Vietnam War game (D20 modern)

[Dark Herald]

I may be running one on Thursday if all goes well. Plan to start all the characters as level 2, just off the boat, but out of boot camp, which I see as the first level. Just a fun one off that may develop into 3-5 sessions if all goes well. Any suggestions of basically anything would be appreciated. The characters I think will be US Army on a special mission, but again, anything you have to add would be appreciated. Will post to tell how it turns out...

[Roland St. Jude]

Sheriff of Moddingham: I'm going to leave this open, but consider this a pre-emptive warning to tread very carefully here. Real world politics, even when it intersects with gaming, is an inappropriate topic here. I'd hate to see people get into trouble needlessly.

[Zincorium]

My first suggestion is you allow some sort of differentiation as far as specialties, even going so far as to allow special attached members of another service if the players are really into that sort of thing. While it would be thematically appropriate to have them all nearly the same, it's not so good for gameplay. Adding in translators, vehicle operators, even journalists would add a little spice.

Second, traps. There were an astounding variety of traps used in the veitnam conflict, and in a system like d20 modern where there is no rogue who is automatically skilled at detecting and eliminating them, they become a legitimate threat and create tension. Hard to justify rushing in a door to clear the building if one of the NPCs set off a grenade a few hours ago doing the same thing...

[B0nd07]

To go along with Zincorium, the Vietcong also used a vast network of underground tunnels and bunkers to ambush enemy units. You could also use mortar barrages. I'm thinking frag grenades in a random spread around the party. Maybe roll a d8 for direction, then a d10, 12, or 20 for distance from party. Even if the party isn't hit, there's still going to be a psychological effect from everything blowing up around them. Those might be a bit much, damage wise, for level 2, but they could work.

As for their mission, since they're on a special mission, it's could be to destroy something behind enemy lines that air recon hasn't been able to find. Perhaps a mobile radar station, a communication tower, or anti-air missiles. All would be guarded, but probably not as heavily as something closer to the front line.