Operation Firefly - Mission 4: Combat Patrol

After my small Solo Adventure I finally received another order-mail from my friend and we were finally able to end this game, which had been dragging along since August...
I don´t know if it was the relatively boring mission or other circumstances that kept him from participating with more enthusiasm.

April 21 - 17:20.

Its late afternoon in the Lagashkar Valley. The sun is still blazing on this unusually hot spring-day. The soldiers of Alpha Platoon are already exhausted, but their command is neither able nor willing to give them a break. The entire day they´ve been patrolling the area on the southern side of the river, looking for influx of Taliban into the region that might threaten Mayasaf. Some unusual activities have been spotted and the troops have been put on alert.

This evening, more combat patrols are about to be sent out into the Greenzone to investigate the area and report any enemy activity back to the HQ.

One of these groups is Alpha 2, one of the Squads from Alpha-Platoon stationed in the area. Their route has already taken them along a farmroad through clusters small settlements and farming compounds. They´re halfway back to base when they suddenly come under fire - it´s only light rifle fire, cracking through the vegetation from one of the treelines, but it means trouble. After a brief consultation with HQ, Alpha 2 is ordered to push towards the enemy position to get a better picture of their numbers and enemy activity in the area.

Their advance behind the treeline leads them towards a number of compounds surrounded by fields. The enemy is probably hiding somewhere here.

"Your task is to conduct a combat patrol to assess enemy numbers and their organisation to prepare further steps. Don´t get bogged down into heavy fighting - and, as usual, don´t harm any civilians. Gather information and get back to base safely!"

------------------------

Objectives:

-Suffer no KIA

-Assess enemy numbers (Points awarded for every 2 enemy units sucessfully spotted & PIDed by your soldiers)

-Investigate and mark enemy infrastructure  (Points awarded for every Hot-Spot discovered - destruction is not necessary)

Your Forces:

1x US Infantry Squad

Additional assets requested:
1x medium mortar battery, callsign Wormtooth.
----------------------------

The Area

This mission takes place in the greenzone-sector 3 of our campaign map (Look here for more information). With two insurgency cells and two squads in the area, the area is pretty much dominated by the US troops. So they are out sweep this small farming area behind the treeline to gather intel on the enemy.

As Taliban player, my task is to prevent the US Teams from advancing too far (which enables them to discover more Hot Spots) while on the other hand keeping my units hidden from him (as he will get victory points for units that are discovered). That way, I decided to play rather defensively, keeping the troops hidden as long as the US troops don´t get close to my Hot Spots [Spoiler warning - only read this if you want to know where the Hot Spots are:  Hot Spot locations are at: B4, F6, C9, J8 and H11 according to the map-grid ]

Turn 1

Orders for Turn 1

"Maaan, its soo hot!"

"Stop whining, Jackson!"

"Heh, Welcome to hell..." 

"Enough, lets get rollin´!  Cpl. Fricks, your team will secure the compound to our right, while we provide cover. Let´s get some smoke on the road to protect us from potential sniper fire from further down the road. Any questions? Okay, then get to work!"

"Wormtooth, this is Alpha 2. We need a smokescreen at grid 041-302."

"Roger that, Alpha. We´re checking your coordinates."

"Load is on the way!" 

 "3...2...1....Splash"

Smokescreen from the Mortar Support

 Turn 2

 No orders-picture for Turn 2, as it doesn´t reflect what finally happened. Team Blue move towards the white house, while Team Red asks for more smoke but fails its request. Nothing dramatic and not worth the pictures or the space ;)

Turn 3

Turn 3 - Orders

Without the cover of smoke, Blue makes its entry into the building while red stays on overwatch. Nothing happens though, until...

"Sarge, I got something! Looks like a plastic bag or something..."

"Careful guys! I want a positive ID on that thing before anyone gets closer to it."

A strange plastic bag is deposited next to the building...

"Jackson, give me an assessment of th...."

"Contact!"

"Sarge, that looks like a bag full of weapons. RPGs, AKs... even some old M16s."

"Well, here we go... that´s what we´re looking for!" 

So that´s it for my first Hot-Spot. But at this pace, I´m very confident that I can protect the other places, as they are hidden and dispersed. 

