Also found my Heroscape terrain. We played a game of Battletech on them this weekend.
Heroscape tiles are great for 3D terrain. We use them quite regularly. The store has some and our regular scenario creator brings his collection every Friday. We hardly ever play on 2D hex maps.
Here's a picture of my Thanatos (being proxied as a Hammerhands) doing a DFA on a Mech for a King of the Hill scenario:
He ended up missing, but still knocked the guy off. There were a few DFAs that night for SOME reason...
Cubby wrote:Attention, MechWarriors! We're aware of the current issue accessing the Master Unit List. We've identified the cause of the outage and are working on restoring the site--and doing so in a way that will hopefully make it even more stable going forward. We're eager to restore this important player resource as soon as possible!
Cubby wrote:Attention, MechWarriors! We're aware of the current issue accessing the Master Unit List. We've identified the cause of the outage and are working on restoring the site--and doing so in a way that will hopefully make it even more stable going forward. We're eager to restore this important player resource as soon as possible!
And it's back
I was informed this site existed, went to it, and it died right as I try and open the page with mechs on it for the clan I wanted.
It was very sad as I had to postpone my order :(
Tomorrow going to be fun !
I just spent an hour setting up the Alpha Strike cards for the 'Mechs of our local narrative campaign. We have about 2/3rds being custom in one form or another (a couple came that way, others have been adjusted further since).
I was kind of worried I'd have to use SSW's "Battleforce" cards for them, or go to MechFactory.
From the BattleTech Forums, an updated list of what force packs we can expect from the Mercenaries Kickstarter in March:
Death_from_above wrote:Overview taking into consideration all Mechs/vees shown/mentioned/hinted at so far
(ACS Patreon, KS announcements/updates, KerenskyCon, WolfNet Ep. 50, GenCon).
Items in italics have yet to be confirmed as being part of below mentioned packs.
Comments in italics are assumptions/personal opinion.
Taking a cue from the Retaliation Pack from the Clan Invasion KS, we might also
see the Mechs from the Box Set as a standalone pack (or possibly a pair of Lances).
Still no confirmation that Battle Armor will also be included in the Mercenaries Box.
The Rec Guides are Back! Plus: Rulebook Restocks and Heir to the Dragon in POD
on OCTOBER 21, 2022
Big news this week – we’ve got a few more installments coming of a recent fan-favorite product, as well as a restock of core rulebooks and other recent products, and a classic BattleTech novel in POD.
Let’s get to it, MechWarriors!
New volumes of BattleMech Recognition Guide: ilClan are on the way!
Back in 2020, we ushered in the current ilClan era by kicking off a series of Technical Readout-style products called BattleMech Recognition Guide: ilClan. Each of the 24 volumes of this PDF-first series included new BattleMech designs, as well as classic favorites upgraded with modern technology to ensure their continued place on the battlefields of the thirty-second century.
We were unsure how these first-of-their-kind BattleTech products would be received, but it turned out that we needn’t have worried: the Rec Guides were a hit from the start! Released in four “cycles” through December 2021, these first twenty-four volumes fueled much discussion, gameplay–and yes, sales–across the BattleTech community.
But before all of those twenty-four volumes were even released, plans were underway to expand the line with a few additional installments to cover BattleMechs, vehicles, and battle armor due for release as part of the upcoming BattleTech: Mercenaries Kickstarter. We’re thrilled to announce that the first of those new Rec Guides, Volume 25, will be released next Friday, October 28.
These final eight volumes will be released bi-weekly through Volume 32 early next year. They’ll include the same mix of new and refit BattleMechs, along with combat vehicles and battle armor. Many of the units included in these Rec Guides will be featured in the Mercenaries Kickstarter, serving as a preview of what to expect when that campaign launches in March.
“Okay, but are you ever going to collect the existing Rec Guides in print format?”
We are. In fact, getting this last cycle of Rec Guides into production was a big part of our plans for the two compilation volumes we’re planning.
The first volume, due for release early next year, will include all of the Inner Sphere, Clan, and ComStar “classic” BattleMechs, refit with the latest technology to stay competitive on the battlefields of the Dark Age and ilClan eras.
The second volume, which we hope to put out by mid-2023, will contain all of the new BattleMechs, vehicles, and battle armor released via the original Rec Guides, as well as refit vehicles, new OmniMech configurations, and other new units.
(One note: the record sheets included in the PDF Recognition Guide installments will not be included in the print compilations. For one, including the record sheets would result in some truly massive tomes; and for another, we want the individual PDFs to retain some value for the time being.)
We’re excited to present these final Rec Guide volumes to you this winter, and as a taste of what’s to come, here are the covers for Volume 25 and Volume 26!
Rulebook Restocks!
The following rulebooks and sourcebooks are now available again through the Catalyst Game Labs web store:
Alpha Strike Commander’s Edition
BattleMech Manual
Battle of Tukayyid
Tamar Rising
The reprint edition of A Time of War will be released next week, Friday, Oct. 28. We know many of you have been eagerly awaiting it!
Heir to the Dragon Available in POD
Last but not least, a new POD version of the seminal Robert Charrette novel Heir to the Dragon is now available via Amazon.
Heir to the Dragon
A BattleTech novel by Robert N. Charrette
E-pub: $4.99
Print on Demand (via Amazon): $15.95
A SWORD FORGED IN SHADOWS…
Theodore Kurita is the son of Takashi Kurita, and heir apparent to the Draconis Combine, one of the most powerful realms of the Inner Sphere. But the Draconis Combine has never been a place of smooth transitions. Historically, a Kurita proves themself a fit leader by a successful bid for power, political or…otherwise.
Theodore’s perilous journey to power is a twenty-year odyssey, beginning with his graduation from Sun Zhang Military Academy. At each level of ascendancy, Theodore finds that keeping power is far more difficult than getting it, and failure lies in wait at every turn. His tactical knowledge is put to the test all too many times. His successes in impossible situations are dismissed as smoke and mirror trickery by some, but lauded as genius by others.
Upon reaching the level of Deputy of the Combine Military, Theodore’s new power allows him to see the uncertain future of his people. He must plan carefully as he bargains for his future with ComStar, the mystic sect, and the yakuza, an interstellar network of organized crime. All the while maintaining an uneasy truce with the man he must one day depose…his own father, Coordinator of the Draconis Combine!
