Welcome back to my Solo campaign for the survival horror game Under the Martian Yoke. This game is currently available on the Blood and Spectacles Wargame Vault Page. It can be played solo, co-op, or Versus and any combination in-between!
Under the Martian Yoke is set after Orson Welles' broadcast of War of the Worlds. In this game, this was no hoax; but an actual news broadcast. The Martian invasion has laid waste to the East Coast of the United States, and only a handful of survivors are left. It is up to them to make it back to survive as long as they can! If they survive long enough, they might escape out from Under the Martian Yoke!
Annie looked up from the tattered and worn Bible she had found in the farmhouse. She and her fellow survivors had been using the place as a hide-out, its inhabitants long gone. Where they ended up, was anyone's guess? Perhaps they had been vaporized by a heat ray, choked to death on Black Dust, dissolved by Green Gas, or perhaps they were still out there somewhere hungry and thirsty?
"We still got some canned peaches from Shyville if your hungry?"
Annie had found Luke hiding here in the Farmhouse when she and Tommy stumbled across it. Luke hadn't been alone. Some slick wily named John was here with him. Luke seemed the decent sort, but she did not trust John as far as she could throw him. The good book had warned her about people like John.
Annie reached out and took the can from Luke's hand. The labelled was faded, and partially torn off. On the front was a drawing of a happy housewife grinning like a fool and holding aloft a Georgia peach. Annie pulled out a can opener from her apron, and with a newly practiced ease tore into the can.
John wandered into the room, "Maybe we should head back to Shyville and see if we can find more supplies? Your gun's still out of ammo Luke?"
"Yup. Shyville's too red though."
"Huh. Well, there has to be somewhere else we can get some eats?"
Timmy's little voice squeaked up, "I was lookin' for Martians and I saw another farmhouse out yonder, Not too far. Maybe there?"
"We could scoot out there and back in no time. Maybe they got some ammo for ya' Luke?"
"I reckon' so."
Annie nodded along. She wanted to stay put, hide, and take comfort in prayer. However, what she wanted was no longer important. They had to keep food, water, and supplies up. Unlike the Israelites, she did not expect Mana to appear from the heavens to sustain them.... not unless it was canned.
Survivor Band
In today's battle we have the following 4 survivors. All survivor bands start with only 4 members. Most humans were killed or horribly injured in the initial Martian assault, so small bands of survivors are all that is left.
On the left is Handsome John. He is a criminal archetype and survived by running for the hills when things went south.
Activation Aimed Suppression Fight Brawn Brains Nerve
5+/2 6+ 3+ 4+ 8+ 9+ 7+
Cool Customer
- Pistol, Knife, Canteen of Alcohol
- Duck and Weave- Shooting attacks have a -1 TN when he has moved.
Next is Tommy Wilkins. He is just a kid, and survived when a building collapsed on his family. He managed to dig his way out, but no one else did.
Activation Aimed Suppression Fight Brawn Brains Nerve
3+/2 9+ 8+ 6+ 4+ 7+ 5+
Pitter Patter of little feet, Fear of Enclosed Spaces
- Improvised Fight weapon, Satchel, Good Shoes
The lady is Annie. Annie McCall is a devout believer, trying to process what exactly is going on. She was part of an ambushed evacuation, and forced to flee.
Activation Aimed Suppression Fight Brawn Brains Nerve
6+/2 7+ 5+ 9+ 8+ 4+ 3+
Pray, +3 Experience
- Pistol, Map, Bandages, and Knife
Last up is Luke Goodson, the leader of this little band of survivors. He survived when he was suddenly knocked unconscious.
Activation Aimed Suppression Fight Brawn Brains Nerve
5+/2 7+ 6+ 4+ 8+ 9+ 3+
Do As I Say, Do Not Be Afraid
- Knife, Canteen of Water, Flares
- Revolver is out of ammo and left at Hide-out
Scenario
The survivors were able to see another farmhouse in the distance that they could walk to easily. Hopefully, their would be some scraps left over, but they might also be Martian traps.
