Return to Gwong Island

This was my first Savage Worlds Explorer Society event held at the Dragon’s Den, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, on Sunday 25 March 2007. Unfortunately…. no one showed up! Well Darrin showed up. But Darrin always shows up (bless his socks!). Who’d have thought game-geeks would go out and enjoy the first warmish sunny day since… oh… last September. (Don’t game-geeks burst into flames when exposed to direct sunlight…?!) Ah well, Darrin and I had a fun little game at the den. A couple people wandered by and looked interested. I stopped and took the time to explain the game and scenario to them but none seemed interested in trying to help Darrin out of his sticky situation.

The adventure was another episode in an ongoing Savage Worlds Pulp Adventure Serial, staring:

Darrin Morris as Oscar Carson and … well… all the other good guys (that I had ready for up to a half dozen other people to show up and play!): Jaqueline Louise Marie D’Hiver of the French Secret Service, Col. Jonathan Q. Gordon of His Majesty’s Secret Service, Captain Roy Barnett and Force 8 from Hong Kong.

Myself, Tim Brown, as the evil Nazi menace, including: Karl von Kinderschisse and his two thugs Gunter and Hans, Der Ubersturnfuhrer, and Hauptmann Karl Meuller and Unteroffizer Helmut Jarlhoff and their platoon of German Panzer-Grenadiers.

July, 1937

It’s been half a year since our heroes rescued Dr. Liederhosen from Gwong Island. Lt. Dirk Flasheart of The US Rocket Corps (Captain Lance Strongarm’s replacement) has been picking up strange signals again from the island at his top-secret listening post in the Philippines. Flasheart informed his friend Oscar Carson, an agent for the U.S. Intelligence Service operating in the Far East. He in turn checked with two of his opposites with His Majesty’s Secret Service and the French Secret Service in the Far East. Col. Jonathan Q. Gordon and Jaqueline Louise Marie D’Hiver, he found, had both been trailing a Secret Nazi spy ring in their area of operations. They suggested that Flasheart might have stumbled upon the base the Nazis were operating from.

D’Hiver further informed him that the “strange signals” Flasheart had been picking up were from a new ultra secret secure radio device called X-222 she had just learned about through an informant.

The three Intelligence Operatives, together with Force 8 From Hong Kong, a team of the military’s best and brightest in the Far East, traveled to Gwong Island aboard a US submarine the USS Barracuda.

August 24th, 1937

The force assembled and was delivered to south side of Gwong Island just before dawn by USS Barracuda. The Group struck inland and after a punishing full days forced march they arrived at a hill above the old Chinese Warlords base. Now, however, it flew the flag of Nazi Germany!

Carefully observing the camp in the precious few moments before the sun plunged into the sea to the west they were able to determine which buildings were likely barracks and which was the communications shack.

In darkness the eight stole down from the hill through the dense jungle to the edge of the clearing that held the base. There they further observed the sentry’s locations and patrol schedule. Quickly and quietly they formulated a plan of attack.

Carson, Gordon and Barnett would sneak into the communications shack and snatch X-222. The Explosives Expert form Force 8 was to crawl forward on his belly, after the sentry’s next pass, and prepare the radio mast for demolition. D’Hiver and the rest of Force 8 would lie in wait to cover the group should any trouble arise.

(click on the pictures for a bigger version)


Darkness falls on the Gwong Island Compound – shot day for night in comput-o-scope!

The sentries passed by. Carson, Barnett, Gordon and the Explosives Expert moved up.

The Explosives man got to the mast and hurriedly set about his task.


The Explosives man going about his business

Carson peered in through a slit in the shades of the Communication Shack’s window. The Signaler on duty sat in a chair with his back to the door, his feet up on the table, and he was reading a magazine. His rifle was leaning against the wall in the corner and he had the set tuned to Radio Berlin and was listening to polkas.

