Iranian Mechanized Platoon
"And Our Soldiers, They Verily Would Be The Victors."
- – Iranian Army Motto
"Prepare against them what force you can."
- – Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Motto
The Iranian military isn't all just martyrs and volunteers with little training. Inheriting a sizable force of western vehicles and acquiring eastern bloc equipment through trade deals and battlefield capture, the Iranian army and IRGC are motivated, reliable, and drilled. With this oddball mix of equipment, the Iranians stand firm against the aggression of any who threaten the revolution.
In Team Yankee
Just like the Basji, your Iranian mechanized platoon is a highly motivated force. With Courage, Morale, Rally, and Counterattack all at 3+, they'll be hard to shift. What hurts though, is their Skill of 5+. They're essentially better motivated Czechs but with worse skills and longer ranged basic infantry unit (MG3 Teams with 16" compared to AK teams with 8") and a smorgasbord of options. If you want to represent the Iranian army, take M113's for your transports. If you want to represent IRGC professionals (not militia like the Basji), use BTR-60's and BMP-1's.
Your AT/AA options are simple, but simple is better sometimes. You can take an M47 Dragon team on top of your RPG-7's, and a SA-7 Grail to at least attempt to swat a helicopter or two.
IRL
The Iranian army was not in a good place after the revolution due to the inevitable political purges, and some early defections and defeats in the initial wave of the Iraqi offensive cemented the fate of the Army coming second to the political Revolutionary Guard Corps in terms of reliability. Expected to make do with a load of equipment they were running low on spare parts for, the Army, IRGC, and the militias like the Basji essentially fought as completely isolated forces against the Iraqis for the first year of the war. After the Iraqi invasion stalled out at the end of 1980, the Army and IRGC had time time to rebuild, dig in, and get ready to strike back.
Oddly enough, your average Iranian soldier's equipment at the start of the war was not too dissimilar to that of your average German Jaeger. The Iranians used (and still use) G3's and MG3's, all built locally under license (and without license later on).
| Iranian Forces in Team Yankee | |
|---|---|
| Tanks: | T-55 - T-62 - M60 Patton - Chieftain |
| Transports: | M113 Armored Personnel Carrier - BTR-60 - BMP-1 |
| Troops: | Iranian Mechanized Platoon - Basij Infantry Company |
| Artillery: | M109 Howitzer - BM-21 Hail - M125 81mm |
| Anti-Aircraft: | ZSU 23-4 Shilka - ZSU-57-2 - SA-8 Gecko |
| Tank Hunters: | Jeep TOW - Jeep 106mm Recoilless - M113 106mm Recoilless |
| Recon: | Scorpion |
| Aircraft: | AH-1 Cobra Attack Helicopter |
| Soviet Support: | SU-25 Frogfoot |