Combat Unit

The Combat Unit was the main fighting/sneaking force of the Militaires Sans Frontières and source of income, and was present since its foundation. It mainly contained Guerillas, Infantries, Commandos, Elite Commandos, Commanders, and Sharpshooters. After their Mother Base was renovated to include a Honeycomb design, the Combat Unit was stationed at the Hangar portion of Mother Base, which also featured a takeoff runway.

The Diamond Dogs had a similar unit active during the 1980s, where they were deployed to various hotspots around the world to take on various jobs. However, unlike with MSF, it was not actually created until after Diamond Dogs had a firm foundation, namely, right after the Diamond Dogs extracted Huey and learned that Skull Face had a weapon that could surpass Metal Gear in the Angola-Zaire border region of Africa.^[1] However, individual soldiers were sent out to various missions in various hotspots around the world before then, including breaking through a blockade force, restoring the demilitarized zone, recapturing a coltan mine, searching and destroying remaining rebel forces, breaking through a cordon, liberating a hijacked Western resources corporation-owned tanker, and escorting a South American president and defending him from an assassination attempt by disgruntled generals. It also gained a sub-unit within the unit called the Security Team to deal with any threats to either Diamond Dogs' Forward Operating Bases, or in rare cases to Mother Base directly. This unit was formed as a result of a disgruntled former MSF member Mosquito leading his private force to invade Mother Base as revenge towards Big Boss under the belief the latter sold out MSF to XOF the day their old Mother Base was destroyed.

Although FOXHOUND, or rather, the group that would eventually become FOXHOUND at San Hieronymo Peninsula in 1970-1971, did not possess a combat unit, it did feature a similar unit known as the Sneaking Unit, which was made up of four divisions (named Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and Delta), each containing four members. They were primarily used for sneaking missions into enemy territory, and did missions such as sabotage, weapon and document procurement, as well as abducting and/or rescuing potential recruits. The unit was formed at the suggestion of Jonathan, a former Soviet soldier who joined the group to stop the renegade FOX commander Gene, with the unit operating by having one person go in at a time while the others wait out in cardboard boxes until called upon. This specific method was done as a compromise to allow for such a unit to exist while at the same time keeping true to the intended spirit of a sneaking mission, which was going in alone. Several of the members, due to their being former Soviet or FOX unit members, also worked with blending in with various soldiers of the same uniforms as themselves.^[2]

Combat Unit-related Skills (Militaires Sans Frontières)[]

Skill	Description
Mother Base Deputy Commander (Miller only)	Effect on Mother Base Increases morale of all staff on assigned team.
FSLN Comandante (Amanda only)	Effect on Mother Base When part of the Combat Unit, the Guerrillas' morale will rise.
Bird Watcher	Effect on Missions Tracking enemy soldiers in center of screen while using Binoculars will have the same effect as Enemy Search.
Decoy	Effect on Missions Easily targeted by enemies. When targetted by enemies, PSYCHE and defense increase. Using a shield has the same guard effect as Snake Formation.
Channeler	Effect on Missions Location of all items and prisoners is displayed on detailed map.
Engineering	Effect on Missions Raises the chance of increasing damage against large-scale weapons and mechs. Speed of placing objects becomes faster.
Green Beret	Effect on Missions Increases damage dealt by CQC. Raises the chance to increase damage when firing weapons. Increases natural recovery rate of LIFE gauge. Effects are amplified in proportion to number of people with this skill.
Gung Ho	Effect on Missions Increases natural recovery rate of PSYCHE gauge. Increases effect of some Battle Cries.
Pro Wrestling Maniac	Effect on Missions Increases damage dealt by CQC. Defeating a soldier with CQC will force him to drop all of his items. Defense rises when the player's PSYCHE is damaged. Recovery from unconsiousness is faster. Snake Syncing becomes faster when syncing with another teammate with the same skill. Increases effect of some Battle Cries.
Radio Technology	Effect on Missions Chance of neutralizing enemy requests for backup increases. Effects are amplified in proportion to number of people with this skill. Support Rank is increased when requesting support from Mother Base.
Rescue	Effect on Mother Base When part of the Medical Team, Sickbay staff's recovery speed increases. Effect on Missions Increases running speed for a set time when allies are near death. Decreases button presses required for CPR to save allies. LIFE gauge recovers more than usual when saving allies with CPR.
Sidekick	Effect on Missions Compliments allies when they neutralize enemies. PSYCHE rises for the soldier who was complimented. Be aware that players cannot achieve an S rank with the use of a Battle Cry.
SWAT	Effect on Missions Increases damage dealt by CQC. Increases damage when firing at enemy's hands or feet. Allow player to take down enemy soldiers by rolling. Shortens time required to sync with allies. Effectiveness of all actions excluding Rolling and Snake Sync are amplified in proportion to number of people with same skill.
Voice Actor	Effect on Mission Increases effect of some Battle Cries.

