DAY 10 – APRIL 27th 2000
EAST of DOBRODZIEN, POLAND – EVENING
ROUND 02
ALEX goes back to keeping watch, while PFC CRANE calls his next target: the destroyed house at the corner of the intersection just North of the flat roof building.
CHANGING TARGET [click to expand]
A new target for the mortar requires a RECON roll from the forward observer (CRANE has INT C and Recon B; he also has a Binocular, but I’m not sure it counts toward directing fire, so I won’t count it):
- CRANE rolls RECON [D8+D10] = 1 SUCCESS (rolled 7 and 5)
He successfully directs the mortar team for their next round.
Team CALDWELL keeps watch.
The MORTAR TEAM aims the mortar at the new target, consuming their slow action
The FLOCK’s soldiers spread out, some moving away from their position, while others go prone. Some confused shouting can be heard from the town, then the church bell starts clanging.
LOOKOUT and PATROL [click to expand]
The lookout has a 4% chance of determining where the mortar is:
- Roll[D100] = 99 -> still no clue
There’s a 2% chance of a patrol arriving to the scouts’ area:
- Roll[D100] = 56 -> no patrols
End of Round 02
ROUND 03
MORTAR TEAM’S ROLL [click to expand]
Team REDWING and the MORTAR TEAM exchange initiative, which they can do because they can communicate (via radio).
MORTAR TEAM rolls for HEAVY WEAPONS with no modifier. They’re at short range, which gives no modifier, and light, elevation and weather do not come into play:
- MORTAR TEAM rolls HEAVY WEAPONS [D10+D10] = 1 SUCCESS (rolled 7 and 1)
The round is on target: it will land on the planned hex at the corner of the intersection.
The 120mm mortar has damage 9, with armor modifier +2 and BLAST A. There’s two groups of two soldiers each one hex from the targeted hex, so they are hit by a BLAST B explosion. One group is prone, reducing the blast power to C, while the other is standing and moving away. Let’s roll to see if they’re hit:
PRONE GROUP
- Roll Blast Power C [D8+D8] = 1 SUCCESS (rolled 8 and 1)
- Roll Hit Location Die = ARMS
All prone enemies are hit and suffer 2 damage points (no armor for the arms). They automatically fail their CUF roll (simplified rules for NPCs) and are suppressed.
STANDING GROUP
- Roll Blast Power B [D10+D10] = 0 SUCCESSES (rolled 5 and 4)
- Roll Hit Location Die = LEGS
The standing group is unharmed, they however are knocked prone (Player’s Manual, page 68) and fail their CUF roll (again, simplified rules for NPCs).
In the Round 03 image, it seems like a third group is within the blast radius, but counting by hexes, they’re just one hex beyond Blast Damage D.
Another explosion and a second cloud of dark smoke obscures the impact area.
“On target” confirms PFC CRANE.
Team CALDWELL keeps watch.
FLOCK’s soldiers keep scattering, with one group exiting CRANE’s field of view. The two groups hit by the explosion lose their turn recovering from suppression.
LOOKOUT and PATROL [click to expand]
The lookout has a 8% chance of determining where the mortar is:
- Roll[D100] = 47 -> still no clue
There’s a 3% chance of a patrol arriving to the scouts’ area:
- Roll[D100] = 19 -> no patrols
End of Round 03
ROUND 04
[Team REDWING and the MORTAR TEAM exchange initiative]
The previous target is now obscured by smoke and PFC CRANE can’t assess the damages dealt by the last round. There’s 3 more soldiers just North of the smoke who are prone and immobile, but there were 4 men where the last round landed, so he quickly decides to call another round on the same hex.
MORTAR TEAM’S ROLL [click to expand]
MORTAR TEAM rolls for HEAVY WEAPONS with no modifier. They’re at short range, which gives no modifier, and light, elevation and weather do not come into play:
- MORTAR TEAM rolls HEAVY WEAPONS [D10+D10] = 0 SUCCESSES (rolled 5 and 3)
The round is off target: time to calculate deviation by rolling 2 D6:
- Direction: roll[D6] = 3 -> the round lands S-E of the target hex
- Distance: roll[D6] = 1 -> the round lands 1 hex away from the target hex
The mortar round lands right on top of the two-men team that was running away.
