Highly original name, but it does what it says on the tin.
Pretty impressive finding the stuff in a shop! Nice one!
I know. Due to plague and the aforementioned small human I've not been in there in about two years. Walked in to be sociable with friends running an x-wing tournament and bitching about AMG and....yeah. the two big starter boxes were just on the shelf. If there'd been a Lance rather than star expansion I mightve grabbed that too to have a full company in plastic, but sadly all they had were clan boxes and I'm trying to avoid introducing clan stuff till people have had intro games with the base rules.
Ghaz wrote: For those worried about the jumping 'mechs in the new mercenary force packs, Adrian Gideon (BattleTech Line Developer Ray Arrastia) posted this on the BattleTech forums:
We’re trying to them done as separate pieces. So you can put the mini on the base without the plume, and they were all sculpted with that intent.
chaos0xomega wrote: I hate that we will be waiting 4-6 months minimum for half this stuff to hit shelves.
at least you're American and can get the stuff as soon as it'sd avaliable rather then having to wait for the exclusivity period to end.
Haha, you so funny! Points at flag.
M.
I was complaining for you as much as myself. as a Canadian finding stores that'll ship here should be easy eneugh but yeah the international audiance is kinda getting the middle finger
Plus they're being very short-sighted with the upcoming Kickstarter and including no 'Mechs from outside the KS (so none of these boxes, not the new beginner box, not the new Alpha box). I like that they're excited about all their fancy new plastic 'Mechs, but damn if they aren't making it hard to get so many of them for anyone outside of the US.
I'd be ashamed of how much I paid for the B&N Annihilator/Blackjack if I didn't basically get them for free via eBay gift cards.
H.B.M.C. wrote: Plus they're being very short-sighted with the upcoming Kickstarter and including no 'Mechs from outside the KS (so none of these boxes, not the new beginner box, not the new Alpha box). I like that they're excited about all their fancy new plastic 'Mechs, but damn if they aren't making it hard to get so many of them for anyone outside of the US.
I'd be ashamed of how much I paid for the B&N Annihilator/Blackjack if I didn't basically get them for free via eBay gift cards.
Personally I wonder if they traded a limited exclusivity on those Force Packs in return for financing the initial production...
Have they said anything about future availability of the plastics or are they simply never going to make them easier to get? Like I would purchase right now a couple more Battlemasters from the box set but aside from crazy prices on eBay or buying another copy of the box that is not possible right? Just seems an odd way to go about it....
petrov27 wrote: Have they said anything about future availability of the plastics or are they simply never going to make them easier to get? Like I would purchase right now a couple more Battlemasters from the box set but aside from crazy prices on eBay or buying another copy of the box that is not possible right? Just seems an odd way to go about it....
The fact that all of the AGoAC boxed set minis will be available from IWM in metal by this summer (Battlemaster and Awesome are the last two) suggest to me that those particular sculpts won't been seen in plastic in another box. It seems entirely plausible that we could see variants available in new Lance Packs or such like the Griffin is getting, but we haven't seen anything yet. I know I'll be grabbing a few Beemers from IWM this summer when it's available, lots of great characters ride in Battlemasters and the kit will also make the Royal version!
Ghaz wrote: Personally I wonder if they traded a limited exclusivity on those Force Packs in return for financing the initial production...
Almost certainly, but there shouldn't be any problems with including current 'Mechs in the upcoming KS, including those that are already out like the Dragoon ones, and non-exclusive upcoming minis like the Alpha Strike ones.
I do hope that they aren't going to box the vehicles 4 to a giant needlessly over-sized box. Not only is that lame from a value prospect (IWM give you two of just about every vehicle per blister), but it's a massive waste of resources to put 4 vehicles - traditionally quite small compared to 'Mechs - into one of those enormous Lance boxes.
There are loads of (ground)vehicles that would be great to see in plastic, currently i only have 10 IS fighting vehicles, 3 IS support vehicles and 7 clan fighting vehicles (not counting VTOLs or ASFs).
A buddy of mine runs an Ajax/Manteufel C3 lance that is just brutal for his Davion heavy guards.
Unfortunately for all the plastic lovers they are only available through IWMs
I do hope that they aren't going to box the vehicles 4 to a giant needlessly over-sized box. Not only is that lame from a value prospect (IWM give you two of just about every vehicle per blister), but it's a massive waste of resources to put 4 vehicles - traditionally quite small compared to 'Mechs - into one of those enormous Lance boxes.
Hmm, maybe they'll put a full company's worth into a box instead lol
Judging by the photos though, the new sculpts are fairly large and would fit neatly into some of the smaller lance boxes that they have.
It would be nice to see more than 4 Combat Vehicles, particularly from TRO 3025 or even 3039. But I guess they need to gauge reception on one set before they start pushing for more. As its, much like the Elementals, i don't think putting them on full size hexes is good, since they can be paired up in a hex.
Clan Stars would be insane, though. While they would be fun, especially for Hell's Horses fans, does anyone think they'll put 10 of those models at an affordable price point in one box?
Charistoph wrote: It would be nice to see more than 4 Combat Vehicles, particularly from TRO 3025 or even 3039. But I guess they need to gauge reception on one set before they start pushing for more. As its, much like the Elementals, i don't think putting them on full size hexes is good, since they can be paired up in a hex.
Clan Stars would be insane, though. While they would be fun, especially for Hell's Horses fans, does anyone think they'll put 10 of those models at an affordable price point in one box?
Why do you think i have so many clan vehicles?
*looks down at flag in sig*
Clans as a rule supplant 2 vehicles for every mech, even my beloved horse do that even though our crews do not suck as bad as other clan vehicle crews. My clan has also developed many of the really great clan vehicles-
.XL mars
.enyo strike tank
.epona persuit hover tank
.garuda VTOL
etc....
petrov27 wrote: Have they said anything about future availability of the plastics or are they simply never going to make them easier to get? Like I would purchase right now a couple more Battlemasters from the box set but aside from crazy prices on eBay or buying another copy of the box that is not possible right? Just seems an odd way to go about it....
The fact that all of the AGoAC boxed set minis will be available from IWM in metal by this summer (Battlemaster and Awesome are the last two) suggest to me that those particular sculpts won't been seen in plastic in another box. It seems entirely plausible that we could see variants available in new Lance Packs or such like the Griffin is getting, but we haven't seen anything yet. I know I'll be grabbing a few Beemers from IWM this summer when it's available, lots of great characters ride in Battlemasters and the kit will also make the Royal version!
Gotcha - somehow I have missed that this was the case (that the IWM Sculpts coming out are the same as the Catalyst plastics) - im not opposed to metal but have none of the IWM minis (got a crapload of old Ral Partha though) - how is the detail on the IWM metals of these vs. the new plastics?
petrov27 wrote: Have they said anything about future availability of the plastics or are they simply never going to make them easier to get? Like I would purchase right now a couple more Battlemasters from the box set but aside from crazy prices on eBay or buying another copy of the box that is not possible right? Just seems an odd way to go about it....
The fact that all of the AGoAC boxed set minis will be available from IWM in metal by this summer (Battlemaster and Awesome are the last two) suggest to me that those particular sculpts won't been seen in plastic in another box. It seems entirely plausible that we could see variants available in new Lance Packs or such like the Griffin is getting, but we haven't seen anything yet. I know I'll be grabbing a few Beemers from IWM this summer when it's available, lots of great characters ride in Battlemasters and the kit will also make the Royal version!
Gotcha - somehow I have missed that this was the case (that the IWM Sculpts coming out are the same as the Catalyst plastics) - im not opposed to metal but have none of the IWM minis (got a crapload of old Ral Partha though) - how is the detail on the IWM metals of these vs. the new plastics?
Yeah, for all the good that Catalyst has done and the resurgence CBT is seeing, it can still be harder than it ought to be to follow the news and what's coming next. The IWM releases of the Catalyst sculpts use the same 3D files, so the details are identical. A lot of the detail comes out sharper in metal and the kits mostly allow for greater posability than you'd easily get from cutting up the plastics. I've lost track of how many metal Shadow Hawks and Griffins I've bought (building the historical forces from the early FASA sourcebooks gets repetitive), and I've no doubt the Battlemaster will end up the same way. Probably going to go through a bunch of Black Knights as well.
Chillreaper wrote: I am not buying another Beginner Box just for Vindicator. Do I look like I like nerve gassing crowds of civilians? I can live without it.
-10 social credit for Chillreaper for defeatest commentary.
We all know Vindicator are very good mech. It is also cheap, but you have to buy lots of add ons to make purchase practical. This used to be Company Store, but Beginner Box is what they now call this. Adapt to the new narrative citizen. Either way you will be anchored to the Celestial Wisdom and all will be in harmony.
I bought 2 copies of the existing beginner box (and AGoAC... and Clan Invasion), I will definitely be buying 2 more copies of the new Beginner Box.
Maybe CGL will sweeten the deal and include like $5-10 voucher codes in the new Beginner Boxes to make it a bit more worthwhile, kinda like how they include $20 vouchers in AGoAC.
Just got back from the store, got a few batrep pics coming after i take a nap, but for now i did an update pic of all my battletech minis by faction & unit
2nd deiron-mountain division
Spoiler:
2nd swords of light...the 10 mechs front left are all c3 equipped units (shugenja & battle master are masters)
Spoiler:
10th lyran guards...so much Steiner scout squad.
Spoiler:
P.S. i run the hector as a falconer because i like the look better.
Clan Hells Horse iota galaxy-
Spoiler:
interesting that out of the 8 units that are medium class only 2 of them are mechs, the rest are vehicles.
a collection of "objective" units-
Spoiler:
Automatically Appended Next Post: Now i am back with some battle pics, just a few
The first game i did not play in-it was a 3 way team up. 2 lances (comstar and the 2nd swords of light) team up to stop the steel vypers.
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
The game i was in was a planned mission, comstar was trying to re-capture/destroy a raijin in my force. the comstar player requested i not use a C3 lance so i broke out my 2nd derion mountain fighters.
the comstar player also really likes assault mechs so i countered him with a mix of mostly fast mediums and a light heavy. the only assault i ran was the akuma. everything on my side was jump capable as well.
You should be more afraid of the Enyo strike tanks (and the Garuda assault choppers). they are much harder to hit and pack quite a punch. the hueys like the O-bakemonos' do not want to be seen by the enemy they rely on TAGs to do their job so they do not just die.
BrianDavion wrote: nice minis. losses points for not having a dire wolf in 10th Lyran colours though
I do not even own a dire wolf, although i have the hells horse successor mech for it- the tomahawk II
I think i only have 3 invasion era iconic clan omni mechs- a masakari, a puma, and a vulture. i do run a madcat but i use the stealth marauder mini because i love the look of it and it represents the D variant quite well.
[EDIT]: Hey, did I imagine this or was there a set of optional expanded rules for piloting checks where Heavy/Assault 'Mechs had a better chance of staying upright via modifiers?
[EDIT]: Hey, did I imagine this or was there a set of optional expanded rules for piloting checks where Heavy/Assault 'Mechs had a better chance of staying upright via modifiers?
Tactical Operations: Advanced Rules, I believe. Under Piloting Skill Rolls - Taking Damage. The copy I have is old, well before the split (dakka Uziel on front), and has it on page 23.
[EDIT]: Hey, did I imagine this or was there a set of optional expanded rules for piloting checks where Heavy/Assault 'Mechs had a better chance of staying upright via modifiers?
I know the one for the heavy gauss- if you move while firing you must make a basic piloting check- in an assault mech there is no mod, in a heavy it is a +1 in a medium it is +2
[EDIT]: Hey, did I imagine this or was there a set of optional expanded rules for piloting checks where Heavy/Assault 'Mechs had a better chance of staying upright via modifiers?
I have those rules in the old Maximum Tech book.
Basically Lights had +1, Mediums 0, Heavies -1 and Assaults -2 to their target number to pass Piloting rolls.
I'm not sure if it only applied to Piloting rolls due to damage received, though - I'd have to dig the book out to check. I do remember that they also added modifiers to the roll depending on how much damage you took (think that it went up in bands of 20).
Charistoph wrote: Tactical Operations: Advanced Rules, I believe. Under Piloting Skill Rolls - Taking Damage. The copy I have is old, well before the split (dakka Uziel on front), and has it on page 23.