And yet not, especially in the weapons which definitely don't match. At least we won't have long to wait for confirmation, with that volume due out on November 11th.
And yet not, especially in the weapons which definitely don't match. At least we won't have long to wait for confirmation, with that volume due out on November 11th.
The Woodsman is an Omnimech, so different weapons in a brand new configuration might be the standard.
Of course, it could be a Woodsman II, created by one of the cheapskate homeworld clans or Escorpión Imperio.
The loadout matches the 'Mech mentioned HERE (1 UAC/20, 1 LB-10X AC, 1 LRM-20 and 1 ER medium laser). The problem is if it is a Woodsman, you would be one ton overweight... before adding any ammunition
I like that style of art as it reminds me of the B&W style in my favorite RPGs of the early 90s. Is that the current style for the game in general or just one particular artist's? I was never a fan of the classic pencil sketches of previous decades personally.
Also found my Heroscape terrain. We played a game of Battletech on them this weekend.
Hot tip.
If you have enough of these keep some to act as a base layer and then glue the rest into pairs one on top the other. Double height they serve for a single elevation level for CBT. This makes then easier and quicker to stack, especially if you run a file along the sides and smooth out the grooves a bit in the middle.
Ghaz wrote: I'll let you guess what 'Mech this is (hint - it's on this list)
I can't think of what it could be unless this is a change of a model that's already had the orange pre-mold model made and shown before.
It looks like something with 2 PPCs, LRM-5, and either an AMS or Machine Gun.
It could be a Vulcan and that tubular LRM-5 is the AC/2 and PPCs are actually Medium Lasers, but that was one they had earlier shown as an orange model.
The Awesome’s PPCs do have an element in the barrel that sets them apart from lasers and ballistic weapons. The Merlin has the same element just not as detailed as it is still a concept sketch.
Ghaz wrote: The Awesome’s PPCs do have an element in the barrel that sets them apart from lasers and ballistic weapons.
I didn't argue that the PPCs of the Awesome had a different element from the rest of its weapons or the Merlin's from its, I just said the Awesome's PPCs didn't match what the Merlin has in its torso.
Ghaz wrote: The Merlin has the same element just not as detailed as it is still a concept sketch.
Not the same element. The Merlin has circles in there which looks like tubes in a tubular launcher (akin to the Griffin). The Awesome's are in straight lines radiating from a central circle, looking like a fan. I honestly don't see how circles in a circle are "less detailed" version of a fan. Now, I won't deny that could be an emitter of a different model of PPC (just look at all the different versions of autocannons), but it doesn't look like the Awesome's to me.
Ghaz wrote: The Merlin has the same element just not as detailed as it is still a concept sketch.
Not the same element. The Merlin has circles in there which looks like tubes in a tubular launcher (akin to the Griffin). The Awesome's are in straight lines radiating from a central circle, looking like a fan. I honestly don't see how circles in a circle are "less detailed" version of a fan. Now, I won't deny that could be an emitter of a different model of PPC (just look at all the different versions of autocannons), but it doesn't look like the Awesome's to me.
Look under the crossbars and there are the circles. Barrels with details inside are PPC, Barrels with black holes are ballistic weapons and barrels and barrels left white inside are lasers. Plus we'd already seen the Vulcan several months ago and this looks nothing like a Vulcan to begin with.
Ghaz wrote: Look under the crossbars and there are the circles. Barrels with details inside are PPC,
Not circles like with the Merlin model, 2 circles, not 5. One for the center of the fan and one on the inside of the housing. There is no fan structure with the Merlin image. Again, this could be a different model of PPC, which is fine.
Ghaz wrote: Barrels with black holes are ballistic weapons and barrels and barrels left white inside are lasers.
And I said it looked more like a tubed LRM array, just like the Griffins. Neither of which are black holes.
Ghaz wrote: Plus we'd already seen the Vulcan several months ago and this looks nothing like a Vulcan to begin with.
I did say I was not confident in that guess at all because we had already seen the actual model and what I thought was a tube-mounted LRM-5 would have to have been an Autocannon in order for it to be a Vulcan. It wasn't helped that I forgot what I Merlin looked like, which I had already mentioned.
Ghaz wrote: Look under the crossbars and there are the circles. Barrels with details inside are PPC,
Not circles like with the Merlin model, 2 circles, not 5. One for the center of the fan and one on the inside of the housing. There is no fan structure with the Merlin image. Again, this could be a different model of PPC, which is fine.
The march of technology across BattleTech’s eras is relentless—but some war machines never die. This PDF-only series includes brand-new BattleMechs and OmniMechs, alongside Classic ’Mechs and combat vehicles from both the Inner Sphere and the Clans rebuilt with the latest technology to keep them competitive on modern battlefields. This series also includes in-universe development notes, battle histories, notable pilots, and record sheets for each unit.
It is the 31st century. Mankind has spread to the stars and spawned titanic stellar empires, each controlling hundreds of worlds across a thousand light years and beyond. Yet the sins of man have followed him from the cradle of humanity.
Political machinations of feudal lords plunge whole sectors into war; unscrupulous merchant starship captains smuggle weapons to their own faction’s enemies; greedy military commanders demand tribute from worlds they’re protecting; animalistic pirate kings harvest high technologies and human slaves in lightning raids; betrayals from oath-bound allies leave honorable soldiers growing cold on forgotten worlds; death at the tip of knife from a concubine turned assassin to avenge a world and love lost: it is a time of war.
What empire will you swear allegiance to: a warrior merchant of House Steiner; the honorbound samurai of House Kurita; the vat-bred warriors of the Clans; a mercenary that fights only for the highest bidder?
Choose your life in the universe: a MechWarrior piloting the thirty-foot-tall BattleMechs that turn the tide of any battle; a spy deep behind enemy lines discovering critical secrets; a merchant carrying critical supplies; a scientist unleashing the latest cutting edge technologies?
They really are- I was very pleasantly surprised at the Pouncer X and the Demolisher (Clan) being designs that are fluffed for the Jade Falcons. I did not expect them to get that much love from this new round of guides.
