Troops in Contact: The Rionegro Initiative August 17th-19th

THE RIONEGRO INITIATIVE
Rionegro continues to be ravaged by civil war. President Catano remains in a coma. Former Vice President Munoz heads the Republicanos who hold most of the south of the country, including the political capital San Pedro. In the north, General Veron leads his “Patriota” Government of Rionegro from the commercial capital of San Luis. Following 18 months of often brutal fighting, neither has been able to dominate on the battlefield.

Now, after several weeks of preparation, Munoz’s Republicanos have mounted a large offensive with the aim of seizing key positions in Rionegro, and breaking the Patriota army. The push has comprised of a series of rapid thrusts against high value objectives. These have had mixed results. The most successful in the centre of the country has led to the city of San Luis on the Rionegro river being encircled and cut off.

In the east the Republicanos are attempting to reach the Lomo Plata mining region through Patriota held territory. After several days of rapid advance the leading elements have reached to just outside the village of Astroga at the foot of hill 143. With their flanks exposed, and having lost contact with their supply lines, the advance has been halted for the moment. Time is needed to consolidate gains, and bring up supplies. Tomorrow the advance will resume. That is, unless the Patriotas can reorganise themselves enough to counter attack and halt it. But there is more than just the fate of the advance at stake around Hill 143...

What is this: A story driven, 27 hour airsoft event with ammo limits, simple medic rules, vehicles, and pre-assigned teams. This is not a full MilSim, but there will be opportunities for LARPing and more. We continue to want to give people something different to the usual weekend skirmish. This is a chance for players from all around the country to meet new people, and play in a bigger event without having to travel abroad.

Last year’s event had over 150 people, we expect this one to be even bigger.

Where: Bellurgan Park, Dundalk, Co. Louth.
When: August 18th and 19th.
How long:

• Sign-in and chrono: Friday 18:00 to 00:00, Saturday 09:00 to 12:00
• Game WILL start: 11:00 Saturday
• Game end: 15:00 Sunday, followed by post game BBQ.

How much: €60, €50 with discount for early registration, which includes the post game BBQ.
Registration: Will open on Friday June 1st at 12:00.
Age limit and other restrictions: Over 16's only, and mid cap magazines only. NO HI-CAP winding mags this year. As Rionegro is subject to a UN backed arms embargo and no fly zone, players cannot bring aircraft, heavy weapons or armoured vehicles. Small arms and support weapons only. Bio-BBs are required and will be available on site.
Camping: Camping will be possible on site from Friday night, with toilets and showers.
What are the factions:

• Munoz' Republicanos, made up of scout troops, light infantry, heavy weapons specialists and the feared penitents punishment unit.
• Veron's Patriotas, comprising heavy infantry, recon forces, and a unit of private military contractors.
• The Astroga Revolutionary Militia.

More Information:
More information will be provided soon, including detailed descriptions of factions and units, updated rules, how to apply for leadership roles, and how to pre-book. Look for information here and on the official event sites:
The official website: www.troops-in-contact.com (to be updated soon)
The official game forum is at: forum.milsimdublin.net

¡Viva la República de Rionegro!

stevie4568 wrote: »

I'm very excited for this can not wait to attend!

Might I recommend making a Facebook page for this event if there isn't already one? It would be a handier way of putting out announcements, and reach more people than just those here on boards

The Bellurgan guys will have a FB page for the even on their section.

For those that don't have Facebook access (and there are a lot) we are posting details and taking enquiries across 4 different Irish discussion sites.

Feel free to throw up any questions here though.

stevie4568 wrote: »

brilliant thanks sliabh, what pages are they being put up on? I only really know this page here when it comes to irish airsoft:P

The main one to be concerned about at the moment is http://forum.milsimdublin.net/index.php which is where the game fora will be for registered players.

There is a twitter account running as well on @RionegroWatch

Game poster now out.


Also, as we left the information off the website initially, Registration will open on Friday June 1st at 12:00.

If you are going to be in a command position (Faction Commander, Unit Commander, or a Section Leader - I need to provide details here in the next few days) then they would be essential. For everyone else, you won't need them, but they can make you and your team mates more effective in the field.

Inari wrote: »

Radios are one of those things that is better to have and not need than need and not have. They're like €50 for a cheap set, so go halves with a mate and you're sorted!

I would recommend paying a little extra for something decent like the Motorola XTR 446 (about €80), as you do get much better quality than from cheapo Aldi/Lidl ones.

And whereas a crap AEG is your problem, a crap radio can be everyone's when you have poor range, struggle to understand what is being said, and fill the airwaves with static and noise when you transmit.

:-)

Game Registration opens on Friday June 1st at midday. This will be a 2 step process - pay and register for a unit.