This scenario has 5 loot markers randomly placed on the board. When a survivor picks up a marker, you roll a 10. On an even it is Loot that can be picked up. On an Odd it is a Martian Trap! A Trap brings on a Martian foe within 6 MU.
The objective is to gather as much loot as you can before you are forced to scatter, all go unconscious and possibly dead, or the danger level gets too high.
Set-up
The area to be searched for scraps is a lone farmhouse at the end of a dusty roadway. Next to it is a weed choked ruined out-building. There is a nearby dying field, and a barren orchard. There is also a small pond in the area. There are 5 loot markers scattered randomly from the center of the board.
The board itself is 36MU by 36MU. 1 MU equals 1 inch in today's scenario. There are no Martian foes starting on the board. The survivors decide to deploy on the west side, near the destroyed out-building. Annie and Tommy stick together, while John and Luke stay together on the opposite corner. They start 6 MU in from the deployment edge.
The group also decided to set off just before dusk, and arrive at their destination at dusk. However, poor timing also means that bad weather has rolled into town with wind, rain, and thunder. This automatically starts the danger at 11! That stinks!
Turn 1 - Danger 11 Yellow
Annie skulks across the gap between the out-building and the house, and takes some cover. Tommy gets to the edge, and tries to activate again to run, but fails! That Yellow Danger level starting strikes! Handsome John moves to a corner and covers one of the markers with his pistol. Luke runs ahead, and then tries to activate again. He barely succeeds and grabs the first loot marker. It is a 3, so real loot and not a Martian monster!
Danger Phase:
The current Danger Score is 13, and the dice roll for new dangers comes up 22. No new threats yet!
End Phase:
None
Turn 2- Danger 13 Yellow
The sun is beginning to set now, and Line-of-Sight is reduced to 30 MU.
Luke runs across to the road, and tries to pick-up another loot marker. It is Even, so this time it is a Martian Trap! A Gunner unburies itself from near the pond!
Handsome John sees it dig it's way out and must make a Fear test! He barely passes, and decides to take careful aim. He knows he needs to shoot to kill that monstrosity! However, he fails his second activation test instead of firing. His fear got to him!
Tommy makes a run for another loot marker, but fails his second activation test to try and get to it! That is very unlike him.
Annie moves onto the porch of the house, trying to get an angle on the new foe while covering Tommy. She has line-of-sight, but decides not to risk a second activation this time.
Danger:
The Gunner mindlessly fires at Luke, and the survivor fails his suppression test! He immediately drops prone to avoid getting hit further! He is suppressed by the shooting.
The Danger Level is 15, and the dice roll is 8. A new danger arrives! This time, a Rabid arrives on the board. It starts heading towards Handsome John, unconcerned about the pond between them.
End:
Luke decides it is time to Get UP! He passes his fear test and gets to his feet.
The criteria for a Scatter are not met.... yet!
Turn 3 - Yellow 15
This time Line-of-sight is 24 MU as the sun sets!
Handsome John aims and tries to fire again. He fails again!
Tommy moves up and grabs some loot, and the roll is a 3. It is real loot! This time, he passes his second activation and runs for the board edge!
Luke skulks towards the last loot marker, but fails to get to it. He tries to activate again, but fails!
Annie takes careful aim, and fires on the Gunner, but misses.
Danger:
The Rabid tries to make a Dynamic action test to get across the pond, but fails.
The Gunner sees Luke up and moving, and fires again at the target. This time the shots go wide enough where Luke is unphased.
The Danger level is at 18, and the dice come up....16. More Martian menaces appear! Three wild dogs appear by the edge of the field and begin to move towards the house Annie is at.
End:
Scatter is not triggered.
Turn 4- Danger 18- Yellow
The sun is setting fast, and the Line-of-sight is only 18 now.
Luke grabs the last loot marker, but it is another Martian trap! This time a Butcher digs its way out of the ground!
Handsome John just starts shooting! It isn't quite enough to take down the Gunner by overflowing pins to damage. Both his activations have been spent.
Tommy manages to run off the board with his loot.
Annie moves to follow Tommy, but fails to activate for her second activation.
Danger:
The Danger Level is at 20, but the dice come up 24! A short reprieve!
