Merkava.

[RERomine]

I've read through this thread several times. It is good reading with beer and pretzels. Anyhow, while they could squeeze 8 troops in there, it was as pointed out before ad-hoc and not doctrine.

All varieties of Merks were designed as MBT. The rear exit was designed to allow the crew to exit relatively safely if needed. Somewhere along the line, someone noticed it could be used for troops as well. That doesn't make it doctrine.

I've watched the various videos. The YouTube videos are clearly of a promotional variety, showing much of the same footage. The four men shown exiting the vehicle are lightly equipped and oddly armed. They could be an LMG, a sniper rifle, some variety of M16 with the M203 attached and some sort of SMG w/folding stock. And heaven forbid they have to get out in a hurry, because that didn't seem to be happening. In those videos, the 12 main round storage canisters have been removed. If you want to hear the loudest cry of anguish in the world, tell a tanker you are going to take away over 80% of his main gun ammo on a regular basis.

Another thing that has been pointed out is the Namer has been created as a heavy APC for the IDF. Depending on the source, it puts them as having capability to care 2-3 crew members and 9 fully equipped troops. They have removed all the ammo and the turret basket and for all that, all they could accomplish was make space for heavier equipment for the troops? If that is the best they could do, it sounds like it is highly unlikely to try to squeeze 8 men into a Merk on a regular basis.

That is the point of the topic at hand: Doctrine. There are many things that have been done on an ad-hoc basic. It doesn't make it doctrine. Comments and videos in one website, albeit a very large one, doesn't make it doctrine. Used in as a heavy APC in one relatively small campaign doesn't make it doctrine either. Prove this to be doctrine and people will listen. Don and Andy have gone through efforts to accommodate special requests where practical, without compromising commonly excepted ideas of realism.

If there is a niche that any one of us wants to fill by modding our units, we have been given the ability to do so. Make your change, play the game and be happy. If it is changed in the game for all, the AI will make it game doctrine, even if it real doctrine. We will see those Merks as HAPCs all over the place, even if it isn't really used that way.