ACTION ON THE RED RIVER

AS USAL, i am  always looking at oddball   scenarios for sci-fi games,
for use with any rules.

since most of our games are actually played using   the old TRAVELLER
RPG system for building worlds, solar systems ,  sub-sectors and sectors
of space, BUT not necssarily following the GDW UNIVERSE, as scripted, we also
use wotever ruleset that is most wunnerful at the time.

we also use models of spacecraft for actions in space, with little
lead or plastic joes/jolenes  with  deckplans to fight out boarding
actions, and tabletop terrain to fight out planetside actions.

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THE BACKGROUND.

the latest small scale struggle for truth, justice, and our
joe's/jolene's way of life OUT THERE takes place on  a  low tech level
(mostly steam, wind, muscle, and animal power outback, with some interstellar
normal level at capital city and built up areas), low population (3,000,000 at
last census, about half that is transported colonits) colonial world where the
forcs of lawlessness and disorder (bandits that used to be transported
colonists) are trying to get strangle hold on the local economy of FIRST SHIP
and voluntary colonists.

this has come about due to a change of government backhome (no more
transported scum sent to the off world colonies, but also, no more
government  funding  to run things   off world either!).
the colonists are on their own.

to this world of wonder comes the some times piratical ffree trader HI THERE
III, inbound with a load of agricultural machinery, luxury items, and
smallarms on a vogage of specultion, as well as a few wandering
hardcases from unknown pasts, looking for  unkown futures- do not ask,
do not tell passengers, if you value your health, if you get my drift.

in due time cargo and passengers are off loaded, the crew has a
planetside leave, and new cargo and/or passengers are sought out, the HI
THERE III lifts off and returns to roaming the spaceways....

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THE CARGO.

the agricultural machinery is destined for delivery to a settlement NNW of the
spaceport town, about 200 miles up the RED RIVER, and smack into one of the
areas largely controlled by bandit bands. delivery is scheduled by one of the
locaal steam powered river boats, WANDER OF ERIN, CPT MASON DIXON, master and
owner.

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THE WANDER OF ERIN

THE INFO BELOW IS READILY AVAILABLE TO ANYONE.

WANDER OF ERIN,  100-MT WOOD BURNING   STERNWNEEL   STEAMBOAT,  CREW OF
7, PLUS THE CAPTAIN. TOP SPEED IS 9 KNOTS, DRAFT 3 FEET. ONLY VESSEL IN CLASS.
NO ARMAMENT, AND NO RADIO.

DECK CARGO IS STORED UNDER THE  SKELETAL WOODEN SUPERSTRUC- TURE
SUPPORTING THE PILOT HOUSE, AND CABINS FOR CREW AND 6 PASSENGERS. DECK
PASSENGERS, IF ANY, ARE ON THE MAIN DECK WITH CARGO.

THE MASTER AND HIS CREW ARE TYPICAL RIVER BOAT FOLKS. NONE HAVE BODY ARMOR,
EVERYONE HAS A HANDGUN, SPARE AMMO, AMD A KNIFE OR HATCHET ON HIS BELT.

THERE ARE FOUR SHOTGUNS AND FOUR CARBINES IN THE BOAT'S ARMORY WITH LIMITED
AMMO ALONG WITH TWO FLAREPISTOLS AND 2 DOZEN ASSORTED COLORED FLARES.

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THE BOFFINS.

IN ADDITION TO THE  MASTER/ OWNER AND CREW, THERE ARE  FOUR  (4)  BODS
TRAVELLING UP RIVER TO THE SERF DIG 50 MILES BEYOND THE DELIVERY POINT FOR THE
AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY. BOFFINS OF VARIOUS AGES, 3 MALE 1 FEMALE, VISIBLY
ARMED WITH HANDGUNS. ONE OF THEM IS A MEDICAL DOCTOR.

THE BOFFINS  HAVE LIMITED AMMO FOR THEIR HANDGUNS, PLUS   A SHOTGUN, 2
CARBINES AND A RIFLE WITH LIMITED AMMO IN THEIR BAGGAGE (UNSEEN AND UNKNOWN TO
BANDIT SPIES).

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THE MANIAX.

Waiting up river for them at THE THREE SISTERS is BIG MIKE FINK and his
MANIAX, one of the more suffessful bandit bands roaming the outback and
collecting tolls from RED RIVER traffic. BIG MIKE has other plans for the ag
machinery and boffins.

there are 30 MANIAX in BIG MIKE's bandit band.  about 1/3 are veterans,
1/3 are experienced, and 1/3 are "green",
all have horses or mules to ride and carry supplies..

BIG MIKE, his LTs (4 of them) and about half of the MANIAX have light body
armor, all have a CCW (knife, machete, club, hatchet, etc). the rest rely on
poor hygiene and clothing for protection.

 weaponry is mostly of   the "liberated" colonist variety-hanguns,
shotgus, carbines, rifles-with a few  captured lawforcer hanguns, SMG,
assault rifles, three LMG with limited ammo., and a half dozen homemade hand
grenades

BIG MIKE's shooty pride and joy is a 90mm recoilless rifle (with 12
rouds of HE ammo) captured from   OLD MAN JENNING's place.

BIG MIKE depends on pistol launched flares, smoke signals, hand signals, lung
power, runners etc, for battlefield commo

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THE THREE SISTERS.

this is a grouping of three large rocks, with smaller rocks and dirt around
them, making small rocky islands, actually, located smack in
the middle of  an S-bend in the RED RIVER.

river traffic must either go between the THREE SISTERS, or pass close to the
shore on either side of them, where river boats pass with mere
yards of the  tree and brush lined  banks.   either way, the combo of
increased downstream current, and hazard reduces the speed of anyriver boat to
about 6 knots when negotiteing the THREE SISTERS.

it is common to transit this section of river before nightfall.

also, due to dangers of traveling at night, it is common for riverboats to
tied up at the river bank or anchor in midestream for the night.