Turn 4

This was the plan - but Red is only allowed a Tactical Move when leaving Buildings! They get to the edge of the field

After the fire died down, Team Blue was kept on the lookout while red began to advance into the courtyard. 

Turn 5

Orders for Turn 5

Team Blue advances under the cover of smoke grenades

Team Blue conceiled by smoke

As does Team Red.

Somewhere along their path towards the house, bullets crack through the air. Someone is shooting from the compound! The soldiers quickly put some rounds into the windows before the full weight of the enemy firepower comes to bear. A young Talib with twitchy trigger-finger has spoiled the ambush his group has set up. Now, the Mujs hunker down and try not to get hit, unable to lay down effective fire on the US Soldiers that are moving closer. 

Team Red detects an ambush!

Two Taliban are killed and the rest is pinned!

Turn 6

No orders picture for this turn, but here are the instructions:

"Blue conceals itself with smoke, while ordering the mortar to fire upon the building containing the hostile forces. The squad will then proceed to secure or destroy the weapon cache near the house.

Meanwhile, Red is put on Overwatch. Use smoke if possible."




Both Blue and Red determine that it might be wiser to save some smoke grenades for later.

Mortars are ranging in on the enemy position!

As Blue calls in the Mortar Battery, shells begin raining on the house. The shells strike dangerously close to the position of Team Red, filling the air with deadly shrapnel. Fortunately, noone is hit by friendly fire, but neither does the strike seem to have any effect on the Taliban in the building. After watching the show, Blue moves back to the weapon cache to secure it. 

Team Blue securing the bag full of weapons

Meanwhile, Red is still locked in a firefight. Though they kill several enemies that have resumd their attacks from the houes after the barrage ended, the resistance is fierce. One of the US Soldiers is hit by incoming fire and the Team decides that they are too exposed, retreating behind the nearby rocks.

Bad defense die...

... causing a casualty and a run for cover

 

Fortunately, the wounded soldier is still combat effective, though he´ll definitely require treatment once back at base. 

"Don´t worry, it´s just a fleshwound!"

On the upside, a casualty transport is organised, which spares the team the long walk home.

With more time available you could continue the mission longer than expected before retreating or abort the patrol and head to the rendevous.

"Abort mission, I repeat: abort mission. Disengage and establish a secure perimeter until the relief arrives. Secure the weapon cache and disable it, if necessary" 

Roger that! Securing perimeter and waiting for evac.

------------

Mission Accomplished.

US

-Suffer no KIA  (5 VP)

-Per Hot Spot discovered (2 VP)  x1

-Per 2 Units spotted & PIDed (1 VP) x1

Total: 8 VP

Taliban

-Conceil at least 3 Hot Spots from the enemy (5)

-Per enemy KIA (3)

-Per wounded American Soldier (2) x1

Total: 7 VP

Score:  8:7

COIN generated:   2

COIN expended:  3 (Medium Mortar)

Net COIN Loss:  -1

Total COIN score: 74-1 = 73

Though the patrol was able to detect the enemy in the area, information about their numbers and organisation remain sparse. The patrol was not able to disrupt the enemy presence in the area in a significant way. However, the combat experience of your troops indicates that they were up against disciplined fighters and more resistance might flare up in the area if the enemy is left to organise himself.

Soo - we´re back on the campaign map for the next turn! Stay tuned for the next turn!

A FoF-Solo Diversion: Ghost Town

Hey guys,

I´m finally fed up with waiting for new orders for our ongoing PBEM-game and decided to play a small solo scenario. So here we go. The basic idea is simple:  A bunch of soldiers is ordered to sweep and secure a small farm somewhere. When they arrive, the place is deserted - but is it a real ghost town or are the soldiers stumbling into the sleeping dragons lair? 

US Troops closing in on the Farm

How does it work? The task is to secure all 5 buildings in the area according to the building-clearance rules. Basic Insurgency-level is 3 for determining the difficulty of clearing, but you don´t roll for reinforcements until a clearing-check failed. If one of your units fail a check, instantly roll 5 reinforcement-rolls and up the insurgency level by 1 - you´ve hit a hornets nest and things are about to get ugly! From now on, roll reinforcements every turn.  Repeat procedure if another check fails.