I hope they make it into the Alyina Mercantile Militia's forces.
Pouncer I and W are oddities. ER Pulse weapons are pretty rare, as is the use of ArtV, and the W just has so much firepower. As for the G, well, it'll overheat like crazy but don't get into its short range.
I'm happy that I found a home for the Wraith with my St. Ives Lancers when I pick up the Alpha Strike box. I had totally missed that it was going to be produced in the Capellan Confederation in FM: 3085.
We played our first game ( a three way battle) of Alpha Strike this weekend and had lots of Blasts. Definitely the beer and pretzels version of the game we were wanting. now we just have to wait for the Alpha Strike core box to come out. I have just painted up 18 inner sphere mechs over the weekend, so ready for more fun. I'm finding lots of good info out there, just not a good list of all the special unit rules for the mechs in alpha strike. Also still not finding a release date for the core box set.
Theophony wrote:We played our first game ( a three way battle) of Alpha Strike this weekend and had lots of Blasts. Definitely the beer and pretzels version of the game we were wanting. now we just have to wait for the Alpha Strike core box to come out. I have just painted up 18 inner sphere mechs over the weekend, so ready for more fun. I'm finding lots of good info out there, just not a good list of all the special unit rules for the mechs in alpha strike. Also still not finding a release date for the core box set.
Awesome!
Some of the abilities can be found in the Quick Start Guide, but the rest are in the Commander's Edition. A lot of the missing ones have to do with special ammunition or other mechanics which are hard to explain in a short guide, like C3. I don't think Sarna is ready to put them up on their site at present, or no one has taken the time to do so, at least.
Alpha Strike is MUCH quicker, and deadlier, to play. Besides having range damage unified, Heat almost isn't a concern like it is in Classic/Total Warfare, as Movement doesn't affect it.
For our Friday nights, we're lucky to see 2 'Mechs be destroyed by something other than a Head shot or Ammo explosion in 90 minutes. For Alpha Strike (last Friday of the month), we usually play 70 minutes, and stuff just melts.
In our narrative campaign, we've lost more units in Alpha Strike than in CBT (the two most devastating was this last Saturday, as the two that went down were irreplaceable Minnesota Tribe 'Mechs, the GM said Elite Techs MIGHT be able to restore them).
Ghaz wrote:I think I preferred the hole in the forehead over this...
Not too many changes from the original, but it never really was as derpy as some of the other reimaginings like the Blackjack or Lancelot.
Yo, found a local shop that imported the Starter box so i grabbed one and i was wondering if there is any wiki or fan sites that showcases the moust common colour patters and styles for this universe as no "how to paint" was in the box, as battletech is as alien to me as Lada is to people outside north scandenavia,
I know it is "my minis paint the way i want", but that kind of creativity i lack, i need lore images for inspiration to paint the two mechs in the box.
FrozenDwarf wrote:Yo, found a local shop that imported the Starter box so i grabbed one and i was wondering if there is any wiki or fan sites that showcases the moust common colour patters and styles for this universe as no "how to paint" was in the box, as battletech is as alien to me as Lada is to people outside north scandenavia,
I know it is "my minis paint the way i want", but that kind of creativity i lack, i need lore images for inspiration to paint the two mechs in the box.
, but one can take in real life units as inspiration. You can look in to some of your local unit's preferred colors as an example. The units for my local narrative campaign are set up to have a scheme similar to the VF-124 Jolly Roger squadron of the US Navy and/or Skull Squadron of Macross fame.
Here's a Spider I did up in those colors (and mine are probably the worst of the unit):
On the other hand, my own personal Inner Sphere scheme takes after a skit I heard as a Boy Scout, about how a Captain wears a red jacket so people can't see him bleed, and then asks for brown pants when they run in to a much bigger ship.
And my Clan scheme takes that concept, and adds colors that reminded me a little of the Cloud Cobra name sake:
If you read the source materials most paint schemes on cammo specs are for official PARADE colors as many units in the game use appropriate cammo schemes for the local theatre.
There are exceptions of course like the swords of light units that always go into combat in parade colors, as well as with some clan units.
Depending on the unit, parade schemes can be easier than pulling off a good camouflage scheme, are more distinctive and won't look out of place on any of the maps whereas some camouflage scheme might (e.g., a forest camo on the Lunar Base map).
Camo can be done simply though. I did these with white contrast and a sponge for the green. I highlighted the white a bit but I didn’t bother for the green. The longest bit was waiting for the contrast and black wash to dry. You could also then build on this with a brush and some brown or black to get another disruptive pattern layer.
They are printed a bit larger than normal scale, but the technique should scale down to normal size mechs.
Ghaz wrote: Depending on the unit, parade schemes can be easier than pulling off a good camouflage scheme, are more distinctive and won't look out of place on any of the maps whereas some camouflage scheme might (e.g., a forest camo on the Lunar Base map).
That is basicly what i was thinking when i flipped thru the booklet and saw the unit cards. But same could be said about basicly anything seeing how diverse the maps for this game can be, so i will go for the block colors in the getting started section in the link provided by beasts.
Flinty wrote: Camo can be done simply though. I did these with white contrast and a sponge for the green. I highlighted the white a bit but I didn’t bother for the green. The longest bit was waiting for the contrast and black wash to dry. You could also then build on this with a brush and some brown or black to get another disruptive pattern layer.
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
They are printed a bit larger than normal scale, but the technique should scale down to normal size mechs.
That's not really what I would call a 'good' alpine camouflage (and would look out of place on almost all of the BattleTech maps). this is what I would call a 'good' alpine camouflage:
And this is what I would call a really good camouflage scheme:
Fair enough. Stippling does the same job as sponging really. In the first video example above though, I think the final drybrush rather overpowers the brown and blurs the dpm a bit too much. Definately a fan of quick schemes though
Another quick cammo application is a little paint on a toothbrush. apply it to the model by running a finger across the bristles so that it splatters on the target model. makes some real nice flecktarn style cammo.
I wanted something that stood out, so radioactive green on the top half for my inner sphere guys.
with close up.
I think these photos were before the light-yellow edge highlight on the upper armor.
Not too in love with the bottom half. I may have to add black and beige tiger stripes on the lower half. Also need to finish all the lenses (Purple) and thinking of some splash color on the upper half as well.
