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GURPS Star Wars: Vanguardd, S1E02d

September 4, 2023 Rigil Kent No comments

Insurgent Team Vanguard

GM: Ronnke
Bostco Buczynski (FX Engineer)
Darrrill (Nosh)
Nim Zholwa (Gigermann)
RK-0336 “Luck” (Rigil Kent)
Tina “Tiny” Crankshaft (Mel)

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Podcast

Episode 2: Shadows of Pallas, Part 4

Darrrill moves against the comm array to ensure that the Imperials cannot summon help. He accomplishes this easily enough and rejoins the rest of the Team.
Leaving the locals outside the mine, the Team enters the facility. They quickly engage a pair of troopers in a long hallway, continue on toward a lab where they take on two more, and then finally reach the control center where a trio are standing watch with an officer. Despite the troopers sealing off the control center, Nim is able to hotwire the door to open it and Luck hurls an armed thermal detonator inside. The officer might have been able to escape through another door, but the three troopers are vaporized…
The Team continues on to the lab proper, a converted storage facility. Here, they capture several scientists and learn the Empire has been experimenting with injecting various materials into the locals which is causing mutation. Luck wants to just blow this entire place, but the locals resist, insisting that they can rescue the hideously mutated people who are their friends and family. In the end, Luck decides that the team can do no more and he won’t risk them when the Empire inevitably returns, so the team withdraws, taking their scientist prisoners and the captured walker (which they intend to stash somewhere until they can figure out how to smuggle it into the city.) The prisoners they intend to turn over to their contact, Kalen Brie, who will no doubt want to thoroughly interrogate them…
Later, they will learn that the Empire did show back up and, exactly like Luck expected, they came back in force.

Player Notes:

Full house for a change.
Several short firefights. We also sort of decided that thermal detonators have a weird blast radius of 5 yards but do mininuke (UT156) damage which is an insane 6dx200 cr ex with linked damage of 4dx200 burn ex rad sur. So yeah, those troopers were vaporized.
At the end, we had a string of mediocre or outright bad social engineering checks, resulting in the locals demanding we not just blow up the facility … so the team bailed, knowing these idiots were all going to be wiped out when the Empire returned. And yup!
Haven’t figure out where we’re going to store the walker – it’s currently hidden somewhere in the badlands, so isn’t easily accessible. Clearly, we need to obtain a decent-sized freighter that we can store that puppy in! LOL.

Campaign Logs, Star Wars: Vanguard Campaign, GURPS, Recap, Star Wars

GURPS Star Wars: Vanguard, S1E02c

August 28, 2023 Rigil Kent No comments

Insurgent Team Vanguard

GM: Ronnke
Bostco Buczynski (FX Engineer)
Nim Zholwa (Gigermann)
RK-0336 “Luck” (Rigil Kent)
Tina “Tiny” Crankshaft (Mel)

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Podcast

Episode 2: Shadows of Pallas, Part 3

Having identified the probable location of the Imperial basecamp, the Team considers their options and decide that they need to capture or neutralize the AT-ST they passed during the speeder chase before it can get clear of the radio interference and alert the base of their presence.
Thanks to Tina’s sense of absolute direction, they are able to quickly locate the walker, then stake out locations ahead of it. When it passes, Luck uses his jet pack to spring down on the roof; the Team’s new ally, Ronan, decides to make a mad jump to join him, nearly going over the side. Ronan yanks the hatch open and with two well-placed stun shots, Luck neutralizes the pilot and gunner.
The two are extracted and interrogated, though not a great deal is really learned. After heavily sedating the two and ensuring they are both bound and their rebreathers are topped off, the Team leaves them behind and then moves forward to observe the camp again. Ronan returns to his people to bring Darrrill and any reinforcements that want to assist. In that time, Tina’s droid, H4X-R, is able to insert into the facilty and secure images, including that of the hideous experiments going on in the biolabs.
Upon arrival, the Wookie is dispatched to take out the comm array, while Luck and Bostco lead a ground team, augmented by the AT-ST, piloted by Nim and gunned by Tina.
Attempts to stealth forward are foiled by a single alert stormtrooper, and a fierce firefight ensues. Two of the troopers are dropped by regular shots, and a third surrenders when the walker blows up the gun emplacement on the roof and then vaporizes the fourth trooper who is locked in a deadly exchange with Luck. Ronan is grievously injured during the exchange, but not killed.
The Team look in the direction of the comm array which Darrrill should be reaching at any moment…

Player Notes:

Still down Nosh for this session as he went on vacation, though he’s coming back next week, just in time for Darrrill’s thrilling heroics.
Thanks to Return of the Jedi, we know hijacking an AT-ST is ridiculously easy. So we did it! Gigermann joked that, since we ended Episode 1 with having “obtained” the pirate starship, and now we’ve taken this AT-ST, we should end every chapter with us having stolen another vehicle of some sort. I’m looking forward to the AT-AT!
Tina’s last shot at the poor stormtrooper was brutal. Three hits. Before calculating DR reduction, damage was 200, 200 and 250. Stormtrooper armor on the torso is DR 60, but the weapon was (5), so only 12 protects, which means he took 188, 188, and 238. That’s 614 points of damage! Ronnke said it was like -50x his base HP and -10x is essentially disintegrated. I think that’s the most damage I’ve ever seen done with a non-starship weapon.

Campaign Logs, Star Wars: Vanguard Campaign, GURPS, Recap, Star Wars

GURPS Star Wars: Vanguard, S1E02b

August 6, 2023 Rigil Kent No comments

Insurgent Team Vanguard

GM: Ronnke
Bostco Buczynski (FX Engineer)
Nim Zholwa (Gigermann)
RK-0336 “Luck” (Rigil Kent)
Tina “Tiny” Crankshaft (Mel)

Live Stream
YouTube
Podcast

Episode 2: Shadows of Pallas, Part 2

With their new ally, Ronan, leading the way, the Team links up with the remaining members of Pallas’ citizens who have been harried and hunted by Imperial forces.
The Team divide to gather intelligence from or lend assistance to the survivors, learning that few of them know what the Imperials want here either. Eventually, they narrow down the probable locations of the Imperial basecamp to one of two mining camps.
Leaving Darrrill behind to assist with any defenses and with Ronan leading the way, the rest of the Team take speeders to scout out the two spots … but en route, they are sighted by a pair of biker scouts who pursue!
When one of the scouts breaks off, the Team realize he is likely going to get within comms range and summon reinforcements so they wheel around and pursue him, leading to a three-way chase as they are still being hounded by his buddy. In the end, the Team opt to ground their vehicles and open fire with their weapons just as the scout reaches transmission range. They then flee the smoking wreckage before the AT-ST they passed during this chase can investigate.
Identifying the basecamp is easy as one mining facility is obviously abandoned, but the other still has Imperial activity – and guards! – at it. In fact, the Team are able to witness something strange: a shuttle arrives at the camp as lab-coated techs push a repulsor-sled toward it. Upon the sled is a very high tech cryo-tube containing a person who looks … mutated!

Player Notes:

Still late recaps. Kept getting stupid busy. Trying to keep these minimal.
Down Nosh for this session as he went on vacation.
We missed two weeks in a row after this – the first week was due to two additional absences (me for a stupid amount of OT, Giger for a computer catastrophe), the week after due to Ronnke being sick and FX having computer woes of his own.

Campaign Logs, Star Wars: Vanguard Campaign, GURPS, Recap, Star Wars

GURPS Star Wars: Vanguard, S1E02a

July 23, 2023 Rigil Kent No comments

Insurgent Team Vanguard

GM: Ronnke
Bostco Buczynski (FX Engineer)
Darrrill (Nosh)
Nim Zholwa (Gigermann)
RK-0336 “Luck” (Rigil Kent)
Tina “Tiny” Crankshaft (Mel)

Live Stream
YouTube
Podcast

Episode 2: Shadows of Pallas, Part 1

On Phantine, the Team is investigating why Pallas, one of the city-states on Phantine, went silent. The official story is that city shields failed, but Luck doubts this and wants to discover the truth.
Via speeder, the Team reach the outskirts of Pallas, discovering signs of sabotage that lend credence to their theories.
As they enter the city, several of them realize that they are being watched and a quick chase ensues …
…but comes to an abrupt halt when the Team finds itself engaged in a firefight with a squad of stormtroopers! It is a fierce engagement, but on that ends with only the Imperials downed and the Team having made a new (temporary) ally.
The sound of an approaching AT-ST forces the Team to bug out quickly…

Player Notes:

Way, way, way late recaps. Kept getting stupid busy. Trying to keep these minimal.
Full house again, though the next two will be down one as Nosh (Darrrill’s player) went on vacation.
The bulk of this session was taken up by the firefight.

