Thursday, 16 June 2016

Battlesworn, Red Planet, dead green Baron

How can I begin, oh my gossips. I must try and lessen the shock, prepare you for the Horror. Some of the more araldite readers will remember the superb Blakes 7? Lettuce now dwell upon the last ever programme, the one where the mook troopers managed to hit someone hit right in front of them? Bear (bare?) that picture in your mind.

When you're doing Space Opera there's a few well-worn scripts that are worth following. Our last VSF outing (April 16) was designated as a diversion for this raid. You may be aware that Martian technology relies on exciting exotic elements to produce a range of rays. So the different technology contained in the vehicle is too dangerous to fall into their hands. As per the usual script, a small group including Baron Greenbackusama and party have made their way into the bowels of a Martian pyramid to destroy the powerplant from the captured frog walker.

I had toyed with making small rooms, each a level that the party would have to clear or avoid, but gave this up as too fiddly. Instead I had a divided area with each room/floor pattern representing a change in terrain.

The sides were pure “old” battlesworn, the attacking, smaller force being:
Leader/Brute, Warmage (Greenback), Sniper (stilleto) Flyer (pet) 4 fighters, 2 shooters
Locals Leader/Warmage , 5 fighters, 5 shooters.

Setup was simple, I had the Martians and diced per location to give a spread. I know it's not in the rules but it does give a more “snapshot” feel to the start. Besides, my leader came out close to the transporter which would have led to an ambush rather than an invasion scenario. The good guys all appeared on the transmat pad.

The pet started, zooming all over the shop, but I had shooters, a reaction and not only did they get the reaction, the poor thing was deaded!

My warmage did an excellent paralysis* on a shooter, which caused an unseemly brawl for the poor chap. I got the best of it, for a change.


Tony's leader goes after the prize, gets shot and dispatched by a fighter. Stiletto gets shot before he can cause damage. The Baron is wounded and makes a few inefectual goes with his lightning “spell”**.

With my chaps advancing from all directions, the Baron goes in, well its either that or get shot, and dies a deaded death!


Alas and woe, the Baron is no more! His aids lie dead, strewn willy nilly on an alien concrete floor, stains on which will be forever Earth.

Good game, very space opera feel. Cannot but feel that if Tony had gone for my leader, causing a huge bundle, his troops were more concentrated than mine. Still-. Sorry for lack of pics, 'er in doors had swiped my camera. Got 3 of her own, but still takes mine.

*Reasoning that being palalysed would lead to enslavement via mumification.

**Probably an electrical device of great cunning.

















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