(Planet 28) Crash Jordan - Saviour of Death Planet Iota - #CharacterCreationChallenge

Day 11 of the #CharacterCreationChallenge and we're back to statting out figures I painted over the last year.  Today I try to justify a figure I honestly did not enjoy painting, but in the game Planet 28, this might be fun...

Crash Jordan of Earth-1980   (307 points)
Agility:  7

Shooting: 7

Fighting: 6

Psyche: 3

Awareness: 5

Speed:  10cm

Hit Points: 20

Traits:  Fearless, Unshakeable

Abilities: Throw 

Equipment: 

Fists (1d4+1)
Laser Pistol (1d8, 15cm)

Partial Living Armor (At the start of the game, roll 1d10+10.  Those are the hit points of the leg armor. When hit, roll 1d10.  On a 6+, the leg armor takes the damage.  Once the living armor is destroyed, Crash must make a Psyche save or fall unconscious.  A successful Psyche check in subsequent turns can be made to regain consciousness.

RPR 49021 - Rand 

Everyone in the world knows famed quarterback for the New York Sharks, Randall "Crash" Jordan, as he set record after record in the West Side Stadium.  It was actually a close game for once, and he was about to drive the team down for the winning score when the sky opened up and sucked him through a portal to this world, a world of misfits from other realities. 

Something went wrong going through the portal.  He was missing his lower half when he landed on Death Planet Iota, he was sure to perish, if not for the help of a devious bunch of hooded little men, the Ou-tinni or something like that.  They were the kings of the junk heaps in this world, and they gave him a pair of new legs, encased in ceramic compound that's stronger than steel.   He's not stronger or faster, but it does seem to protect him, even if the new voices inside his head have convinced him to do some unsavory things, for some god he doesn't know, with a name he can't pronounce. 

Notes:  Crash was saved by Jawas, and the scavengers sewed the legs of a Chaos Space Marine onto his body.  Whether the legs of the perished Chaos warrior are still in the suit has not been confirmed.  

And Planet 28 is fun!  Go on WargamesVault and spend five bucks on it, it's worth it! 

(Planet 28) Immovable Force

With one girl completely immersed with all thing March Madness, and another completely indifferent, it was a good day break out a simple scenario and relearn Planet 28.  

Scenario:  Death Planet Iota is a junk planet, the final resting place for items sucked into various vortexes throughout the universe.  Only the strongest, the smartest, or the most resilient tend to survive.  

The Ratskins are all three.

Toughened by the planet (and thick layers of animal pelts) the Ratskins scavenge what they can find, and raid when necessary.   Tough and heavily armed, they are a force to be reckoned with, even more so when they're hired for a task.

The Ratskins

One of the local warlords has acquired a damaged aircraft which arrived on the planet.  Desperate to find techs smart enough to fix it, he has squirreled it away in a heavily guarded complex which houses a number of other valuable items.

The complex is heavily guarded from the outside, but easier to access from the underground.  The Ratskins will be paid more than most of the items they're destroying are worth.    Anyway, what would they do with a spaceship?  

The only internal guards are the Chimneysweeps, a Gnomish Police Force, currently being hired out as security by the warlord.  

The Chimneysweeps.  Disregard the heavy support gnome.

Ratskin Obejective:  Destory all the objectives (blue chips).  The Ratskins have been given demolitions charges.  It takes two actions to secure the explosives (Both actions do NOT need to be done on the same turn) and one separate action to detonate (hopefully far away).  One detonation action can explode all active bombs.  Anything detonated before the security droid (see lower left) are partial payments.  

Chimneysweeps Objective:  Keep damage to a minimum.  Three or fewer objectives destroyed is a victory, although the aircraft counts as three objectives by itself.  

The Ratskins had snuck into a building, but triggered a silent alarm, which alerted the gnomes of their actions.    They were still able to whip around the corner and unload onto the gnomes in the corridor only to completely miss.  The gnomes gained their senses and returned fire, only to... completely miss.  

The Ratskins and Gnomekind tended to avoid each other, this was their first true encounter.  While the Rastkins were tough hombres, the gnomes were a different breed.  Despite their slowness (10cm minus 1d6 cm per action) they had an iron skin.    While the gnomes shots kept missing the Ratskins, perfectly square shots to vital areas seemed to simply bounce off, sometimes with a laugh from the gnome.  

Ultimately a hail of SMG fire finally knicked and wounded one of the Raskins that they paused for a moment, only to have another shot have them headed back towards the underground.  

On the far end of the board, the gnomes had injured one Ratskin, the Ratskin's shotgun-wielding brother started to unleash Hell.  It was still difficult to wound the gnome with the blasts, but the shot sent him flying backwards multiple time.  

