Core Space - Galactic Corps & Security Wardens

The Galactic Corps are a combined militia and police force; neither heroes nor villains but sometimes both. They're controlled by an elite of human politicians who have little but self-interest at heart. They're happy to let the Corps do good work such as rescuing disaster victims but only if it does not conflict with their own interests.
The Corps are basically the best and worst of humanity - striving for a better world but only for their masters. The Corps view Traders with disdain and will often treat them as criminals, using any excuse to engage. Towards the more affluent areas the Corps are better trained and equipped, whereas discipline out in the sticks tends to depend entirely on the local director; a lazy corrupt director will lead an inefficient band of bullies rather than a well-oiled machine.
The origins of the Galactic Corps are hazy but most likely it started as a private security firm with military leanings. Over time the general populace has accepted that the Corps are the galaxy's army ans police rolled into one, but in fact the Corps has no true official standing. The GCC tolerates the Corps rather than condones it, understanding that it is too large an organisation to take head on. The Corps does help maintain order, particularly against the Purge, although its rough edges anger civil rights activists and often draw bad publicity.
Squads going into action tend to be small and tightly ordered, consisting of a team of Guards, a Juggernaut and a Director, although the numbers of each are often bolstered for certain situations.

At the far left is Director Zool. Master strategists and relentlessly ambitious, directors are often intelligent but with a cold, unsympathetic eye. Although they are usually from privileged backgrounds the officers are drilled to obey the chain of command and are, at the end of the day, political cannon fodder alongside their men. Director Zool is a hard-edged man with a dry humour and a soft tone. He prefers to get things done amicably and without fuss but will not hesitate to utterly destroy any who don't agree. His principle aim is peace; for there to be no outside disruption or civil disturbance whatever the cost, and he therefore rules his sector with a rod of iron.
Juggernauts are powerful and heavily armed; the hammer of the Corps used to bludgeon and punish any disobedient populace. They are often large men who have been chemically enhanced or have a mutation, normally in favour of size and aggression at the expense of intellect.

At the far right are two Security Wardens. They are hired by the local authorities to keep the peace, essentially civilians with good training and body armour who can be a thorn in your side or a welcome distraction. Security Wardens can be lazy, and lack the discipline of the Galactic Corps. Their actions will depend on how they feel at the time and can be unpredictable. If a Security Warden is not within short range and LoS of the Purge, but they are within medium range and LoS of one or more Galactic Corps characters they will be commandeered by the Corps. They will follow the rules for the Galactic Corps this turn, using both of their actions, targetting and attacking enemies, and apprehending defeated traders if necessary.

Highly trained, often brutal, the Galactic Guards are often recruited from poor backgrounds and from  areas with a lot of racial conflict, making them easier to control. They're not encouraged to think for themselves but to obey commands without question.

The Galactic Corps will target the Purge first then either Gangers or Traders, whichever is closest. They will not attack Security Wardens, Civilians or each other and do not consider these groups as enemies. Some situations require the best of the best and you will notice that the Galactic Corps have alternative "elite" statistics on the reverse of their character boards.

JDMG Scenario 07 - Citi-Def Suspects

When my good friend, Dave Stone, came to visit me recently, he asked if we could play a game of the Judge Dredd Miniatures Game? I was only too happy to oblige. I had been thinking of running a follow up scenario to the last one, Devereux's Debut, so this gave me the perfect opportunity to implement it. Previously, Judge Scott and Psi Judge Devereux had foiled a gun smuggling plot. They arrested the buyers but the seller, Mr. Johnson, managed to escape. However, the most important concern was that they captured all of the stolen guns - a crate load of Spit Gun Rifles. Tek Division went over the evidence and discovered that the guns came from the Citi-Defence armoury of the James Caan Block in Sector 13. Judge Stone was assigned to bring in the James Caan Citi-Def leader, Byron Hazlett, for questioning. He may have been unaware of the missing guns or he might have been either directly or indirectly involved in the crime. Either way, he had to be questioned. As a precautionary measure, Judge Stone requested back-up from Judge Moore and Med-Judge Nash. It proved to be a wise decision!
THE FORCES - MEGA CITY ONE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Street Judge Stone - Level:3 Infantry Hero with 4 Experience Points and worth 200 Credits.
Stats - Move 5", Agility +2, Shoot +2, Melee +1, Melee Dice 2D, Will +2, Armour +5, Hits 4.
Equipment - Boot Knife, Daystick, Lawgiver Mk II Pistol, Stumm Gas Grenades and Standard Issue Armour.
Talents - Armour Buster, Incendiary, Pour it on and Warning Shot

