Reconnaissance is the act of gathering intelligence on your enemy. It is extremely important but easily the most underestimated part of any battle-group in the SARP due to hugely over-estimated sensor technology capabilities.

Reconnaissance can be achieved in many ways but the following conditions need to be met:

1. You can see your enemy
2. Your enemy cannot attack you (ideally he shouldn't even know you're there)
3. If legal issues arise, your enemy does not detect you observing him

Reconnaissance units are a high priority target as interest in gathering intelligence indicates you want to put troops in an area. Indicating you can quickly put down reconnaissance will either stop you from being able to plan effectively (forcing you to use search and destroy and classic probing techniques) or neglecting an area entirely (allowing your enemy to continue to hold it).

Reconnaissance units almost never engage in attacking or defense and are almost always highly modified interceptors. They can travel over very vast distances very quickly and pack extremely sophisticated sensors, communications and battle analysis capabilities. They must be extremely reliable and stealth helps.

For these reasons, weapons armor and maneuverability are sacrificed as reconnaissance is a highly specialized role. Battle-analysis equipment is used so Reconnaissance can provide useful information for further planning - estimating what enemy units are capable of so you can plan against them effectively - to recognize flaws in your own plans (and change the accordingly). You must also be able to recognize when you have been detected or when you have been fired on so you know when to bug out and return to base (once your cover is blown, the enemy will do everything in their power to distort the data you are gathering so you make sub-optimal planning decisions).

Reconnaissance units often make good surgical strike units when adapted properly as their ability to evade fire and function deep inside enemy territory for extended periods of time - though their speed, range and sensor capabilities will suffer accordingly to the loss of specialization.

There are four primary forms of reconnaissance. Although the forms each accomplish largely the same objectives, they are each utilized in different situations, depending upon the amount of intelligence already known about the enemy forces and the feasibility of obtaining more.

• Route reconnaissance focuses upon surveying a specific access or bridge point into a territory. The objectives of route reconnaissance are to obtain information regarding the route itself and the terrain surrounding the route that the enemy could utilize to influence movement, to clear enemy assets that could influence friendly movement, and to completely annihilate or diminish the effect of checkpoints on friendly movement.

• Force reconnaissance focuses upon obtaining information about the enemy via direct penetration of enemy lines. As the most aggressive form of reconnaissance, reconnaissance in force (RIF) operations are only carried out when enemy disposition, robustness, weaknesses, and, reactions can not be determined via traditional reconnaissance methods.

• Zone reconnaissance is a concentrated form of reconnaissance that focuses on obtaining information regarding the routes, terrains, enemy assets, and chokepoints within a designated zone. Although zone reconnaissance is the most extensive, intensive, time-consuming, and, deliberate form of reconnaissance, a detailed reconnaissance of the zone may instead be focused on named areas of interest (NAI) that would accomplish the previously mentioned objectives.

• Area reconnaissance is a form of reconnaissance that focuses on obtaining information regarding enemy assets and disposition, the terrain, and, the civilian and military activity within a designated area. In essence, area reconnaissance is a scaled-down variant of zone reconnaissance. Therefore, area reconnaissance typically resolves faster than zone reconnaissance. Furthermore, area reconnaissance micro-operations may be embedded within larger, zone reconnaissance macro-operations.

This page was originally made by Wes then was updated by Ethereal