Set during the World War III scenario outlined in Sir John Hackett's novel The Third World War: The Untold Story, the novel follows the titular United States Army armored company-sized team in combat against the Soviet Union after the Warsaw Pact invades Western Europe.

While Hackett's book emphasizes strategy and world politics, Coyle's features the experiences of the tank crews and infantrymen fighting on the front lines.

[citation needed] The novel achieved best-selling status and inspired a series of comic books, an Origins Award-winning board wargame, and a video game.

Over the summer of an unspecified year, relations between the United States and the Soviet Union deteriorate rapidly, particularly in the Persian Gulf.

On August 3, with the increasingly likely possibility of war, Bannon sends his wife Pat and their children to Rhein-Main Air Base to flee the country alongside other civilians, while also preparing to replace Garger for repeatedly troubling him.

Suddenly, as Reynolds inspects TF 3-78's positions, the Soviets attack, and Team Bravo's company commander is killed.

That evening, Pat and her children arrive at Rhein-Main and narrowly board an American aircraft as the Soviet Air Forces indiscriminately bomb fleeing civilians, while Bannon learns the staff are more enthusiastic about war than the soldiers who have actually seen combat.

Bannon however expresses doubts to Reynolds that the rest of the battalion, particularly C Company, can carry out their role in supporting the armor teams.

The Mech Platoon advances to secure the nearest town, but is attacked by a member of the Free German Youth, who is killed after wounding a soldier.

TF 3-78, resuming activities under Jordan, coordinates an ambush against a Soviet battalion approaching their position and a town, using scout troops and area denial artillery munitions in a reverse slope defense to force them into Team Yankee's lines.