Module Suitability Review - King's Ransom

Image is taken from Twilight: 2000 Wiki, IP is GDW/FFE

King's Ransom is to me, "Indiana Jones meets the post apocalypse". It's chasing a valuable McGuffin (the Iranian Crown Jewels sound like something right out of a D&D game), through the devastated and unique vista of Iran. It's sweeping landscapes, and strange customs. It's all those things, and Frank Frey did a very good job tying it all together.

The story of the loss of the jewels is pretty well carried off, and their rediscovery, as well as the purpose they are put to? Straight out of something like the Maltese Falcon. The subplots, including a KGB Colonel, and a cheating wife, that could lead to the rebellion of the Communist army that the Soviets have built up in northern Iran, or a raid on the Soviet 45th Army staff. All of these things make this an adventure of unique value. One I am ashamed to say I never got a chance to run.

But how does this stack up as fodder for miniatures scenarios?

Skirmish Scenarios

We have quite a bit of fodder here, if only using the mountainous terrain of the Zagros mountains and gaming out the multiple patrol sized actions one can game out here. But there are some other ideas?

• The initial raid on the Soviet signal company. That would make a pretty gameable scenario, and let's be honest, you'd have a use for all the specialty kits you find on the market these days!
• The "Ducks in a Barrel" idea in the "Further Adventures" section of the book. It's a very gamable scenario, and the map is accurate enough that you could build a pretty nice terrain piece based on the map.
• The defection of Colonel Shahrestani, this could make a good small-scale campaign if done right, and would fit right in for something like Black Ops.

Larger Scenarios

There are a few ideas here, such as gaming out the subsequent Soviet offensive that is in the offing, and you could also game out some of the Allied anti-marauder sweeps, which are described quite well in the book, though most marauder bands in the Allied held zone are not much larger than platoon sized bands,

But I like the idea of gaming out the rebellion of the Soviet-backed Tudeh army. Frank Frey hints at this being a strong possibility in King's Ransom, and a pretty good game could be done in the spirit of the Sepoy Rebellion, with the Soviets in the position of the British, but with a iffy supply line.

Well, that's as much as I can say for now. Next up will be a review of Last Submarine, which kicks off the second Twilight: 2000 trilogy and takes the game to interesting ports of call..so to speak. So, see you then!