120 miles Northeast of Los Angeles lies the fictional country of Atropia. That's the name given to the area of what commanders at Fort Irwin National Training Center call 'The Box', a 1,000 square mile area in the Mojave Desert used to train US & allied troops and their commanders in large scale combat and the realities of modern warfare.

Comprising an area larger than Rhode Island, with complete control of the land, airspace, and electronic signals in the area, the commanders of the 11th Armored Cavalry that make up the Opposing Forces (OPFOR) not only have the home field advantage of knowledge of the terrain, but the ability to jam GPS, track radio transmissions, and operates a closed intranet with its own "Falsebook", "Tweeter", and even an "Atropia News Network" for the actors portraying the citizens and insurgents that the visiting units must contend with. 

Commanders and troops must contend not only with the unforgiving desert terrain as they attempt to approach Atropia, but frequently find themselves either without technological advantages they rely on such as the jamming of their GPS guidance systems, or the targeting of their radio transmissions by OPFOR artillery units that require strategic thinking instead of brute force.