Operation East Wind 7 March 8-16 2014

[Aswayze]

Announcement:

Operation East Wind 7 dates and location have been set. *

When: March 8th - 16th 2014

What: Operation East Wind is a 9 day long 24 hour per day immersive milsim event set in the closing days of the Cold War. *From the moment you arrive till the moment you leave, you are surrounded by and living in the life of a soldier deployed on an alert in the Cold War. *

You may choose to be part of either the NATO forces or the Warsaw Pact with each side having it's own specific options, *requirements, advantages, and disadvantages.

At East Wind, you are involved 24 hours a day for the entirety of the event.

You will know the feeling of walking out on a multi day patrol, the sound of a truck delivering your hot food *(if you are lucky) and the sights and sounds of dark forest seemingly teeming with the enemy around your little patrol base in the black of night. *You will use night vision, you will use mines, you will ride in military trucks and armored personnel carriers, you will be supported by armor and you will use period correct comms equipment. You will know the boredom of a 03:00 TOC shift and the sinking feeling in your stomach when that shift suddenly STOPS being boring. * You will know the true value of a hot drink on a cold rainy day, you will learn to lament T-rations, you will know the joy of walking into the mess tent and smelling hot A-rations. * You will know how lonely the world can be when your little outpost is under attack and you know that the nearest help is way too far away. * You will know how piercingly bright a parachute flare is on a moonless night. *You will know the smell of a canvas tent on a sunny day. * You will know how nice and cozy a stove is on a cold wet day. You will know what it is like to transition from peacetime, to alert, to war. *


Who may participate?
Attendees must be 18 years of age or older unless pre-approved by event administration. * *

How much does it cost?
The fee structure for Operation East Wind is broken into two categories:

The cost for participants attending for up to 4 total
days is $215. *For those attending from 5-9 total days the cost is $250. *All attendees are provided with all meals, including snacks and drinks for the duration of the time they are in attendance. * Additionally, attendees are allowed to check mission equipment out from the supply tents including correct night vision systems, flares, IR systems, Claymore and POMZ mines, radios, telephone systems etc. *

Sign up is now open and will close on Feb 1st, 2014. *At signup, a non-refundable deposit of $50 is required with the balance due on Feb 1st *2014. *

Where is East Wind 7 being held?
We are proud to announce that East Wind 7 will again be held at D-Day Adventure Park in Wyandotte, Oklahoma. No doubt, there are a great many of you who have played at D-Day before. *It is an amazing facility with a lot of really impressive infrastructure. * *You might be tempted to think that you even know the D-Day Adventure Park pretty well... * You will be quite surprised to see how much more there is to that property than you ever imagined. * We will be operating on a 1000+ acre playing field with 45 miles of roads and trails. *There are towns, an airfield, steep hills, green valleys, streams, ponds, and lots upon lots of space. *If you have played at OK D-Day before you have probably seen a little bit of it but I assure you, it's just the tip of the iceberg. *

Why 9 days?

We run East Wind events for 9 days because in order to put together a quality event there is a certain minimum amount of time it takes to get everything all set up and settled in. * If this was a weekend event, we would spend all day and night Saturday setting up and getting everyone settled in and then all day Sunday endexing. * By running for 9 days we maximize our field time and get the most value out of our week's vacation time (or spring break for you guys in school). *If you cannot attend for the entire time, that's fine; you can attend for as much or as little as you can fit into your schedule.

Why this degree of insanity/attention to detail? *

Sure, we could camp in civvy tents instead of GP Mediums or real Soviet tents. *We could use a Ford Tempo with a plywood turret instead of a real Diamler Ferret. *We could move guys around in a short bed Chevy pickup instead of a M35A2, and we could certainly cook flapjacks on a 2 burner Coleman stove instead of using period correct field kitchens. * Where would the fun be in all of that? * At East Wind we seek to get everything right down to the smallest detail because this is how we immerse you into the event. *You do not attend East Wind, you are part of it, you are inside the world that we create for you, you can 'feel' this event.

