The Yellow Rose of Messier 67

Last week we used Gruntz for the first time in ages. There were four of us playing an ambitious set of linked games with a central theme. The setting was our own background using our Messier 67 forces.

Each player fought in two games with the winner of each earning a token (marked either R, O, S or E for reasons that will become clear). What follows is not so much an AAR, since I was only properly following my own games, but will follow the linked scenarios and report how it played out.

The Yellow Rose of M67

The overarching plot is the quest for a rare plant. It was described in the notes of a famous deceased botanist who had visited the planet Hillier. It is thought that she planted the flower in an area of the planet (or its moon) with specific environmental conditions. Each location is the setting for a game but only one of the settings contained the real "Yellow Rose".

Motivations

Aslan (Dave): Although they have not been seen on the world since the arrival of the human ark ships, the Aslan claim it is theirs. The plant matches the description of a known specimen from their own history. If they can find the plant and validate it is the same, it will justify their claim.

Anarcho Communist Commonality (Me): Under its environmental protection laws, the rare plant must be retrieved, protected and cultivated.

New Commonwealth (Anthony): The flower looks stunning and will make a fortune!

2nd Confederacy (Ross): The botanist once visited a 2nd Confederacy fringe world whose population was primarily of Texan descent. As well as hinting at the plant having healing properties, she allegedly joked that it looks like a yellow rose.

Slot 1, Game 1 - Aslan v 2nd Confederacy

Jungle

A dense jungle has formed at ground zero of a terraforming pod. Indigenous locals have advised that they have seen a yellow plant along the banks of a river. Due to translation problems, the exact spot has not been described properly but three locations fit the description.

The tribe refused to act as guides in this area of the jungle. When asked why, the answer was difficult to understand. However, in needing to ask about the flower, the offworlders had learned the local words for different colours. The natives were scared of “something pink” in the trees.

Three markers are placed along the river which runs from corner to corner; one in the centre and the others 12” either side.

Forces start within 12” of the other corners and must examine the markers. An action is spent to check for the plant. Only one marker is actually the plant which must then be removed via one of the table edges adjacent to your starting corner.

When passing through area terrain, a skill check is needed to avoid disturbing a pack of Terrorformed. Activation is by card...draw a card for each unit on the table then assign each to any unit. Activate in descending order. When Terrorformed units are in play, they get a card too.

Both forces advance on the river

Dave's Aslan sent drones ahead to disturb the creatures near the 2nd Confederacy. This strategy pinned them down for most of the game. You can see the Aslan crossing the river to two of the possible locations (yellow flowers).

The Aslan found the flower (Token R) at the first location but that didn't stop them pretending they were still looking leaving Ross to stay on mission and leaving his Texans knee deep in pink horror.

Slot 1, Game 2 - Anarcho Communist Commonality v New Commonwealth

Dome

A small colony on the barren moon of Charlie fled when they heard about the Aslan fleet. At the centre of their colony is a biosphere. The plant might be located here.

Retrieve the plant from the dome and take it off your table edge. When infantry are hit and the damage check exactly equals their armour, they must take a skill check (12) as the toxic atmosphere tears at their body and they try to patch their suit.

The target flower was in the dome on the left.

Ant's Commonwealth sped up and started harassing my powered armour. To the left, my Boudicca APC is finding somewhere to drop two fireteams under the cover of the hab units.

That went badly wrong. After the first team deployed, a push move (move, move, shoot) saw one of Ant's units round the corner and kill my men with a well placed rocket! The second team disembarked and I returned the favour.

The APC had an exchange with a couple of Ant's vehicles amid the huts but was ultimately removed. At this point, we only had a few stragglers on each side. Our commanders, pictured here, had a rumble with Ant's leader heading off to the dome. Luckily, the remainder of my powered armour took him out.

The remainder of the commonwealth infantry used the other dome to get safely past my tank. They knew they had no hope of escape, though, so surrendered humiliatingly amongst the cabbages.

My last trooper entered the dome and collected the yellow flower (Token O).

Slot 2, Game 1 - New Commonwealth v Aslan

Farm

The botanist left some plant samples with an old farmer for safekeeping. The farmer has since died and the ownership of the holding has changed. The new owners know nothing of the agreement and likely ploughed the field where the plant was growing.

Some of his animals are behaving strangely...one in particular.

Both human forces must attempt to kill (or use a tranquilliser round) the cow and spend a turn at its body removing the contents of its stomachs. The sample must be removed from the table.

The cow starts near the centre of the table and moves 6” in a random direction each turn. Its herd of 5 other cows surround it (radius 3ish”) and will attack anyone that come within charge range.

Daisy and her bodyguard at the centre of the table.

The Aslan and New Commonwealth forces are both fast so there was a rush to the centre to fight over the cow. At this point, Daisy is still alive but some of her herd are dead.

Ant's forces include missile defence and devices that hinder targeters in close proximity which gave Dave some problems. Daisy's stomachs (Token S) changed hands a couple of times but, in the end, the New Commonwealth won. Not before one of the cows killed a grenadier, though!

