August Digest #5

World of Warships

La Pampas is back in a weird but very costly new event. Basically you exchange a percentage of your accumulated resources - Elite Commander XP, credits, doubloons, steel, and so on - in a cumulative progression in order to eventually reach the Pan-American broken DD. There is a restriction on the amount of resources you can contribute. However, the event is not all it seems. And it's extremely costly; unless you have a mountain or two of resources at your disposal, forget it. Typical WG sales approach: offer with one hand while taking away with the other.

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Today was short grind. Also happens to be the weekend, a trend I hope to continue over the next few months. 

The Tier VIII German premium Anhalt is a nice battleship yet requires a different approach to play. Slow in speed and turret rotation. The guns hit well enough when a target is presenting broadside but then that can be said about every other ship in the same situation. The single torp firing arcs gives all-round coverage. Which comes in handy whether yolo-ing and kiting. Reminds me of the Tier IX Pommern. 

Fujin is part of that famous trio (Fujin R and Kamikaze) of Tier V premium Japanese destroyers. When it's on, it's on. Yet was reminded how fragile it is (health pool wise) when a rival DD torp nearly wiped me out (too late and lazy to avoid it) with just one torp hit. Low detection and fast torp reload means it's a real threat if opponent is unaware. But you need to keep your distance waiting for the golden opportunity to move in fast, strike, and then flee. 

The Tier V US premium Marblehead Lima is sister to Marblehead and basically a clone of the tech tree version, Omaha. Bullying your way into a close quarter fight is a risky endeavour at the best of times for any light cruiser. Staying back using your good HE to start fires and torpedo salvos is the better tactical approach, one I've quickly adopted for this ship whenever grinding with it.

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Another short grind. Targeted goal was the usual three daily coal crates. Along the way, completed the Voyage and GQ Johnny token missions and the Event Pass bonus reward. Played the three 15-pt commanders on the Fujin, Marblehead Lima and Anhalt. A quiet session much appreciated.

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Same outcome as yesterday (above). Fujin reminds me of the yolo-Emilio in that it's fast torpedo reload is very handy. Playing the other two ships from a distance seems the best way to play both. 

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The Iserlohn Action

Historical action that took place on 15 April 1941 between an Italo-German convoy and four British destroyers. 

Anyway, played this historical scenario. The British force, consisting of two Tribal destroyers, Mohawk and Nubian, and two 'J' class destroyers, Janus and Jervis deployed approaching from the southern table edge. 

Their approach from the landward side would initially fool the Italian escorts, the destroyers Luca Tarigo, Baleno and Lampo who had positioned themselves to the open water side. 

The convoy consisted of four troopships - Adana, Aegina, Arta, Iserlohn - and one ammunition ship - Saubadia. The entire force was deployed in the north-east corner of the 6' x 4' table. 

Objective for the convoy and escorts was to exit the table in the south-west corner. The British aimed to spoil that objective by either sinking all the enemy or forcing them to retire to their embarkation port. 

TURN 1 began with the immediate sinking of Iserlohn after being illuminated by starshell from one of the British destroyers. All four destroyers opened fire blasting the hapless troopship into the briny. 

TURN 2 saw the Italians react with Tarigo and Lampo swinging about to try to intercept the British threat. Baleno remained with the convoy. However, the British scored a double immediately lighting up Aegina and Saubadia. And suffered the same fate as Iserlohn. Aegina managed to last long enough for the lifeboats to deploy before she too joined her fellow ships sinking into the deep briny.

TURN 3 saw the Italian destroyers finally contact their British opponents. Successful illumination was followed by gunfire and torpedoes. But the targeted British proved harder to hit. With all this happening, the British were momentarily distracted from their aims. However, they were able to reform and move towards the remaining two convoy ships. 

TURN 4 was a turn of maneouvre and counter-moves with no attacks on the convoy as both destroyer groups moved into suitable attack positions. 

TURN 5 was the last turn as Arta was spotted and once again British gunfire proved deadly. Soon Arta joined the other three ships. At this point, the game ended because the Italians had lost half their total ships, a condition for ending the game. 

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Vietnam War slow-grow campaign

Scenario 2: Action at Ca Bong

Table layout. View from northwest (upriver). Ca Bong, objective for the Americans, is in the bottom right quarter. 

Another view, this time from the western side of the Song river. Inhabited areas are denoted by black cloth. Fields are carpet squares. Hills are either shaped green scourer pads or grey foam. 

