Resin Bunkers from MBA for Vietnam Project

    28mm NVA Jungle Bunker available from Miniature Building Authority - you can see fig inside

I picked up these four resin bunkers and sniper positions at Historicon 2025 from Miniature Building Authority. Not that every game is going to include a bunker, but the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong did use them, and they were usually well-camouflaged, making it hard to see them. My plan was to have them "appear" on the tabletop when a light machine gun Event Card is drawn in my Surviving 'Nam rules. Same with the sniper positions, though I may need to purchase a prone figure or two to have them and their base actually fit inside the position with the roof on! Oh, no -- just when you thought it was safe -- more purchases! 

    Coconut Log MG Bunker from MBA (originally made by Acheson Creations) with some VC figs

These 28mm pieces were originally produced by Acheson Creations, and Kirk at MBA has picked up them up and carries them on his website. All of the pieces came with detachable roofs. I purchased the Coconut Log Bunker, NVA Jungle Bunker, and two of the Sniper Positions. I'm a big fan of Acheson pieces, but have learned by now that you MUST do something to get of the mold release agent. Otherwise, your paint will bead up like rain on a newly-waxed car -- or pull away and bubble. My method is to put them in the dishwasher with soap on a low heat, light wash cycle. Next, I prime them with Krylon Fusion Acrylic black matte spray paint. The final step before painting is to go over the surface with a 50/50 mixture of black craft paint and water, to ensure all crevices are fully filled.

    U.S. soldiers investigate MBA's 'Sniper Position' - it blends in well with my Jungle Scatter pieces!

Typically, Acheson pieces are a snap to paint up. Sometimes, it is only 3-4 colors on something and you're done, except for flocking. These were a bit more complex, though. I decided to do the wooden log construction of the bunkers first. I did a wet brush of dark brown, letting them dry overnight. Then, I did two highlights -- the first in Howard Hues Camo Brown and the second in Khaki. I'm always happy with the wood look this color combo gives, and these were no exception.

    A V.C. machine gunner inside the Coconut Log Bunker with the roof off of it

Next up, I went to work on the very thick vegetation molded onto both the roofs and the bottom parts of the positions. I decided to go with a three-color approach. First, I painted it all in a very dark green craft color that I have. After drying overnight, I did a medium green dry brush. These pieces are excellently sculpted, and have nice deep grooves in the palm fronds that are perfect for dry brushing. The next morning I put on the final very light green dry brush -- applied lightly. I really liked how the vegetation looked at this stage, and think it will blend in nicely with the model trees I use on the tabletop, which was a concern I had originally.

    The bottom part of the NVA Jungle Bunker comes in two pieces, with the roof as a 3rd piece

The final detail on the pieces were the boulders or large rocks modeled into the vegetation at various points. In carefully looking over these pieces, I found that I had painted a number of the rocks green thinking they were vegetation instead of rock. Even after I thought I was done, I found more of them! I did a three-color approach to these, as well. I used a Charcoal craft paint as a base coat, then a medium and finally light gray dry brush highlight. At this stage, everything was painted. I liked how they looked, but definitely wanted to do a wash on them before flocking. 

    MBA's 'Sniper Position' with palm frond roof off of it - the inside portion is too small for my figs!

In the end, I did two washes. For the vegetation, I used a dark brown vehicle wash from Vallejo. In creating my jungle scatter pieces, I had toned down the green plastic of those with a brown wash. I felt that doing a brown wash on top of the vegetation on the bunkers would give them a similar look to the scatter pieces. I was glad that I made that decision. I think the brown-washed vegetation looks great! Next, I did a black wash on the rocks and wood. The last step would be flocking, and like everything else with these bunkers, it would be multi-step and more complex than usual.

    Side view of 'NVA Jungle Bunker' - you can see the separate back wall better in this photo

First, I had to paint all of the earth that was showing. I used my usual craft brown paint. This was fiddly in some places, as I had to pick out the brown between individual palm fronds or rocks. Some modelers might have painted the earth first, in the time-honored paint "inside out" approach. However, I was afraid I would have too much splash over with the wet and dry brushing of the vegetation and boulders. Of course, I could have done the earth first and then gone back and just touched up the mistakes. If I were to more of these pieces, that's probably the method I would try next. 

    'I'm not going in there...YOU go in there!' -- a close up look at the front of the Sniper Position

Once the earth color had dried, the time for flocking had come. I have an old Elmer's glue bottle that I keep filled with half white glue, half brown craft paint (the same color I use for the earth). Once again, I carefully brushed this onto the brown earth spots, and then poured over Woodland Scenics Blended Turf. I tapped off the excess, and then used a makeup brush and a soft paint brush to whisk off the excess flocking from the leaves and boulders. I seized the chance of a borderline low humidity that day to spray the flocked pieces with Krylon clear matte.

    This look at the roof of the NVA Jungle Bunker gives a good picture of the intricate detail

The final step in the flocking process was to add patches of Woodland Scenics Blended Green Grass in irregular patches to the turf. It is a similar process I use for many of my bases, and I like the effect it gives. Like with my miniature bases, I also glued on a few tufts here and there. And leaves! I am really liking the touch that miniature leaves give to figure bases and terrain flocking. Now, I just need to find another source of them before I run out. One final spray coat and these bunkers are done! Well...they were supposed to be done. I wasn't 100% happy with how the roofs sat on the bunkers. I swore they fit nice and snug before I primed and painted everything! However, they seemed a little wobbly after it was all done. So, I decided to add a layer of black felt to the bottom of the roofs. Not only would it essentially be invisible when the roof was sitting on the bunker, the felt material should both snag and cushion the posts a little, and help them sit a little more secure. That is the hope, at least!

