Classic Traveller Double Adventure 1b - Shadows using solo play

Introduction

I am back to running the Classic Traveller adventures. I recently did Research Station Gamma and was planning to move to Twilight’s Peak.  The introduction to Twilight’s Peak stated it was best to run Shadows prior. I was planning to run Shadows soon anyway so running it now. I am using my Two Hour Wargames Future Tales based spreadsheet to run the games and generate the narrative.  But it is more Traveller based than previously. I have deleted some content from the generated narrative but otherwise have barely changed the spreadsheet’s output.

Chapter 1 - The travellers find a purpose

The story begins on Yorbund during the early hours on 190-1105 with the team in the Oasis located in the Rough area of the barren locale.  The team leader is Penelope Gray with the other members being Kathryn Reed, Jasmin Bauer and Ile. The starting tension is low.

Penelope Gray is a closed-minded human female artist from Wochiers with average characteristics. Attributes are Larceny and Crack Shot.

Kathryn Reed is a appreciative human female little boss from Rhylanor with higher than average characteristics. Attributes are Technical, Medical. They are armed with a laser pistol and a powered knife.

Jasmin Bauer is a calm human female scientist from Rhylanor with average characteristics. Attributes are Vehicle.

Ile is a calm Aslan female from Regina with higher than average characteristics.

Yorbund is an Imperial planet located in the Spinward Marches0. It is a normal sized world with a toxic atmosphere, some water and is at an agreeable temperature. The tech level is similar to 20th C, population is low and the law level has low restrictions. The government is based on monarchy with an aristocratic society and an average economy based on agriculture and industry. It has fuel and repair facilities and no military bases.

The object is to determine how to shut off the defences from a pyramid complex on the ground so the ship can take-off.

Chapter 2 - Solve a puzzle concerning the how to get into the pyramid complex

So they may accomplish the current undertaking the team need to work out a puzzle concerning how to get into the pyramid complex. To do this the travellers need to travel to the barren rough area. The team do not have the jitters.  Kathryn is seemingly distracted. Finally the party are all set to undertake to solve a puzzle concerning the how to get into the pyramid complex. The crew labor at working out the puzzle. Penelope gives it their best shot with higher than average savvy.  Penelope solves the puzzle!

The party crawl down the shaft and crawl onto the walkway around the shaft. (location 1 in the scenario).

Chapter 3 - Exploring of the first level

That they may carry out the challenge the party have to explore of the first level. There is no nervousness within the team, however Ile is talking and frequently using the wrong word. Finally the group are all set to clamber down a cable to the lower level. Penelope does OK. Kathryn attempts to resolve the task with average savvy but is wounded in the process.

Jasmin endeavours to carry out the task with average proficiency and is now unconscious and badly wounded after falling off the cable. Ile has endured the hazard but is also wounded.

(Party are now in chamber 21).

Chapter 4 - Solve a puzzle concerning the power plant

The travellers search the large chamber they are in. They find some grapples that will make it easier to climb up the rope.  While searching, the party run into three small animals.

Penelope is injured and the attacking animal slinks away. Kathryn shoots another animal dead. Ile grapples with the third animal and overcomes it but is wounded in the process.

The party have found the control centre.  At last the travellers are primed to undertake to fathom out a puzzle concerning the how to switch off the power plant. The adventurers attempt to solve a puzzle. Penelope tackles it with determination with below average expertise due to her injuries.  Penelope solves the puzzle and the power plant is switched off.

Chapter 5 – The character are able to leave

The party return the way they came. The band of travellers face a small animal. Penelope is injured in the attack and falls unconscious.

While still making their way back the party disturbed by loud noises. Kathryn is badly affected, trips and is wounded. The party get back to the ship.

The team find time to rest and recuperate. There is medical skill to help. Penelope Gray needs to recover and is now all fine.  Kathryn Reed needs to recover, improves but remains carrying an injury.  Jasmin Bauer needs to recover but dies from her injuries.  Ile needs to recover, improves and remains carrying an injury.

The ship takes off and the adventurer’s should have more time to recover from their wounds.

Verdict

My spreadsheet is not designed to run though adventures that are effectively dungeon crawls with no people.  It is designed to run adventures with fairly well defined scenes that build to complete a story. I did run Shadows fine with the spreadsheet but it generated narrative that is not relative.  I am not a big fan of this type of “dungeon crawl” adventures (one of the reasons I could not get into D&D as in the early days that is what it seemed to be). It is a short adventure. Having said that I am going to run Annic Nova but should take even less time as it is just exploring a ship.

5150 Fighter Pilot boardgame - game 01 a short two mission campaign

Introduction

I signed up for four boardgames from the Two Hour Wargames boardgamekickstarter.  The PDFs have arrived and I cannot wait until the games are actually delivered to start playing.  I have already had a go at 5150 Back AlleyBright Lights.  Next up is 5150 FighterPilot.

The fighters are Star Wars Micro Machines.  The report is not long.

Prologue

Rafael Bates is a Rep 4 Gaean in a Light Fighter with Thrust 5, Firepower 3 and Hull 1.

Rafael in his light fighter

Rafael is fairly new at this, and hopes to go far.

Mission 1

Rafael gets the call! His mission is to perform a line patrol – there are a couple of possible targets on the scanner (2 PEFs in locations 6 and 1) 

Rafael burns his way to the first blip.  He reports back to base “Nothing here, on my way to the next location.”  But the next location moved to him and it is a enemy medium fighter!

Contact!

Erin Barton is a Rep 4 in a Medium Fighter with Thrust 4, Firepower 2 and Hull 3.

*erin

The enemy: Erin Barton in a medium fighter 

Erin is distracted by flashing lights on here instruments and this has an impact on her manoeuvring. Rafael gets In the zone which helps him with manoeuvring. So much so he manages to line up a shot, and does what looks like a devastating hit, knocking out all Erin’s guns and a big hole in her hull.

Rafael blows a hole in the hull and destroys her guns.

 Erin makes a run for it and Rafael’s inexperience shows as Erin makes if safely away.

*run

Erin escapes!

However, Rafael is commended for successfully performing his first mission.

Mission 2

The next day, Rafael is called up to the fighter bay again.

"Deep Line Patrol today.  See what is actually there.” (3 PEFs all in locations 5)

Rafael is sent out on patrol again.

Rafael starts his patrol and rather than race to the three blips, he awaits to see if any are real and will come to him.  This turns out to be the worst decision Rafael can make. All three blips move towards him and coalesce into five fighters.  Rafael recognises the fighter markers as belonging to that 

infamous ace, Bruce “five rep” Mark. 

Unlucky! 5 fighters!

Five against one, how bad can it be?  And to make matters worse, Rafael’s fuel indicators show a leak.  Unbeknownst to Rafael, Bruce Mark is able to dig deep inside himself today, giving him a further edge on for the upcoming manoeuvring.  Mark lines up Rafael in his sights and sends his fire pumping into Rafael’s hull, blowing his ship up.