Campaign Logs, Star Wars: Vanguard Campaign, GURPS, Recap, Star Wars

GURPS Star Wars: Vanguard, S1E01c

July 16, 2023 Rigil Kent No comments

Insurgent Team Vanguard

GM: Ronnke
Bostco Buczynski (FX Engineer)
Darrrill (Nosh)
Nim Zholwa (Gigermann)
RK-0336 “Luck” (Rigil Kent)

Live Stream
YouTube
Podcast

Episode 1: The Diplomat, Part 3

Suspecting that the Crimson Corsair pirates are here for the same reason they are, the Team accelerates their time table.
Bostco enters the hotel lobby and tries to get a room for the night, confirming that they’re booked up.
Nim enters via a service entrance, posing as a pizza guy trying to deliver to someone. When he exits, he does so ensuring that the service door can be quickly opened.
Just as the team are preparing to enter via the service entrance, the pirates storm the front lobby, making no attempt to conceal their assault. This provides excellent cover, however, and with Tina discreetly providing overwatch via the systems she’s sliced into, the team locates Diplomat Wren’s room, slices it open, and extracts with her via a lift following a quick bit of convincing. And, as they are entering one lift, another opens to reveal a couple of hostile pirates. Luck leaves them a parting gift in the form of an armed thermal detonator. They don’t seem to like it very much.
Downstairs, the team extracts, using the now abandoned service entrance once more. Crowding aboard a speeder, they are unfortunately observed by the pirates and a short-lived chase ensues that ends at the hangar…
At the hangar bay, the Crimson Corsairs have an exceedingly bad day as they are quickly cut down by the expert fire of the team. And to add insult to injury, the Team decides to escape the station in the (late) Corsair’s own ship!
Mission accomplished.

Player Notes:

Way, way, way late recaps. Kept getting stupid busy. Trying to keep these minimal.
Down Tina’s player due to her being on vacation.

Campaign Logs, Star Wars: Vanguard Campaign, GURPS, Recap, Star Wars

GURPS Star Wars: Vanguard, S1E01b

July 9, 2023 Rigil Kent No comments

Insurgent Team Vanguard

GM: Ronnke
Bostco Buczynski (FX Engineer)
Darrrill (Nosh)
Nim Zholwa (Gigermann)
RK-0336 “Luck” (Rigil Kent)
Tina “Tiny” Crankshaft (Mel)

Live Stream
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Podcast

Episode 1: The Diplomat, Part 2

The Team arrives at Starhaven Station and are relieved that their codes check out. Leaving Darrrill behind with Kira Thalos to ensure their escape route is secure, the Team inserts onto the station and begins to gather information
Bostco takes Tina with him and plays up his reputation as a semi-famous physician to gain access to the wounded at the local medical facility so as to ensure that Katalana Wren, the woman they wish to extract, is not among the casualties.
Darrrill observes the arrival of who he suspects to be more of the pirates who initially attacked the ship that caused all of this mess in the first place and alerts the rest of the team.
Nim hits a local casino with Luck acting as a sort of bodyguard; there he engages with Xal’Dor Vorkesh, the casino owner and a known info-merchant. While this going on, a bounty hunter wearing Mandalorian armor enters with a warrant to take Vorkesh into custody. A tense stand-off ensues with Nim pretending to be another hunter who already has taken Vorkesh into custody while Luck is preparing to get into an ugly shoot-out with the hunter. Eventually, the hunter withdraws in the face of overwhelming odds, though he promises Vorkesh that this isn’t over.
In appreciation for Nim defusing the situation, as unusually as he did so, Vorkesh provides the information on Wren’s probable location…

Player Notes:

Way, way, way late recaps. Kept getting stupid busy. Trying to keep these minimal.
Mostly information gathering in this one, along with some almost shooting. And I was gonna get me some Mandalorian armor too! Maybe later…

