Command Essay: Kobayashi Maru and First Salvo

[HalfLifeExpert]

This is an essay I wrote for Command players that has the purpose of explaining the Soviet Navy's Cold War I concept of the "First Salvo", which involved positioning naval assets in such a way as to be able to attack Western naval forces within the opening minutes and hours of a war breaking out, utilizing the Red Tide scenario "Kobayashi Maru" as an example.

[SunlitZelkova]

Thanks for sharing, it was a good read. I think it unlikely the doctrine survives in the Russian Navy or has been adopted by the Chinese, given the reduced threat of nuclear escalation, but the principles are still important in contested areas like the South or East China seas, where small deployments of American, Japanese, and other ships tend to occur frequently and Type 054 frigates tend to be assigned to shadow them.

[HalfLifeExpert]

Thanks for sharing, it was a good read. I think it unlikely the doctrine survives in the Russian Navy or has been adopted by the Chinese, given the reduced threat of nuclear escalation, but the principles are still important in contested areas like the South or East China seas, where small deployments of American, Japanese, and other ships tend to occur frequently and Type 054 frigates tend to be assigned to shadow them.

Thanks for reading and I'm glad you enjoyed it.

I discussed the possibilities of "First Salvo" in Cold War II not in the exact sense as it was during Cold War I. It's no longer a question of preventing nuclear threats to the Russian (or Chinese) mainland, but about neutralizing a potent American or allied asset early in a war, ideally before they are fully alert. The newer weaponry and technology would likely make the 'self-sacrifice' part of "First Salvo" less and less necessary. That said, it could end up resulting in the same trap that the Japanese fell into with the opening strike on Pearl Harbor, with the result being primarily to galvanize their enemies into fighting even harder.

I also wrote that section because I felt the Eastern Med deployments of mid-2022 were too eye-catching to ignore in this context. For the Russians, like with their land-warfare doctrines, "First Salvo" could have survived into the present more as a result of institutional momentum rather than as a well-thought-out strategy. In fact, the thinking could be to simply cause as much damage with their relatively small surface fleet as possible before it's going to be destroyed, especially after the surprise destruction of Moskva