OVERCAST: Mason's Rebellion

KamiKahzy · Aug 4, 2018

Mason lets the transgression with Dub go, he's new after all and not familiar with military organization. But it did bring up a valid point, some of the people going in weren't the best equipped to be handling a full on assault. At the moment they didn't have the supply to redistribute weapons properly. But most everyone in the squads at least had a rifle, that would have to do for now. But Mason tells Greaves that the lieutenants can bring 5 of the firebombs with them just to add some versatility to their arsenal.

In the meantime Mason himself went up to the truck and spoke directly to the two men. "I'd like to know how you found this place, first."

Lorsh · Aug 4, 2018

You approach the truck, and hear faint music coming from the radio, although it's almost turned all the way down.

The 'younger' man, who might be around your age, replies. "Well, uh... we knew where it was before, we just didn't know you boys had set up here. I'll just be honest; we were on our way to a stash. It's buried somewhere in this compound, I don't know if you boys found it yet, but uh... we were basically gonna get some better guns, then go back to those sum'bitches for another round, y'know? Couldn't do much with those lever-guns," he says. "Had to hide the better stuff from the provos, so we didn't have it on hand when they showed up on our property."

The older man smooths his shirt a bit. "...Not that the two of us are in a position to negotiate if you fellas really want somethin' your way, but you look like a reasonable guy, yeah? We could dig up that stash for you, let you keep some of the guns? Maybe you could send a few boys to help us clear out them bad'nits?"

KamiKahzy · Aug 20, 2018

Mason nods as he thinks over the situation. Assuming these men are telling the truth then there's really no reason to not let them into the compound and collect their property. Though he didn't want just anyone wandering around the facility unguarded.

Mason holds up his hand to the men in a 'wait' gesture while he goes off to talk to one of the guards he brought. He tells them to get the compound sanitized of any obvious capabilities so the civilians don't see more than they should. And also to grab a shovel if the civilians didn't bring any. Then Mason orders three of the guards and the younger of the two men to come with him, the rest of the guards are to stay with the vehicle and the older civilian. "Go ahead and claim your property," he tells the civilian, "but we're watching you. Understood?"

As Mason and the guards walk with the civilian towards the supposed stash, he asks him about the 'bad'nits' in question. How many there were, how well armed were they, and if they seemed organized at all.

Lorsh · Aug 20, 2018

"We're grateful, sir," the younger of the two men tells you. "And yes, fully understood."

Your men make sure that the camp is clear of anything sensitive to the eyes of outsiders. Some vehicles, weapons and equipment are covered up with tarps for the time being.

The man leads you over near the northwest corner of the camp, and a few of your militiamen start to dig while he talks to you about the bandits he and his buddy encountered earlier.

The man begins to describe the bandits to you. "Well, most of 'em are men. They've got a few trucks, cars, shit like that to drive around in. Few of 'em got pistols, few of 'em got shotguns, a few of 'em got automatics. Maybe two dozen guys overall, I'd say? They're no doubt harassin' other folks that live out in the country, probably rapin' and stealin'. My brother ended up taking a bullet, but the rest of my family managed to get away, but they're scattered. As our little 'all clear' signal, we got a blue flare gun hidden back at the house. If we could get to it, we could use it bring 'em back. Hopefully they're still alive. But yeah, we'd have to clean out those other fuckers first."

Finally, the stash is dug up. There are two large duffel bags, one of them filled with large-caliber handguns, and the other with assault weapons. The men have a sizable stash overall, with an emphasis on .357, .45 and 5.56mm firearms. It definitely looks like it may have tipped the scales slightly in the two men's favor if they went back to face the bandits with these guns, but it may have still been slightly suicidal due to the ruffians' larger numbers. It's debatable on whether or not the two men care, though.

Pocket pistol [2, 10]
Wheelgun [6/6, 6/6, 6/6]
Scoped magnum [6/6, 6/6, 6/6]
Heavy pistol [8/8, 8/8, 8/8]
.45 pistol [7/7, 7/7, 7/7]
.45 pistol [7/7, 7/7, 7/7]
Heavy SMG [20/20, 20/20, 20/20]
Burst rifle [15/15, 15/15, 15/15]
Burst rifle [15/15, 15/15, 15/15]

KamiKahzy · Aug 20, 2018

Mason nods appreciatively at the cache as he wasn't expecting quite this much ordinance from a bunch of backwoods locals. And due to the sheer number of bandits Mason concludes that they cannot be allowed to simply roam about freely. A few ideas start to form about how to deal with the problem, but unfortunately they'll have to wait until the assault with Hartnup has concluded.

