[any RPG] Favorite tricks and gadgets for infiltrating an enemy base

[Kensen]

You are the Hero. In addition to what the real-life you can do, you are also physically very fit, you know martial arts, and you can handle firearms. You also have the necessary contacts to obtain illegal equipment such as hand grenades.

You have to infiltrate a secret base/stronghold/lair, do something there (kill someone, rescue someone, steal something or destroy something) and get out alive.

You have $50,000 to spend on equipment. You know the location of the base, but you have little or no intel on the base layout, guards or security systems. You have only 12 hours to get the equipment and another 12 hours to complete the task. You're not allowed to tell anyone about the job or the base.

What equipment would you buy with your $50,000 and why? What other preparations would you make?

(I'm designing an infiltration game, hence the questions. )

[dsmiles]

You are the Hero. In addition to what the real-life you can do, you are also physically very fit, you know martial arts, and you can handle firearms. You also have the necessary contacts to obtain illegal equipment such as hand grenades.

You have to infiltrate a secret base/stronghold/lair, do something there (kill someone, rescue someone, steal something or destroy something) and get out alive.

You have $50,000 to spend on equipment, but you have little or no intel on the base and only 12 hours to get the equipment and another 12 hours to complete the task. You're not allowed to tell anyone about the job or the base. You know the location of the base and you can get there easily.

What equipment would you buy with your $50,000 and why? What other preparations would you make?

(I'm designing an infiltration game, hence the questions. )

Climbing gear. Mooks never look up.

[Volthawk]

If there's nothing we need to get inside, or if the thing we're trying to get is tough enough, explosives. Lots of them.

[Kensen]

If there's nothing we need to get inside, or if the thing we're trying to get is tough enough, explosives. Lots of them.

It's easy for you to get to the general area where the base is located. I.e. you won't need a helicopter or 6 hours to drive there. Getting inside the base is not necessarily easy.

[valadil]

I'm assuming it's a semi-modern game based on the mention of grenades and a helicopter. How's the internet in your game? My first response would be to check if hacking was an option. If you can get to their security system, you're usually golden.

About a year ago we were trying to infiltrate a building in a modern game of Mage. The GM was a little sick of my VA hacking everything, so he said that the building we were in only had an internal LAN, with no ISP and no outside connection. I guess he was trying to get us to use another avenue for attack. It didn't work. On the way to the building we hit up Microcenter and picked up a cheap wireless router. The rest of the party went in, plugged the router into the first ethernet port they found, and carried on. I got to hack the place and never even left our van.

[Kensen]

I got to hack the place and never even left our van.

That's a good idea. In modern scenarios you would be able to obtain a lot of useful information that way. Though there are a few possible scenarios that I can think of where this sort of approach could fail:

* The "bad guys" are really cheap, they have no central security system you can hack, and thus you can't (de)activate anything remotely. They rely on mechanical locks and old school security cameras, and scary Russian thugs with SMGs.

* Their security specialist knows what he's doing. His relevant skill is as good as your hacking skill (or better). By trying to hack their system you may actually inadvertently warn the bad guys about your attempt to infiltrate their base.

[valadil]

* The "bad guys" are really cheap, they have no central security system you can hack, and thus you can't (de)activate anything remotely. They rely on mechanical locks and old school security cameras, and scary Russian thugs with SMGs.

We mostly just went for their cameras so we could see where armed guards were and if necessary run the cliched loop to the people watching the cameras.

* Their security specialist knows what he's doing. His relevant skill is as good as your hacking skill (or better). By trying to hack their system you may actually inadvertently warn the bad guys about your attempt to infiltrate their base.

Yeah, that definitely happened later on. When we went up against someone better than us we were given degrees of how far we could go without notifying him. So watching cameras wasn't too hard but reading his email was.

[bbugg]

I'm interested in this too - but to get ideas, so keep em coming!!

