I played Resist! tonight, again going with the standard game with a random draw.
With seven ‘successful’ missions behind us, my band of 15 (comprising 12 maquis and 3 enemy spies), despite having managed to recruit an additional two members along the way, had been reduced to just five. We had earlier managed to flush out one of the spies; so this meant there were two spies and only three maquis who remained hidden and dedicated to the cause.
Our group had attacked the commander’s villa, destroyed the barracks, reconnoitered the mountain pass, taken back the farmhouse, attacked the counter-guerilla headquarters, destroyed the supply convoy, and finally defended the crossroads. Taking out the supply convoy had been at an enormous cost, with no fewer than five maquis sacrificing themselves in the process.
I thought I was going to have to call it quits there (it would have been a “minor victory”), but then realised that with my remaining three, who were now guaranteed to be taking part in any further action, there was one mission – an attack on the mayor’s house – where success was still possible. The attempt would necessitate another sacrifice, and it was unclear what sort of defence we would encounter; however a successful mission would elevate our efforts to the level of “victory” (albeit not a major one), and we could afford a failed mission in a bid to take out one last target…
As we learned what we were facing it became clear that we could pull it off. Emelio didn’t make it back, but thanks to him the attack was a success.
There were two targets remaining – a low-value bunker, and Franco’s own headquarters – but they were both too heavily defended. Sagrario and Adolfo had both kept their involvement hidden from Franco’s forces, and it was time to return to civilian life and hope for the best. They could do no more – the resistance was over.
This was a very poor-quality photo (the text was pretty unreadable even at full-res), so I’ve only uploaded a small version. The stack of names to the right are all the resistance members who were caught or killed. To the left are the only remaining remnants. Above are the two missions we were unable to attempt.
My MVP was Roberto (who deals a large amount of damage when he reveals himself), along with the brave souls who sacrificed themselves to bust him out of prison not once but twice!
This game is good. It is also a brutal series of tough decisions from start to finish, as you realise time and again that in order to succeed at the mission you have chosen (or simply at any of the missions which are available), not everyone will be coming back. And even then you might fail. All you can do is try to mitigate the damage as best you can, and hold out for as long as possible.