MC1 Citizens 06

In this post and the next one I'm going to take a look at some of my female sci-fi citizens to use as inhabitants of Mega City One. Rather unusually, all five have been given names by me.

At the far left is Maria Mercurial, the star of an old Shadowrun scenario. The figure was produced by Ral Partha and she has cybernetic arms and legs. The sculpting on her is exquisite and perfectly proportioned. In MC1 she would be a Star, a notable singer with a big following of fans.
Next in line is Tina Merrill, who is either a Blocker or a Citizen. She is a very old figure produced by Citadel Miniatures as part of their Spacefarers range which were created long before Warhammer 40,000 came into being.
In the centre of the group is Takazumi Tomokumi a 1/48th scale model who came with a plastic Manga hover vehicle. I forget who exactly produced her and the vehicle but it was a Japanese firm. Given that she is a driver I've decided to make her a professional Driver. She will undoubtedly be one of the racers in the Superslab Slam scenario that appears in the Judge Dredd and the Worlds of 2000 AD rulebook (see p.203 -207).

Fourth in line in Zoe Heriot whom fans of Doctor Who may recognise as one of the companions of the Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton). Her figures is produced by Black Tree Designs. I'll be using her as an Employee - a Personal Assistant to a corporate manager.
Last up is Kisten Galdot, a Blocker or Citizen. She was produced by West End Games as a rebel operative for their Star Wars range.

High Moon Scenario 01 - High Moon at Stillwater

Here I present my first scenario using the High Moon rules by Two Hours Wargames, a supplement of their Six Gun Sound rules, which adds supernatural elements like vampires, werewolves, witches and zombies to the setting. For my High Moon games, I'll mostly be using the background history used in Dracula's America as I like that setting a lot. Plus, it fits in so well for this introductory scenario. This encounter takes place shortly after midnight on 13th of June 1875 in the town of Stillwater, New Mexico. This is the same town that I used in my first Six Gun Sound scenario - Gunfight at Stillwater, but it is set in an alternative dimension wherein Count Dracula has taken over the presidency of the USA. As such, there is no need for me to describe the game board set up. If you want to know more about it see here - http://vampifansworldoftheundead.blogspot.com/2018/06/six-gun-sound-scenario-01-gunfight-at.html
This batrep will be very rules heavy as it mainly concentrates on melee combat, which was not covered at all in my first Six Gun Sound batrep. I'm using a combination of the Six Gun Sound: Blaze of Glory, Six Gun Sound 2nd Edition and High Moon rules with a few house rules of my own. The main rules come from Blaze of Glory, Melee Combat and Reaction tests from 2nd Edition and the Supernatural rules from High Moon. I've also added some narrative parts to this batrep and hopefully in future the narrative parts will increase as the rules explanations decrease.

"Sheriff, get out here now!" 
The voice was loud in the quiet of the night and was spoken with the confident authority of a man who demanded instant obedience.
Sheriff Frank Bonner was 32 years old, fit, healthy and good at his job. He stepped out of his office, in no great hurry, accompanied by his young deputy, Luke Simms, who was ten years his junior and shaping up to be a reliable officer of the law.
"What the hell do you want, stranger?" Bonner demanded gruffly.
"I'm here to take over this town," the tall, pale-skinned stranger replied with an arrogant sneer. He was dressed in expensive clothing, mainly in black, apart from his crimson waistcoat. "From now on, you'll serve me."
"Like hell!" Bonner angrily fumed. "Over my dead body."
"Oh, good. I was hoping you'd say something like that," the stranger smiled cruelly as his right hand hovered over the butt of his holstered Colt .45 Cavalry revolver.

The encounter would begin with a Gunfight, just as it did in my previous Six Gun Sound batrep. The strangers in town were from left to right, Radu Cazacu, a Rep:4 Cowboy Mountain Man and a Human Bodyguard Grunt. He was armed with a Colt .44 Army Revolver and an Axe. He had the Attributes Brawler and True Grit. Next in line was Amelia, a Rep:4 Vampire Grunt who was unarmed and had the Attributes Precognition and Nerves of Steel. The stranger who had spoke to the sheriff was Tristan Duran de Cuevas Rubias, a Vampire Leader and a Rep:5 Star. He was armed with a Colt .45 Cavalry Revolver and a Sword. He had the Attributes Precognition (all Vampires receive this attribute and it allows them to roll twice for activation if they want to, and choose which result to use), Fast and Initiative. Finally, was Raoul, another Rep:4 Vampire Grunt. He was armed with a Colt .36 Navy Revolver and his Attributes were Precognition and Agile.

