Big Red One Escapes Viet Cong Ambush in 'Perilous Paddies'

    The Big Red One crossing an area of rice paddies when the Viet Cong spring an ambush on them

I created this scenario for my Surviving 'Nam rules after reading a book called The Boys of '67: Charlie Company's War in Vietnam by Andrew Wiest. The author calls the incident from the book, which I was replicating in this scenario, the company's baptism of fire. It was the first time C Company took significant casualties during their deployment. I realized that was not necessarily a good omen for my squad of the Big Red One that I am following through their year "In Country!" The scenario has the squad tasked with crossing a series of rice paddies, entering a treeline, and passing through to ford the river. Historically, the moment the point squad got into the middle of the rice paddies, the Viet Cong, deployed in the woods around them in an arc, opened up on them and riddled their ranks.

    The squad at its jump off point about to enter the board and begin wading through rice paddies

For my adaption, the players must send one fire team across the paddies towards the woods until the ambush is sprung. The other squad elements may hang back, as they typically did so that the entire group would not get caught out in the open. Woe to that the poor group on "point," though! However, last mission was a bit of a watershed for my squad, though. A number of soldiers who had yet to miss a mission became Veterans - one third of the way through their tour. In game terms, this means they not only activate one number better on 1d20, but also receive a new "trait" which gives them some kind of bonus. Despite being under strength (four per fire team instead of the full strength five), and also with two new FNGs in the ranks, they are ostensibly more experienced and effective. Would that help them in this ambush, though? We shall see!

    M60 gunner Cpl. Boston & his assistant Pfc. Warfield head towards a Vietnamese tin shack

Looking at my squad, I decided that newly-promoted Sgt. Frey and his fire team would be on point. His most experienced soldier, Cpl. Carter, had rolled the trait called "Point Man." This would allow me to discard one Event Card per turn if he's at the front of the formation. Plus, this would be the first mission for the other fire team leader, Cpl. Cassidy. The new sergeant felt this mission looked too hairy for Cassidy to cut his teeth on, and took one for the squad. He volunteered his own team to be out in front and exposed. He recommended to 2nd Lt. Fickell that he and his radioman head towards a Vietnamese hut on the far left, which had a great view of the rice paddies and woods. If anything bad happened, he'd be in a sheltered place to call in fire missions. On the opposite flank was a Vietnamese tin shack. He suggested to Cassidy to send Cpl. Boston and Pfc. Warfield, the M60 gunner and assistant, to use that as a covered firing position. The rest of the squad spread out along the paddy dikes and thanked their lucky stars they weren't in Frey's fire team as they began sloshing through the ankle deep water towards the distant wood line. Frey spaced his men out in V-shape, and told them to be ready to take cover if they came under fire. 

    Sgt. Frey's (bottom left) fire team is on point for this mission & head across the rice paddies in a 'V'

They hadn't progressed far into the paddy when the shooting began. As each soldier splashed faced down into the shallow water, they heard the crack of rounds going overhead. Frey grimaced. The V.C. had done them a favor and sprang their ambush way too early, he judged. He and his men were still fairly far out and the fire they were receiving was inaccurate. He risked raising his head and could see what looked like two bunkers with machine guns firing at them -- one straight ahead and another to their right. The wood line all around the arc facing them was lit up with muzzle flashes and the sound of AK-47 fire. Definitely some serious shit!

    To the squad's left, V.C. riflemen open up on the Americans from the Western woods

Behind him, Cpl. Cassidy cursed as the ambush was sprung. He yelled for the lieutenant and radioman to hustle into the hut. Then he raised his M-79 grenade launcher, popped in a flechette round and sighted in on the closest squad of V.C. blazing away at them from the left. BOOM! Cassidy grinned, "Got you bastards!" Several of the dark clad figures fell to the ground, and he could hear screaming. "Get off your asses," he yelled at his team, "put some rounds downrange." Around him, the new team leader saw several raise their heads and fire off bursts at the closest bunker. The machine gun inside kept firing, though.

    Even more dangerous, a bunker conceals a V.C. machine gun team in the North woods

On the far right of the line, Cpl. Boston dashed to the tin hut, took cover, then popped his head back around the corner. "Aww, shee-yit!" his shoulders slumped. He was out of line of fire of the closest bunker's firing slit. The stocky black soldier put his head down and sprinted back towards the rice paddy, passing up his assistant gunner Warfield who had been following him. Boston hurtled the paddy dike, steadied his M60 on the top of it, and squeezed off several bursts at the bunker. The machine gun inside went silent, but he guessed he hadn't killed the gunner, and had instead just suppressed him for a moment.

