War of the Worlds - scenario revisions
I was able to playtest the first two scenarios in the campaign and in addition to completely messing up using the "Recharge" action (I misread it), there was much learned. We had 3 players and used all late-war planes based on previous comments to see how that might effect the play.
The Cylinder Opens was rather one-dimensional as the tripods could effectively just truck down the board, even with removing the run action, and get off the map. Kind of boring. It needed more so I've revised it so that the tripods would have more of a reason to engage in combat while still keeping with the flavor of the campaign.
The Fighting Begins had several problems from the get-go. I had reduced the tripods from 3, down to 2. This left the martians at a distinct disadvantage as the triplanes just blew up the cylinders while the martians were trying to get energy resources. All the players felt the scenario needed to have a 3rd tripod. An outstanding question that dramatically impacts this scenario is the effect of an explosion damage on cylinders. We used the standard rule so the cylinder lost 1/2 of it's health which gave the Earthlings a huge advantage. In our playtest they were able to destroy two cylinders because of explosions.
The idea of missions ending in a tie also came about and whether or not points should be assigned to victory conditions for tournament play.
There are other outstanding questions in italics below which I'd be glad to hear opinion on.
Revised Scenarios
The Cylinder Opens
March 25, 1918
”With infinite complacency men went to and fro over this globe about their little affairs, serene in their assurance of their empire over matter.” ~ The War of the Worlds
Rumors of Martian scouting missions had only recently reached the White Cliffs of Dover from the Western European front. In our hubris the nations of Europe believed the assault repulsed, our divine right affirmed. The first wave of landings targeting our sovereign soil appeared like those on the continent - meant as a test of our resolve - with the first cylinder landing at Woking, Surry. Our response at was woefully inadequate due to the commitment of resources on the continent.
Players: 2-8
Playing Area: 90cm x 90cm. A single cylinder represented by the cylinder terrain markers supplied with the Tripods and Triplanes box or equivalent section of tube placed within 1 ruler from the Martian side of the field. Two objective templates, no less than 1 ruler distance from the center of the map and no less than 2 rulers from each other.
Martian Player: 1 or two tripods, Mk1 (Locust) or Mk2 (Scarab) or a combination of both. Tripods start inside the cylinder. Tripods may not take running actions.
Earthling Player: 3 A-firing Entente planes per tripod.
Winning Conditions: The Earthling player wins if all tripods are destroyed. The Martian player wins if all the Earthling planes are destroyed or both tripods exit from the Earthling side of the map with at least ˝ of their energy pool.
The Fighting Begins
March 27, 1918
“It would seem that these giants spent the earlier part of the afternoon in going to and fro, transferring everything from the second and third cylinders—the second in Addlestone Golf Links and the third at Pyrford—to their original pit on Horsell Common.” ~ The War of the Worlds
Mankind was still reeling from the first assault when the second wave of cylinder landings began a few days later. The Martians had established a foothold and were now consolidating their supply chain – a clear indication they were preparing for a lengthy campaign.
Players: 2 - 8
Playing Area: 90cm x 90cm. Three cylinders represented by the cylinder terrain markers supplied with the Tripods and Triplanes or equivalent section of tube with the cylinder opening facing the center of the map placed triangularly equidistant 1 ruler from the center of the map. Martian player must identify which is the Woking cylinder.
Martian Player: Three Martian Tripods, Mk1 (Locust) or Mk2 (Scarab) or a combination of both, stationed at the Woking cylinder. Place 5 energy cubes in each of the Addlestone and Pyrford cylinders.
Earthling Player: 5 A-firing triplanes. Assign 1 squadron leader: choose two different skills for its pilot. The Earthling player may choose to enter the board from any single side of the map, but all planes must enter from that edge.
Winning Conditions: The Martian player wins if they create 2 Mk3 (Squid) tripods. The Earthling player wins by preventing the completion of the Mk3 (Squid) tripods. This may be done through either destroying tripods and/or cylinders.
Supplies to create Mk3 (Squid) tripods must be consolidated at the Woking cylinder. In order to transfer materials, Martians must spend a single action on the cylinder to collect 1 energy cube and then a second in the Woking cylinder action to drop off. Tripods may leave the cylinder from any direction once energy has been collected or dropped off. These energy cubes are not included in the Tripods’ supply. If a Tripod is destroyed while carrying “supplies”, those supplies are also destroyed. Only a single Mk3 (Squid) tripod may be created at a time. A Mk3 (Squid) tripod may be created once 3 cubes have been dropped off and 1 turn has been spent in “construction”. A Mk3 (Squid) must wait a full 3 actions before entering the board.
Idea: Allow tripods to “absorb” the energy as part of the recharge action, effectively giving them a 2-energy recharge?
Idea: If a tripod is destroyed, the collected energy is dropped and can be picked up by another tripod.
