"Resident Evil 2" Board Game Report: Spider-Man & Black Widow Verses Zombies

SPIDER-MAN AND THE BLACK WIDOW FACE OFF AGAINST "RESIDENT EVIL 2"

This game was played using Scenario 1A - Getting To The Police Department from "Resident Evil 2: The Board Game" by "Steamforged Games". However, in order to allow us to set-up a quick(ish) play through, the in-game plastic figures were replaced with a handful of my painted "Copplestone Castings" zombies and a pair of re-painted "Heroclix" miniatures. The table was set-up exactly as instructed by the "Capcom" licensed game's rulebook, including the contents of its Item Decks, Tension Deck, Character Start points and zombie locations 

Spider-Man was armed with his famous web-shooters and enough web-fluid for fifteen shots. He also had the "Cool Under Fire" special skill, which meant that once per activation he "may use an item while one or more enemies are in his square without making an evade roll." The costumed crime-fighter would start the game in the top north-western corner. The Black Widow was armed with her Stingers and enough electricity for fifteen shots. She also had the special skill "Reckless", which meant "at the end of any character's activation including her own" Natalia "may take an out-of-sequence activation" and "after doing so, she must forfeit her following activation", and the "Intrigue" ability, which allows her "once per scenario" to "discard a card drawn from the tension deck without resolving the effects." The Avenger would start the game in an alleyway south of the Tiny Room.

The super-heroes would successfully complete this scenario if they all leave the playing area via the western door in the Final Room. Once a character has left the playing area though, they cannot activate."

THE TABLETOP -  THE ALLEYWAYS AND ROOMS SURROUNDING THE R.C.P.D. BUILDING

"The story so far... Whilst visiting Raccoon City on a photography assignment, the Daily Bugle's Peter Parker has uncovered some alarming report's concerning the Umbrella Corporation. Having contacted the Avenger, Natalia Romanova, for some much needed support, the friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man has donned his crime-fighting costume and started to make his way to Raccoon City's Police Department. However, both Web-head and the Black Widow soon find their way to their rendezvous point blocked by the brain-chomping Undead..."

Spotting the ghoulish zombie shuffling towards him down the alleyway, Spider-Man immediately activated and spent the first of his four actions shooting at the walking cadaver. The masked vigilante's web-shooters were a "rapid fire" weapon, which meant he could "spend one additional ammunition point to roll an extra attack dice". One of his shots pushed the zombie back, allowing the super-hero to move south and then fire both his web-shooters at his target again. The groaning corpse was nicely wrapped up in sticky webbing, and out of the game for good. As no other Undead were around nothing occurred in either the subsequent reaction or tension phases.

SPIDER-MAN HEADS SOUTH AS THE BLACK WIDOW BEGINS BATTLING NORTH

The Black Widow ran east along the alleyway she found herself in and turning to head north saw a zombie stood between her and a potentially useful item. As her "Widow's Bite" was also a "rapid fire" weapon the former Russian spy fired a double burst at the fiend, and pushed it further north up the alleyway. Disconcertingly, the creature staggered back towards her, making a loud painful groan.

Spider-Man headed south-east, opening the door to the First Room and stepped inside. Everything was eerily quiet, and the place seemed deserted. Meanwhile the Black Widow fired a second double-powered blast at her would-be assailant and brought the creature down permanently. Natalia then made her way up north to search amongst some debris, and considered whether to perhaps enter the Lower Room next time..?

THE BLACK WIDOW FINDS AN ITEM AS SHE NAVIGATES HER WAY TOWARDS THE R.C.P.D.

Peter Parker's alter-ego swung himself south across the First Room towards a potentially useful item located in its south-west corner. There was clearly no-one else in the place to worry about as far as the reaction phase was concerned, but during the tension phase it seemed the claustrophobic location was ideal for an "Undead Ambush" as two dark silhouettes outside were the wall-crawler's "only warning before glass shatters to jagged shards and death resumes its tireless pursuit!"

Suddenly, instead of simply facing something useful on the floor in front of him, Spider-Man was looking into the hungry faces of two freshly spawned zombies. Completely oblivious to her colleague's plight, the Black Widow searched the end of the alleyway she was in and discovered a green herb. This would allow Romanova to heal herself or a friend "in the same or adjacent square one level." The Avenger then kicked open the door to the Lower Room and immediately fired a double-blast at the zombie she saw inside. Unfortunately the shots went wild, and only succeeded in attracting the green-hued creature's attention. It unpleasantly stumbled towards the former Russian super-spy, it's arms outstretched...

SPIDER-MAN GETS MORE THAN HE BARGAINED FOR AS ZOMBIES BREAK IN TO HIS LOCATION

Spider-Man acrobatically somersaulted back away from his assailants, threw open the First Room's south-east door and hurled himself through it, slamming it shut behind him as he went. He was momentarily safe, but was now facing another zombie which stood between him and his passage north. Hearing the super-hero's dramatic entrance into the dark alleyway, the Undead monster shuffled south towards him.

Determined to bring down her foe fast, the Black Widow actually used her "rapid fire" "Widow's Bite" to its maximum potential and used one action to fire a triple-burst at the cadaver stomping towards her inside the Lower Room. The zombie was destroyed, allowing Natalia to race west and open the location's door. There were still a few hurdles between Romanova and the Raccoon City Police Department, but she had plenty of juice left in her Stingers, as well as a little time on her side.

To Be Continued...