Good AAR as usual !

I like your terrain, very realistic :

All,

If you've seen the advertisement for the just-released rules, "Some Corner of a Foreign Field," all of these battle reports were done using them, I was a play-tester.

It's mid-morning, January 10, 1968.  After their probe from the south yesterday, the squad was relieved by members of the 25th ID, then pulled back to their battalion positions in the east.  The remainder of the day and all night saw US air and artillery pound Kham Duc.  The squad replacements, but the Brigade is so short of bodies that SFC Bleier is sent back down to command the squad, and they're still two bodies short!

Nevertheless, they are on point once again, leading the attack into Kham Duc from the east (25th ID is pressuring from north, west, and south).  The squad has two M-48s and two M-113s attached, but that's because enemy resistance is expected to be very tough once again.  And it was...


Overview, north is up, squad enters on the right, NVA own the rest of the map.


NVA to the north of the crossroads; there is a 12.7mm HMG in the top building, and an RPG in the ruins just below it.  All other NVA in the picture have rifles.


NVA  to the south of the crossroads.  Position at top right has an RPG, all others are rifles.


NVA at the west end (far left): top left is an 82mm mortar, top right are rifles, and bottom center is a recoiless rifle.


Looking east at the squad, just coming onto the board.  From left: Nickerson (replacement that ran last fight), Sgt Malone (been here for about three missions), Hoge (with M-60, brand new replacement), Worley (brand new replacement), Kruczek (been around a few missions), Bradley (been around awhile, started as a Sgt, busted down due to cowardice, worked his way back up, very reliable as the M-60 gunner of late, just worked himself back into a team leader position), Brister (brand new replacement), and Lipps (brand new replacement).


Things didn't go very well.  Scratch that, it was a royal ass-whoopin,' the likes of which I hadn't seen previously (in this campaign).

For the rest, check the blog at:
http://blackhawkhet.blogspot.com/2014/06/in-country-game-18-10-jan-1968.html

V/R,
Jack

Ouch!
Just...
Ouch!

"The squad has two M-48s and two M-113s attached"

Oh dear... you know it's going to be bad when you have heavy support attached, let alone such large amounts...

All,

I am returned!  Albeit, in a much reduced capacity.  The wife and baby are doing great, we're all just tired, and I haven't really gotten anything done regarding gaming (damned kids!).  I have been taking a gander here every now and again, but refrained from posting as 1) I didn't want to get wrapped up in conversations and gaming and ignore the family, and 2) I didn't want to throw something on here then leave someone feeling ignored.  Having said that, please bear with me if you post something and I don't get back right away.

Anyways, here's the last game I played for "In Country," which occurred prior to the the boy's arrival, I just now finished typing it up.

After their tremendous ass-whoopin' at the hands of the NVA during their last attempt to secure Kham Duc, the squad pulled back to the battalion position once again, east of the town.  There they sat and watched the steady rain of steel by US airstrikes and artillery as they cared for their wounded, cleaned their weapons, and topped off their ammunition.  They had suffered very heavy casualties, and ached for a chance to get back at their enemies.

But there they sat for the remainder of the day, and all the next day, watching the bombs fall and 105mm shells strike.  It was sunrise on January 12, 1968 when SFC Bleier roused the men.  As they ate cold C-rats for morning chow Bleier explained they were once again attacking into Kham Duc, but something was different.  Old Sarge didn't look right; dark circles under his eyes, his skin was sickly pale, and his hands were shaky.  "You alright, Sarge?"  "Yeah, I'm fine."  But the men picked up on this, and the heat of their anger and desire to re-engage the enemy in Kham Duc quickly dissipated.

The squad joined the platoon, which linked up with the rest of the company and met the attached armor at the line of departure, approximately a klick outside the town.  The whole company was on line, with a platoon of tanks interspersed.  The formation crept forward, waiting for the cough of incoming mortars, or the stutter of enemy machine guns, at least the crack of a sniper rifle, but nothing happened.  Once the formation was within 300 yards of the town the Company Commander called a halt and conferred with his platoon commanders.  1st Platoon, in the center, was ordered into double interval skirmish line, with the squad in the center, in order to advance into Kham Duc as the other two platoons and the tanks assumed supporting positions...

"I can't believe it's so quiet.  Maybe we got lucky, Sarge, maybe the flyboys and the cannon cockers wiped'em out!" says one of the new guys.  "Yeah, don't hold your breath Slick.  If old Victor Charles isn't in there, it's because he chose to not be in there," replied Bleier.  "Dammit, I bet they slipped past us again," muttered Malone.  "Yeah, well, that ain't all bad... What was that!?"


