Deployment
A decision game
The following decision game comes from Problems for Platoon and Company (Aufgaben für Zug und Kompanie), a book of exercises written by Erwin Rommel in the early 1930s, when he taught tactics at the Infantry School in Dresden.
Deployment
The year is 1935.
You command the 3rd Platoon the 1st Company of the 1st Infantry Regiment.
Your platoon consists of four rifle squads (each of nine men and one light machine gun), a three-man mortar team (with one light mortar), and a five-man headquarters. (The last element consists of yourself, your deputy, and three messengers.)
Today, your regiment is marching towards the east.
Your company serves as the vanguard of the regiment. As such, it marches in front of the regiment, with no friendly elements between it and the enemy save the scouts of the regimental cavalry platoon.
One of the three platoons of your company (1st Platoon) serves as the point platoon of the unit. It therefore marches some six hundred meters in front of the main body.
The main body, which has been reinforced with a platoon of three anti-tank guns and a half-platoon of two heavy machine guns, marches in the following order.
anti-tank platoon
2nd Platoon
3rd Platoon
heavy machine gun half-platoon
In the distance, you hear rifle shots.
Soon thereafter, a mounted messenger reports to the company commander, who has been marching in front of the main body.
The company commander gives a hand signal that commands the platoon commanders to gather at his position. As soon as the platoon commanders arrive, he gives the following order.
‘Five kilometers (three miles) to the east, near the village of H, the mounted scouts of the regiment have located weak enemy forces.’
‘Do you see the woods in front of us? Once we reach it, the company will deploy.’
‘The second platoon will deploy to the right of the road. The third platoon will deploy to the left. The heavy machine guns will remain on the road, some two hundred meters behind the platoons. I will be located with the second platoon.’
What now, Herr Leutnant?
You may use the comments section to write the orders that you would give to your platoon.
I will post the three solutions provided by Major Rommel on Wednesday, 25 June 2025.
1. Return to my platoon and quickly brief my Platoon Sergeant and Squad Leaders on the situation and change in mission.
2. Get the platoon moving IAW the company commander’s orders.
3. Halt just inside the wood line to the left of the road (and out of sight of anyone in the clearing beyond) and deploy the platoon with 2 squads on line and one back.
4. Move out on command with two squads forward and one covering in a traveling over watch formation. Platoon leader to move with one messenger just behind the rightmost squad and Platoon Sergeant and the other two messengers with the over watch squad.
Go left
2 squads up
1 with LMGs and me
1 back
Contact
Lead 2 on line. 1 and LMG come up , now 1 squad and LMG as support fires.
I maneuver 3 squads depending on situation but probably more left to flank with 2 up 1 back.
1 stays in reserve , 1 envelop with 2 up , 1 trailing.
I should stay with the LMGs perhaps, but too bad. We’re flanking 2 up 1 back squads.