Thank You. I saw the image on the back of one of the books and loved it, but my google-Fu and lack of knowledge on Battletech in general made it so I could not find any info out on them. Time to read up and see if I'm willing to live with that background or change the pants of all my mechs.
A BattleTech Anthology by Bryan Young
E-pub: $5.99
Print-on-Demand (via Amazon): $12.95
DREAMS OF ’MECHS AND MERCS…
Katie Ferraro dreams of nothing more than being a MechWarrior. Orphaned at a young age, she learns everything she can about ’Mech repair from her mentor and adoptive father. On the distant planet of Jerangle, though, her chances of fulfilling her dreams are slim.
But when she finds an abandoned Kit Fox in the jungle, she realizes her dreams might not be so far away. As she goes to work on the ’Mechin secret, she makes a name for herself as a talented tech, but waits for the right moment to reveal herself to be what she always dreamed of: a MechWarrior. With her newfound ’Mech, Katie forms her own mercenary unit. She’s too young to be a leader and too brash to be a tactician, but she’ll do anything in her power to keep her unit together long enough to take their next job.
These five Fox Tales, including a brand-new one published only in this collection, tell the fascinating, infuriating, and funny stories of the rise of the everyone’s favorite new mercenary unit in the Inner Sphere: The Fox Patrol.
A BattleTech trilogy by Robert Thurston
Digital Boxed Set – E-publication: $4.99
THE COMPLETE STORY OF CLAN JADE FALCON’S MOST REVERED WARRIOR!
This digital boxed set contains the following novels:
WAY OF THE CLANS
In the 31st century, the BattleMech is the ultimate war machine. Ten meters tall and armed with devastating weapons, it is an unstoppable engine of destruction.
In the 31st century, the Clans are the ultimate warriors. The result of generations of controlled breeding, Clan Warriors pilot their BattleMechs like no others.
In the 31st century, Aidan aspires to be a Warrior of Clan Jade Falcon. To win the right to join his Clan in battle, he must succeed in training that will forge him into one of the best warriors in the galaxy—or break him completely.
In the 31st century, Aidan discovers that the toughest battle is not on the field, but in his head—where failure will cost the ultimate price: his humanity.
BLOODNAME
Truebirth: Born in the laboratory, these genetically engineered soldiers train to be the ultimate warriors. They are the elite pilots of the Clan’s fearsome BattleMech war machines.
Freebirth: Born of the natural union of parents, these too are soldiers, but pale imitations of their Truebirth superiors. Despised for their imperfections, they fight where and when their Clan commands.
Aidan has failed his Trial of Position, the ranking test all Truebirth warriors of the Clan Jade Falcon must pass. He is cast out. Disgraced.
But with a Bloodname, all past failures are forgiven. With a Bloodname comes respect. With a Bloodname comes honor.
Aidan will do anything to gain that name. Even masquerade as the thing he has been taught to despise.
A freebirth…
FALCON GUARD
In 2786, the elite Star League Defense Force fled the Inner Sphere, abandoning the senseless bloodshed ordered by the Successor Lords. Now, almost three hundred years later, the Clans, heirs of the SLDF, turn their eyes back upon their former home. Nothing will stop them from raising the Star League banner over Earth once again.
For two years, the Clans’ BattleMech war machines have overwhelmed the armies of the corrupt Successor Lords. Now, on the doorstep of Terra, the Clans must fight one final battle, a battle that will decide the fate of humanity for all time.
For Star Colonel Aidan Pryde of Clan Jade Falcon, the battle is more than a question of military conquest. It is an affirmation of the superiority of the Clan way, a way of life that he has sworn to uphold despite his fear that the noble crusade has fallen prey to the lust and ambition of its commanders. But amid the chaos and carnage of battle, he is about to be tested in a way he never thought possible…by a person he has never even met…
When the sale started there were 20+ items. It quickly disappeared. It didn’t have the clan invasion box listed, but I check and ordered it and the 20% applied.
Also added three more lances to the former Duchy of Orloff….Now they will be the Constructicons
Still all detail work to be done, but they are getting closer to completion.
Theophony wrote: When the sale started there were 20+ items. It quickly disappeared. It didn’t have the clan invasion box listed, but I check and ordered it and the 20% applied.
Also added three more lances to the former Duchy of Orloff….Now they will be the Constructicons
Mark Your Calendars for the Launch of BattleTech: Mercenaries
The next exciting chapter of BattleTech history will launch March 23, 2023 at Adepticon in Schaumburg, IL!
In 2018, Catalyst Game Labs built upon the thirty-five-year legacy of BattleTech with the release of the A Game of Armored Combat and Beginner Box sets. Those boxed sets included re-imagined miniatures which retained the core of each ’Mech’s identity, updated with modern aesthetics. Upon that foundation, our Clan Invasion Kickstarter unleashed nearly one hundred additional miniatures and finished among the top 100 Kickstarter campaigns ever. By the end of this year, more than four million high quality, affordable, ready-to-play plastic ’Mech miniatures will have hit gaming tables in just four years.
The next chapter of BattleTech’s titanic resurgence will be the Mercenaries Kickstarter campaign. The new campaign will introduce more than 50 new designs, including ’Mechs, armored and support vehicles, a VTOL, additional battle armor, and a new aerospace fighter–all to the same high-quality standards and ready to play right out of the box.
We are beyond excited to officially announce that Catalyst Game Labs and Adepticon have partnered to launch the BattleTech: Mercenaries Kickstarter on March 23rd, 2023, 10 a.m. Central/11 a.m. Eastern–the first day of Adepticon. We’ll be livestreaming throughout the weekend, including the campaign’s launch, Q&A sessions, developer interviews, actual-play events, and more!
“I’ve been to hundreds of conventions all over the world, and AdeptiCon is a wonderfully unique experience,” said Randall N. Bills, Managing Developer for Catalyst Game Labs. “I’m an equal-opportunity gamer and enjoy playing nearly any type of game. But walking past endless tables of amazing terrain and fantastically painted miniatures is an incredible experience unto itself. If you love miniatures games, AdeptiCon is the place to be. And we couldn’t imagine a more perfect venue for launching our Mercenaries Kickstarter.”
