Griet shrugged, "I wasn't best at anything. If it is a stand off, it's best to shoot first, after that all hell will break loose. That's why I'm glad you're shooting, not me. Maybe the best time would be just before popping the smoke, as I roll them off, you fire. That way our shot is in the clear and maybe we get lucky and obscure their shot. Good luck if you need to take it."

"Okay, kiddo," Jason calls over the noise of the engine.  "Let me know what Bayer says about your suggestion."  Hearing the other vehicles in the convoy speed up and come closer, he accelerates to maintain interval.  Concentrating primarily on the road ahead, he looks for a suitable curve.

Speaking to Konrad..."Hauptmann! We have two choices here. One is too pull ahead and run. We do this by popping some smoke and taking a road they did not see us go on- it's hard to track at night. Second is to pull ahead and ambush but we will die if we do this- their trucks have armor that will stop small arms and we will have to have a 100% hit with our rockets which is a pipe dream. These guys are their rapid reaction force trained and armed to the teeth. They have more than likely trained with each other for the last few years. They will eat our lunch..."


"Now, I have saved a secret and I'm willing to use it to get us out of this mess. Get on the radio and tell all units to follow and hold weapons tight, then we pop smoke and I send out my two special smoke."


"So, if you're OK with it call and tell all vehicles to follow and then from here we throw two smokes from you and my two special ones. What do you say boss?"

OOC: "Special" smoke is CS gas grenade.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:25, Mon 01 Dec 2008.

In reply to Griet Niewiadomska (msg #17):

He grinned, projecting his usual good-natured confidence, trying to bouy his comrade's spirits.

"Ah but you see, where the positions and weapons are the same, then it all comes down to skill! In that department we certainly have the edge, do not fear. So there is really nothing to worry about, is there?"

"Here, hold these. If you please."

Dawid gave her his night-goggles.

Casually, he took out his cigarette pack, offered her one, and then (with some difficulty) bent down under the cover of the tarp and lit himself a smoke. Fuck it, they already had their pursuers in plain sight, no crafty Indian trick was needed to hide the scent of tobacco over the machine oil and burning alcohol stench spewing of the huge KAMAZ engine.

Laughing, he flipped the chasing hounds the bird and blew smoke in their direction.

"Yeah, go fuck your mothers, hey? Lousy fuckers! See you in Hell or at the point of my cannon! I hope the radiation made your balls fall off!"
This message was last edited by the player at 22:25, Sun 30 Nov 2008.

Griet took a cigarette and after handing back Dawid's night vision goggles, she lit the end. She inhaled deeply and said, "I'll only smoke half of it, the other half I'll finish to celebrate you smoking the bastards behind us."

October 12, 2000
0415hrs.
40F
Scattered clouds; full moon
Approximately 9km south of Kozienice

The chase continues through overgrown fields dotted with scattered trees. The trees grow thicker as the party travels north until, up ahead, a dark wall of them stand before the faint blue glow of the moonlit sky.

The trailers continue to match the speed of the party's own convoy. As the road curves slightly back and forth behind them, Dawid and Griet can make out two more vehicles following them- another large truck and a smaller, Jeep-like one- making the pursuing force five in total.

The forest is about 1km up ahead. About 100m up ahead, Jason and Mariusz make out a dirt road forking to the left, running parallel to the more distant woodline.

Actions?
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:26, Mon 01 Dec 2008.

Hearing they had company, Anneka didn't bother to send a reply over the radio - Walter keeping up with the leading vehicles would do that for her.
Although she was slightly disappointed that the heaviest weapon they had in the truck was her RPK-74, she did at least have the best night vision equipment amongst the entire group. Taking advantage of the technical superiority, she lent carefully out so she could observe behind them and attempted to identify the exact makeup of the pursuing force...

Relaxed and confident-sounding, Dawid relayed the information about the additional vehicles.

Seeing that nothing was going to happen for a moment, he went through his pack and grabbed some food and stuffed it in a bag, enough for a day's rations for the three of them. He stuck his head back inside the cab and made sure that if they bailed out of the truck, Adam would grab these meagre supplies as well.

That done, he looked at the gun and did some figuring based on Griet's suggestion.

"I think I could take some single potshots, even on the run. If we have to stop for whatever reason, then I could take time to improve my aim. There's nothing fundamentally different between this weapon and any other cannon, just because it's usually fired in large bursts, you can fire it singly."

"Now if we hit, well, it depends. Fragmentation rounds might not penetrate into the compartment, but if they are traveling they might be surprised, swerve off the road. We could get lucky, destroy the vision blocks and other optics, lights, their night vision."

He clarified that they could (and probably would be forced to) drop smoke on the run, as he agreed with Griet that stopping might allow for some quick shots. "So, if I say "SMOKE" then just drop a grenade over the side to confuse them. If I say "STOP" get ready to abandon ship. If I say "GET OUT", well, we're walking."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:26, Tue 02 Dec 2008.

