Operation Dark Star 1.1.0

Operation: Darkstar

An Ambush Alley Scenario Pack

In Association with Rebel Minis

Operation Dark Star


Notices:

While every effort has been made to prepare an accurate, thorough and error-free document, your comments and suggestions regarding improvements to this user’s manual are appreciated. Please forward suggestions and requests for clarification to [email protected]

Copyright:

Operation Dark Star ©2008 Rebel Minis and Ambush Alley Games. Produced for Rebel Minis under exclusive license from Ambush Alley Games. All rights reserved. Reproduction of this work by any means without the written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden. Ambush Alley! ©2007 Ambush Alley Games. All rights reserved. Reproduction of this work by any means without the written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden. All significant characters, names, places, items, art and text herein are copyrighted by Shawn Carpenter and Ambush Alley Games. This product is a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, places or events is purely coincidental.

Images:

Game photos ©2008, Shawn Carpenter.

Ambush Alley Games: Ambush Alley Games ©2006 Shawn Carpenter, Robby Carpenter, David “Dark Paw” Phipps.

Publication History: Publication

Version

Date

Operation Dark Star

1.1.0

April 10, 2008

This document was printed on

June 11, 2008

Last Revised: June 9, 2008

Ambush Alley Games Operation Dark Star

Page i

Operation Dark Star


Table of Contents ABOUT OPERATION DARK STAR ........................................................................................... 3 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................ 3 TROOP QUALITY AND MORALE ..................................................................................................................... 3 FOG OF W AR AND ASSET CARDS ................................................................................................................. 3 VICTORY POINTS ......................................................................................................................................... 3

SCENARIO 1: DON’T BOTHER KNOCKING ............................................................................. 4 SCENARIO 2: THE HOT GATE ................................................................................................. 7 SCENARIO 3: THE SMALL THINGS WILL KILL YOU .............................................................. 9

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©2008 Rebel Minis & Ambush Alley Games

Operation Dark Star


FOG OF WAR AND ASSET CARDS

ABOUT OPERATION DARK STAR

Ambush Alley Fog of War and Asset cards are not used in these scenarios.

INTRODUCTION Operation Dark Star is an Ambush Alley mini-campaign in three scenarios. The campaign may be played contiguously, with the outcome of each scenario affecting the next, or it may be played episodically, with each scenario played with fresh forces. Photographs of suggested table layouts are included in each scenario brief – use them as a rough guide to position your own terrain and miniatures when playing the scenarios. Don’t feel that you must slavishly adhere to the example layouts. As long as you maintain the general positions of starting forces and objectives, density of cover and line of site blocking features, you’ll be fine.

TF Black operators engage terrorists on the outskirts of Sadr City, Baghdad.

All the figures necessary to play any of the scenarios have been included in this set. You will require a copy of the Ambush Alley rule book to play Operation Dark Star.

VICTORY POINTS At the end of each scenario, victory points are totaled for each side and the difference between those totals is used to determine who (if anyone) won and by how wide a margin:

The scenarios in Operation Dark Star focus on a fictional Task Force Black mission. Task Force Black is a coalition special operations unit formed from elements from the US Delta Force and the British Special Air Service. TF Black is an actual organization that performs clandestine “black” operations in Iraq.

Margin of Victory Table Difference of 0-4 points = Indecisive Difference of 5 to 9 points = Marginal Difference of 10 to 14 points = Decisive Different of 15+ points = Total

TROOP QUALITY AND MORALE TF Black Operatives and Leaders all have a Troop Quality of Elite (D12) and a Morale of D12. Unless otherwise noted, all Terrorists have a Troop Quality of Trained (d8) and a Morale of D12.

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Mission Brief

SCENARIO 1: DON’T BOTHER KNOCKING

The Professor is being held in a building in a crowded neighborhood on the edge of Sadr City, one of the poorest and most densely populated districts in Baghdad. It is also an area notorious for its anti-coalition inclinations. A Task Force Black special response team has been tasked with rescuing him. Recent UAV surveillance reveals that the neighborhood they will be operating in is strangely quiet, almost deserted, so civilian casualties shouldn’t be an issue.

We got the call out at 0700. A professor of biochemistry on his way to Baghdad University ran into some traffic problems. You know. The kind that carries Kalashnikovs. The Professor had a security detail. Contractors, good ones – not posers, but the ambush they ran into was surgical. Within three minutes the entire detail was dead and the Professor was in the back of a van headed for parts unknown.

The strike force must quickly infiltrate the neighborhood, rapidly neutralize resistance in the target building, and secure the hostage for either helicopter or ground evacuation.

The spooks went into overdrive trying to track the guy down. The bad press of a precision snatch and grab followed up by a videotaped execution would be bad enough, but to make matters worse, the Professor knew how to cook up some nasty bugs – and how to distribute them where they’d do the most harm. Not the kind of guy you want in the hands of a physically persuasive enemy, if you know what I mean. It took eighteen hours, but HumInt resources tracked the van down to a neighborhood on the southwest margin of Sadr City. Lt. Col. Davies’ laser pointer wormed around a building on the UAV photo displayed on the briefing room’s plasma screen.