Slot 2, Game 2 - Anarcho Communist Commonality v 2nd Confederacy

City

The botanist’s original lab was located somewhere in Dimmock City. The city was destroyed by a WMD and is now deserted. Although the rough area of the lab is known, its exact location is not. The plant is still in the remains of the lab.

At the end of six turns, the location of the lab is randomly determined as being in one of several buildings. Whoever has the nearest unit is the winner.

Deployment: Players assign a number to each unit and list which of the 16 imaginary grid squares each unit is in. Where a player is the sole occupant of a square, that square is locked and belongs to them. Where two players are in a square, they roll a d6 for each unit and keep the highest. The player with the highest dice locks and owns the square. The loser must retreat to one of the surrounding squares that is not yet locked.

Dimmock City ruins.

This Confederacy gunship buzzed round the table for most of the game. Luckily for me, Ross rolled poorly for it throughout and it did nothing! Unluckily for me, The "cube" building below it had two of my fireteams inside. They were caught in crossfire between Ross's men in the two adjacent buildings and a third, closer to the camera (out of shot).

My actions at this brick building were also a disaster. I should have stayed in there and held it but I got greedy and tried to string men out to the crashed dropship to control more ground. To the right was another building housing Ross's bots. I was hoping to spot them and rocket them from my tank. Yet another crossfire with the bots and a unit in the central building wiping the team out.

I had better luck with Commander. He fired in through the windows of a small building (just in front of the green truck), killed the unit inside and held his ground. Although Ross held 6 buildings against my 3 (effectively half the table was uncontested for him!), the lab turned out to be the building my commander was in (Token E).

Resolution

Aslan Dave: Token R
Anarcho Commie Me: Tokens O and E
British Ant: Token S

With that, we went out to the missus' flower bed were I'd sealed the identity of the real Yellow Rose in a box. But it was dark by then so, Ironically given the ACC environmental laws, I probably crushed a load of flowers!

And the winner was my Arnarcho Communists. The Rose was token O and had been in the Bio Dome on the rocky moon. Yay!


Summary

Loads more happened than I can remember or write (or you could stand to read). It was an ambitious day but we all agreed it worked well and was fun (or the others are just humouring me!). Four different types of game with a central theme. Gruntz allowed us to put some diverse forces of our own devising on the table.

The missus is back from France tomorrow. I think the garden is still alive thanks to another British summer.


Other pics as requested by MrHarold:

Reverse angle on the domes

Slightly wider shot of the city. Here you can see the building housing Ross's bots (bottom left) and all three buildings surrounding my units and pinning them in the "cube" building.

Better shots of the jungle terrain can be seen here where we played the original version of this scenario in January.

Welcome to the Jungle

A couple of weeks ago we played a small, three-player game of Gruntz. We used the jungle terrain I finished making a week earlier.

Each player could make a force of up to 50 points with no vehicles, jump packs or the like - the aim was get a "traipsing through the jungle" feel. For those unfamiliar with the Gruntz army builders, 50 points equates to maybe a couple of 5-man fire teams or a single powered armour team.

The scenario background was deliberately vague as it fits into a loose, mystery narrative arc I'm using for some of our games. Each player had to place two objectives away from their deployment zones (which were the three corners of a 4 x 4 table). The aim was to collect as many of the objectives as possible and carry them off the respective deployment corners. No alliances were allowed.

My GoR forces are nearest the camera. James' Blitzkreig AG scum troops are opposite. Ant's New Commonwealth Gurkhas are in the left corner (by the empty chair).

Plan showing the six blue objectives. The river can be traversed on foot but halves movement.

 My plan was to send one team left to capture that lower objective as well as denying it to Ant. The other team were to cross the river and take the objectives at the base of the hill and on top of it.

Ant's men have beaten me to the first objective but I take a short cut through the terrain to ambush him. This triggers an opposed skill check....

....against these fellas. Since I fail the check, a pack of "things" appear nearby. Luckily, they are out of charge range.

Although I managed to kill the monsters, doing so tied my chaps up leaving the Gurkhas to escape with one of the mysterious missiles. They looped round this copse and annihilated my men!

From the hill, my second fire team spot the BlitzKreig troops are using bounding overwatch to advance.

With the New Commonwealth already retreating with one objective, my remaining team crossed the river and collected the easy target from the base of the hill. They proceeded to climb the slope, entering terrain again and drawing the attention of another pack of creatures some distance away.

What I should have done is retreated with two objectives and let Ant and James fight it out. What I actually did was press on, deliberately entering terrain and choosing not to test for stealth! With one team gone I suppose I saw the writing on the wall and hoped I'd get lucky and have BlitzKrieg set upon by the pink things.

Omnomnom

It sort of worked. BlitzKrieg were attacked but their overwatch fire was successful and put paid to the creatures. Unfortunately for me, more monsters piled in and finished my force.