Street Judge Moore - Level:3 Infantry Hero with 5 Experience Points and worth 200 Credits.
Stats - Move 5", Agility +2, Shoot +3, Melee +1, Melee Dice 2D, Will +1, Armour +5, Hits 3.
Equipment - Boot Knife, Daystick, Lawgiver Mk II Pistol, Stumm Gas Grenades and Standard Issue Armour.
Talents - Accurate, Close Combat Shooter, Crackshot and Luck of Grud.

Med Judge Nash - Level:3 Infantry Hero with 4 Experience Points and worth 200 Credits.
Stats - Move 5", Agility +2, Shoot +2, Melee +1, Melee Dice 2D, Will +2, Armour +5, Hits 3.
Equipment - Boot Knife, Medi-Kit, Lawgiver Mk II Pistol and Standard Issue Armour.
Talents - Doctor, First Aid, Medic and Paramedic. 

THE FORCES - JAMES CAAN BLOCK CITI-DEF SOLDIERS
Byron Hazlett - Level:3 Citi-Def Officer Infantry Hero with 4 Experience Points and worth 165 Credits.
Stats - Move 5", Agility +1, Shoot +1, Melee +0, Melee Dice 2D, Will +2, Armour +5, Hits 4.
Equipment - Spit Gun Rifle and Shell Jacket.
Talents - Agile and Quick Dodge.
Special Rules - Rallying Cry and True Leader.

Joe Markowitz - Level:2 Citi-Def Soldier Infantry Hero with 2 Experience Points and worth 205 Credits.
Stats - Move 5", Agility +1, Shoot +2, Melee +1, Melee Dice 2D, Will +1, Armour +5, Hits 3.
Equipment - Spit Gun Rifle, Hand Bombs and Shell Jacket.
Talents - Aim, Frag out and Suppressing Fire.
Special Rule - Trigger Happy.

Nick Lewis - Level:1 Citi-Def Soldier Infantry Hero with 1 Experience Point and worth 150 Credits.
Stats - Move 5", Agility +1, Shoot +2, Melee +1, Melee Dice 2D, Will +0, Armour +5, Hits 2.
Equipment - Spit Gun Rifle and Shell Jacket.
Talents - Aim and Suppressing Fire.
Special Rule - Trigger Happy.

Russ Kokin - Level:1 Citi-Def Soldier Infantry Hero with 1 Experience Point and worth 150 Credits.
Stats - Move 5", Agility +1, Shoot +2, Melee +1, Melee Dice 2D, Will +0, Armour +5, Hits 2.
Equipment - Spit Gun Rifle and Shell Jacket.
Talents - Aim and Suppressing Fire.
Special Rule - Trigger Happy.

Semel Javan - Level:1 Citi-Def Medtech Infantry Hero with 1 Experience Point and worth 105 Credits.
Stats - Move 5", Agility +2, Shoot +0, Melee +0, Melee Dice 2D, Will +2, Armour +4, Hits 2.
Equipment - Spit Gun Rifle, Hand Bombs and Shell Jacket.
Talents - First Aid and Medic.
Special Rule - Lifesaver.

For this scenario, the Justice Department forces totalled 600 Credits and the Citi-Def soldiers totalled 775 Credits. In theory, it should have been a close match, but that did not take into account the number of critical hits that were rolled!
SET UP
I played this scenario on a single 2' by 2' sci-fi battle mat by Battle Systems to represent part of the interior of the James Caan Block. Dave and I quickly put together some interior walls and added various furniture items to many of the rooms.