    Front of the Coconut Log Bunker -- you can barely see the flesh of the prone machine gunner inside

I'm very happy with how these bunkers and sniper positions came out. I'm so glad that Kirk from MBA has kept some of the incredible Acheson terrain line in production. If you need a few bunkers for either Pacific theater of World War II or Vietnam, I highly recommend these!

    Top down look at a Sniper Position which shows the dry brushing on the palms fairly well

So, what else is on my painting desk? Since terrain is often a "do a little bit and let dry overnight" kind of pace, I have been working off and on the last five Fantasy Fishmen I had primed and ready to go. They're off to a great start and are pretty far along. After that, I have some decisions to make as far as miniatures go. I can begin painting my horde of 28mm metal Orcs and Goblins, or I can do up a few batches of miscellaneous stuff I've been wanting to get done eventually. My guess is it'll be Orcs and Goblins, but we shall see!

    Last look at the NVA Jungle Bunker with 2 of my 28mm 'Black Sun' range NVA troops

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 288
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 167

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 36
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 61

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 115
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 150

What A Tanker -- a WW II Game in Canada??

    Allen rolls the dice, literally &figuratively, with his advance along a road up the center of the board

Those who know me are well aware that I do NOT like the classic tank game. I can think of little more tedious in miniatures than a game full of looking up armor penetration charts and arguing about whether a shot is hitting front or side armor. However, What A Tanker, by Too Fat Lardies, is a pleasant diversion from such chart-based, uber-detailed gaming. I actually enjoy the game, and it is probably the WW II game our Sunday Evening group has played the most over the years -- especially recently!

    My Lee tank, right, lines up a shot from the cover of the woods at Keith's Canadian Valentine

The GM is almost always Keith. Though he enjoys the minutiae of discussing differences between the various Panzer IV versions -- the type of thing makes my eyes glaze over instantly -- Keith likes these rules, too. He embraces the simplicity of What A Tanker and can be depended upon to set up an entertaining scenario using these abstracted, detail-light rules.  This scenario was no different. It was firmly in the "What if?" realm, and featured a 1940s American invasion of Canada in response to a Fascist coup taking over that country. Allen, Mike S, Andy, and myself were the American invaders, while Joel, Tom, Mike W, and Keith were the Canadian defenders. Each of us controlled one tank, but would receive a replacement if ours was blown up (at the cost of surrendering a victory point). The defending Canadians were bolstered by several hidden anti-tank guns, which Andy argued probably made victory unrealistic for us.

    Allen's first tank rolls merrily up the road, while Mike W's (with the inexplicable bottle cap) awaits

Our chances of winning weren't improved by my friend Allen's "Hey, diddle-diddle, let's drive up the middle tactics" with both of tanks. His first was destroyed early on by a combination of shooting from Mike W's tank and one of the anti-tank guns controlled by Tom. His second was well on its way to suffering the same fate on the same approach up the road going through the center of the board. Andy went on a sweeping move on the right flank, but was outfoxed by Tom, whose tank darted from cover, got a side shot, and blew him up. Mike S sent his tank through the woods to blow up the ammunition trucks parked in the courtyard in town. He wasn't going to be bothered stalking enemy tanks if he could rack up some easy victory points for us!

    Joel's tank, left, enters the courtyard to rescue the ammunition trucks from Mike S's predation

Meanwhile, I decided to pretend my tank commander actually wanted to live, and would maximize his chances of not being blow up while taking shots at the enemy. Every move of mine ended up in cover that either made it difficult to spot my tank or harder to hit. It paid off almost immediately when my first shot across the board put two hits on Keith's Valentine tank. Sensibly, Keith darted out of my line of sight to reinforce the center. I switched to stalking Tom's tank, who was dueling in a game of position with Andy. There was one turn when I didn't move at all because my tank would have ended up out in the open, unprotected by any line of sight restrictions or terrain. Cowardly? Perhaps, but my tank not only inflicted big hits on two different enemy by the end of the game, it did not take any damage.

    That Tom -- he's a wily one! His tank blows up Andy's tank with a side shot near the railroad tracks

Meanwhile, our side finally scored a kill when Joel's tank turned into the courtyard to rescue the ammunition trucks. His shots at Mike S's Lee tank all went wide, while Mike's return fire did not. After 2-3 turns firing, Joel's crew bailed from their disabled tank. Still, at the end of the game, we had lost two and they lost only one. Both Allen's second tank and Mike S's tank were badly damaged. We called it a Canadian victory -- another in a long, historical tradition of failed American invasions dating back to even before 1776. I agree with Andy that the odds were stacked against us, with the Canadians defending their turf and having three anti-tank guns. Still, it was fun -- we laughed and had a good time. 

    One of my Lee tank's positions utilizing cover -- "never give the enemy an open shot" was my motto!

If you haven't played What A Tanker, and you're not a control freak who doesn't like a game where you can't necessarily do what you want to with your forces because of bad dice rolls, you might want to give it a try. It is certainly more light-hearted and more of a "game" than a simulation. And in my book, that's a good thing!!

    The 8 of us enjoyed a lot of laughs around the table - Keith, at right, presiding over the game

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 288
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 167

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 36
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 57

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 115
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 150

    Tom spies out my tank's deployment, safely tucked between a building & the sprawling center woods

Surviving 'Nam: In Between Missions Update on Replacements

    The Big Red One (1st Infantry Division) patrols on a claustrophic trail in Vietnam

As unlucky as 2nd Lt. Cooper's platoon was in its first month in Vietnam, they were actually fairly fortunate when I rolled for their replacements. My plan is for each squad (a "fire team" would be more accurate term for their unit size) to be allowed to go down 20% from five members to four before they receive reinforcements. However, since both the sergeant of 2nd Squad and his assistant, Cpl. Frey, wouldn't be reporting for duty next mission, I assumed that the company commander would tell Cooper to "suck it up" and lead 2nd Squad for a few weeks till Frey was back. I pulled up my draft of my Surviving 'Nam rules, grabbed a 20-sided die, and started rolling up poor Lt. Cooper's fate. This blog update is to give you a look at the campaign process -- a key part of which is replacing losses suffered by the platoon!

