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Author Topic: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations  (Read 1364 times)

Offline Sarmor

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Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« on: December 28, 2021, 05:47:09 PM »
I'm looking for rules recommendations for Vietnam War air combat - around 3-10 planes per side, ideally not too complex and not hex-based, though I guess beggars can't be choosers.  ;)
Any suggestions?

Got a couple of 3mm Phantoms and MiG-21s from a friend and now I'm wondering what rules to use them with (except fielding the planes as air support for Cold War Commander ground forces which I don't have... yet  :D ).

Offline CapnJim

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #1 on: December 28, 2021, 08:16:25 PM »
I would have recommended Check Your Six! Jet Age, but the "No hexes please" criterion kinda rules them out.

Whichever rules you end up using, I hope your F4s have gun pods.  Air-to-air missiles were a bit less than reliable back then... :o
"Remember - Incoming Fire Has the Right-of-Way"

Offline Sarmor

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #2 on: December 29, 2021, 06:33:22 PM »
Hm, maybe I'll reconsider the "no hexes" requirement... But this is meant to be a microscopic side project and I'm not too keen on getting a board/mat for it.

Whichever rules you end up using, I hope your F4s have gun pods.  Air-to-air missiles were a bit less than reliable back then... :o
I have the F-4Es with integral Vulcan cannon - I think these were used by the end of the Vietnam war.

Offline CapnJim

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #3 on: December 30, 2021, 01:18:21 AM »
I have the F-4Es with integral Vulcan cannon - I think these were used by the end of the Vietnam war.

I think they were too...

Offline SJWi

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #4 on: December 30, 2021, 05:53:25 AM »
Sarmor, I don't play a lot of air-to-air games, and when I do it is mainly "Check Your Six" run by a friend .However , a few suggestions based on what I know. Tumbling Dice's "Thud Ridge" in their "Wings at War" range seem to have quite a following. They are aimed at their very comprehensive 1/600 aircraft range, and seem to be pretty simple.  A starter set of rules and 16 aircraft costs only £10!  Wargames Vault sell Rory Crabb's "Target Locked On" and A&A Games "Fox Two Reheat" for $8 and $12 respectively. I have a much older version of the Fox2 rules which I bought after seeing them played at a show many years ago. They have obviously stood the test of time.

Worth Googling reviews of all three to see which best fits your needs.

Offline robh

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #5 on: December 30, 2021, 11:29:32 AM »
Do you want the added complexity of flight stands and tracking the altitude/attitude of the planes?

If not then Bandits II is a really good set of post WW2 air combat rules:
https://www.wargamevault.com/product/135038/Bandits-2
The pdf is currently in the 'vault winter sale.

There is a helpful (if quiet) 3mm/1-600 air-wargames group on .iO if you want to see discussions about the various rule sets available and painting/marking guides etc.
https://groups.io/g/1-600thMiniatureAircraftWargaming/messages

Offline 6mmfan

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #6 on: January 01, 2022, 06:20:13 PM »
I'll second Tumbling Dice's "Thud Ridge". You have to buy it as a bundle with minis though, which may or may not be useful.

EDIT: C21 by Wessex games is also a good choice. Fast and furious and they have a simplified way of managing heights.
« Last Edit: January 01, 2022, 06:22:41 PM by 6mmfan »

Offline Commander Roj

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #7 on: January 02, 2022, 06:02:44 PM »
I'll second Tumbling Dice's "Thud Ridge". You have to buy it as a bundle with minis though, which may or may not be useful.

The first 1:600 I bought was “Thud Ridge” and I have been very pleased with it. A great starting point air games and so very adaptable. I’ve used the basic system for Arab-Israeli, Iran-Iraq and 70’s Cold War. I can’t recommend it highly enough, especially if you want to put more than a handful of models on the table.

Offline Sarmor

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #8 on: January 06, 2022, 05:45:50 PM »
Thanks for all your suggestions!
Thud Ridge sounds interesting... But I guess it's not available as a PDF, is it?

Offline Commander Roj

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #9 on: January 18, 2022, 07:32:30 AM »
I don’t believe so. Comes as part of a battle pack with a enough aircraft for a basic game.

Offline Easy E

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #10 on: January 18, 2022, 03:32:17 PM »
The Tumbling Dice aircraft minis are good value and dead easy to paint too!
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Offline Sarmor

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Re: Vietnam War air combat rules recommendations
« Reply #11 on: January 18, 2022, 06:34:40 PM »
I do have a couple of Tumbling Dice aircraft. They're okay, but I prefer the sculpting style of Oddział Ósmy's minis. That's just a matter of taste, though - the main issue with ordering a battle pack or even a physical rulebook is shipping costs and duty.  :(

Anyway, I'll probably shelve the idea for now to focus on other projects, especially since I got a bunch of minis for the upcoming second edition of Hind Commander.  :)

 

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