Steve Jackson Games - Site Navigation
Home General Info Follow Us Search Illuminator Store Forums What's New Other Games Ogre GURPS Munchkin Our Games: Home

Go Back   Steve Jackson Games Forums > Roleplaying > GURPS

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 05-13-2017, 07:14 PM   #1
mook
 
mook's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Los Angeles
Default Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

Well, there is no shortage of Aliens/Colonial Marines RPG talk across these wide webs, including quite a lot right here on these forums. Thanks to all those creative souls who made my life so much easier!

I'll be running a 4-hour con-game in a couple weeks of U.S. Colonial Marines vs. the usual hordes of shiny, nasty Xenomorphs. I'm taking a short break from the story side of things to hammer out some of the mechanical stuff, presented here (with annotation) to see if I've made any glaring errors or if anyone has tips or suggestions.

BASIC MARINE
Weapons

M41A Pulse Rifle
9d pi+, Acc 4, RoF 3, Shots 99+1(3), Bulk -4, Rcl 3
Average Damage per shot vs. DR: 31

Underbarrel Grenade Launcher
10d cr ex, Acc 4, RoF 1, Shots 3(3), Rcl 3
Average Damage per shot vs. DR: 35

...or...

M56A2 Smart Gun
10d pi+, Acc 5, RoF 10, Shots 200(5), Bulk -5, Rcl 2
Average Damage per shot vs. DR: 35

Notes: All tweaks were made in the name of playability over 'realism.'
* The Pulse Rifle and Smartgun are tweaked from the Storm Rifle and Chaingun in Ultra-Tech. I thought the biggest change was lowering damage type to pi+ from pi++, but I then discovered that is official errata.
* As "flavor text" they are using APHEX rounds, but mechanically they are not (one less thing to roll).
* The Smart Gun gives a total of +4 to user skill (+1 for being braced from the harness, per UT; +1 as a simplification of the assisted tracking from the gun; and the usual +2 for a RoF of 10)
* The Grenade Launcher is the 25mm launcher from UT with HE warheads. Officially, the damage should be 4d pi++ (0.5) with a followup of 4d cr ex [1d+1]. I'm opting to change that to a flat 10d in the hex of impact, with 1/2 damage to adjacent hexes. That's a significant change, but the fragmentation damage would never penetrate Xenomorph DR anyway (below), so why bother rolling it? The 10d, I think, maintains the Boom and Splash players expect from the movies.
* In an even fight, the Marines should have the advantage of dealing penetrating damage against the Xenomorphs' lower DR.
* Best Tactics: lots of cover, chokepoints, and prayer

Armor, M3 series USCM body armor
Helmet: DR 18 (so, DR 20 with Skull)
Torso: DR 30
Arms and Legs: DR 20
Gloves: DR 10/5, flexible
Assault Boots: DR 10/5


BASIC XENOMORPH, ST 22 w/ Striking ST 4-6
Bite, Outer Jaws: 2d+3 cut, Avg. damage: 10
Bite, Inner Jaws: 3d+3 imp, Avg. damage: 13
Claws: 3d(2) cut, Avg. damage: 13
Tail: 3d(2) imp, Avg. damage: 13

Natural DR: 25
Acid Blood: 1d corrosive damage per 5 points of damage taken for 3 turns, either to all adjacent hexes (firearms, explosives) or one hex in the direction the attack came from (melee)

Notes:
* Even with their armor divisor of (2), the Xenomorphs would have a hard time reliably overcoming the Marines' body armor, at least at the Torso/Vitals.
* Best Tactics: swarming, targeting the unarmored Face and Neck, and gratuitous amounts of bleeding


These numbers seem like they should help avoid either A) the Marines just completely rolling over the Xenomorphs, or B) the Xenomorphs ripping the Marines to a messy TPK in the first encounter.

Any holes I should be wary of?
__________________
How to Be a GURPS GM, author
Game Geekery, Blog (GURPS combat examples, fillable PDF sheets, rules summaries, campaigns and one-shots, beginners' intro)
GURPS Discord, unofficial hangout and real-time chat
mook is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2017, 07:31 PM   #2
Kalzazz
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Default Re: Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

Id make grenades more awesome, since people presumably expect grenades to be some manner of area effect, and these grenades vs DR 25 foes are 'direct hit or go home'
Kalzazz is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2017, 08:21 PM   #3
Phantasm
 
Phantasm's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: On the road again...
Default Re: Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

One other Xenomorph tactic: laying in ambush above and grappling targets of opportunity. It seems as though some of the aliens had a fast-acting paralysis or similar poison that could be applied with their tails to the unarmored necks. This tactic is intended to allow their prey to be taken alive for breeding new alien soldiers.
__________________
"Life ... is an Oreo cookie." - J'onn J'onzz, 1991

"But mom, I don't wanna go back in the dungeon!"

The GURPS Marvel Universe Reboot Project A-G, H-R, and S-Z, and its not-a-wiki-really web adaptation.
Ranoc, a Muskets-and-Magery Renaissance Fantasy Setting
Phantasm is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2017, 09:11 PM   #4
(E)
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: New Zealand.
Default Re: Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

Would the Marines have access to any flamethrowers, heavy weapons and or explosives? Stats or a reason why they can't get hold of them might be required.

Xenos grappling through walls and floors, how tough are the walls and floors? Can the Marines shoot through those doors and floors?

