Years ago I discussed here how Weird War is a setting I'd LOVE to run.
As a campaign starter here is an idea I'm freely throwing out there for anyone to use to kick off one of their games. I've done it previously with a Roman Campaign idea for Majorian or for the New Shadow for Lord of the Rings.
Enter the Savage Worlds rules along with the Weird War II rulebook.
In this case, imagine Operation Overlord failed. It fails not for the "normal" reasons, but because of the Weird War ones/ You know the beaches swarming with Axis zombies, Wehrwolves and Stitches along in additional to the rest of the Wehrmacht dug in along the Atlantic Wall.
Imagine if you will this memorandum prepared after the bloody repulse of the troops and the stories circulating among the ranks. Enter the PCs and having to land clandestinely in Europe to figure out just what the hell went wrong.
To: Major General Walter A. Smith From: Lieutenant Colonel William Thomas, 15th Army, 114th Special Operations Command Report filed: June 27th, 1944 Regarding: Failure of Operation Overlord, June 6th, 1944
TOP SECRET – For your eyes only.
General,
As you well know, the Allied invasion of Normandy was a disaster. Despite meticulous planning by SHAEF, everything that could go wrong did. Losses were far higher than even the worst projections. Allied planners are at a loss to explain why the landings failed so completely.
After-action reports chronicle the meager forces extracted from the beaches after just four days of fighting. The French Resistance carried out their missions, but like the soldiers on the beaches, they ultimately failed.
Worse, the reports suggest something far more sinister. Soldiers told of firing multiple rounds into German infantrymen: blowing off limbs only for them to keep coming. Only flamethrowers and bazookas brought some down. Pillboxes spilled out armies of shambling corpses that attacked with gruesome wounds. Despite the carnage, the invasion clawed its way inland.
As the advance continued, seaborne troops linked up with scattered paratroopers. Fighting intensified. Field hospitals were overwhelmed with bite wounds rather than gunshot or shrapnel injuries. Survivors described horrors in jumbled, near-catatonic terms. Then a massive North Atlantic storm rolled in, grounding Allied airpower.
Resistance along the beachhead fractured. Reports flooded in not just of Tigers and panzergrenadiers, but of hulking stitched-together brutes, mechanical soldiers, and other impossible horrors. While the front was stretched to the breaking point, the true enemy struck from the rear.
Men began dying in ever-increasing numbers from infected bite wounds. The dead rose from hasty graves and attacked their former comrades. The 203rd General Hospital was overrun. All medical support collapsed. Simultaneously, the 21st Panzer Division broke through and raced toward the Channel.
Split in two, Allied forces streamed back to the beaches in chaos. Evacuations began the night of June 10th/11th under extreme duress. Outbreaks occurred on several transports, forcing harsh quarantines and disposals. At least the contagion was contained.
The contingency plans of Operation Crosswire and Nightshade were activated. Success was achieved, and after two months all port facilities in the [CENSORED] area remain secure. Recommendation of immediate dispatch of [CENSORED] to France to reconnoiter and make contact with the [CENSORED] partisans.
My command has covertly observed and interviewed survivors as directed. The stories are too bewildering to dismiss. The Office of Special Investigations has been notified and is pursuing further understanding of the ramifications. Material losses and casualty figures remain incomplete.
This office has returned to Operations Mode Alpha and stands by for further instructions.
Respectfully submitted, Lieutenant Colonel William Thomas 18th Army Group, 114th Special Operations Command July 29th, 1944
Prepared by Lieutenant Susan Winters, Assistant Adjutant, 114th Special Operations Command
The PCs have to parachute in or perhaps be deployed by boat. Either presents opportunities for the Game Master to spring other monsters on them as they infiltrate. Perhaps ultimately needing to find the lair or strange Third Reich science run amuk?
What do you think? A good way to kick off a Weird War II camapign?
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