Yup, it’s only for falls from taking damage. P. 21 in the split book. +1 for Light/Ultra-Light, +0 for Medium, -1 for Heavy, -2 for Assault. There is also a reminder that it is +1 for every 20-point “band” of damage (so +1 for 20-39, +2 for 40-59, etc).
Manchu wrote: I honestly do not get the hype around Tex Talks.
I didn't either, at first. Couldn't stand his videos; thought that he was just being a try-hard edgelord.
But, then I listened to an interview with him and a couple of other guys (including Stackpole, no less!) and I have revised my opinion.
He obviously loves BT and the amount of work that goes into the videos these days must be astounding. They're so full of detail and (relevant) tangents that the research alone seems to take weeks or months for each one. I mean, the recent one on the Warhammer took 45 minutes before actually talking about the Mech itself.
Now, I can understand if that kind of waffle is as annoying as anything, but I'm really glad that I persevered and feel like the BT universe is better for having the videos.
If you’re saying that the content is better than substantially everything else available then I agree considering there is virtually nothing similar, of any level of quality, available otherwise. So, yes, it is better than nothing. But it doesn’t deserve the strange reverence with which some BT fans lavish it.
It’s also absurdly padded out with empty bad writing, low quality meme humor, and cringey “I’m a badass Clint Eastwood man’s man” posturing. There’s maybe 15 minutes of actual informative discussion in a 2-hour (!) video. Even if he kept the lame persona and some of the in-setting jokes, these vids should be 20-30 minutes long at most. And they should come out much more regularly.
I could understand a long narrative with lots of front-loaded, high-level background material if the thesis was in any sense controversial of even just non-obvious. But the theme is always just a platitude. “The Marauder is a cool mech.” “Tukayyid was an important battle.” “Comstar has done some shady stuff.” Is this even for BattleTech fans??
Manchu wrote: I honestly do not get the hype around Tex Talks.
Absurdly meticulous and well-researched deep dives into the history of BattleTech. The recent Warhammer video is tremendous, taking a full 1/2hr to go into the history of the design of an SLDF era WarShip to form the basis for why the Warhammer was such a successful design.
It's treating BTech history like actual history, and giving it that level of attention and thought, like an in-universe documentary.
Basically Lights had +1, Mediums 0, Heavies -1 and Assaults -2 to their target number to pass Piloting rolls.
I'm not sure if it only applied to Piloting rolls due to damage received, though - I'd have to dig the book out to check. I do remember that they also added modifiers to the roll depending on how much damage you took (think that it went up in bands of 20).
Charistoph wrote: Tactical Operations: Advanced Rules, I believe. Under Piloting Skill Rolls - Taking Damage. The copy I have is old, well before the split (dakka Uziel on front), and has it on page 23.
Manchu wrote: Yup, it’s only for falls from taking damage. P. 21 in the split book. +1 for Light/Ultra-Light, +0 for Medium, -1 for Heavy, -2 for Assault. There is also a reminder that it is +1 for every 20-point “band” of damage (so +1 for 20-39, +2 for 40-59, etc).
Did these rules make it into the BattleMech Manual?
H.B.M.C. wrote: It's treating BTech history like actual history, and giving it that level of attention and thought, like an in-universe documentary.
Honestly, I wish that was the case. But I said my piece above. Speaking of which, I do wish CGL would publish a book that really covers BT history as its main point rather than having info scattered in fragmented and oblique ways all over the place.
Did these rules make it into the BattleMech Manual?
Not that I can find. It has the default rule to make a PS check when a ‘mech takes 20 or more points of damage in a single phase “regardless of how many points is taken in that phase” (p. 53) but then lists the 20-pt “bands” optional rule (p. 55) without mentioning the weight class modifier.
H.B.M.C. wrote: It's treating BTech history like actual history, and giving it that level of attention and thought, like an in-universe documentary.
Honestly, I wish that was the case. But I said my piece above. Speaking of which, I do wish CGL would publish a book that really covers BT history as its main point rather than having info scattered in fragmented and oblique ways all over the place.
Leap into the rich history of the BattleTech universe and get up to date for the new ilClan era with this comprehensive tome! BattleTech Universe includes sections for all of the major factions, offering concise histories for each from their founding through 3150.
In addition, BattleTech Universe highlights the major moments across the history of the Inner Sphere through fiction excerpts from some of the most beloved BattleTech novels of years past—and today! An easy-to-follow guide in each segment offers suggestions for further reading.
Whether you’re just starting out in BattleTech and want to dive deep into the history of its factions, or you’re ready to jump into all the action of the ilClan era, BattleTech Universe is your indispensable guide to get up to date on 3150 and beyond!
Manchu wrote: Yeah, we’ll see. The idea of “concise histories” for each faction with re-printed excerpts from novels doesn’t seem all that promising.
*Asks for lore to be in one place, gets shown an announced book of lore... all in one place, still complains.*
What?
Same reaction. If you don't like someone going deep and treating the information as in-universe facts and logic (admittedly with meme humor that is subjective) and also are dismissing the centralized 'Start Your Lore Journey Here' book, what are you looking for?
H.B.M.C. wrote: Did these rules make it into the BattleMech Manual?
You know it is battletech, it isn't like us old players need it in a new manual. there is no in game restriction on using whichever optional rules you like.
Our group uses the old ammo explosion rules (for more Stackpole...or Michael bay if you prefer for LOLS) from max tech along with the max tech level 3 vehicle damage tables (they make vehicles much more fun to play)
We also use the +1 pilot skill check for every 20+ points of damage (stacking), forced withdrawal + safecon, As well as removing the declare fire phase in favor of the "fire as you bear" rules. much of it to speed up game play while still maintaining a high degree of immersion.
Manchu wrote: Yeah, we’ll see. The idea of “concise histories” for each faction with re-printed excerpts from novels doesn’t seem all that promising.
you're not going to get "house handbook" level in a single universe book. that level of detail is impossiable.
you're going to get a START and then yeah if you wanna DEEP DIVE? go from there but build on it. I've been playing this game for decades and am STILL learning
It’s not complicated. I didn’t just recently migrate from 40k to playing CBT. Over the years, I have collected and read dozens of the sourcebooks and a number of the novels. I don’t need to START my “lore journey” at all, much less with a padded-out starter box primer directing me to purchase this and that BattleTech novel series or directing me BACK to the sourcebooks I’m already familiar with. I can see, given the number of new players, why that product could be helpful for them. And I can see why CGL would like to sell a product catalog to new customers.
But that’s not what I’m talking about regarding a comprehensive, single-source account of the setting history. Obviously, I am also not talking about combining all the existing sourcebooks together, either, or going into that level of detail, which is really not even a matter of historical narrative (they tend to be more about military minutia). What I mean is closer to a setting bible, the sort of document that reflects at a reasonable level of detail “What Is What” along the lines of docs used by creatives working on the franchise or, for those who remember how WEG’s SWRPG materials were used, for people who want to roleplay in the setting.
yeah and those have existed to a degree. the old "inner sphere" sourcebook from back in the FASA days was more or less just that, basicly a short and sweet history of the inner sphere from "space flight terra to 3062"
I imagine the universe book'll be the same. a good place to start. but for the vetern players, proably not a lot we don't already know
So a bit more detail on this weekends battletech games.
Game 1- we put my 2 unit factions up against each other. 2nd swords VS hells horse iota galaxy.
The table tonight was a ruined industrial area-
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
We decided on a 6 turn objective mission for the attackers to capture and activate an expeimental "omega" superheavy mech with infantry.. all the defender had to do was stop them from getting there.
The force deployment
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
The defenders were distracted by the big shiny assault mechs and let the Tyr hovercraft zip around the table to steal the objective.
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The second game was something silly- a light mech battle
I do not get to put out the little guys very much, so this is the first time out for some of these mechs.
there was no outstanding objective in this game other than kill the enemy.
The IS came out ahead on this one thanks to a few super lucky hits.
Needless to say with as fast as everything is we were all over the table/play space.
The last time we did a big light brawl was on a Solaris day. Lot of destroyed 'Mechs in those bouts.
Worst game for me was when I took my lightest Clan 'Mech (a Pouncer) out for a 1v1 fight in Hartford Gardens. First turn had my leg shot off, fell of a wall, and never recovered. Shorted match of the day.
With CGL properly sizing 'mechs (and the weapons on the 'mech) it wouldn't have been any smaller than the size it is on the 3D sculpt, just how it is held.
Sometimes it’s more fun to let the light and medium mechs have the spotlight.
My next CBT project will be Battle of Luthien-themed, with 2nd Legion of Vega facing Clan Nova Cat.
I think lights get a lot of unfair flak because people don't know how to use them, and many Btech games lack objectives other than kill them all. Here, have 4 Locust go kill that Zeus is not a very interesting game.
Sometimes it’s more fun to let the light and medium mechs have the spotlight.
My next CBT project will be Battle of Luthien-themed, with 2nd Legion of Vega facing Clan Nova Cat.
I think lights get a lot of unfair flak because people don't know how to use them, and many Btech games lack objectives other than kill them all. Here, have 4 Locust go kill that Zeus is not a very interesting game.
M.
Battletech 3rd Edition had a scenario that was roughly that. A damaged Battlemaster (heaviest mech that came in the game) versus all the bug mechs that came in the box. Still, a Battlemaster had more options than a Zeus when surrounded.
It just says pairs from what I see, I don't see where it says "two pairs of two" - that was a question asked by one of the posters but the response was just "they will be in pairs" which could mean 1 pair, 2 pairs, 4 pairs, whatever.
In any case, inner sphere lance boxes are fairly small, and based on the size of the vee prototypes if its two pairs in a box then it should fill out the box nicely.
Nah, they'll do Inner Sphere vehicle Lances. 4 vehicles per box (two vehicles, duplicated, so 2 of each type), and there will be 8-10 boxes of them, all priced like Lance Packs.
H.B.M.C. wrote: Nah, they'll do Inner Sphere vehicle Lances. 4 vehicles per box (two vehicles, duplicated, so 2 of each type), and there will be 8-10 boxes of them, all priced like Lance Packs.
Yep as an IS lance is literally 1 for 1 conversion from vehicles to mechs. clanners get a bit wonkie since they consider vehicles inferior to mechs so replace a single mech point with 2 vehicles, but then they are glass cannons(other than the Heimdal) and any clan outside hells horse has terrible crew stats (5/6 standard).
Vehicles should never be underestimated especially using the level 3 hit location and crit charts. my friends davion heavy guards lance of X3 AJAXs (one of each type) and a Manteufel "spotter" tank in his C3 lance is a beast to fight.
H.B.M.C. wrote: Nah, they'll do Inner Sphere vehicle Lances. 4 vehicles per box (two vehicles, duplicated, so 2 of each type), and there will be 8-10 boxes of them, all priced like Lance Packs.
Yep as an IS lance is literally 1 for 1 conversion from vehicles to mechs. clanners get a bit wonkie since they consider vehicles inferior to mechs so replace a single mech point with 2 vehicles, but then they are glass cannons(other than the Heimdal) and any clan outside hells horse has terrible crew stats (5/6 standard).
Vehicles should never be underestimated especially using the level 3 hit location and crit charts. my friends davion heavy guards lance of X3 AJAXs (one of each type) and a Manteufel "spotter" tank in his C3 lance is a beast to fight.
the clans also don't train their tank crews very well, in part because tank crews are useally made up of failed trueborns and freeborns and "nobody cares about them!"
"The Clan lives by the motto that "man comes before machine," a philosophy which values the individual soldier over whichever tool of warfare he uses."-Sarna
chaos0xomega wrote: It just says pairs from what I see, I don't see where it says "two pairs of two" - that was a question asked by one of the posters but the response was just "they will be in pairs" which could mean 1 pair, 2 pairs, 4 pairs, whatever.
In any case, inner sphere lance boxes are fairly small, and based on the size of the vee prototypes if its two pairs in a box then it should fill out the box nicely.
The 'how many pairs in a force pack' would be covered in the 'Can't say anything more at this point' statement from Adrian Gideon. If they're not sold in multiple pairs you'd have the price of a pair of 20-ton Skulkers being the same as a pair of 80-ton Demolishers and that's unrealistic IMHO.
chaos0xomega wrote: It just says pairs from what I see, I don't see where it says "two pairs of two" - that was a question asked by one of the posters but the response was just "they will be in pairs" which could mean 1 pair, 2 pairs, 4 pairs, whatever.
In any case, inner sphere lance boxes are fairly small, and based on the size of the vee prototypes if its two pairs in a box then it should fill out the box nicely.
The 'how many pairs in a force pack' would be covered in the 'Can't say anything more at this point' statement from Adrian Gideon. If they're not sold in multiple pairs you'd have the price of a pair of 20-ton Skulkers being the same as a pair of 80-ton Demolishers and that's unrealistic IMHO.
I'm not really certain about that- think of the Inner Sphere Striker Lance- 3 lights and a medium.
It's the same price as the Inner Sphere Direct Fire Lance- which is 2 Assaults and 2 Heavies.
I don't think they're likely to try to balance it out by weight or combat power, going by the existing Force packs.
i got the water table set up. but both the opposing players forgot to choose and or print out the sheets for their capture transports.
So we went ahead with some quick replacements.
This was not designed to be an easy mission, each side brought 1 transport to try and board and capture the primary boat in 8 turns. they were also fighting each other.
Funny enough both sides blew their MASC rolls on a mech and took out hip actuators.
the comstar side had a hovercraft but it died to a motive crit from the other sides WIGE so it became a race to disable the WIGE
On the final turn the WIGE attempted a boarding action and failed by 2. leaving the objective boat alive and running.
Because as the 'mechs get new artwork, the 'mechs which previously didn't have a torso are being given one (e.g., the Nova found in the Clan Invasion box now has a torso)
Because as the 'mechs get new artwork, the 'mechs which previously didn't have a torso are being given one (e.g., the Nova found in the Clan Invasion box now has a torso)
The Thug, too, I noticed. The model even has the torso slightly twisted.
I wonder if they'll get rid of it for the Black Hawk-KU...
Per Xotl on the Battletech forums, the trait is being outright removed from the BMM.
presumably as the art is updated mechs with NTT will be addressed. with what we know is in the new KS, I think the number of mechs without torso twisting art is going to be umm.. the artic fox (based off the Uller)a and the falconer
Because as the 'mechs get new artwork, the 'mechs which previously didn't have a torso are being given one (e.g., the Nova found in the Clan Invasion box now has a torso)
The Thug, too, I noticed. The model even has the torso slightly twisted.
I wonder if they'll get rid of it for the Black Hawk-KU...
Probably, but since there's no Inner Sphere OmniMechs in the Kickstarter it won't be for a while.
I'm really glad that I decided to focus on my Diamond Shark trinary (and Snow Raven, Wolf and Jade Falcon stars) this year and left my Crater Cobras for next year as I would have been waiting for so many miniatures from the Mercenaries Kickstarter for them.
Chillreaper wrote:I think that I might be ill or something...
I scrutinized that lineup and thought "You know what? I think that I have enough Mechs".
I'm sure that it'll pass, or I could get some medication for the condition, I suppose.
I kind of understand that, there are only two there I don't already have a variant of, and only the Highlander is one I actually miss. The Gargoyle has never really be one I liked.
That being said, as a Thunderbolt fan, I have a desire to have my hands on that Eridani model. I just wonder if I can get my hands on a Götterdämmerung before that boxset comes out.
BrianDavion wrote: Per Xotl on the Battletech forums, the trait is being outright removed from the BMM.
presumably as the art is updated mechs with NTT will be addressed. with what we know is in the new KS, I think the number of mechs without torso twisting art is going to be umm.. the artic fox (based off the Uller)a and the falconer
Do you have a link for that, or at least which post that was in?
Chillreaper wrote:I think that I might be ill or something...
I scrutinized that lineup and thought "You know what? I think that I have enough Mechs".
I'm sure that it'll pass, or I could get some medication for the condition, I suppose.
I kind of understand that, there are only two there I don't already have a variant of, and only the Highlander is one I actually miss. The Gargoyle has never really be one I liked.
That being said, as a Thunderbolt fan, I have a desire to have my hands on that Eridani model. I just wonder if I can get my hands on a Götterdämmerung before that boxset comes out.
BrianDavion wrote: Per Xotl on the Battletech forums, the trait is being outright removed from the BMM.
presumably as the art is updated mechs with NTT will be addressed. with what we know is in the new KS, I think the number of mechs without torso twisting art is going to be umm.. the artic fox (based off the Uller)a and the falconer
Do you have a link for that, or at least which post that was in?
While our weekly group doesn't use Quirks, we do have a campaign I'm in that does. We have a Cicada 3C that will be most grateful when that goes on line.
While our weekly group doesn't use Quirks, we do have a campaign I'm in that does. We have a Cicada 3C that will be most grateful when that goes on line.
While our weekly group doesn't use Quirks, we do have a campaign I'm in that does. We have a Cicada 3C that will be most grateful when that goes on line.
yeah it'll open up a bunch of mechs I'd otherwise not touch
Anthony Scroggins has posted a concept sketch for Inner Sphere Battle Armor on his Patreon. I'm not a patron so I can't say how it looks, but it does give us hope that it may show up in the Mercenaries Kickstarter (or in another Force Pack).
So do I - I've got IS Standard, Hauberks, Kanazuchis, Rottweilers, Voids, Infiltrator IIs, Phalanx, Grenadier, Kage, Gnome, Toads, Coronas, Golems, Afreets, Rogue Bear and even some random Fa Shih armour from a friend who bought too much - but a nice new set in plastic isn't a bad idea.
VictorVonTzeentch wrote: Oh I'll end up with quite alot of that IS Standard. Already have alot of Elementals from the KS, but need more.
I might have a Battle Armor addiction problem.
It's only a problem if you look at it negatively!
Battle Armor is a thing I'd love to see a 28mm release of, if only for a display/diorama bit.
There's a chance you might see one in metal some day to go along with the 25mm Elemental from Iron Wind Metals
There are also 2 Hauberk Commando sculpts, too, with this search.
Someone on the BT forum played a version of Alpha Strike that was closer to being BattleTroops/ClanTroops in scale. I don't have all the details on how they set it up, but there is a Battle Report of it here. He called it Infantry Strike, and I would be hard pressed to say I wouldn't want to try it out. It might even bring some of the Games Workshop guys in to the game.
Well, there are quite a few metals i own that are great, they have not made plastics so who knows if it would be better. i like the sculps of my crimson langur, stalking spider, original glass spider, original raijin, 3rd version of the blood asp, mech scale xerxes ASFs, enyo strike tanks among others.
I am just curious what lance pack the vulcan will be in.
XannKortal wrote:However, with the introduction of the AGoAC and Clan Invasion boxes representing new introductory points: how does CGL define the Introductory (i.e., the non-tournament, but also non-advanced) rules?
Adrian Gideon wrote:It's all in the process of an overhaul. The old ('current') Introductory/Tournament/Advanced/Experimental system, just like the prior Level 1, 2, etc. system was too tied into the fluff and lore to really be a good breakdown of rules and gameplay level.
XannKortal wrote:However, with the introduction of the AGoAC and Clan Invasion boxes representing new introductory points: how does CGL define the Introductory (i.e., the non-tournament, but also non-advanced) rules?
Adrian Gideon wrote:It's all in the process of an overhaul. The old ('current') Introductory/Tournament/Advanced/Experimental system, just like the prior Level 1, 2, etc. system was too tied into the fluff and lore to really be a good breakdown of rules and gameplay level.
The old Level 1, 2, 3 system wasn't really tied in to fluff, but was tied in to how much rules crunch you wanted to do and how far one was willing to take the munchany equipment. Of course, that was pre-Jihad, too, before "RetroTech" was brought in. Rifle Cannons (basically what we use with our armies in the 21st Century) would be Level 3 because of their odd rules interactions with Standard Armor, Battle Armor, Buildings, and Structure.
The "current" system has the Standard/Advanced/Experimental system tied to the fluff. For example, the Hatchetman, which would be classified as Level 1, is classified as "Experimental" on the Record Sheets provided by CGL as part of the Kickstarter releases, even though it is quite "Standard", if not "Introductory", by the time the Clans invade. Mixed Tech is "Experimental" for Operation Bulldog, but "Standard" by the time of the ilClan with numerous TRO and regular units being Mixed Tech by the time of the Hour of the Wolf.
From a realistic standpoint, in order to include everything, and be consistent, a return to something akin to the "Level" system might be in order (and easier to consistently track), but it would require a rewrite or removal of Total Warfare and/or the Battlemech Manual.
aphyon wrote: Well, there are quite a few metals i own that are great, they have not made plastics so who knows if it would be better. i like the sculps of my crimson langur, stalking spider, original glass spider, original raijin, 3rd version of the blood asp, mech scale xerxes ASFs, enyo strike tanks among others.
Yes, and no. The original sculpts were based on designs taken from TRO: 3025, 2750, and 3050 tend to be the worst. Many of those designs are great, but others are quite... lacking. Take the Lancelot, for example. Horrible in drawing, worse in original sculpt. The latest plastic is at least workable, though, I prefer the STL mock up someone made.
The Firestarter is one such offender. The original artwork makes it a gawky affair. The Ral Partha and Ironwind models do little to improve this design. (I'm not faulting them, though, the fault lies more in the original drawings.) However, it looks like the design CGL will be releasing, along with the Vulcan above, will more closely follow the schema of Mechwarrior Online, which looks amazing.
Another interesting offender is the Stalker. A great Assault mech, but the original design is akward. Just reversing its knee design makes it sooo much better.
It's not technically classic, but master unit list has been updated with ilClan material, including the new factions from Tamar Rising, and some that have not been mentioned before, like Star League Clan Wolf, or the Clan Protectorate. It also will incorporate the IS Clan General list if you click on Alyina Mercantile Militia, or whichever general list is associated with your faction, which I thought was a major upgrade.
I have the original master unit list circa 3075 on PDF but since we rarely play past that point (usually 3067 is the cutoff unless we are playing a WOB settings)
Gitzbitah wrote: It's not technically classic, but master unit list has been updated with ilClan material, including the new factions from Tamar Rising, and some that have not been mentioned before, like Star League Clan Wolf, or the Clan Protectorate. It also will incorporate the IS Clan General list if you click on Alyina Mercantile Militia, or whichever general list is associated with your faction, which I thought was a major upgrade.
clan protectorate is something thats been mentioned before. it's a sea fox/nova cat state that is a FWL member.
the extinct list is actually kinda depressing... when did the fire javalin go extinct?! :(
For those who like fancy books, THIS was supposed to be on the store today:
Cubby wrote:Sorry, all, I spoke too soon - the store listings may not be ready, and that's above my pay grade.
Since people were guessing, what I'd hoped to get out was the Warrior trilogy in hardcover and leatherback editions. Still working on that, but it may not be today. My apologies.
Good. I always liked the Vulcan, it did things very differently, completely ignored the meta and yet made sense in doing so. Only comperable mechs are the Firestarter and the Flea.
Got quite a bit of battletech in again this weekend. and even more new players. the explosion of classic battletechs resurgence just keeps going...not like i would be unhappy about that
I posted some pics of the 3d hex board the store had in the other topic (pics of your recent games), i was requested to set up a city and this is how it turned out-
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
My first game on the table was explosive....literally.
this is the turn the bushwacker and typhoon faced off against a suicidal thunderbolt.....1 LRM 15 ammo crit later and all three of them died in an epic explosion.
then the battlemaster and stalker traded heads-gauss VS ERPPC+medium laser.
only my lonely little razoback survived for my side.
For those wondering about the contents of the upcoming Technical Readout: Dark Age, reports from Origins (where they have a few early copies available) list the following 'mechs:
Gun
Arbalest
Crimson Hawk
Koshi standard
Mjolnir
Anubis
Cadaver
Crosscut MOD
Dola
Jackalope
Pack Hunter II
spider
Wulfen
Eyrie
Blade
Havoc
Jaguar
Rokurokubi
Storm Raider
Tiburon
Arana
Calliope
Cuirass
Night Stalker
Raven II
Scarecrow
Goshawk II
Stalking Spider II
Violator
Argotera
Avalanche
Black Hawk standard
OMNI Centurion
Enforcer III
Gracedigger
Raider
Sarath
Shockwave
Ursus II
Wendigo
Bakeneko
Dark Crow
Exhumer
Gryfalcon
Hitotsume kozo
Kheper
Mad Cat III
Thunder Fox
Anzu
Shadow Cat II
Vulpes
Vulture Mk III
Vulture Mk IV
Dragon II
Karhu
Lament
Loki Mk II
Scourge
Ursa
Blood Reaper
Carronade
Gallant
Hound
Mangonel
Thor II
Black Knight
Cave Lion
Jade Hawk
Mad Cat Mk IV
Prefect
Shiro
Sphinx
Tian-Zong
tundra Wolf
WArwolf
Bruin
Doloire
Zeus-X
Omen
Stalker II
Juliano
Night Wolf
Onager
Orochi
Peacekeeper
Shrike
Tenshi
Atlas
Atlas III
Jupiter
malice
Xanthos
Poseidon
Ares
I am sure this will surprise nobody, but i played more battletech this weekend.