Team Bravo stacking up, while Alpha enters without preparation (sorry for the blur)

I decided to take the chances and let the larger group enter the house without stacking. They´re 5 soldiers (+1) and have a Squad Leader (+1) - without stacking (-1) that´s still a +1 in total. 
So they enter - and roll a 6. As you see: No need to worry. Building clear.

Alpha Team clears the first building

 On the next turn, Bravo now storms the second compound after stacking up, while Alpha stays on overwatch in case something goes wrong. Bravo receive +1 on their roll for stacking. Again, I roll more than I needed with a 5. But I wasn´t willing to take too many chances.

Bravo Team enters the second house.

Covering the advance of Alpha, Bravo-Team now takes overwatch and scans the area for threats.  The MG-Team that hasn´t done much yet moves to the tree to cover the road. 

 Next turn, Alpha agan enters without stacking up to save some precious time - after all, time is slowly running out and there are still 2 buildings to go after clearing the big house. 

Alpha storming the building

 Again, with a 6 rolled, they´re sucessful. Now, the MG-Team moves up as they´ll be needed to clear one of the buildings ahead as only 2 turns remain.

Time is running out

The soldiers scramble towards the house... MG-Team rapid-moves, while Bravo is forced to tactical speed as they leave a building.
In the next turn, bravo make their entry and find no enemies. However, the MG-Team fails their clearing-test - though no casualties are taken, the failure triggers 5 reinforcement roles against Insurgency Level 4...
...Of which 3 fail. Only two enemy groups appear. One next to the field, where Alpha cannot see them to perform their overwatch-duty. They immediately open fire on the MG-Team and kill one of the Americans despite their good cover. But the return-fire sends two Taliban down.

Casualties!

Normally, the Game should have been over after this, but I decided it was more fun to fight the small skirmish to its bitter end - now that it finally got interesting. 

Bravo-Team moves out to take cover behind the Jeep and support their buddies. They´re caught in the open, but fortunately the RPG-rocket flying towards them does not detonate - which probably saved someones skin! As usual, the return fire is devastating and neutralizes the entire enemy unit... for now

Bravo Team caught in the open

At the other side of the farm, the second group of Talibs is trying to outflank Bravo-Team by moving into the central house. However, they are quickly dealt with by Alpha-Team who are still on Overwatch.

Taliban advancing into the perimeter!

In the end, the only surviving Taliban was the one lying on the road (he got up once after all his mates where shot and a second time in the last turn before he finally flew. He´ll return!!)

So, a victory with some bitter price for the Americans. All 5 buildings cleared, but 1 KIA.
And their position has been spotted and reported to the nearby warlord...
Things are about to get hot!

(I was trying to play another game on the same setup - a big Taliban assault against the position. Unfortunately, my Camera decided it needed a recharge, so I´m writing this update instead of playing, while the battery is loading. If it doesn´t finish quickly, it´ll be an interesting night, as this temporary Gaming setup blocks the main path through my room.)

Renaissance Army Update

I´ve been able to make some very limited progress on the 10mm Renaissance boys, after I´ve mostly been painting Civilians for the last FoF-Scenario. Next up the list are the Renaissance Infantry and a group of US Special Forces. Apart from that, I´m working on more Crop fields to improve my Terrain now that the action of the Campaign will increasingly move to the Greenzones... And I still haven´t gotten around creating more buildings to have proper Terrain for the City of El Qualeed. Worst of all, time will be more limited in the next weeks, as I´m moving into the more critical and time-consuming phases of writing my BA-Thesis.

However, back to the renaissance troops. Painting them has proven to be more tedious as expected, especially for the mounted Arquebusiers who are not mostly iron-clad like the Curassiers & Pikemen. Fortunately, they are now in their final processing stage and only require some final details and flocking.

Meanwhile, I´ve started working on the first infantry group. The pikemen are painted much more quickly than the Cavalry. I´m basically writing this post to show you the mass-effect of even a small infantry group. I´m really satisfied with the look of those formations compared to the 15mm-pics that I´ve seen.
The only thing that still bothers me is the length (or rather the shortness) of the pikes. I´ll probably have to refit them with some wire-pikes that are longer, to create a proper effect.

