FM/C95 - Offensive tactics

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The FM outlines our core skills, policies and guides to ensure every member stands ready for the mission ahead.

Apply sufficient fire to reduce the enemy’s ability to return effective fire.

• Direct fire toward known or suspected enemy positions to suppress them.
• Increase volume, accuracy, or tempo of fire until enemy fire becomes ineffective or sporadic.
• Use suppressive fire as the primary method; at closer ranges or against small elements, deliberate fire may be sufficient.
• Maintain fire until friendly manoeuvre or disengagement is achieved.

Fire superiority enables freedom of movement and reduces friendly casualties.

Following contact, restore combat effectiveness before continuing operations.

Immediate Priorities

• Move off of the enemy position.
• Establish security.
• Confirm command structure.
• Assess casualties.
• Redistribute ammunition.
• Re-establish orientation.

Follow-On

• Reassign tasks as required.
• Report status.
• Prepare for follow-on action.

Enemy positions should not be used as regroup or rally points after contact or assault. Once occupied, these locations are likely known or pre-planned for indirect fires, air attack, or follow-on engagement.

Even if cleared or abandoned, the enemy may still respond with artillery, mortars, or direct fire once friendly forces occupy the position, increasing vulnerability during reorganisation.

Following contact, elements should displace to a separate, concealed, and defensible location to reorganise, treat casualties, redistribute ammunition, and establish security. Selecting regroup points away from enemy positions reduces predictability and improves survivability

Destroy, dislodge, or force the enemy to disengage.

• Apply overwhelming fire and manoeuvre from decisive positions.
• Maintain momentum to prevent enemy recovery or withdrawal.
• Clear remaining resistance methodically.
• Re‑establish control and prepare for follow‑on actions.

Manoeuvre elements to attack the enemy from a position of advantage.

• Move outside the enemy’s primary arcs of fire and observation.
• Use terrain, timing, and suppression to conceal movement.
• Maintain coordination with fixing elements to prevent enemy reorientation.
• Position flanking elements to engage decisive targets or vulnerabilities.

Prevent the enemy from manoeuvring or disengaging.

• Apply sufficient fire to force the enemy to remain in position.
• Maintain continuous pressure to limit enemy movement and initiative.
• Avoid over‑committing forces intended for manoeuvre.
• Adjust fire to maintain suppression without unnecessary exposure.

Identify the enemy’s location, strength, and disposition while minimising exposure.

• Use observation, movement, and probing fire to locate enemy elements.
• Confirm enemy positions through multiple indicators where possible.
• Avoid committing decisively before the enemy is identified.
• Report contact clearly to enable follow‑on actions.

Engage the enemy while repositioning to prevent being fixed in place.

• Apply effective fire to suppress or fix the enemy.
• Reposition elements after limited engagement time from the same position.
• Use movement to deny the enemy predictable targeting and control.
• Exploit new positions to gain improved firing angles and observation.
• Maintain coordination so fire and movement remain mutually supporting.

Prolonged firing from a single position increases vulnerability. Continuous manoeuvre preserves initiative and survivability.

Feints and demonstrations are conducted to deceive the enemy regarding friendly intent, location, or main effort.

A feint involves limited engagement to provoke a reaction, while a demonstration shows force without committing decisively. Both aim to draw enemy attention, fix forces, or cause misallocation of resources.

Key characteristics of feints and demonstrations:

• Actions are believable and consistent with real attacks.
• Force is applied selectively to avoid decisive engagement.
• Enemy reactions are observed and exploited elsewhere.
• Risk is carefully controlled to prevent escalation.
• Coordination ensures deception supports the main effort.

Feints and demonstrations are most effective when the enemy relies on reactive decision‑making and lacks complete situational awareness.

A fixing attack is conducted to prevent the enemy from manoeuvring, reinforcing, or disengaging.

Rather than seeking immediate destruction, the fixing element applies sustained pressure to hold the enemy in place while other elements manoeuvre to achieve decisive effects elsewhere.

Key characteristics of a fixing attack:

• Fire is used to deny enemy movement and initiative.
• Positions are maintained long enough to shape the battlefield.
• The fixing element avoids unnecessary advance or exposure.
• Success is measured by enemy immobility, not terrain gained.
• Coordination with manoeuvring elements is critical.

Fixing attacks are commonly used as part of larger manoeuvre schemes such as anvil and hammer, encirclement, or breakthrough operations.

Limited pursuit is conducted to maintain pressure on a withdrawing enemy without committing to a full chase.

The intent is to prevent the enemy from disengaging cleanly, force continued movement, and inflict additional losses while avoiding overextension. Pursuit remains controlled and is broken deliberately when risk outweighs gain.

