[2300AD] Legio Patria Nostra

[Mike Montesa]

We've just kicked off a three part 2300AD campaign. It's the first time I've run the game in almost 20 years and it's just as good now as it was then. Even better in fact, now that I am looking at it with a much better understanding of both the 2300AD game and the art of roleplaying itself.

Because of time and scheduling restraints, we have decided to run this as a three part campaign. The campaign starts in 2298, at the very beginning of the Kafer War, and is set on the colony world of Aurore. The first adventure is one of my own creation. For the second and third adventures, I am planning to use the old modules Mission Arcturus (set in 2300) and Operation Overlord (in 2301), with a few minor changes, thus covering the entire war.

The characters are members of the French Foreign Legion. Due to the lethality of the 2300AD system, and the nature of the campaign (military) the players are buffering themselves for character deaths by creating a pool of characters, essentially the whole squad (or Groupe in French military terminology). Players have primary characters made up, but during our "character jam" everyone kicked in to create backgrounds for the NPC members of the squad. This way, everyone has some investment in these NPCs, who may at some point move forward and become active PCs if someone is killed.

The character jam was very fun and productive. I really like the main characters and the NPCs that were created and indeed the group investment in the NPC backgrounds did pay off.

The next few posts are the "story hour" version of what went down in the adventure. My actual play comments will follow after them. It's rather long but I hope you'll stick with it.

[Mike Montesa]

2300AD: Legio Patria Nostra

Part 1 – March or Die

“Tu es Partout”

Eta Bootis, at the end of the French Arm of human explored space, is home to 6 million hardy colonists, and the 700 men of the 13th Demi Brigade de la Legion Etranger. Not much happens out here at the far end of the colonies, but that is about to change.

It is April 3, 2298AD. The members of 1er Groupe, 2eme Section, 1er Compagnie are out on the town, in a bar on a side street of Lumiere d’Aube, the French colony’s second city. What else would be going on here except a bar fight? This is confirmed by the patron that comes crashing through the window. Inside, three townies are trying to hold down a huge black Legionnaire named Eric West, a Britisher from Beowulf. You wouldn’t think the man had actually been a doctor in the past, but to look at a lot of Legionnaires, you wouldn’t be able to tell much about where they came from or what they had done, and unless you yourself wore a kepi blanc, they probably wouldn’t tell you.

Another more nondescript Legionnaire deftly hauls one of the townies off of West. Gunter Manfred is German but that is not his real name. A bit older than the others, few could even guess the kind of life he led before signing up.

The former corporate troubleshooter gets a few curious looks at the practiced arm lock he throws on the townie from Legionnaire Chinua Achebe, a tall Azanian from Kimanjano. Achebe’s past is not nearly as exciting as Manfred's, which is exactly why he signed up. Fixing farm tractors bored him silly so he joined the Azanian colonial militia, and got bored silly fixing tanks. He wanted to be where the action was, but even in the Legion, there are cushy posts like Aurore, so the current tussle was something of an event for him.

Caporal William Burroughs was no stranger to violence, having had more a few brushes with the law back on Ellis. Burroughs found it a bit ironic that he had joined the U.S. Marine Corps to get away from the ass-end of the American Arm, only to later join the Legion and wind up on the ass-end of the French Arm.

Whistles shrill in the street outside the bar; the owner has called the MPs. This month, the security company of the 2REP has the duty, and our heroes would rather tangle with the hardcases in the MPs on a different day. Alert to the danger, 1er Groupe piles out the back door and into the alley, led by Manfred, who has a knack for this sort of thing. True to form, Burroughs is the last man out, clapping the other members of the Groupe on the shoulder as they pass him – Baert, Zhang, and Bierhoff.

Having gotten clear, they stop in an alley a few blocks away. They’re short a man, Hertado, and some discussion is had over whether to go back for him. But as Hertado was last seen going upstairs with Marie, they figure he’s probably okay for the night. They’ve still got over a day left on their passes, and they decide to go to a more hospitable establishment.

Le Chat Noir is well known to the Legionnaires, being something of a private club; townies don’t go in there, and members of other French Army units may get more than they bargain for if they do. The owner, Rene, is an ex-Legionnaire himself and he runs a classy joint. The sultry strains of a centuries old song spill out into the street as the Legionnaires go inside. Lauren Villars, the hostess, is singing a Legion favorite, “Je ne Regrette Rien” which may also be her motto as well. To the Legionnaires, both the bar and its hostess are sacred. There are never any fights there, and Lauren is no camp follower.

She finishes her song and approaches the Legionnaires. Pleasantries are exchanged as she brings them a bottle of Bourbon and a tray of glasses. 1er Groupe relaxes. Achebe and Manfred discuss the finer points of setting up stills, while Burroughs helps Zhang with his bad French.

The news holo over the bar scrolls out yet another un-noticed message from Colonial Administration. There has been a problem with the courier missile relay satellite near Murprid and outbound messages are subject to delay. Service is expected to resume within a day.

Bierhoff proposes a challenge to West and the two start pounding back shots of Wild Turkey. Bierhoff is nearly as big as West and they are evenly matched and both of them end up passing out at the same time. Lauren comes over and says, “Who won?”
Achebe replies, staring at the glass in his hand, “I guess Bourbon was the winner.”
Manfred sweeps up the money everyone has bet so far and adds, “Then Bourbon shall pay.”

Lauren laughs and kindly offers them some rooms upstairs where they can sleep it off.
Morning on the 4th dawns much like many other days with the exception of the message blinking on Caporal Burroughs’ commlink. “Attention, all Legion personnel. All leaves have been cancelled. Report to base immediately.” Burroughs rousts the men in his drill sergeant’s voice, and the Groupe help West and Bierhoff downstairs. Lauren is there and asks what’s going on. Legionnaires all over the city are being recalled she says as a truck full of them rolls by. “I don’t know Mademoiselle,” says Burroughs, “But it will be all right. Just a drill probably.” “Bon chance, mes amis!” says Lauren with a smile as they head outside.

Another truck is coming along and Hertado is hanging off the back, beckoning them to jump on, which they do. As Lauren watches them go, the holo behind her flashes a special news bulletin.

