0104 – The Great Escape – Part V – Arriving at Zloczew

 1115 07 AUG 2000, Zloczew, Poland

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We were back again. We had been there before and a few things had changed. The militia manned their checkpoints, weapons at ready. They gave us a few waves of recognition before turning to scan the horizon again. It seems there are determined to keep their independence.

Arriving at the central market, stalls had been set up and business seemed to be good. A few merchants were in town, bartering and haranguing as best they could. Now to find someone headed south.

The characters arrive at Zloczew after a short, uneventful drive. The militia is back in force and stops them at the first checkpoint. Recognizing Potato and Robinson, the group is waved through and continues on into the town proper, finally arriving at the market.

Referee’s note: as the characters did well in the last few encounters, the Chaos Rank will be reduced to 5. In addition, this “side quest” is taking a lot more time from the original story-line than I wanted. Therefore, by the power vested in me as both GM and Players, I am going to assume that we can contact the council and arrange for both the medications and the wounded citizen to be transported back to Weilun. Plot line closed. We will, however, be keeping the generator and refrigerator. Something tells me we will be needing it.

The team will take a break to rest and replenish. First on the list is medical care. Assuming we are here for 24 hours, which is reasonable, the characters can heal their scratch wounds. The little boo-boos are then removed from the character sheets.

That leaves us with the real wounds. The majority of the wounds were suffered during the drive-thru of the ambush in Praszka. We have the following wounds:

• Marshall – Head (Serious), Right Arm (Slight)

• Klasha – Head (Serious), Left Arm (Serious)

Logan had performed first aid before so the team members are out of danger, but they will need rest. Driving around in the back of an OT-64 will not be considered adequate rest.

The second issue is ammunition. The ammunition can be resupplied from the ammunition carried onboard of the OT-64 or from the personal stores, so that is not a problem.

Third on the list if fuel. The team has approximately 80km or a little bit less than half a period of travel, which we can round up to half as there were a couple of detours off-road. This means that Can-Can just swallowed 40×3 (consumption modifier for ethanol) = 120l of ethanol. We should probably get that replaced.

Since the group is in town, they could probably grab some local food for the day, meaning we can add 18kg of domestic food to the shopping list.

The last item on the list is tricky: the coax was damaged during the ambush in we need replacement parts. Add on PK to the list and we should keep an eye out for more ammunition for both the PK and KPV. That being said, off to the market.

I will be using the house rules I posted before, in case anyone is wondering how I came to the result that I have. I am not going to reiterate them here but you can find them in the post archives.

The shopping list contains the following:

Item	Amount Needed	Availability	Base Price
Ethanol	120l	C/C	$15
Domestic Food	18kg	C/C	$5
PK Machinegun	1	R/S	$2000
7.62mm L	As much as possible, if we get a PK	S/C	$70
14.5mm B	As much as possible	S/C	$30

Zloczew is a town, so we will use the availability ratings for a town. First of all, to find a merchant willing to sell fuel (C, meaning 10 or less on a D10). The merchant is a coward (Jack of Diamonds) and moderately greedy (5 of Diamonds), raising all base price rolls by +10% for selling and -10% for buying. Griffin and Potato will go shopping with Wally as a translator. The highest Persuasion asset is 5, from Griffin.

For the fuel, the merchant is asking 120% (including the +10%) for the fuel. This would bring the total price to 120x15x1.2 or $2160. Wow, that is a lot. Maybe Griff can get him to lower the price a bit.

[Convince the merchant to lower the price for the fuel – Asset Level 5 – Difficult (x1) – Target Number 5 – Roll(s): 4] – Success.

The price is lowered by 10%, bringing it down to 110%. Griff can try again at one level more of difficulty.

[Convince the merchant to lower the price for the fuel – Asset Level 5 – Formidable (x1/2) – Target Number 2 – Roll(s): 8] – Failure.

So that is final offer. The total price will be 120x15x1.1 = $1980. Still a lot of money.

Thankfully we have some medical equipment from Weilun to trade 160 Units of strong sedative ($5 each base price) and two Doctor's Medical Kits ($1000 each base price).