    1st Squad's roster -- will field 4 soldiers instead of five with Pfc. Tatum still wounded

Sure enough, when Cooper showed up at the tent belonging to Capt. Meyer, CO of Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, he was given the hard news. "I'm not putting a PFC in charge of a squad -- 2nd is yours, for the time being." The captain glowered at him, sucking intensely on a cigarette. "Cpl. Kern can be trusted to take charge of 1st Squad. He's been with them since the States." Meyer insisted that the 1st squad knew Kern and trusted him. He also told Cooper to promote assistant gunner Boston to PFC and have him carry the M60. According to Sgt. Bruce's AAR, sent from the hospital in Saigon, Boston had been johnny-on-the-spot in his first action. He'd be fine carrying the "hog." "And by the way, Cooper, word is Sgt. Bruce lost his leg. Both he and Hayes won't be back. Tough luck, but there it is..."

Adding in Lt. Cooper & his radioman, 2nd Squad will field 5 soldiers

The captain knew that still left holes in Cooper's platoon. At least two to fill in 1st Squad, an assistant M60 gunner, and scrounging up a new medic for the platoon. The captain got on the horn and pulled Cpl. Frank from his duties as medic at Firebase Ganesha. When Frank arrived on the chopper a couple hours later, he brought a surprise with him. Cpl. Hawk, who'd stepped on punji sticks the company's third day in the field, declared himself fit for duty and rode in with him. "Hot damn, Hawk! You just made my day!" Knowing Cooper was watching the exchange, he told Hawk he could help Kern in 1st Squad. He enjoyed the disappointed look on Lt. Cooper's face. That damned Butterbar still needed to prove himself! Exfiltrating and leaving his platoon in the field...he's lucky he wasn't facing a court martial! 

    After filling key openings, the platoon welcomes a new medic & assistant gunner

Not expecting much, the captain requested another assistant M60 gunner and another man for 1st Squad. Somebody had a sense of humor back at base, though. They sent one of their clerk/typists, a terrified looking Pvt. Otis out, along with a cherry fresh from the States -- Pvt. Warfield. He assigned the FNG Warfield to help Boston, and the Pogue Otis to Kern and Hawk. With Hawk back, he told Cooper, they were still coming out ahead. "I've got another mission for you. We're making a sweep in a couple days. More details to follow, but don't screw this one up! You almost had more of your men ride home in Medevac birds than humped back on their own! Dismissed." Lt. Cooper swallowed hard, saluted, and left, glad to be out of the captain's menacing presence. 

* Butterbar = Second Lieutenant
* Pogue = People Other than Grunts
* FNG = F@$king New Guy 

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 288
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 167

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 36
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 57

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 115
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 150

Some Sci-Fi Civilians Using 'Stargrave' Kits

    6 Sci-Fi civilians assembled from the plastic Stargrave kits using various arms, heads, & equipment

One thing that I am a little short of for my Star Wars skirmishes is figures I can use as civilians. Most of the 28mm miniatures I've painted up are carrying some sort of weapon. I heard on the Lead Adventure Forum about folks using the various Stargrave plastic figure sets to kitbash unarmed figures. So, I gave it a whirl. I'm not the greatest at converting figures, and believe these six miniatures show mixed results.

    The Fishman alien on the left was probably my favorite, even though he has nothing in his hands

The biggest problem was finding suitable arms. There are enough carrying briefcases or tablets or whatever to shove into empty hands. It is the other arm/hand that tended to look a little odd. The lengths of the arms are usually sized to be a supporting hand for a weapon. Sometimes, they empty handed-arm ended up looking too long, I felt, and other times too short. All six of these will do in a pinch, of course, but I wouldn't pronounce myself thrilled with how they came out. 

    Also in the running for my favorites of this batch are the Caucasian man and the ape alien

I do love the various heads the Stargrave boxes give you to customize the figures. I decided to go half and half, with three alien heads and three human ones. Not surprisingly, I like the alien ones the best! My favorite is probably the "Fishman" looking one with green skin and darker green "freckles" on his head. His big beady black eyes give him a lot of character, and the breathing apparatus over his mouth makes it obvious he's from an alien culture. I tried to match the blue one's skin to the Anadorans that I painted up for both my skirmishes and my Xenos Rampant! games. I know it isn't exactly the same alien head that I am using for Joel's Corporate Security faction. Still, it evokes their look a bit. And if there are enough to be Corporate Security on my Tatooine, then there should be enough wandering the streets as civilians.

    The dark-skinned lady & blue alien prove that, in the future, we will still be attached to our devices!

The humans I did in various skin tones -- a Caucasian style one, Asian, and darker skinned. They came out okay, but I've noticed some Stargrave faces look cartoony with their softer, plastic detail. Otherwise, I thought the detail on the clothes turned out okay. I did my usual 28mm painting style -- base coat and dry brush for highlight on virtually every color I put on them. Their clothes I painted in a wide variety of colors. Even though most of the torsos are meant to be wearing uniforms (I have two of the Stargrave Crew boxes and one of the Mercenary ones, in addition to the Troopers). I like how they came out not screaming "uniform!" 

