Some background on these guys: These units were formed to do counter insurgency ops. The vision for them was to stomp groups like ISIS or regime opponents, and they aren’t supposed to fight other military forces. They are formed out of regime loyalists, similar to the Republican Guard. I imagine that in an invasion scenario they would either end up holding chokepoints (think someplace like Nassyriah) or places important to the regime, conducting ambushes, or acting as stay behind forces to organize militias or conduct ambushes in the invader’s rear. But don’t get confused, they aren’t going to be fast roping or jumping out of planes. They also aren’t going to be conducting conventional attacks against NATO either. You can think of them like Saddam’s Fedayeen but a little better equipped and better trained.
In the CMSF2 campaigns, the special forces are used as stay-behind forces, being the backbone of the anti-NATO civilian militias that are formed in Syria after the NATO invasion.
The discussion of CMSF2 units and how they relate to the campaign's lore conjured up an interesting thought I had. I always found the CMSF2 lore to be quite underrated and very interesting, especially for how much of a niche audience this game caters to. You can tell how much of the story is influenced by post-9/11 GWOT fears (obviously considering the original game back in 2007 was made amidst the height of the Iraq War and Dubya's presidency), such as the threat of WMDs (i.e. the dirty bomb attacks that caused NATO to invade Syria) as well as the rising tensions with Syria and Iran during Bush's second term, which caused some to fear that Bush would have invaded yet another country as part of the GWOT saga. You also get small little details in the campaigns that really make the story feel complete. Like how you have Lebanese Shia Hezbollah volunteers coming to support Assad (as in OTL) during the Semper Fi campaign, the post-invasion insurgency that is beginning to take hold after NATO takes control of Syria, as well as some insight about how many Syrian civilians have been displaced by the invasion, etc.
to add further to this, there's another interesting detail in the game's story I thought was pretty cool. Although the entire 2008 NATO invasion of Syria plotline is (obviously) based off of the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, it has considerably more international support due to the dirty bomb attacks being directed by a Syria-based militant group (similar to the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan), hence why you even have some European NATO allies like Germany (which is actually represented in the NATO DLC) sending in their troops to participate in the invasion of Syria, in contrast to how they were pretty much opposed to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and never contributed troops. the fact that the NATO invasion and occupation begins during the summer of 2008 was also quite interesting. IRL in 2008 Bush's approval ratings were reaching their all-time low thanks to the Iraq War as well as the Great Recession. ITTL in CMSF the dirty bomb attacks would probably have massive social and political ramifications. For example, Bush would probably have gotten a short-term increase similar to what happened immediately after 9/11. It probably wouldn't have butterflied the Great Recession away, but a large-scale attack in the West likely would have made national defense a much more significant topic in the 2008 US elections. Seeing how McCain or Obama would handle CMSF's occupation of Syria is quite interesting to think about.
Yeah the game's lore is largely ignored because of how small the fandom is and how niche it is The game certainly attracts a certain type of players (CM players seem to have far more knowledge on military matters than other games)
@@xahmadx6442 definitely. I think the fact that the CM playerbase generally tends to be older and mostly consists of wargamers, combined with the CM games having a steep learning curve and not having much marketing has to do with it.
OG-7 is another case of "doesn't transition well to CM" Yes, it does have a better fragmentation effect, but the point of this rocket is that it is much smaller than AT rockets. There are two types of backpacks for RPG-7 rockets: for 2 rockets (carried by the grenadier) and for 3 rockets (carried by the assistant). But you can carry 2 OG-7s "per slot" (officially, unofficially it is very much possible to squeeze in even more). PS I really wonder what Syrians put in their trucks. Even with 2 mortars and all the listed ammo inside, there is enough space in a Ural for ~20 passengers in comfort. "In comfort" in this case means airliner-style seats and not even with low-coster standards for legroom =)
The AKS-74U's folding stock isn't unique to it as both the AKS-74 and the AK-74M have folding stocks, the AKS-74 having the same "triangle" folding stock as the AKS-74U, and the AK-74M having a polymer version of the AK-74's fixed stock with a cutout on the side it folds to so as to not impede with the Dovetail mount, mounted on a folding trunnion. Other than that everything you said about the guns was spot on and I genuinely appreciate seeing someone be as accurate about firearms as you are that isn't a gun youtuber. Also this was a good video, keep up the good work! No one makes me want to play Combat Mission more than you and your videos.
