Foreword
Hanoi, 22 September 1940, 1800 hours.
After weeks of strained negotiations, the
beleaguered Vichy French authorities and
their Japanese interlocutors had just
reached an agreement in Hanoi, granting
the Japanese basing and transit rights
through Indochina, four hours before the
ultimatum sent by ambassador Nishihara
had run out. It seemed that war had been
averted.
And yet, around midnight that very same
day, firing broke out at the border post of
Dong Dang. At 2355 hrs, the Japanese 5th
division under Lieutenant general
Nakamura Aketo had crossed the border of
French Indochina at three points along a
70-kilometre front. As the fighting raged,
believing that negotiations were still
possible, Lieutenant colonel Louvet set out
from Lang Son with part of a motorised
detachment only to be gunned down by
elements of the Japanese vanguard,
making him perhaps the first French
casualty of the war in the Pacific. A four-day
undeclared war, christened the “Lang Son
incident” in a classic example of Japanese
understatement, had begun in earnest.
This pint-sized campaign covers the
fighting along the 4th colonial road as the
Japanese 5th division carries out a vast
encirclement to trap Germain Mennerat’s
2nd Brigade of the Tonkin Division in the
railway hub of Lang Son, focusing
especially on the central and southern
columns of the Japanese advance and the
hard-pressed Vichy French defenders who
stood in their way between the 22nd and the
26th of September 1940. The forces
present are varied and colourful, with a
strong infantry division generously
supported with tanks, aircraft and artillery
on the Japanese side and a hodgepodge of
colonial marines, Tonkinese rifles and
foreign legionnaires supported by a
handful of obsolete tanks of WWI vintage
on the French side that makes for a very
unlikely matchup.
Researching this particular episode proved
to be both a source of joy and frustration. At
some points, the lack of good maps,
complete orders of battle and the often-
contradictory sequences of events made it
feel like an exercise in futility; sometimes, it
seems that the men who laid down their
lives in Indochina were indeed les oubliés
du bout du monde. And yet, despite the
difficulties involved, the rare occasions in
which one managed to glean a precious bit
of information from the most unlikely
sources made it all worthwhile.
In this regard, the series of 1 :100 000 scale
maps prepared under the direction of Lt.
colonel Friquegnon in the 1930s and the
1:400 000 scale road maps of Indochina
published by the Institut National
Géographique proved invaluable, though I
had to complete the topographic
information they provided with the
excellent 1:50 000 maps of Vietnam
produced by the U.S. Army Map Service in
the 1960s.
It is my hope that this campaign will not only
provide my fellow players with many hours
of enjoyment, but also arouse interest in this
obscure but fascinating episode.
Michael E. Moss, August 2021
 Historical Background
Before we begin, it is worth paying
attention to the word “incident” (translated
from 事件, jiken, or 事変, jihen) which was
used from the Meji restoration to the defeat
of the Empire of Japan to describe all sorts
of events ranging from riots to attempted
coups, from political struggles to large
battles such as Khalkhin-Gol. Indeed, the
roots of the Lang Son incident are to be
found in yet another “incident” a few years
earlier, namely, the Marco Polo Bridge
incident of July 1937, which sparked a war
that would claim over 20 million lives over
the course of the eight following years.
Many of these incidents were, in fact,
sparks that Japanese imperial ambition
hoped to fan into localised conflicts that
would eventually allow Japan to achieve
dominance in East Asia step by step and
without having to face the prospect of
embargoes that would starve its war
machine of oil and steel.
The Japanese invasion of China was a vast
undertaking. Despite their overwhelming
military, industrial and technological
superiority, Chinese determination to fight
on despite losses and the vastness of their
territory turned the operation into a
quagmire. Defeat on the battlefield at
Changsha in 1939 led the Japanese to
reconsider their war plan. Victory would not
be achieved through decisive battle but
through attrition, and thus the Imperial
Japanese Navy extended its operations
southwards, implementing a blockade of
the Chinese coast that cut off all but three
of China’s links with the outside world: with
the USSR, through Turkistan, with the
British Empire, through Burma, and with
France, through Indochina.
When Japan invaded China in 1937, it did so
without a formal declaration of war, arguing
that the country, fractured by warlordism
and civil war, was no longer a valid political
entity. According to the French, who were
sympathetic towards China’s plight, the
absence of legal belligerents meant that it
was free to provide military support and
supplies to the Chinese government
through the port at Haiphong and up the
Tonkin-Yunnan railway. This policy of
assistance had the effect of subverting the
strategy through which the Japanese
intended to win the war, and it was not long
before the Japanese government went on
the offensive, both overtly and covertly.
Covert operations took shape through
intelligence and propaganda efforts
among local populations, spurring locals to
rebel against western colonialism. Despite
the fact that Pan-Asianism was often hardly
more than a propaganda slogan for the
Japanese, who placed themselves clearly
at the top of the Asian racial totem pole, it
proved to be a useful propaganda tool, as
the populations of South-East Asia were
sympathetic to the idea of the Asian man
defeating the hitherto seemingly invincible
European man. In Indochina, the Japanese
secret service intensified its activity,
promoting anti-French and nationalist
movements and cults, especially the
Caodaist religion, to the point of creating a
veritable “fifth column” in the colony.
The Japanese as liberators of the “southern
peoples”. Osaka Puck, December 1942.
 Overtly, the Japanese government began
to apply diplomatic pressure on France as
early as 1937, demanding the closure of the
border between Indochina and China and,
especially, the Haiphong-Kunming railway
line. At this point, however, France’s clout
as a leading world power prevented the
Japanese from pushing their point any
further. The influential and independent-
minded Kwantung Army had its sights set
on expansion to the north, and this dictated
the focus of Japanese policy for most of the
period; however, its defeat at the hands of
the Soviet Union after its unauthorised
adventure in Khalkhin Gol would earn it the
displeasure of the government in Tokyo,
leading Japan to consider another option,
namely, expansion to the south. This
attitude, which was favoured by the
Imperial Japanese Navy, was propitiated
by the fact that the captures of Hainan and
Nanning were some of the precious few
successes achieved by Japanese arms in
the summer and fall of 1939 amidst
stiffening Chinese resistance and defeat at
Changsha, in Hunan, and Zhongshan, in the
Pearl River Delta. This, in turn, would draw
Japan’s attention towards its new,
unexpected neighbour: French Indochina.
events that would unfold in French
Indochina.
Japan ramps up the pressure
Even before the Konoe government was
formed and its policy officially announced,
the Japanese authorities were quick to
exploit the failure of allied arms in France to
push their advantage by sending an
ultimatum to French ambassador in Tokyo
Charles Arsène-Henry on 19 June 1940,
demanding that France suspend all
movements of military equipment along the
Haiphong-Kunming railroad. Governor-
general of Indochina Georges Catroux was
aware of the weakness of his situation, as
he could expect no support from the
beleaguered metropolis or from Britain; the
Americans, likewise, had no intention of
going to war with Japan over French
Indochina. Thus, acting on initiative,
Catroux pre-emptively cut off all shipments
of fuel to China and admitted a Japanese
commission to verify compliance.

