5 Parsecs - Jailhouse Rocks

Seeking greater pay, the Hermes crew relocated to the Prison Moon of Tybos. Missions here are designated as Red Zone, meaning more numerous and more dangerous enemies. Tybos is a huge place with gangs in control of many areas. The authorities focus on monitoring and policing the outer boundaries to prevent escapes.

Turn 11 - Save The Tech

The crew got hired by PenalTech to help them safeguard an important comms relay station that intell suggested a local gang had decided to destroy. The team got air dopped in just as the large group of Gangers arrived. 

Gangers forming-up to attack

Skor and Harlan setup a sniper position

The rest of the team form a perimeter

The team quickly set up a permitter around the relay site and awaited the attack which came from two directions, by a large group of shotgun armed Gangers.  

After a brisk fire fight Capt Gideon lay wounded but the attack was driven off and team were able dust-off with a mission successful. Gideon was later fixed-up in the Hermes shinny new med bay and was straight back into the action.  

The Gangers attack

 Mission 12 - The tracker

A background quest in this campaign is the search for a data shard containing a copy of the personality and experiences of Capt Gideon. They want to recover it from the Ossian Veil Assassins who are trying to weaponize it. A tipper has been received that a bot abandoned inside one of the prisoner controlled zones may have a tracking programme that could locate the shard. 

The gang controlled area

So the crew set off into a ruined part of Tybos looking for the tracker. The locals are out in force to stop this intrusion.          

The gangs assemble

The crew quickly locate the right building and enter to secure the tracker just as the locals arrive at the same site, resulting in a deadly close range fight. Luckily the crew had armour which saved them from the multiple hits they took.   

The building is breached 

1st Mate Ivarr is from a race that relishes close combat and must charge if in range, and so it was be barrelled into a group of 8 enemies with his sabre swinging wildly. Four were felled in two turns with the rest accounted for by the accurate shooting of his compatriots.   

 

All hell breaks loose 

Ivarr attacks

The crew made good their escape with the tracker intact and when back at base were able to use it to find the location of the precious data shard.   

Italian Wars - Turn 6

 

San Barzano attacks Roccamurta's stronghold 

This week we played two different scenarios to reflect the differing conditions on each table. On the smaller table it was a Fiorento army attempted a breakthrough to lift a siege - essentially they had to move from one table quadrant to another, scoring for units that managed this. The other tables played an attack on a stronghold where the attacker scored by damaging the bastion. 

Game 1 - Fiorento vs East Gallomagna

In this scenario the defending East Gallomagna's had a choice of either flooding the target zone or of moving to intercept the enemy. They opted mostly for the later. 

Fiorento cavalry moves out 

East Gallomagna horse waits the onslught

This suited the Fiorento army as they were mostly cavalry and so able to  punch through the Gallomagna cavalry screen and go on a arcing run that evaded the enemies dangerous infantry long enough to record a win. Fiorento Win

East Gallomagna foot in pursuit

Game 2 - Montegrifone vs Taverno

The Taverno troops deployed their vanguard in defence of the church that was their stronghold and looked to reinforce this position as quickly as they could. 

Taverno defenders

Montegrifone launched a series of spirited attacks against the Taverno field squares and bounced off, losing two squadrons quite rapidly, which hampered their attacks. Taverno troops quickly supported the defenders, forcing the Montegrifone army to withdraw. Taverno Win 

Montegrifone attacks but is pushed back

Game 3 - San Barzano vs Roccamurata

In the final battle the Roccamurta troops were defending a border tower in their first battle with their northern neighbours. The Roccamurta troops deployed an artillery and infantry defence, with their Horse looking to reinforce the foot. 

San Barzano holy legions 

Roccamurata ready for the attack

Roccamurta boasts some accurate artillery and plenty of shot, so opted for a static defence that broke-up the San Barzano attack with heavy firing. The piecemeal assaults were driven off to leave Roccamurta's border secure. Roccamurata Win   

San Barzano attack faulters

So after 6 turns Roccamurata has a slight lead and East Gallomagna has fought its first game. In other news Taverno has released the captured San Barzano leader from captivity in exchange for favourable trading terms and the establishment of taverns in the holy city.      

     

Italian Wars Turn 5

 

This week we played a fairly balanced scenario - both sides deployed 1D4 units as a forlorn hope with the balance of their troops on the table edge behind them. Points were scored for killing the enemy and for any forlorn hope units who stayed in an 18" box in the table centre.

Game 1 - Taverno vs San Barzano

This game was a big tussle with both sides having large field squares heading straight for the centre of the table. Over 7 turns the game ebbed-and-flowed with San Barzano 1 point ahead after 5 turns. This changed dramatically in turn 7, with Taverno running out 6-3 winners to record their first win.  

 

Taverno attacks

San Barzano forlorn hope

Game 2 - Montegrifone vs Fiorento

The battle has two contrasting armies - the shooty Montegrifone infantry vs the elite cavalry of Fiorento. This battle was spread across the board with both sides moving quickly to attack. Montegrifone were 6-1 winners after 6 turns.    

Montegrifone horse

The cream of Fiorento nobility 

Game 3 - Virezza vs Roccamurata

The Virezza strength is their large field squares whereas the Roccamurata have more numerous units as their infantry is a little cheaper. Virezza attacked on the Roccamurata left and centrally. The centre attack suffered under accurate artillery fire, enabling Roccamurta to counter and then push back the attack on their left. MVP was the Roccamurata Demi Lancers who destroyed all three enemy horse for only light casualties.       

Roccamurata foot

Literally an uphill battle for Fiorento

Virezza horse - 2 moves later both were routed

A big feature of these battles was the loss of three officers - Fiorento and San Barzano had their CinCs taken hostage and a Roccamurata sub commander died leading a shot unit against an enemy field square.  

 

The fallen

    

Italian Wars - Turn 4, part 2

The only game this week was the completion of the Virezza vs Montegrifone battle from last week. Virezza continued their attack on the attack on the Montegrifone camp.

Montegrifone won by a single point after 7 turns of play, managing to prevent the enemy from penrtating their camp.

So after 4 turns the campaign position is below. Most people are getting general upgrades this week

5 Parsecs - Haywire Bloodstorm

The crew of the Hermes renewed there adventures in recent weeks with two more missions. 

Turn 9 - Haywire 

The Captain decided to renew the quest for the missing data shard, which involved following a tip-off about a isolated research station which hold the shard. 

After a long speeder ride across the frozen surface of Travois moon, they arrived at the research in the gathering gloom to find a group of haywire robots on guard. Maybe one of them contained the shard? 

The aggressive robots attacked immediately, moving swiftly across the icy ground to engage in combat. After some tough hand-to-pincer combat the threat was neutralised but no shard was found.

 

Turn 10 - Bloodstorm

This mission was the second part of the ongoing story arc in which the crew are trying to track down a rival who tried to have them eliminated in turn 6. Their rival Q'narr has hired a team of the feared Bloodstorm Mercs to take them out.

Both the Crew and the Mercs sought high ground so there was a race to get onto the rooftops and find a good spot.

 

Both teams picked the same large building and so a close range firefight ensued. The crew were hit multiple times but their high Toughness and Battle Armour converted these into stuns not wounds. Over a couple of turns they managed to whittle the Mercs down before they withdrew.   

Ivarr was downed but luckily his weapon too the brunt of the damage and he suffered only minor wounds.    

Next time the crew blast off for the prison moon of Amarion in search of greater profits and further clues to the where abouts of Q'narr.