You should also mention that these guys often act as advisers to insurgent forces in the campaign. They almost always show up alongside Uncons. IMO narrative-wise, it is their greatest strength. These guys were able to fan up insurgency along Coalition supply line. Gameplay-wise, the Uncons under their command are often much more franatic than the Reserves/ Regulars encountered in early game, making them effective meat-shields for the more capable SF units. Missions that features the SF + Uncon combo are usually tough nuts to crack (Ash Shammas anyone?)
I kinda feel bad for the Syrians. They're just trying to do their duty, but their army will never be as effective as a Western force, simply because of fragile political situation.
@@usuallyhapless9481 I can understand why you did that video on the Iran-Iraq war. It really highlights the problems that such a fragile state imposes on the armed forces. (Although I am a lot more sympathetic to an army that fights ISIS, rather than one that invades another state because it is bankrupt ;)
its a good formation to fight in towns and close combat in general - they have terrifying rpg29s and body armor and can hold fairly well when they have a chance to engage enemy infantry
I don't like facing them in game. They're almost impossible to suppress with infantry, or without running out of ammo, and the RPG-29 absolutely slaps.
Oh, usually they’re fanatics too! They also are decently experienced to boot, so unlike the uncons you fight, these guys will be able to do damage if you don’t respect their firepower.
Could you do a video explaining how C2 works? I think we all know its important for sharing spot contacts but I'm very hazy on the rest of it, such as how it effects morale and overall combat effectiveness, what are the bonuses and penalties for keeping/losing the C2 link at the various levels of the CoC, how big of an impact the leadership modifier makes (is losing contact with a -2 plt leader beneficial in some cases), does keeping the company commander in range for visual/verbal provide any benefit over radio only, etc.
Hapless has a video that covers that partially: ruclips.net/video/f2D-bwTeWxU/видео.html But the rest is really all just behind the scenes/impossible to determine. Rule of thumb there is just to do what makes the most sense, but I wouldn’t advise putting company commanders near the frontline in any battle past 1980
The Syrian SF aren’t really “special” like the US Army Rangers or the British SAS, these guys are like a military SWAT team: they were created for the purpose of fighting terrorism and propping up Assad’s regime. This is why they are the only Syrian units to have body armor and the RPG-29, but ride around in UAZ jeeps: their primary role is counterterrorism and internal security, not deep raids behind enemy lines.
@@AUsernameWeShallMarchToKiev You gotta feel sad for the Syrains in combat mission No matter what they do the coalition outclasses them in every category And it leaves no room for mistakes 1 mistake and that would result in a disaster
@@xahmadx6442 yea, they really get the short end of the stick in Shock Force. I kinda wish we had more modding tools available so we could see a modernized version of the SAA during the Civil War, although knowing the CM series it likely wouldn't happen
I wish the did an updated revision of this game with the option for randomised terrain like in Afrika Korps and Operation Barbarossa. Really miss that option.
You mentioned getting more RPG29 ammo for these guys. I no of no way to get the extra ammo in quick battles, none of the vehicles the Syrians have carry extra and you can't buy ammo crates in QB. Is there a way I'm missing? I'd love to know.