Rafael is blown up by the enemy ace.

Note: rolled all 6’s on Star Power at the end to try and save him from at least the first ship.

Star Power dice roll

Thus ends the (short) career of Rafael Bates in the defence of his home.

Verdict

Fast and furious.  I do like the way the combat works with no table movement and a few simple rolls for advantage and manoeuvre.  I will be playing another campaign soon, hopefully longer.

Alec's story chapter 01 of a 5150 Back Alley Bright Lights boardgame

Introduction

Quick couple of encounters with THW 5150 Back Alley BrightLights boardgame.  PDFs just arrived from the kickstarter.   Figures are from a bunch of HO railway models off the internet.  My children picked out the figures to use for each character.  Board is from MB Space Crusade.  Really need to get some furniture!

The narrative is more like a description of what happened rather than spicing it up.  I ran out of time to do so – more games on my agenda to play :-)

Prologue

Alec Weber starts the new day in New Hope City's Middleton.

Alec is a Rep 5 Basic Exotic with the Martial Arts attribute and a job as Investigator.

Alec

Chapter 1

Alec enters the GreenWood Garage building and encounters Lacey Meadows, an Exotic. Lacey wishes to interact. Alec interacts with Lacey and the result is a Success! Lacey Meadows is recruited.

Alec and Lacey

+1 Increasing Rep for successful interaction. Assuming not a +3 for completing encounter as interaction is not that big an encounter.

Chapter 2

Alec and Lacey are still in the GreenWood Garage building and encounter Ryker Villegas, a Criminal.

Alec and Lacey run into the criminal Ryker

Ryker is a Rep 4 Basic Net Runner with the Slippery attribute. Ryker is not on the best terms with Alec and decides on a confrontation. The confrontation is not lethal.

Ryker Villegas is I cover and activates. Ryker Villegas  is a Rep 4 Basic Criminal, Slippery who will Shoot.  On the inactive side, not in cover are Alec Weber and Lacey Meadows.

Ryker hits Alec who ducks back.

Ryker fires at Alec who ducks back.

Alec and Lacey are now in cover and activate. Alec will Recover while Lacey will Shoot.

Lacey fires at Ryker but misses as he is in Cover. Ryker returns fire but also misses as Lacey is in cover. Lacey returns fire and hits!

Lacey and Ryker trade shots.

Ryker ducks back.

Ryker ducks back!

Ryker decides that it is not worth it and leaves.

Ryker flees the scene

Lacey also decides she has had enough and leaves. Lacey has definitely had enough as Alec searches for her but cannot find Lacey anywhere.

Lacey also leaves, never to return

+3 Increasing Rep for a successful encounter, +4 increasing Rep overall but no increase in Rep.

Lifetime Rep is +4.

Verdict
Oh, did I have fun? Absolutely!  The game is a stripped back version of all the other 5150 titles. But also fully compatible.  I will continue to run through more encounters without changing the rules.  It is a little vanilla compared to previous 5150 but certainly generates a similar narrative.    More to come but have a few other THW boardgames to test out first..

High Colony Sam Landry turn 2 - a 5 Parsecs from Home Campaign

Introduction

I solo play though the second campaign turn of a 5 Parsecs from Home adventure using my own combat rules.  The adventure is based in the High Colonies setting – a colonised solar system in 2228.  This is the first campaign turn.

It took a while to get around to the second turn.  I replaced the railway 20mm figures with some Heroscape figures.  The terrain is still very basic.

All the campaign turn narrative is generated by the spreadsheet, except the actual encounter.

Changes to the rules are in the first turn post. 

Campaign Turn 2

Period 2. Location: Cook.

The team of 4 is currently Samantha Landry, Cain Randolph, Santos Kirk, Jaylin Wang.

Credits: 13. Patrons: 2. Rivals: 0. Not on a Quest. Clues: 2. Rumours: 0.

The team decide to not travel.

Upkeep is 1 Credits.

Cain Randolph is in sickbay for 1 turn. Spend 4 credits for 1 turn speed up for Cain. Cain is out of sickbay. Total of 4 credits spent on sickbay acceleration.

Jobs

Crew available for jobs are: Samantha Landry, Santos Kirk, Jaylin Wang.

Samantha Landry and Santos Kirk look for a patron. New Patron found: Local government.

Job on offer pays 1 Credits and have this turn to execute.

Jaylin Wang trains and goes from 3XP to 4XP.

Assigning equipment

Samantha Landry is assigned: Clingfire pistol Brutal melee weapon Combat armour Body wire reflex enhancing implants

Cain Randolph is assigned: Blast rifle

Santos Kirk is assigned: Shotgun

Jaylin Wang is assigned: Blast rifle

Pre-encounter

No quest.

Mission selected is: Patron mission.

Patron for the mission is Local government.

Opposition is 5 Aggressive Raiders with a Morale of 2.

  Lieutenant: S-4 C-2 T-3 Rifle, Old fashioned blade

  Specialist: S-4 C-1 T-3 Shotgun

  Raiders: S-4 C-1 T-3 Rifle

  Raiders: S-4 C-1 T-3 Rifle

  Raiders: S-4 C-1 T-3 Rifle

The opposition (deployed already)

Deploy Conditions: None

Notable Sights: Loot cache. Nano-Booster. Single-use drug. Increases Speed by +1

Mission Target: Clear. A crew member, Cain, must exit across the Enemy table edge.

Terrain Type: Industrial

Terrain layout (3 x 3 areas):

  Key building, Key building, Trees

  Open, Open, Pit/Yard

  Pit/Yard, Pit/Yard, Pit/Yard

The team on the mission:

Samantha Landry: R-2 S-4 C-0 T-4 Svy-0 Clingfire pistol, Brutal melee weapon, Armour: Combat armour, Other: Body wire reflex enhancing implants.

Cain Randolph: R-1 S-5 C-0 T-3 Svy-0 Blast rifle.

Santos Kirk: R-2 S-4 C-1 T-3 Svy-0 Shotgun.

Jaylin Wang: R-1 S-4 C-0 T-3 Svy-2 Blast rifle.

The crew

The final number of enemy opposing the mission is 5

Deploy Enemies: Not within 18" of any enemy or 6" of deployed table edge.

The team does not seize the initiative.

Encounter

The defenders are spread out to guard against easily exiting off their side

The team leads with Sam and Santos to the right for firepower, Jaylin and Cain are on the very far right to move through the cover of the yards and then through the woods.

The setup - The crew need to get Cain off the other side

Only Sam gets to move in the quick phase.

Sam fires at the specialist in the building with her clingfire pistol for no effect!

In retaliation, the troops in the building fire back and suppress Sam.

Sam is suppressed (to green bushes indicate this).