Craning her neck to see behind her and past the two larger trucks between the Tarpan-Honker and the enemy pursuit force, Anneka can make out several of the lead vehicles through her modern NVGs. Due to the intervening friendly vehicles and the curvature of the road, Anneka can only see the chasing vehicles intermitently but it is clear that the first vehicle is a small armored reconaissance vehicle- either an OT-65 or BRDM-2- with a turret-mounted machine gun of some kind (it isn't clear whether the weapon is a 14.5mm HMG or 7.62mm LMG). The second vehicle is harder to identify. It has the rough shape, size, and wheel configuration of a large truck but it's smooth, slab-sides, and angular cab suggest that it has been armored to some degree. Several weapon barrels portrude from various apertures in the truck's thick outer hide, most notably the circular tub atop the truck's cab. The third truck is a veritable twin of the second but the last large truck and the Jeep-like trailing vehicle appear to be standard, unarmored variants. Due to their size and number, it is likely that the pursuing trucks are carrying at least a full platoon of the seasoned anti-bandit troops rumoured to have been laying in wait at Pulawy.

Satisfied she'd gained just about as much information as was possible under the conditions, Anneka pulled herself back into the cab and grabbed the radio.
"This is Starlight. Five vehicles. First is lightly armoured with turreted machinegun. Second and third appear to be trucks with juryrigged armour plate, firing ports and possible pintle mounted heavier weapon. Last two are softskin."
"Estimate total manpower at approximately thirty soldiers."
"Advise leading two vehicles pull ahead under cover fire of trailing two and conduct quick ambush with grenades and RPGs."

Sure, they had armour, but it appeared to all be intended to protect mainly against small arms and bolster morale of those inside rather than provide any serious protection.

"They're faster than us and they'll not give up easily."
Three out of the four vehicles they'd acquired could probably keep pace, but the Ural KT-L tow truck was another matter entirely.

on hearing the radio traffic from the major sam speaks to the Hauptmann.." Boss if we stop we will be fucked in the ass. lets throw smoke and fight another day when the odds are on our side."




sam
m25
speaking to konrad

Ondar sits in the troop compartment of the Honker silently gripping his weapon - with his lips slightly pursed and his eyes bugged out.  As he follows the American's conversation with the German, his head swivels back and forth between them like he was watching a game of table tennis.

He looks plaintively across the cargo bed at Milk.

"Is Major crazy?"



[Ondar]
Honker Troop Bay
SVU-AS (10/10)
Wondering

In the darkened cargo bay of the Tarpan, Quyen answers the Hauptmann, "I put the RPG under the seats."

She was seated further in and had no view of the pursuing vehicles. Listening to the radio chatter and Bayer and McCoy in the back, she waits for the word to deploy or keep moving. Couple mines would be nice right about now, she thought.

"No chance of outrunning them?" she asks. Thinking about time and distance she says, "If they are keeping up with our speed and are under 400 meters away, thats not any time to setup an ambush without them driving on top before we're anywhere near in position."

"However, if we can speed up to setup an ambush... then we can speed up to lose them, right?"

In reply to Anneka Soleblume (msg #26):

Hearing that the following vehicle "only" had a heavy machinegun instead of an equivalent autocannon, Dawid focused the NVGs back on the pursuers, cursing that the Russian optics were brighter and less distorted than western gear, the trade off being more granularity.

Not being able to tell any more he gave up. He turned around and looked forward over the cab, then waved.

When he had Anneka's attention, he jerked a thumb back at their pursuers, tapped the side of his helmet, then pointed at her and made a vigorous slashing motion across his throat.

That pointed reminder delivered, he spoke to Griet.

"Risky, but not impossible. As an artilleryman I prefer a straightforward blow people up approach top problem-solving."

"Standard counter-ambush drill would be for them to stop and deploy in a flanking maneuver. Fighting from the march isn't recommended unless they are motor-rifle troops."

"Now, these 23mms clearly outgun and outrange anything they have, if "all" they have are machineguns. If a kill zone is set up where there are ambushers in close, we could be sitting back in support and pick them off with single shots as they deployed or tried to advance on us. It would be like target shooting ducks on the wing. Of course, probably highly fatal for any ambushing party in close. Such is the lot of a soldier."

He sighed. "Of course, having enough time to, say, plant a 120mm shell as an improvised mine, and deploy the mortar, would be nice."

Bayer toggles his radio, "Eagle, Sunray. What's your estimate on how much damage you can do if you slow a little? Have enough ammo to knock out the lead vehicle?"

While he waits for a reply he says to McCoy, "I know. I don't want to lose our any vehicles so soon. I've got a feeling smoke won't do too much. Get some HC ready though. I'd rather smoke cover than gas."

"Mariusz, get ready to jump ahead and setup facing our direction. A defensible position. Wait for my word."

