{"id":88422,"date":"2024-10-16T17:15:00","date_gmt":"2024-10-16T17:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2024\/10\/16\/soldiers-exposed-to-new-combat-realities-with-expanded-training\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T01:15:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T01:15:13","slug":"soldiers-exposed-to-new-combat-realities-with-expanded-training","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2024\/10\/16\/soldiers-exposed-to-new-combat-realities-with-expanded-training\/","title":{"rendered":"Soldiers exposed to new combat realities with expanded training"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A new approach to training brand new recruits<\/a> in large-scale combat aims to prepare soldiers for future conflicts as the Army readies the force for a potential slugfest against foes like the Russian or Chinese militaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In March, the service launched \u201cForge 2.5<\/a>,\u201d another update to \u201cThe Forge,\u201d<\/a> which began as a concept in 2016 with a 96-hour field exercise for week-seven trainees. The Forge has been in place since 2018 as a regular feature of basic training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The event closely mirrors \u201cThe Crucible,\u201d which the Marine Corps instituted in its recruit training in the 1990s. The field endurance test <\/a>puts recruits in a patrol base, and they run through a variety of combat and logistical scenarios over the course of the four-day stretch.<\/p>\n\n\n\t