The Bridge Head AAR:

The initial dispositions of the bridgehead forces with a small column led by Lieutenant Tamiya out on manoeuvres.

The bridge construction was proceeding well.

A small element of Her Majesties (Gawd Bless 'Er) survey team scout ahead for a route for the Great Martian Western Railway... Unfortunately, they were looking in the wrong direction...

The Martians manage to sneak up on the unsuspecting imperial forces until it was almost too late.

Bitter hand to hand fighting ensued with an element of the Imperial Princesses Hatamoto (bodyguard) and a small section of the Martian Native Askari Corp giving the intruders what for and seeing them off.

With the civilians fleeing with the Princess (will she never learn) more Martians arrive and make short work of the forward column with Lieutenant Tamiya last seen going down in a seething mass of Martians polearms...

The remaining units make a stand on the newly constructed bridge, with civilians fleeing left right and centre, in a desperate attempt to hold off the madding hoards.

The lone machine gun emplacement at the fore fails to halt the attack and suffers drastically.

With civilians mostly out of harms way the Imperial troops were able to lay down a barrage of heavy rifle fire but with seemingly little affect.

A new behaviour of the Martians was noted in the fact that they seemed to want to destroy everything to do with the construction site.

With one remaining unit lead by Lieutenant Bandai in the south redoubt giving as much fire as possible but running dangerously low on ammunition, things looked desperate indeed but low and behold the Martians appeared to have had enough.

Victory! Not only were the civilians safe but the bridgehead was secured. This new behaviour of the Sky Martians has been reported back to the Royal Society for further study.

Without a doubt, War on Mars will continue...

 Diary of Archibald Harris-Hampton, Illustrated London News Overseas Reporting Team.September 20th 1890. 

The Anglo/Japanese alliance were very fortunate that this was only a small Martian war party, although it was noted there were several different martian clans banded together. Whilst during initial engagements the Martians were bent on killing they are now seen to be sating their lust for blood by butchering the recently dead and feasting on their intestines! Our loyal Martian Askari tell us these are death rituals that give the participants great power in battle. The fiends!

The Bridge Head - A Red Planet Adventure

North West Frontier, Mars. 19th September 1890. The offices of the Illustrated London News Overseas Reporting Team. 

Your Humble reporter Archibald Harris-Hampton is grieved to report an attack by the nefarious Sky Martians against a small Imperial Japanese force expanding the Anglo/Japanese Alliance Territories of the North West Frontier of the Colony of New Victoria, some 125 miles distant.

A detachment of Imperial troops and a small section of engineers were set upon whilst constructing a new bridge across one of the old Martian canals. The area was reported safe by the locals who have had no trouble from the roving Sky Martian bands. They were unavailable for comment afterwards...

Fortunately the Sky Martian attack was not as brutal as they have been in the past and once again your humble servant was able to report in full with the outcome...

Skiff Merchants and Their Trade Routes.

Most trade between the City Martians is conducted by the land caravans but there are a few merchants that prefer to use skiffs to transport goods across the deserts. This or course has it's risks but more often than not they are bettered by the profits. The travel time is quicker than the land caravans but the chance of meeting Sky Martin raiding parties is increased tenfold.

The skiff convoys consist of two or three tug-neffs attached to several tenders that carry the cargo. As many as five tenders can be attached to the biggest tug-neffs but this is traded off for a slower speed. The tug-neff can be armed with several ballistas and usually the rear tender will have a ballista along with a crew that are ready to fight for their cargo.

The skiffs are made in a similar way to the Sky Martian skiffs and have a more bloated appearance than the elegant Sky Martian skiffs. There is some rumour that construction methods for the tugs have been traded for rare goods and information about the land caravans with certain Sky Martian clans but this, is as of yet, unfounded... If it is to be found that trade and information is being passed between the Skiff Merchants and the Sky Martians then there will be retribution from the City Martians for the betrayal.

The tenders are basically large hulls with a main deck and a small cargo hold below this deck. The tug-neff has a similar appearance to the Sky Martian skiffs albeit shorter and rounder with an upper deck at the rear which the trimsman will use and the captain of the convoy will have his place under this upper deck. The tugs and tenders usually aren't decorated but occasionally an affluent Skiff Merchant will adorn his tug with geometric patterns and these pattens can be used as an identification of the Skiff Merchant from a distance.

Using the trade winds that traverse the planet the Skiff Merchants ply their trade between as many cities as possible using well known routes through the lowland canyons; most trying their best to avoid the Sky Martians. During the night the tugs will preferably anchor against the cliffs of the canyons with a watch posted throughout the night. If the convoy finds itself in the open then they will reduce their height and anchor to the desert floor.

The crew themselves are made up of the braver City Martians and some of them can become somewhat of a legend to the more domestic City Martians. But, there is some resentment from many of the leading families as the Skiff Merchants become arrogant the longer they are in the sky. This arrogance is increasingly likened to the attitude of the Sky Martians and if it continues then the cities elders will have to make a decision as to what to do.

A return.

For too long have the annals of Mars been left untouched. This will now change for the better...

Along with tales and histories of Mars there will also be reports of new figures, vehicles and terrain to supplement our endeavour on the Red Planet.

Exciting times are ahead...

Thank you and Welcome back to the Red Planet