I think Arma is a little under celebrated in terms of what it's inspired in more mainstream titles; state of decay, pubg, dayz, and fortnite are just a few that are practically direct descendents of it.
Soo... we live in the timeline where vets got to play the very missions they fought in during an actual war in a video game... what a time to be alive.
my school bus driver in high school was an air cav pilot who flew UH-1 Iroquois (Huey) helicopters in 'Nam. hell of a transition, assault helicopters to school buses full of screaming snot nosed brats. he drove that bus like he stole it. never a dull moment, he had some awesome stories.
I had a bus driver exactly like that when I lived in Oregon. His name was Tim and he was super funny because he had a dark sense of humor. He drove that bus like a madman and was always a joy to ride with
whats the difference? one is flying over the rice patties with a bunch of brats trying not to get killed, the other is flying over the road with a bunch of brats in the back tryin not to get killed. Same shit, bus driver probably gets worse pay tho
If you knew anything about the Army, you’d know that being a chopper pilot is pretty much the same as being a school bus driver. The only thing different is a chopper gets shot at and the bus… Usually doesn’t.
@@douwehuysmans5959 That’s probably why they’re called silent professionals. Don’t turn it into a sad boy meme, they’re not talking about with the intent you’re suggesting. They deserve as much recognition and merit we can give them for their sacrifices, fighting for their people and living through hell.
Both. The best stories I’ve got are also from the worst stories I’ve ever experienced. Life’s simpler when all you have to do is wake up, don’t die, keep the man on your left and right alive, and sleep.
@@bobbyb4024 lets face it, for those jobs in the military you have to be kind of psychotic. Well educated, good leadership qualities, superhuman drive, and alotta crazy
Vietnam combat vets are the only Boomers that aren't arrogant and annoying in my experience. Totally makes you see how awesome the generation could have been if they weren't so selfish.
It's crazy when you realize there are less and less Vietnam War vets now. I'm still used to the 2000's when almost everyday I met at least 1 VW vet. Now they're either dead or too old to go out. Depressing indeed.
I still know a ww2 vet. A truly dying breed, he has amazing stories about his boyhood and teenage years. It scares me that by 2030 there will be no ww2 vets left. Cherish your elders and learn from them, trust me when I say that they usually enjoy tell their stories as much as you will enjoy listening to them.
@@aaahhhhhhh yep I grew up in the 1980s, drinking with WW2 vets who were prisoners of the Japanese. They opened my eyes to the horrors of war over beer and rum chasers in the navy association...
@@SavageGameDesign same with my now deceased grand pa. Died in the 90s he's a ww2 vet and experienced the attacked at Pearl Harbor. Idk how he felt about Vietnam but I know how he felt about Japan, embarrassed I'm told. He saw anime and thought the nukes where to much. We nuked em so hard they went kawaii......
@@alienoftheapocalypse2183 I will ask him if you want me to. Obviously I'll see him tomorrow, but I'll ask now if you want. Rangers were attached to MAC V. My step-father was part of the Brownwater Army that patrolled on airboat and Mike boats. They dropped off Rangers, Delta, Seals, Snipers, RUF-PUF PRC's, CIA 'ghost teams' and ROK Marines for missions and then pulled them out when needed.
@@alienoftheapocalypse2183 He said he did not. My step-father was in the Delta in Cao Lah as part of an A team Mike force, mobile strike force. If Mike knows anyone from there
The story about the NVA soldier grabbing his buddy's boot was crazy, I was leaning forward into my speakers to make sure I could hear every word. What a wild experience that must have been
John Stryker Myer was the man whos boot was grabbed, hes done plenty of interviews if you're interested. Highly recommend his appearances on Jockos podcast.
John started his own podcast as well - "SOGCast". He's been at it for a short while now, interviewing various SOG members for their experiences/memories. If you want more insane SOG stories, definitely check it out. I highly recommend
@@alexcaswell5478 Ghostrider Don Here; Jocko and Tilt's SOGCast #7 if you want to here about the 195th AHC Aviators. Who received one Silver Star and 8 Distinguished Flying Crosses extracting a SOG recon team and Hatched force about to be over run. Oh and with a Typhoon striking Vietnam and Cambodia. As Tilt says "just another day in SOG."
@@hughescrewchief836 Hi Don! I've absolutely listened to your episode. You had some incredible stories to share; thank you for taking the time to do that. I know I speak for many when I say how honored we are to hear from folks like you. I can only begin to imagine what it was like. Truly hardcore men!
Man, the Maj. Gen sounds exactly like what you'd amagine a general to sound like; distinguished and mature yet still youthfully spry with an assertive tone, with years of experience you can practically hear. Love it. 👌
When you take a moment to think about it, this is actually pretty amazing. Even with the inherent limitations of a game, having actual SOG operators playing along with this group and providing commentary and giving instructions provides a more in-depth and immersive experience than any biography or podcast appearance ever could. It’s incredibly surreal.
This is therapy for most veterans, this is actually good for mental health, at the end of the day nobody gets hurt, there are laughs and they get to do something that they enjoy.
@@joneli5888 Even reliving trauma in a way that you can't control, just in a repetitive movie type experience, is a way that they try to "desensitize" people to their triggers sometimes.
Bro I'm not going to lie after watching this for 10 mins, I started to cry. I was thinking about my brother when he was still in Afghanistan, I think that it is good that the vets in the video are able to talk about what happened when they there in combat. Sadly for some people that is not all ways the case, when you start asking they just get up and leave or pretend that your not there or start swearing and crying. Sadly my brother did not come home, before he left we there sitting at the dinner table and he said that this would be his last deployment to Afghanistan . He told us that ",there was nothing to fear because I will come back, be free and have more time to spend with us." After dinner I was talking to him, he looked me in the eyes and said, " I know that your sad to see me go but this is the last time, besides when I come back I will take you mountain biking or skiing." We waved him off and watched him drive off into the night, sadly this was the last time that I saw him. On 26 August 2021, at 17:50 he was killed at the air port in Afghanistan. In the late morning we where told what happened, I felt ashamed, angry and sad. It hit me even harder when we saw him come back in a box with the American flag over it, to see him living then not was sad. RIP all vets that have died, been injured and injured mentality.
Omg your brother was one of them?! I remember that day, it just happened What was your brothers name? I'll look him up a d pray for him and your family tonight. I'm am so sorry about your loss, i didnt lose family.member but your story is similar to one of my bestfriends. His name was Christopher Wilson. His name is etched into stone confront of our local high school, theres a memorial. He was also on his last deployment in Afghanistan a d was actually also getting out of the army within few months and there are 2 different accounts of what happened 1. Taliban threw a grenade and Chris jumped right on top of it to save 3 of his men. And the other version is one of his own men threw the grenade a d ot bounced back and he jumped onto it to save 3 of his men. We do not know which is the true version either way to know my good friend sacrificed himself and jumped on to a grenade is insane but not surprised to learn he did it. He was exactly the type. So I can relate more then you kno friend. I cant believe to be speaking to a family member of one of the soldiers who died at the Kabul airport that day If u ever need to vent I'm hear friend., if u need to talk or anything.