With the one gnome constantly getting pushed back towards the firefight in the center of the complex.  The one gnome thought valor was for another day and ran around the wall, letting the Ratskin leader set the charge unmolested.  

With his compatriot already in the sewers, the lone Ratskin in the firefight in the center of the complex, exchanged fire, only for the blasts to continue to be absorbed by gnomish physiology.  

Even a decent shot (2d8 =11) was absorbed by the gnome's armor (d8+d4).  This was the theme all game.

Finally, as the gnomes may have all been reloading. The Ratskin dashed around his corner and headed towards a communication objective.  

Obejective Two: Armed.

Meanwhile, the gnome in hiding regained some bravery, and regretted every second of it.  He engaged the Ratskin leader in a melee that would be difficult to land a wounding blow.  However the part couldn't hug each other, much less hurt each other, until the gnome, finally shoved him away and tried to escape, only to stumble between two Ratskins advancing.  

By this point the security bot was fully operational and moving through the complex, with weaponry more than capable of injuring the Ratskins.  As they fell back, the leader detonated both charges, destroying both objectives, and possibly leaving on of their kind either killed by the blast, or buried under the rubble.  A partial victory for the Ratskins, a major one for the Chimneysweeps, although no one wanted to contact the client about the two large explosions in the complex.  

The 2nd edition of the rules clear up combat and equipment, but a hot light armor die (d8) versus a poor to average damage dice (2d6 or 2d8) either mitigates or cancels out most of the damage.  The lone Ratskin who needed a break test (less than 50% of hit points) was hit five times before it happened, and didn't completely break until a sixth shot got through for a whopping four points and dropped the break test save as 1-2 on 1d10.  

Now throw in an extra d4 for the gnomes, and the Ratskins should have just outraced them while they had the chance.  

This scenario was directly inspired by "Maximum Havoc" from Preacher by Day.  and involved Chaos cultists who were a little squishier for some Lamenters.  I may revisit this scenario in the future, but I have an Easter game to plan for both girls. 

Sci-Fi Paper Stand-Ups

 As I'm diving back into Planet 28, it was nice to rediscover paper stand-ups available to print out over at Tales From Farpoint.  In a game where there can be a variety of figures outside your classic wargaming troop types, paper stand-ups might win awards, but they are great for home games.

The blog also offer useable stand-ups for Kryomek and Battletech, perfectly usable for Planet 28, or any other sci-fi game.

(Planet 28) Grymmace - Unliving Heavy Weapon Merc - #CharacterCreationChallenge

Throughout the 2024 edition of the #CharacterCreationChallenge, I've been inspired by games I run, games I want to run, figures I've painted, and now, figures my friends have painted, using the rules for Planet 28.  .  

 
Grymmace - Unliving Heavy Weapon Merc   (369pts)

Agility: 4 
Fighting: 4   
Shooting: 7   
Awareness: 4 
Psyche:   6

Speed:  10cm  (-1d6 each move for Slow)

Hit Points:  20

Traits: Brave, Deathproof, Painless, Slow

Equipment:  Energy Shield (1d12+6 protection), Repeating Plasma Rifle (Range 25cm Indirect Fire, Armor Piercing, Volatile,  D: 1d12+50

Grymmace, fighting along side of the Gyrmm (They are of no relation)

There are many mercenaries in the galaxy of the Gnomish Space Marines.  Grymmace is one of the most foolhardy, dedicated mercs, commanding a high price because despite gruesome injuries, they can not seem to die!

It's Repeating Plasma Rifle is usually enough to send its foes for the battle screaming in the other direction, but in the numerous stories that he was felled by a sniper head shot, baked in a napalm claymore, or disintegrated by artillery, the opponents were shocked to find Grymmace the next battle, sometimes the next day, without a scratch.

While the merc is a bit unusual, Grymmace takes advantage of two possibly conflicting campaign rules.  If the figure is taken out of action, and rolls on the Campaign Injury Table Deathproof treats any result of "Death" as No Effect.  Painless allows the character to ignore any result except death.  I'm sure there's errata somewhere, but in this instance, Grymmace cannot truly die.  I'd say they might need to find a new Repeating plasma rifle (which is not cheap), but over 40% of the Grymmace's character points are dedicated to not dying and raining a hellstorm within relatively close range.  There are far more effective characters in this point range, but it's more than sufficient. 

Grymmace made his first appearance supporting gnome space miners five years ago in Cheese Planet of Lipton-9.   These are the first campaign states for them, using a wholly different rules set. 

(Planet 28) The Murder Ball Extrication

On Death Planet Iota, the remnants of the Gnomish Space Marines (GSM)  trapped there casually patrol a swath of land surrounding the trading post of Mosley's Station.  The station itself is a lawless area, with rival gangs fighting over territory.  Recent acquisition of plans detail the construction of a "Murder Ball" by the GSM.  Unable to use this information, the gangs have decided to ally themselves to protect the data until an agent of the rebellion, Manuela Bo-thans, can escape town in an armored vehicle.  

