[Nam 68] Platoon - UD 27/4 final AAR of first game

[commissarmoody]

Yeah a few more VC and NVA might be in order. Are you going to do more work with the Perry civilwar figs for the them?

[Silent Invader]

Aha: great minds Steve  

Your cards, are they for characters, events, both?

I use standard playing cards for the activation. I did make cards for everyone in the Platoon and for the VC but it was far easier to shuffle playing cards and any character specific details are on a much easier to reference sheet. Here's the entry for Barnes:



It's an untypical entry, as the personal adjusters (PAs) for most of the cast members are 0. But Barnes is special, very special.  

The PAs are just used as appropriate alongside any other modifiers for Shooting, etc.

I'm not using cards for events, just a reference table, which is what the RIP test is generated by.

[Silent Invader]

Yeah a few more VC and NVA might be in order. Are you going to do more work with the Perry civilwar figs for the them?

I've got about 30 Perry plastics to convert into VC, mostly to go into 6 man Assault Groups but there'll be RPGs etc too

[Elk101]

The cards are for support options available to each side with the US and allies having cards that make Close Air Support or Contact Fire Missions quicker (they have to be requested and approved,  they don't just arrive),  as well as providing intel that offsets the Communist player's cards and other advantages.  The Communist Support Cards provide events like tunnel entrances appearing, foxholes,  snipers, Doubtfuls (are they unarmed villagers or are they Vc?), control over booby trap events, and other such things. As they rely on being played to either respond to something or to set something up I'm having trouble getting solo play rules to work smoothly. Incidentally I've called my Vietnam rules BOHICA which I understand stood for 'Bend Over Here It Comes Again' (ie getting sent out to something else shit).

[Silent Invader]

BOHICA 

I see. I built fire support (which also includes air support, basically anything big and bangy  that comes from off-table) in as a function of Wolfe and Barnes (or a FOO). It's always called for so requires working comms and there's a risk of it being off-target. Barnes' Shooting PA mean he's more likely to get it right whereas Wolfe, much less so.  The other stuff you mention is built into markers (real or dummy) or generated by the RIP table for solo games, though my 'events' are narrower/simpler.

In non-solo games, using real and dummy markers does mean that the player needs to keep track (a list!) but personally I don't find that too onerous.

 

[Elk101]

From what I'm aware of from reading on the subject, the US support,  whether air or artillery based, was used regularly, often as an early option rather than as a last resort. It doesn't make for a decent game to have one player get the shit knocked out of them by off table support so I made such supports required by requests, which must be radiod in and approved.  They then have a delivery time to wait. This makes the timing unknown to both players and gives the Communist player a little wriggle room. These support options also cost Victory Points which could give them a negative score. They might destroy the enemy in the field but it won't translate to a broader victory due to the reliance on US support. The  Communist player could 'win' despite being annihilated.

The US player is more likely to get support if they are under fire and have casualties,  representing a prioritisation of support. In certain games they are not allowed at all, mainly outside of Free Fire Zones.

[Silent Invader]

That all makes sense. I've read of Fire Support being called in on a single sniper, which is what happened in the game above. To make it less effective I have a single max 9" burst radius per turn with the likelihood (more so for Wolfe!) that it won't be spot on target. Minis in bunkers and holes are also immune to it unless they are the hit centre. I let it happen when successfully callled, so as not to be hanging around for the next turn.

[Elk101]

I liked the fact that a CFM got called in in your report game. Artillery is a whole mini game with different types of fire missions, sheaf patterns,  etc that can be (optionally) used. That way you can request a mission based on the specific situation such as a basic Battery One barrage through to Zone & Sweep and Time on Target. The more you fire the more Victory Points you give up.

Sorry, I'm derailing this a bit, I'm just enjoying comparing notes!

[Silent Invader]

No derailing at all Steve. It's great to hear your thoughts. I wouldn't discourage anyone else from interjecting either 

Anyways this is the project thread and rules are part of it! 

Your rules sound like they're more involved than mine: yours sound much more in keeping with the range of possibilities of the theatre, weapons and forces, etc. Much like the movies, mine are very focussed on what the men of the Platoon can experience  so - using fire support as an example - it can be called, it can arrive, and hopefully it'll be in roughly the right place. They're geared to what the Platoon experiences with everything else pretty much off-screen. For that reason, I don't think mine would work for games of more than about 35 a side; as the games get bigger there's a tendency to want more in it, etc. Similarly, I don't have vehicle rules and I very much doubt I'll add them.

Btw I very much like your Conmunist forces can 'win despite losing', as it were. Seems very in keeping to me. 

[Elk101]

Likewise I'm liking your movie based approach and wouldn't mind a game! Besides, you were very clear on your intentions from the outset, it's a 'feel' you are out to capture.

Funnily enough my game is only about a platoon a side maximum.

[Silent Invader]

Gotcha. Will you be having vehicle support?

[Elk101]

Gotcha. Will you be having vehicle support?

Yes though I haven't really playtested them yet just run numbers and dice rolls. Vehicles aren't intended to be a big element of the game but I thought I had to include them. The difficulty has been in making sure it's not overly complex but still ensuring that it is logical. Helicopters and fixed wings are part of the support system but helicopters must be represented by a model unless they are FACS. They have a limited time on the table.

I included river craft too.

[Silent Invader]

Comprehensive 

[Elk101]

Comprehensive 

I keep having to go back and simplify them as I got a bit carried away. I tried to find out vehicle speeds so they could all move relative to one another but really I should just categorise them. I tried to do the same with armour. Without something heavy the Communist player will struggle to take out heavy armour but the trick is obviously to negate it through terrain, etc. You can't just throw stuff around at top speed though as low flying helos can clip trees, jeeps and trucks can swerve off roads,  etc. Nothing complex, just a roll you make if you're pushing your luck.

[Silent Invader]

It's certainly easy to get carried away in the throes of rule writing, that's for sure. Taking the movie angle has certainly made it easier for me to stay focused, as if I get stuck or wander I can simply ask myself how the situation might have been managed on screen. I must have watched Platoon about 50 times now.