United States Forces Korea (USFK) has created Lexicon, a war game to help allied and partner planners explore operations in the information environment (OIE) and enhance understanding of nonkinetic tools, capabilities, forces and activities for deterrence and defense.
Lexicon helps personnel learn about the utility and constraints of information tools as operational context changes, allowing them to assess scenarios and OIE dilemmas.
USFK tested the game with representatives from the Republic of Korea (ROK), United Nations member states, U.S. 8th Army and USFK directorates in October 2025 in Seoul, South Korea. The game was especially useful when working with ROK and U.N. personnel, as it spurred conversations about how to develop operations together, said U.S. Army Maj. Patrick Neky, an information operations targeting officer. The event included a workshop during which final adjustments were made before production, with delivery expected in January 2026.
USFK leadership emphasized the war game’s role in training and execution to deter North Korea and other potential adversaries from conflict and, if necessary, to defend the ROK. The OIE war game was crafted to sharpen understanding of the operational environment and illuminate competing objectives. By engaging in such scenarios, planners and leaders can explore, analyze and strategize the most effective actions.
Lexicon enables the testing of OIE options and teaches organizations how to apply and implement tactics.
At the start of the simulation, players representing China, Japan, North Korea, the ROK, Russia and the U.S. are briefed on a scenario in which each country has specific objectives, resources and information capabilities. During the game’s five iterations, each country attempts to influence the other players and apply its own resources and capabilities toward objectives that affect them.
There are five influence metrics: national leadership, relationships, internal support, public receptiveness and international legitimacy. Action cards represent capabilities such as social media campaigns, sanctions and bilateral exercises to affect other countries’ influence metrics. For example, public receptiveness reduces or increases the ease with which a player can influence a target country.
Competing interests mean each player must balance regional escalation, domestic support and global reputation in pursuing objectives. Players also learn to consider trade-offs among capabilities and their relative cost of implementation. The game is designed to adapt to various scenarios and developers hope to tailor it for other theaters and regions.
“Win or lose, you will learn more about the target countries and how to apply information operations,” said U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Jeremy Randlett.