[Hermit]

We have returned to the Korean peninsula, to head off another incursion by those pesky Chinese. The terrain is rolling hills with moderate woods clumped in groups. We're moving in from the east, expecting to encounter the enemy after taking the objectives due to our superior mobility, armor, and the relatively good lines of sight. This will allow us to advance quickly without worrying about ambushes from enemy units. The warm summer weather has made the ground firm and we'll be able to move cross-country and take advantage of the terrain for cover and firing positions. Two roads pass through enemy territory from West to East, and then angle towards each other, eventually crossing in our territory. A large village borders the dirt road on a hilltop just in enemy territory, and this is expected to be a primary encounter area.

Several platoons of M59 APC's have been requisitioned from the motor pool to provide mobility to the leg infantry, and four heavy-lift helos have also been lent from the local air wing. A flight of A-26 Invaders with cluster bombs have been made available for overhead cover. No enemy air activity is expected. At the last minute, division called and said two batteries of 105mm will be at our disposal, in case we need to suppress any stubborn enemy units. The battalion was joined by two platoons of armored infantry on the way to the battlefield, along with their supporting section of 106mm jeeps and M21 1/2-track mortar carriers that we'll use as fighting scouts.

***

As hoped, we have moved swiftly to take up positions beyond the objective areas in the northern and middle areas of the battlefield. We haven't been able to reach the southern objective yet, but chances are good we'll take that without much resistance as well.

Enemy artillery pounded the roads with a surprising number of HE rounds. 122mm, 85mm, 76mm ... you name it. It's fortunate we've chosen to advance over the countryside, or we'd have taken a beating this morning. Our own artillery has returned fire, with an estimate of about 1/2 of the enemy guns out of action within 20 minutes. We sent our light attack helos forward behind the hills, so that we can scout out the enemy disposition. But the minute they exposed themselves, all hell broke loose. The enemy is saturating the air with light SPAA fire. It seems they've recently aquired an APC with twin AAMG's mounted on it. And they have a multitude of them. Our helos are defenseless against this nefarious new vehicle, as their own machine guns cannot penetrate its thin, yet sufficient, armor. For the meantime, our helos will have to cower behind the hills and wait for another opportunity.

The enemy has also apparently loaded up with mortars, as 60mm and 82mm rounds are starting to fall everywhere. Fortunately, only one barrage hit our troops and was ineffective, except to scare the crap out of the inexperienced APC drivers. We're trying to get a fix on their location, so at the moment we hope they continue firing, since they're not doing any damage.

***

One helo managed to get a peak around the hills without bolting for cover, and reported back some really good news. The Chinese have a column of trucks advancing along the road approaching the village. We took some of our 155mm artillery off counter-battery duty, and plotted in the coordinates of the road just outside the village, figuring they'll stop and unload before entering the village. We were rewarded with the sight (and sound) of many secondary explosions, and thick clouds of greasy black smoke rose into the air as a dozen trucks blew apart and burst into flame when the artillery rained down on them. The A-26 pilots radioed that they were going to make a pass down the road to pick off the survivors fleeing back toward their momma's. The Colonel waved them off, however, worried about all the enemy AA fire that was waiting to riddle those slower, bigger aircraft.