Marine Rifle Platoon

"They shall be my finest warriors, these men who give of themselves to me. Like clay I shall mouldthem, and in the furnace of war forge them. They will be of iron will and steely muscle. In great armour shall I clad them and with the mightiest guns will they be armed. They will be untouched by plague or disease, no sickness will blight them. They will have tactics, strategies and machines so that no foe can best them in battle. They are my bulwark against the Menace. They are the Defenders of Freedom. They are The Marines and they shall know no fear."

– George Washington

Semper Fi!

The United States Marine Corps is part of the Department of the Navy along with "the" Navy and the Coast Guard, though in practice they are very much treated as there own separate branch of the military. The United States Marines Corps is one of the largest and only combined-arms marine forces in the world, possessing their own armor, artillery, recon, and air capabilities for performing amphibious and deep-strike missions far from naval bases. Whether you need to fight a campaign against a sprawling sea empire or send a well-equipped reconnaissance team deep behind enemy lines, accept no substitutes.

In Team Yankee

The Stats

The less mobile option for marine forces operating from AAV7 landing craft and Hueys (for fluff players). They also pack more punch than most other infantry platoons, capable of tackling anything on the ground (given the right tools). The options for the marines focus heavily on fire support weapons and can include M60 LMG teams, two SMAW teams and one 60mm Mortar team.

Due to the different organizational structure of the Marines having less artillery with an average of 2 mortars per company, the rifle platoon serves a different purpose as well. Unlike the mechanized platoon whose typical role is to protect armor or hold positions (due to their dragon ATGMs and smaller size), the Marines have WAY larger unit sizes which rival smaller Soviet companies. This means your troops can go on the offensive rather reliably, with the numbers to take MG fire if your defensive smokes fail.

Their primary counterpart is the US Airborne, who serve a similar role as shock troops with the numbers and 5+ rifle fire to reliably close in and destroy the enemy. However, they have access to SMAW teams which allow them to have a legitimate chance to actually hurt tanks at close range.

In terms of options, you may purchase an additional weapon team for a point each. M60 teams are swapped with rifle teams instead. While players may consider purchasing all of them (which isn't necessarily a bad choice), those who wish to use their platoons for a specific purpose may choose to adapt their unit composition instead.

As a rule of thumb, platoons in an offensive role would take the 9 rifle team for sustaining casualties and adding on 2 SMAWs. Conversely, the M60 and Dragon excel in a defensive role due to their range increases and stationary requirements. Taking a 6 team platoon is ideal, as the 3 cost for 3 additional rifle teams would be somewhat unnecessary. Note that Marine infantry mortars do NOT have smoke(THE ONLY SMOKE WE NEED IS FROM THE CORPSE OF THE COMMIES WE KILL) We need to do something about this R. Lee Ermey ghost.

A solid infantry unit which may replace the British hordes as the meta NATO army, due to their superior numbers and options.

IRL

Does anyone know where my sunscreen is?

Marines have a bit of a reputation to be had, and they often act like they're a step between regular army soldiers and Special Operations Forces like Rangers or Force Reconnaissance. Given however that they are the primary force used to perform Amphibious landings, which are often done in the face of enemy aggression, and expeditionary warfare which involves fighting away from supply's base, it is not hard to see where the Marines' (in)famous esprit de corp comes from. Most assuredly, the Germans, who dubbed them the "Teufel Hunde" or "Devil Dogs," or the Japanese who had island after island clawed away from them, would not be one to dispute their right to have their attitude.

The roots of the Marines' tough reputation lies in their history of shoestring budgeting. As a department of the Navy, Marines get the scraps of whatever is left after spending on fancy warships and missiles. This created a culture of making more with less: the Marines had to perform as well as the army despite fewer resources. With a focus on an exceedingly strong esprit-de-corps that some would consider cult-like, no one argues that the Marines are a force that works.

Today as with much of the Cold War, the Marines are an expeditionary unit expected to be the first frontline combat troops deployed to any hotspots around the world, with expeditionary units in various regions worldwide. Doctrinally, expeditionary warfare focuses on infantry tactics due to tanks on beaches being science fiction for the moment and incredibly silly thanks to the power of ATGMs. As many marines would tell you, the core of the Corps is the riflemen.