Wasteland Express Delivery Service Solo Campaign Mode: Session 2

I decided to play the Campaign Mode of this game solo. There is no formal solo mode, so I’m merely tracking how many turns it takes me to lock down three Priority First-Class Contracts. I’m playing the entire campaign as The Fallen, the salty former cultist who drives a school bus. These notes are from #2. Secret Mission, in which the plotline asks the game’s truckers to take punitive action against the Raiders while helping the Archivists both prop up the world’s shaky economy and find a dangerous and pivotal item in the wastes.

Writeup for #1. Welcome to the Wasteland is here.

Public Priority First Class Contracts
• Bailout
• The Big Dig
• Kill ‘Em All

Turns Elapsed: 10

I retain The Creep as a starting ally, which means hopefully I don’t get my shields burned off just trying to get somewhere. I also select the Respect mission from The Archivists on the setup draw, as the prize will let me put a combat edge into my extra ally slot. In #1. Welcome to the Wasteland I focused entirely on trade and smuggling, but things are going to get more pugnacious this time out.

Don’t tell any of the crew back at The Depot how long I had to duel with this loser

I sink my cash on hand into an extra general storage hold and a machine gun right away at Terminus’ Mod Shop, then peel out to target a nearby Raider truck piloted by the repulsive Beanman. I close on him at high speed in a rad zone. The machine gun apparently is still in its “breaking in” period. The normally weak Beanman proves cagey; two turns invested in combat only gets all my armor riddled and useless. It’s an abominable start.

After an eternity of circling Beanman amid acrid dust, automatic weapons and insult exchanges, I finally get my new gun unjammed and sort him out—pillaging his truck for water, which is fetching high prices. The cash lets me notch an important Archivist mission after I ferry it to the thirsty buyers at Motown. Stinging from the cost of my exchanges with Beanman, I buy a rack of missiles to back up the MG. Then it’s off to refill those general cargo slots with cheap rations.

Currently I’m leaning towards fulfilling the Kill ‘Em All and Bailout public missions. I’ll fish for a third Priority First-Class Contract along the way as I don’t want to divide my energy and space messing with the expensive digger mod and extra turns it will take to fulfill The Big Dig’s contract requirements. Hopefully somebody else on staff picks up that slack for me.

I drop off food at New Alexandria, replace my armor at their Mod Shop, and set my sights on the Railmen’s enclave—the first of four Raider enclave battles I’ll have to win to fulfill Kill ‘Em All. The Twins issue from their gates to challenge me and get cratered. I leave with smoking barrels, looted food and water.

The Rock outpost buys the food, New New York gets $25 in Bailout funds (chalk one Priority First-Class Contract). I make a beeline for Bonesaw’s enclave. Sky Captain emerges to contest me, but the missiles I picked up in Motown are too much for him; his craft is splintered in a fusillade on his first attack pass. My hold is full of food and weapons, too. Two down. The Raiders are getting served like I’m a short-order cook.

There’s nowhere good to sell anything, so I replenish my missiles and head right for Nein Nein’s Raider HQ because I’m feeling myself. I pull impatiently into The Library en route, hoping to pull a third Priority contract so I can win without the tedium of the Big Dig: I pull “A Solid,” which will mean taking on some smuggling work for the New Republic Army. Cool. I tangle with The Family at the Nein Nein compound. I keep my missiles in reserve and lose, damaging my armor.

My ally and machine gun finally earn their keep as my tussle with The Fam spills into the next day’s action. We light them up good. That’s three successful punitive raids on the Raiders. I could make it to The Eyeless’ hideout and sew this thing up, but I have no Pillage actions left. Gonna burn a few turns dropping off my burgeoning cargo hold contents just for laughs. New Chernobyl snags my food and Serenity pays 10 $crap for the ammo crate I’ve got. I’m back on the road, about to knock on The Eyeless’ door.

The Eyeless come out understrength, fielding The Harvesters, who reap a bounty crop of my heirloom .50 cal seeds. The enforcement action on all Raider enclaves is complete. There’s a lot of driving ahead to get to The Citadel, the only place I can fish for New Republic smuggling runs that the greaseballs at The Archive need done. I hit The Citadel’s driveway with my last gear at unsafe speeds and draw the “Muck and Brass” job; I have water on hand to complete the smuggling run, but New Chernobyl, the destination, is another massive drive. I’m set upon by the Nein Nein truck en route. The Maw is behind the wheel. He’s a rugged dude, so I uncork the missiles for him and deny the Nein Nein’s attempt at retribution.

My replacement shields melt down in a rad zone on the next stretch of road, but I dump the water barrels at New Chernobyl, fire The Creep and put Armistice in my sleeper cab. Her movement bonus proved invaluable on the home stretch of the first chapter. She seems glad to see me. The Archive has half of their “Solid.” I’m not worried about combat and damage; I have plenty of cash and don’t mind stacking some hits on unused cargo holds if it means I can haul ass with Armistice and close this out.

It’s a long drive to The Citadel as Armistice tells me stories about her dad—Grand Lord Emperor Torque, the legend of highway terror who supposedly died in a big battle with the New Republic Army at Silo 42—but I pull the “Train Station” mission. The Citadel is also selling the weapons I need to deliver to Terminus, which is only one outpost away. I burn a turn getting gouged for a crate of weapons, then get it back in first gear.

We’re on a glide path now. We rumble over a few miles with Hasil Adkins on the tape deck and soon Terminus has their weapons, “A Solid” has been completed, and three Priority First Class contracts are in the bag. On to the next chapter! Although Armistice’s stories about Pops seem to suggest that this monster may figure largely in whatever’s to come next.

Summary: It was fun rebalancing the bus’ slots to have offensive punch and trade capacity—The Fallen’s capacious Sleeper Cab (pulling The Archivist’s Respect mission on my setup draw was a boon), and the early purchase of a Machine Gun + General Purpose extra cargo hold provided enough early impetus to give me all the cash I needed, plus affordable repairs and replacement missiles for the heavy fighting. Not bad!

Next: #3. Less Than Dead