Scenario:  

Duration: 8 Turns

 

Gnomish Space Marines

Capture Manuela and the stolen data - 5 pts

Per Resistance member killed or routed - 1 pt

A single figure needs to be touching the armored car prior to the end of turn 8.

3x GSM Scouts

3x GSM, 1 Hvy Rifle

3x GSM, 1 Hvy Rifle

4x GSM

Mosley Station Resistance

Allow Manuela to escape with the data - 5pts

Per GSM member killed or routed - 1 pt

Figures may set up on, in, or around any building on half of the board closest to the armored car. 

4x Hivers Gang - not the bad-asses from the Great Tractor Heist. They are wearing medium armor

4x Dink-Dinks - Heavy Pistols and no armor 

3x Rat Runners - armed with some powerful rifles with Knockback capability. No armor.

4x Chimneysweeps - Corrupt GSM planetary defense force turned organized crime.  Light Amror

Special Rule:  All gnomes have the "Slow" Trait, meaning for each movement action, they subtract 1d6 cm from their base of 10cm.  Rat Runners and Dink-Dinks are not gnomes. 

The GSM enter town limits

Turn One:  Seeing empty streets and heads peering over rooftops, the GSM leaders immediately realized the element of surprise was lost... and so they panicked.  Fearing getting caught in the open, they stuttered much of their maneuvers. losing valuable time.  In reality, they were still out of range of most of the weapons in town, save a lone heavy rifle shot, which cratered the nearby ground.  

Turn Two:  While most of the gangs took the high ground, the Hivers roamed the streets, where their hand flamers, power swords, and pickaxes were more efficient.  The GSM moved up, their heavy rifles trying to get a bead on the Chimneysweeps, with no success.   The Chimneysweeps acknowledge the attack, by unloading a barrage of SMG fire, nicking only one GSM.

The problem with a game with short races, they can't see over the rooftops without help. 

Turn Three:  The Hivers heavy turned the corner and unloaded into the GSM, with no success.  The GSM moved up and only caused superficial wounds.  

Meanwhile, the three GSM scouts on the right flank became pinned down from Dink-Dink fire .  The four-man GSM rifle team on the left flank worked the side, only attracting some fire from a lone Chimneysweep on the room. 

Turn Four:  Amazed that their heavy hadn't been killed the other hivers jumped out into the street.  A hand flamer badly injured one GSM, and wounded three others, two of which were caught hiding around the corner. 

When you don't have a template, a row of chips work just fine.  

Turn Five:   The GSM continued to panic, now stalling in the middle of the road.    The Hivers charged with abandon into the group. 

Behind the melee, a GSM heavy rifle finally got a bead on a Chimneysweep on the roof, nailing him in the chest.  He immediately broke, dashing down the stairs and pushing his way though the GSM who finally reach the door to the building.

Nobody told me war hurts!  Get me outta here!

Meanwhile, as the scouts were trying to find a way around the Dink-Dinks gun, a lone scout climbed up onto the roof to draw fire, and hopefully return some as well.  The Dink-Dinks  were not known for their shooting prowess, but today they volley fired with great accuracy. Three shots severely wounded the scout and the subsequent fall did not help either, but he did not break.  

This odd piece of architecture broke my fall. 

Turn Six:  With the melee's in the street delaying the GSM, but proving ineffective, the Hiver leader and the Heavy broke off and tried to chase down the GSM rifles on the left flank.

*KA-POW*  *KA-POW* *KA-POW*

Three shots rang out, and the GSM still on fire flew back many feet.   The melee and surrounding buildings hid most of the GSM from the Rat-Runners, so they concentrated their fire onto the one figure they could see.  He was dead after the first shot, but the subsequent hits flew him back until the building stopped his flying body.  

The downed GSM on the far left was standing near the doorway before he as assassinated.

The GSM Rifles on the flank decided against running into the Chimneysweeps' building, rather high-tailing it towards Bo-Than's departure.  

Except their heavy rifle, who managed just enough speed to ascend the steps and shoot one of the gnomes in the back, sending him hurtling off the building to his death.  As the others turned to meet him, another was shot in his back, by a heavy rifle in the streets.

The lone survivor, turned towards his nemesis on the rooftop, screamed his warcry and fired.

*Click, Click*

In a system that uses d10s for combat, the lower the better, two 10's were bad news.  I almost pondered him jumping off the roof to join his fellow gang members. 

Realizing Maneula was leaving soon, the Dink-Dinks descended to street level and towards teh armored car.

Turn Seven:   Manuela emerged from underneath the armored car.  It would be ready to go in one turn.  