The merchant is willing to give us 80% of the base value for the sedatives but only 30% for the doctor’s medical kit. Strange but something we don’t want to probe into too deeply at the moment.

Maybe Griff can convince him to up his offer.

[Convince the merchant to raise his offer for the sedatives – Asset Level 5 – Difficult (x1) – Target Number 5 – Roll(s): 10] – Griff cannot change his mind on the sedatives.

We can try to bump the price on the medical kits, as 30% of their value is not a lot, to be honest.

[Convince the merchant to raise his offer for the medical kits – Asset Level 5 – Difficult (x1) – Target Number 5 – Roll(s): 4] – Griff gets him to up the price by 10%.

We definitely need to try raise the price yet again, although there is little chance of that succeeding.

[Convince the merchant to raise his offer for the medical kits again – Asset Level 5 – Formidable (x1/2) – Target Number 2 – Roll(s): 3] – Almost but not quite

After all this haggling, we can bring to the table the sedatives (160x5x0.8 = $640) and the medical kits (2000x0.4 = $800), totaling $1440, much less than the characters wanted.

At this stage, we can continue to throw things on the pile or try doing something a character would do. Potato will use his bulk to convince the merchant. Potato brings 96kg (212 lbs) of fighting prowess to the table and attempts to pressure the merchant into accepting the medical supplies in exchange for the fuel.

Potato is large and we know the merchant is a coward at heart, so there is some chance of success. If the attempt fails then the deal is off. If it is an exceptional no, then violence will ensue with the merchant and his guards. We can ask the GME to determine the result.

[GME: Can Potato convince the merchant to accept the price by threats? - Chaos Rank 5 – Somewhat Likely (65%) - 42% - Yes]

Although the merchant is not happy about the exchange, he grabs up the medical supplies, questions the characters lineage and gives them the fuel.

This is a good example of using the GME to cover holes in the rules. Of course I could have just made say a difficult roll against Potato’s strength for intimidation purposes, but I find this solution better and a good use of the solo engine.

Next on the list is food. The needed amount of food (18kg) has a base price of 18x5 = $90. Food is commonly available in town, so we can skip the roll. I assume we will have to take our business somewhere else so we can draw the motivation of the next merchant (Queen of Diamonds – Lustful and Seven of Clubs – Moderately Violent). This could get interesting.

The merchant is asking (90x120%) $108 for the food. That is a lot but we do have a lot of mouths to feed. Maybe could trade in the Soviet Field Rations we have. No one really likes them anyways. The merchant is willing to give us 80% of the value for the field rations. Time to haggle.

[Convince the merchant to lower his price for the domestic food – Asset Level 5 – Difficult (x1) – Target Number 5 – Roll(s): 20] – Catastrophic failure. The price even manages to go up by 15% to $124.

Maybe we could get a better price for the rations.

[Convince the merchant to raise his offer for the field rations – Asset Level 5 – Difficult (x1) – Target Number 5 – Roll(s): 13] – The merchant is sticking to his price

Looking back, it might have been worth our wild to take a bit more food with use, but space is limited and we need place for the prisoners.

We can just drop the deal and continue on. Looks like MREs and such tonight.

Next on the list is the PK. The item is scarce but one is available for sale. The price is 2000x80% or $1600. The merchant is not particularly greedy, so that helps a lot. That seems like a fair price and we will let is stand.

We do not have enough chemical defense suits for everyone anyway, so we can probably spare 2. The merchant will offer us 2000x90% = $1800. Of course the characters would try to up the offer.

[Convince the merchant to raise his offer for the chemical defense suits – Asset Level 5 – Difficult (x1) – Target Number 5 – Roll(s): 3] – The merchant raises the price by 10%

We get full price for the defense suits and I am not going to risk blowing that. The difference is $400. The merchant has ammo for the PK and offers to cover the difference in ammunition. The ammo is worth $70x1.2=$84 per 100-round belt (7 belts available) to him. He also has 14.5mm B available for $30x1.1=$33 per 100-round belt (3 belts available).

The group will then trade for 3 belts of 14.5mm B ($99 value) and 3.5 belts of 7.62mm L. Good trade and the equipment is added to the list on the vehicle sheet.