Santon and Jaylin move up and fire for no effect (those units in the building are hard to effect in hard cover.

Sam and Jaylin open up to no effect - the raiders are in hard cover.

Jaylin and Santos get to move in the quick phase.

Santos suppresses the Specialist and kills a Raider (really high dice rolls!).  Jaylin suppresses the other Riflemen in the building.

They raiders  don't get a chance to fire back and Santos and Jaylin manage to fire them again and take them down

The raiders are aggressive so the 2 raiders in the woods (including the leader) cannot see much so charge into the mining yards and straight into a brawl with Jaylin.

Raiders charge into a brawl with Jaylin

Unbelievable! On a roll of 4 dice for the leader and 4 dice for the raider, they both roll 1 success each (a success is a 4+ on a die).  Jaylin knocks out the raider and pins the leader.

...but Jaylin has the upper hand.

Sam unsuppresses.

The next turn Santos and Jaylin move in the quick phase.

Jaylin still locked in melee with the Raider leader.

Santos knocks out the Specialist.

Santos manages to take out the Specialist raider

With 2 raiders down and another 2 suppressed, the raiders leave the table

With a number of the raiders down, the raiders flee the field.

The crew get the loot.

Post-encounter

The mission was a success!

The team held the field at the end.

The team did not run away.

The team did not kill the Boss.

The enemy is a new Rival and Rival list updated.

Pay/salvage is 4 Credits.Plus Patron bonus of 1 Credits. Total earned is 5 Credits. Crew have 13 Credits.

Loot! Bionic parts.

Plus the loot cache. Nano-Booster.

Samantha Landry awarded 3 XP for an overall total of 9 XP. XP awarded for surviving and holding the field.

Cain Randolph awarded 3 XP for an overall total of 6 XP. XP awarded for surviving and holding the field.

Santos Kirk awarded 4 XP for an overall total of 7 XP. XP awarded for surviving and holding the field,  first to inflict a casualty.

Jaylin Wang awarded 4 XP for an overall total of 7 XP. XP awarded for surviving and holding the field, inflicted a casualty on the enemy Boss.

The team skip shopping.

One of the crew found something interesting. Gain one Rumor.

An event occurs for Samantha Landry. You get hurt while working on the ship. Spend 1 turn in Sick-Bay.

Verdict

The combat is going very fast but to be expected on a 2’x2’ table. Otherwsie 2 turns in and ready for the next one!

I am still playing version 1.10 and really need to find some time to update the spreadsheet with the extra Enemies.

Classic Traveller Adventure 02 Research Station Gamma with (mostly) THW Future Tales

Introduction

I am back to running the Classic Traveller adventures. I have previously done Kinunir's four scenarios but got side tracked.  I am using my Two Hour Wargames Future Tales  based rules and a spreadsheet to run the games and generate the narrative.  But it is more Traveller based than previously. I have added some dialogue and deleted some content from the generated narrative but otherwise have barely changed the spreadsheet’s output.

Chapter 1 - What's next?

The story begins on Vanejen during the late hours on 300-1106 with the team in the Plantation located in the Settlements area of the rural zone.  The team leader is Ta-ebte with the other members being Sariah Huffman, Douglas Larson and Aweil. The starting tension is low.

Ta-ebte is a calm Bwap male scientist from lnthe with average characteristics. Attributes are Crack Shot Brawler. They are armed with a laser pistol.

Sariah Huffman is an appreciative human female manufacturing worker from Dinornn with average characteristics. Attributes are Medical Investigative. They are armed with a knife.

Douglas Larson is a disagreeable human male hospitality worker from Knorbes with average characteristics. They are armed with a laser pistol and a knife.

Aweil is an agreeable Aslan male soldier from Vanejen with higher than average characteristics. Attributes are Brawler. They are armed with a big slug pistol and power claw.

Vanejen is an Imperial planet located in the Spinward Marches in the backwater cluster in the Rylanor subsector. It is a normal sized world with a breathable atmosphere, some water and is at a agreeable temperature. The tech level is similar to 17th-19th C, population is average and the law level has low restrictions. The government is based on monarchy with a socialist society and a rich economy based on agriculture and industry. It has fuel and repair facilities and no military bases.

In a bar the group listen to Chiree, a Chirpie, about how he has escaped from a prison by jumping into its surrounding icy waters. Some of his nest-mates are still there with terrible experiments planned for them. The team need to rescue the nest-mates. Chiree joins the party.

This is the introduction to the adventure.  The last paragraph above is a summary from the  adventure book.
PCs are randomly generated.  I do have a conversion formula to map the characters and skills back into Classic Traveller (Books 1-3):

Ta-ebte, Scientist 6A8888 Cr2000

Brawling-2 Blade Combat-2 Gun Combat-2. laser pistol

Sariah Huffman, Manufacturing Worker A68886 Cr1000

Medical-3 Administration-2. knife

Douglas Larson, Hospitality worker 8A8886 Cr5000.

laser pistol, knife

Aweil, Soldier A8ADD8 Cr2000

Brawling-2 Blade Combat-2. big slug pistol, power claw cloth

This is useful for mapping adventure characters and tasks into spreadsheet tasks.

Chapter 2 - Find an Object - location of prison

The band of travellers need to find an object - location of the prison. To do this the travellers need to travel to the rural settlements area. Inwardly, the team have no misgivings about the task. Prior to considering this challenge, it seems the band may need to weather a lot of possible difficulties along the way.

It is evening in the settlement's loading docks. No one is around but it is not surprising considering the lack of anything around here of note. In these whereabouts a problem crops up for the group. The group come across four people that they have seen before in the bar. The leader is Ailorl, a disagreeable Aslan police officer.  The band have authorities interfering with progress and converse.  The authorities are looking for a group with a Chirpie. Ta-ebte seeks to settle the issue with higher than average know-how. Ta-ebte ends up in non-committal small talk as Chiree cannot be seen with them.

During the daytime in the Park the journeyers skirt a complication.

It is evening in the settlement's street. The lights flicker as though poorly maintained and act as a comment on the current state of society. While in this location trouble occurs for the party. The travellers cross with six people. The leader is Jamison Cummings, an introverted male human smuggler. They note that Jamison has weird teeth.

The travellers are believed to be stalked or hunted by Jamison’s band and chat. Ta-ebte endeavours to settle the matter with high expertise. Ta-ebte becomes friends and gain information that will assist with the next task.

It is early hours in the settlement's offices. The hustle and bustle of urban life is most obvious all around with movement of people, robots and vehicles. Aweil is drumming their fingers. Finally the party are ready for the undertaking to find the location of the prison. The band of travellers uncover the location.

Two things covered here – the adventure suggests a meeting with authorities looking for Chiree, and also implied is that part of the adventure is also finding out where the research station actually is. I considered adding in t rumours as per the book but elected not too as it would not significantly benefit the story as I am running it.