Why the expense?
When you look at the cost remember that you are getting food included as well as the use of a lot of really top notch gear. *When we say food, we are not talking about just MREs or hotdogs cooked on a Weber grill. We have cook staff who are professionals in their field that are cooking nutritionally balanced meals that are also era and nationality correct. Doing this right is not cheap and we refuse to skimp on quality. *You could not eat at restaurants for a week on a $250 budget and get the quality of meals you will get at East Wind and that's before we even talk about the other stuff. *It is not an average game that a real BTR-152 comes down the path at you or that you get to face off against a real FV-432 APC with your RPG. *It is not an average game that you show up to the supply tent before your night mission and get Gen 2 and 3 night vision equipment issued to you. It's not an average airsoft game that sends you scrambling out of your camp when an AH-64 Apache shows up skulking around. *Yes, East Wind is expensive, but value wise, it is impossible to beat. Come and see, we'll make a believer out of you by day 1. *

Why should you choose to go to East Wind 7?

This one is easy. *Since the inception of this event our motto has been 'Not because it is easy, but because it is hard.' * You should be going to East Wind because you are looking for a challenge, an experience. * If you are looking at the full experience, you should be going to East Wind because you are ready to live an event 24/7. You should be going to East Wind because you have asked yourself, "Is East Wind right for me?" and said yes. *

Why should you NOT go to East Wind? *

If you think that it is a hassle to get the correct gear, if you are scared of the rain, if you are too proud to know when you need to learn something or if you are just looking for 9 days of solid "3,2,1, go" *speedball action you had better just stay home and play X-box. *East Wind will not be your thing. * *We frequently say that "East Wind is not for everyone, we made it that way for a reason." * The world is full of events that are for everyone. *We choose to break the mold...

This event is not easy, we don't want it to be easy and if you are coming then you should not want it to be easy either. * We say this not to pass judgment on those who should not attend but to allow everyone out there to pass judgment on East Wind and decide if what we are doing fits with what you, yourself, want to do. *

What do I need to know to be successful at East Wind events? *

East Wind offers challenges unrelated to most airsoft events. *It naturally goes without saying that knowing a little bit about airsoft helps but far beyond that remember that you are living in the field and actually doing a lot more field craft type work at East Wind than you are likely to encounter at an average game. * You will likely find yourself adapting a lot better if you spend some time out in the woods in inclement weather since East Wind stays tactical regardless of weather conditions. knowledge of your equipment goes a very long way as well since you will be living and working in it 24 hour a day for 9 days. *Obviously, there are a variety of technical skills that are helpful to know as well which is why we run training events monthly covering a variety of skills that will make your East Wind experience more enjoyable as well as provide an online library of training materials in order to assist you or your group in training up for the event. Apart from that, the most important thing you need to know to be successful and have a good time at East Wind is how mentally tough you are. *If you are willing to give something 105% and not quit, this is the event for you. *It will blow your socks off and you will love every minute of it. *


East Wind isn't just for those in the US either. For several years now, we have had people join the East Wind community from outside of the US with an ever growing team heading down from Canada and players even coming across from Europe to take part in the experience.

It's probably not as difficult as you'd think and the community will try to assist where at all possible to ensure that those coming from afar can do so as smoothly as possible. If you have any worries or concerns, we should be able to answer all of your questions about coming to the US for East Wind, after all we've got attendees who have done it and can offer you the advice and assistance you need to make it happen. *English fluency is not a requirement. *We are an event set in Europe, working with different languages is part of what we do already.



If you would like more information about East Wind please feel free to visit our East Wind forums here: http://www.operationeastwind.com/forum/index.php

I hope to see some of you out there! *

[Aswayze]

Pictures speak a thousand words so here are a few photos from past East Wind events to give you guys an idea what we do out at East Wind. *



UK Infantry moves out with a FV-701 Ferret armored car on patrol. *One US squad holds a key intersection they will be passing through, another US squad has their right of line once they begin moving towards contact, a US M114 armored scout will accompany the Ferret as they screen ahead, while a West German unit stands ready to react if they hit contact they cannot handle. * Missions are in depth, planned well, and long duration. *


A West German Jager light infantryman prepares to step off at an East Wind training event. * He's carrying not only his ruck with the gear to sustain him for the next 24 hours at this winter event but also a SEM-52a radio (slung across his chest) and a Zeiss Orion 80-1 night vision unit (slung below the radio). *


Soviet motor recon troops make use of their BTR-40 to scan NATO rear areas on an offensive recon patrol. *The area they are overlooking is a 210 acre valley that is the primary infiltration route for NATO troops heading towards the border. * Figuring out the routes being used is the first step in being able to take action to disrupt NATO activities in the border region. * *