The Gunner fires on Luke, who is forced to duck down, but avoids being suppressed. Good thing as that Butcher would have probably caught up to him if he had been pinned!
The Rabid passes its Dynamic movement test and wades across the pond towards Handsome John.
The wild dogs charge recklessly towards Annie, while the Butcher slowly shambles towards Luke.
End:
The survivors can choose to scatter if they wish. However, there is a chance they will lose the Loot that Luke has. There is no more Loot on the board, so the Humans decide now is a good time to Scatter!
Luke drops his loot as he high tails it away!
Conclusion:
Our plucky band of survivors managed to fall back through the wind, the rain, and the ensuing darkness to get under cover at their farmhouse. No injuries again.
Wow, there were a lot of bad guys out there. I managed to escape just before things got serious. My shooting was completely ineffective, but thankfully so was their shooting. Luke got the worst of it, but thanks to his high Nerve ability managed to weather most of it and escape. I was lucky no one got hurt or suppressed so I have the full crew for post-game procedures.
Post- Game Sequence:
Luckily, all my survivors managed to make it out of there alive, unharmed, and unsuppressed. That means no Psychological or Serious Injury this time. However, Timmy got off the board with 1 Loot, so let's see what it was:
- 4 Food
- 3 Water
That will help us keep our stash up!
Experience looks like this:
Handsome John- 3 + 1 = 4
Annie McCall- 7 + 1 = 8
Tommy Wilkins - 4 + 4 = 8
Luke Goodson - 7 + 1 = 8
No upgrades this time. We barely got out of there alive, and didn't get to do much else.
That leads to the survivors assigning jobs for the post-game. Tommy will scout for Martians, John and Annie will go scavenge, and Luke will try to Repair his pistol.
The bad weather and darkness seem to have thrown the Martians off the trail. The Farmhouse is secure. Meanwhile, Luke tries to fix his revolver but it is beyond his ability. In retrospect, I should of had someone with a better Brains stat try this, and sent Luke scouting.
Annie finds a dark hole beneath a wrecked garage. She steals herself and lowers herself into the hole, and finds a old hidey hole for bootleggers! It has a variety of items stored inside including:
- 7 Food- 9 Water- 2 Scrap- Extra Ammo for her Pistol
The band goes into the Depravation stage with a decent amount of stash and gear. To keep the band away from depravation they need 8 food, 8 water, and 4 scrap. Thankfully, they have what they need to keep going. When all is said and done their stash is:
- 11 Food
- 14 Water
- 2 Scrap
They are in pretty good shape, as long as no one gets hurt, they should be set for a few more days. They are still down a revolver that they failed to replace.
Thunder shook the house. Annie bolted up, but caught herself before she screamed. Terrible visions flashed in her head, but she shook them clear.
She looked around the darkened room. She was not alone. Luke was there, sawing logs and blissfully unaware of the storm. Tommy was also curled up under a make-shift blanket made from an old sack. It had taken Annie two hours to calm him enough to sleep.
John was sitting at the small table across the room. He had his pistol in his hand, and Annie could see him visibly shaking. She slowly got up and took a few tentative steps towards him, clearly in his line of sight.
"John?"
He did not respond. Annie closed the distance over what felt like an hour, slowly putting one foot in front of the next. In an instant that took a lifetime, she was at the table. Carefully, she placed her hand over John's. It was sweaty and cold. At this distance, she could see perspiration beaded across his forehead.
"It's okay John. Everything is fine. Just a storm."
She slowly and carefully slipped his hand off the grip of his gun. With effort, he slowly turned his head at her. In the darkness, a pale moon beam shone through a boarded up window, and gleamed off his teeth, as his lips slowly curled into a rictus grin. Thunder shook the room.
"Annie?"
Check out the Blood and Spectacles Wargame Vault page for your copy of Under the Martian Yoke.
Become a Patron and get access to all the cool stuff, a peak behind the curtain of Blood and Spectacles, and early-access to playtest games!
You can follow Blood and Spectacles Facebook page or Instagram for more fun!
Check out the latest publications and contact me at our Blood and Spectacles website