“We have unconfirmed reports that a fleet of unknown size and alien origin entered the system at approximately 1830 yesterday. A Contact Team was dispatched but communications were lost with the team at 0330 this morning. So far all attempts to communicate with the fleet have failed. At this time Colonial Administration and French Military authorities stress that although further attempts to establish communications will continue, all citizens should prepare for a yellow Alert Level to go into effect as of 0900 this morning. Stay tuned for further developments.”

[Mike Montesa]

First Battle

At the barracks, the quad is a hive of activity. Troops coming in from the city immediately fall in to formation and instructions are quickly given. The supply rooms and armories are open and gear is being hauled out and handed out as quickly as possible. In the vehicle park, maintenance crews swarm about the APCs and command vehicles like ants.

The heroes fall in and Sous Lieutenant Chard, their platoon commander gives them the scoop. Five hours ago, he says, French and Russian naval units in orbit around Aurore headed out-system to intercept the incoming alien fleet. There has been no word from first contact teams dispatched to meet the aliens since yesterday, and contact has been lost with picket ships on high orbit patrols. All French forces planetside have been ordered to mobilize and deploy in defense of the cities. Colonial administration has ordered a general alert and call up of the militia. The aliens fleet appears hostile and is headed directly for Aurore. The 1er Groupe hurriedly gears up for war.

The next day finds the 2nd Section dug into a fighting position about 100 kilometers east of Lumiere d’Aube. The rest of the 13eme DBLE is deployed on a 20km north-south axis in company sized hedgehog positions. To the north is the 4th RIE, and to the south, the 5th Chasseurs. News reports say that the fleet has engaged the aliens but the outcome of the battle is uncertain. The Russian colony has mobilized and the Tanstaafl militia has been called up. Panic has led to riots in some cities and settlements.

On the evening of April 6th, the human fleet has fallen back to Auroran orbit and brought the battle with them. From the ground, the flashes of nuclear missile detonations replace shooting stars in the night sky. The Legionnaires see one falling star that can only be the wreckage of a large starship plunging through the atmosphere. On the morning of the 8th, the radio carries the stunning news that the French battleship Jean d’Arc, flagship of the fleet, has been destroyed and all hands lost. The survivors had no choice but to retreat, leaving the aliens in command of Auroran orbit. Now the stars overhead hold only a more sinister promise.

While improving their fighting positions the next day, the general frequency push bursts to life with a frantic call. “All units! Incoming nuclear weapons! Cover! Cover!” The shocking news takes a brief moment to sink in, and then the 1er Groupe is scrambling to get into the APC or as deep down in their foxholes as they can. Overhead, dozens of alien warheads draw contrails across the vivid Auroran sky. Achebe dogs the hatch just as the NBC filters kick on. There is an agonizing moment of silence followed by a rumbling in the earth that gets stronger and stronger. Then there is a sound like the sky being ripped apart and the video feeds black themselves out and everything goes dark.

The orbital bombardment lasts for the next two days. The 13th is not hit at first and Commandant D’Hubert orders the battalion to further disperse. During the move the troops can see the incoming kinetic energy rounds and the tracks of missiles as they arrow in on Auroran settlements. Although nothing has hit them yet, other units it seems, are taking a beating. Clouds of smoke hint at the fate of the 4th RIE to the north, and impact flashes strobe to the south where the Chasseurs are. A huge pillar of fire lights the sky over Lumiere d’Aube.

Finally the rain of death stops, but les grognardsof the Legion say it only means the troops are on the way. On April 10th, the sky is filled with the flaring re-entry tracks of hundreds of landing craft. The alien invasion force comes down somewhere to the east of the 13th’s position. Everyone locks and loads.

The hours that pass seem lost as the Legionnaires peer through their scopes to the east. There is a roar of an engine approaching from their rear, and when the look they see some kind of alien ship, a fighter perhaps, sweeping in low toward them. It breaks the sound barrier as it flashes past and Lt. Chard yells out, “Engage!”

Achebe locks up the missile launcher on the APC and fires. Three rockets kick out of the tube and chase after the alien craft, which jinks left and right and manages to dodge the missiles. Then it turns back and toward the 2nd Section’s position. As it does a small black object separates from the craft and falls toward them.

“Incoming!” Burroughs yells and everyone hunkers down. Achebe’s targeting computer bleeps and Achebe fires the remaining three missiles. The alien bomb and the human missiles pass each other. The missiles find their mark and the alien ship is blown apart. The bomb lands about 80 meters from the heroes’ position. The shockwave hammers the men of 1st Groupe into their holes. West, Manfred, and Burroughs are all knocked out. The APC gets rolled by the blast, tumbling several meters before miraculously landing right side up again. Inside, Achebe manages to avoid injury but another Legionnaire, Scholl is unconscious. The engine is shot, most of the systems are down and running on battery power, but the weapons are still functional.

West wakes up dazed, then checks out the other men in the Groupe, who are shaken and a bit deaf but otherwise okay. Achebe looks at the half dead APC and gets to work fixing it. The aliens could come at any time but the effort has to be made.

Finally a few hours later, scouts and early warning sensors report a division sized enemy unit moving in. A cloud of dust heralds their approach. The Legionnaires power up their weapons as Burroughs recalls a famous quote. “You became Legionnaires in order to die. I am sending you where you can die.”

As the Legionnaires squint through their viewfinders and scopes, the aliens at last come into view. There seems to be a tank of some sort followed by a…mob? At least the humanoid forms trailing behind it don’t seem to be in any kind of formation. As the alien unit gets closer it starts to move somewhat aimlessly across the 1er Groupe’s front at a range of about 500 meters. On the radio, contact reports are coming in. Other units have started to engage. Captain Langlois gets on the general push and his tone is amused, almost laughing – “Can you believe what these creatures are doing? Open fire!”

The Legionnaires open up. The crack and whir of gauss rifles fills the air, along with the whump of grenade launchers. West and Manfred rain grenades down on the alien squads, flaying them with shrapnel. The APC can’t move but it’s weapons are functional and Achebe jackhammers away with the 25mm cannon. Caporal Burroughs lifts a missile launcher to his shoulder and fires. The missile bursts out of its tube and the secondary motor ignites as the round flashes off toward the alien tank, arcing up and then plunging down onto the top armor. The flash-crack of the explosion is impressive but the alien vehicle seems unharmed. Burroughs drops the missile tube in disgust and readies his rifle.

