VSF Scenario Design Contest Entries

High Barsoom

by Allen57

Scale

The scenario may be played with any size miniatures, but was originally constructed with 6mm and 10mm figures.

Rules

Space 1889, Hordes of The Things VSF section, The Sword and The Flame, or Battles by Gaslight may be used.

Length

The Scenario lasts 12 turns at which point night falls. As everyone knows, the Martians are afraid of the dark and will withdraw.

Players

One U.S. (High Guard) (with British assistance), one Martian (Tharks).

Forces

The Humans

The settlers

• 4 stands of wagons
• 4 stands of mounted settlers
• 3 stands of dismounted settlers
• 3 stands of longhorn cattle

The Cavalry

• 6 stands of mounted cavalry
• An equivalent number of stands of dismounted cavalry/horse holders figures (to be used when the cavalry dismounts)
• One caisson
• One gatling gun with crew
• One stand of four Red Martian cavalry

HMS Warrior

British ether flyer

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The Tharks

• 12 stands of cavalry
• 4 stands of lizardmen mounted on flying pteranadons

Situation

The 21st U.S. Cavalry (The High Guard) is escorting a wagon train from the New St. Louis etherport to Barsoom Wells. The wagon train with the cavalry escort is on the canal road when scouts report a large group of the nomadic Tharks (15-foot-tall Green Martians) approaching. In the usual lackadaisical fashion of the scouts, their report is being delivered as the Tharks are sighted on the ridgeline. They are noted to be deploying into battle formation.

(Relations with the Tharks have been strained ever since that scalawag, John Carter, in a drunken stupor insulted Tars Tarkus - his one-time friend - by telling him that he had lost honor by allowing the continuing incursion of human thrip hearders into Tharkian ancestral homelands.)

As luck would have it, the High Guard is ferrying a gatling gun to the garrison at Barsoom Wells, and the British etherflyer HMS Warrior is transiting the area.

Victory

Victory is determined by a point system. The side with the higher points wins, but destruction of the settlers stands is an automatic win for the Tharks or loss for the High Guard.

The Tharks. Destroy the pestilential human settlers.

• Each Cavalry stand destroyed = 5 victory points
• Each Wagon or settler stand prevented from crossing the canal = 10 victory points

The High Guard. Exit the settler stands and wagons across the canal bridge.

• Each Wagon or settler stand exited across = 10 victory points
• Each Thark cavalry stand destroyed (not the flyers) = 3 victory points

The loss of HMS Warrior would cause such shame to the British that the peoples of Mars would rise up in mass and drive the despised humans from Mars.

Set-Up

The wagon train with the cavalry escort is at point A on the canal road. The Tharks are sighted on the ridgeline at point B.

The dry river bed in the south west portion of the map is impassable to mounted troops, wagons, and artillery.

Special Rules

End of Scenario. At the end of the scenario, any remaining wagons or settler stands are moved across the canal bridge toward Barsoom Wells and count for victory points. If a sandstorm ends the game any wagons or settler stands which have not crossed the canal bridge do not give victory points to either side.

HMS Warrior Entry. Starting on turn 8, roll 1D6 each turn. On a roll of 6, HMS Warrior is placed anywhere along the west edge of the map.

Sandstorm. After HMS Warrior has arrived, continue rolling 1D6 each turn. If another 6 is rolled, the game ends early with a sandstorm sweeping across the battlefield.

HMS Warrior in Combat. HMS Warrior firing in broadside is the equivalent of 6 artillery pieces. The Martian Pteranadons may attempt to board HMS Warrior by moving adjacent and rolling 1D6 for each Pteranadon. On a 5 or 6, boarding is successful for each pteranadon which rolled a 5 or 6. Melee ensues with each boarding Martian Pteranadon rolling 1D6. HMS Warrior starts with 4 crew sections, each of which rolls 1D6. As casualties are taken, the number of dice reduces. The 3 highest numbers rolled kill one pteranadon or crew section. Melee continues each turn until one side is destroyed or leaves. The Martians destroy HMS Warrior if victorious.

Recommended Figures

The Humans

The settlers

One Irregular Miniatures Plains Wars Wagon Train (there is no catalog #) mounted as 4 stands of wagons, 4 stands of mounted settlers, 3 stands of dismounted settlers, and 3 stands of longhorn cattle.

The Cavalry

Irregular Miniatures Plains Wars - 6 stands of mounted cavalry (PW07, with 8 figures per stand) and an equivalent number of stands of dismounted cavalry/horse holders figures (PW08 and 09). One Irregular Miniatures caisson (ACW23) and one Gatling Gun with Crew (PW10). For the Red Martians, one stand of four figures from Irregular mounted Dark Elf Lizard Riders (DE3, painted as red martians).

HMS Warrior

One Brigade Models Aeronef - HMS Benbow (VAN101)

The Tharks

Represented by Games Workshop's Warmaster Lizardmen. 12 stands of Cold One riders (Warmaster blisterpac W034, based as per Warmaster rules. 4 stands of lizardmen mounted on flying pteranadons (Warmaster blisterpac W038, based as per Warmaster rules)