Five Parsecs from Home - Campaign Turn 2

    Battle raging at Taxore's spaceport during Mission 2 for the Inconceivable's crew

Captain's Log

Ship's Log, Interstellar Yacht Inconceivable, Capt. Alistair Valentine recording. I decided to take the crew of the Inconceivable out to dinner after the amazing success of our first mission. None of us had been injured, and we had been paid handsomely by Gunny's contact at the Galactic Marines. While enjoying drinks before dinner, I proposed to the crew that we use most of the profit to pay off every last bit of debt on the ship. No longer would we have to worry about crooked companies, lawyers, or banks trying to reclaim the ship, I explained. Sure, we could instead build a sickbay or some other new module on the ship, but why do that before owning it outright? Going around the table, I asked each of the other four what they thought (SAS BR61 had remained on board the ship). All four of my crew agreed or voiced no dissent, even though it meant we were left with only 6 credits to their name.

When I went to pay the bill, the restaurant manager pulled me aside. The meal and drinks were on them, he said. He'd heard through the grapevine about a Converted Infiltration team being discovered and taken out by the crew of a recently-arrived ship. I quipped, "I wonder who those heroes could be?" The manager explained he'd recently watched a show about the Converted, and the half machine, half humans had given him the creeps. Anyone who did anything to save him being "converted" into one of those inhuman machines deserved a meal at his restaurant any day!

Once back at the ship, I called the crew together on the bridge to watch me make the electronic payment and receive the communication confirming the ship was ours. Several cheered and Gunny let out a marine whoop. I informed them that I'd spend this week again in the simulator. I wanted to be 100% comfortable with the controls of the Inconceivable before we took off from Taxore. Zorina said she'd like to keep working on combat training in the other simulator if no one else minded. Gunny, Cephvarx, and Doc all said that was fine. Gunny said he'd take Cephvarx with him and try to trade for some stuff we might need. Doc said if it was okay with everyone else, he'd like to explore Taxore a little. It seemed like a fascinating world, and the people seemed interested in his environmental suit and eager to chat. 

I dismissed the crew, leaving BR 61 on security duty. As the crew left the bridge, the security bot called out, "Don't worry about me, my friends. I'm so good at sleeping I can do it with my eyes closed."

    Zoomed in photo from Alistair and Gunny's drone reconnaissance of the spaceport

Security Officer's Log

Ship's log, supplemental entry SO #0002, on the planet Taxore. I'm taking Cephvarx Hul with me to do a little trading in Taxore. I figure the big, purple-skinned lug might scare the merchants into giving me a better price! I'm glad I took him along, as we were checking out a weapons dealer and he called me over where he was sorting through a box of random equipment. He held up a cylindrical cloth bag. "Bipod," he said. "My rifle's model, specifically." Cephvarx is our squad's sniper, for want of a better term. Giving him a bipod would make him even more deadly. Since his rifle model is a relatively uncommon one, the bipod was not of much value to the dealer and we got it for next to nothing. 

That's great, because prices are normally high on Taxore. We didn't see any other bargains and were on our way back to the ship when Cephvarx stopped at a vendor selling electronic tomes. He'd noticed some in Varxian language and was examining each one closely. While he shopped, I browsed the other titles. One caught my eye, The Lost Treasure of Chuff Betzos. Alistair is obsessed with this urban legend of a ship carrying an extremely valuable cargo owned by the founder of Amazonas Galacticus disappearing, and never being located. Alistair thinks it would be just deserts if he were to locate it and sell the contents to replace his lost pension that Amazonas stole from him! He even carries an electronic map that supposedly details the route of the ship through star systems. I bought it for Alistair, knowing he'd devour the text! (This is a Quest Rumor that we received as part of our trade roll). Cephvarx picked up a couple electronic books in Varx, as well. Then we headed back to the ship.

    We would be facing the spaceport's veteran security guards during our infiltration mission

Engineer's Log

Ship's log, supplemental entry EO #0001, on the planet Taxore. Ship's Engineering and Medical Officer Mecrosius recording. Taxore is an amazing planet, and other than the expenses, I like everything about it. Last week, I had been searching out possible jobs for our crew and had made contact with the deputy minister of the Free Trade Association of Taxore. We'd had lunch and he explained how they are fighting trade rules that keep the prices artificially high here on the planet. In the course of our discussion, our captain's plight of his lost pension from Amazonas Galacticus came up. The minister was very sympathetic and outraged by the mega-corporation's actions. He promised to find us some work to help out the caption.

This week, though, I wandered just for the fun and fascination of it. The people are incredibly polite and are accepting of my condition that requires me to wear my environmental suit at all times. They love to watch how the bottom "beak" opens up for me to deposit food, then closes back up. I described how it scans it for possible toxins then, if it is safe, delivers it to my mouth to be chewed. I never saw anyone stare impolitely or point or do anything rude. Even the little children do not giggle when they see my outfit. They simply watch and take it all in, turning away if I gaze at them so they don't seem impolite. As much as I love being part of the Inconceivable's crew, it will be hard to leave this planet. (When I rolled up the results for Doc's exploration, he received "This place is rather nice". We will have to spend a story point to keep him from remaining on Taxore when we eventually leave!). 

