- "We are tasked with anything and everything; espionage, sabotage, you name it we do it..."
- — Colonel Hargrove
The Office of Strategic Services or OSS, are the main protagonistic faction in all Medal of Honor games prior to Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault.
Background[]
General[]
They are normally never seen, but can be heard over the radio. Usually, they are referred to as 'command'. The point of having the OSS as a main faction is to show the dual nature of war; the seen, known aspect of war and the behind-the-scenes aspect of war. The objectives they task the player with usually are meant to be covert operations. Assassination, infiltration, forged papers and suppressed weapons all play a part in the objectives they provide in each mission the players encounter them. Meanwhile, the 'known' aspect of war includes advancing on enemy positions, knocking out armored vehicles, mass charges, popping smoke to mark targets for the US Army Air Corps, and providing cover fire for friendly troops.
Some of the objectives they give to the main character in the games foreshadow the events of the Cold War, primarily when they tell the player to destroy evidence of the German dirty bomb before the "Russians get their hands on it" during the Climbing Mamyev Hill part of Medal of Honor: European Assault. They are the forerunners of the CIA.
Medal of Honor[]
In Medal of Honor, the Colonel Stanley Hargrove and the Office of Strategic Services are the commanders of James Patterson, and help brief him throughout his mission. Ever since Patterson rescued fellow operator Manon Batiste from North Africa, Hargrove became very impressed with his skills and began to monitor his activity in the Air Transport Command, or ATC. Jimmy was recruited to the OSS in 1944 by the Colonel and performed outstandingly, completing his final mission to destroy a V-2 Rocket plant and finally being awarded the Medal of Honor. Their war room is located in an underground bunker in London, England.
Medal of Honor: Underground[]
Medal of Honor: Underground once again features the OSS. They were very interested in Jacques Batiste and his other resistance members. After the unfortunate death of Jacques, they discovered that his resistance partner was no man, but a woman, named Manon. The sister of Monsieur Batiste, Manon was brought to the OSS as an operative but remained in strong contact with the French Resistance. Her place of command is a Resistance safehouse. Manon was never awarded any American medals or decorations, but she usually looted artifacts from the battlefield or received French medals.
Medal of Honor: Frontline[]
The OSS play a large role during Medal of Honor: Frontline. Jimmy Patterson, the main character of Medal of Honor, appears again as a member of the OSS, and serves as the playable character, where he undertakes both direct combat operations, such as the D-Day invasion, as well as espionage missions. Patterson took part somewhat in Operation Paperclip, hijacking a top-secret German flying wing and recovering it to the Allies.
Medal of Honor: Allied Assault[]
Lieutenant Mike Powell was an early addition to the OSS and a very accomplished soldier, going on search and rescue raids, all out assaults, and undercover missions. He was briefed in the same war room as Patterson by Hargrove, scuttled U-Boats, as did Jimmy, and even returning to Schmerzen to finish the fort off once and for all.
Medal of Honor: Infiltrator[]
For heroic actions during the landing in Morocco, corporal Jake Murphy was transferred to OSS. Murphy takes the operation to rescue the German defector-Sebastian Diesler. Probably all the further missions are held under the command of OSS.
Medal of Honor: Rising Sun[]
The OSS plays a less major role in Medal of Honor: Rising Sun, symbolic of the series' drifting towards frontline combat. However, the player does undertake several covert missions for the OSS against Japan.
OSS Insignia in Medal of Honor: Heroes 2.
Medal of Honor: Heroes and Heroes 2[]
In both installments the OSS plays a major role in both games. In Heroes there are three OSS Agent featured: John Baker, Jimmy Patterson and William Holt. Each agents are fight in a different front and completing special missions for the OSS. In Heroes 2 a new OSS Agent John Berg is tasked to gather information about the Germans' new V2 Project and later in the game to infiltrate into the V2 facility and destroy it.
Members[]
Operatives[]
- Colonel Stanley Hargrove
- Colonel Michael Paul Floyd
- Major Phillip Andrew Bromley
- Captain Lasry
- Captain Harris
- Captain Ted Aubrick
- Captain Christopher J. Weston
- Lieutenant James Steven Patterson
- Lieutenant William Holt
- Lieutenant Mike Powell
- Lieutenant John Berg
- Lieutenant Jasper Shelton
- Lieutenant Rafferty
- G3 Operations Officer
- Sergeant Joseph Griffin
- Sergeant John Baker
- Sergeant Jack Barnes
- Corporal Jake Murphy
- Private First Class Ichiro Tanaka
- Private Geoff Stewart
- Manon Batiste
- Jacques Batiste
- Gerritt
Allies[]
- Commissar Cherryenko
- Major Sebastian Diesler (Before the betrayal)
- Captain Ramsey
- Captain Beck
- Captain Tarver
- Lieutenant Padorin
- Lieutenant Joe Baylor
- Junior Lieutenant Troffimov
- Master Sergeant Kelso
- Sergeant Crockett
- Sergeant O`Neal
- Corporal Platt
- Corporal Jamison
- Corporal Rissik
- Lance Corporal Winslow
- Lance Corporal Winters
- Guardsman Jamison (No 2. Commando)
- Guardsman Jamison (7th armored Division)
- Guardsman Parish
- Guardsman Benson
- Guardsman Bishop
- Guardsman Bristol
- Guardsman Edmunds
- Guardsman Perkins
- Guardsman Quinn
- Private Barrington
- Private Baker
- Private Carr
- Private Thomas Conlin
- Fox
- Fabrice Delacroix
- Unnamed Dutch Resistance Woman
- Jigs
- Harrison
- Rollins
- Reilly
- Sergei
- Wells
- Morgan
Trivia[]
- The OSS were the original Tier 1 operators, participating in covert operations unsuited for those of the regular armed forces. The USSOCOM logo which units such as the U.S. Navy SEALs, the 75th Ranger Regiment and U.S. Special Forces belong to, a spade, is based off that of the OSS.