(SP___.0) BLEEDING SIDE WOUND

(Y181) by Scott Tenhoff, USS California

By Y180 the Gorns tenaciously advanced spinwards toward the Romulan capital planets, doing their part of Operation Remus, conquering everything in their path. The planet Justinia (F&E hex 4112) fell to them. The industrial planet was a vital stepping stone on the path to Romulus, and the Gorns were keen to capture it.
The Romulan Governor for his part, also knew of his planet’s importance, both as a industrial planet for the Navy, and to the Gorns as a staging area. When the Gorns finally sieged the planet, the Romulans knew that they couldn’t stand against the Gorn ships as they had the powerful DNT Doomlizard leading their force. The Governor’s passion outside the administration of the planet, was as an armchair General. His library had hundreds of history books on wars of various races that went back hundreds, sometimes a thousand, years.
Before the battle, the Governor assembled the garrision Colonel and Navy Captain commanding the defending fleet and laid out an audacious plan, to not devote 100% of their forces to the defense of the planet, but keep the rest hidden on the planet and engage in the long-term goal of tying up inordinate amounts of Gorn troops, supplies, and ships to occupy the planet.
The Romulan Admiral at Romulus was eventually called in to decide if the plan could be executed, or if the Captain should just shoot the audacious Governor on the spot. The Governor was able to sell his plan to the Admiral, who in fact promised to resupply the planet whenever it could as he understood the Governer’s intent and that it could only help Empire if it worked.
The planet indoubtedly fell to the Gorns quickly, and the forces that had been saved would not have made a significant contribution to the battle, thus a wise decision by the Governor. The Governor, Colonel, and a battalion of legionarres escaped to the interlands of the planet to wage their guerrilla war. The guerrillas waged a low-grade insurgency against the Gorns, waiting for some significant reinforcements from the Empire.
Then Operation Remus happened in mid-Y181, and the potential resupply of Justinia fell by the wayside until Romulas could straighten things out. The Federation and Gorns after the operation fell back towards their respective borders to reassess the front and replenish their depleted navies after the losses at Remus. The Romulan Navy saw an opportunity to strike an easy blow against the Gorn’s by reinforcing Justinia via a new Saberhawk hauling tanks, troops, and supplies to the planet.
The Gorns for their part of the occupation, had been reluctantly dealing with the insurgents, but not significantly pressuring them to eliminate the entire organization. When the SBH Skyaxe arrived, it arrived at the time when the Gorn reinforcements were arriving to rotate out the previous units and start a new search and destroy mission to find the insurgents.

(SP___.1) NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 2; the Gorn player and the Romulan player.

(SP___.2) INITIAL SETUP
TERRAIN: Class M planet (P2.23) with atmosphere in hex 2215.
GORN:
2nd Infantry The Mighty Second consisting of 2 HQ squads, 12 BP, Commando, 2 HWS, and 3 GCV on Side B of the planet. A shuttle convoy of 4 GAS, HAS, and 2 HTS (D15.52) is also on Side B of the planet, any of the above forces can be loaded on the shuttles at the Gorn player’s choice.
FF Gname1, FF Gname2 within 2 hexes of the planet, Side B. Gorn BDG Gname3 with 3rd Infantry Lizard’s Own and FTK 3rd Battalion Tank Company, within 4 hexes of 1506, facnig D, speed 10. All at WS-I

ROMULANS:
SBH Skyaxe w/ 2 G-D, Cen-G, and Cen-F all docked between 3030 to 3430, facing A, WS-III, cloaked, speed max.
Plasma-F and P-2 Defense satellites begin in a 3 hex orbit, one within one hex of 2212, the other in 2414. Both begin the game hidden.
Resistance Forces, 11 BP, 2 Eng, 3 HWS, 3 trucks, 3 GDS, on Side D of the planet at a hidden GCL, see (SP__461).


(SP___.3) LENGTH OF SCENARIO: The scenario continues until all forces belonging to one side have been destroyed, captured, or have disengaged or until Turn #7. Any Romulan that has not either landed or disengaged by the end of Turn #7, it is considered destroyed.

