To Breach the Stormwall

They’ve been holding this small town for the past few weeks, a once unremarkable trading crossraods now reduced to rubble. It’s elevated terrain and commanding view of the nearby bridge making it an ideal spot for mounting a defensive line, a perfect spot to place the Stormwall. For many days, the Axis forces in the area tried to breach the entrenched SSU lines to no avail, all their attempts to advance were met with bullets and Tesla fire.

Intel reports that the Axis is again about to make another push at the Stormwall. This latest wave is composed of elements from the dreaded “Xevero” group supported by two heavy walkers. To make matters worse, reports came in that SSU choppers were felled near the Stormwall lines and these choppers were carrying communication codes to be used in the war effort. These codes must be retrieved.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Road to Babylon - Zero Division Battle Report #02

Second match done today, again at our Base of Operation of sorts, Neutral Grounds Cash & Carry in Makati. Another Axis player, this time it's no other than Jojo Francisco. He's one of the first players of Dust Tactics in the community. In fact he won the first tournament we held here in the country.

Road to Babylon - Zero Division Battle Report #01

After more than a week after we launched our new campaign, Road to Babylon, I finally got to schedule a couple of matches. The first one is against our new blood, Keith, who chose to succumb to the call of Axis' Laser firepower.

Keith deploying his army

Arm Me an Army #1

In this series of articles, I’ll try to cover some of the army lists I’ve used for Dust Tactics/Battlefield/Warfare. I may also feature lists used by members of my local playgroup who piqued my curiosity.

With the conclusion of our month-long campaign, Operation: Chronos, I would like to take time and discuss some of the lists I used for my matches. I had a total of some 20+ games during the entire progress of the campaign, some won me games, others obviously didn’t fare too well.

As previously discussed, one of the main purpose of the campaign is to get our local players familiarized with the new rules for Dust Tactics. With majority, if not all, units from my chose bloc, Allies, drastically changed, it’s time to experiment on a few mechanics. It is worth noting that during the earlier half of the campaign, we only had access to the units previewed on the Dust official website. As we go along, however, we got more cards and stats made available to us.

Army List 1:

Bazooka Joe (12), The Big Boss (13), Grim Reapers x3 (33), Bot Hunters x2 (18), Wildfire x2 (14), Hammers (10). Total: 100 AP.

With the first load of previews of the new unit cards and rules, one of the first thing I wanted to try out was fielding (and hopefully abusing) multiple Officer Units. Joe is one of the top choices, having Officer skills combined with his Black Ops make for an optimal “lead from the shadows” centerpiece. During that time, The Big Boss was the only other non-character Officer unit previewed so they were automatically included.

Having a quarter of my force spent on background units, my remaining 75 points must be a force to reckon with. A Grim Reapers squad is one of my staples being a very offensive anti-infantry unit. Having three on your side should spell headache to the opposition.

For armors, I turned to 2 squads of Bot Hunters. Nothing too impressive but they’re cheap and a squad can be joined by Joe should he feel like, well, Bot Hunting or something.

My pair of Wildfires acts as an alpha strike and/or clean-up unit, depending on how aggressive I want to get. If they survive the first wave of attacks, they can also serve as defense towers to my commanders.

Rounding out my list is a squad of a handy dandy Hammers. The combination of Charge, Flying and First Strike all packed in just 10 AP, yes please! They’re very good at pounding problematic characters and/or vehicles, bypassing Steel Guard/Superhuman/Zombie saves, and they can go Shoryuken against aircrafts.

10 activations are above average, at least from what I’ve observed from my local play group. With Joe’s Black Ops, you have better chances of winning the Initiative roll per round so you can dictate judging by your assessment of your opponent’s force if you want to go first or not. The general strategy is to position the Bot Hunters first, followed by the Grim Reapers. Depending on the situation, I will almost always have my The Big Boss follow to either try and reactivate a Grim Reaper or have a nearby unit injected with Stimulants. Wildfires will open fire on those more aggressive infantries like the fast moving Fakyelis or those pesky Zombies. Joe will then attempt to reactivate The Big Boss, if successful, another Stimulant or 2 attempts at reactivating a Grim Reapers squad.