As you can see, the bulk of the Infantry group is not yet painted, but this is about to change ;)

Operation Firefly - Mission 3: "Ominous Fields"

Welcome back again - this is mission 3, this time we head right into the greenzone. I´ve finally come around to buy some adequate bushes to build proper greenzone terrain. This time, we´ve chosen a shorter scenario to speed things up on the more remote locations of the campaign map. In this battle-report we´re fighting over the area south of El Qualeed (Area 6 on the campaign map - for more details, go take a look here.)

April 21, 09:04 Local Time.

Though Mul Qasr has fallen, the Taliban were able to take the Prisoners with them and moved them towards an unknown location - probably somewhere in the mountains near the Village. 

Meanwhile to the south, US Forces have advanced along the main road into the farming areas of the Greenzone.  The outskirts of El Qualeed are not far away, but before the advance can thrust into the town, business has to be done in the Greenzone.

Hesitant as always, the locals are only willing to speak about the Taliban if put under immense pressure and questioning the farmers has not yielded any satisfactory result. All the soldiers encounter in the area is hatred and mistrust from the populace - it seems like a lot of work lies ahead of the coalition forces. To prevent further deteroriation, the Rules of Engagements are tightened.

Then, on the morning of the 21st, a ragged villager stumbles onto the route of an american convoy, gesticulating wildly. He is brought to the local commander and questioned with the help of a translator, who has serious trouble to keep pace with the speed of the villagers´ report. He seems to have some urgent information.He claims he has seen something in the fields....

Now its the soldiers who mistrust the local villagers, but he keep pleading and seems to be very serious, telling them that the Taliban have killed his father and brother because they were accused of cooperation with the enemy.

Finally, the local commander gives in and despatches your troops to the area. You are to investigate the position described by the villager.

Intelligence reports are handed to you. The area seems to be infested with Taliban, but as of yet they avoided contact. The local population seems to be supportive of the Taliban and its probable that the insurgency movement has many followers among the locals. To prevent them from sliding away from the coalition cause, it is important to prevent any civilian casualties and avoid major disruption of local infrastructure and assets (buildings, fields, canals)

It is very likely that Civilians are in the area to tend to the crops. 

------------------------

Objectives:

-Investigate the Location described by the Villager (The I-Marker)

-Cause no Civilian Casualties

-Destroy no fields or buildings

Aerial Recon Scan of the Area

 So, this is the setup. My adversary has wisely chosen an unarmed UAV to assist him in this operation. To keep things interesting, I´ve adjusted some of the basic FoF-rules to better suit this environment: Contacts that are trying to hide are not automatically spotted due to their intimate knowledge of the terrain and their well-conceiled positions in the field (and because I simply didn´t have enough markers to put on the table) - thus, I actually increased Taliban TQ for the spotting-check against the UAV instead of decreasing it. Furthermore, all neutral contacts are marked as well (Civilians, Goats). This is why a lot of units seemingly pop up from nowhere during the game. That´s no rampant reinforcement-table but gradual spotting on re-scans of the area or units being spotted due to moving out of hidden positions. 

First encounter on setup

Second encounter

As the soldiers enter the area, they spot movement ahead of them:

Up the pathway, three men are walking towards the Troops. At least one of them is definitely carrying an AK on his back.They´re moving at a steady pace, eyeing the US soldiers with suspicion and fear - or is it a glimpse of hatred? 

In front of the white house, an old man and three women are chatting - or are they carrying suicide vests, only waiting for the Americans to come closer

Turn 1

Orders for the first turn are given

White markers are unknown contacts, Blue hexagon marks suspicious but unidentified targets. Every unit makes a PID check on these targets, confirming their status on a sucess. To keep up the tension, I deliberately tried to cast doubt about the status of any contact.

While Red and Green go on Overwatch and keep an eye on any suspicious move.

While Team Red is not able to identify if the contacts ahead are friendly, Green can make certain that the small group ahead are indeed Civilians, as they carry no weapons and do not behave suspiciously. The old man seems to provide the women some opportunity to be in the open, which is not allowed without supervision of a close relative under Taliban rule. Another indication that trouble might lie ahead.

A terrifying new threat has been discovered: GOATS!

Cautiously, as the status of the three men ahead is not yet proven, Blue and Yellow advance around the corner of the enclosure. Nothing lies ahead, only the deserted small pathway. The wind whistles through the fields.