    Another squad of V.C. in the northern tree line along the river -- the squad's objective

Back in the paddy, Frey yelled back to his new M-79 gunner gunner to move up along the paddy dike and start pumping out rounds. He turned back towards the enemy and sighted at the nearest patch of woods. There was one! He squeezed off a round and saw a V.C. thrown backwards. "Gotcha, asshole!" He glanced over at Cpl. Carter, up on point. He was firing off bursts at the enemy until an avalanche of shots impacted all around him. As the point man ducked down behind the paddy, he was showered in mud and water. He saw Pfc. Otis dart by to his right and take cover behind the same dike . He fired several bursts at the bunker, and Frey swore he saw one of Otis' tracers go directly through the firing slit. The machine gun paused in its firing, then resumed again after a few moments. The volume of fire from the woods and the other bunker shifted to Otis, though, who was also showered in splashes. Frey saw him hurled backwards and yell out. He rolled around a bit then lay flat with just his head above the water level of the paddy, calling out that he'd been hit. "Damn it," Frey cursed. "Medic!! Frank, get your ass up there and check on Otis."

    Another bunker and a V.C. rifleman in the Eastern woods on the squad's right

The sergeant smiled as he saw Frank sprinting through the paddy. Man, that guy was fast! The medic plopped down next to Otis and began checking him over. Frey noticed his new FNG staring wide-eyed over the embankment. "Johnson - fire some rounds, dammit!" He watched the newbie sight along the short barrel and pull the trigger. The grenade sailed well past the V.C. he was aiming at and exploded in the woods beyond. "Okay, now bring it in a bit." Johnson loaded another grenade and changed the trajectory. This one exploded way in front of the V.C. in the woods. Frey drawled, "It's okay, Johnson...we got all day. You have them bracketed - focus!"

    2nd Lt. Fickell & radioman Cpl. Byars shelter in a villager's hut as they try to call for a fire mission

Behind Frey, Cassidy was ordering Cpl. Tatum to sprint into the nearest woods and get within grenade range of the bunker. Tatum shook his head and splashed off in that direction, pausing at the last paddy dike before the open ground. "Maaan, why that Chuck gotta pick me for the job?" He missed his friend and previous team leader, Griffin. He wouldn't have ordered Tatum to do something so Gung Ho -- he would have done it himself! On the other side of the line, assistant gunner Warfield had the same idea, though. He shouted for Boston to cover him and sprinted towards the woods that the right-hand bunker was located in. He crouched down as he got out of the enemy machine gun's line of fire. Whew -- made it! So far. He reached into a pouch attached to his web gear and pulled out a fragmentation grenade. He looked at it. "I ain't pulling your pin just yet -- I remember what happened to Hawk!" Warfield began to creep closer to the woods, M16 in his left hand and grenade in his right.

    Cpl. Cassidy's perfect shot with his M-79 grenade launcher takes out several V.C. in the West woods

Meanwhile, Frey saw where Tatum was heading and guessed his mission. He aimed at the last of the muzzle flashes in the closest woods and fired off a long burst. He replaced the magazine, satisfied the muzzle flashes or AK sounds did not recommence. He looked back to his right just in time to see Johnson pump his fist and grin ear to ear as his third round landed in the middle of the V.C. squad he'd been firing at. "Good shot, Johnson! We'll make a soldier out of you, yet..." Another shout from the paddy drew his attention. Pfc. Elliott crouched and pointed, "Boston is down!" Frey cursed and yelled for the medic. Apparently, the M60 gunner had lost his duel with the machine gun in the right hand bunker. 

    Team leaders Cpl. Cassidy in center & Sgt. Frey to his left lead from the front & direct their men

"Somebody put a smoke grenade in front of that damned opening!" Up ahead, he saw Carter rummaging through his equipment and then hurl the grenade. It flew true, but landed short of the bunker opening. Still, purple smoke began to shoot up and slowly spread over the area. He chuckled as Carter shouted "Purple haze!" and mimicking Jimi Hendrix's guitar riffs. "I want fire on that bunker straight ahead now!" Frey called. He saw tracers impacting around it, but the machine gun kept up its fire. The squad was pinned down by the V.C. all around them, but they were beginning to kill some of the enemy. Suddenly, there was the whistle of incoming mortar rounds. He saw them explode beyond the bunker, then slowly walk their way forward until a solid hit sent dust and leaves flying everywhere, obscuring their view. "Well, it is about time you got into the battle, L.T...!" he mumbled.