Key characteristics of limited pursuit:

• Pressure is applied without abandoning formation integrity.
• Fire and manoeuvre are used to keep the enemy moving.
• Contact is maintained selectively, not continuously.
• Boundaries and disengagement criteria are clearly understood.
• Elements avoid being drawn into prepared positions or ambushes.

Limited pursuit is most effective when the enemy is disorganised but still capable of resistance, and when friendly forces retain freedom to disengage at will.

Exploitation focuses on capitalising on enemy disruption or collapse to expand the success of an attack.

When an enemy loses cohesion, elements rapidly advance to deny them the ability to reorganise, establish new defensive positions, or withdraw in good order. The objective is to turn a local success into a decisive advantage through momentum and pressure.

Key characteristics of exploitation:

• Speed and aggression are prioritised over consolidation.
• Enemy gaps, withdrawals, and confusion are exploited immediately.
• Objectives are flexible and may shift based on enemy reaction.
• Command focuses on maintaining tempo rather than perfect alignment.
• Exploitation ends before elements become overextended or isolated.

Exploitation is most effective when situational awareness is high and coordination allows combat power to be redirected quickly toward vulnerable enemy elements.

A breakthrough concentrates combat power to rupture an enemy line at a selected point.

Once the line is penetrated, forces exploit the gap to attack exposed flanks and rear areas, disrupting cohesion and command. The objective is to split the enemy formation and prevent reconstitution of the defence.

Key characteristics of a breakthrough:

• Combat power is concentrated at a decisive point.
• Initial penetration is followed by rapid exploitation.
• Enemy formations are split or isolated.
• Momentum is maintained to prevent line restoration.

Breakthrough operations are most effective when follow‑on forces can exploit success faster than the enemy can react.

Encirclement attacks the enemy from multiple directions to deny movement and withdrawal.

Rather than focusing on a single axis, encirclement applies pressure across several approaches simultaneously. The intent is to isolate the enemy, degrade cohesion, and prevent reinforcement or escape.

Key characteristics of encirclement:

• Multiple manoeuvre elements attack from different directions.
• Enemy withdrawal routes are denied or controlled.
• Pressure is applied continuously across all axes.
• Enemy cohesion and command are rapidly degraded.

Encirclement is most effective against isolated or static enemies unable to break contact or reposition.

A frontal assault advances directly against the enemy from a single direction.

All elements apply pressure along the same axis to fix the enemy while progressively closing distance. Fire and movement are used to maintain momentum and prevent the enemy from disengaging or reorganising.

Key characteristics of a frontal assault:

• Attack is conducted from a single direction.
• All elements contribute to fixing the enemy.
• Progress is achieved through coordinated fire and movement.
• Predictability is offset by sustained pressure.

Frontal assaults rely heavily on coordination and fire superiority, as the enemy remains oriented toward the attacking force.

An anvil and hammer attack fixes the enemy in place while a manoeuvre element strikes from a different direction.

One element applies sustained pressure to prevent the enemy from repositioning, while the second element manoeuvres to attack exposed flanks or rear areas. The enemy’s focus on the fixing force creates an opportunity for decisive manoeuvre.

Key characteristics of an anvil and hammer attack:

• One element fixes the enemy through pressure.
• One element manoeuvres to strike from an offset direction.
• Success depends on maintaining pressure until manoeuvre is complete.
• Manoeuvre is protected by the fixing element.

Anvil and hammer attacks are most effective when the fixing force can hold the enemy’s attention long enough for manoeuvre to succeed.

A pincer attack applies pressure on the enemy from two different directions at the same time.

By attacking from multiple axes, the enemy is forced to divide attention, fire, and manoeuvre, reducing their ability to respond effectively. The intent is to collapse resistance by overwhelming the enemy’s ability to orient toward a single threat.

Key characteristics of a pincer attack:

• Two manoeuvre elements attack from separate directions.
• Pressure is applied simultaneously rather than sequentially.
• Enemy freedom of movement is restricted.
• Enemy fire and command are divided across multiple threats.

Pincer attacks are most effective when coordination and timing prevent either element from becoming decisively engaged alone.

A raid is a deliberate, time-limited offensive action conducted to achieve a specific objective and then disengage.

Raids are not intended to seize or hold terrain. Instead, they focus on striking a defined target (such as personnel, equipment, infrastructure, or information) before withdrawing on a planned route.

Key characteristics of a raid:

• Clearly defined objective and end state.
• Emphasis on surprise, speed, and violence of action.
• Limited duration with a planned withdrawal.
• Forces are task-organised specifically for the objective.
• Disengagement is planned before the raid begins.

Raids rely on coordination between finding, fixing, and striking elements to isolate the objective and prevent enemy reinforcement. Once the objective is achieved, elements disengage rapidly to avoid becoming fixed or encircled.

A raid is most effective when the enemy is unprepared, reaction times are limited, and the attacking force retains freedom of manoeuvre throughout the action.