This list won me my first weeks during the campaign, having lost only to an SSU list where I had to downsize to match his points. The massive rolls of the Grim Reapers against Armor 3 or lower are not something to joke about. Depending on the situation, you can focus fire on certain, hardy (or lucky) units, or you can split to several softer ones. Wildfires are very nice. The 11-square effective opening range is very decent and often times, they have to be taken down by units worth more points, exposing them in the process. The Advanced Reactive Fire can almost always frustrate would-be attackers, attempting to take a nibble on your Officers. I can’t stop saying how much I love the Hammers.

The Bot Hunters are what I consider to replace in this list. Switching them for another squad of Hammers and a squad of Gunners, this time dedicated to escort Joe.

What do you think of my list? I would like to hear your feedback and if possible, let me know if you get to take it for a spin in your own community.

Cruz Chronicles - Operation Chronos: Shadowfall (Epilogue)

The continuous shaking motion of my bed kept me awake for more than an hour now. And I thought I’ve drowned the sound of nuts and bolts yanking at each other, but it resonates the minute I return my senses to where I’m at right now.

It’s been a week since the campaign at Leboux was finished. I can still see the flashes of the gun fires when I close my eyes. I can still hear every explosion, every scream, when I try to drift away from reality. I can still feel the bullet that hit my left shoulder. I can still taste my own sweat and blood after I took that hit. And worst, I can still smell the rotting flesh of those God-forsaken creatures. Still makes my guts turn upside down.

That’s it, I said to myself. I stood up from my bed and put on a shirt. I need some air. Some fresh scent, not this confined combination of wood, metal and sweat I’m getting inside my quarters. Not that I’m complaining, I've seen worse. I just need some breathing space.

It’s night time outside, probably. Everyone’s supposedly asleep. You can tell by the moderately lit hallway I’m facing now. This locomotive must be one of the newer models, I guess. Can hardly hear any noise from the machinery and the wheels, unlike those older, steam and coal powered ones.

I decided I’ll walk further into the next cabs. I reckon they will not allow me inside the main machine room. Could be radioactive, especially if this train is running on VK. I've gone past the other quarters. Everyone must be having a good night sleep except for me. I could use some spirit, maybe they got some stored in the kitchen. But where’s the kitchen? We really weren't toured into this train. We were picked from the eastern outskirts of Leboux, shown to our rooms and that’s it. They said the debriefing will be tomorrow morning.

I must have walked several steps when I saw a door right at the end of the now poorly lit hallway. Straight towards the door I continued. It’s a heavy iron door. Not the type you’ll want everyone to have an ease getting in or out from, like the kitchen for example. But my curiosity is nagging at the back of head right now. “Open it!” I can hear myself yelling, repeatedly, in my mind.

I gave in, I looked behind me, and no one’s followed. Nobody’s here except for me, I deduced. My hand gripped the wheel on the door, it was cold. And heavy. It took a serious effort on my end to turn it and open. I slowly pushed to the heavy door inwards, as I do, I made another quick glance around me to check for witnesses. I swiftly dragged myself in to the mysterious room as soon as I confirmed there was none.

“Welcome, Sergeant.” I almost had a heart attack when I heard someone greeted me. When I turned around, I can’t believe who was standing in front of me. Of all people that would catch me, why Bazooka Joe?

“At ease, soldier. I’m not gonna spank you or anything for being such a curious cat.” His words were enough to assure me I’m not in trouble. But something tells me I can’t really relax. “Here, you could use this” he tossed me his personal flask. I obliged and opened the cap, rum. I took one sip and the alcohol drew a warm, stingy line down to my throat.

“Where are we, sir?” I asked. And I immediately regretted what I just said. I shouldn’t be here in the first place and now I’m asking our highest officer questions?

“These are the fruits of our labors, of our sacrifices!” he mocked. He turned around, and even before I completely examined, he pulled the cloth covering a massive object in the room. And what was revealed was more surprising. It was a walker. And not a standard ASOCOM-built one, I’m not looking at a Mickey or the newer Rattler. It’s a KV-47. And then I realized, there’s more in the room. At least four from where I’m standing.

“Why?” was the only word I was able to throw out in response to my awe. I saw Joe threw a clever grin in return.

“This is Shadowfall.” He began explaining as he rubs the exposed Howitzer of the machine. “Our entire operation in Leboux was set with the purpose of achieving these walkers, and that’s what we did.”

