Players will begin by training to become members of General Survey teams capable of operating in any environment. These are not military or tactical teams, just intended to study austere and extreme environments and collect information as directed as well as conducting liaisons with a variety of people of different cultures. The process is a year long and divided into eight six-week segments as follows:

1. Orientation, Introduction to Mission Planning and Fieldcraft
2. Small Unit Tactics
3. Survival, Evasion, and Human Intelligence (Urban and Temperate)
4. Mission Medical & Rescue Training (EMT, WFR, and TCCC + search and rescue)
5. Jungle Operations
6. Mountain Operations
7. Desert and Mobility Operations
8. Mission Planning Exercise

Each phase is mentally and physically strenuous, with very little free time and significant time spent outdoors.

Training is conducted in 30-40 man “platoons”. A training platoon will be formed into several Teams for the Mission Planning Exercise, and these teams will deploy together.

Before arrival, all General Survey trainees should be capable of the following:

• Vision correctable to 20/20
• Licensed driver
• No medical conditions requiring medication
• No hearing aids requires or significant physical disability
• Pass a Project-designed physical and have a battery of vaccinations
• 40 pushups in two minutes
• 50 situps in two minutes
• 4 pullups without touching the ground
• Running 2 kilometers in 10 minutes
• Carrying a 15-kilogram pack five kilometers in 45 minutes.
• Swimming 100 meters without stopping, treading water for five minutes
• Climbing a rope, lifting and carrying their own body weight 25 meters, and vaulting a meter wall.

They are also expected to review Course manuals and take online trainings based on:

• Project leadership & fieldcraft manual
• SAS Survival Handbook
• US Army Ranger Handbook
• WFR, TCCC, and EMT guides
• Project Mountaineering, Jungle, and Desert handbooks plus supplementary reading

(The US Army Survival Handbook and Ranger Handbook are available online for those interested in inhabiting their characters more, and information on all the other topics can be found online as well)

Team members should be prepared to teach classes based on their individual areas of expertise.