Searching an Abandoned Army Base

    F Troops arrives at the abandoned army base to begin its exploration into the mystery

Our Sunday evening gaming crew got together to play out the fourth installment of my post-apocalyptic campaign. Each player has their own gang of survivors, and most have been steadily using their Renown Points earned to add skills and traits to their crew. Some, in particular Mike S's Bucknuts, are proving even more effective and deadly than they were at the start of the campaign! The scenario for this game was that the survivor gangs had each heard that a nearby army base had recently been abandoned.

    A shot of the base before the start, showing where each survivor gang would come on

Each gang had sent a scout to spy on the base from afar, and all groups received similar reports. The base had indeed been abandoned - there was no movement, and no signs of life. There were clearly indications that a battle had taken place. The quonset huts were riddled with bullet holes and the perimeter chain link and barbed wire fence had been cut and showed signs of forced entry. The players' scouts all surmised that it was NOT an attack by the Machines. There appeared to be no signs of heavy artillery or high caliber weapons -- only small arms. The Machines would certainly have brought heavier weapons in their assault, if it had been them. Each gang outfitted a party to unravel the mystery of who the attackers were, and hopefully to scavenge some useful military equipment, food, or supplies.

    Daffid and Yoav of the Followers of the Dark Prophet enter the base and take cover

Players had four members of their survivor gang arrive at the edge of the table, two on each long sides of the base, one on each short side. Their arrival locations corresponded to a place where the fence had been either cut or physically forced inwards. Gang members entering through those places wondered what could have bent the aluminum bars inward. It must have been very powerful! I was playing my Green Dragons, and we had chosen to bring along our leader Ting, specialist Wang, Quon, and recently-upgraded Bao. He had been practicing with the assault rifle and ammo the Green Dragons had brought back from the second scenario. 

    Wang of the Green Dragons dashes up to the fence, and quickly surveys the buildings beyond

Wang dashed up to the fence, quickly surveyed the sandbagged positions, supplies, and quonset huts in front of him for signs of activity. Seeing none, he ducked through the cut section of the fence, and darted between the two closest quonset huts, seeking cover. Bao crept into the twisted remains of a burnt out vehicle for a firing position to cover him. On the left, Quon entered the woods to keep an eye on the Nightstalkers. On the right, Ting crept into the woods to take a position to observe the Bucknuts. He cursed them as he caught sight of them. Those country bumpkins were the bastards that had killed Chen in the last scenario!

    Gunfire erupts as the Blood Brotherhood catches sight of the Followers and opens fire on them

All along the perimeter of the base, the other survivor gangs were making their way inside. To the Dragons' left, the Nightstalkers entered in force -- all four darting inside, two creeping inside the first quonset hut. Wang could hear them moving things around inside, searching for valuable equipment. He darted along the path between the huts and took cover besides a stack of spare tires and other equipment. Gunfire rang out, and Wang ducked down even more. Bullets began to tear through the tires and boxes near him and he huddled into a ball, hoping that whatever was inside was solid enough to stop the bullets. He peeked over the top and saw it was indeed the Bucknuts who had been shooting at him.

    Daffid goes down wounded, as the gun battle with the Blood Brotherhood intensifies

Outside the fence, Ting had opened fire once he could make out the form of the Bucknuts' leader, Coop. The woods and the target's good defensive position prevented his shots from having any effect. Coop sighted along the barrel of his assault rifle and fired off two bursts at Ting, forcing him to dive for cover as bullets hit all around him. Coop shouted, "Green Dragons - we weren't trying to kill your man in town, last time! We were shooting at the dogs!" The Bucknuts' leader paused to make sure Ting was listening. "Truce? Let's see what happened here first, and we can settle our differences later." Ting wasn't sure he could trust them, but he knew they all seemed to be much heavier armed and equipped than his men. He shouted okay, then called out to Bao to relay the information to the others.

    A third survivor gang joins the battle as F Troop arrives and begins shooting at both the other two

The shouting was immediately drowned out by the staccato booming of gunfire from the other side of the base. The Followers of the Dark Prophet had entered near the front of the base, immediately taking up cover. Moments later, the dark red robes of the Blood Brotherhood slipped around one of the quonset huts and opened fire. Gunfire rang out back and forth. Daffid of the Followers slumped to the ground wounded, and Brother Intensity cried out and fell beneath the pile of supplies he was sheltering behind. Bursts of automatic gunfire rang out as the two sides fired on each other. The Followers' leader Solomon motioned one of his men along as he crept along the side of one of the quonset huts. The two quickly disappeared inside.