    The civilians wander the streets of Tatooine, which are also populated by some of my droids

The various tablets and electronic devices in the figure's hands turned out okay. I painted them different metallic colors, using the Curacao Blue from TurboDork for the screens and the ape alien's briefcase. I will need at least three of these for my upcoming Star Wars skirmish using Space Weirdos rules at the end of the month, maybe more. Otherwise, you will likely seem them on the streets of Tatooine in various games. I keep meaning to buy some figure packs of Sci-Fi civilians, but since I have so many of the unassembled torsos from Stargrave, I figured why not try them first?

So, what else is on my painting desk? Currently, it is overrun with resin pieces from Miniature Building Authority that I picked up at Historicon. I bought two former Acheson Creations bunkers for Vietnam, as well as a couple of sniper positions. Unlike most Acheson pieces, these are a bit more time consuming to paint up. They should be done in the next few days, though, as I'm making good progress. I also have the base coat done on my last five Fantasy "Fishmen" from Beldolor Studios and Reaper Miniatures. After that, I'm not sure what I will be working on!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 288
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 167

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 36
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 57

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 115
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 150

A Visit to Jim's 'Toy Box' for Gaming

        Ted's Napoleonic game stretched for 12' of table width and was crammed with 28mm miniatures

For the fourth year in a row, some of us from Columbus have driven north to Blissfield, MI, to spend a gaming weekend with Jim W at his "Toy Box." This brick building in the village downtown was once a lawyer's office. In a deal he couldn't pass up, Jim bought it from the retiring family of lawyers and established it as his gaming HQ. He and his gaming group -- Ted, Gene, and Dave -- meet there weekly to game. It is also where he stores his miniatures, figures, and terrain, as well as does his painting and building for hobby projects.

    Jim in the light green enjoys a pre-battle cigar outside his Toy Box in Blissfield, MI, on Saturday

Many of us feel lucky to have a spare room or basement for our gaming pursuits. Jim has a whole building! He shares his good fortune not only with his gaming group, but also with us once a year when he invites us up to enjoy two days of games put on by he and Ted. On the tap for this year were a modern scenario set in Jim's fictional former Soviet Republic of Balczakistan and Ted's big Napoleonic battle. Jim would be using Xenos Rampant! rules, which we were familiar with. Ted would be using Valor & Fortitude, which none of us Columbus folks had played. Sides were divvied up by a cloth bag containing two different colored dice. You reached in, pulled one, and that would determine which side you would be on. Simple, and avoids the "I don't care which side I'm on...what about you?" conversation!

    Jim's "Lawyer's Desk & Chair" where he assembles & paints his miniatures and terrain

Before Friday night's gaming, we met for dinner at an Italian restaurant in Blissfield, with Ted and Jim's spouses joining us. It was good to catch up and hear how everyone was doing. The platefuls of food were plentiful and would make the snacks I'd brought along for everyone all but redundant. However, the cooler full of beer did come in handy, of course! Gene met us at the Toy Box, and we were under way with our first game shortly after 7pm on Friday. 

    Building came with wooden document file drawers which now hold his well-labeled mini collection

Jim introduced the scenario as a Soviet attempt to attempt to seize firmer control of Balczakistan, as the independent-minded Central Asians were attempting to detach themselves from the Soviet orbit. I ended up on the Soviet side, in control of two squads of infantry and one armored infantry vehicle. Mike S had the other two BTRs and one squad, while Dave E took the truck and two squads of Interior Ministry troops. We sent him on a flank march on the right to threaten the bridge, as well as break up any potential defenses along the river line. Mike and Mike would meanwhile hook left, using a couple small stands of trees as cover. We would disgorge our infantry squads and then move the armored vehicles up to support the assault on the buildings the Balczakis would likely be defending.

    Table setup for Jim's modern game -- those are our BTR armored vehicles & Russian infantry

Our opponents had "regular" Balczaki troops as well as irregulars, who'd joined forces in an attempt to fend off our thrust. They needed to deny us possession of the stone bridge in town, which the Soviets would utilize to expand their assault on their rebellious satellite country. As expected, they "Alamo-ed Up" in the stone buildings that had ample windows facing where we we'd be assaulting from. Jenny was given the unenviable task of holding off our thrusts from the building, and put a unit on both the top and bottom floor. She waited till we got within range and then blasted away at Mike S's BTR. Her shots bounced off its armor and caused no damage. Jenny's rolls tended not to be the greatest in this game, which she would make up for in Saturday's game!

    Our first squad of infantry disembark probably a bit too far away, but we were being careful

Our first squad we disembarked was probably too far back, but it hustled forward and took position in the trees to blast away at Jenny's building at long range. The other two squads deployed closer. My HQ squad, with our overall leader, entered a stand of trees close to the building and began pouring in fire on her troops from close range. Her return fire was not inconsiderable, and my HQ squad was soon down to 40%. I had been skeptical when I saw Jim's five-man infantry units. Would they be too fragile for Xenos Rampant's combat system? Much to my surprise, with the cover benefits and a lot of the shooting at long range increasing the armor stat of the units, they were surprisingly durable. It took multiple turns of shooting by several Russian units before we finally ground Jenny's units in the hard cover of the buildings down enough so that their fire was less effective. I already like XR! rules, and this made me appreciate their flexibility even more. 

    Dismounted squad hoofs it towards the village buildings where we were sure the enemy waited

Since there was a turn limit for us to get in possession of the bridge, it soon became obvious to me that if we waited till her units were eliminated, we simply would run out of time. I urged Mike S to push forward and shoot from closer range, while I moved my BTR to loop around the building and be able to target the units in the lane behind the buildings. They scattered quickly into the buildings and alley ways once they saw my and Mike's armored vehicles making the turn. We shot them up a bit, but once they got in the buildings, they actually became more dangerous to us. They were able to go to the second floor and get a "top armor" or outflank us to get side or even rear shots. Jim had modified the rules to decrease the BTRs armor stat when fired at from those directions.