I knew someone who died at the airport in Kabul. We'd only met through a milsim server we both played on but he was a brilliant guy, made everyone laugh and was just a nice person to everyone but then we sadly found out that he was one of the Marines who was killed. My condolences to your family, I hope you're okay
Hey man, make sure that you do your best to stick with your family so you can help each other heal as much as possible. Don't be afraid of therapy because it'll make you all stronger and closer, and it'll be easier together.
@@forevermarked5826 Thank you for your support, I appreciate very much. My brothers name is Daegan Page, he was serving with 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment based at Camp Pendleton. Sorry for your lose, I wish your friend Christopher a happy rest. What he did would have taken a lot of courage and balls. Christopher choices to die for others. Again thank you for the support, my family thank you.
I'd like to commend the emotional maturety and fortitude of these veterans and any others that can understand, accept or even enjoy Games based on the conflicts they took part in. And our morbid fascination and enjoyment with the stories and games that spring from the stressfull and often horrid situations and circumstances that these warriors had to endure.
Jocko interviewed quite a few of these guys and what they did and how they think is inspiring. This is a awesome to see Drewski. Keep up the great work brother. This is the beginning of a new way of teaching history from those who were there. I think we'll see much more of this to come. This was my Dad's era of military service. During gun school training at NTC Great Lakes, we LOVED the Vietnam guys. They had a grit and humor that was unmatched and really reminded us of the WWII vets.
This op was an absolute blast. It was so cool having boots on the ground with the real deal and seeing how their thought processes worked, even in game. I hope we get to do another one soon!
That was planning for the rooftop fight - as we were on green hell difficulty there were over 200 weapons trained on us on that rooftop. IDF an absolute necessity
I learned this from my roommate who was a marine, and we used to get high, listen to music, play guitar, and he would tell me war stories. It was burned into my brain.
@@Americkslander a guy at my church was on a plane halfway to 'Nam when the war ended. I found this out when he was helping me put a net on my WW2 reenactment kit and he started talking about his own helmet and I was like "You served!?!?" And we started talking about his experiences and his father's WW2 stories and I nearly teared up when he thanked me for doing reenactment
My grandfather was a Green Beret in Vietnam but he told us very little about his service. I believe he might've been MACV-SOG but we're not entirely sure. I only say this because there are some missing bits of service on his papers when he got out and he also knew a ton of CIA guys. Bit of an enigma but yeah he took a lot of the stories with him as well.
My grandfather served in Vietnam, and all though I can’t show him this video I’m sure he would be proud that veterans of this war are finally getting the respect they deserve
Nothing is more calming and soothing and makes me feel safer when someone in the army like a General or someone on comms saying what the mission is and giving the run down it’s like that’s our boys out there.
Bro the atmosphere of this DLC. I live in east Indonesia and often when i was still a kid my dad used to take me along with his buddies to do hunting using air rifles in the forest JUST like these. It's not rare that rain started pouring down when we were in the middle of the hunt. This is just crazy.
The way they were moving through the jungle in a spread out line gave me flashbacks to my own experience in the army, awesome stuff. Although, definitely wouldn't be crouch walking that much, that shit is tough even without equipment.
My grandfather flew in the hal-3 helicopter squadron in Vietnam and was in a naval helicopter squadron throughout the 70s and 80s, he plays video games too, mostly sci fi though, hes not into war games he thinks they are sometimes depressing.
@@toyotawitha20mm35 He wouldn’t like Battletech then, lmao. Centuries of nonstop warfare grinding humanity into a technological dark age as entire worlds, their populations, and all their factories are consumed in nuclear hellfire.
I can emphasize enough how f_ckin cool this is. Real SOG's running op's in ARMA. 🤯 It doesn't get any better than this. Thank you with all my heart for your service gentlemen. God Bless you boys. 🇺🇸💪👍
I remember as a grunt saw gunner pushing out on skt's with the snipers making 6 man teams and im sitting there reading sog books through my nods thats when my reality fully hit me and really gave me another perspective to the business of war and really helped me out with my planning and how I could influence those around me
this was sick to watch. my grandad was mac-v team 22 in the kon tum province and died in 1971. never got to meet him but have been able to hear stories from 3 different men who served with him thankfully.
weirdly enough my favorite parts of this video were the bits spent in total silence just listening. having real vets in game really makes you think about how fucking scary this must have been in real life
Thats cool. Them guys came home to straight hate at home. I hate how they have been treated. God bless all troops including the brave who fought in a terrible war. Vietnam was a horrible place.
@@tomlusk7873 tom thats terrible to hear. From a brit who just made this game with the sog vets, welcome home and thanks for serving! I hope you found peace with your war experiences
@@b-52eggbeast88 I was lucky I was sent to Germany instead of Vietnam but it still did not take the sting away from being spit on when I got off the plane and Fort Dix New Jersey to get on another plane to go to Germany for three years
@@penguinpie5056 as an American (native) who is anti imperialism and experienced the cruelty of this system....this is based. Unsurprising the " anti participation trophy" boomers are giving participation trophies for these false flag wars
@@HerkNewz69 Myth: The National Liberation Front which was the underground opposition government to Saigon, controlled the Viet Cong and prepared the declaration of how the South would be governed once the revolution was accomplished. Fact: The National Liberation Front was a front organization under command and control of North Vietnam. The Viet Cong were members of the People's Army of Viet Nam. North Vietnamese documents confirm that the NLF was merely a front organization and was under the complete control of the North Vietnamese communist party under Ho Chi Minh. Ho Chi Minh created the Viet Minh, an ostensibly nationlist organization, in 1941 to bring "independence" to Vietnam. The Viet Minh co-opted the real nationalist organization, the VNQDD. Southern nationalists were completely co-opted by the communists. Those who refused to go along were either slaughtered or escaped. The communists controlled or influenced violent action in the South as early as 1947 and throughout the period of the French Indochina War (1946-1954) The official policy of North Vietnam was to create never-ending violence in the South - assassinations, torture, rape and kidnappings - until the Southern government collapsed because it could not protect the people.
I joined the United States Army at the height of the Vietnam War I even volunteered for Vietnam but the Army had other plans for me they didn't have too much use for tanks in Vietnam so I was sent to the 3rd Armored Division 1968 to 1971
@@RicardoSanchez-es5wl He volunteered for a pointless war, not exactly a hero nor a real service. just another pawn that was lucky enough to make it out.