The golden opportunity for Japanese

expansion to the south and the elimination
of one of China’s few remaining supply lines
would come with France’s disastrous
defeat at the hands of Germany in 1940 and
the resulting changes in the balance of General Georges Catroux
power. Wasting no time, on 1 August, under
The French government, which had
the slogan of “Asia for the Asians”, a new
relocated to Bordeaux and been reformed
cabinet led by Prime Minister Konoe
under Marshal Philippe Pétain, was critical
Fumimaro announced Japan’s new policy
of Catroux’s yielding attitude and firmly
to the press. Japan’s priorities were now to
opposed foreign meddling in French affairs.
drive the Westerners from their Far Eastern
Catroux, however, argued that the
colonies, to establish friendly local
authorities in France were unaware of the
governments under Tokyo united in a
situation in the Far East, and he continued
Greater Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere, and
to seek a compromise with the Japanese
to put an end to the war in China. This, along
military authorities in his negotiations with
with an uneasy peace with the Soviet Union,
General Nishihara, a French-speaking
opened the way for Japan’s new
cavalry officer at the head of a diplomatic
southward drive and set the scene for the
mission in Hanoi. Catroux’s insubordination
and independence of action earned him to
be sacked and replaced by Admiral Jean
Decoux on the 25 June, but in a strange turn
of events, Catroux decided to ignore the
order and remained at his post until he
finally stepped down on 20 July and joined
De Gaulle’s Free France movement in
London.
General Nishihara Issaku
In the meantime, the colonial government
and Nishihara’s diplomatic mission
negotiated unsuccessfully, as the French
played for time and the Japanese upped
their demands, requesting that they be
allowed to station troops in Tonkin and
make use of the ports and airfields in the
area to outflank the Chinese. Catroux’s
successor, Admiral Decoux, believed that
Indochina could and should be defended
and adopted a much more assertive
attitude. The failure of negotiations at the
local level led Tokyo to open negotiations
directly with the recently formed Vichy
government in August 1940, which, being
aware of its weakness in the region, strived
to save face while giving in to a number of
Japanese demands. Finally, after a month
of tense exchanges, an agreement was
signed in Tokyo on the 30th whereby the
French would allow the Japanese to station
troops in Tonkin in exchange for the
acknowledgement of French sovereignty
in Indochina. Decoux was vocal in his
opposition to the agreement: “I believe that
the allegedly peaceful landing of these
troops would destroy our last chance to
save the colony, and I insist that if we are to
risk losing Indochina, we would rather lose
it by defending it than by betraying it”.
Admiral Jean Decoux
Tensions flare up
As soon as the agreement was signed on
30 August, general Tominaga Kyouji issued
an ultimatum to Admiral Decoux, urging
him to immediately allow Japanese troops
access to northern Indochina and to its
airfields, to which Decoux replied that he
had not received instructions to that effect.
When the general Tominaga threatened to
move in by force, Admiral Decoux and
General Martin, the overall commander of
the French forces in Indochina, mobilised
their forces.
General Nakamura Aketo
Fearing that Decoux’s disobedience would
lead to open conflict, Vichy sent him a direct
order signed by Pétain himself to open local
negotiations with the Japanese. Decoux
accepted the order and scheduled
negotiations to begin on 3 September
under General Martin, but general
Tominaga, meanwhile, had ordered his
command to prepare for an invasion of
Indochina and, on the 6th of September,
elements of the Japanese 21st infantry
regiment led by lieutenant-colonel
Morimoto Takuji violated the Indochinese
border near Dong Dang. Regardless of
whether this violation was intentional or
accidental, it provided Decoux with an
excuse to break off negotiations, which
only resumed on 14 September, after the
Japanese had apologised for the border
incident. Finally, on 19 September, the
Japanese foreign affairs minister stated
that his government’s patience was
exhausted and that, if no agreement was
reached by the 22nd, Japanese troops
would invade Tonkin by force.
At the very last moment, an agreement was
signed in the afternoon of 22 September
whereby the Japanese would be allowed to
station up to 6000 troops in northern
Indochina, make use of four airfields and
move up to 25000 troops through Tonkin
to Yunnan. It seemed that war had been
averted.
The Japanese invade regardless
Despite the fact that the agreement signed
between the French and Japanese
authorities had reached Tokyo by 6 PM, in
the night of the 22nd, general Nakamura
Aketo’s 5th division crossed the
Indochinese border at three points along a
70-km front. Around midnight, French
defenders at the outpost of Dong Dang, to
the north of the railway hub of Lang Son,
opened fire on Nakamura’s central column,
as the firefight began to spread out to the
neighbouring outposts. Fighting raged on
during the night as the authorities
scrambled to contain the situation in vain.
General Martin, who had been a staunch
proponent of defending Indochina by force
of arms, was apparently surprised by the
quality and ferocity of the Japanese troops.
His confidence in his troops’ ability to resist
the Japanese onslaught was largely based
on reports from the Deuxième Bureau
(military intelligence agency) according to
which the Japanese troops in southern
China were demoralised and exhausted
after their defeat at the hands of the
Chinese at Kunlun Pass earlier in 1940;
these reports, however, proved to be
misleading, as the Japanese 5th division had
been rebuilt into a strong fighting force by
August that year.
Japanese troops reach Dong Dang
Meanwhile, to the north, a Japanese
detachment advanced on Bi Nhi and a
southern column with cavalry and infantry
overran a screening force at the Chi Ma
border post and began pushing towards
Loc Binh, to the east of Lang Son.
The trap closes
On the morning of the 23rd, the Japanese
infantry resumed its attack on the Dong
Dang outpost, this time with air support. As
the civil authorities vainly attempted to
negotiate, the Japanese troops took
advantage of any lulls in the fighting to
infiltrate and improve their positions “with
the utmost bad faith,” in the words of
Admiral Decoux.
By the 24th, the outposts of Dong Dang, to
the north of Lang Son, and Loc Binh, to the
east, had been overrun; only the Na Cham
outpost, held by a single company of
marines under Commandant Carli, held out
against desperate odds, and an attempted
counterattack by a battalion of Tonkinese
Rifles failed when most of the native
elements melted away, leaving only the
metropolitan soldiers. The attempted
counterattack, however, was sufficient to
make Nakamura worry about his flank at
Dong Dang, where he had installed his
command post, as he prepared to attack
Lang Son, which lay only 15 kilometres to
the south, while the southern column
approached the city from the east.
Sensing that the Japanese were moving to
cut him off from Hanoi, the French
commander of the Lang Son-Cao Bang
sector, general Mennerat, requested
permission to withdraw to Dong Mo, to the
south, straddling the road to Hanoi; general
Martin, however, refused, ordering him to
hold Lang Son at all cost. To the southeast,
the Japanese southern column attacked
the town of Mai Pha and the airfield on the
outskirts of Lang Son; to the north, the
Japanese vanguard pushed the French
defenders back to the bastion at Ky Lua, to
the north of the city.
Ky Lua bridge seen from the north
By the 25th, the French forces were trapped
in the city of Lang Son. The day began with
a Japanese assault against the Ky Lua
district with heavy artillery preparation.
Faced with an untenable situation, General
Mennerat obtained permission from
General Martin to sue for peace with the
Japanese and, after several hours’
negotiation, all fighting ceased at 2002
hours.
Aftermath
In the night of the 25th, the emperor of
Japan personally ordered the army to
cease all hostilities in Lang Son. Although
Mennerat’s 2nd brigade had been largely
destroyed, fresh battalions were still
blocking the way south to Haiphong at
Dong Mo, Na Dzuong and Diem He. The
“Lang Son incident” was over.
Despite a few other “incidents” in which the
Imperial Japanese Navy landed troops at
Do Son and Army bombers raided
Haiphong, killing a number of civilians, the
fighting had largely concluded. The
Japanese issued a formal apology and
released their prisoners on the 5th of
October.
The consequences of this brief incident,
however, were manifold. For the French, it
was a rude wake-up call as to the
vulnerability of French Indochina and of the
inability of the forces defending it to wage a
modern war. For the local population,
whose dubious loyalty towards the French
was highlighted by the many instances of
desertion among the Tonkinese rifles and
looting by civilians, it symbolised the victory
of the “yellow” man over the “white” man.
But the fighting at Lang Son also proved
that the French were willing to shed blood
for Indochina, and indeed after the incident
the Japanese respected French
sovereignty in the area for the next five
years.
For the Japanese, however, the occupation
of northern Indochina was nothing but the
beginning of a fatal drive towards the south
that would drag it from a local war with
China into a world war. In July 1941, the
Japanese would move into southern
Indochina, which they would use as a
launchpad for their aggressive expansion
into Thailand and Malaya later that year,
followed by their invasions of Burma and
Singapore, where the 5th division would
consolidate its reputation as an elite
fighting force.
In an ironic twist of fate, furthermore, the
scenes of these tragic events would once
again witness episodes of bloodshed
between the French and the Japanese in
1945, but that is another story…
 The Opposing Forces
The French 2nd Brigade
The French Army of Indochina was a mixed
force that essentially featured three types
of regiments. The first type were the
metropolitan regiments, made up mainly
from white Frenchmen, of which there
were only three units: the 9th, 10th and 11th
Colonial Infantry Regiments, which were
the descendants of the units that
participated in the French conquest of
Indochina in 1884; to these prestigious
regiments we must add the 5th Foreign
Infantry Regiment, which constituted the
elite of the forces in Indochina. The second
category, native regiments, were the most
numerous and made up the bulk of the
French forces in the area. These regiments
were raised according to local ethnicities,
and in total there were six regiments of
Tonkinese, Annamite and Cambodian
tirailleurs. Finally, there were also two
mixed regiments, which had, at least in
theory, two native companies for every
metropolitan company.
The Division du Tonkin (Tonkin Division)
was one of the three major units in French
Indochina along with the Cochinchina-
Cambodia Division and the
Annam-Laos brigade. This
force, which was charged
with the defence of the
northern part of Indochina,
was particularly active in
the twenties and thirties,
both due to the anarchy in
neighbouring China and
local Vietnamese
nationalists. At the
outbreak of hostilities, the
Tonkin Division was
divided into three brigades
with their headquarters at
Haiphong, Hanoi and Dap Cau, respectively.
Among these, it is the 2nd Brigade under
General Mennerat that would bear the
brunt of the fighting.
All in all, the 2nd Brigade had approximately
5 battalions of infantry from the 3rd
Tonkinese Rifles, 9th Colonial Infantry
Regiment and 5th Foreign Infantry
Regiment, as well as a motorised
detachment, a group of tanks equipped
with obsolete Renault FTs of WWI vintage
(of which only a few were still in running
order), a group of 75mm guns and a battery
of 155mm guns in the fortifications at Lang
Son, for a grand total of approximately
5000 men.
Renault FT tank captured at Dong Dang

