Dong Ap Bia - Hamburger Hill

[Mad Russian]

I'm starting this thread just for the map making efforts of those interested. This is one of the most challenging locations in the world that I know of.

The area is the A Shau Valley of South Vietnam. It was the location of many firefights and small unit actions during the Vietnam War. It is also the home of a mountain called Dong Ap Bia by the locals. This mountain would become famous in US military history as Hamburger Hill.

There are some parameter changes I'd like to make in regards to the map for this location. Our Vietnam/WWII/Korea/Falklands/Small Actions part of the series will be done in a map scale of 250 meters per hex. With that in mind, I'd like this map to be done in a 250 meter per hex size.

We currently have 10 elevation levels. I'm not entirely sure if Dong Ap Bia can be done in 10 elevation levels. That's what we are here to find out. What will this beast take to recreate? It may not be as bad as I currently think it is.

I will be supplying maps and information about both the battle and the mountain as we go.

To start with for anyone interested in the battle itself, which was part of Operation Apache Snow, you can find out about it here:

http://ehistory.osu.edu/vietnam/essays/ ... /index.cfm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hamburger_Hill

A full list of operations run in the A Shau Valley is:

Operation Deleware (April - May 1968)
Operation Dewey Canyon (Feb - March 1969)
Operation Apache Snow (May 1969)

http://www.cc.gatech.edu/~tpilsch/AirOps/AShau.html


Good Hunting.

MR

[Mad Russian]

Here is the basic location of the A Shau Valley.

Good Hunting.

MR

[Mad Russian]

Here is a 1/250,000 scale topographical map of the area. The three main areas of concern for Operation Apache Snow are marked on this map.

Good Hunting.

MR

[Mad Russian]

Here is another general area map of the A Shau Valley.

Good Hunting.

MR

[Jamm]

Thanks MR.
I'll see what I can do.

[Mad Russian]

I'll see if I can get the exact GE location of the mountain.

Good Hunting.

MR

[MikeGER]

with the Gmap tool (i had learned about when playing CMANO) i am able to retriev 'Opencycle maps' with height line up to zoom level 16
... the example here is only zoom level 13
Hill 16.253 N 107.175 E

[MikeGER]

max zoom [;)]

[Mad Russian]

I found Hamburger Hill in Google Earth. I put my cursor over the Vietnamese memorial for the battle. You can see the lat/long in the bottom right of the screen shot for where that memorial is.

This doesn't seem to be an exact location for the picture to be placed on GE because I believe the hill itself is over 900 meters tall. 930 IRRC.

The yellow line that comes in and leaves on the left side is the border with Laos.

Good Hunting.

MR

[Mad Russian]

Here is the color key for our 10 elevation levels.

Good Hunting.

MR

[Jamm]

I've got a working copy, contour map done, Hamburger Hill on the lower left.
250m hexes and 50m contour lines.
The lines will be re-shaped to better suit the hexes and gameplay.
A lot of work to do yet

[Mad Russian]

Interesting map elevations. I see the peak on the east side of the valley as being a really high one.

The map looks really good. Another big issue will be that most of this terrain on the hills/peaks are covered in jungle. How to show the elevations with terrain that is covered has always been an issue.

Is this scale at 250 meters per hex?

The map looks really good so far. [&o]

Good Hunting.

MR

[Enigma6584]

Very well done indeed. Interesting to see the development of this.

[Mad Russian]

From a game standpoint it is going to be interesting to determine which terrain in a hex is dominant. Especially with some features like Dong Ap Bia. There are several places around the world that have been fought on that have the kind of terrain feature that it represents.

We know we can do nice smooth valley floors. What we need to work on is the extremes.

As we can see with points 1 through 3, there are 4 elevations in a single hex. With 4 there are 3 elevations in that hex but you are also at the crest of the formation.

The big challenge for map makers/scenario designers will be how to mark the elevations in situations like these.

Good Hunting.

MR

[Jamm]

I had some spare time today, so I put in a little work.
I dropped the no. of elevations to 10, since that is what the engine uses.
I was able to get at least 50% for the dominant levels on the steep inclines.
Here's a pic of the elevations.

[Jamm]

And some early jungle work

[CapnDarwin]

Steve will absolutely love the look of that map. Great job!!

[Mad Russian]

So the intent is to use fade through vision for elevations that are covered in vegetation?

The problem with Vietnam is not only the elevation differences but the terrain differences as well. There are multiple terrain features. For the mountains alone we could have:

Triple Canopy Jungle
Double Canopy Jungle
Jungle
Bamboo
Elephant Grass
Trails

That's the reason I chose Dong Ap Bia to try to model. If we can make this location we can do anywhere in the world.


Good Hunting.

MR

[tide1530]

It's an art....What else can you say

[Jamm]

ORIGINAL: Mad Russian

So the intent is to use fade through vision for elevations that are covered in vegetation?

The problem with Vietnam is not only the elevation differences but the terrain differences as well. There are multiple terrain features. For the mountains alone we could have:

Triple Canopy Jungle
Double Canopy Jungle
Jungle
Bamboo
Elephant Grass
Trails

That's the reason I chose Dong Ap Bia to try to model. If we can make this location we can do anywhere in the world.


Good Hunting.

MR

Yes MR, I think opacity of the jungle allows the gamer some visual clues to the elevations,
and still maintains the natural.
A dark green blanket texture mapped over the terrain could be done to look more lifelike,
but as a gamer I would be lost. A bit of give and take.

The terrain types you mention like the canopies will certainly affect the ingame factors
such as mobility, air strikes, spotting etc. Jungle or terrain density could take these things
in to account. Although I am planning some elephant grass and paddies.

This map is a challenge so far.
But I think it'll be more difficult to design a scenario with units fighting with this terrain.