tjoris9
07-03-2005, 04:14 AM
I got this idea for a story while playing Mercenaries (and a story thread from Doonesbury helped, too). I think I may make either a novel or a d20 Modern campaign around it.
Here's the premise:
In 2002, shortly after the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, a unit of U.S. marines was sent into the city of Al Bazaar. Their mission was to a) perform reconnaissaince of the city, searching for remaining Baathist forces b) secure a museum against looting. They vanished without a trace. This is their story.
The unit is assaulted by a large, organized force and all but a handful of marines are killed. The survivors are captured by an Iraqi ganglord who has made Al Bazaar into a city state. He tells the remaining marines that he needs help securing Al Bazaar against "outside forces", including Al Quaida, Baathist rebels plotting Hussein's return to power, and agents from neighboring countries. He also has a grand plan for taking the world for all it's worth. In return, he will make those who aid him rich, and those who refuse to dead.
Ultimately, this ganglord is both the U.S.'s greatest ally in the war on terror, and also a threat far more dangerous than Al Quaida if his plan works. I intend to give it a Blackhawk Down meets GTA feel.
Tell me what you think, TC. I'm trying to work the kinks out of the plot, the most obvious being "why would he need U.S. soldiers to help him when he has so many resources?" Then there's the question "Should I even put serious thought into this at this point in time, instead of waiting a decade or two, to see how things actually turn out?"
Here's the premise:
In 2002, shortly after the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, a unit of U.S. marines was sent into the city of Al Bazaar. Their mission was to a) perform reconnaissaince of the city, searching for remaining Baathist forces b) secure a museum against looting. They vanished without a trace. This is their story.
The unit is assaulted by a large, organized force and all but a handful of marines are killed. The survivors are captured by an Iraqi ganglord who has made Al Bazaar into a city state. He tells the remaining marines that he needs help securing Al Bazaar against "outside forces", including Al Quaida, Baathist rebels plotting Hussein's return to power, and agents from neighboring countries. He also has a grand plan for taking the world for all it's worth. In return, he will make those who aid him rich, and those who refuse to dead.
Ultimately, this ganglord is both the U.S.'s greatest ally in the war on terror, and also a threat far more dangerous than Al Quaida if his plan works. I intend to give it a Blackhawk Down meets GTA feel.
Tell me what you think, TC. I'm trying to work the kinks out of the plot, the most obvious being "why would he need U.S. soldiers to help him when he has so many resources?" Then there's the question "Should I even put serious thought into this at this point in time, instead of waiting a decade or two, to see how things actually turn out?"