AdeptiCon is the world’s premiere wargaming convention, running more than 650 tournaments, event games, and hobby seminars–along with hosting over 115 exhibitors–each year. AdeptiCon 2022 also saw the return of the prestigious Golden Demon painting award to North America, which will return in 2023.
Catalyst's presence at the convention has continued to grow over the past few years, with Catalyst Demo Team events drawing experienced MechWarriors and new players alike to the battlefields of the Inner Sphere.
“For quite a few of us in this hobby, BattleTech provided our first foray into the world of table-top miniatures gaming,” reminisced Dave Pauwels, AdeptiCon Media Director. “The idea of replacing cardboard tokens with painted models of two-story high ’Mechs was a revolutionary one back in the day and a lot of us were hooked (one of the first miniatures I ever painted was a Demolisher). To see the game experience a sort of renaissance now, in 2022, is incredible and AdeptiCon loves being an event where you can find finely painted ’Mechs waging war over beautiful terrain tables. By partnering with Catalyst Games for the Kickstarter launch, AdeptiCon proudly plays its role in the continued success and popularity of one of our favorite games.”
Stay tuned to AdeptiCon.com and bg.battletech.com for future news surrounding all the games and events you can experience with BattleTech–and Leviathans (monstersinthesky.com)–at Adepticon in 2023!
Asenion wrote: Clanner Elemental vs Word of Blake cyborg, fist fight! - who wins?
All other factors evened out the WoB cyborg. The Zombie adepts are specifically tailored to take out clanners, and zombie infantry were tailored to hunt down elementals. The Jihad was a new objective, a repurposing, clan killing was what WoB cybertech was designed to do.
Cyborg infantry are specialised elemental killers, the fact they are nasty against anything else is just a side effect of being an infantryman designed to take on elementals and win.
General question, the random salvage boxed sets that they've produced. Are those coming back into stock/production or are they shifting away and only going to provide the pre-set boxed sets going forward?
Overread wrote: General question, the random salvage boxed sets that they've produced. Are those coming back into stock/production or are they shifting away and only going to provide the pre-set boxed sets going forward?
My FLGS, who is so new that they seem to be the last ones shipped anything, got about 3 or 4 flats recently.
I haven't seen any word about them stopping doing it. If anything, it will probably be expanded once the new Mercenary Kickstarter sets are brought in.
It is great for when you have access to them, and not all the box sets, too.
Yeah I'm also wondering if it might tickle my "random box opening" interests since Magic the Gathering is insanely expensive, cycles too fast with new editions and is just a monster to try and collect.
Mechs are easier and blind box can be enjoyable when being causal.
They are useful for padding a single price per boxset regardless of number of miniatures included.
I bought a lot of spheroid lances last time, so over half of my clanners were randomised.
By the time it was done I had the wrong clan. I wanted to filed some Jade Falcons, but ended up with Smoke Jaguars.
usernamesareannoying wrote: hi guys... sorry if it has been mentioned but do we know if/how the rules have changed for alpha strike?
i have the original book and compendium and am wondering if they're garbage now.
This isn't 40K nothing is ever garbage. for classic battletech for example we are still using the core rules from over 30 years ago (since they never really changed) and we get to pick and choose which optional rules we want to use including max tech rules and stuff from catalyst (tac ops etc..).
as long as you and your group are all on the same page it shouldn't be a problem. There are no "BattleTech police" checking up on you.
usernamesareannoying wrote: hi guys... sorry if it has been mentioned but do we know if/how the rules have changed for alpha strike?
i have the original book and compendium and am wondering if they're garbage now.
It's very minor changes, often only affecting really specific circumstances. They've gone back and forth on when infantry can embark/disembark from transports a few times over the years, and there is a new charge damage calculation.... but the basics should all be intact. I'd say keep the old one, and maybe get a digital copy from Catalyst- they send you emails to get the new version when they update it. But if you showed up at a table, you'd probably be fine, just have to adapt a few finer points.
usernamesareannoying wrote: hi guys... sorry if it has been mentioned but do we know if/how the rules have changed for alpha strike?
i have the original book and compendium and am wondering if they're garbage now.
There is a page of posted Errata. One of which is for both the original Alpha Strike book and the Companion. However, the latest Errata for the Commander's Edition is from September 2022 (which means my copy I bought this year may be a little out of date). It may address any questions you may have.
aphyon wrote: for classic battletech for example we are still using the core rules from over 30 years ago (since they never really changed) and we get to pick and choose which optional rules we want to use including max tech rules and stuff from catalyst (tac ops etc..).
Eh, not quite. There have been quite a few rules changes, but most are rather subtle or use less-common units. For Battlemechs the biggest changes have been to Partial Cover and external heat (notably Inferno rounds). C3 has seen a rule change here and there. However, Combat Vehicles and Infantry have seen quite a bit of changes over time.
aphyon wrote: as long as you and your group are all on the same page it shouldn't be a problem. There are no "BattleTech police" checking up on you.
The only major rules changes i can remember before catalyst took over was
.fixing AMS so that instead of shooting down a d6 number of missiles for the matching number of ammo, it reduced the cluster table by 4 for 1 ammo.
There was previously a huge section of optional rules-
.floating crits
.ammo explosion rules
.pilot modifiers for damage
.vehicle damage tables
.expanded heat scale
.extreme ranges
etc...
catalyst added a few more.
.there are currently 4 different rules for ECM/ghost imaging.
.re-tooling the vehicle damage tables to make them less effective so the focus was put more on mechs.
and so on.
The Alpha Stike Commander's Edition is available on wargamesvault for $19.99. I downloaded and printed it out as I am old and like dead tree format, but still have it on my Ipad to mess about with. I will say that I am a huge fan of any game system that does not have disposable codicies that are outdated or wrong pointed upon release.
Alongside the new Alpha Strike boxed set, we’re excited to announce the return of companion sourcebooks for each BattleTech faction, detailing the combat commands, force building, unique battlefield abilities for each. Formerly known as Combat Manuals, this rebooted line of sourcebooks is fully compatible with Total Warfare or Alpha Strike play. Revamped versions of the Kurita and Mercenaries sourcebooks will join the all-new Force Manual: Davion in relaunching the line.
