Pretty Good Tactics post for groups.

Reddit user: ilikeprettycolors writes:

Obligatory first post, made account for this, love the sub read it everyday, blah blah. After seeing the very enlightening post about Lone Wolf tactics on the front page today, I finally figured out something that I can contribute to the community, and that was my (more like my buddy's, but mine too) tips and tactics for squad operations.
Now, before I start, I am going to describe some terminology for you. An soldier is a single player. A fireteam is usually consists 3-4 soldiers. I have been chewed out way too many times by my buddy for referring to fireteams as squads (Ex army ranger, he taught me most of this stuff) so from here on out I will refer to these groups as fireteams. Squads consist of 2-3 fireteams, or 8-12 soldiers. This guide is for fireteams, consisting of 3-4 players.
A fireteam in DayZ is arguably the best arrangement in the game. You have a group that is large enough to use advanced tactics such as suppression and flanking (really advanced, right) effectively, but you are not too big to be able to properly organize and protect yourself. However, there are some glaring problems that these teams tend to run into, and usually our team exploits them to gain the upper hand. Also, there are some basic tactics that every team should know.
Basic principals of Fireteams
I got all of these from my buddy, so here goes.

• "There is no better protection than a mound of dirt." My friend said that to me when I asked why terrain was so important. It is true on so many levels. The high ground should be the only ground. You gain three advantages when you are on higher ground than whatever you are shooting at/scouting. First off, you can see farther over more obstacles. Two, you are shooting down at those below you, which means it is harder to be hit (and seen), and easier for you to hit vital areas. Three, anyone who wants to try and rush your position has to climb a hill, leaving them exposed.
  
• The second is just as important: Have a leader. We have an established "boss" in our group, he makes the calls and tells us what to do. Why is this important? Because bickering and uncertainty in the middle of a firefight is death. When 3 men run one way and the other goes the other, the other is probably going to get shot and the squad is down a vital asset because of a communication problem, aka a completely avoidable circumstance. Not to mention if you trust someone enough to be a leader, he probably has proven he is experienced enough to make the best call most of the time.
  
• Have established specializations I see this too often when we attack other groups, when one goes down 3 rush over to try and help him. Then I just giggle as I shoot them. Not only is it a waste of space to have 3 folks carrying full doctor's gear, but when there is no procedure to help the wounded (or setup a vantage point for sniping, or making contact with other groups, etc etc) then it just leads to confusion and bad decisions. We have the leader, a medic, a sniper/overwatch, and there is me, the communicator (aka bait). Now, when one of my communication attempts (aka suicide attempts) goes wrong, instead of scrambling around with 2 of us trying to revive me while the other shoots in the general direction, we have a bit of a system. The overwatch guy gets into position before I make contact, he spots and keeps track of numbers. Leader and medic stand back, far enough to stay out of sight but close enough to rush up to help. I go up, do my thing, get shot, and the overwatch takes out one, while medic rushes to help me with suppressing fire from leader. Bandage and epi later we retreat to a defensible position, I get some blood in me, and we go finish off/loot the SoBs. However, say the medic gets shot, everyone has a basic medkit on hand to pick him back up, and the medic carries the advanced things like antibiotics and most of the blood.
  
• Automatic weapons are king I'm sure that many of you understand this, but in a fireteam the ability to lay down supressive fire is paramount to almost every offensive maneuver you can think of. Now a sniper, yea he should probably have a LRS and bolt action rifle. He won't be clearing buildings or laying down cover fire, he will be sitting on a hill taking down the unsuspecting and unknowing. Everyone else needs a M4 with a ton of ammo. I suggest ammo boxes and 3-4 mags, fill up your vest with them.
  
• The diamond is king My friend has another term for it, I don't remember it or like it so I call it the diamond method of moving. How does this work? Move in a diamond formation at steady speed, with a person at the head, rear, and on both sides. Then, instead of each person scanning 90 degrees out from where he is standing (if your on the left, you look left, etc), they each scan at 45 degrees counterclockwise, aka left, from their position. This makes it easier (and faster) to watch all four sides and maintain movement without drifting apart. Check every 5-20 secs depending on the area and your position on the diamond.
  
• You are not invincible This is something that I see so often. Larger groups of 4-8 will just walk openly down a street, shooting anything that moves. "We have 8 shooters, what is the worst that can happen?" Confusion is. One sniper shot from a hill 300 meters away can disrupt your entire ego trip. Since you were too busy basking in your glory, you failed to scan your surroundings. Second shot, and Sargent Dumbass who stopped moving to look around is dead. Anyone else looking darts for cover, sniper is still hidden. Then we kill them one by one. A lonewolf can splinter a fireteam that is uncoordinated and unprepared. Don't let your guard down to go be heroes of the world or evil bandit lords, it's irritating as hell to have to start as a group as freshspawn.
  
• And finally: The best defensive, offensive, pretty much everything is when they have no idea you are are there Lots of squads move openly throughout the land, failing to grasp this. Then a duo or another squad sees them, and mows them down. Don't be those guys. While a properly managed fireteam is very deadly, it doesn't matter if you lose half your men in an ambush. Move in the treelines. Scout before you enter. Simple stuff. When you have the drop on a group, you have all the choices and all the power. Too big? Track them or just let them go. Going into a nearby town/city? Rush and setup an ambush. Look somewhat friendly? Send the bait to go talk to them. If you get ambushed, you have one option: "Hi, we are frien---" "You are dead"
  

This is just the very basics that Mike has taught me/I have gleaned myself from playing DayZ If I get more time later, i'll write up some basic maneuvers for you guys to read, and some of the more advanced stuff mike learned in Army. I hope you like it, and feel free to ask me any questions.