Tomahawks over the desert; with the 111th Squadron

 First I have to announce that Flotilla Forward is indeed done in draft form.  I just need to reformat it in pretty, readable form to release it.  I hope that will be my summer job.  If not it will be my fall job but I will get it out before Christmas!!!  It is a tweener between Platoon Forward and Squadron Forward but closer to Squadron Forward.  On to todays' post...

The 111 Squadron is one of my first squadrons.  It was a playtest squadron for Squadron Forward and the planes show their age a bit.  I haven't posted with them in a long time but they are a fun squadron.  They started out with 10 or 12 pilots back when I really had squadrons so have attrition down a fair bit.  They have Flight Sgt Boom Balfour get selected for OCS and come back a pilot officer.  They have only had one CO, "Puck" Poole who can outfly any man in the RAF and has 2 kills.  They have a "cool" factor of 1 which means on the base they are considered a fair squadron.  On their last mission their second in command, Lt Thurlby was shot down by a CR 42 and killed.   Puck intends to spin up Flt Lt Johnny Attleburg by having him lead the next mission while Puck goes along.   As you can guess, Puck is not sure if Johnny is up to the task of #2 but wants to give him a fair shot.  

Character

Puck Poole          2 kills      Veteran      "flies like the devil himself"

wingman F/O George Charles        Sprog

Flt Lt Johnny Attleburg               Avg

wingman   Flt Sgt   Nick Skinner     Veteran      3 kills

 

Mission is CAP over a supply dump as the 8th army gathers supplies for a coming offensive.   It was spotted by the axis the day before.     

 

Sure enough Puck spots bandits on the horizon and calls out to the lads.  With a little help Johnny moves the group in behind what turns out to be 6 CR -42s.  Their are 2 MC 200s top cover but they are busy racing around higher and frankly not paying attention.  

The Tomahawks achieve a bounce!    [  pretty hard to do where the enemy doesn't see you until you fire!]  

Puck and Charles line it up!

Flt Sgt Skinner gets in tight and gets his 4th kill!.  

The other 3 targets are damaged.     The CR -42s forget about bombing and scramble for survival!  Primary mission already accomplished!

Puck climbs high to prevent the Macchi's from diving on his mates.  He calls for his wingman to join him but Charles is "heavily engaged".  Puck will talk with him after the battle...

F/O Charles follows the damaged Falcon while his wingman/CO duels the Macchi's.    Another Falcon latches on the inexperienced British officer's tail.  

Flt Sgt Skinner, fresh from his kill, shows up and fires at the falcon, wounding the pilot and saving Charles.     During the excitement, the original falcon that Charles was chasing dives away to freedom with severely damaged wings.  

Meanwhile, Flt Lt Attleburg finishes off his first Falcon...

And goes after the section leader.

 

"Puck" finally gets position on the machi  and scores his 3rd kill!

 

Skinner hammer's the falcon and it starts to leak petrol but still continues to run towards Italian lines.  He can't seem to line up a fatal shot!

Through some excellent maneuvers Puck actually gets a great shot at the other Machi  but only damages it.

Skinner makes one more pass at the stricken falcon but the Italian refuses to fall.   Skinner admires how the Italian has managed to maneuver his damaged plane all the way back to the front lines.  He waggles his wings and breaks off.  

The Italian makes it back to base!

The buildup continues...

Great game that played in under an hour.  A resounding victory for the 111 Sq.  Flgt Sgt Skinner needed one more kill to make ace and I thought he was going to get it but the Falcon kept out of his cross hairs; amazing.    Flt Lt Attleburg gets 2, gains Veteran status and has proven he can be #2.  Puck added 1 to his score and F/O Charles loses his sprog status but his disliked in the squadron as he failed to go help Puck.  The squadron gains 1 cool point so now their reputation is starting to spread across the theater.     [ It also now will help modify die rolls.]   

Enjoy

Joe

PS    Something else I am working on...

 

Sgt McMann, The 10th Mountain and a new Raid scenario

 Sorry no posts for a while.  We bought a beach house and that is taking much of my time as of late.  With the US finally leaving Afghanistan it got me thinking about that war and I decided to brush off my 10th mountain for a scenario.  It is a great squad with many cool missions under its belt. The last one in March of 2020 you can find on this blog entitled "Rendon's rosary".  Sgt McMann is well respected as a leader and has got his squad through some things.  

So I rolled up "village sweep" for a scenario and realized that, while appropriate for the 20th century, it really didn't fit with the 21st century.  The intel is so good for the most part that western forces don't sweep but raid in a surgical strike.  So for those of you with Grunts Forward that want to take it into the 21st century replace "village sweep" with "raid".   