Speaking aloud he says while holding down the transmit switch, "I'm going to take the advice of both of you. Drop HC and see if we can lose them... once the flak and tow trucks get a little closer to us first so they don't get stuck in the smoke."

"If it doesn't work I want the dismounts to ready for a hasty ambush centered around the motorcycle's AGS. Dawid will try to buy us some time with that cannon."

"Bring the RPG if we need to go through with the backup." He thought for a moment... then adds quietly "When."

Griet lowered herself down behind the assortment of boxes piled on the truck. The RPK was ready to use and she had the smoke grenades in her hands. She looked up at Dawid and said, "For what we are about to receive, may the Lord make us truly thankful..."

"Will do," Mariusz aknowledged Bayer's order and turned to shout in Jason's ear.

"We're to speed up a little and see if we can find a good ambush spot facing the way we are coming. If we can, we set up and tell the Kaptain." his eyes probbed the terrain ahead hoping to find a suitable spot soon.

In reply to Konrad Bayer (msg #31):

Dawid rolled his eyes. Weren't they broadcasting on an open channel? Still, the pursuers were well aware of the AA gun, so the options were not unknown to them. None of the following vehicles seemed to be radio vans, maybe no one had discovered their operating frequencies and was listening in.

Taking a second to shoot a sardonic glance over Griet he looked back at the chasers, did some figuring. Lets see, he thought, accuracy stopped and moving vs. survivability up on the open gun vs. ammunition supply vs. penetration of the vehicles' armour, add in others to draw fire and provide cover for more shots...

He wished he knew what Konrad was thinking.

Stopping dead in the road would be a real nail-biting experience, and he knew he would certainly hit the lead vehicle several times as it closed because of the increased accuracy, more hits meant more chance of a kill. In return he would come under withering fire on the open gun, increasing the chance a lucky hit was scored, ending the duel. Shooting while on the run was much less accurate but that went both ways and he probably could take as many pot shots as he liked. Stopping under the cover of other supporting firepower would be best for accuracy, but still not 100%.

"Sunray, while moving at any speed 50%, with 80% survival. Stopping with no support, 60% with 30% survival. Say, 70% across the board with support."

"This shit aint HC boss, that's just thick smoke; this is CS gas. One grenade covers a football field and anyone inside it will shit and puke on themselves. I want to drop two about 2 seconds apart to fuck them up good. They are bound to the road so they can't swerve off or they go into the trees. If they slow or stop then we outrun them. At 55mph we go 80 feet per second. Let's drop the gas. Their trucks aren't sealed and they won't have masks. This shit hangs around for a few miniutes and the effects last until you wash it off."
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:08, Wed 03 Dec 2008.

"OKAY!" Jason shouts over the wind and engine noise.  He then twists the throttle and speeds up to pull away from the other vehicles, looking for a suitable ambush site.

"Roger that boss," Tucker replies back into the radio as he turns his attention to the rear to keep an eye out on what's going on.  "I hope we didn't bite off more than we can chew this time.  Just like Sheen said in 'Apocalypse Now', "Never get off the damn boat!"

Milk frowns and replies,

"Is James Brown the 'Godfather of Soul?'"

Realizing that Ondar probably has no idea who James Brown is he adds,

"Yeah."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:11, Wed 03 Dec 2008.

The Ural motorcycle accelerates and pulls away from the remainder of the convoy, passing the dirt road on the left. The wall of trees up ahead begins looming closer as the bike quickly closes the distance. Jason, concentrating on the road ahead, sees nothing amiss. Mariusz, on the other hand, through his borrowed NVGs, notices something odd under the trees, now just under 400m distant. A rounded object, clearly man-made, reflecting an oblong sliver of moonlight from the edge of the treeline near where the dark strip of road enters the wood*. Mariusz has seen plenty of Polish army helmets in his short life, and he has no doubts that that's what he is seeing right now.

Several hundred meters behind the motorcyle, the party's trio of trucks continues on apace. The pursuit force remains 300 or so meters behind them, matching their speed and keeping their distance.

OOC: *Mariusz recognizes this wood as one of the national wildlife parks nearly surrounding Kozienice.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:14, Wed 03 Dec 2008.

With konrad not answering, Sam smiles, lifts the grenade to his chest, and pulls the pin and drops it over the side of the truck. He counts "one thousand one, one thousand two" then pulls the pin on the second grenade and drops it over the side also. Both grenades were his last bet and now they both bellow thick, blinding smoke to his rear. He smiles and says "Oops, I slipped."

"Boss, now lets take the road to the left and get the fuck out of here; the cycle can take up tail end charlie..."
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:49, Wed 03 Dec 2008.

Anneka's attention was focused behind the small convoy as she attempted to line up her RPK-74 for a few bursts of hopefully effective suppressive fire. Walter, she thought, was certainly trustworthy enough to guide the lumbering vehicle without her unwanted assistance....