Instructor(s)

Current qualified instructors:

• Any AI wearing the Squad Leader badge

Booking a Course: To book a course, please speak with one of the listed instructors and request a suitable date. Information will also be posted in the Squad Training Academy subforums

Number of candidates

Three candidates maximum per one instructor.

Purpose of this course

The Squad Leader Course aims to provide participants with the skills necessary to be an effective and contributing factor within Squad gameplay as a Squad Leader by learning how to make use of the kit.

Prerequisites

You can only participate in this course once you've passed both the Basic Infantry and Advanced Infantry courses.

Goals of this course

All Squad Leaders should understand the core gameplay mechanics of Squad, and be able to effectively plan, assess and execute alongside other Squad Leaders

 

Squad Leader Kits 

For the best Optic, 1 other person is required in your squad

 

Squad Leader Abilities

As a squad leader, you are in charge of dictating logistics truck loadout. Choose the amount of construction and then fill the rest with ammo. The majority of HABs (+1 ammo crate) in the game currently cost 600 construction. You will often see logistics vehicles being loaded with 1800 ammo and 1200 construction, this will allow a squad leader to place 2 HABs down without having to return to base.

As a squad leader, you now have access to the SL radial menu, which is opened by pushing "T", and looks like this;

To place a radio (FOB), use the top left button;

then place the radio in the desired location by left clicking when the placement is green. Once the radio is placed, you can unload supplies. As of V2.9 there is a 400m radius around any radio in which another radio can not be placed (previously 300m)

 

After the radio is placed and the supplies unloaded, going into the "Deployables" sub menu

gives you the following options;

The icons represent (from top right, clockwise, to bottom left): Structures, Fortifications and Emplacements.

Inside structures, the button highlighted is the HAB button. Here, it costs 500 construction points. The bottom right button is the Ammo Crate and the bottom left button is a vehicle repair station. Placing the radio gives you a 75m radius around the radio to place things like HABs, ammo crates, weapon emplacements, fortifications, etc. The most important items are the HABs which can cost between 100 and 500 construction points, depending on the faction (Note: Insurgents can place 2 HABs per radio!), and ammo crates which cost 100 construction points each.

 

The HAB allows all players on a team to spawn with a 45 second delay (from the time of being incapacitated). There are no limits on the number of players who can spawn, and, unlike a Rally Point, no wave system. It is, however, possible to prevent spawns on a HAB. If there are enemies within a certain distance of a HAB, the HAB becomes ‘overrun’ (2 enemies suppress a HAB at 20m, 8 enemies suppress a HAB at 80m as of V2.9). Its map icon will change to red with a cross through it, and players are unable to spawn there until the enemies have been cleared out (with a 20 second re-activation time). If anyone damages or deconstructs the FOB to a certain threshold, the HAB also becomes unspawnable.

 

Note: You can make placing structures and emplacements better for your team by rotating them them into a more appropriate position using the left and right arrow keys!

Vehicle Claiming System

You can claim vehicles. To claim a vehicle, just run up to it and press "F" to claim it. If members of your squad are claiming vehicles, you will have to authorise it by pressing "Page Up" to confirm the claim, or "Page Down" to deny the claim.

As of V2.5, a 3 man squad can claim 2 vehicles and a 6 man squad can claim 6 vehicles.

Rally Points

Rally Points (RPs) are squad-specific spawn points. Each Squad can have 1 RP at a time, on which only squad members can spawn. There is no limit to the number of times players can spawn on a rally point. 

The Squad Leader can't place a rally point alone. To place an RP, the SL needs another member of the squad within 15 metres of him/her (3 other members if Lead Crewman or other non-SL kit). If enemies are within 50 metres of the desired location, the rally point cannot be placed, and the timer for placing a new one will be reset tot 2 minutes. The SL can only place an RP every 150 seconds.

RPs are a useful spawn tool, however, they have drawbacks. A unit spawning on an RP spawns with only the ammunition they had when they died (But a minimum of three rifle magazines and 1 bandage). In addition, the RP can easily be destroyed by an enemy soldier moving within 15 metres of it.

On the map, the rally point icon (A numbered flag) shows the squad number of the squad who placed it. You can only spawn on the yellow rally point of your own squad.

(Tip: Insurgents only - If you are dead as an Insurgent SL, you can 'Buddy Rally" off of another squad's RP by opening the map and left clicking on it).

Rally Points are an inventory item and as such, once the SL has placed an RP down, unless he rearms off an ammo crate, vehicle or rifleman ammo bag, if the RP gets destroyed, the SL can no longer place any more RPs. Each RP costs 50 ammo. The SL can pick the RP back up and then redeploy it.

Communications

As a squad leader you now have access to the Command chat channel and Direct Communications Channel. As a squad leader, you can talk to every squad leader at once, using default G, or you can directly chat to other squad leaders by using the numbers 1 - 9 on the number pad. 1 opens up comms with Squad 1, 2 with Squad 2 etc.

Where possible, use direct comms with other SLs. To directly communicate with the commander, use Num 0 on the number pad.

Map Stuff

A squad leader has control over a squad, and also has control over the map. Right clock on the map as a squad leader, you should see icons like;

Mark enemy positions as accurately as possible, with the correct markers

Each tab at the top has its own markers in it, as detailed above for you to mark enemy assets, or dictate your own squads orders, like;

The orders on the left hand side of the POI (Point of Interest) marker can tell your squad to move to a position, attach, defend, etc. These orders can also be dictated through the "T" Radial Menu that was shown earlier. Look at the object you want to mark, then open the Radial Menu and select the order to put an order on the map in the exact position you want to mark, like;

At the bottom of the screen, on the compass, placing a SL orders mark gives the members of the squad a range to the order above the icon, like;

Specialist kits (Especially ATs) will ask you to mark objectives or vehicles so they can easily range their weapons.

Commander's Assets

The commander will have assets that are useful to your team. To call these assets in, the commander can use the UAV to designate them himself, or you as a squad leader can request an action on an area by looking at the place you want the commander's asset to be used, and then opening the T Radial Menu and selecting the tactical request button, like;

This will create an icon on the map as above, which you need to open the tactical map (Caps lock) and right click and approve within 60 seconds like;

Only once you click Accept will the commander receive your request for support and be able to use the assets.

Squad Leading Tips

Top right corner of the map, click the cog wheel settings and then tick "Toggle Viewing FOB Radii" button to give you a circle around friendly radios which will allow you to see where you are able to place structures. It will also allow you to see where you can place other radios.

As of V2.0 there is now a refund feature in game for constructed items, eg: HABs. A structure can be refunded for 80% of its value, but only if it has not been fully built. This is useful to remember if you have placed a HAB badly.