So far the aliens have neither returned fire nor made any moves for cover. The Legionnaires are baffled but pour it on – if this is going to be a turkey shoot, so be it. Then suddenly, the alien infantrymen disperse and disappear into cover, like cockroaches when the light is turned on. The tank just as abruptly faces to the front and lights off its smoke generator. Then the aliens begin their attack.

The change in tactics and execution is as shocking as everything else that has happened this day. The aliens are using fire and movement tactics, rushing forward one group while another lays down cover fire. Legionnaires Freeman and Hertado are hit. Then the tank cranks its turret around and snaps off a shot at the Legionnaire APC. The hypervelocity penetrator cores the AVCI-3 from stem to stern. On its way out the back of the APC the round eviscerates the engine compartment, along with Legionnaire Zhang in the turret basket. Zhang has been cut in half and his blood paints the inside of the vehicle. In a daze, Achebe tries to ignore the blood splashed all over his uniform and crawls over to man the machinegun. Incredibly, despite the terrible pounding the APC has taken, Achebe hangs tough and keeps firing, mowing down an advancing squad of aliens.

The aliens press their attack, but the Legionnaires maintain steady and disciplined aimed fire. After losing about half their attacking infantry force the aliens pull back. A cease fire is ordered and the Legionnaires count the cost. Zhang is dead and Hertado and four others are wounded. There have been casualties in nearby units as well, including the entire 3eme Groupe, which was caught outside their vehicle when the alien bomb hit. There is also news that Capitaine Langlois is dead and Lt. Chard is now in command. Achebe sadly takes Zhang’s dog tags and pulls a shovel off the APC to dig a grave for their friend.

West does what he can for the wounded and the Legionnaires of 1er Groupe man 3eme Groupe’s APC, #33. The tactical channel on the radio is alive with contact reports. The aliens have backed off this part of the line but seem to be pushing hard elsewhere. To the north and south of the 1er Groupe’s position, the fighting rages. The Legionnaires dig in for another attack, but before they can get settled, a panicked message from HQ bursts across the com-net. “They’ve broken through! Two companies wiped out. Heavy armored vehicles…All units fall back to rally point Charlie! Sauve qui peut!” Some of the German radio operators refer to the aliens as kafers…bugs.

As 2eme Section piles into their vehicles, the tactical display in Lt. Chard’s holo shows enemy units swarming over 1er Compagnie positions. Out of the smoke and dust to their front, two alien tanks even larger than the first one they saw crawl forward. Achebe jams the throttles open and the APCs race away, leaving the field to the advancing alien horde.

[Mike Montesa]

March or Die

After 30 minutes of all out flight, 2eme section reaches rally point Charlie, but seems to be the only part of the 1er Compagnie to do so. Lt. Chard gathers the men together to discuss the situation and tells Achebe to try and raise Battalion HQ. After a few minutes Achebe can’t seem to get through but Burroughs shows him how it’s done. After identifying himself he’s told to hold for 13 Actual, Commandant D’Hubert himself.

The Commandant gets on the line and speaks to the men of the 2eme Section, his words matching the movements on the tactical display patched through from HQ. The aliens have overrun most of the French forces in their sector. The 4th RIE has been overrun, and the 5th Chasseurs broken and on the run. High command has ordered all survivors to regroup and pull back to defend Cite d’Aurore. The aliens it seems, wish to take the city and have laid siege to it, probably with the spaceport as their objective (though who really knows what these things want?) D’Hubert orders them to make all haste for a new rally point on the far side of La Mer de Sal, 500km to the northwest. Things do not look good, D’Hubert says, but as long as they can put up a fight, the 13th will do its duty. “We are all Legionnaires and we all know what we must now do. March or die.”

Lt. Chard asks for opinions. It is decided to avoid the highways and travel overland. A brief stop will be made in the settlement of Mauriae, before turning out over the inland sea. Everyone mounts up and the APCs roar off.

The huge pall of smoke rising from Lumiere d’Aube blackens the late afternoon sky. The Legionnaires try not to think about the devastation too much. They try not to think about the fatigue that weighs them down, or the screams of pain from the wounded. Their only view of the aliens so far has been through their rangefinders and scopes. A few perhaps dread what they might be like up close. What do these things want? Why have they attacked unprovoked? There are no answers.

Soon the settlement of Mauriae comes up on the holo-display. As they get closer they can see that the place is a shambles. Like many frontier towns, this one is a row of buildings lining a main street. All of them have been razed or shot full of holes. There is no sign of life, human or alien. Lt. Chard orders the 1er Groupe to enter the town and check it out. Burroughs orders his men to dismount the vehicle and they begin to move through the town along the main street. When they reach the town hall parking lot, the answer to where all the townspeople have gone is there to see. Approximately forty to fifty men, women, and children lie dead in the parking lot, torn apart by weapons that leave terrible wounds. The massacre is terrible and infuriating. Up to this point, the alien motives were not so clear, but the fact that the kafers seem to have rounded up these people and killed them in cold blood explains a lot. Burroughs reports this to Chard and they continue their sweep.

Manfred spots something lying in the road at the far end of town. It seems to be one of the kafers and it looks like it’s dead. 1er Groupe moves forward as Manfred calls it in to Chard, then he looks back to see that the thing has moved a few meters to the right. It’s not dead. It’s getting up and it has a weapon, and it’s so fast! It fires before Manfred even knows what happened and the shot caroms off his armor and knocks him flat. The rest of the Groupe opens up and blasts the alien to bits. West tends to Manfred’s wound as the rest of the team moves up to get a look at their enemy.

It’s a creature out of a nightmare. Its insectoid appearance is worthy of the term “Bug.” But what doesn’t fit the appellation is the creature’s equipment, which is obviously the product of a technologically advanced civilization. As they examine the alien’s weapon, Burroughs reports. “We got one sir.”

“Just one?” Chard asks. As he says this a shot rings out. Legionnaire Eisner, riding with his head out of 33’s hatch sees the muzzle flash and that’s all before his head snaps back and he falls down into the APC dead. All around the 1er Groupe the night explodes with weapons fire as the kafers spring their ambush. West, Manfred, and Burroughs are all hit though not so seriously. Even so they hit the deck scrambling for cover while Burroughs yells for the rest of the Section to open up. The covering APCs on the edge of town thrash the buildings with return fire.

