"Robot War" - Tank Swarm City Fight

 Our next game of Robot War incorporates my old Mega Force toys.  Launched by Kenner in 1989, they lasted only a year.  The range included lots of large land battleship vehicles, huge aircraft and loads of smaller die-cast vehicles in about 1/285 or 1/300 scale.  The 2 sides were V-Rocs and Triax, neither of which was specifically labelled as being goodies or baddies.  They caught my eye at the time as being suitable as proxy models in games of Epic Space Marine.  I got a few sets when they came out, a load more sets when they were remaindered in various toy shops, and a few more of the larger vehicles in recent years from eBay.  We only used the small V-Rocs vehicles and a couple of tactical aircraft refuellers.  This was also the first outing for my Lidl wargames mat (or "outdoor carpet" as they refer to it), even though I've had it for a couple of years.  They have these every year for about £8 and it's the ideal size for our dining table.  I dug out my rocky plateaus to use too, it's also the first time I've had a chance to use them in a game.

Stand by for action!

Number 2 son's forces included 6 tanks (move half a range ruler, fire 1 or 2D8 for their main guns), 2 Anti-aircraft tanks (move half range ruler, fire 2 or 3D6 for AA guns), 4 missile launchers (move half a range ruler, fire 1D10 for their missile). Air assets included 2 helicopters and 3 VTOLs (all travel 1 range ruler, fire 2D6 guns), 3 fighter-bombers (stationed off-table, appear at any point on the table to fire 2D10 missiles each).  There is also a Trident tactical aircraft refueller, we decided that this moves half a range ruler, fires 1D8 and can spend a turn repairing a destroyed VTOL or helicopter.  All vehicles can take only a single hit apart from the Trident, which can take 4 hits.

MBTs ready to move off.

The tank turrets look to be vaguely Merkava inspired.  Command tanks have 2 guns.

Robots view the battlefield.

My robots used the same rules as the previous game against the dinosaurs.

Prepare to move out...

Number 1 son also had 6 MBTs and 2 AA tanks, 4 missile launchers, a couple of helicopters, 2 VTOLs and another Trident refueler.

Air strike!

Number 2 son started the game.  His first action was to send his fighter-bombers streaking across the battlefield to attack my robots.  Poor aim meant that only 2 of the 6 missiles struck home.  Return fire from the mecha would wipe out the entire flight.

Air units advance.

The VTOLs and helicopters used their longer movement to skim over the top of the rocky cliffs.

Lone VTOL spotter sighted.

A single VTOL was transported forwards by the Trident, then leap-frogged forward using its own movement to rapidly close the range.  A very lucky pair of shots damaged one of the enemy robots!

VTOL.

This was cunning use of the transported vehicle by Number 1 son.

Firing on enemy VTOLs and helicopters.

 One of the robots fired on Number 2 son's aircraft.

Tree cover doesn't save these 2.

Lucky die rolls eliminated 2 of the aircraft despite their attempts at concealment by hovering in the trees.

Armoured advance down the centre.

The main armoured force was making slow but steady progress down the centre of the table.

Flank column.

A smaller armoured column pressed down the edge of the table, remaining concealed by the trees and rock formations.

One robot down.

The robots advance into the city.  The missile robot was destroyed by a very lucky extreme range shot.

Useless shooting.

One of the robots decided to deal with the aircraft concealed in the woods.  It completely missed all targets at very short range.

Prepare to repair crashed aircraft!

In the centre, the armoured force closes on the crashed VTOL and helicopter, ready to try and repair them.

Trident strikes a robot.

The other Trident makes a long-range snipe against a robot.

Yet more poor shooting.  This pilot needs spectacles!

Displaying yet more incompetence, the robot pilot manages only a single hit on the sitting duck in front of him.  The Trident is able to get both the helicopter and VTOL operating again on successive turns.

Carnage on the flank.

There is more success on the flank, where one of the robots catches the armoured column and wipes out an entire tank unit.

Useless robot pilot pays for his bad gunnery skills.

A volley of missiles puts an end to the embarrassment of the incompetent robot pilot in the centre.