The Hiver leader turned the corner and saw the GSM Rifles nearly out of sight.  He stopped his pursuit.  The Hiver heavy turned around, and seeing bodies on the ground that magically appeared, took a few shots at the GSM on street level, sending one fleeing.  

The GSM Heavy on the roof wounded the lone surviving Chimneysweep, and he surrendered.

The lone GSM with any purpose finally climbed atop his building again, using some cover.  Relieved that the Dink-Dinks weren't shooting at him, that was short-lived as the Rat-Runners powerful guns tore into him, tossing his corpse back onto the street. 

His death was not completely in vain, as the scouts finally scurried up the right flank with some speed, but not enough to reach Manuela in time.  

Turn Eight:  One lone GSM Rifle had made it to the building adjacent to the armored car.  All he needed to do was get his stubby little legs over there and the mission would be complete.  

The gang members had other ideas.

The Dink-Dinks had reach the courtyard with one held action, and the Rat-Runners readjusted themselves, most with a saved action, although one hit a sweet shot through a window and a doorway to not only wound a different GSM rifle, but the knockback took them off the board! 

The brave GSM rifleman waddled through the building as fast as he could go....

... and ended up just short. 

As the armored car pealed off, with Manuela and the Murder Ball plans inside, the gang members opened fire, just to add insult to injury.  

Every shot missed....

Post-Game: If there was a turn 9, the two gangs would get another round of firing, and probably not miss again, however, I believe a better narrative is the GSM Rifles covering fire allowed him to escape., and the GSM as a whole withdraw from the town.  

Final score:  Mosley Station Gangs 8 - Gnomish Space Marines 4

As I continue to work with Planet 28, I definitely don't like the static initiative using each figures' Agility score.  

Also, I slowly comparing the 2nd Edition rules revisions to the 1st.  Medium armor (1d10+3) is out, replaced by Ballistic Armor (1d8+4).  A minor difference, but considering the Hiver's armor kept them safe from makeshift weapon melee attacks, it's still fine.  

This scenario was inquired by a Star Wars scenario, Mosley Station – Tomorrow’s War on Tim's Miniature Wargaming Page, over a decade ago! 

I should have time this week to reset the board and try things out using Fistful of Lead - Galactic Heroes as a refresher for Historicon.

(Painting) Chaos Space Gnomes (Space Dwarves Chaos Squad) by Macrocosm

It's been a long-long week, but, if any paltry positive could be pulled, it's that the Space Dwarves Chaos Squad from Macrocosm Miniatures are finally completed!

I've got to admit, this was one of my favorite Kickstarters, from start to finish.  I abhor UK shipping, yet Macrocosm has a knack for getting things out faster than some or their competitors here in the States.  

The minis themselves are resin with a lot of flash, but the detail was great, and I could hide some of the missed flash in the flocking.  

For Planet 28 1st Edition -

Armored Chaos Space Gnome:  Shooting 4 - Fighting 3  - Agility 5.  Hit Points 20 - Speed 10cm+1d6 running.  Exo-Armor (treat as heavy armor, except it nullifies the Space Gnomes' SLOW trait).

Figures wielding melee weapons tend to vastly improve their fighting scores, and leave shooting at base.

 

Next: The table is "clear" of long-term projects, time to look at the Historicon push list. 

This alleged Historicon push list is mostly a recent order I placed through Battle Valor well prior to my "budgetary realignment" at work.  I already have enough figures for my games, but halfway through the year I might as well try a push, since I have a bit more time.

Project: 350 -  A few more ideas appeared, pushing by total up to 465  (313/152) from 462 (310/152)

(Painting) Gnomish Space Marine Dreadnought

I've been wildly impressed with Dollar Tree's Final Faction line of action figures.  Even for a $1.25, the figures are definitely good enough to play with, and a number of pieces can be used for miniature games, and the accessory packs are good for toys and augmenting your tabletop armies.  

This was on the shelf as a P-131 Automated Drone.  That might be fine for final faction, but me, it's a Gnomish Space Marine Dreadnought.

Gnomish Space Marine Dreadnought (485 points walker)

Agility: 5  Shooting: 8

+2 Crew Sections

+2 Hard Point Turrets with Battle Cannons

+1 Hard Point Turret with Heavy Machine Gun

+15 Armor front and back

+Radio

(You could add 25 points for Battle Hardened Crew, maybe 27 points for camouflage)

Next in the Queue:  The same old same old.  Chaos Gnomish Space Marines, Zombies, Campers,  and Blue Martians... plus another dreadnought

Project 350: Despite getting some stuff off the lists this month, we've bumped back up to 459 (304 drafts/155 scheduled) versus 456 (298/158) last month.  Despite being behind only three Gamma World sessions, I also have found some pretty cool stuff to add to my blogging "to-do" list.  Once some of this stuff on the painting bench gets finished, I can proceed with Planet 28 and Pulp Alley projects (and whatever the sci-fi games for Historicon will need.

