I recently received the updated rules for Nuts! a World War II game from Two Hour Wargames. In addition, I got the Compendium, with covers a number of optional rules, such as ski troops, mascots, weather, air strikes, and urban fights.
After playing the videogame Snipe Elite 4, in which you go through Italy during WWII, I decided to play my own sniper game. I like this especially because the rules in Nuts allow for unlimited maps and missions.
This will be a Chocolate and Cigarettes game, meaning a game with smaller numbers of troops, as my entire 'team' consists of one lone sniper. Since I wanted to be a good guy but still a cold-hearted, ruthless killer, I went with a Russian soldier.
Meet Dimitri Kozlov, a Rep 5 Russian Sniper. Fitness 5, Mental 4, People 3. Basically, his skills mean he's in incredible shape with above average intellect and average people skills. Hopefully he won't have to do any negotiating.
For Attributes, I went with the Compendium rules, which allow for a wider variety. I started with the Sniper Package, which is Sniper Expert and Stealthy. I then randomly rolled Dim, which means he's a hell of a sneaky shooter, but he really, really doesn't play well with others.
The campaign starts with both sides at Morale 4 and Investment at 4. As the first Encounter is a Patrol, Investment is a 3. Using the Compendium rules, this will be a Sniper Patrol, meaning I not only have to reach the top of the map, but I must drop two major opponents, whether they're officers, enemy snipers, ect.
In case you're wondering, no Dimitri is not about to play Twister. Using my living room as the board, I set Dimitri at Section 9 at the top of a hill. The orange and green represent the forest at sections 1, 4, and 7. The red circles are the three PEFs, starting in Sections 2, 4, and 5.
PEF #1 resolves as Nothing. However, PEF #2 resolves as an NCO and a Rifleman ( I rolled at random because at the time, I wasn't sure how to resolve specific troops). PEF #3 resolved as 3 Riflemen.
Rolling Activation, the Germans move first. This triggers and In Sight Check, with the winner basically getting a free turn. I rolled Red d6 for Dimitri and Green d6 for the Germans, with 1, 2, and 3 being Successes. The side with the most successes win In Sight.
Uh oh! Even though they get a -1d6 penalty for my Stealthy Attribute, they still win and get to go first. While the NCO has an SMG which doesn't have the range to hit me, the Rifleman has a Bolt-Action Rifle that can, even without a scope. He's a Rep 4, but I'm at the top of a hill and prone so the chances of him scoring any kind of hit are-
Crap!!!! Not only does he score a direct hit, but for damage I roll another 6, which is Obviously Dead! He scored with a head shot to my soldier!
Wait, I still have Star Power! That means my Star, the character I control, rolls a number of d6 equal to his Rep, and as long as he rolls, 1, 2, and/or 3, he can reduce and even ignore the damage completely. All he needs are a couple of those rolls and he'll be completely in the clear-
Um, yeah . . .about that . . .
So ends the saga of Dimitri Kozlov. In his first mission, a lone, lowly enemy soldier puts a single bullet right between his eyes and ends his adventures.
Luckily, it's not over yet! I rolled up a new character and the Russian platoon, upon learning of poor Dimitri's fate, has sent another sniper to take his place. I'm keeping the campaign the same. Luckily, the Campaign Morale remained the same. However, since I lost the Patrol encounter, my new character will start his adventure with a Defend.
But that's for another story.
For now, RIP Dimitri Kozlov. Dropped before he ever fired a bullet. And this will go down in history as my quickest RPG adventure yet.
Hopefully, my new character has better luck.
