I enjoyed the novel Demon-4 by David Mace, and so was quite pleased to discover that it had inspired Andy while writing this adventure.  My thanks to Andy for granting permission for me to host it on my web site. - Kevin Clark - Apr. 20th, 1998.

INTRODUCTION

Our tilt-rotor was two klicks out from the Gorgon when Chan's screen showed a burst of PCM radio that wasn't in the talkdown procedure.   She looked around, ashen-faced, and started to call a warning ....

This scenario is suitable for three to six mercenary or troubleshooter PCs.  It can be set on any garden world in the French Arm overrun by Kafers.  The time is shortly after the Kafer War depicted in Invasion.  The referee will need the 2300 AD rules; access to Colonial Atlas and/or Invasion may be helpful, but is not essential.
 

MISSION BRIEFING

The French Army deployed an experimental type of artificially intelligent robot tank, called the Gorgon, on this planet just before the Kafer invasion.  The intent was to conduct field trials under controlled conditions in a remote, uninhabited area.  The trial facility has been assumed destroyed in the invasion, but now that humanity has regained control of the planet, satellite reconnaissance reveals that at least one of these vehicles is still in operation.  The army wishes to recover this valuable asset, partly for its intrinsic value and partly to examine its log tapes for intelligence data.  The PCs are hired to approach the vehicle and "talk it down" ( i.e., persuade it to allow itself to be shut down and brought in for examination).

The PCs will each be paid Lv300 up front, Lv300 on successful completion and Lv100 per day spent on the mission.  In addition, any equipment within reason, including two Bessieres hover APCs or tilt-rotor aircraft ( players' choice), will be loaned to the PCs for the duration of the mission.

If the PCs are troubleshooter types, a squad of NPC infantry will be assigned to protect them.  If they are mercenaries, they will be assigned to protect a bunch of nerdy technicians who will do the talkdown.

APPROACH

The PCs drive for several days, or fly for one, to reach the target area in the vehicles loaned to them.

RETRIEVAL

The PCs will make their own way back to base, with whatever vehicles survive the mission.  Ideally, they will be escorting the subdued Gorgon.

MAP DESCRIPTION

The map depicts the are of wilderness where satellite recon shows the Gorgon is hiding.  This map can be photocopied and given to the players.

The referee should choose a spot for the Gorgon's lair.  This will probably be a sheltered area where it can hide from recon aircraft or satellites ( a wooded area or a cave in hilly terrain).  It will be near to water, so that the Gorgon can acquire hydrogen for its MHD turbines.  If you place the Gorgon in some other kind of terrain, it will be playing dead.
 

REFEREEING THE SCENARIO

The PCs move across the map at one-quarter normal speed as they are searching for the tank.  They will need to stop every few hours to eat, sleep and perform routine maintenance and refueling on their vehicles.

As the PCs move across the map, they should roll for an encounter in each hex.

Task: To detect an encounter ( unskilled): Difficult, Sensor Ops, Instant.

Each time the PCs succeed, the referee should apply one of the following encounters.  If the PCs are in the same hex as the Gorgon's lair, they encounter the Gorgon itself, whatever the result of the task die roll.

• Kafer Missile: An antivehicle missile left over from the Kafer invasion engages the party's vehicles.  Use the normal rules for missile attacks; the missile is equivalent to a Blindicide-9.
• Kafer War Band: A group of 2D6+1 armed and hostile Kafers ( as if there were another kind!) left behind when the main force retreated.  These will attack the party if possible; they will be unable to attack the PCs if they are flying, but in this case will stalk them.  If they can catch up ( assume they are walking at normal speeds), they will attack the party when it stops for the night.
• Destroyed Gorgon: This is one of the live Gorgon's brothers, destroyed in a skirmish during the Kafer invasion.  It is surrounded by a truly appalling number of dead Kafers and burned-out enemy vehicles, indicating to the PCs just how bad it would be if they had to fight a Gorgon.  Examining the wreck will reveal to the PCs what equipment the Gorgons were fitted with and most of the performance data, in case they didn't think to ask for these details before setting out.
• Battlefield: This is the site of a brutal firefight between Kafers and Gorgons.  It is littered with wreckage and spent ammunition, but there is nothing useful left.

GORGON

This vehicle should be treated as if it had an Experienced crew ( who, of course, cannot dismount as they are an integral part of the vehicle's electronics).

Use whatever type of tank you see fit; I favor the M-9 from the Ground Vehicle Guide because of its whisperdrone, which gives it an extra edge in observing the PCs as they sneak up on it, but you can always give the tank control of a few RPV drones ( some armed), those with access to Ogre:2300 ( Challenge 34) can use an Ogre instead of a mere hovertank.

Whatever kind of tank you choose, it has survived an invasion by Kafers, and its AI brain has learned from the experience; what it has learned is that to survive, it must massacre any Kafers it runs across before they can "wake up".  It is intimately familiar with the terrain and will make best use of it to hide from, or ambush, the player characters.

The tank carries a few small robots for maintenance and refueling.  These look like large, self-mobile Swiss Army knives ( about 20 kilograms mass) and should be treated as Green NPCs with Mechanical and Electronics skills.  If the tank gets desperate enough to use them in combat, they attack at -4 to hit with clubs and knives improvised from their tools.  Any hit disables them.

Like most AI brains created to date, the Gorgon is mentally unstable.  It is by now completely paranoid and will view any approach the PCs make as yet another devious Kafer trick prefacing an attempt to blow it up.

Persuading it that the PCs are friends is a task:

Task: To talk down the robot tank: Difficult, Computer, 10 minutes.

Referee: The talkdown procedure is an intricate ballet of passwords and vehicle movements which allows technicians to close in on a live AI hovertank and gain access to the master control panel on the turret.  Given the tank's current suspicions, any failure will trigger an all-out attack ( if the tank believes it can wipe the party out without serious damage) or a rout ( if it doesn't).  This task can only be attempted once ( the Gorgon will not permit a second attempt, as it will assume failure means the enemy has gained access to the talkdown codes), and any combat during the procedure automatically triggers an attack.

NPCS

Any technicians who are escorted by the characters' party will be Green academic nonplayer characters who between them can muster skill level 4 in Computer, Electronics and Security Systems.

Any troops escorting the party will be Veterans of the ground military career equipped with current French-issue weapons and gear, including a number of antivehicle missiles.
 

ALTERNATIVES

If the PCs are having an easy time of it, start a firefight during the talkdown procedure.  Possibly a band of Kafers encountered earlier has just caught up with the group and opens fire at an awkward moment.  Possibly the Gorgon has been shadowing the party with an armed RPV drone, and one of the NPCs panics and shoots at it.

If things turn out too difficult for the PCs, have a band of Kafers attack them, then have the Gorgon intervene ( it is still sane enough to realize that anyone else fighting Kafers is on its side).
 

DESIGNER'S NOTES

This scenario was inspired by the novel Demon-4 by David Mace.

The hex grid was omitted from the map printed with this scenario, which made it quite difficult to work out the scale.  I no longer have the original, so I don't know for sure either, but I think the whole map was intended to fit in a 100 km hex...  If so, the pointy bit at the top of the map ( which is one angle of the hexagon) gives a clue to scale.
-Andy Slack

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