Force Decimation

Force Decimation (Syaran: Присилно десеткување, Prisilno desetkuvanje) was the military doctrine of the Syaran National Army employed during the Zemplen War. Force Decimation entailed the usage of armored and mechanized forces to attack the flanks of an enemy force with the intent of surrounding and subsequently destroying the force in detail. The ultimate objection was the "decimation" of the enemy force, rendering it either annihilated or incapable of further offensive or defensive capability. Force Decimation was developed based on Syaran military history from the 1960s up until the early 2000s, and was the predominant methodology of fighting during when the Zemplen War broke out in May 2008. Force Decimation proved ineffective when fighting against the Ruvelkian Imperial Armed Forces, and the doctrine was scrapped following the end of the war in 2010.

Background

During the Siduri War the Army of the Syaran Republic had learned that it's slow moving firepower heavy Measured Battle Doctrine was unable to deal with the increased development of armored warfare practiced by the Common Axis powers. After the war the ARS abandoned the concept and began developing a separate doctrine centered around independent mobile armored formations much like those that had been fielded by the Cacertian Empire. This led to the abandonment of heavy tanks like the Thaumas and the adoption of the lighter and faster Myrmeke Main Battle Tank, intended to emphasis speed and mobility. For the remainder of its existence the ARS was primarily focused on low intensity conflicts with neighboring Ruvelka during the Granika Border War and the Hayren War, but in 1969 the Seven Day War involved fast moving and heavily armed Syaran forces ejecting Ruvelkan forces from Zemplen. The success of mobile armored forces, backed up by mechanized infantry and self-propelled artillery, became the mainstay of Syaran offensive operations. While this was never formalized as a cohesive doctrine before the ARS dissolved during the Refusal War, the concept was revitalized following the establishment of the Syaran Commonality Armed Forces.

The focus on pincer movements became a major focal point of Syaran military exercises during the 1990s and early 2000s. The doctrine was officially formalized following the Imerti Conflict, where fast moving Syaran armored forces had repelled a Ruvelkan invasion of Imerti. The first document detailed "Force Decimation" was released in October 2005, and it was shortly thereafter established as the educational standard for Syaran officer academies.

Methodology

Force Decimation was a principally an operational-level concept, to be conducted by corps and field armies, although the implementation would fall to the division and brigade level. A standard Syaran mechanized corps would consist of two mechanized divisions, an armored division, and a reserve mechanized division (usually labeled as a motorized division). The corps would also field two brigades of artillery (field and rocket artillery), a helicopter aviation regiment, a regiment of engineers, an air defense brigade, a support brigade, an anti-tank regiment, and a reconnaissance regiment. Standard Syaran Army protocol would call for the reconnaissance regiment advancing ahead of the main body by anywhere from 5-20 kilometers depending on terrain or circumstances.

Once an enemy force of sufficient size was identified, the Syaran corps commander would deploy his divisions in a pre-battle formation that usually involved placing the armored division in the center, with the two mechanized divisions on each wing. The motorized division along with the anti-tank regiment would serve as a immediate reserve and flank guard to protect the corps as it began it's assault. The armored division, with support from the corps rocket artillery brigade would commence the attack with the intent of pinning down the enemy force in place, while the mechanized divisions on each flank would advance with the intent of probing the flanks of the enemy force to identify weak spots or gaps in their lines. Once they had been identified, the mechanized divisions would then turn "inward", and attack the flanks of the enemy in a pincer movement with fire support from the corps helicopter gunships and their own organic artillery batteries. The goal of the pincer was to link up with the other Syaran division on the other flank to complete the encirclement of the enemy force.

Once the two pincers had met in the "middle", they would then turn inward and proceed to attack the enemy force from the rear. Surrounded and under attack from all sides, it was expected that the enemy force would then either surrender or be destroyed, either way resulting in a Syaran victory.

The end goal of Force Decimation was the destruction of enemy forces of equivalent size to a Syaran corps or army, allowing the Syarans to pick and choose the nature of the engagement while inflicting heavy losses on the enemy. Field Marshal Vakhtang Avakian likened it to "bite and chew", allowing the Syaran Army to systematically destroy an enemy force in detail. Much of Force Decimation was left to the leeway of the local commanders to decide; because of the variety of different circumstances Syaran forces could expect to operate under, it became expected that Syaran generals would be free to prosecute their attacks to their own likings and methods. However, Syaran commanders were also expected to obey the orders of their superiors and their operations once finalized. As a result there was a significant culture of both independent but robust obedience instilled in Syaran officers leading up to and during the Zemplen War, which was reflected in the course of the Syaran operations in the conflict.