EXERCISE ATLANTIC LANTERN '95

# France, June 1995 — Exercise ATLANTIC LANTERN A fictional multinational field exercise, 12–25 June 1995, across the existing map of Brittany, Normandy, the Loire corridor, Paris and Champagne. France hosts and coordinates, retaining French national command authority; France did not fully participate in NATO's integrated military command in 1995. ## Period atmosphere French francs; French-language daily life; paper orders, fax, payphones, VHS, 35mm film, analogue radios and early PCs. Shops, railways, farms, fishing ports, cafés, newsrooms, emergency services, gendarmes and local councils carry on independently. No smartphones, satellite tracking for everyone, or current vehicles and uniforms. ## Exercise geography Exercise support hubs around Rennes, Laval, Le Mans, Saumur, Tours and the Chartres–Évreux corridor where existing map cells allow. Brittany and the northwest coast support maritime observation, transport and flight-training activity. Paris is a civilian, political and news hub, not a mock combat zone. The mapped region is not a claim to include all France. Towns and public roads remain civilian under French law; field training uses pre-authorised military areas and temporary agreements. ## Participants and activity French host directorate oversees exercise control, safety, routes, coordination and permissions. Fictional visiting UK, US, German, Belgian and Dutch contingents retain national chains of command. Scenarios include convoy coordination, route security, field communications, medical evacuation, engineering surveys, air-ground liaison, logistics, search and rescue, mock air defence and simulated patrol contacts. There is no live battle or preordained enemy invasion. Era-appropriate equipment is used without falsely claiming that a fictional scenario is a recorded historical exercise. ## Open-world life Become any compatible character: personnel in a military or service role, an aviation observer at a legal viewpoint, a café owner, truck driver, newspaper reporter, tourist, railway passenger, interpreter, mechanic or local villager. Towns have normal business hours, traffic, weather, festivals and public transport. Characters pursue their own needs, relationships, work, pay and rest. Public concern about noise, roads, crops and safety can alter exercise activity. ## Opening At 06:30 local time on Monday 12 June 1995, French coordinators prepare the first authorised vehicle movements. Allied detachments verify radios, maps, permissions, safety checks and supplies. Civilians commute and open shops while local media prepare coverage. Players choose their own entry point, affiliation and personal goals, without a forced protagonist or winning condition.

France, 12 June 1995. A fictional multinational NATO training exercise, ATLANTIC LANTERN, brings French hosts and visiting British, American, German, Belgian and Dutch detachments to western and northern France. Roam the open world as a soldier, aircrew member, logistician, local resident, journalist, interpreter, rescue worker or exercise controller. Training engagements are simulated, not real war. Civilian places remain lived-in and independent. Choose your own career, relationships, transport and goals as convoys, flights, inspections, patrols, village festivals and unexpected weather evolve.