The Japanese 5th Infantry Division
Early in September 1940, the Japanese
Imperial Army organised the Indochina
Expeditionary Army out of elements of the
South China Area Army for the express
purpose of invading French Indochina. This
army corps included the recently created
22nd army, which boasted two infantry
divisions and two mixed brigades, and it
was furthermore supported by the 14th tank
regiment and an imperial guard infantry
regiment, army air force and elements of
the IJN 2nd fleet and navy air force.
Among these troops, it is the 5th Infantry
Division, supported by the 14th tank
regiment, that would spearhead the
invasion. The 5th Infantry Division was a
square division made up of two brigades,
the 9th and the 21st, with two regiments each:
the 11th and 41st infantry regiments and the
21st and 42nd infantry regiments,
respectively. The 21st infantry brigade, in
particular, had a reputation as an elite unit.
Furthermore, the division also had a
mountain artillery regiment, a horse cavalry
regiment, an engineer regiment and a
transport and logistics regiment.
The 5th Infantry Division
distinguished itself
throughout the Second
Sino-Japanese War,
participating in Operation
Chahar, the Battle of
Taiyuan and the Battle of
Xuzhou, among others,
before it was assigned to
the Southern Chinese area.
Disaster struck when the 5th
Division’s elite unit, the 21st
brigade, was surrounded
by the Chinese and all but
wiped out at the battle of
Kunlun Pass. These severe
losses, which did not go
unnoticed among foreign
intelligence agencies, led the French to
underestimate the strength of the
Japanese army in southern China.
Japanese troops march into Indochina
alongside a Type 94 tankette
The invasion force that entered Tonkin in
late September 1940 numbered over
25000 men, with light and medium armour
and air support, far outmatching its French
opponents. After its strong performance in
Indochina, the 5th division would go on to
distinguish itself in the Malayan campaign,
where it overcame British, Indian and
Australian resistance, and fight its way into
Singapore.
 The Campaign
The organisation of this campaign differs
from others in that it is split into two
different halves, covering the progress of
the Japanese central and southern
columns. Since the campaign covers a
large number of different units across a
front approximately 50 km wide, casualties
will only need to be tracked on a single
given table. As the French forces were
spread thinly across a string of outposts
along the 4th Colonial Road (RC4, which
would become infamous for the deadly
series of ambushes fought ten years later,
in 1950) they will usually not be able to call
on any kind of reinforcements beyond their
starting platoons.
The Japanese will be racing against time to
attack the railway hub at Lang Son from
both sides; the degree of victory or defeat
will depend on whether they can achieve a
historical outcome, namely, the
encirclement of Mennerat’s 2nd Brigade,
within 10 turns.
The northern column’s advance will be
covered by three odd-numbered scenarios,
namely tables 1, 3 and 5, whereas the
southern column’s advance will be covered
by tables 2, 4 and 6. If the French manage
to hold the Japanese long enough, they will
also have the option to attempt a
counterattack which, while unlikely to stop
the Japanese advance, may delay them
enough to throw them off schedule.
Throughout the campaign, the French
player will have the chance to deploy
different types of platoons, all of which will
be described below, based on the troop
types that were historically present at the
different engagements. The Japanese
player, on the other hand, will mostly lead a
standard infantry platoon, but will also have
the chance to choose a cavalry platoon
from the 5th division’s organic mounted
battalion in the southern column if he so
wishes.
Below is a map of the first campaign ladder:
The first campaign ladder begins with the The French counterattack on table 3 bis is a
night attack against a lone platoon of Patrol scenario (Scenario 1 from the main
Tonkinese Rifles at the border post near rulebook).
Nam Quam (table 1), followed by the attack
The platoons available for each scenario of
against the Dong Dang outpost (table 3). If
the campaign are as follows:
the Japanese player fails to capture Dong
Dang in the first round, the next round will Table Japanese French
be fought in daylight and, if the French 1 Infantry 3e RTT
manage to resist during the next daytime 2 Infantry or 3e RTT
round, they will have the option to attempt cavalry
a counterattack (table 3 bis). Once Dong 3 Infantry 3e RTT
Dang has been overrun, the Japanese 3 bis Infantry 3e RTT
advance will move on to Ky Lua, on the 4 Infantry or 3e RTT, 5e REI
cavalry or 9e RIC
outskirts of Lang Son. Capturing this table
5 Infantry 3e RTT
will complete the northern part of the
6 Infantry or 5e REI or 9e
encirclement. cavalry RIC
As to the southern campaign, it covers the
attack against the border outpost at Chi Ma Casualties and reinforcements
(table 2), the capture of Loc Binh (table 4)
The Japanese enjoyed significant
and the enveloping attack against the
superiority in numbers and can deploy a
southern flank of Lang Son at Mai Pha
fresh platoon every time a scenario is
(table 6), as can be seen in the map below.
played. Casualties will, however, affect the
The scenarios are governed by the CO and men’s opinion as per the At the
following rules from the main rules and Sharp End supplement. Track these values
Blitzkrieg 1940 handbook: for the 5th Division as a whole.

