Last Frontier: The Vesuvius Incident
Fat Messiah Games (1993, $10)
Designed by Michael Wasson and Neal Sofge
Players 1
Playing Time 2 hours
Period Science Fiction
Scale Tactical
Turn 5 seconds
Map 2 meters
Unit individual

Components
1 ziploc container
1 17"x22" unmounted mapsheet
20 page rulebook
158 uncut counters on stiff card
1 charts/tables sheet\par}}{\pard\fi-250\li449\sa114\tx449{\plain\f1\fs18 1}{\plain }{\plain\f1\fs18 10/11/93 errata sheet

Counter Manifest
30 aliens
12 marines; status; G71 rifles; M135 each pistols
10 explored
5 IC/foam; dead crew each 4 crew; orbiting; panic each
3 breach; bots; serious damage; KO; each dark
2 lift car; pistol; welding torch; security each video; booby trap; double-sized counters (RPP-7 plasma gun)
1 combat; acid-sprayer; herbivore; each predator; insane crew; berserk bot; civilian medkit; marine medkit; suit patch; toolkit; air lock open; ring stop; drive on; drive overload; reentry; reentry timer; access code; crew manifest; RAM dump; ship's log .

Fat Messiah says:

“Join the UN Colonial Marine Corps in this exciting solitaire game ... Take command of a team of 12 heavily armed Marines as they board a crippled lab ship in a decaying orbit. Rescue the surviving crew, but beware of malevolent alien intruders, escaped lab animals, berserk robots and a sabotaged defense system.

Work fast — the controls are smashed and the ship is plummeting towards a fiery end in the atmosphere below. The action is exciting and unpredictable from the minute you dock until the last shuttle blasts out!”

The reviewer says:

“The extreme randomness of the system may be a turn off for some ... giving the impression that little the gamer can do in the way of planning can prevent the mangling or abduction of his team. But this is the precise effect the game seeks to impart. The system helps to create the mood of the game ... Aliens appear and deal out damage swiftly and mercilessly. The task of the player is to react to the inevitable disaster and salvage what he can ...

If you end the game with only a third of your marines dead or incapacitated, you have done very well. More likely there will be an unholy slaughter and your frantic men will make a mad dash for the escape shuttles to avoid being dismembered ... If you cut your gamer teeth on the Metagaming line like I did, you’ll probably enjoy this offering’s high quality for a low price. It’s worth checking out.” UseNet posting by Evan M. Corcoran.

Comments

A real cliff-hanger! While it sounds reminiscent of Task Force’s solitaire game Intruder (1980), LF:TVI takes the genre to a whole new level. Both games are clearly inspired by the Alien film(s). In Intruder, the crew of a small research spaceship faced a mutating alien. LF:TVI starts with similar material, and then adds some devious twists and turns that will have you cursing the designers as things go from bad to worse.

The game is a combination rescue mission /nail-biting race against time/battle for survival against vicious aliens. The random elements and interplay of the threats really add to the challenge and replayability. This is great solitaire gaming given a very attractive presentation.

Collector’s Notes

The Fat Messiah Games web site (www.fatmessiahgames.com) shows that the game is in print and available for $10. Boone 4th lists low/high/average auction prices of $8/$10/$9. The game was not listed in Boone 3rd.

Web resources

Errata -http://www.fatmessiahgames.com/fmg/vesuvius/errata.html Scenarios & Variants -http://www.fatmessiahgames.com/fmg/vesuvius/xtra.html

Other games from Fat Messiah

Hard Vacuum, Insecta, Robotanks, Shapeshifters, Virtual.

Capsule Profiles:

Longest Day
LA Lawless
Last Frontier
Laser Tank
Lesnaja 1708
Legend of Robin Hood
Lords of the Middle Sea
Luftschiff