This is really cool, what an experience. I gotta admit just watching this puts a smile to my face and makes me happy we still have these guys around to be able to tell their stories and show just a glimpse of what it was like. I have alot of respect for them. Also glad this was captured and shown. Great video and great people. Thank you for sharing this and being apart of this.
That's a cool new type of experience for sure. I love how contrary to modern gaming it is, the realism requires a much different approach in attitude, and discipline. Great job men.
My father was a Vietnam veteran, with the 101 Airborne Div. He passed away in 2015, with 77 years old in his country of birth, Spain. He hated war videogames and he always refused to watch me play them. I always will be proud of him.
I'm glad I made the decision to get into ARMA, even though I don't have all the DLC and get that annoying ad type stuff showing up on my screen. It is still amazing. This had to be a one of a kind experience for you drewski, What an Honor!
00:47 of Major General Ken “El Cid” Bowra holding that car15/ xm177e2, even with the limited 30rnd mag. That’s what the macv-sog/ special forces used. I want to build one of them like that myself.
Had to go watch the video about these guys and all I can say is that they are incredible. It is insane that you got the chance to play with them. I find it humbling that they can share a piece of history through a way that will find more people than a book. These guys know that the best way to do it is to find something that resonates to the younger generation. Thank you for your service guys, and thanks for the vid Drew as its this is one of the best ones you have released.
The part around the 1:37 mark is called an OPORD brief. In the military soldiers are briefed on their mission as well as every little detail that might affect it. You'll hear a lot that certain things are METT-TC dependant, which means that the variables change the mission. METT-TC is basically a huge acronym that breaks down the various factors that play into a mission
Damn dude I bet these guys had some major flashbacks. My father served in Vietnam in the 25th Infantry Division I followed in his footsteps and served in the Army going to Iraq 2005
Hey Drew, if Arma wants to add a Special Forces A-team Mike force Mobile Strike Force for airboat operations in the Delta of Cao Lah, my step-father was MAC-V SOG and could provide details if they wanted to put a heavily armed airboat and a Mike Boat in the game.
my grandpa was in the 75th infantry (airborne rangers) he got a silver,bronze and a purple heart and if the stories are true he would have gotten the highest honor if an commissioned officer was ever goddamn present his name was Paul Alfaro rip he died of covid (he was on dialysis already already dangerously sick) but I would be interesting to hear if anyone knows him my mom would love to hear stories from his division
75th Ranger Regiment* (Airborne, and Rangers are just different schools. There's nothing that impressive about being Airborne. Every other person I know in the Army is Airborne. A Ranger Tab, in a Ranger Regiment is more impressive.)
PUBG is battle royale but there is a lot of teamwork involved even among randoms. You literally have to work as a team to get the chicken dinner consistently.
Left 4 Dead and its sequel aren't realistic games, but they rely off teamwork. When they were making the game they learned "we learned from our earlier multi-player games that while many games require teamwork, few actually require it to succeed" or something like that
Been working on the road for the past three months. Your Arma videos have kept me entertained. Can’t wait to get home to download this and start my journey. Keep up the work. Love your videos dude!
I know a former SOG guy. Dude has a hilarious story about a bicycle. Had his mom send him a bell for said bicycle, which pissed off a lot of people, apparently.
Every now and then I watch ur channel, I have to say teaming up with some veterans and playing games like this add so much realism. Even I as a veteran am reliving moments. Keep this up its exciting.
Something I've noticed about these SOG guys is that even though time marches on, they're all still seeing the world through the eyes of the warrior kids they were back then. So many of them are eager and willing to share their stories and give advice. Like all true badasses, any ego beyond their quiet and resolute confidence simply doesn't exist. Tilt still has the same attitude he had as a smartass E4, still has that same mischievous smile. He was totally cool sharing some advice for my nephew as he gets ready for SFAS and even gave a shit about my service as an 11B Mech nobody to thank me for it. The fact that real SOG vets are taking this seriously and are being earnest about what's going on is yet another example of what amazing warriors they are.
You are so lucky to have been able to play with Vietnam veterans. This moment will be Priceless for the rest of your life I have so much respect for the Vietnam veterans my father fought in Vietnam 1968 to 1969 and I enlisted in the Army in 2005 I always wanted to be just like my dad
Ok really though, General Bowra is a literal living legend in the SF community. Like, I grew up hearing the stories about this guy! I honestly can't believe you got him to play ARMA 3! This is so cool!
Inspired to say thank you to all of those who put everything out there when the time came. All of you who did so, from the bottom of my heart thank you for the sacrifice you made then and for the burdens you may carry now. Secondly, i can really appreciate the quality of this game.
A buddy whose no longer alive has a stepfather that faught in Vietnam. One of the wilder, personal Vietnam war stories I've heard in person. So he & his squad, or as a part of a larger plan, I can't remember, have been told they are going to take a hill that is completely wide open. They start making their way up, but about 3/4ths of the way up, they get ambushed with fire coming from three sides. They are over exposed, so they try to fall back to the brushline they came from, but the stepfather (call him Carl) takes a bullet to the back of the head & goes down. Someone comes back out for him, grabs Carl, and brings him back into cover. They stemmed the bleeding the best they could until they could get him to a field hospital. Where Carl stayed for a couple months, before the military sent him back out to fight again.
Drew these are my favorite videos of yours! Reliving traumatic situations help is with ptsd and provide relief from war time memories. I NEVER comment on videos but just the intro hit me in the feels. Please do more of these!!!!
I have 0 military experience, hell I've never even shot a gun, but for whatever reason I have a ton of friends who are in the military or other sorts of armed forces. Really cool video, thanks for uploading it.
As much i would love to hear our vets stories at combat , i do respect them when they dont want to talk about it , i see them as someone with more knowledge than me
All I can say is that this video is amazing. Those vets seemed to have a great time. I bet it was an honor playing with them and wish I could have been there with you.