Combat Unit-related Skills (Diamond Dogs)[]

Icon	Skill	Description
	Athlete	When deployed as a Combat Unit staff member, movement speed increased by 20% when sprinting, jump distance increased by 20%, and no speed reduction when carrying bodies.
	Boaster	Disguises abilities and ratings when scanned with an analyzer (true rank displayed in staff list; doesn't work on g.4 Int-Scope).
	Botanist	When deployed as a Combat Unit staff member, medicinal plant harvest multiplied by 2.5.
	Climber	When deployed as a Combat Unit staff member, movement speed increased by 20% when crawling, hanging and climbing.
	Fortunate	When deployed as a Combat Unit staff member, serious injury probability reduced by 50%.
	Gunman	When deployed as a Combat Unit staff member, Reflex Mode duration increased by 1s when holding a weapon.
	Quick Draw	When deployed as a Combat Unit staff member, speed to draw primary weapon doubled.
	Quick Reload	When deployed as a Combat Unit staff member, weapon reload speed increased by 50%.
	Rescuer	When deployed as a Combat unit staff member, Fulton recovery success rate increased by 20%.
	Savage	When deployed as a Combat unit staff member, press the CQC Button while sprinting to unleash a devastating punch.
	Tough Guy	When deployed as a Combat unit staff member, max health increased by 20%.
	Vanguard Sharpshooter	Sniper who can pick off targets from long range and carry out covert scouting missions. (Exclusive to Quiet)

Behind the scenes[]

During Event FOBs, the player can procure Combat Unit soldiers from S to S++ ranks, with S and S+ ranks being redeemed ten times, while S++ ranks only being redeemed once. Unlike the other units that can be purchased, the Combat Unit soldiers have nearly twice as many soldiers as the other units, and are about twice as expensive. Their having twice as many overall may have been due to the existence of the Security Team, which was considered a sub unit for the Combat Unit.

In the opening of Metal Gear Survive, the Captain was originally a member of the Combat Unit, as revealed in the casualty list.

Gallery[]

Notes and references[]

^ Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Kojima Productions (2015)
Ocelot: Boss, we're finally ready to put together a Combat Unit. Staff assigned to the unit will be dispatched as mercenaries to conflict zones. That should guarantee us a stable source of income. "Merc deployment" allows you to send Combat Unit staff to relatively easy missions suited to the unit's level. There's little risk, but the rewards are low, too. However, there are also contracts known as "Dispatch Missions" that offer a higher risk and reward. Give your orders to undertake these missions using your iDroid.
^ [CALL] // Jonathan: Big Boss, let's go over how to switch team members. You won't be sneaking in alone anymore. We'll all be sneaking in together. // Snake: I thought that going in alone was the whole point of a sneaking mission. // Jonathan: Right, I know. Going in all at once wouldn't be very bright. We'll move one at a time, and switch off as we go along. // Snake: What do people do when it's not their turn? // Jonathan: We'll have them hide nearby. After all there's plenty of cardboard boxes in the truck. // Snake: All right. I'm used to hiding in cardboard boxes. // Jonathan: When you want to switch off with another team member, press the START button to bring up the Map Screen. Then select "MEMBER CHANGE." Then you'll be prompted to select a "Hiding Point" - a location on the map where you can hide - choose one as a place to hide. Finally, choose a team member to switch with. Then you're done. // Snake: OK. We'll do that. // Jonathan: From what I've seen, there are a lot of soldiers around here dressed like me. I should be less conspicuous than you. I used to be a rescuer, so I'm pretty good at dragging people around. Meaning I'm perfect for gathering new recruits. So make good use of me. // (if the player switches to Jonathan) // [CALL] // Jonathan: OK, it's my turn now. Wow, called on by Big Boss himself - this is going to make a great story when I get back. // Snake: Watch yourself out there. // Jonathan: If a unit member is dressed like the enemy, they can slip through the enemy's guard as long as they don't act strange. Sometimes you'll see a blue chameleon icon appear at the top-left of the screen. That means the enemy believes you are an ally so they won't sound any alarms. Unfortunately, a legendary soldier such as yourself doesn't qualify for this special type of infiltration technique. // Snake: Yeah... All right, show me what you can do. I'll keep listening from here and let you know where the enemies are as far as I can tell. The red circles on the Map Screen are the locations of the enemy soldiers. They show use where the enemies around us are. // Jonathan: Thanks. I'll put it to good use. All right, here I go. Wish me luck.

[1] Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Kojima Productions (2015)
Ocelot: Boss, we're finally ready to put together a Combat Unit. Staff assigned to the unit will be dispatched as mercenaries to conflict zones. That should guarantee us a stable source of income. "Merc deployment" allows you to send Combat Unit staff to relatively easy missions suited to the unit's level. There's little risk, but the rewards are low, too. However, there are also contracts known as "Dispatch Missions" that offer a higher risk and reward. Give your orders to undertake these missions using your iDroid.

[2] [CALL] // Jonathan: Big Boss, let's go over how to switch team members. You won't be sneaking in alone anymore. We'll all be sneaking in together. // Snake: I thought that going in alone was the whole point of a sneaking mission. // Jonathan: Right, I know. Going in all at once wouldn't be very bright. We'll move one at a time, and switch off as we go along. // Snake: What do people do when it's not their turn? // Jonathan: We'll have them hide nearby. After all there's plenty of cardboard boxes in the truck. // Snake: All right. I'm used to hiding in cardboard boxes. // Jonathan: When you want to switch off with another team member, press the START button to bring up the Map Screen. Then select "MEMBER CHANGE." Then you'll be prompted to select a "Hiding Point" - a location on the map where you can hide - choose one as a place to hide. Finally, choose a team member to switch with. Then you're done. // Snake: OK. We'll do that. // Jonathan: From what I've seen, there are a lot of soldiers around here dressed like me. I should be less conspicuous than you. I used to be a rescuer, so I'm pretty good at dragging people around. Meaning I'm perfect for gathering new recruits. So make good use of me. // (if the player switches to Jonathan) // [CALL] // Jonathan: OK, it's my turn now. Wow, called on by Big Boss himself - this is going to make a great story when I get back. // Snake: Watch yourself out there. // Jonathan: If a unit member is dressed like the enemy, they can slip through the enemy's guard as long as they don't act strange. Sometimes you'll see a blue chameleon icon appear at the top-left of the screen. That means the enemy believes you are an ally so they won't sound any alarms. Unfortunately, a legendary soldier such as yourself doesn't qualify for this special type of infiltration technique. // Snake: Yeah... All right, show me what you can do. I'll keep listening from here and let you know where the enemies are as far as I can tell. The red circles on the Map Screen are the locations of the enemy soldiers. They show use where the enemies around us are. // Jonathan: Thanks. I'll put it to good use. All right, here I go. Wish me luck.

[1]

[2]