(SP___.4) SPECIAL RULES
(SP___.41) MAP: The map is fixed; it does not float. Any unit leaving the map has disengaged and cannot return. The Romulan player can only disengage along xx30. The Gorn player can only disengage in direction A or F. Units which disengage in unauthorized directions or areas are considered destroyed.
(SP___.42) SHUTTLES AND PFs: All shuttles are advanced types (J17.0) and PFs have warp booster packs. Mega-packs are available.
(SP___.421) No ship in this scenario is qualified to carry an MRS shuttle, but in a variant of the scenario where that is possible, they may be purchased [up to the limits in (J8.5)] under (SP___.431).
(SP___.422) Only the SBH has casual fighters in this scenario, and does not qualify to carry an EW fighter. If in a variant with enough fighters, EW fighters will be available at the standard squadron sizes.
(SP___.423) The PFs in this scenario do not qualify as a flotilla.
(SP___.43) COMMANDER'S OPTION ITEMS
(SP___.431) Each ship can purchase additional or special equipment as Commander's Option Items (e.g., T-bombs, extra Marines, etc.) up to 20% of its Combat BPV. See (S3.2) for details and exceptions. Note that whatever is spent here counts in the Standard and Modified Victory Conditions (S2.2) as Victory Points for the enemy. The Gorn FFs cannot purchase additional boarding parties, commandos, or heavy weapon squads. As a reminder the FTK can purchase both boarding parties or vehicles as COIs.
(SP___.432) The empires that are involved in this scenario do not use drones, in a variant all drones are "fast," i.e., Speed 32. Each drone-armed ship can purchase special drones up to the historical percentages appropriate to that empire as part of the Commander's Option Items. Note that (S3.2) allows drone ships extra points for this purpose.
(SP___.433) No ship in this scenario normally carries a Prime Team (G32.0), but such Teams are sometimes assigned to various ships. Players may experiment with Prime Teams, perhaps as a balance factor.
(SP___.44) REFITS: The Gorn player has the Carronade refit and Plus refits.
(SP___.45) Skyaxe configuration: The Saberhawk has been configured as a Commando ship. The 4 N.W.O. boxes are 2 Barracks and 2 Cargo, the 4x APR are Shuttle boxes with 4x GAS. The 2 Optional Weapons are Phaser-1s (RA). The Skyaxe is carrying an additional 18 BPs, 2 HWS, and 2 Tanks via (G33.44). The Skyaxe is also carrying 50 cargo spaces worth of supplies in its cargo boxes, it can transfer these to the planet, and scores 1 VP for each cargo point transferred.
(SP___.451) Centurion’s cargo. The CEN-G and CEN-F have been loaded up with vehicles and shuttles from an escorting Skyhawk before the battle. The PFF has 4 GAS on it’s shuttle mech-links, each GAS has 2 BPs or HWSs taken from the Skyaxe’s complement added in (SP__.45) above. The PFG has 5 BPs or HWSs and 1 Tank from the Skyaxe loaded prior to the battle, taken from the extra troops from (SP___.45) above.
(SP___.46) Romulan insurgents. The Romulans on Side D of the planet are the only remaining organized resistance remaining on the planet. The Romulans are aiming to reinforce them with as many troopers and shuttles as possible.
(SP___.461) During the original defense of the planet, the Romulans realized the Gorn had an overwhelming force which easily overwhelmed the planetary defense unit, swatting their fighters and bombers out of space easily. The planetary governor decided that his ground forces were to evacuate and run a guerrilla operation to tie up valuable Gorn assets to hold the planet. The governor also held back the use of two defense satellites much to the fury of the Romulan Navy and garrision commander. There was an alternative, backup facility to control the satellites on Side D of the planet. Once the satellites are activated, the Gorns discover it, and realize the insurgents were hiding in the nearby hills, ready to defend the site when the Gorns strike it. If the Gorns capture the GCL, the Romulans lose control of the satellites and they go on automatic for the rest of the scenario.
(SP___.5) VICTORY CONDITIONS: Use the Standard Victory Conditions (S2.20). The Gorn player scores double the victory points for any Romulan ground unit killed. The Romulan player scores normal victory points for each Gorn ground unit killed (by any means), and the Romulan player also scores double the victory points for each shuttle landed on the planet at the end of the scenario. The Romulans also score double the victory points for each boarding party or vehicle left on Side D of the planet at the end of the scenario. The Romulans also score 1 VP for each cargo point transferred to Side D of the planet. If the Saberhawk is destroyed, the Romulan player automatically loses (this reflects that the loss of the HDW did not make the mission to resupply the insurgents worth the loss of the ship).
(SP___.6) VARIATIONS: The scenario can be played again under different conditions by making one or more of the following changes:
(SP___.61) Replace the Gorn units with a Federation force of similar units. Pol+, Pol+, CDW, and FTK.
(SP___.62) To aid the Gorns, replace a FF with a PTC with two Plasma-Fs as optional weapons.
(SP___.63) For a larger scenario add a FFV with 6 G18B (122) to the Gorns, and a SKA which starts with the SBH, and an additional Plasma-F defense satellite to the planet.
(SP___.7) BALANCE: The scenario can be balanced between players of different skill levels by one or more of the following:
(SP___.71) Add or remove 2-4 BP of the Gorn or Romulan player from the forces on the planet.
(SP___.72) Replace a Gorn FF with a BFF.
(SP___.73) Delete or add boarding parties to the planet for either side.