Price and Payment
If you have paid and registered by the 15th of July the cost of the event is €50. Bookings after that date will cost €60. Payment will be by PayPal and there will be a link on the Bellurgan Park home page. Make a record of the payment reference number as you will need it for the registration.

We are going to cap numbers this year, and there will be limits to the sizes of some of the smaller units. So apart from the cost saving, we would recommend you book as early as possible.

Register for a Unit
You register for the event, and select your unit using the booking form. The link for this will go up on the Troops-In-Contact website on Friday June 1st.

You will need to provide contact details, your age (so we can see how many under 18 players we have), and your PayPal reference. Select your preferred unit, and an alternative if your first choice is full. And if you are interested in one of the command positions check that box and leave a note saying what you would like to do (Unit Commander or Faction Commander).

Once the form is submitted we will check the details and we will send you an email to confirm the payment was received, and which unit you will be in. Please bare with us if that may take a day or two. You will also be given access to the closed player forum.

Which Unit to Go For?
The different units have been tailored to give different types of game to players, from beginners to the more hardcore. Depending on what you are after, and your level of experience there should be something here for you. As we have said before though, this game will not be like a usual weekend skirmish. You will be expected to work as part of a unit and to follow orders in that group. Some of the time you may be waiting for things to happen.

Players new to MilSim

• Penitent Brigade

This unit will mostly operate in large groups, and will initially be given simpler, more direct missions e.g. frontal assaults, defences. Expect more action, but over the weekend we plan to introduce more varied and demanding objectives. The Penitents will operate from a fixed base where they return to re-arm, eat and sleep.

General Purpose Units

• "Los Rochas" The Heavies
• Presidential 25th Light Infantry
• Astroga Revolutionary Militia

These are the backbone of each side. Players here will have a variety of missions including patrolling, attacking positions, protecting assets, and occasional sentry duty. You will work in groups from section size (5-10 players) up to the whole faction (potentially 100+). Sometimes you will operate independently, and sometimes you will have to co-ordinate with other groups. These units operate from a fixed base where they return to re-arm, eat and sleep.

For Experienced MilSim Players

• 38th Special Weapons Group
• "Hunter Force" Recon Unit
• Special Liaison Assistance Group
• Executive Security Solutions PMCs

These are smaller units with more specialised roles. Players can expect more demanding and varied missions, from stealthy reconnaissance, sniper and counter-sniper activity, to clearing mines, operating heavy weapons, recovery of high value assets, and more. Mostly working in smaller sections, though sometimes co-ordinating with larger units, players can expect to spend long periods away from their bases, and may have to be ready to bring all their food, water and ammunition with them. To give you an idea of how different these roles are, last year many of these players fired less than 100 rounds in the whole game!

Questions
If you have any questions on registration or units, ask them here.

stevie4568 wrote: »

What will be the story with the Hunter Recon Unit? I'm assuming that they will not be seeing much action and will be doing exclusively recon work as some of my mates seem to think its going to be all about launching raids and kicking doors non stop...

One for the EM to answer, but the style of play will be slower paced. There will be more emphasis on avoiding contact and observing, or probing attacks and withdrawing to report than taking ground and eliminating resistance.

stevie4568 wrote: »

Thats what I though to be honest. We will probably go for the 25th infantry then. Will they be more mobile than the Heavies do you think? They want to be moving a lot

Probably, they are invading an entire province!

But the Heavies and the Light Infantry will be fairly similar in mission profiles.

KonFusion wrote: »

Looking forward to my first contract with ESS after defecting from the 25th

Hope Gollybruton pay well...

Our job ad from last year. I believe the pay is excellent, but the death in service benefits are not so good...

sharpy2010 wrote: »

Hi sliabh
What about the pmc's? What exactly are they tasked with?
A few friends of mine and myself are interested but we lack any formal uniforms (but we do have a training) and aren't regular milsim players

At a high level they will have a VIP (their EM) to keep safe. But how that happens, and "developments" in the situation on the ground mean they won't just be babysitting for the weekend. I will let the PMC EM say more.

As with last year we are going with headgear to identify units, so not having any sort of uniform won't be a problem.

Not having MilSim experience isn't a problem if you have the right mind set. The Hunters, SLAG, PMCs and SWG, are for people looking for something more than just getting into firefights (which they will do too). You could find yourself spending an hour hiding in a ditch, waiting for an enemy who you observe ("radio if there is a man with an MP7 in a thigh holster in the patrol") before quietly withdrawing without ever having been seen or firing a shot.

If you are comfortable with that style of play, then you could have fun in these units as well.

Registration opens today at 12:00. We will post links to the payment and booking forms as soon as they go live.