Active Assailant Tabletop "Game"

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Course Overview

The Active Assailant Tabletop "Game" is a Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP) compliant simulation designed to test decision-making, command and control, resource management, and recovery operations during active assailant incidents. Threat Suppression personnel created this unique exercise model in 2013. The program has since become a recognized training model, with numerous organizations developing similar exercises based upon concepts pioneered by Threat Suppression.

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Threat Suppression has conducted these games more than 80 times for public safety agencies, educational institutions, critical infrastructure organizations, and Department of Defense installations. The exercise has been utilized at multiple Department of Defense facilities, including mission-critical installations, critical infrastructure sites, and planned high-risk events requiring extensive interagency coordination and security planning.

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Public safety leaders from numerous agencies have described this exercise as one of the most effective methods available for teaching command and control during active assailant incidents. Multiple educational institutions and public safety organizations have also sought guidance on developing similar programs based upon the Threat Suppression model.

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Unlike traditional tabletop exercises, this program immerses participants in a realistic, rapidly evolving incident based on lessons learned from actual active assailant events across the United States. In cooperation with the host agency, Threat Suppression personnel select an actual high-risk facility within the jurisdiction and build a customized simulation around that location. Utilizing real floor plans, available public safety resources, and realistic 9-1-1 injects, participants are challenged to manage a complex incident from initial dispatch through long-term recovery operations.

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How the Exercise Works

Most programs consist of two or three progressively more complex scenarios conducted during a single day. Participants utilize game pieces, floor plans, and simulated public safety resources to move personnel throughout the facility, address threats, treat casualties, and coordinate operational objectives.

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The exercise is driven by realistic 9-1-1 calls and injects modeled after actual incidents. Drawing from lessons learned at numerous active assailant events, Threat Suppression personnel intentionally incorporate both accurate and inaccurate information into the exercise. Participants must evaluate incoming information, identify misinformation, and make critical decisions with incomplete and often conflicting intelligence, just as they would during a real-world event. Personnel are issued game pieces that realistically represent the resources available within their jurisdiction. As the scenario unfolds, participants must allocate resources, prioritize objectives, and adapt to changing conditions in a manner that closely mirrors actual incident management.

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Dual-Perspective Training

One of the unique features of this exercise is its ability to simultaneously train both first responders and facility leadership. Law enforcement, fire, EMS, and emergency communications personnel typically operate on one exercise board and receive information through simulated 9-1-1 calls, radio traffic, and incident injects. Participants must coordinate resources, establish command and control, manage casualties, and respond to emerging threats.

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Facility administrators operate separately and receive only the information they would realistically possess during an actual incident. While responders focus on incident mitigation, administrators begin confronting many of the challenges that emerge after the attack.

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As the exercise progresses, administrators must address employee accountability, mass notification systems, media inquiries, social media activity, family reunification, memorial activities, continuity of operations, misinformation campaigns, and numerous other recovery challenges. To mirror real-world recovery operations, injects are delivered across three operational periods: the first 24 hours, 24 to 72 hours, and 72 hours and beyond. This approach allows participants to experience both the operational response and the long-term consequences of leadership decisions.

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Realistic Decision-Making Under Stress

A key component of the exercise is the incorporation of conflicting, incomplete, and inaccurate information. Based on lessons learned from actual active assailant incidents, participants receive a mixture of valid and invalid reports throughout the simulation. Teams must determine which information is actionable, which information requires verification, and how to make critical decisions despite uncertainty. This aspect of the exercise consistently proves to be one of the most valuable learning opportunities for participants, as it closely replicates the information challenges encountered during actual incidents.

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Intended Audience

This exercise is designed for law enforcement, fire service, EMS, emergency communications personnel, emergency managers, school administrators, hospital administrators, critical infrastructure managers, government officials, and other leaders responsible for planning, response, recovery, and continuity of operations during active assailant incidents.

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Course Materials and Scheduling

For a detailed course description, please download the course PDF below. If you would like more information on booking this course, please email info@ThreatSuppression.com, or call 1-800-231-9106.