The three men seem unimpressed by the weaponry of the Soldiers and remain on their course as the Soldiers pass. Indeed, one of them has slung a kalashnikov around his shoulder and the second man is carrying his weapon conceiled under his cape. The third is a young man, carrying a basket. He keeps looking nervously at the Americans, as do the other men - their looks are not friendly and welcoming, but they don´t seem hostile either.

Blue and Yellow advancing

Turn 2

Orders for Turn 2

 

As Yellow advances around the corner to check the alley, they encounter a group of three men. One of those is definitely armed, another one is playing around with a cellphone... The soldiers cannot positively ID the contacts.

"Three men to the front - One with an AK, one with a cellphone - could be a Dicker or even a triggerman. Mike 2-1, Please advise." 

"Mike 2-1, this is Echo Leader. Your contacts are considered neutral until proven otherwise or posing an immediate danger."

"Copy"

 

Unknown contacts down the alley

 

Team Red advances to its position, running past the three civilians. They take cover behind the low enclosure of the fields and prepare to advance into the crops.

Green jumps over the low wall and makes their way into the thick underbrush of the field. Meanwhile, the three men - now definitely identified as Civilians -  move further down the alley, still under the watchful eyes of Blue and Green. Suddenly, Troopers of Team Green spot something in the field behind the civilians - somethings moving there! The troops spot multiple contacts moving towards the wall.

 

Contacts in the southern field!

 

At the same Time, more Movement is detected right next to red - a small group of four, who cannot be properly identified, and a large group of more than five, who are hardly visible through the this cornfield. Though Blue is able to spot the movement of the larger group, they are not able to fire, as Team Red might be endangered and the status of the contacts is still unknown.

More contacts to the left!

The next sensor-scan of Raven reveals that activity is increasing in the south-eastern field and on the flanks (Grid-C8 & K7), as the sensors reveal new signatures.

That UAV is a real hassle. My original plan was to stage an ambush on the coalition flank as soon as the front elements have advanced far enough. However, the US troops have formed a very compact group, being very close together. Add to this the very limited capabilities of my Insurgents...

Turn 3

Orders

While Green and Blue keep their eyes on the fields and cover the advance of the other units, Yellow and Red descend into the fields. Carefully scanning the area, knowing that a large group of people is waiting for them, the soldiers creep forward. Are the signatures shown by the UAV workers in the field, or armed resistance waiting for the right moment to surprise the US troops? 

Suddenly, shots crack through the silence. The soldiers scramble for cover, trying to assess the direction of the attack. The fire is sporadic but very close, coming from the front. Finally, someone is able to make out the position of the attackers. Fire is returned and the fighting intensifies. An RPG warhead whistles past the soldiers heads. During the next few minutes of chaotic, close firefight in the field, two confirmed kills are reported. Luckily, no friendlies are hit. 

Team Yellow engages the large group in the field

Red enters into the field while the enemy is distracted by yellow, covering the rear. The smaller group is immediately identified as enemy by both Blue and Red, and bullets are sent down into the field. Three men fall to the gunfire and one is up and running, losing his morale after experience the barrage of superior firepower.

 

Team Red hits the small Taliban Group hard

 

Unfortunately, Blue can not get a positive ID on the second, larger group in the same field as they are preparing to fire on red and things go terribly wrong: An RPG lands right in the position of the Americans in the field, causing two Casualties. Return fire is sent into the fields by Blue and Red, 

but one of the US-soldiers in the stricken Team has suffered terrible wounds.

One of his mates tries his best to keep him alive...

 

US Casualties!

 Again, incredible bad defense die are the only way for the Insurgents to get any kills on the regular. This time, we had an instance of 4 sucesses in the attack (out of 9 or 10 FP die) and a horrendous defense: 1,1,1,1,3,4 and 6.  Five misses!

 

Meanwhile, the three Civilians along the alley hurry to get out of the fight. White moves out of the house to cover the fields on the souther part of the battlefield and spots the thread immediately - while Green has trouble spotting the armed men through the thick vegetation to get a clear ID.

Machinegun-Fire rattles down the pathway, killing three enemy behind the walls. Return fire is weak and unaimed. Terrified by the Machine Gun, the second group hunkers down and waits for a better situation to hit the infidels. 

Taliban in the southern field under MG-fire.

