Galactic Heroes: Caught in a Tight Spot

 One last AAR for the year; following up on the previous game, after escaping from Lursa's rebels, the Baron contracted with an E-Corp Security Team to launch a retaliation strike. Mission objectives: Kill the rebels and retrieve a series of data crystals containing plans for future raids and the locations/identities of other rebel cells. 

THE CREWS

LURSA'S RAIDERS (Crew Trait: Ranger) 

•  Lursa (Leader; Encouraging, Impervious, Deadeye; Mutations: Life Leech), armed with a Blaster Pistol 
• B'etor (Specialist; Killer, Deft; Mutations: Extra Arms), armed with Pistols 
•  The Maw (Regular; Bloodthirsty; Mutations: Gaping Maw), armed with an Autorifle and Chainsword 
• Torso Jones (Regular; Thundering Charge; Mutations: Iron Hide), armed with a Blaster Rifle and Buzzsaw-Axe 
• Manta Claws (Regular; Steady; Mutations: Fangs and Claws), armed with a Blaster Rifle

E-CORPS SECURITY TEAM (Crew Trait: Advanced Comms) 

• Captain Hudson (Leader; Two Guns, Veteran, Encouraging), armed with Pistols
• Sgt Hicks (Specialist; Ranged Fighter, Deadeye), armed with a Sniper Rifle
• Barry Hercules (Regular; Killer), armed with a Shotgun
• Shiro Hagen (Regular; Observant), armed with an Autorifle
• Wally the Warbot (not pictured; Regular; Soulless), armed with Titanium Fists 

Scenario was "Caught in a Tight Spot" from the Wasteland Warriors rulebook, with the E-Corps team cornering Lursa's Raiders in their camp; Betor and Manta Claws began the game deployed at the center of the table with the four data crystals (Loot tokens by any other name), and the remainder of the gang entering the table as they activated.Night had fallen, reducing visibility to 12" and giving everyone a -1 to Shooting rolls.

Things got off to a quick and bloody start, with Captain Hudson swiftly moving into position and unleashing Burst fire with his two pistols on Betor and Manta Claws, wounding both. Betor struggled to her feet, returning fire before getting a shotgun blast in the back from Barry Hercules that put her out of action and put another wound on Manta. Torso Jones and the Maw entered the table, taking up positions and returning fire once they were within range, and Sgt. Hicks getting into a covered position and taking aim with his sniper rifle. 

 

This very quickly became a knock-down, vicious fight, with figures moving from cover to cover, getting wounded, knocked down, crawling to the next bit of cover, standing up, shaking off shock, firing again...at one point I think a total of five figures on the table were prone with wounds. Both Manta and Shiro Hagen got wounded, crawled a short distance, and then succumbed to their wounds while trying to stand up. E-Corp figures would move in, grab a data crystal, and promptly get shot, dropping it as they fell prone. The Maw was taken out of action by a second Burst of fire from Captain Hudson, with Lursa being wounded in the same burst. 

With Betor, Manta and the Maw all going Out of Action in the span of two rounds, it looked like it was going to be E-Corps' game; but Torso Jones charged out of cover and beheaded Sgt Hicks with a single wild swing of his buzzsaw axe. Lursa shot and wounded Captain Hudson in a phenomenal shot (she needed a 9+ on a D10 and got it) and then Torso jumped on the prone man, finishing him off before catapulting himself at Wally the Warbot and demolishing the 'bot as well.

At the end of the game, Barry Hercules escaped off table with a single data crystal, Lursa had a wound  on her and Torso Jones was standing victorious. Everyone else was Out of Action. But the rebels maintained possession of 3 data crystals, giving them the victory. 

So now the Baron possesses a data crystal full of plans and the locations of other cells...I smell a rematch!