Achebe guns the engine and pulls up next to the dismounted Legionnaires. He drops the loading ramp and rushes to pull his comrades inside. Rounds spatter off the APC's armor but he manages to get everyone aboard. Baert pulls Eisner’s body out of the way and mans the autocannon, savagely spraying covering fire as 33 barrels out of town.

They move out again. They reach the coast of the inland sea and the three remaining hovercraft of 2eme Section are soon going all out over the tidal flats. When these give way to water, those that can try to catch a few uncomfortable hours of sleep. As dawn begins to break, they sight the far coast and minutes later are “feet dry.”

Here the communications channels come to life. Many units are coming together at this rally point and the IFF indicators are showing a range of units. The command icon of the 13eme DBLE stands out clearly among them and Achebe steers toward it. Surviving French forces are gathering here on the move and word goes out that the entire force is moving out in 15 minutes to attempt to relieve the defenders of Cite d’Aurore. The valley is a hive of activity as units arrive and regroup. The battalion Adjutant Ordina, stops by 1er Groupe’s vehicle as they take five and stretch their legs. He tells them to level their ammunition across the section, drink some water and eat something now because things are moving fast.

The ad hoc force of French survivors totals about a division’s worth of troops. The Kafers have an army in position just outside Cite d’Aurore trying to break into the city. The defenders are holding them but can’t last much longer without help. HQ has decided that the city and its spaceport must be held and all French military efforts directed toward this goal. The army now assembling in the valley is going to try to take the Kafers from behind, break through and head into the city.

The 13eme DBLE is assigned to roll around the left flank of the Kafer army and engage targets of opportunity, then continue on into the city. The roar of hovercraft engines builds as the French Army moves out.

“Le Plus Beau Corps de France”

Two hours later, the army crosses phase line Echo and spreads out into battle formation. 2eme Section gets its orders – destroy a Kafer rocket artillery unit in a suburb outside the city. The APCs hurtle forward as the French Army begins its attack and the battle is joined.

The Legionnaires’ target is a trio of Kafer self-propelled rocket artillery vehicles sitting in a schoolyard. The Kafer ground troops, caught by surprise at the APCs howling out of the sunrise at them, mill about in confusion. 25mm gauss cannons snap angrily and shred the Kafer infantry. Achebe and the other APC pilots volleys their missiles at the alien vehicles and they erupt in balls of fire and rapidly expanding gas. As the Legionnaires continue their approach, they see someone, a woman it looks like, waving a flag from the window of the school. Lt. Chard orders 1er Groupe to go in and check it out, and the rest of the Section to wait on the other side of the objective.

Caporal Burroughs orders everyone to get ready to dismount. Fire Team A composed of Burroughs, Manfred, West, and Baert are going in. As Achebe drops the ramp and they jump clear, they see the woman in the window duck back inside as a Kafer appears in the window on the floor directly beneath her. Bierhoff rips off a cannon burst that walks up the wall and splatters the Kafer all over the inside of the classroom.

Fireteam A rushes for the back door. As soon as they get inside, a Kafer pops out and fires at Manfred who’s on point. It misses and Manfred puts two rounds into the thing and it goes down, but keeps firing at him. Baert rushes up and opens fire but misses. Burroughs finally puts paid to the alien with three more shots.

Moving quickly, they hit the stairwell. As they do, a Kafer hand grenade bounces of the wall and down the stairs at them. West yells, “Grenade!” as everyone dives for cover. West however, jumps forward and scoops up the grenade, flinging it back up the stairs where it goes off. The blast hurls alien body parts across the walls and steps. Throwing caution to the wind and driven by a growing hatred for the Bugs, West charges up the stairs before anyone can stop him. He reaches the top and sees a pile of dead aliens but one is still alive and raising its weapon. Human and alien meet face-to-face. Neither can read the other’s emotions but both know that in the next moment, one of them will be dead. The Kafer rips off a burst of fire that misses West by a hair’s breadth. West returns the favor, but in his haste, he also misses. Manfred coming up behind flips his selector to full auto and blows the Kafer to bits.

When the roaring gunfire stops, a classroom door down the hall opens up. Fireteam A takes aim. A child about seven years old stumbles out followed by a woman. Her name is Lisle and she is a teacher. She has been hiding in the school with six of her students. When the Kafers showed up she hid in the maintenance shed on the roof. She’s overjoyed to see the Legionnaires. The children and their teacher are quickly herded down to the waiting APCs. As they board, the command channel is reporting success!

The Kafer army, caught from behind, is broken and is withdrawing. French units are ordered to press on through into the city. In some places the Kafers seem to have abandoned units they could not extract from the battle. These units fight to the very last and French losses are high. Even so, the victorious human forces enter the city as the aliens head for the hills.

Crowds line the streets of Cite d’Aurore, eager to greet their saviors. As the column of troops turns the corner onto the main street, the soldiers begin to sing Le Boudin. If the song is not recognizable enough, the famous kepi-blanc of the Legionnaires is unmistakable. The crowd cheers wildly as the men of the 13eme DBLE march past at their leisurely 88 paces per minute. Their low voices echo off the buildings and over the crowd, striking despite the fact that there are less than 200 men left out of the original 700.

The Legionnaires begin to sing a new song.

“Non, rien de rien, non, je ne regrette rien.”

[Nearside]

Fantastic. 2300 is a great setting, and having been a playtester on the 2320 sequel to the game, I think it's ready for a second wind.

I think your group are going to love the next few modules, I remember me and a friend (yeah, you, JT) running Mission Arcturus for two groups in the same house at the same time, and meeting to compare notes now and then. When the day was over, both groups of players were able to meet up and compare notes about how they'd handled various things in the scenario. Great times!

Thank you for this Actual Play, and please continue!

[Mike Montesa]

We did chargen for this as a group, with each player creating their main character (Achebe, Burroughs, Manfred, and West). We spent time discussing things like character background and motivations at each turning point before moving to the next step in their development.

For example, after generating the basic attributes and whatnot, you choose background skills. When that was done, each player talked about their character's background and what influenced them. So, if someone had "Ground Vehicle" as a background skill, for example, I asked why. "He was a trucker." At which point we might all start talking about that character's life as a trucker and maybe come up with some high points about it. Same thing for turning points in their careers as well.