An NVA (National Volks Army) patrol moves out on a snowy muddy morning during East Wind 3. *This was just the start for the days weather, by the end of the day there was an additional 4 inches of the white stuff on the ground. * They are cold, they are muddy, they are tired, but they are prepared. *We stay tactical 24/7 regardless of weather. *When you look at our PCI lists and wonder why we require so many things, this picture shows why... *



A US squad leader on duty in the TOC managing incoming radio traffic using period correct US comms gear. *He has his notepad out and is copying traffic as it comes in. *Once the message is copied, he'll decrypt it using the SOI cards hanging in front of him then either reply or take action as needed. *

This link takes you to a vid of Soviet troops using their R-159 radio to call their allies the East Germans after a successful assault to take a town. *Notice how the guy has a hard time with the map? *That's because the maps are not garden variety generic maps, they are exact replicas of the proper Soviet pattern maps and are different than the US maps he worked with in his US Army service. *


Soviet and East German troops load up in a pair of UAZ-469 utility vehicles for trip forward. *These little trucks are the workhorses of the Warsaw Pact motor pool delivering troops and supplies 24/7 regardless of weather.


A Canadian Forces soldier carefully removes a PNM-2 mine (Made from a Madbull Powdershot mine) from a section of the border. *The night before, his unit discovered this Warsaw Pact minefield the hard way, now they are back to get these things cleared out so that nobody else has to learn the same lesson. * *You can see that he has carefully cleared out around the mine and probed under it to try to mitigate the risk of anti-handling devices. *This is nerve racking work. *


A US Squad Leader, exhausted from an all night patrol contemplates the fact he has to push on to assault a key town towards the end of East Wind 5. *6 hours later, he was one of the last troops to die of radiation poisoning, having clung hard to his little toe hold. *Here are vids of both Warpac and NATO troops expiring from radiation:


An NVA patrol, just returned from a cross border mission, is debriefed by the Soviet HQ staff. *Notice the wierd blue interior of the tent? *That's actually a period correct Soviet tent they are in. *The map they are pointing at is a near perfect replica Soviet style map of the AO they are working in.


A Soviet patrol prepares to move out on a night recon mission. * East Wind runs 24 hours a day.


A Soviet soldier looks out into the failing light of the day from the ruined building his section holds. *He fought hard for the town he's in right now and he's got a long night ahead of him making sure he keeps it. * He know's NATO will come tonight, he know's there will be blood sweat and tears before the night is through, it's just a matter of when. * When the next dawn broke over an even more battle scarred town this soldier was one of a pitiful few live Soviet troops that pulled out of town. *They had held the line.


A Soviet Soldier during the last battle of East Wind 5 races along the edge of a burning forest to get himself into an assault position for the final push. * The final battle was set in the closing stages of a large scale nuclear exchange so we worked with the local volunteer fire department to do a controlled burn of the site the same day. * The effect was staggering. *


A US Army soldier at a OP prior to the beginning of hostilities takes notes on the activities of the East German border guards posted on the opposite side of the border from him. *Do they have any routines? *How often are they fed? *Do they have a supply cache nearby? *Are they avoiding any particular areas on their side of the border? * What are they using to communicate with higher? * Do they appear to be well organised? *How does their morale look? * Less than 24 hours later anyone who did not know why this sort of thing matters probably wasn't alive to know it. *



East German Grenstruppen, growing progressively more bold and provocative walk literally right up to the border and examine NATO positions with binoculars. *A Canadian Forces trooper moves up opposite of them just outside the concertina wire on the NATO side of the border zone matching them move for move. *The rest of his section is positioned, watching and waiting. *As the afternoon wore on, tensions continued to rise until a NATO officer who had grown a little too accustomed to walking up to the border and yelling at the East Germans took a 7.62 round to the chest. *Moments later, the two border guards seen here were riddled with 5.56 and the Soviet troops who were driving up to the border in their APC to show the flag suddenly had an entirely different mission. *


A US soldier takes a moment to brush his teeth after a mission. * You're out there for 9 days... *That means eating, sleeping, pooping, washing and shaving in a combat environment. *


Canadian Forces patrol moves out on a dark moonless night. * 50% of East Wind happens at night so you soon grow used to trying to pick out what the blurry images in your night vision are.