(Scenery/Terrain) Killer Cacti of Death Planet Iota

Sometimes you have a pile of projects a mile long, but when something quirky comes along and jumps to the front of the queue.  

After seeing Skinflint Games post about Alien Cactii reminiscent of an early 90s 40k table, and seeing some of the projects that are "almost done" on the table, it made sense to knock these out.  

I'd have them done sooner, but there apparently was a regional shortage of Styrofoam balls and toothpicks, so much that I couldn't make them an impulse buy at a hobby/craft shops on the way home from work, or even swinging by a shopping center after a tournament.   

After finally obtaining these silly things (and now having enough for an entire forest(?) if I dreamt of it) the only thing that slowed me down was layering.  Enough Citron Green to soak the balls, enough time to let the glue gun do its magic, and enough time for the Forest Green wash to soak into the nooks and crannies. 

But ViscountEric, it's Styrofoam.  Shouldn't it melt using spray sealant?

The multiple layers of paint protected the spheres, but where there was pitting is where I splashed the orange wash in the holes. 

Still, for a Planet 28 campaign that's on a multiversal nexus, where everything/one gets dumped and it's survival of the fittest, the cacti are a necessary edition.  How I actually use them is a different story.

Next Up:  Figures befitting Killer Cacti

Project 350: Big day, as we drop to 456 (298/158) from 458 (300/158).  A lot of the scheduled drafts are self-sustaining.  A post RPG Actual Play posts Tuesday, and more material needs to be written up from our Monday game.   And I'm sure I'll get some interesting posts for future Easters and April Fool's Days.  There is still a glut of material to do/play in my drafts, and since I should have the kids this weekend, I plan on visiting my mother for her birthday, and spending the rest of the time playing some games.  Some test Pulp Alley perhaps, maybe some Formula D/Ticket to Ride, and perhaps a delve into Gamma World?  

(Planet 28) Waiting to Extract

 My foray into campaign play using the 1st Edition of Planet 28, before cracking open the 2nd Edition hardcover, was supposed to be light-hearted, and barely interconnected.  However, after the incident at Colgar Station 6, and some random rolls, things got serious mighty quick.  

Captain Nate, owner/operator of the Placidity, had been injured during a quick shootout with Blue Martians, and as the crew headed back towards the ship, the injury appeared to be far worse than first feared.  None of the med supplies they packed were working, and he was slowing the entire group down.  Finding some ruins, the sent the ship mechanic, Jewel, to run batch to the ship and extract them from their location.  While it may seem odd that Alan the pilot wasn't sent, he was considered the Captain's best friend, and his motivation had kept the injured man going far longer than others would.

The Placidity  (827)  Objective: Evade capture/death for 8 turns.  

Captain Nate 

Agility: 2, Fighting 5, Shooting 6, Move 7cm, HP: 20

Persuade, Inspire, Pilot

LasPistol (d8, 25cm), No Armor (1d4-1)

Currently -4 to his agility and -3cm to his movement due to a serious leg injury. Numbers are adjusted on the stats.

Gina - 1st Mate

Agility 6 , Fighting 6, Shoting 7, 

Gunslinger

Shipsweeper (1d12+6, 30cm, Knockback, Explosive, Reload)

Alan - Pilot

Agility 8, Fighting 4, Shooting 4, Move 10cm, HP 20

Inspiring, Pilot

No Armor (1d4-1)

Adam -Merc

Agility 6, Fighting 5, Shooting 7 Move 10cm, HP 20

Gunslinger, Sniper

Hvy Rifle (d12+6, 40cm, 2-handed, -2 to opponents armor)

The Crew of the Placidity

What they did not know was that the Chimneysweeps, the Gnomish Planetary Defense Force, had been embarrassed by everyone else during the skirmish, and put out a sizable bounty on both the Placidity crew and the Blue Martians.  

The Blue Martians had long vanished into the wilderness or a nearby city, but the a trio of the best bounty hunters on the planet decided to team out and split the take.

The Bounty Hunters Guilde (776)  Objective: Capture members of the crew (base to base contact) before the end of turn 8.  

