Well, I'm over a month late but I've been fiddling around with the background for the Nova Castille campaign, but you can see that in
this blog entry.
Following on from our previous update, welcome to the first of the battle reports in our INQ28 campaign, which will detail the struggles to determine the fate of Nova Castille, an apparently insignificant planet at the centre of many intricate plans!
At least four Inquisitors have been drawn to Nova Castille (and there are many other factions hiding in the wings) so one of my main aims was to slowly introduce each of the Inquisitors in a way that fitted their narrative and helped the player. My group has played a number of Inquisitor games before, but it didn't hurt any of us to take it slowly!
For this scenario, Darren (my player) would be using his character to infiltrate a den of criminals and kill their leader by whatever means possible. Stealth was preferable, but not mandatory. With a number of guards in his way, Darren would have to be careful and try to manipulate circumstances to his advantage...
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A little bit of background for you all...The White Snake cartel is a relatively powerful organisation that has begun to spread throughout the Hyades Sub-Sector. In recent years, the cartel has been primarily associated with the distribution of the prohibited narcotic known as 'Haze'. Preliminary Inquisitorial investigations have traced the distribution network of Haze back to Nova Castille, but other considerations have meant that the Inquisition has yet to take substantive action.
With the sudden and unexpected death of the White Snakes' leader, a former petty thug by the name of Tybalt Andrus has quickly grasped control fo the cartel, setting in motion plans to eliminate those dissenters within the organisation who pose a threat to his position. He has dispatched a trusted assassin to kill Abel Bivander, a high-ranking member of the cartel who is perhaps his biggest threat..
Unbeknownst to Andrus, his trusted assassin is in fact the Inquisitorial acolyte Ra'ef Venris, dispatched by Inquisitor Ferox with the aim of infiltrating the White Snakes and learning what threat the cartel poses - and what aid it may offer Ferox's Istvaanian plans. After several months of careful progress, Ra'ef has garnered himself a reputation within the cartel as a hardened but dependable killer with few qualms. With the unexpected rise of Andrus, Ra'ef has been given an unparalleled opportunity to gather information on the cartel's activities. Succeed in killing Bivander, and Andrus may well give up more information on quite how the cartel is gathering "Haze", and just who is backing the organisation in its spread across the sub-sector.
As we catch up with our erstwhile protagonist, Ra'ef has tracked Bivander to a series of catacombs beneath Cantium, the capital of Nova Castille. Cantium is said to sit upon many miles of catacombs, the locations of some of which are public knowledge, whilst others have been lost for centuries. It appears Bivander has established a base of some sort, though for what purpose is unclear.
Set-upWe decided to make use of the recently-released <span style="font-style: italic;">Space Hulk</span> board sections to represent the area of catacombs that'd been taken over by Bivander.
A dimly-lit, shadowy locale, Ra'ef could theoretically sneak through and eliminate his target silently, but he would have to contend with the guards in his way. On the other hand, tearing the heart out of the enemy would send a powerful message to Andrus's rivals...
BOLTHOLESVenris pulled the heavy grating closed behind him as he entered the catacombs. He moved silently on the balls of his feet, a combat knife held in the prescribed style, blade below the fist. As he progressed along the tunnel, his eyes began to adjust to the dim lighting, and the noise of the crowds milling on the street for the Sanctustide celebrations began to fade.
The Interrogator trusted that the noise of the crowd would have covered his entrance. Although he was dressed in the
de facto uniform of the White Snakes - his head shaven and a long, dark trenchcoat that concealed the armoured bodyglove he wore beneath - he did not know what lay ahead. He hadn't had time to observe the catacombs; circumstances had necessitated that he enter Bivander's underground base of operations lest Venris lose him altogether.
As he moved forwards, he became aware of a chamber ahead, illuminated by a powerful light-globe. The silhouette of a guard carrying a bulky autorifle dominated the doorway. The figure was facing away from him. Hefting his knife, Venris quickly considered eliminating him. He inched forwards, keeping out of the light.
Andrus had been clear in his expectations that the assassin live up to his reputation - Venris was to tear the throat out of Bivander's unsanctioned operations and send a message to the entire White Snake that Andrus would brook no opposition.
As he closed, he could smell the acrid stink of sweat on the Cartel member. He raised the knife, readying for the killing strike. He breathed in
as the Cartel member stepped forward, walking out of the room, entirely unaware of how close he'd come to death. Venris exhaled slowly, listening as the guard's footfalls faded to echoes before moving through the room, taking the opposite doorway. These catacombs appeared to have been co-opted by Bivander's men. Crates and other contraband had been stacked in the chambers and tunnels, providing ample cover for the Interrogator as he moved through them.
Venris stiffened as he heard footsteps heading towards him. Another cartel member was in the chambers ahead.