    BTRs begin to hammer away at the 2-story stone building where the Balczakis were firing at us

Soon, both BTRs were damaged, but we had inflicted punishing hits on the Balczakis, too. It came down to the final turn. Mike S was able to move his vehicle over the bridge and suppress the Balczaki command unit next to it. That ended up giving us the victory at the 12th hour, just as time expired in the game. It was a hard-fought, close run win. Everyone seemed to have fun, though, and we were off to a great start in our Toy Box weekend! Thanks, Jim, for running a fun game!! 

    Meanwhile, Dave's Interior Ministry troops volunteered for the flank march towards the bridge

Ted wanted to start Saturday's game at 11am to give him time to set up the hundreds of 28mm Napoleonic troops we'd be playing with. This allowed Mike's son Jason to drive up in time for the game and join us. The scenario had Wellington leading an allied force of English, Portuguese, and Spanish across the Pyrenees Mountains into France. A French force was raised to meet them and our battle would be fought along a 12' wide table representing a mountain pass. True to many mega games, Ted had deployed our troops from one table edge stretching to the other. We would be using Valor & Fortitude rules, which thankfully, were on the simple end of the Napoleonic scale of details.

    Sniping away at Dave's troops were the Balczaki irregular troops, slowly whittling the Russians down

I ended up on the Allied side, commanding the mostly Spanish troops on the left wing. Under these rules, as long as your units (regiments, Ted said) stay within 12" of your division commander, you can move them -- as long as you don't roll a "1" on 1d6! If you want to shoot, you don't even need to do that. So, anyone want to guess how many times over the course of the 10 turns or so I rolled a "1" for the infantry units in my division? You in the back?? Why, yes! Three times -- twice as often as I should! Why we're at it, how about how many times Jenny -- my French opponent across the table -- rolled a "1"? Zilch! None!! What's more, my two cavalry regiments were deployed far away from my commander, so they had to roll for "Messages" to arrive. However, as light horse, we essentially needed anything but a "1," as well. You guessed it -- I rolled 1's at least three times for them, as well. And always at critical moments, it seemed.

    With an 11th hour run on the bridge by our battered BTRs, we secured victory at the last moment

Nevertheless, we did our best to surge forward and make a good attempt at taking possession of the stone bridge -- the only one of the five objectives on my third of the table. We had possession of it about as often as the French, as our regiments fought back and forth over it. However, on the last turn of the game, I sent a fresh regiment in, with supports, against a battered and shaken French unit holding it. We each rolled five dice for combat. Jenny would hit on "5's' on 1d6, while I hit on "3's." Anyone want to guess who won that fight? Let's just say the battle would have been very close if I had won that engagement. As it was, we got our butts handed to us, and we would soon be retreating back through the pass!

    Ted explains things to our French opponents in the Napoleonic game, Jenny, Jim, and Jason S

Still, it was a fun game. Very cinematic -- with hundreds of massed troops being hurled this way and that into combat. It looked like an account of a Napoleonic battle you might read. I wasn't exactly crazy about a few aspects of the rules, but then again, I'm not 100% sure we were doing everything right...ha, ha! Ted insisted that we had the last version of the poorly-worded Quick Reference Sheet. Dave kept saying he didn't think so. Finally, he pulled it up on his phone and showed it to Ted and us. Yep, we were playing with an older version. The main thing I didn't like were the modifiers for melee. According to Ted's interpretation (on the confusing QRS), there was no bonus to charging in attack column, yet there was one to charging in line. I tried to argue that the line bonus probably was intended for when receiving a charge, but Ted and Jim insisted that wasn't the way it was supposed to be. If in line, both the chargers and those receiving the attack got the bonus. 

    My Spanish division marching towards the bridge which was our objective on the left flank

I did like that it played VERY quickly, was not complex, and had a nice way of covering morale failures. Once a unit had taken casualties beyond its Tenacity rating, it had to take a Valor test when it lost a melee or took hits from shooting. If it failed the test, poof! It was gone. No worrying about rallying it later. Simply remove them as combat ineffective for the game. And on any turn you lost a unit due to a failed Valor test, your division had to take a Fortitude test. If you failed, you received a Defeat token. This was essentially a victory point for the opponents. Very simple. If the weird kinks that go against the way Napoleonic warfare actually was fought are corrected, and instead match what the writers of history say, then it will be a great convention set. 

    Mike S's English troops receive Jim's French cavalry charge -- Jim's dice were on fire (as usual!)

NOT that I am going to go and start painting Napoleonic troops! Heavens, no!! Earlier in the weekend, I had asked Ted, who is the most prolific painter of miniatures that I know, what period was his least favorite to paint. He admitted it was Napoleonics. I laughed and reminded him that not only has run giant Napoleonic battles at conventions (and for us), he has also painted and run giant all-cavalry, Napoleonic battles! If the period is enough to give an enthusiast like Ted the stink eye in painting them, who am I to argue? I will leave that period for other gamers to paint up and field forces with. That said, I was glad I got to play in Ted's game. It was fun, and we had a great time laughing and shaking our heads at our luck. For all my below average die rolling, I did have two shining moments of glory. Twice, I rolled Valor tests when I had to roll 4+ on all five dice. I believe that is a 3% or so chance of success, and I did it twice. My dice stunk the rest of the time, but hey! I got to defy odds when it really didn't matter and a beaten unit took one extra unit to rout off-table...ha, ha!

