Special Forces
Camp "An Bak"

Near the Cambodian border lies the small village of An-Bak. This village is one of many Montagnard villages in the area to which US Special Forces have been dispatched to train the locals in guerrilla warfare, which is to be used against the Viet Cong and NVA.

The Special Forces arrive to the village and are greeted by the locals and their village elder. After the rise wine ceremony the elder agrees to the Special Forces request to train the young men- and women of the camp. The Special Forces put their tent up in the edge of the village and uniforms and weapons are provided to the local trainees.

Special Forces establish a gun range, to which the trainees are taken and given basic weapons training and marksmanships training along with practice shooting. The weapon familarization was of great use, since many of the trainees had never held a gun and had no previous experience in its functions.

After the weapons training the trainees are assembled and given a briefing on the current situation in the region. According to US intelligence a well known NVA officer, Vinh Peng is reported to be moving towards the region. Vinh Peng fought the French, serving as an officer during the battle of Dien Bien Phu and after that he continued his military career, focusing on recruitment of new Viet Cong and NVA. He is considered a dangerously experienced bomb technician.
When the briefing has been completed the trainees and soldiers eat before they conduct a squad based training, which is to be followed by a patrol through the jungle. Gear is put on and the group prepares to move out.

The group assembles and moves out, led by Sgt. Johnson. They conduct squad based exercises – hand signals, formations and combat discipline. After the brief training the group moves out along a path presumed to be used by the Viet Cong to move weapons and personnel. Upon entering an open field, lead scout Sgt. Collon is hit by a Viet Cong sharpshooter. The squad takes cover, returns the fire and drags the wounded soldier in to cover and treats his wounds. The Viet Cong disappear.

After having been ambushed the squad returns to the base to report and eat. Lt. Boone is largely concerned about the Viet Cong activity, which has been increasing in the sector over the last couple of weeks. Around midnight Cpt. Willard returns from battalion HQ with orders and Intel. Reliable intelligence says that Ving Peng will be meeting a contact in this area some time between midnight and noon the next day. The group assembles to go out on a night patrol to capture the contact for information about Peng.
Moving out just before midnight the group moves silently to an old French bunker which is the presumed meeting point. Its pitch black, but the group manages to hold together. At the meeting point the squad comes under fire and four montagnard trainees are injured, but the hostile is neutralized. It turns out that it is a villager from a close by village, waiting for Peng. In return for a promised medevac the villager tells them that Peng will come by around lunch the next day. The villager dies of sudden blood loss, and the group moves back while Cpt. Willard stays with a trainee and mines the area with claymores.

After midnight Willard returns to Batallion HQ and a new advisor arrives – Cpl. Rash from Mike Force.

The next day begins at 0600. The montagnards and Special Forces get up and have a morning exercise to get in shape. Some hand-to-hand training is also performed. Warm breakfast is served and then they move to the shooting range to get some more target practise. After that, the squad gears up and under command of Lt. Boone they move out towards the French bunker, to check the booby trapped corpse and retrieve lost ammunition before it falls into the hands of the Viet Cong. During the walk two Viet Cong are observed, but no contact is made. 

At the old French bunker the claymore mines are disarmed and the lost ammunition recovered. Two Viet Cong have fallen victim for the mines and are pulled into cover of the bushes for later evac. The group moves back towards the village, but on the way back two of the montagnard discover a small Viet Cong encampment - a kettle for cooking rice, along with clear signs of activity. They mine the place and move back to the village. 

Back in the village additional reinforcements have arrived, a scout sniper and an additional two advisors from MACV/SOG, on some dubious mission in the village. All military personal in the village is briefed about the situation by Cpt. Willard who is back from Battalion HQ. The soldiers will divide into two groups and sweep through the jungle towards the French bunker and there put on an ambush for Vinh Peng, who should arrive in two to four hours. The squads eats, gears up and prepare to move out.

The squads move out through the djungle and sweep it for Viet Cong activity. At the old French bunker the squad leaders gather, discussing how to best capture Vinh Peng. Six men, led by Lt. Boone set up three recon positions along the trails most likely to be used, while Cpt. Willard takes the Montagnard and wait close to the French bunker, ready to send his men to place an ambush along the right trail.

The recon teams move out and get into position. An hour passes before a small enemy patrol is sighted. Their position and movement is reported in and Cpt. Willard and his montagnards move into position, while the recon team sneaks after.

The Americans and Montagnards attempt a pincer manoeuvre around the Viet Cong force, but they are spotted before they have time to get into position. A fire fight erupts and things quickly get out of hand. Bullets fly in every direction and it’s hard to know who’s a friend and who’s a foe. After ten minutes of fighting the last enemy soldier is killed.

During the fighting Cpt. Willard is seriously injured by shrapnel from a hand grenade and Lt. Boone killed by an AK round in the head. Along with the officers the force suffers an additional four montagnard causalities. Three Viet Cong and one NVA soldier were killed, but Vinh Peng managed to escape.