Mason gestures towards the cache of guns as he speaks, "Please take it all, it's your property. And for what it's worth, I would like to help you two out with these bandits. Letting them run free is a threat to us and plenty of innocents out here. Unfortunately my men are a bit tied up with operations for the next few days, I can't spare anyone until this other business is concluded. But I would like to discuss this further if you two are willing. Is there a place we'll be able to meet? Or maybe a radio frequency you can monitor?"

As Mason is walking the man back to the truck he asks where exactly they managed to get these guns. Some of them appeared to be military issue.

Lorsh · Aug 24, 2018

The man seems grateful that he and his comrade can retain access to the weapons, but he reminds you that you are free to use and keep many of them if you get around to helping him. He appears a little stressed that the help cannot come immediately, but tells you that he can keep in touch with you via a radio frequency. He tells you that he'll be camping in the woods, in the meantime.

The man, who finally introduced himself as Mel, and the other man (his father) as Carter, explains that the three long guns were smuggled home by veterans of Operation Vanquish(1). They were stashed away, and used to fight zombies in the initial outbreak, then hidden again after the NPA took over, in case the Clean Zone were to ever be compromised. The handguns were all legally owned before the outbreak, as well as the leverguns they had in the truck. Though, now the NPA has mostly banned handguns for being too concealable.

Carter and Mel load their guns up into their truck. If nothing else is to be said, they drive off.

Later, a runner comes up to you and tells you that Lambert of Prater's Militia has mobilized some men, and that Captain Hartnup also radioed and said to be on standby to meet them near Tosaco.

(1) A series of military conflicts that occurred around 20 years ago, fought by the Central Republic and its South Federal allies against several other nations in that region. It ultimately overthrew numerous small countries' governments, including several communist regimes (but mostly left-leaning democratic countries) and replaced them with puppet states of the Central Republic's allies.

KamiKahzy · Aug 26, 2018

Mason records the radio frequency from Mel and bids him and his father good luck before sending them off.

With all the other business concluded it was time to get the troops ready to head out for Tosaco. Since this would be the first real battle Mason and his men would engage in, Mason felt it prudent that he be there to oversee his own troops personally. Not only for the troops' morale but to also make sure there weren't any wires crossed with the various groups Hartnup managed to gather for the assault.

Mason quickly finds Greaves and tells him to get suited up. It wasn't part of the original plan but Mason will need his Chief to help coordinate the men and keep them organized when the fighting starts. He would have liked to keep Greaves at base to coordinate the defenses, but the assault has too much riding on it to allow for any small oversights. Mason leaves command of the base with Harry and instructs him to keep a tight watch schedule while the bulk of their forces are away. He promises that he'll radio back to base with any pertinent updates as they arise.

Mason leaves Harry with a firm handshake and then goes to suit up himself. Mason takes his assault rifle, his sidearm and his ballistic vest before heading out to the yard to oversee the caravan as it loads up.

Lorsh · Aug 30, 2018

After Mel and Carter leave, a few of your men make jokes about them being crazy hillbillies.

Greaves goes and grabs his gear, getting ready to move. Harry agrees to stay behind and watch over the base, and tells you he'll let you know if anything comes up.

Your men start getting ready to leave. Currently, only 5 firebombs are being brought along. Hartnup expects the outpost to have a chainlink perimeter fence, in addition some sandbag pillboxes, makeshift palisades, and a few defensive trenches. In terms of vehicles, the enemy has at least one armored personnel carrier, several humvees, and assorted trucks and jeeps.

After gearing up, you go outside and take a look over your assault group again. Most of the men have already assembled and are ready to go. The vehicles have all been inspected, fueled up, tire pressures checked, etc. A few of the men look nervous, while others look pumped to finally be taking on the zone's fascist overlords.

KamiKahzy · Aug 30, 2018

Even with the odds they may or may not be facing, Mason feels he has as many men and supplies as he can spare for a first assault without risking everything.