A buddy of mine joined the Air Force, and ended up in their spec ops group, but not MACV-SOG. Even though he fought in the jungles of Southeast Asia in '71 and '72, he never set foot in Vietnam. His unit was stationed at Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base, and spent their jungle time in Laos and Cambodia. They would go in on Slicks, then hike several klicks to their AO, where they'd plant sensors along the Ho Chi Minh trail, and reconnoiter the AO. If they found caches of ammo, food, weapons, and other supplies, which they often did, they'd either set charges, if they had enough, or would sabotage it, and if it were something really big, they'd call in for an air strike on it. Of course, those were caches that weren't guarded. They would often RON, sometimes twice per mission, and would make their way back to a PZ for extraction. He was part of Recon Whiskey, a team of 6 guys. Once in a while, they'd take 6 to 10 "Yards" with them. (Montagnards are the largest ethnic minority group of people living in the mountains of Vietnam, and they hated the NVA and VC. He said they were fierce fighters, and excellent trackers, being the hillbillies of Vietnam. He wrote a book about his time over there, but never published it. It's a really good book, and I wish he'd publish it. After his time in country, they were sent to do missions in South America. Funny thing: While he was visiting, and I introduced him to ARMA 3 shortly after the game came out. I set him up to play a sniper scenario and he loved it. I bought him the game, once he got back to his home state, and a few months later, I asked him if he was still playing ARMA. He said, "No, I was doing fine, but then it starting bringing back a lot of old memories and nightmares and I couldn't sleep anymore, so I stopped using it." :(
I realize this was a while ago now, but Drewski I just had to say that while I 100% understand why you deemed yourself a less important part of the element, I'd argue your level of game-sense and tactical mindset combined make you a fiercely strong part of said element. Love the respect and admiration you held for these legendary gentlemen, though; for that I cannot argue with you. 😂 Much love Drew, and a hearty thank you to these gentlemen for their service!!
Ive watched this whole thing , awesome is all can say , just awesome . hats off to the warriors , thank you for everything you did there . From a ole Navy (cold war) Vet
This is straight up the biggest flex in the arma community.... SOG op with actual SOG members.
I think Arma is a little under celebrated in terms of what it's inspired in more mainstream titles; state of decay, pubg, dayz, and fortnite are just a few that are practically direct descendents of it.
@@j.sargenthill9773 dayz is a arma 2 mod
@@FriendxA it is. but it is also a terrible stand-alone game
@@j.sargenthill9773 opinions are like assholes.
@@j.sargenthill9773 I thought the same until I played it on ps5 now everyone just thinks I'm hacking lol.
Also I love that people in their 60s & 70s are playing this game. That’s incredible. Says a lot about how great the game is.
Cheers..!!!
These must be the only senior gamers who can play in these servers and not automatically get accused of being pedophiles. xD
I knew a dude in his 70s who played GTA San Andreas.
I recall ARMA is also used to rehabilitate vets with PTSD
@@AHSValor dang
Soo... we live in the timeline where vets got to play the very missions they fought in during an actual war in a video game... what a time to be alive.
Wild isnt it!
I lived stalingrad as a young panzergrenadier, now I play it
Yeah that's pretty nuts isn't it when you really think about it those guys must be thinking that would never happen lol
We need a 1980 Belfast campaign.
@@ianmedford4855 oof m8
my school bus driver in high school was an air cav pilot who flew UH-1 Iroquois (Huey) helicopters in 'Nam. hell of a transition, assault helicopters to school buses full of screaming snot nosed brats. he drove that bus like he stole it. never a dull moment, he had some awesome stories.
Love it! If he’s anything like Don he probably did (steal it)
I had a bus driver exactly like that when I lived in Oregon. His name was Tim and he was super funny because he had a dark sense of humor. He drove that bus like a madman and was always a joy to ride with
whats the difference? one is flying over the rice patties with a bunch of brats trying not to get killed, the other is flying over the road with a bunch of brats in the back tryin not to get killed.
Same shit, bus driver probably gets worse pay tho
If you knew anything about the Army, you’d know that being a chopper pilot is pretty much the same as being a school bus driver. The only thing different is a chopper gets shot at and the bus… Usually doesn’t.
@@yaboileeroy3038 Usually not... Not if you're in the US.
i looked up this unit and they have a 100 percent causality rate so damn near every single one of these vets were injured some way
Ghostrider Don Here; That is correct also 11 MOH recipients and I believe 66 DSCs. Incredible group of warriors and their aircrews.
Best training, riskiest missions. Least likelihood of returning, biggest chances for glory.
@@nuclearkamikaze I've yet to hear a veteran speak about glory in war
@@douwehuysmans5959 That’s probably why they’re called silent professionals. Don’t turn it into a sad boy meme, they’re not talking about with the intent you’re suggesting. They deserve as much recognition and merit we can give them for their sacrifices, fighting for their people and living through hell.
@@nuclearkamikaze Don't put words in my mouth
These boys are probably having some extremely good, or extremely bad memories. Either way, you can tell they are enjoying the whole experience
Fun fact
Playng war video games or airsoft/paintball help veterans deal with ptsd
Not for eveyone tho
Probably both :) Being deployed and in an active zone makes bond like nowhere else.. And is often with experiences most would prefer never having. :P
Both. The best stories I’ve got are also from the worst stories I’ve ever experienced. Life’s simpler when all you have to do is wake up, don’t die, keep the man on your left and right alive, and sleep.
@@sublimelove23 They are kind of crazy and psychotic but they have a lot of admirable qualities
@@bobbyb4024 lets face it, for those jobs in the military you have to be kind of psychotic. Well educated, good leadership qualities, superhuman drive, and alotta crazy
Virgin twitter user: “OK, Boomer…”
Chad Arma player: “Copy that, Boomer”
True. I respect Drew a lot for respecting what people went through in their younger years, rather than the "ya alright old man"
Honestly I feel more natural talking to a vet than to other civilians.
@@desertranger1095 Vets are civilians bro.
I would go through a meat grinder if they told me too
Vietnam combat vets are the only Boomers that aren't arrogant and annoying in my experience.
Totally makes you see how awesome the generation could have been if they weren't so selfish.
A major general?? And chopper pilot from the actual time and missions! I am actually a bit speechless on this. Amazing!
EGG BEAST is a designer of the game
@@Penitent_Intent i have never described myself as one. I designed the game.
It's crazy when you realize there are less and less Vietnam War vets now. I'm still used to the 2000's when almost everyday I met at least 1 VW vet. Now they're either dead or too old to go out. Depressing indeed.
An undervalued generation.
Agreed!.. getting older.
I still know a ww2 vet. A truly dying breed, he has amazing stories about his boyhood and teenage years. It scares me that by 2030 there will be no ww2 vets left. Cherish your elders and learn from them, trust me when I say that they usually enjoy tell their stories as much as you will enjoy listening to them.
@@aaahhhhhhh yep I grew up in the 1980s, drinking with WW2 vets who were prisoners of the Japanese. They opened my eyes to the horrors of war over beer and rum chasers in the navy association...
@@SavageGameDesign same with my now deceased grand pa. Died in the 90s he's a ww2 vet and experienced the attacked at Pearl Harbor.
Idk how he felt about Vietnam but I know how he felt about Japan, embarrassed I'm told. He saw anime and thought the nukes where to much. We nuked em so hard they went kawaii......
