Chainsaw Warrior (1987)

Chainsaw Warrior

Chainsaw Warrior is a single-player board game designed by Stephen Hand and published by Games Workshop in 1987. Set in a dystopian future New York City (2032), the game features a narrative where players take on the role of a retired special forces agent tasked with stopping a malevolent entity known as “Darkness,” which commands a horde of zombies and other creatures emerging from a rift in time and space.

Game Components of Chainsaw Warrior

1. House Cards:
   • There are 108 House cards in total, representing various locations within the building you must navigate (e.g., corridors, elevators, stairways).
   • These cards are divided into two decks of 54 cards each. The second deck contains the entity Darkness, shuffled randomly among its cards.
2. Character Attributes: Players create their character by rolling dice to determine attributes such as:
   • Endurance
   • Wounds
   • Hand-to-hand combat skills
   • Reflexes
   • Marksmanship
   • These attributes affect the player’s performance in combat and overall survivability.
3. Equipment:Players can equip their character with various items, categorized into five main types:
   • Hand-to-hand weapons
   • Guns
   • Heavy weapons
   • Devices
   • Clothing
   • A critical item is the Laser Lance, which is essential for defeating Darkness. Players start with limited ammunition for this weapon.
4. Tracking Components: There are separate tracks to monitor effects from zombie venom and radiation damage, adding another layer of strategy to the game.
5. Timer: The game is played against a clock, with a strict time limit of 60 minutes to complete the mission.

Game Setup of Chainsaw Warrior

1. Prepare the House Cards:
   • Shuffle the 108 House cards and divide them into two decks of 54 cards each. The second deck will include the Darkness card shuffled randomly among its cards.
2. Character Creation:
   • Roll dice to determine your character’s attributes:
     • Endurance
     • Wounds
     • Hand-to-hand combat skills
     • Reflexes
     • Marksmanship
   • The number of dice rolled for each attribute varies, and you can use rules that ensure minimum values for easier difficulty settings.
3. Equipment Allocation:
   • Roll to determine how many points you can spend on equipment. You can carry a maximum of 13 items, which can include:
     • Hand-to-hand weapons
     • Guns
     • Heavy weapons
     • Devices
     • Clothing
   • Choose your starting equipment based on the points rolled, ensuring you include essential items like the Laser Lance, which is crucial for defeating Darkness.
4. Set Up Tracking Components:
   • Prepare separate tracks to monitor effects from zombie venom and radiation damage, as these will affect gameplay.
5. Timer Preparation:
   • Set a timer for 60 minutes to keep track of your time limit during gameplay.
6. Starting the Game:
   • Begin by drawing cards from the first House deck and resolve encounters as they arise. Each card drawn takes approximately 30 seconds to resolve.

Gameplay Mechanics of Chainsaw Warrior

Game Structure

• Solo Play: Chainsaw Warrior is designed for a single player, who must navigate through a series of encounters within a time limit of 60 minutes.
• Card-Based Encounters: The game utilizes 108 House cards, divided into two decks. Players draw from the first deck to encounter various monsters and obstacles, while the second deck contains the Darkness card, which must be confronted to win the game.

Character Attributes

At the beginning of the game, players roll dice to determine their character’s attributes, which include:

• Endurance: Determines how much damage you can take before dying.
• Wounds: Affects how many injuries you can sustain.
• Hand-to-Hand Combat Skills (HTH): Influences melee combat effectiveness.
• Reflexes: Impacts your ability to evade attacks.
• Marksmanship: Determines your effectiveness with ranged weapons.

Equipment and Weapons

Players can equip their character with various items categorized into:

• Hand-to-hand weapons
• Guns
• Heavy weapons
• Devices
• Clothing

A critical item is the Laser Lance, which is essential for defeating Darkness. Running out of its ammunition or losing it requires backtracking to obtain a replacement, incurring a time penalty.

Combat Mechanics

Combat is resolved through dice rolls:

• Melee Attacks: Compare the enemy’s Power plus a d6 roll against your HTH plus a d6 roll.
• Ranged Attacks: Compare the enemy’s Reflex plus a d6 roll against your Marksmanship plus a d6 roll.
• Players can choose to evade attacks or engage in melee combat based on their strategy.

Encounter Resolution

Each encounter drawn from the House cards takes approximately 30 seconds to resolve. Players may face various challenges, including:

• Zombies and Mutants: Each type has specific attack patterns and effects.
• Traps and Hazards: Players may encounter traps that require skill checks (like Reflex) to avoid penalties or damage.

Damage and Effects

Players must track damage from encounters:

• Accumulated damage from zombies can lead to effects like venom or radiation poisoning, which can further reduce Endurance.
• If Venom or Radiation damage equals Endurance, the player dies.

Game Objective of Chainsaw Warrior

The objective of the game is to defeat Darkness within an hour, which is represented by a sand timer. Players must navigate the board, fight enemies, and collect items to strengthen their character and complete the mission within the given time limit.

The game ends when:

• The player successfully defeats Darkness using the Laser Lance or Implosion Vest.
• The player runs out of time, succumbs to injuries, or is overwhelmed by enemies.

Game Components of Chainsaw Warrior