My party is up against an enemy stronghold guarded by old-school means (guards on watchtowers and a big fence) and we can't figure out the best way in. The best idea we have so far is to armour a car and remotely drive it through the front door. Maybe then we can snipe some head honchos as they come out to organise a resistance...

Not the best plan, but we're getting desperate!

[dsmiles]

We mostly just went for their cameras so we could see where armed guards were and if necessary run the cliched loop to the people watching the cameras.



Yeah, that definitely happened later on. When we went up against someone better than us we were given degrees of how far we could go without notifying him. So watching cameras wasn't too hard but reading his email was.

I'll stick with my "Mooks never look up" shtick. I like the sneakysneaky.

[Volthawk]

I'll stick with my "Mooks never look up" shtick. I like the sneakysneaky.

Go underground, maybe.

[kkortekaas]

I'm interested in this too - but to get ideas, so keep em coming!!

My party is up against an enemy stronghold guarded by old-school means (guards on watchtowers and a big fence) and we can't figure out the best way in. The best idea we have so far is to armour a car and remotely drive it through the front door. Maybe then we can snipe some head honchos as they come out to organise a resistance...

Not the best plan, but we're getting desperate!

I'm in bbug's group as well and we're in a tight spot.

This is further complicated in that it's in a sunken underground city with no natural light, we've gotta haul torches or flashlights (so we'll be quite visible on approach) and the city itself is a friggen death trap.

[Reynard]

Spend a small amount on hiring prostitutes to distract/capture some of the guards, take their keys, guns, and uniforms.

[Volthawk]

I'm in bbug's group as well and we're in a tight spot.

This is further complicated in that it's in a sunken underground city with no natural light, we've gotta haul torches or flashlights (so we'll be quite visible on approach) and the city itself is a friggen death trap.

So is the base dry somehow? Or is it flooded?

[dsmiles]

Here it is: Mooks are incompetent.

[Ravens_cry]

A high Disguise and Bluff modifier.

[dsmiles]

A high Disguise and Bluff modifier.

Exactly. See my trope for more info on the "Disguised as a Guard" sub-trope. Works every time.

"Aren't you a little short for a Storm Trooper?"

[kkortekaas]

So is the base dry somehow? Or is it flooded?

Sorry, I should clarify, when I say sunken I mean it's in a giant underground cave. not underwater.

[Volthawk]

Sorry, I should clarify, when I say sunken I mean it's in a giant underground cave. not underwater.

Ah. Do you have explosives? Blow up the ceiling, and flood them.

[Ormagoden]

Two words... ruthenium polymer.


Classically you find out what cleaning company the base uses. Replace the workers and wear their uniforms. Steal what you need over the 12 hour window and call it a night. Works in shadowrun!

[Ravens_cry]

Exactly. See my trope for more info on the "Disguised as a Guard" sub-trope. Works every time.

"Aren't you a little short for a Storm Trooper?"

I wouldn't dress as the enemy, just the cleaning or maintenance staff. Every base needs people to clean it, and such people are 'beneath notice', yet they go places while carrying rolling along equipment you can hide things in.
Or if your bluff is high enough, three words, one trope: Bavarian Fire Drill.
God, I love Social Engineering.

[Kaervaslol]

Mmmm a truck and the rest in explosives and some sort of remote control device.


Crash the truck against the north corner of the facility, enter through the south corner while the guards are distracted.

[Oracle_Hunter]

Two words... ruthenium polymer.


Classically you find out what cleaning company the base uses. Replace the workers and wear their uniforms. Steal what you need over the 12 hour window and call it a night. Works in shadowrun!

Works less well for "secret" bases.

Spoiler

Show

Yes, everyone needs someone to clean up, but that's why you have J.O.'s

Bad comes to worse, you barrack the staff inside the base for months at a time, and keep them in quarantine for a day whenever you're swapping them in or out.

Better to place yourself in their provisioning service and break inside once you get past their perimeter.

