Part 458: Sludge Factory - Turn 2

Sludge Factory: Tactical Update 2

The report of the Long Tom shook what Eadan Baxter hoped was just dust from the nearer surface of one of Chatham’s massive, laminate buildings. He shuddered at the thought of what that dust would’ve done to his lungs if he weren’t wearing heavy-duty environmental gear. He didn’t want to dwell at all on the horror stories he’d heard from the locals about Chatham’s acid rains eating straight through protective gear and into the men beneath.

Every building on Chatham was designed with those rains in mind: there were no windows, the doors were recessed, and every single one had been constructed of layered ceramics, metal, and glass that kept as much of the atmosphere out as possible and helped serve as an early warning system if something nasty were trying to eat its way through. Every layer was colored, so as their outsides started to melt property owners would always know when to hire a construction crew or bring in a portable kiln to re-glaze the exteriors. Some pricier buildings even had sensor mesh layered in, which would automatically warn the occupants when their walls were getting thin.

Nearly all underground constructions on Chatham had been abandoned centuries ago. The soil was simply too caustic to dig into, and any seepage was likely to be even more concentrated than the ambient murk.

Eadan’s support trailer gave a jerk as the clamps holding his little loading cart released. It was barely even a vehicle by anyone’s standards: a few electric batteries and a top speed just fast enough to be completely outclassed by a fully loaded Mobile Long Tom. It was his job to deploy, load a shell of the type his gunners specified, and lock back into his support trailer before the carriage gun needed to move again. The whole process took eighteen seconds if he were on the ball, and the loaders had to alternate to keep their gun supplied. In theory the Mobile Long Tom’s secondary gunners could load the vehicle by hand but it was a slow process. Without the support trailers, the gun could still fire once every ten seconds provided it wasn’t moving, but if it did need to roll out it wouldn’t be able to reload until it came to a complete stop. No gunner worth his salt would let themselves be left behind.

Especially not on Chatham.





(Manticore movement is inaccurate)



Indirect-Fire Artillery Targeting Phase
Mobile Long Tom fires indirectly at hex [target hex greater than 17 hexes away]!



Movement Phase
Hunter 2
- High-speed turn on concrete in hex 3803!
- - Must pass a skidding test (5 base - 1 distance traveled = 4): rolled 7, succeeds!

Manticore:
- High speed turn on concrete in hex 1603!
- - Must pass a skidding test (5 base - 1 distance traveled = 4): rolled 7, succeeds!
- High speed turn on concrete in hex 1305!
- - Must pass a skidding test (5 base + 0 distance traveled = 5): rolled 8, succeeds!

Manticore (LBX):
- High speed turn on concrete in hex 1603!
- - Must pass a skidding test (5 base - 1 distance traveled = 4): rolled 5, succeeds!

Hephaestus 1
- High-speed turn in hex 0932!
- - Must pass a sideslip test (5 base - 1 distance traveled = 4): rolled 7, succeeds!

Hephaestus 2
- High-speed turn in hex 0732!
- - Must pass a sideslip test (5 base - 1 distance traveled = 4): rolled 8, succeeds!

Odin Scout
- High-speed turn on concrete in hex 2227!
- - Must pass a skidding test (5 base + 0 distance traveled = 5): rolled 7, succeeds!
- High-speed turn on concrete in hex 2127!
- - Must pass a skidding test (5 base + 0 distance traveled = 5): rolled 8, succeeds!

Anhur
- High-speed turn in hex 1929!
- - Must pass a sideslip test (4 base - 1 distance traveled = 3): rolled 7, succeeds!
- Descends to Height 0 in hex 1225 (3 MP)!

Zorya 1
- High-speed turn on concrete in hex 2432!
- - Must pass a skidding test (5 base - 1 distance traveled = 4): rolled 5, succeeds!



Indirect-Fire Artillery Phase
No rounds land this turn!








Final Player Status:





Opposing Force Status:




Mission Objective:
Capture the Coolant Factory (0/1)

Secondary Objectives:
Protect the Mobile Army Support Hospital from detection (0/1)
Defend the Mobile Army Support Hospital (0/1)
Locate the Clan Ammunition Dump (0/1)
Destroy the Clan Ammunition Dump (0/1)

Special Rules:
Caustic, Tainted Atmosphere (TacOps p56)
Vehicles suffer an automatic Crew Stunned if armor is breached, Mechwarriors take double damage from cockpit hits.
Point Commanders
As long as they are active combatants, the Mars Assault Vehicle and Epona Pursuit Tank may designate one unit each as an Ace for two turns. New Ace units may not be designated until Ace status expires. Units which opt to remain immobile for at least two turns gain Ace status on the first turn they move. BattleMechs and VTOLs may not be Aces.



Orders Due: Midnight Saturday!