What I wanted to know was, "Why did you join the Legion?" and this got some interesting answers. Ideas were discussed together and all of the players hashed out input from each other, resulting in some pretty convincing and downright cool background stories.

Achebe was a tractor mechanic from the vast farms of Kimanjano who wanted to get into the shit.

Manfred was a troubleshooter involved in the Beta Canum beanstalk sabotage investigation, which eventually necessitated him faking his own death and going on the lamb.

Burroughs was a truck driver from Ellis who joined the Marines and found them too Mickey Mouse for his liking.

West was actually a doctor on Beowulf who ran afoul of one of the nobility on that world and was accused of malpractice. His reputation ruined, he joined the Legion.

Another question I asked the players was, "Why do your characters trust each other with their lives?" Since none of the characters had any combat experience yet, the players decided that while out on maneuvers, their vehicle crashed and they all had to hike 150km through the Auroran hotback to get back to base, and had to help and support each other on the journey.

With these guys done, we got to work on the other members of the unit. I had a list of eight names and nationalities which I tossed out, and the players came up with backgrounds for them. Very short, not totally fleshed out, but enough to give them legs and a personality. Thusly invested, should one of the main PCs get killed or incapacitated, we can bring one of the NPCs to the fore as a PC.

In the first play session immediately following chargen, 2300AD has a neat system for assigning quick skill levels to NPCs. I found this very helpful as it wasn't necessary to have everyone totally statted out.

Before the game, we talked a lot about Band of Brothers and the way the character focus shifted around. There were central characters of course, but sometimes a whole episode would revolve around some of the more minor characters. We're only playing three episodes so we can't really use this too much, but I think it will help deal with the effects of the lethality of the system in a military campaign like this one.

The whole process of chargen, including making up the NPCs (who didn't get stats at this point, just background) took about two hours and was really a lot of fun.

My next post will be about the play session itself.

[Mike Montesa]

OK, well, how did it go?

I decided to start the game on the eve of the outbreak of the Kafer War. The idea as I've mentioned is to cover the entire war, beginning, middle, and end. With a limited amount of time, the story itself isn't going to come from the characters and their issues as much as I usually try to do. That said, I want to keep the focus on them as much as possible and paint their story against the epic backdrop of an interstellar war.

So, to balance out the lack of time for character development, I'm going to try to open each session with a "downtime scene" where the PCs can interact outside of their "mission scenes". The first part of this session was like that, and it was great to see the players establish their characters the way they did.

I tried to conjure up a contrast between the high tech nature of the setting and the low tech nature of the characters' situation. Given the proximity of the French colony on Aurore to the desolate hotback, it was easy to layer on the old North African tropes that go with the Legion.

Le Chat Noir was the name for my idea but the players developed it, fleshing out the kind of place it was and I just ran with it, dropping in Lauren and Rene. The song Lauren was singing was also part of the anachronism intended to create the mood we were going for at that point.

The build up to the first battle was fun, and created some tension I think. Even though some of the players had experience with the 2300AD setting, I think going through the awful waiting of the first few days, followed by the orbital bombardment and having to ride that out helped key them up for the first battle.

When the Kafers attacked we got our first heavy duty workout with the game system. I flubbed a couple of things like the way tamped explosions work but otherwise it went surprisingly smoothly for all the hardware we were playing with.

The game system is deadly, and we're all cool with that. As I've mentioned we have backup characters everyone has invested in to step up if main characters get killed.

Overall it went really well and I have to say I'm really pleased with all of it, the game system, the setting, and most of all, the players!

[Mike Montesa]

Finally got the write-up for Part 2 done. Awesome game! Finale coming up soon! So, without further ado...

Part 2 - Mission Arcturus

“You became Legionnaires in order to die, and I will send you where you can die.”

Situation: With Kafer space forces driven from the Eta Bootis system, the opportunity exists to send an expedition into the Arcturus system and ascertain the condition of the Station Arcture Deep Space Observatory, which was cut off and assumed lost three years ago. Scouts have confirmed that the station is still intact on its orbit around Arcturus but due to Kafer activity in the system, no contact or boarding attempts could be made.

Mission: Fire Team A and two combat walkers from 1ere Groupe, 2eme Section, 1er Compagnie, I/13 DBLE will advise and support elements of the 7th Fusiliers-Voltigeurs de la Marine Spatiale. This combined task force is ordered to proceed to Station Arcture, board the facility and rescue any human survivors of the crew and scientific research contingent.

Execution: You will be transported to the Arcturus system aboard the Bassompierre (Suffren-class cruiser). Bassompierre will approach Station Arcture to conduct a preliminary scan. If boarding the station is viable, you will deploy to carry out the mission objectives.

Flashback

As the Bassompierre enters the Arcturus system Fire Team A sits among the other members of the 7th FULVOMARS. Captain Mainds goes over the mission briefing seemly for the umpteenth time. Everyone knows what’s coming – or so they think. Burroughs thinks back just a few days ago to when they were first handed this mission. Standing in a tent pitched outside Cite d’Aurore it was hard to conceive of anyplace other than the windswept Auroran Hotback. Capitaine Chard wasn’t smiling when he told Burroughs, now a Sergeant, what his next mission would be.

“Now that things have calmed down a little, high command has dreamed another amazing stunt. Commodore Lutke is putting together a mission to go see what happened to Station Arcture, and he needs people with combat experience against the kafers to go along as “advisors”. This one smells political. Now that the kafers have run off, everyone wants to get a piece of the action. Where were they two years ago when we had plenty of bugs to go around don’t ask.

“So, I need my best bug hunters to uphold the honor of the Legion, sergeant, and your fire team fits the bill. You’ll have a couple of the BH-21s along to back you up. I imagine Achebe will be happy to hear that. Anyway, you lift in 48 hours so get your men ready. Good luck.”

“Sergeant?” says Capitaine Mainds, snapping Burroughs out of his reverie. “Would you like to give us your briefing about the bugs?” Since they came on board the Legionnaires and the men of the FULVOMARS have kept their relations polite but distant. The FULVOMARS are elite boarding troops and although they have combat experience, they have never fought the kafers. As Burrroughs gives his briefing on kafer behavior and tactics, Manfred overhears two FULVOMARS men dismiss the briefing as a waste of time – they’ve heard all this through previous reports, and are wondering why they have to be saddled with a squad of dirtside grunts like the Legionnaries.

