Guards! Guards!

by Brian Cameron

I’ve been playing Firefly Adventures: Brigands and Browncoats again. It can be played coop or solo and the mechanic for non-played figures could be useful in other games.

The opposition are Brawlers or Shooters and, as with your own figures, take two actions each turn.

Brawlers will brawl with one of your figures if they start a turn adjacent to one. And they’ll do so again for their second action if they’re both still standing. If they aren’t adjacent to one of your figures at the start of the turn, they’ll move towards one and either brawl if they reached one or move again as their second action.

Shooters are very similar but will shoot if they are within 6 squares of you (about maximum range) or will move to try and get into range.

Another of the games interesting mechanics is that each figure has two aspects. They can wander round looking innocent and the opposition will ignore them, or they can act heroic (e.g. breaking in, brawling, shooting) which rouses the attention of any opposition figure in line of sight; they’ll be the next figure to activate.

The opposition figures can also be set a patrol pattern by putting out a number of counters which will be the points they’ll move towards next when its they’re turn. They’ll ignore ‘innocent’ figures as usual but will also be activated by seeing a body (so try not to leave them lying around!). If they do, they’ll head towards your figures they can see or, if none are visible, towards the nearest of your figures that is on the board.

All very neat and easy and could obviously be adapted for guards, etc. in pretty much any time period with the option that they take notice of anyone on the basis that no one is innocent!

I’ll finish by saving the game is excellent, well produced and focused on the player crew having a job to complete and get rewarded. There’s a nice balance, as jobs are neither impossible nor easy. And violence isn’t always the answer!

Recommended.