I have about 160 different mechs, tanks, battle armor, etc... so i tend to try and run some units that do not get a lot of attention.
Our comstar player is obsessed with crabs, king crabs hermit crabs etc.. so i did battle against his crabs
i brought the heavy gauss stalker, a gauss variant cestus, a falconer (being played by a hector) and a silly valkyrie
For a guy who complains he never gets successful crits, me managed 2 triples and a double this game. most of them causing engine hits that forced most of my force to withdraw.
Only the valkyrie survived and decided to run away. the only crowning achievement for my side was taking out his commanders king crab to a combination head shot.
We have an Ostsol in our campaign organization that was refit to be a MedLas carrier.
Still fragile as heck, but has gotten a lot of Vehicles on its tally.
Spoiler:
Ostsol OTL-4SK Special K
Mass: 60 tons
Dry Cost: 4,912,000 C-Bills
Total Cost: 4,912,000 C-Bills
Battle Value: 1,223
Walking Speed: 54.0 km/h
Maximum Speed: 86.4 km/h
Armament:
7 Medium Lasers
================================================================================
Equipment Type Rating Mass
Engine: Fusion Engine 300 19.00
Walking MP: 5
Running MP: 8
Jumping MP: 0
Heat Sinks: Single Heat Sink 23 13.00
Heat Sink Locations: 4 LT, 3 RT, 2 LL, 2 RL
Armor: Standard Armor AV - 144 9.00
Head 8
Center Torso 22
Center Torso (rear) 6
L/R Torso 22
L/R Torso (rear) 4
L/R Arm 8
L/R Leg 20
================================
Equipment Location
---------------------------------------------------
2 Medium Lasers RT 2 Medium Lasers LT
2 Medium Lasers CT Medium Laser HD
BattleForce Statistics
MV S (+0) M (+2) L (+4) E (+6) Wt. Ov Armor: 5 Points: 12
5 4 4 0 0 3 0 Structure: 5
Special Abilities: ENE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA
Edit: Though, what's scarier is the Awesome the player modified with some Star League tech. +3 Jump Jets, +4 MedLas forward, and +4 MedLas Rear, all acquired by swapping to DHS.
I used to hate the Ostmechs, I guess that it was due to first seeing them in Citytech. Project Phoenix ones grew on me, the newer ones also look very nice. I'll have to grab a few.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Charistoph wrote: We have an Ostsol in our campaign organization that was refit to be a MedLas carrier.
Still fragile as heck, but has gotten a lot of Vehicles on its tally.
Spoiler:
Ostsol OTL-4SK Special K
Mass: 60 tons
Dry Cost: 4,912,000 C-Bills
Total Cost: 4,912,000 C-Bills
Battle Value: 1,223
Walking Speed: 54.0 km/h
Maximum Speed: 86.4 km/h
Armament:
7 Medium Lasers
================================================================================
Equipment Type Rating Mass
Engine: Fusion Engine 300 19.00
Walking MP: 5
Running MP: 8
Jumping MP: 0
Heat Sinks: Single Heat Sink 23 13.00
Heat Sink Locations: 4 LT, 3 RT, 2 LL, 2 RL
Armor: Standard Armor AV - 144 9.00
Head 8
Center Torso 22
Center Torso (rear) 6
L/R Torso 22
L/R Torso (rear) 4
L/R Arm 8
L/R Leg 20
================================
Equipment Location
---------------------------------------------------
2 Medium Lasers RT 2 Medium Lasers LT
2 Medium Lasers CT Medium Laser HD
BattleForce Statistics
MV S (+0) M (+2) L (+4) E (+6) Wt. Ov Armor: 5 Points: 12
5 4 4 0 0 3 0 Structure: 5
Special Abilities: ENE, SRCH, ES, SEAL, SOA
Edit: Though, what's scarier is the Awesome the player modified with some Star League tech. +3 Jump Jets, +4 MedLas forward, and +4 MedLas Rear, all acquired by swapping to DHS.
That Ostol is cutting it really close. One med laser on the back, and the pain starts.
Going from top right, to left, then to the bottom row:
1. Rifleman IIC
2. Sagittaire
3. Regent
4. Is... is that a Quickdraw? What's going on with the back of its head?
5. Hoplite (apropos!)
6. Based on the turret I'm going to guess the Shrek over the Alacorn.
7. Scorpion (a plastic Scorp... well I'll be!)
8. I was about to say Enforcer, but then I saw the shoulders. That's a very Enforcer-ish Firestarter.
H.B.M.C. wrote: 6. Based on the turret I'm going to guess the Shrek over the Alacorn.
Yes it's a Schrek. According to Anthony, the vehicles are going to have a nice little bonus to the sculpts...
Anthony Scroggins wrote:The final vehicle minis should have rotating turrets, but I neglected to order this print with the turret detached so I'm not gonna cut through it.
H.B.M.C. wrote: 7. Scorpion (a plastic Scorp... well I'll be!)
Yes. We saw him a few months ago in the KerenskyCon pics, along with these guys...
H.B.M.C. wrote: Is that a Quickdraw, though? With the weird sensor thingy on the back of his head?
Yes, it is a Quickdraw. Since the background has the Quickdraw being designed as a replacement for the Rifleman I would assume it's some sort of targeting array.
Yeah the Hoplite sure is a weird 'un. You could almost use it as an up-armoured faster Urbie, where it would excel in that sort of environment, except it doesn't have jump jets.
It's time to come together for one of our own. One of the owner/operators of Iron Wind Metals, a BattleTech licensed product line since the FASA days, has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. To assist her family, we are dedicating all profit from this month's Premium BattleMech Miniature to her health care expenses.
The Hammerhead is 45-ton, ilClan era design by Clan Sea Fox, provided to all Clans and Inner sphere factions in a tariff-free offering. Now, add it to your own TO&E!
This premium variant uses new modeling techniques being employed to update all BattleMech designs. It comes unassembled and unpainted, with posable arms in ball-and-joint sockets. Sea Fox engineers are assuring all buyers that the shoulder sockets will accommodate the arms of future premiums in the same weight class for the ultimate kit-bashing experience.
Yeah, i feel you there, i was going to order some of the epic scale 3d printed terrain from sacrusmundus before i had access to a person with a 3d printer. he is based in Australia and i am in the USA. it cost as much to ship the sets as it does to buy them. fortunately, now STL files + 3d printer go brrrrr.
Looks like I picked the right point in time to print my own stuff. I wonder if this shipping thing continues for a long time it's going to push things more towards 3d printing.
Master unit list, even if you aren't playing Alpha Strike, is a quicker and handier way to tell who typically has access to mechs in certain eras. It has the Hammerhead as IS Clan General.
My name is Derek, and I run an online gaming company called Aries Games & Miniatures. One of the companies I work with on a daily basis is Iron Wind Metals, who the owners are Mike & Melissa Noe.
In April of 2021, I was informed that Melissa was diagnosed with both Lung & Brain cancer. She's been fighting hard and has kept a good attitude through it all, but now she needs your help. For anyone that has worked with, or had the pleasure of talking to Melissa, knows she is one of the kindest people in the world. Her humor can shine a light on some of the worst days. She always called herself the "Office Wench", and jokingly a Viking Biker as she loved riding motorcycles. She's charming, witty, and very down to Earth.
Well...as many of you know from your own experience, either with family or friends, Cancer treatments can devastate the family...both emotionally and financially, and that's where they can use your help.
Someone asked him (Anthony Scroggins) if this means another Wolf's Dragoons force pack was in the works and he replied "Nah they'll be sprinkled into the general kickstarter packs."
I wish it was a Scylla! I love that thing's whirlpool missile launcher arms. I was surprised at the Shogun as well, almost as rare as their Wolfhound IIC.
Of the ten 'mechs in the Wolf's Dragoons sourcebook, the only ones we haven't seen are the Falcon, Hornet and Imp. I will be very surprised if we don't get the Imp at the very least.
Beginning in the Dark Age clan Sea Fox began producing Shoguns for sale to mercs in the Inner Sphere, so it appears they aren't quite so rare once you get into and beyond the 3130s.
We need a plastic version of the Grown Up UrbanMech.
I was cruising through IWMs and my force faction list tables and i was thinking some cool mechs that i would like to add to my collection if catalyst made them in plastic
havoc
Neanderthal
STAG
lynx
tempest
P.S. did anybody notice the KARHU is a Z'GOCK type zeon mobile suit
Our look inside the Wolf Empire following the battle for Terra is just around the corner, so it’s the perfect time to expand your roster with one of the iconic units fighting through that region.
We’ve also got a preview of that upcoming sourcebook, Empire Alone, and more to share today!
Wolf’s Dragoons Assault Star
Spoiler:
Price: $34.99
The Wolf’s Dragoons are the most well-known and respected mercenary command in the Inner Sphere and their Mech Warriors are some of the most skilled and feared across hundreds of worlds. Once more, the Inner Sphere is poised for war and the Wolf’s Dragoons are on the forefront.
Newly available in the Catalyst Game Labs store, this ForcePack includes the new Annihilator, as well as a re-posed Timber Wolf and Rifleman and new variants of the Archer and Blackjack BattleMechs – no assembly required – along with 10 MechWarrior pilot cards and five Alpha Strike cards! Perfect for BattleTech and Alpha Strike action!
Unleash the Wolf’s Dragoon Assault Star on your enemies!
This ForcePack includes:
5 High quality, fully assembled, (Unpainted) miniatures 10 MechWarrior Cards 5 Alpha Strike Cards Note: A limited number of the Wolf Dragoon’s Assault Star ForcePacks. We are currently limiting them to two per order, until our next restock.
Death to the dishonorable! Eager to take revenge on the devious Smythe-Jewels, Clans Coyote and Hell’s Horses announced a Trial of Possession for all of the Fire Mandrill Kindraa’s holdings and legacies. The no holds barred campaign saw innovative strategies and state-of-the-art technology come into play in the Kindraa’s fight for survival. Desperate maneuvers and sly battle plans swung the battle back and forth. Turning Points: Foster details the fate of Kindraa Smythe-Jewel in a titanic struggle in the Kerensky Cluster during the Golden Century.
Turning Points: Foster uses Chaos Campaign rules to give players the option of fighting individual battles or to follow a campaign arc. Included are a detailed map of the world of Foster, a rundown of the forces involved, and scenario tracks recreating the battles.
Below, we’ve got an exclusive sneak preview from Empire Alone¸ the upcoming sourcebook detailing events in the Wolf Empire, Free Worlds League, and neighboring nations following the Battle for Terra. (Click for a larger version.)
Empire Alone will be available on the Catalyst Game Labs web store Friday, July 8 and in retail distribution Wednesday, July 13!
Spoiler:
Coming Soon: Timber Wolf TC Premium Miniature On the Catalyst Game Labs web store Friday, July 8.
Spoiler:
GoFundMe
A beloved member of our BattleTech family, Melissa Noe of Iron Wind Metals, is battling cancer, and our community is rallying to support her and her family. A GoFundMe account was recently established under her family’s control to provide a venue for community donations – if you’re able, we hope you’ll consider lending your support.
Adrian Gideon wrote:Hey all, just a quick, informal, semi-official word (because we couldn’t get the official word in time to add to the announcement):
The bulk of our Wolf’s Dragoons stock is going to our European distribution hub, so they’ll be available for folks over there to order, once the hub opens. No ETA on that yet, but just letting folks know that it’s a reality, it’s being worked on, and we’re honestly trying to make sure we can take care of people as best we’re able.
Thanks.
Also note that ACD Distribution has the new Beginner Box listed with a release date of September 21st.
normally as a hells horse iota galaxy player i never have to worry about clan honor duels since they never abide by it. when i looked through my collection, trying to decide which mechs needed to get out and play and realized i had a lance worth of blood spirits mechs. talk about polar opposites!
