Tuesday, November 16, 2010

You can run... (Part 3)

Still Day 10
This is the third part of my batreps You can run... (Part 1) and You can run... (Part 2).
 
Turn 21: After two activation rolls without anyone activating, all activate, with the zombies acting first.

Lots of zombies move forward. One zed starts to feast upon a survivor who had been killed before. The feast will last for just this turn. Five zombies start feasting on ganger #2 and will do so until turn 25.

One Zed charges a soldier #1. He scores one success on the Being Charged test, so he would melee with a penalty. Mr. Whiteface – who is standing next to him – scores two successes on the Being Charged test. He is able to fire his BA Pistol twice and hit his target with both bullets. The undead is knocked down and OD.

No other zombies are in charging distance.

Team Whiteface turns around to fire single shots, with Mr. Whiteface firing twice. Only the trained soldiers hit their targets. They kill two undead and knock down another.

Seven shots have been fired. The shots from the assault rifle have no effect, but Mr. Whiteface’s shots generate two more zeds behind them.
 
Turn 22: Team Whiteface activates while the zombies doing nothing.

All continue to fire single shots into the undead mob, but only two shots from the soldiers hit their target and knock down two zombies.

Five shots generate two more zombies. 
  
 
Turn 23: Only Team Whiteface is active.

I’ve learned from the last round that Mr. Whiteface shooting won’t do anything but calling in more zeds, so only the National Guard will fire single shots this turn.

All miss with a total of three shots and one zed is created. 
  
  
Turn 24: Team Whiteface pauses to evaluate the situation. The zombie s activate.

A feast on the very first ganger begins. It will last until turn 28. Some more zeds join the feast on ganger #2.

Several zeds close in, some of them coming into LOS triggering In Sight tests. As a result of the test:
Soldier #3 will hold his fire, because the zeds are more than 6” away.
Soldier #2 snap fires but misses his target.
Soldier #1 holds his fire as well.

No zombies are generated. 
  
Turn 25: All are active, with Team Whiteface moving first.

Soldier #1 charges and kills a zombie in melee.
Soldier #2 moves and fires a single shot. He kills another zombie.
Soldier #3 and the Whitefaces charge a zombie and Mr. Whiteface kills the foul creature.

A zombie activates and charges soldier #1. The soldier barely escapes alive by killing the zed with just one more success in the second turn of combat.

Three zombies move closer, some more join the feast.

The single shot that has been fire doesn’t generate any zombies. 
  
  
Turn 26: All are inactive and one feast is over.
 
Turn 27: Team Whiteface activates, the zombies shuffle around undecidedly.

Special Detachment Whiteface intends to repeat the successful strategy used in turn 25.
Soldier #1 moves and fires, but misses his target.
Soldier #2 fires and misses too.
Soldier #3 and the Whitefaces want to charge a zombie. Mr. Whiteface decides to snap fire instead (Yeah, I forgot repeatedly that he has a Free Will), but misses his target. Mrs. Whiteface puts her telescopic steel baton to good use and kills the zombie in melee.

Three shots fired in this turn create one new member for the horde.
 
Turn 28: Only the zombies will act this turn.

This is the last round of the feast in the woods, but nine zombies start a picnic on the former gang boss. With so many hungry mouths to feed this will last only this turn.
One zed moves closer and two zeds charge soldier #3 and the missus standing next to him. Both humans accept the charge and will fight one zombie. Soldier #2 is close enough to the charge to fire a single shot but misses the assailant. Mrs. Whiteface kills her zombie, with a sharp blow to his skull, but Soldier #3 is knocked down. If he hadn’t been protected he would have gone OOF.

No zeds are generated this turn.
 
Turn 29: All feasts end and everyone (including both Rep 1 PEFs) activates. The living and breathing members of the community activate first.

