Hold the Line! - Five Parsecs from Home Solo Campaign - Campaign Setup
Welcome to my Five Parsecs from Home Actual Play! Five Parsecs from Home is a solo Adventure Wargame, so a little different than my normal fair. It’s still great fun and an enjoyable solo experience. The game is simple to learn and play, especially if you have a war gaming background.
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| A great game. Credit to Nordic Weasle and Modiphius! |
How I will be Playing Five Parsecs
I don’t have terrain, minis, or a battle mat, so instead, I’ll be playing out everything using a super simple Virtual Table Top called Owlbear Rodeo. Try it out, it has everything you need and it’s easy to get going. https://www.owlbear.app/
The game does have RPG elements but lacks mechanisms for interaction between PCs, NPCs, and enemies, beyond shooting at each other. I may free-play those or try to find a light system to help me out there. We will see!
I’m using Blades in the Dark’s faction system to help flesh out the various groups vying for control in the sector.
Finally, I won’t be posting these weekly, but fortnightly or maybe even monthly. That’s because these take a bit longer to create than other actual plays, with the maps and minis and such.
Lastly, in combat, I won’t be showing every shot. I’ll mostly write up a summary of the combat, along with screenshots of the fight.
OK let’s get to crew creation!
Crew Creation
As this is a skirmish game (and not a war game) you will normally be taking in six characters into battle in a given fight. Your ‘crew’ will be those characters. Events, battles, travel, and debt payments, will all revolve around the crew. It can expand or shrink based on your actions and the luck of the dice.
For this crew, I’m going to start with the typical setup of three humans, two primary aliens, and a bot. For names, I’ll use https://donjon.bin.sh/
Tokens for the crew and a lot of the combatants are from https://janloos.com/
Leader
Name: Vinon Dara
Type: Human
Background - War-Torn Hell-hole. (+1 Reaction, +1 Military Weapon)
Motivation - Survival (+1 Toughness)
Class - Mercenary (+1 Combat Skill, +1 Military Weapon)
Reaction: 2, Speed: 4 inches, Combat: +1, Toughness: 4, Savvy: +0, Luck: 1
Story - Vinon grew up on the battleground planet of Cono IV. Every day was a struggle for survival, an instinct Vinon has yet to grow out off. After watching several family members die to blaster bolts or slug throwers, Vinon learned at a young age that the only way out was to carry a gun. Signing onto an elite Mercenary group, Vinon has campaigned across a dozen worlds before his 30th birthday. Contract up, Vinon has decided to set up his own crew.
Thoughts - Vinon has a great set of stats as the leader. If I can get him a solid rifle and armor, Vinon will be a power across the galaxy.
Name: Henna Koerner
Type: Human
Background - Orphan Utility Program (1 Story Point, Patron)
Motivation - Escape (+1 Speed)
Class - Special Agent (+1 Reaction, Patron, +1 Gadget)
Reaction: 2, Speed: 5 inches, Combat: +0, Toughness: 3, Savvy: +0
Story - Henna was born and bred to be a secret agent. From the day she could walk she was trained in all combat arts. By the time she was a teenager, she hated her life and her trainer. At 16 she killed an instructor and ran away. She has been running for years until she met up with Vinon and his old outfit. Now Henna uses her training for her own profit.
Thoughts - Henna is fast and has a good reaction speed. She could get into a good shooting position quickly. She will also be Vinon’s second in command.
Name: Sone Garcia
Type: Human
Background - Low-Tech Colony (Low-tech Weapon)
Motivation - Discovery (+1 Savvy,+1 Gear
Class - Working Class (+Savvy, +1 Luck)
Reaction: 1, Speed: 4 inches, Combat: +0, Toughness: 3, Savvy: +2
Story - Growing up in a forgotten colony world wasn’t easy for Sone. His world was once thriving but local conflicts and economic conditions cut it off from trade with the rest of the galaxy. They slowly regressed to subsistence-level agriculture. But Sone had a knack for getting old technology up and running. Still, he hated living there and dreamt of the stars until one-day Vinon and his band swung past Sone’s planet. Sone signed up right away.
Thoughts - Sone will be our tech person for sure! 2 savvy gives him a lot of advantages on and off the battlefield. He doesn’t have any specific combat skills so I’ll have to keep him safe.
Name: Ukan
Type: Feral
Background - Industrial World (+1 Gear)
Motivation - Fame (1 Story Point)
Class - Artist (1D6 credits)
Reaction: 1, Speed: 4 inches, Combat: +0, Toughness: 3, Savvy: +0
If a Feral crew member takes part in a battle, all enemy-imposed penalties to Seize the Initiative rolls are ignored.
When making a Reaction Roll at the start of a battle round, if the dice only score a single 1, it must be given to a Feral crew member, if possible.
Story - Ukan always wanted to be something more, to go among the stars, to be free, and to be the artist they always wanted to be. But the thing about Ferals? They paint with the blood and bodies of their enemies. A perfect fit with a mercenary band, Ukan is constantly posting to the net their latest artwork.
