Department of the Army

Opposing Force Organization Guide (FM 7-100.4) Department of the Army

In today's complicated and uncertain world, it is impossible to predict the exact nature of future conflict that might involve the U. S. Army. So the Army must be ready to meet the challenges of any type of conflict, in all kinds of places, and against all kinds of threats. This is the nature of the contemporary operational environment (COE) and the makeup of the opposing force (OPFOR) used in training for the COE. This manual is one of a series that describes an opposing force (OPFOR) for training U. S. Army commanders, staffs, and units. See the References section for a list of the manuals in this series. Together, these manuals outline an OPFOR that can cover the entire spectrum of military and paramilitary capabilities against which the Army must train to ensure success in any future conflict. Applications for this series of manuals include field training, training simulations, and classroom instruction throughout the Army. All Army training venues should use an OPFOR based on these manuals, except when mission rehearsal or contingency training requires maximum fidelity to a specific real-world threat. Even in the latter case, trainers should use appropriate parts of the OPFOR manuals to fill information gaps in a manner consistent with what they do know about a specific threat.