What? We traveled all the way to that forsaken city for these? “I can’t understand, sir.” I replied. “We were banking that we were sent there to secure more KV.”

“In a way, yes, we did. But mainly, that was Ozz’s job.” He continued, “by the time the Axis sent in their retaliatory forces after the Zero Division took over the city, Ozz and his men were done packing most of the mined VK from the city. What was left there was merely bait. Bits of cheese to attract the mouse.”

 Joe took the flask from my hand, “you see, soldier, we were sent to Leboux, not to defend it. We were there to intercept the Reds.” He further explained.

“And the Zero Division’s ‘disappearance’, Ozz being gone, that was all a plot, sir?” I uttered, still in total shock of what I've learned.

“All part of the plan.” He confirmed.

“How about these Russian walkers, sir? Where are we going to use them?” it took all of my remaining courage and audacity to ask that. I need to know. After everything that happened, I deserve the truth, I thought.

Joe took slow steps, moving closer in front of me, still wearing that devious smile on his face. Looks me straight in the eyes and then taps me on my right shoulder, “Well, soldier, that’s another story for some other time. What do you say we get that drink you were looking for in the kitchen?”

Cruz Chronicles - Operation Chronos: Shadowfall (Part 4)

Even though they’re still several clicks away, I can smell the stench of rotten flesh and my gut starts to feel it will turn upside down. Again. For the third time tonight. I’ll never get used to these Nazi experiments. Not in a million years.

This is the second time we’re defending the Hospital Grounds from an attack by the Axis. But this is a different formation from the last encounter. This is not The Mongoose.

 I signaled my Bot Hunter unit to march to the nearest cover I found available for us. As we were moving, I saw a glimpse of the wave of zombies approaching us. One of them, their “leader”, I think, was carrying a mechanical saw. I told myself we should keep that thing in our firing range.

Behind them is a more terrifying sight. Several of their heavy-armored infantry led by what looks like a woman follow closely. Unlike our Heavy Rangers, these offshoots are sluggers, due to their denser armors, as Intel said. We better be more careful.

To our right flank, I noticed the rest of our platoon assumed defensive positions. The empty tenement immediately next to the trees we’re tucked in was quickly occupied by two of our Grim Reaper units, followed shortly by our Big Boss. I saw Bazooka Joe right behind them. Suddenly my radio buzzed with more bad news from our officer: The Assassin, Angela, was spotted. I ordered my squad to remain as hidden as possible.

I checked my ammunition again, made sure my UGL is loaded. Then all of a sudden, I hear one of our Wildfires made the opening fire towards the enemies who camped inside another empty building across the field. It was answered by a couple of rockets from their Hans, followed by the Ludwig lurking behind it. In a matter of seconds, the light walker was reduced to shattered scraps aflame. Bolton, the pilot, was lucky enough he made the jump before the hit.

I try to assess our orders again: we must hold the defenses and we must take out Angela. Losing the Wildfire just like that made me disappointed, at the very least. I looked at my men and they were awed by the sheer firepower of the opposition. How are we supposed to take them out?

Then out of nowhere, from way behind our defense lines, a squad of Heavy Rangers came flying above everyone else. In a span of seconds, it took us, including the Krauts, by surprise, when it landed right in front of the bushes covering an Axis Grenadier squad. The chilling sound of mechanical arms pounding on human flesh, the cracking of ribs and skulls, not to mention the sight of blood and gut squirting like paste from those German bodies, it all felt like a cold stab of solid ice right into my chest. As if it was not enough shock for everyone, a shriek of what sounded like a female suddenly covered the battleground. The Hammers report it in, they took out Angela.

From there, it felt like everything was put to fast forward. Our Tank Busters did what they do best, turning the enemy Hans to molten spare parts. The zombies led by the one they call Grenadier X advanced further forward towards our lines. Our Grim Reapers exchanged loads and loads of bullets against Lara and her companions. My squad together with a squad of Gunners broke our cover, emptying all our rifles and launchers in one concentrated attack against the nearest bunch of undead Krauts. Everything was happening so fast I failed to recognize if the green slime staining my pants and boots was from those Axis abominations or from my own gut when I threw up to their stench.

