Village Battle Indochina

Setup a small solo play through for my French Indochina War Eureka miniatures using the ruleset Hammer of Democracy by Ivan Sorensen.

20mm Hellcat strike on VM positions

Map Size 3' x 3'. 20 minutes of "Game Clock". After each turn roll 1 d6, take this much time off the game clock. Actual time to play was around 25 minutes or so.

Both forces were evenly matched, deploying with mortar & HMG team, 1 heavy infantry, and 3 light infantry. According to game rules each square was Dependable meaning 7 HP per square.

The Legionnaires deployed behind battle works on the outskirts of a small village, successfully rolling to spot Viet Minh movements on a 2 d6 5+ via aerial recon. This meant that off map artillery could target them on the first turn.

VM had very good initiative and activation rolls moving rapidly into position. Mortar and artillery fire wore down a few units but could not stop two squares from getting danger close to the French line.

By turn 3 the French had to roll for low Ammo with three units had been lost to effective VM artillery fire. A successful French Hellcat strike in Turn 4 might have proved the difference, severely damaging the two closest VM units which had not been destroyed by artillery and mortar fire, which was abysmal for the French side a la Dien Bien Phu.

Legion MG Nest

This battle was almost two close to call. The French took heavy losses, loosing half their deployed force but ultimately kept the Viet Minh from breaching the perimeter.

Excited to continue wargaming with these figures. I have quite a few troop options that I'm looking to play around with. Next time you see this I will likely play an armor reinforced game but will not allow French airstrikes. I currently have M24 Chaffee for French support and plan on adding some armored cars as well. Luckily the Viet Minh have a bazooka unit to even odds.

Keep rolling those 6's

 -15mm Dieter

Indochina French Eureka Legion & Para

The First Indochina War (1946-1954) is a conflict I've always been interested in and keen to realize for a wargaming project. Finally got these Eureka (USA) miniatures done up and ready for the tabletop. About a year or two ago I finished Bernard Fall's Hell in a Very Small Place: The Siege of Dien Bien Phu, and decided to grab a set of French and Viet Minh figures. Lets take look. 

Using the ruleset Hammer of Democracy Friendly battle rules for the Second World War. I've added a few tweaks to bring the conflict into the Cold War and specifically the latter period of the First Indochina War, from 1950-1954. Can't recommend this ruleset enough. Definitely a beer and pretzels vibe but with just enough tactics to make it interesting. I might dive more into this ruleset in a later post because it's that cool.

For these French troops I decided to essentially divide them into two color schemes. Basic drab green with some camo tops for French Army or Foreign Legion, and all camo troops representing Para (or Legion) elements.

Wracked my brain thinking of ways to avoid painting so much camo; scouring google and my personal library trying to find a larger selection of French Indochina photos to prove my theory that not all the troops stationed in Indochina wore the British para smock or Marine Pacific camo. It seems the camera loved these camo troops but I found some variations and photos from late in the war of Foreign Legion troops wearing the traditional green drab.

The camo scheme came out tan looking, a bit too "sandy" in appearance, but I'm still happy with the end result in that it gives a little more pop on the figures against all green table backgrounds and the mostly green Viet Minh troops. The more I look at them kind of thing.

Per the rules, bases include officer stands, light infantry, heavy infantry, assault teams, MG Teams, Mortars, and recoilless rifles. Artillery is all "off table", a protocol that I'm adopting for a few other projects. Love the little details that Eureka worked into some of these heavy weapons stands. Note the rifles and ammo satchel next to the loader and firer on the recoilless rifle team.

I've added a M24 Chaffee, nicknamed Bisons at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. Currently working on basing a Grumman Hellcat for close air support. Sorry VM, no air support for you!

Keep Rolling Those 6's

 -15mm Dieter

Patrol Boat Riverine: Peter Pig PBR

My Vietnam skirmish project is one that I plan on revisiting with some more terrain and a few new miniatures. In the meantime I figured that I'd highlight my Patrol Boat Riverine (PBR) miniature from Peter Pig.

I don't mind admitting I'm a bit of Peter Pig fanboy. They can do no wrong and nearly every miniature that they manufacture I would buy. I ultimately went with Flashpoint because their SEAL sculpts were so cool looking (Peter Pig does not offer any true SEAL figures), however I liked the sculpt of Peter Pig's PBR so I purchased that instead of Flashpoint's offering, which looked great but seemed larger.

The canvas top and U.S. star on the radar are not regulation but it breaks up the solid drab scheme of the real world PBR. The tub gunner in front is magnetized and sports the distinctive black beret of the Navy river patrol section. The gunner in the far back has a LMG and the second gunner has both an LMG and grenade launcher. Quite an effective weapons platform if you ask me. That pesky antenna took some shrapnel damage in the last battle and the repair crew hasn't gotten around to getting a fresh coat of paint on it.

In my Green Faced Men rules module the PBR can drop off/pick up a SEAL team and lay down some pretty effective cover fire as well. PBRs fought in teams of two but I reckoned due to the clandestine nature of the SEAL work just one would suffice. I did purchase a Light Seal Support craft from Flashpoint but have not painted that up yet. The LSSC or STAB, is a smaller light boat for clandestine insertion and extraction. Not as heavily armored but faster.

