STALKER7

Session 3 of Farlight 43.2 – Ruins of a Distant Future

Around the Game Table

The Sturgis crew navigated a tangle of family obligations, last minute schedule changes, and the usual Winter illness to get together two weeks ago for another episode of their tabletop campaign. In this one, they’re roaming our solar system a few centuries in the future as operatives in an organization dedicated to protecting humanity from ‘X-Tech’, or Extinction-level Technology.

The previous session found our heroes on Ganymede Station, investigating the suspicious death of a fellow operative who had been working undercover. This time, they were confronting the prime suspect, Loric Lens, a Dock Boss with a nasty reputation. Evidence suggests proof of the murder and extensive malfeasance is on Lens’ personal computer in his office.

In a show of L.E.O. solidarity, the Station Marshal provided our crew with a layout of the dock area, along with a rundown of Lens’ gang of henchmen, thugs, and reprogrammed tool bots. The assessment also revealed a dangerous, alternate route into Lens’ workshop, one that would allow our heroes to flank the main force guarding the main passage.

TenFold Space Station?

Combat imminent, it was time to break out the proper miniatures, some card stock scatter from TinkerTurf Terrain, and set up the very cool Daedelus Station from GaleForce9 TenFold Dungeon series.

I enjoy making and painting terrain but have to admit the TenFold set is quite nice and very convenient. A modular, box-in-a-box design, the set offers small, medium, and large rooms, several corridors, plus interior wall options, stairs and doors, all held together with sturdy plastic clips.

With good color and solid construction, a bit of interior furniture and appropriate scatter, I had a great layout in no time. I’d pick up another in a heartbeat. (Or, if the folks at GaleForce9 want to send us a couple sets, the various game groups here at CCWC would be happy to put them through their paces on the tabletop.)

The Approach

Door Number One or Door Number Two? The one on the right leads to a repair bay loaded with thugs, cover, and homicidal tool-bots. The left hand door leads to a side passage, but it’s currently in low-power mode, running with minimum environmental protection to conserve valuable energy and oxygen across the station.

The crew opted for the stealth approach and sent the Hacker and his trusty drone into the low-oxygen/freezing cold corridor. Their job was to get the heat and circulation back on. A tense roll or two as Chris C’s Hacker worked against the clock to locate and access the Enviro-Control panel. But last-second saves are what heroes do. Objective Accomplished.

Temp and air restored, the crew stacks up in the passage and prepares a ‘dynamic entry’ on the unsuspecting goons and bots in Side Storage Room 5-52-D.

They burst in and neutralize the targets with a few well-aimed shots and punches. That room cleared, our heroes prepare to storm the Repair Bay.

This one turns into a brawl. Partly because there’s more cover for the well-armed Dock Goons, but also due to a nearly endless supply of Tool Bots who, with their torches, cutters, and hydraulic manipulators, appear each turn and promptly try to ‘disassemble’ the players’ characters.

And so Chris C’s Hacker bobs and weaves his way into another Low-Power passage to shut down the Tool Bot Control Panel. A little frostbite here, some oxygen deprivation there, he succeeds before the rest of his team is welded, clamped, and chopped to bits.

Almost there.

The Objective

Outside the entrance to Lens’ Workshop, the crew catches their breath and reloads their weapons. They need to get in and get to the terminal before Lens has a chance to wipe it.

What happened next happened fast.

Gangers, modified gun drones, a boosted second, and the Boss Man himself all start shooting the second the door whisks open. Rapid exchanges of gunfire in cramped spaces are never good, and with all those tiny pieces of metal, zipping around looking for a warm meat home, our heroes catch a number of rounds.

Matt F’s character acquits himself quite well, the electric ‘Hmmmm – CRACK‘ of his rail rifle putting large holes in important places on several baddies. It’s chaotic and confused for several tense turns but the smoke clears to find our heroes bloodied but unbeaten, and Boss Man Lens all alone.

Defiant to the end, he goes down in a hail of bullets.

Session Concluded

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Once again, I’m indebted to the Sturgis crew for their patience as we play test yet another rule set, this time in an unfamiliar, Sci Fi setting. A good game group is worth their weight in gold. I literally couldn’t do it without them.

That’s it for now. The two-day cyberpunk weekend just ended, so that AAR is inbound. Plus, Bolt Action 3E is still on the horizon, as is an epic wrap-up to the latest arc in a 5E campaign. (All props to resident D&D GM, Mike D.)

Thanks for stopping by. Have an excellent day.

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