Imperialus
Explorer
I’m concidering my first foray into DMing a D20 game other than D&D and wanted to throw my ideas out here to get feedback. Keep in mind everything is fluff right now. I haven’t even decided on a system. I’m seriously considering Grim Tales since it seems to provide some of the “feel” I am looking for but am more than open to suggestion. I don't own either D20 Modern or Grim Tales so I'm basically at square one mechanics wise.
The basic premise is: It’s the mid 1960’s and we’re at war. To be more specific, we’re still fighting Hitler. World War two has continued uninterrupted for the better part of a quarter century and most of Europe has become a shell blasted wasteland. The war took a sharp right turn from history in late 1942. Specifically, the Manhattan project was completed in late November 1942. Though the Allies found themselves in possession of a weapon capable of tearing the heart out of the Reich they delayed, fearing massive civilian casualties. The weapon was decided to be kept as a last resort and a small squadron of elite flying fortresses were stationed in an underground airbase south of York. Little did the allies realize but within weeks of the Manhattan projects completion another equally dedicated group of scientists completed an untested prototype of another atomic weapon in a mountain fortress in Bavaria. Hitler’s high command decided immediately to rush this new weapon to the eastern front just as the German lines around Stalingrad were about to be encircled. Hitler rescinded his earlier orders to hold the ground and instead issued a general retreat. He had other plans for the Russian army that was soon chasing the remnants of the 6th army across the steppes.
On January 2nd 1943 a huge column of almost a million Russian infantry, T-34’s, artillery pieces and trucks wound it’s way past the ruins of a tiny village wiped off the map months ago by German artillery completely unaware of a large metal cylinder hidden in the rubble of the Soviet Hall that was soon to spell their doom. At exactly 2 PM that afternoon the frozen steppe sky was lit up by a flash brighter than the sun seen from as far away as Stalingrad almost 100 kilometers away. In an instant, the Russian counterattack was destroyed, survivors stumbling around, cloths burnt from their bodies. Most freezing to death long before any medical aid could find them. The survivors at the head of the column untouched by the blast ground to a halt cut off from their chain of command and confused and terrified by what they had just witnessed. The 6th army escaped back to German territory to regroup and rearm unmolested. The German commanders were not long savoring their victory however, they did not realize that the allies had the exact same destructive capacity as them.
Within hours of the attack allied commanders had received word of what had happened. It immediately became apparent that a counterattack was necessary. The industrial city of Dresden was chosen for destruction and the so called “Angel” squadron was scrambled late in the afternoon of January 3rd. At 1:45 AM the city of Dresden ceased to exist. The flying fortress guided over it’s target by an escort of Mosquito night fighters had dropped it’s nuclear bomb in the middle of the downtown commercial district.
The next 4 years were ones of chaos and fear as nuclear weapons were played like cards in a game of hearts. The first German “super heavy” aircraft capable of carrying a nuclear payload destroyed Manchester, and a nuclear bomb was set in New York harbor destroying much of Manhattan. The huge camps set up for the D-Day invasions were also discovered by a German spy and targeted. The Germans also developed the first “suitcase bomb” and smuggled it into the United States via Mexico and destroyed one of the major factories producing allied warplanes. The bombing of Moscow and a number of other large Russian troop concentrations forced the Soviets to sue for peace and withdraw from the war. The allies kept up counterattacking destroying Hamburg, and a poorly guided plane succeeded in destroying much of the southern half of Berlin though the remainder of the city was still largely functional. Tokyo was also destroyed killing the Emperor and causing the withdrawal of Japan as well.
Eventually the
for tat bombings slowed and then finally stopped. Though nothing was ever said both sides seemed to realize that if the war continued to go down this rout there would be nothing left worth fighting over. By early June 1947 the war had largely returned to it’s conventional roots even if it was radically different in appearance. In late August 1947 the survivors of the planned D-Day invasion mostly British and Canadians succeeded in establishing and holding a small beachhead in Normandy. Troops poured in and quickly managed to drive the Germans out of the North West section of France stopping approximately 30 Miles north of Paris. Fortunately the armies have managed to avoid the brutal trench warfare made famous by the preceding war and the front lines have remained relatively fluid consisting of small strongholds and most combat is confined to skirmishes, supply train ambushes and surgical strikes on strongholds.
The face of the combatants has changed as well. In 1950 a brilliant if somewhat insane German scientist went through thousands of concentration camp victims before perfecting a primitive but functional cybernetic arm. He quickly began perfecting the technology and developing other limbs and they were quickly put to use making disabled veterans capable of combat again. At the same time a reclusive British scientist working on a tiny island off the north coast of England created primitive vehicle mounted laser weapons. The technology was rapidly miniaturized and by the late 50’s hand held laser weapons were finding their way into the hands of elite units such as the SAS. A Canadian scientist also contributed a major breakthrough to the soldiers in the field. In the mid fifties he developed a new alloy that came to be known as placsteel, a lightweight but exceptionally strong alloy that was turned into all manner of body armour and vehicle plating. On a darker note Hinrich Himmler fell deeper into madness and began an even more intensive study of the occult. He discovered ancient rituals that enabled him to raise the corpses of the fallen into a mindless army that didn’t sleep eat or feel pain. Fortunately for the allies the ritual is highly taxing and few undead are raised at a time, this keeps the allied lines from being completely overrun by hordes of zombies.