You could buy new RPG-29 teams (but that’s expensive), but no Syrian vehicles except for the organic UAZ-469 in the ORBAT of the special forces carry RPG-29 warheads
hey haplesss,if you ever see this hi. i checked on what the special forces, regular army and rep guard had on scenarios and quick battles, discovered an interesting thing, reg army and above have radios that work on the platton HG, only if you separate an RPG from it, same thing with SF. the problem is that in scenarios they cant separate rpg team and they straight up lack it in the XO on the platton HQin scenarios. any idea as to the why that's the case? casue having the radios makes the C2 of the syrians all the much more effective. my bad, it isnt the XO who has the radio but the assistant squad lead
Hey Hapless, just a suggestion I thought would be cool to see in a video, but maybe you could try playing against someone new to the game who has a massive force compared to yours. Attack or defend, I wanna see your insane knowledge and tactics go against someone using meat shields lol
To be fair, that photo was the only photo I could find that came close to the vanilla ingame look of the Syrian SF. IIRC they're actually Syrian police. The fact that they don't exactly come across as 'the best of the best' just puts the 'special' in special forces
Hello, i'm a sub for quite some time so just to clarify, the uniforms are based in the commandos unit from the republican guard, but the 80s/90s one lol, the image in the thumbnail could be swaped for a night ops one but i understand, keep up the work @@usuallyhapless9481
As usual good unit guide. Any plans to do another WW2 campaign? Has been rather modern around here lately and Battle Pack 2 for Normandy is coming out on June 6th.
I should really do a modern campaign next, as we did a WW2 one last time. But there definitely looks like there's going to be some cool new stuff for Normandy I'll have to have a crack at!
Damn, so they only have one belt in the whole squad? I wonder why they did that. You'd think they'd have more at least spread out, I'm used to having way more.
They don’t exist in CMSF2 (no idea why), but in all other games you can select the “dismounted” option when buying a unit to turn all vehicles into ammo crates.
I feel this was the case for the Syrian army before the Syrian civil war, now present day, the Russian have updated with new weapons and tactics and bolstering their armor as well. This this game represents the the Syrian army present day or pre civil war ?
The game simulates a Syrian army with minor ahistorical additions: for example, the Syrians have export Russian T-90As (called the T-90SA), early-production export BMP-3s, and the special forces have Russian body armor and AK-74Ms. However, the game was created before the Syrian civil war, so it doesn’t really portray the modern Syrian military.
@@usuallyhapless9481 I see. Here's hoping we see a brand new Combat Mission engine so we can see helicopters (both attack and transport, imagine the KA-27 Helix for the Syrian side), jungle warfare (for a CM game based on the Sino Japanese war or Pacific Front. Indochina wars, or again based on an alternative Sino American war including Taiwan), and even suppressed weapons (which would likely benefit special units)
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
The hilarity of RUclips recommending this now
wake up babe, new syrian formation guide dropped
I love that the PKM gunner only gets 1 belt but they took the time to model 2 on his chest rig lol
Yep. The Syrian Mech infantry get more than 1 PKM box, but no one else for some reason
@@usuallyhapless9481 I suspect that was a mistake or the developer forgot to count remaining 2 ammo box on their ammo pouch.
Special Forces with just 1 PKM box... lmao.
Some background on these guys:
These units were formed to do counter insurgency ops. The vision for them was to stomp groups like ISIS or regime opponents, and they aren’t supposed to fight other military forces. They are formed out of regime loyalists, similar to the Republican Guard.
I imagine that in an invasion scenario they would either end up holding chokepoints (think someplace like Nassyriah) or places important to the regime, conducting ambushes, or acting as stay behind forces to organize militias or conduct ambushes in the invader’s rear.
But don’t get confused, they aren’t going to be fast roping or jumping out of planes. They also aren’t going to be conducting conventional attacks against NATO either. You can think of them like Saddam’s Fedayeen but a little better equipped and better trained.
In the CMSF2 campaigns, the special forces are used as stay-behind forces, being the backbone of the anti-NATO civilian militias that are formed in Syria after the NATO invasion.
@@AUsernameWeShallMarchToKiev Yep. They also get used in the Canadian campaign to guard a chemical weapons facility.
Aren’t these the ones who would do close assaults in the Golan Heights? Or is that the airborne?
@@horseman2777 Oh yes and their ATGMs in that mission sucked.
With what happened this past weekend, it has truly emphasized the “Special” in “Special Forces”
The discussion of CMSF2 units and how they relate to the campaign's lore conjured up an interesting thought I had. I always found the CMSF2 lore to be quite underrated and very interesting, especially for how much of a niche audience this game caters to. You can tell how much of the story is influenced by post-9/11 GWOT fears (obviously considering the original game back in 2007 was made amidst the height of the Iraq War and Dubya's presidency), such as the threat of WMDs (i.e. the dirty bomb attacks that caused NATO to invade Syria) as well as the rising tensions with Syria and Iran during Bush's second term, which caused some to fear that Bush would have invaded yet another country as part of the GWOT saga.