Chapter 3 - Question a person of interest about acquiring transport

To come closer to the goal involves the band of travellers to acquire transport. To do this the crew need to travel to the rural light industrial area. The team are mentally well rested. Ahead of the challenge, it seems the band may need to weather a few possible difficulties along the way.

It is early hours in the light industrial's warehouse. The large warehouses go on and on.  Never-ending and soulless. While in this location a difficulty arises to deal with.

The band of travellers are confined by tight spaces while navigating the warehouses. Ta-ebte seeks to settle the issue with higher than average capability. Ta-ebte could not get past the barrier and is wounded.

It is daytime in the light industrial's street. Bulk carrier vehicles are in abundance taking and receiving loads. Douglas is chewing something. The team are now able to brave the test to question a person of interest about acquiring transport. The group see one person that they have met before. The leader is Ia, a calm male Aslan mercenary. It stands out amongst the rest in that Ia has visible battle scars. Sariah Huffman is haggling with Ia. Sariah attempts for a favourable outcome with average proficiency.  Sariah successfully negotiates the exchange.

The team have a submersible!

Once knowing where to go, the team need to acquire transport, the best is submersible and the lessor choice would be by air.  If they scored well, they got a submersible, not so well aircraft.

Chapter 4 - Find the nest-mates

To fulfilling the goal requires the party to find the nest-mates. To do this the team need to travel to the barren coastal area. The team arrive uneventfully at the station in the Barren area via submersible. The pressure to complete is starting to weigh the team down. Before facing this challenge, it seems the gang may need to overcome several possible complications along the way.

It is daytime in the station's entrance.  On this occasion a problem crops up for the team.  They need to get into the station. Ta-ebte could not beat the hazard. Sariah overcomes the hazard. failed to endure the hazard. Aweil could not beat the hazard.  Chiree could not beat the hazard. The group are in the station, albeit mostly wounded.

It is daytime in the stations offices and labs.  Sariah is biting their fingernails. The band are ready for the test to see if they can solve the puzzle of what is being researched. The party struggle to fathom the puzzle. Ta-ebte attempts to resolve the task with low ability. Ta-ebte solves the puzzle (!) and gains an understanding of what is the purpose of Research Station Gamma.

The travellers chance on one security robot, Iqip. A confrontation occurs. They open fire at the security robot who fires back at them all. Ta-ebte confronts Iqip and disables it. Sariah Huffman also faced Iqip. Sariah is injured. Douglas is hit badly, is out of the fight and is dead. Aweil versus Iqip but both miss. The robot, believing it job done, elects to leave the fight.

It is now early hours in the stations' vault room.  Sariah is tapping their fingers. At last the party are ready for the undertaking to open the vault. The group seek to open the vault. Aweil endeavours to settle the matter with higher than average talent. Aweil manages to easily solve the puzzle and the vault opens - Cr123,000 is discovered inside!

The team attempts to bypass the robots so they can continue. Aweil leads the way and is successful but is wounded in the process.

It is late hours in one of the globes and the group steer clear of a complication that could have arose with an animal in the fog in one of the globes.

The band of travellers come upon five people in a globe. The leader is Quinton Steele, a closed-minded male human labourer. Ta-ebte tackles discussion with determination with higher than average ability. Ta-ebte ends up in non-committal small talk.  The party leave the globe open and move on.

It is late hours in the station globe area.  Ta-ebte is getting animated while making a point. At last the group are now able to brave the test to find the nest-mates. The group uncover the globe with the nest mates.

The band find time to rest and recuperate. There are medical skills to help. Ta-ebte needs to recover and is now all fine.  Sariah Huffman needs to recover but is badly injured and is no longer able to continue with the team.  Sarah is dropped off at the settlement to recover.  Aweil needs to recover and is now all fine.  Chiree needs to recover and remains carrying an injury.

This chapter covers getting into the station and the various encounters.  It is a bit like a dungeon crawl so just selected the “rooms”/globes of interest and did a task for each.  And there is a possibility of robot encounters and the party managed to get one of those.  They never encountered the professor.  I did not list the research being conducted – you will need to read the adventure for that.

 Chapter 5 - Question a person of interest about returning neat-mates

To achieving the whole purpose calls for the gang to question a person of interest about returning nest-mates. To do this the party need to travel to the rural rough area.

While travelling between areas, the team are accosted by a single military enemy, Danna Larson, a thoughtless female human thief. It was not obvious at first, but Danna has a complete lack of hair. A confrontation occurs. Danna’s idea is to intimidate, not kill. They shoot as they are rushed by Danna

Ta-ebte goes up against Danna Larson. Ta-ebte is out of the fight. Aweil deals with Danna Larson. Aweil has a extremely high savvy and is armed with a big slug pistol. Danna falls in a heap to the ground and out of the fight. Ta-ebte recovers and the team quit the fight.

It is daytime by the Rough's Lake.  Ta-ebte is talking slowly due to his injuries. At last the group are ready for the challenge to question a person of interest about returning nest-mates.

The team contact Dhale, a thoughtful male Chirpie tribesperson. Aweil interviews Dhale. Aweil gives it their best shot with their high talent. Aweil successfully obtains some information from Dhale. Aweil is presented with a gold coin with a human on it.

This covers leaving the station and returning Chiree and the nest mates to their village.  The party did not successfully get all coins, just the one.

Verdict

Running the adventure in the spreadsheet worked out mostly well. I am happy with how it managed to run with Research Station Gamma.  I have modified some of the generated output to be a little more random.  Next up is Twilight’s Peak.  I considered Shadows/Annic Nova next but let us go into the deep end – Twilight’s Peak is different to Research Station Gamma and Kinunir in how it is laid out to play.  I will play a few more adventures before I tackle the one I am completely unfamiliar with – The Traveller Adventure.

Two Hour Wargames Future Tales game with generated narrative

Introduction

I was slowly running through a solo game of Future Tales set in the Classic Traveller universe.  I was not content with how it flowed – always room for improvement.  So I redid the spreadsheet to flow better, not as much work as I thought.  I changed the stats so they were more classic traveller. I also improved the generated narrative a little bit.  Below is the (mostly) unedited narrative from the spreadsheet.  The only thing I had to do was add in the chapter heading descriptions, correct some spelling mistakes and the occasional extra comma in lists, and the rare extra full stop.

From this, I have changed the narrative generated to be more variable, particularly around tasks but also some other repetitive phrases as well.

This post is more a placemat on the first of the generated narrative so I can be ready to run a Classic Traveller adventure.  As narrative goes, it is still not great but at least it shows all the tasks performed in the game.

Chapter 1 - A direction is sought

The story begins on Regina during the evening on June 1105 with the team in the Square located in the Commercial area of the urban area.  The team leader is Holly Davies with the other members being Cindy Morrison and Kyson Alvarado. The starting tension is low.

