Wargames Terrain Workshop Post Apocalypse Scenery 01

I continue with my reviews of Wargames Terrain Workshop scenery items, but this time I'm highlighting a couple of scenery pieces I recently ordered, both of which are from the Post Apocalypse range. In both cases I chose the painted options, both to save me the time in painting them and plus, they look a lot better than I suspect I could have achieved.

The two items I chose were the Toxic Pool and the Crushed Car. The Toxic Pool measures 197mm in length by 126mm in width and by 15mm in height. I specifically wanted it to use in my Judge Dredd Miniatures Game. Toxic Pools are a common feature of Mega City One. In addition to being a great place for dumping corpses, I thought it would make for an ideal spawning point for some Toxic Zombies. Although I ordered the painted version, which costs £12.60, as opposed to £7.00 for the unpainted version, I repainted the surrounding earth banks to match the colour scheme of most of my figures and scenic bases. Dave Stone, who painted it, had given it a brown surround, just like on the crushed car. Note the skeletal hand and skull sticking out of the pool! A nice touch!

As soon as I saw the Crushed Car model, I knew that I wanted it. Dave has done a first class job on painting it and the rust effects are just superb. It measures 107mm in length by 59mm in width and by 24mm in height. The painted version cost £7.20, whilst the unpainted version is just £4.00. I did think about repainting the base but decided that the brown colouring complemented the rusty brown of the car, so just left it as is.

To the left of here is a closer look of the car in a photo taken from the WTW webstore. The car looks a lot brighter and more orange in my two photos but that might just be because of us using different cameras and lighting. The Crushed Car has already made an appearance in one of my JDMG batreps (scenario 05 - Robot Rebellion) but you have to look very carefully to see it as it was positioned well away from all the action by the rear wall. You can find both of these scenery items here - http://wargamesterrainworkshop.co.uk/?product_cat=post-apocalyptic-and-s-d-z-a-accesories

I am absolutely delighted with these two items of scenery and you can expect to see them appearing in more batreps of mine in the future. What I particularly love about all of Dave's work is that they are very usable, well-detailed and superb value for money. Even his painted stuff is very affordable and often cheaper than similar unpainted products from other companies.

Zombicide Scenario M01 - The Big Rubble Part 3

TURN 12

ELSA. "I have survived this far," Elsa said with gritty determination as she swung her Chainsaw at the Zombies charging her, "and I am not going to die at your hands. Not when I'm armed with a Chainsaw!"
At first, the Chainsaw felt heavy and unwieldy and she missed more times than she hit with her first flurry of attacks but she soon corrected her mistakes and she turned into a whirling Dervish of Death, killing all five Walkers around her. Just one in three of her fifteen attacks was a fatal hit but she had removed the immediate threat to herself and Raoul.

DEREK. Derek the locator walked over to where Elsa and Raoul were at the head of the T-junction.
"You handled that Chainsaw very well," he acknowledged as he walked in front of Elsa. "Good to have you on board."
He fired his unique firearm known as Pa's Pistol at a pair of Walkers. He missed once but scored two killing head shots.

NEEMA. The former corporate executive moved out of the small one room building and joined her colleagues. She thinned out the group of four Toxic Walkers moving up behind them, firing her .44 Magnum Revolver twice and killing two of the Toxic Walkers nearest to her. (This advanced her to the orange level and she chose the +1 Free Combat Action Skill.) She fired again but her bullet went wide by a few inches.

RAOUL. The freelance mercenary was a sea of calm as he stood in one place and dealt with the Zombie threat from in front, to the side and behind him. His AA-12 Atchisson Assault Shotgun was lethal in his steady hands. He fired four short bursts of three rounds and scored fatal wounds on five Toxic Walkers and two normal Walkers. Suddenly the Zombie menace didn't look nearly so threatening as clear ground surrounded the four Survivors.