After the briefing, Manfred relates this to the rest of the team and they all agree to watch each other’s backs. Finally, Capitaine Mainds reminds everyone that contested ship-to-ship boarding actions can have casualty rates of 50% or more. The Legionnnaires decide they aren’t going to be in the 50% that doesn’t come back.
The Bassompierre enters an intercept trajectory with Station Arcture, and the boarding parties move to the landing bay to gear up and get their final briefing before embarkation.

For this mission, the troops are wearing CSC-2 space combat armor and carrying specially modified versions of the FAM-90. Scanning reports come in – the station has power, but is in bad shape. The mission commander decides to go in three teams, Titan 1, Titan 2, and Titan 3, with the Legionnaires accompanying Lt. Paillard and three other FULVOMARS troopers in Titan 2. The other Titan teams are all FULVOMARS men.

Into the Breach

Lt. Paillard is not inexperienced but seems cocky and dismissive of the Legionnaires. Sgt. Burroughs plays it straight with Paillard but knows he better keep both eyes open going in. The warning claxon blares and it is time to depart.

The Bassompierre stands off about 100km from Station Arcture and launches the ships boats. As they get in closer, they can see the extent of the damage the station has sustained and due to all the debris, docking directly with the station is ruled out. Time for a spacewalk. The cargo bays depressurize and the landing ramps open to deep space. The Legionnaires have had P-Suit and zero-g training but none of them have done a spacewalk since basic. The more experienced FULVOMARS troops move out first, crossing over to the station and attaching guy-lines to their teams’ entry points. Titan 2 is aiming for the hull breach in the station spin habitat.

About 50m from the station, it is necessary to unhook from the guyline and move in independently using suit thrusters. Burroughs overcompensates and manages to slam into a drifting file cabinet – part of the debris cloud 1floating near the breach – and Sgt. Bastide jets over to help him in. Fortunately, Burroughs’ suit is undamaged and he is unharmed. Baert manages to land safely, as does Manfred, who makes it look like he’s done this sort of thing before. West can’t pick a way through the debris field and has to be pulled in by Sgt. Emery. Finally, the two combat walkers, piloted by Achebe and Scholl make their touchdowns on the station. It’s time to move in.

Because of the damage, the station is wobbling about its axis. The unusual movement makes several of the Legionnaires nauseus, causing some ribbing (and a bit of griping) from the FULVOMARS men. But now all the boarding teams are inside and Lt. Paillard orders everyone to begin their sweeps. Titan 1 in the observatory at the “top” of the spindle is to work their way down to the cargo hold. Titan 3 in the cargo hold will work their way to the back to the reactor at the bottom of the spindle. Titan 2 is to clear the spin habitat. Then all the team will meet in the cargo hold.

Inside Section 3 of the spin habitat, Titan 2 finds a darkened ruin. The FULVOMARS investigate to the east of the hull breach and Legionnaires to the west. The place is a mess, and except for wreckage, there is nothing to be found. Titan 2 assembles at the east lock.

SNAFU
As they are about to go through, an emergency message from Bassompierre comes through. “This is Olympus to all Titan units. Two Kafer warships have entered the system on an intercept course. We are moving to engage. Once the enemy forces are neutralized we will return for you. Until then, continue your mission as planned. Lt. Paillard is now in command. Good luck, you’re on your own. Olympus out.”

For a moment, Lt. Paillard is silent, then he switches to the command channel to talk to the Bassompierre. Burroughs isn’t impressed with Paillard so far and on the private Legionnaires’ channel, warns everyone to stay sharp and watch each others’ backs.
Paillard gets back on the all-hands circuit, sounding distressed but otherwise calm. “All right. Things have gotten a little hairy but as far as we’re concerned, we proceed as planned. All teams move out. Check in every 5 minutes.”

Titan 2 cycles through the airlock into Section Two, and carefully moves inside, ready for anything. If anything, Section Two is even deader than Section Three. In the darkness, the teams’ suit lights illuminate the shattered wreckage. Signs of fighting are obvious, burned and damaged buildings are everywhere. So are the bodies of the station personnel who tried to hold the Kafers here. The atmosphere and pressure readings here are normal, and the FULVOMARS troops crack their helmet visors. The Legionnaires do likewise. The stale smell of death still lingers.

As they move forward, there is the slow building feeling of being on a train as it decelerates, and within a few seconds, everyone is trying to grab onto something. What happened? No one seems to have an answer and the motion has stopped, so they keep going.

Section One is much the same, and the team keeps working its way forward. A couple of times, Lt. Paillard and the FULVOMARS troops ask the Legionnaires about the alien debris – weapons and tools – that are lying about. When the Legionnaires admit they don’t know exactly what a certain item is (a Kafer welding torch), one of the other FULVOMARS troops mutters under his breath, wondering what they brought the Legionnaires along for.

[Mike Montesa]

FUBAR

As Titan 2 forms up on the airlock into Section 24, Central Authority, suddenly, the team leader of Titan 1 is on the radio. “Sir, we’ve got movement. Wait…Contact! Front! Left! They’re behind us! Return fire!” Titan 3 also calls in – they’re also getting hit. The traffic from Titan 1 and 3 gets more confused as they engage and it’s obvious both teams have been ambushed. Lt. Paillard locks out the command frequency and it’s clear he’s trying to deal with the situation. Everyone waits for a few more tense moments. Then Paillard clicks back to the all hands circuit. He sounds shaken. “We’ve lost contact with teams 1 and 3.”

Burroughs suggests they keep moving. If the Kafers managed to ambush both squads at the same time, they could have the same planned for them. Paillard agrees and they set up to enter Section 24 again. As the door cycles open, everyone is ready for the bugs to hit them, but the section ahead of them is just as deserted as the others.
Carefully, Titan 2 moves into central authority. The FULVOMARS circle the spoke column to the right and the Legionnaires go left. As the Legionnaires move up, they come upon a series of buildings where the bugs appear to have kept their prisoners. The dessicated faces of 14 station personnel stare blankly at the Legionnaires. Then Paillard is on the radio to Burroughs, “Sergent, bring your team over here. I think you better have a look at this.”

In the amphitheater, everyone is gathered around a table where the Kafers appear to have staked out a prisoner and vivisected him. West examines the body and determines the victim was probably still alive when it happened. Paillard and his men are shocked, but the Legionnaires know what they’re up against. The FULVOMARS men seem ready for some revenge.

