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Control Campaign

Quick Reference
  • Every game is played in one of five Boston Locations; crews accumulate Control there, unlocking benefits.
  • Progress is tracked on the Story Sheet: Crew Name, Crew Limits, Quest Line, Goals, Crew Territory, and Experience Points.
  • After the first game, choose a Quest Line from your Faction List and fill in Tier 1 Goals.
  • A Quest Line is three Quests (Tiers 1–3). Complete all a Quest's Goals to Complete it and advance a Tier.
  • Each Goal has a Progress Condition and a Target; mark a Progress box when the condition is met (marks are permanent). Marked boxes = Target means the Goal is achieved.
  • Spend Experience Points in the Story Phase to buy Upgrades. Universal earners: Survival, Failing Forward, Harsh Lesson, Achievement Unlocked, Location Domination.
  • Completing the Tier 3 Quest finishes the crew's story — the crew disbands.

Overview

This chapter covers how games are linked together, following crews and telling the stories of their battle for Boston — how to improve your crew over time, recruit new members, and equip them with more lethal weaponry and sturdier defenses. [Battle for Boston pg. 41]

All of the games of Fallout: Factions that a crew plays are linked together, following an ongoing narrative arc. Each game is set in a specific Location — one of the five key places around Boston — and the Control a crew builds up in those Locations shapes its whole campaign. [Battle for Boston pg. 41]

The Story Sheet

A crew's whole campaign is recorded on its Story Sheet (the Crew Roster). During crew creation the player fills in the Crew Name (A) and the Crew Limits section (B). After their first game with the crew, they are prompted to choose a Quest Line (C) from their Faction List and fill in the Tier One Goals section (D). [Battle for Boston pg. 41]

At the same time, they write a value into one of the boxes of the Crew Territory section (E). This tracks how well-established the crew is in each of the five Boston Locations, and is used when choosing Scenarios. [Battle for Boston pg. 41]

In subsequent games, the crew can earn Experience Points, which have their own section (F) on the Story Sheet. The Story Sheet also contains a blank space (G), which the player can use to make notes and record ongoing grudges. [Battle for Boston pg. 41]

Story Sheet example with callouts A–G

Section
A Crew Name
B Crew Limits (Upgrade Limit, Control Limit, Champion Limit)
C Quest Line
D Tier One Goals (also Tier Two and Tier Three Goals)
E Crew Territory (Home Turf, Control Total, and per-Location Control/Scout)
F Experience Points (Available / Spent)
G Notes / grudges

Quest Lines

A Quest is the narrative your crew is following to complete their Wasteland schemes. Some crews want to become fully fledged settlements, others want to go out with a bang, and many have other ulterior motives. [Battle for Boston pg. 41]

Each crew has a Quest Line, chosen after its first game, which gives a selection of long-term Goals that the crew gradually completes over the course of multiple games. [Battle for Boston pg. 41]

A Quest Line is broken into three Quests, each corresponding to a separate Tier: [Battle for Boston pg. 41]

  1. The crew's first challenge is to complete the Goals for the Tier 1 Quest.
  2. Once done, they are ready to progress to Tier 2, which opens up new advancement opportunities and unlocks the next part of their Quest Line.
  3. Completing the Tier 2 Quest lets the crew advance to Tier 3.
  4. Completing the Tier 3 Quest completes the Quest Line and finishes the crew's story.

When a Quest Line is finished, the Leader has proven that they are invaluable to the future of Boston, and they are raised to the upper echelons of their Faction along with their chosen followers. The crew disbands and can't be used in any more games, but its player has the chance to found a new crew around some of their favorite, long-serving models and start over again. [Battle for Boston pg. 42]

Goals

Each Quest has its own section on the Story Sheet, with a space for each of its Goals. [Battle for Boston pg. 42]

Each Goal has a Progress Condition, which indicates when a Progress box should be marked for that Goal. In the example below, the player marks one of the Progress boxes each time the crew earns 4 or more Experience Points in a single game. Progress Conditions are quite varied — some call for specific in-game achievements, while others can be fulfilled before or after a game. [Battle for Boston pg. 42]

Once a Progress box has been marked, this is permanent — even if the Progress Condition ceases to apply. [Battle for Boston pg. 42]

Story Sheet Goals example

Achieving a Goal

Once the number of marked Progress boxes for a Goal equals its Target value, the Goal has been achieved, and no more boxes can be marked. [Battle for Boston pg. 42]

When all of a Quest's Goals have been achieved, the Quest has been Completed, and the crew is ready to advance to the next Tier in the Story Phase. [Battle for Boston pg. 42]

Experience Points

Crews can earn Experience Points during games, representing lessons learned from a dangerous life in the Wasteland. [Battle for Boston pg. 43]

When a crew earns Experience Points, they are added to the Available box on their Story Sheet. Players can spend Experience Points in the Story Phase to purchase Upgrades for their models. Any points that are spent are deducted from the Available box and added to the Spent box. [Battle for Boston pg. 43]

Story Sheet Experience Points example

Each Scenario lists specific ways in which crews can earn Experience Points, but there are a number of universal ways of earning them: [Battle for Boston pg. 43]

  • Survival: At the end of each game, before the Story Phase begins, each crew earns 1 Experience Point. [Battle for Boston pg. 43]
  • Failing Forward: The first time in each game that a player Fails a S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Test, their crew earns 1 Experience Point. A crew can only benefit from this rule once per game. [Battle for Boston pg. 43]
  • Harsh Lesson: If a Champion is Incapacitated, its crew earns 1 Experience Point. A crew can only benefit from this rule once per game. [Battle for Boston pg. 43]
  • Achievement Unlocked: Whenever a crew completes a Goal, it also earns 1 Experience Point. [Battle for Boston pg. 43]
  • Location Domination: If a player has to surrender Control in a Location because their Control Total is higher than their Control Limit, their crew earns 1 Experience Point. A crew can only benefit from this rule once per Story Phase. [Battle for Boston pg. 43]

Campaign Flow

A Control campaign repeats a simple loop: [Battle for Boston pg. 41]

  1. Set up and play a game in one of the five Boston Locations, earning Experience Points and adjusting Control along the way.
  2. After the first game only, choose a Quest Line and record Tier 1 Goals and starting Crew Territory.
  3. Resolve the Story Phase — treat the wounded, mark Goal progress, advance Tiers where Quests are Completed, and spend Experience Points on Upgrades.
  4. Repeat until a crew Completes its Tier 3 Quest and finishes its story.

Campaign Sections