    Wang takes cover from the Bucknuts fire, but also has to worry about the arrival of the Nightstalkers

The gun battle at the front became even more intense as a third group arrived. After occupying the sandbagged guard positions outside the gate, F Troop moved up to the fence and began firing on both the Blood Brotherhood and the Followers of the Dark Prophet. More bullet holes in the buildings of the army base as the rival survivor gangs battled it out. Those who ducked inside the quonset huts found signs of the previous bloody struggle. Bloodstains were everywhere, and trails of bodies being dragged could clearly be discerned. The attackers had ransacked the place already, it appeared, and everyone struggled to find anything of value left among the debris of battle. 

Commander Zander of the Nightstalkers seemed particularly spooked. After two of his men found some useful equipment, he was the first to motion his men to exit the army base. "Whatever did this, boys, might be back. Let's get out of here!" The well-equipped group then quickly ex-filtrated through the large gap in the fence. Zander stopped to examine the bent aluminum bars. "No vehicle tracks," he muttered, shaking his head. "These bars were bent by someone or something. I don't want to meet whatever could bust open a fence like this!" His men stealthily crept from the base, regrouping in a patch of woods.

    Bucknuts begin to ex-filtrate from the compound, with their leader Coop covering their withdrawal

A cry from near the front of the base signaled another casualty of the gun fight. F Troop's Captain Amos slumped next to his firing position, clutching his side. "Got him!" Deacon Justice of the Blood Brotherhood shouted in triumph. It seemed there was little effort in searching among the base's buildings from the three groups near the entrance. Instead, here was a chance to settle some scores and pay back some bad blood between rivals. In my campaign, players earn Renown Points for knocking out of action members of rival survivor gangs. However, they receive a bonus to that score if it is from a group that inflicted a casualty on your gang during the previous game. This might explain Jenny's behavior with her Blood Brotherhood this game, and her bloodthirstiness!

Once the third casualty had been suffered by the players, that sprang the return of those who had attacked the base. I had the players who'd all suffered a casualty roll off, with the winner indicating which of the six woods spaced along the table edge "something" would arrive. Joel chose the woods between my Green Dragons and Mike S's Bucknuts. On the first turn, I indicated the shadowy "something" was stealthily creeping to the edge of the woods, so that it could see out. Its closest targets were Bao inside the cover of the burnt out car and Brutus and Jackie O of the Bucknuts, who had just exited the base and were in the open. 

    With the Bucknuts distracted by "something" firing at them, the Green Dragons prepare to exit

I had received an extra card for the "something" -- I like how the players reacted to the mystery, by the way! I saved the "2 card" for the creature, because it allows an extra die to be rolled, when attacking (player chooses the best). In addition, it was armed with an assault rifle. So, I fired two bursts, with Jackie O falling to the ground wounded and Brutus receiving a "Shaken" marker for near misses. Since anyone in hiding loses that status when they shoot under the Fistful of Lead Core Rules, I described the firer as a dark, human-sized figure that looked vaguely like...Allen! Allen has a bushy beard, hair, and mustache. I said the hair and skin were very much darker than Allen's, and immediately the players began to speculate on who or what the firer could be.

On the Bucknuts turn, Brutus scooped up the fallen Jackie O and ran behind the woods out of sight of his ambusher. Bravely, Wrich stepped around the woods and blazed away with his assault rifle. He missed, from which the players learned the firer had the "Stealthy" skill. Return fire inflicted a Shaken marker on Wrich, but also resulted in an Out of Ammo for the shooter. My Green Dragons took advantage of the distraction of the Bucknuts gun battle with the attacker to exit the base, as well. We dashed off-table with two backpacks full of supplies. Not the greatest haul, but for the first time, we were also leaving the table with no casualties!

    Players speculated over the identify of the mystery attacker - was this a clue to the fate of the base?

Near the front of the base, both the Blood Brotherhood and the Followers ceased firing and made their way off the base. Joel saw them do this, so had F Troop seize the opportunity and dash forward and search for some supplies. After finding some, they also took the opportunity to leave, carrying the unconscious body of Capt. Amos with them. The game had been a tale of two separate encounters. At the front of the base, the three survivor gangs had fired on each other from the outset. All three suffered a casualty, but upon rolling at the end of the game, the gang members all survived. On the other hand, the Nightstalkers, Bucknuts, and Green Dragons had avoided gunplay, for the most part. None suffered a casualty, with Jackie O recovering from her wound before exiting the table.