H.B.M.C. wrote: I wouldn't call them Codices. BTech has had faction-specific books for literal decades and not a one of them has ever been required like a Codex has.
These are a lot more codex-like than the Field Manuals (e.g., see pgs. 116-122 of Empire Alone). Being optional rules doesn't make them any less the equivalent of a codex for BattleTech as they both do the same thing (i.e., allow a player to build a force for game play).
Also remember, Open Play is still a thing in 40K...
Open Play exists because "2 Ways to Play" sounds stupid, so they needed a third to go alongside Matched and Crusade.
And, ok, I looked at Empire Alone. Big deal. Again, we've had sections telling you what rules to use with various commanders/units for donkey's years. They've never been vital to the game, certainly not to any extent close to what a Codex is to 40k.
Indeed, a codex is required to field any units in 40K. Field Manuals, Force Manuals, and the like are not required to field anything other than if you are doing a narrative campaign or just feel like copying a "historical" unit.
The only book I bought for Btech was Total Warfare after I got the starter sets (the 2 mech, AGOAC, and the Clan Invasion) and between that and the free mech sheets I have had no problem playing awesome games. I source missions/scenarios from other systems most of the time.
Speaking of which I am excited for my group's game tomorrow, eventually I plan on getting campaign op but another of our group has it and we have been running a really fun campaign currently.
And it's a 5/8 80-ton 'Mech with an LRM20, LB-10X and UAC10 in its default config.
So almost Anthony's Dark Woodsman with the UAC going down from a 20 to a 10 and the ER laser going from a medium to a small. Good to have that one cleared up (and it's good to see the Merlin and the Starslayer in the RecGuide).
News on the Alpha Strike boxed set:
Alpha Strike Box Set Release
After discussions with our warehouse and distribution partners–based upon the incredible demand shown for the Alpha Strike boxed set–we are taking an unusual step. The Alpha Strike boxed set has been set to “release upon receipt”; the box is on track to hit our warehouse on the week of November 15th. This means it will immediately start shipping out to any stores that have ordered it, with most domestic orders starting to reach shelves during the first week of December. The Alpha Strike boxed set will be available for sale on the Catalyst Game Labs web store on Friday, November 25.
The problem with the Naga II is that its armour is paper-thin. It has more internal hit boxes than armour hit boxes, with a whopping 58% of its potential maximum armour load.
I don't know if giving it a 400 XL was a good choice.
Yeah, that's sort of covered in the 'Battle History':
Though its firepower served its MechWarrior well, it proved that the ’Mech was a relic of both times and doctrines long gone. While a Naga II’s overwhelming weaponry serves it well in duel-style combat, its poor armor makes it weak in the combined-arms warfare that has dominated the past century. Facing modern realities, the Naga may just be a greater asset than the Naga II can ever be.
Not sure that I buy it, but it sounds good?
In other news, I wonder how long it will take this to show up in a RecGuide?
Ghaz wrote: There was no officer in the Werhmacht by thar name, so no they're not changing the name.
You ever look up Patton's views on race?
But yeah, let's get rid of the other one...
Yes, I have, but I'm pretty sure the majority have not (including the people at Topps).
Looking at Ray's posts on the matter (most of the other posts have been nuked)...
Adrian Gideon wrote:Patton, no Rommel. You won't be seeing that again.
Adrian Gideon wrote:It should be obvious. No, I won’t discuss any of it, here or elsewhere, and it’s rule 4 here so that’s pretty much the end of it.
I get the distinct impression that he's not happy about the subject, which means it was most likely a dictate by Topps. I do remember seeing that they were not going to go back and retcon the Rommel out of existence, it will just be left to quietly fade away.
Ghaz wrote: There was no officer in the Werhmacht by thar name, so no they're not changing the name.
You ever look up Patton's views on race?
But yeah, let's get rid of the other one...
well, the one is banned outside historical fiction in some countries, the other is not
removing specific WW2 naming is simply to have less troubles by going into some markets
They could have just made a slight name change and it would be a non issue, call it the "Erwin" and its suddenly named after Schroedinger. Call it the "Roumel" and its suddenly named after a canadian actress. Call it the "Desert Fox" and yeah, you get the point.
That being said, I'm not actually sure the name "Rommel" is much considered a problem by most people, even the Bundesmarine had a destroyer named the Rommel (in his honor) until the late 1990s.
The Naga II continues to plague me; but I found a stop-gap solution: MixTech!
5 tons dedicated to modular armour - one on each torso section plus the arms - adds 10 armour to each location. To compensate for the (nonsensical) reduction of speed, you take a super-charger in the CT.
Then for guns I gave it 4 ER Med, 1 Large Pulse, a flamer, 1 SSRM4 and 2 SLRM5s, a targeting computer and a few extra heat sinks.
I am far more irked that the Caesar 5D gets its second mention- and still no record sheet! Unlike the R, it's inexplicably statted progeny, it was a beast. Same hardened armor, but Clan tech weapons, TSM, and Talons. A mech dedicated to walking right through the middle of the battlefield, to kick that dude in half.
How can it make the recguide, and not be in the rec guide? It's outrageous! It's unfair! rabble rabble rabble.
Gitzbitah wrote: I am far more irked that the Caesar 5D gets its second mention- and still no record sheet! Unlike the R, it's inexplicably statted progeny, it was a beast. Same hardened armor, but Clan tech weapons, TSM, and Talons. A mech dedicated to walking right through the middle of the battlefield, to kick that dude in half.
How can it make the recguide, and not be in the rec guide? It's outrageous! It's unfair! rabble rabble rabble.
Maybe it's because none have been built yet. From page 223 of TRO: 3150:
It was to have been built on New Avalon with Sea Fox assistance, but plans are on the table to begin production on New Syrtis instead.
We've got a bloodname tournament coming up at our shop this week. Clan mechs, bring a light, a medium and a heavy from the Clan Invasion era.
I'll be running a Hellion B (because the Heavy laser leads to hilariously short games)
A Goshawk (because it is amazing)
And a Mad Cat H, because it is a surprisingly well balanced, though brutal design.
My hope is to convince one of my foes to battle on the alien worlds map with the mushrooms. And also to use the Hellion to tear apart a larger mech, before incinerating from the heat of my own weapons.
