With the decision taken not to hold the regular Thursday Zoom game it fell to the diehards (Chris and Tony) to fill the gap and ensure that the Blog wasn't left unsupported. Obviously a suitably serious game system was required, but which? Eagle eyed readers who looked at the title will already know the answer - Space Weirdos.
Space Weirdos is a simple 'Astro-Beer and pretzels' sci-fi skirmish available from Wargames Vault for the princely sum of $4.99 (or £4.32 in real money). Weighing in at a mere 16 pages (including the Cover and rear page Quick Reference Sheet) it uses an opposed dice roll mechanic using pairs of D4, D6, D8, D10 or D12. Different figures use different die types depending on their skill in defense, shooting, melee or will power with situational benefits or penalties increasing or reducing the die type used. Despite the short format, rules for designing your own units are included so its was child's play to work out a quick Orc vs Marines game to test the rules out.
In the green corner we have a Marine Sergeant leading his force of two Marines with Heavy Rifles and one Marine with a Flamethrower. With Heavy Armour and excellent shooting skill the Marines were expecting to gun down the Orks at long range. If they got in close the Armour and Melee weapons should mean they were still effective.
In the other green corner the Orks, with a Boss leading 4 Orks with Heavy Pistols and Knives along with a Goblin Sniper for long ranged work. The Ork Boss was a devastating close combat fighter with the other Orks not far behind, all were armed with Heavy Pistols meaning the long range firepower was limited. The Goblin sniper was looking to engage the enemy from a distance being terrible in hand to hand.
Chris was hosting and had put together both forces so it was up to Tony to choose sides and he picked the Orks, will he wash away the Marines in a green tide? Will his tactical skill bring victory? Has he read the rules? He claims to have skimmed them and exhibits some knowledge of the mechanics - good enough. Following pre-game kebabs ordered by Eileen the game begins.
The Marine Sergeant had the Leadership skill Tactician meaning that the Marines roll for initiative using 2d8 against the Orks 2d6. All figures have 3 actions whose use is limited by their stats. Speed 2 means only two move actions are allowed per turn for example.
Turn 1 and the Marines go first. Players alternate moving figures, both are cautious and there is limited sniping at range which proves ineffective as significant movement meant reduced shooting dice and cover improved defense. Eventually the Marines scored a hit.
Rather than automatically inflicting a wound, a successful hit leads to a roll of the Under Fire table (2d6 plus modifiers with a 10 or better killing the target outright) the Marine rolls a 3 and his target gets a snap shot back at him! Luckily the Ork misses. End of the first turn and no casualties have been inflicted.
Turn 2 and the flamer equipped Marine tries to get the bead on an Ork sneaking down the left flank, sadly the Ork is well hidden and no shot is possible. Instead in his go the Ork charges the flamer, hits and inflicts damage, the Marine goes down.
The goblinsniper comes into his own and takes a shot at the Marine. He aims, hits and takes the Marine out of action. First blood to the Orks.
The Marine Sergeant decides to even the score and charges into the fray, sadly for him the fray hasn't read the script and he inflicts no damage. The Ork Leader counter charges and puts the Sergeant down and stunned. Things are not looking good for the Marines. Luckily no other Orks can get into combat and finish the Sergeant off (small mercies).
Turn 3 and the Marines go first. The Marine Sergeant tries to recover and fails, he tries again and fails a second time, he tries again and succeeds, all three actions used and he's still down. At least he's not stunned though. It doesn't last. After both Orks finish their attacks the Sergeant is out of Action. In compensation the two Marines on the far side of the table each manage to take out an Ork, albeit loosing one of their number in the process. Its still not looking good.
Turn 4 and with only one Marine left Tony senses victory and wins initiative. An Ork charges in only to be felled by Overwatch fire. The Marine than takes a turn and kills the second Ork closing in on him (what a Hero!).
He then uses a command point to dodge the incoming fire and hide. The turn ends and with it the game. It turns out to have been too little too late. With 3 dead Marines the Orks score 60 while 4 dead Orks are only worth 52 points. Victory to the Orks and the Marines are left to wonder what went wrong.
In the inevitable post game discussion the rules are considered to have worked, the game is fast to play, once the rules are understood and the Under Fire and Under Attack tables means that the effect of hits are uncertain and can result in counter fire. Both sides suffered poor rolls and the initial game saw little damage inflicted. An enjoyable evening has been had and the game is likely to be played again - overall a success.
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