Holly Davies is a agreeable human female manufacturing worker from Zivije with high characteristics. Attributes are Investigative and Larceny. They are armed with a laser pistol.

Cindy Morrison is a closed-minded human female artist from Keanou with average characteristics. Attributes are Larceny and Technical.

Kyson Alvarado is a neurotic human male combat officer from Regina with a average characteristics. Attributes are Crack Shot. They are armed with a submachine gun. They are armed with a knife.

Regina is a Imperial planet located in the Spinward Marches and a subsector capital. It is a normal sized world with a breathable atmosphere, some water and is at an agreeable temperature. The tech level is similar to 21stC, population is average and the law level allows highly restrictive measures. The government is based on bureaucracy with a corporate society and a rich economy based on agriculture and industry. It has fuel, repair and ship building facilities and military bases. A notable feature is its strange geology.

The team need to recover an object, specifically incriminating government secrets. To achieve this requires around five clues and may take up to nine scenes to complete.

Chapter 2 – A puzzle to solve

To get nearer to fulfilling the mission necessitates the team to solve a puzzle concerning the things out of place. To do this the team need to travel to the space command area. They will need to travel through three areas prior to leaving their current Urban region. The team arrive at the Space area via medium space transport.

There is no nervousness within the team. Prior to considering the challenge, it seems the team may need to overcome a fair amount of possible complications along the way. To get to the command area they will need to travel through five areas from their current location.

While travelling between areas, the team confront gangers. They encounter four people. The leader is Branson Carson, an introverted male human ganger. Branson has very attractive features.

They attempt to fire as the opponents charge at them.

Holly Davies goes up against Branson Carson. Holly has an average ability and is armed with a laser pistol. Branson has an average proficiency and is fighting with a knife. Holly is injured and left the fight.  Cindy Morrison contends with Peyton Lucas. Cindy has an average ability and is fighting unarmed. Peyton has an average talent and is fighting unarmed. Cindy is injured; target has left the fight. Kyson Alvarado deals with Uriel Jimenez. Kyson has an extremely high capability and is armed with a submachine gun. Uriel has an extremely high capability and is fighting unarmed. Kyson is injured; target has left the fight.

The team quit the fight. The opposition also determine to depart.

During the late hours in the Eatery the team dodge a complication.

It is evening in the command's work area.  It is here potential strife emerges for the team. They encounter three people. The leader is Webwe, a disagreeable female Bwap patron. Webwe has visible battle scars.

The team have competition and have come across others doing the same and enter into discussions. Holly Davies confronts Webwe. Holly endeavours to carry out the task with fairly low know-how. Webwe gives it a try with fairly low talent. Holly ends up in small talk and nothing untoward occurs.

During the daytime in the Work area the team duck a complication.

It is late hours in the Command's Cargo area.  Kyson is walking with a limp. The team are now able to brave the test to solve a puzzle concerning the things out of place. They try to figure out the puzzle. Holly aims to complete the job with average proficiency. Holly solves the puzzle and gains one clue.

There is no time for the team to recover.        

Chapter 3 – Injuries!

To advance towards doing the mission necessitates the team to question a person of interest about hired thugs. To do this the team need to travel to the rural light industrial area. They will need to travel through five areas prior to leaving their current Space locale. The team arrive at the Rural area via medium space transport.

The team feel no strain. Looking at what is required to perform the challenge, it seems the team may need to overcome several possible complications along the way. To get to the light industrial area they will need to travel through three areas from their current location.

While travelling between areas, the team are challenged by someone with a grudge. They encounter three people. The leader is Paisley Reeves, a disagreeable female human dealer. In what is somewhat of a surprise, Paisley has an obvious cleanliness fetish.

They fire as the foe attempts to grapple. Holly Davies contends with Paisley Reeves. Holly has average expertise and is armed with a laser pistol. Paisley has average savvy and is fighting unarmed. Holly is injured and left the fight. Cindy Morrison takes on Elyse Lang. Cindy has a very low talent and is fighting unarmed. Elyse has a very low capability and is fighting unarmed. Cindy is injured; target has left the fight. Kyson Alvarado versus Mckenzie Gamble. Kyson has a very high know-how and is armed with a submachine gun. Mckenzie has a very high expertise and is fighting unarmed. Kyson is injured; target has left the fight.

The team maintain the combat. The opposition believe it would be better to leave.

All team members are badly injured from this and the last confrontation.  They decide to abandon looking for the clue and take time to recover. The team find time to rest and recuperate. Holly Davies needs to recover and is now all fine.  Cindy Morrison needs to recover and is now all fine.  Kyson Alvarado needs to recover and is no longer able to continue with the team.

The team attempt to find recruits to join them and two candidate(s) are located. They encounter two people. The leader is Byron Casey, a calm male human teacher. It is distinctive that Byron has a heavily tattooed body.

Holly Davies attempts to recruit Byron Casey. Holly attempts to resolve the task with average proficiency. Holly is successful and the candidate may join the team. Byron Casey is a calm human male teacher from Treece with average characteristics. Attributes are Crack Shot.

The team are looking to procure some equipment.  In the time used to search, no equipment can be found for sale.

Chapter 4 – They find a person with information

To get closer to attaining the objective commits the team to question a person of interest about nervous behaviour. To do this the team need to travel to the urban commercial area. They will need to travel through three areas prior to leaving their current Rural region. The team arrive at the Urban locale via medium space transport.

Ahead of the challenge, it seems the team may need to overcome a fair amount of possible complications along the way. To get to the commercial area they will need to travel through three areas from their current location.

During the evening in the Bar the team avoid a complication.

During the late hours in the Shops the team skirt a complication .

It is late hours in the commercial's shops. Flashing lights provide some distraction from the quiet. It is here the team hit a snag. They encounter three people. The leader is William Rios, a thoughtful male human trader.

The team are subject to an attempted kidnapping and attempt to talk their way out. Holly Davies engages William Rios. Holly endeavours to settle the matter with higher than average savvy. William attempts the task at hand with higher than average capability. Holly ends up in small talk and nothing untoward occurs.

It is daytime in the commercial's shops. People are coming and going with self-determined purpose. It is here trouble occurs for the team. They encounter two people. It is the main villain with minions. The leader is Cindy Morrison, a closed-minded female human plutocrat. The team notice that Cindy has baldness.

They get into a firefight. Holly Davies against Cindy Morrison. Holly has a higher than average ability and is armed with a laser pistol. Cindy has a higher than average proficiency and is armed with a laser pistol. Holly’s target has left the fight. Cindy Morrison deals with Victor Bass. Cindy has an average proficiency and is fighting unarmed. Victor has an average proficiency and is fighting unarmed. Cindy is injured and left the fight.

The team believe it would be better to leave. The opposition also resolve to quit.