No. Name
1 Gates of China
2 A Rude Awakening
3 Dust-up at Dong Dang
4 Up the RC4
5 Storming the Redoubt
6 Outflanked at Mai Pha
Scenario The French get a fresh platoon the first time
BK3 each table is played but may not obtain any
2 reinforcements; however, on maps where
3 several platoon types are available, they
BK5 may switch to a different force to obtain a
BK4 fresh platoon. Opinions may likewise be
5 tracked for the 2nd Brigade as a whole.

Support is available as per the lists below.

This force represents the various platoons Tirailleurs Tonkinois Support List
from the 3rd Tonkinese Rifles in this List one
campaign. Tonkinese Rifle voltigeur teams Adjutant
can move 2d6 and adopt a tactical stance.
Two bouteilles incendiaires
Troop Type: Regular Medical orderly
Platoon Force Rating: 0 Barbed wire
Entrenchment for one team
Command Dice: 5
Additional V-B ammunition for one man
Force Morale Track
Anti-aircraft machineguns
Force Morale 1 2 3 4 5 6+ List two
Command Dice 2 3 4 5 Roadblock
Special J Sniper team
Renault FT MG with junior leader
Platoon Headquarters Renault FT 37mm with junior leader
Lieutenant, Senior Leader, Pistol List three
V-B Team Canon de 25mm L72 AT gun with five
crew and junior leader
V-B Caporal, Junior Leader, V-B
Launcher 60mm Brandt mortar team with junior
Three rifle grenadiers, rifles with V-B leader and four crew
launchers 37mm mle M1916 infantry gun with five
crew and junior leader
Hotchkiss M1914 MMG team with five
Groupe de combat one to three crew
Sergeant, Junior Leader, Rifle Pre-game barrage
Demi-groupe de Demi-groupe de List four
fusiliers voltigeurs Canon de 65M mountain gun with five
FM 24/29 LMG Four riflemen crew and junior leader
with two crew Groupe de combat with junior leader
Four riflemen List five
Forward observer team with fixed line
telephone and 81mm mortar section
Canon de 75mm M1897 with five crew
and junior leader
Options in red are only available on tables 3,
5 and 6.
Options in blue are not available on tables 1
and 2.
Options in green are only available on
tables 5 and 6.
This force represents the various platoons Colonial Infantry Support List
from the 9th Colonial Infantry Regiment in List one
this campaign. They may choose not to Adjutant
make one force morale roll per game, and
Two bouteilles incendiaires
they are rated as Stubborn.
Medical orderly
Troop Type: Regular Barbed wire
Platoon Force Rating: +1 Entrenchment for one team
Command Dice: 5 Additional V-B ammunition for one man
Anti-aircraft machineguns
Force Morale Track
List two
Force Morale 1 2 3 4 5+ Escouade de fusiliers motocyclistes
Command Dice 2 3 4 5 Roadblock
Special J
Sniper team
Renault FT MG with junior leader
Platoon Headquarters Renault FT 37mm with junior leader
Lieutenant, Senior Leader, Pistol White-Laffly AMD 50 with junior leader
Sergent-chef, Inferior Senior Leader,
List three
Rifle
Canon de 25mm L72 AT gun with five
V-B Team
crew and junior leader
V-B Caporal, Junior Leader, V-B
60mm Brandt mortar team with junior
Launcher
leader and four crew
Three rifle grenadiers, rifles with V-B
launchers 37mm mle M1916 infantry gun with five
crew and junior leader
Hotchkiss M1914 MMG team with five
Groupe de combat one to three
crew
Sergeant, Junior Leader, Rifle
Pre-game barrage
Demi-groupe de Demi-groupe de
List four
fusiliers voltigeurs
Canon de 65M mountain gun with five
FM 24/29 LMG Four riflemen
crew and junior leader
with two crew
Four riflemen Groupe de combat with junior leader
List five
Forward observer team with fixed line
telephone and 81mm mortar section
Canon de 75mm M1897 with five crew
and junior leader

Options in green are only available on table

6.
This force represents the various platoons Colonial Infantry Support List
from the 5th Foreign Infantry Regiment in List one
this campaign. They may ignore one force Adjutant
morale roll after it is made, and they are
Two bouteilles incendiaires
rated as Stubborn.
Medical orderly
Troop Type: Regular Barbed wire
Platoon Force Rating: +2 Entrenchment for one team
Command Dice: 5 Additional V-B ammunition for one man
Anti-aircraft machineguns
Force Morale Track
List two
Force Morale 1 2 3 4 5+ 6+ Roadblock
Command Dice 2 3 4 5 5 Sniper team
Special J
Red die
Renault FT MG with junior leader
Platoon Headquarters Renault FT 37mm with junior leader
Lieutenant, Senior Leader, Pistol List three
Sergent-chef, Senior Leader, Rifle
Canon de 25mm L72 AT gun with five
V-B Team crew and junior leader
V-B Caporal, Junior Leader, V-B 60mm Brandt mortar team with junior
Launcher leader and four crew
Three rifle grenadiers, rifles with V-B
37mm mle M1916 infantry gun with five
launchers
crew and junior leader
Hotchkiss M1914 MMG team with five
Groupe de combat one to three crew
Sergeant, Junior Leader, Rifle Pre-game barrage
Demi-groupe de Demi-groupe de List four
fusiliers voltigeurs
Canon de 65M mountain gun with five
FM 24/29 LMG Four riflemen crew and junior leader
with two crew
Groupe de combat with junior leader
Four riflemen
List five
Forward observer team with fixed line
telephone and 81mm mortar section
Canon de 75mm M1897 with five crew
and junior leader

Options in green are only available on table

6.
 FRENCH SUPPORT OPTIONS DEFINED Field defences

Descriptions for most of the support The French player may select any number
options in the French list may be found in of field defences on tables 1, 2 and 3. On
the Blitzkrieg 1940 handbook. Below are tables 4, 5 and 6, entrenchments may only
some clarifications regarding the be selected from the second time the
limitations placed on the availability of scenario is played onwards.
some support options:
Grenade availability
Armoured support
French groupes de combat have three
The French had little armour in the region hand grenades and one smoke grenade.
other than a handful of old Renault FT tanks, They are held by the voltigeur team.
few of which were in working order.
The 9th RIC also has White-Laffly
AMD 50 armoured cars available
from its motorised detachment’s
reconnaissance platoon. The French
may only deploy AFVs as support on
tables 3, 5 and 6.