We used-forced withdrawal with safecon rules
I bid a challenge to our steel vyper player who ran a mostly heavy star. i challenged him with 2 assaults and 3 medium equivalent points.
The vypers ran
.executioner
.gargoyle
.timber wolf
.black python
,mad dog
MY side i ran
.blood asp
.blood kite
.crimson langur
.stalking spider
.a point of blood drinker proto mechs
The game was pretty straight forward. challenges were issued and the battle commenced.
It was also the first game where i ran a mech 24 overheat (the spider) as i figured i was going to die..then i didn't for an extra turn.
The star commanders battled each other while the other points borke off in duels.
I lost 2 protomechs destroyed, the stalking spider destroyed and the crimson langur forced into withdrawal.
conversely, the vypers lost the timber wolf, gargoyle, executioner, and mad dog to forced withdrawal.
That is correct i used the models for the ROC but i ran blood drinkers- 9 ton heavy protos with the same movement of a ROC but they are equipped with 3 clan ER small lasers each.
I forgot to add i was playing upsilon galaxy and he was running Triasch Keshik rules.
aphyon wrote: That is correct i used the models for the ROC but i ran blood drinkers- 9 ton heavy protos with the same movement of a ROC but they are equipped with 3 clan ER small lasers each.
I forgot to add i was playing upsilon galaxy and he was running Triasch Keshik rules.
Protomechs are a rarity. It's always interesting to see them around. I've used old plastic models as proxies myself as getting one's hands on them from the local is a challenge.
I've not heard of the Blood Drinker class, though. Your own personal build?
aphyon wrote: That is correct i used the models for the ROC but i ran blood drinkers- 9 ton heavy protos with the same movement of a ROC but they are equipped with 3 clan ER small lasers each.
I forgot to add i was playing upsilon galaxy and he was running Triasch Keshik rules.
Protomechs are a rarity. It's always interesting to see them around. I've used old plastic models as proxies myself as getting one's hands on them from the local is a challenge.
I've not heard of the Blood Drinker class, though. Your own personal build?
I have 3 squads of proto's ROCs, minotaurs, and orcs, i use the ROCs to represent themselves or blood drinkers, the minotaurs as themselves or the "new" svartalfa and the ORCs as demon ticks as the weapons are in the same location (arm mounted ER smalls)
All the variants i use are in the "heavy metal light" program database i never made any of my own.
the demon tick is my favorite with a 100 fusion engine. it only has 2 ER small lasers as i said above but with a move of (7/11/7 HEX) 14/21/14 it is pretty much a threat to everything on the table.
The blood drinkers are a bit slower to add in the 3rd ER small laser. sporting only a 75 rated engine. Since i was playing a themed blood spirits star i felt it was the correct one to use.
aphyon wrote: I have 3 squads of proto's ROCs, minotaurs, and orcs, i use the ROCs to represent themselves or blood drinkers, the minotaurs as themselves or the "new" svartalfa and the ORCs as demon ticks as the weapons are in the same location (arm mounted ER smalls)
All the variants i use are in the "heavy metal light" program database i never made any of my own.
the demon tick is my favorite with a 100 fusion engine. it only has 2 ER small lasers as i said above but with a move of (7/11/7 HEX) 14/21/14 it is pretty much a threat to everything on the table.
The blood drinkers are a bit slower to add in the 3rd ER small laser. sporting only a 75 rated engine. Since i was playing a themed blood spirits star i felt it was the correct one to use.
Interesting. I'm not familiar with the "heavy metal light" program. I tend to use MegaMekLab for Protomechs, and neither it nor Sarna.net have the Blood Drinker or Demon Tick. I wonder where they got the designs from, or if they are the programmers' own designs.
Still, I'm on the fence with the usefulness of Protomechs. I've used Satyr 4s, Gorgon 1s, and Roc 3s so far. The Satyrs were mostly used as fast Tag carriers, and worked pretty well at that job. All told, I don't think I've lost a whole unit of them, though I usually lose one in a match. I have lost up to 3 in a match once, though, to some high rolls with Clan Large Lasers. Since the scenario was about staying close to an objective, and they were on the other side of where the 3 died, so I dropped the pair in to a nearby pond to protect them from long range fire.
For their BV and the job I want them to do, the Satyrs worked fine, great even. The Gorgons did their job, too. I can't say much about the Rocs, though, they did a decent job as they intercepted a pair of bugs trying to run down a flank, but would have a Mech armed with the same number of Clan MPL done the job easier and with more mobility?
Protos are a trade off. most people i play with find them annoying because of the "near miss" rules for location 3&11
The book describes the EI link system as giving them better performance than standard clan pilots so we always run them as gunnery 2, and they cannon fall down so any pilot checks on the rare occasion it is need are done off the gunnery skill. the flip side of the EI system is any internal damage to any part of the proto causes a pilot hit, so it is quite easy to kill them via pilot shock.
I run the demon ticks as effectively a light mech. being incredibly fast, packing a combined 10 ER small lasers and completely heat neutral. it works well with IOTAs combat doctrine of headhunting the enemy commanders mechs. it is also incidentally the same speed as my crimson langur so they tend to run as a team.
The svart has stupid amounts of armor, and while being slow for a WIGE i like running it for thematic reasons for my horses. the blood drinkers only come out when i play blood spirits.
Heavy metal light is part of the heavy metal series of computer programs that were officially sanctioned for classic battletech. the pro pack has everything except aerospace (found in heavy metal aero which i also own a copy of) the pro pack includes heavy metal "mech" (for mechs), "vee" for vehicles, and "light" for infantry, battle armor and protomechs.
The updates include patches from places like mechforce UK for the armored cowl option as well as various mech variants. the program also allows you to build nearly every mech found on sarna or in one of the TROs. i do not think the plasma weapons or TSEMP weapons are in there though.
P.S. the base BV 1 for the demon tick is 254, for the blood drinker it is 274 each
the heavy metal program is a (at this time) program for mech design that is something along the lines of 20 years old. Unless Rick (the program is made and produced by a mane named Rick Raisley) has released an update I've not heard about recntly it's an old program and both SSW and MML are better programs.
that said HMpro is a lisenced product... assuming the lisence is still kept up.
also last I heard the program had issues with calculating BV 2.0
It’s half-way through 2022, and Catalyst is hard at work on the next BattleTech campaign. That does not mean, however, that we’ve forgotten any of the missed promises from our first campaign. We have several digital products and the lost card decks to account for, plus the insignia dice which came out at such suspect quality that we chose to drop them from approximately 20% of our final deliveries.
It’s easy to focus on our losses and not count our victories, but all in all we delivered more than 1,100,000 digital and physical items to better than 15,000 backers. An average of seventy-four items per person in what was one of the largest Kickstarter campaigns (Top 100) of all time. On the downside, if we count the loss of quality control on the insignia dice, we failed to deliver 4% of our promised items.
So, a 96% fulfillment rate. All while weathering a worldwide pandemic and lockdowns in China and enduring spiraling shipping costs. How bad did that get? At one point, right when we were moving the bulk of our rewards, containers had climbed from an $8000 average to $32,000, and could spike even higher. That’s adding about $4 in lost revenue to every copy of Clan Invasion, or an 8% penalty.
So, yeah, we do feel like we won a war, even if we lost some battles along the way. Which may not feel comforting if you, our backers, took some shrapnel during a skirmish. We can find a way to do better. And we will.
In the meantime, there has been some misinformation spreading out there which we want to set right. It has always been Catalyst’s intention to make good on the lost card decks and substandard insignia dice. No, you do not have to request it (or lose it). A significant part of the delay was figuring out how to handle this for every backer. Not just the highest backers or the Kickstarter vs Pledge Manager backers. All backers.
We think we’re now in striking distance. We’ve parsed through “spreadsheets from hell,” located and hired a solid customer service specialist who didn’t faint at the sight of blood, and worked with our website programmers to ensure that we didn’t break our own webstore system in order to handle this level of commitment. We chose to use CGL store credit to maximize your benefit by an extra $20 if you backed both dice and decks (see below).
DICE: Everyone who pledged to receive a single pair of dice will receive at least a $5 credit (per pair) on the Catalyst store to make up for the lack of CGL quality, and an additional $5 (per order) for the conversion to store credit.
DECKS: There were three missing decks (by title) but CGL combined the extant pilots from in-progress decks to create “Heroes of the Inner Sphere,” which you will have received in place of at least one missing deck. You will still receive a credit of at least $15 per missing deck.
In the next few weeks, credits will start to mail out. There are more than 12,000 of them. We will continue to post updates as to where we are in the process. For those who asked about applying this credit to the next campaign, we think that is possible, but it will take an arrangement with our pledge manager. If you do not spend the credit, we will work with you to apply it at that time.
BattleTech has been utterly transformed in the gaming market over the last three years, with sales and popularity not seen since the original Clan Invasion thirty years ago. In large part due to your amazing passion.
Thank you all for your brilliant patience and support.
Some (indirect) news on the Mercenaries Kickstarter from the Leviathans Kickstarter:
So theoretically we could see the Mercenaries Kickstarter starting on September 2nd, but realistically I would put it from two to four weeks after the Leviathans Kickstarter (if they stick to the 30 day campaign that Kickstarter recommends).
BrianDavion wrote: the heavy metal program is a (at this time) program for mech design that is something along the lines of 20 years old. Unless Rick (the program is made and produced by a mane named Rick Raisley) has released an update I've not heard about recntly it's an old program and both SSW and MML are better programs.
that said HMpro is a lisenced product... assuming the lisence is still kept up.
also last I heard the program had issues with calculating BV 2.0
The last update for the program was for 3132, so that gives you an idea of how old/new it is, the great thing about it is that you can pretty well build any mech with a TRO entry with the program.
As for levianthans, they would work great for EasyEs new game-castles in the sky.
Ghaz wrote: So theoretically we could see the Mercenaries Kickstarter starting on September 2nd, but realistically I would put it from two to four weeks after the Leviathans Kickstarter (if they stick to the 30 day campaign that Kickstarter recommends).
Would they really do two Kickstarters in the span of a month?
Ghaz wrote: So theoretically we could see the Mercenaries Kickstarter starting on September 2nd, but realistically I would put it from two to four weeks after the Leviathans Kickstarter (if they stick to the 30 day campaign that Kickstarter recommends).
Would they really do two Kickstarters in the span of a month?
Well, first of all Kickstarter doesn't allow multiple projects at the same time and if they do the recommended 30 day Kickstarter they would not be able to do two Kickstarters within a month (although it is possible to shorten a Kickstarter campaign down to as little as one day, I don't see that happening). Then once the Leviathans Kickstarter is complete, I would imagine they would want to take a short breather, not only for themselves but also for the backers who want to support both Kickstarters (and there seems to be quite a few on the BattleTech Forums). Hence, I can't really see the Mercenaries Kickstarter starting until mid-September to early October if they keep to their Fall 2022 timeline.
I'm more amazed that they'd want to two campaigns that close to one another, especially given how complex the last one was.
When they announced the Kickstarter back in April they specifically stated 'Fall 2022' and that would be between September 22nd and December 22nd. Catalyst hasn't noted any changes to that time frame.
Like many in the extended online BattleTech community, we at Catalyst Game Labs were surprised today by the decision of a prominent member of that community to re-brand their online presence as a general science fiction discussion rather than BattleTech alone.
This decision appears to have stemmed from a meeting Wednesday night between that community member, David Anthony Vivas, and BattleTech Line Developer Ray Arrastia. The meeting was one in a series of dialogues we have had and will continue to have across prominent BattleTech communities.
These discussions came after Catalyst Game Labs was contacted by the BattleTech license holder regarding potential violations of the BattleTech rights and license. While no specific action was demanded by the license holder at that time, Catalyst elected to proactively reach out to individuals in the BattleTech community regarding BattleTech IP rights and license uses.
We took this step as a courtesy to the community to alert them to probable forthcoming issues, and in the hope that Catalyst could work with them to tailor their communities and activities to better fit within the bounds of the BattleTech IP rights and license.
At no point during conversations with any community members did Ray make any requirement for a comprehensive rebranding or retreat from the BattleTech fan space. Rather, during these meetings, he laid out some suggestions for ways to continue operating and ensure the greater community’s long-term viability in light of the license holder’s concerns. That initial meeting with “Everything BattleTech” was meant to be the first exchange in an ongoing conversation; the subsequent, unilateral rebranding was a surprise to us.