Facing them were from left to right, Luke Simms, a Cowboy Deputy and Rep:4 Grunt, armed with a Colt .44 Army Revolver. His two Attributes were Brawler and Marksman. In the centre was Frank Bonner, a Gunman Sheriff and a Rep:4 Grunt. He was armed with a Colt .45 Peacemaker Revolver and his Attributes were Marksman and Nerves of Steel. Joining them, was a concerned citizen, Moose Ackley, a Cowboy Homesteader and a Rep:3 Grunt. He was armed with a .58 Trapdoor Springfield Rifle and had the Attributes Brawler and Coward. God knows what he was thinking when he decided to join in!

I set up the two sides 6" apart and had everyone roll on the Flinch Test table. This was taken against a character's Sand stat with 2d6. Tristan automatically passed 2d6 because he was a Star. Raoul also passed 2d6. Radu, Bonner, Simms and Ackley all passed 1d6, so they'd suffer a -1d6 penalty on the Draw Test. I didn't roll for Amelia as she wouldn't be taking part in this Gunfight.
Next up, everyone rolled their Rep scores, with appropriate modifiers, looking for successes (usually a 1-3 per 1d6) to see in what order the Draws would take place. From highest to lowest, it went Tristan, scoring 4 successes out of 5d6.
Ramon was second with 3 successes out of 4d6.
Radu scored 2 successes out of 3d6 (he suffered a -1d6 penalty for Flinching).
Simms scored 1 success from 2d6 (he suffered a -1d6 penalty for Flinching and a -1d6 penalty for being Terrified. Vampires cause Dread in their opponents unless they are a Vampire, a Werewolf, a Zombie or have the Nerves of Steel Attribute.)
Bonner scored 1 success out of 3d6 (he also suffered a -1d6 penalty for Flinching, but because he had the Nerves of Steel Attribute he was not Terrified). He should have done better because being a Gunman, he scored successes on a 1-4 instead of  a 1-3.
Ackley scored 0 successes out of 0d6! He started with 3d6 for his Rep but suffered penalties of -1d6 for Flinching, -1d6 for being Terrified and -1d6 for drawing a Rifle. Oh dear!
I did roll for Amelia and she scored 1 success out of 4d6, but I have no idea why I rolled for her as she was unarmed!

It was obvious that Tristan would target the sheriff, and so he fired his Pistol twice, rolling a 5 and a 2. Adding his Rep of 5 gave him results of 10 and 7 - a hit and a miss. Rolling 2d6 on the Shooting Damage table he scored a 3 - target is hit in the Head and must roll on the I'm Hit table. Bonner rolled 2d6 against his Toughness of 4 and passed 1d6, which caused him to go Out Of Fight. First blood to the Vampires.

Raoul fired twice at Deputy Simms rolling a 6 and a 5, which when added to his Rep of 4 gave him results of 10 and 9 - both hits. He rolled twice on the Shooting Damage table and got results of a 9, hit in the Gut and OOF, and a 4, hit in the Leg and I'm Hit. There was no point rolling on the Recovery From I'm Hit table for his Leg wound because he was already OOF.

With only one target left standing, Radu fired twice at Ackley but with poor rolls of 2 and 1, giving him results of 6 and 5, he missed with both shots. It looked like it might be Moose's lucky day.
Or maybe not! He could only fire his Rifle once. He had to target Radu but he rolled a 1 and because he was using a one-shot weapon, he was out of ammo! The darned fool brought his Rifle to the gunfight but forgot to load it! Well, I never saw that one coming!

