All right, hopefully this works 'cause I usually can't persuade rpol to show pictures...



Colour-inverted for clarity, since it was scratch-on-rock, otherwise consider this an IC map.

Arrow is just to show the expected direction of attack and which way up we are. You'll note Carl leaves out details of buildings/yards and just blocks in properties as areas that can be defended...buildings with diagonal lines are defended, preferably at least two people/roof but the more the merrier, hatching shows where fire and/or nastiness can be poured onto those below. The thicker the hatching, the more the enemy don't want to be there.

He plans to put Wildcat in that horrible black area behind the Grand Bull, so even if she has a funny five minutes at realising the fastest way to null the Comanche threat is not to kill them but to drive their pony deficit higher than potential gains (this is going to shred Carl's little black heart, but for the town he'll do it, even though it'll probably cost him Hoss, too) she's not going to unnerve crucial defenders around her.

Carl has no idea about the vampires, so he'll send someone to warn/collect/arm the Oriental girls at some point (poor sod). He also doesn't know CB's freely at large, and might shoot him on sight if no-one updates him.

August's arrival will throw this plan a bit when/if Carl finds out about it, as it'll mean they'll need to fake a poor defense to draw the Comanche into the real one with the requisite confidence to get into trouble on those spikes and thus staggered when they hit the main kill zone.

On which theme: improvised caltrops. He'll do as they did in the war and get scrap metal and pointiness strung on a rope and thrown across the street part-embedded in the serendipitous mud. Fermented sewage (not all tannery is done at the ranch, hell no) thrown over this to make sure those wounded on them don't survive even if they get away is even better.

Y'all may notice, like Gus did, that if the Comanche come in North-East the defences are relatively weak, but there's really nothing up there for them unless they attack the church, where folk traditionally shelter, in which case they can be caught between the mobile cavalry force (which he'll be with himself) and any number of hard places any way they try to go save away very fast. The odd circle is the barrel with flour/dynamite, which can be set off from the Town Hall with minimum ammo waste if he can get a bit of sheet glass from the Grand Bull's dead mirror/windows.

If there's more dynamite, great - he'll set ex-miners working on that. Likewise, if they can get more ginnels blocked, great, but he's being realistic.

John's news will cause tactical changes, but the strategy's sound. He'll ask Evans about unreliable witches around and boot them out East of town to find what cover they can. If he catches up with Arthur he's liable to beat the man at least half to death (because God would probably not approve of shooting him in the face: you see, he is trying) and boot him out there, too. Formal battle training wouldn't convince Carl the man would be of any use against a raiding party.

Wooo...

Now that's better!  I cannot draw.  Same idea tighter perimeter.

The scalding water too, I particularly like that bit.

Best not to tell the Ranger about the sewage on the wire.  The wire, she's no problem with.  The sewage, dumped into them or onto them, she can deal with.  But the idea of causing infections deliberately would lead to another argument.

It's funny how she draws such strange lines in the sand.

Question, how does plate glass + bullet = ignition source?  Mad Science?  Is it some function lead striking lead based substance?  Confused on that part.

...

But come on Carl.

You're really suspecting Wildcat, the same girl who gave her last dollar (and probably still got ripped off by the unscrupulous owner in the process) to save an unreliable idiot horse that was going to be sold to the glue factory, will stop to think "Hey let's murder ponies"?

Granted Carl doesn't know what but still.

=P

Good God why must Carl assume the worst of her in so many different contexts.  He probably thinks she tortures puppies too. XD
This message was last edited by the player at 14:46, Wed 21 Dec 2011.

Sorry, I forget other people don't tend to hang out with re-enactors/amateur mad scientists/pyromaniacs sometimes..."like the candle and old TV screen trick" probably means nothing to you. *hem*

Lantern on glass (preferably with a nail driven through the bottom and removed so that the oil leaks a bit - put it on upside-down and flip), glass on lidness barrel o'boom, top lantern up, light lantern. Fire and highly combustible substance are now one bullet away from being dumped on dynamite and setting up a bit of the dust/flour in the process, ensuring the lot goes up pretty much instantaneously. Hanging fire could be very bad, throwing torches very obvious, and blasting away at the thing would be wasteful and relatively dangerous.

Quite. So Wildcat the baby squaddie'll be back there where she can hear the caltrops taking effect, but not be in the thick of it to freak out about it, and her shooting at riders to her heart's content won't put anyone in danger (except said riders, but they may be bulletproof anyway).

Carl loves horses just as much as she does (it's why he hates cavalry on principle even though he respects them as soldiers), but he knows what's going to seal the course of this battle is how many ponies a side has left at the end. That's why Gus will be at the head of the gauntlet, because he can hack it and not dent the morale of folk around. Comanches stuck on foot in a town are just as screwed as Dust Adders stuck on foot in a camp, after all.

Ah, see if you'd said a lantern and a barrel was involved I'd have pieced it together better.

