Radioman is a class opened in all factions when you reach Level 15. They're goal in life is to act as a mobile communications point for the Commander. They stay with the Commander for as long as he needs them so that he can continue to call marks to benefit the team.

To be an effective radioman, the first thing you need to realize is that you are no longer General Infantry. You do not think like everybody else, you do not act like everybody else, and you do not move like anybody else. Do not join a GI squad. If you are Lvl.20+, make a squad called RADIO SQUAD and avoid any radiomen going in there. If you are not Lvl.20+, don't join a squad, just be unassigned.

Next, you must know your kit. In all factions and wars, you will receive a rifle, pistol, smoke grenade, and radio set. In the USDoD, you might receive an XM177E1. It's ♥♥♥♥, if you have the option of an M16 use that instead. You will also receive a cool new option on your HUD. To access your HUD, press T by default. It will show a little radar pointing towards your commander. It will say NEARBY if the commander is nearby, and IN USE if the commander is currently using you to call for fire support. If it's gray, it's out of range, if it's orange, it's in range but far, and if it's green, you're doing your job.

When the commander is out on the field, he has three goals in life, as opposed to your one: Blow the living ♥♥♥♥ out of the enemy, communicate with his troops, and guide his squad leaders on where to go next. Your job is to allow him to blow the living ♥♥♥♥ out of the enemy. By being within range of him, you allow him to see a menu with the possible fire support and their cooldowns, as well as the forms of Recon. If for any reason the commander is not in range with a radio, he is incapable of calling in any fire support, which can be detrimental to the team. Remember, do not, under any circumstances, leave the side of your commander unless you are specifically instructed to do so.

When you spawn in, you will have an extra option of where to spawn. In addition to the usual Yankee, Whiskey, and X-ray, you will also now have Commander. Spawn on the Commander unless if instructed not to.

Occasionally, the commander won't see a need to call fire support. Perhaps your team is pushing the points so fast that calling in fire support would take so long that by the time the shells came down, your team would already be there. Perhaps everything is on cooldown. In this case, he may give you the order, "Radiomen, join the fight." This means that you are immediately a grunt but with a radio on your back and a smoke grenade or two. Your commander will likely now become a grunt himself, or do something not involving radios, or perhaps has the best stationary radio in the history of stationary radios. If he needs you again, he will call out "Radiomen, on me." If ever you hear that command and weren't ever given the first command, clearly somebody is doing something very wrong.

Sometimes, when you finally get to your commander after running through the dense South-East Asian jungle, he will be actively screaming "TAMALE, THIS IS ROSWELL-BRAVO 2-6, REQUESTING THAT YOU SEND YOUR FAST MOVERS TO GRIDREF 2 9 6 1 4 2 8 6, BURN 'EM FOR ME, WILL YA?" That means that he's calling in fire support. Stay by his side until he either instructs you to join the fight, or, if he really doesn't want to move, might just use your radio from the same spot instead of the stationary one out of common courtesy so that you get the XP. Don't, however, interrupt his commanding, as what he says and does might be important. Again, do not leave his side, even if he gives negative ♥♥♥♥♥ about your being there, as he might suddenly need you.

Every now and then, upon seeing you, your commander will suddenly start running into live combat. This isn't because he thinks you smell and would happily spend the next eternity away from you, but instead that he was using the stationary radio and was unable to get any good points. What you are to do is follow *behind* him. He wants you to act as a mobile radio so that he can call his own marks from the battlefield, rather than relying on SGT Dumbass over here who only uses purple smokes for cover. Do not, however, anticipate his next movement by running ahead of him, as the last thing you want is for your commander to run after you. He needs to be able to access the radio at any given moment, so every second that you're running away is a second more time for the communists to strip away our American freedom. Or if you're playing as VC and learning about VC radioman work, in which uh, "gaw hawm gi, ah rys ees sayf."

Here's a section on what not to do.

First thing's first, remember, being rear echelon is ♥♥♥♥♥ work, so grab the nearest XM177E1 and revolver and run directly into a hail of enemy bullets. If the grunts aren't too scared to follow you, let alone the commander, then clearly you have some form of retardation. Make sure to avoid the commander at all costs, as he is clearly a pedophile who wants to molest you.