Quickly, he moved to the side of the doorway. He was thankful that the lack of light in the catacombs. He held his breath as the Cartel member moved into the chamber before striking. Quickly, one hand covered his victim's mouth as the other slashed the combat blade across his throat, deflating his lungs and robbing him of the air he needed to scream. Venris held the cartel member in a vicelike grip until the body went limp before lowering it to the ground.
Quickly, he rifled through the dead man's trenchcoat, looking for any keycards, codes or ciphers that might aid him in gaining access to Bivander. Unfortunately, he found nothing.
As he straightened, he heard an intake of breath from behind. He turned to see a young-looking man in the characteristic dress of the White Snakes. The Interrogator studied the man - if he could be called a man - before him in a matter of moments. The cartel often took youngsters from the street, inducting them into their organisation because of the terrific loyalty such actions engendered. They were impressionable and fervent to the organisation - something Venris counted upon.
"Don't just stand there!" he hissed. "Get over here and help me!"
"Wha-?" the youth's chin quivered as he took in the scene before him; one White Snake standing over the bloody body of another.
"This man is an assassin, sent by that damn Andrus," Venris was taking a tremendous gamble, but he trusted it would pay off. "I managed to stop him before he could get Bivander!"
The young cartel member took a step forward, momentarily lowering the autopistol in his hand. Venris stepped forwards, thrusting the bloody combat blade into the youth's hands.
"Take this, and guard the body. I'm going to get help. Understand?" The Interrogator was forceful and imposing, and the youth just nodded meekly, his eyes wide. With that, Venris strode out of the chamber, leaving the boy behind. He could hear the sound of vomitting.
Venris moved quickly through the catacombs, knowing that time was of the essence. As he walked, he drew his bolt pistol from its holster. It was a bulky weapon, difficult and time-consuming to maintain. It attracted a lot of attention, and that was one reason he'd picked it as part of his cover as an assassin. Such killers-for-hire typically had 'signatures', and it had impressed Andrus from the start. He should have killed the boy, he knew. And yet he hadn't done so. His master would likely consider it a sign of weakness, but Venris trusted he had done the right thing. He moved into cover behind some heavy pipework as he considered his options.
Ahead, he could see a heavy door with a keypad next to it. In front of the door stood a hulking brute of a man hefting a heavy stubber. Such firepower heralded something significant.
Already behind him, he could hear shouting. He wondered just what would happen to the poor gutterjack caught with a bloody knife in his hands and without the brainpower to talk his way out of the situation. He had a flicker of guilt - just a flicker. It was out of his hands now, and he had to press on.
Moving out of cover, he strode forwards, his coat billowing behind him. He screwed an expression of concern upon his face. As he moved up, he saw another Cartel member come out of a side-tunnel, an autogun in his hands and a look of extreme annoyance on his face.
"What's goin' on?" He asked. "What's all the racket?"
"Andrus has sent a hit squad after Bivander!" Venris blurted. "I don't know how many he's killed."
"What?!" The other cartel member looked incredulous, before turning to the guard with the heavy stubber. "We've gotta tell the boss!"
The door guard was resolute and uncompromising. "Nobody gets to see the boss without his say-so."
Venris kept his face steady, but mentally raised an eyebrow. Just what was Bivander up to? The guard had been told that a battle was taking place, but only seemed concerned with making sure he was undisturbed.
"Look," he said to the other cartel member. "You go help out the guys. I'll wait here. If anyone else comes here, I'll send them your way."
The other man looked dubious, but nodded, breaking into a run as he headed down the corridor. The Interrogator was keenly aware that his web of lies would very quickly fall apart. There was no hit squad. There was no firefight, and soon people would put two and two together and realise that he didn't belong here. He had only been so lucky thus far because the Cartel was so ill-disciplined.
He turned to the door guard.
"It's a shame, you know."
"What is?"
"That you had to be in my way." Venris snarled, pulling his chainsword from beneath his coat. He stabbed the activation rune and the weapon came to life with a throaty roar. With the bulky heavy weapon in his hands, the Cartel member never stood a chance. The Interrogator almost cut him in half, the spinning teeth splattering gore and viscera across the tunnel walls.
Suddenly, a bullet impacted next to Venris, ricocheting off and narrowly missing him. He span into cover before returning fire down the tunnel, the bark of the bolt pistol almost deafening in the narrow confines of the catacombs. He withdrew into one of the side tunnels as a Cartel member with shotgun stumbled forward. For a split second Venris saw him, standing over the body of the door guard:
Venris squeezed the trigger. The bolt struck the cartel member, detonating with a
crump and leaving a fist-sized hole in his torso and sending him flying back. Venris moved up, sizing up the reinforced door ahead of him. He wouldn't be able to cut through it before the White Snakes caught up with him. He studied the keypad next to the door; it would have thousands of possible combinations. With a muttered curse he raised his pistol and fired into the keypad. There was a shower of sparks and the door rolled open.
