Early Fallen

[Djct]

Play report

Week eleven

So last week I was trying to work out if the scenario was going to end this week. I was ready to rush a couple of things to try and stage a desperate climax.

It was not to be. But only for good reasons.

The PCs were due to go back with the broken army to the town of Avorgna and the final battle would be staged on the plain in front of the town. However, the players decided they would be slaughtered and decided to take matters into their own hands.

This is where they deviated from the adventure storyline - they decided to bluff their way in to the enemy stronghold and capture the relic air/raft that the opposition used for artillery spotting.

They dressed in the uniform of the cavalry that had been broken on the trenches, and took the guise of the wounded returning to base. It was not too much of a stretch given the wounds they had already recieved. A series of miraculously good rolls on persuasion meant that they managed to bluff their way past pickets, through the first aid and mess tents and into the area where both artillery and air/raft were stored. They bluffed their way into fixing the air/raft (again miraculously) and managed to drug the pilot and drive away, using explosives to cause major damage to the artillery and ammo - there was a great image of them flying over the enemy camp as ammo explosions lit the night sky.

They have now returned to Avorgna to shore up the defences and plan to drop propaganda on the enemy forces next time. All the time their own army is retreating and shedding people. The final confrontation awaits.

Notes

- it will be a few weeks before we can pick this up again due to various breaks from each of us

- I am glad that the players took action into their own hands - the last few weeks have seemed a bit railroady

- I will have to ensure that players can see their actions make a difference to the outcome. At the moment it does not quite feel like that, though this week was a step in he right direction.

- the character who uses grenades is almost out of them. Opportunities for destruction become much more limited without them!

- the fact they have the Air/raft allows them much more freedom. Will they just try to hide, make a raid on a different area, or use it in a clever ay to turn the tide of the fight

 

[Djct]

Play Report

Week twelve - the end ...

Back into action after Easter breaks and other commitments.

The players were keen to ensure that they used their captured air/raft to best effect. Their latest hare-brained scheme was to assassinate the imperial governor from above.

In the end, accompanied by the local sharpshooter and an officer who could be used to identify the Governor, they set off in the air/raft. I determined that the governor would make precautions (he is smart and has tl8 troops) and that there would be crunch guns ready in case of attack.

They matched velocities with what they presumed to be the Governor's convoy, which was three jeeps and some trucks. They pinpointed the jeeps as their target and started firing grenades and auto rifles at them.

Here I used the vehicle combat rules to work out effect. In this case it meant that the grenades though causing major damage were less effective than multiple assault rifle shots causing multiple minor damages. I may have been doing something wrong though!

In short order two of the three jeeps were affected. However the last one managed to set off a crunch gun bullet which miraculously knocked out the engine of the air/raft. All rolled for - it was a lucky shot.

This changed the adventure totally. As the last shots were fired destroying the last two jeeps, the air/raft crashed. Again I used the falls rules but modified them as they were brutal. 2d6 damage per metre! This would have led to 60 d6 damage minus the chars agility x d6. And there could have been velocity additional damage as well.

I didn't want to kill the characters, so I stopped when I had rolled 30 dice and got to 120 points and applied the effects. They all took serious or critical wounds and went unconscious as they saw the Governor approaching their crashed vessel with a smile on his face.

I let them wake up the next morning, staked out over a hill to see their remnant army getting massacred by the government forces. Then the Reformation Coalition arrived, smashing through orbit and massacring the bad guys. The characters were rescued by a troop of marines landing near them.

They had won ...

Notes

- Ok so technically I chickened out of killing them, but given the a grenade causes 7d damage I think 60 d for a fall is brutal!

- the deus ex machina always existed in the adventure and I was never all that happy with it, however I thought it played out ok in the circumstances.

- the players had a hard time believing they had won

- vehicle combat seemed sensible but as noted above, bullets seemed a lot more useful than grenades.

The verdict

Well it was great playing traveller again. The adventure was a bit railroady, and way more combat oriented than I would have liked.

The players enjoyed it and the newbies would be happy to play traveller again.

So a bit of a result.

We have decided to give Achtung Cthulhu a try next; I will miss posting updates here though. If and when we do get back to traveller I will post updates here.

I hope that anyone still reading has enjoyed or found some value in the posts.

Keep travelling!