Pulp Alley: Pecos Pete vs. the Saucer Men, Episode 27

After the last thrilling episode, Pecos Pete and the Giddy Up Gang found themselves confronted by a possible Alien invasion!
Following the clues, Pete and three other Leagues followed an old map into the mysterious Valley of the Broken Moon. There they were confronted by four clues (an old prospector, his camp, a dead body, and famed archeologist Arkansas Bob) and Perils aplenty!

Pecos Pete and the Giddy Up gang. Matinee idol, or is it just a cover?

 

 Virginia Dare and Danger, Inc. Risking it all to the highest bidder.

 The Royal Archeology and Mystical Society. What arcane plans do they have?

 The Red Raptor and his Sky Kings. An enigma wrapped in a puzzle....

 The treacherous valley.

 A mysterious stranger waits by the abandoned mine.

 Pete gets to the first Plot Point, the prospector's camp.

 It's full of rattlesnakes! Due to some particularly brutal Fortune Card play, not only was Pete attacked, but his companions. Nevada Ned was incapacitated by venom, while Bob was only temporarily overcome. Pete would spend most of the game trying to get this Plot Point.

 Wellington, Virginia Dare's dog, was once a again the first casualty of the game. This little guy is a bullet magnet.

 Dixie Dare (Virginia's estranged sister) has a go at Arkansas Bob. He didn't fall for her wiles... But he doesn't fall to the Raptor's fists!

 Kareem, Virginia's bodyguard, falls to Ace, the Raptor's killer sidekick.

Lady Dora Standpipe uses her mystical arts to commune with the dead and pass another plot point.

The Royal Society was first to the Mysterious Stranger and into the mine beyond. The Red Raptor's League was next, but not the Raptor himself. Due to a concerted effort by three other players, the mighty Red Raptor was brought low. Luckily, Ace avenged him, tenfold.
Danger, Inc. had spent most of the game dealing with Ace and were last into the mine entrance behind Pecos Pete.

The game was great. Truly cinematic moments to go around.
Next episode: The Mines of Madness

Coming to a Matinee near you Thursday!

Last episode, Pecos Pete and the GiddyUp Gang found mysterious clues to an Otherworldly Plot from space. Many Leagues duked it out over the clues. The Royal Society was able to grab the most important clue, so they'll start with an advantage, but Pecos Pete is right on their tail.
The Valley of the Broken Moon is filled with dangers aplenty. Grab your popcorn!

Campaign for Kingdom Battle #2: The Beatdown

Duke Archibald, fresh from his last victory, took the field along with three allies against Horace, the Pretender, and his three traitorous friends.

The opening moves saw the various lords trying to keep their battle lines in formation, but as usual, a few broke ranks in spontaneous charges.
When the forces met, real pounding began on the flanks. In one turn, Sir Roderick lost four of 6 units to Ulric.

For whatever reason, poor pay, tribal loyalties, the pikemen on both sides never got in a lick. They all left after a few hits or arrows. The flanks quickly caved. By the time Horace got his troops in the center to fight, it was over. Half his army was gone,
After the usual executions and promotions, Archibald was feeling pretty good about his chances. Little did he know Sir Rutiger, his trusted lieutenant on the left flank, was already plotting his demise....

Full Steam on Dystopian Seas

I'm sure it's a common wargamer problem. You invested in a line of miniatures or period because they look cool, get about half done and quit either because the rules suck, there's not much interest anymore, or the company producing them gives up or goes under. I had the trifecta with Dystopian Wars.
I bought each of the starter sets: British, Prussian, Japanese and American sets of really cool steampunk ships. I got the Brits done and started on the German. Here's where my complete lack of love for naval games started kicking in in. Love the minis, hate to paint them, and for the most part, don't really like naval games.
About that time, Spartan Games went under. No more toys. I would have helped them out by dumping massive amounts of cash their way on the their Dystopian Legions minis, if they hadn't and gone and made them 35mm! Completely out of scale with my other VSF stuff.
Jump ahead a few years and I find out a fellow Basement General had also heavily invested in DW. His collection was bigger and better painted. Next obstacle: the rules, in my humble opinion, suck.
No problem. The venerable spaceship rules, Full Thrust came to the rescue. I've been playing them for years and adapted them to flying ships. It was easy to switch up a few thing for battles on the Dystopian Seas.

 The Brits: A Battleship, 3 frigates, 3 escorts and a couple of bombers.

 Admirals plot their moves. More rum is needed!

 Fighters hunt the skies

 Poor plotting leaves a ship aground.

This battle would see a new Revolutionary War between my British fleet (with some Hessian allies) and Other Jay's American forces.
The rules worked great. Pre-plotting moves proved a headscratcher for some. They ran aground, slammed into their own ships. The little ships died heroically while the massive capital ships blasted away at each other. The fighters and bombers proved either a nuisance at best, or a killer.
It ended with a minor American victory and me eager to paint more. Until I realize again, I hate painting ships.

The Wizard's Tower: a Dragon Rampant game

Long have the greenskin hordes looked down from their mountains and coveted the riches of the denizens of the valley below. But always has their guardian, the wizard Valdamere protected them. Word has spread that the old wizard is dying. Now is the time for Garn Gorespear and minions to strike!

 A few of the Duke's men scramble to intercept the horde.

 News of the wizard's death have been greatly exaggerated.

 A goblin chariot streaks across the field.

 "Out of the way peasants! We're here to save the day!"

 Gary looks for opponents, but finds only cabbages.

 Let the burning and pillaging begin!

 A few skirmishes fail to make their escape and are destroyed by orcs.

 "Slow your roll, foul beasts!"

 sooooo much pillaging.....

The Duke himself takes on a pair of ogres.

This turned out o be a great little 4 player game. On the small side for us. We usually play DR with each player getting 3 "Luck: tokens to preroll failed activations or poor attack/defense roll. Not this time.

The Duke's men could not get going until it was too late. I wrote this off as too much time getting lazy and fat in the valley.

We managed to decimate the Orc forces but not till after they burned most of the village. We had enough time left over to play Gorechosen, a great little gladiator game.

Mega GASLIGHT Battle!

It's been a awhile since we've played any Victorian SciFi. With the news I'd be hosting an 8 player game, cold boilers were stoked to life, battered old veterans were dragged from their plastic homes and piles of 20 sided dice were stacked in anticipation.

 Forces marshal for the assault. 

 The tower laboratory of the mad professor. Both sides want his latest invention!

 The American Expeditionary Force holds the right flank for the Allies.

 The Jaguar speeds ahead. This little beastie is usually dead within a turn, but he managed to dodge and weave until the end.

 Prof. Nighshade's flankers stoically advance.

"Look at the size of those cabbages!"..german forces are momentarily distracted.

 Krieghosen with tank support advance against the Americans.

 Meanwhile, the Germans abscond with the mad scientist.

It was a close run game. I was glad to see the troops back to their terrible habits after a few games otherwise. The Rokkitruppen, Ulan Unicycle Lancers and Citizens Brigade died horribly and to a man without firing a shot. Contraptions failed when they were needed most and many beers were drank to salve the losses.