(SP___.8) TACTICS:
Gorns:
Romulans:

(SP___.9) PLAYTESTERS COMMENTS:

(SP___.X) DESIGNER'S NOTES:

HISTORICAL OUTCOME:

By Scott Tenhoff (Scottt) on Tuesday, November 05, 2013 - 09:10 pm: Edit

(LS?) BLEEDING SIDE WOUND

Map: Use the standard map. All town hexes are clear hexes.

Romulan Forces:
The Romulan player sets up first. Place a turret in hex ???? and ????, there is a bunker in hex ????. Every unit can be in an Improved Battle Position, but none have to be. All units set up within 6 hexes of ????. Troops: The Romulans have: 2 HQ, 23 Marines, 2 HWS, 2 Engineers, 8 trucks, 2 GCV, 1 tank on the map at the beginning of the scenario. Reinforcements: The Romulans have 4 GAS with 8 Marines, a Centurion-G with GCV and 5 Marines, and an orbiting Saberhawk-G carrying an Infantry Century of HQ, 7 Marines, and 2 HWS (the remaining troops are in the GAS and PF).
Romulan Mission:
The Romulan mission is to escape with as many of their ground troops after they receive their reinforcements.
Gorn Forces:
The Gorn forces start off the map, either on-board orbiting space ships, or on another side of the planet and being ferried here via a shuttle convoy. In orbit there is a BDG with: 3 HQ, 24 Marine, 3 HWS, 3 Engineers, 3 GCV, 4 GAS, 2 HTS (from FTK). Also in orbit is a FTK carrying: HQ, 8 Marine, CPV, 4 APV (Mobile Company). On an opposite side of the planet the Gorns have a shuttle convoy of: 4 GAS, 2 HTS, HAS, 2 HQ squads, 12 Marines, 2 HWS, and 3 GCV.
All Gorn forces start off-map at the beginning of the scenario.
Gorn Mission:
The Gorn mission is to hold the map at the end of the scenario.
Time Limit, Victory:
The Romulans score 1 VP for each squad moved off the board, 2 VP for each vehicle. The Gorns score ½ VP for each squad on the board at the end of the scenario, 1 VP for each vehicle, 2 VP for each shuttle, and score an extra 5 VP if they capture the bunker intact (not destroyed). The side with the most victory points wins.
Special Rules
The Gorn FTK in orbit has 2 HTS shuttles on board and has transferred them to the BDG to aide it landing it’s troops, prior to the FTK’s landing. The FTK is scheduled to land on Turn 5 entering along the North board edge, or any turn after that. The Gorn shuttles may enter the board Turn 1 carrying whichever units of the Gorn players choice. If a shuttle leaves the map to return to be reloaded (i.e. with a vehicle), it returns 4 turns later.
The Gorn shuttle on the other side of the planet arrive on the map along the North board edge at the beginning of Turn 2.
The Gorn player has 3 transporters on his ships in orbit that he can use each turn to either transport troops down, or use Transporter Artillery. The Gorn player has 10 shots of Transporter Artillery at the start of the scenario.
The Romulan reinforcements (GASs and PF) arrive on Turn 4 from the south board edge. At the beginning of each turn, the Romulan player rolls 1D6, if he rolls a 4-6 he can use the Saberhawk’s 2 transporters, on a 1-3 the Saberhawk is out of range of the planet.

Balance, Alternative
If playing the SFB scenario in conjunction with this scenario, use all of the forces from that scenario (for a larger, more complex scenario). Additional gorn forces will be available (from the FFs and BDG) and for the Romulans 4 additional GAS shuttles and the Cen-F.
Notes, Tactics, and Background

By Scott Tenhoff (Scottt) on Tuesday, November 05, 2013 - 09:11 pm: Edit

So there is my try at a joint SFB/SFM scenario.

I obviously need to flesh out the hexes of the SFM scenario.

I also don't know if the SFB scenario is too short at 7 turns.

Any input would be appreciated

By Steve Petrick (Petrick) on Wednesday, November 06, 2013 - 04:34 pm: Edit

Scott Tenhoff:

I will have to check on whether or not a PFG can carry a tank, I am unsure on that (honestly, not joking, I cannot recall myself ever having landed a tank with a PFG, but that may have been a simple choice on my part rather than a rule), and I am not sure delivering a tank is a good idea (vehicles are a lot easier to find when you are looking for the enemy in remote areas). See (D15.76). Infantry can disperse more and hide longer.

Background-wise, what you have defined is how all planetary garrisons work if they can. Fade into the background and conduct guerrilla operations if they can once the battle is lost. So your Romulan governor is not inventing anything new, or acting against the best interests of the Romulan Star Empire (demanding the troops stand and die rather than retreating into the hinterlands to conduct guerrilla operations, or demanding they surrender in order to reduce the damage to the civilian population and infrastructure would be).

