Contact! 20th Anniversary Regimental Dinner

It has been a while since I've been to a game of Contact! at The Fight School, but Dean contacted me about the 20th Anniversary Regimental Dinner, and given that just turning up meant character points how could I refuse?

We weren't well enough to go and play, but next year hopefully we shall be, but it was a bang-up meal cooked by the crew at The Secret Nuclear Bunker – Chipping Ongar.

And it was great to see faces old and new.

Slovenian Army

I was searching for Belgian Army pictures just for shots of the FN F2000 and came across this picture, which turns out to be of Slovenian troops and don't you just love the look of the first two guys.  These guys could almost be out of Starship Troopers the movie.

Day at Bisley

I haven't posted here for so long you all probably wondered whether or not the site was dead?  That would depend on definitions of dead of course.  I rather like Lovecraft's “That is not dead which can eternal lie, And with strange aeons even death may die” as a definition myself.  I was treated to a day out shooting at Bisley Camp and I got to shoot three fullbore rifles on the Short Siberia 100 yards range, and shoot three gallery rifles in a covered range whose name escapes me.

Fullbore

The first rifle I shot was a 7.62 number four action in a nice bespoke rifle with a scope.  Sorry can't be more specific than that as I was listening to the safety brief and instructions.  It had a bi-pod and the first thing I noticed was that I didn't like the eye relief on the scope as it was getting between me and shooting the rifle.  I shot five rounds on a five cross target, hitting up and to the left each time with four out of five consistent positions i.e.: same pattern, which is good I was told.  The kick was short and sharp and for me felt a bit like sneezing spasm.

Next I got to shoot a WW1 303 Lee-Enfield off a sandbag at a half-round target over iron-sights, which were a joy to use.  I fired five shots and got a good consistent grouping all in the black, which made up for my disappointment from being off target when shooting the previous rifle.  I was told by my instructor that they would be pleased if they had shot that grouping.  So all good then.  My impression of the recoil of the Lee Enfield was that as long as it was properly shouldered it was okay, but if you didn't shoulder it properly then it would kick you hard.

Finally, I got to shoot a straight-pull M4 clone with an ACOG sight on a bi-pod.  Ten rounds fired this time and again I got a good group, who am I kidding, it was announced I got eight bulls over the radio.  Well chuffed, as you can imagine.  Having shot a lot of airsoft M4s over the years it was interesting to compare the weight and feel of the real steel versus the airsoft toys.  Real M4s are a lot heavier as they have a lot of steel components, and the magazine when loaded is a non-trivial addition to the overall weight.

Little Red Riding Hood.

Changed grip as my wrist was starting to hurt.

Re-acquired target.

This is a lot of fun to shoot.

Gallery

After an ample lunch we went to do some gallery rifle shooting in 357 and 22.  The first rifle I shot was a Winchester action carbine.  Five rounds fired and while low, I was told it was not a bad group.

Then I got to shoot ten rounds on a knock down the targets rig and hit eight out of ten targets.  Again using a scope that was causing me problems from the eye relief and losing the sight window.

Finally shot a 22 M4 clone that was semi-auto that was a joy to fire, but I wish it had been fitted with an ACOG, or my EoTech Holo sight though.

On the left five rounds with a 357 from a Winchester action carbine.  On the right ten rounds 22 from a semi-auto M4.

Addendum

Slings are things of joy, as I missed my three-point sling when not firing off a bi-pod, or rest.  I preferred iron sights over scopes, but admit that this is down to lack of training and having the scopes set-up for me.

Observations on recoil and this rifle kicks like a mule comments.  I suspect most of these are down to men's tendency to rely on their muscle strength to counter poor shouldering technique, and up their bragging rights.  Pistols are another matter entirely though, as I can see that there is a culture of size matters from having using larger calibers to show how strong one is.

Con-032 Torrington 4

CON-032-TO4

Background Introduction:

The designation P147 meant that the scenario was set on a planet that had not been visited by the UNSGC and that we had no intel on it. In game such scenarios are called pathfinder missions.

The original stargate site on Earth was found in the Antarctic, buriied under the ice, and there were 78 gates in a large ring like formation. Base 78 was named after the number of gates found. Prior to Base 78 falling into enemy hands and being destroyed, a small number of the smaller gates had been removed for research purpose, and these are the ones that we now use in game.

Mission:

The second mission of this cycle was to a world designated P147. An unexplored world that the UNSGC was hoping would become a new offworld colony base. Our gate out was for 10.09 hundred hours and the return gate was at 11.01 hundred hours.

Orders:

Gather data on radiation levels and collect flora and fauna samples for the Pandora project. This mission fell under the auspices of the science division, and Dr. Forsythe was assigned command, as has considerable combat command experience, which would benefit the mission.

AAR:

Dr. Forsythe deployed the team and Dr. Carter and myself started taking our readings, while the rest of the team did a brief recon sweep. After taking the necessary flora & fauna samples, then sampling for background radiation, the team prepared to do a full reconnoitre of the area around the gate.

