Atlantis campaign begins...

[Red Orc]

Fantastic work Bullshott! They've come out gorgeously... beatifully modelled and a fantastic paintjob too - I like the dark coppery skintone, neither African, Middle Eastern or Native American, but somehow suggesting all of them, as is only right and proper for people from somewhere that doesn't exist in out timeline!

Love that deep green and copper combo on the shields too. And the helmets are superb. Do you have a better view of the staff-guy?

The 'living statue' is a Mage Knight Golem, I think? I wish I'd checked out Mage Knight minis before I started all of this, there seem to be various things in the range that work for Atlantean troops and technology...

All in all, brilliant work sir, I'm proud that my (frankly a bit barmy and made up) campaign has inspired such brilliant work!

[Chairface]

Gorgeous! Love the automaton, and recognize several of the bits. Care to do a quick tutorial?

[Bullshott]

Gorgeous! Love the automaton, and recognize several of the bits. Care to do a quick tutorial?

The base figure is a mageknight Impaling Golem:



I removed the spikes on the shoulders, above the head and at the top of the golem's back. I also trimmed-off the weapon things on the fists. After that it was just a case of fitting parts from the GW plastic Lizardman Cavalry boxed set. The new head was a drum (trimmed to fit the golem body), crowned with a headress made from the armoured cold one head in the set(lower jaw removed and trimmed to fit the drum 'head'). A bit of greenstuff to pack out the back of the new head/headress and it was pretty much all done.

[Ramshackle_Curtis]

How did he go down in the end? TO malmalute's english want it? God damned Limeys!

[Red Orc]

Right chaps, I decided it really was about time to make some 'campaign maps', or at least, to show you the ones I've been making; these are fairly faithful reproductions of the maps I have pinned to my cork noticeboard in my office. In other words, they look a bit cluttered and scrappy! I hope you can all make the details. A click on the images if they are too small should increase the size by about 50%... but that seems to be as big as they get. If people can't see details, let me know and I'll try to get better images.

First up, the west coast, where Jimbibbly's Japanese, the US forces of Bullshott (in the north) and Dewbakuk (in the south), Malamute's British, and Gamer Mac's Imperial Chinese, are all consolidating territory; meanwhile, after spectacular success against an American mining expedition, Dr De'Ath's Khosindian pirates have mysteriously vanished, while Thunderchicken's promised British re-inforcements have mysteriously never arrived!

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm219/redorc01/Atlantiswestzones.jpg

In the south-eastern zone, V_Lazy_Dragon's Confederate States forces, and Mors's Japanese, have so far met little resistance or any other problems; Answer_is_42's French, however, have had to fight off a British attempt to land in their zone of influence, and further to the west, Alfrik's Prussian battalions of the Imperial German Army have fought a combined British/Atlantean force and, it is reported, captured a major native city into the bargain.

http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm219/redorc01/Atlantiseastzones.jpg

How will the balance of forces develop? Will the large battle that seems to have taken place on an island to the south-west of the continent damage the ability of those forces in the west to capitalise on earlier successes? Will the forces in the east be able to co-ordinate their operations to eliminate common enemies? What will be the overall attitude of the Atlanteans, now they have come into direct conflict with the 'modern' powers? Will Thunderchicken's British ever find their way to Atlantis? All (perhaps) will be revealed in the coming weeks...

[Dewbakuk]

How did he go down in the end? TO malmalute's english want it? God damned Limeys!

It was the British, can't remember who bagged it but I distinctly remember it running down the temple, swinging it's sword and breaking down before the weapon connected.....

[Alfrik]

In the South East, the Prussian assault on the city of Hythoria is one of our 2 next battles planned. City Guards, Temple Elite, British Light forces that have swung wide and arrived at the city will make a stand against the Prussian onslaught. Meanwhile back near the beaches, the Brits have oppted to strike a blow at the Prussian Landing Depot to disrupt the supply line and hopefully destroy major stocks of supplies already accumulated. Raid will hopefully be played out today.

[Red Orc]

Thanks for the clarification Alfrik: I'm presuming that is the port at location 22 rather than the city at location 9?

So, contrary to earlier rumours, the Pussians have not taken a major Atlantean city, though they are attacking it... the outside world awaits further developments with bated breath!