MACV/SOG was a scary (badass) unit. I had the pleasure of knowing a couple growing up who greatly influenced my career in the Army
Apparently they had a 100% death rate. The most dangerous job in the history of planet earth
Yes they are.. And the blueprint for modern SF outside of SAS..
My step-father was MAC-V SOG. If any of them know Edwin Thomas Holman, please let me know.
Did he know a michael ward? Rangers attached to mac v Saigon (if I am remembering correctly) .
@@alienoftheapocalypse2183 I will ask him if you want me to. Obviously I'll see him tomorrow, but I'll ask now if you want. Rangers were attached to MAC V. My step-father was part of the Brownwater Army that patrolled on airboat and Mike boats. They dropped off Rangers, Delta, Seals, Snipers, RUF-PUF PRC's, CIA 'ghost teams' and ROK Marines for missions and then pulled them out when needed.
@@alienoftheapocalypse2183 He said he did not. My step-father was in the Delta in Cao Lah as part of an A team Mike force, mobile strike force. If Mike knows anyone from there
Upvote this comment folks
Let me know if you find anyone, I'm intrigued
The story about the NVA soldier grabbing his buddy's boot was crazy, I was leaning forward into my speakers to make sure I could hear every word. What a wild experience that must have been
John Stryker Myer was the man whos boot was grabbed, hes done plenty of interviews if you're interested. Highly recommend his appearances on Jockos podcast.
John started his own podcast as well - "SOGCast". He's been at it for a short while now, interviewing various SOG members for their experiences/memories. If you want more insane SOG stories, definitely check it out. I highly recommend
@@alexcaswell5478 John aka Tilt is in our game along with wild carrot and el cid
@@alexcaswell5478 Ghostrider Don Here; Jocko and Tilt's SOGCast #7 if you want to here about the 195th AHC Aviators. Who received one Silver Star and 8 Distinguished Flying Crosses extracting a SOG recon team and Hatched force about to be over run. Oh and with a Typhoon striking Vietnam and Cambodia. As Tilt says "just another day in SOG."
@@hughescrewchief836 Hi Don! I've absolutely listened to your episode. You had some incredible stories to share; thank you for taking the time to do that. I know I speak for many when I say how honored we are to hear from folks like you. I can only begin to imagine what it was like. Truly hardcore men!
Man, the Maj. Gen sounds exactly like what you'd amagine a general to sound like; distinguished and mature yet still youthfully spry with an assertive tone, with years of experience you can practically hear. Love it. 👌
And the ease of command literally dripping from every sound the man makes.
When you take a moment to think about it, this is actually pretty amazing. Even with the inherent limitations of a game, having actual SOG operators playing along with this group and providing commentary and giving instructions provides a more in-depth and immersive experience than any biography or podcast appearance ever could. It’s incredibly surreal.
Well said. That was our goal in making the dlc with them
Playing ArmA with with Vietnam vets is already something. But with one of them being a former major-general? Man, that's... insane.
He is the very model of a former major general
This is therapy for most veterans, this is actually good for mental health, at the end of the day nobody gets hurt, there are laughs and they get to do something that they enjoy.
That's a good way to look at it
@@bombomos Getting to re-live your trauma in a way that you can enjoy and control are actually good coping mechanisms.
@@joneli5888 Even reliving trauma in a way that you can't control, just in a repetitive movie type experience, is a way that they try to "desensitize" people to their triggers sometimes.
@@scruggs6633
Exposure therapy.
@@combativeThinker Exactly.
The amount of honour drew must have felt was probably out of this world
F-Eh!!!!!!!!
this would of been a great honor.
Bro I'm not going to lie after watching this for 10 mins, I started to cry. I was thinking about my brother when he was still in Afghanistan, I think that it is good that the vets in the video are able to talk about what happened when they there in combat. Sadly for some people that is not all ways the case, when you start asking they just get up and leave or pretend that your not there or start swearing and crying. Sadly my brother did not come home, before he left we there sitting at the dinner table and he said that this would be his last deployment to Afghanistan . He told us that ",there was nothing to fear because I will come back, be free and have more time to spend with us." After dinner I was talking to him, he looked me in the eyes and said, " I know that your sad to see me go but this is the last time, besides when I come back I will take you mountain biking or skiing." We waved him off and watched him drive off into the night, sadly this was the last time that I saw him. On 26 August 2021, at 17:50 he was killed at the air port in Afghanistan. In the late morning we where told what happened, I felt ashamed, angry and sad. It hit me even harder when we saw him come back in a box with the American flag over it, to see him living then not was sad. RIP all vets that have died, been injured and injured mentality.
Omg your brother was one of them?! I remember that day, it just happened
What was your brothers name? I'll look him up a d pray for him and your family tonight. I'm am so sorry about your loss, i didnt lose family.member but your story is similar to one of my bestfriends. His name was Christopher Wilson. His name is etched into stone confront of our local high school, theres a memorial. He was also on his last deployment in Afghanistan a d was actually also getting out of the army within few months and there are 2 different accounts of what happened 1. Taliban threw a grenade and Chris jumped right on top of it to save 3 of his men. And the other version is one of his own men threw the grenade a d ot bounced back and he jumped onto it to save 3 of his men. We do not know which is the true version either way to know my good friend sacrificed himself and jumped on to a grenade is insane but not surprised to learn he did it. He was exactly the type. So I can relate more then you kno friend. I cant believe to be speaking to a family member of one of the soldiers who died at the Kabul airport that day
If u ever need to vent I'm hear friend., if u need to talk or anything.
I knew someone who died at the airport in Kabul. We'd only met through a milsim server we both played on but he was a brilliant guy, made everyone laugh and was just a nice person to everyone but then we sadly found out that he was one of the Marines who was killed. My condolences to your family, I hope you're okay
Hey man, make sure that you do your best to stick with your family so you can help each other heal as much as possible. Don't be afraid of therapy because it'll make you all stronger and closer, and it'll be easier together.
@@forevermarked5826 Thank you for your support, I appreciate very much. My brothers name is Daegan Page, he was serving with 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment based at Camp Pendleton. Sorry for your lose, I wish your friend Christopher a happy rest. What he did would have taken a lot of courage and balls. Christopher choices to die for others. Again thank you for the support, my family thank you.
@@Comproleplayer Thank you, sadly all the good guys die.
I'd like to commend the emotional maturety and fortitude of these veterans and any others that can understand, accept or even enjoy Games based on the conflicts they took part in. And our morbid fascination and enjoyment with the stories and games that spring from the stressfull and often horrid situations and circumstances that these warriors had to endure.
men will always want to hear tales of warriors ;)
Jocko interviewed quite a few of these guys and what they did and how they think is inspiring.
This is a awesome to see Drewski. Keep up the great work brother.