Still unable to contact the other Titan teams, Paillard considers their next move – continue to clear the spin habitat or head up to the core. After some discussion, they decide to head for the core and maybe try to find the other Titan teams. With no sign of the Kafers yet, everyone is wary.

They could get the combat walkers up the stairs, but Achebe balks. The freight elevators are a better fit. Wary of an ambush at the top, they decide to head up the stairs to Section 48, check it out first, then bring the walkers up. With the FULVOMARS in the lead, Titan 2 moves up the stairs. When they reach the top, everything looks clear. Lt. Paillard, and Sgts. Bastide, Emery, and Malcher move clear of the stairwell.
Manfred is next, followed by Burroughs, West, and Baert. Something is wrong, Then Manfred sees, Sgt. Bastide look back, and then the FULVOMARS trooper drops to the floor dead. There is a flash of light and Paillard drops, his severed arm briefly lit in the muzzle flashes of the Kafer ambush. Emery and Malcher also go down in a fusillade of Kafer fire.

“Contact! Front! Achebe! Scholl! Get up here! Now!” screams Burroughs as the Legionnaires open up. Manfred fires off a few grenades. One of them must have hit something because the incoming fire slackens a bit. For a few seconds the darkness is strobed with weapon fire. Burroughs snaps off several bursts with his shotgun, as West and Baert open up. Manfred exhausts his grenade magazine and then goes to work with his 4.5mm rounds. West is hit in the leg but Baert pulls him back inside the stairwell, as Manfred and Burroughs dive for cover. Several bursts of Kafer fire hit the Legionnaires but their armored suits seem to take the hits.

After what seems like an eternity, the freight elevator arrives and Achebe and Scholl announce their presence by firing their plasma guns into the Kafer ambush. Cyan flashes of expanding plasma rapidly break the alien attack. When its over, the still mobile Legionnaires waste no time finishing off any Kafer survivors. Burroughs tries contacting the other Titan teams but there is still no response. Reluctantly, Burroughs assumes command of the mission.

Improvise, Adapt, Overcome

Of the four FULVOMARS troopers, three are dead. Lieutenant Paillard is unconscious and in a coma, and West does his best to stabilize him. While securing the area Manfred comes across the first human survivor they have seen, Eugene Laforet. The man is clearly traumatized by his experience and is reluctant to cooperate with the Legionnaires. Burroughs and Baert think he might actually be on the Kafers’ side and if they leave him there, run off to tell the Bugs what happened.

While the other Legionnaires discuss the situation West tries to figure out what happened. He learns basically that the number of survivors of the station has dwindled to only 6, and the other 5 are being held in the reactor room. What’s that thing the Bugs are building at the end of the station? Laforet looks at them and says: “It’s a stutterwarp.” The Bugs are getting ready to take the station somewhere. “Where are they going?” “Nowhere we want to be,” is Laforet’s detached reply.

While they are talking, that feeling of sudden deceleration builds again, and soon everyone is scrambling for a handhold. What’s going on? Suddenly, it begins to dawn on them. If you’re going to engage your stutterwarp drive, you can’t be wobbling around all over the place, you have to be stable – the bugs are stopping the station’s spin in order to set course for Bugland!

A decision is made to proceed directly to the reactor core, seize it, and stop the Kafers from flying away with the ship (and everyone on it, willing passenger or no).
They decide to drug Laforet and West prepares a sedative. The man struggles a bit but they get the shot into him and he goes to sleep. A sling is rigged up on the backs of the walkers for Paillard and the station technician. The Legionnaires cross-level the ammunition, check their gear and move out.

The Legionnaires enter the spoke shaft that will take them to the core, and from there to the reactor room. As they climb upwards, gravity lessens until they are floating in almost zero-g. Wary of more ambushers, they carefully enter the spin habitat access chamber and call the elevator up.

Then the station shudders and the lights flicker and dim. When they brighten up again, the voice of the station’s computer echoes through the corridors. “Warning. Reactor power surge in 26 minutes. Recommend SCRAM.” The Legionnaires are not engineers, but they know that can’t be good. When the core transport car arrives they pile in as quickly as they can, but not before disabling the car on the second shaft, to prevent the Kafers from using it.

Endgame
Manfred punches for the Fusion Plant room and the car begins to move. As they pass the Machinery Bay, the car grinds to a halt. The Legionnaires don’t know why it’s stopped and don’t care either, they just know they need to get out of it and keep moving. The escape hatch is too small for the walkers so Achebe fires up his suit’s welding torch and he and Scholl cut a hole in the floor to allow the walkers to exit.
Soon, everyone is floating free in the core shaft. Their suit lights show only a long tube stretching away in the distance. The computer voice makes another announcement: “Reactor power surge in 20 minutes. Recommend SCRAM, Automatic shutdown sequence initiated. Shutdown failed. Reactor power surge in 20 minutes.”

Moving as quickly and as carefully as they can the Legionnaires press onward. When they reach the cargo bay, Burroughs tries to contact Titan 3 but still gets no answer. Fearing another ambush, and focused on getting to the reactor, the Legionnaires stay in the core tube and bypass it, pressing forward.

As they pass through the Pumping Station, the station computer announces 15 minutes to the reactor power surge. Manfred, on point, looks back at Burroughs as the team passes through the Pumping Station. Suddenly his display starts to light up. “Contact front!” A group of Kafers, barricaded at the end of the core in front of the reactor, are popping up to open fire.

Alien grenades carom off the walls and detonate, and the shockwaves and shrapnel slam the Legionnaires into the bulkheads. Everyone braces themselves in zero-g and begins to return fire. Achebe and Scholl get a clear shot and lob a few plasma rounds at the bugs, which evaporates around half their strength at that end of the core. Unfortunately, when the Legionnaires bypassed the cargo bay, they also missed the Kafer squad waiting to ambush them there, and these bugs announce their presence by nailing Scholl’s combat walker from behind with several grenades. Scholl stops moving. Dead or damaged, there’s no time for any assessment – the Legionnaires are fighting for their lives.

Achebe turns to cover the rear, and fires several bolt of plasma back down the core at the attackers. Meanwhile Baert, West, Manfred, and Burroughs gain the upper hand on the first ambush team, letting off several magazines of 4.5mm FMJ plus grenades at the barricade.

