Fire and Ice: Chapter 5: The Free Americans and The Firing Range

From SSDC, Inc.

ENCOUNTER 10: THE FREE AMERICANS

The first possible location the characters come along is secluded deep in the woods off the main road. The dirt road is bumpy, but no problem for the Nomad. A smart party will dismount well away from the site and carefully move in. A foolish party will definitely run over one of the Plasmore mines laid in the road. This will definitely #@!$ up their vehicle (as each fragment reduces integrity by 4 points, plus concussion damage). If this happens, the residents will be alerted.

Molecular wire, trip flares, and Claymores protect the perimeter of the camp. There are also Bouncing Betty mines sown around the perimeter. The minefield is 25 meters deep and surrounds the entire perimeter. Characters moving through the minefield must roll a d10 every 5 meters. On a 1 or 2, they have triggered a mine. characters specifically searching for mines may make a Level 4 Set Traps or Detect Concealment roll (+2 levels if the character does not have Demolition skill). If the character is moving at crawling speed, the difficulty is halved. If running, add 2 levels of difficulty. If a character detects a mine in a given 5 meter area, they need not roll to see if a mine is set off.

Once through the minefields, the characters must avoid the trip flares and Claymore mines surrounding the area. A Detect Concealment check at Level 6 is needed to detect the trip wires or mines. Characters moving through this area have a 2 in 10 chance of tripping an unnoticed wire (half that if moving slowly, double that if running). Tripping a wire will launch an ultra-violet flare, as well as tripping a booby-trap circuit for a Claymore mine. This will obviously alert the entire compound. Negotiating the barbed wire takes about one minute at a low crawl, during which time the character is a sitting duck [use the rules for molecular wire in DO NOT BE ALARMED].

If the characters try to parley with the residents, their leader will call out:

"We ain't comin' out, you pigs! We're sick of y'all guv'mint types tellin' us how to live our lives! Yer Alliance is corrupt, an Evil Empire that perpetuates itself at the cost of the workin' man! We've got the freedom to live the way we want, that's a basic God-given right! We've got the freedom to bear arms and protect our families! We're the Free Americans, and we'll fight and die to protect our liberty!"

Obviously, these guys and gals are messed up. Their leader has gotten a hold of some 20th century American History texts and created his own little cult. These sad souls have mistaken the party for government agents, and intend to martyr themselves for their misguided beliefs in a shooting war. In truth, they are too insignificant for even the local authorities to bother with. Any government agents could wipe this place out as easily as you or I might swat a fly. Only retreat or clever talking will prevent a shoot-out.

If the team can convince The Free Americans that they are also freedom fighters, who intend to take on big Brother by sneaking into a "government" weapons lab and monkey wrenching it to further their guerrilla war, the cult will buy it hook, line and sinker. They will even volunteer to help in any way they can, and the team will gain valuable cannon fodder... er, assistance!

The Free Americans are a group of ten Gen-Humans, led by a Gen-Human Warrior model who calls himself Vernon Weaver, and his Gen-Human Warrior second-in-command, Randy Howell. All told, there are eight men and four women. Weaver is not really a better soldier than the others, he is simply a charismatic leader. He can also pilot the group's vehicle. Howell, on the other hand, is huge. He is the group's gunner and demolition expert. Howell is the next best thing to having a Ram Python (and he's about as bright!).

Their cabin is built to withstand an assault of this sort. The building is one story tall and measures 10m by 20m. Treat as a prefab bunker (THR 7, AI 250 for each wall). If the party takes the building by force (which requires killing all twelve people), they have a base that is more secure than the doctor's home, if less opulent. All that anyone (even Balshrom) knows of it is its general location. The cabin is equipped with sleeping quarters (two private bedrooms with large beds - these each accommodate 10 size classes) and a barracks-like area which sleeps eight (these beds can only accommodate sleepers of Size Class 5 or smaller). The kitchen is outfitted with a portable still, portable stove, and 500 units each of food and water (sure it's MREs, but it's enough MREs to withstand a 3 week siege!). There is a portable heater for those cold nights, and a porta-john for when nature calls. One room contains reloading and repair equipment used by Howell to maintain the group's weapons, as well as a portable polymizer (which can replace up to 30 points of absorption before running out of Liquid Rubber), and rifling equipment to clean the guns. A blanket net covers the entire building.

