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Author Topic: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Next Game Scheduled - Page 16 - 15 Feb 25)  (Read 33522 times)

Offline has.been

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As usual, excellent preparation work.
I look forward to your AAR and your opinion of the rules.

Offline AKULA

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As usual, excellent preparation work.
I look forward to your AAR and your opinion of the rules.

100% This.

I love reading AAR, but even CapnJim's pre-game reports are an enjoyable read

 :)

Offline CapnJim

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Thank you, Gentlemen.  I appreciate your comments.  I also appreciate that some of you get what inspired most of the platoon's names.

Now, down to business.  We did play yesterday (Friday, the 17th).  Once I get the photos sorted, I will write the AAR (likely within a day or 3).  Immediately following the AAR, I'll post our thoughts on the rules thus far (I will say this now - they are pretty positive).  But to tease you along until I get those 2 things sorted out, here's a snippet of the action yesterday:

Rounds were zipping past him, and thunking the dock he was behind and the pile of grain bags stacked on it.  It wasn't a heavy fire, but it was enough to keep Sgt. DeYoung's head down.  He was waist-deep in the stream, and trading fire with VC in trees and brush on the other side of the marshy area in front of him.  Things were not going well, not that that was anything new....

Pvt. Ponozzo, to his right, must have blown his wad right off the bat.  He was now just taking pot shots at those same VC.  Worse, Spec 4 Shaw (his grenadier) and PFC Young had worked their way up the hill to his front left toward that hooch, but they must have been hit - he couldn't see them anymore, and they weren't firing.

"Where the f**k is Jagger and the other fire team?" Sgt. DeYoung sharply said out loud, to no one in particular.  He hoped they'd get the hell up here fast...

There you have it.  AAR and rules review to follow soon...
"Remember - Incoming Fire Has the Right-of-Way"

Offline CapnJim

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Game 1 Full AAR - Page 14 - 19 Jan 25)
« Reply #198 on: January 19, 2025, 07:38:37 PM »
And now, Ladies and Gentlemen (or perhaps Meine Damen und Herren, or even Mujeres y Caballeros), I present to you...

1st month:  Same Shit, Different Day.

Prologue

Lt. Entwistle and SFC Daltry had both just been assigned to 3rd platoon, Bravo Company, of 2-12 Cav in the 1st Cav Division.  In fact, they'd only been there a few days, with SFC Daltry with a couple days' head start.

That didn't stop The Old Man from giving them a mission.  "Should be no sweat" he said.  "Just a routine security patrol a couple of clicks outside the wire" he said.  "You guys can handle it" he said.  SFC Daltry, with one tour in 'Nam already, along with combat experience in Korea, knew better than to buy that load of crap.  "L-T, The Old Man says one squad, right?.  Then it's either Jagger or Delp.  They both been around a few blocks."  "Yeah, I agree." said the Lt.  "Send Alias and his 60 team out, too."  "Good idea, sir.  We'll send Moon out, as well.  We don't send nobody outside the wire without a medic."

"OK, Sergeant Daltry.  Let's go with Jagger's squad.  He's always talkin' himself up.  Let's see what he's got."  "Yup.  Good idea, L-T.  I'll go grab 'im."

A couple hours later, SSG Jagger and his patrol were moving north up a trail that ran more or less alongside a stream.  The water in the stream was about thigh high mostly.  About 2 and a half clicks out, Jagger gave the "rally around me" hand signal, twirling his right hand above his head.  His men all went down on their knees, facing outward.  Sergeants Richards and DeYoung, his team leaders, came up to see what was up.  SSG Jagger spoke softly "OK, there's a bridge  about 500 meters up the trail, at a couple fisherman's hooches.  Sgt. DeYoung, you take point.  Spread out, don't bunch up.  I'll bring up Sgt. Richards, Cpl. Alias, and Spec 4 Moon.  We'll stay about 40 yards behind you.  Clear?"  Everyone nodded.  "OK.  Move out"  And they did.

Contact!

Sgt. DeYoung did indeed take point.  He moved up the trail, with Pvt. Panozzo on his right, and Spec 4 Shaw (his grenadier) and PFC Young on his left.  When they got to the bridge, Sgt, DeYoung covered his men, using the bridge for some cover, as they waded across the stream.  So far, all they could see were a few civilians.



