When the Totenkorps first arose on the battlefields of France in 1944 panic and terror gripped Commonwealth forces. Every advance became a nightmare. Any village, field, or wood could contain the corpses of the living dead. They might wait patiently until the frontline passed over them so they could rise and strike at the vulnerable rear areas, or they might simply rend anything that came close. Commonwealth soldiers found that dogs could quickly sniff out the danger, but were driven so mad with terror they couldn't be relied upon. The controversial scientist Dr William Sargant championed the creation of Cerberus units, dogs surgically and chemically altered to suppress their fear instincts. Cerberus units are viewed as something of a mixed blessing, with some regiments adamantly refusing to deploy them.