Fierce speculation ensued as to the identity of the dark-clothed, dark-skinned attacker. I decided to throw in something to worry the players as we broke up. I informed them that all of their gangs, upon heading back towards their bases, felt they were being followed. Whatever was following them was too clever to be caught, though. Whenever they tried to leave someone behind to ambush the stalker or double back, the pursuer would detect it, and stay out of sight. Doubtless, the next mission will involve more clues as to who this mystery enemy might be!

Dog Day Afternoon - 3rd Post-apocalyptic Game

Green Dragons take cover in the ruined city block, watching the approach of the Blood Brotherhood

I had decided to do an urban scenario for my third game with my Sunday night gaming group. For the last several months, I've been furiously painting ruined buildings, street sections, and scatter terrain. After the latest batch, I crossed my fingers and set out a 5'x3' board using my "concrete" floor tiles and my cork road sections. I cluttered up the streets with my burnt out vehicles and vegetation scatter, and placed my ruined buildings atop the floor tiles that I use as sidewalks for my Mean Streets games. Tossing in my 28mm graveyard on one 12"x12" tile, my terrain filled up the table nicely!

    My Green Dragons begin to spread out, hunkering down behind walls and burnt out vehicles

I was worried that I'd come up short and have to paint up more ruined buildings. Thankfully, that did not happen. Critiquing the setup, I think my mottled gray floor tiles are just too uniform looking. I will be brainstorming some way to make sections look more realistic with a mixture of asphalt, earth, and sparse grass. Originally, I was thinking of creating irregular shaped pieces of styrene flocked appropriately to place here and there. However, now I am thinking of simply making a 12"x12" piece to either lay over the tile or replace it. I do have some foot square cork sections left over from my streets. I could try it out with them and see what it looks like. Of course, that means storing more 12" square terrain tiles, though!

    The Bucknuts stalk stealthily through the rubble of blasted buildings -- too close to me for comfort!

Anyway, stay tuned to see what I come up with. I had five players coming that night, so that meant my Green Dragon gang was tapped to make an even number. Four gangs would deploy within 6" of each corner, and the remaining two opposite each other at the midpoint of the long table. When my players arrived Sunday night, I had the starting locations set up with dice, tape measures, quick reference sheets for the Fistful of Lead Core Rules we use, and markers to denote which figures have already acted that turn. I let the players pick out which four members of their gang they would use tonight and select their starting locations. I took the remaining spot on the board.

    To the Dragon's right, Keith's Nightstalkers arrive on table and immediately enter the graveyard

The table was five feet wide with a 12" width street running across most of the center of the board. The final foot had a ruined church in the center, flanked by a graveyard on one side and dilapidated playground on the other. I used my new 6"x12" street sections to break up the four feet of city block, two sections per side. I did my best to evenly distribute cover so that no player had a disadvantage in their starting position. I also wanted to break up the sight lines of the streets and gaps between buildings as much as possible. Finally, across the center of the table, I evenly spaced out five pieces of urban scatter with a crate on it. The crate represents the chance to find some medical equipment or food. Even though the opposing players are "objectives" in themselves in my games, I also like to place physical things for them to scavenge for. 

    The menacing, red-robed forms of the Blood Brotherhood are never a welcome sight across the table

My Green Dragons "luckily" drew the center point of one board edge and deployed behind a burnt out vehicle and the shattered remains of a couple buildings. To our right, in the graveyard, were the Nightstalkers run by Keith. To the Green Dragons' left were the Bucknuts, run by Mike S. "Greeeaat," I thought! My two sniper friends are on either side of me! Chen was sent off to the left to grab some hard cover and keep an eye on the Bucknuts. Mike S is an aggressive player and enjoys attacking his rival players openly and forcefully. On my left it as no better. In Keith's previous game, he grabbed firing positions and blazed away happily all game long at enemy gangs. And across from me was the Blood Brotherhood -- Jenny's gang. They were the current leader in Renown Points after two scenarios. Jenny loves to mix it up on the tabletop, too! Yikes -- my Green Dragons were in for a hot night, it appeared.

    F Troop, our nemesis last scenario, was back -- but likely too far away for us to inflict some payback

To the Brotherhood's left, and deployed in the dilapidated playground was Joel's F Troop gang. Joel tends to be a little less aggressive, but incidentally, his was also the gang who the Dragons wanted "payback" against. We would receive bonus points for knocking any of their gang members out of action (they took out one of ours in the last game, "I Smell a Rat!"). As it was, we never got close enough to them to take any shots at F Troop. To the Brotherhood's right was Joel's brother Allen and his Followers of the Dark Prophet. That meant Jenny was tonight's designated "Sams-wich" -- something I have experienced more than once in the past. Allen's wife always admonishes the brothers not to kill each other every week, so being stuck between them can be a bad thing!