White-Laffly armoured cars on reconnaissance.

French Arsenal Table

AFVs

Vehicle Armour A.P. H.E. Speed Secondary Notes

Renault FT MG 2 - MG Slow None Small, Low Profile,

Unreliable
Renault FT 37mm 2 3 3 Slow None Small, Low Profile,
1MT, Unreliable
Armoured cars

White-Laffly AMD 50 1 3 3 Wheeled MG Rear-facing turret

MG
Anti-tank and infantry guns

Weapon A.P. H.E. Weight

Canon de 25mm L/72 5 2 Light

37mm mle M1916 3 3 Light
Canon de 65 M 3 5 Medium
Canon de 75mm M1897 5 6 Heavy
This force represents the various platoons Japanese Infantry Support List
from the 5th Division in this campaign. List one
Troop Type: Regular Engineer wire cutting team, 3 men
Satchel charge
Platoon Force Rating: +2
Adjutant
Command Dice: 5
Medical orderly
Force Morale Track Type 100 rifle grenade launcher
Force Morale 1 2 3 4 5+ List two
Command Dice 2 3 4 5 Marksman
Special J Red die
Tank killer team, 2 men
20mm type 97 AT rifle team, 3 men
Platoon Headquarters
Ruse
Rikugun Shoui, Senior Leader, Pistol and
sword Pre-game barrage
Gunsou, Senior Leader, Rifle Asia for the Asians!
Grenade discharger squad Type 94 Te Ke with junior leader
Gochou, Junior Leader, Rifle List three
Three Type 89 grenade discharger Type 92 MMG on tripod, five crew
teams, 4 crew each 3.7cm Type 94 AT gun with junior leader
and five crew
37mm Type 11 infantry gun with five crew
Squads one to three and junior leader
Gochou, Junior Leader, Rifle Engineer flamethrower team, 3 men
LMG Squad Kawasaki Ki-48 bombardment
One LMG with three crew, nine riflemen Type 97 Te Ke with junior leader
Type 95 Ha Go with junior leader
List four
Engineer section with junior leader
Infantry section with junior leader
7cm Type 92 infantry gun with junior
leader and five crew
Type 89 Chi Ro with junior leader
List five
20mm Type 98 autocannon, five crew

Options in red are only available on tables 1,

3, 3b and 5.
Options in green are not available at night.
This force represents the various platoons Squads one to three
from the 5th cavalry regiment in this Gochou, Junior Leader, Rifle
campaign. They normally begin LMG Squad
dismounted but can be deployed mounted
One LMG with three crew, seven
at no additional cost. Please refer to the riflemen
Blitzkrieg 1940 handbook for rules on
mounted troops.
Japanese Cavalry Support List
Troop Type: Regular List one
Platoon Force Rating: +0 Adjutant
Medical orderly
Command Dice: 5
Type 100 rifle grenade launcher
Force Morale Track
List two
Force Morale 1 2 3 4 5+ Marksman
Command Dice 2 3 4 5 Tank killer team, 2 men
Special J 20mm type 97 AT rifle team, 3 men
Ruse
Platoon Headquarters Pre-game barrage
Rikugun Shoui, Senior Leader, Pistol and Asia for the Asians!
sword List three
Gunsou, Senior Leader, Rifle Type 92 MMG on tripod, five crew
Grenade discharger squad 3.7cm Type 94 AT gun with junior leader
Gochou, Junior Leader, Rifle and five crew
Two type 89 grenade discharger teams, Kawasaki Ki-48 bombardment
four crew each List four
Cavalry section with junior leader

Options in green
are not available
at night.
 JAPANESE NATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS

FIXED BAYONETS

The Japanese soldier was drilled in bayonet fighting more than any other nation, it being
seen as the deciding weapon in combat. Japanese tactics were to pin a target with part
of their force while other units moved to their flanks to deliver an unstoppable charge.
To reflect this training, the Japanese are always considered Aggressive in close combat.

Grenade discharger squad team or squad to cease to exist, roll as

Treat the Type 89 grenade discharger as a
2” or 50mm mortar, with the exception that
it fires at half effect the first time it engages
any given target. Subsequent attacks
against the same target generate full
firepower dice as long as it remains
stationary. The weapon has a minimum
range of 12”, and the crew may use their
rifles to engage any enemies within that
range. Type 89 grenade dischargers have
unlimited HE and one smoke shell each.
Japanese LMG
The Japanese light machine guns all
suffered issues with jamming and as such
they fire with 5D6. They are, however,
equipped with a sling and bayonet for use
in the assault and are consequently treated
as an SMG in close combat.
JAPANESE SUPPORT OPTIONS DEFINED
Asia for the Asians!
Under this slogan, the Japanese
announced their intention of breaking the
Western grip on the colonies of the Far East,
a prospect that was not entirely
unappealing to the local population. This
certainly seems to have been the case
among many of the men in the 3e Régiment
de Tirailleurs Tonkinois, which lost up to
1000 men to desertion during the fighting
around Lang Son. This option allows the
Japanese player to force his French
opponent to roll a die when attempting to
deploy a Tonkinese Rifles section, which
will lose that many men to desertion before
they enter the table. If this would cause a
normal on the Bad Things Happen table.
The Japanese player may only purchase
this option once every time a map is played.
This support option has no effect on
European regiments (9e RIC and 5e REI).
Ruse
Admiral Decoux noted how the Japanese
took advantage of any lulls in the fighting
caused by attempts to negotiate to infiltrate
and improve their positions “with the
utmost bad faith”. The Japanese player
may purchase a Ruse in order to either
deploy one unit an additional 6” further
from a Jump-Off point than would normally
be the case (12” for infantry, 15” for cavalry)
OR to move a jump-off point up to 18” in any
direction, so long as it is further than 12”
away from any enemy troops or jump-off
point.
Satchel charge and tank killer teams
The satchel charge is shown on table seven,
Hand-held anti-tank weapons, as are the
Molotov cocktails used by tank killer teams
in this period, which are listed there as
petrol bombs. Unless issued to a specific
anti-tank team or section, the satchel
charge may be used once by any section on
the table when commanded by the senior
leader commanding the platoon.
Kawasaki Ki-48 bombardment
This bombardment works like a pre-game
barrage, with the added effect of
destroying buildings like a Stuka
bombardment, as described in the
Blitzkrieg 1940 handbook. It does not,
 however, inflict shock on troops attempting Japanese Medic
to enter the table. If anti-aircraft
Although the Japanese signed the Geneva
machineguns were selected as a support
Convention in 1929, they did not ratify it and
option, troops attempting to enter the table
generally did not feel bound by its terms, as
may add +1 to their roll.
can be seen in their atrocious treatment of
Marksman prisoners of war. There are several
documented instances of Japanese troops
Less emphasis was placed on the
deliberately targeting allied combat medics;
development of trained snipers in the
therefore, shooting an enemy medic will not
Imperial Japanese Army than in Allied
cause the Japanese player to roll on the
forces. As a result, a Japanese marksman
Bad Things Happen table as per Appendix
operates like a sniper but with the following
B of the main rulebook.
amendments: he hits at close range on 3 to
However, it seems that Japanese medics
6, at effective range on 4 to 6. He does not
often did not wear distinctive red crosses
increase the chance of hitting a Leader
on their uniforms and may have been
within the target group.
mistaken for ordinary infantrymen, and so
do not cause a Bad Thing to the opponent
when hit either.