Wally can repair the PK (yes, I know it is probably not that easy but it is a game, after all) with a successful roll.

[Repair the PK Coax – Asset Level 8 – Difficult (x1) – Target Number 8 – Roll(s): 2] – Success. The PK is back in action.

The team also gains 1 skill point and 1 initiative point for their trials and tribulations up to now. Now time for some rest.

0103 – The Great Escape – Part VI – On the Way to Zloczew – The Hunters

 1045 07 AUG 2000, Near Weilun, Poland

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Not everyone you meet is tryin’ to kill you. It is hard to remember that little bit of wisdom these days but that does not make it any less true. We had a chat with those hunters and, although they could not help us get the supplies delivered, they were a welcome break to lead being slung over our heads at high speed.

Wally thanked them for their time and handed over a clip for their AK. The really liked that and then everyone went on their way, still breathing.

Just to recap, the team has met a group of hunters from Zloczew. They are frightened but unwilling to run so that they won’t be perceived as doing something shifty. They are not willing to talk but the leader is very ambitious. Where to go from here is the big question.

Both Wally and Klasha speak Polish, although Wally is the only native speaker. Klasha is also seriously wounded, so we should probably leave her out of the action for a while.

It is probably not a good idea to dismount Wally alone but at the same time, the group does not want to appear as a threat. One other member should accompany him, excluding the driver (Robinson) and the gunner (Potato). Potato would probably be a threat just by his presence. That being settled, Wally and Macron dismount, Macron slightly behind and to the left of Wally as the approach the group. Wally has his weapon slung and Macron has his pointed up, trying hard to be non-threatening.

The characters had an interaction with Zloczew when they drove out the stragglers that had taken up residence in the town. Therefore, it is possible that the hunters know the group, as they are responsible for the civilian’s weapons. Still, we can ask the GME.

[GME: Do the hunters recognize the characters after they come close? - Chaos Rank 6 – Somewhat Likely (80% - it is a large town but the group stayed a couple of days and may have met more people but probably not everyone) - 33% - Yes]

Now that the hunters know who the group are, there may be a chance that they are more inclined to talk to the group. The characters helped them out once in their time of need and has only had a positive impact on the community.

[GME: Will the hunters now talk to the group? - Chaos Rank 6 – Very Likely (90%) - 52% - Yes]

So now everyone can relax and start talking to each other. The initial reluctance probably comes from the fact that the hunters do not recognize Wally, as he was brought onboard after Mitchell was killed in an ambush while the group was recovering the OT-64. Marshall probably watched the whole thing.

Wally dismounted and approached the group, his hands hooked into his web belt. The hunters still clutched their weapons, watching his every move. When Macron came around the end of Can-Can, a hint of recognition passed over their faces. One of the younger ones then pointed toward the turret where Potato’s bulk filled the turret hatch. After that, the group relaxed, knowing we meant them no harm.

A good day then, no one has to die. The easiest solution would be for the hunters to travel farther south and deliver the medication to the townspeople of Weilun. That would, however, be a major risk for the group. Still, one can ask.

[GME: Would the hunters be willing to smuggle the medication into Weilun for the characters? - Chaos Rank 6 – Very Unlikely (45%) - 74% - No]

I did not really expect them too. In the current state of the world, that is asking a lot. There is probably a lot of trade between the towns, maybe the hunters know of a merchant or smuggler that would be willing to take over the transport.

[GME: Do the hunters know of someone that would be willing to smuggle the medication into Weilun for the characters? - Chaos Rank 6 – Somewhat Likely (80%) - 96% - No]

Would have been too good to be true anyway. Guess there is not much more that the characters can hope to learn from the hunters, so they can probably part ways.

On to Zloczew.

0102 – The Great Escape – Part V – On the Way to Zloczew

 1045 07 AUG 2000, Near Weilun, Poland

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After strapping the generator on the back deck and stowing the small freezer with the blood and plasma, the team can prepare the package for the civilians. The drugs most needed to combat the outbreak are:

Item	No. Available
Antibiotic – (Liquid or Oral)	95 Units
Mild Pain-Reliever	163 Units

It would have been nice to have more and a lot of people got hit for very little return, but that is the way it goes sometimes.

