Black Company
| Black Company by Squeegy |
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Black Company is a personalized, turn-based wargame where individual players join up as various classes of soldiers, and are led by their fellow suggestors in battle against GM-controlled forces in small-scale skirmishes. The enemy is commanded either by Squeegy, the author, or MrQ, also known as General Q. Waterbuffalo.
Plot
The suggestors play as members of Black Company, a division in the American military. The very first mission involved a surprise attack on a Black Company convoy by troops of the Mexican army, disguised as friendly soldiers at a checkpoint. They were slaughtered, and war sprang out between the two countries. Black Company took the fight to Zangano, the paramilitary organization that comprises the Mexican army much as Black Company comprises the United States's.
Game Progression
Much of the early fighting took place on the 4chan /tg/ board, including the initial failed mission and several missions in the first Mexican sector. /tg/ lost several battles due to poor organization, incompetent leadership and insufficient numbers. Since then, the game has been ported exclusively to tgchan, and the latest sector has been handled entirely by their forces.
Playing the Game
Each thread begins with a roll call, where all the players post their intent to play with a callsign according to their class and a name of their choice. New players may choose from the six main classes given in Codex 3, which are Infantry, Rocketeer, Telekinetic, Medic, Sniper, and Engineer. Once everyone has joined, those who have signed up as Officers (organizational and tactical support players who have no individual role in battle) are given a map with notable locations in the sector, and asked to choose which to launch an assault on. They are occasionally given support units, which players who have joined already must then be assigned to if no one steps forward to claim them. The map is then provided to the Officers, who must choose where to deploy the troops under their command, and the game begins.
Turns
Turns in Black Company are split into Action Phase, the phase in which all troops must submit their actions, and Enemy Phase, the phase in which allied actions resolve and the enemy then makes its movements and actions. Once you have submitted an action, you are not allowed to delete or change it, though if you failed to include a roll you may do so in another post.
Each phase represents a nebulous amount of time from how long it takes to aim and fire an assault rifle, to the time it takes to sprint down a city block. In general, battles are over in minutes.
Movement on the Map
Every class has a statistic called 'MOVE', which represents the amount of squares of movement that class can travel in one phase. For instance, the Infantry class has 4 MOVE, which means that they can move 4 squares every turn before committing an action. Notable movement rules:
- You cannot move after acting.
- One ACT can be spent to regain full MOVE, with a penalty of 1 MOVE for each ACT spent after the first. If a class has 2 ACT and 4 MOVE, they can sprint for a maximum of 11 MOVE.
- Even classes which normally must choose between moving and acting (i.e. the Sniper) can spend their act to sprint.
- Sprinting is considered a general term for moving faster, so the MOVE gained can be used while prone or crouched, for pose changes, and for any other normal expenditure of MOVE. This also means that vehicles can 'sprint'.
- Changing poses costs MOVE, but can have benefits as well as disadvantages. Each pose change costs 1 MOVE, and changing from standing to prone or vice versa requires 2, because you must crouch first.
- Crouching: +1 to-hit, -1 move, -1 to be hit (if on a hill)
- Prone +1 to-hit, -2 move, -1 to be hit (unless on lower ground, then +1 to be hit)
ACT and Actions
Any number enclosed in brackets on a class card (for instance, 'Shoot [5]'), signifies that it is an action, that unless otherwise stated, requires the expenditure of an ACT. You must also roll to successfully complete the action, on a 1d10, with the goal of getting the number stated or higher. If you fail an action, the author decides what happens. You will never shoot an ally with a bullet unless disoriented, but explosives are unpredictable.
Promotions
Every phase in which you submit an action and come out alive puts you further towards your next promotion. All new players start out at the Private rank, but after their first battle or two they will be promoted to Specialist and be permitted to improve one thing on their stat card. This can be nearly anything except for ACT, but is generally a single number (for instance, your MOVE, or your gun's damage or range, your HP, or lowering the goal on a dice roll). The only case where an upgrade comes at a penalty is AR, which will reduce your MOVE by 1 for each point it is raised by.