Japanese Arsenal Table

AFVs

Vehicle Armour A.P. H.E. Speed Secondary Notes

Type 94 Te Ke 1 - MG Average None Small, Low profile

Type 97 Te Ke 2 3 3 Average None Small, Low profile, 1MT
Type 95 Ha Go 2 3 3 Average MG Rear-facing turret MG,
1MT.
Type 89 Chi-Ro 3 5 4 Slow MG Rear-facing turret MG.

Anti-tank and infantry guns

Weapon A.P. H.E. Weight

37mm Type 94 Anti-Tank gun 4 3 Light

37mm Type 11 infantry gun 3 3 Light
70mm Type 92 infantry gun 3 5 Light
20mm Type 98 autocannon 4 6 Light Close range 0-24”, Effective over 24”
Type 97 AT rifle 3 1 Man-portable

Infantry weapons

Weapon Firepower Close Effective Notes

Type 92 MMG 9 0-24” Over 24” Lose two firepower when crew reduced
to one man.
Type 11 and Type 96 5 0-18” Over 18” Lose three firepower dice when reduced
LMG to one man. Treat as SMG in close combat.
The tables below have been designed to allow you to easily generate names and backgrounds
for your officers to play a narrative campaign using the At the Sharp End supplement.

Japanese name generator

Surname Name
1 die roll
st
2 die roll
nd
Result 1 die roll
st
2 die roll
nd
Result
1 Sato 1 Taro
2 Suzuki 2 Jiro
3 Takahashi 3 Saburo
1 1
4 Tanaka 4 Shiro
5 Watanabe 5 Goro
6 Ito 6 Rokuro
1 Nakamura 1 Hiroyuki
2 Kobayashi 2 Masahiro
3 Yamamoto 3 Masayuki
2 2
4 Kato 4 Takao
5 Yoshida 5 Yoshihiro
6 Yamada 6 Tetsuo
1 Sasaki 1 Sadao
2 Yamaguchi 2 Yoshiharu
3 Matsumoto 3 Masaaki
3 3
4 Inoue 4 Seiichi
5 Kimura 5 Satoshi
6 Shimizu 6 Toshiyuki
1 Hayashi 1 Toshiaki
2 Saito 2 Masayoshi
3 Yamazaki 3 Junichi
4 4
4 Nakajima 4 Eiichi
5 Mori 5 Yasuhiro
6 Abe 6 Kazuhiro
1 Ikeda 1 Masato
2 Hashimoto 2 Hideki
3 Ishikawa 3 Hideaki
5 5
4 Yamashita 4 Yoshitaka
5 Ogawa 5 Kazuyuki
6 Ishii 6 Yoshinobu
1 Hasegawa 1 Nobuyuki
2 Goto 2 Takahiro
3 Okada 3 Hideyuki
6 6
4 Kondo 4 Akihiro
5 Maeda 5 Hajime
6 Fujita 6 Tatsuya
 Japanese officer backgrounds

4-5

6-7

10

11-12

Japanese NCO backgrounds

2

10

11

12
 French name generator
Name Surname
1st die roll 2nd die roll Result 1st die roll 2nd die roll Result
1 Jean 1 Martin
2 Michel 2 Durand
3 Philippe 3 Dubois
1 1
4 François 4 Simon
5 Pierre 5 Laurent
6 Alain 6 Fournier
1 Bernard 1 Lambert
2 André 2 Lefebvre
3 Daniel 3 Mercier
2 2
4 Jacques 4 Blanc
5 Christophe 5 Dupont
6 Pascal 6 Faure
1 René 1 Morin
2 Joseph 2 Chaudard
3 Olivier 3 Rousseau
3 3
4 Nicolas 4 Bonnet
5 Robert 5 Guignard
6 Jean-Pierre 6 Muller
1 David 1 Chevalier
2 Roger 2 Blanchard
3 Guy 3 Lemaire
4 4
4 Jean-Claude 4 Dufour
5 Marcel 5 Gauthier
6 Marc 6 Fontaine
1 Yves 1 Marchand
2 Georges 2 Picard
3 Serge 3 Meunier
5 5
4 Julien 4 Gaillard
5 Paul 5 Tassin
6 Henri 6 Moulin
1 Vincent 1 Leroux
2 Maurice 2 Dupuy
3 Louis 3 Lemoine
6 6
4 Denis 4 Deschamps
5 Gilles 5 Leclerc
6 Guillaume 6 Pithivier
 French officer backgrounds

2-3

6-7

10

11-12

French NCO backgrounds

2

10

11

12
The scenarios in this campaign have not
been designed to be balanced on an
individual level; historically, the Japanese
enjoyed a huge advantage in numbers,
equipment and air power, and the French
player may sometimes feel like he is having
a hard time. The campaign, however, has
been designed to be balanced as a whole,
as the Japanese can afford few delays if
they are to tighten the noose on the
defenders at Lang Son by turn 10.
Since players will sometimes have the
choice of which platoon they wish to field,
support points for the scenarios must be
worked out according to the rules in the
main book and any specific rules provided
in the scenario.
Notes on terrain
Although it might be tempting to break out
the reed huts and aquarium plant foliage, it
is worth keeping in mind that northern
Vietnam is not like the typical jungles we
often imagine when thinking about the
The Dong Dang railway station in the 1930s. This is the railway line through which supplies were
sent to China and which ran south towards Lang Son parallel to the RC4.
Pacific theatre. The Lang Son region has a
transitional climate between the
subtropical and warm temperate climates,
and it has four clearly demarcated seasons.
Moist deciduous forests grow on the steep
slopes of the dramatic Karst landscapes,
and the valleys along which the roads run
were mostly given over to rice paddies.
Bamboo groves and palm trees can add
some welcome variety to your forests. Use
bamboo groves and palm trees to add
some vari As for rice paddies, September is
harvesting season and so they may be
modelled with fully-grown plants.
Most traditional rural buildings were mud-
and-brick houses similar to the ones in
southern China, with thatched or tiled roofs.
To these we must add French colonial
buildings, usually made of masonry, with
more modern examples being made from
concrete. There were also some wooden
buildings. Most buildings in the smaller
villages will have one or two storeys at most,
whereas larger buildings will mostly be
found in the city of Lang Son itself.
Most of the RC4 was metalled at the time.
Provincial roads were mostly unmetalled.
The border post at Chi Ma (Scenario 2) has
a simple stone wall that provides hard
cover. The front part with the gate is a
major obstacle and the sides are medium
obstacles.
Railway tracks are raised and provide light
cover to troops lined up against them
except where the roads cross the tracks.
Night fighting rules
Owing to Japanese training in night fighting
tactics, the penalty to leaders’ command
ranges during night fighting does not apply
to them.
At any point during a night battle, a player
may expend three pips from his Chain of
Command die to launch an illumination flare.
This removes all night combat penalties
during the player’s current phase.
Air support is not available during night
battles.