Deployment of the lead vessel, a monitor from the Riverine force Team One (Lieutenant Petersen's command) triggers game start.  Batrep to follow later on the week. Once done, will setup for the next scenario: Escape And Evasion whereby an SAS team attempts to extricate themselves from a tricky situation. Cheers.

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August Digest #4

Vietnam War slow-grow campaign

Riverine Operations Part 1

Backstory

While the ANZACs at Dong Lam are conducting their sweep Operation Black Bottle is beginning - a riverine sweep up the Song Hoa river as far as the Hong Lee bridge. For this phase three companies from the 54th U.S. Infantry (A, B, D), 9th Division, would make their way upriver to secure the bridge and road from Ap Trang as well as the eastern bank opposite to where the Suoi Trang creek emerged into the Song Hoa (see map below). 

The grey areas denote cleared cultivation or clusters of huts; everything else unless stated is natural vegetation and mostly uninhabited. I've also given them names for ease of identification. And bear no relations to actual or historical locations. 

The old colonial plantation is a functioning rubber tree estate that covers a greater extent than the grey footprint shows. This footprint is a collection of buildings and structures. The plantation borders the Hong Le bridge road to the east, as far north as the two locations Ca Khoc and Co Lac to the north and to the map edges west and south. To the locals it's simply known as the plantation or Don Dien. The plantation owners are absentee French who've returned to France back in the fifties and left caretakers in charge. The estate is now run by a descendant who has assimilated into Vietnamese society with a Vietnamese wife and offspring. 

Hugging the waterways on both sides are various local fishing communities who sell their catch either at Ca Bong or in Vuon Hoa itself. 

The hamlet of Ap Mo straddles the main highway. Ap Mo itself consists of just three old colonial-style buildings of which one is a mercantile store owned by a French-Vietnamese relative of the plantation overseer. There is also a small hotel often busy with locals and travellers. The last structure is an old warehouse. 

Subsidiary roads and tracks commonly used is shown. These connect the various communities. There is also a ferry boat (of sorts) operating on the Suoi Trang stream used mainly by those in and around Noi Buon. 

Beyond the fishing areas, on the northern banks heading toward Thuoc Toi, is mostly overgrown secondary growth interspersed with thick stands of ever plentiful bamboo. West of Thuoc Toi are small holdings, usually family owned rice fields with a few orchard trees. The eastern third of the above map from the river north and inclusive of Ap Mo is largely undulating and hilly jungle.

Battle Plan overview

This overview takes into account that multiple actions will take place en route to the battle group's main objective. For now however these inevitable engagements will be treated separately to this main mission. For the sake of this narrative let's accept that the river journey was uneventful and without incident up until their deployment.

This mission will be broken into three separate sub-mission (one per company). 

U.S. Forces listing

Note: I don't have the full amount of figures to cover all three companies at one go so I'm going to run this scenario in several stages as I expect there will be several engagements happening all at once upon deployment. 

Here's the full listing of those that will take part in this next mission. Names have been ficitionalised to protect the past. I've also listed four rifle platoons because that fourth one is either optional or support weapons. 

• A Company
  
• OC - Major Donald
• 21C - Captain Eissen
• 1st Platoon - Lt Castillas
• 2nd Platoon - Lt Byrd
• 3rd Platoon - Lt Seldwayer
• 4th Platoon - Lt Rowley
• B Company
• OC - Major Schuler
• 2IC - Captain Morales
• 1st Platoon - Lt Camsolea
• 2nd Platoon - Lt Burnside
• 3rd Platoon - Lt Carson
• 4th Platoon - Lt Myers
• D Company
• OC - Major Zollerfeldt
• 2IC - Captain Clarke
• 1st Platoon - Lt Dawes
• 2nd Platoon - Lt Schaeffer
• 3rd Platoon - Lt Smith
• 4th Platoon - Lt Cyzinksi
• Team 1 River force
• Commander - Lt Petersen (naval)
• Monitor
• Tango
• Tango
• Tango
• Monitor
• Team 2 River force
• Commander - Lt Delweere (naval)
• Monitor
• Tango
• Tango
• Command
• Monitor

Battle Plan Company-level

A Company's main mission is twofold: (1) to land then sweep through and secure Ca Bong and (2) conduct patrols south to the river crossing to Noi Buon. HQ in Ca Bong. Team 2 (Delweere) will initially support the landing of A Company before moving  on to the bridge to provide fire support for B Company. 