Our group is getting together on Black Friday to play Alpha Strike. We really like the concept of quicker games with less paperwork (Office workers all of us). Though we might wind up doing the full Classic games in the future. I finally got the last of the Inner Sphere box sets this weekend, just the specialty unit boxes left to pick up, Then I'll start with the Clans.
The last Friday of the month is when we usually play Alpha Strike, so if our group meets up on Black Friday, it will be Alpha Strike. The rest of the Fridays are Classic Battletech.
I am not sure about the new Hetzer. I will buy them because they are on the shortlist of favourite vehicles, most of which are already confirmed.
However I like the order style. I think it is mistake to reimage all the units the same, consistency in weapon barrels is appreciated, but not consistency in armour and hull design, these units would be desgined by different people in different ages and will have different 'skins'.
Also the new Hetzer doesn't look cheap enough. I loved the fluff of Hetzer deliveries having the Ac20 thrown inside with some bolts to install it.
Orlanth wrote: I am not sure about the new Hetzer. I will buy them because they are on the shortlist of favourite vehicles, most of which are already confirmed.
Most of the concept sketches coming out now (especially for the Combat Vees) are most likely for artwork (which may be seen in the Recognition Guides) and are not planned for miniatures at this time.
It should be pointed out that there is no method of updating these documents to future versions that both DriveThruRPG and CGL's site will do.
Still, just keeping up with the Erratas should handle any problem. Honestly, I've been doing it for a couple years now.
That's a good point. Doesn't really bother me as what I really wanted was to fill in some of my knowledge of the current IlKahn era and to not have to pay full price for Alpha Strike Commander (for our 10mm mecha games), having purchased AS and ASComp already. I was tempted to go in for just a buck for AS, but I'm very happy with the 27 items that my $18 bought me and I'm happy to kick a little cash to Catalyst and Charity.
However, even if I was interested in playing standard Battletech (which I very much am not) I think the price differential is definitely enough to offset relying on errata rather than a full update.
A few notes on the Friday BattleTech releases (the Alpha Strike boxed set, Recognition Guide Vol. 27 and the Eris premium 'Mech) from Cubby on the BattleTech Forums:
Cubby wrote:Probably going to post it around 11 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. PT Friday. Around that time, this is a human-driven process that can only be somewhat automated and requires a little coordination, so don't freak out if it's 5 min after the hour and it's not up yet.
Those with FOMO may wish to plan their Black Friday appropriately...
Cubby wrote:
Fat Guy wrote:It would be nice to have prior notice if we are/aren't getting a Rec Guide this Friday though, and if not...when?
The thing is literally getting laid out as I'm typing this. We haven't been sitting on it for months and just aren't bothering to communicate its status for this week. As with some of the previous Rec Guide installments, these products can often happen on very tight turnarounds, so we don't always have the notice to give you.
In this case, the intent is to get Rec Guide 27 out this Friday, Nov. 25.
So saying they're 'hot off the press' would be apropos.
It should be pointed out that there is no method of updating these documents to future versions that both DriveThruRPG and CGL's site will do.
Still, just keeping up with the Erratas should handle any problem. Honestly, I've been doing it for a couple years now.
That's a good point. Doesn't really bother me as what I really wanted was to fill in some of my knowledge of the current IlKahn era and to not have to pay full price for Alpha Strike Commander (for our 10mm mecha games), having purchased AS and ASComp already. I was tempted to go in for just a buck for AS, but I'm very happy with the 27 items that my $18 bought me and I'm happy to kick a little cash to Catalyst and Charity.
However, even if I was interested in playing standard Battletech (which I very much am not) I think the price differential is definitely enough to offset relying on errata rather than a full update.
That's more or less my position, I just play Total Warfare much more than I do Alpha Strike. I have the Commander's Edition in dead tree format, but haven't been able to get my hands on Total Warfare in the same format at present. I just thought having a warning would be helpful for those who might be relying on it.
Still, there's a LOT of the other books which justifies the price, in my opinion, even if the rulebooks were left out.
Hey guys, I have been out of the BT world for decades, but I still have a ton of stuff from the FASA/Ral Partha era.
Now I am tempted by the new Alphastrike box coming out... Are these the same size as the current Catalyst mechs? Or are these smaller?
It seems there have been many different itterations the last decades and it is difficult to find a way back. The Catalyst stuff is a bit bigger then the classics, but not to much. Then there are the rather ugly Iron Wind ones, the Clix stuff and I believe some small scale mechs (for AS?)?
Thank you!
Garfield666 wrote: Hey guys, I have been out of the BT world for decades, but I still have a ton of stuff from the FASA/Ral Partha era.
Now I am tempted by the new Alphastrike box coming out... Are these the same size as the current Catalyst mechs? Or are these smaller?
It seems there have been many different itterations the last decades and it is difficult to find a way back. The Catalyst stuff is a bit bigger then the classics, but not to much. Then there are the rather ugly Iron Wind ones, the Clix stuff and I believe some small scale mechs (for AS?)?
Thank you!
You may be thinking of the Battleforce line for the mini-mini mechs. There's a limited section of those available from IWM, and they're used kinda more like tokens since Battleforce is further abstracted out to do larger scale battles. Otherwise yeah, all of the new Catalyst minis are to scale and more recent IWM minis are meant to be in scale or close enough as well. The nice thing about Battletech is that the minis really don't matter so as long as you can find a grouping of minis that you think look good together, you're set.
As they said, the ones in this new Alpha Strike box will be of a size with the new CGL models.
But if you want some comparisons
From the old FASA-style plastics:
Panther:
Cyclops:
And for some of the IWM models:
Wolverine:
Ebon Jaguar (Cauldron-born:
Of course, some of the IWM models are REALLY crazy in size difference, like the Mad Cat (but I don't have the Clan Invasion Mad Cat to provide a comparison).
Thanks alot guys, that's great help. I will try to get the AS box and if I catch Battletech fever again, get more of the Catalyst mechs. Until then I can live with a mixture.
Garfield666 wrote: Thanks alot guys, that's great help. I will try to get the AS box and if I catch Battletech fever again, get more of the Catalyst mechs. Until then I can live with a mixture.
