This month at the club, Mick organised a 15mm game to the “Surviving 'Nam” rules, on a beautiful jungle themed table.
The Surviving 'Nam rules saw his four players: Paul, Lawrence, Mark and Vince, working cooperatively to control the blue, green and orange fire teams, plus a command team (white) against an enemy force driven by event cards & rules.
The scenario had fire teams entering on the west side of the board, with the exit point on the opposite, eastern, side.
The game began quietly, as Green team advanced toward the first sampan.
As the Green team closed in, all hell broke loose. Incoming fire quickly found its mark, with one of the team going down in the paddy fields. The medic immediately rushed forward to his stricken comrade, only to come under fire himself and hit the deck in the paddy fields.
With the situation becoming increasingly confused, another member of the green team moved over to check on the casualties. A quick examination revealed that the medic was, in fact, perfectly fine. He picked himself up and prepared to continue the advance.
His good fortune lasted only a matter of seconds. No sooner had he got back on his feet and started moving forward than another burst of fire caught him, sending him straight back into the paddy.
Orange team, meanwhile, skirted around the north of the village, only to walk straight into the jaws of a Viet Cong ambush! Their sergeant, having apparently spotted a particularly dangerous snake, bravely dashed for the safety of a nearby building, leaving the remainder of his squad to fend for themselves.
Despite their sergeant’s somewhat less-than-heroic behaviour under fire, the rest of Orange team held their nerve and managed to see off their would-be ambushers.
Elsewhere, a machine gun concealed in a hidden bunker suddenly opened up on White team, unleashing a torrent of fire. Fortunately, the position was quickly identified and pinned down by return fire.
With the scene rapidly descending into chaos, Blue team forged ahead, continuing their search of the sampans and village huts.
Just as the fire teams were beginning to think they had completed their mission, word came through that the Colonel had other ideas. The troops were now required to search at least five Viet Cong bodies for intelligence!
Orange and Blue teams doggedly pursued their new objective, while Green team began to evacuate their wounded and dead.
As more Viet Cong closed in on their position, the 2nd Lieutenant and his radio operator also made their way towards the extraction point, leaving the M60 team and grenadier to cover their withdrawal.
The grenadier's well-timed smoke screen bought them some valuable breathing space, but it wasn't long before their tenacious adversaries began charging through the smoke to continue the pursuit. Both members of the M60 team were hit, prompting Orange team to rush to their rescue and drag the wounded men towards safety.
By now, the 2nd Lieutenant, Green team, and roughly half of both Blue and Orange teams had reached the relative safety of their waiting choppers. As the helicopters lifted off, they were able to provide covering fire for the beleaguered rearguard, allowing the remaining troops to make their escape.
Against all the odds, the survivors made it out - although quite how much intelligence the Colonel actually got from those five bodies was another matter entirely!