Mason takes a moment to adjust his gear before he takes a spot in front of the men and raises a hand for their attention. Once the noise settles down enough Mason speaks out loudly so everyone can hear his voice.

"Men, this is it. Our first step towards liberating our home from the warlords that organized their own rise to power. You all signed on for this, and for that you have my respect, and my gratitude. I don't know what we'll find when we get down there, but it doesn't matter because I'll be with you all to the end. Remember, we fight for each other so we can continue the fight for freedom. And no matter what, no one gets left behind. Good hunting!"

And with that Mason takes his place in the caravan and, once everything is ready, gives the signal to move out. Once the caravan leaves Mason radios ahead to Hartnup to let him know they're on the way.

Lorsh · Aug 31, 2018

A cheer rises up among your assembled militiamen as you conclude your modest pep talk. The men pile into their vehicles with their guns and equipment, and soon your convoy is rolling out the gates of the old compound.

You hitch a ride in one of the cars, and your caravan takes a few country backroads until it gets near Tosaco. Thankfully, it was an uneventful drive.

There is a clearing in the outskirts of Tosaco where you meet Captain Hartnup and the others. There are many ARF fighters assembled, most of them suited up in green and brown hunting camouflage fatigues, with boonie hats and baseball caps on their heads. Most of them have light blue armbands or face masks. Maybe half of them have assault rifles, with the others possessing other assorted long guns, like hunting rifles and shotguns.

Quite a few of Prater's men can be seen as well, wearing mostly civilian clothes with some reinforced pads and such included. They are identified by their purple armbands marked with a 'P', and appear to be mostly armed with hunting weapons, supplemented by a few semi-automatic rifles and submachine guns.

There is an armored RV in the center of the camp that Hartnup appears to have created as a improvised mobile command post. He appears in the vehicle's doorway, and waves for you to come in.

You are introduced to Lt. Camroy, the leader of the ARF outpost in Chauvez, as well as Bobby Lambert, the representative of Prater's rebels.

Hartnup shows you the tac-map of the Lake Outpost, as well as the sectors where the attacks will take place. He tells you that the participation of Prater's rebels has caused him to change his previous plans slightly. Right now, Camroy's unit is supposed to take Sector 4, and Prater has been assigned to Sector 3. Due to Camroy being short on men, Hartnup decided to dismount his hired boat crew and attach them to Camroy's ground units.

Hartnup says that you can choose to focus on either Sector 1 or 2, and asks if you have any tactical input. In a nutshell, his current plan is to blow holes in the defences with rocket-propelled grenades and hopefully destroy most of the machine gun emplacements, before moving in with his makeshift armored vehicles; which consist a few reinforced cargo vans, as well as a 'battle bus' and a few GPMG technicals.

KamiKahzy · Aug 31, 2018

Mason's first tactical input is that they should focus on forcing the enemy west if they're going to push in from the east. To that end Mason suggests leaving the western road open for any armed forces or civilians to retreat through. From military experience Mason knows that men fight twice as hard when they've got no place to run. So with their forces spread thin it would be prudent to reduce casualties by allowing a rout to occur if it does.

Beyond that Mason asks about some details concerning the field. First and foremost he wants to know if there's any civilians in the area and where their allegiances lie. Then he asks about the trailer park to the southwest and the abandoned shack to the north, specifically if there's anyone living there or if there were any NPA forces stationed there. Finally Mason asks about the boat crew that Hartnup hired and how he originally planned to use them.

Lorsh · Aug 31, 2018

Hartnup agrees that giving the soldiers the temptation of retreating would be beneficial to the assault. Although seizing the outpost is the first priority, Hartnup still says that destroying as many of the NPA as possible would still be beneficial in the long run, as any routed enemies will simply regroup and serve to strengthen a different outpost or unit. To that end, he suggests that some of Camroy's men could be kept in reserve to possibly intercept and kill/capture any soldiers fleeing on the western road, possibly setting up IEDs if any vehicles were to retreat that way.

Hartnup tells you that there aren't very many civilians in the area. There were reports that there are few scavengers set up in the trailer park that mostly sell moonshine and low-quality cigarettes to the troops, and prostitutes are occasionally said to gather there as well. The officers at the outpost generally turn a blind eye to these activities, and would probably cite morale as the reason.

