Developing A Scenario (part seven)

TURN FIVE

Overview at the start of turn five

I send as many Indians as I can to close in on the wagon, except for my spear-armed mounted warrior who I order to turn around and attack the rifle-armed cowboy in hand-to-hand fighting.

Up close and personal

We decide to resolve the melee before the firing - mainly because it is our first melee in the scenario. Ricky rolls a 4, which becomes a 3 after my warrior's shield is taken into account, so well short of the needed 5. I roll a 6, which is enough for a hit even without my +1 modifiers for being an Indian and for having a spear. The hit turns out to be on the horse, which is killed, but the rider can fight on, albeit on foot.

Ricky's man is down but not out

Unfortunately for me, my partial success in the melee turns out to be my only success of the half-turn as my firing at the wagon is ineffective.
Ricky manoeuvres his one remaining mounted cowboy to charge my spear-armed mounted warrior from the side, and moves his other cowboys to clear a path for the wagon along Pitchfork Way.

The wagon has almost reached safety

Ricky's charging cowboy soon regrets his decision, suffering a hit while not inflicting one, but he only has to fall back a square.
Firing by the cowboys is as ineffective as by my Indians, with just my bow-armed mounted warrior suffering a hit, and that only makes him fall back a square.
TURN SIX
There is no doubt the Indian cause looks desperate, but there is still hope because one rancher has been killed - the only human fatality so far - and the cowboys will have to run away and abandon the wagon if the second rancher, which is Ricky the Kid himself, is downed. Accordingly I order my braves to target Ricky as much as possible. This entails charging him from the side by my bow-armed mounted warrior, as well as hoping to shoot him.

Ricky the Kid is wearing green in the square directly north of the wagon

I ask for this melee to be resolved first. My warrior gets +1 for being an Indian in hand-to-hand fighting and +1 for attacking from the flank, but no bonus for being mounted as Ricky has another cowboy with him in the square. Ricky and his ranch-hand have no modifiers. The dice roll 6-1 in my favour, meaning I get a hit. It turns out to be on Ricky rather than the ranch-hand, but a further roll shows it has no effect! A rifle-armed brave in the square immediately in front of Ricky fires and scores a hit, despite having a -1 modifier for moving. The hit is on Ricky, but again it has no effect - he must be one tough hombre. A bow-armed warrior also in the square directly in front of Ricky shoots but misses.
Elsewhere, the only incident of note is when my spear-armed brave on horseback charges the cowboy whose horse was killed last turn, scoring a second hit, but it only forces the man to fall back a square. My brave chooses to follow-up and occupy the vacated square.
Ricky, deciding discretion is the better part of valour, pulls the figure of himself as far from danger as possible while leaving the ranch-hand who was with him to face my angry warriors alone.

Ricky the Kid skulks nearest the camera, while the wagon, or at least the horses pulling it, pass through the gate to the ranch

My bow-armed mounted warrior is forced back a square by firing, and then has his horse shot from under him, and another of my warriors is twice forced back a square.
In his excitement, Ricky forgot to move his remaining mounted cowboy, but the omission looks academic unless something amazing happens in turn seven.
TURN SEVEN
All depends on whether I can kill Ricky this half-turn as his wagon cannot otherwise be prevented from entering the ranch and giving him victory. I get a chief and a warrior, both armed with rifles, to rush along Pitchfork Way to within two squares of the rancher.

Lining up for the Indians' last shot at winning

That means just a 3 is needed for a hit, but there is a -1 modifier for moving. The chief misses, but the warrior scores a hit ... but to no effect.
With the wagon sure to enter the ranch in Ricky's half-turn, I concede.