[WWII/TS/Covert Ops/Weird War II] Götterdämmerung on Walpurgisnacht

[Þorkell]

Originally Posted by Icelander

Have Beevan, shall have to obtain Ryan.

FWIW I have a copy of Ryan.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by johndallman

Assuming they have the backing of OSS or SOE, and can pass for Germans, getting in should be possible.

For the purposes of the adventure, the PCs will belong to a secretive section or desk of one or the other organisation, tasked with something so obviously unimportant that everyone will fall all over themselves giving them assistance.

In the interest of providing an interesting selection of pre-gen PCs, I had thought that there would be an odd collection of experts from all over the world, probably explained by the mysterious and occult objective of their quest.

Some PCs will be able to pass as Germans, others as other Axis soldiers. Most probably I will have to offer one or two fish-out-of-water PCs, who aren't experts in Berliner German and Brandenburger culture, and can't easily pass for locals. Some players don't like it when their PCs are supposed to fit easily into the adventuring locales, while they are entirely alien to them. Most of my players have probably visited Berlin, but none have spent more than a month there and some probably only a few days.

I had thought maybe a decorated young American Marine who had not left his native land* before the outbreak of war and is included in the mission largely because a high-ranking US general insists that no matter how esoteric the skills of other team members, they'll need a good man in a tough spot who happens to be a phenomenal shot.

Another idea would be a Gurkha commando. Cheerful, lethal and indomitable. Someone who was good with languages could easily speak several European languages in 1945. There was a battalion of Gurkhas on Cyprus in 1939 and they fought in North Africa and Italy, among other places. I dunno what he could pass as. I wonder if Berliners would know enough about the world to recognise a racial difference between an 'Italian' of vaguely Moorish or Cypriote ancestry and a Nepali?

*Which might be rural Maine, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky or even Texas, depending on the breaks.

Originally Posted by johndallman

Getting back out again is harder. If they leave their vehicles unguarded, they will be stolen.

I had some idea that a good mechanic might burn the outside chassis of a truck to make it look like a wreck, remove a few vital parts so it wouldn't run and leave it as a part of a bombed-out ruin. Bury the vital parts and make it possible to use the truck to escape after an hour or so of repair work.

Of course, a convoy of trucks pretending to be Swedish would be a nice backup.

Originally Posted by johndallman

Getting picked up by aircraft is conceivable, but the Berlin airfields are all subject to Soviet attack and ones further west will still have Luftwaffe ground troops with AAA even if they don't have much in the way of aircraft. Getting picked up by submarine is hard: Berlin is some way from the Baltic coast, and the Danish Straits are still heavily mined; the Western Allies have left the Baltic to the Soviets.

It's always possible to postulate an airborne assault on a small airfield as part of the operation, if it's important enough. Of course, the paratroopers wouldn't know the true purpose of the raid.

I guess the Spree was impassable due to mines and other defences.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by Icelander

Some players don't like it when their PCs are supposed to fit easily into the adventuring locales, while they are entirely alien to them.

OK, I hadn't anticipated that problem. Indeed, I don't think I've ever met any players who feel that way.

I dunno what he could pass as. I wonder if Berliners would know enough about the world to recognise a racial difference between an 'Italian' of vaguely Moorish or Cypriote ancestry and a Nepali?

Some German students of "racial science" might figure that out. Making sure the Ghurkha's Italian is really solid would help, and backing it up with an Accent perk and some supporting skills would help.

I had some idea that a good mechanic might burn the outside chassis of a truck to make it look like a wreck, remove a few vital parts so it wouldn't run and leave it as a part of a bombed-out ruin. Bury the vital parts and make it possible to use the truck to escape after an hour or so of repair work.

Plausibly, but isn't it likely they'll want to leave in a hurry?

I guess the Spree was impassable due to mines and other defences.

It will certainly have had a lot of junk in it by this time, and it isn't all that big a river at Berlin.

[adm]

Originally Posted by Icelander

I had thought maybe a decorated young American Marine who had not left his native land* before the outbreak of war and is included in the mission largely because a high-ranking US general insists that no matter how esoteric the skills of other team members, they'll need a good man in a tough spot who happens to be a phenomenal shot.

A spare U.S. Marine being available in Europe is rather unlikely. Marines were nearly exclusively assigned to the Pacific Theater, other than Embassy guards, and those serving as ships security units.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by adm

A spare U.S. Marine being available in Europe is rather unlikely. Marines were nearly exclusively assigned to the Pacific Theater, other than Embassy guards, and those serving as ships security units.

He'd have to have some specific mission critical attribute related to the mysterious and occult McGuffin, it is true.

Being the last scion of a royal line might do it.

I was thinking that the Gurkha was there because witch-finding runs in his family and he has demonstrated* indomitable will and resistance to the supernatural before.

*Under some Weird War II conditions.

[safisher]

Originally Posted by Icelander

He'd have to have some specific mission critical attribute related to the mysterious and occult McGuffin, it is true.

Navajo spirit walker.

[fredtheobviouspseudonym]

Originally Posted by adm

A spare U.S. Marine being available in Europe is rather unlikely. Marines were nearly exclusively assigned to the Pacific Theater, other than Embassy guards, and those serving as ships security units.

See http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-OSS/; apparently there were a fair number of USMC personnel in the OSS. (NOT Pacific -- Douglas MacA didn't allow OSS in his sandbox.) Said source has a list by name and location of service of USMC personnel in the OSS.

One example -- OSS USMC Captain John Hamilton (better known as actor Sterling Hayden, per The Godfather & Dr. Strangelove) served in the Balkans, France, and Germany.

[adm]

Fred;
The link does not work. That is interesting, I had missed that.

[Polydamas]

Originally Posted by Icelander

I had some idea that a good mechanic might burn the outside chassis of a truck to make it look like a wreck, remove a few vital parts so it wouldn't run and leave it as a part of a bombed-out ruin. Bury the vital parts and make it possible to use the truck to escape after an hour or so of repair work.

Given the amount of shelling and bombing which they expect, I am not sure that many officers would sign off on that plan. If one bomb or collapsed building can take out their transport, and nobody will be there to see it, they will need an alternative which they can switch to on short notice.

Beevor thinks that a large fraction of all Soviet casualties were from their own artillery, but he likes to tell stories about the Soviets killing their most loyal supporters through incompetence or paranoia, so I might look for another opinion.

[Sword-dancer]

Originally Posted by Icelander

More to the point, however, what is a plausible way to get a party of Western covert operatives into Berlin just ahead of the Russians?.

Military glider perhaps

Originally Posted by Icelander

Another idea would be a Gurkha commando. .

Indian Free Legion

Originally Posted by johndallman

That would be
Pretending to be Germans in the SS puts them at a higher point in the status ladder and cuts down on the impressment attempts, at the cost of needing better Acting skills.

Ther was n´t necessary much love lost from the Wehrmacht to the SS, but the chances to be hanged for deserters could be lower OTOH if the Soldiers or Commanders of the Army feel threatened or consider they´re doing something dishonorable...