You also get small little details in the campaigns that really make the story feel complete. Like how you have Lebanese Shia Hezbollah volunteers coming to support Assad (as in OTL) during the Semper Fi campaign, the post-invasion insurgency that is beginning to take hold after NATO takes control of Syria, as well as some insight about how many Syrian civilians have been displaced by the invasion, etc.
to add further to this, there's another interesting detail in the game's story I thought was pretty cool. Although the entire 2008 NATO invasion of Syria plotline is (obviously) based off of the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, it has considerably more international support due to the dirty bomb attacks being directed by a Syria-based militant group (similar to the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan), hence why you even have some European NATO allies like Germany (which is actually represented in the NATO DLC) sending in their troops to participate in the invasion of Syria, in contrast to how they were pretty much opposed to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and never contributed troops.
the fact that the NATO invasion and occupation begins during the summer of 2008 was also quite interesting. IRL in 2008 Bush's approval ratings were reaching their all-time low thanks to the Iraq War as well as the Great Recession. ITTL in CMSF the dirty bomb attacks would probably have massive social and political ramifications. For example, Bush would probably have gotten a short-term increase similar to what happened immediately after 9/11. It probably wouldn't have butterflied the Great Recession away, but a large-scale attack in the West likely would have made national defense a much more significant topic in the 2008 US elections. Seeing how McCain or Obama would handle CMSF's occupation of Syria is quite interesting to think about.
Yeah the game's lore is largely ignored because of how small the fandom is and how niche it is
The game certainly attracts a certain type of players (CM players seem to have far more knowledge on military matters than other games)
@@xahmadx6442 definitely. I think the fact that the CM playerbase generally tends to be older and mostly consists of wargamers, combined with the CM games having a steep learning curve and not having much marketing has to do with it.
@@nguyenbaokhiem6728 those and also the price
OG-7 is another case of "doesn't transition well to CM"
Yes, it does have a better fragmentation effect, but the point of this rocket is that it is much smaller than AT rockets.
There are two types of backpacks for RPG-7 rockets: for 2 rockets (carried by the grenadier) and for 3 rockets (carried by the assistant). But you can carry 2 OG-7s "per slot" (officially, unofficially it is very much possible to squeeze in even more).
PS
I really wonder what Syrians put in their trucks. Even with 2 mortars and all the listed ammo inside, there is enough space in a Ural for ~20 passengers in comfort. "In comfort" in this case means airliner-style seats and not even with low-coster standards for legroom =)
The AKS-74U's folding stock isn't unique to it as both the AKS-74 and the AK-74M have folding stocks, the AKS-74 having the same "triangle" folding stock as the AKS-74U, and the AK-74M having a polymer version of the AK-74's fixed stock with a cutout on the side it folds to so as to not impede with the Dovetail mount, mounted on a folding trunnion. Other than that everything you said about the guns was spot on and I genuinely appreciate seeing someone be as accurate about firearms as you are that isn't a gun youtuber.
Also this was a good video, keep up the good work! No one makes me want to play Combat Mission more than you and your videos.
Thanks very much man!
You should also mention that these guys often act as advisers to insurgent forces in the campaign. They almost always show up alongside Uncons. IMO narrative-wise, it is their greatest strength. These guys were able to fan up insurgency along Coalition supply line. Gameplay-wise, the Uncons under their command are often much more franatic than the Reserves/ Regulars encountered in early game, making them effective meat-shields for the more capable SF units. Missions that features the SF + Uncon combo are usually tough nuts to crack (Ash Shammas anyone?)
That's a good point! I missed that.
01:02 failed bridge crossing over the anti-tank ditch.
I kinda feel bad for the Syrians. They're just trying to do their duty, but their army will never be as effective as a Western force, simply because of fragile political situation.
Yep. That's a very hard problem to solve.
@@usuallyhapless9481 I can understand why you did that video on the Iran-Iraq war. It really highlights the problems that such a fragile state imposes on the armed forces.