Another robot goes down.

Just off-centre, another robot manages to miss with all 4 short-range shots against the main tank force.  He pays for his mistake as his mecha is blown to pieces by massed tank fire.

Massed tank firepower is telling now!

On the flank, the robot's luck runs out.  At this short range, the anti-aircraft tanks prove devastatingly effective against ground targets too.

Air strike deals the final death blow.

Only a single robot remains, and this is the moment that Number 1 son chooses to unleash his fighter-bombers on their attack run.  Enough of their missiles strike home to eliminate the final enemy unit.

It was a fun game, introducing additional die types (D6) added more variety to the game.  Using a target number of 5 for all attacks at short range means that bigger guns/missiles (D8 or D10) are more likely to hit, but I gave the AA tanks and helicopters/VTOLs 2D6 each to boost their chances.  Adding +1 to the difficulty for each range ruler length effectively limits those guns to 2 range rulers (about 2 feet), because they aren't going to be managing to roll a 7 on a D6 after that!

It was nice to get out and use some of my scenery, I was pleased how well the flocking on the rocky plateaus matched the Lidl games matt, this was purely by luck.

The half-term holiday is over now, so I might have a chance to work on clarifying the rules a bit before we get to the summer holidays - assuming the kids are still interested by then!

Stranger Things Board Game

 Our friend Graham popped round for a game again on Friday evening, this time bringing with him the Stranger Things board game, covering seasons 1 & 2.  This is a fairly incoherent overview of the game, hindered by the fact that it is relying on my memory of the evening and my rather hazy understanding of the rules, gleaned as we played.

Stranger Things

It's a co-operative game, your aim being to rescue Will from the Upside Down in the Season 1 version that we played.  Throughout the game, you can "Help Eleven", which releases psionic abilities to help you.

The game board for Season 1

The game board is divided into the town of Hawkins (top) and the Upside Down (bottom).  It's double-sided, with Season 2 on the opposite side.  The board is set up with small stacks of counters for the various challenges that will be encountered.  Each character has 5 random action cards that are numbered from 1-3, which can be spent to overcome challenges or perform actions.  The challenge counter stacks vary in size from 2 to 4 counters.  Counters are randomly numbered 0-5 and at the start of the game, all the stacks in Hawkins have the top counter turned over, giving a hint as to the total in the stack.  Most locations have a special challenge you can try to overcome, or you can get an item or calm down (move your fear tracker backwards).  At certain locations, you can perform actions or overcome challenges that let you turn over additional top counters or even look at one entire stack to find out the total.

Mike, Hopper & Nancy.

The figures for the characters are pretty good likenesses.  Mike has a radio, Hopper is in his Sheriff's uniform, Nancy has a revolver.  Not pictured are Joyce (clutching a string of fairy lights), Dustin and Lucas.  You also get a figure of Eleven, used to mark whether you are in Act 1, 2 or 3 of the game, which affects how many "Scene" cards you draw after each character has acted (more on that later).

Demodogs.

The demodogs are nice, coming in 2 poses.  They weren't used in our Season 1 game, only appearing in Season 2.

Lucas at his starting place in the Laboratory.

I played Lucas for the first game.  Each character has a starting location in Hawkins noted on their character card, Lucas started at the Laboratory in the woods.  Characters all have a special ability.  Nancy could move the Demogorgon or one of the patrol vans 1 location at the start of her turn, Lucas started with one item, Mike could "Help Eleven" from any location, whereas other characters had to move to a specific location in order to do so.  Dustin could move 2 locations rather than 1, and could move past enemies unhindered.

The Demogorgon lurks in the Upside Down...

The Demogorgon starts in the Upside Down, but may be drawn to your location as the game progresses... If that or one of the patrol vans are present at a location, you cannot perform the action/challenge at that location, so they are both a hindrance and a threat.

My character card.

