Ah, I was wondering where this thread went. I committed to a response, but in the process of thinking it through, I discovered that we actually need to do some serious thinking about the nature of TL12 combat. Some key questions need to be answered:
What is the endurence (in hours) of TL12 combat armor?
I am thinking that troops "suit up" for major combat operations, but for the most part, they wear balistic cloth when not exspecting combat.
I'm also thinking that troops will wear a camo combat jump suit over their combat armor, so that they can adapt their uniform to the specific situation rather than have to swap out the entire suit.
Start from the premis that each soldier will carry between 20 and 30 pounds of gear on their body, plus another 40-50 in their "ruck" that will remain with the vehilcle.
What troops will need on their person:
Ammunition (including grenades)
Cleaning kit
Back up vision enhancement and personal coms (back up if armor is not worn or system fails)
Water (at least 2 quarts)
Food (quantity mission dependent)
First aid (bandage)
Pain killers (optional)
In the ruck:
Sleeping bag.
Personal shelter.
Change of undergarments (especially socks).
Spare components for commonly damaged parts of armor (probably gloves, boots, elbow and knee protection).
personal hygene gear (razor, tooth brush, soap, towl and washcloth, TP).
Collapseable entrenching tool (useful for many things besides diging fighting posisions).
Water and Food.
So, there is a start.