If the team explores the house, it is possible that they will find a secret trap door in the floor (Level 6 Detect Concealment if looking). This trap door leads down into an escape tunnel. Size Class 4 to 6 individuals can move through the tunnel at a crouched run, larger characters must crawl and smaller individuals may walk normally. The tunnel is 120 m long, and leads to a small cave, in which the group's Rockwell Nomad is concealed. It is in need of repair (Level 7 Auto Mechanic check). However, it is lacking certain parts needed to get it running. If the team's vehicle hit the mine, this one is their only hope. Will they think to strip one vehicle for the parts to fix the other? If not, they'll have a long walk ahead!

The keys are in Vernon Weaver's pocket. If not found, the vehicle may be hot-wired (Level 4 electrician, Level 3 Bypass Security, Level 5 Pick Locks or Level 7 Auto Mechanic). A fuel siphon can be found in the emergency kit stowed in the team's vehicle (roll d100 to find the percentage of fuel remaining in the tank of this vehicle).

ENCOUNTER 11: THE FIRING RANGE

On their way to the next possible location for the lab, the team accidentally stumbles onto a livefire weapons testing range. This area was once part of the long-abandoned military base, which housed both missile silos. However, the signs and fence have long since grown over in the area the team enters through.

The robot-controlled MOR-1 mortars have lain dormant for years because they have not had a target. Unfortunately for the team, their vehicle is within the parameters of target eligibility. The unwittingteam will accidentally activate the test program without even realizing what is going on.

"Your vehicle has entered a peaceful, quiet meadow. The waist-high grass on either side of the small dirt road sways in a gentle summer breeze. The buzz of the cicadas is reaching a crescendo in the summer heat. Suddenly, without warning, the buzzing sound increases to a howl, and a shell explodes about ten meters ahead of the vehicle!"

If the team panics and keeps driving, roll to hit once per each three-second round. The mortar is at range bracket 8, and does not receive the +10 bonus per round fired, as there is no forward observer to adjust the fire.

Smart characters will probably bail out of the vehicle and begin to look for a spotter. Finding the remote is a Level 8 Detect Concealment check, and it is -80 to hit because of its size. It is 50 meters from the vehicle, hovering at an altitude of 50 meters (making the effective range 70 meters). Treat the remote camera as a mini-sphere K-Sat, with Propulsion 1, Radar Guidance Package 1, Ultra-Violet Damper, Surveillance Package, and Visual Remote.

If the characters stay cool, they can make an Intuition check after each round lands, at -50 (+10 for each round that lands) to realize that the rounds are being fired in a pre-set pattern. Another Intuition check (at a bonus equal to the amount the first roll was made by) will allow the character to discern the pattern. The rounds are landing in a star-shaped pattern, one meter closer to the target each time. Of course, this means that round #11 will score a direct hit on the vehicle! This gives them 30 seconds to figure it out, with the vehicle being rocked by fire the entire time. If the vehicle has kept moving, of course, the pattern will be impossible to discern.

There are a couple of ways to avoid being blown up:
1) Waste the remote and move the vehicle about 20 meters in ANY direction; or
2) Drive out of range. The Nomad's maximum speed is 50m/sec. This accounts for a -10 to hit (-40 for speed, +30 for size). Remember, rolls to hit are only made if the vehicle is moving. Otherwise, they land in the pre-programmed positions. Thirty seconds is enough time to get out of range. For every 10 points a Pilot Automobile skill check (Level 3 Difficulty) is made by, reduce the mortar's chance to hit by 1 point (evasive maneuvers) . If the driver can succeed at an Intuition roll, he or she can tell which direction the rounds are coming form (you wouldn't want to get closer to the thing, would you?).

Wrecking the mortar with radar-guided munitions is possible, but characters are unlikely to have any such thing.

If the team only realizes that they have activated a weapons calibration program, they can probably escape before it's too late. The mortar only has 15 shots, so it's over in 45 seconds, one way or another.

Bailing out of the vehicle is a good idea for the passengers - as long as someone remains to drive it. The driver may not think this is such a good idea! It takes one round to dismount, and one round to get back in, should anyone decide to do so. The remote is programmed to only recognize vehicle-sized objects as targets (no, Rams, fortunately you don't count as vehicles here!). At the very worst, all they should lose is their vehicle (and perhaps anyone who remained inside). Any character standing in the blast radius of an exploding round will take collateral damage, calculated normally. It is possible to survive a hit - if you're in armor and lucky!

Next
Fire and Ice: Chapter 6: Kitty

Previous
Fire and Ice: Chapter 4: Jericho City Encounters

Module Home
Fire and Ice