Sci-Fi skirmish game using Planet 28 Rules and Alternative Armies HOF figures.

 

The Planet M'lanQuidox 17 is a water world which way back in time had a large asteroid smash into it. This created a HUGE crater, causing a crater wall to emerge from the planet's waters. The wall was incomplete at one point allowing some tidal ingress and egress. The crater walls are precipitous and soar above the waters. Plant life survived the asteroid impact and evolved over many millenia and tended to clump together on the more sluggish waters of the crater, forming floating islands of vegetation, some many hundred of metres long and wide, that drifted here and there on the torpid currents. Storms sometimes caused these floating islands to break up, and sometimes force amalgamation of smaller islands. Low clouds cover the crater on most days.

On discovering the unique planet The Commonwealth of Planets ruled that it should be set aside for scientific study  and under NO circumstances should it be exploited for it’s natural resources (if any). Any breaches would be punished to the full extent of the law.

Sector 29 Scientific Research Facility -JV was established on a quadrilateral “island" with a 6 cabin and laboratory drop on one of the few days that allowed airborne access, and a small team of technicians and scientists were installed. All communications, scientific, technical and personal were sent via a Geo-Stat satellite.

The weekly report has not been received for 6 weeks so a small team of Star Force Alpha Marines with Engineer and Medic  have been dispatched to investigate and effect any repairs and report back.

The team arrived and carefully entered the area. The structures were checked, no signs of life, the satellite dish was smashed and the generator out of fuel. The 2 storey lab building looked as if it had been ransacked IT hardware had been ripped out. The Engineer of the team started fixing the generator and then she set to work on replacing the satellite dish atop the building. The medic and team leader carried on searching the building, carrying on until they emerged on the roof where there was nothing but some of the huge vines that had started to already to engulf the building.

 

There being no other signs of life the remaining marine joined the Engineer on the roof of the Comms cabin and they quickly got the dish fixed and a test message broadcast to the Geo-Stat satellite  whilst the message was uploading the marine heard strange noises from the landing stage area and moved onto the adjacent building and took cover in the vines. His com-link message alerted the other members of the team.  A small submarine had surfaced at the landing stage and destroyed their boat !

 

 

A landing party disembarked and advanced into the station. Mean while the Alpha Force Team leader and the Medic climbed down the vines at the back of the Lab. Building and headed off to join the rest of the team on top of the cabin next to the Comms cabin. The leader’s idea was to catch the Landing Party  whilst they were as far away from the sub as possible. As the leader and medic passed behind the buildings the Orange Jump Suited landing party advanced cautiously  through the central open area of the Station. After  they had passed by the Marines, it occurred to the leader that maybe they could take the submarine ! The Engineer and the Marine shimmied down the fine to the back of the bin and passed along to the corner of the accommodation line. They could see a sentry  up on the ‘sail’ and opened fire, causing him to drop out of sight. They sprinted for the sub and swarmed up and overcame the sentry. In an instant they had dragged the casualty below and sealed the outer hatch.

The shooting alerted the landing party who sprinted back towards the sub but were caught in the open by fire from the Team Leader and Medic. Two went down immediately another  soon wounded The Landing Party leader and another returned fire, wounding the Medic.4made it back to the sun but found the hatches locked and realised their folly as the Engineer submerged the vessel with them still banging on the hatch. Three drowned in the process and the one survivor made it ashore but just hid in the undergrowth.

 

The Team leader and the Medic were now in a two against two scrap and managed to down one of their opponents and the leader barricaded himself in an accommodation cabin . The fight was over

Subsequent investigations showed that the Agrax Corporation was prospecting the planet with the hope of extracting the nutrient rich waters and converting it into high grade fertilisers for sale to food production planets in the sector. The Agrax Corporation was dissolved and members of its executive board sent to penal colonies.

 

A good game with my son who was over from Australia.

Ruritanian link

 May I recommend all those interested in Ruritanian shenanigans, the erudite Blog of Red Orc?

http://redorcsblog.blogspot.com/

'In Dogger, German Bight, Fisher, South Utsire,North Utsire....'

 Soooo some shipping...

This is sort of how my 'Space Ship'  looks in my imagination. 

this is more what it does look like.....

 

The Argo needs finishing..black hull for a start....

 

and a waterline sub.... owned by the Agrax Corporation illegally mining nutrient rich ocean basin deposits  on the planet M'lanQuidox 17 in contravention of the Commonwealth embargo of interfering in this Sector of Special Scientific Interest.

 

Right..... onwards and upwards etc. 

John 

 

 At last there is a glimmer of normality.

"Awake, for Morning in the bowl of night, has flung the stone that puts the stars to flight"

After nearly two years of inaction I have lumbered into purposeful pursuits.Well not really.... more like an excitable Springer Spaniel...... no plan, no rhyme and reason...... but great FUN.

One Hour Skirmish Wargames..... used for Sci-Fi style escapades with a retro feel ( Dan Dare lives again...) 