ZOMBIES. The brief respite the Survivors had gained was soon interrupted with the arrival of many more of the Walking Dead. Three Runners sprinted in from Spawn Point 1. Five Walkers arrived from Spawn Point 2. A second Toxic Abomination entered the fray, this time arriving at Spawn Point 3. Four more Walkers emerged from Spawn Point 4.
TURN 13

RAOUL. Once again, Raoul stood his ground and let rip with his Assault Shotgun. The group of seven Zombies (five Walkers and two Fatties) who had exited the building that the red and yellow pimp-mobile was parked next to, were blown apart in a hail of automatic fire. (Unsurprisingly, Raoul was the first Survivor to reach the red level. He chose the +1 to Dice Roll: Ranged Fire Skill. With his Assault Shotgun, he would now hit on rolls of 3+ instead of 4+.)
"I am so pleased you are on our side," Elsa said in admiration.

DEREK. "Neema, we need to get rid of these Walkers pretty damned quickly," he said as he noticed just how close a group of five Toxic Walkers were getting. Out of four shots from Pa's Pistol only one missed. The other three were all explosive head shots. (These three kills advanced Derek to the orange level. He chose the Toxic Immunity skill, meaning that the acidic blood from the Toxic Zombies would not harm him. This was very useful if ever he got into melee combat with one or more of them.)

ELSA. She moved forward to check out the pimp-mobile. Inside the glove compartment she found two gold-plated pistols. (These were another unique weapon. They were known as the "Evil Twins" and although they were a pair, they counted as a single weapon for the purposes of carrying weapons and equipment and so only took up one hand slot for Elsa.) She took them and moved back to the safety of her new group of friends.

NEEMA. "I'll get the rest, Derek," Neema told her young colleague. The two remaining Toxic Walkers required two shots each from her .44 Magnum before they died.

ZOMBIES. Four Runners charged up close to the Survivors. Fortunately, none of them were Toxic Runners, although that wouldn't have bothered Derek too much! Elsewhere, the Zombies were increasing in the number of new arrivals (thanks to Raoul reaching the red level.) This was especially evident at Spawn Point 1 where seven Walkers arrived. Two Runners emerged from Spawn Point 2. Spawn Point 3 produced one Runner from each manhole that had at least one Survivor in its Zone. This meant that three Runners in total crawled out of the sewers. From Spawn Point 4 came two Fatties and four Walkers.
TURN 14

ELSA. Elsa placed herself in the front line of the Runners' attack and set about hacking them apart with her Chainsaw. By the time she had made ten attacks, she was surrounded by bodies, limbs and heads. All four Runners had been sliced and diced. (These kills advanced Elsa to the yellow level and she gained a fourth Action per Turn.) She switched her focus to the two Runners sprinting towards her from the Northern Spawn Point and killed them with four shots from the Evil Twins Pistols.

NEEMA. "Where the hell are they all coming from?" she asked rhetorically. Her .44 Magnum Revolver barked five times and she despatched three Toxic Walkers with lethal head shots.

RAOUL. It almost seemed like the freelance mercenary had developed a mystical affinity with his Assault Shotgun. He projected a Zen-like calm as he focussed solely on the task of killing Zombies. Out of twelve shots fired, ten caused fatal head wounds on seven Walkers, two Fatties and one Toxic Walker.

DEREK. "Well now that you've cleared a path to that building over there, let's see what's inside," he said to Raoul, as he walked over to the entrance of the building so many Zombies had emerged from.
"Holy shit!" he exclaimed. "Not another one!"
Looming just inside the building stood a second Toxic Abomination, a fearsome monster who inexplicably was wearing a pair of purple bunny rabbit slippers and a pair of white Y-fronts. Spikes, boils and blisters covered its massive body and its hands and jaw were covered in dripping blood.
"I killed one of you bastards before and I can do it again," he said, raising Pa's Pistol to aim at the head of the creature. The incendiary round entered the Toxic Abomination's mouth and exploded in a ball of fire that left nothing remaining of the creature from the chest upwards.
Derek stepped inside and immediately noticed movement from behind a stack of wooden crates in one corner.
"Don't shoot me, dude!" a terrified voice shrieked out.
"Reveal yourself," Derek ordered. He kept his Pistol aimed at the location of the voice.
A young man with long brown hair, a beard and moustache and wearing casual clothing stood up and raised his hands in the air to show he was unarmed.
"I'm Gary" he announced, "and I'm not a Zombie!"
(Derek discovered the fourth objective token and luckily it turned out to be Gary.)

