It has been over a week since the last EDEE turn arrived, and work is getting bizarre. I have four masters and two are whinging about average delivery of requirements they have never specified and a third was just been taken over by a UK company. As a result, I am in Sydney (rather than Manila) with my plans needing an overhaul and Christmas is looming.
What better way to express my feelngs, but to go to Vietnam in 1964!
I received this double map whopper two years ago from S&T and shoved it into the roof. Somehow, in my current mood and with an unexpected weekend, I brought it out and set it up. The black are the Viet Cong, the red are the NVA, the yellows are the South Vietnamese and the greens are the free world forces. If you zoom the image by clicking on it, you can see the ANZ Task forice in Phouc Le (just east of Saigon). Also note the massive number of bombers on the left box of the map. Otherwise, there is not much on the map - a few divisions and a number of irregulars on each side. This makes for lots of maneuver (though as I played, I found everything was happening around bases).
The Free World forces are always visible (that rule is cleverly called "New York Times") while the communists have fog of wag and a number of dummy units. To make that work solitaire, I would roll a die for Free World target selection.
I started with a massive bombing of a base near the border hoping to clear it out. I did cause some casualties but only delayed its usefulness to the Communists.
The Communists hit back by taking Khe Sang with two divisions and a regiment of Viet Cong. The Free World lost a regiment of marines and the base. The NVA then advanced and put the firebase of Quang Tri under siege
Elsewhere the Viet Cong did very well taking two cities. At the end of their turn, they were well in the lead with political and military points. The Free World political points were actually negative (humorously indicated by a picture of Jane Fonda in North Vietnam).
The Free World started with some recon of Viet Cong positions. Delta Force uncovered a dummy unit near Da Lat. Unfortunately, Chuck Norris survived the insertion.
The US First division threw itself at the Iron Triangle just west of Saigon but the attack failed, even with fire support, with the loss of a supporting ARVN division. An attack on another Communist base failed when one of the attacking regiments was ambushed. The only Free World attack that went to plan was a riverine counterattack in the Delta where we caught the Vient Cong in the open. (What's that sweet morning smell?)
At the end of the first turn, the Free World clearly needed a rethink. They needed the facility to take out Communist bases and to launch effective counter attacks. One of the AVRN units was shattered beyond recovery. Even worse, their points had gone backwards. If the Communists lead by 25 on both scales, they win a sudden death victory.
What can the Communists do next turn?
BTW, a recent article in S&T talked about the many wargames the US played before getting involved in Vietnam. Everyone showed a Communist victory.
Too few turns on my hands!
Posted by: PythonMagus | Thursday, 26 November 2015 at 09:48 PM
too much time on your hands ...
Posted by: Thygocanberra | Thursday, 26 November 2015 at 08:09 PM
Are there counters for Aussie units?
Posted by: Paul | Monday, 23 November 2015 at 04:13 PM