After the package is prepared, the team is left with:

Item	No. Available
Blood, Whole	2 Units
Plasma	3 Units
Sedative, Strong	160 Units
Doctor's Medical Kit	2 Kits
Small Freezer	1
1.5kw Generator	1

The greatest problem now is how to get the medication BACK to Weilun. It would probably not be advisable to roll on back into town, drop off the wounded civilian and the drugs. Better to maintain the appearance of a marauder raid.

Instead the team can continue on to Zloczew. They have been there before, freeing the town from the control of a group of stragglers. The townspeople will probably not be very upset to see them and maybe the team can find a way of getting the medication back to Weilun.

We have not had a random encounter during this period of travel so I can just go ahead and roll. The territory around Zloczew used to be classified Terrorized, as the stragglers had taken over the town and had their way with it before the officer showed up and restored order. Since the characters drove off the stragglers and rearmed the town, I would classify the territory as Insular. The town is not keen on a repeat. The territory type will not add a modifier to the encounter roll.

The terrain type is, of course, Road. A roll of 3 gives us the encounter type Group and a second roll (5) reveals that they are Hunters. The terrain is open, so the encounter distance is just over 2km (2,100m). Using my generator tool, the group can be fleshed out.

Encounter: Hunters unit with 7 hunters. (Observation 16)

=============================================

Veteran Polish hunter #1

(Initiative: 4, Attributes: 7, Assets: 13, UCD: 4)

Motivation:

-----------------------------------------------------

Very ambitious: The NPC will be overwhelmed by a desire to manipulate and control the people around him, to become a ruler of men.

Moderately violent: The NPC is aggressive and inclined to view violence as the preferred means of resolving disputes.

Hits:

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -1 Initiative

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -2 Initiative

Note: initiative modifiers are cumulative.

Main Weapon: AK-74 with 1 magazine(s)/belt(s) and 10 loose rounds

Grenades: HC Smoke Grenade q

Equipment: Flak Jacket, Combat Webbing, Pack, Gas Mask, Sleeping Bag,

Food: 5kg of Wild Food

*****************************************************

Experienced Polish hunter #2

(Initiative: 3, Attributes: 6, Assets: 11, UCD: 3)

Hits:

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -1 Initiative

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -2 Initiative

Note: initiative modifiers are cumulative.

Main Weapon: Double-Barreled Shotgun with 4 magazine(s)/belt(s) and 10 loose rounds

Melee Weapon: Club

Equipment: Pack, Sleeping Bag,

Food: 1kg of Wild Food

*****************************************************

Experienced Polish hunter #3

(Initiative: 3, Attributes: 6, Assets: 11, UCD: 3)

Hits:

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -1 Initiative

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -2 Initiative

Note: initiative modifiers are cumulative.

Main Weapon: Crossbow with 7 arrows/bolts

Grenades: Antitank Grenade q

Equipment: Kevlar Vest, Combat Webbing, Pack, Sleeping Bag, Gas Mask,

Food: 7kg of Domestic Food

*****************************************************

Experienced Polish hunter #4

(Initiative: 3, Attributes: 6, Assets: 11, UCD: 3)

Hits:

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -1 Initiative

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -2 Initiative

Note: initiative modifiers are cumulative.

Main Weapon: Pump-Action Shotgun with 5 magazine(s)/belt(s) and 10 loose rounds

Equipment: Kevlar Helmet, Combat Webbing, Pack, Sleeping, Pack, Flashlight,

Food: 3kg of Wild Food

*****************************************************

Experienced Polish hunter #5

(Initiative: 3, Attributes: 6, Assets: 11, UCD: 3)

Hits:

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -1 Initiative

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -2 Initiative

Note: initiative modifiers are cumulative.

Main Weapon: Double-Barreled Shotgun with 4 magazine(s)/belt(s) and 20 loose rounds

Grenades: Fragmentation Grenade q

Equipment: Pack, Sleeping Bag, Flashlight,

Food: 1kg of Wild Food

*****************************************************

Novice Polish hunter #6

(Initiative: 1, Attributes: 6, Assets: 9, UCD: 1)

Hits:

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -1 Initiative

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -2 Initiative

Note: initiative modifiers are cumulative.