[Malamute]

It was the British, can't remember who bagged it but I distinctly remember it running down the temple, swinging it's sword and breaking down before the weapon connected.....

Quatermain and the Naval Brigade, shortly before Quatermain's untimely demise at the mechanical hands of those whirling Dervish automatons

[Lowtardog]

Quatermain and the Naval Brigade, shortly before Quatermain's untimely demise at the mechanical hands of those whirling Dervish automatons

They were a bit tasty weren`t they

[Red Orc]

Well, it would be Quatermain of course, he is the world's most famous Big Game hunter...

...but you don't mean to say... he's injured?

Don't worry, we're playing 'campaign rules'! He's not dead, he can come back in a later game...   ... as can any other named heroes, especially pre-exiting fictional ones - no permanently killing Sherlock Holmes, Captain Nemo or Captain (later General) Melchett either! Send me details about how any heroes 'died', and we can work out a convincing story of how they were only knocked out, and spent a week back at base drinking brandy until they were better.

[Malamute]

Well, it would be Quatermain of course, he is the world's most famous Big Game hunter...

...but you don't mean to say... he's injured?

Don't worry, we're playing 'campaign rules'! He's not dead, he can come back in a later game...   ... as can any other named heroes, especially pre-exiting fictional ones - no permanently killing Sherlock Holmes, Captain Nemo or Captain (later General) Melchett either! Send me details about how any heroes 'died', and we can work out a convincing story of how they were only knocked out, and spent a week back at base drinking brandy until they were better.

Now there's a man after my own heart. Yes I am sure he will return. In fact he'll probably wake up and realise it was all a dream

[Lupus]

Thanks for the clarification Alfrik: I'm presuming that is the port at location 22 rather than the city at location 9?

So, contrary to earlier rumours, the Pussians have not taken a major Atlantean city, though they are attacking it... the outside world awaits further developments with bated breath!

Nope the Prussians keep struggling for supplies as the British Aeronef fleet keeps atatcking anything they send

[Alfrik]

As concerns Quartermain, "Africa won't let him die", short pop back to africa, the witch doctor does his dance and Quartermain is back in action! (reference League of Extordinary Gentlemen)

[Red Orc]

Well, I may as well publish the 'wound table', and explain (at least sketchily) the 'Field of Battle' rules as least as far as heroes go. Maybe for units too, if I get that far before my shilling for the steam-powered computation engine runs out.


'Dead', in a campaign game, means only 'incapacitated and unable to continue with the battle'. Perhaps the hero has been knocked out, or is trapped under rubble, has a broken leg or other serious or incapacitating injury. Whatever the case, no hero is 'dead' for futher campaign games until they have rolled on the
Heroes' Wound Table
Roll a d6; this is the number of weeks that the hero must spend recuperating from their injuries.

If the hero was killed in particularly accidental or unheroic fashion (eg unluckily caught by the edge of an explosion; accidently trampled by a large animal; shot by a unit of regular infantry), subtract 1 from the roll. If this results in a '0' score, the character recovers in time for the next game whenever that takes place, even if the next day. All that has happened is that the character must take the rest of the day off due to feeling a bit poorly. Serves them right for not noticing the dinosaur/not turning sideways to ward off the blast/not charging the damned riflemen faster.

If the hero was killed by being 'normaly heroic' (eg in hand-to-hand combat, charging a Lewis Gun position, fighting Klankentruppen or some such) then no adjustment is made.

If the hero was killed in somewhat more dangerous fashion (eg in combat with an enemy hero, at the centre of an explosion, or by being specifically targeted by enemy assassins) then add 1 to the roll. It's tough being a hero, and sometimes on has to pay the price. Added to which, heroes on the other side need to get a bonus too.

If the hero was killed in spectacularly dangerous and heroic fashion (eg in a massive explosion after piloting a hydrogen-filled attack-ballon into the heart of the enemy's steam-driven mechanical dinosaur cavalry charge, thereby entirely tipping the battle from certain defeat for the hero's side, to victory tempered only by the hero's loss), then add 2 to the roll. The hero must spend an extra week recovering, probably in Monte Carlo or Switzerland somewhere.