The three Judges started in the lower south-west corner.
SPECIAL RULES
The five Citi-Def soldiers on this floor are represented by dice, with each number representing one particular character. I knew which numbers corresponded to which characters but Dave, who was controlling the Judges, didn't. This added a degree of uncertainty to the proceedings. Until he drew Line of Sight to a die, he wouldn't know who he was facing. Just out of interest, the numbers were

1. Nick Lewis - Level:1 Soldier
2. Joe Markowitz - Level:2 Soldier
3. Byron Hazlett - Level:3 Officer
4. Semel Javan - Level:1 Medtech
5. Russ Kokin - Level:1 Soldier

VICTORY CONDITIONS
The Judges must remove Byron Hazlett from the table, preferably alive. The Citi-Defence soldiers win if they prevent this from happening.

AFTERMATH
This was a fun game that was played in good spirits and much amusement. Dave had never played JDMG before, but the rules are very simple and he quickly picked them up without any difficulty. He also quickly learned the value of being in hard cover for his Judges! It looked like an easy victory for the Judges and it certainly was. That was almost certainly down to Dave's amazing dice rolls. He scored an incredible ten 10s on the night! A roll of 10 is an automatic critical hit, which, if it penetrates, will do double damage. Neither of us could believe Dave's good fortune!
When it came to working out the wounds the Citi-Def lot received, things took a turn for the worse. Both Byron Hazlett and Joe Markowitz, the leader and second in command respectively, were killed outright. Oops! Nick Lewis suffered an injured left leg wound (-1 to his Movement stat), Russ Kokin suffered a crippling left arm wound (-1 to his Agility and Melee Dice stats) and Semel Javan took an injury to his left arm (-1 to his Agility stat). All three served time in the iso-cubes.

Judge Stone earned the following experience points -
+1 for surviving the battle.
+1 for slaying a Level:1 Hero.
This earned him 2 experience points, which took him up to 6. Sadly, this was one short of what he needed to reach Level:4. Bad luck, Dave! However, do read the conclusions below!

Judge Moore did exceedingly well. He earned -
+1 for surviving the battle.
+3 for slaying a Level:3 Hero.
+2 for slaying two Level:1 Heroes.
This earned him 6 experience points, enough to raise him to Level:5. However, a character can only advance one level at a time, so he rose to Level:4 with 10 experience points, just one point short of Level:5. He added +1 to his Will score, bringing it up to +2 and +1 to his Hits, bringing them up to 5. He also acquired a new Talent from the Punk Breaker list - Voice of Justice, which allows him to re-roll a failed arrest attempt. He has obviously been taking lessons from Judge Scott.  His credits score increased by +25 to 225.

Med-Judge Nash earned the following experience points -
+1 for surviving the battle.
+2 for slaying a Level:2 Hero.
This earned him 3 experience points, bringing him up to 7, which was just enough to make it to Level:4. He added +1 to his Movement score, bringing it up to 6", so that he can reach wounded colleagues quicker, and +1 to his Hits, bringing them up to 5. He also acquired a new Talent from the Gunslinger list - Accurate, which allows him to re-roll a failed 1D Shoot attempt. His credits score increased by +25 to 225.

CONCLUSIONS
So, was Byron Hazlett innocent or guilty? After an extensive search into his past history, it was determined that he was innocent of any wrongdoing and if had surrendered to the Judges instead of shooting at them, he would have been released without charge. However, when the Judges turned their investigation over to Joe Markowitz they discovered an entirely different story. It was he who "misappropriated" the crate of Spit Guns and it was he who sold them on to a certain "Mr. Johnson". It seemed that Markowitz was in the pocket of the Mob and a search of his financial records uncovered a number of other illegal dealings he was directly involved in. He got his comeuppance in the end but purely because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The other point I want to cover is why all three Judges didn't level up in this scenario. It certainly could have happened. When Russ Kokin shot and wounded Judge Moore that ended Turn 3. At the start of Turn 4 Dave could have chosen any of his three Judges to act first. If Judge Stone acted first he would have almost certainly shot and KO'd Kokin, thus getting the extra experience point he needed to level up. But Dave acted very selflessly and said it just made sense that Judge Moore would lash out at the perp who had just shot him and act first. So, it was Judge Moore who got the last available experience point, even though he didn't need it. It was wasted on him because he was already at the maximum experience points he could attain at Level:4. I have to applaud Dave for such a sporting gesture. Simon, you owe him one!
The campaign is starting to gel really well, and I like how the scenarios are starting to link together. We haven't seen the last of the mysterious "Mr. Johnson" or indeed, Malexica the Necromancer. Hopefully in my next scenario I'll get to feature Judges Burnett, Huntsman and Webb and see if I can get them advanced to Level:4.

