natural water source such as a pond, lake, or stream.  It is not capable of desalinating water.

     Water Purification Kit, Small: A small machine designed to draw water through a system of filters, purifying the water of most contaminants. Purifies 0.75 liters per minute, and runs on hand power.  It is not capable of desalinating water.  Filters last for 50 liters.