I grew up around a lot of cotton country.  Even that stuff, which is not nearly as bad as flour, but when stored in a silo can create a similar situation, caused quite a few deaths in the 1800s when some hapless stooge would bring a lantern into said silo and, well it ends badly.  Heck even when I was a child, there were two accidents years apart where someone touched off an explosion without thinking or perhaps knowing.

One was a known case of a chain smoker trying to get a light off of a blowtorch at a cotton gin, if the paper was to be believed.  I am considered to be a redneck, but I'm not redneck enough to comprehend how any of that seemed like a good idea at the time, but I can also find it highly plausible for a redneck.

I'm not country at all, for my father being an engineer, despite the fact his specialty was rural power distribution, we lived in suburbia.  But even I know what a salt lick is, you kill all coyotes on sight and leave the corpses where they lie, that you can load .44 Special in a Marlin 1894 .44 Magnum trapper if the difference is less than 0.12", and the difference between a billy and a nanny.

The other accident was a case of someone from, well a different place, striking a light where they really shouldn't have most likely out of ignorance.  Apparently smoking really can kill you.

You knew of the barrel, or 'twas your idea, at least. How WC meant to ignite it I know not. Still, apologies for obscurity.

Wow. I did not know cotton did that. (In fact, I've never seen a cotton plant, but that's hardly surprising given where I live) wow.

It is quite rare with cotton, but it does happen, but usually not very spectacularly.  The conditions have to be just right.

In fact it was investigated recently and actually found to be non combustible.  This caused a number of scuffaws from people with a long background in the stuff, but I also know people who are 3rd generation cotton farmers who smoke in the gins constantly and who have never had a problem.  Still I've noted that several of these facilties are now No Smoking zones.

I can beleive that since the facilities involved in both these incidents were not destroyed, but I don't believe that it's non flammable and I think that's the problem.  There's been several incidents of electrical problems causing explosions that have sent people to the hospital:

http://lubbockonline.com/filed...xplosion-injures-two

Cotton explosions aside, I think the real measure of these defenses will be how much of them you've finished by the time the Comanche get here. I've heard it said that defenders pick the place, attackers pick the time.

So some of these are preparation ideas and some of these are tactical ideas.

It seems to me that the major prep tasks are:

• Gathering the people
• Setting up the barricades
• Setting up the traps

Is that the right of it?

The special battle plans are:

• Caltrops to slow and wound the horses.
• Funneling the riders into a killing field.
• Killing horses over riders to inflict losses that will convince the Comanches the cost is too great to continue the fight.

Are these about right?

The former equal the latter, yes. Wildcat thinks all wire will be at clothesline height (some clotheslines will doubtless he adapted for this). It won't be.

John and August's information will be really important to tactics, though. Also whether Murphs returns and whether he brings Hoss, since athough Carl's aware that there's an incredibly high chance any animal he takes into battle here will be killed, with Hoss he knows he can keep it from happening the longest - likewise, he's confident she can keep him alive the longest, too.

So sorry guys. I'm going to go ahead and blame the holidays (but not St. Nick, that guy has his work cut out for him) on my lack of response... yep. Of course major planning would occur around Christmas :P

Anyway. In the even that I get dragged away again (Busy today, tomorrow, day after, suffice to say free time is limited until about next Wednesday and even then I'm not sure what I'll have going on) John will definitely hunt down the group and inform them of the challenges they face.

So sorry guys. I'm going to go ahead and blame the holidays (but not St. Nick, that guy has his work cut out for him) on my lack of response... yep. Of course major planning would occur around Christmas :P

Anyway. In the even that I get dragged away again (Busy today, tomorrow, day after, suffice to say free time is limited until about next Wednesday and even then I'm not sure what I'll have going on) John will definitely hunt down the group and inform them of the challenges they face.

Posting now though. Hopefully I can keep up.

Hero!

Imagine me making an 'Urrr?' sound followed by an inquisitive and confused raising of a single eye brow.

[does so] You sound like Lurch in my head.

I meant more that when JohnJohn's gone he is very very gone, but when he is there, he is brilliant. Hopefully this'll jog Gus' memory about the sound of the song that makes men bulletproof...

Just a feller tryin' to do what's right by them that's done right by him. :P

Round up of where which town Dust Adders are at this moment, in case their current actions affect Carl/John's Dramatic Task rolls or anything related:

Gus - helping with the vampires
Frank - alerting Wildcat to the vampires

Murphs - riding messenger between town and ranch
(Felix, Jeb and Joe were reported to be warning outliers and will probably return to the ranch with said folk unless the town is nearer or the homestead thought to be defensible, am I right, Stray? Dave will probably be allowed to remain at the ranch after getting Widow Bradshaw there to help Ward act directly against Tez)

Little Tom - stockpiling lead

Bill - having a frilly fit beside Carl

Elliot - sharps collecting
Ned - sharps collecting

John - people herding
Johnny - people herding
Dishonest Abe - people herding
Big Tom - people herding
...and Carl already sent Dutch the Poker Player &co. to find Roland ages ago, so by the time the last stragglers are convinced neither the Ranger nor the Dust Adders are going to eat them and arrive at the Bull to be updated/set tasks, the first there should be setting out on delegated tasks. Carl hopes to get there and oversee said delegation soon, but trusts the herders, Roland and John to get it under control regardless.