D Company's mission is mainly to secure control of Hong Lee bridge. Once A Company has secured control of Ca Bong, B Company will land and push through to the bridge. Aim is to secure control of the bridge and the road south of it. Establish headquarters at the Plantation. Patrol as far north as Ca Khoc. D Company will air support available to them as well as artillery on-call. Fire zones have been prepared and authorisation given. 

B Company's mission will be to land at Diem Xanh and make for Thuoc Toi establishing a headquarters there. In support initially will be Team 1 under Lt Petersen. Once B Company are moving on to Thuoc Toi Petersen's team will restation themselves with A Company as fire support and as a reserve to Team 2. B Company have on-call both artillery and air support that have been duly authorised. 

Key Objectives pertaining to the main Battle Plan

• establish and secure control of Ca Bong
• secure control of Hong Lee bridge
• establish and secure control of Thuoc Toi

Key objectives are worth 2 points each. Secondary objectives are worth 1 point apiece. Scoring less that six points is a loss. Any score between six and eight points is a minor win. Scoring nine or more points is a major win for the Free World. 

Secondary Objectives (1 pt each)

• VC losing over thirty percent of their total force committed to this mission by way of combat
• Finding five or more caches of any kind
• Discovering and destroying any tunnel system
• Discovering any enemy encampment
• Finding valuable military documentation
• Capturing any enemy VC alive
• Destroying any enemy armour (APCs and tanks) and soft-skin transports

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Mission Three: The SAS operations around Lang Bac

This mission revolves around a ANZAC Special Forces squad with the backstory inspired from several actual Special Forces events and stories I've heard in my travels combined into one imaginative extract. For now, this is all I have created. More to follow for sure. 

Backstory

This is a work of fiction...

"...It's been several days now since their night insertion and long walk-in. The smell of the jungle was becoming acceptable to Trooper B, lead scout for the ANZAC SAS team. Captain R had briefed them on the ambush and they had quietly but quickly moved into position. Trooper B and Trooper K were at the one end of the linear ambush. Paired together, barely inches apart, they lay on the ground ignoring the warm dampness of the humid night and the growing night sounds. Trooper B checked the clacker once more knowing that it was ready. He checked the safety was off. It was. He imagined the wires carefully leading to the triplet of claymores positioned just yards from the track. 

The rest of the team were off to the right in similar readiness. He carefully rubbed the sweat with his camo scarf. He ignored the growing stiffness in his body. The sound of the jungle was a familiar song to him now. The luminescent glow of the fungus speckled the darkness which seemed to him utterly amazing. 

Suddenly he felt a soft but distinct tap-tap-tap on his left side. He quickly shook the pleasant thoughts of a moment ago and immediately concentrated on the firing arc he had chosen before it fell dark. Then he heard it. The slight scuffle of footsteps distant, off to his left. Faint at first but drawing closer. Something was on the track. He could not see at all: it was too dark. He tried to discern the step patterns instead but couldn't make them out amidst the night symphony of insect sounds. 

The steps became clearer however. He turned his head slightly in the direction he guessed them to be. Whoever was making those steps was pretty good at moving around in this inky darkness. Then it stopped. He waited. He was immediately tempted to trigger the claymores. 

Another tap-tap. 

A signal by Trooper K to wait. So he did. The steps began again moving slowly off to their right. Moving down the track. He listened. No other steps were heard. 

Suddenly a trip wire flare went off.

Automatically he squeezed his clacker. The explosions were as sudden as they were loud. The illumination was blinding. Trooper K was already firing. Trooper B joined him. 

Both quickly expended magazine and had fresh ones already loaded. Rounds chambered. They waited amid the sudden deafness. Then there was a hand on his shoulder. He understood immediately and quickly rose to a knee, turned around and reached out for the vine line that lay not far away, stood up and slowly but surely followed it into the darkness. 

At the predetermined RV spot they waited for the rest of the team. A quick count. Then the team moved off. Back into the jungle. Back into the darkness..."

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Hobby

Did some more Blinds and support fire blast squares today. Tried another approach to gluing the two halves of the Blind by first taping the back with sellotape before applying the wood glue to the front and using a spatula to work the glue into the gaps between the two halves. Once dried will prime then paint in their respective faction colours - red for VC/NVA, yellow for ARVN, green for Free World. 

For the 6" blast squares I did something similar using the end off-cuts as braces on the corners before gluing. Once dried, I trimmed the braces then applied a black primer coat. Base coat will either be grey or some other neutral colour.  