This is the beginning of a new way of teaching history from those who were there. I think we'll see much more of this to come. This was my Dad's era of military service. During gun school training at NTC Great Lakes, we LOVED the Vietnam guys. They had a grit and humor that was unmatched and really reminded us of the WWII vets.
Thanks - i think you understood the point of making our game completely - DOL :)
This op was an absolute blast. It was so cool having boots on the ground with the real deal and seeing how their thought processes worked, even in game. I hope we get to do another one soon!
As a veteran, I'm both impressed and annoyed at your "I'm up, they see me, I'm down" bit. You've definitely played with your share of vets.
That was planning for the rooftop fight - as we were on green hell difficulty there were over 200 weapons trained on us on that rooftop. IDF an absolute necessity
Why annoyed?
I'm up. I'm home now. No one sees me. I'm down.
@@camoman132my guess is that it’s Drewski isn’t a vet and hasn’t experienced combat like those guys 👍
I learned this from my roommate who was a marine, and we used to get high, listen to music, play guitar, and he would tell me war stories. It was burned into my brain.
My grandfather was MACV-SOG sadly he took most of his stories with him.
my grandpa would've gone to Vietnam, but he lost parts of two of his fingers in a lumber mill accident. im glad he didn't go
My grandpa was a Viet Minh in the Franco - Vietnamese war, he got shot in the head but luckily he survived.
@@6pasa488 Not really
@@Americkslander a guy at my church was on a plane halfway to 'Nam when the war ended.
I found this out when he was helping me put a net on my WW2 reenactment kit and he started talking about his own helmet and I was like
"You served!?!?" And we started talking about his experiences and his father's WW2 stories and I nearly teared up when he thanked me for doing reenactment
My grandfather was a Green Beret in Vietnam but he told us very little about his service. I believe he might've been MACV-SOG but we're not entirely sure. I only say this because there are some missing bits of service on his papers when he got out and he also knew a ton of CIA guys. Bit of an enigma but yeah he took a lot of the stories with him as well.
My grandfather served in Vietnam, and all though I can’t show him this video I’m sure he would be proud that veterans of this war are finally getting the respect they deserve
Thank you, that is our aim
Nothing is more calming and soothing and makes me feel safer when someone in the army like a General or someone on comms saying what the mission is and giving the run down it’s like that’s our boys out there.
Now this what I believe Arma can be, great job Drew
Honestly what an incredible video...the veterans older voices giving call outs and orders sounded like real coms... literally gave me goosebumps
Totally agree this was an incredible video! Kinda surreal in a way
Drewski…I’m a vet and would love to play this game with you. How can we make this happen? Let Rob know we need to do this! :)
Good video bro
Hope you can reach out to him and play!
like this folks
Get this man on a game Drewski!
Adding this reply to make your comment go up
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The way these guys plan their maneuvers in-game while in the Huey gives me chills.
Bro the atmosphere of this DLC.
I live in east Indonesia and often when i was still a kid my dad used to take me along with his buddies to do hunting using air rifles in the forest JUST like these. It's not rare that rain started pouring down when we were in the middle of the hunt. This is just crazy.
Glad to hear we got things right. Atmosphere is everything in a game like this.
The way they were moving through the jungle in a spread out line gave me flashbacks to my own experience in the army, awesome stuff. Although, definitely wouldn't be crouch walking that much, that shit is tough even without equipment.
crouch walking is quit painful over long distances. but it works well in a game.
@@nybergsgarage i can feel the phantom pain soreness in my thighs neck and back
too right, we do it because in Arma 3 it makes you make less noise so the AI enemy won't hear you coming... gives you a chance to detour or ambush.
Wow, really did not expected Vietnam veterans to play video games.
My grandfather flew in the hal-3 helicopter squadron in Vietnam and was in a naval helicopter squadron throughout the 70s and 80s, he plays video games too, mostly sci fi though, hes not into war games he thinks they are sometimes depressing.
@@toyotawitha20mm35 Ohh, that's very bad ass bro, thank him for his service on my behalf.
@@toyotawitha20mm35 Honestly, considering the things he probably saw, I don't blame him.
Its great to revisit their history in this more understanding age
@@toyotawitha20mm35
He wouldn’t like Battletech then, lmao. Centuries of nonstop warfare grinding humanity into a technological dark age as entire worlds, their populations, and all their factories are consumed in nuclear hellfire.
It must have been stressful since he’s, you know a major general… the other team had NO IDEA.
“Boy, I’ve been doing this since before Pong was made…”
pretty sure the other team is bots
@@OldestHouse they were but there were so many of them on max skill… we do get stomped frequently - it’s always a huge buzz to make extraction
@@fuzzyhead878 " lemme show you how we did it back in Vietnam son!"
The fact that these gentleman are even able to play such a game and basically "re-enact" the things that they did is truly remarkable.
I can emphasize enough how f_ckin cool this is. Real SOG's running op's in ARMA. 🤯 It doesn't get any better than this. Thank you with all my heart for your service gentlemen. God Bless you boys. 🇺🇸💪👍
These are some of the most badass men, and they’re chilling playing arma just living the old days, love it
New video idea drewski : “I played Hell let loose with real WW2 Germans”
Based
please do.
@@patriot17764th most of them are dead...
They're either all dead or in their 90s. Not gonna happen dweeb
@@gamernotvalid9452 wtf
I remember as a grunt saw gunner pushing out on skt's with the snipers making 6 man teams and im sitting there reading sog books through my nods thats when my reality fully hit me and really gave me another perspective to the business of war and really helped me out with my planning and how I could influence those around me
Thats the SOG/ SF way - always learning from others DOL
this was sick to watch. my grandad was mac-v team 22 in the kon tum province and died in 1971. never got to meet him but have been able to hear stories from 3 different men who served with him thankfully.
weirdly enough my favorite parts of this video were the bits spent in total silence just listening. having real vets in game really makes you think about how fucking scary this must have been in real life
amen!
Thats cool. Them guys came home to straight hate at home. I hate how they have been treated. God bless all troops including the brave who fought in a terrible war. Vietnam was a horrible place.
I was spit on when I got off the plane Fort Dix New Jersey headed to Germany
@@tomlusk7873 tom thats terrible to hear. From a brit who just made this game with the sog vets, welcome home and thanks for serving! I hope you found peace with your war experiences
@@b-52eggbeast88 thank you it was my pleasure to serve
@@b-52eggbeast88 I was lucky I was sent to Germany instead of Vietnam but it still did not take the sting away from being spit on when I got off the plane and Fort Dix New Jersey to get on another plane to go to Germany for three years
@@tomlusk7873 its all service for your country. Im glad that these days that kind of behaviour is not going to happen
Extract was hectic. Nice job Drew and others. Mad respect to see actual former MAC V SOG members playing the game
Tilt's story had shivers rollin down my spine man. The way he crept back the same that he crept up was just freaky as hell.
