The gunfire erupts in the bush around the "Afghan village" as Army reservists from WA's 13 Brigade fight their way in to clear the buildings of insurgents.

The bullets may be blanks and their adversaries only enemy in name, but the training is deadly serious.

The "village" is just east of Perth in the centre of the Bindoon Military Training Area, the focal point for a final round of intensive training before a major exercise in Queensland in July.

WA will be sending its largest ever contingent of reservists for the combined force operations, as part of Talisman Sabre, a joint exercise with other Australian units and military forces from the United States.

Private Michael Mani rifleman with 16 Battalion. ( ABC News: Andrew O'Connor )

In Bindoon, in drizzling rain, the soldiers patrolled, escorted convoys through ambushes and cleared villages of insurgents, training to operate both in the Australian bush and the urban environments of places like Afghanistan and Iraq.

"At the end of the day, it's a high-risk environment and we understand that and we roll with it," said 16 Battalion Army reservist, Private Michael Mani.

"The big one for us is our urban ops — our ability to transit from a rural environment into an urban environment. Building clearances. Room clearances. Providing all round security."

Once dismissed as weekend warriors, Australian reservists have been integrated into the nation's most demanding overseas missions for more than 15 years.

Brigadier David Thompson says Army Reserves play a greater role than in the past. ( ABC News: Andrew O'Connor )

Reservists have served in warfighting operations Afghanistan and Iraq and members of WA's 13 Brigade played a key role in peacekeeping operations in places like the Solomon Islands.

"The Army reserves obviously have a much greater role than they have in the past and a culture of readiness," 13 Brigade Commander David Thompson said.

"We're a part of the full-time Army. We deploy on operations. Effectively, one-third of our brigade has deployed on previous operations and will deploy on future operations for the Australian Army," he said.

'Inherent risks in military training'

But while deployments can be dangerous, so can training.

About a third of Army Reservists have been deployed on previous defence operations. ( ABC News: Andrew O'Connor )

Like units across the country, WA's 13 Brigade suspended operations after the death of two soldiers in recent separate training accidents in Darwin and Queensland.

"Our brigade immediately stopped in accordance with the direction and went back and look at our military risk profile for the current training we were doing and also for future activities," Mr Thompson said.

But with Australia now considering a request from the United States for more forces in Afghanistan, these soldiers know only too well that hard training skills honed here could prove life-saving and lethal over there.

Frontline leaders such as Lieutenant Marius Basanovic manage that delicate balance between demanding training to prepare for combat and keeping his soldiers safe.

"There are inherent risks in any military training, but I can say with my hand on my heart that I have done everything I can in my power to ensure my soldiers are conducting their training safely," he said.

Army reservists from all walks of life

Lieutenant Marius Basanovic says there's inherent risk in any training operation. ( ABC News: Andrew O'Connor )

The soldiers doing the planning, driving, patrolling and fighting in the bush around Bindoon are as diverse in their motivations as they are in their backgrounds.

Lieutenant Basanovic is law student who is leading a platoon preparing for convoy escort duty. His team's mission involves driving to a replenishment point in hostile territory to resupply their vehicles and troops, while on-guard against attack.

"There's no other job where you can be 25 years old and command men and millions of dollars worth of equipment," he said.

Private Punitha Perumal is a 39-year-old white-collar professional who trades her keyboard and spreadsheets for a rifle and an Army truck.

She has been in the Army Reserve for four years and says it is a world away from her day job.

"I'm an accountant, so I work with computers and calculators, and I wanted to do something different on the weekend," she said.

"You get a good Monday morning story when you speak to your colleagues. 'How was your weekend? I played soldier'."

Private Punitha Perumal, says being in the Reserves is a world away from her day job.

Private Perumal joined for the old fashioned reason — she wanted a challenge.

"It might sound cliche but the advertisement is what it is — challenge yourself. It pushes me outside my physical boundary, gender boundary, culture boundary, I'm way out of my comfort zone here," she said.

"Change happens outside your comfort zone. That's why I'm doing this."

The WA reserves will be well outside their comfort zone when they join thousands of Australian regular Army and reserve troops in Shoalwater Bay in July.

After completing Exercise Talisman Sabre, the WA reservists will form part of the Australian Army's ready brigade, fully prepared for operational deployment.