The basic premise is: It’s the mid 1960’s and we’re at war. To be more specific, we’re still fighting Hitler. World War two has continued uninterrupted for the better part of a quarter century and most of Europe has become a shell blasted wasteland. The war took a sharp right turn from history in late 1942. Specifically, the Manhattan project was completed in late November 1942. Though the Allies found themselves in possession of a weapon capable of tearing the heart out of the Reich they delayed, fearing massive civilian casualties. The weapon was decided to be kept as a last resort and a small squadron of elite flying fortresses were stationed in an underground airbase south of York. Little did the allies realize but within weeks of the Manhattan projects completion another equally dedicated group of scientists completed an untested prototype of another atomic weapon in a mountain fortress in Bavaria. Hitler’s high command decided immediately to rush this new weapon to the eastern front just as the German lines around Stalingrad were about to be encircled. Hitler rescinded his earlier orders to hold the ground and instead issued a general retreat. He had other plans for the Russian army that was soon chasing the remnants of the 6th army across the steppes.
On January 2nd 1943 a huge column of almost a million Russian infantry, T-34’s, artillery pieces and trucks wound it’s way past the ruins of a tiny village wiped off the map months ago by German artillery completely unaware of a large metal cylinder hidden in the rubble of the Soviet Hall that was soon to spell their doom. At exactly 2 PM that afternoon the frozen steppe sky was lit up by a flash brighter than the sun seen from as far away as Stalingrad almost 100 kilometers away. In an instant, the Russian counterattack was destroyed, survivors stumbling around, cloths burnt from their bodies. Most freezing to death long before any medical aid could find them. The survivors at the head of the column untouched by the blast ground to a halt cut off from their chain of command and confused and terrified by what they had just witnessed. The 6th army escaped back to German territory to regroup and rearm unmolested. The German commanders were not long savoring their victory however, they did not realize that the allies had the exact same destructive capacity as them.
Within hours of the attack allied commanders had received word of what had happened. It immediately became apparent that a counterattack was necessary. The industrial city of Dresden was chosen for destruction and the so called “Angel” squadron was scrambled late in the afternoon of January 3rd. At 1:45 AM the city of Dresden ceased to exist. The flying fortress guided over it’s target by an escort of Mosquito night fighters had dropped it’s nuclear bomb in the middle of the downtown commercial district.
The next 4 years were ones of chaos and fear as nuclear weapons were played like cards in a game of hearts. The first German “super heavy” aircraft capable of carrying a nuclear payload destroyed Manchester, and a nuclear bomb was set in New York harbor destroying much of Manhattan. The huge camps set up for the D-Day invasions were also discovered by a German spy and targeted. The Germans also developed the first “suitcase bomb” and smuggled it into the United States via Mexico and destroyed one of the major factories producing allied warplanes. The bombing of Moscow and a number of other large Russian troop concentrations forced the Soviets to sue for peace and withdraw from the war. The allies kept up counterattacking destroying Hamburg, and a poorly guided plane succeeded in destroying much of the southern half of Berlin though the remainder of the city was still largely functional. Tokyo was also destroyed killing the Emperor and causing the withdrawal of Japan as well.
Eventually the
for tat bombings slowed and then finally stopped. Though nothing was ever said both sides seemed to realize that if the war continued to go down this rout there would be nothing left worth fighting over. By early June 1947 the war had largely returned to it’s conventional roots even if it was radically different in appearance. In late August 1947 the survivors of the planned D-Day invasion mostly British and Canadians succeeded in establishing and holding a small beachhead in Normandy. Troops poured in and quickly managed to drive the Germans out of the North West section of France stopping approximately 30 Miles north of Paris. Fortunately the armies have managed to avoid the brutal trench warfare made famous by the preceding war and the front lines have remained relatively fluid consisting of small strongholds and most combat is confined to skirmishes, supply train ambushes and surgical strikes on strongholds. The face of the combatants has changed as well. In 1950 a brilliant if somewhat insane German scientist went through thousands of concentration camp victims before perfecting a primitive but functional cybernetic arm. He quickly began perfecting the technology and developing other limbs and they were quickly put to use making disabled veterans capable of combat again. At the same time a reclusive British scientist working on a tiny island off the north coast of England created primitive vehicle mounted laser weapons. The technology was rapidly miniaturized and by the late 50’s hand held laser weapons were finding their way into the hands of elite units such as the SAS. A Canadian scientist also contributed a major breakthrough to the soldiers in the field. In the mid fifties he developed a new alloy that came to be known as placsteel, a lightweight but exceptionally strong alloy that was turned into all manner of body armour and vehicle plating. On a darker note Hinrich Himmler fell deeper into madness and began an even more intensive study of the occult. He discovered ancient rituals that enabled him to raise the corpses of the fallen into a mindless army that didn’t sleep eat or feel pain. Fortunately for the allies the ritual is highly taxing and few undead are raised at a time, this keeps the allied lines from being completely overrun by hordes of zombies.
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