With all the shooting being done, it was time for Reaction Tests. Only Ackley had to roll and he had to roll 2d6 verses his Sand of 3 on both the Being Shot At and Man Down tables. He only rolled once but applied whatever was the worst result. Rolling a 4 and a 1, he passed 1d6. For being Shot At, this counted as Duck Back because he couldn't return fire. However, the result for Man Down was if twice more friends are Out Of Fight or Obviously Dead he must Leave the Table. He was doomed to Leave the Table because by having the Coward Attribute, all results of Duck Back counted as Leave the Table instead. Bye bye, Moose!

Tristan, Amelia and Raoul advanced on the fallen bodies of Bonner and Simms in anticipation of feeding on their blood. However, they were stopped in their tracks when a female voice cried out from behind them.
"Halt now! Turn around and step away from those bodies. You will not feed on innocent blood this night."
Two strangers, an elderly, white-haired man and a beautiful young woman with long, lustrous black hair approached them, clearly unafraid.
"Who dares command Tristan Duran de Cuevas Rubias?" the cruelly handsome Vampire leader demanded indignantly.
"Allow me to introduce ourselves," the elderly gentleman spoke softly and calmly, "I am Mordecai Pendragon and this charming young lady is my assistant, Miss Ella Normandy. I strongly urge you to do as she says... if you value your lives!"
"You presumptuous fool!" Tristan's eyes flashed red and he bared his fangs. "I will make you suffer in ways you cannot imagine!"
"No! It is you and your lackeys who will suffer this night!" Ella spoke with a voice dripping with menace. 
Then she charged at all three Vampires.

Who are this pair of strangers? If you know who Pendragon is, you can probably guess the true identity of "Ella". I rolled for Initiative for both sides. I first rolled a 2 for Ella's side and a 4 for Tristan's but Ella used her Precognition Attribute to roll again and scored a 6. Tristan believed that Ella would fail to activate with that score, as a 6 usually means a failed Activation, so he chose not to roll again with his Precognition Attribute. It would have made no difference what he rolled. He could never beat a 6, and yes, Ella did Activate with a 6! At this point, Tristan and his followers had no idea they were facing another Vampire.
Ella automatically passed 2d6 verses her Sand of 6 on the Charge Into Melee table. Tristan also passed 2d6 and so could fire once at Ella before she reached him but it would count as a Rush Shot. He rolled a 4 for a result of 9 by adding his Rep of 5. Normally this would have been a hit but because it was a Rush Shot it counted as a miss. Raoul also passed 2d6 and like Tristan he could shoot once but it would count as a Rush Shot. He rolled a 2 for a result of 6 - a clear miss. Amelia only passed 1d6 and because she was unarmed, she couldn't fire. She just had to take the charge.

When fighting multiple opponents, the outnumbered person fights each opponent once in turn. The fights can take place in any order but usually the player controlling the multiple fighters decides who goes first. I decided to go from least powerful to most powerful against Ella, hoping to wear her down before she faced Tristan.
Amelia rolled 7d6 in the Melee Combat, looking for successes on dice rolls of 1-3. She received 4d6 for her Rep, +2d6 for being a Vampire and +1d6 for Outnumbering Ella. She scored 4 successes. Not bad!
However, Ella rolled 9d6 - 7d6 for her Rep (gulp!) and +2d6 for being a Vampire. She scored 5 successes. She rolled 1d6 on the Melee Damage table, and added her success of 1 over Amelia to her roll of 4 for a total score of 5. This was more than Amelia's Rep but was not a 6+ so Amelia was Out Of Fight. However, Vampires count OOF results as -1 to Rep instead. Note this is only a temporary loss of Rep. It is fully restored once the Melee is over.
So they carried on fighting but this time Ella rolled 9d6 to Amelia's 6d6. Ella rolled well with 6 successes and Amelia rolled bad with just 2 successes. Ella added +4 to her roll of 3 on the Melee Damage table for a score of 7. Any roll of 6+ counted as Obviously Dead if it can cause lethal damage, otherwise it counted as Out Of Fight.
According to High Moon, Vampires can only be killed by silver weapons, and any other Obviously Dead result is classed as -1 to Rep, but I disagreed and used my house rule which allowed other Vampires, Werewolves or a Witch's Damage spell to cause lethal damage to a Vampire. I've seen this happen so often in fiction, film and TV not to want to use it. Note that this Encounter is a very rare occasion in which Vampires are fighting one another. Usually, the weaker one will back down when they meet. Vampires of equal Rep would roll off with 1d6 to see who is the more dominant. But Ella is not an ordinary Vampire by any means! She doesn't follow the normal rules for Vampires.
Ella grabbed hold of Amelia's head, gave it a twist and ripped it off her body with consummate ease, killing her instantly.
"I told you that you'd suffer!" she snarled. 
She threw the head at Tristan but he batted it aside with his sword.