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World of Warships

Took a break from the normal skipper grind and played instead those ships with new or switched commanders. Fair few and it was fun to play ships I haven't played either in a while or only once. Highlights would have to be delight in playing Gambia and Nanning. 

While my teammates raced after the enemy I was left to defend our base in the Gambia against three enemy ships, Dallas, Duncan and Sinop. I had less than 1/4 HP left. Lucky for me these were bot-driven. Still, I could have done with some assistance especially from the a*hole who kept pressing "Defend the base" whilst chasing after the enemy carrier at the other end of the map. In a moment of relief, I typed "nz". At the time I was also remembering what Rommel claimed to have said about the ANZACs during WW2, how he would attack with Australians and defend with New Zealanders. I guess I was living the dream. Lol. 

Pleasantly surprised by the Nanning and its two five-torpedo tubes armament and range. This Legacy event reward has smoke while its guns deals useful damage especially after torping the target. Like putting someone out of their misery. 

Also forgot I had plonked my Santa commanders from past Christmas events on most of the Tier One ships. Forgot also how slow they are. But it did help me to focus dealing damage when confronting an opponent. Aiming below the gunwale might be standard at higher tiers (because of the citadel location) but at Tier One aiming for the superstructure is the best way to deal damage and earns kills quicker. No matter which cruiser, the results are the same. 

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June 2025 Digest #2

Norm's Train

US modeller whose passion are trains. His works though are a sight to behold - visually appealing at a higher level than usual scratch building. His train displays are based upon real life. Highly recommended if you're interested in next level modelling utilising both standard modelling construction and incorporating 3D printing and laser cutting. An inspiration if looking for more in-depth modelling design and construction techniques. High quality, detailed, production. In some ways, he reminds me of my idol, the late great Donald F. Featherstone.

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World of Warships

Earnings for the past two months (April and May) are as follows (from Co-Op Battle mode and all the rewards from the various WG events foisted upon us). Column one is for April while column two represents May:

In-game credits:    17,175,000        15,227,860
Doubloons:            3,650                 4,148
Grey EB:                430                    861
Green EB:              223                    376
Blue EB:                146                    103
Red EB:                  4                        24
Elite Cmdr XP:       474,000             580,675
Free XP:                 147,250              191,230
Signals:                   1,094                  786
Camo:                      25                      58
Coal:                       127,600              106,550
Premium days:        25                       26
Ships:                      1                         7
Steel:                       4,800                  4,650
Port slot:                  3                         4
Commander:            2                         3
Miscellaneous:        1,139                   1,271
Research points:      -                           -
Event tokens:           5                          10,949
Community tokens: 600                      -

Fairly steady overall. Not surprised by the absence of Research Points as they belong to probably the most expensive means of obtaining ships. That, and steel ships. 

EB stands for Economic Bonus which helps with performance rewards. Range from common (grey) to rare (red). Miscellaneous represents such items as Action reports (part of the Experimental Ships event), unique Explosion effects (recently introduced to make explosions looks "pretty"). Elite Cmdr XP is only useful for upskill captains. 

Currently gunning for more Free XP (in June) so I can participate in the next Reserach Bureau line reset. Which will be the Harugumo line. Which means I am simply following the recommended approach. 

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New event although I wasn't aware - rehash of Soviet era warships. Played for the crates expecting nothing; ended up getting the Tier VIII Soviet premium destroyer Provorna (formerly German Z-33 and paid as war reparations to the Soviets). Not taken it out of port as yet; no intention too so far.

Card game is a simple but delightful diversion from the daily grind. Even jumped into Operations to complete one of the common mission requirements. 

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Dunkirk 1940

On the evac mission, plonk At All Cost mod card on any ship to win irrespective of your opposing card's strength. Usually apply this winner on the two level three missions which are the most difficult. So, you need a minimum of 48 Support tokens to win at these missions but I aim for around 114 support tokens: you can boost your stockpile by playing all the support missions where you'll find opportunities to earn extra support tokens. 

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Vietnam War solo campaign project

I will be using the solo variant of CDS as devised and promoted by Andy Bailey from Georgia, USA with some "house rules" variations thrown in for good measure to keep the narrative flowing. Core rules remain CDS, naturally.

Next, I am going to rate the various Allied "Big Men" who will be platoon-level commanders along with a couple of company and battalion level officers. NCOs, for now, will not be rated; however, should a platoon-level officer "Big Man" become casualty, the next in command (SNCO/NCO) will step up accordingly. Should company-level commanders get knocked over or incapacitated, same procedure will follow, ie someone steps up. 