Followers of the Dark Prophet move out into the streets, hoping to scavenge some food or equipment

On our first turn, the Green Dragons four members moved out. Chen was sent to keep an eye on the Bucknuts. He took a position in heavy cover and watched as the other gang moved up stealthily. Quon and Ting darted forward and crouched behind a burnt out sports car, while Feng raced up to the window of a crumbling stone building overlooking the wide street. From all corners of the board, the rival gangs moved up. To our left, three of the Nightstalkers lined a wall overlooking the ruined church. Specialist Cypher raced to the corner of the wall and focused his optics on a crate semi-hidden amidst the ruins of the church. It looked promising, and on the next turn, he darted out towards it. He was able to recover some medical supplies stashed inside. Meanwhile, his teammates scanned the ruins beyond him, ready to pour in covering fire at the first sign of trouble.

    White investigating a crate, Jackie of the Bucknuts dispatches a feral dog that raced to attack her

The Bucknuts sent Jackie racing forward to a investigate a crate next to an abandoned van. Before she could get a chance to check it out, furious barking made her freeze in her tracks. A feral dog had sprung from beneath a nearby burnt out pickup truck and was charging towards her. With remarkable coolness, she spun and fired a single shot into its skull. The huge dog slid into the crate and lay motionless. I created a new mechanic this time to encourage players to venture into the wide street area to investigate the crates. When a player first takes an action to solve the task of scavenging equipment in one of the crates, they are given control of a feral dog and an additional card to activate it. It is placed immediately anywhere on the board outside of 5" from a player character. The player can either use that card to activate the dog or any other in its hand. Allen's Followers of the Dark Prophet had beaten Mike S's Bucknuts to the roll, and investigated their own crate. Allen placed the dog in the burnt out pickup and used his next card to send it charging in to attack Jackie. Alas for Allen (and the dog), he rolled poorly for the pooch and it was quickly put out of action in melee.

    A bullet flies in from somewhere and Chen is struck. Was the shooter aiming at him or the dog?

Shortly thereafter, Jenny's Blood Brotherhood also made a task roll on a crate (although failing). She placed a second feral dog in the exact same spot. Unfortunately, she chose to send it racing to attack my Chen, who thought he had done a good job of hiding. Chen jabbed the butt of his rifle into the feral dog's jaw, eliciting a yelp. The beast shook it off, though, and stayed in place, growling furiously. One of the Bucknuts saw the struggle taking place and fired a shot. Was he aiming for the feral dog or Chen? The shot struck Chen, who dropped to the pavement, bleeding and out of action. When firing into a melee, Fistful of Lead rules dictate a random roll to see who is targeted. My Green Dragons weren't actually having a lot of luck tonight, and Chen's misfortune was symptomatic of how things would go for my gang.

    While Jackie checks to make sure the dog is dead, Efron races up and snatches away the supplies!

Meanwhile, Allen was being fairly bold with his advance. Two Followers of the Dark Prophet moved towards the van where Jackie had paused after downing the dog. One raced up and snatched up the crate, rolling successfully to loot some valuable equipment. He smiled at Jackie as he did so. This allowed Allen to place yet another feral dog. This one was in another pickup truck within striking distance of Mike's Bucknuts. Annoyed at losing the equipment, Coach Coop (the Bucknuts leader) sighted along his sniper scope and squeezed off a single shot. The bulldog fell to the asphalt with a whimper. If I thought my Green Dragons were having a tough night, the dogs were truly have a dog day afternoon. Every single shot fired at them took one out of action. What's more, despite being +1 in melee over the characters they engaged, they also lost every melee.

    When the machines send a Scout Bot to investigate the gunfire, the Bucknuts blast away, disabling it

With three total casualties so far, that triggered the arrival of a Scout Bot at the end of turn 2. Since I'd lost Chen, I was given control of it. I placed it in the corner the Bucknuts had arrived ontable from, hoping to distract them and give them something to think about. I looked at my four cards (which dictate the order of activation), and sighed. Nothing above a five! Apparently, this Scout Bot rolled ontable through a pile of rubbish, clearly announcing its arrival. The Bucknuts turned at the noise, and one of them fired a burst from their automatic weapon. Sparks and chunks flew from the glass, plastic, and metal. The Scout Bot crashed into a pillar, its sole wheel spinning wildly. Mike was definitely making up for my poor rolling. In his four rolls to wound this game, he had rolled ALL 9's or 10's on a ten-sided die. Everything he shot seemed to go out of action -- don't mess with the Bucknuts!!