Soldier #1 and #2 move and fire single shots at an undead mechanic. One bullet hits and terminates the intended target.
Soldier #3 recovers from knock down.
Mrs. Whiteface continues to fight against the zombie who had knocked down soldier #3 in the previous turn. After three rounds of combat they are evenly matched and my hands are shaking.
Mr. Whiteface charges and scores a deadly +3 result in melee against a zombie. 

All twelve zombies on the board move. Both PEFs don’t move.

No new zeds are generated. 

 Turn 30: All are active, but the shambling horde moves first.

All zombies move closer.

This is not an exercise! All three soldiers change their fire mode to burst fire. Each shot will be aimed at a different target among those nine zeds moving down the road. Before firing Team Whiteface moves backwards. They are not fleeing, it’s just a tactical withdrawal.

Soldier #1 is getting nervous and doesn’t hit anything.
Soldier #2 scores one hit on the horde.
Soldier #3 – can you believe it? – chose this moment to be out of ammo.

Nine shots have been fired this turn and four more zeds appear on the scene.

This is not good!


Final Comment (Part 3): Uh-oh! You can see the Whitefaces have gotten themselves into an ugly situation here. This wasn't supposed to happen, but in the end the zombies always win. Sooner or later! As the saying goes: You can run, but you cannot hide!

Speaking of running; the game isn't over yet, so make sure to tune in for the final part of this batrep.
Whiteface

Saturday, November 13, 2010

You can run... (Part 2)

It's still Day 10
This is the second part of my last batrep You can run... (Part 1).

Turn 11: The gangers activate first, the zeds follow. Team Whiteface is inactive.

Both gangers fire 3-round bursts at the zombie around them, but only manage to knock two of them down.

The zeds activate and one zed charges a soldier. As a result of the Being Charged test he will fire at the zed and the soldier next to him will assist him in melee. The bullets don’t hit their target, but his fellow soldier is able to kill the zombie in melee.
Some zeds move closer to the gangers one of them charges the second ganger. Both gangers have two successes in the Being Charged test, fire at the undead assailant and score three knock down results.

Thirteen shots have been fired this round and 6 new zeds appear on the board. All of them somewhere close to ganger #2.

Turn 12: Team Whiteface activates first, the gangers second. The zombies won’t do anything.

One soldier from the National Guard rallies Mrs. Whiteface and the retired soldier. The other soldier moves backward for better protection.

Each ganger fires a burst at one zed. The gang boss kill one zed, ganger #2 knocks down another undead.

Six Shots have been fired and generate 3 more zombies.


Turn 13: Zeds and gangers cancel each other, Team Whiteface moves toward Mr. Whiteface to build a group.

Turn 14: Team Whiteface and zeds cancel their activation, but the gangers will act.

Both gangers desperately spread their burst fire at the zombies around them. The gang boss kill two zeds, while his companion kills one and knocks down another.

Six shots fired result in 4 new zombies. Two on the road, one in the church and a hobo raises from a bank next to the church.


Turn 15: Zombies act first, Team Whiteface second and the gangers are inactive.

Two zombies start feasting on two downed survivors (each of them until turn 19), another one moves closer to the feast. Every other zed moves towards the gangers or recovers from knock down.

Team Whiteface withdraws along the edge of the board.


Turn 16: Gangers and Zeds cancel each other, so only Team Whiteface is active.

Two National Guard soldier have zombies in LOS. Both fire a single shot, but only manage to knock down one zed.

Two shots generate 0 zombies.


Turn 17 and 18: Team Whiteface, everyone else is inactive.

In both turns all soldiers fire single shots at different zombies. They only knock down a zombie that had been knocked down anyway.

Six shots create two more zombies in turn 17. One inside the white house, the other inside the green house.



Turn 19: The last round of feasting. Only the zeds are active, because all humans cancel each others activation.

One zombie recovers from knock down, one joins the feast, some move, two exit different houses and one moves towards Mr. Whiteface. Two zombies will charge the gang boss and five will charge his buddy.