“Curse you!”“ Go back to the Nazi-dug graves from where you came from!” “Go to hell!” These are just some of the war cries I heard in the intensity of the battle. Well, apart from the howls and grunts and cranks. I think I even yelled something similar myself while I’m pouring my bullets to one of the zombies.

I took a quick look behind me, and saw what we lost on our side of the board. My Bazooka, Michael Terrence, is laying face first on the ground. I willed myself to yell for help but I can’t hear my own voice from the all the noise around me. I told my remaining men to reload and prepare for another strike. I closed my eyes for a bit, took one deep breath. I’m ready to go, I guess. No turning back now. I tightened my grip on my rifle’s handle. “On Three!” I heard myself say. One. Two. And then my radio started to do its weird noise. And then the familiar voice of our Heavy Rangers officer reached my ear:

“Fall back! Enemy on retreat!”

Endziel: Operation Chronos - The silent puppets Wave 3, Lucked out

We are in dire need of resources to continue the tests.our tests subjects are either losing it or, lacking a proper term, dropping dead. We must attack now or we can never make another one ever.

Lacking options and opportunity, We must retake our base from Ze Mongoose. This will be a long shot, as Patient Zero is now under enhancement and rebuilding experiments. We will have to rely on Patient X again for this one. Patient X proves to be an effective weapon based on the past battle against Ze Mongoose, a cheap and effective one. We could always rebuild him or create one as long as we wanted to.

I took one last puff of my cigar and blew the smoke. I watched it as it dissipates slowly, then I snapped my finger tossing the cigar butt on a nearby trash bin as I ussually do.

"That's weird" - I told myself. This would be the second time I'd miss the bin, the first one was the incident with patient one. So I picked it up and put it on the bin myself. "I have a bad feeling about this.", Then I looked back and saw my Leiutenant, Gasparde Frey, looking at me.

"Anything wrong?"

"Nothing, we proceed as ussual" - I replied.

---

We marched onto our destination, bringing everything to retaliate to Ze Mongoose'. We took a different path this time to surprise them to their flank, but I guess our scouts did bad. We are unprepared, we marched right into the snake's pit, another Axis' territory, Xevero. Bad luck?

"This bunch doesn't look friendly, Gunter..." - My other Liutenant, Jester Helwig, said. Leboux is different, faction doesn't give you immunity here, it's everyone for himself. There's no way of knowing if a tiger could be eaten by another tiger.

Of course they were threatened. They shoot first, we send our men, or at least which used to be our men. Led by Patient X who's said to have the strength of five men, where in fact he used to be five men before, they're like pack of wolves hungry and howling, eager to plunge their fangs onto the prey. Our twin Hans, ever vigilant on clearing the path of walkers so that our shamblers will have no difficulties tearing up thair preys. But there's something off. We are doing the correct battle plan, however it seems that it is not working very well. The twin hans were brought down, we sent in another two for reinforcements only to be brought down as well. Patient X isn't fighting the way he used to in the previous battle, and the shamblers seems to be doing the same too. Bad luck?

There's no time to think of that right now. We need to win this or we will not have anything to go back to. After hours of exploding shells and gunning panzers, the dust settled. Xevero is retreating leaving they're territory uncontested. We now have the resources we need to continue with our experiments.

It may be bad luck that brought us here, or made it difficult for us to fight earlier, but a strong army
don't rely on luck, they make their own.

---

Game 3: vs Jpe's Xevero
Format: Dust Tactics V2
Mission: Scenario 3: Bait and Flank
AP: 100 pts
Status: Battle won, Location acquired
Locations held: 1
Special Bonus: none

Endziel: Operation Chronos - Silent Puppets Wave 1, Apocalypse rising

Patient Zero is still unstable, although she exhibits exceptional traits as compared to Patient X, she is still of the same genetic code mutation. The Wiederbelebung serum seems to have different effects based on the physical, emotional and mental state of the patient.

With these in mind, I am still eager to see her capabilities in battle. I bet those allied scums at ASOCOM would not expect something like this.

"Sir we have arrived, Target's hideout at 6:00, 1000 meters"

Today's target are the Basterds, one of the allied lapdogs, a veteran team. I would say they were formed as old as Division Zero of ASOCOM. Nevertheless they will find death.

The howling began, the beasts were released. Supported by Feldwebel Lara Walter's elite squad and Agent Angela Wolf's assassins, we took them by surprise. We took the whole camp before they even know what hit them. Bullets were never made to kill these guys, they keep on coming back for more, and more... Until there's nothing left of the enemy.

