Era of Darkness:D-day

[Jefram_denkar]

Era or Darkness D-Day invasion

Note all names used are the characters names and each rolled on the special traits table
In the Dead Reign (page 162)

Alexander LaCross = Sniper/Intel (High MA)
Kevin Miller = Heavy Weapons/Infantry (Strong man got a total of P.S. 33!!!)
Mark Chardic = Demolitions/Transportation (Natural Combat Driver)
Derrick Johnson = Medic/Supply Spec/Radio Operator (Extra MOS)

Part one

The game began with 4 characters (all commandos involved in the British and Canadian part of the landing) jumping out of the aircraft over the Normandy beach head I got their marching order and as the final character left the plane I hit is with a German 88 round blowing it apart and forcing the last one out to roll under his Parashoot skill (He made it) they landed and realized that they missed their landing zone and their target by several km’s and stuck behind enemy lines.

Once the group took stock of the equipment they had they started moving towards the town of Ranville to undertake their objective (raid a battalion level HQ that was in charge of the local artillery mind you the plan involved a 40 man platoon not a 4 man squad). They started by hitting one of the nearby 88 guns and then a second one (great use of prowl on both cases only one character got hurt and that was from a rifle butt stroke). At the second gun they found a German staff car and decided to try and drive the few km to Ranville. They took the German solders overcoats and helmets (one guys character (Kevin) was so big 7 foot and P.S. 33 that he could barely pull the overcoat over his shoulders let along put it on) and 5 of the 88mm shells (they had plans for them). They started their way towards the town and ran into trouble almost from the get go. Less then 10 minutes into the drive the character get stuck in a late night traffic jam as German troops start to react to all the aircraft in the air. As they are stuck and waiting for the truck to move while hoping no one near by noticed they were not German (perception roll of 5) when a trio of De Havillind Mosquito fighter bombers launch a ground attack on the stalled trucks and the stolen staff car!!!

Thanks to one characters quick thinking they pulled into a nearby grove of trees and were not killed only to end up in the middle of an infantry company’s command post. The two German speaking solders in the unit made up a story about loosing their gun and gotten lost in the confusion of the air attack and needed to get back to Ranville. The officer they talked with was nice enough to point them in the direction thanks to a failed perception check and a character with M.A. 23 (The Medic Derrick) they were sent on their way.

Now heading in the right direction they speed towards the town of Ranville until they come across the wreckage of a crashed transport plane and the bodies of several allied solders. Nearby a German officer (a major) is directing traffic and they get stuck behind four Tiger Tanks!!! As they wait the German officer waves them over and orders them to hop out and join the search for allied commandos only to make his perception roll and go for his gun screaming for back up. One of the characters pops him with a stolen MP 40 and they drive out of their before the Tiger tanks have a chance to fire, all the while firing their Thompsons and MP-40 from the sides. They go about a another mile of the winding road past some hedge rows (thus blocking the trailing enemies view) and discover a crashed glider surrounded by about 20 Germans and a Mark 3 Panzer nearby, in their clutches is a group of three glider borne British solders!!! Figuring they got nothing to lose they raced in spraying machine gun fire at the German troops and drove towards the captured airman to try and rescue them. The German tank spots them and open fire (missing them) as they race close to the captured solders and the tank. The Heavy weapons specialist (the 7 footer with P.S. 33) armed with a Piat (Projector infantry anti tank) fired the weapon with penalties from the moving staff car and actually blew off the tanks turret, killing the loader and stunning the rest of the crew!!!

As they raced in expert marksmanship (and lots of high rolls) eliminated most of the opposition with the big 7 footer leap attacking from the car killing the German solder in on blow in hand to hand combat. The first real party wound (rifle shot from one of the near by Germans) happened as we loading the three solders in and then they raced off into the hedge rows. 10 minutes later after loosing the Germans they reequipped the British solders who headed off to finish their mission while the party tended their wounds and decided to walk the remaining distance to Ranville (now only about 2 km away) they leave the car and uniforms behind but the heavy weapon specialist snags one of the 88m shells and will carry it with them if they needed it. They move along the fences and hedgerows and enter town early in the morning before the sun comes up, almost shoot a young girl and her younger brother trying to sneak home before killing a German guard taking a leak and avoiding a couple of patrols as they checked out the town. They discovered the HQ were in the old town hall and that their is both a nearby 88mm gun as well as another tank (another Panzer Mark 3). As the characters move around they discover the German forces are using the old bakery to help supply their forces and they make contact with the French woman making bread there. she talks with them and shows them an old tunnel that leads from the bakery to the old town hall (dug during the first world war as a shelter that could be accessed from three different places in town the bakery and old town hall being two of them) following the tunnel they come to the basement of the old town hall that been converted into cells for prisoners.

