'Nam Project - an AAR of sorts

 I have not played a game for a while due to 'real life' being busy, and wanting to make some extra scenery before playing my next game.

 I was able to play a game this weekend which was quickly thrown together for one main reason: my copy of the "Bolt Action" rules arrived a few days ago and I wanted to play test them to see what they were like.

 I had to do a bit of prep before playing as a) the rules were intended for WW2 Platoon plus level of play and not the Vietnam war, and b) I was playing them solo at 1:1 skirmish level.

 It was also the first time I had used my printed game cards, and they added to the game a lot.

 With these adjustments in mind I have the following AAR to share, complete with dodgy photos:

Mission: the LRRPs were to patrol to a small village and conduct a search for signs of the enemy.

 (Note - this is not the type of mission LRRPs would normally do, but I wanted to use the new buildings I had made).

 The LRRPs approached the village and made for the huts by crossing over the rice paddy.

 It was while half way across the paddy field that the first signs of the enemy appeared. These were spotted, and one was just a false alarm, but the other was the LMG detachment from a VC squad.

 The VC fired at the LRRPs, but the shots were in no danger of hitting the LRRPs. One of the VC charged the lead scout, but was dropped by one of the other team members before the VC could charge in to melee.

 The other VC were quickly dispatched by the LRRP team.

 Making it in to the village unharmed, the LRRPs spread out to search the village when they are again attacked.

 One of the VC fires an RPG towards the team, but the shot goes wide and explodes harmlessly beyond the LRRPs.
 The LRRPs make short work of the VC RPG team and again continue on with the mission.

 Having searched two of the four huts, the LRRPs are again interrupted by the appearance of a VC command group.
 Two of the VC are quickly dispatched, but the leader was pinned and took a few turns to deal with.

A random event sees the appearance of a cobra on the scene. Fortunately for the LRRPs it appears a good distance away from them, but it did make things tense for a few turns until it moved in to the jungle and out of sight.

 The mission continued with a few random shots winging their way at the LRRPs from the jungle, but there were no more interruptions while the team completed their search and then called in for extraction from a near by helicopter.


Game Notes

 I made a few changes to the rules to allow 'Bolt Action' to be played as a 1:1 skirmish game.

I used the weapons list from the rule book with no problems, adjusted the distance allowed between figures, and used counters instead of order dice.

 Overall the game played very smoothly and the game flowed quickly as there wasn't much need to keep referring to the rules to look up what the procedures were.

 I did have to re-read the melee rules to make sure I was reading it right as it is very nasty to those involved.

Having played the game using the Bolt Action rules I will continue to do so, as they are very easy and produce a good result for a game.

I will need to type up my rule adjustments and additions for future games, and if anyone is interested I will be happy to share my notes with them.

'Nam project - Campaign game 2

The LRRPs were given a new mission from HQ - they were to do a Bomb Damage Assessment of a crater made from a low to medium payload. The Pilot had dropped some bombs on what he thought was a unit of NVA moving towards one of the many U.S. fire bases  in the area. Now those higher up wanted confirmation of the enemy presence in the area.

The game set up showing the crater

 The LRRPs inserted not too far from the crater, choosing to patrol into the area rather than risk being caught in an ambush at what could be a major infiltration route for the NVA.

The LRRPs begin their patrol

As they approached the crater, potential enemy activity began to show up on the other side from their approach.
 

The LRRPs slowly approach the crater...

The first possible encounter moves out of the AO to the top of the area.
 

...while a possible encounter appears and moves off

Enemy activity seems to increase as two more blips move around the AO, this time both heading towards the crater.

More possible encounters..

... as the LRRPs draw close to their objective.

Another potential encounter proves to be nothing to worry about

Enemy or not?

Not it would seem

Which might have been good for the blip

The first one cause a bit of alarm in the LRRPs, but it was a 'hit and run'. Rather than take on the LRRPs the enemy fires a 'spray and pray' in the LRRPs direction and then melts into the near by jungle. 

The threat passed, the LRRPs shake out into a line formation to  search the crater and surrounds.

More blips appear

and move closer to the LRRPs

as the LRRPs begin their search.

The next encounter turns into another hit and run as this time the LRRPs take suppressing fire before who ever the firer was melts away.

The JNR Scout is fired at.

 With the suppression dealt with and no more encounters around, the LRRPs get on with their mission.

Searching the crater and the sides.

 No sooner had they cleared the crater when torrential rain began and visibility was reduced.

Objective complete it begins to rain.

Just before the LRRPs reform into patrol single file another potential encounter arises.

Enemy or another hit and run?

Fortunately this is nothing to worry about and the LRRPs change formation before moving off to be picked up for a return to base, with their mission a success.

