Road Wreckage

"Are you sure we should have just left him in the office?"  Dawn asked as Allen guided the SUV down the county road.  "I still can't believe we left him with some gas, food and his guns."
"We should have just put a bullet in his head and taken his stuff."  Horace grunted.  "No doubt he would have done the same to any of us."
"Damn Horace, aren't you a cop?"  Mark asked, taken aback.  "A month ago I doubt you would have even arrested that guy!"
"If he was creeping around armed to the teeth, I would have shot him like a dog in the street!  You saw his tats, he was a ganger, hardcore."  Horace shifted from watching the road to facing Mark.  "I know we agreed to leave him, but believe me, we are going to have to let go of 'the way things were' because if we don't, the old world will kill us."
"Hell man, if we're going to kill people in cold blood, how are we any better than the creepers out there?"  Allen said, swerving around a downed tree.  "We have to be careful, but I don't want to be a murderer."
"We will have to deal with everyone we meet however they deserve."  Mark said.  "If they try to hurt any of us, we will protect ourselves."  Looking at Horace he continued "We won't just wait for someone to shoot us, either - if someone is a threat, I will fight, and kill, for any of you."
Dawn filled the silence that followed.   "How about a little music?  My player connects to the SUV..."  She started the player, some random pop song starting to fill the truck with synthesizer sounds.
"What the hell is that?"  Allen asked, looking ahead down the road.
"Lady Gaga I think..."  Dawn started to say and followed Allen's gaze.  "Oh.  Looks like an accident."

Approaching the crash

The setup for this is pretty straightforward.  There is a gang of 5 people (gangers) that have setup an ambush.  Team Mark all pass 0d, and will drive into the ambush before reacting.  The gangers consist of three people (rep 3,3,4) with rifles (2 bolt action, 1 semi-auto) which form one group, hiding behind the wagon loaded with hay.  A second group of 2 (rep 3,3) are armed with BAP and SMG, and are hiding behind the broken down big rig.  They will approach, going through the standard meet and greet.  However, they will not barter, and instead be willing to 'trade' (seize) 4 weapons, units of food or fuel, and then let the group leave. 

The riflemen ambushers

Close combat group

There are 3 PEFs, and no starting zombies.  No zombies will appear until shooting starts (I figure the gang keeps the immediate area clear) once shots are fired, normal zombie summoning rules will apply (engine noise, gunshots, etc.)  It is morning, the ER is 3, zombies will appear on '6' for attracting zombies.  Success will be exiting the board in any direction.  Leaving any direction besides the opposite side from the group entry will cost 1 additional unit of fuel.

Layout/seating in the SUV

From the previous encounter, the group left the unconscious ganger in the office building, with all his gear.  They also left a unit of fuel and food for him.  Dawn is wearing the body armor looted from Peaches (she is the only team member it will fit) but otherwise there have been no other changes to the group's equipment.

Looks like an abandoned crash site

"It looks like there was a fire.  I doubt there is anything useful."  Allen said as he drove towards the crash site.  "Maybe we should just try and drive around."
"Pull up near the truck, I'll hop out and make sure the SUV can get through.  With that rain last night, last thing we need is to get stuck off the road here."  Mark offered.

Pulling up next to the wrecks

Things happen fast after the group moves up.  The two gangers move into sight, and we all go to in sight checks.  The gangers decide to walk the walk, and the team reacts.

Gangers appear and draw!

"Hey there are people out there!"  Dawn said, looking out the passenger window.  "They're armed..."
"They're drawing!"  Mark yelled and shoved his own pistol out the window.
"It's an ambush!"  Horace yelled.  "Get us outta here Allen!"
Gunfire erupted from the SUV as figures took aim from a hay bale ahead...

So we go for in sight tests, and a draw down.  Not what I was expecting (or wanting) but that's how things go sometimes...

Unlucky gangers

The riflemen are ready though

Mark hammered shots at the nearby ganger.  One shot went wild, but the other slammed into the ganger, dropping him in his tracks.  "One down!"