More movement is spotted in the field, as a second group of Taliban moves up. Spotting them right away this time, Green opens fire and puts half of the group to rest. Again, the return fire is inefficient. 

 

Reinforcements flock towards the mauled group and get shot immediatey by OW-fire

 

As ordered, Raven zooms in onto the two Taliban-units to the north of the field. One of them had already started to take sporadic and unaimed shots at Red, obviously identifying them as hostile. The second group further north was identified as Taliban as well, as the men where carrying arms - including an RPG - openly.

Recon Footage from the UAV

Turn 4

Actually, due to the UAV, the bad Lines of Sight in this scenario are favouring the regulars more than the Taliban. My original plan to lure the teams into the fields to sweep them (like they did in the last scenario) where I could ambush them does not really work. He knows where he has to put his troops, my Taliban are no longer hidden on crucial places to utilize ambushes and no OOC-Movement is possible to quickly reinforce positions. I started to use the Afghan Hot Spot-Rule to move my troops around the battlefield, but I was definitely lacking flexibility in my setup. This terrain might have been really interesting if the US player had not chosen to buy a UAV as asset.

However, I managed to get two lucky hits - so let´s see whats up with them!

 

First Aid rolls

 

In the centre, Team Red struggles to stabilize the wounded soldiers. One of them is quickly patched up and ready to continue the fight after only suffering a light wound. The second casualty however, Private Ron Trishaw, is so seriously injured that he dies in the hands of his teammates. He would be the fourth fatality for the regiment in the first week of the operation, not accounting for the POWs whose fate was still unknown. 

 

Orders for Turn 4

 

Team White puts heavy fire on the southernmost group of insurgents at the wall. Caught in a devastating crossfire between White and Green who perform their overwatch-duty, the entire group is wiped out.

 

The effects of crossfire

  As Team Blue enters the field, one of the soldiers covering the approach down the alley spots a head popping up from a bush. A second look indicates that a man is hiding there, fumbling with his cellphone, but otherwise not armed...

Suspicious contact to the left!

He is quick to hide again as he notices the coalition soldier observing him.  The Teamleader hesitates for one moment, remembering the priority not to harm civilians, but decides that the suspicious behavior of this man makes him a threat. The Team is ordered to fire and bullets burst through his chest. However, as he falls down, he is still able to press the final button on his cellphone... 

 "COVEEER!"
A deafening explosion rips through the field and blows up dust, smoke and debris. With their ears ringing, the soldiers struggle to check for casualties.

Boom!

 As a result from one of my bad reaction-tests last turn, I drew a FoW-card giving me an IED - quite a huge one in fact (AP: 6). So, I placed the triggerman as a reaction to Yellows advance - if sucessfully blasted, I would hit all three US Teams in the crop field, as they where within 4" of Yellow. The US player decided to shoot at the man though the troops where not sure if he was a threat (they failed their PID, but as we are taking more of a roleplaying-approach to our games, I decided to face my player with the hard decision to shoot and kill a potential civilian  - which would cost him his secondary objective -  or to expose his troops to the risks of such an attack) 
 
Having won the reaction test, the US troops pierced the man with bullets. Rolling a 6 on his detonation-roll, he was still able to explode the IED, though he died... 


FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeep

"Is everyone allright?"
"Yeah!"
"I´m Fine"
"Check - that was one hell of an explosion!"
Relieved that the Team has no casualties, the American soldiers ascertain that Team Red and Yellow who where caught by the explosion as well are fine. Everyone is up and standing, though confusion is still reigning in the ranks of the coalition soldiers.

Overwatch-fire prevents any interruption of Team Yellow´s move

  After shrugging of the effects of the explosion and reorganizing, Team Yellow makes its way though the thick underbrush towards the Mission Objective.
"Contact left!" 
The Team opens fire on the Taliban group, taking out several men with aimed bursts of fire. One of the Talibs shoots his RPG at the team, but the rocket whistles past their position. Somethings lying in the dust, covered by some stones. While the rest of the Team keeps the heads of the Taliban down, one of the soldiers is sent to investigate. Cautiously, he checks the ominous discovery. Its small bag. After carefully checking for boobytraps or IEDs, the soldier finally removes the stone and checks the bag. It contains a pile of paper with arabic handwriting, maps, lists and scetches. Looks like it could be interesting for the intelligence staff.
Just at this moment, a horde of Taliban appears behind the high wall that protects Team Yellow. They´re dangerously close and armed to the teeth... 