[QKLee11]

Price looks good, atmosphere and realism looks good... getting time off will be a factor...wanted to go last year, see what I can do this year

[Aswayze]

That is always an issue.

It is for me too!

[Mordarski J.A.]

I've got two months of banked OT at the moment....boss has been harping on me to take time off....oh yes, time will be taken for this

[winterpeg]

My boss surprise because I hand in my vacation form for March 2014

[Aswayze]

Actually for once I am off the hook on that front this year. I am getting laid off on Dec 31 and will still be drawing severance pay throughout March.

Just have to be careful not to find a job till after East Wind is over.

[QKLee11]

Originally Posted by Mordarski J.A.

I've got two months of banked OT at the moment....boss has been harping on me to take time off....oh yes, time will be taken for this

What do you do to bank all that OT J.A.? I would like to go to this.

[Gato]

I'm still trying to source some of the O.D. gear in my sizes and stow some $ away, but I've managed to get hold of real C7 hand guards, had to call in a favor though :P

Work continues towards my C7 build. I now have a legit Elcan C79 and Hand guards for the build, just need a gun and trades!

[Ricochet]

This event looks outstanding, and fun as hell. It's great that you can create an experience like this for airsoft. Has anyone from ASC attended the full event, as in all nine days? For me, it doesn't look like the mental and physical endurance would be a problem, albeit challenging, but it looks like it would be a lot of airsoft to take in at once? I'd love to hear some testimonials from players that have stuck it out the whole way. Was it a case of "It was a great experience, but I got it out if my system", or was it more like "I'm gonna attend this bitch every year if I can"?

[Gato]

Originally Posted by Ricochet

This event looks outstanding, and fun as hell. It's great that you can create an experience like this for airsoft. Has anyone from ASC attended the full event, as in all nine days? For me, it doesn't look like the mental and physical endurance would be a problem, albeit challenging, but it looks like it would be a lot of airsoft to take in at once? I'd love to hear some testimonials from players that have stuck it out the whole way. Was it a case of "It was a great experience, but I got it out if my system", or was it more like "I'm gonna attend this bitch every year if I can"?

There's a bunch of guys from out west who've gone to the past few I think, they represent the CF element. I'm hoping to join them for the nine days, in the next few years if I can get kit and finances nailed down. If you're interested too, head on over to the EW forums and check out the posts on gear for whatever team you're considering!

[winterpeg]

Originally Posted by Gato

I'm still trying to source some of the O.D. gear in my sizes and stow some $ away, but I've managed to get hold of real C7 hand guards, had to call in a favor though :P

Work continues towards my C7 build. I now have a legit Elcan C79 and Hand guards for the build, just need a gun and trades!

Armyissue.com you can find all the sizes of OD combat shirt,pants and some requirement kit for Canadian force in EW7

Cheer

[Mordarski J.A.]

Originally Posted by QKLee11

What do you do to bank all that OT J.A.? I would like to go to this.

I work for the Government of Manitoba. Unfortunately, the office I currently work out of (Brandon) had only myself and one other person, so we racked up OT pretty easily. I'm on the verge of a transfer back to Winnipeg so I won't be able to pick up as much OT next fiscal year.

Originally Posted by Ricochet

This event looks outstanding, and fun as hell. It's great that you can create an experience like this for airsoft. Has anyone from ASC attended the full event, as in all nine days? For me, it doesn't look like the mental and physical endurance would be a problem, albeit challenging, but it looks like it would be a lot of airsoft to take in at once? I'd love to hear some testimonials from players that have stuck it out the whole way. Was it a case of "It was a great experience, but I got it out if my system", or was it more like "I'm gonna attend this bitch every year if I can"?

Twice, EWVII (2014) will be my third. EW ruined all other airsoft for me, no matter how hard I try to avoid it I find myself comparing every other event to EW in terms of length, depth, excitement value, and overall cost. I have vowed that only death will keep me from attending each year (if I'm dismembered I'll take a staff position in the TOC).

The event itself feels more like the real military in terms of no guarantee of "trigger time". Units/squads are sent on missions and *may* come in contact with the enemy. I personally think that being on edge like that heightens the experience. For example, my first EW I used one mag throughout the entire event, and that was during an ambush wherein we were chasing down a Soviet squad (I got dead). At my second EW, we (the Canadians) expended every round of ammunition we had on us when the East German border guards shot the NATO commander (which set off hostilities for the event). EW allows every person attending to have their own amazing experiences, no matter what side of the border you opt for.