It is late hours in the Commercial's Shops. Flashing lights provide some distraction from the quiet. Holly is speaking but clearing their throat when pausing. The team are all set to undertake to question a person of interest about nervous behaviour. They encounter one person. The leader is Gino Peterson, an extroverted male human academic. The team nearly did a double take.  They could not help but notice that Gino has ragged clothing.

They seek information from the person. Holly Davies deals with Gino Peterson. Holly looks to conclude the task with higher than average savvy. Gino attempts for a favourable outcome with higher than average ability. Holly has a fully co-operative person that provides valuable information.

The team find time to rest and recuperate.  Cindy Morrison needs to recover and is now all fine.  Byron Casey needs to recover and remains carrying an injury.

The team are looking to procure some equipment. There is the possibility of equipment being available to acquire. Equipment acquired by team members: slug pistol, knife.

Chapter 5 – The old stories are true

To progress towards doing the whole purpose necessitates the team to question a person of interest about old stories/legends. To do this the team need to travel to the urban residential area.

The pressure to complete is starting to weigh the team down. Before facing the challenge, it seems the team may need to overcome a fair amount of possible complications along the way.

It is daytime in the residential's suburbs. The sameness of the dwellings in is unnerving.  The tallness of apartment blocks casts long shadows across the roadways. It is here a trial to contend with appears. They encounter one person. The leader is Camren Mitchell, a agreeable male human service worker. They note that Camren has weird teeth.

The team have competition and come across others doing the same and start talking. Holly Davies takes on Camren Mitchell. Holly gives it their best shot with higher than average talent. Camren gives it a try with higher than average capability. Holly and Camren become friends.

It is evening in the residential's park. Too little lighting causes the area to seem more menacing than it should be. It is here a dilemma arises. The team are affected by hearing trouble. Holly aims to complete the job with higher than average expertise. . Holly has failed to overcome the hazard. Cindy tackles the task at hand with average know-how. . Cindy has failed to overcome the hazard. Byron attempts to resolve the task with very low proficiency. . Byron has failed to overcome the hazard. They are all injured.

During the late hours in the Apartments the team skip an issue. It is late hours in the Residential's Warehouse. The sameness of the dwellings in unnerving.  The tallness of apartment blocks casts long shadows across the roadways. Cindy is walking with a limp. The team are ready for the undertaking to question a person of interest about old stories/legends.

They encounter one person that they have met before. The leader is Imani Hanna, a appreciative female human senior bureaucrat. The team notice that Imani has a deep voice.

They interview the person of interest. Holly Davies against Imani Hanna. Holly looks to conclude the task with average talent. Imani undertakes to achieve success with average talent. Holly successfully obtains information from the person.

The team find time to rest and recuperate. Holly Davies needs to recover and is now all fine.  Cindy Morrison needs to recover and is now all fine.  Byron Casey needs to recover and is now all fine.

Chapter 6 – Records

To draw nearer to attaining the whole purpose necessitates the team to find an object -  records of  a visit. To do this the team need to travel to the urban residential area.

The team’s nerves are beginning to unravel. In advance of doing the challenge, it seems the team may need to overcome a fair amount of possible complications along the way.

It is daytime in the residential's construction site. Many children are out playing. It is here a difficulty arises to deal with. They encounter two people. The leader is Vicente Caldwell, a neurotic male human reporter. The team notice that Vicente has is softly spoken.

The team are subject to an attempted kidnapping and start talking. Holly Davies contends with Vicente Caldwell. Holly looks to conclude the task with average talent. Vicente aims to complete the job with average know-how. Holly is not convincing and a confrontation occurs. They get into a firefight.

Holly Davies engages Vicente Caldwell. Holly has a higher than average proficiency and is armed with a laser pistol. Vicente has a higher than average know-how and is armed with a shotgun. Holly target has left the fight. Cindy Morrison takes on Belen Boyd. Cindy has a higher than average savvy and is fighting with a knife. Belen has a higher than average capability and is fighting unarmed. Cindy target is out of the fight. Byron Casey takes on Vicente Caldwell. Byron has a average know-how and is armed with a slug pistol. Vicente has a average savvy and is armed with a shotgun. Byron is injured; target has left the fight.

The team leave the fight. The opposition quit the combat.

It is daytime in the residential's shops. Many children are out playing. It is here a problem crops up for the team. They encounter three people. The leader is Dominik Phelps, a thoughtless male human diplomat. It is distinctive that Dominik has ragged clothing.

The team are mistaken for a different identity and converse. Holly Davies contends with Dominik Phelps. Holly undertakes to achieve success with average talent. Dominik undertakes to achieve success with average capability. Holly ends up in small talk and nothing untoward occurs.

It is early hours in the Residential's Offices. Many children are out playing. Byron is making constant references to popular culture. At last the team are ready for the challenge to find an object - records of a visit. They uncover the object. Holly endeavours to carry out the task with high savvy. Holly finds the object and gains one clue. The team find time to rest and recuperate.   Byron Casey needs to recover and is now all fine.      

Chapter 7 – The final scene

At last the team have solved enough clues to recover an object - incriminating government secrets. To do this the team need to travel to the urban spaceport area.

The pressure to complete the task is intensifying. Ahead of the challenge, it seems the team may need to overcome a fair amount of possible complications along the way.

During the daytime in the check-in the team steer clear of a dilemma.

During the late hours in the Vehicle bay the team skirt a confrontation.

It is late hours in the spaceport's shops. It is unnaturally quiet. It is here the team hit a snag. They encounter four people. It is the villain's minions. The leader is Sierra Phillips, a thoughtful female human bounty hunter. It is unusual but the team cannot help but notice that Sierra has strong perfume.

They open fire. Holly Davies deals with Sierra Phillips. Holly has an average talent and is armed with a laser pistol. Sierra has a average ability and is armed with a slug pistol. Holly target has left the fight. Cindy Morrison contends with Loegath. Cindy has an average know-how and is fighting with a knife. Loegath has a average talent and is fighting unarmed. Cindy is injured; target has left the fight. Byron Casey meets F-a-aar. Byron has a very low expertise and is armed with a slug pistol. F-a-aar has a very low expertise and is fighting unarmed. Byron is injured; target has left the fight.

The team quit the combat. The opposition decide to leave the fight.

It is early hours in the Spaceport's Shops. The light is quite bright for this time of the day.  It makes the normally constrictive walkways seem quite open. Byron is humming to themselves. Finally the team are primed to undertake to recover an object - incriminating government secrets. The villain has the object in his possession.  The objective is to capture the villain.

They encounter one person. It is the main villain. The leader is Cindy Morrison, a closed-minded female human plutocrat.

They open fire. Holly Davies meets Cindy Morrison. Holly has a higher than average proficiency and is armed with a laser pistol. Cindy has a higher than average proficiency and is armed with a laser pistol. Holly is injured; target has left the fight. Cindy Morrison confronts Cindy Morrison. Cindy has a higher than average savvy and is fighting with a knife. Cindy has a higher than average savvy and is armed with a laser pistol. Cindy is injured; target has left the fight. Byron Casey engages Cindy Morrison. Byron has a average expertise and is armed with a slug pistol. Cindy has an average talent and is armed with a laser pistol. Byron is injured and left the fight.