Staff Sgt. Jagger did as he said.  He and the rest of the men on patrol spread out into a line abreast, about 40 meters behind Sgt. DeYoung.  Sgt. Richards' fire team was on his left, and Cpl. Alias' M60 team was on his right.  The medic was fight there next to him.



What SSG Jagger's patrol didn't know (yet) was that some VC were also approaching the little cluster of hooches.  Cue the dramatic music.  The fishermen had ferried in some supplies, and the Regional VC officer and 7 men were there to collect those supplies.  The officer and his assistant, moved up toward the hooch on the hill (one place where the supplies might be), while 3 VC with old WW2-era rifles moved along the base of the small hill to their right.

 

3 more VC, with SKSs/carbines were in cover in a copse of trees between the trail and the stream.  They announced themselves by firing at Sgt. DeYoung's men, advancing towards some bushy areas on the edge of a small marsh.  "Contact front!" yelled Sgt. DeYoung, slapping the top of his helmet with his right hand and pointing to his front.  His men, of course, returned fire.



Sgt. DeYoung was new still fairly new in country, but he kept his eyes and ears open.  He saw those 3 VC advancing carefully at the edge of the marsh.  He and Panozzo fired at then (with some effect), while he ordered, via hand signals, Shaw and Young to work their way up the low hill toward the hooches.  They complied with the order.   But, he noticed that Panozzo was just taking single shots with his M16. He wondered about Panozzo's fire discipline at first contact.  He'd talk to him about that later.  Also, by now, the civilians were scattering to the north.  All but a woman standing still as could be by the hooch on the hill.





SSG Jagger, hearing the weapons fire, had Cpl. Alias move the edge of the trees on their hill and set up his 60, and engage targets of opportunity.  SSG Jagger then moved (slowly - very slowly) with Sgt. Richards' fire team, through the trees toward a second, smaller bridge over the side stream.



The VC on their right made their way along the base of the small hill with the hooch on it, toward the other hooch.



By now, Sgt. DeYoung's fire team was in a precarious position.  He could no longer see (or hear) Shaw and Young up on the hill, and he figured they must be down.  Panozzo must be low on ammo, and he and Panozzo were both waist deep in "this f**kin' leach-infested stream" (Sgt. DeYoung's words, not mine).  It was right about then when he wondered out loud where SSG Jagger might be. 

He found out.  He could now hear firing coming from his left and left rear, not to mention the distinctive sound an M60 makes, firing from behind his position.  The tracers from the M60 fire were a clue, as well.  He saw Panozzo drop one of those VC at the edge of the marsh across from them, but another came up and start to drag him away.  Panozzo made that one keep his head down.  "He might be only takin' single shots, butm man, he's makin' 'em count." though Sgt. DeYoung...and that gave Sgt. DeYoung a chance to search the grain bags on the dock where he had taken cover.  It was rice, and a lot of it, more than a few fishermen would need.

What Sgt, DeYoung didn't see, was just about the same thing happen to his left front.  SSG Jagger and Sgt. Richards' fire team had (finally) made it to the stream, started crossing it, and engaged the 3 VC over there as they were trying an end run. They wounded one of the VC, and the others started dragging him away.





In both of the 2 groups of VC, they tried to drag their wounded comrades to safety, but kept getting pinned down by US fire.  The coup-de-gras occurred when the VC officer and his assistant got up by the hooch on the low hill.  The assistant, armed with his old MP40, tried to get at Spec 4 Shaw and PFC Young, who were indeed lying wounded by some wicker fencing in front of the hooches.  The VC assistant didn't make it. He was unceremoniously stitched up and cut down by a burst of well-aimed and well-timed fire from Cpl. Alias' M60 machine gun.

And, that dear readers, was that.  The VC bugged out, dragging their 2 wounded men with them.  They left the dead man on the hill, as they could not get to him.  Firing died down to nothing, and the US men carefully advanced to secure the area.

Epilogue

It was a sharp little firefight.  It could not have taken more than 10 or 15 minutes.  To Sgt, DeYoung, it seemed a lot longer than that.  Once the patrol secured the area, they found the dead VC, and realized these weren't mere Local Force VC they had fought - they were Regional Force VC.  And, they had found a pretty significant VC supply stash.  They also found and de-rigged a booby trap by the door to the hooch on the hill.