    Cpl. Tatum sneaks into the West woods after his comrades have gunned down most of the V.C.

Frey looked over to check on Tatum's progress and saw him slipping into the hopefully now V.C.-free woods. On the other flank, Elliott was splashing towards Boston. He paused, confused, as Pfc. Otis sprinted past him towards the rear, screaming something that sounded like "F-ing snake!" Frey chuckled. Well, at least that meant Otis was okay! Spec 4 Frank was moving towards Boston, too. Frey heard splashing to his left and saw Cassidy shouldering his M-79 and firing a grenade off. Another V.C. in the woods was tossed backwards by the blast. Cassidy grinned. "Not who I was aiming at, but what the hell...?" Suddenly, he grabbed his shoulder, and cursed, crumpling to the ground. "God damn it -- I'm hit!" Frey ordered Johnson to go check on the stricken team leader. Johnson stumbled through the paddy water and sank to his knees next to him. There was a sharp "Thwack" and Johnson pitched forward on top of Cassidy, also hit. 

    Meanwhile, spurred by my poor activation rolls, the V.C. activate & pour fire into the Americans

On the squad's far right, Warfield had almost reached the woods when he heard Vietnamese voices shouting. Suddenly, a squad of black-clad V.C. darted around the trees and between him and the cloud of purple smoke. Thankfully, their eyes were focused on trying to locate his buddies in the rice paddy through the thickening cloud. He could see their expressions, their eyes wide and jaws clenched with fear. Probably what he was doing right now, too, Warfield thought. He froze, hoping the V.C. wouldn't notice him. Crouching slowly down, he pulled the pin and counted. Then he underhanded the grenade at the lead soldier. It bounced once, twice, and rolled still. He ducked, watching, as it exploded exactly when the squad had run to center themselves over it, completely unaware. His ears rang from the explosion and he stood up and began running back towards the rice paddy. He risked a look over his shoulder and saw all five V.C. soldiers sprawled on the ground, some motionless, some writhing in obvious pain.

    Squad's mid-game positions -- note Cpl. Tatum infiltrating on left & Pfc. Warfield on the right

As he neared the dike, he saw Lt. Fickell across the paddy burst from the hut and shout to the squad, "We're pulling back, people! Grab the wounded and fall back! Choppers are on the way to rocket the Hell out of this place!" All across the paddy, soldiers were helping their comrades to their feet and assisting them in moving to the rear. Another smoke grenade popped and sent out expanding, yellow tendrils of smoke, covering their rear. Warfield shook his head when he saw Spec 4 Frank half carrying his friend Boston through the paddy. Warfield ran over and wrapped Boston's other arm around his shoulder. Together they carried him, splashing through the shallow water. Pfc. Elliott jogged past them and held up Boston's M60, "I got his hog, Warfield..."

    BOOM!! Squad's one & only fire mission finally arrives and inflicts damage on the North bunker

Frey watched the squad leave, sending out long bursts of covering fire, and counting as each man left the paddy. When Tatum ran past, Frey turned, and waved at the lieutenant. He and his radio man had been spraying M16 fire back and forth through the trees. "Let's go, L.T.! We're the last ones..." The three jogged off, crouching down to present as little as a target as possible. Frey shouted to Lt. Fickell, "Well, that could have gone worse. Good job with the fire mission, sir!"

    Point man Cpl. Carter tosses a purple smoke grenade to block the East bunker's field of fire

As Sgt. Frey said, that scenario could have easily gone worse for my squad. I rolled high enough that the pre-battle phase, which I call "Countdown to Contact," ended after my squad members had proceeded forward for only one turn of movement. This meant we were still at fairly long range for the V.C. However, with two bunkers with machine guns, they had us outgunned for the moment. That wasn't helped by losing M60 gunner Boston for one turn of fruitless movement that put him outside of arc on the bunker. He raced back and was able to suppress one of the bunkers, but the V.C. were un-Pinning at a high rate and the machine gun was quickly back in action each time. Speaking of Pins, my point man Carter and his buddy Otis collected so many Pin markers from the fusilade of shots directed their way that I seriously wondered if they would ever be able to act! 