The LRRPs move into single file and into the jungle.

Once back at base the LRRPs pass on what intel they found; there was evidence of enemy equipment in the crater in the form of a back pack. Nothing was inside the back pack, but it was NVA issue. There was also evidence of an active enemy in the area, but not in large enough formations to openly take on the LRRP patrol.


Game notes

This is the first game I used my new card idea, and it worked really well. I rolled a lot of blips to begin with and oddly enough they all seemed to be coming from the same area.

 Each time a blip was spotted I would draw a card from my 'encounter deck' and every time it turned up 'no encounter'.  Once the game was over I found I was lucky, as the very next card in the deck was the enemy, as was a few close at hand.

 When ever a blip spotted the LRRPs before being spotted itself it would fire a burst of snap fire at the LRRPs which I considered to be harassing fire.

 This system worked really well, and when determining the enemy ratings at the start of the game I can also determine the ratio of enemy cards to no encounter cards allowing for heavy or light enemy activity in the area.

 This game was also the first time a random event came up during play, which was the torrential rain. Not a very exciting event, but one that could have allowed the enemy to get right on top of the LRRPs before they were spotted.

 I also need to do more work on my intel charts to see what type of intel the LRRPs can gather during a mission.

 This was the third game I have played using the Disposable Heroes Point Blank rules, and I am liking them a lot.  The rules are well suited to small actions involving small teams of elite troops like the LRRPs.

'Nam project - campaign game 1

I played my first game in my Vietnam Campaign today, and it was an odd one - not a single shot was fired!

The Mission

 Team 22 is to position itself near a trail and observe any enemy activity before withdrawing from the area for ex filtration.

 They are to observe the enemy and collect information only. They are to count the number of enemy in the area and make a note of weapons and equipment.

Once in the vicinity of the trail they are to set up an observation post and remain undetected. 

 Should the Team be contacted they are to conduct a fighting withdrawal to a PZ.

area of operations

Intel

 Intelligence indicates that trained local VC are operating  in small groups.

The Set up

 Using my charts I determined that the enemy would be local VC that are trained but with poor T&E. I placed my LRRPs in their OP.  Due to a poor insertion, the threat pool for the game would be at +1 for the game, meaning a blip would appear on a 1 - 7 at the start of each turn.

 The mission would last until all blips had been used (a total of 6 blips were rolled for) or the LRRPs were contacted and forced to withdraw.

The LRRPs set up their OP with two men watching the trail, with the other four pulling security around the perimeter. 

 The LRRPs would get one Victory Point for every blip spotted, while the VC would gain 1 VP for every LRRP removed from play.


The Game

 The first blip placed turned out to be nothing. Maybe it was a wild animal in the undergrowth.

First blip was a false alarm

 The next blip was a party of VC moving east to west along the trail. The LRRPs spotted the VC and started making notes for their debrief back at base.

 Chattering amongst themselves, the VC failed to notice how close they were to death.

chattering VC - discussing what was for dinner maybe?

 The next few turns saw two more blips appear, both moving east to west.

activity on the trail increases

The first of the two blips turned out to be a false alarm, but the second one was another group of VC.

The closer blip was a false alarm

Again the VC failed to notice the lurking LRRPs. Realising that only two watching the trail could cost a VP or two, I pushed one of the LRRPs into a position closer to the trail, but making sure he remained hidden.

But the next one wasn't.

After a bit of inaction another blip turned up, this time traveling West to East along the trail. They were spotted, but luck remained with the LRRPs, who remained unnoticed.

The repositioned LRRP is hiding near the trail.

The final blip appeared on the East end of the trail, and the VC and the blip crossed paths.

The VC automatically spot their own.

  This final blip was nothing of importance.

No enemy - time to go home.

With all the blips now activated the mission parameters had been met and the LRRPs moved off to their PZ for the return trip back to base.

Final Notes

 The LRRPs gained a full 6 VPs for the game. As I mentioned, not a shot was fired. This would have changed had the VC spotted the Team hiding near the trail.

 The poor T&E of the VC is what made this mission a success. They basically needed to roll a 1 on a d10 to spot the LRRP team lurking near by.

 Due to their higher T&E, the LRRPs had a 50% chance of spotting a blip, and given that their activation pool was higher too, they had more chances to make spotting attempts each turn.  As it was they almost missed spotting one blip.

 I created a number of charts for determining the set up for the game - what type of enemy, their level of training etc.

 I need to come up with a random terrain generator, and make some extra trails and river sections to allow for this random set up.

 Not all games will be this easy, and a better trained and equipped enemy would have busted the LRRPs earlier on, setting up a fire fight.

 I also want to have a crack at making some small sampans so I can have some river traffic to observe as well.