    The Inconceivable crew deploys behind the spaceport's customs house and air conditioning units

 

The Game 

 Since Doc had found a second job for us on Turn 1, I decided to play that one out for this turn's mission. The Free Trade Association of Taxore hired us to escort and protect a VIP. Our opponents would be "Veteran Enforcers" -- think police or hired, good quality security guards. From that kernel, I decided that the association wanted to install a device to monitor transmissions and logged entries at the city's spaceport. They wanted to be able to cull data of ship arrivals, cargo offloaded, port duties, etc., so they could prove that the authorities were artificially keeping prices high (and likely skimming off profits).

    The guards' specialist with the auto rifle begins to redeploy around a quonset hut for a firing position

Doc had explained the mission to Alistair and the crew last turn when we chose to complete Gunny's mission instead. We had till Turn 3 to undertake it, but I figured this meant doing it now meant one more character out trading, training, or exploring rather than searching for a job. Captain and crew approved of the nature of the mission, though the prospect of breaking into the spaceport and facing off against private security did worry them a bit. However, the residual goodwill from eliminating the Converted Infiltrators, and their status as relative newcomers on the planet, should give them some degree of "forgiveness." Or at least that is what the crew hoped!

    Alistair and Gunny leap over the low wall behind the warehouse, intending to go in the back door

There would be Danger Pay, Benefits (an extra roll on the Loot Table), and Shiny Bits (more loot) on this mission. Unfortunately, I rolled that our crew was "Caught Off-Guard" by the enemy, so we would act after them on Turn 1. No chance to "Seize the Initiative" and get free shots this time! The enemy worried me a bit, as they were all +1 Combat Skill and Toughness 4 -- better stats than all but Cephvarx Hul and SAS BR61 on our crew. They were mostly armed with 12" range Hand Lasers, which would be out-ranged by Cephvarx, Alistair, and Doc. However, the specialist (thankfully, they had no Lieutenant) was armed with a Auto rifle. That would be the best gun on the table, so we would need to knock him out ASAP.  

   BR61 & Zorina escorting the Technician, while Cephvarx Hut gets ready to climb the customs house

The Enforcer's "A.I." would be "Tactical" -- likely meaning they wouldn't be aggressively charging forward like the Converted last mission. However, with only one weapon with more than a 12" range, the security goons would need to advance to get in range. Cephvarx Hul would be key to our success. His military rifle -- boosted by the bipod we got from trading. His spent experience points at the end of last turn had raised his Reactions to 2, making him our ace in the hole. Gunny, recognizing that, gave the Varx the Stimpack. If he were to be knocked out, we'd need him back on his feet ASAP. Of course, I promptly forgot to add the bipod to Cephvarx Hul's stat card -- whoops! He was shooting with one "+1" tied behind his back, so to speak...ha, ha! 

    Meanwhile, the security guards move forward along the wall to investigate the alarm & get in range

Our mission was to take the VIP technician to the center point of the table and give him time to install the device. Once he did that, we will have won the scenario. Next, I set up the spaceport tabletop. Dead center was a domed building containing the control console that our technician had to access. Once again, I used my acrylic floor tiles in concrete gray, as I assumed this would be another city mission. I wanted to put a landing pad for a space port, so used one of my 12" square asphalt road tiles and surrounded it with a low stone wall with two gates. I positioned it off-center, so the row of domed huts could be running dead center down the middle of the table. Behind the domed huts were some warehouses and a customs office. On another side of the landing pad were two long quonset huts (more warehouses? Security?). Opposite them across the pad were some power grids. Various other pieces of small terrain were scattered around the board. 

    Doc Mecrosious opens the garage door a crack to a perfect shot on one of the security guards

I was pleased with how the board looked, but I definitely need more futuristic terrain so I don't have to use as much of my "modern" stuff! I wanted to set the board up as fairly as possible, with a somewhat logical layout. I realize the game will be vastly different depending on which side of the table my crew sets up, and where the Enforcers deploy. I rolled for the crew's side and got exactly the side I wanted. We will come in behind the warehouses and the enemy will come in on the more wide-open side near the landing pad.

    It was a poor "tactical" choice on my part of loop the guard's best weapon around the hut

Re-reading Five Parsecs from Home's battle rules, I understood the enforcers had to deploy in three squads of two figures. Each squad would be within 8" of another and the members of each pair had to be within 3" of each other. Since they had the jump on us, I pondered what they would do. Perhaps an alarm had been set off and their equipment showed my crew was approaching from behind the custom's house. I measured the range from the auto rifle-armed specialist's position and discovered he would be out of range if he just hunkered down along the wall. The rules say "Tactical" enemies will more to outflank. So, I decided he would circle around behind the quonset hut (to be out of line of fire) and take up position between the two. The other two pairs would go the other way and remain along the wall.