Some of the other things I love about EW:

- Line units only (no SF), means specific weapon restrictions and no crazy loadouts
- Period correct equipment such as radios and night vision
- Period correct vehicles and a field sizeable enough to warrant their use
- Hot meals prepared in the "flying kitchen" (MKT) more often than MRE meals
- An incredible camaraderie between participants
- The personal challenge to soldier on and work towards a common goal
- The 'Cultural Exchange' at the end of the event

NATO Wiki: http://operationeastwind.com/wiki/NATO_Forces
WARPAC Wiki: http://operationeastwind.com/wiki/WARPAC_Forces

[QKLee11]

I agree John, I go to most of Blacksheep 6 MILSIM's. OP Pine Plain and OP Cove. Have not encounter a MILSIM event in Canada that compairs...especially OP Cove...2 40 man Platoon fighting, Patroling against one another in high altitudes with adverse weather (rain, fog, dampness, cold)....good missions set...very challenging, ppl didn't "pack it in because of the weather"

I want to go EWV because it reminds me of West Germany NATO Exercise Reforger...in 1988 I was a young and new Infantier augmentated with 3 RCR, that Operation was a big eye opener for me.

Originally Posted by Mordarski J.A.

I work for the Government of Manitoba. Unfortunately, the office I currently work out of (Brandon) had only myself and one other person, so we racked up OT pretty easily. I'm on the verge of a transfer back to Winnipeg so I won't be able to pick up as much OT next fiscal year.



Twice, EWVII (2014) will be my third. EW ruined all other airsoft for me, no matter how hard I try to avoid it I find myself comparing every other event to EW in terms of length, depth, excitement value, and overall cost. I have vowed that only death will keep me from attending each year (if I'm dismembered I'll take a staff position in the TOC).

The event itself feels more like the real military in terms of no guarantee of "trigger time". Units/squads are sent on missions and *may* come in contact with the enemy. I personally think that being on edge like that heightens the experience. For example, my first EW I used one mag throughout the entire event, and that was during an ambush wherein we were chasing down a Soviet squad (I got dead). At my second EW, we (the Canadians) expended every round of ammunition we had on us when the East German border guards shot the NATO commander (which set off hostilities for the event). EW allows every person attending to have their own amazing experiences, no matter what side of the border you opt for.

Some of the other things I love about EW:

- Line units only (no SF), means specific weapon restrictions and no crazy loadouts
- Period correct equipment such as radios and night vision
- Period correct vehicles and a field sizeable enough to warrant their use
- Hot meals prepared in the "flying kitchen" (MKT) more often than MRE meals
- An incredible camaraderie between participants
- The personal challenge to soldier on and work towards a common goal
- The 'Cultural Exchange' at the end of the event

NATO Wiki: http://operationeastwind.com/wiki/NATO_Forces
WARPAC Wiki: http://operationeastwind.com/wiki/WARPAC_Forces

[Aswayze]

You’re in luck QKLee, it happens that Reforger was exactly what I had in mind when I first came up with the idea for East Wind years ago.

Trigger time is a question that comes up a lot.

We do not go for trigger time pretty much at all. We’re generally working on different goals generally more related to shaping the battle space and figuring things out.

We get theater level intel “from higher” but we do not get any info on our own local situation so if the command staff want to have any idea what is happening in the AO, it pretty much comes from recon and actionable intel gathered in the field by participants. That tends to keep everyone pretty busy doing tasks that are a great deal more interesting that shooting wave after wave of just respawned enemy anyhow.

Here’s a story from East Wind 4 that gives a bit of an idea what “lack of trigger time” is all about:


Night raid on Colleville from the perspective of a single US private:

13:00 hours. With unit sitting on border in peacetime. High Soviet activity level on opposite side of border. Command does not have effective comms with higher.

13:07 hours. Soviets push across border en masse. Your unit, backed up by British armored infantry are holding the line but just barely.

13:15 hours. Local commander decides to commit his armored scout car to the fight. Knowing that by doing so he's potentially loosing his only effective runner to higher HQ.

13:20 Hours. Ratelo finally gets through to higher. Word is reinforcements are coming.

13:35 hours. Your unit is down to 40% You've lost contact with the Brits but things don't sound so good over there. An RPG just took out the Ferret so you're only wheels are now a burning wreck. Ammo is getting critical.

