Did I imagine seeing this in the T2k 1e boxed set

[rcaf_777]

I blasted my way out of Kalisz with a Bradley and the other players were crew in my vehicle or the M1 which other player had. I ran out tow's but still a few rounds left for main cannon the M1 took a beating but it made it through, we ran in a pair T-80 and pair of BDM's, it was my frist TW 2000 frie fight and was rough lol what a game

[Sanjuro]

In our first T2000 campaign, the GM gave us a fully armed M1 and an Elite npc crew to help us with an upcoming mission (a raid on the biggest Pact fuel dump in the area)- only for the aspiring marauders in our party to murder the crew.
Unfortunately they had not allowed for the fact that highly skilled and experienced infantrymen do not actually have the skills to operate a tank, so we had to abandon it!

[Slappy]

Like the idea, but there may be a more straightforward way to strand them. Just a suggestion, no criticism of the other ideas.

What if the M-1s are on a road march, either alone or with only a jeep and a couple of MPs. Say they're coming from a quick rear refit (track work, radio repair, optics swap out, that sort of thing). They're being hurried to the front lines and as they're not planning for action are low on supplies. They left their ammo (or all but a couple token rounds) with the rest of the unit when they went to repair. In addition, they were only allocated enough fuel to make it to their unit as they planned to gas up there. They are on the way when the Sovs break through and the unit they're headed for is destroyed. They have enough fuel to make it 5-10km, but that's it. They don't want to drive all over the countryside looking for friendlies and burn that last couple of gallons, so they pull off into some woods and hunker down. Now there's enemy armor running all over the county looking for stragglers and you need to make contact and get them out.

[Legbreaker]

A little something to remember is that tanks leave a big nasty trail that simply CANNOT be hidden. If an enemy picks up the tracks, then it's just a matter of time....

[Bullet Magnet]

Why would the truck go boom Why would the T90s not target the M1s first

Mobility. A tank with no fuel is a glorified gun emplacement.

But, the other theories I've seen posted here also make sense. I didn't see a specific number for how many T90s the have at their disposal in this. If the Soviets have enough, each tank may have had its own vehicle to target, and the unarmored vehicles would just be easier to remove from the equation, from their point of view.

Also, the soft vehicles would be carrying other supplies, like the bulk of any food they were bringing along. From the Soviets POV, it might make sense to just starve out the US tank crews. They might even leave a gap when they encircle the US tanks, figuring the crews might try to make a break for it once their supplies ran dangerously low. Then, the Soviets can take the tanks without needing to fight; all they gotta do now is find some fuel and ammo for them. And who knows They may have some of that stashed away from some previous engagement. (If they think like player characters, they'd take anything not bolted down, sell some of it off for wrenches, and come back for what was bolted down, thinking to sell anything they can't use.)

[atiff]

Mobility. A tank with no fuel is a glorified gun emplacement.

And an M1 with a gaping hole in the side and smoke spewing out the top is even less than that.

I'm not trying to be combative here, but... Hitting the truck *first* makes no sense to me. (I have assumed that from rak's description) Now, if it is "rounds clang off the M1s, and the fuel truck goes boom" - OK, I can go with that.

[raketenjagdpanzer]

Well, as I said it's all essentially a narrative device; when or if the PCs find the tanks it won't be as the heavy shit is going down. No, it'll be a case of if they follow a trail of destruction, namely three or four wrecked T90s, buncha dead Pact troops, some blown up soft-skinned US vehicles, tracks leading off towards the ruins of a nearby town.

[Tegyrius]

Don't overthink it, guys. Rak is right. The fuel tanker going up is pure narrative. It was, if not an ambush, at least an unplanned firefight. No one really saw what happened except possibly a T-90 commander, and he's dead now. What's important is how the PCs deal with the situation, and I think "go rescue these powerful, valuable, and currently paralyzed assets" is a solid setup for a session or three of play.

- C.