But it came at a cost.  SP4 Shaw (Sgt, DeYoung's grenadier) had been shot up pretty bad.  PFC Young, who was with SP4 Shaw, was wounded too, but not as badly.  Fortunately neither were killed.  SSG Jagger sent a couple men from Sgt. Richards' team back to their firebase, and SP4 Shaw and PFC Young were medevac'd out.  And the VC supply cache was secured and (as appropriate) either taken back to the firebase or destroyed.

When they got back to base, they learned that Sgt. Young (3rd Squad's B Team Leader, and no relation to PFC Young) had been killed by a sniper while checking on his men on perimeter duty.  Lt. Entwistle and SFC Daltry then transferred Sgt. DeYoung to lead 3rd Squad's B team (once they got back to the firebase, Sgt. DeYoung had complained to SFC Daltry about SSG Jagger's slow response to the fight at the fisherman's hooches).  SP4 Shaw was medevac'd to Saigon, and would be out of action for a few months, but he would make it.  And PFC Young would be fine, but would be on Light Duty for a month.  And Sgt. DeYoung and his fire team members, having taken the brunt of the fight, were now Veterans.

And, as of right now, the Platoon's Body Count Kill Ratio stands at 1 - 1.  Not bad, but not good - The Old Man will be having a chat with 2LT Entwistle about that.

As I mentioned, I'll post a bit of a review on the Nam '68 Tour of Duty rules here in a day or 2.  And as we get closer to February's fight, I'll post the updated Platoon Roster here, as well as the scenario info.  But, suffice it to say, the threat level has gone up (Charlie's getting all skippy now...), and our next mission will be further out in the shit.
« Last Edit: January 19, 2025, 07:40:16 PM by CapnJim »

Offline carlos marighela

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Game 1 Full AAR - Page 14 - 19 Jan 25)
« Reply #199 on: January 19, 2025, 08:17:20 PM »
Enjoyed that. Judging by the casualties, the rules don't seem to be the blood fest favoured by many other sets. Seems much closer to the mark to me.

Of course this being Vietnam and the US Army, you know we are all looking forward to the AAR where the grenade gets rolled under the platoon commander's cot.  lol
Em dezembro de '81
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Pede o mundo de novo

Offline Lord Raglan

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Game 1 Full AAR - Page 14 - 19 Jan 25)
« Reply #200 on: January 19, 2025, 09:10:41 PM »
Loving the narrative Jim, you are putting a huge amount of time and effort into these bateps, they are a pleasure to read.

You are setting the bar high mate.

Online Gunbird

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Game 1 Full AAR - Page 14 - 19 Jan 25)
« Reply #201 on: January 19, 2025, 09:26:55 PM »
Not good, but not bad.....sums up your first month rather well :)

Looking forward to the next installment!
Who is Gunbird? Johan van Ooij, Dutch, Mercenary Gamer, no longer mobile and happy to live life while it lasts >> http://20mmandthensome.blogspot.com/

Offline has.been

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Game 1 Full AAR - Page 14 - 19 Jan 25)
« Reply #202 on: January 19, 2025, 10:39:05 PM »
Fascinating stuff Capt. Please keep it up. :)

Offline BeneathALeadMountain

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Game 1 Full AAR - Page 14 - 19 Jan 25)
« Reply #203 on: January 19, 2025, 11:02:56 PM »
Thank you for posting, looking forwards to reading your thoughts on the game (only read through it so far but I like Warwick’s approach). Your AAR has made me realise that maybe I don’t need a massive collection to start (I have nothing bar a couple of unmade m113’s).

Looking forwards to watching your campaign progress, it’s really helping to motivate me.

Andrew
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« Last Edit: January 20, 2025, 02:54:37 AM by BeneathALeadMountain »
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Offline mikedemana

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Game 1 Full AAR - Page 14 - 19 Jan 25)
« Reply #204 on: January 20, 2025, 05:07:42 PM »
Fun AAR, Jim! I have been reading a lot of accounts by Vietnam veterans lately, and this small scale action definitely rings true! Hope everyone enjoyed it. Did you play the VC and Ted and Gene the fire team commanders? How did you divvy up the troops?

Mike Demana

Offline Ultravanillasmurf

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Game 1 Full AAR - Page 14 - 19 Jan 25)
« Reply #205 on: January 20, 2025, 06:32:23 PM »
Thanks for the AAR, looking forward to the next instalment.