Anyhoo, the OP scenario is too vague. For a truly secret place, you have to do a straight infiltration job - 24 hours is too little time to figure out who their suppliers are, when they make deliveries, and fab up sufficient IDs to get through security. Furthermore, it's not at all clear how long it takes for you to get equipment, much less what the Street Index is for illegal gear - how far does $50K really go? And how easy is it to get floor plans and so on?

The Plan

Spoiler

Show

Anyhoo, straight infiltration is relatively straightforward - reconnoiter the perimeter for access points (e.g. gaps in patrol, utilities access), break in (e.g. wire cutters, demolitions gear), disable their security system and avoid/disable guards when possible.

Disabling the security system is problematic, provided the Security Boss is watchful. You'll probably need to locate their Security Center on your own - wiring diagrams can point you to places suited for high power drains - and take it over. Once there you might be able to fiddle with the equipment for loops and so forth (depends on whether they record the footage normally, and how it's indexed) but it's probably safer to kill everyone inside, boobytrap it to slag the room if investigated, and seal up the door to make it hard to get inside.

If they have a double-layered security system (i.e. each camera reports to each area) you're probably screwed. In that case, it might just be easier to disable cameras as you go by.

Mechanical locks are easily taken care of with Lockpick Guns; keypads need to be hotwired. If stealth is no longer important, breaching charges are always fun.

Weaponry-wise, you'll want flash-bangs and tear-gas (and a gas-mask for yourself), a silenced pistol for when things go badly and various assassin gear (e.g strangle wire, knives) for when you have to take someone out. Obviously you want to kill as few people as possible, and carry as little gear as you can get away with - body armor is clearly out.

[SilverSheriff]

Grappling Hook, scuba-gear, Time Bombs, Timed Smoke Bombs, Guns, knives, X amount of Illegal drug, Cell Phone and house-hold items.

The Plan? get in the base using Grappling hook, scuba gear and items found around the house, set up something shady, set the Bombs and Smoke Bombs to go off, escape, make lots of noise while on phone to the Police after explosion.

[drengnikrafe]

My immediate thought was the sonic screwdriver.

[Ihouji]

My party is up against an enemy stronghold guarded by old-school means (guards on watchtowers and a big fence) and we can't figure out the best way in. The best idea we have so far is to armour a car and remotely drive it through the front door. Maybe then we can snipe some head honchos as they come out to organise a resistance...

Have done that exact thing, pro tip fill the armored car with high explosives on a remote detonator. Turns the whole armored car into a giant frag grenade.

We were playing Mutants & Masterminds and had a Gambit rip off in the party he just charged the armored car before we sent it in.

[Tyndmyr]

Easy. You just buy $40,000 worth of high explosives, parachutes for all but one member of the team, three inflatable pools, one hooker, three bottles of tequila and a rubber duck. The rest is self explanatory.

[Volthawk]

Easy. You just buy $40,000 worth of high explosives, parachutes for all but one member of the team, three inflatable pools, one hooker, three bottles of tequila and a rubber duck. The rest is self explanatory.

Have done that exact thing, pro tip fill the armored car with high explosives on a remote detonator. Turns the whole armored car into a giant frag grenade.

We were playing Mutants & Masterminds and had a Gambit rip off in the party he just charged the armored car before we sent it in.

See? Explosives always solve the problem.

[Kami2awa]

Bribe the janitor to leave everything unlocked.

[BobVosh]

Easy. You just buy $40,000 worth of high explosives, parachutes for all but one member of the team, three inflatable pools, one hooker, three bottles of tequila and a rubber duck. The rest is self explanatory.

I see what you did there

Really with as little info as you have with as small a time window as you got, full stealth mode go. Recon the area, sneak in as best as you can. Invest in all require lock breaking tools(including electronic ones), and buy/make various grade explosives. If you can get one in time, pick up cell phone jammers and other white noise devices.

[dsmiles]

Easy. You just buy $40,000 worth of high explosives, parachutes for all but one member of the team, three inflatable pools, one hooker, three bottles of tequila and a rubber duck. The rest is self explanatory.

The first time I read this, I didn't read "rubber duck." It's too early for this.