Surprisingly, there were signs of former habitation in the area surrounding the gate. Though it appeared quite run down and there were no signs of recent habitation. It was at this point that the firing began. A hostile contact was taken down, but it became apparent that he was what we in science were calling a Type 2 hostile. It was reported that the hostiles were spotted with support personnel in white lab coats, which indicated that some sort of experiment was being carried out.

Fortunately, our personnel were able to capture one of the hostiles and we managed or withdrawal through the gate using covering fire.

Summary:

What was interesting was that during our mission on P147 we heard the sound of the gate activating four times. The sounds appeared to come from two distinctly different locations in relationship to where we were.

We now have clear evidence of at least two or more gates on this world. Arguably in what could be seen to form part of a circle like the two complexes we have on Earth. This appears to make P147 the first planet after Earth to have a gate complex.

Con-032 Torrington 2

CON-032-TO2

Background introduction:

Though this was the second scenario of the weekend, it was my first mission in the guise of my character Captain (Dr.) Ash on my second attendance at The Fight School site for a game weekend. As I mention last time Contact! has an ongoing plot where the actions from one event carry on over to have consequences in future game.

One of these is something called "Operation Clean Sweep" , which were a series of scenarios where the offworld Type 1 reanimators had executed attacks on the UNSGC player characters, denying them access to Base 78. Out of character, Base 78 was the site at Greenham Common, where first games of Contact! were run by The Fight School.

Mission:

This time I was going to CO13B, where the UNSGC use to have an Intel facility, which had been destroyed during "Operation Clean Sweep". Our outbound gate was scheduled for 11.36 hundred hours and our return time was 14.53 hundred hours.

Orders:

The rules of engagement were not to initiate fire. The recovery of former intelligence assets was the primary goal. Our secondary goal was to deploy a Stargazer unit, with its slave units and gather astronomical date to calculate where the planet was in our galaxy.

AAR:

M.Sgt. Vosloo led SG-18 and elements of SG-17 offworld. He ordered a reconnaissance sweep of the surrounding area, which might conceal a hostile force, on our arrival at CO13B.

Meanwhile the science team deployed the stargazer unit according to the instruction given to us, which we were to find out later led to us getting no usable results. We had set up too close to the gate, which activated during our recording time and the EMP footprint wiped our data. Such an operational error was a a result of the enemies "Operation Clean Sweep".

The SG teams spotted a lone man on their sweep. He claimed to be part of a larger force that could have taken us out had they wanted too. He appeared to be suffering from low level ABC contamination, and was raggedly dressed in British DPM, and clearly paranoid. Our mystery man turned out to be someone called Craig who was talking about a football match on TV, and having a beer when he got back with us to Base 51.

The stargate then activate and 3 people arrived onworld. Some tense moments passed as we identified the newcomers as SSI (an in game corporation) field biologists from Base 78, which had fallen to enemy incursion two years previously. The story we got from them was that they had gated out of Base 78 during the attack. They told us that another incoming gate was due soon. However, we thought that their information was based on an out-of-date gate schedule, as they were not initially aware of being 2 years in the future.

However, the sound of the gate again activating was heard, followed by the outbreak of weapon fire. Our troop dealt with the hostiles and the team was able to return without further incident.

Summary:

We brought Craig back with us, and we discovered he was involved with "Deep Black", an organization that appears to help the UNSGC from time–to–time, when it benefits them. We were also able to retrieve the SSI personnel, and captured enemy troops.

We were all well aware that there was now a new hazard to add to list of travel of travel through the stargate, translocation in time, which had happened once before, but this had been thought to be a one off freak incident that now turns not to be the case.

Con-031 Mortimer's Cross 3

Background introduction:
This was to be my third and final in character, as Captain (Dr.) Ash, game mission offworld during this weekend game. This game was played on our alternative piece of woodland, which made for a more interesting game, as some of us had not been there before, and those who had couldn't fully remember the layout of the site.

This was a pick up the pieces left after "Operation Clean Sweep" scenario for the players. Given it was British Summer Time, it wasn't pitch black when we went out, but it rapidly became darker as the evening progress, especially given the tree cover that blocked the starlight that can help one see at night.

CON-031- MC3

Mission: Go to planet, designation CO55A (Colony Offworld 55 at gate site A). Our gate out was going at 21.08 hundred hours and our return gate would be at 23.14 hundred hours.

Orders:

Our orders were again do not to initiate hostile actions. Science was represented by all three on base members, as MID felt that medical and technical support might be needed.

AAR:

After entering the playing area the first thing we found was a disused building, which added tension to the game of exploring the site as no one remembered seeing it before. M.Sgt. Vosloo, led the mission and we did the whole "Forrest Gump in Vietnam thing" until we came to a spot in the woods where we stopped. During our pause we noticed a light in the distance from behind us, so we set up an ambush to wait for the unknown force to arrive, as we didn't want a repeat of last time when we bumped into "Them".

Turned out to be a single man who made no attempt to move stealthily and we even heard him whistling a tune. As he came close Dr. Stokes, our medic, arose from the undergrowth and greeted him, which surprised him. However, he acted as if he were expecting to meet a group in woods. Dr. Stokes took the bag from the stranger, playing along and then subdued him as he turned to leave (I can't remember if that was a shot in the back, or coshing the NPC, but was a typical Dr. Stokes trademark move).