Terrorists wait in ambush for TF Black operators during Operation Darkstar.

Regular Mission Objective

“That’s the place, gentlemen. When you get there, go in rocking and don’t bother knocking.”

Infiltrate to the target building. Neutralize defenses. Rescue the hostage. Secure the hostage, any prisoners, and any recovered intelligence and hold until evacuated by ground or air.

Task Force Black had a target. We thought it would be a simple hostage rescue. In and out, no fuss, no muss.

Terrorist Mission Objective Prevent the Task Force Black team from reaching the safe-house where the Professor is being held. Prevent the Professor’s rescue. Destroy the team before it can exfiltrate.

Yeah. Right.

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Table Set-Up (2’x2’ 15mm, 4’x4’ 25mm)

Task Force Black Victory Conditions Entry Team is stacked at target building by end of turn three: 5 pts. Full Entry Team arrives at target building: 5 pts. Professor taken alive: 5 pts. Per POW captured: 2 pts. No Regular POWs/KIAs: 2 pts.

E: Entry point for TF Black T: Target Builidng 1 – 4: Starting positions for Terrorist Security teams 1 through 4

Task Force Black Strike Team Force Composition

TF Black Operators assaulting through an ambush.

Terrorist Victory Conditions

1x Dynamic Entry Team 1x Team Leader w/MP5 SMG (Small Arms) 1x Operator w/Combat Shotgun (Small Arms) 3x Operators w/MP5 SMG (Small Arms)

• •

2x Fireteams 1x Team Leader w/M4 (Small Arms) 3x Operators w/M4 (Small Arms)

•

Terrorist Force Composition

•

•

•

Prevent TF Black from entering target building until end of Turn 6: TOTAL VICTORY. Prevent TF Black from entering the target building until end of Turn 4: 5 Professor killed during take down of target building: 5 Per TF Black Operative/Leader wounded: 2pts. Per TF Black Operative/Leader killed: 3 pts. Per POW held at end of game: 5 pts.

4x Security Teams 1x Team Leader w/Small Arms 5x Gunmen w/Small Arms Note: Terrorist small arms my take the form of an AK47 or shotgun.

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Special Rules Clearing the Target Building Use the standard House Clearing rules in Ambush Alley. On any result calling for a casualty check, roll a D6. On a roll of 1 or 2, the Professor was killed during the rescue attempt, but was able to pass his information on to a Task Force Black operative before expiring.

TF Black operators clearing the target building

TF Black Survivors Keep track of what figures survived the scenario – these are the only figures that will be available to the TF Black player in the next scenario!

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TF Black player may decide which figures he wishes to stay behind and hold off the reinforcements and which he wishes to send on the dispersal unit raid.

SCENARIO 2: THE HOT GATE The terrorists “convinced” the Professor to assist them in setting up an aerosol dispersal unit that will flood the Green Zone with some nasty bug they purchased during one of the Soviet Union’s going out of business sales. The old guy was tough, so it took a lot of very nasty persuasion. He won’t be playing the piano any time soon, that’s for sure.

Any figures sent to raid the dispersal unit are removed from the table for use in the next scenario. The remaining figures may be set up within the marked deployment area as the TF Black player desires. The blocking force must prevent as many reinforcements from pursuing the raiding team for 5 turns.

The bug has a very short life-span, so it will only be dangerous for about six hours after dispersal – but with the current wind conditions that will be plenty of time to infect most of the people living and working in the Green Zone and from what the Professor said, this bug would make Ebola look like a slower, gentler cousin.

TF Black Mission Objective The TF Black blocking team’s objective is simple: Prevent any terrorists from exiting the board through Ahriman’s Gate long enough for the raiders to get clear and accomplish their mission.

Luckily for us, the Professor knows where the dispersal unit is and tells us how to neutralize it with a thermite grenade, the explosive answer to duct tape. Unluckily for us, the bad actors holding him hostage weren’t alone and their buddies are making a bee-line for our position to take him back.

Terrorist Mission Objective The terrorist mission objective is just as simple as TF Black’s: They must force their way through Ahriman’s Gate in order to chase the TF Black raiders down before they can reach the dispersal unit. Slaughtering the operatives guarding Ahriman’s Gate would put the cherry on top.

The terrorists set the dispersal unit up in a neighborhood whose crowded buildings make it a virtual fortress. The only way in or out is through a gap between buildings barely wider than the pothole pocked road that passes through it. The locals call that gap “Ahriman’s Gate.” So, we have to split the team. Some of us will make for the dispersal unit to apply some thermite goodness while the rest will stay behind as a rear guard. It’s going to get pretty hot for any tangos trying to get through the Ahriman Gate today.

Mission Brief The TF Black team must split into two groups, one of which will remain behind to hold off the terrorist reinforcements while the other locates the dispersal unit and destroys it.

Terrorists prepare to rush the Ahriman Gate.

Only TF Black team members who survived the first scenario are available for play. The AMBUSH ALLEY!

