CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam 68 Game 9 Scenario Info - Page 31 - 15 Sep 25)

[CapnJim]

Christ! There's a barely a squad's worth left. That's pretty heavy attrition.

2 squads, actually (1st and 3rd).  But your point is still valid.  The question now, absent any replacements, is whether they'll first run out of months left in their tour, or troops left to conduct it....

We'll see what's left after Friday's game...

[Lord Raglan]

Christ! There's a barely a squad's worth left. That's pretty heavy attrition.

War is hell Carlos

.....but someday this war will end

[carlos marighela]

Indeed, almost certainly within the next five games.

Jim, if you need help killing off the rest there's a feature up by the border with Laos in the middle of the country called Hill 937. 

[CapnJim]

Indeed, almost certainly within the next five games.

Jim, if you need help killing off the rest there's a feature up by the border with Laos in the middle of the country called Hil 937. 

Wrong unit, there carlos.  Hill 937 was the One-Oh-First.  My guys are 1st Cav...nice thought though...

[carlos marighela]

Oh that's easy then, just send them up as part of the Cav's operations to relieve Hue. Another real meat grinder.

[CapnJim]

Too late.  It's already July of 1968....

But fear not.  I'm on it...

[CapnJim]

Well, that was sub-optimal...

We did indeed play our latest Nam '68 Tour of Duty game Friday.  As usual, Dave, Gene, and Ted played the Americans, while I played the VC and civilians.  Dave took 3rd Squad, Ted the Platoon HQ and the sniper team, and Gene 1st Squad and the M60 team.

Before we spin our yarn, let's take a look at our sleepy little hamlet (they are all beginning to look the same to 3rd platoon...), with its inhabitants (there were 12 of 'em) going about their business as the Americans approached from the east.







Our game begins as 1st Squad and the M60 team enter the board from the east.

Part 1:  Off to a Lousy Start.

As the Americans came on from the east, straddling the trail heading into the hamlet, it wasn't just townsfolk going about their business.  Four men with guns were there too.  While their guns were older bolt-action rifles, one had a scope on it.



1st Squad and the gun team cautiously worked their way west along the trail. 



The Americans were being watched.  Warily by the civilians, and pointedly by the boys of the VC.



As 1st Squad and the gun team worked their way to the edge of "town"...



...3rd Squad come up to their left rear...



...while SFC Daltry, his HQ, and the snipers came on to their right rear.



Some of the civilians began heading west, away from the approaching Americans, while the VC patiently watched and waited.



Daltry and his HQ approached their first objective building, while the sniper team crept forward in the bush at stream's edge.



The rifle squads and the gun team crept forward as well.  Things were quite.  Too quiet.



That quiet was shattered by the crack of a single rifle shot, and SSG Rahck went down.  Hard.  A sniper's bullet through his head.   





Men nearby shouted "Medic!" and Sniper!" and Cover!".  PFC Johnson did none of those.  Instead, he put an 40mm HE round from his M79 where he though the sniper's bullet came from.  His round landed close enough, and the VC sniper hit the dirt.   



Over at 1st Squad, at the east end of the hamlet astride the trail, 2 civilians were approaching them up the trail, seemingly with a purpose.  CPL Shaw had a bad feeling about them, as many of the other civvies were either getting the Hell out of dodge, or going about their daily chores.  Not these 2...



I'll leave it at that for now.  Part 2:  The Middle Wasn't Any Better... will be posted soon.

[carlos marighela]

Nicely told!

Do I spy with my little eye a Rubicon VC figure kitted out the the old Wargames Factory bolt action rifle from their Survivors set?

[Lord Raglan]

A gripping yarn for sure old boy, well told as usual sir 👍🏻

[has.been]

keep it coming.

[Ultravanillasmurf]

Ooh, exciting.

[CapnJim]

Nicely told!

Do I spy with my little eye a Rubicon VC figure kitted out the the old Wargames Factory bolt action rifle from their Survivors set?

Thank you.  And yes - your little eye did indeed spy that...

And to yous other guys, thanks as well.

Platitudes aside, here is...

Part 2:  The Middle Wasn't Any Better...

The members of 3rd Squad were stunned for a moment at the loss of SSG Rahck.  Well, except for PFC Johnson.  He and his M79 were on the lookout for that sniper...



Meanwhile, while the US sniper team was edging up along the creekside, an old villager seemingly ignoring them as he hobbled by...



