Red Storm Rising
Encyclopedia
Red Storm Rising is a 1986 techno-thriller
novel by Tom Clancy
and Larry Bond
about a Third World War
in Europe between NATO and Warsaw Pact
forces, set around the mid-1980s. Though there are other novels dealing with a fictional World War III, this one is notable for the way in which numerous settings for the action — from Atlantic
convoy duty to shooting down reconnaissance satellites to tank battles in Germany — all have an integral part to play on the outcome. This is one of three novels (the others being SSN, and Against All Enemies
) that has no association with Clancy's others, as it does not fall in the Jack Ryan universe.
The novel eventually lent its name to a game development company called Red Storm Entertainment
, which Clancy co-founded in 1997.
, USSR
, crippling Soviet oil
production and threatening to wreck the Soviet economy. Seemingly needing to make crippling concessions to the West to survive the crisis, the Politburo
chooses a different path: war. The Politburo decides to seize the Persian Gulf oil field
s by force. (It is unknown if Tom Clancy was inspired by, or even knew about, the Siberian pipeline sabotage
explosion for this key plot item).
According to the Carter Doctrine
, any attack on the Persian Gulf
is an attack on a vital strategic interest of the United States, and will be treated as such, meaning a military response. To prevent NATO's combined reaction, they first launch a KGB
operation to split NATO by making it appear
as if West Germany had launched an unprovoked terrorist attack on the Soviet Union, followed by an invasion of Europe in response to that “attack.” With West Germany occupied, and NATO defeated, it is hoped that the United States will not feel the need to rescue the Arab oil states, as it can meet its oil needs with Western Hemisphere sources. In order to mobilize popular support within the Soviet Union specifically against West Germany, the Politburo arranges a bomb blast in the Kremlin
, killing, among others, some visiting children from an elementary school in Pskov
, publicly pinning the blame on a West German exile who is in fact a Soviet agent.
The KGB operation has limited success: the coming Soviet attack on West Germany is detected only a few days in advance when a Spetsnaz
major is captured in Aachen
. The officer's capture gives NATO time to start mobilization and provides sufficient evidence to prevent the complete fracturing of the alliance. Nonetheless, it scores some success, as several governments, notably those of Greece and Japan, publicly claim that this is a “German-Russian disagreement” that they refuse to be involved in. Thus, the Soviets have a quiet Pacific theater due to political pressure on Japan, and are also able to avoid a southern front in the coming conflict in Western Europe as Turkey
is unable (or unwilling) to launch an offensive alone.
NATO aircraft manage to reduce Soviet ground superiority on the first night of the war by using first-generation stealth planes
and tactical fighter-bombers to eliminate five Soviet Mainstay
AWACS aircraft, several bridges, bridge equipment and crews, and Soviet Air Force tactical fighters, achieving air superiority. The Soviets still advance, but at great cost to themselves. Germany becomes the epicentre of the conflict; here, NATO forces are slowly driven west while inflicting significant damage to the Soviet Army
.
One of the strategic master-strokes of the Soviet Union's opening moves in the war is its seizure of Iceland
, capturing the NATO air station at Keflavík
. This disrupts the GIUK
SOSUS
line (American seabed hydrophones), expected to prevent the Soviet Navy
from operating effectively in the Atlantic by making it impossible for their ships and submarines to enter the Atlantic undetected. In addition, the Soviet Navy isolates and protects its ballistic missile submarine
fleet, freeing its attack submarine force to engage and destroy NATO shipping. The Soviet Navy is able to act as an offensive weapon, and the Warsaw Pact seriously damages NATO's war effort by interdicting resupply convoys coming from North America
with both aircraft and submarines. This advantage is put to immediate use, as a NATO carrier battle group, led by USS Nimitz, USS Saratoga
and the French
carrier Foch, is successfully attacked by Soviet Badger
and Backfire
bombers, the latter firing Kingfish missiles
. A noteworthy tactic is the launch by the Bagders of Kelt missiles as drones set to transpond as if they were Backfires, far out from the main air fleet. The US carriers' F-14
squadrons erroneously fire on the drones, leaving an insufficient number of Crusaders
from the Foch and SAM missiles for the real bombers. Foch is sunk, the amphibious assault carrier Saipan
explodes, taking 2,500 Marines
with her, and the two American carriers are forced to spend several weeks in drydock at Southampton
, England.
In West Germany, the battle becomes a war of attrition
that the Soviets expect to win, having greater reserves of men and materiel
. NATO holds the Warsaw Pact forces to small but continual advances, but only through unsustainably high ammunition usage, and as the Soviet success in attacking the Atlantic convoys is maintained NATO's prospects appear bleak. With the death of the Soviet political favorite CinC
-West in a NATO air attack on the Soviet rear lines, the more competent CinC-Southwest and his second-in-command, General-Colonel
Pavel Leonidovich Alekseyev take over on the German front. Alekseyev commands a successful Soviet attack on the town of Alfeld
, finally giving the Soviet Army the breakthrough it needs. As the OMG (Operational Manoeuvre Group
) forces start to deploy, NATO looks likely to lose all of Germany east of the Weser River
.