Yellow at the Mission Objective - but suddenly, a large group appears behind the high wall...

 More Taliban appear at the bushes by the hill and prepare to engage.
Meanwhile, in the southern fields, more insurgents hurry towards the wall, but Team Green puts more rounds down the range and achieves some devastating effect.

Another wipe-out at the southern field

Unfortunately, my IED has not caused any more casualties. These regulars are tough! But I hope it teaches my friend to avoid placing the troops so close together (though it had its benefits to use these mutuall supporting positions)

Turn 5

Terrified by the encounter with the IED, the US player orders his troops to basically ignore the Rules of Engagement by stating: "New mission parameters: all ARMED contacts are considered hostile now, except for fleeing/retreating subjects. Open fire allowed on any target even if PID failed."

He can only hope that things don´t go terribly wrong and he his not court-martialed for this.

Orders for the Turn

Team White continues to fire on the group of Taliban, again reducing their numbers. The lonesome remainder to the south of the field tries to support his  friends in need, but is taken down by aimed reaction fire from one of the Assistant Gunners with his M4. After sucessfully suppressing the enemey, White grabs the Machine Gun and advances towards the corner of the enclosure. 

 

Meanwhile, Team Green advances to their position as ordered, firing on the remaining three men on the other side of the path. No survivors are reported and Green establishes its defensive position next to the wall. 

 

Covered by Red, Team Blue advances into the field and engages the armed contacts within the field who are quickly neutralized. Only two enemies remain who are not able to properly suppress the US soldiers. 

 

Blue Team engages the Taliban in close Firefight in the fields

 

 

Faced by the overwhelmingly large group that suddenly appeared behind the wall, Yellow is quick to retreat into the field and out of their line of sight. Behind them, they hear the screams and battlecries of the Taliban who charge towards their former position. Barely escaping from the close assault, Yellow focuses their fire on the small group thats still left in the field. The two Afghans quickly succumb to the crossfire from Red and Yellow. 

 

Yellow avoids Close Combat with the Horde by retreating into the Field and out of LOS

 

Further fire comes in on red as the Taliban try to put more pressure on the retreating US troops. However, the small group of 5 riflemen is easily suppressed by Red and poses no serious threat. 

 

Just as Team Green has established its position, something cracks trough the thick vegetation of the fields. Charging towards them is a man with a fanatical grimasse. He wears no weapon, but his battlecry praising Allah makes his intentions more then obvious. Green unleashes a barrage of fire. The first shots whistle past the man as he closes in...

Then, he is struck by several wounds and stumbles. Blood is spilling from his mouth, staining his tunic. His eyes roll upwards as he dies, collapsing into the underbrush. 

 

 

 

 Well, that was the second asset gained by a FoW-Card in this game: A suicide bomber. Unfortunately, he was sucessfully dispatched by Team Green before he could cause any harm.

 

 

At this point, I ended the game and assigned victory to the US. My Insurgent forces where depleted and in no position to prevent the retreat of the teams. I was pretty sure that another turn wound not make a difference. To prove my feeling, I took over and played the last round of organized retreat solo - and indeed, nothing of significance happened. More Talibs died and the Americans retreated. Here´s a picture of what the end situation after Turn 6 might look like:

End Situation

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 Results: 

US - Mission Accomplished!

-Investigate the Location described by the Villager (The I-Marker)  (5 VP)

-Cause no Civilian Casualties (3 VP)

-Destroy no fields or buildings (2 VP)

Total: 10 VP

 

Taliban

-Capture American Soldiers (5)

-1x  Kill American soldiers (3)

-Seriously wound American Soldiers (2)

Total: 3 VP

Score:  10:3

COIN generated:   11

COIN expended:  5 (UAV)

 

Net COIN Gain:  6

Total COIN score: 68+6  = 74

 

Bonus: The Team has recovered Intelligence about Taliban activities in the area. You may turn over 1 Guerilla-cell marker anywhere on the map on the beginning of the next campaign turn.

 

Taliban Activity in the Area has been severely disrupted. Heavy losses have forced the Taliban to leave the area and retreat to safer havens, but local support in the communities remains strong.