...and SFC Daltry's men were clearing the first target building (they did find some VC supplies), an explosion rocked 1st Squad.  The Vietnamese chick that had approached them had suddenly chucked a grenade into the middle of CPL Shaw's fire team on the trail, killing CPL Shaw, badly wounding Private Bonham, and rattling PFC Bigelow. 

 

However, PFC Bigelow got better.  The other civilian, apparently startled at this turn of events, turn and ran away as fast as he could.  The young Vietnamese woman who threw the grenade was not so fast, and took a part of a flechette round from PFC Bigelow's M79 in her back, and she went down wounded.



1st and 3rd squads recovered their senses, and continued to cautiously advance into the hamlet.



At the west end of the sleepy little hamlet, more VC appeared (4 to be exact) along the stream.  They all had older bolt guns as well, but one of them also had a scope on his rifle.



Another crack of a rifle shot rang out, and SGT DeYoung, a team leader in 3rd Squad, fell badly wounded.  The VC sniper had struck again.  PFC Johnson, on alert now, fired his M79 at the sniper, but just barely missed him.



SFC Daltry was beginning to lose his shit.  He had 4 men down already, and they'd only cleared one building.  In an very agitated state, he issued orders for everyone to retreat, and get back to the RP.



The men in 3rd platoon obeyed the order.  Men grabbed the dead and wounded and began their withdrawal.

 

The VC smelled blood.  The 4 chaps who had just come on moved up the stream toward the Americans.  By now, what civilians were still around were bugging out as well.



The Americans kept up their withdrawal.  They did so carefully - this was not a rout, after all...







And that's it for now.  I'll post Part 3:  The End Sucked Too., which will be the final part, perhaps either later today, or more likely tomorrow.

[CapnJim]

Okay.  So I had a chance today.  I'll finish up 3rd Platoon's sad tale.

Part 3:  The End Sucked Too.

The men of 3rd Platoon kept up their withdrawal...



...while the VC kept up their pursuit.  While most of the weapons used so far had been the kind with explosives involved, there was sporadic small arms fire.  It amounted to little effect, occasionally pinning somebody down (well, except for that VC sniper...).





But more VC appeared, apparently exiting the big hooch at the west end of the hamlet.  Three more guys with old bolt guns, an officer, and his assistant.  The chap kneeling on the lanai began harrassing the Americans as they withdrew.



The M60 team, covering the retreat, traded ineffective fire with the pursuing VC who had made it to the north bridge.



The Americans kept up their retreat. 









Let's not forget, though, that this was a fighting retreat.  The M60 wasn't the only gun covering the withdrawal.  M79s were too.







By now, most of the Americans were well on their way to the RP.  The VC got one last parting shot in, killing one of the M60 loaders with rifle fire.  The Americans had to send men back to drag him off.   And the VC officer and his men advanced through the hamlet to secure the place, and to check on the wounded woman (she survived, by the way)...



It was over.  "Thank God" thought the Americans - I'm sure of that.

The Aftermath

This fight was, by far, the worst day thus far in our campaign for 3rd Plt, B Co, 2-12 Cav.  They ended up with 5 KIA (the 2 seriously wounded men ended up dying), with 3 of those being NCOs.  2 VC were responsible for 4 of those casualties - the woman who threw the grenade and the sniper.

The VC, on the other hand, suffered no KIA.  The woman who threw the grenade survived, and the only other VC who was wounded (the kneeling fellow by the bridge), was patched up by his buddy during the fight.

Once 3rd Platoon got back to the RP, SFC Daltry regained his composure, and called in Chickenman 1-2 to take out the KIA and the sniper team (who contributed nothing to the fight -they never were able to acquire any targets, even though the odds were with them).  They reorganized into 2 8-man squads, with the M60 team and the HQ.  They were nearly combat ineffective.

But not quite.  Their next mission, scheduled for 15 August, is a sweep up a creek valley, to search a fisherman's hooch that G2 says the VC are using for a supply point.  The good news is that they get to rendezvous with an M48, and it will accompany them on their mission.

This campaign has been very interesting.  It is wearing on the players, and that wear only manifests itself during these Nam '68 games.  A very interesting dynamic. 

I'll post the August scenario details about a week before the August game.  Pray for 3rd platoon.  They need all the help they can get...   

[has.been]

I don't know about 3rd Platoon, but I need a rest after that. 

[carlos marighela]

They're taking a real pasting. As ever, it seems that Country Joe McDonald was telling the truth!

Learned what Hawaiians call a verandah too.