April 30

Today is the anniversary of the Fall of Saigon, signalling the end of the Viet Nam War. I would like to say "Thank You" to all those American, Aussie, ROK, and ARVN soldiers who served in this important fight against International Communist aggression.

Historians often tell us that the war was lost, but I think that it did play an important role in the Cold War. The Soviet Union was put on notice that the US would use force to stop Communist aggression.

It was also a time for our Pacific allies to work together and they still support us to this day, with troops fighting side by side in the War on Islamic Terror.

As for wargaming options, the Viet Nam War provides many interesting scenarios for use. The typical American fire base being attacked by Communist forces is always a good one. Or you can take the war to the enemy by playing a helicopter assault into enemy held territory. We all know the role played by the Huey helicopters, but the H-21 "Flying Banana" helicopters were also used early war.

Esci and later Italeri made excellent 1/72nd scale Special Forces figures for this conflict as well as a Viet Cong / NVA set. Pegasus Models now make a set of USMC Vietnam that are excellent as either US Marines or US Army troops. They fit perfectly in size with the earlier sets too.

FAA make metal miniatures in 20 mm that fit well with the 1/72nd scale plastic sets. I use them to provide both command figures and heavy weapons. Their Communist heavy machine gun is essential to shoot down American helicopters!

Pegasus also makes a line of palm trees and banana trees that help with those jungle terrain set ups. Most of Viet Nam was fought using weapons that were not too different from those of the Second World War, so if you have never tried a modern game, a small foray into Viet Nam could be a good start.