Puerto de Oro
| Puerto de Oro |
Puerto de Oro is a miniature game using 28 mm figures to play a pirate attack on small town. It will be held at LinCon gaming convention in 2012. The game will have a town of maybe fifty houses, a fort, several pirate ships, lots of miniatures and an endless amount of missions to be carried out by players of any side.
The town
The town was originally founded by Spanish conquistadors who named it El Puerto de Noestra Sagrada Virgen del Cabello de Oro, but it is called Puerto de Oro (Golden Harbor) for short. It is situated in a bay where a fresh water river divides the town in two parts. On both sides of the river high hills rise from the sea. The town clings to the sides overlooking the bay. The southern side of the town is dominated by the fort protecting the bay with it's cannons. The northern side boasts Villa Marfil, the home of the governor of the town.
Names of possible places:
- Plaza del Mar - Havstorget
- Plaza Real - Kungstorget
- Paseo Maritimo - Havspromenadvägen
- Calle San Thomaso - Gatan helgon Thomas
- Villa Marfil - Marmorhuset - Guvernörens hus
- El Toro Loco - Den Tokiga Tjuren
- Espada y Oro - Svärd och Guld
- La Guardia - Vakten
- La Cabra Dorada - Den Gyllene Geten
- El Faról Rojo - Den Röda Lyktan
- La Iglesia de Noestra Sagrada Virgen - Den heliga Marias kyrka
The terrain
Outside the town the terrain is often both steep and heavily vegetated.
Maybe we will include a volcano.
The groups
There will be several groups that a player may take command of. Anything from a large group of pirates including a ship to a single character living in the town. All of these will have an known mission to carry out and one or more secret missions.
- La Guardia - Militia
- La Guardia de la Gobernador
- Guards of the Fort - Not on good terms with the governor
- A small unit of British/French marines
- Pirates of "The Blue Mermaid" - Big ship, ~68 cannons, very few pirates
- Pirates of "the green ship" - Quite big ship, lots of cannons, few pirates
- Pirates of "the red and black ship" - Small ship, 12 cannons, more pirates
- Pirates of "the fat flute" - 4 cannons, lots and lots of pirates
- Pirates of any other ships we might have at the time...
- The smith's apprentice
- The bartender with hired help
- The Pirate captain without a ship
There might also be some game master controlled units like
- A horde of rats
- A group of drunks
- A wagon stuck in a narrow street
The missions
There will be several missions, some official and some secret. The missions should be divided into categories depending on how long time they will take and should award some kind of victory points (candy piasters) depending on how hard they are.
They will also be divided between pirates and possibly south and north part of town.
Most groups will have a specific official mission that are connected to those figures. As an example the mission about keeping order in your tavern would belong to an inn keeper and his bouncer and servant girls.
Examples of possible missions:
- Get the golden candelabras from the governors mansion
- Kidnap the governors daughter for ransom
- Get hold of at least two barrels of ale
- Defeat an other groups leader
- Get the map hidden in the pub's cellar
- Bring back at least three womenfolk to the ship
- Burn down three houses
- Get the uniforms of at least three guards
- Steal charts/rutters
- Kidnap a carpenter
- Save your expensive wines
- Keep the order in your tavern
- Defeat an other groups leader
- Keep the pirates out of the better parts of town
- Stop more pirates from getting into the city
- Save all womenfolk
- Block at least three streets.
- Get back home from the pub you're in
- Get to the jungle without being seen by pirates
- Put your (hidden) bomb in the house of the French ambassador
- Assassinate the rich man living in the yellow stone house
- One victory point per two dead pirates
...and so on...
The flow of the Game
A player choosing to play a larger group of miniatures will be expected to play for about 5 hours while if choosing a single character the mission will probably be designed to last for up to an hour. Any player may join at any time while the game is running. They will just be placed in the terrain and start playing.
There will be several game masters running separate parts of town. They will have their own turns that won't be synchronized with the others. Characters in adjoining sectors may fire at characters out of turn or even more often than the others may return fire.
We should make cards with the rules for every group of figures that can be chosen by players.
The rules
Rules will be written specifically for the game and extremely simple.
Movement
Characters and groups of figures will probably have some standard move, lets say the length of a card (~9cm). I think they should be able to run twice this, and that rubble or hedges etc. may make it the width of the card instead. Pike armed units in formation always move at slow speed. Mounted characters may move at triple speed.
Ships may move at any speed but may only change speed or heading by a standard move. Rowboats may move at standard speed if at least half of all occupants row, or slow if at least a quarter of the occupants is at the oars.
Combat
Combat will be in the likes of; roll one six sided die and if same or higher it kills the opponent.
Simple suggestions:
There are three versions of combat. Ranged or close combat and finally cannon!
In ranged combat the ones firing roll one die for each figure firing. If the roll is the same or higher than the "to hit number" including any modifiers, it kills one figure of the unit it fired at. There might be a modifier of -1 for long range or cover.
In close combat the unit acting roll for hits first and when hits are determined any survivors may fight back. This means that both sides may fight when one unit has an action. Some weapons may modify this. A unit with pikes or long spears may roll for hits first, the first turn of the fight, even if it is the other units turn when close combat is initiated. Mounted troops closing with a pike unit may not roll for kills at all during first turn.
Usual to hit numbers:
- Musket armed figures: Ranged 5, Close Combat 6
- Hand weapon and pistol armed figures: Ranged 6, Close Combat 5
- Militia: Close Combat 6
- Pirate Captain: Ranged 6, Close Combat 4
- Fencing Master: Close combat 4 and may parry any kill at 5
Cannon will probably be able to fire at any place that has a straight line of fire.
Usual to hit numbers:
- A ship: 5
- Generally at the fort: 5
- A specific house in town: 6
- A group of figures: 6 and then roll the number of figures in the group or less to hit one.
- A single character: 6 followed by rolling a 1 as of the rule above.
When a cannon or a broad side fires and at least one ball misses it's target, the game master may at his choice deal out random destruction to the surroundings.
Heroics
I have an idea that there will be heroics cards that either is associated to a special character or that can be drawn when completing a mission.
Examples might be:
- Exceptional buckler. User may parry a kill result from close combat on a roll of 5 or 6. Reusable.
- Dodge. One miniature may avoid a kill result. One use.
- Grappling hook. The whole group might climb any wall one at a time. One use.
- Bible in the pocket. Any one miniature avoid a kill result from ranged combat.
- Agile. Character may jump and climb up one story or a double move horizontally. Reusable.