GARY. "You wouldn't have happened to come across a pretty redhead in a black catsuit, would you?" Gary asked hopefully. "We were together but got split up."
"Yeah, we have her outside," Derek replied. "She's safe and bloody handy with a Chainsaw, too."
"Oh, thank God for that. Say, I wonder what's in these crates?"
Gary had a quick rummage through the crates but most were empty. All he found was one Bag of Rice, which he took.
He walked outside, saw Elsa and gave her a wave. She smiled and waved back. He leapt into the driver's seat of the pimp-mobile parked a few feet away.
"What say we get out of here?" he asked.

ZOMBIES. Two Runners and two Walkers closed in on Elsa, Neema and Raoul, whilst one Runner ran to attack Gary in the pimp-mobile. Four Toxic Runners arrived from Spawn Point 1. Two ordinary Runners entered the area from Spawn Point 2. Five Toxic Walkers arrived from Spawn Point 3, whilst five Walkers arrived from Spawn Point 4.
TURN 15

DEREK. "You are not welcome here," he said as he ran out of the building to intercept a Runner who had reached the side of the pimp-mobile opposite to where Gary was sitting. Derek swung his Claw Hammer and brought it down in a bone-crushing blow on the top of the Runner's skull. The Zombie dropped like a puppet with its strings suddenly cut. Derek got of a single snapshot with Pa's Pistol and was pleased to see a male Walker's head explode.
"I'm riding shotgun," he declared as he climbed into the passenger seat next to Gary.
"No arguments from me," Gary responded.

ELSA. "Can't you scumbags give a girl a god-damned break?" she asked as once again, she fired up her Chainsaw to deal death and dismemberment to two Runners and two Walkers.
"Hey, Gary," she said with a big smile as she ran towards the pimp-mobile and deftly leapt into the back seat. "How are you doing?"
"All the better for seeing you," Gary grinned back at her. "Any more coming along with us?"

GARY. "You guys get out of here," Raoul ordered decisively. "Neema and I will catch up with you soon."
"No problemo," Gary replied. "Take care now."
He had no trouble in starting the car as the keys were still in the ignition. With a squeal from the tyres, he executed a handbrake turn and sped away at high speed. Three Walkers foolishly tried to block his way. In the fight between man and machine moving at high speed there could only be one winner. All three Walkers were flattened and killed as the car mowed them down. Gary accelerated away from them and drove onwards to safety.

NEEMA. Thanks to Gary's aggressive driving he had left a clear path for Neema and Raoul to follow. She sprinted after him, relieved to be free from the Zombie menace at last.

RAOUL. Raoul easily caught up with Neema.
"I see a police car parked just ahead of us," he observed. "We'll take that if it's drivable."

ZOMBIES. A plaintive moan went up from the mouths of so many Zombies who had just seen what should have been a succulent feast escape from their grasp. The car had gone but they could still catch the two humans on foot. As one, they chased after Neema and Raoul. From Spawn Point 1 three Toxic Runners made an appearance. Nothing emerged from Spawn Point 2. However, instead, all Walkers got an extra Turn. This meant that four Walkers were only one Zone away from Neema and Raoul. From Spawn Point 3 four Toxic Walkers arrived. A total of seven Walkers entered from Spawn Point 4.
TURN 16

RAOUL. Raoul ran round the corner to where he had seen the police car parked. The doors were unlocked so he stepped inside and sat in the front passenger seat. He'd let Neema drive.

NEEMA. Neema quickly joined him and took the driver's seat.
"A lucky break, huh?" she smiled.
"We've had a lot of luck today," Raoul admitted. "Let's hope it continues. Now get us out of here."