When a brilliantly timed naval attack on Soviet bomber bases with submarine-launched cruise missiles
cripples the Soviet bomber force
, the Soviets lose their most effective convoy-killing weapon. The Soviet Army proves unable to capitalize on its breakthroughs in Germany, as they have already lost too many troops for the amount of territory they have gained. The U.S. Marines stage an amphibious assault
on Iceland backed by NATO navies, retaking the island and closing the Atlantic to Soviet forces. Finally, a failed bomber raid on the NATO naval forces attacking Iceland (in which the remaining Soviet naval cruise missile bomber fleets are nearly wiped out) leaves Soviet prospects of victory through conventional war all but hopeless.
This leads the Politburo to consider the use of tactical nuclear weapon
s at the front to regain the initiative. Alekseyev, realizing that a tactical nuclear exchange would almost certainly lead to a strategic nuclear exchange
, seeks and obtains control of his theatre's nuclear weapons in order to ensure they are not used. A captured Soviet pilot from the Iceland campaign also reveals to the NATO forces why the war was started: oil. The NATO forces immediately re-evaluate their bombing tactics over the front and begin a campaign to locate and destroy as many Soviet fuel depots as possible; this cripples the Soviet tanks, keeping them from launching at least one major attack which would have caught the NATO forces shorthanded and allowed reinforcements to arrive prior to the battle.
With the Politburo contemplating the use of strategic nuclear weapons, General Alekseyev joins forces with the head of the KGB and the Energy Minister, Mikhail Eduardovich Sergetov, in staging a coup d’état
, replacing the Politburo with a troika
consisting of Sergetov, Agriculture Minister F. M. Krylov, and longtime Politburo member Pyotr Bromkovskiy (an elderly and respected World War II veteran) whilst the Head of the KGB is allowed to be executed by a Major revealed to be a parent of one of the children that was killed in the Kremlin bombing. A ceasefire is sought by the Soviets and accepted by an exhausted NATO, and the aftermath of the war is left unwritten.
and the Mi-24 Hind
are not nearly as survivable as projected; that the mobility granted by modern armor means that the Soviet doctrine of a massed thrust achieving a breakthrough of the opposing front is ill-founded—the enemy lines can withdraw and reform rather than break; and modern air power can only dominate a battlefield in the absence of an opposing modern air force.
Clancy also incorporated the rumoured F-19
"Frisbee" stealth fighter into his plot. The existence of stealth aircraft was an open secret
among aerospace watchers in the 1980s, but was highly classified at the time the novel was written. In actuality, computers of the day were not powerful enough to design the F-19's curved surfaces, resulting instead in the simpler and more angular F-117 Nighthawk
.
The 1991 Persian Gulf War
, although far more of a mismatch than a late-1980s NATO-Warsaw Pact conflict would have been, did provide some evidence for Clancy's hypotheses. The U.S. Army's Apaches proved more vulnerable to ground fire than had been predicted, and by the war's end the majority of close air support
was being delivered by the more heavily armored A-10 Thunderbolt II ground attack aircraft. Fittingly, Clancy identifies the A-10 as being a key weapon in his Red Storm Rising scenario. He even has the Russian armored forces dub it the "Devil's Cross" due to its ability to destroy many tanks before being driven off by SAM
s and MANPADS, and due to the Russians' perception of its profile, from an angle, as similar to that of the Russian Orthodox
cross
. His predictions on the high rate of munitions expenditure also appears to have been borne out—even though the initial attack on Iraq was short, it drained U.S. arsenals to an alarming extent, forcing the Pentagon to undertake a crash program to rebuild stocks of smart bomb
s.
Evidence for the prediction of high expenditures of munitions was already available from the 1973 Yom Kippur War
. In this conflict both sides consumed munitions so rapidly that within one week of the start of combat, both the United States and the Soviet Union had to airlift munitions
to their respective client states (Israel for the U.S., Egypt and Syria for the Soviet Union) to avoid a collapse of their respective armed forces.
Another point of interest is the use of America's Iowa-class
battleship
s, which in the novel are sent to Iceland
to support the United States Marines during their amphibious landing
and air assault
. The effective use of battleships
in modern war was demonstrated during the 1991 Gulf War
, when the Missouri
and Wisconsin
shelled shore-based artillery sites, antiship missile
facilities, and Iraqi troop concentrations arrayed along the coasts of Iraq
and Kuwait
, and on Faylaka Island.
In the novel there is little mention of operations by special forces, such as American Navy SEALS
and Army Rangers
. This is particularly striking considering Clancy's interest in this area. The only special forces groups mentioned are the Soviet Spetsnaz
, German GSG-9, Marine Force Recon and British SAS
groups in the opening hours of the conflict and a limited British Royal Marine
presence on Iceland several weeks after the Soviet invasion. Many strategists suggest that in an all-out war of this kind, units such as these would be used to disrupt various an opponents's strategic and tactical operations. In the conflict described in the novel, Special operation teams could have been used to harass Soviet air operations in Norway.
Clancy's descriptions of NAS Keflavik
, Iceland, and the surrounding area were extremely accurate.
, designer of the Harpoon (series) modern naval warfare game, used the second edition miniatures rules to test key battle sequences, notably the Soviet operation to seize Iceland and the attack on the carrier battle group in the "Dance of the Vampires" chapter. Bond refereed the game sessions, which typically involved several players on each side (Clancy among them) acting in various roles.
In December 1988 MicroProse
released a Red Storm Rising computer game, in which the player commanded an American submarine against Soviet forces. The player had the option of choosing between both single missions or campaign and which era to play in; modern missions offered the player more advanced submarines and weapons, but also a more technologically advanced adversary as well.
