Recon: spotters, balloons and planes
Five ways to see the front, each with its own reach and its own weakness: spotters, the balloon, recon planes, flash and sound ranging, and impact reports.
Recon is how you see the war. Every target you fire at comes from it: a spotter's report, a balloon's live circle, a recon plane's photographs, or the crossing bearings of an enemy gun. Each source sees a different slice of the front, and each has a weakness.
Your sources
| Source | Coverage | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Forward spotters | Line of sight 1–1.5 km past your fire trench | Blocked by hills, smoke and night |
| Observation balloon | A 3 km circle around its winch | Enemy guns can shoot it down; 3 min to replace |
| Recon plane | A 400 m strip along a path you draw; live while it passes, then last known | 90 s cooldown; enemy anti-air can drive it off |
| Flash and sound ranging | No picture, only bearing lines to enemy guns that fire | Needs 2–3 enemy shots for a usable ellipse |
| Impact report | About 150 m around your own impact, live for 15 s | Only if a spotter, balloon or plane can see the spot |
The recon panel at the bottom right of the map table shows the balloon's status, the plane's cooldown and what the spotters can see.
Spotters
Forward spotters watch from your own lines, out to 1 to 1.5 km past your fire trench. A hill, a smoke screen or nightfall blinds them, and whoever holds the ridges and hills sees further. Their reports and corrections reach you over the radio through Sergeant Abelard.
The balloon
The observation balloon rises over its winch and turns a 3 km circle live. Inside it you see the war in full colour, soldiers and all. It is your widest window, but enemy guns can shoot it down, and a new one takes 3 minutes to go up.
The recon plane
To send a plane, drag a path across the map (on a gamepad, press X and steer with the stick). You draw the route; you never fly the plane yourself. A 400 m strip along the path turns live while the plane passes, then settles into last known behind it. The plane needs 90 seconds before it can go again, and enemy anti-air can drive it off. Save it for big moments: a charge, a depot on fire. Planes join you in winter, the second season.
Flash, sound and impacts
Flash and sound ranging give you no picture at all, only a bearing line toward each enemy gun that fires. Two or three of them cross in an ellipse worth shooting into. See Finding enemy guns.
The impact report follows your own shots. If someone can see the spot, about 150 m around the impact turns live for 15 seconds, so you see what your shell did before the fog closes again. See The shot.
Stronger in the hot zone
Recon support is stronger in the hot zone, with more balloons and more planes in the air. See The hot zone.
Everything recon shows you stays on the map after it has gone. See Fog of war and The intel map remembers.