They watched from hiding as a strange woman in an SS uniform escorted by a part of blank eyes SS guards came to the cells and she took a small child out and led her back up the stairs. The characters came out after she left and freed the others leading them back out to the bakery and freedom. Afterwords they came up with a plan.

The Heavy weapons expert took out the 88 shell he had been carrying and the Demolitions expert rigs a couple pounds of C-4 to it. The timer was set to 50 minutes.

The group decided that it was going to try and get the child back so they lock and load some silenced weapons (Welrods and De Lisli Carbines) and prepare to head up stairs. The Heavy Weapons character Kevin decides a distraction is in order so heads back out the tunnel with his PLAT, headed over to the next alley way and fired his PLAT off at back of the Panzer parked their. The resulting explosion served as an excellent distraction as the tank and some near by fuel drums blew up. The kicker being with the nearby 88 firing away on aircraft above and all the havoc the D-day invasion was causing the Germans though it was an accident!!! (I rolled a 1 on their perception check) so now with the guards distracted Kevin ran back and they stormed up the stairs. The first level went well but a couple of the German got shots off so they barricaded the two main doors and reequipped with MP-40s and Thompsons. They checked out the second level and discovered the main planning office along with a handful of Germans, most of which were easy kills save for the last which was a German Sergeant with an MG 42. They did not discover him until he ambushed them in the map room. He did not bother entering the room just sprayed from the enterence on the surprised characters. Luckily for them three of the four made their dodge rolls even with the penalty of close range. The medic of all people on the other hand got hit and dropped below 0 hit points before they killed the German. Both Alexander the Intel Expert and Mark the Demo expert made their First aid check and actually stabilized the Medic. Then Kevin the Heavy Weapon specialist grabbed Derrick the Medic and ran back down the stairs to get him clear of the impending blast.

With the clock ticking the other two race to the top bypassing the other two floors but found something’s they did not expect. At first Alexander and Mark encountered the two guards standing outside of the old mayor’s office. The guards suddenly started to moan and raise their MP-40s the players respond by cutting them in half with the MP-42 they got from the Sergeant down stairs. They approached and checked out the bodies only to discover they been dead for months (Variation of the Thinker Zombie)!!! At that time the heavy doors opened revealing the dead body of the child and the Female SS officer standing their eating the remains of the child in a blood and gore filled room. The characters stand their as she begins her monologue before hosing her with machinegun fire (yes it was not the fact she was eating a child, in a blood soaked torture chamber, or a member of the SS. It was the fact she had a monologue that was the clearest sign she was EVIL!!!)

(Yes I have a bad habit as a GM of major villains having Monologues)

Anyway they hose her and the bullets bounced off her TK force field (they did manage to drop it with the combine fire of an MG 42 and Thompson sub Machine gun.) Annoyed at their attempt to kill her (not to mention the rudeness of interrupting her dinner). She snapped her fingers and said “Kill then Fifi.” Before vanishing before their eyes.

The players gave me a dirty look at that (my other bad habit as a Gm is giving cutesy names to very violent and dangerous creatures) as Fifi the Werewolf stepped forward and howled in rage and blood lust. Naturally the characters empty their weapons into the creature with no effect. In response the Werewolf launched a leap attack on Mark the Demo guy.

And that was when I roll a 1 on its leap attack and their was only one place for it to go. So suddenly the German Army solders trying to get in the old town hall suddenly see a Werewolf fly out of the four story of this building and crashed right on top of them.

That gave the character a couple minutes to check the place out and that is what led them to discover three things of interest a strange book bound in flesh, a brief case with weird notes and a sealed ceramic bottle, and a desecrated church alter. They grab the book and briefcase and then check out the alter discovering their willingness to spray fire machine guns has cracked the top of the desecrated alter and they opened it to find a white battle standard of the Knights Templars and wrapped in it an ancient sword of the order of the Templars.

With that they ran down the stairs trying to figure out what was going on. Only too end up on the main floor as the werewolf smashed threw their barricade. Mark the Demo guy grabbed a pre built explosive charge, armed it and threw it. The blast buying time to run back for the tunnel under the building and setting a land mine at the entrance of the tunnel. They get clear of the bakery as the charge goes off delaying the were wolf once more and letting them get clean in time before the large charge set by Mark goes off and drops the building on top of it.

The characters (all four) get invited by a French family to stay at their house and hide until the landing forces arrive in Ranville later that day. Derrick the Medic will live but is out of the campaign for now (Take a few months to heal) and the rest were sent with him to a mash outfit when Alexander the Intel guy starts talking about monsters to an officer.

End of part one

What do you think???

[Shawn Merrow]

Sounds like a fun game.

[Lord Z]

Is there any chance of an audio recording of future sessions?

[Jefram_denkar]

I've been thinking about submitting the adventure once the Campaign is done to the Rifter

As for recording them since the game was from 11:30am to 7:00pm that would be a tad long but it is something to consider.

[Jefram_denkar]

I've got some more material related to this that I will post soon.