The team elect to stay in the fight. The opposition decide to leave the fight.

The villain, Cindy, has escaped with the incriminating government secrets.  The team has failed in their task to recover them and will need to face the consequences of the failure.

Verdict

That was a load of fun, and the first time in playing all of these THW rules I have actually made it to the final scene, although I still failed at the objective!.  It flows much better and while there is room for improvement in the narrative, it is getting better.  I think the spreadsheet is at the stage where I can run through Research Station Gamma next - the whole idea of the spreadsheet was to run through Classic Traveller adventures.

High Colony Sam Landry turn 1 - a 5 Parsecs from Home Campaign

Introduction

I solo play though the first campaign turn of a 5 Parsecs from Home adventure using my own combat rules.  The adventure is based in the High Colonies setting – a colonised solar system in 2228.

Background

So there I was, starting a THW Future Tales solo adventure and had run through the first few scenes. 

But Five Parsecs from Home (2^nd Edition) has been in the back of my mind for a year. Regularly looking at it and in denial I was interested. Finally at the end of October 2019 I started automating as best I could everything in Five Parsecs from Home into a spreadsheet (everything but the combat part!).  I finished this in late November.  I did not want to specifically play with the 5Parsecs combat rules. I have some (unpublished) rules I have used for some previous pulp games and (unpublished) rules I use for WW2 skirmish.  I wanted to combine these rules into something I could reuse across a number of pulp-type games I plan to play (The Department, Pulp Alley campaigns, Battlestations boardgame, possibly the original Warhammer Quest).  I realised my original pulp rules were good as a basis but not suitable for a wider scope so quickly modified them.  A work in progress, they do map directly to the character abilities in 5Parsecs and so are compatible with them.  The main difference is everything is opposed GoalSystem dice roll pools.  Each side will roll 1-5 six-sided dice and compare successes.  GoalSystem is that on each die, a 1-3 is zero successes, 4-5 one success and a 6 is two successes.

I decided to run the adventure using the newly unearthed (by me) High Colonies RPG set in the near future Solar System.  I have a blog page for details on HighColonies setting.

All the campaign turn narrative is generated by the spreadsheet, except the actual encounter.

Changes to the rules

I tried to limit the changes to the rules as much as possible but here they are:

•  Combat rules are different but are compatible with character and weapon stats.  Also, I will be playing encounters on a 2’x2’ board.
• The XP required to level up is different for each level and generally harder than the rules (this aligns to how the abilities are used in combat).
• Luck was added to the rules in version .10 but I have not included it.
• Story Points are tracked but I think I will only use them to save PCs from death.
• I added in some terrain generation rules (the encounter objective aligns to 4 terrain types that then generate a 3x3 matrix of terrain.
• I added in additional mission types from the 1^st edition for Opportunity and Quest missions.

Getting the team together

The team met through a random meeting in a bar and are best characterised as Lovable rogues.

The 6 person team:

1. Samantha Landry is a Female Scavenger with a Space station background and a motivation for Survival. Stats: Reaction 2 (body wire increased reaction), Speed 4, Combat 0, Toughness 4, Savvy 0, XP 0. Items: Body wire reflex enhancing implants.
2. Elijah Wagner is a Male Scientist with a Industrial world background and a motivation for Adventure. Stats: Reaction 1, Speed 4, Combat 0, Toughness 3, Savvy 1, XP 0.
3. Omari Crawford is a Male Working class with a War torn hell hole background and a motivation for Escape. Stats: Reaction 2, Speed 5, Combat 0, Toughness 3, Savvy 1, XP 0.
4. Cain Randolph is a Male Scoundrel with a Bureaucratic class background and a motivation for Adventure. Stats: Reaction 1, Speed 5, Combat 0, Toughness 3, Savvy 0, XP 0.
5. Santos Kirk is a Male Enforcer with a Wasteland nomads background and a motivation for Truth. Stats: Reaction 2, Speed 4, Combat 1, Toughness 3, Savvy 0, XP 0.
6. Jaylin Wang is a Female Working class with a Tech guild background and a motivation for Order. Stats: Reaction 1, Speed 4, Combat 0, Toughness 3, Savvy 2, XP 0.

Stash

Low-Tech Weapons: Shotgun, Handgun, Brutal melee weapon, Handgun, Rifle, Shotgun.

High-Tech Weapons: Hand flamer, Hand cannon, Clingfire pistol, Glare sword, Blast rifle.

Military Weapons: Blast rifle.

Gear: Dazzle grenades, Purifier, Nano-doc, Combat armour.

Gadgets: Duplicator.

Credits: 16. Patrons: 2. Rivals: 0. Not on a Quest. Clues: 2. Rumours: 0.

Campaign turn 01 – A fight with raiders

Period 1. Location: Cook. Cook is a Colony station and is at Earth-Moon L3 with a population of 1200,000 that are Wary. The government is Australia and ruled via a Multi-Party Parliament.

The team of 6 is currently Samantha Landry, Elijah Wagner, Omari Crawford, Cain Randolph, Santos Kirk, Jaylin Wang.

Credits: 16. Patrons: 2. Rivals: 0. Not on a Quest. Clues: 2. Rumours: 0.

The team decide to not travel.

Upkeep is 1 Credits.

No one in Sickbay.

Jobs

Crew available for jobs are: Samantha Landry, Elijah Wagner, Omari Crawford, Cain Randolph, Santos Kirk, Jaylin Wang.

Omari Crawford and Cain Randolph look for a patron. 2 Credits are spent to help out. Existing Patron found: Sector government.

Job on offer pays 2 Credits and have 1 turn to execute.

Samantha Landry trains and goes from 0XP to 1XP.

Elijah Wagner trains and goes from 0XP to 1XP.

Santos Kirk explores and finds an Arms dealer. 3 Credits each, in order: Shellgun, Blast rifle, Rifle, Suppression maul, Rattlegun.  Team buys the Shellgun and Blast Rifle (6 Credits).

Jaylin Wang explores and gets a few drinks. No effect.

Total spent on jobs is 8 Credits.

Assigning equipment

Samantha Landry is assigned: Clingfire pistol, Brutal melee weapon, Combat armour, Body wire reflex enhancing implants.

Elijah Wagner is assigned: Hand flamer, Glare sword.

Omari Crawford is assigned: Hand cannon.

Cain Randolph is assigned: Blast rifle.

Santos Kirk is assigned: Shellgun.

Jaylin Wang is assigned: Blast rifle.