Brave Quon spies a crate, aware that four Blood Brotherhood members are also advancing towards it

In my sector, Quon had crept up to within a move of where two members of the Blood Brotherhood were poring over a crate in the center of the street. Shots rang out, and both of the hooded cult members fell to the ground writhing in pain. Quon judged his time was right and sprinted to the crate. He quickly figured out how to open it and snatched up the supplies that had been hidden inside. I had tried to do this as cleverly as possibly. I moved Quon up on my last activation card, and planned to move him back on my first one on the next turn. Once again, my cards were terrible, though. My highest was a six! Jenny's cultists recovered and fired at Quon, hitting him and knocking him out of action. The Green Dragons were definitely having "dog luck!" Everyone who hit one of my figures rolled a 9-10 on 1d10, too, taking them out!

    The Nightstalkers man the graveyard wall, pouring covering fire into F Troop for Spec. Cypher

Back on my right, F Troop had reached the playground wall and saw Specialist Cypher standing with the supplies in his hand. They poured fire into him, giving him several shock markers but no wounds. Luckily for Cypher, one of Keith's activation cards was a special one allowing the figure activated to clear all shock for free. Cypher sprinted away through the ruins and dove over the graveyard wall, not stopping until he plummeted into a grave that had been dug, but not filled. Cypher checked himself over, found he was unhurt, and rose to his knees waving the supplies at his fellow Nightstalkers. The soldiers let out a cheer for their brave specialist. Keith was having a "Bucknuts" kind of night, too. His return fire on F Troop also took out one of their soldiers.

    Drawn by the heavy gunfire, a military bot clanks forward to investigate, spotting the Nightstalkers

Keith's luck was about to change, though (or was it?). I totaled up the figures that had been taken out, and the carnage tripped us up to the third level. This meant we skipped the Sentry Bot arrival stage and went straight to a Military Bot. Joel was given this card to control and he placed it in the street next to the graveyard. The Nightstalkers heard the ominous metal clanking at the giant, man-like robot strode purposefully towards the wall. Unlike me, Joel had pulled a King (or Ace), which allowed him to act first. Keith's troopers were helpfully bunched close together, which allowed Joel to target three of them with burst fire from its machine gun. His wound rolls were not nearly as deadly and resulted in a miss, shock, and a wound on the three Nightstalkers. On his turn, though, Keith was able to have three of his guys vault the wall and escape off-table. The fourth ducked behind the wall and prayed, but was also able to escape on the following turn.

    With both cultists down and bleeding, Ting creeps forward, eyes on the supplies won and lost

Meanwhile, the Blood Brotherhood was feeling the ill effects of being out in the middle of the street. Both the Green Dragons and Followers of the Dark Prophet poured fire into their exposed position. One hooded cultist fell dead while another was wounded. This encouraged my leader Ting to try to regain the supplies that brave Quon had paid the ultimate price for scavenging. He raced to the cover of some scrub growing out of the split pavement. Unfortunately, the round ended and once again my cards were all low, meaning I would not activate until later in the turn. Another Military Bot stomped onto the table, though, and I was awarded control of it. I brought it in on the edge of the center street, hidden by a wall from the Bucknuts.

    Grand Master of the Blood Brotherhood finds a good firing position in the burnt out pickup truck

Jenny's leader had taken cover in the bed of a burned out pickup. Grand Master blazed away at Ting, once again hitting and scoring a 9-10! Luckily (finally?), I had the foresight to give leaders in my campaign the "9 Lives" trait. This reduces the first "Out of Action" result on the figure to a wound. Another cultist fired at Ting and he received a second wound. My guys just could not win for losing, tonight!

    Jenny's cultists just won't stay down! Despite their wounds, they gun down Ting hiding in the bushes

Meanwhile, with both F Troop and the Nightstalkers scattering for the board edge, the military bot began to march back towards the center of the table. The new bot rounded the corner and fired burst fire from his machine gun. Three of the four Bucknuts were inside the "blast radius." I rolled and, in true Hollywood fashion, the bad guy machine missed all of the heroes. Knowing enough was enough, Mike had all of his troopers sprint off table. He'd garnered enough points, he figured. In addition, Brutus and Jackie had removed portions of the Sentry Bot, taking valuable optics and ammunition with them off-table.

    Ting limps off-table, heavily wounded and rethinking the commands he'd given this day

At this point, all six factions were heading for the table edges. Two military bots were roaming the table, blasting away on full auto at anything that moved. I was actually very happy with how my post-apocalyptic games were ending. As more and more bots arrive, the surviving gang members decide it is time to run and live to fight for another day. It gives a very cinematic and almost realistic feel. Four of the gangs had taken casualties in this scenario, though, with my Green Dragons taking two. Only the Bucknuts and Nightstalkers got off the table unscathed. 