Venris charged into the next chamber. There was Bivander, an older man with close-cropped hair starting to grey. He stood up from his chair, whirling to face Venris as he did so. Across the table from Bivander, a robed figure lurched to its feet, turning and running for the opposite door. Venris fired at the figure, but the shot had little discernable effect. In either case, the Interrogator had no time for anybody but Bivander.
Bivander charged at Venris, an axe in his hand. Venris recognised it as a shock weapon of a type common on Nova Castille, but no less powerful for being so. Whilst not as deadly as power weapons, the devices were far easier to manufacture, and could prove fatal. The Interrogator parried an overhead swing with his chainsword, the motor howling as the blade's teeth attempted to grind through the weapon. Venris kicked out, sending Bivander flying across the room. Although spirited, Bivander was older than the Interrogator, and much less skilled at combat.
Bivander sprawled on the floor as Venris moved to stand over him, his bolt pistol ready should the White Snake attempt to fight.
"Andrus sent you?" Bivander seemed to squint at Venris, as though having trouble focussing on him. "Or someone else?"
Venris frowned. Could this man know of his mission?
"What do you know, Bivander?" The interrogator growled, levelling the pistol at the pathetic man in front of him.
"Oh, more than you know..." the White Snake laughed, a hacking, wheezing cough that seemed to turn to a gurgle as he started to convulse, green foam forming at his lips. Venris lunged at him, knowing almost as he did so that there was nothing he could do. The White Snake had swallowed a suicide pill! What could have motivated him to do so?
Looking up, Venris moved quickly to the other door of the chamber. Readying his pistol, he kicked the door open and surveyed an short tunnel ending in an empty grate. As he reached the end of the tunnel, he found a dark cloth - the robe that the mysterious stranger had worn. Where had he gone? He couldn't have fit through the bars... could he?
Warily, Venris returned to Bivander. As he did, someone entered the chamber.
"Halt!" Venris shouted.
"Careful, killer!" Tybalt Andrus entered the room, a smile on his face. He was unarmed, his hands raised in a playful gesture of surrender. "I must say, I'm impressed that you dispatched him so quickly. I hope you don't mind, but I wanted to see for myself."
"The guards...?" Venris asked.
"Taken care of." Andrus smiled once more. "And you, my friend, will be richly rewarded for your part in this. Come, we must discuss our next operations."
Frowning almost imperceptibly, Venris followed. He would have to contact his master as soon as possible...
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ReactionsMolotov:
I'm pleased with how this mission went. Typically we play with two players and a third GM, but this mission was somewhat different. It was partly played so that Darren could refamiliarise himself with the rules, using a single character. The stakes were clearly high but it was an entertaining game. The end of the mission was perhaps a bit of an anti-climax; Interrogator Venris pretty much hacked through Bivander without much opposition, but in missions against other combat characters, I don't think Ra'ef will prove too much of a handful. All in all, I'm pretty pleased with how things went; I'm certainly keen to continue with the Nova Castille campaign, though I'll have to ensure the battle reports are a little swifter!Darren:
When I started the mission I had quite a few ideas of how I wanted to play it. I had given Ra’ef a back story that I wanted to stay true to in the mission as well. By the end of mission however certain elements of Ra’ef’s personality were shown to be more prominent than I had initially anticipated which was great, it gave his character so much depth.
To start the mission I wanted to slowly work my way through and avoid as many people as possible. I didn’t want to stride round and just blast my way in. I started off by getting Ra’ef to observe his environment and pick the best paths to encounter the least amount of people, which he did. However this was short lived. Ra’ef took out the first guard stealthily from behind which was brilliant, exactly what I wanted to do. I tried to hide the body but got caught by another guard and this is where Ra’ef’s personality really started to come into its own. I knew early on I wanted Ra’ef to be a semi-leader when the inquisitor wasn’t around, but he was much more of a fast talker than I had expected. After convincing the young guard that the guy on the floor was the assassin and helping him he went on to convince a second guard to take him to his target basically hassle free. That didn’t quite go to plan but Ra’ef didn’t stop there he talked his way into leaving him and the doorman alone at which point I thought, Finally!, another chance to show off some stealth. That wasn’t to be either. I really wanted this mission to be quick and precise, and I knew I needed to take out the doorman quickly so I hacked off his arm with a chainsword, then a firefight ensued with the remaining guards. By this point I realised nothing had gone as planned and every attempt to make Ra’ef a stealthy killer had fallen flat on its arse, so I thought let’s not fight the tide, I dispatched the guy shooting me with consummate ease, I then (following a nudge from the Games master) blasted my way into my targets room with the boltpistol and after a brief dance around cut him down to size as well.
I was really happy with the game at the end, I fought against my character to make him into something and once I gave that up he turned into a brilliant character on his own. After playing games like Necromunda and Gorka Morka which allow you to make and develop individual characters, it was still surprising to see just how much character can fit into a 28mm model. I’m very much looking forward to the next part of the campaign where hopefully I get to see my other characters develop.
