Location: Zircon/Jewell
Date: 001/1105
I rolled for the planet's attributes twice and got a Fuel Refinery result and a Gloom result. The former means that travel only costs 3Cr and the latter that visibility will be 1d6+6". I interpreted the fuel refinery as meaning there was a scout base in system. For the latter, I decided it either meant a tainted or an exotic atmosphere. I picked the Jewell subsector to check for a suitable planet first, because it is at the border of Zhodani and Imperial space. I have a vague idea that conflict along the border will be part of any future campaign, although that could change according to whatever whim takes my fancy. So, looking through the systems with scout bases, I noted that Zircon has a dense tainted atmosphere and a scout base. Perfect. Whatever taints the atmosphere causes reduced visibility. It's a non-industrial planet so I think the taint must be natural and may be dust because of the planet's low hydrographic index. At this period in the history of the Spinward Marches Zircon is a non-aligned planet.
The team had dropped in at the scout base for a cheap refuel and Eshtovr went off to see the local commander while the others ran errands. Shelby was in the local market playing dice and doing rather well. Weeb was nearby dickering with a trader and arranging delivery of some trade goods to their ship. Just as he was raking in his latest winnings, Shelby's comms rang.
"Gotta mission," announced Eshtovr, "Some kind of drop being made. I need you to escort the VIP to a data terminal downtown where they will need to access it. Hostiles are likely to be limited in number, but don't take any chances. Seems we could be looking at Cyclan involvement. You and Weeb get over there. We'll follow up as quick as we can. Remember that all weapons are illegal here, so be careful. If you must take that cannon of yours with you, don't let the local cops catch you. Sending coordinates for pick-up and drop off to your comm now."
Sector government (one of the team's patrons) assigned a protection mission. It involves getting the target to the centre of the board for a full turn. The enemy is Converted which I am interpreting as Cyclan, based on E. C. Tubb's Dumarest Saga. I only rolled one enemy, but will be using random events, so let's see how it goes.
The team got the drop on the enemy and made a full move before the enemy got to move. On top of that, I rolled low enough that both of my crew were able to act in the quick actions phase. Woohoo. That got Shelby into position while Weeb was able to pick up documentation that would give the team a quest rumour. Who knows where that will lead? The enemy figure advanced at full speed, but did not get into line of sight yet.
Weeb advanced to the corner of the Penneys Building. The bot's sensors quickly detected a suspicious figure moving quickly into cover behind a parked car. It's suspicions were confirmed when the figure pulled an assault rifle out from under it's duster coat and fired at Shelby on the roof. Shelby yelled and pitched over, dropping his rifle. Weeb groaned mechanically as it heard Shelby fall, and again when two ROUS crawled out of a nearby vent. It pinged Eshtovr and told her to hurry up as it raced across the street to get a clear shot at the Cyclan infiltrator. Weeb blasted the infiltrator with both barrels. It would not be getting up again. Now to deal with the ROUS that was launching itself at it. The ROUS's claws were sharp but failed to damage Weeb's plasteel shell. Weeb's shotgun, however, crushed the vermin's skull. One down, one to go, as the other ROUS raced as fast as it could towards the bot. The VIP raced past the bot and the ROUS, reaching the data terminal. Hopefully, she could do whatever she needed to do before anything else could go wrong.
The hostile managed to roll the 6 needed to hit Shelby, taking him out of the fight. I only remembered about using story points later on so I let this result stand. Weeb got to act and moved to a spot where the hostile could not count as in cover. It blasted the infiltrator before being attacked in a brawl by one of the ROUS (vent crawlers). The two brawlers tied but Weeb rolled high enough to kill the ROUS while the ROUS rolled a 1 and did not hurt Weeb. I used giant rats as the vent crawlers because that is what I had to hand.
Weeb quickly pumped the action of its shotgun and let the second ROUS have it right in the face. Two solid hits and the ROUS practically disintegrated. Meanwhile, Eshtovr and Garth had finally arrived! Out of breath, they raced towards the ongoing fight. When they arrived, the VIP was done with their task and disappeared into the crowd. The crew quickly recovered Shelby and looted the corpse of the infiltrator before merging into the crowds that were gathering and then disappearing back to the Saucy Sue where they found that Shelby was just winded. His jump belt had taken the full brunt of the shot and been destroyed in the process.
The crew earned 9 Credits for this mission, including danger pay and bonuses for completing it quickly. They also gained a Military Rifle and a Blade, and a CredCard that they were able to cash in for 3 Credits.
Shelby was not hurt but lost a random item of equipment.
At this point I awarded experience and moved on to other post-battle activities. No character had enough experience to spend the points yet, and I did not have enough credits to invest in advanced training. I did decide to spend 6 Credits to get a roll on the Gear table and a roll on the Gadget table. The crew snagged a set of Combat Armour and a Repair Bot. With law levels in mind, and the thought that I can introduce the police as a programmed problem in some scenarios, I also spent 2 Credits on Hand Guns for those worlds where rifles are illegal and 3 Credits on Blades for those worlds where even Hand Guns are illegal. I foresee issues where the bad guys pay no heed to the law, but I'll deal with that when the time comes. To offset the cost, I sold a spare shotgun.
The help I gave the VIP has led to making friends among the locals (+1 story point). I suspect we are no involved in some attempt to free the planet from its extra-system rulers.
Shelby and Eshtovr had a heart to heart after his near death experience and Eshtovr was able to both guide and encourage him (+1 XP each). Meanwhile Weeb cracked the data stick and the team gained a Quest Rumour.
And so the crew of the Saucy Sue has been blooded. They took down their first bad guy and made some progress on something bigger than themselves. With the events that have happened, they will stay on this planet and see what opportunities occur. I'll let the dice decide it, but it may be that the planet is being targeted by the Converted and we have to do something about it. I like that idea, but I'm sure the dice will have something else in mind for me. Unfortunately, the next game will have to be when I return home at Christmas as I am now back at work and separated from my figures by the North Sea.
One thought I had before setting up this game was that I really should add civilians to the table and a system for moving the cars. I chose not to for simplicity's sake this time around. I justified this decision by assuming it was very early morning and all the cars were parked, but it feels wrong to have games in an urban environment without moving cars and civilians that we have to watch out for. I might borrow the 'flock of seagulls' rule from TwoHourWargames for pedestrians where they will panic and run in random directions and random distances. The cars will probably just move along the roads at a fixed rate, stopping at junctions if other cars are in their way. I might also dice to see if they crash because of shots fired near them or figures running in front of them.
