Once again most of my regular Saturday Savage
Worlds players ditched this week so I played another game of Force
on Force, this time with Rick. This game
took us back to Vietnam. I’m still trying to get my head around the rules and
so wanted to stick with a regular vs. Regular battle, but Rick wanted to try
out some better quality troops versus a larger number of lesser quality troops.
So here’s what I came up with…
SITUATION
A team of Australian SAS has
been operating with a team from the MACV Studies and Observation Group well
behing enemy lines near the Laotian border; gathering intelligence on enemy troop
movements and such. On their way to the take out point they bumped into and unexpected PAVN force!
SCENARIO
Duration: 10 turns
Initiative: SAS/SOG have initiative
for first two turns, then test thereafter.
Fog of War: Determined normally
by Reaction Tests
Table Size: ~5’x4’
SAS/SOG MISSION
Break Contact and get to the LZ
by the end of Turn 10.
SAS/SOG VICTORY POINTS
I still haven’t figured these
out… probably 5 for each guy that successfully makes it out, and 1 or 2 for
each PAVN killed or seriously wounded….?
SAS/SOG FORCE
Initiative Level: D10
Confidence Level: Confident
Supply Level: Normal* (see notes
at the end…)
Body Armour: None
Troop Quality/Morale: D10/D10
SAS/SOG Forces
Australian SAS Team
1 Team Leader – M16
1 Grenadier – M16/M203
1 MG-Gunner – M60
1 Medic – SLR
MACV-SOG Team
SOG Team Leader – AK-47
3x SOG Operators – AK-47
PAVN MISSION
Capture the Imperialist Spies
before they can escape!
PAVN VICTORY POINTS
Probably big points for each
SAS/SOG team memenber killed or captured….? 5? 10!? If I were actually using
the helicopters even bigger points for bringing one of those down…
PAVN FORCE
Initiative Level: D8
Confidence Level: Confident
Supply Level: Normal
Body Armour: None
Troop Quality/Morale: D8/D10
PAVN Forces
Platoon commander
3x PAVN squads, each with:
-1x Squad Leader
-1x Grenadier – RPG
- 6x Riflemen – AK-47
(3rd Squad had an RPK
Gunner instead of one of the riflemen)
THE GAME
We rolled a die and determined
tha trick would play the SAS/SOG forces and I would play the Vietnamese.
TURN ONE
(Remember: click on the pictures
for a bigger version)
Initial Dispositions
Rick started off with having the MACV-SOG team fire on PAVN
Squad #1. PAVN Squads #2 and #3 reacted with fire. The MACV-SOG team fired
first, but was entirely ineffective. PAVN Squad #1 returned fire and wiped them
out!? PAVN Squad #2 lost a Fire Power die for having reacted.
The SAS team decided to fire on PAVN Squad #2 and then move
to aid the MACV-SOG team. I can’t remember who fired first, but the NVA Squad
wiped out the SAS…
End of Turn One – Game Over: all SF personnel are down…
So we set it up and decided to try again with the SF teams
having D12 for Troop Quality. Afterwards I realized what I should have actually
done – more on that after the report…
GAME TWO
TURN ONE
Here we go again.
This time Rick declared the SAS team to be on Overwatch.
Then he declared the MACV-SOG team would fire on PAVN Squad #1 and then move.
PAVN Squads #1 and #2 reacted with fire. The SAS (on Overwatch) reacted with
fire on PAVN Squad #2.
PAVN Squad #1 rolled a one bringing out the only Fog of War
card in the game – There’s Something Moving Over There! a randomly determined
team ( turned out to be PAVN Squad #3!) blazed away at something they saw –
another American team moving in behind to surround them! After unloading all
their clips into the bush a wounded wild pig trotted out, fell over and
expired…
After all the reaction dice settled the order of firing was
as followed the SAS fired first at PAVN Squad #2 causing 3 casualties. PAVN
Sqwuad #2 was made of pretty stern stuff – they shrugged off those wounded and
laid down some serious fire on the MACV-SOG team causing one casualty. The
MACV-SOG team fired on PAVN Squad #1 with no effect whatsoever. Finally PAVN
Squad #1 returned fire wiping out the rest of the MACV-SOG team!?
Damn… Again!?