Offline CapnJim

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Game 1 Full AAR - Page 14 - 19 Jan 25)
« Reply #206 on: January 20, 2025, 09:26:37 PM »
Enjoyed that. Judging by the casualties, the rules don't seem to be the blood fest favoured by many other sets. Seems much closer to the mark to me.

Of course this being Vietnam and the US Army, you know we are all looking forward to the AAR where the grenade gets rolled under the platoon commander's cot.  lol

Thanks!  And yes - depending on the type of fire involved (which I will get to in my rules review), figures are more likely to be pinned vs. wounded or killed outright.  As far as fragging the LT goes, that possibility (albeit a slim possibility) exists...

Loving the narrative Jim, you are putting a huge amount of time and effort into these bateps, they are a pleasure to read.

You are setting the bar high mate.

Not good, but not bad.....sums up your first month rather well :)

Looking forward to the next installment!

Fascinating stuff Capt. Please keep it up. :)

Thanks for the AAR, looking forward to the next instalment.

Thanks, fellas![/size]

Fun AAR, Jim! I have been reading a lot of accounts by Vietnam veterans lately, and this small scale action definitely rings true! Hope everyone enjoyed it. Did you play the VC and Ted and Gene the fire team commanders? How did you divvy up the troops?

Mike Demana

Thanks, Mike.  I'll be running the VC and civilians in all the games.  The US guys will be run by whoever else is present.  In this case, Gene ran SSG Jagger, SGT Richards' fire team, and the medic.  Dave ran SGT DeYoung's fire team, and Ted ran CPL Alias' gun team.

Thank you for posting, looking forwards to reading your thoughts on the game (only read through it so far but I like Warwick’s approach). Your AAR has made me realise that maybe I don’t need a massive collection to start (I have nothing bar a couple of unmade m113’s).

Looking forwards to watching your campaign progress, it’s really helping to motivate me.

Andrew
BeneathALeadMountain

Thanks.   Yeah - as we did, I'd start off with a 1-squad game, in a Low-threat environment.  You would only need 12-15 US figs and maybe up to 15 or so VC to start like that.

I have an American Legion meeting tonight, so my plan is to do the rules review hopefully tomorrow (Tuesday).     

Offline CapnJim

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Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Rules Review - Page 14 - 21 Jan 25)
« Reply #207 on: January 21, 2025, 06:25:26 PM »
OK.  As promised, here is a review of Nam ’68 Tour of Duty.  It's an overview with our thoughts on them. 

But first, and interesting tidbit.  At my American legion meeting last night, one of the guys who is a regular attendee served as an RTO in Vietnam.  As it turns out, he served in A Co, 2-12 cav, in the 1st Cav Div, in '69 and'70.  Without knowing that, I had chosen B Co., 2-12 cav, 1st Cav Div. as my platoon's unit, in '68 and '69.  I told him about our campaign, and be agreed to act as sort of a consultant if I had any questions about stuff in country.  Last night we discussed Dog Handlers, medevacs in the jungle, how hard it was to see very far in some of the jungle terrain, and his Co.'s and B Co.'s nicknames.  A Co. was Aces High, and B Co. was Bad Bets (they were all card game related).  So, when our Platoon Leader calls the B Co. Commander on the radio, he'll be trying to reach "Bad Bets 6". 

With that out of the way, on with the review.

Overview

The book is beautiful.  Great production value.   I got the hard-bound version, and it is very nice.  It has a table of contents, as well as an index.  It has 4 major parts to it:  The game rules; organizing your platoon (although this is split into 2 separate sections – not sure why they did that); setting up a game scenario; and the campaign and post-battle rules.

All in all, we enjoyed the rules.  They cover just about any situation that might come up on a Vietnam battlefield.  I may even use them for some more modern games.

The Game Rules Themselves

The game is divided into turns.  A turn is when one side gets its activations.  So, after each side has been the active side, that’s 2 turns.  Sides alternate turns, with the Mission dictating which side gets the first turn.  The Missions also dictate initial force deployments and any reinforcements. 

In each turn, the active side’s figures can take either a Basic Action, or an Advanced Action.  Each figure can (usually) take no more than one action.   How many Basic Actions a side gets in its turn is determined by rolling a d6 per US squad on the table (so, in a 1-squad game a side gets to roll 1d6 to see how many Basic actions it gets that turn).  The game comes with Morale chits (more on that later), numbered 1 through 5.  The active side draws one chit per US squad in the fight from a suitable container, and that’s how many Advanced Actions the side gets.  Then, the inactive side draws a Morale chit to see how many Hazard Actions (basically, reactions) it gets in the turn.  In the VC turns, the referee/VC player must use his/her action to activate VC, as well as any civilians there might be.  Each turn length is variable, depending on the numbers of actions determined each turn.  Generally, not all figures will activate each turn.  That helps make things interesting.  And challenging.

