They Were Soldiers and Dak To - Hill 875

A project in Geneseo, IL by Kevin Talley
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The board game of the battle that changed the war in Vietnam! 450 Americans faced long odds against the NVA at LZ X-Ray. Nov 14, 1965.
Backers: 213
Average Pledge Per Backer: $117

Funded: $25,009 of $24,900
Dates: Sep 18th -> Nov 15th (58 days)
Project By: Kevin Talley
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$25,009

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Last Updated: November 15 @ 03:05 -0500 GMT

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Latest News

Three days left! Tell somebody.

November 11th - via: kickstarter.com
Well, we're getting close!  Now is the time to remind that friend or two that it's time to pledge.  Let's see what almost 180 of us can do here in the home stretch...  (Read More)

55 Year Anniversary of the Battle

November 3rd - via: kickstarter.com
Our campaign ends at midnight on November 14th.  It will mark the 55th anniversary of the battle fought by the 1/7 Cav (and elements of 2/7) at LZ X-Ray. The first 24 hours of the battle could have gone either way, with the assault of the 7th... (Read More)

Broken Arrow!

November 3rd - via: kickstarter.com
This is player card 16 (different than action cards - the 12 player cards get played and drawn at the player's discretion from a 2-card hand they start with).  “Broken Arrow” gives the US player 10 air missions all at once during one of their... (Read More)

Red Action Card #4

November 1st - via: kickstarter.com
This card adds a single hit to any combat during the turn. It can be very useful in a CQC tie-breaker if the red player saves it for that part of the combat phase (ties go to the defender if both sides cause the same number of losses in a CQC). If... (Read More)

Tell a Friend!

October 31st - via: kickstarter.com
Tell someone you know about this 2-for-1 Vietnam battles gameset - you never know, just a few simple conversations might be the difference! After 9 pm - 3rd PLT C Co and 1st PLT Bravo are isolated in the eastern creekbed about 250 yards east of the... (Read More)

Action Card #4

October 31st - via: kickstarter.com
I'm going to be posting select Action Cards from the LZ X-Ray game here over the next few days so backers can get an idea of some of the cards and how they can affect play.  Each side has 14 Action cards which are shuffled at set up.  One card is... (Read More)

BGG and Grognard Ads are ON!

October 26th - via: kickstarter.com
So, now that we are into the home stretch, we at Cadet have made it even easier for you to convince your friends and gaming group members to back the campaign.  They can't miss the ads on Boardgamegeek.  "They Were Soldiers" appears in just about... (Read More)

2/3rds of the Way! 20 Days Left.

October 26th - via: kickstarter.com
They Were Soldiers and Dak To - Hill 875 Launched 18 Sep, 2020   |   Deadline 14 Nov, 2020 $16,752 pledged 67% funded 161 backers 20 days to go So we are 2/3rds of the way and we have 20 days left.  All it takes is the people already in our group... (Read More)

Solitaire rules in development!

October 23rd - via: kickstarter.com
OK - we have had enough demand now for a solo rules system that the designer has agreed to develop them.  The NVA will be the "system" for the LZ X-Ray game and the US will be the "system" for the Hill 875 game.  This way, players who want a solo... (Read More)

End of Turn 8 - Night...

October 20th - via: kickstarter.com
Turn 8 - Night - As the last pair of Hueys leaves the LZ with 4 wounded troops aboard, the two cutoff platoons to the east are fighting for their lives.  Two companies of the 7th/66 NVA (8 fresh platoons) are moving into position on the southern... (Read More)

Hill 875 Reads and Views

October 20th - via: kickstarter.com
Research items for the "bonus game." Suggested Reading and Viewing for Dak To – Hill 875 Edward F. Murphy, Dak To – The 173rd Airborne Brigade in South Vietnam’s Central Highlands, June-November 1967 (Novato: Presidio Press, 1993) F. Clifton... (Read More)

LZ X-Ray Reads and Views for the Military History Enthusiast

October 19th - via: kickstarter.com
A few research materials to help create an accurate simulation. Suggested Reading and Viewing for “They Were Soldiers” / Battle for LZ X-Ray – Ia Drang Valley Nov 14, 1965 Harold G. Moore and Joseph L. Galloway, We Were Soldiers Once…and... (Read More)

Passed 15K! Now it's up to us...