We wish David the best with his rebranding effort, and remain available and willing to discuss any concerns by those operating communities or fan spaces in the BattleTech online sphere.
The reaction among BattleTech community members today has reminded us of the importance of–and fan appetite for–dedicated spaces online for BattleTech communities. We are currently reviewing Catalyst’s official presence online and always evaluating options to refine and improve it.
It really pisses me off if it's what I'm imaging. No matter how legally on the right Topps&Co. are the fact is that for years while the game was in the doldrums it was the online fans that kept it out oblivion. Now, after 2 several succesful KS for the 2018 game, and the plastic miniatures that brought fresh air for the game it's time to turn back on the people that kept it alive?
Who are we talking about, here? Who's the "prominent member of that community that has re-branded their online presence as a general science fiction discussion"?
From what I've managed to put together, from hearsay it goes like this:
There's a site, with Discord (I don't know, it's all Web 2.0 stuff to me) called Everything Battle tech.
Monetisation is involved somewhere. The owner, or new owner (who may or may not be the old owner under a different name) has come to the attention of the license holder (Topps).
Apparently the license holder mentioned this to CGL who had a friendly/"friendly" word with the site owner, giving them a heads up. They appear to have rebranded in order to avoid incidents.
The owner of the site may or may not have said that he got a C&D, but the evidence of that hasn't been posted.
All as clear as things usually are in the wonderful world of IP stuff...
From what I've seen Chillreaper is right: David Anthony Vivas / Everything Battletech was making money off the Battletech brand, Topps flagged this up and Everything Battletech went critical - stuff is either down or renamed Everything Sci-Fi.
I should also note that I'd heard lots about EBT and the folks running it and none of it was good, so yeah I'm inclined to side with CGL on this. Especially when, I know from personal experiance that CGL is incrediably supportive and involved with, the online community
apparently the guys all but admitted he only ran the site and discord to make money off the fans.
If it's about monetization of the discord I stand corrected. I was thinking more along the lines of EBT receiving a warning for allowing fan art without permision from Topps.
From the new ilKhan on Terra comes word to the Wolf Empire of their Clan’s victory. With no further communication from Alaric Ward, Star Colonel Othar takes the reins of the Empire, attempting to weather the assaults of his neighbors, and ensure the ilKhan’s realm remains inviolate.
Hungrily eyeing their worlds lost to the Empire, now stripped of the Wolves’ best, factions within the Free Worlds League launch offensives across the border and risk carrying Nikol Marik into a war she may not be ready for. At her back, the Spirit Cats and Clan Sea Fox lair in their Clan Protectorate, eager to pursue their own ends.
And out among the stars, the Wolf’s Dragoons and their new commander are on the hunt…
Empire Alone is a BattleTech sourcebook providing full details of the events around the Wolf Empire and Free Worlds League from 3151 to mid-3152. Included are a full historical summary of events in those regions of space, personality and unit profiles of key players—many appearing here for the first time, and game information to bring it all to your BattleTech tabletop.
H.B.M.C. wrote: I hope Viacom Topps doesn't come after Sarna.net next...
It may not be Topps, actually. Topps was recently bought out by a company called Fanatics (from what I've heard from a the local Demo Agent), and they may be part of the situation as well.
Of course, if there was notable profitable monetization as others have noted, that would be a concern as well.
It may hit 3D model printers and STL creators as well. It largely depends on how much profit and attention they may be getting that gets the IP owner's attention.
H.B.M.C. wrote: I hope Viacom Topps doesn't come after Sarna.net next...
It may not be Topps, actually. Topps was recently bought out by a company called Fanatics (from what I've heard from a the local Demo Agent), and they may be part of the situation as well.
Of course, if there was notable profitable monetization as others have noted, that would be a concern as well.
It may hit 3D model printers and STL creators as well. It largely depends on how much profit and attention they may be getting that gets the IP owner's attention.
Ghaz wrote: As for the 3D printing, most of those are generally of MechWarrior Online models and not something that Catalyst would be taking care of AFAIK.
Which would be either Microsoft or Piranha Games, but some of the designs are REALLY close to each other that the details are almost unnoticeable in a good print.
Ghaz wrote: As for the 3D printing, most of those are generally of MechWarrior Online models and not something that Catalyst would be taking care of AFAIK.
Which would be either Microsoft or Piranha Games, but some of the designs are REALLY close to each other that the details are almost unnoticeable in a good print.
And Piranha stated a long time ago they didn't much care. Repeatedly, IIRC.
privateer4hire wrote: “…apparently the guys all but admitted he only ran the site and discord to make money off the fans.”
For the chronically uninformed, how would someone make money by running such a site?
You paid ("subscribed") for access to the exclusive Patron / Discord Premium content.
Huh.
Thank you
this is very common at the moment as the easiest thing to get people to pay a subscription on patreon/Youtube, offer an exclusive discord for members to discuss everything (which can get you into trouble if you allow politics as well) and have the chance to see stuff before it goes live or suggest new content etc to the creators
but than using a name for it that is already owned by someone else, is not the best idea in the first place
Don't see the 2 front mounted SRM 2's but other than that the loadout checks out.
The SRM-2s are side-mounted according to TRO 3039 and are in the disc-shaped turrets above the tracks along with a MG (they're mounted like this in the original artwork as well). There's also another pair of MGs mounted to the front above the right LRM launchers.
Don't see the 2 front mounted SRM 2's but other than that the loadout checks out.
The SRM-2s are side-mounted according to TRO 3039 and are in the disc-shaped turrets above the tracks along with a MG (they're mounted like this in the original artwork as well). There's also another pair of MGs mounted to the front above the right LRM launchers.
I counted all that it is still missing the 2 front mounted SRM 2 launchers
X2 AC 10 turret
X2 SRM 6 turret
X4 LRM 5 front
X2 SRM 2 front (missing)
X2 machine guns front
X1 SRM 2 left/right
X1 machinegun left/right
It isn't a bad tank but i would rather run a challenger X
It turned out to be a pretty brutal back and forth. keeping us both right around the same number of losses each turn.
the comstar player called it in the end after he lost initiative 2 turns in a row that prevented him from really using the speed of his hermit crabs to his advantage.
The other game we did was the final battle in our ongoing campaign.
The players were trying to hold the city they had liberated in the previous match. they came close, but were down a player and an assault mech. it also didn't help they lost their nightstar on turn 2 thanks to the pilot getting knocked unconscious .
We had to use quite a few proxies for the attacking force. and my poor hunchback basically had a bullseye painted on him as no Mater which way he went the indirect artillery strikes the players called in always seemed to scatter onto him.
We’re pleased to announce that our Kickstarter will be launching this fall for our new gaming and fiction franchise, Land & Sea. We are rolling it out with the intro trilogy of books, starting with the first novel – Splashdown. Once we get the novels out we will then be moving on to the tabletop and roleplaying games.
The image is the cover of Splashdown. What you see is an ASHUR rig – named for the Assyrian god of war. Twenty-five years from now, ASHUR’s dominate the battlefield. The battlespace of combat is mix of armor, GRD’s (Ground Robotic Drones), infantry, and ASHUR’s. It is warfare evolved, and Land & Sea is a military sci-fi series that will grab your attention and hold it tight.
We will be exploring the universe more in future posts. For now, if you want to be informed of the Kickstarter – click on this link: Splashdown Kickstarter and sign up.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Gen Con wrote:In BattleTech: Alpha Strike, you take command of large-scale engagements with tabletop-miniatures gameplay designed for the modern wargamer. The highly anticipated Alpha Strike box set bursts with action, including thirteen high-quality, ready-to-play miniatures and a cohort of terrain and tokens. Grab your advance copy at booth #1611!
chaos0xomega wrote: Holy hell that seems steep for a starter product, but then again theres what, 13 mechs in the box?
The Alpha Strike box is totally optional and is not needed to play the game. To play Alpha Strike all you would need is the Alpha Strike: Commander's Edition rulebook, what miniatures you're using (if you're using miniatures, that is) and http://www.masterunitlist.info/ for the stats of your units.
The box contents are in the pic up above and by comparison, the A Game of Armored Combat box only came with 8 'Mechs and retails for $59.99.
chaos0xomega wrote: Holy hell that seems steep for a starter product, but then again theres what, 13 mechs in the box?
The Alpha Strike box is totally optional and is not needed to play the game. To play Alpha Strike all you would need is the Alpha Strike: Commander's Edition rulebook, what miniatures you're using (if you're using miniatures, that is) and http://www.masterunitlist.info/ for the stats of your units.
The box contents are in the pic up above and by comparison, the A Game of Armored Combat box only came with 8 'Mechs and retails for $59.99.
Technically, you can use the Quick Start Rules to handle most Mech work. The Commander's Edition just expands on Special Rules, other unit types, and different ways to build your unit.
I believe the Alpha Strike: Commander's Edition is currently the only Alpha Strike rulebook available. Plus, unless everyone in the group is using the Quick Start rules then it makes sense to have your own rules and $39.99 hardly breaks the bank (or you could get the PDF for only $19.99 if you have a tablet you can use).
Ghaz wrote: I believe the Alpha Strike: Commander's Edition is currently the only Alpha Strike rulebook available. Plus, unless everyone in the group is using the Quick Start rules then it makes sense to have your own rules and $39.99 hardly breaks the bank (or you could get the PDF for only $19.99 if you have a tablet you can use).
Yes, it's the only FULL rulebook. But if you want to get your toes wet on the basics, the QSR is a good place to start. The QSR is missing A LOT, even when it comes to the Specials, but it does cover the basics on movement, range, and shooting.
Recently, production quality issues accidentally slipped into the release of the Hammerhead. As a result, approximately one-quarter of the initial run of the miniature have too-thick layer lines from a draft 3D printed top of the torso.
After Catalyst acquired enough data to verify there were significant issues, the miniature’s producer, Monster Fight Club, responded to us less than twenty-four hours after being notified of the problems. Our partners walked us through exactly how the error occurred, how they’ll ensure it doesn’t occur again (going so far as to destroy the molds associated with the issue!), and then presenting the following plan to absolutely make this right. It is important both to Catalyst and to MFC that BattleTech customers can trust in the continued quality of the Premium Miniatures line.
The next Premium Miniature, the Eris (from Recognition Guide: ilClan, Vol. 18), is in final production now. All Eris miniature packs will also include a corrected Hammerhead torso part. So if you are planning on purchasing the Eris, you’ll simply receive the corrected part for the Hammerhead for free. We expect the Eris to go on sale in August.
Next, Monster Fight Club has already begun a second print run of the Hammerhead. They are verifying that all parts produced in this second run are free of defects. Also, this reprint will include an additional arm and leg, expanding poseable options.
Finally, anyone who simply wants to receive a replacement Hammerhead torso piece may email info@monstefightclub.com, and a replacement torso will be mailed to you. (This will not ship out until after Gen Con, but if you are attending Gen Con, while supplies last, there will be replacements available at the Catalyst Booth, #1611.)
Thanks for your patience as we sort out this issue. And thanks to Monster Fight Club for so quickly and thoroughly stepping up to make this right.
Did a couple of simple pick up games tonight. with a newer player. i let him pick from my selection of mechs and i put out some stuff i thought needed a bit more table time.
This was the table i set up-
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Game 1 was a straight battle
He ran
.battlemaster
.dragon fire
.falconer
.thunderbolt
I ran-
.orochi
.awesome 9M
.warhammer
.ninja-to
He was using the terrain and his faster mechs pretty good at first, and i thnk he may have won....had i not put a thunderbolt 20 through the cockpit of his basically undamaged dragon fire.
Both my mechs were pretty beat up by the time his remaining T-bolt decided to retire.
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
He had time for a second game, but everybody else was in the middle of a solaris free for all so we spiced things up a bit and had a second go.
He wanted to play around with ECM ghost imaging and gauss so i set him up with my desert lance-
.fafnir
.atlas S2
.viking G2
.battlemaster 4S
I put out
.sunder OD-DR
.awesome 9Q
.awesome 9M
.archer 6S
We kept the era to 3063 and older. we also added a defender's objective mobile HQ. we went end to end this battle with his forces starting at the middle of the field and my forces attacking from the river.