All skill levels are diced randomly ranging from 2 (avg) to 4 (excellent). And these apply specifically to those undertaking the first phase of Operation Reprimand Sweep. Because they're ANZACs their skill level will be rated above average than their US counterparts. For now, these will be the BIG MEN with others added as the campaign unfolds.

6 ANZAC Bn CO - Lt.Col. Angua Kildove (AUS) = 4

A Coy 6 ANZAC, OC - Maj. Leigh Porter (AUS) = 3
A Coy 2IC - Capt. Brett Longford (NZ) = 3

1 Platoon cmdr - Joe Wilkinson (AUS) = 3
2 Platoon cmdr - Mike Sommers (AUS) = 3
3 Platoon cmdr - John Galbraith (NZ) = 4
4 Platoon cmdr - Peter Jensen (NZ) = 3

C Coy 6 ANZAC Bn, OC - Maj. Bruce Ford (AUS) = 4
C Coy 21C - TBA

9 Platoon cmdr - Kyle Simpkins (AUS) = 3
10 Platoon cmdr - Bill Hollis (AUS) = 3
11 Platoon cmdr - Ken Jackson (NZ) = 3
12 Platoon cmdr - Malcolm Ledbetter (AUS) = 4

Commanding the tanks - Ross Kilpatrick (AUS) = 3
Commanding the APCs - Miles Ramsek (AUS) = 3

NZSAS det - Capt. Mike Heeley (NZ) = 3

Next step will be to lay down the terrain for the table according to the solo variant rules. 

Phase 1 - Secure main road

The scenario will begin with a sweep through the village of Lang Dong Nam on the main route through the area. A Coy 6 ANZAC are leading the sweep in an inverted triangle formation on foot after demounting from APCs and trucks. 

Company headquarters and 4 platoon are in reserve. 

A Coy's mission will be twofold:

• sweep and clear the town of any possible enemy threat
  
• provide protection for a team of mortars that will set up therein
• secure town the for further use as forward Bn HQ

On call is direct artillery support from the NZ 162 bty at Firebase Montenegro. Air support will be also available via USS Abilene carrier group but the threat perceived is deemed low but they will be on standby should the situation deteriorate fast. 

C Coy ANZAC will remained mounted and move through and secure Ap Mo, a small hamlet a couple of kilometres along the main route. Defensive perimeter to be established. Kilpatrick's tanks will move up to connect with Ford's infantry and provide added fire support as required for the evening.

The remainder of the battalion (B Coy and D Coy and Spt Coy) will not be involved during this first phase.

Commentary: Overkill? Probably but when dealing with the VC you never underestimate their capabilities to disrupt and ruin your best laid plans. 

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Warm up scenario: Hounds and Hare

First game tonight was a warmup reacquaintance which is a prelude to the above designed campaign. And occurs several weeks prior to the official campaign. A US infantry patrol is conducting a normal sweep in a hostile area when it encounters (surprisingly) a VC squad...

Used the solo variant for terrain placement only which uses deviation dice. Mark your table centre and go from there. Diced fifteen terrain items for this scenario. Below image shows some of the placements. 

Reverted to the basic ruleset for subsequent activities. Next thing after terrain placement (shown above) was determining the route of march for both forces (see below). I simply chose one table edge (short side) to the other for the VC. This led to a logical development. The Free World forces (an infantry platoon) would be marching from long edge to long edge (south to north). 

Once deployed the game happened pretty quick as one of the Free World squads spotted the VC. Moving up into an overwatch position, two of the squads engaged the VC who returned fire. 

But the weight of fire by the Free World fellas seemed to spook the VC who decided to flee. But the weight of fire and accuracy proved decisive as the VC unit suffered heavily losing all bar two in quick succession. The survivors surrendered. Unfortunately the VC commander was one of those killed. 

Still the Free World patrol enjoyed great success. 

Conclusion: Quick warm up game. Been a long while since I last played this game. However, as this is an ongoing campaign game, things are about to develop very quickly...

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May 2025: Part 1

World of Warships

Grinding the Dockyard event for the Blucher finished today. Took her out for her maiden voyage and kept her back as recommended instead of charging in guns blazing. Recommendation confirmed: she's not as strong as expected. Nothing remarkable given she's a dockyard ship - usually they have some gimmick of sorts to justify her status as a reward. Especially when spending valuable doubloons (the two starter packs) to progress through the phases along with the silly grinding.

Not interested in the Unbreakable Line mode. When they make it permanent, then I will play it. Remember the earlier brawl modes from years back and it was always fun to play so am not suprised UL has been lauded as it has. 