Raid

Situation:   Intel has determined a target house with drugs, weapons and/or bomb making material in it.  There is a 50% chance there is a high value target present as well.  Secure the house and it's contents.  Capture/kill it's occupants.  Capture the HVT if possible.    Strike fast and strike hard.   This mission will get us one step closer to home! 

Roll up the board as per PF.  Place the target house in block 2.  

Your Forces  Suggest you take 2-3 squads.

Air/Artillery  Very Likely

Light Support     Yes

Enemy Forces

A= A+3   ( A's in compound are at +2)

B= 3

C=1  ( 50% of technical)

Reinforcements    starting on turn 3 for 4 turns an "A" reinforcement shows up randomly entering moving towards the sounds of guns.  

Special rules  

Forces in the compound (other than minimal guards) will not activate until turn 3.  Forces outside the compound have a 50% chance of activating on turn 1 and then automatically on turn 2. If a HVT is present he will attempt break out until turn 5.  His personal bodyguards will always be better than the regular troops.  He can escape any edge. 

Victory

If HVT present, capture him you win.  Kill him with minimal casualties and it is still a victory.  If he escapes the best you can do is draw.  If HVT not present then capture building and as many occupants as possible with few casualties for the win.  If no captures or multiple casualties you lose.

 

Intel had pinpointed Nadim's drug house and both Nadim and his dad were said to be there. The plan was to raid the drug house and capture Nadim.  Lt Richards outlined the plan.  2nd squad would surround the compound.  The ATG would blow open the gate and 1st squad (Sgt McMann) would enter the compound and capture the drug trafficker.

 

The board rolled up for the raid scenario.  I used "urban" but envisioned a small town. Target building on the right.  10th mountain enters from the left.  Black markers are blinds. 

Forces    8/8 10th Mountain

Lt Richards        Avg        not popular 

1st squad  Sgt McMann     Avg   Very popular.  Squad has moral of 10 when he is around.

1st FT LCpl Schlact     poor    just stepped up when Cpl Adams left

2nd Ft Cpl Anderson   poor      comfortable though relatively new to the squad.

2nd Squad   Cpl Adams  poor  Sgt McMann's right hand.  Just took over second squad.  Should be promoted to Sgt soon.  Wants to impress his new squad. 

Nadim's dad.

2nd squad and Cpl Adams lead the charge through the town as the rebels find their weapons.  Lt Richards has told all of them to not stop before the compound.  

Rebels start to fire smalls arms and RPGs...

But the fast moving Hummvees are hard to hit this morning and everything is going according to plan.

All US forces on the table now.  2nd squad spreads out.  LT in the ATM followed by McMann in the cougar.      The Apache draws a bead on the rebels in the market stalls and ...

 

 They decide they have had enough fighting for today!

Sgt McMann's cougar almost runs into the LT as his humvee stops.  McMann fears the humvee has been hit but...

no the LT just decided to fire a missile at some hostiles in a club in front of the road!  Sgt McMann just scratches his head.   [ leadership check on Richards had him stop for a turn.]  

Meanwhile the target building is starting to stir as Cpl Adams rounds the corner.

Everything in place for the assault.  [ Random event has dropped 1st squads morale back to normal hence yellow marker behind cougar]

 

 The door is knocked down and 1st squad enters!  McMann sends Anderson left and he goes with LCpl Schlact to the right.  

 Anderson does very well.  Encountering 5 taliban who have been roughed up by the Apache.  He loses no one and captures 2. 

 

Sgt McMann loses no one across the courtyard.  In a 5v5 pitched battle they have 2 soldiers go down but the medic is right there. 1 scratch and 1 light wound.  No prisoners, No Nadim or his dad.  [ one of the 5 will later be identified as Nadim's younger brother.]   A quick run upstairs and no Nadim.  

Nadim's dad leaving the compound.  You would think he wouldn't have a chance right?

His group is only pinned!  Worse reinforcements show up in the building right next door.  Now the US fireteam has a fight on its hand and becomes pinned!

Cpl Adams shows up to try to restore the situation.  Being new he fails to rally the FT.

The Lt, hearing about an impossible escape, jumps in the cougar and drives over to stop this attempt.  He sees 3 figures including a grey haired man.  He screams for the turret to fire but it is too late.  They vanish in the dust of Afghanistan.  

An amazing escape that cast a pall on an otherwise sold operation.  With only 2 POWs I called it a loss for the 10th.  Capt Ross is not please and blames the LT.  The LT blames Cpl Adams who does not get his promotion to Sgt.    1st Squad did well but Sgt McMann and Cpl Anderson miss their leadership rolls.  McMann's squad still has high morale at 10 though.  