Some scenarios in this campaign must be

fought at night. Night fighting has the
following effects:
- All “to hit” rolls suffer a -1 penalty.
Thus, a regular target at close range
will only be hit on a 5, and a regular
target at effective range will only be
hit on a 6. Roll for effect as normal.
- Close combat dice are halved after
each side’s close combat score has
been calculated.
- Leaders’ command ranges are
halved.

Renault FT tank and Indochinese infantry on manoeuvres in a rice paddy, 1920s.

 Scenario one: The Gates of China
2355 hrs, 22 September 1940. General Nakamura’s central column has crossed the Chinese
border at the old gate at Zhennan Pass (current-day Youyi Pass, or Friendship Pass) and has
begun to advance south towards Dong Dang. On the way there they encounter a single platoon
of Tonkinese Rifles guarding the road. Hopelessly outnumbered, the French colonial force
must hold on as much as it can until support can arrive.

Patrol phase deployment Victory conditions

The Japanese player rolls a D6. On a 1 to 3, The Japanese player must capture all of the
all four of their Patrol Markers start on the French Jump-Off Points or reduce their
point indicated by red arrow 1. On 4 to 6 Force Morale to zero. The French must
they are placed at red arrow 2. retain at least one Jump-Off Point to win.

The French player places all four Patrol Special rules

Markers at a single point within the shaded
Night fighting rules are in effect.
area. The Patrol Phase begins with the
player with the higher Force Morale taking
the first move.

Force support

Both sides have 1D6+6 support points

available, modified by the platoon force
ratings. The Defender will not be able to
deploy any of their support choices (other
than fixed defences) until Turn 2, when they
will be able to deploy as normal.
 Scenario two: A Rude Awakening
Further south, opposite the Chinese town of Aidian, lies the tiny Chi Ma border post. This is
where the southern column of the Japanese 5th division has crossed on its way to Loc Binh,
surprising a small force of Tonkinese Rifles in the dead of night.

Patrol phase deployment both players will place three Jump-Off

Points on the table.
The French player deploys four Patrol
Markers within 12” of his own table edge Force support
and at least within 12” of at least one other
The attacker has 1d6 support points, and
friendly Patrol Marker. The Japanese
the defender has half that amount,
player enters at a single entry point of his
rounding down any odd number and
choosing along his own table edge,
adjusted for force rating.
stacking all three or four Patrol Markers,
whichever he prefers, at that one point. Victory conditions
The Japanese player The Japanese player
rolls 1D6 before the must take one Team
Patrol Phase. On a roll to the French base
of 1 or 2, the attacker line to win.
takes two moves with
his Patrol Markers. On Special rules
a roll of 3 or 4, three Night fighting rules
moves are taken and are in effect.
on 5 or 6, four moves
are taken. At the end
of the Patrol Phase
 Scenario three: Dust-up at Dong Dang
After overrunning the Tonkinese platoon near Nam Quan, the Japanese have reached the city
of Dong Dang. With its military outpost and railway station this is a key position in the sector, as
taking it will open the road to Lang Son only 15 kilometres to the south.

Patrol phase deployment Victory conditions

The French player four Patrol Markers
within 18” of his own table edge and within
12” of at least one other friendly Patrol
Marker. The Japanese player enters
anywhere on his table edge with four Patrol
Markers. Before the patrol phase begins,
the Japanese rolls 1D6 and takes that many
free moves with his Patrol Markers. At the
end of the Patrol Phase both players place
three Jump-Off Points on the table.
Force support
The Japanese player receives 2D6 support
points up to a maximum of 10. The French
player receives half that amount, rounded
down. Support points are then adjusted for
force ratings.
Either side must force his opponent to
withdraw from the table, either voluntarily
or due to a reduction in his Force Morale,
whilst keeping his own Force Morale at 3 or
greater. Any other result is a draw. The side
with the higher Force Morale begins as
active player.
Special rules
Night fighting rules are in effect the first
time this scenario is played, after which the
scenario will be played in daytime. The
French may attempt a counterattack
(scenario 3B) if they hold out for two rounds.
The rice fields provide soft cover to
stationary infantry and are broken ground.
The buildings provide hard cover. The
stream is heavy going.
 Scenario three bis: The 3e RTT counterattacks
Hoping to relieve the Dong Dang outpost, the French have moved up elements of IV/3e RTT
from Diem He up Provincial Road 32. To their surprise, however, they ran into a Japanese
column that was moving westwards to outflank Lang Son from Khanh Khe.

Patrol phase deployment whilst keeping his own Force Morale at 3 or

greater. Any other result is a draw. The side
Both sides enter the table at one single
with the higher Force Morale begins as
point, rolling 1D3 to see which of their three
active player.
entry points they use. Each player chooses
whether to start with three or four patrol If the counterattack is successful, the
markers, and at the end of the patrol phase campaign progresses one turn to reflect
both players place three Jump-Off Points Japanese concerns about their flanks.
on the table.
Special rules
Force support
The rice fields provide soft cover to any
Roll 1D3; both sides get this many support stationary infantry and are broken ground.
points, adjusted for force ratings. Neither The irrigation canal is broken ground.
side may select entrenchments, static
defences, preliminary barrage or air
support as their choices.

Victory conditions

Either side must force his opponent to

withdraw from the table, either voluntarily
or due to a reduction in his Force Morale,
 Scenario four: Up the RC4
After crossing the border at Chi Ma, the Japanese southern column has marched 14km town
provincial road 146 towards the town of Loc Binh in the hopes of gaining access to Colonial
Road 4 and marching northwest to encircle the city of Lang Son. The Loc Binh military outpost
is manned by elements of the 3e RTT, reinforced by elements of the 9e RIC and 5e REI.

Patrol phase deployment Victory conditions

The Japanese player places three Patrol
Markers at any single point on the red
arrow. The French player places four
patrols anywhere on the blue arrow, either
together or within 12” of another Patrol
Marker.
The Japanese takes 1D3 free moves before
the Patrol Phase. The player with the higher
Force Morale then takes the first move.
Force support
The Japanese player obtains 2D6+6
support points; the French player has half
that amount, rounded down.
The Japanese player must exit two units
from the French player’s table edge to
claim victory. To win, the French player
must play two full Chain of Command dice.
However, the Japanese player may use one
of his own Chain of Command dice at any
moment to reduce the French player’s
Chain of Command point total by three
points.
Special rules
The rice fields provide soft cover to any
stationary infantry inside. The terraces
count as minor obstacles for movement
purposes.
 Scenario five: Storming the Redoubt
Lang Son is in sight! As the Japanese march south from Dong Dang, the French set up their last
line of defence at the Ky Lua redoubt, one kilometre away from Lang Son on the other side of
the Song Ky Cung. Forcing the French out of Ky Lua will force them to withdraw into the citadel,
where they can be bombarded into submission. Victory hangs in the balance!