ZOMBIES. All of the Zombies in the immediate area swarmed towards the sound of a car engine starting up. (At this point it was patently obvious it was game over. I moved the Zombies who were on the board but none had any chance of stopping Neema and Raoul escaping next Turn. So I never bothered spawning any new Zombies this Turn. Still, those remaining made an impressive looking horde!)
TURN 17

 NEEMA & RAOUL. Neema started the car and swiftly drove out of the area to safety.
"We did good, Neema," Raoul said, smiling happily.
"We certainly did," Neema agreed.

CONCLUSION. It is always satisfying to successfully complete a Zombicide mission. It is even better if you can accomplish it without suffering any casualties. I was very happy with how this scenario went. But I have to admit that the Survivors had a lot of good luck working for them. Right from Turn 1 the party were lucky. Derek found Pa's Pistol straight away and that proved to be very decisive as it gave him a weapon capable of killing an Abomination with one shot. That gave them a HUGE advantage right from the start. Then Raoul did exceptionally well to find the Assault Shotgun, which was devastatingly effective at killing loads of Zombies. He also found Neema's .44 Revolver. Although it was only a single shot per Action weapon, it had enough firepower to kill a Fatty. So from Turn 2 Neema and Raoul had a firearm that could kill any Zombie except an Abomination and Derek had that threat covered. This was the perfect start to the game.
They were also lucky that Elsa and Gary were the third and fourth objective tokens out of seven to be found. That was purely random but it could have been a lot worse. Elsa got lucky in finding a Chainsaw in her first Search Action but Gary only ended up with a Bag of Rice, so it wasn't all good luck.
For me, Raoul was the man of the match. It was no surprise to me that he was the first (and only) Survivor to reach red level. He was just a killing machine and I absolutely love the AA-12 Atchisson Assault Shotgun in Zombicide and in real life.

Zombicide Scenario M01 - The Big Rubble Part 2

TURN 6

RAOUL. The freelance mercenary moved from the mall corridor into the toy shop and headed straight for the exit. One blow from his Fire Axe was all it needed to destroy the lock. An unexpected and nasty surprise awaited him outside - six Zombies, made up of a normal Walker, two Toxic Walkers, a normal Runner, a Toxic Runner and worst of all, a Toxic Abomination.
"This is not good!" he snarled as he opened fire with his AA-12 Automatic Shotgun. The burst of semi-automatic fire took out all three Walkers as their heads were reduced to bloody pulps. (These kills advanced Raoul to the yellow level and he gained the +1 Action Skill.) The Abomination shielded the two Runners with its huge over-sized body. Raoul fired a second burst at the Abomination and Stared in disbelief as they caused no harm whatsoever. 
"Oh shit!" he exclaimed, "We are so screwed!"
(Obviously I knew his Automatic Shotgun would do no damage to the Abomination but Raoul didn't know that and had to find out the hard way. His Automatic Shotgun did 2 Wounds per shot but a weapon doing 3 or more Wounds was required to kill an Abomination.)

DEREK. "Let me have a go," the young locator suggested to Raoul. Working on the principle that all creatures were afraid of fire, he reckoned an incendiary round ought to have some effect on the Abomination.
"Go for it," Raoul urged.
Derek aimed his unique weapon known as Pa's Pistol at the head of the Abomination and fired just as the creature strode towards him. At point blank range he did not miss and the Abomination's head exploded in a welter of gore of flames.
"Woohoo!" Derek exclaimed.
"Way to go, Derek," Raoul said excitedly.
(Pa's Pistol is one of the very few weapons in the game that can kill an Abomination. It inflicts 3 points of damage per shot. Although it can only fire once per Action and has a lowly range of 0-1, it is still a formidable weapon. Derek was very lucky to have found it so early in the game. Naturally, this kill advanced him to the yellow level and he too, gained a fourth Action per Turn.)
He fired three more times at the two Runners but only managed to kill one of them - a Toxic Runner.

NEEMA. "Are you boys having fun?" The beautiful, dusky corporate executive asked. "I hope you've left some targets for me."
The remaining Runner proved to be very elusive to hit. Neema's .44 Magnum fired three times, missing twice before striking the Zombie in the forehead, killing him instantly.