JDMG MC1 CitiDef Soldiers 02

Here I present another small group of Citi-Defence soldiers. These come from the James Caan block in Sector 13 of Mega City One, where my Judge Dredd Miniatures Game campaign is set. All five figures were pre-painted 28mm scale sci-fi troopers produced by EM4 Miniatures. Sadly, this set is out of production now, so these are very rare figures. I won't go into any background info for the Citi-Defence squads as I'd only be repeating what I wrote here - JDMG MC1 Citi-Def Soldiers 01
The only painting I added to these figures was on their bases.

At the far left is the squad's officer, Byron Hazlett, a Level:3 Infantry Hero. He is armed with a Spit Gun Rifle and he wears a Shell Jacket. His four Talents are Agile, Quick Dodge, Rallying Cry and True Leader. He costs 165 Credits.
His second in command is a Citi-Def Soldier and Level:2 Infantry Hero called Joe Markowitz. He is armed a Spit Gun Rifle and Hand Bombs and he wears a Shell Jacket. His three Talents are Aim, Frag Out and Suppressing Fire. He also has the Special Rule, Trigger Happy. He costs 205 Credits, making him the most expensive recruit in this squad.

In the centre of the group is Nick Lewis, another Soldier, but this time, a Level:1 Infantry Hero. He is armed with a Spit Gun Rifle and is protected by a Shell Jacket. He has two Talents - Aim and Suppressing Fire and the Special Rule, Trigger Happy. He costs 150 Credits.
Second from the right is another Level:1 Soldier and Infantry Hero, Russ Kokin. He is identical in every respect to Nick Lewis.
Bringing up the rear is the squad's Medtech, Semel Javan, a Level:1 Infantry Hero. He is armed with a Spit Pistol and is less well protected, wearing Pad Armour. He has the Talents of First Aid and Medic and the Special Rule of Lifesaver. He is worth 105 Credits.
They are not a great force by any means but on the plus side, they are made up entirely of Heroes, making them more resistant to arrest attempts by the Judges. I am planning on featuring this squad in the next episode of my JDMG campaign, which should appear next month.

JDMG MC1 Citi-Def Soldiers 01

The typical view of the Citi-Def soldier is of a man who barely knows one end of a Spit Gun from the other and, pumped up on action vids on the Tri-D, attempts to live out his fantasies by joining the only military option open to citizens. In many cases this is remarkably accurate and the Citi-Def is a source of constant worry to the Justice Department, for allowing citizens legal access to weaponry surely courts disaster. A force of Citi-Def soldiers will not be the most competent in Mega City One, but they do have access to armour and heavy weapons that can make them very scary - as much to one another as any enemy!
In this post, I'm going to review the first of my numerous Citi-Def forces, a small unit containing just four figures but who are one of each of the four types available to a typical Citi-Def squad. Citi-Def soldiers always belong to one particular city block and are often fanatically loyal to that block. This squad that I'm showing here belong to the Danny Glover Block in Sector 13, the location of my Judge Dredd Miniatures Game campaign.

