Cycles are destroyed or are heavily damaged through a combina
tion of magic and daring. The Juicer pilots (many of them Phae
ton Juicers) also suffer casualties; about forty aircraft are
downed by the enemy. The airborne regiment has been shat
tered, however.
On the ground, things are not going much better for the Coa
lition. The troops are moving through dirt roads surrounded by
heavy forests, ideal terrain for ambushes. The Juicers and their
allies have placed hundreds of mines, deadfalls, barricades and
other traps across the roads, and lay in wait in the woods. Coali
tion scouting parties, mostly made up of Dog Boys, fight lethal
skirmishes with small Juicer bands. Meanwhile, Juicers and sor
cerers in jeeps and motorcycles strike at the main formations and
142
flee before the enemy can counterattack. A common tactic con
sists of firing several short or medium-range missiles at the lead
vehicle of a formation, disabling it and forcing the entire army to
stop. Snipers let several vehicles go by and then shoot at officers
and command vehicles. Whenever a Coalition platoon or squad
falls behind or is isolated, dozens of Juicers come out of hiding
and charge it, killing without mercy.
After two days, the Coalition force is unable to cover more
than 20 miles (32 km). The Juicers have stopped the relief force
dead on its tracks. General Norvell orders a withdrawal after suf
fering over 22% casualties in what he calls "the forest of death."
Little does he know that the Juicers forces have suffered nearly
40% causalities and could not fight successfully for more than
another day.
Adventure/Scenario Ideas:
Some possibilities include help
ing ambush a Coalition patrol. The G.M. could scale the size and
composition of the CS troops to be challenging but not over
whelming; on the other hand, the player characters should real
ize they must use hit-and-run tactics. If they stay to slug it out
with the Coalition army, they will surely be outgunned and out
numbered.
Battle In the Skies: If the player characters are pilot types,
they could be part of the assault on the Coalition Death' s Head
transports. They 'll get their chance to engage in dog-fights with
the best the Coalition has to offer. If they succeed, they will be
heroes.
Monster Munchies: The player group has just ambushed a CS
patrol and they are making tracks - but the noise just awakened
a huge monster, and it is hungry ! The creature could be a Rhino
Buffalo (see Rifts Sourcebook One), a Worm of Taut (see Con
version Book One), or a similar large, fearsome non-intelligent
monster. The characters have to deal with the monster and/or the
pursuing CS force. If they play their cards right, they might tum
one enemy against the other!
The Taking of Newtown
Without reinforcements, Newtown falls under the second as
sault just as Julian the First predicted. General Orly is captured
and tortured, his troops crushed. Convinced that the CS will pay
a healthy ransom, Julian manages to keep the troops he com
mands from looting and burning the city to the ground. Damage
is relatively minor and for the moment, his men behave them
selves, flush with victory and full of themselves. However, there
are numerous civilian casualties and the destruction is great; just
not as bad as it could be.
All ransom demands are ignored. No secret cure is uncovered
at UTI. No CS troops come storming in. It' s like the calm before
the storm.
The Coalition's Reaction
The Juicer Uprising is a severe blow to the Coalition States
on a psychological and publicity level. Although the casualties
and physical damage are relatively small, the fact that their care
fully crafted plans have exploded in their faces has made many
prominent Coalition leaders furious. General Underhill is among
the most outraged; he and his people had been planning a
number of campaigns against Tolkeen and other "enemies" of
the CS for years, and saw the entire Juicer recruitment as an un-
necessary diversion of resources. Now not only has he been
proven right (although not in a way he had expected), but he has
to do something about it. Joseph Prosek the Second is also furi
ous, if only because he is implicated in such a boldfaced decep
tion and callous act of treachery that it damages his credibility
and image (he will, after all, be Emperor someday). The worst
off among the Coalition leaders would appear to be Colonel Ly
boc who has prudently made himself scarce during this debacle.
The Juicer Uprising is the first time in many years that a
member of the Coalition States, even a minor city, was directly
threatened with destruction. In the words of Emperor Prosek:
"The Coalition' s safety rests on the fact that its people know that
the State will keep them safe from the chaos and violence that
ravages the Earth. If the people stop knowing this truth, disaster
will follow."
The military planners of the Coalition are faced with several
challenges. Their intelligence reports show they are dealing with
a force of 10,000 to 1 5,000 soldiers, at least half of whom are
Juicers, and likely to grow larger by the day, as sympathizers
and opportunists join their ranks. Sporadic acts of insurrection
and rioting have already occurred at some border towns and the
forces at Tolkeen seem to be preparing to mobilize. If the CS is
not careful on how they respond to the crisis at Newtown, they
could risk attacks from places like Tolkeen and the Federation of
Magic or jeopardize other plans that have been in the works for a
long time now - critical operations that could give them every
thing they want if their hand is not forced prematurely. Trying to
balance the security needs of the entire nation, the planners
spend several days arguing as to what force should be sent south.
Emperor Prosek has reportedly said that he expects the entire
matter to, "bum itself out in a few weeks. After all, nothing im
portant is really at stake here. Is there? Not in the grand scheme
of things. If they want Newtown, let them have it"
Rumors & Conspiracies
The Coalition States does its best to keep things quiet, but
the Juicers' victory fills the airwaves and is spread by word of
mouth, videotape and even by written messages. Soon, the
"Great Deception" and the taking of Newtown is the talk of the
day. It' s on everybody ' s lips. But the Emperor is correct, the CS
has lost nothing other than a minor resource in Newtown and has
taken a public black eye.
Still, rumors fly faster than jet aircraft and soon the Juicers '
victories are magnified a hundredfold. Characters not in the Ar
kansas or Missouri area may hear one or more of the following
rumors:
•
Newtown isn't even a real place. The entire conflict is propa
ganda created by the enemies of the Coalition States.
•
The Prometheus Treatment really turns Juicers into undead
monsters controlled by an alien intelligence.
•
An army of 1 00,000 Juicers razed Newtown and New Chilli
cothe, and is even now, marching on Chi-Town.
•
Emperor Prosek is leading twenty (or in some stories, forty,
or a hundred) armored divisions to Arkansas to crush the re
bellion.
•
Every Juicer in the world is part of a mass conspiracy and is
involved in the uprising ! "Yer not a Juicer, are ya?"
143
•
Not just Juicers, but 'Borgs and Crazies are in on it; all en
hanced humans have decided it' s time to end the reign of the
"squishies." A number of 'Borgs and Crazies are buying this
story and heading to Arkansas.
•
A Juicer assassin has murdered Emperor Prosek and his son,
Joseph. The CS is keeping this incident secret, for fear of
mass revolts and civil war.
•
The Juicers are being secretly supplied/helped/controlled by
Atlantis, Naruni Enterprises, Tolkeen, Lazlo, the Mechanoids,
the Xiticix . . . insert your favorite enemy. Some stories claim
all of the above at the same time !
•
Larsen' s Brigade (see Rifts® Mercenaries) is marching to
wards Arkansas to support/crush the revolt (pick one; both
are false).
•
The NGR is behind the revolt; the Germans are abandoning
Europe to the Gargoyles and are planning a mass exodus to
North America. The revolt is designed to soften up the Coali
tion for the invading German Navy.
•
The armies of the demon worshippers of Tolkeen, Lazlo and
the Federation of Magic will soon be joining forces with the
200,000+ Juicers and will soon be marching upon Chi-Town.
Adventure/Scenario Ideas:
If the player characters are at-
tracted to the uprising at this stage they can still get their licks in
against the CS. Anybody who hates the Coalition may see this as
a golden chance for some payback. Mercenaries (Juicers and
otherwise) can sell their services to the highest bidders, and cru
saders and heroes can travel to Arkansas to help protect the
weak and defenseless from the horrors of war.
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