Campaign Logs, Star Wars: Vanguard Campaign, GURPS, Recap, Star Wars

GURPS Swashbucklers: Sea Dogs, Company Log

July 8, 2023 Gigermann No comments

Date	Course	Knots	NM	Notes
31 Dec 1724	Ashore			Refit complete; ship christened Graceful Dame, launched, anchored in Kingston Bay
1 Jan 1725	Ashore			Ventured inland to query Old Tom regarding Morgan’s Coin
2 Jan 1725	Ashore			Dove in Port Royal for Morgan’s Coin; began provisioning for voyage
3 Jan 1725	Ashore			Provisioning, continued
4 Jan 1725	SE	4	72	Cleared Kingston and put to sea in AM
5 Jan 1725	SE-NE	4-2½	84	At sea
6 Jan 1725	NE	2½	62	Arrived at île-à-Vache before noon; entered Ferret Bay and went ashore
	Ashore			Rumjack entered port after noon; Mr. Ned Long threatened company with death. Rescued Ms. “Dora,” fled bay during confusion
	SE	4	35½	Departed Île-à-Vache in PM
7 Jan 1725	SE	3½	83½	Hove-to for guardacosta inspection
8 Jan 1725	SE-NE	4	94	Favorable weather. Passed S of Isle de la Beata in AM
9 Jan 1725	NE	3½	89	Passed French schooner in PM, headed W. Shifted torn sail for spare.
10 Jan 1725	Ashore			Arrived at Santo Domingo around midnight
11 Jan 1725	Ashore			Shifty hanged in AM.
12 Jan 1725	Ashore			Took on provisions; cleared port after noon
12 Jan 1725	EbSE	5¾	63	Mr. Moggridge on light duty due to illness
13 Jan 1725	EbSE	5¾	132	Sail sighted ahead at noon, Princess Mary, hailed for news. Mr. Moggridge on light duty due to illness
14 Jan 1725	EbSE	6¼	150	Performed divine service. Mr. Moggridge on light duty due to illness. Strange man from the sea leapt aboard, and leapt away
15 Jan 1725	EbSE	6¼	150	Mr. Bold employed fixing hull leak. Mr. Moggridge on light duty due to illness
16 Jan 1725	EbSE	6	144	Favorable wind shift. Mr. Moggridge on light duty due to illness
17 Jan 1725	EbSE-NNE	6-4½	89	Tacked NNE in AM. Winds shifting unfavorably. Mr. Moggridge on light duty due to illness
18 Jan 1725	Ashore			Arrived at Barbados very early AM; waited for sunrise to enter port. Rumjack entered port in PM.
19 Jan 1725	Ashore			Purchased 2 tuns cotton for sale at St. Kitts, 1 tun spiced rum. A shore expedition (Sir Randel, Dr. Spenser, Mr. Palange, and Mr. Lucroy – visit the ‘devil’s house’ where they have a strange encounter Cpt. Hayden & LT Rogers meet with Cpt. Lockhart
20 Jan 1725	Ashore			Departed Bridgetown in convoy with Princess Mary afternoon
20 Jan 1725	NbNW	5½	62¼
21 Jan 1725	NbNW-W	5½	116½	Rescued Cpt. Dufresne & Crew in a.m. in p.m., encounter Charon (?), observe Pelican take Rumjack (now dead ship)
22 Jan 1725	NbNW	6¾	142	Arrived at Saint Kitts very early in a.m
23 Jan 1725	Ashore			Sold 2 tuns cotton; purchased 2 tuns goods for sale at Port-de-Paix
24 Jan 1725	Ashore			Took aboard passenger, Geoffrey de Saloman
25 Jan 1725	WNW	10½	177½	Departed St. Kitts in AM. Light rain AM, and Evening. Passed S of St. Thomas, N coast Puerto Rico Dutch flute sighted heading SW
26 Jan 1725	WNW	7½	182¾
27 Jan 1725	W/WNW	6¼	146½	On middle watch, narrowly avoided uncharted reef
28 Jan 1725	W/WNW	7½	196¼	Arrived at Port-de-Paix after midnight, anchored until AM
29 Jan 1725	Ashore			Accompanied Mr. de Saloman to duel Dutchman (?), Falko Rijnders, at nearby island; Dr. Spenser meets Mdme Cassandra
30 Jan 1725	Ashore
31 Jan 1725	Ashore			Sir Randel, Dr Spenser, Lt. Rogers and Cpt. Hayden attend a party
1 Feb 1725	WbNW	4¼	72½
2 Feb 1725	WbNW	4	94½
3 Feb 1725	WbNW-NNW	6	148½	Encountered British schooner under-manned due to impressment by Navy vessel; Geoffrey de Saloman agreed to captain for them, departed company
4 Feb 1725	NNW	8¾	210¾	Arrived at Nassau just before midnight
5 Feb 1725	Ashore			Delivered message to Raynard Adler, who paid agreed-upon 1s Rescued merchant’s daughter, Rogers and Bold injured Discovered Cpt. Doyle as behind the attack
6 Feb 1725	Ashore			La Dame Blanche at port; Sir Randel joins Mr. Boissonade at meeting with Captain Morgan expert, discovered to be “Handsome Ned” Long, who is apparently not dead
7 Feb 1725	Ashore
8 Feb 1725	Ashore
9 Feb 1725	Ashore			Ms. Dora recovered her former captain’s pocketwatch from a local sailor
10 Feb 1725	Ashore
11 Feb 1725	Ashore			La Dame Blanche departed in AM
12 Feb 1725	NW			Departed Nassau in AM; winds increasingly gusty
12 Feb 1725	Ashore			Arrived at Harbour Island in PM; secured for bad weather Dora kidnapped, rescued
13 Feb 1725	Ashore			Detained for questioning by Lt. Brace of the Hazard, and released
13 Feb 1725	SWbW	8¾	52¼	Put to sea in PM
14 Feb 1725	SWbW	7¾
	WNW	10½		Entered Gt. Bahama Bank
	SWbW	7¾	175¾	Evaded pursuit by unknown vessel in eve
15 Feb 1725	WbSW	5-8	107	In Florida Channel current. Nearly becalmed around midday
16 Feb 1725	WbSW	3¼	31½
16 Feb 1725	Ashore			Arrived at Havana late AM
17 Feb 1725	Ashore
18 Feb 1725	Ashore
19 Feb 1725	Ashore
20 Feb 1725				Cleared port before noon, with passenger, Amira Inara Muñoz Stranded Spanish sloop sighted. Did not assist-appeared capable
21 Feb 1725
22 Feb 1725
23 Feb 1725
24 Feb 1725				Arrived at Campeche before sundown
25 Feb 1725	Ashore			Dinner with Gordon Reade, Maurice Boissonade, and company