Hartnup tells you that the boat crews were originally going to attempt to intrude on the southern end of the outpost, as it was originally thought there was no southern fence due to the lake. However, this became void when the scouts updated the map to show that there were fences on all sides.

KamiKahzy · Aug 31, 2018

Mason takes all this into consideration before he proposes his idea. A full on assault could work as long as the expected resistance wasn't too strong. But it never hurt anyone to try and even the odds, which is what Mason hoped to do.

Mason points to the abandoned shack and the trailer park. He suggests that sometime during the night some small groups of men sneak to these areas and recon them. Give them a quick sweep for any enemies, bystanders and valuables, and then set something on fire. If there were people living in the trailer park then it would be best to start the fire there and make the NPA think the moonshiners got stupid with their swill. That would draw out at least a token force from the base, which could then be silently taken out. A few minutes after the NPA forces arrived at the park the shack could be lit up next, which would likely make the command suspicious of an attack, but they would have to get some kind of surveillance on it regardless. Whether or not they send out forces to check on the shack wouldn't matter, because all eyes would be pointing either west or north towards the fires, leaving the eastern flank completely exposed and shrouded in the early morning darkness. That's when the bulk of the forces could charge in and assault the eastern flank, creating an entry point and ideally causing complete chaos in the camp itself. Then the other forces can push in from the north, forcing everyone inside the camp to either fight or run west as intended.

The only problems would be getting forces to those two spots, making sure they weren't noticed on the way, and then making sure there was no resistance from either NPA forces or the locals squatting at the trailer park itself. It would require a bit of recon first to properly coordinate the plan, for which Mason is open to suggestions from those gathered in the RV.

Mason also inquires about how many forces they expect to find in the base and how well equipped they expect them to be.

Lorsh · Sep 3, 2018

Captain Hartnup says that even a small distraction has the possibility of rousing the entire base, and putting them on alert. Even if it draws their attention away from the real attack, they would still be able to quickly respond to it. Hartnup suggests that it might be better to attack completely by surprise, at a time when the soldiers are probably mostly asleep.

Hartnup suggests the opposition should mostly be armed with standard NPA equipment, namely gov't carbines for the common troops and some auto-carbines for specialists and squad leaders. They probably also have a decent number of machine guns, such as squad automatic weapons and general-purpose machine guns.

Hartnup tells you that the unit stationed at Lake Outpost is D Company of the 2nd Mounted Rifles Battalion. They possess a decent number of vehicles (hence the title 'mounted'), and somewhere between 80-150 men. Considering that the commanding officer is known to be a major and not a captain, the number of men is probably on the higher end of that estimate. From what ARF scouts have gathered so far from their patrols, the men are averagely-equipped for an NPA unit, mainly geared up with non-ballistic padded armor and Gov't Model carbines. Even though most of the men won't be rocking assault rifles and ballistic vests, they still have decent motorized capabilities and access to powerful machine gun emplacements to protect their outpost.

KamiKahzy · Sep 3, 2018

Mason thinks for a moment about other possibilities, but then shakes his head. He throws out a token suggestion about a honeypot plan to lure some of the NPA boys to the trailer park for a 'good time', but there'd be no way to know how many would take the bait and it would risk splitting their forces further than necessary. It would have been nice to have a squad already stationed in the trailer park to handle any stragglers escaping down the west road, but the logistics of it might not be feasible.

Mason asks what capabilities Hartnup and the others brought that would be useful for taking out the MG nests, and possibly the vehicles themselves.

Lorsh · Sep 4, 2018

"Well, that bait tactic could work. But I don't think that it'd be ultimately worth taking a risk with one of our squads, if it's just going to net us maybe two or three dead NPA foot soldiers. Leaving a small team by the trailer park to intercept retreaters doesn't sound like too bad of a plan, though. Still, depending on who's retreating, there's a risk that our guys there would get mowed down by a fifty-mounted humvee that's trying to get away," Hartnup shrugs.

Hartnup says that he has four technicals with .308 machine guns mounted on them, and that he has a few vans jury-rigged with heavy armor that might be able to just smash through the fences. "They'd probably get immobilized if they got hit by enough grenades, especially from a launcher. So I would't plan on doing anything like that until the soldiers are weakened."