Ghostrider Don here; As Tilt says "Just Another Day in SOG."
The fact that some ZF members where here makes this vid so much better
To any Vietnam veterans who happen to stumble upon this comment Thank you for your service and welcome home! Your sacrifice will never be forgotten
Sad about the POWs left behind though. God bless every one of them.
Stunning and brave
@@penguinpie5056 as an American (native) who is anti imperialism and experienced the cruelty of this system....this is based. Unsurprising the " anti participation trophy" boomers are giving participation trophies for these false flag wars
@@HerkNewz69
Myth: The National Liberation Front which was the underground opposition government to Saigon, controlled the Viet Cong and prepared the declaration of how the South would be governed once the revolution was accomplished.
Fact: The National Liberation Front was a front organization under command and control of North Vietnam. The Viet Cong were members of the People's Army of Viet Nam.
North Vietnamese documents confirm that the NLF was merely a front organization and was under the complete control of the North Vietnamese communist party under Ho Chi Minh.
Ho Chi Minh created the Viet Minh, an ostensibly nationlist organization, in 1941 to bring "independence" to Vietnam. The Viet Minh co-opted the real nationalist organization, the VNQDD.
Southern nationalists were completely co-opted by the communists. Those who refused to go along were either slaughtered or escaped.
The communists controlled or influenced violent action in the South as early as 1947 and throughout the period of the French Indochina War (1946-1954)
The official policy of North Vietnam was to create never-ending violence in the South - assassinations, torture, rape and kidnappings - until the Southern government collapsed because it could not protect the people.
@@HerkNewz69 communists got owned and pwned lolololol
I joined the United States Army at the height of the Vietnam War I even volunteered for Vietnam but the Army had other plans for me they didn't have too much use for tanks in Vietnam so I was sent to the 3rd Armored Division 1968 to 1971
Blessings to you and your family and know we appreciate your service to this nation
Welcome Home!
I'm still there, I never came home.
Oh cool a vet from General patton's infamous spearhead division is here
@@RicardoSanchez-es5wl He volunteered for a pointless war, not exactly a hero nor a real service. just another pawn that was lucky enough to make it out.
This is so cool! Playing with real War vets!
This is really cool, what an experience. I gotta admit just watching this puts a smile to my face and makes me happy we still have these guys around to be able to tell their stories and show just a glimpse of what it was like. I have alot of respect for them. Also glad this was captured and shown. Great video and great people. Thank you for sharing this and being apart of this.
Thanks for a great comment too!
Ghostrider Don Here; Thank you your comment is is great. That is why us MACV-SOG vets got involved.
That's a cool new type of experience for sure. I love how contrary to modern gaming it is, the realism requires a much different approach in attitude, and discipline. Great job men.
My father was a Vietnam veteran, with the 101 Airborne Div. He passed away in 2015, with 77 years old in his country of birth, Spain. He hated war videogames and he always refused to watch me play them. I always will be proud of him.
I'm going to be honest: this is the coolest fucking thing.
I'm glad I made the decision to get into ARMA, even though I don't have all the DLC and get that annoying ad type stuff showing up on my screen. It is still amazing. This had to be a one of a kind experience for you drewski, What an Honor!
DLCs are on sale this weekend - some have 70% off
Can't imagine being in that part of history and now playing it all over in a computer game of the 21 century.
I love how the vets don't talk, don't joke around, don't say a word unless they have to.
00:47 of Major General Ken “El Cid” Bowra holding that car15/ xm177e2, even with the limited 30rnd mag. That’s what the macv-sog/ special forces used. I want to build one of them like that myself.
we've been to visit him and fired it at the range. a great weapon.
Had to go watch the video about these guys and all I can say is that they are incredible. It is insane that you got the chance to play with them. I find it humbling that they can share a piece of history through a way that will find more people than a book. These guys know that the best way to do it is to find something that resonates to the younger generation. Thank you for your service guys, and thanks for the vid Drew as its this is one of the best ones you have released.
Mission complete! Thanks for your kind words
The part around the 1:37 mark is called an OPORD brief. In the military soldiers are briefed on their mission as well as every little detail that might affect it. You'll hear a lot that certain things are METT-TC dependant, which means that the variables change the mission. METT-TC is basically a huge acronym that breaks down the various factors that play into a mission
Absolutely loved watching the Gameplay, Strategy, and Experience of being in ARMA's The Suck 2.0 with the vets. Can't wait for more content.
My Uncle who was a vietnam vet just passed away a few months ago. This is like watching one of his stories.
Damn dude I bet these guys had some major flashbacks. My father served in Vietnam in the 25th Infantry Division I followed in his footsteps and served in the Army going to Iraq 2005
Hey Drew, if Arma wants to add a Special Forces A-team Mike force Mobile Strike Force for airboat operations in the Delta of Cao Lah, my step-father was MAC-V SOG and could provide details if they wanted to put a heavily armed airboat and a Mike Boat in the game.
Do you know what unit your step-father was in?
my grandpa was in the 75th infantry (airborne rangers)
he got a silver,bronze and a purple heart and if the stories are true he would have gotten the highest honor if an commissioned officer was ever goddamn present
his name was Paul Alfaro
rip he died of covid (he was on dialysis already already dangerously sick)
but I would be interesting to hear if anyone knows him my mom would love to hear stories from his division
If you google the unit you may find they have a facebook group or a reunion association- good luck and sorry for your loss!
@@b-52eggbeast88 I'll check his papers thanks for the tip
75th Ranger Regiment* (Airborne, and Rangers are just different schools. There's nothing that impressive about being Airborne. Every other person I know in the Army is Airborne. A Ranger Tab, in a Ranger Regiment is more impressive.)
i wish people would make more games like this that rely on teamwork instead of battle royal games
If that was the case there would probably be 'camping' just like in real life fights and not a ton of kids just shooting out in the open lol
PUBG is battle royale but there is a lot of teamwork involved even among randoms. You literally have to work as a team to get the chicken dinner consistently.
Left 4 Dead and its sequel aren't realistic games, but they rely off teamwork. When they were making the game they learned "we learned from our earlier multi-player games that while many games require teamwork, few actually require it to succeed" or something like that
Been working on the road for the past three months. Your Arma videos have kept me entertained. Can’t wait to get home to download this and start my journey. Keep up the work. Love your videos dude!
Those Huey sounds. Wow, absolutely amazing sound design. Great video and I’m in awe of what those men did.
It was (a very enjoyable) honor to watch this. Absolutely amazing. Thanks Drewski for bringing this to us.