Campaign Logs, Sea Dogs GURPS, Recap, Sea Dogs

GURPS Star Wars: Vanguard, S1E01a

July 3, 2023 Rigil Kent No comments

Insurgent Team Vanguard

GM: Ronnke
Bostco Buczynski (FX Engineer)
Darrrill (Nosh)
Nim Zholwa (Gigermann)
RK-0336 “Luck” (Rigil Kent)
Tina “Tiny” Crankshaft (Mel)

Live Stream
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Podcast

Episode 1: The Diplomat, Part 1

On Phantine, Insurgent Team Vanguard receives a new mission from their contact, Kalen Brie: Katalana Wren, a Naboo diplomat and secret asset of Brie’s is dangerously close to being compromised by the Imperial Security Bureau after the ship she was on was heavily damaged by pirates. Brie needs the team to get aboard the space station where this is taking place, get her out, and do so quickly. To Luck, he will also add (discreetly) that if they can’t get her out, then she will need to be eliminated.
With limited time before they are scheduled to depart, the Team gets as much data as they can, as well as working landing permits on the space station, though this results in Bostco now owing something of a favor to the crimelord, Hobbs.
Brie arrives to pick them up before flying them to a rendezvous with a friendly corvette docked with the small freighter that will be taking them to the station. The captain of this corvette provides Luck with a beacon call that will summon the ship to cause a distraction.
The freighter captain, Kira Thalos, is eager but cautious, and very worried that their landing codes will trip alarms..
The team makes the jump to lightspeed and tensions run high…

Player Notes:

Way, way, way late recaps. Kept getting stupid busy. Trying to keep these minimal.
Mostly lots of planning, discussion options and general goofing off during this session.

Campaign Logs, Star Wars: Vanguard Campaign, GURPS, Recap, Star Wars

GURPS Star Wars: Vanguard, S1E00

June 26, 2023 Rigil Kent No comments

Insurgent Team Vanguard

GM: Ronnke
Bostco Buczynski (FX Engineer)
Nim Zholwa (Gigermann)
RK-0336 “Luck” (Rigil Kent)
Tina “Tiny” Crankshaft (Mel)

Live Stream
YouTube
Podcast

Episode 0

We begin in media res with most of the team already sneaking aboard an Imperial Gozanti-class light cruiser. RK-0336, a former clonetrooper better known as “Luck”, is in command of the small insurgent team with Bostco Buczynski, a semi-famous pharmacist turned rebel, Nim Zholwa, a Duros thief and scrapper, and Tina Crankshaft, a genius mechanic they call Tiny, making up the team.
Flashing back twenty-four hours, we learn how the team got this mission: Nim has agreed to help out local crimeboss, Hobbs, liberate a captured asset. Accomplishing this goal will wipe out the debts Nim’s family owe to Hobbs.
The rest of the team spend a bit of time obtaining as much information on the target vessel in the limited time they have. Ultimately, they come up with a means to get smuggled aboard the vessel.
Back to the present: the team encounter stormtrooper resistance but with Luck leading the way, the quickly cut through them with a great deal of shooting. Jaxon Crossfire, the objective, is rescued, and the pirate gang that Hobbs promised to send to aid quickly boards.
The team exfiltrates with the pirates, even though they would very much like to keep the Gozanti. Perhaps another time…

Player Notes:

Way, way, way late recaps. Kept getting stupid busy. Trying to keep these minimal.
Luck began the campaign with TA: Blaster/Neck while operating on a mistaken presumption about the armor covering, which made him terrifyingly deadly. We’ve since adjusted it so he’s using TA: Blaster/Chinks in Torso Armor.
This was a sort of ‘get to know what your characters can do’ mission, since one of the players was out.