Do the Xenomorphs have any other ignore damage abilities in gurps terms?
__________________
Waiting for inspiration to strike......
And spending too much time thinking about farming for RPGs
Contributor to Citadel at Nordvörn
(E) is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2017, 09:11 PM   #5
mook
 
mook's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Los Angeles
Default Re: Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kalzazz View Post
Id make grenades more awesome, since people presumably expect grenades to be some manner of area effect, and these grenades vs DR 25 foes are 'direct hit or go home'
Oops, good catch! Even rolling max. damage (10 natural sixes!), the adjacent hexes would only take 5 points. I may just make the grenade a 1-hex area of effect at full damage. Take that, ya lousy Xenos!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Phantasm View Post
One other Xenomorph tactic: laying in ambush above and grappling targets of opportunity. It seems as though some of the aliens had a fast-acting paralysis or similar poison that could be applied with their tails to the unarmored necks. This tactic is intended to allow their prey to be taken alive for breeding new alien soldiers.
Nice, yes, ambush also very good. I saw a few mentions of drones/warriors having paralyzing poison, but didn't recall seeing anything on-screen. Certainly makes sense, though (and gives the PCs one more thing to worry about).

Quote:
Originally Posted by (E) View Post
Would the Marines have access to any flamethrowers, heavy weapons and or explosives? Stats or a reason why they can't get hold of them might be required.

Xenos grappling through walls and floors, how tough are the walls and floors? Can the Marines shoot through those doors and floors?

Do the Xenomorphs have any other ignore damage abilities in gurps terms?
There is a dropship crash involved at the beginning of our tale, so the Marines basically have barebones supplies. Bursting through walls/doors to get a grab on someone is definitely a legit tactic, as is firing through said walls/doors.

Maybe Hard to Kill for the Xenos? I'm hoping DR 25, HP 25, acid blood will let at least a few get close enough to be a real threat. Haven't settled on a Dodge, either, but maybe Enhanced Dodge as high as a 12-13?

I could be a real jerk and give them Luck :) (which all the PCs have, as a matter of course)
__________________
How to Be a GURPS GM, author
Game Geekery, Blog (GURPS combat examples, fillable PDF sheets, rules summaries, campaigns and one-shots, beginners' intro)
GURPS Discord, unofficial hangout and real-time chat

Last edited by mook; 05-13-2017 at 09:16 PM.
mook is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2017, 09:49 PM   #6
mook
 
mook's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Los Angeles
Default Re: Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

I've also been reminded, courtesy of YouTube and Wikipedia, that in Alien Resurrection one of the Xenomorphs spits a glob of acid into a character's face, like a "spitting cobra." Say, 5 yard range, that gives them at least something as a ranged attack.
__________________
How to Be a GURPS GM, author
Game Geekery, Blog (GURPS combat examples, fillable PDF sheets, rules summaries, campaigns and one-shots, beginners' intro)
GURPS Discord, unofficial hangout and real-time chat
mook is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2017, 09:53 PM   #7
shadowjack
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Endor
Default Re: Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

Quote:
Originally Posted by mook View Post
Maybe Hard to Kill for the Xenos? I'm hoping DR 25, HP 25, acid blood will let at least a few get close enough to be a real threat. Haven't settled on a Dodge, either, but maybe Enhanced Dodge as high as a 12-13?

I could be a real jerk and give them Luck :) (which all the PCs have, as a matter of course)
I disagree with amping up their individual survivability to that level; the bugs gain their advantage from stealth, numbers, possibly unusual forms of perception (the novelization hinted at some sort of infrared or field sense), and nigh-suicidal bravery. In the original movie, as formidable as the bugs are in hand-to-hand, the Marines are able to fairly handily stand them off as long as the humans keep to range, have enough ammo, and don't care about collateral damage. When they don't have those three things—which turns out to be most of the time—the bugs are able to close in and do their worst.

So, of course, your merry job as GM is to choreograph changes to the environment, mission, and resources so that the humans rarely have those three important things. :)

More bugs died than Marines in the movie. Let the players blow them away! …and then dump another wave in their lap.
shadowjack is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-13-2017, 10:13 PM   #8
(E)
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: New Zealand.
Default Re: Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

Quote:
Originally Posted by shadowjack View Post
More bugs died than Marines in the movie. Let the players blow them away! …and then dump another wave in their lap.
For the feel of the Aliens movie each successive wave of xenos would start with a change of tactics.

Hard to Subdue might be a better option than hard to kill.

Pre calculating the slams that a xeno can do might be useful. Especially if they have a long jump distance.

Edit
Secret: Android. (Probably a bit much for a con game though)

Note tunneling speed maybe?
__________________
Waiting for inspiration to strike......
And spending too much time thinking about farming for RPGs
Contributor to Citadel at Nordvörn

Last edited by (E); 05-13-2017 at 10:20 PM.
(E) is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2017, 12:13 AM   #9
shadowjack
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Endor
Default Re: Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

Quote:
Originally Posted by (E) View Post
Hard to Subdue might be a better option than hard to kill.
There you go. Makes it really fun to capture that oh-so-vital live adult sample xeno.
shadowjack is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-14-2017, 01:19 AM   #10
mr beer
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Default Re: Colonial Marines vs. "Aliens" Xenomorphs

If you want quick combats, make the xenos auto-die at -1xHP or x0HP.
mr beer is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Fnords are Off
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 09:41 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.