Fast play 3x3 Portable wargames...... 18th Century Imagi -Nations of Lovotznia and Herzog quibbling over a piece of territory. Fastest game less than 10 minutes. Lesson learnt? Do not put 2 units per grid when facing Elite artillery and then throw  successive 1's when you put your general in harm's way on the first turn..... At 10mm this easy to fit onto a sheet of A4 with the grid drawn on. 

'9x9 'normal grid Portable wargames  again with Lovotznia and Herzog

Painting

Austrian, British, French and Prussian Napoleonics .... Just a PWG brigade of each

Sci-Fi, 15/18mm Rim Mercenaries, Star Force Alpha Marines and some other figures to use for Dan Dare inspired japes.

Plastic Greeks of Adam Dobbyns 'Argonaut' inspired game.... rules soon to be published..... including foes, Amazons, skeletons, a large plastic octopus and a rather spiffing Hydra

Still in the pile .... 6mm ECW from Heroics and Ros and 10mm ECW from Lancer miniatures

Scenary

Aquarium plastic plants for the Sci Fi Skirmishes. Held uptight in cut to size holes in polystyrene sheet covered with ;Mixed Herb' flock Other scatter terrain for skirmishes, the odd tree , log pile, rock pile etc. 

A 'space craft' for hot extraction scenario ( made from a shampoo bottle and yoghurt pot with cardboard add-ons.... it doesn't look too bad if you look at it with your eyes 80% closed... any less than 80% and its origins are obvious )

A floating research station..... Kellogs variety pack boxes wrapped in paper

A submarine and The Argo still need doing....

Busy ,busy, busy.

John

Onward to Strelsau.....

 As a further aside to the Ruritanian theme  I found this rather spiffing map thanks to the Google elves.

https://alchetron.com/Ruritania

I have no idea who created it ( but thank you)   but the use of a slice of the Czech Republic is jolly useful as it gives a good tie in with the description in The Prisoner of Zenda vis-a-vis the geographical distance between Dresden and Strelsau. The regions I am not sure about but the presence( or so it seems) of Grand Duchies or Papal cities or even free cities within the Ruritanian border might prove a treasure trove for justifying local bellicose posturings. 

I am still unsure whether to stick with the time frame of mid 1700's as per "The Princess Osra" or the latter half of the 19th as per "The Prisoner of Zenda"  and "Rupert of Hentzau"

All to play for...

Progress....or lack of it.

 There is little to report apart from the arrival of more Heroic and Ross figures this week which I hope to do some skirmish games with. 

Unfortunately we have the builders in, which means all my materials, board, scenery, armies etc have been banished to the 'Man Cave' , which my wife informs me is not for me alone.... hence the mountains of Kilner jars and gardening impedimenta which have been in residence since we moved here four years ago and are now themselves buried under the contents emptied from the garage.

I have designed what I hope is Manor House of correct proportions for ECW skirmishes but it awaits construction. Today I hope to design a small street again for ECW skirmishes.

I am sure I am not alone in being easily distracted by other ventures. Yesterday was spent in re reading the Prisoner of Zenda and searching for clues to produce a map of Ruritania, with the longer term goal of conducting skirmish type encounters caused by the nefarious shenanigans of the day. Spies, assassins, insurrection, kidnaps, anarchists, contested successions, railways, telegraph......phew! I do not know whether to thank Mark of The Man of Tin blog for starting me off on this or curse him for re- igniting my interest which has been latent for 20+ years.

The repercussions of the Crook's Farm Battle

 

If either of the commanders had expected acclamation and plaudits from their superiors following their actions at Crook's Farm, they were sadly disappointed.
Sir Josiah, reporting to Senior Commanders in Linden, was given little praise for carrying the war to the enemy, or for the meagre fooddtuffs he had procured for the City. It was pointed out to him that his troops were now busy consuming such victuals  and therefore thanks to his actions was putting the City's supplies in deficit.
Lord Thomas had pointed out to him that if he had not retired from the Field at South Clifton then the foe would not have entered the lands to the West of the River Trout in the first place, and, despite Lord Thomas' blustering and indignant protestations regarding his ejection of an enemy host with but an equal sized force of his own, the Royalist Command in Nottingham 'regretted' his failure to follow up the enemy and either annihilate them as they attempted to ford the River Trout, or harrass them all the way to Linden. 

Both commanders returned to their base areas in high dudgeon, to resupply, re-equip, recruit and soothe the hurts they had received from their superiors. Their subordinate Colonels took their Regiments home with varying amounts of relief, and anticipation of further service.   Whilst they awaited the orders and commissions  of the Higher Command, Lord Thomas and Sir Josiah resolved to entertain the troops that they might call on, with attacks on local adherents to the enemy's cause.

" scarce a  day went by without some alarum or excursion or beating up of quarters"


If I can find some simple skirmish rules to my liking and some suitable cheap figures I might game such an attack with perhaps 20 figures a side. Otherwise it will be an algorithm and Excel Random number in a spreadsheet job.