In 1989, TSR, Inc.
released a board game
designed by Douglas Niles
, based on the book. The game won the Origins Award
for Best Modern-Day Boardgame of 1989 and Best Graphic Presentation of a Boardgame of 1989.
The 2007 video game World in Conflict
postulates a Soviet invasion of Germany in an effort to preserve a crumbling Soviet Union set in a similar time period under similar pretenses. Co-author of Red Storm Rising, Larry Bond, was the main consultant for the World in Conflict team.
Techno-thriller
Techno-thrillers are a hybrid genre, drawing subject matter generally from spy/action thrillers, fantasy/war novels, and science fiction...
novel by Tom Clancy
Tom Clancy
Thomas Leo "Tom" Clancy, Jr. is an American author, best known for his technically detailed espionage, military science, and techno thriller storylines set during and in the aftermath of the Cold War, along with video games on which he did not work, but which bear his name for licensing and...
and Larry Bond
Larry Bond
Larry Bond is an American writer and wargame designer. He is the designer of the Harpoon and Command at Sea gaming systems and several supplements for the games. His numerous novels include Dangerous Ground, Day of Wrath, The Enemy Within, Cauldron, Vortex and Red Phoenix...
about a Third World War
World War III in popular culture
World War III is a common theme in popular culture. Since the 1940s, countless books, films, and television programmes have used the theme of nuclear weapons and a third global war. The presence of the Soviet Union as an international rival armed with nuclear weapons created a persistent fear in...
in Europe between NATO and Warsaw Pact
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...
forces, set around the mid-1980s. Though there are other novels dealing with a fictional World War III, this one is notable for the way in which numerous settings for the action — from Atlantic
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
convoy duty to shooting down reconnaissance satellites to tank battles in Germany — all have an integral part to play on the outcome. This is one of three novels (the others being SSN, and Against All Enemies
Against All Enemies (novel)
Against All Enemies is a 2011 spy novel by Tom Clancy and Peter Telep. It appears not to be part of the Jack Ryan series of novels, and instead introduces a new hero, ex-Navy SEAL and CIA paramilitary operations officer Maxwell Moore.-Plot:...
) that has no association with Clancy's others, as it does not fall in the Jack Ryan universe.
The novel eventually lent its name to a game development company called Red Storm Entertainment
Red Storm Entertainment
Ubisoft Red Storm is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ubisoft Entertainment, specializing in video games and related merchandise, mainly based on the works of the writer Tom Clancy. The company develops and markets their own CD/DVD-ROM games...
, which Clancy co-founded in 1997.
Plot summary
Islamic terrorists from Azerbaijan destroy a new oil-production facility at NizhnevartovskNizhnevartovsk
Nizhnevartovsk is the second largest city in Khanty–Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Russia, located along the right bank of the Ob River. Population: 251,860 ; 239,044 ;...
, USSR
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, crippling Soviet oil
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
production and threatening to wreck the Soviet economy. Seemingly needing to make crippling concessions to the West to survive the crisis, the Politburo
Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Politburo , known as the Presidium from 1952 to 1966, functioned as the central policymaking and governing body of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.-Duties and responsibilities:The...
chooses a different path: war. The Politburo decides to seize the Persian Gulf oil field
Oil field
An oil field is a region with an abundance of oil wells extracting petroleum from below ground. Because the oil reservoirs typically extend over a large area, possibly several hundred kilometres across, full exploitation entails multiple wells scattered across the area...
s by force. (It is unknown if Tom Clancy was inspired by, or even knew about, the Siberian pipeline sabotage
Siberian pipeline sabotage
The Siberian pipeline sabotage refers to the alleged 1982 sabotage of the Soviet Urengoy–Surgut–Chelyabinsk natural gas pipeline by the CIA as a part of a policy to counter Soviet theft of American technology.- Background :...
explosion for this key plot item).
According to the Carter Doctrine
Carter Doctrine
The Carter Doctrine was a policy proclaimed by President of the United States Jimmy Carter in his State of the Union Address on January 23, 1980, which stated that the United States would use military force if necessary to defend its national interests in the Persian Gulf region...
, any attack on the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
is an attack on a vital strategic interest of the United States, and will be treated as such, meaning a military response. To prevent NATO's combined reaction, they first launch a KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
operation to split NATO by making it appear
False flag
False flag operations are covert operations designed to deceive the public in such a way that the operations appear as though they are being carried out by other entities. The name is derived from the military concept of flying false colors; that is flying the flag of a country other than one's own...
as if West Germany had launched an unprovoked terrorist attack on the Soviet Union, followed by an invasion of Europe in response to that “attack.” With West Germany occupied, and NATO defeated, it is hoped that the United States will not feel the need to rescue the Arab oil states, as it can meet its oil needs with Western Hemisphere sources. In order to mobilize popular support within the Soviet Union specifically against West Germany, the Politburo arranges a bomb blast in the Kremlin
Moscow Kremlin
The Moscow Kremlin , sometimes referred to as simply The Kremlin, is a historic fortified complex at the heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River , Saint Basil's Cathedral and Red Square and the Alexander Garden...
, killing, among others, some visiting children from an elementary school in Pskov
Pskov
Pskov is an ancient city and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located in the northwest of Russia about east from the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population: -Early history:...
, publicly pinning the blame on a West German exile who is in fact a Soviet agent.