    Spanish troops surge forward and seize the bridge, while more Spaniards guard their flank

All in all, a great weekend of gaming with good friends. I look forward to continuing the tradition next year. Rumor is, we'll add a tour of "Ted's Basement" to the early Friday afternoon festivities. The rumors of vast stockpiles of miniatures need to be confirmed. It should be quite the sight! 

    English center, before it was battered, broken, stomped, and thoroughly crushed by Jim's French

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 288
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 161

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 36
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 57

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 115
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 150

 

    Sadly, the bridge ended up in French hands at the end of the game, cementing our defeat

 

First Playtest: Surviving 'Nam - A Year In-Country with Mr. Charles...

    Viet Cong have an ambush ready for the soldiers of the Big Red One in my first play test of the rules

Well, the system worked! And boy, was it bloody for my soldiers from the Big Red One (1st Infantry Division)!! 2nd Lt. Cooper was tasked with leading two squads with an attached M60 light machine gun (LMG) team and medic, to check out a small, Vietnamese hamlet, taking place as part of a company-wide sweep. Each squad was led by a veteran sergeant with three riflemen and an M79 bloop gunner (grenade launcher). A total of 15 soldiers, recently arrived in Vietnam, were humping single-file on a trail through the bush heading towards the hooches of Su Khoi Dau Khong Vui. From the distant sounds of firing from where the other platoons in the company likely were, they could expect contact at any moment. If it happened, it would be their first significant firefight of their 12-month tour of duty. The troopers were nervous, but confident in their sergeants, old timers Sgt. Hayes and Sgt. Bruce. However, they still were not 100% sure about their brand new second lieutenant, Cooper, who'd just been placed in charge of their platoon shortly after arriving in Vietnam.  

    Layout of my fictional Vietnamese hamlet & the hooches the soldiers have been tasked to investigate

My system is an adaption of Ganesha Games' cooperative or solo miniatures game, Sellswords & Spellslingers.  The intention is for players to each control a squad of American soldiers trying to survive their year-long tour in Vietnam. The enemy, in this battle the Viet Cong (VC), are controlled by the Event Cards and the game's mechanics. I played it as if I were two separate players, though, each controlling a squad and splitting the attached elements up between them. My imaginary two players would alternate activating a soldier until all soldiers had acted, and then a new turn would begin. 

The game lasted 11 turns, with the final group of soldiers exiting the table, assisting their wounded comrades to safety. They left behind 21 dead or wounded VC at the hamlet, but suffered grievous wounds in the process. Luckily, that included only one American Killed in Action (KIA). After the battle, I rolled on the chart for recovery from wounds to see who would be available next month (Mission #2), who would still be recuperating in the rear, and who had the misfortune to make a quick full recovery and be available for the next scenario...ha, ha! The ranks will be considerably thinned for that game, with each squad down from five to four and three new replacements assigned to fill the void. I'm getting ahead of myself, though! How about a battle report?

    The Big Red One in column as it marches past fields & patches of woods as it nears the hamlet

In the lead, Sgt. Hayes motioned his point man and slack man towards the hooches, as they came into view. Things seemed peaceful, with about a dozen Vietnamese farmers and villagers going about their business in the fields, leading animals, or stopping to stare at the approaching G.I.'s. For my rules, I've created a new pre-battle sequence called Countdown to Contact. Instead of players rolling for each soldier individually for their actions, and then moving them like normal, each player rolls two dice per soldier under their command all at once. He then assigns the dice to figures and moves them. Any failures to activate do NOT result in the draw of an Event Card. This pre-battle sequence is meant to reflect that players nott really know when the you-know-what is going to hit the fan. So, Sgt. Hayes gave his lead three soldiers two moves towards the hooches, hoping to get them checked out before any enemy appeared, while the rest of his squad followed up with one move. Sgt. Bruce moved his squad up behind, some beginning to fan out into the woods to the left of the trail.

    Sgt. Bruce's 2nd Squad begins to deploy into the woods to cover 1st Squad's search of the hamlet

At the end of each turn of Countdown to Contact, a single d6 is rolled. You add +1 for each elapsed turn, plus any scenario modifiers to the roll (I gave this scenario, "Check out the Hooches!", a +2, meaning I was adding three total to the die roll). If a "6" or higher is rolled, Countdown to Contact ends and the normal activation procedure begins. Players then roll one or two 20-sided dice (their choice) for each of their characters -- called PCs. I've changed it from the three dice of Sellswords to two dice to make for fewer wild swings in events. Veterans activate on a roll of 7+ (Sgt. Hayes and Sgt. Bruce were the only veterans, having seen combat in Korea). Most troops are "Grunts," and activate on an 8+, while FNGs on a 9+ (the N&G stand for "New Guy" -- can you figure out what the "F" is for?). Wouldn't you know it, but I rolled to end Countdown to Contact after only one turn! That was only the first of many unexpected things to occur for my newly-arrived troops!

    Even before the shooting started, some of the villagers wisely decided to flee for safety

I had also created a chart for civilian movement, with results ranging from Freeze to moving away from U.S. troops, moving away from any VC, double moving towards the nearest board edge, and even "transforming" into a VC, revealing a weapon, and opening fire or throwing a grenade. I rolled at the end of each turn, with most civilians having escaped off-table by turns 4 or 5. Only one doughty old mamasan, just as she neared the table edge, pulled out a sub-machine gun from under her black pajamas and joined the VC in the woods. Meanwhile, Pvt. Parker and Pfc. Taum reached the stairs of the two hooches by the end of their moves. The rest of the two squads were moving up to cover them, expecting gunfire at any moment.