(Although I am a lot more sympathetic to an army that fights ISIS, rather than one that invades another state because it is bankrupt ;)
Well, when they're not committing warcrimes ofcourse
@@larsdejong7396Well if you want an example of such an army actually performing well look at the Iraqi army during the 88 offensy
@@hotsingleplaguedoctorinarea Did I suggest they didn't? I said I am MORE sympathetic. Not sympathetic out off itself.
its a good formation to fight in towns and close combat in general - they have terrifying rpg29s and body armor and can hold fairly well when they have a chance to engage enemy infantry
The thermobaric rocket from the RPG-29 is highly effective, especially against NATO squads in built-up terrain
These kind of videos are the best on the channel since the amount of information about ingame units is so limited in a visual sense
We have Special Forces at home!
Special Forces at home:
Pretty much
I don't like facing them in game. They're almost impossible to suppress with infantry, or without running out of ammo, and the RPG-29 absolutely slaps.
Oh, usually they’re fanatics too! They also are decently experienced to boot, so unlike the uncons you fight, these guys will be able to do damage if you don’t respect their firepower.
They won't just die/leave/surrender. They will return fire the moment your 2 mg teams reload.
Could you do a video explaining how C2 works? I think we all know its important for sharing spot contacts but I'm very hazy on the rest of it, such as how it effects morale and overall combat effectiveness, what are the bonuses and penalties for keeping/losing the C2 link at the various levels of the CoC, how big of an impact the leadership modifier makes (is losing contact with a -2 plt leader beneficial in some cases), does keeping the company commander in range for visual/verbal provide any benefit over radio only, etc.
Hapless has a video that covers that partially: ruclips.net/video/f2D-bwTeWxU/видео.html
But the rest is really all just behind the scenes/impossible to determine. Rule of thumb there is just to do what makes the most sense, but I wouldn’t advise putting company commanders near the frontline in any battle past 1980
He made a video about this called "Combat Mission Basics: How Units Communicate". Highly recommend you check it out.
Josey Wales also made this video, which is helpful: ruclips.net/video/pxEeW3v4oNM/видео.html
13:25 Uh, am I just a dumb dumb or does the ammo described and showed in the truck not match? Good stuff as always Hapless ❤
Great video. Would be good to get an overview of the Syrian airborne
about time
I didn't expect them to have a special force
The Syrian SF aren’t really “special” like the US Army Rangers or the British SAS, these guys are like a military SWAT team: they were created for the purpose of fighting terrorism and propping up Assad’s regime.
This is why they are the only Syrian units to have body armor and the RPG-29, but ride around in UAZ jeeps: their primary role is counterterrorism and internal security, not deep raids behind enemy lines.
@@AUsernameWeShallMarchToKiev You gotta feel sad for the Syrains in combat mission
No matter what they do the coalition outclasses them in every category
And it leaves no room for mistakes
1 mistake and that would result in a disaster
@@xahmadx6442 yea, they really get the short end of the stick in Shock Force. I kinda wish we had more modding tools available so we could see a modernized version of the SAA during the Civil War, although knowing the CM series it likely wouldn't happen
@@nguyenbaokhiem6728 hope we get a CM about the battle of Mosul
Would certainly be an interesting one
@@xahmadx6442 IIRC there was a custom scenario on the Few Good Men website about the battle of Mosul for CMSF2
I wish the did an updated revision of this game with the option for randomised terrain like in Afrika Korps and Operation Barbarossa. Really miss that option.
Awesome vid, as always.
Wish you had more playlists per CM or video category. Kinda hard to find, eg all SF2 related videos.
You mentioned getting more RPG29 ammo for these guys. I no of no way to get the extra ammo in quick battles, none of the vehicles the Syrians have carry extra and you can't buy ammo crates in QB. Is there a way I'm missing? I'd love to know.