Basic Actions are, well, basic.  There are just 2 – Cautious Move (5”, unaffected by terrain) and Suppressing Fire (roll to hit, and roll a cover save.  Fails pin the shot-at figure, although there is an outside chance suppressing fire will actually hit someone).  NCOs (Platoon Sergeants, and Squad and Team Leaders – although the book contradicts itself on which of these 3 can do this, so we decided all 3 can) can “influence” the men in their platoon, squad, and fire team respectively, within 10” of the NCO.  They do the same Basic Action as the NCO, for a reduced cost in Actions.  We liked that rule.

Advanced Actions cover just everything else.  Sprinting (either 10” or 2d6+4”, reduced by a d6 in rough terrain); Targeted Fire (roll to observe, roll to hit, roll cover save, and for failures, roll for wounds (pinned, light wound, serious wound, dead); Covering Fire (the game’s version or overwatch or opportunity fire); Run and Gun (Cautious Move and Suppressing Fire, or vice versa); Search; Challenge Civilians (makes civilians – including VC infiltrators – run away); Drive (for vehicle drivers/chopper pilots): Medic! (Anyone can try to treat Light Wounds.  Medics get a better chance with Light Wounds, and are the only ones who can treat Serious Wounds); Commanding (a figure with the “Commander” rule - Platoon Leader, Platoon Sergeant – and access to an RTO can add Actions to their pool that turn); Request Support Fire (if any is available, but can also be used to call in a Medevac.  Can only be done by a figure with the "Commander" rule and access to a radio); Courage Under Fire (gives a Pinned figure a chance to unpin and do something, out of the normal Rally Phase of their turn); Hazard: Ammo Check (allows the active player to force an Ammo Check on an enemy figure who Returned Fire, to see if they run Low on Ammo).

Hazard Actions (those that the inactive player can take in reaction to the active player’s actions)   They include Return Fire (just as it sounds); Ammo Check (allows the inactive player to force an Ammo Check on an enemy figure who Fired, to see if they run Low on Ammo); Resolve Check (cause an enemy figure who was about to Sprint to take a Resolve Check (the game’s version of a morale check – failure pins the figures and cancels the Sprint action), Detonate Booby-Trap (yep – just as it sounds, for when an enemy figure wanders too close to a pre-set booby trap); Move Civilian (US player only – may move a civilian up to a Sprint Move, in any direction, including off the board).

Once all the Basic, Advanced, and Hazard Actions have been used in a turn, the Morale chits used to determined Action numbers are put back in the Morale Chit container.  The player whose turn it is may attempt to rally pinned figures, and the cost of drawing a Morale chit to keep for every 3 figures he/she wants to try to Rally.
 
Each force has a Total Morale Value (the sum total of the Morale Values of its members).  That is their Break Point (although the book only infers this – it doesn’t come right out and specify it).  As the force Rallies figures, takes casualties, comes under Supporting Fires, etc. It must draw Morale chits, and keep those.  They then form a running total.  Once that running total hits the Break Point for one or both sides, the game ends.  There are some Morale chits that have Special Actions.  These usually help a friendly figure or hurt an enemy one.  They count as 0 toward the Break Point, and also count as ) fro advanced and hazard Actions.   

We enjoyed the way the game turn flowed.  The only issue we had (and it got better as we got on in the game) was confusing the processes for Suppressing Fire and Targeted Fire).  Also, we did not use Fire Support Requests in game 1.  We will in Game 2.

Setting Up the Platoon

The rules include TO&Es for US Army (straight leg, mech, and air cav) and USMC platoons.  Teams (the Platoon HQ, fire teams, and support weapon teams) are rated by Morale level (Reluctant, Stoic, and Fervent – not words I would have used, by the get the message across) and Experience level (Recruit, Veteran, and Elite).  Each figure has a Morale Value and Resolve Number (which must be rolled or higher to pass a Resolve Test), which are functions of the Morale and Experience Levels. 

