"Black Ops: Tactical Espionage Wargaming first read" Topic

My copy of Osprey's Black Ops came in today. After a quick thumb-through:

64 pages. Cool artwork like you would expect.
Standard rules for shooting and hand to hand. Night fighting. Thermals. Indirect fire. Vehicles. Stealth and Suppression. Troops of varying skill level and quality. Reaction tables for civilians and neutrals so they can be "automated".

An AK47 has the same stats as an M16 although though they do differentiate for Battle Rifles (M14, FN Fal).

The only specific scifi treatment seems to come from two small tables at the rear of the book. One for gadgets like thermoptic camo from Ghost in the Shell. The other is for direct energy weapons. Roughly 11 entries from both lists combined.

Looks to have potential!

Cheap on Amazon:

link

I read it and can't wait to try it. Very nice mechanics and great system for stealthy missions…

Very glad I got it… hopefully I'll be able to try it in a couple of weeks…

cheers
Francisco

Just ordered my copy…..pacing outside the post office now!

Actually, according to news from Lockheed the directed energy weapons are no longer science fiction. They're selling 60kW laser weapons to the U.S. Army right now!

AK47 has the same stats as an M16

These are no way near the same.

The AK-47 is a far better weapon then the M16.

Mithmee… Just… No.

Having handled and fired AKs and M16s both in many versions and configurations I will atest to the M16s being vastly superior weapons. I will take a M16 A2HB in 7.62 any day any time. Sorry Mithmee, not a chance…. If you want a crap built spray and pray that you can arm a untrained dupe with, then by all means, grab your AK. I will take my M-16 and cap the fool from so far out he won't even know he is in a fight yet.

You could do the same with a lee enfield…just saying ;)

Does anyone know the back story on the Soviet ship model featured in the boarding operation pictures in the rules? Incredible w/ interior/exterior terrain details for the boarders and crew to fight through. Looks like 20mm or 28mm scale; incredible detail.

Cheers,
Rob

FightsOn,

I haven't seen the Black Ops rulebook yet, but I suspect the ship you're asking about is the same one that was in an article in Wargames Soldiers and Strategy a couple issues ago (there can't be that many 28mm models of Soviet cold war warships…). If so, the article said that it was scratchbuilt. If we're talking about the same ship, it is an incredible piece of work, with lots of internal detail and constructed in modules to give lots of opportunity for room-to-room fighting. In the article they mention that the interior layout was designed to be as accurate as possible, with a few minor adjustments to allow easier movement of 28mm figs during game play, but that there are large sections that are informed guesswork because actual ship plans are still classified!

Would these rules fit the bill for a semi roleplaying campaign revolving around a group of near future PMCs? I am essentially running a wargame campaign for friends wherein each of them take on the role of a PMC in a team, and am still looking for the rules I would like to use.

So far I am settled on Savage Worlds: Modern Ops, but this also looks like it has potential. With so many new minis coming out on top of the great ones out there, I would love to hear how these rules are with regards to campaign play.

Just had my first read thru' of the book-impressed!
In answer to KSC-they are not really RPG but you could flesh that out to your personal taste/take on such thing, these are scenario driven rules with simple mechanics and very few 'grey areas'! Scenario/force/op for reaction is all covered with charts and tables-easy to read and all d6 driven. Game turn play is card driven but you only have a handful of cards in your deck per player ( iirc-2 each for leader/hero, support weapon,grunts/operators,specialists,NPC/neutrals and a pair of jokers)……
The campaign side reads like the build up to the 'final level' and the 'big boss' battle as in a videogame……intentionally I might add as the author has styled gameplay accordingly, hits on a 'team' are dished out by the player to 'minions' first giving the leader/hero a better chance to make it to the end 'level'…….the enemy can be player driven or ref. driven with the reaction tables too……
I would give your players a team/squad (4-8?) each of PMC/Mercs with the leader being the 'character'……combat appears short and decisive, not much fun if you get wasted on the first outing!