Myself and another player, Dr. Carter, examined the contents of a white cooler bag that had two six packs of Coca-Cola in it, each with a message attached.

Msgt. Vosloo ordered that we move out, but just as did we made another contact with an unknown force. Dr. Carter, braver than I, bushwhacked one of them by lighting him up with her tac-torch and a small exchange of fire ensued. after this Dr. Carter dragged a captive back to join me. During the firefight we had become separated from the rest of the team we decided to make our way back to the gate as best we could.

We made it to the gate where Dr. Stokes had brought the captured courier and his bag with him. We sat and waited, as there was some considerable time left to kill. The remaining elements of our team arrived in due course and spread out forming a defensive line.

What was really eerie was that for some reason I could sense the presence of the enemy team across the clearing from us. anyway, just before our gate was due to open the captured prisoner kicked off, I shot him and a ricochet hit the other prisoner in the head killing him. However, we managed to manhandle our dead captives through the gate while under fire, which was a bit hairy.

Summary:

The final firefight seemed to be the equivalent of saying "get out of Dodge" as no serious assault on our teams exit was made, but there again we might have outnumbered them.

The messages with the Coke cans were written in Japanese, a combination of katakana and kanji, and I was able to recognise a couple of symbols. The Coca-Cola cans turned out to have been laced with ABC, and from the translated message it was clearly meant to be delivered to a spy, who would then use the Coke to contaminate someone.

I didn't make any notes about the rest of the scenarios, as I played an NPC for the rest of the weekend. However, I left the game feeling really energised and wanting to know more, with more questions than you could shake a stick at to ask.

Con-031 Mortimer's Cross 2

Background introduction:

This was the second mission of the game weekend that I went out as Captain (Dr.) Ash, a name chosen as people often call me by this diminutive, but I will say that I do not recommend that one does this, because it can be very confusing. For instance when my name was being called is the person referring to me or my character? I found this quite difficult to cope with, probably because I can best be described as an episodic role-player.

A device that had been left on a previous visit to the planet that would record and map the stars in the sky at night, so that we could figure out where we were travelling to when the teams went through the stargate.

The back story was that this planet use to be a Philips Corporation colony world, which was lost as a result of what was called "Operation Clean Sweep" by the T1 OPFOR. The enemy were former UNSGC personnel that had become compromised by contamination with a substance called, imaginatively enough, Alien Biological Contaminant 1 (ABC1), which made them hostile to former colleagues and act against the UNSGC program.

CON-031- MC2

Mission:

Go through the stargate to a planet designated as C213A and try to recover the United Nations Science Corps (UNSC) Stargazer 1 unit and its data. Our gate out was at 14.14 hundred hours and our return gate would be at 16.25 hundred hours.

Orders:

Our orders were donot to initiate hostile actions. Command of the mission would be shared between myself as head of the UNSC, Dr. Well representing the Military Intelligence Divison (MID), and overall command would revert to M.Sgt. Vosloo Peace Keeper Division (PKD), if hostile forces were met.

AAR:

Another verdant green woodland, and it was a very hot day too.M.Sgt. Vosloo led us in the general direction of where colonists had been previously found when he had last visited the planet. We walked into the woods and it was at this point that we heard sounds, which on hindsight were voices. M.Sgt. Vosloo thought that obvious route to the sounds looked too much like a trap set to ensnare us, and led the team around a small lake to reach where the sounds were coming from.

On reaching the other side of the lake and sneaking up on the enemy, we saw three figures standing in the woods. M.Sgt. Vosloo and Dr. Well were in front, so I was called up to try and initiate contact, which resulted in both myself and my bodyguard, Cpl. Vorsfelde, being wounded.

During the exchange of fire it became apparent that the enemy were "Them", as after being hit and falling over they would reanimate and get up again. M.Sgt. Vosloo ordered a tactical withdrawal, as our team was strung out in a column, while the enemy were in a line and therefore able to bring more effective fire on us.

We staged a fighting retreat back to a dried up river gully near to our original starting position at the stargate. During the firefight I was acting as a medic to the team, but then M.Sgt. Vosloo took a hit to the head rendering him unconscious, and command of the team fell apart.

The next few minutes were ones of absolute confusion and mayhem, but I was able to revive M.Sgt. Vosloo, but it was around this point that we noticed two more people walking through the woods towards. We opened fire on the enemy reinforcements, but our shots had no effect upon them whatsoever. However, by this time our team had been overwhelmed, as all of us were wounded an unconscious as a result of the wounds.

However, sometime later some men speaking German injected something into me that revived me, and had done the same to the rest of the team. we were all pretty banged up and had been left to fend for ourselves. The remaining time was spent ferrying the immobile team members to the gate, where we found the Stargazer unit left for us to take away.

Summary:

It's dangerous out there. Confirmation of another hostile force that were labeled Type 2s, who appear to be fighting the T1s, and it would seem that we just got caught in the middle of it. We had to have a refresher from the Base commander on the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for securing uncooperative hostiles, and how to use said SOPs to contain and isolate the T2 threat.