Thoughts - Ukan brings a bit of extra money for the cre and will give the crew more advantages in taking the initiative.
Name: Txewi
Type: Swift
Background - Alien Culture (+1 High-Tech Weapon)
Motivation - Loyalty (1 Story Point, Patron)
Class - Scavenger (1 Rumour, +1 High Tech Weapon)
Reaction: 1, Speed: 4 inches, Combat: +0, Toughness: 3, Savvy: +0
During a battle, Swift may use their Movement Action to glide down to a lower position. They can land on a position below them safely at a distance equal to the difference in height.
They can leap gaps up to 4” wide when moving, and as a free action can jump from any height without damage.
When firing a weapon with multiple shots, Swift must direct every shot at the same target.
Story - Quick, erratic, and fast-talking, nobody quite understands why Txewi is with the crew. Vinon attempts to pay them, but they never accept credits, only salvage that they find. Txewi is fiercely loyal and will protect Vinon’s life with its own.
Thoughts - Txewi gives me some mobility options across the battlefield. I’ll try to put them into places where they can leap or high up.
Name: 115566-X1 (Pair for short)
Type: Bot
Background - None
Motivation - None
Class - None
Reaction: 2, Speed: 4 inches, Combat: +1, Toughness: 4, Savvy: +2
They receive a 6+ Armor Saving Throw, due to their metallic construction.
Story - Found by Vinon in a junk heap a dozen worlds ago, Pair was slowly repaired over several years. Now a fully working combat-bot, Pair will follow Vinon’s orders always.
Thoughts - Bots are powerful but have some downsides, as they can’t receive XP. It will be a useful part of the crew for sure.
The Ship
These guys couldn’t be an effective crew if they didn’t have a ship, could they? Let’s see what it is.
A Warn Freighter, Hull 30. Debt is 22 credits. The freighter isn’t great or bad, but it is inexpensive which is great for now. It will be named the Thrush
The Crew
Rolling on the crew table we see the crew are all old war buddies. That makes sense as they are part of Vinon’s old mercenary company. And they are characterized as in it for the credits, as all good mercenaries are.
They will be called the True League.
Equipment
These are either standard rolls or bonuses from backgrounds. I’ll roll them up and equip them to the best characters. But I won’t bore you with the 15 or so rolls I need to do. I’ll be posting the crew sheets for everyone to take a look at.
The crew also gets 7 story points I can spend to help with rolls. They will come in handy!
Factions
Alright, this is where I am stepping out of the game as set out by Five Parsecs from Home. Why am I doing this? I want to create a story where this mercenary faction is affecting and is affected by what is happening in this universe. The Blades in the Dark faction rules are a simple way of simulating this. So here is a brief description of the factions. Some may be added and others may be removed as things go.
Each faction has a project and after each battle, I will roll the number of dice equal to their Tier. Depending on what their highest D6 is, I’ll tick that many boxes on their clock. If they finish the clock the project is complete.
For the True League, I’ll add dice if they are successful in their missions.
The True League - Tier I Faction
Created by the experience mercenary Vinon Dara, The True League is just aiming to complete enough missions to pay off their ship loan.
Player Faction
Current project - Gain more reputation on the current planet Etera to bid for bigger contracts - 4 Ticks
Independent Guild of Mercenaries - Tier II Faction
The local system Mercenary guild, they sub-contract jobs to other crews.
Allied Faction
Goal - Complete the current contract to provide security for the Etera system
Project - Complete worldwide security sweep on Etera- 4 Ticks
Unity Local Naval Detachment - Tier III Faction
The local naval detachment is tasked with the defense of the sector from invasion.
Friendly Faction
Goal - Defend Etera system from invasion
Project - Complete defenses for a potential invasion of Etera - 6 Ticks
Local Etera Administration - Tier II Faction
Fabulously corrupt, the local planetary administration has not taken kindly to mercenaries doing their job.
Goal - Maintain nominal independence from Unity
Project - Petition Unity ambassador for increased autonomy - 6 Ticks
The Space Dogs - Tier II Faction
The local crime syndicate, the Space Dogs are up to the usual stuff, drug trafficking, kidnapping, protection rackets, etc.
Goal - To keep everyone off their turf.
Project - Strike a blow against the Mercenaries. 6 Ticks
The Swarm - Tier IV Faction
The long-term adversary of Unity, the swarm is a group of intelligent bug-like aliens. In this sector, they can easily overpower Unity, and everyone knows.
Goal - Kick Unity out of the system and take Etera.
Project - Make probing attacks against Unity Defenses. 6 Ticks
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And that is all the setup! I hope you enjoyed it. The next post will be their first battle. It will be epic!
Thanks for reading as always.
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I just found your blog and bookmarked. I'd love for you to review my 5e D&D solo adventure, The Saint's Tomb ( https://sayeth.itch.io/the-saints-tomb). It's free and easy to play.
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