Mark shoots one ganger

Dawn brought her SMG up and sprayed the second ganger by the truck.  Bullets tore up the already flat tires of the truck, and slammed into the ganger.  Blood and gore erupted from the ganger as Dawn's shots hit home.  He was dead before he hit the ground.  "Looks clear!"  She yelled triumphantly.

Dawn kills the second

A dull thunk sound followed by the tinkle of broke glass cut the silence in the SUV.  A sudden bloom of blood spread across Allen's chest.  "Ugggh" was all he managed as he slumped behind the wheel.
"Allen!" Dawn screamed, lurching for the wheel.  "Help him!"
Another crack sounded and Dawn cried out as a slug hit her in the chest, slamming he back into her seat.  "I'm hit!"
"Horace!  Grab the wheel!"  Mark shouted as he hauled Allen's body into the backseat, spilling blood over the beige leather interior.  "Stay with us Allen!"

End of the turn

Allen was hit, not killed outright, and passed 1d for his recover from knockdown.  He was Out of the Fight.  Dawn was hit as well, and passed 2d for her test.  She is wearing the body armor recovered from the previous encounter, and is able to Carry On.

Horace attempts to take control of the SUV, suffering a -1d penalty from the backseat.  He passes 2d, and moves into the driver's seat.  The group is out of the range of the riflemen - the longest ranged weapon is the SMG at 24".

Shooting has occurred, so zombies spawn from the noise.  Yet another thing to deal with.  At least the PEFs are not charging in...yet.

The next turn starts with the SUV moving forward (it has to move half its previous speed forward as Horace gains control) and the zombies closing in.  Of course, the zombies win initiative, but at least Team Mark has the remaining gangers beat.

Its going to be a tight fit

Horace settled into the drivers seat, sliding on blood left from Allen.  "Hang on everyone - I don't know if this beast will fit through here!"
"I see the shooters!"  Dawn yelled.  "I'll try and get them!"  She leaned out the passenger window bringing her SMG to bear on the gangers.  Squeezing the trigger she fired a long burst into the wagon, aiming for the rifle armed gang members.

Dawn is on target!

Amazingly, Dawn gets two hits.  With the SMG, she spreads the hits across two targets, getting an OOF and a stunned result.  Not kills, but good enough.  The last ganger rolls a man down check and passes 0d, deciding its time to run away.

Mark shoots the nearest zombie, killing it.  No sense in letting zombies swarm the SUV, if I can help it...

The next turn requires two separate checks for Horace to avoid the tree and the wrecked truck.  Pass 2d means clear, pass 1d is 'glance' and requires another check, pass 0d is a crash (full bash value crash.)  The ganger recovers as Horace is driving around the wrecks, and promptly runs away (I rolled a man down check - he passed 0d).

Horace passed 2d, missing the tree.  He then passed 1d, and recovered with a pass 2d.  They made it around the wrecks!

In the clear!

So the group is in the clear, but there are three downed gangers, with weapons to be looted.  There were also a couple of tents and a cabin nearby to investigate.  There are still 3 PEFs and a few zombies active to deal with.

Decisions...

The SUV heads off to the west

"Should we check those guys out?" Horace asked as he swerved around the wrecks.
"Hell no!  Just punch it!"  Mark was holding Allen, trying to stop the bleeding.  "We need to stop and patch up Allen.  Dawn are you okay?"
Coughing and changing out her magazine in her SMG dawn replied "It feels like I was kicked by a horse.  I'll be okay though."  Dawn managed a small laugh "I guess I shouldn't complain about the new outfit..."

I chose to just leave the table.  One PEF had moved up to start the turn, and there were just too many ways for it all to go bad.

After the battle, Allen passed 1d, and would recover.  I decided he would be out of action for the rest of the day.  At least he was alive.

So I know this was a pretty short encounter, and one of the rather lame "cross the board" scenarios.  It was almost the end though - pistols versus rifles is bad at longer ranges.  The group got lucky, and Dawn's shooting made all the difference.