October 16th - via: kickstarter.com
So there is no doubt we have a game here that is in demand.  Enough of us want to re-live or re-write history in the Ia Drang or Dak Klong river valleys here to make this game series real.  The question is: can we collectively get enough of our... (Read More)

New map file for They Were Soldiers

October 15th - via: kickstarter.com
So, after considering feedback from a few sources about the prototype art (and looking at several aerial photos of the LZ X-Ray battlefield), we decided to enhance the map for the game - with some more realistic treatment of the foliage around the... (Read More)

Hill 875 prototype on the table...

October 12th - via: kickstarter.com
So we have been playtesting the "bonus" game recently and it is really a nail-biter!  The design works just as well for the historical challenge of 875 as it does for both LZ X-Ray and Hamburger Hill.  Here's a few pics of the first 3 turns before... (Read More)

Sneak Preview of design in development - Linebacker II

October 10th - via: kickstarter.com
One of our backers here (the same guy who inspired us to add Hill 875 as a bonus game to the campaign) recently mentioned (in the comments thread) his interest in our Linebacker II design.  It was mentioned (along with others like Bat 21 and... (Read More)

LZ X-Ray battle website

October 3rd - via: kickstarter.com
Hit this link https://lzxray.com/ for the most comprehensive website dedicated to the battle.  This site has original footage, photos, even aerial photos and bird's-eye animated battle maps showing the action at LZ X-Ray from November 14-16, 1965.... (Read More)

Hill 875 Video

October 3rd - via: kickstarter.com
Here's an episode of "Combat Zone" - a military channel production from 2006/7.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emYv7sm0EmI This episode was on 2/503's experience during the first day and night of Hill 875 and it is actually very good.  A couple... (Read More)

Congrats to all! We have passed last campaign total with 45 days left!!!

September 30th - via: kickstarter.com
It's official!  The last campaign ended at 12433.  So now we KNOW these games can become real on our tables AND we KNOW exactly how.  There is no mystery.  While it's certainly possible that, just given time, we will attract enough gamers to hit... (Read More)

Page 9 - Terrain effects and turn timeline

September 28th - via: kickstarter.com
Page 9 of the Hill 875 rules supplement... page 9  (Read More)

Helos, LZs and groundfire

September 27th - via: kickstarter.com
More from the 875 rules supplement. page 8  (Read More)

AC-47 Spooky, NVA Bunkers and AAA

September 26th - via: kickstarter.com
A few new unit types are featured in the Dak To battle! page 7  (Read More)

More 875 - U.S. deployment and NVA Order of Battle

September 25th - via: kickstarter.com
We're moving right along!  Here's page 6 of the 875 rules supplement.  Consider telling a friend about the campaign...If all of us could just get one person we know to pledge for this project, it would be a lock!  Then there would be no question... (Read More)

The NVA Commander - at both battles!

September 24th - via: kickstarter.com
Something I bet you didn't know about the battle for LZ X-Ray and Hill 875...  (Read More)

Hill 875 Setup!

September 21st - via: kickstarter.com
Here's the next two pages of rules for the 875 bonus game.  The NVA are completely hidden (except that the Americans know there is at least a company of the 2/174 on the hill).  Unlike TWS, where the NVA "starting" hexes are printed on the map (on... (Read More)

Hill 875 Rule mods!

September 21st - via: kickstarter.com
Wow!  What a start - almost 100 backers already moved over to the new campaign.  Don't forget to tell a friend about us and help us make sure we get the games on our tables ASAP.  Here's the first three pages of the "Hill 875" rules supplement.... (Read More)

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