MACV-SOG team is down – at least the PAVN took some
casualties this time and the SAS are still standing…
TURN TWO
The SAS maintained the initiative.
PAVN Squad #2 checked it’s casualties and administered First
Aid. They had suffered one Seriously Wounded and one Lightly Wounded.
The SAS faded back into the jungle and moved over into
cohesion with the MACV-SOG so they could administer first aid the following
turn. Only PAVN Squad #2 had LOS and they could only react to fire so they made
their move with no reactions.
I suppose PAVN Squad #1 could have done something…? Did I
try to move them in to close assault but failed a Troop Quality test…? I can’t
remember…
TURN THREE
While the Australian SAS team was administering First Aid
the Vietnamese wrested initiative of the situation from the Imperialist
Agressors!
Upon arriving at the MACV-SOG position to administer first
aid they discovered that all of them were actually okay… All of them… Just
fine…. For all their screaming and whailing not one was injured… A bullet had hit
the team leaders pack exploding a tin of tomato soup within splattering it all
over his neighboring team member. The Team leader had felt the jerk and saw the
splattering tomato soup and though it was his own blood gushing out. The
neighboring team member, on the other hand, though he himself had been hit and
was bleeding profusely out his head. In their flailing about they knocked a
branch into the eye of a third team member and who then also though he’d been
hit. Then the remaining team member had simply wet his pants when he though all
his fellow teammates had been hit, and then when he realized he was wet though
he had ALSO been hit and it was actually blood pouring down his leg… Then the
SAS medic arrived and calmed them down.
Doing a quick triage, they took stock of themselves and realized that in
fact no one was hit, they were all just fine and had a moment of uproarious
laughter, which was followed by a solemn oath to never, ever speak of this
incident to anyone, ever…
Beginning their activations, PAVN Squad #2 declared their
intent to fire on the MACV-SOG team. The SOG team reacted by moving away – they
did so successfully – passing through the SAS and out the other end of the
stand of trees and bush. NO shooting for Squad #2…
PAVN Squad #1 then decided to close assault into the woods!
I’ve realized, while writing this I’m not entirely sure if I would have been
able to. It says in the book that “If one or more figures in a unit are within
Rapid Movement Distance of an opposing unit, the entire unit may launch a
charge and attempt to engage the enemy in Close Assault…” However we had
declared the stands of trees, which the unit would be starting in and ending
in, to be “Dense Woods”. Infantry units may only use Tactical Movement through
Dense Woods…? Which takes precedence? One would think that the tactical move
only would… but the wording of the close assault rules “Starts withing Rapid
Move Distance…” makes me wonder…
Also… The PAVN Squad, I’ve realized afterwards, wouldn’t
have had LOS to the unit. The SAS were deeper than 1” into the dense woods and
thus LOS to them would be blocked… Of course it doesn’t specifically state that
the target of a Close Assault has to be within LOS at the start of the move…?
Well, whether they should have or not, The PAVN charged. The
SAS did a Troop Quality test and passed so decided to stand and fire. Defensive
fire took out HALF the PAVN squad… but they passed their morale test and in
they went! I think the first attack took out a couple SAS, The SAS fought back
taking out two more of the PAVN…
I think the two PAVN and TWO SAS went at it for a few more
rounds without much of anything… Then they both lost one and there was just the two of them
going toe-to-toe…
Finally the last of the SAS took out the last of the PAVN.
The four PAVN that were actually involved in the close assault were diced for
and all four ended up dead. The other four I wasn’t sure about – they were shot
on the way in… I figured they could be left out in the open and if anyone
wanted to check on them they might still be okay…
PAVN Squad #3 did a rapid move to get to near the brush
where all this was going down.
TURN FOUR
The PAVN retained the initiative!
Doing a First Aid Check, the SAS had two Seriously Wounded
and the other one was fine. Unfortunately one of the Seriously Wounded was the
Medic!?
PAVN# 2 decided to split the unit and sent the two Lightly
Wounded to the rear with the Seriously Wounded.
PAVN Squad #3 did a rapid move to get up where they would be
close to the woods where the SAS were hanging out.
In the End Phase the MACV_SOG team made for cover of a
nearby stand of trees and brush.