The KGB operation has limited success: the coming Soviet attack on West Germany is detected only a few days in advance when a Spetsnaz
Spetsnaz
Spetsnaz, Specnaz tr: Voyska specialnogo naznacheniya; ) is an umbrella term for any special forces in Russian, literally "force of special purpose"...
major is captured in Aachen
Aachen
Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...
. The officer's capture gives NATO time to start mobilization and provides sufficient evidence to prevent the complete fracturing of the alliance. Nonetheless, it scores some success, as several governments, notably those of Greece and Japan, publicly claim that this is a “German-Russian disagreement” that they refuse to be involved in. Thus, the Soviets have a quiet Pacific theater due to political pressure on Japan, and are also able to avoid a southern front in the coming conflict in Western Europe as Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
is unable (or unwilling) to launch an offensive alone.
NATO aircraft manage to reduce Soviet ground superiority on the first night of the war by using first-generation stealth planes
Stealth aircraft
Stealth aircraft are aircraft that use stealth technology to avoid detection by employing a combination of features to interfere with radar as well as reduce visibility in the infrared, visual, audio, and radio frequency spectrum. Development of stealth technology likely began in Germany during...
and tactical fighter-bombers to eliminate five Soviet Mainstay
Beriev A-50
|-See also:Related development:Ilyushin Il-76, KJ-2000Comparable aircraft:E-3 Sentry-External links:* * * * * *...
AWACS aircraft, several bridges, bridge equipment and crews, and Soviet Air Force tactical fighters, achieving air superiority. The Soviets still advance, but at great cost to themselves. Germany becomes the epicentre of the conflict; here, NATO forces are slowly driven west while inflicting significant damage to the Soviet Army
Soviet Army
The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
.
One of the strategic master-strokes of the Soviet Union's opening moves in the war is its seizure of Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, capturing the NATO air station at Keflavík
Naval Air Station Keflavik
United States Naval Air Station Keflavik is a former NATO facility at Keflavík International Airport, Iceland. It is located on the Reykjanes peninsula on the south-west portion of the island...
. This disrupts the GIUK
GIUK gap
The GIUK gap is an area in the northern Atlantic Ocean that forms a naval warfare chokepoint. Its name is an acronym for Greenland, Iceland, and the United Kingdom, the gap being the open ocean between these three landmasses...
SOSUS
SOSUS
SOSUS, an acronym for Sound Surveillance System, is a chain of underwater listening posts across the northern Atlantic Ocean near Greenland, Iceland and the United Kingdom — the GIUK gap. It was originally operated by the United States Navy for tracking Soviet submarines, which had to pass...
line (American seabed hydrophones), expected to prevent the Soviet Navy
Soviet Navy
The Soviet Navy was the naval arm of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have played an instrumental role in a Warsaw Pact war with NATO, where it would have attempted to prevent naval convoys from bringing reinforcements across the Atlantic Ocean...
from operating effectively in the Atlantic by making it impossible for their ships and submarines to enter the Atlantic undetected. In addition, the Soviet Navy isolates and protects its ballistic missile submarine
Ballistic missile submarine
A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles .-Description:Ballistic missile submarines are larger than any other type of submarine, in order to accommodate SLBMs such as the Russian R-29 or the American Trident...
fleet, freeing its attack submarine force to engage and destroy NATO shipping. The Soviet Navy is able to act as an offensive weapon, and the Warsaw Pact seriously damages NATO's war effort by interdicting resupply convoys coming from North America
Exercise REFORGER
Exercise Reforger was an annual exercise conducted, during the Cold War, by NATO. The exercise was intended to ensure that NATO had the ability to quickly deploy forces to West Germany in the event of a conflict with the Warsaw Pact.The Reforger exercise itself was first conceived in 1967...
with both aircraft and submarines. This advantage is put to immediate use, as a NATO carrier battle group, led by USS Nimitz, USS Saratoga
USS Saratoga (CV-60)
USS Saratoga , was one of four Forrestal- class supercarriers built for the US Navy in the 1950s. Saratoga was the sixth US Navy ship, and the second aircraft carrier, to be named for the Battle of Saratoga in the American Revolutionary War.Commissioned in 1956, she spent most of her career in...
and the French
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
carrier Foch, is successfully attacked by Soviet Badger
Tupolev Tu-16
The Tupolev Tu-16 was a twin-engine jet bomber used by the Soviet Union. It has flown for more than 50 years, and the Chinese license-built Xian H-6 remains in service with the Chinese air force.-Development:...
and Backfire
Tupolev Tu-22M
The Tupolev Tu-22M is a supersonic, swing-wing, long-range strategic and maritime strike bomber developed by the Soviet Union. Significant numbers remain in service with the Russian Air Force....
bombers, the latter firing Kingfish missiles
Raduga KSR-5
The Raduga KSR-5 was a long-range, air launched cruise missile and anti ship missile developed by the Soviet Union....