    Just before escaping off-table in a hail of bot machine gunfire, Jackie and Brutus pry off some parts from the Scout Bot they'd downed

Despite my bad luck, it was a good time. I felt the game flowed well and terrain on the table looked nice. Now, it is time to figure out what Scenario 4 will be! Hopefully, with my school year ending soon, it won't take as long to get this one played. Stay tuned!

Finally! Second Post-Apoc game: 'I Smell a Rat...!'

    F Troop, a survivor gang drawn from a former Army unit, search for loot on the outskirts of town

It had been since July of 2022 that I ran our first post-apocalyptic game, Water or Gas? Waaay too long! And just when I was ready to host the long-awaited sequel, the flu bug made a run through our gaming group and I had to postpone twice more. Five of us finally got together, though, this past Sunday to play out, "I Smell a Rat!" -- the second scenario in what will hopefully be a continuing series of games. It also happened to be Super Bowl Sunday, so we had the TV on in the background to keep an eye on the commercials and regular scoring between the Chiefs and Eagles.

    F Troop advances, ready to forage the ruins for supplies (figs from Battle Valor Games)

In my second scenario, various gangs of survivors have heard that another gang was recently wiped out by the Machines and their Bots on a foraging expedition. A number of rival gangs were also aware that the deceased gang members had a headquarters in a trailer on the edge of a town. Most were of the opinion that there had to be some guns, ammo, or other useful supplies stashed in the trailer or nearby. The goal was to be the first to loot the headquarters! Unknown to the would-be looters, swarms of rats have been drawn to the area by the smell of the gang's rotting food. Amidst the swarms could be seen the huge shapes of ROUS's (Rodents of Unusual Size, for fans of The Princess Bride).

    The Green Dragons, my newest team, advance onto the board wearing their HazMat suits & masks

There were three weapons caches on the board (3 Renown Points each) -- in the trailer, hidden inside a rusted van, and also inside a broken down taxi. These were spread across the center of the board, and would require a "Normal" task roll to successfully loot it. At eight other scattered points on the tabletop were crates marking the location of medical equipment or food supplies (2 Renown Points each). However, the first time a player character came within 6" of one of those spots, they had to stop their move and roll a d10. On a 1-2, a ROUS appeared, 3-5 swarm of rats, 6+ no effect. If one appeared, a card was immediately dealt to the player two spots to their left at the table. The controller of the swarm or ROUS added the extra card to their hand, and could use that card or one of their other cards to activate the creatures.

    The rowdy Barbarozas investigate a pile of rubbish, hoping to find something useful

Players could also get a RP by knocking out of action a rival player's character, killing a ROUS or swarm, or even while controlling a rat and knocking out another player's character. This last one was to ensure proper bloodthirstiness among the rival players rather than any gentleman's agreement! Finally, players could earn an RP for spending two actions carving off some meat from a downed swarm or ROUS -- White Castle rat-burgers on the menu tonight! Ha, ha!!

 

    Winners of the first scenario, the Blood Brotherhood move up past a ruined building

The board was roughly 6' wide and 4's across. I am thinking of shrinking it down a bit for the next game. There was less interaction among rival teams in this game than I was hoping for. Jenny's Blood Brotherhood and Andy's Barbarozas had a running fight through the second half of the game, but otherwise, little other gun play happened between players. I even sweetened the pot for players who had a character knocked out of action last game. They would receive a bonus 1 RP each if they got revenge and knocked out members of that gang. With the lack of targeting each other that occurred, I am thinking my board is too spacious.

    The Followers of the Dark Prophet were the first to trigger the arrival of a swarm of giant rats

The game opened with each player starting near one of the four corners or mid-point of one of the long edges. I had tried to distribute the equipment caches evenly across the board, and all five players immediately began heading for them. Allen's Followers of the Dark Prophet were the first to come within 6" of a crate. A rat swarm appeared, though, and the startled Daffyd of the Followers tried to leap back. His fellows opened fire on the swarm, but that seemed to only enrage the vermin. Almost immediately afterwards, Jenny used the extra card (or one of her own?) to charge the rats into Daffyd. He went down, screaming horribly, devoured by a moving carpet of rats.

    The Barbarozas welcomed the rats arrival and waded in with axes and swords to carve up a meal!

His horrified brethren continued to pour fire into the swarm, but succeeded in putting only one wound and one Shock marker on the rats. Since swarms remove a wound at the end of each turn, the second turn dawned with an almost fresh rat swarm ready to charge again.  However, the concentrated gunfire of the black-clad Followers finally dispersed or killed most of the rats before it could charge again. This seemed to check Allen's enthusiasm for moving ahead quickly, though, and he explored more cautiously for the next couple turns.

