Convoy Tactics

Review details of Socom 3 Convoy Medley at SocomO'matic

I thought it was high time to discuss tactics, I am going to detail different strategies for the different game types. I am starting with Convoy, since it is likely the game type that demands the most team play. Especially for the Terrorist team who is trying to get a convoy thru, often the Seals don't have much game because they don't need to on these maps. But if the Terrorist are playing a good game the Seals have to pick it up, and if they do then you have an exciting game!

Lots and lots of people play Seals on Convoy, hoping for easy wins. It is no way to Game! There is nothing as fun as having a good team on Convoy and blowing loaded cargos thru a green Seals Team to a Drop Zone. But then again, when the Terrorists are playing a respectable game it is very exciting to to blow a Cargo truck or control a Drop Zone.

Lets review the Mission:
Convoy Mission:
• Terrorists team use a convoy of two cargo trucks and armed vehicles (sometime tanks) to retrieve and move important supplies from one of two load zones to the extraction point. Seals team prevent the enemy from doing so by destroying the two cargo trucks, killing the enemies or prevent them from delivering one truckload of the cargo to a Drop Zone.

General Strategies
• It's all about the Convoy, read the above Mission, Convoy is not Suppression and though killing the other team helps, it does not win the game. Everybody should be involved with either protecting/destroying the Convoy trucks or controlling the Load and Drop Zones. There is nothing more embarrassing than being the last one alive and not being in the game at all. Just remember "It's all about the Convoy!". All assets, people and vehicles, need to be focused on the Mission.
• Vehicles, this is Convoy, vehicles are key for both sides. The Convoy Trucks are the whole game, so don't try to run people over or leave them while you shoot at people, remember "It's all about the Convoy!". Always try to capture or destroy the opposing team's vehicles. The Mounted Machine Guns will make small work of a Convoy truck when shot into the front grill. Don't lose your vehicles, vehicles are the center of the game for Terrorists and on levels where Seals have vehicles they are key to their success. Often if you have the other teams vehicles you own the map. Likewise if Terrorists turn a Technical over to the Seals it is likely it will be turned on the Convoy Trucks. Terrorist sometimes have a Tank, DO NOT EVER GIVE UP THE TANK TO THE SealS, on Convoy this usually means a win for the Seals.
• Communication is good on every Game Type and helps so much on Convoy. All you need is a small gap or distraction to run the trucks thru, or a secure load zone. Make sure your team knows where you are, where the Cargo Trucks are, where the enemies and enemy vehicles are. With a little Intel it's easy to slide a Convoy Truck into the Load Zone or Ambush it on the way there. Share Intel with your Team and guarantee the win.
• Timing goes hand in hand with communication, if the Tank can distract or you can rush a gap with good timing and avoid the bigger battles on the way to the Load Zone your Convoy game will be even stronger. Or perhaps you adjust the timing and placement of an ambush to make sure you net the Convoy. If you change the timing, a little slower or faster, you change the game. Most people have no patience to wait, so try it. Likewise if you meet a challenger way forward of where you did the previous round you will undoubtedly surprise them.
• Split the Convoy is a way to give you an additional chance at Loading and Dropping. Some maps are more conducive to splitting the convoy. If as a Terrorist you do split the convoy make sure both Convoys have support. If you are a Seal and notice on your Radar, call it out and make sure they both are being targeted.
• Block Roads at Pinch Points wether you are blocking the Seals or the Terrorist you can change the pace of the game by interrupting traffic. On Convoy blocking the traffic is important especially for the Seals. You can do this with an ambush, vehicles in the road, mines in the road or all of the above. When blocking travel pick pinch points where traffic is bottlenecked and you can make the most of your Road Block. When I say roads I am really talking about any place you can drive or walk.
• M2 Mines for Convoy are great, especially for the Seals team. Often Both Load zones are heavily mined up by the Seals, so when the unsuspecting Cargo Truck drives in to load up they blow sky high. M2 Mines are great for blocking traffic at pinch points as per above and are very useful against the Tank.
• Ambush, remember its all about the convoys. Ambushing the Cargo Trucks is the best strategy for the Seals on Convoy, Terrorists beware.
• Smoke the convoys. Smokes are handy for Terrorists on this map, especially to hide the Convoy Trucks and yourself while loading or to cover a mad rush thru a Seal ambush.
• Switch it up after playing the same game. Pick a different load zone, ambush or tactic. Do not give them a chance to get wise to your game.
• Roads are fastest sometimes it's good to dodge behind every rock when you are trying to drive thru an ambush. But sometimes it's bad when you need to really cover some distance before the other team can catch up or find you. Put some distance behind you when appropriate. We have seen people drive back and forth with in the same area under fire rather than make a quick escape. Once a convoy truck is loaded it is a race with the Seals to the Drop Zone.
• Hide out for a Win, if a Seals stays alive and the Terrorist do not get a loaded truck to the Drop zone the Seals will win. So keep it in mind, when you are the last Seal and they do not have time to get to a Drop Zone, stay alive and win the round.

Map Specific Strategies
• Killing Fields
- This is a discinct Convoy Game, the large open map makes vehicles more important than ever. There are load zones are in the center of the city and in the Seal base. The Terrorist base is both the Convoy spawn and the Drop Zone.
- Seals have two Technical dune buggies, DO NOT not to lose these vehicles and stay away from the Tank. As seals Wolf Pack the convoy, find the convoy, don't get to close but zoom around in and out and your gunner should take out the Convoy Trucks and the lone Terrorists on the Periphery. Don't get hung up when driving, don't get your gunner shot and keep track of the convoy trucks. (they are on your radar)
- Terrorist hold up and capture vehicles. The best tactic I see is to block the Terrorist base with the Tank and wait until we have destroyed or captured at least one Seal's technical. Do not wait past 2 minutes, you need time to load up and come back to the Drop Zone. Call it out when Terrorist have destroyed or captured a Technical from the seals. Seals will get wise to holding up at the base so be prepared to switch it up to a rush on occasion.
- This is a good map to split the convoy on, especially if you have a Seal technical under your control. Split the convoy, one Truck to the city and one Truck to the far Load Zone either along the North or South wall of the map.
• Devils Road
- This is a circular map, the Terrorist Convoy Spawn and Drop Zone is in the same spot. There is the big city at the oasis, at the far side of the map, with a a Load Zone (the Oasis) and another Load Zone (the Back LZ) just up along the road further near a smaller village.
- The Seals spawns and most obvious tactics are to Ambush the Terrroist along the long road to the Oasis or Ambush the Convoy at the Oasis Load Zone. There is a path thru the mountains above and between both of these areas as well as the Back Load Zone.
- A good Terrorist tactic is to make a fast run directly to the oasis led by the Tank, control the Oasis Load Zone. As soon as a cargo is loading, smoke it up and when loaded take it back the way you came.
- Seals can easily camp the Back Load Zone, as well as make their way to the Drop Zone and camp it out as well. The Drop Zone on Devil's Road is very defensible.
- This is a good map to split the convoy on, especially since it's circular. At any point, and dependent upon the game play, you can go either direction to reach the Load Zones and the Drop Zone. At the Terrorist Convoy Spawn you can take an immediate hard left to head to the Back Load Zone.
• Cistern
This is a very unique map for Convoy as well, there is one way forward and the Drop Zone is on the far side of the map from the Convoy Spawn. Terrorist control either end and need to push past the Seals in the middle.
Seals ambush top of the mountain or better yet at the crossroads
Terr control second load
• Harvester
circular map
Seal map, hide out in central area
Seal control barn
terr control the farm house
good split
have to blow the brach to the drop or fjord on the river