I know a former SOG guy. Dude has a hilarious story about a bicycle.
Had his mom send him a bell for said bicycle, which pissed off a lot of people, apparently.
Trung ta
Captured a general 👌
I gotta say I dident expect something like this to happen this is amazing.
This actually a great experience as a a Veteran myself My a couple of my Drills were from the Vietnam War I salute past and future veterans
My Dad served in Vietnam. He loved ARMA3. I so wish he could have seen this.
Every now and then I watch ur channel, I have to say teaming up with some veterans and playing games like this add so much realism. Even I as a veteran am reliving moments. Keep this up its exciting.
This is blowing my mind I can't believe you actually got the real people there with you man that's crazy
Something I've noticed about these SOG guys is that even though time marches on, they're all still seeing the world through the eyes of the warrior kids they were back then. So many of them are eager and willing to share their stories and give advice. Like all true badasses, any ego beyond their quiet and resolute confidence simply doesn't exist. Tilt still has the same attitude he had as a smartass E4, still has that same mischievous smile. He was totally cool sharing some advice for my nephew as he gets ready for SFAS and even gave a shit about my service as an 11B Mech nobody to thank me for it. The fact that real SOG vets are taking this seriously and are being earnest about what's going on is yet another example of what amazing warriors they are.
Absolutely agree
That was epic thank you to the veterans who made this experience feel so real🇺🇸💪
You are so lucky to have been able to play with Vietnam veterans. This moment will be Priceless for the rest of your life I have so much respect for the Vietnam veterans my father fought in Vietnam 1968 to 1969 and I enlisted in the Army in 2005 I always wanted to be just like my dad
Wow...it's cool to hear these guys talk and plan while playing this game.. all these years and they would still be deadly
Constantly evolving Drew. Stoked for you man.
To know that these guys are old and playing games make me happy
Super badass video. GWOT Vet so it's nice to the Gruntpa's kicking ass in Arma.
Well said! Love it - Gruntpa!!
when i was in malaysia it was considered not normal to go a day without a period of rain. and monsoon season was dope.
Ok really though, General Bowra is a literal living legend in the SF community. Like, I grew up hearing the stories about this guy! I honestly can't believe you got him to play ARMA 3! This is so cool!
My uncle on my dads side was a tank commander in vietnam, he's never spoke much about it, only showed us souvenirs he took with him.
Inspired to say thank you to all of those who put everything out there when the time came. All of you who did so, from the bottom of my heart thank you for the sacrifice you made then and for the burdens you may carry now.
Secondly, i can really appreciate the quality of this game.
Great video, and thanks to these men that served & are still here to be able to play this game with you.
A buddy whose no longer alive has a stepfather that faught in Vietnam. One of the wilder, personal Vietnam war stories I've heard in person.
So he & his squad, or as a part of a larger plan, I can't remember, have been told they are going to take a hill that is completely wide open. They start making their way up, but about 3/4ths of the way up, they get ambushed with fire coming from three sides. They are over exposed, so they try to fall back to the brushline they came from, but the stepfather (call him Carl) takes a bullet to the back of the head & goes down. Someone comes back out for him, grabs Carl, and brings him back into cover. They stemmed the bleeding the best they could until they could get him to a field hospital. Where Carl stayed for a couple months, before the military sent him back out to fight again.
Played with a Vietnam veteran was such a cool experience even if you are just running supplies
Bro as an Afghanistan war veteran I love to see this! You should do more videos with vets 🇺🇸 keep up the awesome content
I wonder what the vets were feeling in such an immersive experience. This is the closest you can get without actually living it.
Drew these are my favorite videos of yours! Reliving traumatic situations help is with ptsd and provide relief from war time memories. I NEVER comment on videos but just the intro hit me in the feels. Please do more of these!!!!
I have 0 military experience, hell I've never even shot a gun, but for whatever reason I have a ton of friends who are in the military or other sorts of armed forces.
Really cool video, thanks for uploading it.
What a time to be alive. Playing video games with todays spartans.
As much i would love to hear our vets stories at combat , i do respect them when they dont want to talk about it , i see them as someone with more knowledge than me
All I can say is that this video is amazing. Those vets seemed to have a great time. I bet it was an honor playing with them and wish I could have been there with you.
A buddy of mine joined the Air Force, and ended up in their spec ops group, but not MACV-SOG. Even though he fought in the jungles of Southeast Asia in '71 and '72, he never set foot in Vietnam. His unit was stationed at Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base, and spent their jungle time in Laos and Cambodia. They would go in on Slicks, then hike several klicks to their AO, where they'd plant sensors along the Ho Chi Minh trail, and reconnoiter the AO. If they found caches of ammo, food, weapons, and other supplies, which they often did, they'd either set charges, if they had enough, or would sabotage it, and if it were something really big, they'd call in for an air strike on it. Of course, those were caches that weren't guarded. They would often RON, sometimes twice per mission, and would make their way back to a PZ for extraction.
He was part of Recon Whiskey, a team of 6 guys. Once in a while, they'd take 6 to 10 "Yards" with them. (Montagnards are the largest ethnic minority group of people living in the mountains of Vietnam, and they hated the NVA and VC. He said they were fierce fighters, and excellent trackers, being the hillbillies of Vietnam.
He wrote a book about his time over there, but never published it. It's a really good book, and I wish he'd publish it. After his time in country, they were sent to do missions in South America.
Funny thing: While he was visiting, and I introduced him to ARMA 3 shortly after the game came out. I set him up to play a sniper scenario and he loved it. I bought him the game, once he got back to his home state, and a few months later, I asked him if he was still playing ARMA. He said, "No, I was doing fine, but then it starting bringing back a lot of old memories and nightmares and I couldn't sleep anymore, so I stopped using it." :(
Thats a great story thanks for sharing
@@b-52eggbeast88 You're very welcome.
I realize this was a while ago now, but Drewski I just had to say that while I 100% understand why you deemed yourself a less important part of the element, I'd argue your level of game-sense and tactical mindset combined make you a fiercely strong part of said element. Love the respect and admiration you held for these legendary gentlemen, though; for that I cannot argue with you. 😂 Much love Drew, and a hearty thank you to these gentlemen for their service!!
Dude, I don't think I can express how cool this is to me that you got real Vets. It seems like something to never forget.
I wonder if any of those guys served with my grandfather. He was a Scorpion in Vietnam, a chopper gunner. Helluva man from the stories I've read
Trying to imagine my vietnam-vet grandpa playing arma with me now
Respect to the Vietnam Veterans out there and thank you
Ive watched this whole thing , awesome is all can say , just awesome . hats off to the warriors , thank you for everything you did there . From a ole Navy (cold war)
Vet
Ghostrider Don Here: Thank you for your kind words.