Sunday, October 18, 2015

Al Bubu Village -- a "Pulp Alley" Game

In a little while as I write this, Rob will be here for his first "Pulp Alley" game.  He will run the "Yellow Peril", while I will try out the "Greene Team":

The "Yellow Peril" -- with 'Company of Heroes' perk


The "Greene Team" -- with 'Eagle-Eyed Troopers' perk


Somewhere in Algeria is the small settlement of Al Bubu . . . where a mysterious and elusive archaeologist, Professor Jacob Florida, is reported to have stashed an amulet allegedly from an unknown civilization:

Dark creature (upper right) is a possible associate of the Professer . . . or a "Terror".


Rob will have his choice of table side . . . and each of the 2'x2' boards can easily be moved to accomplish this (i.e., no terrain 'bridges' the boards).  The scrub (closest to camera) does not block sight.  Palm trees do block sight (use base as determiner).  The four central palm groves and the area they enclose are an extremely perilous area.  Other perilous areas yet to be determined.

Greene Team is leery of Native Patrol

Rob arrived and we decided to use both two-story buildings as fixed perilous areas AND to have two "patrols" of native soldiers (pictured above).  Anything within 3" of them would be considered to be "perilous".  At turn's end, the Patrol would continue in line in a random direction (I used Games Workshop 'scatter die' and 1d12 for each patrol)

Here Tong is unexpectedly in a "perilous area" with the approach of the Native Patrol.


Indeed, there were several times during the game where a Native Patrol inconvenienced the Yellow Peril characters in particular.  Their Leader, Feng Yi, was trapped a couple of times.

While the wily Orientals unexpectedly found a "Red Herring" when Wu Fang drew their first minor plot point, the obviously superior Greene Team (since I'm writing this   they are "obviously superior") secured a pair of early plot points (admittedly after a pair of failures).

Captain Greene has one plot point and heads for the Main one, while Lt. Winger also has a point.


Feng Yi (as you can see above) has been cut-off from the main plot point by a Native Patrol.  As she, Captain Greene and Lt. Winger converged on the Main Plot Point, the Native Patrols prepared to quit the central area.

Greene solves the Plot Point as Lt. Winger and a wounded Feng Yi watch.


Captain Greene not only not only overcame the area's extreme peril challenge, but solved the Main Plot Point as well.  Indeed the "Greene Team" 'won' the scenario with two minor and one main plot points, while the Yellow Peril only had one minor point . . . plus one "Red Herring" and another minor point when Wu Fang was shot and dropped the item.

-- Jeff