Just missing Lance's surfboard. Charlie don't surf!

Charlie is always watching...

Keep Rolling those natural 20s

  -15mm Dieter

The Other Charlie Company: Flashpoint VC

Still plugging away with playing and testing some finalized rules for my campaign module, Green Faced Men: Navy Seals in Vietnam when I realized that I had yet to showcase the Viet Cong figures from Flashpoint's Vietnam War line. Like their detailed SEAL counterparts these are truly stellar metal miniatures with many unique sculpts and lots of accurate weapon options.

The Other Charlie Company, VC Fireteam Flashpoint

The specific pack which I ordered and painted is Local Force VC/NLF Rifle Platoon, 36 figures total but I only painted 26 for my campaign. I also added some booby trap/tunnel/objective markers which look great alongside these figs. The majority are sculpted with bolt action rifles with a few officers carrying Ak's & "found" M-16's. I think my favorite is the older chap with a long beard or the stealthy AK officer pictured below. A handful of RPG teams (I decided against painting the included loaders) and LMG gunners round out this generous set from Flashpoint. All miniatures shown are based on Proxie Models 20mm rounds which have become my standard base for single basing 15mm figures.

VC emerging from the tunnel system

Keep rolling those Crits..

 -15mil Nguyen

GFM: Operation Jolly Woodsmen

Got in a few quick games during the Christmas break testing out my Navy Seals Vietnam module based on Ivan Sorenson's No End in Sight V2. Gamed a few missions and of those I recorded this game for a quick Battle Report. Codename Operation Jolly Woodsmen, Summer 1968.

SEAL OFFICER

In this operation the SEALS are attempting to take out a pesky sniper the "Woodsmen" who has been harassing allied troops for weeks. Just recently the Woodsmen shot a ARVN colonel mortally wounding him. This is a high value target. The Viet Cong can use three tunnels to traverse the map quickly, setting up ambushes or escaping heavy firepower. If firing more than once from the same position, they reveal their location. If a SEAL figure is equipped with a radio, they can call in artillery fire from nearby naval ships.

The SEALS gave away their position early after a lone VC riflemen took the tunnel system and ambushed Delta team. He was silenced after pinning one SEAL in the second turn. The SEALS quickly moved into cover and the firefight began. The Woodsmen took notice and fired at Alpha team first. One figure pinned but no hits otherwise. Not caring to give away their position the Woodsmen did not fire again until Turn 3, moving prone to better cover near Alpha's position. The SEALS turned the tide beginning in Turn 3 with Alpha team, rallying one pinned figure and Delta moving into assault position.

The Stoner LMG and Delta's heavy suppressive fire in the bottom half of Turn 4 being decisive. The Woodsmen turns out to be the Woodswomen! Heavily wounded after the top half of Turn 4, it's unlikely that she'll take up a rifle again. The SEALS retreated with no casualties, bagging three VC. It pays to be the winner. Next time I play this operation I'll being playing as the Viet Cong because it seemed a fun layout for old Mr. Charlie.

Happy New Year, Keep Rolling those Crits...
-15mm Dieter

Men With Green Faces: Flashpoint Vietnam Navy SEALS

Showcasing a finished batch of Flashpoint Miniatures Vietnam Navy Seals. Ready to duke it out over the river ways and brown waters of the Mekong Delta. I purchased a pack each of SEALS and Viet Cong from Flashpoint in Australia with the idea of wargaming small skirmish games at squad level. I've tested out the rules and once I refine/customize a bit more, will be writing up a battle report. In the meantime lets check out these awesome figures.

The ruleset which I'm using is a modified version No End in Sight Cold war & modern Platoon Combat v.2 by Ivan Sorensen. These rules place a heavy emphasize on moving cautiously into cover. You fire Shock Dice and Kill Dice hitting on 5-6 & 6 respectfully. The idea here being that most of your firefights would be chaotic with an unseen enemy in a tight quarters jungle environment. I've been calling this module, Green Faced Men: SEAL Operations in Vietnam.

I've added a few simple wrinkles to represent the clandestine nature of most of the SEAL missions. Sorensen's rules are very fluid, the author tells the gamer several times to make up their own rules depending on historical considerations or simply how the player would like to play. I particularly enjoyed the inclusion of some solo play tables and general ideas on how to play the game solitarily.

Codename Operation Poacher 1968

Flashpoint did a phenomenal job with these miniatures. Each figure is completely unique in the pack of twenty four. You can tell the sculptor took a lot of care and added plenty of flare to each miniature. Very good detail, rivaling the well known 15mm producers like Peter Pig and Old Glory. For my money, these are some of the best Vietnam special forces miniatures out there. The one quibble I have is that their is no SMG or grenade launcher figures included. Picture below shows the different backpacks on each figure.

The Men With Green Faces

Keep Rolling those Crits...

 -15mm Dieter