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Terrorist Reinforcements To represent the waves of reinforcements assaulting the gates, each time six Terrorist casualties are taken off the board, re-form them as a new Assault Team that enters in the Terrorist Entry Zone at the beginning of the next turn.

GAME DURATION: 5 TURNS TF Black Victory Conditions No Terrorists pass through the Ahriman Gate by end of Turn 5: 5 pts. Less than ten Terrorists pass through the Ahriman Gate by end of Turn 6: 2 pts. No TF Black KIA/POWs: 2 pts. Per terrorist killed: 1 pt. Green Zone (Ahriman’s Gate): Initial defensive position of TF Black blocking force.

Terrorist Victory Conditions More than ten Terrorists pass through the Ahriman Gate by the end of Turn 6: 10 pts. For each TF Black Operative or Leader killed or wounded: 2 pts. For each TF Black Operative or Leader taken as a POW: 3 pts.

Red Zone: Starting position of Terrorist assault units (and subsequent reinforcements).

TF Black Force Composition The TF Black player has whatever figures he chose to leave behind as a blocking force.

Special Rules Over-Extended Operation TF Black’s combat load-out reflects the surgical nature of their normal operations. They do not carry more ammunition than they think they’ll need for a mission. As a result, the prolonged firefight at Ahriman’s Gate may leave the defenders in short supply.

Terrorist Force Composition 4x Assault Teams Terrorist Assault Team 1x Team Leader w/Small Arms 5x Gunmen w/Small Arms

To reflect this, reduce their Troop Quality die by one type each time a TF Black rolls a 1 on a Reaction Test. TF Black Troop Quality may not be reduced below D6.

Note: Terrorist small arms my take the form of an AK47 or shotgun.

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SCENARIO 3: THE SMALL THINGS WILL KILL YOU “Taking the dispersal unit by stealth was impossible with all hell breaking loose behind us at the Ahriman Gate. It would be run and gun all the way. We hit the bad guys with everything we had and prayed we weren’t too late to stop them from unleashing the “Russian Flu” on half of Baghdad.”

Mission Brief The clock is running down. The dispersal unit must be destroyed before the viral compound is fully converted into aerosol form. It is protected by three security teams and the terrorists’ command cell.

E: Entry Point for TF Black teams and Terrorist Reinforcements X: Dispersal Unit 1: Terrorist Command Cell 2 – 4: Terrorist Veteran Assault Teams 2 through 4

The TF Black assault team must reach the dispersal unit, destroy it and neutralize the viral mixture before the Terrorists can launch a biological attack. Failure to do so will result in mass casualties.

TF Black Force Composition

Regular Mission Objective

The TF Black player only has those figures available that he did not use in scenario two (and that survived scenario one, of course).

The squad must reach the weapon cache, plant demolition charges, and exfiltrate. The operation must be executed quickly to deny the defenders time to significantly reinforce. Failure is not an option.

Terrorist Mission Objective The dispersal unit must be protected until the viral agent is sufficiently aerosolized to achieve maximum effect!

TF Black Operatives infiltrate the area near the viral dispersal unit.

If the invaders succeed in destroying the dispersal unit, the mission will fail – and failure is not an option!

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Terrorist Force Composition

Special Rules Planting Charges To destroy the dispersal unit, a TF Black fireteam must spend a turn in contact with it. Once the charges are set, the cache is automatically destroyed if the unit that sets them moves away.

All Terrorist units in this scenario have Veteran Troop Quality (D10) and Morale of D12. 3x Veteran Assault Teams 1x Command Cell

If the unit is engaged in close combat, forced to Fall Back or seek cover due to casualties, it cannot complete setting the charges and must try again on its next turn.

+Any Terrorists that made it through the Ahriman Gate in the previous scenario. See Special Rules. Veteran Assault Team 1x Team Leader w/Small Arms 5x Gunmen w/Small Arms

Terrorist Reinforcements As the Terrorists take casualties, they may replace them with figures that were able to exit the table through the Ahriman Gate in the previous scenario.

Command Cell 1x Team Leader w/Small Arms 5x Gunmen w/Small Arms

If no terrorists made it off the board, the Terrorist player receives no reinforcements.

Note: Terrorist small arms my take the form of an AK47 or shotgun. .

At the end of each turn, the Terrorist player may recycle any casualty figures as reinforcements. Reinforcements appear in the entry zone marked on the map.

Scenario Length: 6 Turns

The Terrorist player may only receive as many reinforcement figures as he was able to get through the gates in the previous scenario.

Regular Victory Conditions Destroy the dispersal unit by the start of Turn 5: 10 pts. Exit the board by end of turn 5: 5 pts. Exit the board by end of turn 4: 7 pts.

Terrorist Victory Conditions Prevent destruction of the dispersal unit by the end of Turn 6: 10 pts For each TF Black operator or leader slain: 3 pts. For each TF Black Operator or leader captured: 5 pts.

As the sun lowers, members of the terrorist command cell stand guard over a van containing the dispersal unit.

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Operation Dark Star 1.1.0

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