Thursday, March 11, 1887 The Springfield and Southern Railroad passes through the settlement of Oldfield, Missouri, three miles east of Sparta, Missouri. A wagon road also runs along side the rail line. These are the major channels of commerce through this area of Christian County. Nestled along these trade routes and to the north of Oldfield, lays the farmstead of James Edens. Edens lives in a cabin with his wife, Elizabeth. Their ill daughter, Melvina, and her husband, Charles Green, have brought their children over to spend the night. Also, James' son, William and his wife Emma, have also arrived to stay the evening. The sleeping arrangements are described below. On this same night, there was a meeting of the Bald Knobbers which ended around 10:30 p.m. Several of the group went home, however some traveled toward the railroad tracks. "Captain" Dave Walker and the rest were led be his son, William and Wiley Mathews. The group emerged from the woods a short distance from the William Edens' cabin. They stopped to talk. It seemed as though Edens had compared the Bald Knobbers to that of a bunch of sheepkilling, no good dogs. There was trouble in the air. Young Walker and his recruits bolted for the cabin, oblivious to the elder Walker's commands to stop. When they reached the cabin, the doors were kicked in, however no one was home. It was decided that William Edens was at his father's place. Still wearing their masks, vigilantes were ready for a ruckus by the time they reached the James Edens' cabin. Pounding on the door, William Walker demanded the door be opened. What happened after that is better left unwritten, however, the result of the incident left a blood trail with the dead bodies of William Edens and Charles Green inside the cabin. James Edens was seriously wounded and unconcious. Elizabeth Edens was wounded and had fainted. Both Emma and Melvina were unharmed as well as the children. William Walker had taken a serious wound with a bullet in his thigh. Wounded and scared out of his wits, William Walker flees to Douglas County to disappear for awhile. Christian County sheriff, Zsck Johnson eventually arrests 25 Bald Knobbers in the Edens-Green murders by March 18th. He then corrals William Walker in West Plains, Missouri on April 1st. Between April 19th and 27th, a Christian County grand jury indicts 16 Bald Knobbers in the case. William Walker, however, would have to wait until March 9th, 1888 before he was to find out his fate in the murders of Edens and Green. On trial, the jury wasted little time in convicting Walker of first-degree murder. He is sentenced to hang until he is dead. Three other trials are held for Wiley Mathews, John Mathews and Dave Walker for murder in the first-degree. Each would meet the same outcome as William Walker. Our scenario begins after the Bald Knobbers are captured. The remaining Bald Knobbers have decided to try and break their friends out of jail and escape to the Ozark hills. If the vigilantes can succeed, their comrades will not hang. Each day they try and fail, a Bald Knobber will hang! GAME SET UP Terrain for the game may be made up of any 1880's era buildings and scenery. There should be at least a jail, courthouse, country store and stable. Most townships in 1887 Missouri had only dirt roads or paths that traveled through town. If you would like to add a little incentive for the Bald Knobbers, try placing a gallows by the jail. This should "spur" them on to succeed. CHARACTERS There should be four outlaw figures in the jail at the start. They can not move until they are freed. Also in or around the jail, the sheriff and six newly swom in deputies. The sheriff is very skilled with a gun, treat him as an elite character. The deputies may be up to a recruit class character except for one which is a veteran. In addition to the lawmen, some townsfolk should also be present. Place another six characters in and about the town. They could be treated as non-player characters (NPC) or as characters run by players of the game. The quality of the townsfolk should be considered green. Plus, they will not react to a fire fight unless they roll their morale or under. A test must be made for every new "threat" the townsfolk have contact with. The morale roll may be modified by the following conditions: CONDITION: MODIFIER Hiding in building or in cover : +1 Within 6" of another townsfolk : +1 Within 12" of a Deputy : +2 Within 18" of the Sheriff : +3 Surprised by a Bald Knobber : -2 Caught in a cross fire : -4 The Bald Knobbers group consists of eight figures, all of which are seasoned in skill, except for the leader who is a veteran. One character will carry two sticks of dynamite to punch through the jail house wall. They may enter the table on any two adjacent sides. SCENARIO SPECIAL EVENTS The Bald Knobbers may choose whether to hit the town in daylight or at night. If they choose daylight, treat the conditions as normal. A night attack will have the following modifications to weapon fire and observation. The table will be considered well lit up to 1' of the table edge (based on a 6'x8' table). Since the Bald Knobbers wore dark clothing and masks, any attempts to spot them in this area will be at a A. Once they enter the lit part of the table they may be seen as normal. No townsfolk may be set up in the dark area. Weapons fire will be treated as if ya can see 'em, ya can plug 'em. If the Bald Knobbers fail the first attempt, a prisoner will hang the next morning. They may then recruit 2 more of their numbers for the next attack. If it fails, another prisoner hangs. An additional 2 members may join the attack. If the final attack fails, they are all eventually captured and put on trial. The Hangman's noose is a waitin'! If the Sheriff or any Deputy are killed in the line of duty, a townsfolk may be recruited to fill the position. Their status will be raised to that of a seasoned figure. Thus there should always be seven lawmen in Ozark. Back to Table of Contents Penny Whistle #38 Back to Penny Whistle List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1998 by Lion's Den Publications. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com