Yesterday spent credit to obtain the supership Jacksonville. Not taken her out of port yet but may soon do so just to confirm the hype that it's as OP as stated. Currently does not have a commander (none spare in Reserve) but will plonk a 21-point captain on it and take it out for a lark. 

Tried to shift a few commanders around tonight; been meaning to do so for a while but never got round to it. Usually you can do so without expending doubloons and/or elite commander XP as many times you want. But tonight could only do so once before it costs. Monetization everywhere.

Contemplated going the Research Bureau route. Resetting and regrinding a tech tree line will allow me eventual access to other ships but I am hesitant. Saw Lord Zath's take on resetting the RB way but remain unconvinced. And despite Clyde Plays excellent RB guide to resetting, I am reluctant to travel down this path. Not sure why, but some instinct prevents me from embracing this legitimate approach to accessing more new ships. Happy, for now, to slow-grow my Research Bureau points. So excellent OP ships like the Paolo Emilio or Vampire II will have to wait long-term before obtaining. I do have one, the Ohio. But am in no immediate rush to go after others. Current priority - and a long way off - is the Slava. 

Playing the Tokachi has been fun. Aside from helping me to finish my Dockyard grind, it has been performing well when played actively in Co-Op mode. Past few games has seen the ship score at least 3-4 kills on average regardless of the map. Be it on the Two Brothers map through the middle or on any approach lane in Haven, she performs very well, especially when confronting superior numbers. Armour may be non-existent but her torp salvoes against battleships are lethal. And her HE is a good firestarter. 

Counterstrike 

Reviewing YT videos of old and removed CS maps no longer active that past few days. A big trip down memory lane when I watched some YT vidz on the topic. Forgot how much I used to play Counterstrike a lot in 1999 - 2001. Much loved game. Played Counterstrike, CS 1.6, CS: Condition Zero quite a bit back in the day. Began to wane when CS Source was released. 

Old maps like fy_iceworld were always on rotation and the internet cafe was always full of young (and old), mostly Asian. Late night sessions often extending overnight into the next morning.

FY-SNOW was a variation of FY-ICEWORLD which was a straight shoot-out whereby weapons were laid out and you spawned on to them. The map above is version 9. 

ICEWORLD was extremely popular and the server was often full when on rotation. It was the one I played a lot. Of course, you had the wall hacks and aimbots happening or getting booted instantly, but it was so much fun you often ignored those negative aspects.

By the time CS: Global Offensive appeared I had already moved on to other games. And even though I have both CS:GO and CS2 in my Steam library, I have no interest apart from spectating the pro teams and their amazing skills. 

I have returned for some Condition Zero action because it has a narrative (of sorts) for some nostalgia some years back. And still miss those internet cafe fun times. But I have WOWS nowadays to fill that void. Poorly though, I might add.

Canvas Eagles - Solo adaption

Many years ago (around 2018) I wrote up a solo adaptation of Canvas Eagles. While perfect for solo gladiatorial combat, it was also handy for multi-plane actions. Plus I wanted to explore King Kong atop Empire State building situations with fantastic beasts. Hence why I named it Canvas Eagles - Beast Warz.

Tweaking a few changes and/or options seems in order when I pulled out the original typed up adaptation today. 

Command Zones

In the original, I've got the top two skilled pilots (designated A and B pilots) having a Command Zone radius of 2 and 1 hex respectively. What these Command Zones represent is the influence the pilot exerts on any other friendly aircraft (usually wingman) within that zone. 

This zone only applies to C- and D-class pilots (Pilot and Novice respectively) who are normally wingman to the more experienced A- or B-class pilot. If the wingman is an A- or B-class pilot the command zone cancels out between both. 

Looking at it now I might expand the range of the A-class pilot Command Zone from 2 to 3 hexes, B-class from 1 to 2 hexes and C-class is now 1 hex while D-class pilots have no Command Zone.

Rewording needed: "...If either move outside that command zone, for whatever reason, then they immediately revert to their own movement procedure (see below)..." This applies specifically to wingman in a pairing. And applies especially to D-class pilots which is expanded upon in the next paragraph.

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A Vietnam War scenario

The Temple of Light Scenario - a Vietnam War scenario

Characters: All characters and unit designations are fictional.