Donnie Riddlebottom - Retiree (213)
Fighting: 6
Shooting: 7
Agility: 4    Speed: 10cm
Hit Points: 20
Traits/Abilities: Brawler, Loot
Equipment: Explosive Laser Pistol (1d8, Range 20, Characters within 5cm of any character hit by weapons takes d6 damage), Light Armor (Royal Order of Space Winnebagos Vest)

Jhorka - Pelegian Sapper (Retired) (330)

Fighting:  8

Shooting: 7

Agility:   5

Speed:  10cm

Hit Points:  20 

Traits/Abilities:    Fear, Gunslinger, Throw, Persuade, Sabotage

Equipment: Heavy Pistol (1d10+2, Range 25) Heavy Armor (1d12+6, -1 Agility already applied)

"Gary"  Garindan Bounty Hunter (233)

Fighting: 5

Shooting: 7

Agility:  6

Speed: 10cm 

Hit Points:  20 

Traits/Abilities: Sniper, Coward, "Shore Footed", Climber 

Equipment:  Scoped Heavy Rifle (1d12+6, Range 60, Knock Back, -2 to opp's armor value), Light Armor (1d8)

The Bounty Hunter's Guilde:  Donnie, Jhorka, and Gary

The crew were held out in some ruined buildings.  The Bounty caught up shortly thereafter.  

Turn 1-2:  Jhorka and Donnie attempted to work the limited cover to assault the position Adam (and by turn 2 Gina) were hiding in.   Adam's heavy laser rifle has a step below a support weapons, yet he could penetrate the Pelegian's armor.  

That person wasn't in the window a second ago...

Turn 3-4:  A firefight between Jhorka and Adam proceeded, with Adam's cover taking most of the damage, but him still taking some superficial wounds.   Donnie attempted to use that distraction to dash behind the ruins, but Gina was peeping out the window and a blast of the "Shipsweeper" didn't hit the bounty hunter, but it did question his life choices.

Turn 5-6: Adam confirmed Donnie's missteps, as he turned to shoot him out in the open.  Two shots knocked the bounty hunter down, and he quickly scrambled out of way (and out of the game).  

Meanwhile, Captain Nate stayed under cover, ready to support the other ruins if they had become overrun.  Alan continued to inspire the Captain to help at a moment's notice.  "Jewel will have the ship here in a jiffy.  Just make sure you don't get me killed, please!  You can do it!"

I pictured the badly wounded Captain, leaning up against the wall, laser pistol pointed towards the unknown enemy coming closer, a la Tom Hanks in the end of Saving Private Ryan.  Except there were no P-51s to be angels on their shoulders, but there was a bounty hunter sniper off in the distance.

Long range weaponry in Planet 28 can be nasty...

Two shots hit the Captain, his body flying against the wall, knocking some of the bricks down.  His body crumpled to the ground.  Alan grabbed his captain and pulled him back over the wall. 

Adam changing targets was enough of an adjustment for Jhorka to get a better shot.  Two massive barrages of fire struck the mercenary.  Although he was still alive, he had had quite enough and scrambled towards safety, anywhere else but there. 

Shooting shot after shot at a heavily armored bounty hunter with no effect was just too much for Adam the merc.

Turn 7-8: Both Gina and Alan knew that they were in far worse shape against the sniper at range, but it was doubtful they were wearing a tin can thicker the Jhorka, so both made a mad dash towards the firing position. 

Two crew members try to go after the unarmored bounty hunter.

Gary the sniper hit Gina running across the open.  The shot was not as devastating as either that hit the Captain, but the force of the blow knocked her back half the distance she had already sprinted.  With Jhorka catching up, Gina determined it was in her best interests to run back, and perhaps defend whatever crew was left behind the ruins, namely the Captain.

Alan dashed around the corner and confronted the sniper, but came up short (he needed to use all his actions to reach and could not engage in melee.

Alan reaches the bounty hunter...

Seeing the flailing human running at him, Gary simply took steps back and fired two shots from the hip.  One missed....

...just for him to get blown away and point blank range.

The other hit, stopping the pilot in his tracks.  

Seconds later, an old transport ship emerged over a nearby hill.  The defensive weaponry usually wasn't effective in ship-to-ship combat, but even the erratic firing throughout the area was enough for Jhorka to take heed and retreat.  

Game Notes:  As I continue to expand my use of rules, the despite the much higher curve for "military" hardware, the tougher armor might was well make them spit balls.  Mind you, Adam's Heavy laser rifle (essentially a support weapon) was the same roll as Jhorka's heavy armor, but he never got close wounding him (Even before the extra d6 from cover.  Just because a bounty hunter wants to be well-protected doesn't make them idiots tactically.)  The scary thing is there's a level of armor above heavy (powered) that's simply ridiculous.  For 40k considerations, Space Marine armor is heavy, Terminators have powered armor.  As I explore the Space Hulk implications of using Derelict with Legions of Steel minis, the Paladin PBA is probably medium armor, with the close combat and Behemoth troops getting upgraded to heavy.