. A noteworthy tactic is the launch by the Bagders of Kelt missiles as drones set to transpond as if they were Backfires, far out from the main air fleet. The US carriers' F-14
F-14 Tomcat
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experimental program following the collapse of the F-111B project...
squadrons erroneously fire on the drones, leaving an insufficient number of Crusaders
F-8 Crusader
The Vought F-8 Crusader was a single-engine, supersonic, carrier-based air superiority jet aircraft built by Vought for the United States Navy and the U.S. Marine Corps, replacing the Vought F7U Cutlass...
from the Foch and SAM missiles for the real bombers. Foch is sunk, the amphibious assault carrier Saipan
USS Saipan (LHA-2)
USS Saipan is a , the second United States Navy ship named in honor of the World War II Battle of Saipan.-History:Saipan was laid down on July 21, 1972 by the Ingalls Shipbuilding Division, Litton Industries, Pascagoula, Mississippi; launched on July 20, 1974; sponsored by Mrs. J...
explodes, taking 2,500 Marines
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
with her, and the two American carriers are forced to spend several weeks in drydock at Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
, England.
In West Germany, the battle becomes a war of attrition
Attrition warfare
Attrition warfare is a military strategy in which a belligerent side attempts to win a war by wearing down its enemy to the point of collapse through continuous losses in personnel and matériel....
that the Soviets expect to win, having greater reserves of men and materiel
Materiel
Materiel is a term used in English to refer to the equipment and supplies in military and commercial supply chain management....
. NATO holds the Warsaw Pact forces to small but continual advances, but only through unsustainably high ammunition usage, and as the Soviet success in attacking the Atlantic convoys is maintained NATO's prospects appear bleak. With the death of the Soviet political favorite CinC
Commander-in-Chief
A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
-West in a NATO air attack on the Soviet rear lines, the more competent CinC-Southwest and his second-in-command, General-Colonel
Colonel General
Colonel General is a senior rank of General. North Korea and Russia are two countries which have used the rank extensively throughout their histories...
Pavel Leonidovich Alekseyev take over on the German front. Alekseyev commands a successful Soviet attack on the town of Alfeld
Alfeld
For the town in the district of Nürnberger Land, see Alfeld, Bavaria.Alfeld is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located on the Leine river in the district of Hildesheim and on the German Framework Road.-History and main sights:...
, finally giving the Soviet Army the breakthrough it needs. As the OMG (Operational Manoeuvre Group
Operational manoeuvre group
The Operational manoeuvre group was a Soviet Army organisational maneuver warfare concept created during the early 1950s to replace the Cavalry mechanized group which performed the deep operations on the Eastern Front during the Second World War....
) forces start to deploy, NATO looks likely to lose all of Germany east of the Weser River
Weser River
The Weser is a river in north-western Germany. Formed at Hann. Münden by the Fulda and Werra, it flows through Lower Saxony, then reaching the historic port city of Bremen before emptying into the North Sea 50 km further north at Bremerhaven, which is also a seaport...
.
When a brilliantly timed naval attack on Soviet bomber bases with submarine-launched cruise missiles
BGM-109 Tomahawk
The Tomahawk is a long-range, all-weather, subsonic cruise missile. Introduced by General Dynamics in the 1970s, it was designed as a medium- to long-range, low-altitude missile that could be launched from a surface platform. It has been improved several times and, by way of corporate divestitures...
cripples the Soviet bomber force
Soviet Naval Aviation
Soviet Naval Aviation was a part of the Soviet Navy.- Origins :...
, the Soviets lose their most effective convoy-killing weapon. The Soviet Army proves unable to capitalize on its breakthroughs in Germany, as they have already lost too many troops for the amount of territory they have gained. The U.S. Marines stage an amphibious assault
Amphibious warfare
Amphibious warfare is the use of naval firepower, logistics and strategy to project military power ashore. In previous eras it stood as the primary method of delivering troops to non-contiguous enemy-held terrain...
on Iceland backed by NATO navies, retaking the island and closing the Atlantic to Soviet forces. Finally, a failed bomber raid on the NATO naval forces attacking Iceland (in which the remaining Soviet naval cruise missile bomber fleets are nearly wiped out) leaves Soviet prospects of victory through conventional war all but hopeless.
This leads the Politburo to consider the use of tactical nuclear weapon
Tactical nuclear weapon
A tactical nuclear weapon refers to a nuclear weapon which is designed to be used on a battlefield in military situations. This is as opposed to strategic nuclear weapons which are designed to menace large populations, to damage the enemy's ability to wage war, or for general deterrence...
s at the front to regain the initiative. Alekseyev, realizing that a tactical nuclear exchange would almost certainly lead to a strategic nuclear exchange
Nuclear warfare
Nuclear warfare, or atomic warfare, is a military conflict or political strategy in which nuclear weaponry is detonated on an opponent. Compared to conventional warfare, nuclear warfare can be vastly more destructive in range and extent of damage...
, seeks and obtains control of his theatre's nuclear weapons in order to ensure they are not used. A captured Soviet pilot from the Iceland campaign also reveals to the NATO forces why the war was started: oil. The NATO forces immediately re-evaluate their bombing tactics over the front and begin a campaign to locate and destroy as many Soviet fuel depots as possible; this cripples the Soviet tanks, keeping them from launching at least one major attack which would have caught the NATO forces shorthanded and allowed reinforcements to arrive prior to the battle.
With the Politburo contemplating the use of strategic nuclear weapons, General Alekseyev joins forces with the head of the KGB and the Energy Minister, Mikhail Eduardovich Sergetov, in staging a coup d’état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
, replacing the Politburo with a troika
Troika
The general meaning of the Russian and Bulgarian word troika is three of a kind, a collection of three or simply the number three. It may also mean:-Politics:* Troika of judges or political leaders...
consisting of Sergetov, Agriculture Minister F. M. Krylov, and longtime Politburo member Pyotr Bromkovskiy (an elderly and respected World War II veteran) whilst the Head of the KGB is allowed to be executed by a Major revealed to be a parent of one of the children that was killed in the Kremlin bombing. A ceasefire is sought by the Soviets and accepted by an exhausted NATO, and the aftermath of the war is left unwritten.