Your character card has a fear track which builds as you experience things like a Demogorgon attack or as you explore the Upside Down.  If fear reaches the end square, the game is lost, but you can spend action cards to "calm down" in certain locations on the board.  On the left are my action cards, a couple of 1s, a couple of 2s and a 3.  The radio icon means you get to add an extra 1 to the score if you are in the same location as another character.  Action cards are spent to overcome challenges (equal or beat the total of the counters in the stack), move extra locations or perform actions at locations.  As an example, the first stack at the lab has only 2 counters, I already know that the top counter is a 1, so even if the hidden counter is a 5, I only need to spend my 1, 2 and 3 action cards to be sure of equalling or beating that challenge.  The red triangle means you have to draw an extra Scene card at the end of your turn - more on those in a moment.  Lucas also starts with a random item, in this case a bear trap to give +3 during a fight!  You can pick up items by searching various locations, though you can only carry 2 at a time.  When searching for items, the total of the action cards spent dictates how many item cards you get to draw, giving a greater choice over which single one you will keep.  They give bonuses in certain situations, for instance the first aid kit reduces your fear by an extra 4 when you spend an action card in a "calm down" location. Some items give a bonus to "Help Eleven" (activate her psionic abilities), others to "Rescue Will" (final objective), others at the Laboratory (as you remove additional stacks of challenge counters, allows you to use more red triangle action cards without adding extra scene cards - see below).

You also have opportunities to recruit Allies.  These include some of the more obvious ones such as Steve Harrington, Jonathan Byers, but also lesser characters such as Benny Hammond, the diner owner killed early in season 1.  Allies give you various abilities - Jonathan counts as a character in your location, giving you the +1 action for every action card you spend with the walkie-talkie icon.  Benny's only purpose is to be sacrificed (killed) as soon as you have gained him, in order to immediately activate one of Eleven's powers without having to complete the challenge.

Some of the Scene cards that cause you trouble.

At the end of each character's turn, you draw a "Scene" card.  This is generally something bad that happens to you.  The Demogorgon cards add to your fear.  If you're in the Upside Down, it can be especially deadly because it might add a number of fear equal to the number of challenge stacks in the Demogorgon pool, which starts at 4.  You can reduce the number of stacks by successfully fighting the Demogorgon, but with each stack containing 4 counters (potentially a total of 20 to equal or beat if you're really unlucky), it's a risky thing to do.

Some more scene cards.

Other scene cards involve the search parties from the Lab hunting you, which rob you of action cards.  Once you have worked your way through the whole action card deck, you shuffle them and start again... but now you are in Act 2 of the season, which involves drawing 2 scene cards after each character's turn.  Overcoming the stacks of challenge counters at the Hawkins' Laboratory means you can use event cards with the red triangle without causing extra scene cards to be used at the end of your turn.  Starting at the lab, I spent a couple of turns removing some of those stacks to make it easier/safer for everyone to use their action cards.

Approaching the endgame...

We lost the first game fairly early on when Lucas became terrified in the Upside Down.  We did better in the second game (I was Nancy), managing to activate most of Eleven's psionic powers and reducing the Demogorgon to half strength.  This meant that it would induce less fear if it attacked while we were in the Upside Down.

Nancy collapses from terror, thus losing the game.

Sadly, everything fell apart as we moved to try and Rescue Will.  After a failed attack on the Demogorgon, Nancy's fear moved to Terrified and the game was over.

The other side of the board for Season 2.

The Season 2 side of the board involves different challenges and adds in some extra characters and allies.

The game was good fun, but it certainly seems to be one where losing is the most common result!  It's well balanced, but would probably play better with more characters.  Although you draw a scene card after each character turn and would run through the action cards more quickly, you would probably have more items in play overall, thus making it easier to complete various of the challenges without having to waste actions repeatedly searching to try and find the best items for specific tasks (or having to spend more action cards because you don't have the bonuses from items).  You might be more likely to have characters at the same locations together, getting bonuses on their action cards, though it would make it more likely that you would both be affected by whatever the Scene card was at the end of the turn.

I'd certainly play the game again, I think as you played it more, you'd get a better feel for how to use certain characters to get the best use of their abilities, and would start to earn how many different challenge counters there are.  By the end of the second game, we knew that we had encountered a lot of the "5" challenge counters, so took a few risks that paid off.