I statted out Gary's sniper rifle two years ago, and it emulates what I wanted it to do.  Against lightly armored opponents, it was simply devastating, and should have been even worse!  I forgot to use Adam and Gary's special ability Sniper (This character may re-roll any failed skill rolls when shooting).  Adam was hitting but not penetrating armor.  Gary had a number of misses late in the game which certainly would have changed the narrative.  In the end, I'll keep the scoped heavy rifle on Gary, but next time I'll add the Reload trait to the weapon.  With Sniper and Reload, the weapon effectiveness against soft targets should remain the same. 

I also realized while referencing the rules that Alan's Inspiring ability is +1 to all friendlies skill checks within 10cm.  I was referencing the Inspiring Zeal skill which focuses a +1d10 skill bonus for figure within line of sight.  Considering the only reason I didn't have him fetch that ship was that ability (and I couldn't find Jewel's card.) I'll chalk to up to a live-and-learn lesson.

Campaign Results:  While I haven't read the 2nd Edition cover-to-cover I was relieved to see the campaign rules have the tiniest adjustment.  In the 1st Edition and revised pdf, character rewards start with a period, so I originally assumed (with question) that tenths of points were awarded (0.5 for every enemy killed, 0.1 for surviving.)   The second edition has replaced that period with a proper and distinct bullet point, so I'll need to make some adjustments from the prior game.  It makes much more sense, but the older material it emulates was never completely fair or logical either.  I just figured they wanted folks who levelled up to be bad-asses.

Injuries:

Captain Nate survived, but now must roll 1d20 for break tests.  He has one more game at Agility 2 until the leg heals up, the 7cm movement is permanent. 

Gary's hip shot was meant to maim, not kill.  Alan has a shattered leg, only -2 to agility, but for 4 games.  His reduced 7cm movement means he and Captain Nate can take slow walks together in between games.  

Rewards:  The Crew of the Placidity simply needed to have someone alive to pick-up after 8 turns. They earn the 10 points, which is probably the belated reward they got for obtaining and transmitting the biological data in the previous scenario.    The bounty hunters failed to kill or capture any figures.  

With my revised interpretation (Thank you bullet points), Gary terrorized the table with 15xp, enough to afford him a nice set of medium armor under those clothes, just in case someone does get close to him.)

Despite not hurting Jhorka, all of Adam's successful shots result in 1xp each, so he's on his way for something.

(Planet 28) Incident at Colgar Station 6

Colgar Station #6 was a biological research base, conducting all sorts of experiments.  Hours ago a distress called was sent to all channels from a Dr Jay Banks, requesting extraction and a big reward for his rescue.  

Three different teams responded, each with different motivations.  

Playing with a Pulp Alley scenario with Planet 28 rules, there were six normal objective tokens and one major objective (Dr Banks in the center of the table).  All chips on buildings are inside the buildings and figures must go inside to recover them.

All buildings (and normal terrain) are considered rough.  An agility roll is required.  Pass and most normal.  Fail and that movement is done at half speed. 

The lillypad and small oasis are both considered hazardous terrain.  Passed agility roll and they treat terrain as rough (half speed).  If failed, the figure takes 1d10 damage (minus armor).

Upon touching an objective token for the first time, the figure will roll 1d6 to determine what skill needs to succeed (1-2 Fighting, 3-4 Shooting, 4-5 Agility). 

The first group to leave for the distress call were the Gnomish Planetary Police Force unit, known as the "Chimneysweeps."

Chimneysweeps (547)

Agility: 3 Fighting: 4 Shooting: 4  Move 10 - 1d6cm  HP: 20

Slow, Iron Skin

Lt Armor (d8+d4), SMG (2d6, 40cm 2-handed), Leader has Pistol (d8, 20cm)

They're not just bad cops, they're BAD at policing as well, far tougher than a civilian, but in this fight, there might be trouble.

There aren't that many honest folks, but the crew of the Placidity were the closest thing to it... and relatively nearby.  

The Placidity  (992)

Captain Nate 

Agility: 6, Fighting 5, Shooting 6, Move 10cm, HP: 20

Persuade, Inspire, Pilot

LasPistol (d8, 25cm), No Armor (1d4-1)

Gina - 1st Mate

Agility 6 , Fighting 6, Shoting 7, 

Gunslinger

Shipsweeper (1d12+6, 30cm, Knockback, Explosvie, Reload)

Alan - Pilot

Agility 8, Fighting 4, Shooting 4, Move 10cm, HP 20

Inspiring, Pilot

No Armor (1d4-1)

Adam -Merc

Agility 6, Fighting 5, Shooting 7 Move 10cm, HP 20

Gunslinger, Sniper

Hvy Rifle (d12+6, 40cm, 2-handed, -2 to opponents armor)

Jewel - Mechanic

Agility 6, Fighting 3, Shooting 4, Move 10cm, HP 20

Engineer, Repair

Tool (1d4+3 melee)

Blue Martian Irregulars wanted to plunder the research base, and possibly eat Dr Banks... or treat Dr Banks to something nice. 