ZOMBIES. All of the Zombies remaining on the board moved closer to the sound of gunfire. From Spawn Point 1, two Walkers arrived. Another three Walkers arrived from Spawn Point 2 and a single Walker arrived at Spawn Point 3. Two Toxic Walkers entered the area from Spawn Point 4.
 TURN 7

RAOUL. "You kill six Zombies and six more take their places," Raoul griped. "Let's thin this crowd down some more."
He stood in the doorway and fired his AA-12 a total of twelve times. Exactly half of his shots were misses or glancing hits but the other six were devastatingly effective and he killed five Walkers and a Fatty.

DEREK. "Good work, Raoul," Derek acknowledged as he stepped outside and saw that the Zombie horde was widely spread out now. He concentrated his fire from Pa's Pistol on the two Walkers approaching from Spawn Point 1 to the west of him. He missed once but hit twice and again, the Zombies died in a messy explosion of blood and flames.

NEEMA. "I've got your back, Derek,"  Neema said as she also stepped outside the mall to stand behind her young colleague. Three Walkers were approaching from the east. Two of them were Toxic Walkers and Neema scored fatal head shots on both of them but she missed the third Walker.

ZOMBIES. The female Walker who Neema failed to hit advanced to within striking distance of Neema and a Runner charged at Derek. Two more Walkers replaced the pair that Derek had just slain at Spawn Point 1. Two Toxic Runners sprinted from Spawn Point 2. A pair of Walkers arrived at Spawn Point 3 but four Walkers emerged from Spawn point 4.
TURN 8

NEEMA. Neema could have shot the female Walker who charged her but instead she used her Machete to decapitate the Zombie, although it did take two blows to completely sever the head. Just as the Runner reached Derek, Neema brought her Machete down on the back of the fast moving Zombie's head, splitting his skull open. She spun and snap-fired her .44 Magnum Revolver. The heavy calibre bullet entered the right eye socket of a male Walker and blew half of his head off.

DEREK. With four Walkers all within close proximity, Derek fired once at each of them with Pa's Pistol. He scored a better than average three kills. He was growing very fond of this unique weapon and its lethal ammo.

RAOUL. When Raoul exited the mall, he saw that his two colleagues had eliminated all but three of the Zombies nearest to the mall. He opened fire with his AA-12 Atchisson Assault Shotgun. The heavy weapon bucked wildly and six rounds went wide or high but three rounds hit and he killed a female Walker and a pair of Runners. The immediate around the three Survivors was now clear.

ZOMBIES. The remaining Zombies were single-minded and continued their advance to where all of the gunfire was coming from. Two Walkers entered the scene from Spawn point 1. Two Toxic Walkers arrived from Spawn point 2. Spawn Point 3 spouted three more Walkers and a single Runner arrived at Spawn Point 4.
TURN 9

DEREK. "Oh, you think you can sneak up behind us, huh?" Derek asked, not expecting an answer. The two Walkers moaned at him as they shuffled slowly towards him. Derek's shooting with Pa's Pistol was erratic. He missed, he hit, he missed and he hit. Both hits were clean head shots. The threat had been neutralised.

NEEMA. Neema's shooting with her .44 Magnum was identical to Derek's - two misses and two hits out of four shots. A pair of Walkers collapsed to the ground with fatal head wounds.

RAOUL. Pistols were fine for killing small numbers of Zombies but for larger numbers an automatic weapon or area effect weapon was required. Raoul's AA-12 Assault Shotgun unleashed a barrage of 12 Gauge rounds that tore through two Toxic Runners, two Toxic Walkers and two Walkers. (Apologies for the out of focus photo. I usually check each shot before taking the next one but in this case I must have forgot. These six new kills advanced Raoul to the orange level and he choose the Medic skill. He could now heal one wound on any Survivor in the same Zone as him, including himself, once per Turn.)