Scale: 15mm

Mode: Solo

Ruleset: Charlie Don't Surf (Too Fat Lardies)

Date/Time: 28 April

Background: A divisional sweep has been ordered by the area commander, Major General "Big Joe" Malkolski (USA). For A Company, 6th ANZAC battalion, their mission is to clear the Temple of Light complex at Anh Loh by the 17th May. The region is rumoured to be home to the 53rd VC battle group commanded by a Colonel Nguyen van Noong.

A Company is a composite company, as is the 6th ANZAC battalion itself, comprising two platoons from the 33 RAR (Royal Australian Regiment) and two platoons from the 17th RNZIR (Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment). 

Leading the sweep will be 1 Platoon (AUS) supported by 2 Platoon (AUS) and 4 Platoon (NZ) in arrowhead or inverted V formation. The infantry will be supported by Coy HQ and 3 Platoon (NZ) mounted in APC. A troop of tanks (AUS) will also provide inf-arm support along with helo air cover spt provided by the 17th Air Cav (US) unit. 

Major Leigh Porter (AUS) also has on-call artillery support from both the local artillery unit (NZ's 163 bty) and F-4 air strike capabilities from the USS Abilene carrier group should things really heat up.

Deep and to the rear of the temple complex a NZSAS team led by Captain Mike Heely (NZ) are in place to both verify and set up ambushes of likely escape routes. 

The VC battlegroup is about 300-strong, so intelligence reports. The enemy is a veteran unit and will be tough to deal with but Major Porter is confident his company will fulfil their mission successfully. Just in case things go pear-shape however, the battalion commander Lt-Col Angus Kildaire (AUS) has ordered C Company on standby as backup along with a second troop of tanks. 

Map above is rough. Green areas show habitation as in villages or hamlets. Red square is the temple complex. Blue lines are known streams and rivers. Grey lines are the main transit routes that vary in quality from proper highways to dirt tracks or trails used by the locals only. 

Allied forces start from the bottom of the map. Deployment to be diced for. 

Allied forces: 

• four Platoons infantry
• one SAS team
• Section mortars (x4)
• APCs (two troops worth)
• Tanks (x2)
• F4 (x2)
• Hueys (x4)

VC forces:

• equivalent of 300 troops including fire spt teams

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29 December - Canvas Eagles - Multi-plane scenarios 1 and 2

Chatting to my gaming buddy the other day got me thinking about likely scenarios for our next matchup. The scenarios presented below represent what those mulling options spewed forth. Apologies in advance. 

Scenario 1: Late Night Bomber (I'll be home for breakfast)

Backstory:

A night bomber is late returning from a night mission over northern Germany. A malfunction causes the bomber to fly low whilst detouring away from enemy positions. Unfortunately there is a miscalculations with the navigation and the bomber ends up flying directly over enemy lines who awake to hear the thunderous sound overhead. Alerted, the enemy react. Meanwhile, Allied command, aware the bomber is overdue, orders the forward air units to be on the lookout and safely escort the bomber home for breakfast.

Forces:

• 1 Allied bomber - Handley Page (1)
• A flight of Allied Sopwith Camels (4) 
• Enemy interceptor planes - Fokker DR-1s (2-3)

Conditions:

• Early morning (around 6.00am). Dawn reveals clear visibility to all on this fine spring morning. Hardly a cloud in the sky.
• Bomber starts on either short map edge and must moves the length of hex map to safely exit the opposite end. Doing so safely while still active in the air is deemed a moral victory for the Allies. But winning the match is counted using the Victory conditions (see below). 
• Allied fighters must RV and then safely escort (or defend) the lost bomber. Roll d6 to determine arrival and spawn point.
• Enemy despatches a flight (2-3 aircraft) to intercept and hopefully shoot down the bomber. Their arrival will be diced for on first turn. This includes deployment location and the turn on which they arrive. Their mission is to down the bomber and drive off the escort.
• No Allied plane may spawn to the rear of the bomber relative to its current location. Likewise, the same applies to the Central Powers interceptors who may not spawn forward of the bomber's current location. 
• No aircraft may spawn within 6 hexes of the bomber on dice roll. If this happens, reroll for new spawn point.
• Spawn point and arrival time are determined by a either a d6 (simplified) or d10 (standard) roll for every fighter/scout plane on Turn 1.

Victory:

• Bomber safely exits map = 3 victory points for Allies
• Enemy interceptor driven off or shot down = 1 victory point per interceptor for Allies
• Bomber shot down/crashes = 3 victory points for Central Powers
• Allied escort plane driven off or shot down = 1 victory point per escort for Central Powers
• Compare differentials with best differential wins. 