Blue Martian Irregulars (770)

Shooters (x3)

Agility 7, Fighting 3, Shooting 4, Move 10cm, HP 20

Laser Rifle (2d8, 40cm, 2-handed), No Armor (d4-1)

Dervishes (x2)

Agility 8, Fighting 4, Shooting 5, Move 10cm,  HP 20

Pistol (d8, 20cm) Dagger (d4+3 melee), No Armor (d4-1)

Three wildly different groups, all they I've designed with the 1st Edition "Plus" rules for Planet 28.   The crew of the Placidity also have a lot of skills that will be more useful in the longer campaign.  

Deployment:  All three units deployed on the left hand side of the board, two on opposite ends of the oasis, and the Placidity below the Blue Martians, hidden by research buildings. 

Turn one:  Everyone who couldn't dash towards an objective found the relatively safe spaces with cover, until Khan-Man randomly opened fire at Captain Nate (and missed)! 

Turn two:  Alan from the Placidity high tailed it into a research building for relaying data to a contact off-world.  Two of the Blue Martians dashed into a different building.  The two gunslinger Martians had a different time obtaining the biological samples from the oasis, one taking signficant damage from the traps.  

Khan-Man ran away when Adam the Merc appeared around the corner.  Destination: "Save" Dr Banks, whether he wanted saving by the Blue Martians or not.

Come back here!  Let me save you!

Figures in the building are actually inside the buildings at that spot.

Gina and Jewel take the long way to reach the lillypads

Turn Three and Four:  Khan-Man finally "save" Dr Binks, but also realized he was actually saving Dr BINKS. 

Back at the research buildings, Alan easily cancelled the distress call, and moved on to help Gina and Jewel, but the two Blue Martians in the other building were in a bit of a pickle.    Captain Nate was just outside their door, and Adam was waiting around the corner holding a Heavy Laster Rifle, a weapons tough enough to put a hole in space marine armor.  The one Martian jumped out and shot the Captain in the back. The captain turned around and gave him a glancing shot in return.  Adam, completely befuddled, decided to shoot at the Martian Dervish off in the distance, sizzling the already wounded creature.  

Gina and Jewel attempted to evade the giant poisonous pond frog.  

Jewel took significant damage from the frog, but distracted it enough for Gina to accomplish the objective.

Alan gave some inspiring words to Gina and Jewel, to prevent them from dying.

Turns 5-6 - Khan-Man and another Dervish met up at mid board and moved to scrap materials from the power station.  

And what of the Chimneysweeps?  The Sweeps are the weakest GSM unit I statted out.  As corrupt law enforcement, they have horrible skills, poor movement, and solid armor, so no one wanted to bother them, but in the reverse, they couldn't hit the Blue Martians to save their life, whether they were sprinting or standing still.  The captain of the GSM was able to reach a lab and plunder it with minimal effort.  

Adam and Captain Nate scattered as the first Martian started shooting wildly and ran out the door and around the corner.  Captain Nate though he had sufficient cover, but the escaping Blue Martian had turned around and fired a returning shot, knocking the Captain to the ground.  

With that lucky and dangerous hit, Adam went into  defensive mode, protecting his remaining clue.    Gina, Jewel, and Alan took the long way to get home, but it was a safe way. 

The Chimneysweeps attempted to encroach on Adam's new territory, but with a gloved fist in the air, they stopped dead in their tracks. 

Don't even try it.... 

No one on the Chimneysweeps had been injured and they retreated with their ONE POINT.

Despite Captain Nate's injuries, the rest of the crew escaped with minor injuries and TWO POINTS

The Blue Martians, dissipated after the game. in two directions, but had acquired SIX POINTS (Three minor objectives and Dr Binks).

Using the short campaign rules on the back page of the 1st Edition zine, two characters earned 1 xp each, while the rest earned tenths of xp's (Examples: Each successful shoot or fight action, pre-armor, is .1 xp.  making it through the scenario unwounded is .5 points).  Traits and equipment can be added based on their point value at creation, while skills and Hit Point increases cost 20 xp, so don't expect great progress with figures who can't hit or can't avoid getting hit early in a campaign.

The Blue Martians earned 10xp collectively for winning the scenario, so I expect some equipment upgrades, or maybe armor for one of the irregulars.

Finally, any character who reached 0 HP roll on the injury chart.  Both Captain Nate and the Blue Martian Dervish who were taken out suffered a shattered legs, resulting in both of them getting -4 Agility to the Dervish for 4 games, and -4 Agility to the Captain for 2 games.  Both dropped to a max speed of 7cm per action.

The scenario was directly pulled from Colgar6 and the Infinite Legion of Toy Soldiers: The incident at Station X