Mission

Ok, now for the admission – I have no SF figures.  Well, OK, I have some 15mm unpainted figures that are in storage and did a quick look but cannot find.  I also have little in the way of SF terrain.  So what do I have: 20mm WW2 figures and some terrain not in storage and 20mm railway characters I plan to use for Pulp Alley and similar games.  So the raiders look just like WW2 soviets and our team look like they are waiting for a train 😊 I can suspend my disbelief as I assume the team could look like normal people but with weapons.  Imagine the weapons.  And Cook I a space colony so the terrain could be anything – just so happens to look very “Earthy”.  I thought about adding some SF bits to at least give a semblance, but did look around the house very hard as I was focussed on playing.

No quest.

Mission selected is: Patron mission.

Patron for the mission is Sector government.

Opposition is 7 Aggressive Raiders with a Morale of 2.

Boss: S-4 C-2 T-4 Rifle, Old fashioned blade, Hand gun

Lieutenant: S-4 C-2 T-3 Rifle, Old fashioned blade

Specialist: S-4 C-1 T-3 Shotgun

Raiders: S-4 C-1 T-3 Rifle

Raiders: S-4 C-1 T-3 Rifle

Raiders: S-4 C-1 T-3 Rifle

Raiders: S-4 C-1 T-3 Rifle

The opposition.

Deploy Conditions: None

Notable Sights: None

Mission Target: Patrol. Fight a normal battle and hold the field at the end.

Objective: Store.

Terrain Type: Mixed

Terrain layout (3 x 3 areas):

Open, Open, Open

Open, Crops, Crops

Park, Light woods, Light woods

Store location: 3

The team on the mission:

• Samantha Landry: R-2 S-4 C-0 T-4 Svy-0 Clingfire pistol Brutal melee weapon Armour: Combat armour.
• Elijah Wagner: R-1 S-4 C-0 T-3 Svy-1 Hand flamer Glare sword.
• Omari Crawford: R-2 S-5 C-0 T-3 Svy-1 Hand cannon.
• Cain Randolph: R-1 S-5 C-0 T-3 Svy-0 Blast rifle.
• Santos Kirk: R-2 S-4 C-1 T-3 Svy-0 Shellgun.
• Jaylin Wang: R-1 S-4 C-0 T-3 Svy-2 Blast rifle.

Our team.

The final number of enemies opposing the mission is 7.

Deploy enemies: Set up in one “blob” with 1“ between each figure.

The team seizes the initiative. Any character in your crew may either take a normal move or may fire before the game begins.

The game table with both sides deployed.

Encounter

Note: combat rules used for this encounter are here.

For seizing the initiative, Omari moves up to get into range.

Omari dashes up the side of the road.

For the Quick Phase, only one roll available to assign so give it to Omari to fire as he is a little exposed.  Omari fires at the raider to his front for no effect.

The raiders are aggressive enemies so most advance.  For Omari this is bad as three enemy converge on him.

Aggressive enemies charging forward.  Omari is a target in reach of three of them! 

Omari Vs three Raiders:   Omari does not do well and The Boss is hard to beat (especially when he rolled really well).  Omari is out of the fight.

Omari is out of the fight.  Not unexpected.

The rest of the team now get to respond, revenge for Omari!

Elijah has a hand flamer that can reach the three raiders. Pins the Boss; suppresses a raider.

Jaylin with the blast rifle:  nothing.

Cain with the blast rifle:  pins a raider.

Santos’s shellgun: suppresses a raider.

Sam then charges into melee with the Boss!

After some fire have suppressed some of them, Sam charges into melee with the Boss!

The Boss it out of the fight!  But Sam is pinned in return by one of the other raiders that managing to get in a melee hit even while suppressed.

(turn 2)

Sam, Elijah and Cain go in the Quick Phase.

Sam melees a raider that goes out of the fight

After putting the Boss down last turn, Sam manages to put another raider out of the fight.

 Elijah advances then fires his hand flamer to pins the Lieutenant.

Elijah uses his flamethrower but is obviously unfamiliar with it as it surprisingly does nothing!

Cain uses his blast rifle at raider at the back who is out of the fight!

In response to the above, a raider melees Sam for no effect.

Cian blasts a raider out of the fight!

 The Lieutenant and the Specialist charge at Elijah.

The flamer doing nothing, the two enemy that were targeted charge Elijah.

Elijah out of the fight.

Not surprisingly, Elijah is out of the fight.

The raiders have lost three members, one above morale level.  The raiders decide to retire.

The team has the field!

Post-Encounter

The mission was a success!

The team held the field at the end.

The team did not run away.

The team managed to kill the Boss.

Survival: 4 are OK.  2 are not OK

Elijah Wagner is not OK. Crippling wound Require 1d6 Credits of surgery or suffer -1 permanent reduction to highest of Speed or Toughness. 1 terms in SickBay.

Omari Crawford is not OK. Crippling wound Require 1d6 Credits of surgery or suffer -1 permanent reduction to highest of Speed or Toughness. 1 terms in SickBay.

The team did not make a new Rival.

Pay/salvage is 3 Credits plus Patron bonus of 2 Credits. Total earned is 5 Credits.

Loot! Recreational supplies. Can be sold for 1D6 Credits and crew does not require Upkeep next campaign turn.

Samantha Landry awarded 4 XP for an overall total of 5 XP for surviving and holding the field, inflicted a casualty on the enemy Boss.

Cain Randolph awarded 3 XP for an overall total of 3 XP for surviving and holding the field.

Santos Kirk awarded 3 XP for an overall total of 3 XP for surviving and holding the field.

Jaylin Wang awarded 3 XP for an overall total of 3 XP for surviving and holding the field.

The team do not spend anything shopping.

Equipment malfunction.  A random item in your stash is Destroyed - the Blast rifle.

An event occurs for Cain Randolph. He gets hurt while working on the ship. Spend 1 turn in Sick-Bay.

The Campaign turn has ended.

Verdict

I actually had the game set up for a month to play.  I was uncertain if I could handle playing with 6 unique characters.  So uncertain that I put off playing.  I did play in the end but it was a constant flip to see what characters had what.  I had a 2 page QRS that I now need to make one.  And another good idea would be a second sheet that has the characters, and opposition and weapon descriptions and chances to hit/melee already worked out.  I can do the latter easily from the spreadsheet.

Luckily 2 were knocked down, I fudged it so they were out and left with 4.  I have changed the sheet so 3-4 characters is the norm and hard to recruit after that.  Consequently enemies roll two d4 and chose the best, rather than the best of two d6.   Other than that I had fun and will continue on for a few games at least.  I may also change the combat rules as the distances are so close.  Although I do like the fact that the games are at close range shots and involve melee.  It was also a result of the enemies being aggressive so advanced.

I also need to check out Version 1.13 – I am a minor Patreon supporter and it has a lot more on the Enemy side of things that looks good.  Not sure I am ready to change the sheet yet as have only encountered one enemy so far.  Maybe later.