There were blood everywhere, the one you'd expect in a gladiator's arena where you pit lions against a men. This is not war anymore, this is apocalypse. And this is just the beginning.

---

Game 1: vs Vic's Basterds
Format: Dust Tactics V2
Mission: Scenario 1, Encounter
AP: 100 pts
Status: Battle won, Location acquired
Locations held: 1
Special Bonus: Wipeout

CRUZ CHRONICLES - Operation: Chronos, Shadowfall (Part 3)

Where am I? What happened? I thought of these questions as I try to open my eyes. For a moment everything seemed like a blur. As I slowly gain a clearer vision of my surroundings, I suddenly felt a hammering pain in my head. I’m back in the Hospital Grounds, I deduced to myself.

I tried to reach for my temple and that’s when I realized that my left arm was wrapped with bandage, supported by a sling around my neck. I tried to examine myself by trying to feel and move my other appendages. I felt a little bit better knowing I’m still in one piece. Most importantly, I’m still alive.

I looked to my left and saw Sergeant Wilson, our unit leader. He was also lying on a stretcher, still asleep but from the looks of it, he didn’t sustain any serious injury. I tried to turn to my right. As I slowly do so, I felt the pain on my left shoulder. Took a bullet, so it seemed.

Two more stretchers to my right hand side, the closest one next to me I don’t know the name, but I remember him as one of the pilots of our Wildfires. The one on the farther side was Corporal Badge, a weapons expert from the other Heavy Weapons Squad. Unconscious, with some patches here and there, they’ll live and fight another day.

All of a sudden, I felt the fatigue and decided to lay myself back to rest. As I do, flashbacks of the recent events ran through my head.

I recall an attack on one of our held locations. No, actually it was here, this hospital we’re stationed in right now. I heard the Axis troop was called The Mongoose. A couple of dreaded names rang amidst the gunshots and explosions: Lara and Panzerprinz. At first it seemed like a random attack but we realized they were after our newly dropped supplies. They must be falling short on their own, or could be an attempt to sabotage ours.

The assault was bold at the very least. I saw a couple of those mutated ape squads and some zombies, along with those eerie-masked, laser-totting grunts. The exchange of blows was brutal and devastating, considering the scale of the skirmish.

The enemy got the upper hand at the start. They were able to hold on to one of the scattered supply crates for some time. But we pushed forward, with the combined firepower and speed of our Heavy Rangers leading the way. Towards the end, I saw the Panzerprinz driven away by one of our Grim Reaper squads.

The vermins crawled back to one of their encampments. After a short regrouping, Joe assembled a strike force to hunt down the remaining Mongoose, with my Bot Hunter squad as part of it.

We got to the abandoned city hall just north of our camp, which apparently was taken over by the Axis forces we’re following. They took us by surprise early on, as I saw our other Heavy Weapons Squad knocked down upon entering their grounds. From there everything happened like a haze. I remembered my squad charging towards a Hermann, hoping our Bazookas and UGL load outs could bring it down. We were out of luck I guess, as our shells didn’t even scratch the walker’s hull. And then I remember seeing a blinding, warm light coming towards us, and that was it. I went blank from there.

Judging from there, I would say we lost that battle to claim the city hall. But seeing we were able to regroup back here, the enemies did not retaliate further. There’s still a fat chance of us winning back this city and drive both the Axis and SSU away.

And then it hit me, I could use the time! I reached out to my left chest pocket, and boy was I so relieved to find one thing: the pen I picked few days ago. Time to finish that report.

CRUZ CHRONICLES - Operation: Chronos, Shadowfall (Part 2)

I’ve been holding on to this pen and piece of paper for more than an hour now. Technically it was just the pen, this is like the nth piece of paper I tried to write my thoughts on. What’s funny is the pen wasn’t even mine. I picked it up from a fallen comrade. May he rest in peace.

I’ve written debriefing reports before. Can’t tell if it’s the terrible coffee or the nearly spoiled rations I stuffed my face with earlier. Maybe it’s the mildly lit lamp. I really don’t know, I can’t seem to put into written words what I’ve been running again and again at the back of my head.