 

Enjoy

 

Joe 

 

 

The Education of Lt Nguyen

 Hope everyone is having a good year.    I have been busy with Covid at our hospital this year.  Did manage to play 1 game inspired both by GMTs Fire in the Lake and Jack's mediocre posts on TMP.  [ I will admit Jack is using Platoon Forward the way I intended it and his terrain and painting puts mine to shame.] On to our story...

The concept of "armored cavalry" was actually invented and developed by ARVN and copied and improved on by the US.     One of the innovators was the 6th Armored Calvary Regiment. My platoon belongs to the regiment and have been in 2 battles.  They won a bunker busting mission and lost an ambush when their accompanying tanks ran away [ check 5 Nov post 2019].  The Armor Plt CC, Lt Qui, was embarrassed and apologetic and promised he would personally help the platoon with their next mission.   The AC platoon has average training and morale but all the leaders are poor.  

I have modified the Grunt's Forward mission table for an armored cav unit in Vietnam as follows:

D20                                  Scenario

1-3                                  Hammer Dawn

4                                     Ft Apache

5                                    Village Sweep

6-8                                 Cordon

 9-13                              Ambuscade

14-15                             One of our planes is missing

16-18                             Counter attack   [ from Platoon Forward]

19-20                              Patrol

I rolled "Cordon" so the platoon will be called out to protect ballot boxes during a local election in  Cam Rahn 1967.   

Characters

Lt Nguyen Duc     Son of a land owner   idealistic/enginering        [hesitant] poor leader

1st squad  Sgt Pham  Van    fisherman      meek/wealth                            poor    His squad is not happy with him.

2nd squad is detached to another site. 

Attached Lt Qui Platoon leader of  M-41 Walker Bulldog tanks.

1 squad of Ruff-Puffs with a poor NCO and MMG.  

Lt Nguyen arrives and surveys the scene. 

Polling booths set up in front of town hall.    Rumor is that local VC plan to disrupt the election to show it is fraudulent and to prove they can. 

 View from across the square...

Villagers coming in to work and vote under the safety of the SVN flag... Duc places people at every entrance to the square with the MMG on the roof of the store to cover the flag and the booths.  VC want to disrupt the booths, take down the flag and occupy the town hall.  

Disposition of forces...    

Sgt Pham's track certainly calms villagers...

 A UN observer stops by to see how it is going...

And ends up chatting with Lt. Nguyen in broken vietnamese.    Suddenly...

From across the square rifle shots from the bridge.   The Ruff Puffs actually spotted something before it fired!   They missed but at least...

Lt Qui had time to turn his tank around before the recoiless rife was set up and fired.  The round bounced off the he makes short work of the rifle team.   Unfortunately a MMG in the hut nearby kills him as he is manning his MG.  His crew, demoralized will take no more active part in the battle.

From the left side of the board spring VC determined to give the people free voice.  

Amazingly these 2 Ruff Puffs win the initiative, hold their ground and fire.   [ These Ruff Puffs are tough!]

Casualties are determined randomly and the VC leader falls.  The VC morale holds but they will not charge without a leader.  [ I think we can give the people free voice from over here comrade!]  Amazingly the 2 RP soldiers survive the return fire and retreat into the town hall in good order. The leader sustains only a scratch and soon the VC occupy the near ...

voting booths.   Several are gong to move into the store to lay down suppressive fire as the leader makes a charge into city hall.  Meanwhile...

Duc moves his squad onto the second floor and the jeep into a covering position for the flag and city hall.  He yells at the RP Sgt to enter the store with his squad to enflade the VC.  

 The VC make their charge with 9 men; 5 are supressed leaving 4 to enter.  [ You can just see the RP Sgt entering the store on the left of the picture.]   3 ARVN are in the hall and both sides quickly fail their morale checks and leave the building by side exits; a bit unsatisfying.  

meanwhile a battle erupts in the 5 and dime.   The MMG team is broken which complicates things on the ARVN side.  

Board towards end game.  Duc on bottom left.  Reinforced by survivors of town hall.   Shooting at the polling booths and at the 5 and dime when they have a clear shot.   A random event brought on a RPG team that was setting up to blow up Lt Qui's tank just as another Walker Bulldog showed up off screen to the right.  The battle rages in the 5 and dime...

 Duc radios Sgt Pham to enfilade the polling booths.  After a delay, the Sgt moves out.

 

 

Finally in the 5 and dime the RP Sgt is hit.  The rest of the men break with 2 exiting to the bamboo and the MMG surrendering.  

Bulldog surprising the RPG team.

With Van able to hammer their position from the side and no hope of getting to the flag the VC decide they had done what they could today.  The election has been disrupted and 2 booths have been destroyed.  They pull back the way they came.  