Spawn:

• Position is ALWAYS relative to the bomber's direction of movement. So, if moving from right map edge to left map, the bomber's right wing tip (from bomber pilot's perspective) is always "north" while the left wing tip is  always "south". Central Powers aircraft can never spawn forward of the bomber. And Allied escort planes can never spawn rearward of the Allied bomber. 
• Note: if the players decide to have the bomber fly from left to right, then the notations are reversed, i.e., bomber's left wing tip is now "north" while the right wing tip is "south". Got it? Good!
• Using basic cardinal points that match with die roll. So, if bomber is flying from right to left then "1" would be "north", "2" would be "north east". "3" is "east", as follows:
• 1 = north
• 2 = north-east
• 3 = east
• 4 = south-east
• 5 = south
• 6 = reroll
• As above so for the Allied escorts arrival only in reverse for die roll 2 to 4. 1, 5, and 6 remain the same. Therefore:
• 1 = north
• 2 = north-west
• 3 = west
• 4 = south-west
• 5 = south
• 6 = reroll
• If bomber is flying left to right, for the Central Powers spawn point is as follows:
• 1 = north
• 2 = north-west
• 3 = west
• 4 = south-west
• 5 = south
• 6 = reroll
• As above but for Allied escort planes:
• 1 = north
• 2 = north-east
• 3 = east
• 4 = south-east
• 5 = south
• 6 = reroll
• Spawn for either Central Powers or Allied escorts triggers whenever d10 rolls greater than 5 for either side. Let's hope the Allied have a non-incident free flight then and they can get home to a hot cooked full English breakfast. 

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Scenario 2: Reconnaissance over the front line (I see you!)

Backstory:

Captain James "Lofty" Chambers and Lieutenant Egmont "Treetops" Hassler have been ordered to locate the positions of the newly arrived 165th Artillery regiments near St-Iglaire flying their B.E.2c "Checkers". Accompanying them flying covering escort will be a single fighter flown by Lieutenant Thomas "Over the top, boys!" Marchelton-Shivers either in one of them "new fandangles foisted on us by the Air Ministry" DH-2 or his old but reliable Sopwith Triple "Betsy". This is an afternoon flight. The early summer day has been warm for the most part but it looks like "clouding over, so the Met boys believe so". Can the duo find their elusive prize or will it be another empty unrewarding afternoon mission over enemy lines. Lofty hopes so. 

Forces:

• 1 Allied scout/reconnaissance aircraft - B.E.2c (variant to be clarified in batrep)
• 1 Allied fighter escort - Airco DH-2 or Sopwith Triple
• 2 Central Powers Fokker E-IIIs
• 3 German ground artillery batteries (1 gun model represents battery)

Conditions:

• Suitable hex map board (3 x 4)
• Artillery gun models (representing batteries)
• Allied aircraft appear anywhere along a long hex map edge flying towards enemy lines. Dice for altitude of both planes. Both planes start no further apart than two hexes.
• Enemy aircraft will appear once the first artillery battery location is revealed. They may enter only from the map edge up to the AO limits (see further down). Aircraft arrive as one group. Normal altitude die roll takes place for every aircraft. 
• Recon aircraft must locate every enemy battery. These remain hidden until revealed. Their hidden location is written down by player controlling enemy guns PRIOR to start of game and only disclosed once the Allied recon plane enters the individual battery's arena of operations (ARO).
• Enemy battery guns cannot deploy within 3 hex radius of each other nor may they deploy any further apart from one another more than 7 hexes apart.
• The artillery regiment's AO (area of operations) limits cannot be closer than 4 hexes from the Allied planes map edge. 
• Once the recon aircraft enters anywhere inside an enemy battery's hex arena (3 hex radius), the enemy player immediately reveals its location by placing said bty model on board in its true location. 
• Allied player MAY then choose to bomb it (B.E.2 carries one hand-held bomb dropped by observer) if able to. Otherwise, it will record that location and move on to the next location. If successful in bombing bty, result counts towards final victory (see below). 

Victory:

• Enemy battery successfully located = 1 victory point to Allies
• Enemy battery successfully bombed = 1 victory point to Allies
• Recon aircraft safely exiting map board on own side = 1 victory point to Allies
• Recon aircraft shot or crashes = 1 victory point to Central Powers
• Enemy battery not located = 1 victory point to Central Powers per hidden bty
• Enemy fighter driven off (exits map board) or shot down = 1 victory point to Allies
• Compare victory points. The side with the better differential.

Cheers.

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