I wanted to try something in a different genre from our Lone Wolf adventures, so I decided we'd go for a post-apocalyptic Road Warrior scenario!
You are Cal Phoenix, the Freeway Warrior, champion and protector of Dallas Colony One. A murderous gang of HAVOC clansmen, led by the psychotic Mad Dog Michigan, are bent on destroying your fragile colony as it crosses the wastelands of Texas on the first stage of a life-or-death exodus to the California coast. These bike-riding clansmen are a formidable enemy: armed, cunning, and extremely dangerous, capable of launching a lightning raid at any time, day or night. You will need all your wits about you if you are to defend your people and reach your destination intact!
Ironically, my wife's last name is Phenix, which is darn close. I'm going to start calling her Freeway Warrior, I think. And we come from Texas! It's fate, I tell you.
This adventure comes to us courtesy of the awesome folks at Project Aon. The original material is copyright © 1988 Joe Dever (text) and copyright © 1988 Melvyn Grant (illustrations).
Before we can officially get started, we have some "bidness" (that's how we say "business" in Texas, which I'm pretty sure not even the Apocalypse can change) to resolve. I went ahead and rolled our combat skill, getting an AWESOME two (out of ten), and an even more awesome ZERO out of ten for our Endurance. So, go me. But we have to decide what skills we wish to pursue, so I put together a poll. Vote for your top four and then vote for how you want the points to be allocated:
Now we have to decide what we want to take along on our adventure. I think my favorite entry is the flexible saw, because I can totally foresee a page that tells us "If you have a flexible saw to hack off your own leg and crawl to safety, turn to section 90. If not, you die of exposure while pinned beneath the fallen tree. Thanks for playing!"
We start with only one close-combat weapon, a knife. Which, given our abysmal combat skill and absolute minimum END, is probably a good thing. I'd hate to slice ourselves to death before getting behind the wheel. However, we also get our choice of one missile weapon:
I'm inclined to go with a shotgun, because as long as you can point a shotgun in the general direction of the bad guy, you have decent odds of hitting him or her or it. But the final choice is, of course, up to you.
Feel free to make your case for what we ought to choose in the comments!
Mad Dog Michigan. I was going to say, “How long did it take this guy to come up with that name?” (Well, I actually did say that anyway,:D ) Then I saw that it’s 1988, so nevermind.
I picked the compass as one of the items because I have no sense of direction, so I know how badly that is needed out in the desert. I would have chose the food, but they take up too much room in our backpack. I’m going to assume that we are not emanciated and that we have money to buy food.
I chose everything in the first poll, except the driving skills, for survival reasons. Even if we can’t drive everything that there is to drive in the story, we still have a brain, eyes, ears and all four limbs, so we can atleast drive something.
Jeff, I’m pretty sure the Apocalypse might actually increase the use of “bidness” in place of “business.”
I followed Frankie’s line of thought regarding which skills to take, with the allotment of 2 points in the top vote getter, and 1 each in the next two.
Compass seemed a good idea, but I opted for meals, which I saw as being important. Speaking of saw, I also took the flexible saw, and rounded out with binoculars.
I chose the rifle, it seems to be the most versatile weapon available.
I chose all skills except stealth, 2 to top skill 1 to each of the others, binoculars, compass, geiger counter, and radio, and shotgun…
never got into the lone wolf but this i may be a frequent part of
Since we already have a low endurance, we gotta take the meals. Remember in Lone Wolf when they would out of the blue make you eat or lose endurance? Meals are a must.
I just wonder how far we’ll go with such a low ENDurance…
With that END, definitely take the Geiger Counter.
I feel I need to post more here, so I’ll post what I pick.
Like Frankie, I chose everything but driving for the first poll, for the same reasons. I chose Geiger Counter (radiation), Compass (We’re traveling, right?), Binoculars (Look out for bikers) and Flexible saw (You convinced me, Jeff, and a rifle for the shootings. I was tempted towards shotgun, but it sounds like you’ll need to pick off those bikers from afar.
I’d go with the rifle – being able to engage enemies that can barely see you is a lifesaver.
I like the overall idea I read in post but I have never really understood these types of post on here. Is it a story, game or what and what do you do? I think playing the Fallout series will have to suffice for now.
Tool, I don’t think I understand what there is to not understand. These are “Choose your own adventure” stories. You get to a decision point, everyone votes and discusses, we choose the given option and off we go to see what happens. It’s communal role-playing gaming, basically. I mean, I get it if it’s not your cup of tea, but as to the general concept, it’s pretty straightforward …
Perception, Driving, Field Craft
Two Points to the top, and one each to the next two
Solar Torch, Compass, Food, Binoculars
Rifle
I figure the guy’s going to have to rely on brains, maintain surveillance to learn who his enemies are, fight from a distance only when forced to engage the enemy, and have a quick escape route if he’s to survive.
Shooting, cause I figure we’ll get into a couple of gunfights. Perception, because lets face it, we need it. Stealth, better to avoid a gunfight if possible. Lastly, Driving, because what kind of freeway warrior would we be if we can’t drive.
Two for the top vote and one for the next two because knowing a lot can help, but not the one for all four because a jack of all trades is master of none.
Binoculars, seeing far enemies good. Food, duh. Torch, light is also a plus. Geiger counter because if there is radiation, it might be better to avoid it.
Rifle, because accuracy is better than wide range when there is more than one enemy. It also has a good range.
@Jeff, I just checked back and there are choice boxes now, they weren’t coming up before. It makes more sense now.
I think driving is going to be kind of important. We’re the Freeway Warrior, not the Hiking Trail Warrior. Shooting also seems to be a good idea; with that END, we don’t want to get close enough for anybody to punch us. Stealth is also good for that, I hope. I chose Field Craft for the fourth, on the hope that it would let us skip meals. And I think we should have a point in each of the four, just in case “If you have ________, turn to page 90” turns out to be a life-saving option someday. Sure, we won’t be good at anything…but when are we ever?
Hang on. Are we (this colony) in some sort of motorized convoy arrangement, or on foot, or JetSkis, or what? It makes a difference as to what I’d pick.
Food (duh). Machine pistol since our combat skill is so low. Spraying bullets at short range is more effective than a rifle if you can’t hit what you’re targetting.
Signal flare, because it can double as a weapon. Wow, I’m all sorts of evil.
I remember seeing “Road Warrior” (nowadays referred to by it’s Aussie release of “Mad Max II”) at the drive-in (ask your parents, kids). It was so cool. I was eight when I saw it.
Around 22, I finally got it. That movie is f’ed up. As it should be. The post-apocalypse is no romantic adventure. Sorry for being a Debbie Downer.
@spidercow2010(16): Nice reference to “Waterworld.” ;9
Of course, the best line in that movie is “Do you know how to fly a plane, kid?” As compared to Mad Max… “You want out of here? You’re talking with me.” Don’t care your opinion about Mel Gibson, but dang he was the man.
The original Mad Max was a great movie. “Beyond Thunderdome” was lame. I will definitely see the fourth installment. Enough drifting off-topic. Signal flare = arrowed!
With a combat skill of 2 and endurance of 0 (how does that even work? Do we start off already dead?) I think we’re going to need that stealth.
I foresee Lone Wolf-esk running away in our near future.
Haz, I “rolled” a zero, but you add whatever you roll to “20”. So we start with an END of 20. Had I rolled a 9, we’d have 29. Oh well.
Ah. Thank you. We seem far less doomed then.