Fun game that played fast!   In retrospect I should have set up a larger cordon but it worked out.  The Ruff Puff proved tougher than expected.  It was sad to lose Lt Qui as the 2 LTs had developed a friendship and it never hurts to have a friend who owns several tanks!  Post battle Lt Nguyen gained a skill so he looses his hesitancy.  Moreover, he made his leadership roll and is now average!  I guess he learned a lot running this varied force.   Also Sgt Pham's squad is warming to him and he is now neutral in their eyes.   

Now that the platoon is improving I can't wait to see what they can do.

 

Enjoy

 

Joe

Buffalos of the Far East

 Happy New Year!  Hope everyone had a great holiday.  I survived the first holiday without my dad.  Not a lot of miniatures under the tree this year as I still don't seem to want to do that much plus Warlords didn't do their 30% off sale like last year.   I assume the itch will come back.  I did get some Tojo's for my air combat and several A-20s.   Can't decide what nationality to make my A-20s.  Originally I was going to paint them Russian but lately I am thinking RAF.  We will see.  I did get Fire in the Lake by GMT games.  If you want a strategic overview of Vietnam that is a great solitaire game go get this!  My brother got me B-17 leader which reminds my of the second game I ever got, AHs Lufftwaffe.  Hope to get that on the table soon.   Enough prattle.  Remember those buffalos I painted in November???

453 RAAF was dispatched to Singapore as war clouds appeared on the horizon.  It was made up of brand new trainees plus an Ozzie plucked from Spitfires named Sdr Leader Harris with 3 kills to his name. They started out with 3 Average pilots and 4 green.  Due to the situation they get -1 on all replacement and repair rolls.  Their first scrape was a 4 v 4 with some Oscars.  In a fair fight Harris damaged one [ a feat in a Buffalo] and Flying officer Armstrong actually got a kill but was wounded during the battle.  The next day the flight was involved with  4 v 6 Oscars with Flt Lt Dalton leading.  Pilot Officer Jones damages one but Sgts Enderson and "crash" Grayson are both shot down though they are brought back to base.  Dalton brings his damaged buffalo home and crashes on the dirt strip and is invalid home.  Today our brave band sends up 4 fighters led by newly promoted Flt Lt Armstrong on patrol when they are vectored towards Japanese bombers heading towards their airstrip...

Characters

Flt Lt Armstrong      naive/family         Avg                    1 kill

Wingman Sgt "Cattle" Kimburton  fanatical/music        green

 

Pilot officer  James     pleasant/ theater             green

wingman   Flight Sgt Altman       Haughty/ anti-officer 

Armstrong vectors them in perfectly and they manage to come in below the bombers ...

He decides to forgo their training and have everyone take a different bomber.  The plan is after one pass he and Cattle will reform and take on the Oscars...

who are caught out of position!   [ Squadron Forward rolled up only 3 but 2 vets and an avg.]

Sometimes you just get lucky!   F/S Altman fires a well aimed burst and sees the Nells wing snap!

"Cattle is also rewarded as the starboard engine catches fire on his target.  The two officers are not quite as fortunate.  

 

An Oscar pounces on Cattle but Armstrong is there to drive him off.   

 

Turn 3 and the 4 surviving bombers drone forward as the fighters dance a deadly dance.  

F/S Altman cries frantically for help as an Oscar latches onto his 6.  

This is not looking good as his engine starts to smoke from damage.

F/S Altman does the only thing you can do in a buffalo; dive!   He gains some space against the veteran as Cattle shows up to try to knock the Jap off him.  Unfortunately Cattle can't seem to land a blow.  Altman does manage to escape almost at treetop level.  

With P/O James leaking petrol Armstrong tells his band it is time to break off.  They have done what they could; 2 bombers shot down with no losses.   They will go to an alternate airstrip.

Meanwhile...

The 4 Japanese bombers complete their mission and return home.   Damage to the airfield is light.  There is more drama to be played out however.  P/O James makes it to the airfield and sets it down perfectly.  After this feat and damaging an Oscar first battle he easily makes his AKOT roll to become an Average pilot.   F/S Altman isn't so lucky.  He flips his damaged buffalo and is badly wounded.  2 Days later he and several other patients are transported south to a main hospital when their lorry is strafed and he is killed.  [ On special events I rolled that he was killed in an accident; go figure poor guy.]   Sgt Cattle Kimburton also makes his roll to become average.   Also with F/S Altman in the hospital the squadron needs a new senior NCO.  Harris picks Cattle because he is the  only NCO who hasn't been shot down yet!  As a Sdr Leader it is his call so Cattle gets promoted.  Lastly Sgt Darley joins the squadron bringing us up to 7, only down an officer.  We have 6 planes with 1 in the shop.  Great fun and I really enjoy the mixture of down in flames and bag the hun.  The battles play fast but still have the chrome I like.

 

Enjoy

 

Joe