ZOMBIES. A gap had opened up in front of the three Survivors. But the number of Zombies drawn to the area was now on the increase. From Spawn Point 1, four Walkers arrived. Three Toxic Runners came charging in from Spawn Point 2. Two Walkers arrived at Spawn Point 3 and another three Walkers arrived at Spawn point 4.
TURN 10

NEEMA. Moving eastwards to the T-junction, Neema stopped to shoot at a pair of Toxic Walkers. Her first shot missed but her next two were deadly accurate and she dropped both Toxic Walkers.

RAOUL. Raoul moved past Neema to check out the small one room building to his right. But first he had three Toxic Runners to deal with. They went down hard as each one required two shots to kill but Raoul's kill ratio continued upwards.

DEREK. Derek walked to where Neema was standing. Pa's Pistol spat fiery death three more times, missing once but killing twice as two Walkers moving alongside a second pimp-mobile fell to the ground with their heads destroyed and on fire.

ZOMBIES. A single Runner charged at Derek and Neema. Eleven Walkers, split into two groups of seven and four, were closing in, slowly but relentlessly. The tide of Zombies entering this danger zone increased with four Toxic Walkers arriving from Spawn point 1. Two Runners arrived at Spawn Point 3. The greatest threat came from Spawn Point 3 - two Fatties accompanied by four Walkers. Finally, four more Walkers arrived at Spawn Point 4.
TURN 11

DEREK. "You're dead-meat," Derek snarled as he swung his Claw Hammer at the head of the Runner charging towards him. With a satisfying "Thunk!" it cracked open the Runner's skull at the forehead and the Zombie dropped down  in front of him. He moved south a short distance to team up with Raoul.
"I'll get these two," Derek said, "there are far more targets for your Shotgun back there."
Derek was clearly on a roll. He fired Pa's Pistol twice and scored fatal head shots on the two newly arrived Runners.

NEEMA. "Okay, let's see if we can find anyone in here," she said as she moved to the small unmarked one room building. Her Machete shattered the lock on the door. She cautiously stepped inside the darkened room and cried out in delight.
"I've found someone! Don't be afraid. We're here to help. I'm Neema Freeman. Who are you?"
An extremely attractive young woman with long red hair and wearing a skintight shiny black catsuit stared at her with obvious relief.
"Oh, my God!" she gushed with obvious relief. "Thank God you're here. I heard gunfire outside and hoped you wouldn't pass by. I'm Elsa. Elsa Bryce-Howard."
(When Neema opened the door I had to draw a card from the Zombie deck to see which Zombie or Zombies spawned in the room. The card I drew stated that all Runners gained an extra Turn. This was very lucky for me as Derek had just killed the last three Runners on the board. Ha, ha, ha!)

RAOUL. Raoul moved back the way he'd come to stand in front of the parked pimp-mobile. Seven Walkers stood in front of him. Out of nine shots from his AA-12, he missed three times but scored six kills. That was impressive shooting.

ELSA. "I need a weapon," the former cat burglar stated. "I ran out of ammo recently. Hopefully, someone left something useful in here."
Elsa's luck was in. Hidden amongst the rubble and debris she found a Chainsaw. Better still, it had a full tank of gas.
"That's better!" she smiled. "Now, let's get outta here!"
"Go," Neema ordered. "I have two male friends outside. They'll be glad to see you."
Elsa nodded ingratitude and ran out of the building, blinking at the sudden sunlight. She ran past Derek, smiling at him, before coming to a stop alongside Raoul.
Introductions were quickly made. They had to be quick because suddenly they were surrounded by Zombies.

 ZOMBIES. Five Walkers moved into the Zone with Elsa and Raoul. Elsewhere more and more of the undead were moving towards the humans, hoping to feast on their flesh. Five Toxic Walkers came shambling from Spawn Point 1. Three more Toxic Walkers arrived from Spawn Point 2. Once again, Spawn point 3 produced the greatest threat. This time it was two Toxic Fatties and four Toxic Walkers. One Toxic Runner arrived from Spawn Point 4, meaning all four Spawn points brought forth Toxic Zombies. It was going to get very bloody!

To be concluded.