13:37 hours. You hear the familiar roar of a deuce rolling up behind town. Troops dismount and begin to sweep forward.

13:40 hours. The situation is not advantageous, Reinforcements push up to the Brits and get them then everyone hastily withdraws from town. It was a bad fight but managed to break contact pretty well and at least you're not leaving anyone behind.

14:00. You're back at camp and after grabbing a pile of ammo and making good your reloading, you grab some lunch. All the leaders are in the TOC, something is up.

15:00 Two other squads push off to probe the enemies defenses and look things over. Your squad, who's been up since 0:200 hits the rack for some sleep.

20:00 You get up from bed and grab a quick meal. An Opord is being issued at 22:00 and you are told to prepare for a night raid. You check your rig for jingly things and tape over anything that shines then wait...

22:00 Opord is issued. It will be a full company raid on the town we left earlier today. Recon says that the enemy is set up primarily in two main buildings. Estimated 2 full sections of Soviet troops, no vehicles present. One squad's got near security to make sure the doors open to get back out, the Brits have got far security to make sure that no help gets to the towns garrison once we hit. Another squad's got the church, your squad gets the larger of the buildings. You'll be going in hard and fast. Zip in, kill some Ruskies, pick up priority intel, grab any important prisoners and zip out. Mission will kick off at 02:00.

23:00 You draw a set of nods, camo up your face and go through your rehersals with your squad. Who's on our left? Who's on our right? What's the recognition signal when we head back out through our near side security? How far can we advance? What buildings are ours and which ones do the other squads have? What's our rally point if things go haywire? Information is pouring at you and you are working hard to digest it all.

24:00 the entire company gathers for a rehearsal. Mini glow sticks show the layout of the town and you run through each step so you understand how it's all supposed to go down. You're squad leader is concerned about the 75 meters of open ground you'll be crossing to get to your building. If the Soviet's are up and lively that's going to be pure murder. The CO hopes that you'll be across that ground before the Soviets can react. You dearly hope so...

01:00 final checks. Nod batteries are good. Mount is straight right? Have you shot with nods before? No? Crap get with Gallion over there and have him walk you through the basics! You double check your mags, double check your gear, double check your everything. Everything is dark dark dark now, the whole unit is lights out right now so eyes can adjust. Tension is really high. The single German blurts out a quote from the movie Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. "Master Blaster rules bordertown" Morale is high.

01:15 3rd squad pushes out to sweep the road ahead and link up with the recon team that's been keeping eyes on the Soviets for the last 6 hours. You are jamming as much coffee down your throat as you can stand. You're beat, you did not get enough rest and you know you've got a hard night ahead.

02:00 everyones on the trucks for the movement forward. Slowly, the trucks grind their way into the blackness, the moon is not yet up and it is seriously dark out.

02:25 the truck slows to a halt at your drop off point. A member of 3rd squad is there to act as your guide to get your squad up to your assault position. The units break up and disappear into the inky blackness. You move forward adjusting yourself to the green glow of the nods and the feeling that every stick that snaps, every stumble, every breath sounds like the loudest rock concert. How are we supposed to sneak up on this place?

02:50 You're guide got you lost and you're coming up on show time but your unit is not to your assault position yet. If they kick off the attack with us not there, we're screwed! There's no way we'll cover that ground!

02:59 You reach assault position with little to no time to spare. Your SL waits for the signal to move out...

03:07 No signal but you hear a volley of fire from another squad and see in your nods as the race forward. SHIT! You know you're screwed now but your squad leader yells "let's go!" and over the berm you go running forward with all your might watching the distance close to your objective. Almost immediately, you find yourself running into an enemy position. Silhouettes move in the blackness, waking and stirring, grabbing weapons, reloading. You fire as you move killing several but knowing that you cannot afford to get bogged down here. A machine gun opens up from the upper floor of the building you're headed for. Rounds zip through the night you hear some of your squad mates go down. Forward... Forward you run, nothing but death here, you've got to get to that building.

