Solo Pulp Game(s) ...ish

 So about three weeks ago, I played out a second test run of the IHMN based rules - and I didnt really like the result. So much so that, half way through the game, I just started posing the figures to tell the story I wanted! Anyway, I took a few pix so here they are, just for eye candy really - 

In the aftermath of the Nazis pillaging the ancient tomb of Ramallah, a number of events in far flung corners of the world took place beyond the gaze of the general public

The Evil Priestess, seething with rage at the loss of her priceless and powerful artefact, screamed out her strongest incantation, summoning the Lord and Lady of the underworld to her aid..

The acolyte nervously approached the Mummy King and Mummy Queen, ancient rulers of the evil regime of Ramallah

Meanwhile, in Paris, a shadowy civil servant briefs two operatives of the Deuxieme Bureau - a trip to North Africa is in the offing...

Across the Channel, a similar meeting occurs at Chequers, the country seat of the Prime Minister 

In a quiet corner of the estate surrounding the Dacha of Lavrenty Beria, a Colonel of the NKVD is in earnest conversation with two of his top agents

In Washington DC, too, the " Black Chamber" of the State Department has learned of the Nazis success

Whilst in Roma, an Italian diplomat talks in hushed tones to a pair of OVRA officers...

Following is the IHMN Game from a couple of weeks ago.....

The leading Nazis gloating over their ill-gotten gains from the Mummies Tomb 

Frau Doktor Goering and the ancient relic

The Plucky Brits who aim to "liberate" the relic

With a little help from these chaps

I think I got about up to here and decided I didn't really like the rules!

Basically, the Brits forced the Nazis to retreat, and secured the ancient relic!

Hurrah - Albion Triumphant, Rule Britannia etc etc!

Ok, so tonight, I tried again, this time using the simple skirmish rules Andrew and I used a few days ago. I took the surviving Germans from the first game, worked out their points added up to 15, and then wrote up about twenty chits so I could pick the British side at random - as soon as I hit 15 points I would stop

I drew the Lady Archaeologist, the 8th Army officer - and a bunch of standard infantrymen.

I also selected where the Brits would start with a random dice roll - lucky them - I rolled 5!

The surviving Germans who escaped Ramallah 

A flashy high powered Mercedes Benz roars into a small Arab town - subtlety is not the Nazis strongest suit!

And on the first British move, a group comprising the officer and four rifle men appear on the rooftop of building 5. They all fire at the moving car but as they also moved, they roll 3 D6 and take the lowest two scores - only the officer gets a hit, but the "car" saves,

The Mercedes serves to a halt, and the three Nazi occupants take cover

The second Mercedes arrives and pulls up to allow the other half of the gang to dismount. The Brits fire again, targeting the rifle armed guard. The officer scores 13 - so good that even a double 6 wont save the guard - she takes a hit. The riflemen blaze away too and between them get a 9 to hit. The guard fails to save - two hits, she is out of action!

And the very next turn, we had a repeat performance from the Brits, they scored three hits on Fraulein Doktor Elsa, and despite being in cover AND having a grade 3 to add to her scores, she failed to save, and was also out of the game! (this is pretty much going the same way my IHMN test game went...!)

The Brits now doubled down, with the Lady Archaeologist leading the second group of riflemen across the village square, peppering the Mercedes with fire as they advanced, but failing to hit Doktor Goering....

....who decided discretion was definitely the better part of valour, and scuttled down a narrow alley to join group two!

The Brits advanced to the car, and using the "roll a nine to do anything" rule, I tested to see if they could search the car - they did! Now, 1, 2 or 3, they found the artifact, 4,5 or 6, its in the second car - I rolled a 2!

"Scheisse!" screamed Doktor Goering. "Sturmbannfueher, you MUST retrieve that artefact NOW!"

Again using the "roll a nine to do anything" rule, I tested to see if the remaining Nazis could climb onto the roof of the adjacent Arab building - they all passed, They got one chance to fire at the British agent, the officer and Ilse the Whip Girl missed, but the NCO rolled 5 + 2 + her 2 as an NCO = 9. The Brit rolled 1, 2 and 4 - as she is in cover, she takes the two higher scores, and adds her ability value of 3 = 9 a SAVE!

What are you doing Sturmbannfuehrer? The damned British are getting away!

Aber Fraulein Goering, we are outnumbered and the British are still covering the ground from that building...

With ill grace, the Reichmarshals sister accepts there is nothing to be done today, and the Nazis beat a retreat in the second Merc.

Well, that worked a lot better than the previous attempt - but with the same result! I thought that the Germans having a lot of character figures might be able to overwhelm the Brits who were mainly level 0 riflemen - but I was wrong! The rules worked well and the game only took about an hour to play through - I think I am decided that these will be the basis for my Pulp games going forward, although I will have to work out a way to use them for multi player games - that was, after all, the reason for creating so many different factions....well, it was the EXCUSE for creating so many, at least! I reckon simply getting players to roll a die and go in that order each "turn" would work ok.