At the far left is Shane Miller, a Citi-Def Officer. The Citi-Def Officer is different from the soldiers he commands. He is not a weekend warrior living out his action-hero dreams but a career soldier dedicated to the protection of the city. It is his responsibility, as a guardian of Mega City One, to ensure his fellow citizens do not suffer invasion as they have in the past. In all likelihood, it is the Citi-Def Officer who has organised the latest block war, simply to provide real world training for his men! This figure was produced by Mongoose Publishing, as were the Med-tech and the Soldier, but they were discontinued when Warlord Games took over production of the range. Warlord Games redesigned them and increased the range from three figures to eleven. Shane Miller is a Level:3 Infantry Hero armed with a Spit Pistol and Hand Bombs and wearing a Shell Jacket. He has two Talents (Agile and Quick Dodge) and two Special Rules. Rallying Cry - so long as he remains on the table and is still alive, all failed Will to Fight checks for all friendly models may be re-rolled. True Leader - any friendly model within 15" and in line of sight of him may use his Will score instead of their own for any Will check, including resist Arrest checks. He costs 175 Credits.
Standing next to Miller is Matt Kramon, a Citi-Def Soldier. Citi-Def Soldiers sign up for one of three reasons; either they are bored from their long days of unemployment, have a deep patriotic sense to defend Mega City One, or have watched far too many action-vids. They are all, however, crazy once a Spit Gun gets put in their hands. Kramon is a Level:1 Infantry Hero equipped with a Spit Gun Rifle and a Shell Jacket. He has two Talents - Aim and Suppressing Fire and one Special Rule - Trigger Happy. Whenever a Citi-Def Soldier takes a Shoot action, he must make a Will check. If this is failed, his next action must also be a Shoot action unless an enemy engages him in Close Combat before this action can be taken. If no enemy model is in sight, he will attack the closest target, be it friend, foe or innocent bystander. He costs 150 Credits.

Second from the right is Ramsey Van Horn, a Jaeger Squad Commando. Not all Citi-Def units have a Jaeger squad, but those who do include such men in their ranks are often considered to be elite forces (elite being a relative term...). Each member of the Jaeger squad is a full time Citi-Def Soldier who has dedicated himself to protecting his block against all enemies. Training hard in infiltration skills and the disruption of communications, the Jaeger squad is as close to a true commando unit as any Citi-Def is likely to get. This particular figure is made by Wargames Foundry as part of their 2000AD range. Van Horn is a Level:2 Infantry Hero armed with a Spit Gun Rifle and Knife and equipped with a Respirator, Shell Jacket and Sucker Gun. He has four Talents - Infiltrator, Silent Action, Silent Killer and Stealthy. He also has two Special Rules. First is Going Commando - using a combination of Sucker Guns, rappelling lines and para-gliders, the Jaeger Squad Commando can appear anywhere unexpected. The Commando gains a Sucker Gun, allowing him to drop down a sheer surface up to 12" with a single Special action. Secondly, is Silent but Violent, which grants him the Stealthy Talent for free. He costs 245 Credits.
Finally, is Dan Moxness, a Citi-Def Med-tech. Medical technicians who join Citi-Def units are never short of work, patching up patients and performing emergency surgery - usually on unintentionally self-inflicted wounds. They quickly learn to avoid the most trigger happy soldiers, but often take breathtaking risks when one of their unit goes down. Moxness is a Level:1 Infantry Hero armed with a Handgun Pistol and is equipped with Pad Armour and a Medi-Kit. His two talents are appropriately, First Aid and Medic. He has one Special Rule - Lifesaver. The Med-tech is always assumed to have taken one extra Special action on its last turn when using a Medi-Kit (so he will always count as having taken at least one). He costs 105 Credits.
By no means can these be considered a major threat, although they are all classed as Heroes, which does increase their survival odds. In future posts I'll showcase much larger Citi-Def forces who are much more likely to appear in a Block War scenario.

All Things Zombie: Reloaded Board-game

Tonya the Rep:5 Star in the thick of the action. Go girl!

This is a game I have been waiting for for a long time - All Things Zombie: Reloaded (or as I shall call it, ATZ:Reloaded). Let's make one thing clear from the start - this is NOT a replacement for ATZ - Final Fade Out. If you want to game with miniatures and 3D scenery then stick with ATZ-FFO*. ATZ:Reloaded is a stand alone board-game played with card counters on a hex map. The game was written and designed by Ed Teixeira as an improved version of the old ATZ board-game, which is now out of print. Gone are the character specific scenarios to be replaced by generic encounters. The rules are more in keeping with those found in ATZ-FFO. Indeed, ATZ:Reloaded would work as a perfect primer for those wanting to get into ATZ-FFO, as it is much more streamlined and less detailed. Also, if you are limited for space, or lack sufficient figures and/or 3D scenery, then this is a worthy substitute.


