Next Week: VIPER

[Super Squirrel]

My players are going to have their first encounter with VIPER next week. The initial team, should be a cake walk. Two Heavy Weapons exports, a Computer specialist, a Sergeant, and Two Viper Basics will be facing a five member superhero team.

 

Last night I ran some playtest data on the VIPER squad. Four of the superheroes have attacks sufficient enough to CON stun on a lucky roll or knockout completely on a very lucky roll. The fifth, is a speedster who likes to disarm.

 

I'm looking for ideas to expand the game combat session. The game will take place in a bank with one primary entrance and a secondary emergency exit. I figure I'll have the two VIPER Basics cover the rear with the Elites on the front. There really isn't "suppressive" fire other than having the two VIPER Elites taking turns holding actions to stop advancing heroes.

 

The commander will be back providing coverfire for the computer expert. The VIPER squad knows this particular team is coming and they want the speedster covered so that he can't take away the VIPER laptop before the computer expert has completed her (impossible) mission.

 

I'm also thinking of having a planned extraction team that will come in the second the computer system is taken offline. Quixicotal system will start out with a single missile to take out the front wall of the bank. If that doesn't take the attention from inside to outside, I don't know what is. A second set of units (5 will enter through the back door and grab the computer specialist and squad commander, and if they are lucky enough, get one or two of the heavy weapon specialists. The Basics are only covered if they are able to move themselves.

 

The Quixicotal will pull out once the important units are evacuated. This will leave the players with, hopefully, two VIPER basic units and a (likely broken) VIPER laptop with classic self-destruct programming.

[Super Squirrel]

Re: Next Week: VIPER

 

I forgot the all important question.

 

Is this too much or too little? Should the VIPER Basics be priority as well or should they be knocked off with a frag grenade? Do you have better advice for extraction of the team?

[Chimpira]

Re: Next Week: VIPER

 

Is this an elaborate ploy by Viper against the characters or are the heroes going to stumble onto this by accident? What is the make up of the Hero team? If it is a simple bank job and all they are after is information stored in the computer, why are they attacking during the daytime (I think) instead of sending in the espionage team at night? Do not get me wrong, it sounds interesting right now but I need just a little more information. I am currently running a game with Viper involved, but none of the players know it. Right now, they are doing exactly what Viper wanted them to do. I am very interested in how others use Viper.

[PoorWandering 1]

Re: Next Week: VIPER

 

The basics are a priority. It just doesn't do to leave soldiers to be interrogated. Besides it'll ruin morale among the other basics. If nothing else give them Fire department jackets and helmets and a nearby rental/stolen car. It's just not cost effective to sell out your own troops without a very good reason.

[Ghost who Walks]

Re: Next Week: VIPER

 

Ay hostages at the bank, or is deserted?

 

If you want to expand the session, one way is just with weaponry. IMC, VIPER sometimes carries laser rifles. Whenever they see the police, they shoot the gas tanks of the police cars (and any other civilian cars.. This provides the reason I use, for the cops calling the heroes when they see VIPER. VIPER also has the bad habit of jamming police radios, which gets rid of modern police forces best advantage - communications.

 

Justificiation is that VIPER armor is primarily designed to protect against explosive damage...my VIPER is explosion happy.

 

Disguises area good idea. If the heroes are the first to arrive, a VIPER guy in a police uniform can provide misdirections.

 

Overall the escape strategy looks good. If they expect the heroes to show up, a diversion may also be planned. Leaving a ticking bomb, setting off smoke grenades, or dressing up one of themselves as "Captain Flagwaver" all can work.

 

If the VIPER guys are lightly loaded, they may just escape on some VIPER motorscooters, scattering in seperate directions. The heroes might be able to catch one or two, depending on their powers.

[Super Squirrel]

Re: Next Week: VIPER

 

Is this an elaborate ploy by Viper against the characters or are the heroes going to stumble onto this by accident? What is the make up of the Hero team? If it is a simple bank job and all they are after is information stored in the computer' date=' why are they attacking during the daytime (I think) instead of sending in the espionage team at night? Do not get me wrong, it sounds interesting right now but I need just a little more information. I am currently running a game with Viper involved, but none of the players know it. Right now, they are doing exactly what Viper wanted them to do. I am very interested in how others use Viper.[/quote']

Sure. Here is the full story. I posted some of it earlier before.

 

VIPER has lots of information on the Champions, UNTIL, and many rogue groups. The Greek (weaponsmaster), Reptile (martial artist on DCV), Voltage (blaster with electrical powers and a VIPER hunted that will be fun later), Kaledioscope (Blaster and Chaos Powers), and Thought (Speedster High Flight w/ SPD 6) are not in their file.

 

VIPER knows that the Champions team is out of town and they have plans to keep UNTIL busy (Ripper is in town). They plan on testing some new equipment on the bank computer system after hours using standard invasion. This will leave only the new hero team will be free to stop them. This will give them a chance to test their equipment and gauge the powers of the team. Plus they need to see Voltage operate in battle for now.

 

Voltage's background is key to this ploy. Voltage's father was in a VIPER mutantion experiment program. All of their effort yielded no results. However, his son, Voltage, got the powers instead. They want their project back. Or at least that is what the player thinks.

 

I could do the pullout team as Paramedics...

[Chimpira]

Re: Next Week: VIPER

 

Sounds good. If you wanted, I see no reason why the pullout team could not be a mock PRIMUS or UNTIL team. Viper would know how those groups work and their procedures. Things like that could drive the players to become closer to the real organizations so that they would not be fooled again. Maybe even going so far as getting a liaison from one of those groups.

[Chuckg]

Re: Next Week: VIPER

 

Suggestion -- it would make more tactical sense for both the Heavy Weapons to cover the front door, for the back door to be barricaded, and for the Basics to handle the rest.

 

(looks closer, sees it's after hours).

 

*nods* All right. The Basics are just needed to handle whatever night guards there are, then.

 

You don't need an energy cannon to threaten a helpless civilian or a bank guard, but you do need it to stop the hero or the SWAT team charging in the door. So, I think to put both Heavy Weapons close enough together that they can coordinate fire agianst the same target, but dispersed enough that one Area Effect or Sweep won't drop 'em both.

 

(edit) Forget 'barricading', that makes too much noise if you're not doing a daylight robbery. (when noise isn't a concern)

 

They could try to substitute awareness and mobility for mass, and be using the bank security cameras.... no matter which entrance the heroes use, the VIPERs will know it, and then they'll just deploy all their force against that axis.