Characters in Red Storm Rising
- General-ColonelColonel GeneralColonel General is a senior rank of General. North Korea and Russia are two countries which have used the rank extensively throughout their histories...
Pavel Leonidovich Alekseyev, SASoviet ArmyThe Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
— first 2IC-Southwest and later Commander in Chief, Western Theater - CommanderCommanderCommander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
Edward Morris, USNUnited States NavyThe United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
— Commanding officerCommanding officerThe commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...
, USS PharrisUSS Pharris (FF-1094)USS Pharris was a Knox-class destroyer escort named after Medal of Honor recipient Lieutenant Commander Jackson C. Pharris. It was originally designated as DE-1094 and later reclassified as a frigate in the United States Navy. In 1992 the ship was decommissioned and transferred to the Mexican Navy...
, later USS Reuben JamesUSS Reuben James (FFG-57)USS Reuben James , an Oliver Hazard Perry-class guided missile frigate, is the third ship of the U.S. Navy named for Reuben James, a boatswain's mate who distinguished himself fighting the Barbary pirates... - Commander Daniel X. McCafferty, USNUnited States NavyThe United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
— Commanding officer, USS ChicagoUSS Chicago (SSN-721)USS Chicago is a Los Angeles-class submarine, the fourth ship of the United States Navy to be named for the city of Chicago, Illinois. The contract to build her was awarded to Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company in Newport News, Virginia on 13 August 1981 and her keel was laid down on 5... - Sergeant First ClassSergeant First ClassSergeant First Class is the seventh enlisted rank in the U.S. Army, above Staff Sergeant and below Master Sergeant and First Sergeant, and is the first senior non-commissioned officer rank...
Terry Mackall, USAUnited States ArmyThe United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
— M1 AbramsM1 AbramsThe M1 Abrams is a third-generation main battle tank produced in the United States. It is named after General Creighton Abrams, former Army Chief of Staff and Commander of US military forces in Vietnam from 1968 to 1972. The M1 is a well armed, heavily armored, and highly mobile tank designed for...
tank commander, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment on the German front. Receives a battlefield promotion to 2LTSecond LieutenantSecond lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
. - Mikhail Eduardovich Sergetov — Candidate (nonvoting) Member of the Soviet Politburo and Energy Minister.
- Lieutenant CommanderLieutenant CommanderLieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...
Robert A. Toland, III., USN-R — NSANational Security AgencyThe National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
analyst. Promoted to commander just prior to the outbreak of war. - First LieutenantFirst LieutenantFirst lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
Michael D. Edwards, USAFUnited States Air ForceThe United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
— Meteorological officerMeteorologyMeteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries...
, KeflavíkKeflavíkKeflavík is a town in the Reykjanes region in southwest Iceland. In 2009 its population was of 8,169.In 1995 it merged with Njarðvík and Hafnir to form a municipality called Reykjanesbær with a population of 13,971 .- History :...
Air Base, American evader on Iceland - SergeantSergeantSergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
James Smith, USMC — Company Clerk, Keflavík Air Base, American evader on Iceland - PrivatePrivate (rank)A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
Garcia, USMC — Infantryman, Keflavík Air Base, American evader on Iceland - PrivatePrivate (rank)A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
Rodgers, USMC — Infantryman, Keflavík Air Base, American evader on Iceland - Vigdis Agustdottir, IcelanderIcelandersIcelanders are a Scandinavian ethnic group and a nation, native to Iceland.On 17 June 1944, when an Icelandic republic was founded the Icelanders became independent from the Danish monarchy. The language spoken is Icelandic, a North Germanic language, and Lutheranism is the predominant religion...
— CivilianCivilianA civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
, Rescued by the American evaders on Iceland - Captain Ivan Mikhailovich Sergetov, SA — Alekseyev's aide-de-campAide-de-campAn aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
and Sergetov's son. Promoted to majorMajorMajor is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
during the war. - MajorMajor (United States)In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, major is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel...
Amelia “Buns” Nakamura, USAF — An F-15CF-15 EagleThe McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine, all-weather tactical fighter designed by McDonnell Douglas to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. It is considered among the most successful modern fighters with over 100 aerial combat victories with no losses in dogfights...
pilot who becomes the first American female aceFighter AceFighter Ace was a massively multiplayer online computer game in which one flies World War II fighter and bomber planes in combat against other players and virtual pilots...
pilot by shooting down three Tu-16 BadgerTupolev Tu-16The Tupolev Tu-16 was a twin-engine jet bomber used by the Soviet Union. It has flown for more than 50 years, and the Chinese license-built Xian H-6 remains in service with the Chinese air force.-Development:...
bomberBomberA bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...
s and, using ASM-135ASM-135 ASATThe ASM-135 ASAT is an air-launched anti-satellite multi stage missile that was developed by Ling-Temco-Vought'sLTV Aerospace division. The ASM-135 was carried exclusively by the United States Air Force 's F-15 Eagle fighter aircraft.-Development:...
antisatellite missiles to destroy two Soviet ocean reconnaissance satellitesRORSATRadar Ocean Reconnaissance SATellite or RORSAT is the western name given to the Soviet Upravlyaemyj Sputnik Aktivnyj satellites. These satellites were launched between 1967 and 1988 to monitor NATO and merchant vessels using active radar...