    Dragons leader Ting and Wang survey the dilapidated trailer before moving in to search it

Meanwhile, the wild Barbarozas charged onto the board with a rocker's rebel yell. This elicited movement at the first crate, and sure enough, another rat swarm emerged from a pile of garbage. It charged into Barbarozas, who despite toting guns, are always ready for a hand-to-hand brawl. Their team trait is "Ferocious," which adds +1 on their "to wound" roll in melee. I had modeled the team on the classic "bad guys" of Mad Max and other post-apocalyptic movies. Andy's rock and rollers quickly dispatched the rat swarm and then showed their barbaric nature by immediately carving up the carcasses to take home for dinner!

    Ting watches in horror as Wang is attacked by a swarm of rats as he crept towards the trailer

Meanwhile, across the table, the dark red-clad Blood Brotherhood crept onto the scene. Winners of the first scenario in RPs, they showed they were still a force to be reckoned with. When their exploration prompted a loud roll and the appearance of an ROUS, the Brotherhood did not panic. Brother Foresight, who seemed to anticipate the appearance of the monstrous rat, took aim with his shotgun and dropped it with one shot. 

    Before Wang could respond, the rats attack again on the next turn, swarming all over him

I was playing my newest painted gang, the Green Dragons. I sent Feng to the left to investigate one of the crates between my position and that of the Followers of the Dark Prophet. I sent Chen to the right to check out another crate. While Feng fumbled finding anything, and eventually gave up, Chen found a packet of medical supplies and quickly pocketed them. The Dragons' leader Ting, accompanied by his loyal henchman Wang, crept towards the trailer. The two eyed the steel bars reinforcing all the windows and wondered if it was truly abandoned. Ting waved Wang forward. As the green-clad survivor neared the trailer, a seething gray mass emerged from underneath the trailer. Another swarm of giant rats had appeared! 

    The rats had less success against the Blood Brother, as Justice dispatches a ROUS with his shotgun

The rats quickly charged (Joel was merciless when controlling the rats) and inflicted a Shock on Wang. When Ting's turned arrived, I was unsure what to do. If I shot into the melee, Fistful of Lead rules state that you randomize who you hit. However, if you charge into melee, all combatants roll again. So, if the rat swarm rolled high and I rolled low, I could lose both characters. What to do, wondered my leader Ting? I decided to have the leader take up a good firing position and use his "Encouraging" trait to remove Wang's shock. Wrong decision, apparently, as on the next turn, Joel acted with the first of his SIX cards (he also received an extra card because his gang, F Troop, had Advanced Communications as their team trait). The swarm acted before Wang could, and took him out in a flurry of sharp teeth and raking claws. Joel then used the swarm's "Unstoppable" trait to immediately charge Ting!

    The Barbarozas move onto the rusting taxi, gleeful to attack another rat swarm when it appeared

Ting was apparently made of sterner stuff than Wang, though. As the rats came clambering over the walls he was sheltering behind, he splattered one after another with quick pistol shots in melee. Soon, the rat swarm all lay dead or dispersed squeaking for somewhere to hide. In the game so far, two player characters had been taken down by the rats. Had I made them too tough? Apparently not, as they would prove an afterthought in the rest of the game, and no more losses would come at their hands. All in all, I really liked how this mechanic I'd created worked. Giving a rival player control of the "monsters," and giving them an extra card to use for them, gave them more tactical decision making. They could use that card for themselves and one of their originally drawn cards for the rats. Or vice versa. I will definitely keep it for future scenarios!

    Ever on the hunt for humans, a Scout Bot rolls onto the table, attracted by the gunfire of our teams

Since we had lost 10% of our forces, that would also trigger the arrival of the machines at the end of the turn. At 10%, a Scout Bot rolls onto the field. The player who has lost the most figures (or the first to lose them if tied), gains control of it, just like with the rats. Allen was given a Scout Bot, which he placed in Jenny's deployment corner. Meanwhile, things were heating up between Jenny's Blood Brotherhood and Andy's Barbarozas. I knew that once the hooded brethren headed for the broken-down taxi that Andy would take that as an affront. His rockers had been heading there since turn one. He immediately opened fire while sprinting for the hard cover of the taxi. Another swarm of rats scampering over the rusting body of the vehicle didn't faze the Barbarozas in the least.