Since we came here four days ago, we’ve been really occupied with a lot of “negotiations.” First in the line was the skirmish we had with a somewhat lost band of Axis. That was the first time I saw the infamous assassin Angela. Good thing our Grim Reapers proved lived up to their namesake. We’ve kept control of that area since then.

Then there were a couple of renegade troopers led by different commanders that we bumped into. Those bastards were a real pain in the neck. Good thing Joe was able to force a treaty and an alliance of sorts. With the Germans and the Russians around, I agree that we can channel our differences on more pressing problems.

We took down another Axis regiment near the Water District. I was a bit surprised myself to see enemy aerial support so close by. I really wish our requested reinforcements arrive before this campaign ends. We could really use the additional firepower. Not that I’m complaining. But come on, that skirmish could have turned against us if not for some dumb luck that our Six Shooter was able to deal serious dent on the enemy’s forces. Well, that’s before it was brought down by that dreadful Blitz. Even our Wildfires and Honeys took some beating back there. I’m just thankful I survived that encounter in one piece.

But what’s causing me unrest for the last two days was the most recent clash we had with the Reds. That machine they called Grandma dealt the most tremendous blow to our platoon. Not to mention those Steel Guards. It’s like whatever we threw at them just bounce off their armors and plates. What’s worse was we were like target practice to them. Makes me think of our delayed reinforcement again. Can’t wait to have me some Barbequed frogs like Hell! We’ll see about that…

Back in the here and now, on this makeshift chair, I almost fell as I hear some sudden noises. “We’re under attack! We’re under attack! Take positions!” warned one of our officers as he was running with all over the encampment to draw attention.

I saved the piece of paper and folded it back to my chest pocket. Away with this pen too. Let’s hope it brings me luck. Let’s hope I can bring vengeance to its previous owner. I took my AR and checked for ammunition. Made sure my UGL is also all prepped. Within seconds, I’m with my Bot Hunter unit.

“It’s the Mongoose!” confirmed my squad leader.

Operation: Chronos - "Dear Christine"

Dear Christine,

Operation: Chronos - "The Red Dawgs"

As the Red Dawgs retreat from its narrow defeat from Ze Mongoose, it stumbled upon a small faction of axis scum in an abandoned warehouse. Still reeling from the loss, the Dawgs were vicious, the Fakyeli overwheming the axis scout team and then the Red Thunder and Steel Fist ganging up on the axis walkers. Some comrades were lost but no axis were left standing. 

Operation: Chronos - "Of Apes and the Undead"

Excerpt from the journal of

Major General Timofei Teodorovic

3^rd Guards Cavalry Division, Steel Wind

Operation: Chronos - "Up Close and Personal"

Excerpt from the journal of

Major General Timofei Teodorovic

3^rd Guards Cavalry Division, Steel Wind

Operation: Chronos. "Steel Wind"

Excerpt from the journal of

Major General Timofei Teodorovic

3^rd Guards Cavalry Division, Steel Wind

Operation: Chronos "It Has Begun"

City of Leboux

Day 09 since re-entry

Operation Chronos: Prologue - The silent puppets

"Patient zero is looking good..." The man in the white lab coat seems pleased to show me the improved result of the experiment they have been working on for years. The war of Bathaluman is a steep price, as we really need soldiers to win Chronos, but its well worth it. This time we could win this war without even losing a soldier, or even if we do, those soldiers will come back for more.

"Would you like to see her in action sir?" The other doctor refered to patient zero as a "her", although Im really not quite sure how to picture the girl it was behind those blankly staring goggles now. What I do know is that I already have the perfect target to test her wrath.

ASOCOM will come and reclaim the Bathaluman and I will make sure they will have to face death before they do. Come to think of it, Its already too late for them.

Operation: Chronos - The Zero Divide, Prologue

“Are you sure this came from him?” the surprise, and some hint of dismay, from Sergeant Major William “Rhino” Springfield echoed, even from where I sit.

Operation: Chronos

Prologue:

Spring 1947:

CRUZ CHRONICLES: OPERATION: PATHFINDER RESULTS!

And just like that we're entering the last few days of the second month of 2014. We just concluded our Dust Tactics tournament for this month. Bin Belano organized this one and named it Operation: Pathfinder. It's an infantry-only bout at 200 APs a side. This is what happens when walkers walk away.