.
Major themes
This techno-thriller is an examination of a conventional ground war between NATO and the Warsaw Pact. Clancy suggests that several conventional ideas about a ground conflict between modern armies are wrong. For example, he proposes that munitions expenditures would be far higher than projected; that combat helicopters like the AH-64 ApacheAH-64 Apache
The Boeing AH-64 Apache is a four-blade, twin-engine attack helicopter with a tailwheel-type landing gear arrangement, and a tandem cockpit for a two-man crew. The Apache was developed as Model 77 by Hughes Helicopters for the United States Army's Advanced Attack Helicopter program to replace the...
and the Mi-24 Hind
Mil Mi-24
The Mil Mi-24 is a large helicopter gunship and attack helicopter and low-capacity troop transport with room for 8 passengers. It is produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and operated since 1972 by the Soviet Air Force, its successors, and by over thirty other nations.In NATO circles the export...
are not nearly as survivable as projected; that the mobility granted by modern armor means that the Soviet doctrine of a massed thrust achieving a breakthrough of the opposing front is ill-founded—the enemy lines can withdraw and reform rather than break; and modern air power can only dominate a battlefield in the absence of an opposing modern air force.
F-19
F-19 is a designation for a hypothetical United States fighter aircraft that has never been officially acknowledged, and has engendered much speculation that it might refer to a type of aircraft whose existence is still classified.-History:...
"Frisbee" stealth fighter into his plot. The existence of stealth aircraft was an open secret
Open secret
An open secret is a concept or idea that is "officially" secret or restricted in knowledge, but is actually widely known; or refers to something which is widely known to be true, but which none of the people most intimately concerned are willing to categorically acknowledge in public.Examples of...
among aerospace watchers in the 1980s, but was highly classified at the time the novel was written. In actuality, computers of the day were not powerful enough to design the F-19's curved surfaces, resulting instead in the simpler and more angular F-117 Nighthawk
F-117 Nighthawk
The Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk was a single-seat, twin-engine stealth ground-attack aircraft formerly operated by the United States Air Force . The F-117A's first flight was in 1981, and it achieved initial operating capability status in October 1983...
.
The 1991 Persian Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, although far more of a mismatch than a late-1980s NATO-Warsaw Pact conflict would have been, did provide some evidence for Clancy's hypotheses. The U.S. Army's Apaches proved more vulnerable to ground fire than had been predicted, and by the war's end the majority of close air support
Close air support
In military tactics, close air support is defined as air action by fixed or rotary winged aircraft against hostile targets that are close to friendly forces, and which requires detailed integration of each air mission with fire and movement of these forces.The determining factor for CAS is...
was being delivered by the more heavily armored A-10 Thunderbolt II ground attack aircraft. Fittingly, Clancy identifies the A-10 as being a key weapon in his Red Storm Rising scenario. He even has the Russian armored forces dub it the "Devil's Cross" due to its ability to destroy many tanks before being driven off by SAM
Surface-to-air missile
A surface-to-air missile or ground-to-air missile is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles...
s and MANPADS, and due to the Russians' perception of its profile, from an angle, as similar to that of the Russian Orthodox
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
cross
Patriarchal cross
The Patriarchal cross is a variant of the Christian cross, the religious symbol of Christianity. Similar to the familiar Latin cross, the Patriarchal cross possesses a smaller crossbar placed above the main one, so that both crossbars are near the top. Sometimes the patriarchal cross has a short,...
. His predictions on the high rate of munitions expenditure also appears to have been borne out—even though the initial attack on Iraq was short, it drained U.S. arsenals to an alarming extent, forcing the Pentagon to undertake a crash program to rebuild stocks of smart bomb
Smart bomb
Smart bomb has several meanings:* In weapons, a smart bomb is a precision-guided munition* Smart Bomb Interactive, a video game development studio based in Salt Lake City, Utah...
s.
Evidence for the prediction of high expenditures of munitions was already available from the 1973 Yom Kippur War
Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War , also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to 25, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria...
. In this conflict both sides consumed munitions so rapidly that within one week of the start of combat, both the United States and the Soviet Union had to airlift munitions
Operation Nickel Grass
Operation Nickel Grass was an overt strategic airlift operation conducted by the United States to deliver weapons and supplies to Israel during the Yom Kippur War. The Military Airlift Command of the U.S...
to their respective client states (Israel for the U.S., Egypt and Syria for the Soviet Union) to avoid a collapse of their respective armed forces.
Another point of interest is the use of America's Iowa-class
Iowa class battleship
The Iowa-class battleships were a class of fast battleships ordered by the United States Navy in 1939 and 1940 to escort the Fast Carrier Task Forces which would operate in the Pacific Theater of World War II. Six were ordered during the course of World War II, but only four were completed in...
battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
s, which in the novel are sent to Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
to support the United States Marines during their amphibious landing
Amphibious warfare
Amphibious warfare is the use of naval firepower, logistics and strategy to project military power ashore. In previous eras it stood as the primary method of delivering troops to non-contiguous enemy-held terrain...
and air assault
Air assault
Air assault is the movement of ground-based military forces by vertical take-off and landing aircraft—such as the helicopter—to seize and hold key terrain which has not been fully secured, and to directly engage enemy forces...