03:08 grenades flash in the night (pea grenades) there's a lot of yelling and violence. You make it to the building and race in finding yourself face to face with a room full of guys. You rifle cracks and you clear them out one by one. About the time you've got the last one down you notice the familiar shadow of a PASGT helmet and realize you just wiped out a good portion of the US squad that was supposed to be taking the church across the street. They had heard the fighting over here and had raced over to help disregarding the plan. You're pissed that this happened but the flash and boom of a grenade just outside the door reminds you that you've not got time to focus on that crap now. The machine gun upstairs starts hammering away again. The one guy left that you did not kill screams in your ear that we need to get up there and get that machine gun or we'll never get out of here. You nod and the pair of you round the corner heading towards the stairs. Suddenly, almost in slow motion a grenade arches down the stair well. You grab the lead guys Y harness and pull him hard back towards the door but just end up pivoting him into the doorway where the grenade detonates right in front of him. In a flash he is gone and you are alone.

Alone... There is firing everywhere rounds are impacting the building and zinging through the windows, the machine gun upstairs hammers away again and some unseen target and all you can think of is two words that seemed so foreign to you when the operations officer mentioned them in training just a few days ago. Combat Isolation....

03:10. This is a mess. You're whole squad is gone, you killed the squad that's supposed to be holding the church across the street and you can see that the squad that supposed to be covering your way out is engaged in a fierce firefight with the guys who are upstairs. It's time to get the F out of here while hopefully everyone is looking another direction. You crouch and peek out the door eyeing the woods that long 75 yards away. You take a breath and sprint for all your worth. Running, running, running... The machine gun hammers and you’re just waiting for the rounds to stitch you the back but they don't come. You bust into the wood line and dive over a low berm.

03:15. You catch your breath and peer over the berm across the battlefield. The firing from the near side security team has ceased and you hear Russians yelling back and forth to each other. The woods crunch and pop with movement and you know you are in serious trouble. You slowly begin to make your way south to the rally point.

03:22. You stop suddenly when you hear the familar "Click-pop" of squelch breaking on a PRC-68 radio. You scan and spot a shadow in the darkness. You challenge the shadow and get the correct reply. It's your squads ratelo. He's working his way back as well. He tells you he thinks there's a sizable Soviet force moving through the woods just north of here and you guys need to make tracks.

03:45. Slowly you ease your way into the rally point. Nothing much to see... Creeping forward slowly, looking. Suddenly a quiet voice with a British accent comes out from the darkness. "Over here mate" You close up meet with the supply sgt who hearing the fracas on the radio decided to move a truck up to help evacuate everyone. He sets you off on the perimeter to pull security for a while till we get everyone gathered up.

04:15. Nobody else comes... The supply sgt gathers up all who are present and loads everyone in the truck. The engine cranks and the truck creeps back home.

04:45. You are back. Tired and dejected. You know that raid was a disaster. The Brit guy next to you in the truck referred to it as a "dick dance".

05:15 More units return on foot. Many tell stories just like yours, darkness, violence, confusion. You are exhausted. You meet up with some other members of your squad including your squad leader who finally tells you to go get some sleep.

05:20 you are fast asleep.

The next morning, a recon team clears the town. The Soviets obviously cleared out in a hurry just before dawn, mags are strewn about here and there as well as the odd bits of East German and Soviet equipment.

Once the event is over you learn the whole story of the disastrous raid. Turns out that most of the NATO force got out ok. In fact your friendly fire rampage killed almost as many NATO guys as enemy action. The guys that were just up that stairwell turned out to be the last remaining Soviet troops in the town. All that crunching and scary noises you heard in the woods was just other NATO troops heading back. All the Russian yelling was just the Soviet guys calling out to see if any of their other positions had survived the attack. (they hadn't). The guy upstairs, a combat veteran of the Russian Army who was wounded in Chechnya says of that battle: "McClane and I were ready to fight to the last BB! That was one of the most memorable moments at EW for me."

So... Out of the 16.3 hours tracked here. 40 minutes involved fighting. The rest was spent doing other activities leading up to the fight or supporting the fight. Our protagonist was lucky that he actually even got to catch some z's even. The point here is that East Wind is not a high action event. We don't just Yosemite Sam charge the enemy without a plan, respawn 5 minutes later and do it again. When you head out on mission, there's a lot involved. All of that "lot" requires attention to detail and interest in what's happening. If this is your thing, you are going to LOVE East Wind. If it's not, than you probably are not. It's important to us to make sure that we convey that to people looking at the event since we want the people to attend to have a great experience and a big part of that is making sure that we are up front and honest about what we are providing so that guys can make the decision as to whether East Wind is something that they are going to enjoy.