Inside you'll find:

• A full set of colour counters including Survivors, Gangers, and Militia characters, as well as a wide range of weapons and loot that you can find during your games.
• A set of Event Cards that provide all the info you need at a glance, from friends, enemies, zombies, loot and more.
• Newly designed Player Aid Cards to help you keep track of your characters and their “stuff”.
• An easy to use campaign system that ties all your games together where the results of one affects the results of the next.
• Six 11” x 17” maps that can be laid out in over 50 different ways, making each game unique.
• Specific objectives that provide ways for your characters to increase in skill and ability when they succeed.
• All this and more.

ATZ:Reloaded can be played solitaire, cooperatively with everyone on the same side, or competitively with everyone against one another. It can also be played as a “one off game” or part of an ongoing campaign.
Components consist of:

• 25 Event Cards
• 6 - 11" x 17" Maps (2 Rural, 2 Suburban and 2 Urban)
• 20 Character Cards (11 named and 9 generic)
• 88 Counters
• 3 Rules Reference Sheets (printed double-sided)

I have played this game quite a lot these past couple of weeks and I have mixed views on it. Let's start with the good points. First impressions were highly favourable. Production values are high. The rulebook is in full colour with lots of examples of how the rules work. The Event Cards, Character Cards and Maps are well designed. The Counters are printed on thick card and are very durable. It might be that I am extremely familiar with the ATZ rules but I found the rulebook very easy to understand. Game play is more akin to the tabletop skirmish version than the older board-game version. I'm a huge fan of the whole All Things Zombie franchise and followed the progress of this board-game throughout its production with keen interest. Overall, the game is fine but it is not without its faults.

Most of the bad points about the game are relatively minor. What always annoys me about any book is sloppy proofreading. This rulebook has not been properly proofread. For starters, the right hand column of text on page 6 is repeated on the left hand column of page 7. On page 11 under the heading TURN SEQUENCE it says "if the die scores are the same (doubles) neither side will activate." However, in the glossary under DOUBLES it says "when 2d6 are rolled for Activation and the results are the same both sides activate." I believe the text on  page 11 to be correct. This is how it works in ATZ-FFO.
The Damage Table for Ranged Fire on one of the Reference Sheets is badly worded. It says to roll 1d6 vs Rep and apply the result. Usually when it says this you roll against the Rep of the person making the roll, which in this case should be the Shooter. But this wrong. What it should specify is that you roll against the Rep of the Target! And that makes a HUGE difference! It is explained in one of the combat examples in the Zombie rules section but you could easily miss that. I know I did first time I played the game. This rule really should have been made much clearer, because as written, it is just confusing.
I have a few very minor quibbles regarding the Counters. Quite simply, I'd like to have seen more. You get counters for 3 generic Gangers, 3 generic Militia and 3 generic Survivors. These should have been doubled at the very least. Three of each is just not enough. Your choice of ranged weapons is fine and ditto for equipment. However, your choice of melee weapons is pitiful - a baseball bat or a frying pan. Really?! Is that all? Where are the axes, knives, machetes, swords and most iconic of all, the chainsaw?

I really want to recommend this game to you because Ed is a great bloke and this is a good game he's designed. But, and this important, it could have been a great game if a bit more care had been taken. It felt like it had been rushed into production, which I know was not the case. I did enjoy the games I played of it but it isn't a game I'll be rushing back to. Sadly, there is one more negative comment I have to make.

ATZ:Reloaded costs $59.99 from the Lock n Load webstore. What they fail to mention is that there is a $35.00 international delivery charge on top of that. As if that wasn't bad enough, I had an extra £15.00 customs charge to pay for it. As you can imagine I was well pissed off! Good value for money? No way! If you can find a UK supplier I strongly advise you to buy from them.

ATZ-FFO* Please note that Ed is working on a new version of the ATZ tabletop skirmish rules called All Things Zombie: Fade To Black. This rulebook will also be published by Lock n Load and they will replace ATZ-FFO. RRP is $29.99 but you can pre-order it for $24.99 from the Lock n Load website. Having been stung once I won't be ordering from Lock n Load again. One major change is that the book will be printed in full colour throughout. A big thumbs up for that! I have no idea when this book will be released but I'll let you know as soon as I'm able. I'd expect it to hit the shelves sometime in 2016.