Overview of Kham Duc, north is up.  US forces are on right, VC are on left.  It appears the NVA, happy to have taken Kham Duc from the ARVN, and happy to have held it so long against the Imperialist Yankees, decide to save their strength for another day rather than allow the Americans to eliminate them, and so the NVA pulled out last night, slipping through holes in the US cordon scouted the previous night.


All that's left in Kham Duc are a few VC stragglers that didn't get the word, and now that they realize they've been left to die, they are didi-mau'ing to the north, just as the squad spots them.  These VC are in the northwest, three porter teams and three infantrymen.


Looking east at the remains of the squad as it passes Tiger 1, still burning in the street.  From left to right: Lipps, Sgt Malone, Hoge (w/M-60), SFC Bleier, Nickerson (w/M-79, ran last fight), and Abercrombie.


And the fight is on!  Sgt Malone (foreground) spots the VC, sprints ahead into the ruins of a house, and opens fire.  He seriously wounds a VC rifleman (red bead at center) and lightly wounds the porter team above him.

For the rest, please check the blog at:
http://blackhawkhet.blogspot.com/2014/06/in-country-game-19-12-jan-1968.html

In the overall scheme of things, Operation Hearbeat City was a disaster.  It was a reaction to a massive infiltration by NVA troops across the border from Cambodia, missed by the US high command.  The US troops had a great time, partying it up for Christmas, then woke up to NVA nearly overrunning their bases, and taking over several ARVN posts and friendly towns.  The cost of repulsing the base attacks, and then evicting the NVA and VC from their newly conquered territories was severe, and made worse by the fact the enemy was not annihilated, but managed to slip away, back across the border to its sanctuary in Cambodia.

The Brigade pulled back to its combat base at Dak To, conducting a very limited schedule of security patrols, making sure to stay near its base while it reconstituted itself.  The enemy, while he escaped, was still badly bruised, and content to bide his time, also rebuilding his strength.  This period of minimal contact continued for two and a half months; the Brigade, once again near full strength and full of confidence due to a round of aggressive training at the company and battalion level, began early April determined to expand its area of influence.  The North Vietnamese began April 1968 determined to reassert themselves across the border...

To date our 11-man squad has permanently lost 21 members:
7 men Killed in Action
9 men Wounded in Action, severely enough to be evacuated to the US.
2 men Missing in Action
3 men transferred out of the squad (two "3-time Losers," one promotion)

So, this isn't the end, I do plan to return to these guys at some point, but there are three things hampering this:
1) the new baby, of course
2) a boatload of other campaigns I want to start/get back to
3) a massive painting project I've just undertaken (bought everything shortly before the baby came
4) I picked up a new set of rules and I'm dying to get dug into them.

Stay tuned.  I'm slowed down but not stopped.  I believe next I'm going into British vs Germans around Caen, 1944 (with the new rules); I've been dying to get to this campaign and it will work well with the new rules.  Having said that, I've got a bunch of 6mm modern stuff about ready for action, and some 6mm WWII almost there.  Oh, and I have a bunch of Marines for an 'alternate history' type deal I've been wanting to do.  We'll see...

V/R,
Jack

Congrats on the arrival Jack. Family first, always.
Good reports, but look after the little one now!

Hear, hear !
Cheers - Phil.

First of all - grats on a safe delivery and all getting back home Also, well done on slipping a game in so soon; took me six months before I managed to even get to the club for an hour, let alone play anything!

Still can't quite believe it and it's been nine really good months

On to the game I think the squad, and by extension the Platoon, Company and Battalion have earned a full rotation back to the World; albeit a pretty painful and sorrowful one. It's gonna take a lot of rebuilding to get them back into anything coherent...

Really good stuff, and nice to see its reached a natural end point. Look forward to your next set of games!

Quote from: toxicpixie on 27 June 2014, 08:58:12 AM
First of all - grats on a safe delivery and all getting back home (...)

I can not agree more!   

Quote from: mad lemmey on 27 June 2014, 05:58:57 AM
Congrats on the arrival Jack. Family first, always.
Good reports, but look after the little one now!

And don't forget Mum 

Thanks guys, I really appreciate it. 

I didn't get a game in, TP, the fight occurred pre-baby, I just finally got around to writing and posting it.  I've been able to paint for a few minutes here and there so far, but that's it.  Not sure when I'll get another game in, but I must admit, much to my personal shame, that I'm jonesing to get another game in    Only time will tell.

V/R,
Jack