Next up was Raoul. He rolled 7d6 on the Melee Combat table, exactly as Amelia had. He scored 4 successes, just like Amelia had. But this time Ella rolled 6 successes. She added her 2 extra successes to her 1d6 roll of 4 on the Melee Damage table for a score of 6, which counted as Obviously Dead.
Ella's punch was so powerful it went right through Raoul's body to emerge between his shoulder blades. As she withdrew her hand, she pulled out his heart and licked it before throwing it away in disgust.

At this point, Tristan realised that Ella was far more dangerous than she looked and a brief flicker of doubt entered his brain that she might be even more powerful than he was. He shook his head and instantly dismissed the thought. She'd just got lucky, that was all. He was the master here and he'd prove it.
Ella and Tristan were evenly matched with 9d6 each. Tristan's 9d6 came from his Rep of 5, +2d6 for being a Vampire, +1d6 for Outnumbering Ella (Ella was still classed as being Outnumbered at this point) and +1d6 for attacking with a Sword. Both combatants scored 5 successes so they both suffered a temporary -1 to their Reps. 

The fight continued with both Vampires rolling 8d6 for Melee Combat. This time Ella scored 5 successes whilst Tristan rolled 4 successes. She rolled a 5 on the Melee Damage table and adding +1 for her 1 success margin scored a total of 6. This was an Obviously Dead result. Under my house rules this would have killed Tristan but remember he is a Star. He rolled 5d6 for his Star Power Advantage to try and reduce the damage. Any roll of 1-3 would be a success and reduce the damage by one level, rolls of 4-5 would be a failure and a roll of 6 would be a failure and reduce his Star Power dice pool by -1. Tristan rolled 1, 3, 4, 6 and 6. The two successes reduced his damage to OOF, then to -1 to Rep, giving him Rep:3, but the two 6's would reduce his Star Power dice pool to 3d6. He was still in the fight but Ella now had the upper hand. Could she capitalise on it?

The third round of Melee Combat began with Ella rolling 8d6 and Tristan reduced to 6d6 (3d6 for his reduced Rep, +2d6 for being a Vampire and +1d6 for his Sword. By now, he no longer Outnumbered Ella so he lost that advantage). Ella scored 4 successes, whilst Tristan scored 2 successes. Rolling on the Melee Damage table, Ella rolled a 3 and added +2 for her margin of success. This gave her an OOF result which was reduced to -1 to Rep for Tristan's vampiric Advantage.

In round 4 of the fight, Ella rolled 8d6 and Tristan rolled 5d6. Ella scored an impressive 6 successes to Tristan's 3 successes. She rolled a 4 on the Melee Damage table and adding +3 for her margin of success gave her a total of 7 - another Obviously Dead result. Tristan used his 3d6 Star Power dice to reduce this damage and rolled 1, 2 and 6. This reduced the damage to -1 to his Rep (now he was just Rep:2) and his Star Power dice pool to 2d6.

The fight moved on to its fifth round with Ella still on 8d6 and Tristan reduced to 4d6. The result was never in any doubt. Ella scored 5 successes to Tristan's 2 successes. Adding +3 to her die roll of 5 on the Melee damage table gave Ella a result of 8 for Obviously Dead again. Tristan only had 2 Star Power dice left. Could he survive again? Not this time. He rolled 4 and 5. The Obviously Dead result would stand.

However, Stars have another Advantage, called Cheating Death. A Star can be killed by anyone with an equal or higher Reputation. When this occurs, the Star may declare that he is Cheating Death. He is immediately removed from the table and whisked to safety. However, his Rep is automatically reduced by one level until he is eligible for a Rep increase.

