Dinosaur Cowboys is a fast playing (30-60 minutes) skirmish game of competing posses composed of up to 5 members and 1 dinosaur. Each character in the posse can be customized to fulfill a different role and purchase weapons and equipment from the many options available. Combat takes place in the futuristic landscape of the year 2285, where a supervolcano erupted and changed the course of mankind forever.
Download free PDF rulebook
I haven't posted a battle report in a while, but I just put up
Cabin Raid on my blog so I thought I'd also mention it here for anyone who is interested. This match was tons of fun and had some neat, unique elements that really added to the experience!
Encounter Overview
For this game I wanted to build a scenario around the table I setup, which included new barrels, a cabin, and the first use of my new custom plastic Litko tokens (pictured below). But specifically the focus would be the new wooden cabin I had bought and spraypainted. And of course what better use for a cabin than a raid or siege! I took a note of
Ruby Ridge and
Waco Texas and specifically the movie
Arlington Road which drew heavily from both. To that end I wanted a group of Neotechnoists to assault a Duster farmstead.
Now I just needed a motivation for such a raid. In the Victorian era a popular idea was that of
"going native", where some troops or citizens might discard their duties to join the local population or take part in local traditions. Since the Neotechnoist/Wall idea are slightly influenced by Victorian era Britain I thought I could craft a story around this idea.
To that end Private Verhust was created. He's a lifelong Neotechnoist sent to check on the possibility of weapon stockpiling by the Macreegin family. He instead finds a warm and welcoming household representing a life he never had (orphan childhood). Instead of completing his duties Verhust decides to stay with the Macreegin family.
After learning he didn't return from his patrol and assigned weapons confiscation, the local Neotechnoist station at
Rexburg, Idaho sends a small scouting party. The scouting party finds Verhust but mistakes his optional stay with the family for confinement. After returning with the incorrect information the 52nd Rexburg Platoon is assembled and sent to the cabin to "rescue" Verhust.
The Scenario
The table is setup around the central cabin, which is raised on a slight hill and fortified with barrels, sandbags, and barb wire. Private Verhust got wind of the platoons mobilization and warned the family. He also offered to flee, but the Macreegin's would have nothing of it, and instead dug their heels in to help fight for Verhust.
In the interest of keeping the game from degenerating into a flat out "charge forward assault", I decided that Papa Jonas (father of the Macreegin family) would be out foraging and hunting on the family dinosaur (named Bluepatch). At the start of each Turn the family would roll a
D12, and on a roll of 8+ papa and the dino would return from a random table edge.
The rest of the family would deploy either inside the cabin or on the hill, but not any further out. The platoon would deploy from the south edge (facing the cabin door) and advance along the brick lined walkway and surrounding vegetation.
As a twist I used old
Advanced Heroquest game tiles to represent the interior of the cabin (since the roof of the model doesn't come off), which allows for a new dimension to the game. As you can see from the picture I mirrored the outside of the cabin, so the door and both windows are marked. I didn't have much interior furniture but I did put a table along the edge as a sort of barricade, and a chest in the corner for flair. The game tile I used is 10 squares by 5 squares, and I played as if each square was 1 inch to help ease managing movement inside the cabin.
Posse: 52nd Rexburg Platoon: 1/150 IP, 0/1500 ND, 4/4 Traits
Captain Toma (Neotechnoist Leader)
MV 4, AR 1, RMC 7, MMC 8, BRV 7, HP 13, Bonus HP I. 200kW Six-Shooter, Long Sword.
Scatterman (Neotechnoist)
MV 4, AR 1, RMC 7, MMC 8, BRV 6, HP 10, Lucky. Auto Shotgun, Small IRP.
Tenpas Terako (Neotechnoist)
MV 3, AR 1, RMC 6, MMC 8, BRV 6, HP 8, Speed Reload. 200kW Twin-Rifle.
Corporal Grove (Neotechnoist)
MV 4, AR 0, RMC 6, MMC 8, BRV 5, HP 8. Heavy Repeater, Small IRP.
Homer (Neotechnoist)
MV 4, AR 0, RMC 7, MMC 8, BRV 6, HP 12, Speed Reload. Kaboom Grenades, Blunderbuss, Small IRP.
Posse: Macreegin Family: 1/150 IP, 0/1500 ND, 4/4 Traits
Papa Jonas (Duster Leader)
MV 3, AR 1, RMC 7, MMC 8, BRV 7, HP 14, Crippling Shot. 200kW Six-Shooter.
Mama Hanna (Duster)
MV 3, AR 1, RMC 6, MMC 8, BRV 6, HP 11, Get Up! 400kW Lever-Action Rifle, 80kW Six-Shooter.
Sis Shiela (Duster)
MV 4, AR 0, RMC 7, MMC 8, BRV 6, HP 10. Derringer.
Brother Jerrid (Duster)
MV 4, AR 0, RMC 7, MMC 8, BRV 6, HP 12, Underdog Shot. Double Barrel Shotgun.
Private Verhust (Neotechnoist)
MV 4, AR 1, RMC 7, MMC 8, BRV 6, HP 10, Retreat! Light Pistol.
Bluepatch (Untrained Thickskull Dinosaur)
MV 8, PMV D8, AR 1, MMC 6, DIS 6, HP 21
Deployment
Rexburg: Captain Toma on the right flank with Scatterman directly behind him and Homer to the right across a hill. Tenpas Terako on the left flank in an elevated shooting position with Captain Grove slightly forward on the ground below him.
Family: Mama Hanna and Sis Shiela inside the cabin, with Mama at the left (west) window. Brother Jerrid behind the west bundle of barrels opposite Private Verhust. Papa Jonas and Bluepatch off table foraging and hunting.
You can
read the turn by turn account on my blog, but here are some photo highlights:
