CS Note:
The worst development for the CS is that the New
town incident would seem to prove that it is not invincible; al
though there are other factors involved, behind the scenes, that
has prevented the CS military from taking the extreme lethal ac
tion they are famous for. In fact, Joseph quips to his father that
the incident at Newtown might actually work in their favor, giv
ing the enemies of the CS "a false sense of security." And is
overheard saying, "Our enemies see the mighty giant as sleeping
and vulnerable. Won't they be surprised when he finally stirs
and swats them away like the annoying bugs they are."
Reinforcements
When the news and rumors hit the rest of the continent, thou
sands of Juicers decide to join the rebels. Many of these Juicers
were already on their way, having abandoned their comrades
and employers in hopes of finding the cure for their terminal
condition. Over the following two weeks, over 5 ,000 additional
Juicers from all parts of the country make it to Newtown, usually
in small groups, but sometimes in full military squadrons, in
cluding a number of mercenary companies such as the Valkyris
(see the Juicer Organizations section for details). Juicers are not
the only ones, either. Many humans, D-Bees, 'Borgs, Crazies,
and mutants also start flocking to the Juicers ' cause. Most of
them out of sheer hatred for the Coalition. To many of these ad
venturers and outlaws, this is a unique opportunity to, as a griz
zled mercenary put it, "stick it to Prosek and his Dead Boyz
once and for all ! " Others are friends, relatives and loved ones
who have followed the Juicers and want to help. These non
Juicers also number in the thousands (estimated at 4,000-6,0(0).
While the new arrivals provide a great deal more firepower
and vehicles (including medium and large mercenary companies
that brought in tanks, helicopters and robot vehicles), they also
bring more mouths to feed, along with a number of other prob
lems for Julian the First, and the other Juicer leaders. For one,
the situation is a logistical nightmare; many, if not most of the
arrivals have not bothered to bring enough food and supplies to
sustain themselves for long, and lawlessness and disorder start to
take its toll as boredom and confusion sets in. Without an enemy
to fight the Juicer army is like a boat in dry dock - high and
dry. Julian the First is a good general, but he is not prepared to
run a city, especially a city of discontented Juicers, mercenaries
and patriots spoiling for a war.
To deal with this problem, Julian the First organizes the new
comers into small groups and sends them off in foraging expedi
tions, as well as raids into the Coalition State of Missouri.
However, the CS has pulled back and spoils are slim. Bored
Juicers and others splinter into smaller groups that ravage the
countryside. Many members of the Juicer rebels are little better
than bandits, or fanatics motivated by pure hatred towards the
Coalition. They sack villages, attack travelers, and ambush Coa
lition forces wherever they are found. A number of groups actu
ally push deep into CS territory and engage in savage battles
with Coalition forces, diverting troops from the Newtown forces
and inevitably dying at the hands of the Coalition Army.
Adventure/Scenario Ideas:
The player characters can be
part of the roving bands, or may be travelers, heroes and crusad
ers who find themselves attacked by one of these groups, or who
try to defend helpless villagers from such marauders. The ene
mies can be any combination of Juicers, from powerful Titans
144
and Mega-Juicers to nimble Hyperions; they may be accompa
nied by D-Bees, 'Borgs, Crazies and other bandits. Coalition
troops will also prowl the area, and may attack any armed group
they believe is vulnerable or represents a threat to them (it might
be a CS platoon or Company who tries to defend an innocent
town or village).
Battle at Fort EI Dorado
Not every Juicer who heard of the Newtown incident headed
for that city. Many figured that Fort
EI
Dorado, the new Mecca
of Juicer conversion, might also have the Prometheus Treatment.
Some 2,000 Juicers who were in or near
EI
Dorado flocked to
ward that free city. At the same time, about 1 ,500 Juicers were
already at the city, many of them young mercenaries who had
just received the Juicer Process. As the first rumors started to fly,
some tried to force UTI technicians to perform the Prometheus
Treatment on them, or else ! The local authorities tried to inter
vene, leading to a savage shoot-out in the streets of the city. Sev
eral hundred Juicers who had been minding their own business
in the city suddenly found themselves shot at by scared city
guards or private citizens. All this accomplished was to cause a
riot.
The street fighting lasted several hours. King Randall radioed
the nearby Coalition base (see the Fort El Dorado section), ask
ing for help. The commander sent out 300 troops, and ordered
the unit to march toward the city, but not to enter the city proper;
the CS officer did not want to involve his force in a street battle,
at least not until he received orders from his higher-ups.
Meanwhile, a few Juicers decided that a good fire would be
just the thing to distract the city guards; less than
an
hour later, a
lethal blaze ravaged through the poor sections of the city, where
construction materials were highly flammable and fire-fighting
equipment was almost non-existent. Under the cover of the
flames and the screaming hordes of refugees fleeing the confla
gration, hundreds of Juicers ran out of the city, using demolition
charges to knock down large stretches of the city walls (inciden
tally, this quick action saved thousands of innocent people from
dying in the fires or from being trampled at the narrow gates
leading out of the cities).
When Juicers first came into sight of the Coalition troops out
side the city, the commander of the force ordered the troops to
open fire; mini-missile volleys from the force ' s Mark V APCs
cut into the Juicers like a scythe - and into the fleeing city peo
ple. Fortunately, the barrage did not last long, because the Juic
ers outnumbered the Coalition troops and forced a quick retreat.
The final tally of the battle for Fort
EI
Dorado was cata
strophic. Some four hundred Juicers, two hundred Coalition Sol
diers, four hundred city guards and over a thousand innocent
civilians were dead (final casualty numbers were never deter
mined, as large sections of the city were reduced to rubble by the
fires and explosions, burying many of the victims). Twice as
many people suffered injuries. Fort
EI
Dorado itself suffered bil
lions of credits ' worth of property damage. The UTI Juicer fa
cilities suffered heavy damage, as did many factories,
warehouses and other facilities. A prosperous city had been dev
astated.
The Coalition survivors were routed; less than a hundred sur
vivors (many of them wounded) returned to the CS base. The
base commander was then warned by scouts that a force of at
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