    The smoke causes a V.C. squad to leave the woods & advance - much to Pfc. Warfield's surprise!

However, Sgt. Frey (and I) soon realized the key was to follow the mission's objectives. The squad is permitted to pull back once they inflict as many casualties on the enemy equal to their own numbers (13 U.S. soldiers, so 13 V.C. casualties were needed). So, when firing at the bunkers proved to be a difficult shot, we switched to targeting the two V.C. squads shooting at us. Still, one thing was holding my guys back -- our crappy activation rolls! It was amazing how many guys who should succeeded on a 6+, 7+, or 8+ on our 20-sided die would rolled two failures! Time and again, we'd pin the machine gun team in the bunker only to have it un-Pin on an Event Card drawn because of someone's failures. When the "All Hell Breaks Loose" card came up, and all V.C. on the table activate, it was nerve-wracking rolling all those dice to avoid my guys being hit!

    Focused on the rice paddy, the V.C. don't see Warfield or the grenade he tosses into their midst!

The lieutenant's fire mission came in much later than it probably should have, all but silencing one of the bunkers. Cpl. Tatum, sneaking in the woods, did the third and final hit with one well-aimed shot. We had to resort to a smoke grenade to block off the line of sight of the other bunker when my M60 gunner went down, though. The moment that saved the squad, bringing our casualties inflicted on the V.C. to above 13, was when Pfc. Warfield tossed that grenade into the middle of the V.C. squad in the open. They were relocating because the smoke blocked their line of sight of any of my men, and Warfield hit them at just the right moment. Finally, I could pull the squad back, and limit the losses we'd suffered.

    Time to go! The squad begins to gather up the wounded & get ready to pull back from the rice paddy

What were our losses? Pfc. Otis turned out to be okay -- the bullet had hit a piece of equipment and knocked him backwards. I did have three wounded to roll for -- Cpl. Boston who was "Messed Up" and had to be carried from the field; Cpl. Cassidy, who was Lightly Wounded, and my FNG Pvt. Johnson, also Lightly Wounded. Both Johnson and Cassidy rolled "Bad Luck -- soldier returns for next mission" (a little bit of grim Vietnam humor). Their wounds were light enough they could be treated back at base. I was nervous about Boston, though. He was easily my most effective soldier the squad had. His traits were "Gung Ho" (which meant he activated on a 6+ as a Veteran) and "Handy With That" (which gave him a +1 to shooting rolls with his M60). Losing him would be a huge blow. However, I rolled high enough on the chart that he would be out for only one month. Woo-hoo!!

    Squad leadership ensures all soldiers are out of the rice paddies before exiting themselves

The squad has now survived five months "In Country." Frey's team lost no one, but will still be under strength one until Cpl. Hawk comes back in July. Good news, though, Cpl. Kern returns to duty next mission, relieving Cassidy of being team leader -- which he didn't like anyway. That brings that team up to full strength. We will need a new FNG assistant gunner for a month (Warfield will carry the hog for a mission). Speaking of him, for a little bit of storyline, I decided that the medic, Spec 4 Frank, saw Pfc. Warfield's heroics with the grenade. He wrote it up very colorfully for Lt. Fickell, who has decided to put him in for a Bronze Star. Will he get it? Hopefully, he deserved it!

    Illustration done by Andrea Sfiligoi of Ganesha Games -- possible rule book cover?

I had a lot of fun with this mission and am really enjoying playing these games. The way the dice rolls and event card deck naturally ebb and flow, with good rolls, bad rolls, and same with cards, really make the game unpredictable. You feel like all Hell is breaking loose at times, and at other times are praying for that 20 on an activation roll (extra action) or the next Fire Mission card. You cheer when one of your guys plops a grenade down in just the right spot. Fun stuff! 

So, how close are these rules to being published? Well, I want to include 12 scenarios for a year's worth of missions. I have some more to write up and play test before I have 12. So, once that stage is done, I'll be ready to begin layout. Stay tuned for more adventures of the Big Red One in Vietnam!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2026

• Miniatures acquired in 2026: 6
  
• Miniatures painted in 2026: 24

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2026

• Terrain acquired in 2026: 0
  
• Terrain painted in 2026: 2

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2026

• Scatter acquired in 2026: 0
  
• Scatter painted in 2026: 16