    First VC enemy appears - a light machine gun team opens fire on the U.S. soldiers in the hamlet

I jotted down on a notepad any thing I encountered during the play test that I thought needed clarified or changed. One of the first changes I feel I will make was prompted by the sequence of Event Cards I flipped for each activation failure of my soldiers. The first four or five would have activated enemy troops (called "Foes" in the rules) if any had been present. However, since none began on the table, I was skating by with no ill effect from some pretty nasty cards, such as "All Hell Breaking Loose" (which activates all foes on the table). So, my first change will be that once Countdown to Contact ends, scenarios will dictate a certain number of foes be placed on the table immediately. The first one that eventually did show up was an enemy LMG team in the woods along the left hand board edge. It opened fire, pinning several soldiers, but not taking anyone "Down." One of the effects of an LMG in my game is that, even if its roll to hit is unsuccessful, it "Pins" its target and any other enemies within 2". Everything I have read about Vietnam indicated the M60 was the killing weapon in close combat on the battlefields of Vietnam. I found this to be true in my play test, as well. The American's M60 and the VC's RPD (and also the U.S. grenade launchers), wreaked the most havoc on the enemy.

    The first U.S. casualty -- Cpl. Kern is hit by LMG fire while Pvt. Cassidy and a villager look on

Not all Event Cards activate or bring foes onto the table, though. One that didn't bring new enemy hit me on the first turn of normal activation procedure (technically Turn 2). "Colonel on the Horn" has several possible outcomes listed on the card, requiring a further die roll to see what the battalion commander wants. My roll was "Mission Scrubbed - get off table with your wounded ASAP." I reasoned that one of the other companies had walked into a nasty ambush and Cooper's squads were needed to reinforce them. That was the last thing poor privates Tatum and Parker wanted to hear, though! Now they had to double time back across the open ground with VC popping up in the woods all around the ville. This mission was FUBAR before it had barely begun! Another change I'm making is to add a few more outcomes to "Colonel on the Horn." I included ones that don't scrub the mission, including an insistent colonel requiring a detailed Situation Report right away, dammit! This will cause the C.O. and radioman to lose their next turn. 

    Pvt. Janowicz lobs a perfect 'bloop gun' shot amidst a VC squad that just opened fire on his buddies

"All Hell" was truly breaking loose as more and more VC opened fire on my guys. Turn 2 saw the first Americans going "Down." One of the key concepts of Sellswords & Spellslingers, thus also in my "Surviving 'Nam" rules, is the Danger Level (DL) of a foe. It is used when the foe shoots at a PC (the PC must roll higher than the DL to be unscathed), or when a PC is shooting AT a foe. The tricky part for that is modifiers for cover and distance must be listed as "+ / -". That thick Medium Cover is subtracted from the Danger Level of the foe when he's shooting at you, making it easier to roll. However, it has the opposite effect when your PC is shooting at an enemy tucked away behind the trees, making the number you need to roll to hit higher. The first of my troops to go Down (fail to roll over the enemy's DL) was Cpl. Kern, who had moved to the edge of the field and was drawing a bead on the enemy LMG. 

    Another squad of VC shoot from ambush downing Pfc. Griffin, but missing the medic, Cpl. Spellman

I say "Down" instead of wounded because of something peculiar I had read in numerous memoirs by soldiers who served in Vietnam. A soldier would be struck and go down. More than once, they wrote the impact of the bullet felt like they were hit by a truck. However, when someone went to check on them, they found that a piece of equipment had deflected or stopped the force of the round, and the soldier was unharmed. Or sometimes the soldier was only lightly wounded, but the sight of their blood and knowing they'd been shot was keeping them from functioning. I represent this in my rules by a roll below the DL meaning the PC goes "Down." Tip the figure over. Another friendly figure has to go and spend an action checking on him. Once that action has been spent, players roll on the chart to see how badly hurt the soldier was, in fact. A full range of possibilities from unhurt like above, lightly wounded, seriously hurt, or "Messed Up" -- out of action. 

    Having almost begun the search of the hooches, Pvt. Tatum & Pvt. Parker are hurriedly recalled

I began the play test scenario later in the evening, and was surprised when Jenny came downstairs to tell me it was 10:30pm already. Time went by fast while playing! I finished the turn, and resolved to finish the game after lunch tomorrow. My troops were in the process of falling back to our entry point, and things were looking fairly good. Cpl. Spellman, the medic, was Johnny on the spot, bouncing from one downed soldier to another. He had been targeted himself numerous times, but seemed to be leading a charmed life. Every time, he rolled above the foe's DL and came away unscathed. A shout to Spellman's rear distracted him, though, as he was checking on Pfc. Griffin. Sgt. Hayes had been hit! After patching up Griffin's flesh wound and ordering him back into the fight, he jogged off to check on his sergeant. 

    Medic & Pvt. Janowicz check on Pfc. Griffin, while behind them veteran Sgt. Hayes goes down

It was at this moment, that the wheels came off the Big Red jalopy! Spellman was Downed himself by fire from a squad of VC that had popped up to his right. Pfc. Tatum, panting from his hair-raising run through the center of the ville, stopped to help Hayes and Spellman. Another burst of fire, and Tatum went down, too. What was truly turning the tide in favor of the VC was a horrible run of my die rolling for activation. First Squad's M79 gunner, Pvt. Cassidy, failed on both his activation rolls for two turns in a row. I kept a log of what each soldier did to help me analyze the game afterwards. Turn 4 reads "x2 Failures" over and over. Plus, cards like "All Hell Breaks Loose" came up back to back. 