It would think it would be pretty easy to use this system to do up a platoon of ANZAC, ARVN, or even ROK troops for one-off games.  To use it for a US platoons’ 1-year Tour of Duty, all figures start out as Stoic Recruit.  Figures also roll to see how much time each one has left in country (their Short status).  These is a mechanism to promote teams to Veteran status at the beginning of the campaign, as well as the possibility of understrength squads.  It our case, 2nd and 3rd squads’ Fire Teams A ended up being Veterans, while all 3 Fire Teams B were down 1 man.  I also decided to make the Platoon Sergeant a veteran, and gave each of the 2 M60 teams an extra ammo humper.

This process was really pretty straightforward, and their TO&Es were pretty spot on.

Setting up the Scenarios

Once the platoon is set up, the GM/Referee (who does all the paperwork) sets up the scenarios - one game per month of the platoon’s Tour of Duty, and plays the VC and civilians.  This is an 8-step process.

1.  Establish the Threat Level (Low, Medium or High).  The Tour of Duty starts at Low, but is adjusted randomly as the Tour progresses).
2.  Establish the game size (1, 2 or 3 squads).  We decided on a 1-squad game to start, to learn the rules.  From now on, it’ll be determined randomly.
3.  Generate the Mission.  Determined randomly.  Could be anything from a Local Security Patrol, to an all-out Assault (maybe even into a Hot LZ).  There is even the (slim) chance for a VC attack on the platoon’s firebase.
4.  Generate the Location:  Again, determined randomly.  Could be anywhere from deep jungle to a village.  Board sizes will (in our case anyway) be dependent on the size of the fight (number of squads).  Our 1-squad fight was done on a 4.5’ x 4.5’ table.
5.  Determine Civilians.  Again, determined randomly, and is a function of the Threat Level and the Location.  Could be anywhere from none to 3d6.  The game has good rules for how civilians work, including the possibility of VC infiltrators.
6.  Search points.  Some Missions include a randomly determined number of Search Points.  If a US figure uses a Search Advanced Action while adjacent to a Search point, they roll on a chart to see what they find.  Depending on what that is, the VC player may need to draw Morale chits to add to their running total.  It could also be booby-trapped!
7.  Sub-Plots.  Kinda like a pre-determined random event chart.  For example, in our first game, we had an “Ornery Animal” (the ox in the animal pen).  In the next game, the US side will get 2 extra Fire Support Requests.   
8.  Determine VC.  Yes, the game only includes VC.  The VC force is determined by using a standard playing card deck.  Depending on the game size and threat level, the GM draw a certain number of cards, and can keep some of them.  The kept cards determine the VC force.  Spades are Main Force VC, Clubs are Regional Force VC, Hearts are Local VC, and Diamonds are such things as tunnel entrances, booby traps, bunkers, etc.  The higher the card, the better the unit the card gets you.  For example, the 4 of Clubs gets the VC 3 men with bolt action rifles and a grenade.  The 10 of Hearts will get the VC 3 men with BA rifles, 1 man with a scoped BA sniper rifle, and an infiltrator with a pistol or grenade.  The VC units are provided with Morale and Experience ratings and Morale Values. 

This whole process is interesting.  It virtually guarantees that all 12 games will be different, and that some will be easier, and others harder.  As the GM, I like it.

After the Game

Once a side reaches its Break point (or voluntarily retreats), there is a process to follow to see what the result of the fight is.  It is an 11-step process, and we did it immediately upon the end of the fight (the VC broke).

