Body Count in Laos, 1971

This game simulates Operation Lam Son 719, the ARVN incursion into Laos in 1971. An armored brigade drove up Route 9 from near Khe Sanh and was supported by troops airlifted to six landing zones. The map (assembled from four sections) covers the region along Route 9 from the Ho Chi Minh trail in the northwest to some way east of Aloui in the southeast. The scale is approximately 800 yards per hex. There are 369 uncut counters. There are 16 three-day turns. The main ARVN objectives are Aloui and Tchepone. One feature of the game is the initiative roll beginning each turn, which is weighed by modifiers such as the ARVN body count. Only the side winning the roll gets a combat phase. In addition, if the ARVN wins the roll they get to conduct air strikes, and if the NVA wins they get to conduct an artillery barrage. The air strikes need to be planned and then are affected by weather. A wrinkle in the combat system is the use of attack points; the NVA starts the game with 70 and the ARVN with only 40, though the NVA needs to spend theirs for artillery barrages and the air strikes are free.