Military Action in Actual Traveller Play
- Thread starter Golan2072
- Start date
The answers to your question are, I suspect, going to be a bit misleading given the vagueness of the questions.
In my player's immediate future, for example, I will be using/involving all eight of the weapon options you've mentioned in your first question, and troops in brigade, corps and army strength (all three firmly in your 'above battalion' option. And I will be using standard role-playing rules for it, not wargames.
Of course, most of what is going on wlll be a background of blood, guts and bullets. The PCs won't be supreme commanders so their actual physical involvement will be more on the squad to company level. Certain weapons delivery systems (MBTs, support weapons, orbital artillery, etc) will be very relevant to them, not necessarily through dodging or firing it (although both could happen) but it will become part of the environment and quite likely even a mission objective...
In my player's immediate future, for example, I will be using/involving all eight of the weapon options you've mentioned in your first question, and troops in brigade, corps and army strength (all three firmly in your 'above battalion' option. And I will be using standard role-playing rules for it, not wargames.
Of course, most of what is going on wlll be a background of blood, guts and bullets. The PCs won't be supreme commanders so their actual physical involvement will be more on the squad to company level. Certain weapons delivery systems (MBTs, support weapons, orbital artillery, etc) will be very relevant to them, not necessarily through dodging or firing it (although both could happen) but it will become part of the environment and quite likely even a mission objective...
Ganidirsii O'Flynn
SOC-12
Do refugees count?
Only if they're armedOriginally posted by Employee 2-4601:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by Ganidiirsi O'Flynn:
Do refugees count?
'Those stinking rebel cockroaches, Step On Them, HARD!'
I have played and Ref'd Merc games they are sometimes a good diversion from regular RPGing but I can't say that I like them too much as I usually play them out at the level of battalion and usually much gets lost when things get abstracted. Combat, At Close Quarters, with some times intended results from being too close to the Theatre of War is more my kind of thing. Lets you focus nicely on the story behind the conflict. True, I could do this if I focused down on the squad level but that is a game I haven't tried and seen it work too well. Usually, ends up being a Track Across Mithril but with military objectives.
At one time I had a group of players that were involved in a Mercenary Campaign. Most of the action was in District 268. Two of the pc's had Tactics skills of 6, which type eludes me at this time.
Their unit was a cadre type of merc unit. One player used a high tech helicopter using COACC rules, his skill base was mainly from COACC. Another pc whose skills involved ground unit tactics.
Their last major rumble/battle involved some Aslan clans who had a serious grudge against the pc's unit for past encounters, none of which the Aslan's come out well.
In that battle for a planet, in District 268, deep meson sites were used and other not so nice weapons.
End result was the planet was lost but the pc's unit escaped by mis jumping away from the Aslan fleets waiting for them off planet. Due to the losses the Aslan clans suffered at the hands of the PC's unit, the Aslan advances in the District 268 were slowed or stalled out.
The pc's survived the misjump, mostly intact but had to keep an eye out for Aslan Assassin's in pursuit of them.
The three Aslan clans viewed them as "honored enemies" due in part the pc's tactics were exceedingly good.
So the clans only sent out Assassins to even the honor scales for the clans, after the last battle.
All in all all of the players enjoyed the merc unit and the various scales of combat they used.
Their unit was a cadre type of merc unit. One player used a high tech helicopter using COACC rules, his skill base was mainly from COACC. Another pc whose skills involved ground unit tactics.
Their last major rumble/battle involved some Aslan clans who had a serious grudge against the pc's unit for past encounters, none of which the Aslan's come out well.
In that battle for a planet, in District 268, deep meson sites were used and other not so nice weapons.
End result was the planet was lost but the pc's unit escaped by mis jumping away from the Aslan fleets waiting for them off planet. Due to the losses the Aslan clans suffered at the hands of the PC's unit, the Aslan advances in the District 268 were slowed or stalled out.
The pc's survived the misjump, mostly intact but had to keep an eye out for Aslan Assassin's in pursuit of them.
The three Aslan clans viewed them as "honored enemies" due in part the pc's tactics were exceedingly good.
So the clans only sent out Assassins to even the honor scales for the clans, after the last battle.
All in all all of the players enjoyed the merc unit and the various scales of combat they used.
The largest that any of my characters commanded in a campaign was a section (either that or a squad) under the command of a mercenary platoon leader; we had some APCs with support weapons and a couple of mortars or howitzers, and the other player (at the time it was me, the Referee and one other player) piloted the close air support vehicle until someone shot it down. This is how I voted, on the basis that it was part of an ongoing campaign.
In a one-shot with the same Ref (and one other, different, player), I wound up helping command a much larger force.
In a one-shot with the same Ref (and one other, different, player), I wound up helping command a much larger force.
I've played out PC's commanding large contigents of troops (battalions), mostly special forces, in strikes and raids. I mostly used tactics skills as the major contributor to the outcome of engagement (planning), tactics again to read enemy strategy, and command skills if they wanted to change something mid-stream.
The PC's were all military types (mostly Marines with one or two Navy and Army); it only made sense that an Marine O-5 would be able to command a battalion in combat.
The PC's were all military types (mostly Marines with one or two Navy and Army); it only made sense that an Marine O-5 would be able to command a battalion in combat.
Plankowner
SOC-13
I have never run a mercenary campaign or game, but my Players have been involved in things they probably shouldn't have and had wars etc erupt around them.
So, mostly small scale stuff for me, but one time they did see the mushroom cloud from the ortillary (didn't know that name then) nuking the location they had just left...
So, mostly small scale stuff for me, but one time they did see the mushroom cloud from the ortillary (didn't know that name then) nuking the location they had just left...
my players are always trying to buy (and wield) the biggest guns they can find. that said, i couldn't select "artillery" as they have no interest in indirect fire! but give them a vehicle, and auto GLs and VRF gauss guns go on 'em in no time. if i let them buy tanks or APCs, they'll buy them in a heartbeat.
i'm of the "give 'em enough rope" refereeing mentality. it's amazing how much they'll take. . . .
i'm of the "give 'em enough rope" refereeing mentality. it's amazing how much they'll take. . . .
Father Fletch
SOC-12
Bit of an oops. I actually have used all three against PCs as an Evil Bastich GM. Certainly lots of LMG, LAG actions back and forth.
The auto cannon (in the guise of AAA) has been used to bring down PC Air/Rafts in the past.
Many moons ago I also had some IISS PCs acting as liaisons with an Aslan Merc unit in the FFW near the SW, Wardn (1727), IIRC. They were in the secondary blast radius of a Meson Gun impact area and wearing battle dress. One got knocked through a tree and the other, in the tertiary blast zone, was knocked out of the sky and made a small furrow into a hillock.
Numerous have been the PCs using surplus or demilitarized APCs.
CFK
The auto cannon (in the guise of AAA) has been used to bring down PC Air/Rafts in the past.
Many moons ago I also had some IISS PCs acting as liaisons with an Aslan Merc unit in the FFW near the SW, Wardn (1727), IIRC. They were in the secondary blast radius of a Meson Gun impact area and wearing battle dress. One got knocked through a tree and the other, in the tertiary blast zone, was knocked out of the sky and made a small furrow into a hillock.
Numerous have been the PCs using surplus or demilitarized APCs.
CFK