    One mamasan fleeing off-board changes course, pulls out a weapon, and join the VC in the woods

Sgt. Bruce was doing his best, though, to pick up the slack when his counterpart went down. He kept the M60 gunner, Pfc. George, hammering away at the VC. One ability of the squad leader is to give a free activation to any soldier within 6" -- even if they've already acted. Pfc. George and his assistant gunner Pvt. Boston, fed belt after belt through the M60. George was quick to pin and silence enemy LMGs as they opened up on the squads. However, the problem facing the Big Red One was that the guys who were Down were back out in the open, in the center of the village. Plus, it didn't help that Lt. Cooper and his radioman, back on Turn 3 when things looked smooth, extracted themselves off-table. So, no Fire Missions to lay smoke or bail out the troops with the radio gone! Nice job, "Butterbar!"

I wrote my mechanics to encourage players to do what U.S. troops would do when their buddies went down. They risk their own lives to check on them and recover their wounded. The Down mechanic rewards players for doing this. You're not really sure how badly they're hit. This encourages players to check on their buddies, like troops actually would, and help them get off the table to Medevac. 

    Pvt. Janowicz continues to "get some" with his M79 grenade launcher & another great shot!

Things continued to go downhill as the turn count rose. Sgt. Bruce went down on Turn 5. Now, both squad leaders and the lieutenant were unable to help their command. At one point, I counted that I had only five guys standing and seven laying Down or otherwise out of action. Luckily, Pvt. Carter was able to help patch up Sgt. Hayes. Once on his feet, Hayes immediately began to make a difference. His extra action motivated the soldiers to gather up their wounded buddies and begin hobbling with them to the rear. Potential disaster struck when M60 gunner Pfc. George went Down, too. Hayes pulled him to his feet, though, and the two began limping to the rear. 

    Another VC LMG team fires at Cpl. Frey as he moves to rescue Kern, who has been down for awhile

Finally, a lull in new arrivals gave the soldiers some breathing space. Using the woods as cover, the remnants of both squads pulled back and finally were able to withdraw from the field. They weren't exactly in any shape to reinforce another platoon, but they could get their seriously wounded to Medevac, which would hopefully save their lives. At the start of Turn 12, when I noticed no VC had any of the pairs of survivors hobbling together towards the rear in line of sight, I called the game. All were within one move of the board edge, so it was obvious they'd get off. Whew! What a rush, though! At one point, I thought for sure both squads were going to be completely wiped out. Well, except for lucky Lt. Cooper and his radioman Pvt. Byers, doubtless wondering where everyone else was, and why they were lagging behind on the trail! 

    Things looked bleak with both Sgt. Hayes & Sgt. Bruce, the medic, and Pvt. Tatum down in a heap

After the battle was over, I carefully recorded each soldier's status at the end of the game. Luckily, all wounded had been helped off board by their fellow soldiers. This is important because each injured soldiers requires a roll on a Recovery Chart. There are positive modifiers if a soldier has been helped off board, or if the wounds were light. I pulled up the chart, snagged a likely 20-sided die, and wished for the best. So, here are the results of the Big Red One's first action in Vietnam:

    Near the end, I began to wonder if we'd have enough uninjured soldiers to carry all the wounded!

 

1ST SQUAD

• Squad Leader Sgt. Hayes = (Lost Limb - his war is over!) This was a frustratingly bad, post-game die roll. I had a +4 for him being only Lightly Wounded, and +1 for making it off-board. My roll? A "1" on 1d20! Apparently, the old Korean War veteran toughed out that serious leg wound at the end game, but once at the hospital it turned out much worse than it looked.
• Cpl. Kern = fit for duty (Roll was "Bad Luck - soldier returned to unit after a few days of medical care"...ha, ha!). 
• Pfc. Tatum = out for 1 month, recuperating from wounds.
• Pvt. Parker = Killed In Action - the unit's only fatality.
• Pvt. Cassidy = fit for duty. 

2ND SQUAD

• Squad Leader Sgt. Bruce = Lost Limb - his war is over! Wow - I lost both of my squad leaders on the very first mission. Will anyone survive their 12-month tour? 
• Cpl. Frey =  out for 1 month, recuperating from wounds.
• Pfc. Griffin = fit for duty.
• Pvt. Carter = fit for duty (injured, but also with the "Bad Luck" roll).
• Pvt. Janowicz = fit for duty.   

ATTACHED ELEMENTS 

• Command Officer 2nd Lt. Cooper = fit for duty.
• Radioman Pfc. Byars = fit for duty.
• Medic Cpl. Spellman = Million Dollar Wound (returning to the States for treatment -- his war is over!).
• M60 Machine Gunner Pfc. George = Lost Limb - his war is over!
• M60 Asst. Gunner Pvt. Boston = fit for duty.

    My card deck - first play test went well, though casualties were high among the two squads!

That's one KIA and four so badly wounded their tour of duty is over. An additional two won't be back in time for the next mission. So, the ranks will be a little thin for Mission #2! Reflecting on the casualties, that's seven of 15 who reported for duty that will not be there next time. It looks like Lt. Cooper is going to have to take over 2nd Squad himself, while Cpl. Kern is promoted to promoted to lead 1st Squad. He's going to be thrilled by that outcome, I'm sure! And likely, just as thrilled that he's getting two new replacements. Actually, there IS a slim chance with each Replacement roll that you don't get a FNG, but actually get someone more experienced. In the attached elements, there will be a new assistant gunner, as Pvt. Boston is promoted and moves up to take George's place on the M60. There will also be a new medic. I'll do all the rolls to see what type of replacement they get prior to the next post.

After my first play test, I am very encouraged. It was bloody, but I had some awful luck in the mid-going of the game. I want to do at least one more game before I open it up to others giving it a run with their group or by themselves. If you're interested in play testing, send me an email (mike.demana.wwm@gmail.com). I will need to type up rules more properly than I have it now, with sections scattered here and there. Thanks for any comments on the battle report, and I hope to present Mission #2 next week sometime!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 288
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 161

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 36
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 57

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 115
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 150