TURN FIVE
PAVN Squad #3 decided to activate. They were to move into
the wods with the SAS – not entering Close Assault – but just entering the
stand of trees and shoot them up at very close range… The SAS decided to react
by shooting and then running away… I can’t remember how the reactions went… I
think the SAS won the reaction so they got to fire first but were ineffective.
Then, I think, the PAVN went (because they get to respond to reaction fire,
because they are regulars, right…?). The PAVN’s fire wiped out the SAS. They
then completed their move into the woods.
PAVN Squad #2 then also moved up to the woods.
In the End Phase the MACV-SOG team moved from one bit stand
of trees to antoher.
TURN SIX
While the PAVN were sorting out SAS casualties and prisoners
in the woods the MACV-SOG once again seized the initiative! The two SAS
troopers injured in the previous turn’s firefight were also Seriously Wounded.
All were now POWs.
The MACV-SOG – completely out of LOS to anyone – moved to
the far edge of the wood they were in. PAVN #3 also moved up to the edge of the
wood that they were in. PAVN Squad #2 moved further into the wood and took
control of the Australian SAS injured POWs.
TURN SEVEN
The SOG team retained the initiative.
The SOG team made another dash from one bit of cover to
another – not that anyone had any LOS on them.
In the End Phase PAVN Squad #3 moved out of the woods and
took cover behind the wood opposite.
TURN EIGHT
The SOG team still had the initiative.
The moved to the far side of the woods they were in which
brought them to the edge of the LZ.
PAVN Squad #3 made a rapid move around the trees to try and
get to a position where they could see part of the LZ…
Since I had only stated the SAS/SOG teams only needed to get
TO the LZ by TURN TEN, we called it there as the next turn the SOG team would
be into the LZ.
Once I figure out helicopters, it might be fun to do a
scenario like this where they actually have to call a hovering helicopter down
to pick them up in a hot LZ… Maybe have a gunship also hovering around to give
support – blasting the tree line to keep heads down (and RPGs away from the LZ!?)
SAS/SOG
KIA: 0
Seriously Wounded: 4 – the SAS– taken POW
Lightly Wounded: 0
Okay: 4 – THE MACV-SOG – made it to the LZ
Red
KIA: 6
Seriously Wounded: 2
Lightly Wounded: 2
Okay: 15
I had MEANT to make the SAS/SOG teams have ABUNDANT supplies
and totally forgot to give them extra Fire Power… doh…
I also realized afterwards that what I should have done was
to make the SAS/SOG Stealthy or Elusive – so they could have started the fist
turn hidden and just tried to fad away – forcing the PAVN to throw themselves
into the SAS/SOG position to find them, allowing the SAS/SOG forces to ambush
them turn after turn… that would have REALLY balanced things out a bit.
Still learning… Sometimes the more I read the rules and play
the game the more confused I get… They seem so intuitive… yet I can’t get my
head around some things… Maybe I’m just an idiot…?
Coming soon on Tim’s Miniature Wargaming Blog:
I’ve been working on a few 28mm vehicles the last couple
days. Hopefully I’ll be able to finish them up soon-ish…
Don´t worry, forgetting Abundant Supplies in the first few games is quite normal ;)
ReplyDeleteYou´ll remember it eventually - sometimes, simply adding a marker to your unit is also a way to remind yourself of the supply-status.
Another approach apart from making the SF stealthy/elusive is giving the PAVN low confidence, making them test morale whenever they are getting shot at.
And remember that Overwatch-units can interrupt ALL enemy reactions in their LOS. If you have initiative, one overwatch-unit can cover the retreat of the second element.
However, it is still very hard to fight against such a superiority. 8 guys + RPG per Team makes a full 10 FP if they remain stationary and still a whoppin´ 9 D8 if they´ve moved - pitted against 4-6 defense die, it means you´re almost certainly in trouble if they can get their shots off.
If your guys can win enough reaction tests and force pinned-results, things might actually work out. You could try using Suppressive fire to increase the chances of pinning/suppressing the enemy in this case. After all, you don´t want to kill but just get out safely.
Great AAR Tim, and as usual wonderful paint work :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Tim, great report. Good to see the Aussies give the PAVN some hell for a while.
ReplyDeleteI've received my West wind NVA so will be working on them over the summer including my FOA Aussies.
Cheers,
Helen
Good report Tim. I liked that a lot.
ReplyDelete