Main Weapon: .22 Semiautomatic with 2 magazine(s)/belt(s) and 10 loose rounds

Melee Weapon: Hatchet

Equipment: Kevlar Helmet, Combat Webbing, Pack, Sleeping, Pack, Flashlight,

Food: 4kg of Wild Food

*****************************************************

Novice Polish hunter #7

(Initiative: 1, Attributes: 6, Assets: 9, UCD: 1)

Hits:

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -1 Initiative

qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq qqqqq -2 Initiative

Note: initiative modifiers are cumulative.

Main Weapon: .22 Semiautomatic with 4 magazine(s)/belt(s) and 20 loose rounds

Grenades: 140mm HEAT Rifle Assault Weapon (RAW) rifle grenade q

Equipment: Kevlar Helmet, Combat Webbing, Pack, Sleeping, Pack, Flashlight,

Food: 9kg of Wild Food

-----------------------------------------------------

The unit is mounted on horses with riding saddles.

Time to check surprise. The characters are moving in a vehicle, making the roll Average for the Hunters. There are seven hunters in the group (-7) but the characters have a vehicle (+5), making the asset 14.

[Detect the approaching characters in a vehicle – Asset Level 14 – Average (x2) – Target Number 19 – Roll(s): 6] – Outstanding Success.

That was to be expected, as the OT-64 is not known for its stealth characteristics. Can the characters pull off the same trick?

The highest Observation for the characters is 15, minus 5 for the vehicle, plus 7 for the number of people in the other group, for a total of 17. The hunters do not have a vehicle, so the roll is Difficult.

[Detect the Hunters – Asset Level 17 – Difficult (x1) – Target Number 19 – Roll(s): 13] – Success.

Both groups detect each other. Now to see how it play out.

On the road to Zloczew, the group could probably come from either town, so a random roll (1-3 Weilun, 4-6 Zloczew), reveals that they are from Zloczew. Still, maybe there are open to a deal.

We can use the settlement attitude table to set the basic attitude for the group. I roll one D6 and add 3 because of the territory type, resulting in the group being Frightened. This is understandable, as the group is out trying to find food for their community and a lot of armed bands are dangerous. How will they react? We can ask the GME.

It is very unlikely the Hunters will just attack the group out of hand, as they are definitely outgunned. Still, we have to know.

[GME: Will the group attack the characters? - Chaos Rank 6 – Very Unlikely (45%) - 100% - Exceptional No]

Wow, not only will they not attack, they will go out of their way to avoid conflict with the characters. This means that they would probably flee, but we can ask the GME anyway.

[GME: Will the group flee from characters? - Chaos Rank 6 – Very Likely (90%) - 100% - Exceptional No]

Now that is strange, two 100s in a row. So are the ways of the mysterious die gods.

The group does not flee, so this means that they let the characters approach, but why? Maybe they want to take the chance and contact the character group.

[GME: Are the Hunters willing to talk? - Chaos Rank 6 – Unlikely (50%) - 55% - No]

Maybe they are concerned if they flee that may make them a target. This is likely, given the present state of the world.

[GME: Are the Hunters scared to flee because they may be seen as a victim or threat? - Chaos Rank 6 – Likely (85%) - 50% - Yes]

So they remain where they are in order to not give the impression that they have something to hide. That is great, so we can assume the characters are allowed to approach, stopping near the group. We can also assume 50m is close enough. Marshall was there, so she can tell us.

We rolled up slowly on the group. There was no sense scaring anyone, as that would just have led to some more early departures from this world. We had had enough for today.

The group fanned out in front of us, probably to avoid us getting too many wit the KPV, if we decided to mow them down. Better safe than sorry and they seem to have been around the block a couple of times.

It was a rag tag group. They were obviously civilian but they had some military hardware in there stocks, including a well used AK. They seemed serious but we had the impression that they were generally trying to avoid a fight. That suited me just fine.

Now, where to go from here?