Max - ladder hoarding/barricade materials
Slim - preparation in town hall for installing the meek, old, halt, lame and sick (the women in the church will soon start helping with this)

Jesse - ?sulking in a sidestreet somewhere?

Tim the Littlest Dust Adder - getting dry, warm, fed & possibly armed in the Red Eye.

While the Characters are doing their thing, let's find out how the other NPCs are doing with their tasks.

Carl, as our resident Dust Adder, you'll be rolling this Dramatic Task for them. Each roll will represent one of the tasks that has been set out. A complication means something went odd with it. When all the rolls are made, I'll work with Carl and create an interlude post to detail what's been happening around town while the players are busy.

Carl, on behalf of the other Dust Adders, you'll be handling this dramatic task.:

Material collecting: Draw a card to check for Complication, then roll  Notice at no modifier (-2 penalty on a Complication).

People Herding 1: Draw a card, then roll Persuasion or Intimidation at no modifier (-2 on a Complication). This is for the group being directed to City Hall.

People Herding 2: Draw a card, then roll Persuasion or Intimidation at -2 (-4 on a Complication). This is for the group being directed to The Mining Offices.

Collecting outliers 1: Draw a card, then roll Ride at -2 (-4 on Complication). This is to determine how many can be reached in time.

Collecting outliers 2: Draw a card, then roll Persuasion or Intimidation at -2 (-4 on Complication). This is to determine how many homesteaders can be persuaded to leave.

...waaait, I know the Dust Adders' general stats, but do they get the use of my chips or/and wild die?

As you're the one coordinating them, you get your wild die and can use chips as you see fit.

Results!

Material collecting:  2S,
5,5 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 5,5. stuff gathering

People Herding 1: KD
20:23, Today: Carl Allans rolled 4,0 using d4-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of (4+2)6,2. folk persuadin'.

People Herding 2: JS
20:26, Today: Carl Allans rolled -1,0 using d4-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 1,2. confusion!

Collecting outliers 1: 9H
19:26, Today: Carl Allans rolled 0,6,3 using d6-2,d6-2,d6 (red add), rerolling max with rolls of 2,(6+2)8,3. -> 9 white chippit.

Collecting outliers 2: 8H
19:28, Today: Carl Allans rolled -1,3 using d6-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 1,5. herding homesteaders.

So looking over the results, here's how I interpret it:

* Stuff is gathered effectively. This includes barricade materials, though no actual barricades have been made.

* A lot of folk are finding their way to City Hall (where you wanted them to go). Were you using Persuasion or Intimidate?

* A lot of folk are heading to the old mining offices (where you DIDN'T want them to go). That's going to be an interesting complication.

* The riders made it to the outliers with time to spare. Even with some reticence on the part of several families to pack up and leave, and some difficulties getting them moving, the Dust Adders still managed to get most folk where they needed to go (either to the ranch or to the town, depending on proximity).

Is that a fair assessment?

Persuasion, hence the minuses - it's no good herding people to work together if they get there ornery...

The confused parties rolled -1 on their Persuasion, I don't think many are heading mining office-wards.

It looks like the riders reached everyone in time, but despite a roll of 5 the getting-them-to-move roll was actually a failure - I think some poor jackass/es has/have stuck their heels in and refused to follow a Dust Adder/Joe (folk don't like poor Joe) on principle...that noted, the summary sounds about right.

question: since that white spend took me down to three chips, should I draw another as per the chip post, or not since I had four when it was posted?

Go ahead and draw back up to four.

True, but there's those that were directed there by John (and, by extension, Roland and Alistair). It's a whole big cock-up.

Yeah, but the raise on the ride means even some of those who dug in their heels had time to be persuaded. There are those who didn't want to go and might still refuse on general dislike of Joe, especially those who realize he's not actually Mexican, but it's less than would be if you didn't have the raise covering for that.

24 - it's a red!

Aye, though John was starting to direct them elsewhere; I think they're just milling in confusion...which is actually worse than accumulating in the wrong place, so yeah.

Ah bon. Is the Mayor's family/peke now at the ranch?

Indeed they are. I'm trying to figure out how to structure the next post in the thread where Carl and Jake are...I don't see any way of linking them just at the moment.

Describe who's where in Jake's field of vision first, then he can decide to ask someone (including Carl, much good may it do him) where people/automatons he wants to see are/what to do next, or interrupt the priest's probably rather confused explaination of what Danny is to Dr.Franklin, or feed Danny fishes, or offer his services to anyone limping etc.