The 120mm mortar has damage 9, with armor modifier +2 and BLAST A. There’s a group of two soldiers in the target hex; they are prone, reducing the blast power to B, while the other is two hexes away and also prone, reducing the blast power to D. Let’s roll to see if they’re hit:
FIRST GROUP
- Roll Blast Power B [D10+D10] = 3 SUCCESSES (rolled 10 and 6)
- Roll Hit Location Die = HEAD
All enemies in the first group are hit and suffer 3 damage points + 2 for the extra 2 successes rolled, for a total of 5 damages. Even assuming they’re all wearing helmets, they would have level 1 armor, increased to 2 because of the explosion modifier, and they would suffer 3 damage point, which is critical. All enemies in the first group are killed in the explosion.
SECOND GROUP
- Roll Blast Power D [D6+D6] = 0 SUCCESSES (rolled 2 and 1)
- Roll Hit Location Die = HEAD
Second group is unharmed, but fails CUF roll and is suppressed.
A new explosion enlarges the dark cloud hiding the intersection.
Team CALDWELL keeps watch.
There are only three groups of Flock soldiers in sight: one is at the far side of the town, lying prone; the second is at the nearest house, also prone, and the third is moving on the road towards the flat roof building.
LOOKOUT and PATROL [click to expand]
The lookout has a 12% chance of determining where the mortar is:
- Roll[D100] = 57 -> still no clue
There’s a 4% chance of a patrol arriving to the scouts’ area:
- Roll[D100] = 74 -> no patrols
End of Round 04
ROUND 05
PFC CRANE decides it’s best to proceed with the farthest target, so not to obscure line of sight by attacking something in front of it. He therefore directs the mortar to strike the group lying prone next to the gazebo-like structure at the far end of town.
CHANGING TARGET [click to expand]
Like before, a new target for the mortar requires a RECON roll from the forward observer (CRANE has INT C and RECON B):
- CRANE rolls RECON [D8+D10] = 2 SUCCESSES (rolled 10 and 4)
He successfully directs the mortar team for their next round (the extra success doesn’t count).
PFC CRANE lifts his finger from the push-to-talk button and raises his eyes over the binocular, his sight embracing the big picture. Two plums of greyish smoke stain the blue sky and confused voices arrive from the town. Suddenly, his ears pick up something new. He exchanges a frowned look with ALEX.
“That’s an engine” they say in unison.
Team CALDWELL keeps watch.
The MORTAR TEAM consumes its slow action adjusting its aim to hit the next target.
LOOKOUT and PATROL [click to expand]
The lookout has a 12% chance of determining where the mortar is:
- Roll[D100] = 83 -> still no clue
There’s a 5% chance of a patrol arriving to the scouts’ area:
- Roll[D100] = 54 -> no patrols
End of Round 05
ROUND 06
MORTAR TEAM’S ROLL [click to expand]
Team REDWING and the MORTAR TEAM exchange initiative once again.
MORTAR TEAM rolls for HEAVY WEAPONS with no modifier. They’re at short range, which gives no modifier, and light, elevation and weather do not come into play:
- MORTAR TEAM rolls HEAVY WEAPONS [D10+D10] = 1 SUCCESS (rolled 9 and 5)
The mortar round lands on target. The enemy group is at the center of the explosion (BLAST A), which is reduced by one step because they’re prone, down to BLAST B. Lets’ roll to see if they’re hit:
- Roll Blast Power B [D10+D10] = 1 SUCCESS (rolled 6 and 4)
- Roll Hit Location Die = TORSO
As the group remained in place instead of scattering, I would imagine it’s formed by recruits and they’re not carrying flak jackets. They therefore suffer 3 damages, which is critical for a BLAST B explosion, meaning they are killed by the mortar.
There is a second group that was running away from the previous explosion, which is within the mortar effect area and is hit by BLAST D. Let’s roll for this group:
- Roll Blast Power D [D6+D6] = 2 SUCCESSES (rolled double 6!!!)
- Roll Hit Location Die = LEGS
The second group suffers 1 damage point + 1 for the extra success for a total of 2 damage points, which is a critical hit for BLAST D (legs have no armor). The 2 soldiers in the second group are killed in the explosion.
Another splash and another target disappears into a cloud of dirt and debris. PFC CRANE confirms the round is on target. In the relative silence, in between the clangs of the church bell, the engine of an idling vehicle can be still heard.
Team CALDWELL keeps watch.
There’s a few soldiers moving around in town, plus a new group coming from the eastern part of it.
LOOKOUT and PATROL [click to expand]
The lookout has a 16% chance of determining where the mortar is:
- Roll[D100] = 77 -> still no clue
There’s a 6% chance of a patrol arriving to the scouts’ area:
- Roll[D100] = 55 -> no patrols
End of Round 06