Patrol phase deployment he must clear two of the three 2’ by 2’ areas

The French player rolls two D6, placing two
patrol markers on point 1 for every 1-3 and
two patrol markers on point 2 for every 4-6.
The Japanese player then places three or
four patrol markers anywhere along his
table edge, none of which must be more
than 12” from any other. The Japanese
begin the Patrol Phase.
Force support
The French player has 1D6 support points;
the Japanese player adds a further 6 to this
amount. Results are adjusted for force
ratings.
Victory conditions
To win, the Japanese player must exit a unit
off the French player’s table edge. Likewise,
on the French player’s side of the table.
Special rules
The circular building on the edge of the
camp is a simple stone blockhouse that
provides bunker-level cover. The walls
count as hard cover and major obstacles.
Trivia
Lieutenant Alain Babey de Montigny of the
3e RTT was killed in action in the defence of
Lang Son on 25 September 1940.
Sometime after the fighting, a small fort
near the area depicted was built and
named in his honour. That same fort would
become the scene of a desperate defence
by the men of the 3e RTT during the
Japanese coup of 1945.
 Scenario six: Outflanked at Mai Pha
Passing the bombed-out airfield to the right, the southern Japanese column is now
approaching the city of Lang Son from the southeast. If they can force the French out of Mai
Pha, the encirclement of the city of Lang Son will be complete.

Patrol phase deployment The French player places three jump-off

The French player’s deployment is limited
to a quarter of the table as shown by the
white square above. The French player
places three patrol markers within that area,
all within 12” of at least one other friendly
patrol marker.
The Japanese player places two separate
groups of three patrol markers along the
two edges indicated by the red arrows, all
within 12” of at least one other friendly
patrol marker in their group. These groups
move separately of each other.
The Japanese player takes 1D3+1 free
moves before the patrol phase begins.
Once the patrol phase ends, the attacker
may place four jump-off points using any of
the six patrol markers present.
points, plus a fourth one anywhere within
the shaded quarter of the table.
Force support
The Japanese player receives 2D6 support
points up to a maximum of ten. The French
player receives half that amount, rounded
down.
Victory conditions
To win, the Japanese player must force the
French player to withdraw from the table
while keeping his own force morale at 3 or
more. If he fails, the French will win.
Special rules
The pond on the bottom left is impassable.
The stream is broken ground. The pagoda
is made of wood and brick and provides
light cover.
UMPIRE’S NOTES
Due to the non-linear nature of the
campaign, the Japanese player may prefer
to focus on one of the two columns. Thus,
for instance, if they were defeated in
scenario 4, they could choose to move on
to scenario 5, continuing the central
column’s progress, rather than insisting on
the capture of Loc Binh. They will not be
able to move on to table 6, however, until
they capture table 4.
WINNING THE CAMPAIGN
This campaign re-creates a gamble taken
by the Japanese authorities: an
“unauthorised” incursion by “unruly soldiers”
that could either be localised or allowed to
go on by the authorities based on how
events unfolded. After the war, several key
Japanese actors testified that they had, in
fact, been given two sets of orders to
deliver to the Japanese troops on the
ground: one in case the fighting was
favourable to the Japanese, and one in
case it was not. Thus, even though the
Japanese enjoy overwhelming superiority,
the entire coup de force was reliant on how
much their troops could achieve before
diplomatic “normality” was restored.
Therefore, if the Japanese take both tables
5 and 6 before turn 10 of the campaign,
they will have achieved a major victory, with
the capture of Lang Son and its garrison.
If the Japanese only control table 5 or 6 by
the end of the campaign, they will have
achieved a minor victory.
The French will achieve a major victory if
they hold both tables 3 and 4 by the end of
the campaign, and a minor victory if they
hold both tables 5 and 6.
Any other result is a draw.
THE BATTLEFIELDS TODAY
The following notes are added for the
benefit of anyone who might be curious
about the current condition of the
battlefields depicted in this campaign:
Scenario 1
Parts of the old China Gate have been
demolished, except for the main gate,
which survives in an attractive scenic area
that is open to visitors, and it is currently the
only one of the nine historic passes
between China and Vietnam that is still in
service as a border station. A new, large-
scale border station has been built nearby
which receives significant international
traffic, and the entire area has been paved
over and developed significantly.
Scenario 2
The Chi Ma military outpost has
disappeared completely and can only be
reconstructed from a few photographs.
The entire area has been paved over and
developed significantly, and it currently
features another of the border stations
between China and Vietnam.
Scenario 3
The Vietnamese have preserved much of
the old French railway line and currently
use it for trade with China; the station is a
new building, but some elements of the old
station still remain. Nothing remains of the
French outpost (not pictured), but the ruins
of a concrete fort, fort Van Vollenhoven,
which was built by the French between
1942 and 1945, still remain on the heights.
The fort is in very poor condition due to
having been blown up by Nationalist
Chinese troops in 1946.
Scenario 3b
Provincial Road 32 is now National Route 1B;
it is now metalled, but other than that the
area remains scarcely populated, the road
being lined by a few houses, with rice
paddies on the slopes.
Scenario 4
Loc Binh has developed significantly, but
the layout of the roads is still very similar. A
triangular public park has been built at the
approximate location of the intersection
depicted in this scenario.
Scenario 5
The fortifications in Ky Lua were
strengthened from 1942 onwards and still
remained in place in the 1960s. They were
most likely destroyed during the Sino-
Vietnamese war and have now been built
over with residential buildings.
Scenario 6
Mai Pha has undergone some amount of
urban development and has changed
significantly; the pagoda no longer seems
to exist. On the heights nearby, the ruins of
Fort Brière de l’Isle still exist, albeit in very
poor condition due to having been
demolished by the Chinese. Forts Négrier
and Galliéni, also in Lang Son, also exist in
similar states of disrepair.
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community free of charge.
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1940-1956, Paris, William Tallandier, 2015.
DECOUX, Jean, À la barre de l’Indochine:
histoire de mon gouvernement général
(1940-1945), Paris, Plon, 1949.
DREIFORT, John E., “Japan's Advance into
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l'heure japonaise: La vérité sur le coup de
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MACRI, Franco David, Clash of Empires in
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ZELLER, Guillaume, Les cages de la

Kempeitai: Les Français sous la terreur
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日本ニュース 第１８号 "皇軍精鋭堂々と

仏 印 へ 進 駐 " [Nippon News No. 18, “The
Emperor’s Finest Boldly Occupy French
Indochina”] 8 October 1940. Available at:
https://www2.nhk.or.jp/archives/shogenar
chives/jpnews/movie.cgi?das_id=D00013
00403_00000&seg_number=001