Even in hand to claw combat, the Gurkhas make light work of these monsters with their energy-kukris. These beasts had regenerated after my earlier encounter with them.

Battle for the Hill

As the Gurkhas close on the hill, their colleagues (off camera) are ready to leave the table with two objectives. James' BlitzKrieg AG have collected two of their own McGuffins so whoever secures the two missiles I dropped will be the winner.

It looks dicey for James as he is caught between a pack of pinkies and the Gurkhas. His overwatch takes care of the humans and...

...he wins initiative against the beasts, easily finishing them off.

The other Gurkhas leave the area for final scores of:

BlitzKrieg AG: 4
New Commonwealth: 2
Guardians of the Revolution: 0 (and a poor one at that!)

Ultimately, James' choice to keep his fire teams together and use overwatch properly won him the game.

Other stuff:

We used card based activation for the first time. This was great fun for representing the hack through the jungle. Since the creatures were assigned cards too, it made interaction with them that bit more tense.

I should probably have clustered the terrain pieces into larger areas so there was more emphasis on choosing to go round the long way or risk summoning monsters by taking short cuts through the undergrowth.

There was some other stuff too but...well...you know how it is writing these things...

Trouble at New Hamburg

We played a game of Gruntz on Thursday night. The setting was our custom M67 background (https://sites.google.com/site/system15mm/).

We were pretty engrossed in the game so didn't manage to take enough pictures for a cohesive battle report. However, I've posted the scenario and outcome here as it played well and may be of use to others.

Background

New Hamburg was a major city in an independent ark colony. The city had grown quickly for a small independent, making its fortune as a shipping hub due to its host planet’s prime location. Although not an immediate threat to some of the larger corporate powers, it was becoming a nuisance to someone. Five years ago it was extensively bombed by unknown agents. The bombing was enough to effectively destroy the city, ending the colony. It since became no man’s land, open for the taking.

The Anarcho Communist Commonality (ACC) recently began clearing debris from the ruins using nano-cloud technology. In doing so, they have discovered evidence about who bombed the city. Before the ACC engineers could get the evidence off-world, their craft was (conveniently) shot down by a combined force made up of Lone Star Mercenaries and BlitzKreig AG who wish to contest the land.

A small force of ACC Guardians of the Revolution arrive to help the engineers escape.

Game

The game takes place on a 4 x 4 table, ideally covered with dense urban ruins. The crashed engineering craft is between 12 and 24 inches of the Lone Star/BlitzKreig edge. Three engineers are noted in secret as being somewhere along this same strip (i.e. 12 to 24 inches of Lone Star/BlirzKreig edge).

Both forces (400 points each) are set up no more than 6” onto the table.

Lone Star and BlitzKreig units can scan an area 6 + d6” in radius (centered on themselves) with an action. If an engineer is in this area, they are revealed. If the engineers move position, they are instantly revealed and placed on the table. They carry small arms but should be fairly easy to hit and kill.

Each engineer carries an encrypted device that may contain evidence about the illegal bombing. One is a dummy, the other two are actual pieces of evidence. Neither side knows which until the end of the game. If an engineer is killed, they drop their device and it can be retrieved by infantry of either side (using an action to pick it up).

The ACC mission is to get both pieces of evidence off their table edge. If they extract one device the game is a draw. If they retrieve neither of the genuine objectives, then Lone Star/BlitzKreig win.

Early on, a Che Guevara MBT takes up a commanding position atop a building.

Lone Star detect an engineer (directly below the satellite dish). They kill the civilian and take his evidence. The Goblin walker sets up in the building to defend their retreat.

Lone Star as they enter the building.

GoR powered armour cross the street to enter the building and take the data back from Lone Star. They are shot down by the Goblin but recover due to nano-tech. Ultimately they change course away from the camera to defend another fleeing engineer who appears between the crashed ship and the large gas cylinder.

Slain powered armour can be seen below the dish. The engineer they go to defend is killed by cylinder 7 but they pick up the evidence and escape through the C-shaped building to the left. Lone Star had taken the other data as far as the distant block by the green truck. They were taken out by a lucky missile strike, leaving the damaged grav APC (far left) to go and retrieve the device.

The third engineer escaped down the left flank (wrecked brick buildings) fairly unmolested.

 I was worried that I would only retrieve two of the devices and, should one of those be the dummy, the game would end in a draw. There was plenty of other action not covered above. BlitzKreig AG committed to my right flank which I managed to counter by moving the engineer around the tall cylinders. This commitment to the wrong area also left one of my Che Guevara tanks unchallenged. In turn, that allowed the lucky shot that stopped Lone Star from escaping with evidence that I had all but given up on.

If you are thinking of using the scenario, something to be aware of is how easy it is to kill the engineers. Luckily, this is offset by the dense terrain providing them opportunities to hide and the ability for troops to pick up the evidence. I'm not sure the scenario would work as well in a ugo-igo system - the attackers might kill all the engineers in one turn. With alternating activations or similar, it is difficult to commit units to a headlong search as they will require support.