Both gangers test for Being Charged with a result of being able to snap fire. The boss knocks down one zombie charging his companion, but ganger #2 misses with every bullet. The gang boss has to fight two zombies in melee, ganger #2 has to melee four zombies.
Ganger #1 demonstrates why he is the boss and kills both zombies. With a lot of luck ganger #2 is able to kill one zed and to be evenly matched with the remaining three.


Turn 20: The gangers act first, Team Whiteface second and the undead are inactive.

Both gangers wisely decide to leave the combat and flee around the corner of the green house. They stop moving in LOS of Team Whiteface.

Team Whiteface wins the Encounter Awareness check with one success more than the gangers. Because they are inactive they are allowed to roll 2d6 on the In Sight test. Mr. Whiteface is out of range, Mrs. Whiteface has no firearm and one soldier isn’t willing to fire [0 Successes].
The other two soldiers spread their burst fire at both gangers. The second soldier snap fires, but misses with ever shot. The last soldier scores two hits - he knocks downs both gangers. The boss is OOF and his buddy is dead.

The group activates and Mr. Whiteface and all three soldiers fire at zombies. Mr. Whiteface doesn’t hit anything. The National Guard kill a single zed.

Fourteen shots have been fired. This generates three more zombies.


Final comment (Part 2): This part of the battle took very long. Those stupid gangstas with their automatic weapons made me crazy. The turned a peaceful residential area into a warzone. Too many zombies for my taste, but I won't leave yet. Mr. Whiteface has killed a zed (actually two of them) and just needs to find a resource to turn this into a successful mission. Three well armed soldiers assist the family for this scenario and  Mr. Whiteface wants to achieve as much as possible with his own private amry, Strike Force Whiteface.
The gangers have been eliminated, but now there are approximately seventeen zombies on the board.

Make sure to tune in for Part 3!
Whiteface

Thursday, November 4, 2010

You can run... (Part 1)

Day 10
Cast: Mr. and Mrs. Whiteface
Objective: discover
Area: suburban Whiteville

The Whitefaces had survived for several days in the woods. They hadn't seen anyone for some time now...even the sound of gunfire had eventually died down. Mrs. Whiteface had demanded that they return to their old neighbourhood to gather some food and maybe, just maybe find a clue about Dotty's whereabouts. For want of a better plan Mr. Whiteface had agreed.
Three hours later they hide behind a group of rocks at the border of the White Park Residential Area. A quiet, sleepy part of Whiteville. Almost like dead.
Setup: This discover scenario is played on 4'x4' board with the Whitefaces starting in the bottom right corner. This is the first of two scenarios in month one. There will be no ragers, as Project Lazarus hasn't been executed yet. PEFs are represented by little pieces of paper with their REP written on them. They use the zombie activation die.
I used several house rules this time. I included one PEF instead of each zombie usually created at the start of the game and resolved them by checking on the Building - Occupied Or Not? table. In hindsight I have to admit that this might have been a very stupid idea. Nine PEFs (sic!) on the table is very intimidating. They are Rep 5,4,4,3,2,2,1,1,1.
During the game I added a rule that every human - that is including opposing NPCs - would trigger the resolution of a PEF in his LOS. Furthermore I use the NPC interaction rules from I, Zombie.
Turn 1: Only the PEFs with Rep 2 to 5 are active. Two of them move to the wood where the Whitefaces are hiding.
Turn 2: Some of the PEFs (Rep 3-5) move. The Whitefaces are still inactive.


Turn 3: All are active, but the PEFs with Rep 2 to 5 move first. A Rep 4 and a Rep 3 PEF move into LOS. I resolve them using the Building - Occupied Or Not table.
Rep 4 = chance of 1d3 zeds with "1" being zero zeds. I roll a one.
Rep 3 = chance of 1d3 humans with "1" being zero humans. I roll a one.

OK, Lady Luck seems to be on my side this time.