    Almost as if expecting it, Brother Foresight wheels and blasts with his shotgun, disabling the bot

On his turn, two of Andy's characters charged into the swarm and eventually dispatched it. Raven, the second in command of the gang, then opened fire on Brother Temperance, who fell to the ground with a cry, his dark red robe slowly becoming darker. The cool-headed nature of the hooded brethren was apparent, though. Deacon Justice, the second in command whirled around and blasted away at the Scout Bot, which came rolling up behind the Brotherhood. One of his shots hit something vital and the mechanical scout crashed to the ground, its one wheel spinning crazily. Equally nonplussed, Grand Master moved up to the taxi and blasted away at the three enemy gang members. When Fredrik, with his flowing locks of hair, charged into the Grand Master, the hooded commander slammed his submachine gun into the gut of the fearsome barbarian. Shocked, he recoiled and fell back.

    After killing the rats, the Barbarozas use the taxi as cover and fire away at the Blood Brotherhood

Still, Grand Master knew he was outnumbered and backed away. This left the Barbarozas time to find the weapons cache hidden in the taxi's trunk. When Fredrik saw the bots begin to arrive, he shouted to his gang to begin to fall back. He even yelled out "Truce - machines!" to the Brotherhood, and the gun play between the two gangs died out. The Brotherhood was less ready to call it a day, though. Seeing the Green Dragons members entering the trailer, he growled and was tempted to go after them. However, seeing Brother Temperance lying motionless, and worrying more rats might be about, he sprinted over to him. He slung him over his shoulder and backed slowly and grudgingly off the table.

    Meanwhile, Joel's F Troop was scavenging the ruins picking up useful equipment unhindered

As mentioned, my Green Dragons were headed towards the trailer. Chen sprinted along the edge of a patch of scrub, checking out if the coast was clear to make a dash for the trailer's door. Ting followed him up, taking up each position Chen vacated. Seeing no other gang members near the trailer, Chen sprinted and took cover by the staircase leading up to the door. Ting took his place by the scrub, covering him with his pistol. On his next turn, Chen vaulted onto the stairs, and dashed inside the doorway. He immediately located the weapons cache, and gathered it into a sack for ease of carrying.

    After killing the rat swarm that took out Wang, Ting follows Chen towards the trailer

Meanwhile, the hapless Feng, after failing to find the supplies, moved to a patch of woods. He could see the shadowy shapes of F Troop through the trees. Unwisely, he stopped moving and sheltered on the edge of the trees. Making up for his lackluster first game, Joel was on fire that evening. He sent one of his F Troop soldiers through the woods and opened fire on Feng, dropping him with a well-placed shot. Confident that Feng was down, the trooper backed away through the woods. Joel was successful in looting the crates he found and also secured the weapons the gang had hidden inside the rusted van. Eventually, he decided it had been a good foraging expedition, and withdrew -- never having suffered a shot or the claws of any rats.

Followers of the Dark Prophet continue exploring, unaware they are being stalked by a Scout Bot

Ting saw Feng crawling away, bleeding. He darted towards the staircase and shouted encouragement to Feng to shake off the wound and get up. Feng failed his Recovery roll again, but finally on the third try was successful. He staggered erect and began stumbling towards the Green Dragons entry point. Ting and Chen returned the way they came, first to cover by the staircase, then to the scrub, and finally darting for the table edge. Ting scooped up Wang's body along the way, hoping that he was merely unconscious and not dead. Eventually, all four exited the table with RPs from a weapons cache, medical equipment, and killing a rat swarm. 

    The Scout Bot blazed away at the dark-robed Followers, but was unable to score any hits

Jenny got her revenge on Allen by bringing on the second Scout Bot in Allen's deployment area. It fired away at Solomon Bey, the leader of the Followers of the Dark Prophet. His "Sixth Sense" trait forced Jenny to re-roll the hit she'd placed on him and Solomon was more lucky on the second roll. The Followers used the ruins as cover as best they could to minimize the chances for the Scout Bot to score any hits. Jenny's rolls were unsuccessful, and soon there were no more humans in the area for it to hunt down. All of the players had escaped. A late-arriving Sentry Bot similarly missed the opportunity to get shots at the withdrawing F Troop. 

    Ever the caring leader, Ting carries Wang off towards medical treatment at the Dragons base

All teams scored successes, with four of the five suffering an "Out of Action" result on one of its gang members during the course of the game. Everyone also brought home equipment of some sort and likely will be using the RPs earned to add a trait or two to its team members. I am learning each game how to make scenarios more interesting using these rules. I am thinking the next game will likely be inside the ruins of a city, with slightly more intact buildings and streets and alley ways to explore. I have some ideas on what random "monsters" the players will run into, as well.

So, stay tuned for the next game report. Hopefully, the wait won't be as long this time!