Tristan fled Stillwater to live again but now he was a Rep:4 Star. Ella Normandy had not only defeated him but humiliated him and wiped out his coterie. He had to get to Washington DC as swiftly as possible to inform Count Dracula of this new threat.

Meanwhile, Pendragon revealed that he was more than just an elderly citizen. He was also a Warlock and he attempted to cast a Damage spell on Radu Cazacu. He rolled 2d6 against his Rep of 3 and added +1 to his Rep for using a casting tool (his wand). He scored 1 success, which meant the spell was cast but it could only target one person (half his Rep, rounded down). This was immaterial as he only wanted to target one person. He rolled 2d6 on the Shooting Damage table and scored a 6 for a result of a hit in the Gut and I'm Hit. Radu rolled 2d6 on the Recovery From I'm Hit table to determine the extent of his wound and scored 1 success. He was Out of Fight.

With the bad guys defeated, Ella and Pendragon helped Bonner and Simms recover.
"Your town is safe now, Sheriff," Ella informed Bonner. "I suggest you get in contact with the Twilight Order to let them know what happened here. I'm sure they'll be more than happy to take your prisoner away with them."
She turned to indicate the unconscious form of Radu who still lay where he'd fell.
"I'm mighty obliged, ma'am," Bonner said sincerely. "Say, I didn't catch your names?"
"Mordecai Pendragon and Miss Ella Normandy, at your service, sir," Pendragon proffered.
"But you can call me Vampirella," Ella added with a warm smile.

CONCLUSION
I can't even begin to tell you how much fun that was! Ever since I began blogging way back in 2009 I have wanted to run an adventure that starred Vampirella. I certainly could never have imagined that her debut would be in a Weird West scenario, but it all made sense to me. I designed this scenario with her in mind. As a Rep:7 Star, Vampirella is the most powerful character I've created for a THW game. She has all of the Advantages of being a Vampire but none of the Disadvantages because she is truly unique.
Regarding her alias of Ella Normandy, that is canon. Way back in September 1972, Vampirella appeared in a story in Vampirella Magazine #19 by Warren Publications called The Shadow of Dracula, in which she went back in time to the 19th Century to accompany Abraham Van Helsing, Jonathan Harker and Mina Harker on a quest against Count Dracula. This was the first time that she used the name, Ella Normandy. Note that this story took place after the events told in Bram Stoker's novel, Dracula.
She still used this alias in further stories, which is why I adopted it for this tale. The beauty of being a gamer is that we can play games of "what if?" limited only by our imaginations. So I decided wouldn't it be fun if I sent Vampirella back in time to the world of Dracula's America to throw a spanner in the works of this Count Dracula?
Congratulations if you guessed the true identity of Ella Normandy early on. The clues were there but I know not everyone will have picked up on them.
I have shown the figure of Pendragon on my blog before but this is the first time that Ella Normandy has been seen. She is a conversion of the Black Tree Design Doctor Who assistant DW219 Victoria Waterfield. I lengthened her hair to match that of Vampirella's. She is true 28mm scale, so looks a bit small against some of my other Wild West figures, but I don't mind that at all, as it appears she is far less of a threat than she actually is. At the time of writing BTD have her on sale for £2.25.

I hope you enjoyed reading this batrep as much as I enjoyed playing it. Thanks, folks.

Warlord Games Cybermen part 02

To accompany the Cybermen from the Exterminate! skirmish game and the Missy and the Cybermen expansion set, Warlord Games released the Nightmares in Silver boxed set, featuring 10 metal Cybermen variants from the Doctor Who TV series from 1966 to 2013. The Cybermen - originally humanoids from Earth's twin planet, Mondas - have been constant adversaries of the Doctor from his first incarnation to the present day. The Mondasians replaced parts of their dying bodies with cybernetic parts and thus were born the first Cybermen. Eventually, they added emotional inhibitor chips to suppress all feelings. Logical and resourceful, no other Doctor Who villain has changed appearance so often as the ever upgrading Cybermen. From their inaugural appearance in 1966 to their current form, they have evolved to reduce their weaknesses and enhance their strengths. The Cybermen are a formidable and persistent foe.