This was another brutal game....and much like the first we were both rolling and confirming a stupid number of crits from LBX cluster shots and streaks etc.......what really turned it in my favor was trading the atlas (head destruction) and the fafnir(engine crits) for the awesome 9m in the 3rd round.
We called it when he was down to the lone battlemaster trying to defend the city.
As someone who has typically watched Battletech from a distance for decades, has there ever been a "skirmish" version of the game/IP that focuses on the smaller units in the lore? A game variant where the light mech might be the king of the battlefield populated by combined arms vehicles, elemental power armor, and protomechs. I realize that I'm probably combining different eras and Clan/Inner Sphere units in the sentance above so apologies in advance. I also suspect that I'm inquiring about a round peg for a square hole but figured I'd ask just in case.
warboss wrote: As someone who has typically watched Battletech from a distance for decades, has there ever been a "skirmish" version of the game/IP that focuses on the smaller units in the lore? A game variant where the light mech might be the king of the battlefield populated by combined arms vehicles, elemental power armor, and protomechs. I realize that I'm probably combining different eras and Clan/Inner Sphere units in the sentance above so apologies in advance. I also suspect that I'm inquiring about a round peg for a square hole but figured I'd ask just in case.
Did BattleTroops ever scale up to include vehicles & Mechs?
warboss wrote: As someone who has typically watched Battletech from a distance for decades, has there ever been a "skirmish" version of the game/IP that focuses on the smaller units in the lore? A game variant where the light mech might be the king of the battlefield populated by combined arms vehicles, elemental power armor, and protomechs. I realize that I'm probably combining different eras and Clan/Inner Sphere units in the sentance above so apologies in advance. I also suspect that I'm inquiring about a round peg for a square hole but figured I'd ask just in case.
A game can be as large or as small as you wish. You can easily set up parameters where nothing weighs in more than 35 tons (maximum weight for a Light Mech). Battle Armor would still be run as squads and Conventional Infantry as squads or platoons in either Total Warfare or Alpha Strike rules.
If you're talking about where the Light Mech is a Monster on the field like in WarCry, I don't think there's anything official on that scale yet, though the very-outdated BattleTroops/Clan Troops might fit that bill. Unofficially, someone developed a variant of Alpha Strike they called Infantry Strike. Very interesting, but there are a few problems I personally have with it as it doesn't scale anything non-Infantry at all.
Oh, and don't worry about mixing unit types and tech types in Battletech, The only time that is a concern is with Eras or "historical" scenarios. A couple weeks ago, I ran a few Inner Sphere tanks with two Points (i.e. 10 total) Protomechs with zero BattleMechs at all, just to provide something different. Units aren't generally restricted to specific factions, just what technology one may have acquired just as often by salvage as by factory.
Protomechs are a bit of a one-off, though. The pilots require life-shortening surgery in order to pilot them, making finding pilots outside of extremely fanatical factions (like failed Clan pilots or Word of Blake Jihadists) very very low.
beast_gts wrote: Did BattleTroops ever scale up to include vehicles & Mechs?
I remember hearing that from someone who played it, but I haven't read the books to know for certain.
Edit: Doing a quick perusal in an old PDF of BattleTroops, they do have Mech and Vehicle Templates. Clan Troops (1991) provides for Battle Armor. But nothing for ProtoMechs. I think because of a lack of interest, it just was never expanded on by the time ProtoMechs were introduced in 1997/1998. Maybe one or more of the RPG elements can do it, though likely with far more detail.
Battletroop is good, it have some revolutionary game mechanics for its time, and integrates vehicles and mechs with infantry. I like it, I would like a remade, it just need a cosmetic make over if anything.
But basic Battletech is skirmish, the basic game is lance vs lance that is 4 mechs a side. Battletech is the skirmishest of mech games.
Pointman wrote: But basic Battletech is skirmish, the basic game is lance vs lance that is 4 mechs a side. Battletech is the skirmishest of mech games.
But considering the average "health" of a 'Mech, it's not exactly an example of "skirmish". Things take far too long to die in most cases.
My local group has been running Alpha Strike games at 150 points, which is usually good enough for a Lance, and, barring rules questions, can usually fit a game in at 70 minutes. We also use the Multiple Attack Dice Rule to keep a portion of Battletech crunch, and so things don't die too quickly.
Pointman wrote: Battletroop is good, it have some revolutionary game mechanics for its time, and integrates vehicles and mechs with infantry. I like it, I would like a remade, it just need a cosmetic make over if anything.
But basic Battletech is skirmish, the basic game is lance vs lance that is 4 mechs a side. Battletech is the skirmishest of mech games.
Yeah, just like everything with Battletech, even phrasing a question properly is complicated.
That's why I tried to qualify "skirmish" as I've known since the early 90s that most CBT tend to be low model count games but I don't think I've ever seen anyone refer to them as "skirmish" type games due to the complexity of the ruleset and the type of models (big hulking mechs) portrayed.
If you're talking about where the Light Mech is a Monster on the field like in WarCry, I don't think there's anything official on that scale yet, though the very-outdated BattleTroops/Clan Troops might fit that bill. Unofficially, someone developed a variant of Alpha Strike they called Infantry Strike. Very interesting, but there are a few problems I personally have with it as it doesn't scale anything non-Infantry at all.
Yup, that's the feel I was going for. While admittedly I have no experience trying it with CBT specifically, I've found that in general trying to play at the extreme ends of the ruleset/army composition tends not to be particularly fun as they're supposed to be the fringes and not the focus typically. Whether you're trying to bolt on Apocalyse onto 2000's 40k or probably only use 10% of available units in CBT, I expect there would be unforseen consequences.
Protomechs are a bit of a one-off, though. The pilots require life-shortening surgery in order to pilot them, making finding pilots outside of extremely fanatical factions (like failed Clan pilots or Word of Blake Jihadists) very very low.
beast_gts wrote: Did BattleTroops ever scale up to include vehicles & Mechs?
I remember hearing that from someone who played it, but I haven't read the books to know for certain.
Edit: Doing a quick perusal in an old PDF of BattleTroops, they do have Mech and Vehicle Templates. Clan Troops (1991) provides for Battle Armor. But nothing for ProtoMechs. I think because of a lack of interest, it just was never expanded on by the time ProtoMechs were introduced in 1997/1998. Maybe one or more of the RPG elements can do it, though likely with far more detail.
The RPG might be the way to go and admittedly I didn't think about that option. Does it use the traditional hex grid like CBT or is it abstracted? I'm guessing the former but figured I'd ask. I included protomechs just for completeness as I remember them being smaller than light mechs (?) in my roughly at most once a leap year game of CBT/AS but don't recall exactly how they fit in with the rest chronologically or technologically. Same with elemental power armors. I assume the rough size comparison goes Light Mechs (urban?) > Protomechs > other vehicles like tanks/helicopters > Elementals but that's just a guess.
warboss wrote: The RPG might be the way to go and admittedly I didn't think about that option. Does it use the traditional hex grid like CBT or is it abstracted? I'm guessing the former but figured I'd ask.
There's 2 or 3 different versions at the moment, from what I understand, and I'm not really familiar with any of them. The scenarios which called on old Mechwarrior RPG for combat used a basic map with no grid on them at all, so I think it would be closer to more miniature movement. A Time of War is the latest version, but I don't have any copies of it, nor really looked in to it.
warboss wrote: I included protomechs just for completeness as I remember them being smaller than light mechs (?) in my roughly at most once a leap year game of CBT/AS but don't recall exactly how they fit in with the rest chronologically or technologically. Same with elemental power armors. I assume the rough size comparison goes Light Mechs (urban?) > Protomechs > other vehicles like tanks/helicopters > Elementals but that's just a guess.
Light Mechs range from 20 to 35 tons (though 10 and 15 have existed). All BattleMechs are considered "2 Levels Tall".
Combat Vehicle sizes depend on their movement type: VTOLs max is 30t, Hovercraft is 50t, Wheeled and WiGE (Wing-in-Ground-Effect) are 80t, Tracked is 100t. These are usually considered "1 Level Tall".
Protomechs originally massed from 2t up to 9t normally, but "Super-Heavy" Protomechs from 10-15t also exist. These are considered "1 Level Tall". The average human is probably just shorter than the average ProtoMech's Leg. In Warhammer terms, they're about halfway between a Wraith Lord and a Wraith Knight or an Ogre and a Giant. At the level of Battle Troops, they'd probably be deployed like a Space Marine Dreadnought, Wraith Lord, or a smaller monster like a Fomoroid, or Chimera.
Battle Armor runs about 500kg to about 2t, but as small as 80kg can be made. In Warhammer terms, their like Space Marines or the Stormcast Eternals, though some would be as small as Stormtroopers or almost big as a Dreadnought.
So, if you can fit in a Light Mech like a Locust or an UrbanMech, fitting a ProtoMech in to the game should be possible. They are also mostly patterned after monsters, too, so it could be possible to proxy monster models in to such a game. In a story mission, though, they are rather rare, due to so few using them on a regular basis.
Isn't there an RPG equivalent to 'Alpha Strike' now, that being a far more cut-down version that doesn't involve receiving rebates and franking credits during the character creation process?
H.B.M.C. wrote: Isn't there an RPG equivalent to 'Alpha Strike' now, that being a far more cut-down version that doesn't involve receiving rebates and franking credits during the character creation process?
H.B.M.C. wrote: Isn't there an RPG equivalent to 'Alpha Strike' now, that being a far more cut-down version that doesn't involve receiving rebates and franking credits during the character creation process?
I only made up one of the above things...
not sure I'd call it a RPG alpha strike. it's a "narrative" RPG which is useally code for "minimal mechanics sit down with your buddies and tell a story.."
Hopefully it's better than the one that came out for Shadowrun. There's rules light and then there's rules missing... Shadowrun Anarchy was unfortunately more of the latter.
Light Mechs range from 20 to 35 tons (though 10 and 15 have existed). All BattleMechs are considered "2 Levels Tall".
Combat Vehicle sizes depend on their movement type: VTOLs max is 30t, Hovercraft is 50t, Wheeled and WiGE (Wing-in-Ground-Effect) are 80t, Tracked is 100t. These are usually considered "1 Level Tall".
Protomechs originally massed from 2t up to 9t normally, but "Super-Heavy" Protomechs from 10-15t also exist. These are considered "1 Level Tall". The average human is probably just shorter than the average ProtoMech's Leg. In Warhammer terms, they're about halfway between a Wraith Lord and a Wraith Knight or an Ogre and a Giant. At the level of Battle Troops, they'd probably be deployed like a Space Marine Dreadnought, Wraith Lord, or a smaller monster like a Fomoroid, or Chimera.
Battle Armor runs about 500kg to about 2t, but as small as 80kg can be made. In Warhammer terms, their like Space Marines or the Stormcast Eternals, though some would be as small as Stormtroopers or almost big as a Dreadnought.
So, if you can fit in a Light Mech like a Locust or an UrbanMech, fitting a ProtoMech in to the game should be possible. They are also mostly patterned after monsters, too, so it could be possible to proxy monster models in to such a game. In a story mission, though, they are rather rare, due to so few using them on a regular basis.
Thanks for the detailed rundown. Yeah, those are the ones off the top of my head I was thinking in regards to the game type I asked about. I hesitate to call it "skirmish" as the model count would be likely bigger than most CBT lances or small scale as it would either be the same literal scale for model convienence or bigger (if 3d printed) to adjust to the new focus.
Would anyone be interested in that or is that just not really what dedicated want from this IP?
BrianDavion wrote: not sure I'd call it a RPG alpha strike. it's a "narrative" RPG which is useally code for "minimal mechanics sit down with your buddies and tell a story.."
And I'm not sure I'd call Alpha Strike "Battletech". It's a super-stripped down version of the core rules that removes all levels of detail and flavour just so you can smash minis together and make pew pew noises.
warboss wrote: Yeah, those are the ones off the top of my head I was thinking in regards to the game type I asked about. I hesitate to call it "skirmish" as the model count would be likely bigger than most CBT lances or small scale as it would either be the same literal scale for model convienence or bigger (if 3d printed) to adjust to the new focus.
A lot depends on how much you'd call "skirmish" level. If you're talking about a Squad of basic ground pounders of Conventional Infantry (average size is 7), like WarCry or current Kill Team, at most, then yeah, getting Battle Armor can be a small challenge, but Vehicles, ProtoMechs, and even Light Mechs may be too far, though WarCry does have a game design for things like that. If you're willing to grow up to an Infinity-scale game or a platoon of those basic ground pounders, then it can work out.