1.  Determine survival.  Figures with Light and Serious Wounds are checked for survival.  Their odds of survival depend on which side broke, whose side they are on, their level of wound, etc.
2.  Determine VC Body Count:  Add up the VC dead on the table, and those wounded who didn’t survive.  The US player may inflate the body count, and depending on the threat level, can count civilian casualties toward the VC Body Count.  Doing so, however, gives you a small negative modifier to the US Total Morale Value.
3.  Determine US Body Count.  Add up KIA (both during the fight, and as a result of the post-battle survival rolls, civilian KIAs, and inflation).
4.  Determine Kill Ratio.  VC vs. US.  Pretty simple.
5.  Determine Margin of Victory:  This factors in Body Count Kill ratio and who broke first.  In our case the US got a Partial Victory in the battle, but stands at 1:1 in the campaign because of the out-of-game KIA they suffered (see Step 9 below).
6.  Triage US casualties.  Lightly Wounded figure simple miss the next game, then return to duty.  Seriously Wounded figures miss d8 games.  If these numbers equal or exceed their Short status, they get shipped stateside instead.         
7.  Promotions.  There is a decent possibility someone will get promoted after the fight.
8.  Reduce each figure’s Short status by 1.  Any figure that gets to 0 goes home, although there is a mechanism whereby some troops may re-up, and their Short status is reset to 12.
9.  Campaign Card Phase.  Using a standard playing card deck, 4 cards are drawn.  See what they are, and pick only 1 from each suit.  Diamonds are such things as replacements (FNGs), added support weapon teams, new Veteran NCOs (with the "Commander" rule), Platoon leader transfers, etc.  Hearts are such things as increases in units Experience or Morale, New weapons (shotguns, sniper rifles, etc.), an attached FO, etc.  Clubs are out-of-game losses (may be non-battle casualties or KIAs – that’s how 3rd Squad’s B Team Leader got killed by the sniper while 2nd Squad was out on their patrol), and varying levels of War Weariness (which lowers a Team’s Morale level).  Spades covers such things as changing the Threat Level, the addition of vehicles to the next mission, and a chance for some R&R for the platoon (which increases their Morale value Modifier).  Who is affected by any of this is randomly determined, or mujst be a unit that participated in the just-concluded fight.
11.  Update the Platoon Roster.
10.  Determine next mission (see above).

This process was kinda cool too.  It adds to the platoon’s story as it goes through its Tour of Duty, and has things happen outside of the battles. 

Overall Views

Overall, we liked these rules.  They were different enough to be intriguing, and we thought gave us the “correct” flavor for a Vietnam fight.  And, given that Suppressing Fire is a bit easier to pin folks that Targeted Fire is to hit them, as carlos pointed out, the game seems a bit less deadly than some other games, while still resulting in incoming fire more often that not having some affect on the guy getting shot at.  The campaign rules are especially interesting, and help tell the story of the campaign.

The rules are fairly complete.  However, they do miss a few things.  First, there are no rules for hand-to-hand combat.  That’s probably not a big deal, as A.  It didn’t happen too much from what I’ve heard and read, and B.  The rules reward being up close and personal in observing and hitting in targeted fire, so close range gunfights could stand in for HtH combat.

Second, while it includes blast radii for HE stuff, and beaten zones for machine gun fire, it does not include such things for larger caliber flechette/beehive/cannister rounds (i.e. M79, 90mm tank gun, etc..  We may need to house-rule that.

Third, it includes a platoon having am interpreter/ translator, and rules for interacting with the locals, but nothing that specifically links the 2.

Fourth, there is no allowance for dog handlers.   2-12 Cav used dog handlers from time to time, so we may have to house-rule that.   

Fifth, no PAVN.  Although, for one-off games, it would be easy enough to stat them out.  Or simply use the Main Force VC as PAVN.  The book includes their stated intent to do a supplement that includes PAVN, though.

Last, the medevac rules (called Casevac in the rules) mention using ground vehicles in places where helicopters couldn’t “reach the ground”, like jungles.  In such instances, however, they used a drop penetrator and a winch, and could hoist up one casualty at a time.  House rule for this too.

Minor quibbles, given the fact they cover just about everything else.

All in all, we liked these rules.  It took a few turns, but we caught on to them, and the game flowed a bit easier after that.  We would likely not use them for convention participation games, but will be using them for our Tour of Duty here.  Heck, I may even use them for some more modern games, which would take very little tweaking to do…

Completeness:  4 stars out of 5
Complexity:  3 stars out of 5
Playability:  4 stars out of 5.
Enjoyability:  4 stars out of 5.
Overall:  4 stars out of 5.

I hope this was helpful.  If any of you want my Platoon Roster MSExcel spreadsheet, just PM me with your email address, and I'd be happy to send it to you.




Offline BeneathALeadMountain

  • Mad Scientist
  • Posts: 827
Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Rules Review - Page 14 - 21 Jan 25)
« Reply #208 on: January 21, 2025, 07:23:41 PM »
Excellent stuff, thank you for the overview.

Andrew
BeneathALeadMountain

Offline has.been

  • Galactic Brain
  • Posts: 9215
Re: CapnJim's Vietnam Stuff...Nam '68 Rules Review - Page 14 - 21 Jan 25)
« Reply #209 on: January 21, 2025, 07:47:57 PM »
Cheers Capt. for the rules review.

 

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