These four Cybermen variants all appeared on Doctor Who during the 1960's. At the far left is what I have termed the Mk.1 Cyberman, and he debuted in a 1966 episode called The Tenth Planet. Although the Doctor defeated them, in doing so he triggered his first regeneration.
A year later, the Cybermen returned to face the Second Doctor and his companions, Jamie McCrimmon and Victoria Waterfield, in an episode called The Tomb of the Cybermen set on the planet Telos, where an archaeological team uncover the resting place of an army of Cybermen.

In the 1968 episode, The Wheel in Space, the Second Doctor and Jamie battle the Mk.3 Cybermen on a space station shaped like a wheel. The Doctor uses an X-ray laser to destroy the Cybermen's ship.
Later that year, in The Invasion, the Mk.4 Cybermen unleash a hypnotic beam that paralyses most of the Earth's population. The Second Doctor, with help from UNIT, the RAF and the Russians, destroys the Cybermen spaceship, thus preventing their invasion.

In 1975, in Revenge of the Cybermen, the Fourth Doctor and his companions, Sarah Jane Smith and Harry Sullivan, arrive on Space Station Nerva orbiting Jupiter, where the Mk.5 Cybermen plan to destroy a new planet called Voga, which is nearby. Voga is rich in gold, which is harmful to Cybermen as it damages their breathing apparatus.
After a long absence, the Mk.6 Cybermen appeared in a 1982 episode called Earthshock, to destroy a peace conference on 26th Century Earth. In stopping them, the Fifth Doctor's boy genius companion, Adric, sacrifices himself.

Arriving in England in 1988 in the Silver Nemesis episode, the Seventh Doctor and Ace found the Mk.7 Cybermen, a 17th Century sorceress and the Nazis vying for control of a statue created by Rassilon. The Doctor tricked the Cybermen into thinking they had the artefact, but it was actually a bomb which destroyed their fleet.
Fast forward to 2006, and the Tenth Doctor, Rose Tyler and Mickey Smith are trapped on a parallel Earth in a two part episode, called Rise of the Cybermen and Age of Steel. A mega-corporation called Cybus Industries, led by megalomaniac John Lumic, plans to convert the population of London into Mk.8 Cybermen with the help of emotional inhibitor sensors.

At the far left is a Mk.2 Cyber Controller, made by Black Tree Designs and gifted to me by Blaxkleric a good while ago. This seemed like a perfect opportunity to showcase him. Being 28mm scale he is clearly smaller than the Warlord Games figures, but that doesn't bother me in the least. Note how his head is very different to the normal Mk. 2 Cyberman. The "helmet" indicates his leadership status.
Next to him is another non-Warlord Games Cyberman. This Cyber Leader is an old plastic 30mm scale figure from the 2007 Doctor Who Micro Universe range of collectable miniatures produced by Character Options. The "C" on his chest identifies him as belonging the Cybus Industries and the black trim on his head indicates he is a Cyber Leader.

Returning back to the Warlord Games Nightmares in Silver set, second from the right is a Mk.9 Cyber Leader from the 2011 episode, Closing Time, in which the Eleventh Doctor and his companion Craig work together to repel another Cybermen invasion of Earth.
Finally, is the Mk.10 Cyber Leader from the appropriately named 2013 episode, Nightmare in Silver.
The Eleventh Doctor and Clara Oswald discover a whole new Cyber upgrade (a cross between the Cybus Industries Cybermen and the Mondas evolved Cybermen) on a military-controlled extraterrestrial theme park, Hedgewick's World of Wonders. It is this variant of Cybermen that appear in Warlord Games' Exterminate! skirmish game. That is why I have painted this figure as a Cyber Leader as denoted by the black trim on the sides and top of his head. And, no, it does not bother me that he appears to be running. You can see he has clearly been modelled on the Cyberman in this poster for the episode.

These highly detailed metal sculpts are a worthy addition to the plastic Cybermen made by Warlord Games. Whether you prefer old-style Doctor Who to the recent reincarnations, you're sure to find something in this set to suit your tastes. I make no apologies in stating that I much prefer the new series, but each to their own.