A lot will depend on the level of detail and survivability of each of the units in question. Battletech takes a long time to play even with 4 units on a side partially because of the detail, but also because of just how survivable each unit can be. Oh, there are units which won't survive a lot of attention, but they are cheap so you usually them to fill up a small amount of points or to do what's called "Initiative Sinking" with a bunch of them (Players trade of actions in the Movement Phase, so having 5 cheap ConvInf Platoons supporting 3 Mechs can force a player with 4 mechs to be moving 1 opponent's Mech for up to 2 of the their units, prioritizing the very slow Foot Infantry).
If your average Foot Infantry only takes a hit or two with regular rifles to take out, having a dozen or two on the board isn't that big of a problem, but they'd have to be able to handle what the opponent can bring to the table, too. 28 riflemen should have a challenge when facing off against a Gorgon Protomech or two equipped with Anti-infantry weaponry. In the larger Total Warfare and Alpha Strike rules, it would require those PBI to be in buildings in order to have a chance, as being outside of one allows the full force of their weaponry to be at play.
warboss wrote: Would anyone be interested in that or is that just not really what dedicated want from this IP?
With some people showing an interest in someone's personal write up of "Infantry Strike" (Alpha Strike, but at BattleTroops level), I wouldn't dismiss it as something no one would be interested in.
More information on the Combat Vehicle Force Packs we'll see with the Kickstarter. From the Official BattleTech Forums:
shivanwurm wrote:Scroggins made a post on his patreon featuring what he is saying is the vehicles in thier intended pack, and called it a bit of a product preview.
so question for you guys... if someone wanted to jump back in to BT what would be the best place to start?
what if said person didnt care for the standard mech designs but liked the MWO version of the mechs... any recommendations how to handle that?
some of the 50 year old sculpts look 50 years old... bleh
usernamesareannoying wrote: so question for you guys... if someone wanted to jump back in to BT what would be the best place to start?
what if said person didnt care for the standard mech designs but liked the MWO version of the mechs... any recommendations how to handle that?
some of the 50 year old sculpts look 50 years old... bleh
Well, miniatures aren't required to begin with so you could just play with chits to represent the 'Mechs if you want to. The newly redesigned plastic 'Mechs are really nice but if you have your heart set on MWO designs you will either need to have a 3D printer or find someone online who can print them out for you.
Automatically Appended Next Post: Additional question.
Whatever happened to Solaris 7?
I seem to remember that being pretty fun
There are two ways to get started: with Models, without Models.
With Models:
The Beginner Box (getting a new release with the new Vindicator Mech as well as the Griffin)
A Game of Armored Combat (8 Classic Mechs)
Clan Invasion
Alpha Strike (Coming soon with 13 models, 2 of which are new sculpts)
Without Models:
Total Warfare - For Classic Battletech general rules for ground game units (and water-based untis), with some air/space craft rules.
Technical Manual - For creating units that operate with Total Warfare.
Battlemech Manual - For Classic Battletech general rules of Mechs only, has some rules for equipment from Tactical Operations and Campaign Operations (Quirks, specifically)
Alpha Strike: Commander's Edition - For your Alpha Strike needs (if you're playing them).
For more advanced equipment and rules:
Tactical Operations series - Split in to more advanced rules like weather OR more advanced equipment like artillery, or fancy armors.
Interstellar Operations series - Split in to the Alpha Strike precursor BattleForce OR period-specific equipment like Tripods or Nova Combined Electronic Weapon System.
Find an avalanche of new products at our booth, 1611!
* Alpha Strike Box Set
* Mercenary-themed Beginner Box (now includes the Vindicator)
* Empire Alone
* Technical Readout: Dark Age
* A Time of War Reprint (Vintage-cover)
* CountersPack: BattleForce
* 10 new metal dice pucks (Republic of the Sphere, Rasalhague Dominion, Raven Alliance, Clan Sea Fox, Magistracy of Canopus, Kell Hounds, Hansen’s Roughriders, Avanti’s Angels, Black Thorns, Camacho’s Caballeros)
* New T-shirt
** Various new novels in print form including A Question of Survival by Bryan Young, and Land of Dreams by Randall N. Bills
Not long again there was a Kickstarter that saw a bit over 100 'Mechs go through a complete redesign to give them a unifying and updated art style. Since then even more 'Mechs have been updated, with new boxes of plastic 'Mechs coming out slowly. And, on top of that, a further KS is planned with even more redesigns, including vehicle redesigns.
So you don't have to worry about ancient sculpts, as they're getting replaced - and replaced in plastic! - at a pretty decent rate.
Catalyst Game Labs wrote:Catalyst Game Labs recently suspended publishing new works by long-time BattleTech author Blaine Lee Pardoe, primarily due to Mr. Pardoe’s online activities which do not align with Catalyst’s publishing vision. This has nothing to do with Mr. Pardoe’s quality of work or ongoing sales, or (as reported elsewhere) his personal feud(s) with other fan(s) of the BattleTech brand. Mr. Pardoe has been instrumental to the BattleTech IP over the years, and we wish him well in his ongoing, professional career.
This decision was made in consultation with Topps Entertainment, owners of the BattleTech intellectual property, but final determination was by Catalyst Game Labs.
Not long again there was a Kickstarter that saw a bit over 100 'Mechs go through a complete redesign to give them a unifying and updated art style. Since then even more 'Mechs have been updated, with new boxes of plastic 'Mechs coming out slowly. And, on top of that, a further KS is planned with even more redesigns, including vehicle redesigns.
So you don't have to worry about ancient sculpts, as they're getting replaced - and replaced in plastic! - at a pretty decent rate.
I believe it was 92 'Mechs in the first Kickstarter, with the upcoming one to have "more than 50" but "less than the first Kickstarter" so that would be between 51 and 91 . That does not include the Mercenary Force Packs or the Alpha Strike box (and I believe it wouldn't include the Vindicator in the new Beginner Box or the 'Mechs in 'A Game of Armored Combat').
Gitzbitah wrote: To help out and make it more streamlined- search for 'Battletech Force Pack' it should show you all of the new plastic ones.
The Force Packs can be found easily enough in the Catalyst Game Labs webstore:
You can see some of the upcoming Mercenary Force Packs and other products HERE plus you may want to start back at about page 65 of this thread as there's a lot of news for the upcoming Kickstarter.
Apparently this has been something that was brewing for a while and theres a lot more going on then whats been said by either party. Supposedly hes become increasingly more difficult to work with on a professional basis and his political biases started ruffling fathers with CGLs staff and leadership (in that, he more or less brought those political biases to work with him and pissed off people at the office with regards to the things he said to them and around them, etc.). Certainly seems theres no love lost with the "studio" if the like/heart reacts from CGL staffers and freelancers on a FB comment I made are any indication.
I'm also wondering if this relates to the Creative Juggernaut Land & Sea thing at all and if thats not the real driver behind this. Its a blatant Battletech knockoff that seems to be setting itself up to compete with Battletech directly. Its also something that BLP has been working on for years now (evidently with the help of Battletechs main line director, if thats not a conflict of interest I don't know what is). We know the BT x CJ partnership for premium minis suddenly and mysteriously fell apart about a year back, and then last week CJ announced Land & Sea, and then in the brief window of time since then BLP got dumped... it seems too coincidental to be coincidental.
Considering how he takes every chance to bash "the Left" in his statement on it, I can definitely see him bringing his politics to the office. It's also amazing how much he can both self aggrandize and play the victim in said statement.
chaos0xomega wrote: Apparently this has been something that was brewing for a while and theres a lot more going on then whats been said by either party. Supposedly hes become increasingly more difficult to work with on a professional basis and his political biases started ruffling fathers with CGLs staff and leadership (in that, he more or less brought those political biases to work with him and pissed off people at the office with regards to the things he said to them and around them, etc.). Certainly seems theres no love lost with the "studio" if the like/heart reacts from CGL staffers and freelancers on a FB comment I made are any indication.
I'm also wondering if this relates to the Creative Juggernaut Land & Sea thing at all and if thats not the real driver behind this. Its a blatant Battletech knockoff that seems to be setting itself up to compete with Battletech directly. Its also something that BLP has been working on for years now (evidently with the help of Battletechs main line director, if thats not a conflict of interest I don't know what is). We know the BT x CJ partnership for premium minis suddenly and mysteriously fell apart about a year back, and then last week CJ announced Land & Sea, and then in the brief window of time since then BLP got dumped... it seems too coincidental to be coincidental.
As you said there is more than we don't know. Mr Pardoe is painting himself as the victim here, and to a certain extent I think that the lady doth protest too much, but Catalyst's announcement reads like a "we wanted to get rid of him, and were looking for an excuse"
Miguelsan wrote: ... but Catalyst's announcement reads like a "we wanted to get rid of him, and were looking for an excuse"
Which isn't a good thing either.
There are plenty of people at my work I know I disagree with on a political basis. That's no reason to get rid of them.
If its just you personally and the political difference is about something mundane like what the tax rate should be or the importance of socialized healthcare and education, then no - its not a good reason at all.
But, if the political difference involves calls for the overthrow of the legitimate and lawfully elected government in order to install a regime you find more palatable, or publishing disturbing political revenge-porn fantasies about the patriotic American right engaging in political violence and open warfare against the "woke left", and its 80% of your office who are made uncomfortable by these opinions, including some of your best artists, writers, and developers... then maybe you want to remove the guy before his bs causes your best people to quit.
Mind you, this assumes that "political differences" were the actual reason for his dismissal, as opposed to "we don't want to continue to employ someone who is using our product line as a platform to springboard the launch of his own competing product".
Miguelsan wrote: ... but Catalyst's announcement reads like a "we wanted to get rid of him, and were looking for an excuse"
Which isn't a good thing either.
There are plenty of people at my work I know I disagree with on a political basis. That's no reason to get rid of them.
If its just you personally and the political difference is about something mundane like what the tax rate should be or the importance of socialized healthcare and education, then no - its not a good reason at all.
But, if the political difference involves calls for the overthrow of the legitimate and lawfully elected government in order to install a regime you find more palatable, or publishing disturbing political revenge-porn fantasies about the patriotic American right engaging in political violence and open warfare against the "woke left", and its 80% of your office who are made uncomfortable by these opinions, including some of your best artists, writers, and developers... then maybe you want to remove the guy before his bs causes your best people to quit.
Mind you, this assumes that "political differences" were the actual reason for his dismissal, as opposed to "we don't want to continue to employ someone who is using our product line as a platform to springboard the launch of his own competing product".
But didn't you know that "tens of millions" of Americans share his political views?!
Death_from_above wrote:Anthony just posted Mobile Long Tom Artillery concept art on his Patreon.
Model will come on 2 bases : artillery vehicle and ammo/crew trailers.
Also : "So this one falls really nicely into the map objective token category for spicing up your games"
He's allowing the image to be shared, but requests we wait till Aug 4th (GenCon start).
Some more snippets from various comments on his Patreon :
Q : Is the Mobile HQ going to be in a ForcePack like this one or a stand alone product like the Shilone?
A : It'll be in a pack that is more objective focused.
So possibly : Mobile HQ, Mobile Long Tom,..
Q : Have the Imp, Falcon and Hornet been updated yet?
A : They won’t be making the cut this time.
Q : What a journey! My heart wants Reunification War-era mechs, like the Toro. My brain says it'd already be a slight stretch to ask for the Merlin. I think it deserves a little more attention as the first new mech in a while, and this focus on the 3025 era is probably the only time it'd make sense to do it. Also, it really, really needs some work. We could use a Karnov, too. It's the other VTOL that I think gets a lot of use.
A : Might have one of those for you
Since he confirmed the Warrior would be the only VTOL, that leaves the Toro or Merlin. Personally, I'm expecting the latter..
Q : "So, what is everyone looking forward to seeing from me the rest of the year?" Hatamoto-Chi, Manticore, Vedette, Hetzer.
A : I can get you two of those.
Since the Vedette has since been shown, my 5 C-bills for the remaining design are on the Manticore.
If they hadn't already announced the Vindicator as part of the Beginner Box, the Merlin would have fit in to replacing the Wolverine perfectly, being the traditional "this is how you build a 'Mech" example for a long time.
that collection effort started over 30 years ago long before internet stores like mandarake and hobby link japan existed.