Carson slipped into the open door and snuck up behind the signaler raising his trusty sap. He struck down with all his might and knocked the German out cold. In a flash he pulled out all the cable attached to the X-222 and Barnett moved up to the door to help carry it.


Barnett moves up to help Carson with the X-222

Then things went badly. Who knows what he saw; perhaps a shaft of moonlight shone down on the man from Force 8 at the base of the antennae mast? Or light from the Communications Shack reflected on Gordon’s face as he peered in through the door? Whatever it was, one of the sentries in the MG position on the beach at the far end of the compound saw something and raised the alarm! (three aces on a notice check will do that….)

Shouts of “HAAAALT!” and “SCHNELLL!” and “ALARM!” could be heard all about. Soldiers started pouring out of the barrack buildings half dressed.


Germans pour from the barracks

One of the first out was a section commander that glanced about and saw Gordon and Barnett skulking near the Communications Shack. He fired a burst from his MP40. A bullet caught Gordon in the side and he reeled backward and stumbled for cover behind the side of the building.

The covering party from Force 8 opened up. The first burst from the Bren took down one of the HMG crew, at the far end of the compound, as they tried to turn their gun about. Returning the fire of the German section commander another rifleman was grazed.

Germans went to ground and dove for whatever cover they could find, shocked by the sudden violence that tore through the night. They quickly recovered however and unleashed a torrent of fire back at the British commandos.

The Bren-gunner was the first struck. A bullet through his shoulder and one in his thigh took him out of the fight. Next the Explosives man was his in both legs, ending his mission.

Barnett let of a burst at the nearest muzzle-flashes as Carson dragged the X-222 to the door. The two of them then carried it off into the darkness of the jungle, dodging bullets all the way.


Carson manhandles the X-222 set to the door.

The two commandos remained where they were to cover their commander’s flight. They exchanged ineffective fire with the Germans until they became aware of more germans trying to sneak up their flanks. Hoping their commander had gotten a good head start they turned to disappear into the jungle as they rose one caught a bullet in the windpipe that tore through the back of his neck. The other took a stray bullet in his leg just as he thought he might be home free. He wasn’t terribly badly hurt but certainly couldn’t run. He thought he might lay low in the darkness until the activity died down and then crawl off. Unfortunately a squad of Germans combing the area, a short time later, found him and took him prisoner.


Gunter and Hans, Kindershisse’s Gestapo thugs burst from cover and shoot down the fleeing commandos.

In the meantime Gordon had recovered himself and fallen back to the cover of the jungle. He fired a few shots to cover Carson and Barnett’s flight. The Germans sneaking up the flank spotted his shots and unleashed a fury of lead into the bush. When their initial burst finished he stepped out from behind a tree, shot one of the Germans in the face and vanished into the darkness.

What followed was a mad (but brief) chase through the darkness of the jungle. Gordon quickly caught up with Carson and Barnett. As the wild busts of fire from their pursuers quickly approached Gordon and Barnett urged Carson to continue on and try to find D’Hiver while they tried to stall the Germans.


The desperate chase through the jungle.

Hot on their tails the relentless Ubersturmfuhrer burst through the jungle sending a hail of bullets at Gordon and Barnett. Gordon was again grazed. The Englishmen returned fire and tried to melt back further into the jungle. They were overwhelmed and in danger of being surrounded. Gordon took a third bullet and finally went down. Barnett tried to flee but found he was already surrounded and was compelled to surrender.


Carson tried to carry off the X-222 himself.


Gordon and Barnett stop to try and hold of the German pursuers.


Gordon and Barnett exchange fire with the Germans.


Gordon is down and Barnett is surrounded and captured


Carson had found D’hiver and the two struggled along a further short distance with the X-222 before a squad of Germans over took them. They too were compelled to surrender…..


Carson and D’hiver can not outdistance their pursuers and are also captured.

Stay tuned for next week’s installment; ESCAPE FROM GWONG ISLAND! The desperate conclusion to our heroes epic struggle!

(or if they can’t bust out I’ll just have to send in the Rocket Corps….)