As such, I also do not see it as a "bleeding wound" unless these Romulan troops had been particularly successful in conducting guerrilla operations, and in the game background just now, that seems pretty unlikely. Especially if you have reduced the Romulans to being effective on only one hexside of the planet. The truth is that all of my (as the invading and advancing force) needs can easily be handled on the other five hexsides and a ground mobile force is then just not a threat. My Massive Supply Complex (tm) that I need on the planet is in hexside (assuming a planet in hex 2215 of a map) 2214/2215, so I care not if you have a dozen Cohorts of ground troops with no shuttles in hexside 2216/2215. They have no effect on my supply complex and my guards are mostly just looking for local civilians trying to make nuisances of themselves but with no real capability to hurt my supply complex. My problem would be the last five or so squads of the Cohort that originally defended in this area (2214/2215), especially as they still have a rocket launcher and a few rounds of ammunition and recently shot down an HTS shuttle as it was lifting off with a full load of munitions, which then crashed into one my ammunition bunkers . . . now that was annoying. And my reaction force, while it found the place where the rocket was launched from, did not find any of those Romulan marines who launched the missile, and the local Romulan civilians all deny any knowledge of what happened. Sigh.

I am also unsure but that if I were going to be on the planet for an extended period of time (as the Gorns) in order to use it as a supply point I would not have at least deployed DefSats of my own, at the very least to support the operations of my own marines rather than tying down a ship to do the job.

By Steve Petrick (Petrick) on Wednesday, November 06, 2013 - 04:44 pm: Edit

Ground Assault PF landing a Tank. I am going to have to say "no." It cannot do that. The rules for Ground Assault PFs (R1.PF3) specifically say it can land a ground combat vehicle (and its boarding party) in place of five boarding parties (i.e., it effectively reduces the number of boarding parties carried by the PFG by four, one of which must be the heavy weapons squad). A ground combat vehicle is 20 cargo points under Annex #7K, while a tank is 50 cargo points, so even if you gave up all 10 boarding parties you could not land a tank, and the rules for Ground Assault PFs do not allow you to replace all 10 boarding parties (not counting the one "defensive" boarding party) to carry two ground combat vehicles, much less a tank.

By Steve Petrick (Petrick) on Wednesday, November 06, 2013 - 06:24 pm: Edit

To be clear, I am not rejecting the scenarios, only pointing out problems.

By Loren Knight (Loren) on Wednesday, November 06, 2013 - 07:09 pm: Edit

Just a note, a Free Trooper type ship could land tanks.

By Scott Tenhoff (Scottt) on Wednesday, November 06, 2013 - 08:42 pm: Edit

My point about the unorthodox defense (not using the defense satellites during the initial assault) was what was a different tactic the Romulans employed to try to make the "next" battle at the planet more deadly against the Gorns, because the satellites could aide a cloaked raider delivering supplies.

Because the initial battle, they knew they were going to lose terribly, so why unnecessarily sacrifice the assets that could be used later.

By Terry O'Carroll (Terryoc) on Wednesday, November 06, 2013 - 10:03 pm: Edit

IIRC defsats must be controlled by something (a ship or ground base) or they go on automatic operation. So unless you have a hidden ground base controlling the defsats, the Gorns would find and either capture or destroy the unit controlling the defsats and they'd activate.

By Steve Petrick (Petrick) on Thursday, November 07, 2013 - 11:16 am: Edit

Terry O'Carroll:

Sorry, but if you had read Scott's scenario he did include a control base for the satellites still operated by the Romulan defenders. See (SP___.461).

By Steve Petrick (Petrick) on Thursday, November 07, 2013 - 06:39 pm: Edit

Scott Tenhoff:

And my point is that what you are defining is not "unorthodox" but the way it is normally done. Defense satellites can survive even if they were used in combat because they can orbit out of the lock-on of a unit that has spotted them, and cannot be spotted at all unless they fire. So it is entirely possible that any planet might have a few left over, IF a ground control station survived. Any defender might order a few last defense satellites to "go doggo" hoping to use them at a later date. The problem is that the ground control stations tend to be found and the satellites then go over to automatic control and are destroyed.

I am not saying (as noted previously) "no" to your scenario proposal, but your scenario background is not "something special." You have basically (as I said) simply noted how things actually work when a planet is attacked by a force intending to set up light housekeeping.

If the final defense (the ground troops) cannot make it impossible for the attacker to secure an area where he can build facilities, then all they can do is evade contact and conduct guerrilla operations.

This is the NORM. You are not in your background having your governor doing anything special. He might claim it was "all his idea," but trust me his military commanders were pretty much just rolling their eyes when he explained his brilliant new tactic and thinking to themselves "yea, yea, can you get the speech over with and let us get to work?"