    BR61 guns down another security guard from the cover of the customs house pillars

Alistair and Gunny's plan was to have Cephvarx climb the custom's house and take up a firing position on the stone balcony. Doc would enter through the back door of the left-hand warehouse then take up a position from a window or doorway on its front. Gunny and Alistair would take the right hand warehouse and do the same. BR61, Zorina, and the Technician would sneak up to the custom's house, then dash around to the cover of its stone colonnade. From there, the technician could dash to the domed hut, enter it, and install the device.

    Cephvarx Hul from his covered sniper position on the customs house balcony railing

Both sides followed their plans for the first two turns. I did notice that the recommended movement rate for Tactical enemies was probably too slow for the specialist's decision to circle the quonset hut. I should have overruled it and had him dash once he was out of my crew's line of sight. On Turn 3, Cephvarx Hul took his covered position on the balcony and squeezed off a shot, which missed, ricocheting off the stone wall in front of the closest enforcer. The Enforcers then all did their moves, as we had rolled poorly and only Cephvarx acted before the enemy. Gunny, realizing the line of sight from the warehouse wasn't good enough, dashed out and over to the closest quonset hut, where he could see the specialist moving up. Alistair shifted to the doorway to have a better view than the window provided. 

   One of the security guards redeploys out of line of sight of Doc and then takes aim at Zorina

The security guards moving first turned out to be perfect timing. Doc opened up his warehouse garage door a crack, revealing a wide-open shot on the closest enforcer. He fired his colony rifle at the outflanked security guard. The man jerked, then slumped to the ground, motionless. Seconds later, BR 61 rounded the custom's house, squeezed in behind a pillar, and fired his shotgun at the next closest guard. Blam, blam! Another guard fell behind the wall with a grunt. Two enemy down on the first turn of firing - woo-hoo! Meanwhile, the technician dashed to the back of the control hut, crouching down to stay out of sight. Zorina moved forward to another of the huts, staying in cover in her shimmer cloak.

   ZAP! Zorina's shimmer cloak camoflauge doesn't help against the guard's deadly aim with his laser

I realized at the end of turn 3 that I had once again forgotten to roll for Battlefield Events at the end of turn 2. I rolled, and one of the remaining security guards had a +1 Toughness. However, they suffered losses in turn 3, so had to roll for panic. They were considered veterans, so would panic only on a "1" on a d6. They suffered two losses, so I rolled twice. One roll was a 1! The rules say the enemy closes to their deployment area "bails," so the specialist's companion, hearing two of his compatriots down on his headset, decided to "go get help." Turn 4 began with Gunny ducking inside the quonset hut to try to get within range with his pistol. Cephvarx fired another shot and missed. Obviously, he needs more practice with using the bipod! BR62 moved from the customs house to the cover of one of the domed huts.

    With Zorina down, the Inconceivable crew blazed away with their weapons on the next turn

The guards moved next. The tough guy shifted position to be out of sight of Doc and sighted his hand laser at Zorina. "A shimmer cloak!" he thought. "I read about those in an Enforcer of Fortune magazine article. To counter its distortion, I need to aim right about...there!" He fired, and Zorina let out a yelp and flopped to the ground, unmoving. At this point, I used a "Story Point" to make the tough guy re-roll. Wouldn't you know it? He rolled another hit and rolled to exceed her Toughness, as well. The other security guards all continued to move up. Doc fired and missed. Alistair moved from the warehouse door to one of the domed huts, and the technician dashed inside to complete his mission.

    Auto rifle armed guard finally gets to where he can shoot next turn and Gunny takes him out!

The Inconceivable crew was spurred into action by Zorina becoming a casualty. Doc aimed and fired at the guard he could see along the way, and dropped him. BR61 moved to within range of "tough guy" and blasted him. He scored one hit in his two shots and then rolled to exceed the guard's Toughness. Down he went! The only security guard left was the specialist, who finally made it to the space between the two huts. As he began to creep to get a view of the battlefield, Gunny opened the door of the quonset hut, and at point blank range, blasted him. All six were down, and we'd completed our mission. 

I think in the future I will be less literal in following the enemy A.I. It dictated they moved only half moves and would stay in cover. Once they were under fire, they should have been moving faster to get within range, not slowly creeping forward and taking shots. That said, I think I did a good job on picking which of my crew would move before the guards and which would move afterwards. For example, both Doc and Gunny opened a door after a guard moved and were in short range of an enemy that thought they were in cover, but wide open from where they appeared from. My rolls -- except for poor Cephvarx Hul -- were good, and once again my weapon range was superior. One of these days, I am going to roll up an enemy armed with all auto rifles...! Post-battle report in the next episode!

Miniature Painting & Purchasing Tally for 2024

• Miniatures acquired in 2024: 149
• Miniatures painted in 2024: 130