. The effective use of battleships
United States Naval Gunfire Support debate
The United States Naval Gunfire Support debate is an ongoing debate between the Navy, Marine Corps, Congress, and independent groups like the United States Naval Gunfire Support Association on the issue of what role Naval Gunfire Support / Naval Surface Fire Support should play within the Navy...
in modern war was demonstrated during the 1991 Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, when the Missouri
USS Missouri (BB-63)
|USS Missouri is a United States Navy Iowa-class battleship, and was the fourth ship of the U.S. Navy to be named in honor of the U.S. state of Missouri...
and Wisconsin
USS Wisconsin (BB-64)
USS Wisconsin , "Wisky" or "WisKy", is an , the second ship of the United States Navy to be named in honor of the U.S. state of Wisconsin...
shelled shore-based artillery sites, antiship missile
Anti-ship missile
Anti-ship missiles are guided missiles that are designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea-skimming type, many use a combination of inertial guidance and radar homing...
facilities, and Iraqi troop concentrations arrayed along the coasts of Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
, and on Faylaka Island.
In the novel there is little mention of operations by special forces, such as American Navy SEALS
United States Navy SEALs
The United States Navy's Sea, Air and Land Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's principal special operations force and a part of the Naval Special Warfare Command as well as the maritime component of the United States Special Operations Command.The acronym is derived from their...
and Army Rangers
United States Army Rangers
United States Army Rangers are elite members of the United States Army. Rangers have served in recognized U.S. Army Ranger units or have graduated from the U.S. Army's Ranger School...
. This is particularly striking considering Clancy's interest in this area. The only special forces groups mentioned are the Soviet Spetsnaz
Spetsnaz
Spetsnaz, Specnaz tr: Voyska specialnogo naznacheniya; ) is an umbrella term for any special forces in Russian, literally "force of special purpose"...
, German GSG-9, Marine Force Recon and British SAS
Special Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
groups in the opening hours of the conflict and a limited British Royal Marine
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
presence on Iceland several weeks after the Soviet invasion. Many strategists suggest that in an all-out war of this kind, units such as these would be used to disrupt various an opponents's strategic and tactical operations. In the conflict described in the novel, Special operation teams could have been used to harass Soviet air operations in Norway.
Clancy's descriptions of NAS Keflavik
Naval Air Station Keflavik
United States Naval Air Station Keflavik is a former NATO facility at Keflavík International Airport, Iceland. It is located on the Reykjanes peninsula on the south-west portion of the island...
, Iceland, and the surrounding area were extremely accurate.
Games
Clancy and co-author Larry BondLarry Bond
Larry Bond is an American writer and wargame designer. He is the designer of the Harpoon and Command at Sea gaming systems and several supplements for the games. His numerous novels include Dangerous Ground, Day of Wrath, The Enemy Within, Cauldron, Vortex and Red Phoenix...
, designer of the Harpoon (series) modern naval warfare game, used the second edition miniatures rules to test key battle sequences, notably the Soviet operation to seize Iceland and the attack on the carrier battle group in the "Dance of the Vampires" chapter. Bond refereed the game sessions, which typically involved several players on each side (Clancy among them) acting in various roles.
In December 1988 MicroProse
MicroProse
MicroProse was a video game publisher and developer, founded by Wild Bill Stealey and Sid Meier in 1982 as Microprose Software. In 1993, the company became a subsidiary of Spectrum HoloByte and has remained a subsidiary or brand name under several other corporations since...
released a Red Storm Rising computer game, in which the player commanded an American submarine against Soviet forces. The player had the option of choosing between both single missions or campaign and which era to play in; modern missions offered the player more advanced submarines and weapons, but also a more technologically advanced adversary as well.
In 1989, TSR, Inc.
TSR, Inc.
Blume and Gygax, the remaining owners, incorporated a new company called TSR Hobbies, Inc., with Blume and his father, Melvin Blume, owning the larger share. The former assets of the partnership were transferred to TSR Hobbies, Inc....
released a board game
Board game
A board game is a game which involves counters or pieces being moved on a pre-marked surface or "board", according to a set of rules. Games may be based on pure strategy, chance or a mixture of the two, and usually have a goal which a player aims to achieve...
designed by Douglas Niles
Douglas Niles
Douglas Niles is a fantasy author and game designer. Niles was one of the creators of the Dragonlance world and the author of the first three Forgotten Realms novels, and the Top Secret S/I espionage role-playing game.-Early life:Niles was born in Brookfield, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee, and...
, based on the book. The game won the Origins Award
Origins Award
The Origins Awards are American awards for outstanding work in the game industry. They are presented by the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design at the Origins Game Fair on an annual basis for the previous year, so the 1979 awards were given at the 1980 Origins.The Origins Award is commonly...
for Best Modern-Day Boardgame of 1989 and Best Graphic Presentation of a Boardgame of 1989.
The 2007 video game World in Conflict
World in Conflict
World in Conflict, or WiC, is a real-time tactical video game developed by the Swedish video game company Massive Entertainment and published by Ubisoft for Microsoft Windows. The game was released in September 2007...
postulates a Soviet invasion of Germany in an effort to preserve a crumbling Soviet Union set in a similar time period under similar pretenses. Co-author of Red Storm Rising, Larry Bond, was the main consultant for the World in Conflict team.