I guess that's one way to represent logistical stress lol
You could buy new RPG-29 teams (but that’s expensive), but no Syrian vehicles except for the organic UAZ-469 in the ORBAT of the special forces carry RPG-29 warheads
dropped what I was doing to watch this, another great video 👍
Thanks very much man!
hey haplesss,if you ever see this hi. i checked on what the special forces, regular army and rep guard had on scenarios and quick battles, discovered an interesting thing, reg army and above have radios that work on the platton HG, only if you separate an RPG from it, same thing with SF.
the problem is that in scenarios they cant separate rpg team and they straight up lack it in the XO on the platton HQin scenarios. any idea as to the why that's the case? casue having the radios makes the C2 of the syrians all the much more effective.
my bad, it isnt the XO who has the radio but the assistant squad lead
0:33 holy backblast
Hey Hapless, just a suggestion I thought would be cool to see in a video, but maybe you could try playing against someone new to the game who has a massive force compared to yours. Attack or defend, I wanna see your insane knowledge and tactics go against someone using meat shields lol
They dont look so intimidating in the thumbnail as in game.
Poor diet not enough protein
@@lolasdm6959 I meant the fashion choice but fair enough.
They look like working in special forces part time.
@@robertkalinic335 Special needs forces
To be fair, that photo was the only photo I could find that came close to the vanilla ingame look of the Syrian SF.
IIRC they're actually Syrian police. The fact that they don't exactly come across as 'the best of the best' just puts the 'special' in special forces
Hello, i'm a sub for quite some time so just to clarify, the uniforms are based in the commandos unit from the republican guard, but the 80s/90s one lol, the image in the thumbnail could be swaped for a night ops one but i understand, keep up the work @@usuallyhapless9481
As usual good unit guide. Any plans to do another WW2 campaign? Has been rather modern around here lately and Battle Pack 2 for Normandy is coming out on June 6th.
I should really do a modern campaign next, as we did a WW2 one last time. But there definitely looks like there's going to be some cool new stuff for Normandy I'll have to have a crack at!
Wait don't these guys come with optics in a mission? You played as the German Gebirgsjäger I believe
Damn, so they only have one belt in the whole squad?
I wonder why they did that. You'd think they'd have more at least spread out, I'm used to having way more.
They can be nasty to deal with in urban setting, and RPG 29 is very deadly in close combat. And AT-14 can be scary ecen for heaviest NATO tanks.
Ammo Crates ? Where do u get them, played this game for 1 year never saw a Ammo crate lol
They don’t exist in CMSF2 (no idea why), but in all other games you can select the “dismounted” option when buying a unit to turn all vehicles into ammo crates.
Yeah, I probably got mixed up Shock Force is the odd game out that doesn't quite work like all the others.
Wait wait wait they don't just disappear in QB?!
@@17Zen02 If your difficulty level is set too low, the ammunition is automatically distributed to squads without any crates
I love these guys, worth noting that in QB they default to TERRIBLE soft factors. So you need to pay more to make them better than militia...
I feel this was the case for the Syrian army before the Syrian civil war, now present day, the Russian have updated with new weapons and tactics and bolstering their armor as well. This this game represents the the Syrian army present day or pre civil war ?
If I remember the game is set in 2008, so a few years before the civil war would begin in 2011
The game simulates a Syrian army with minor ahistorical additions: for example, the Syrians have export Russian T-90As (called the T-90SA), early-production export BMP-3s, and the special forces have Russian body armor and AK-74Ms.
However, the game was created before the Syrian civil war, so it doesn’t really portray the modern Syrian military.
The game takes place in an alternate timeline- there is no Syrian civil war and no Russian involvement
@@usuallyhapless9481 I see. Here's hoping we see a brand new Combat Mission engine so we can see helicopters (both attack and transport, imagine the KA-27 Helix for the Syrian side), jungle warfare (for a CM game based on the Sino Japanese war or Pacific Front. Indochina wars, or again based on an alternative Sino American war including Taiwan), and even suppressed weapons (which would likely benefit special units)
Your audio setup on this video seems to be broken. Your voice has a ton of low down reverb applied to it.
what a lie and it wasn't even true of it.
@@Mechanized85 What on earth does this post even mean? Are you accusing me of lying?
Such reaching past untruthful for you and you know
Your audio has an annoying buzz.
Guess not.
they have turkish uniforms. lmao.