“Danger. Hull breach, section 6, closing emergency bulkheads,” comes the station computer’s voice. As the bulkhead at the pump station begins to iris shut Achebe realizes it must have been his rounds that caused the breach – there certainly seem to be fewer bugs back the way he was shooting.

The station computer doesn’t let up, and the next announcement spurs the Legionnaires forward even faster. “Fifteen minutes to reactor power surge. Initiating SCRAM. SCRAM failed. Fifteen minutes to reactor power surge.” Achebe hooks a tow-line to Scholl – he can’t tell if Scholl is dead, unconscious, or just stuck in a powerless suit.

Upon reaching the barricade, the Legionnaires prepare to enter the reactor room. This time, when they open the door, Manfred and Burroughs chuck in a couple of flash-bang grenades. The Kafers on the other side have a similar idea, and fire four grenades through the door at the same time. A laser slashes across the bulkhead as well.

The grenade explosions hammer the Legionnaires, and Baert, West, and Burroughs are knocked unconscious. Manfred manages to ride out the detonations, then aims three shots at one bug he can see behind a control console inside the room and drops it with a shot to the head. He pulls back to reload. Achebe doesn’t want to fire inside because the plasma gun on the walker might kill the hostages. Instead, he floats across the doorway and this has the intended effect; the Kafer with the laser fires at Achebe in the combat walker, but the beam can’t penetrate the armor. Manfred moves out behind Achebe at the same time, firing past the combat machine with a long burst that blows the Kafer laser gunner to bits.

A quick check shows that the three KO’d Legionnaires are still alive. Adrenaline pumping, Manfred enters the reactor control room as Achebe covers from the doorway (the combat walker is too big to get through the doorway). Inside Manfred finds what they came for – five human hostages huddled up against the wall. Curiously, they are gathered around the dead Kafer that Manfred shot in the head. They don’t look happy to see the Legionnaires.

Countdown
“Reactor power surge in 12 minutes. Initiate SCRAM. SCRAM failed,” repeats the station computer.

“There’s no time for talk,” Manfred says to the hostages. How do we get off the station?” The hostages simply glare, though one speaks up, “All the lifeboats were jettisoned. There’s no way off.”

“Can we shut down the reactor?” As Manfred says this he looks toward the main core compartment and can see the bizarre alien structures that have been integrated into the human engineered parts.

“My name is Clemenceau. I’m a reactor technician, but I couldn’t tell you what the aliens have done to it, but they’ve bypassed the automatic shutdown controls. I don’t know how to stop it.”

Achebe and Manfred confer. They can’t get back to the cargo bay with the emergency bulkheads closed. Either they stop the reactor or find another way out. Achebe decides to egress from his combat walker – he’s got to help the others. He does and manages to push the unconscious forms of Burroughs, West, and Baert into the room. Then he manually ejects Scholl from his walker, and grabs one of the other troopers’ rifles. Scholl is okay, but was unable to do anything after the Kafer grenade blast cut his power off. They hurriedly pull Paillard and Laforet inside as well.

“Reactor power surge in eight minutes,” announces the computer.

“How do we get off this thing!? Achebe asks frantically trying to take in the hostages and the reactor room at the same time. Suddenly one of the female hostages leaps up at Manfred. “You killed him you bastards!” Manfred tries to ward her off and Achebe pushes her away, but when she doesn’t calm down, he clubs her with the butt of his rifle – there’s NO time for any foolishness now. Instantly the woman submits and indeed the other hostages seem ready to follow the Legionnaires’ instructions.
“We could open the emergency vent doors,” says Clemenceau. Everything in the reactor room not bolted down goes into space.”

“You got pressure suits?” asks Manfred.

“Yes, in that locker.”

“Everyone put one on. Now!” orders Manfred. The hostages scramble to it. The Legionnaires look to their own – Lt. Paillard seems to have died from his wounds. The others are still out cold but their suits are intact. Achebe grabs a suit and hurriedly dons it. If the seals aren’t done right he’s done for, but at this point, caution is a luxury.
“Three minutes to reactor power surge.”

Manfred opens the hatch to the reactor room, then jams the door. “OK! Do it! Open the vents!!” screams Manfred at Clemenceau. The tech initiates the sequence and the reactor doors crack open, and the atmosphere begins to vent into space. Everyone hangs on, waiting for the streaming wind to subside a bit. Then, with the station computer droning warnings in the ears, they begin exiting the station.

“One minute to reactor power surge. Warning, hull breach.”

As the hostages get clear, Manfred, Achebe, and Scholl start manhandling the KO’d Legionnaires out through the vents. Finally, Achebe kicks himself free and out into space. Not knowing what good it will do, as he goes he lets off a grenade back into the reactor room, but for good or ill, he misses and it caroms off the hull.

As the spacesuited figures float away from Station Arcture, a blue glow begins to envelop it, emanating from the Kafer stutterwarp drive. Then the station seems to flicker and move away slowly, then speeding up rapidly, until it is only a fading point of light against the backdrop of stars.

The Legionnaires and the hostage survivors have rounded each other up and activated their emergency beacons. Burroughs has come around and picks up a signal on the command circuit.”

“….is Bassompiere. Titan team this is Bassompiere. Do you copy? We are receiving your beacon and are inbound.”

Pastoral

Later, in the docking bay of the Bassompierre, Capitaine Mainds greets them. The mood is subdued but relieved; the boarding party took heavy losses, yet they rescued the hostages. The Legionnaires stow their gear, then head for medical with the hostages.
In the elevator, everyone is silent. The woman who attacked Manfred, Andrea DuPlessis, seems withdrawn, but some of the other hostages seem to have realized they’re safe now, and with tears in their eyes, thank the Legionnaires for saving them.
As the elevator slows to a stop, DuPlessis looks at Achebe, tears welling in her eyes. “Do you hear that?” she says.

“What?” asks Achebe.

“The music,” she says referring to the music playing quietly throughout the ship as the doors open. “It’s beautiful.”

Achebe can see the pressure of the ordeal finally lifting away from this woman who endured three years of constant terror and abuse. He puts his arm around her and helps her out of the elevator as everyone exits.

The doors slide shut to the strains of Beethoven’s 6th Symphony.

[anarchangel]

Excellent!