The Whitefaces move around the rock and stumble into a Rep 2 PEF.
Rep 2 = chance of 1d3 humans with "1" being zero zeds. I roll a 6.
They are three Rep 4 National Guard Soldiers (Protected, Assault Rifle)

Mrs. Whiteface (a Born Leader) talks to them using the new NPC Interaction table. With +2 successes she scores a seven on the Positive Reaction table. The Soldiers are very friendly and offer to help for this encounter.
Turn 4: Only Team Whiteface is active. They move around another rock to resolve three (!) PEFs next to the green house.
Rep 4 = chance of 1d3 humans with "1" being zero humans. I roll a one again.
Rep 2 and Rep 1 resolve into one  Rep 4 Ganger and three Rep 4 Survivors. All of them carry Assault Rifles.
I decide to check everyone against everyone on the NPC Interaction table. Team Whiteface scores a "run in" against the Ganger and a "run in and plot revenge" against the merry group of Survivors. The Interaction between the Ganger and the group of Survivors leads to a Draw Down which turns into a running guunfight. The ganger ducks back behind a tree.


Turn 5: All are active. PEFs (Rep 4 to 5) go first, Ganger next, Team Whiteface and lastly the Survivors.
The Ganger decides to pop up from his cover to fire a burst at the Survivors. As a result of the In Sight test two Survivors fire single shots at him and he goes OOF.

Team Whiteface activates and the Soldiers burst fire at the dangerous Survivors. Nine bullets, but only one Survivor is OOF. The remaining opponents check for Man Down. One Survivor - I call him Bob - ducks back behind a tree, but the other one goes Heroes All and starts to return fire.
His burst doesn't hit anything, but one National Guard Soldier and the Whitefaces duck back.
When the other two Soldiers fire again one of them goes out of ammo, but the other one ODs his target.

The last Survivor - Bob - activates but decides that he doesn't want to leave his cover right now.

21 shots have been fired, but only 3 zeds are generated.

Turn 6: The Rep 5 PEF activates first and moves towards the nearest PEF. Survivor Bob activates next, everyone else is inactive.

Bob takes a shot at the single zombie behind him and ODs him. Another zed is generated due to shooting.


Turn 7: All but the zombies and PEFs are active.

Bob acts first and shoots another zed.

The Soldier who ducked back in turn 5 fires at a zombie, but misses. The Whitefaces move around a rock and Mr. Whiteface fires two shots at the zombie and ODs him.

Four shots fired generate one zed.

Turn 8: Only the zeds and the PEFs with Rep 4 to 5 are active. Survivor Bob and Team Whiteface cancel each others activation.
Turn 9: Only Team Whiteface is active. The Gangers and zombies cancel each other.
One Soldier moves closer to the Whitefaces, the other two fire at the playground zombies killing one of them.
I want Mr. and Mrs. Whiteface to charge the zombie close to them, but both halt and may not fire. They are Stars...I know, I know...I tend to forget things. Same problem next turn.
The Rep 5 PEF moves towards the nearest enemy (Bob) and has to be resolved.
Rep 5 = Two Gangers. A Rep 5 hard case with a submachine gun and a Rep 4 banger with a machine pistol.

They interact with Bob ending in a +3 negative reaction. The following Draw Down results in both Gangers getting the drop and firing a burst at Bob. Bob is dead.

One zombie moves closer to the downed survivors and another moves towards the Whitefaces.
Six shots fired generate four zeds.

 

One zed is generated.
Turn 10: Only the zombies and PEFs with Rep higher or equal four are active. Team Whiteface and Gangers cancel each other.

The zombies charge Mrs. Whiteface who panics and retires behind a rock. A Star, I said I know. The Soldier standing close to her is retiring as well.
Only Mr. Whiteface is able to melee. He kills the zombie.


Final Comment (Part 1): This scenario is far from being over yet. It took several hours and gaming sessions to complete it. I am not sure if the following batreps will be in the comic book format. It took very long to write just the first ten turns in this style (even without the text in between which I have added today). One thing I have learned is: test every house rule before you include it in you game. Thinking five minutes about a rule change may not be enough.

Stay tuned for more bullets and zombies!
Whiteface