Vietnam Solitaire 12

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Another go at Vietname Solitaire, original rules, going to try to learn more about the game, or relearn as the case may be. It would be good to write a strategy article at some point.

Every time I play this, I seem to turn up a rule I either 1. haven't been playing, or 2. a rule I've forgotten. We'll see how it goes this time.

Turn 1

A. Roll for Trail Counters: Roll 2, 6, place Trail counter in Cambodia 6.

B. Attack Trail areas: B-52 * Cambodia 6, roll 6, fail. * Hanoi, roll 1, remove.

C. Raise/Move US/ARVN Forces: AirCav in Hue-6 and Mekong-3-4, ARVN in Hue-3-4.

D. US/ARVN Combat: Pass.

E. Place NVA/VC Units: VC in Cu Chi-3-4, NVA in Hue-3-4, Mekong-3-4.

F. Insurgency Combat: Mekong; ARVN and NVA lost. VC win in Cu Chi.

G. NVA/VC Offensive: NVA offensive in Highlands, Both lost.

H. AirCav Redeployment: Move to Cu Chi.

I. Scoring, Victory Check and Events Roll: +2 for lost ARVN units.

PP: 12.

Roll 2 for 4, no GB or B52 attacks next turn.

Turn 2

A. Roll for Trail Counters: Roll 2, 3, add Trail counter to Laos 3.

B. Attack Trail areas: None.

C. Raise/Move US/ARVN Forces: 3 US and 4 ARVN, which are placed to help ensure casualties are soaked up instead of eliminating US units.

D. US/ARVN Combat: Pass.

E. Place NVA/VC Units: VC into Highlands-5, NVA into Hue-3-4 and Highlands-3-4.

F. Insurgency Combat: ARVN prevails in Hue-3-4. Lose ARVN and NVA in Cu Chi.

G. NVA/VC Offensive: Hue, NVA prevails.

H. AirCav Redeployment: Redeploy to Hue.

I. Scoring, Victory Check and Events Roll:

Three ARVN eliminated which puts PP at 14, which is a loss. Bummer.

AAR

I'm not sure I've been playing this correctly in the past, as I don't recall losing points for lost ARVN. That's going to change how I play the game a bit going forward. In this game, I think I needed to get 1 less US on the map, in favor of one more ARVN. That could have tipped a battle enough to not lose, while still allowing a US build up.

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What to play next?

Deciding what to play next is always a tough call when faced with a closet full of games, all of which were purchased with intent to play. Here's one I'm dealing with the decision.

  • Something New: this means both something new to me and a game which has been published recently, within the last two or three years.
  • Something Classic: I've acquired a number of games properly considered "classic" which haven't yet been played. The current example would be PanzerGruppe Guderian.
  • Something Again: mastery requires constant practice, which means playing games many, many times to allow nuance to appear.
  • Something Vietnam: as I'm on a Vietnam binge. I don't have all the Vietnam games ever published, but I can say that I have a lot of them, and probably more than most people.
  • Something Obscure: as it's fun to poke around in the dustier corners of game design.
  • Something Different: break away from the same old publishers and try a game from one of the new kids on the block. Or, conversely, dip into legacy with a classic tried and true.
  • Something Light: once in a while it's nice to actually finish a game all the way through in one sitting, in an hour or two.
  • Something Heavy: if possible, it's nice to set up something big and complicated which can be left out for days or weeks or even months, for a leisurely stroll through a very large or long game.

There are surely many more ways to choose, but the above method keeps me busy enough, helps me get both breadth and depth into my play, and provides me with a sense of progress.

The odd man out

When there is an odd man out:

  • Have a solo game ready to play.
  • Keep score or advise on a game in progress.
  • Referee a game in progress.