DUST Tactics: Zverograd Rat Swarm

Rat-Swarm-smallerBiological experiments in the SSU – and preceding it the Soviet Union – were largely abject failures. Thanks to the terrible cost of Lysenkoism and the effect of its adherents on soviet science. Stalin’s demands have been unrealistic – the creation of hybridised ape soldiers for example – and many leading scientists have been purged or exiled.

Access to VK and the living example of the German gorilla soldiers has, however, galvanised research in many fields and the terrible toll of violence in Zverograd upon SSU forces has leant even more impetus to the research. Academician Ilya Ivanov, son of the late Doctor Ilya Ivanovich Ivanov, has been placed in charge of these new programs and between vivisection of captured German undead and ape soldiers and experimental applications of VK he has had numerous successes.

Rat Swarms

Rats breed in large numbers and are eminently expendable, plus they are the only creatures still in ready supply in Zverograd after the long siege. Ivanov’s experiments have produced a number of ‘intelligent’ rat swarms, controlled via a modulated VK signal, which can be sent crawling through gaps and rubble to reach enemy soldiers and overcome them through sheer numbers.

Move: 2
Type: Soldier 1
Special Abilities: Agile, Charge, Squirm*.
Health: 6
Bite: Close Combat only Troop 1: 6/1, Troop 2: 5/1, Troop 3, 2/1, Troop 4: 1/1
Bite: Close Combat only Tank 1-7: 1/1
Cost: 15AP
Cover Save: Blank
NB: The bite-line is for the whole swarm and remains the same until the whole unit is eliminated.

*Squirm: Troops with the Squirm ability can pass through cover, friendly troops and enemy troops as though they were not there. they can co-occupy a space with friendly or enemy troops and can make close combat attacks from that same space. While occupying the same space as a group of soldiers or a vehicle, if they come under attack from outside that space the attack dice are halved (rounding up) and are then rolled as normal for damage against both the rat swarm and the troops or vehicle they share a space with.

Mini

Anti-Tank Dogs

Move: 2
Type: Soldier 1
Special Abilities: Agile, Charge.
Health: 1 (3 dogs per unit)
Bite: Close Combat only Troop 1: 3/1, Troop 2: 2/1, Troop 3, 1/1, Troop 4: 1/1
Bomb: Close Combat only (3) Troop 1-4: 2/1, Tank 1-7: 2/2 (Each bomb blast eliminates one dog)
Cost: 15AP
Cover Save: Blank

Minis

Half-Breeds

Rumour has it that the half-breed experiments have been restarted using samples taken from German enhanced apes. With a maturation period of at least fifteen years it is unlike this will bear battlefield fruit for some time…

(Knock-off planet of the apes figures would work well for this and you could always retcon that the original experiments worked. I’d make them troop 2 with some special abilities or enhanced cover abilities to reflect toughness, bolster their hand-to-hand a little and use themas anti-infantry troops with – maybe – some very weak anti-tank capabilities).

Free Dust Tactics Reference/Playbook


I got sick of looking through every bloody booklet trying to find the rules references.

Obviously this is incomplete, I don’t have all the stuff released in the US yet as European releases lag behind (Boooo!)

Should make a nice little reference book and the aspect should be suitable for tablets (made with Nexus 7 in mind).

DUSTplaybook

Ian’s Updates

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Miniatures Store (With bundle deals with the books)

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Is It Awesome

STEAMED: RELEASED!

STEAMED is a simple (very simple) fast-paced board game of Steampunk mecha-duelling action. Take to one of four distinct mecha and try to beat the bolts out of each other.

Up to four players

Requires several six sided dice.

ADA – The advanced, and shapely, mech of genius clacker Lady Emmeline Whitmore.

Brunel – The devastatingly brutal construction mech of Carston McBride

Haido Tian – The rocket-assisted robot of the notorious airpirate Hong Meifeng.

Iron Hunter – The frontline military robot of Prussian noble Oberst Klein Von Thule.

You can buy it on PDF HERE

Hardcopy HERE

If you buy TODAY in hardcopy you can get a 20% discount with the code CHASEUK – so now’s a good time to pick up my other books too!

It will be appearing at your other preferred outlets over the next few days.

STEAMED: Preview

All being well I may have this game out by the end of the day. It’s a quick/simple board game of mech-smashing action based on some rules I found while tidying up some notepads. I’d made a game based on Robot Jox (1989! Crotch chainsaw!). Of course, it now has much more of a Steampunk twist.

Here’s a taster in the meantime. The construction mech, The Brunel.

Do You Like Awesome?

Here’s some stuff you should pay attention to…

1. Sarah Darkmagic is kicking off a project to fund some diverse art illustrations outside the standard norm. I don’t think this is needed everywhere and in every game and I’m a fan of pinup and cheesecake but more choice is awesome and this is a resource I would use the fuck out of. You can read more HERE and HERE and contact Sarah HERE if you’re an artist that might like to contribute.

The only thing that sticks in my craw is the emphasis on ethnic and female artists rather than art, but I’m willing to let that slide for now.

2. Lego? Robots? Game? Kickstarter? FUCK YEAH! This is a project deserving of your attention and hell, with that combination of awesome, how can you go wrong?

3. Your assistance in kicking economic censorship in the arse would be appreciated. You can add your voice HERE.