Now, a word of warning. While heroes come and go, it's considered bad form for a hero to be injured but for someone else who's basically the same to come along to take their place. As Alan Quatermain is the first named hero to be a casualty I will take him as an example, though this example is not intended as a slur on Malamute's character, just as I say a demonstration of the point. If Alan Quatermain is for example out of action for the next five weeks, in three weeks time I do not want to hear the 'Alec Watermain, the best Big Game Hunter that you've never heard of (though he's constantly being mistaken for some other guy)' has turned up on Atlantis.

My suggestion is that if a hero is out of action for a little while, it might be time to promote someone else to heroic adventurer status. Name a dashing Lieutenant, or a wily NCO, or some adventuring type - a gunslinger, a big game hunter, a fencing champion - from among the ranks of your force, and let them carry out the heroic duties for a bit.

OK; that's how injuries are going to work. It's not quite realistic, but I'd like anyone with a 'dead' hero to really do the die-roll and post the result on here. I'll decide, on hearing the circumstances of 'death', what the modifier should be.

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Now, this all very well but... is the hero even with his own army? Or has he been left under a collapsed building/mammoth/steam-contrivance somewhere? That's why we need to know who controls
the Field of Battle

If the hero's army or unit was within a reasonable distance at the point of 'death' (that must depend on the game, but for 25-28mm games we can assume 6" or 15cm) then the hero is automatically rescued, unless the unit was subsequently wiped out.

Likewise if the hero's side decisively won the battle, then the hero is automatically rescued.

If the opposition forces decisively won the battle, and the hero's own forces hadn't already rescued him (as in the first example above), the hero is definitely captured.

In all other circumstances, the hero must roll a d6:
on a roll of 1-2, the hero has escaped (crawled under cover of darkness back to his own lines etc);
on a roll of 5-6 he has been captured by the enemy who 'killed' him;
on a roll of 3-4, he has found his way into the hands of a neutral 3rd party - generally, this will be Atlanteans (though Atlantean heroes will have to arrange to be captured by someone else) and almost always this will involve being nursed back to health by a beautiful Atlantean Princess or Priestess (unless your hero's a woman of course, in which case it better be a chap who captures her because Queen Victoria didn't believe women got up to 'that sort of thing').

In either the second or third case above, a special game must be played to 'rescue' the captured hero. In this game the hero is counted as an objective only - they can't take part in the fighting because they're too badly injured. The rescuing force must move to his position and then move off the board by the same exit, 'carrying' the hero. If they succeed, the hero can then recuperate normally in their camp.

If the hero has been rescued from a 'neutral' party, the hero, when recovered, can be accompanied (for free) by either a unit from the neutral army, or a neutral hero, in all subsequent games, to represent variously the bodyguard that their distracted lover has sent, the brother of the distracted lover who has vowed that the hero will survive to do the right thing by his sister, or the distracted lover him- or her-self (or whatever variant of that seems most appropriate).

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OK; on the question of units and re-inforcements: these following are suggestions only, because different rule sets have different ways of dividing units, allocating points and all that stuff.

Units of regualr infantry reduced to less than half strength in battle are assumed to be wiped out. Any spare troopers are assumed to make up the holes in units that survive under-strength. So if you start the battle with 10 Uberheim Rifles and 10 Grossburg Line Infantry, and you're reduced to 6 Uberheim Rifles and 2 Grossburg Line Infantry, you may start the next battle with 10 Uberheim Rifles. 2 of the other troopers are assumed to 'recover' in a similar way to heroes, but without all the dice rolls.

For cavalry, roll a d6; on 1-4, the unit can come back in the next battle, even if it was wiped out (all the horses ran away in the first battle when attacked by the steam-crocodiles, but came back later). On 5-6, it can come back at half strength. If this is not possible due to the rules you use, sorry, that unit is out of action for that battle.

For contraptions, also roll a d6; on 1-5 the contraption is repaired. On a 6, it is not. Sorry again, you can't use it in the next battle.

Whatever the results of any of these, the results of a battle only cover the next battle. By battle 3, 10 more Grossburg Line Infantry have arrived from wherever they're coming from. Of course, the Uberheim Rifles may have suffered further casualties by this point...

I think that should all work out OK, but if there are any really compelling reasons why not to do what I've suggested, I'm quite happy that you throw it out the window! But; whatever you do, please post the info here to let us all know how Mr Quatermain is doing, what the state of the Uberheim Rifles is, and whether Cuddles the Re-animated Allosaurus is out of bed! The world public wants to know!