Hartnup says he has four RPG crews and around ten rockets to spare, as well as a decent number of pipe bombs, firebombs, and nail bombs. "The pipe bombs are more of an improvized general-purpose grenade, so they could work against the lighter enemy vehicles. The nail bombs are more useful against foot personnel. We have a single 40mm grenade launcher, so we'll try to use that against the humvees or APC if we can, it'd put us at a safer range from any machine guns they might have mounted."

Hartnup theorizes that the MG nests/sandbag pillboxes pose the risk of causing the most casualties, and at the moment he's unsure if his rockets would be accurate enough to actually hit them. "Gotta come up with alternatives, if possible. But I think we could get lucky with at least one rocket."

KamiKahzy · Sep 9, 2018

While Mason formulates his thoughts on how best to neutralize the MG nests, he asks if anyone has gone on any patrols for Zack in the area.

Lorsh · Sep 10, 2018

"There aren't nearly as many ghouls around here as there are in the west," Hartnup says. "There was a bad outbreak in Noon a few months ago, though the NPA has since retaken it. A lot of the victims from that outbreak have dispersed and are still wandering around, though mainly solo or in small groups. Our patrols haven't run into very many, but considering Lake Outpost has zack trap trenches, they might have heightened activity over there, possibly due to the base's activities making noise. Either that, or the commander was just being extra cautious, or even simply wanted to make obstacles for human attackers like us to fall into and get eaten."

KamiKahzy · Sep 10, 2018

Mason processes that for a bit and ponders their options. After a while he finally speaks, and informs Hartnup that he still thinks the fire distraction in the trailer park is their best shot at putting the base even slightly off balance. The shack can be left out of it, but if the park goes up in smoke then that will definitely get the base watching the western side of the camp. Men will be dispatched and gawkers will undoubtedly come to look at the commotion. As long as they can sell it as an accident caused by drunk hicks then it should keep the Provos unaware of the real danger coming from the east. The sandbagged pillbox behind the trench on the east side would be the greatest immediate threat for the assault, so any advantage they could get to sneak up on it would be worth the risk in Mason's eyes. If they start the trailer fire an hour or so before sunrise then that would give Hartnup's men time to sneak into position and either shell or grenade the pillbox. Then it would only be a short time before sunrise which would give the troops even more tactical advantage. Since the sun rises in the east it would be shining straight into the eyes of the NPA, and the extra light would help the ground troops to spot any wandering Zack that might be attracted to the noise. And with it being that early in the day there would be a good chunk of the Provos that would be just starting to wake up, not even fully kitted out or alert yet.

If Hartnup is willing to entertain the fire idea then Mason is willing to volunteer his men for the job of sneaking out there and doing what needed to be done. Otherwise Mason would follow Hartnup's orders since it was his operation.

Lorsh · Sep 14, 2018

Hartnup seems to consider it for some time. He eventually concedes to your plan, possibly due to either knowing of your past career as a commissioned military member, or simply gathering as much from your demeanor. Hartnup himself doesn't appear to be a veteran; the only suggestion of him belonging to a uniformed service is an old Reserve Highway Patrol patch on his coat, presumably from before the outbreak.

Hartnup agrees to let you cause a diversion, using the members of your party. He asks where you would want to deploy the rest of your men that are not engaging in the infiltration of the trailer park.

KamiKahzy · Sep 20, 2018

Mason suggests that the rest of his troops come in from the north between sectors 2 and 3 so the bulk of the forces can push in from the east.

Assuming there's nothing left to discuss, Mason takes his leave to find Greaves and inform him of the battle plan.

Lorsh · Sep 24, 2018

Hartnup concludes the planning session after going over a few more minor details and sends everyone back to their respective units.

Outside, some of your men have posed from a group photo with ARF members.

Several of your officers and team leaders approach you after the meeting and ask which team(s) should be sent in to cause the distraction at the trailer park. They also ask where the squads should be set up in the sector attack. You are given a copy of Hartnup's map if you wish to write anything down.

OVERCAST: Mason's Rebellion

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Tectonic Nomad

Varlot

Users who are viewing this thread