Nothing wrong with using the old minis. Most metals are still in production and there's far more variety in metal anyway compared to the relatively limited number of plastics. Experienced gamers might even give you a bit of cred for having the older figs.
The only ones that aren't compatible are the Clix figs which are 10mm vs the 6mm scale of Battletech.
An additional reason to purchase the Eris (if the cool miniature wasn't enough)...
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, is still waging her own private war with cancer. To assist her family, we are once again dedicating profit from this month’s Premium BattleMech Miniature to her health care expenses.
And about that little brouhaha concerning the Rommel from a few pages back, it's been neatly resolved in the new RecGuide (from page 10):
VARIANTS wrote:When the Rommel was upgraded with a Gauss rifle after the Clan Invasion, it suddenly competed with the Patton’s market. The resulting negative slump in sales of both tanks prompted Defiance to ensure distinct roles in later models
CAPABILITIES wrote:Defiance’s marketing department long ago realized that producing two visually similar tanks with nearly identical roles teetered on the brink of madness. During the Jihad, the Rommel was re-focused into a close support artillery unit, while the upgraded Patton remains a go-anywhere, do-anything heavy tank.
So the Rommel is now exclusively the Rommel Howitzer found on pages 66-67 of Technical Readout: Prototypes.
H.B.M.C. wrote: And I thought they weren't going to mention the Rommel anymore because of rampant presentism?
Adrian Gideon made the two comments I posted HERE and technically we're not seeing it 'again' as it's in a pre-existing book and it allows CGL to write it off without a retcon (and I don't see too many people playing with Long Toms on board, but YMMV).
It says a lot about the basic design of the phantom, that even after the insane glory of the Pouncer X, the Phantom can still manage to be meh, even with improved heavy lasers galore.
Gitzbitah wrote: It says a lot about the basic design of the phantom, that even after the insane glory of the Pouncer X, the Phantom can still manage to be meh, even with improved heavy lasers galore.
And that’s one of the things I like about BattleTech. It’s the realism that not every ‘Mech is optimized and some truly suck just as they would in real life.
As for the Phantom, I will definitely get one should they come out in plastic just because it looks cool.
Charistoph wrote: I've never been a fan of the Phantom myself, or the Alpha Strike's Pouncer.
The Phantom just seems like an Ice Ferret's downgrade, and the Pouncer for the Adder, at least in the looks department.
The problem is that the Phantom shouldn’t be competing with the Ice Ferret to see the battlefield, but with ‘Mechs like the Fire Moth.
Gitzbitah wrote:It reminds me of a larger, slightly tougher but more expensive Mist Lynx. I agree, definitely not a competitor with Ice Ferrets,
If you're looking for a medium recon mech, it's a great choice.
Even then, the Ice Ferret does the same job, while having more punch. If I want a better recon Medium, I look at the Viper/Dragonfly. Mobility counts more for me in that regard than just pure speed at that level. The only time I go with out-right speed over mobility is the Fireball XF, which is just so stupid fast that Jump Jets don't make a difference.
Charistoph wrote: Even then, the Ice Ferret does the same job, while having more punch.
And cost 500 BV more that the Phantom. If the goal of your recon units is too reconnoiter and not engage in heavy combat, then the Phantom gives you an extra 500 BV to spend on your combat units.
Charistoph wrote: Even then, the Ice Ferret does the same job, while having more punch.
And cost 500 BV more that the Phantom. If the goal of your recon units is too reconnoiter and not engage in heavy combat, then the Phantom gives you an extra 500 BV to spend on your combat units.
Maybe you should read the rest of the paragraph. The Phantom doesn't spare much compared to the Fire Moth (though will survive a couple hits more I think), from there, I have a Fire Moth, and don't want the Phantom, and the Fire Moth has MASC. Meanwhile, the Dragonfly will get where I want it almost as quickly as I want it there, and the Ice Ferret is a Locust with a cERPPC at twice the weight.
Add to that, the Phantom LOOKS like a Great Value brand version of the Ice Ferret, and I am not enthused.
And the Phantom J has a supercharger if you feel the need for extra speed. Personally, I prefer the Phantom's six tons of ferro-fibrous armor to the Fire Moth's 2 tons of ferro-fibrous armor.
Charistoph wrote: .... and the Ice Ferret is a Locust with a cERPPC at twice the weight.
Agreed. I feel like this is the kind of argument that happens when one side is evaluating a mech on its full battlefield role in the context of a fully populated battlefield and the other is coming from a purely rock-em-sock-em robot battle view.
pokefan548 wrote:New Urbie variants for IWM are up on Scroggins' patreon. Includes a running repose, a version with an AC/20 for the UM-R60L, and a kneeling sculpt with an MRM-30 for the UM-R68.
Finally, it also reveals some details about our new mystery RecGuide variant: the UM-R27, with three SRM-6s and AES. Pretty wacky!
And the Phantom J has a supercharger if you feel the need for extra speed. Personally, I prefer the Phantom's six tons of ferro-fibrous armor to the Fire Moth's 2 tons of ferro-fibrous armor.
And I generally prefer the 7.5 tons on the Ice Ferret, or the 7 tons on the Dragonfly.
Meanwhile, the Fire Moth always has its MASC, the Supercharger isn't always available for the Phantom, depending on Era or Tech constraints. All I'd use a Phantom for is getting in to the enemy's deployment area and MAYBE dropping off an Elemental Point along the way.
Ghaz wrote:
Charistoph wrote: .... and the Ice Ferret is a Locust with a cERPPC at twice the weight.
Again, you're comparing apples to oranges.
Not really. I'm talking about 'Mechs I'm willing to have models of and models I won't, and their attending advantages. The Phantom's roles are covered by the Fire Moth and the Dragonfly because it doesn't have the firepower to match an Ice Ferret. Meanwhile, the Ice Ferret can do the same job almost as good and bring some firepower to bear.
H.B.M.C. wrote:And the Pouncer's a better fighter than all of them!
It's a better Sniper than all of them, not necessarily a better fighter. Meanwhile, I have a Cougar that can do a similar job. Still ugly, just like the Phantom and not worth getting the Alpha Strike box for, in my opinion.
Charistoph wrote: It's a better Sniper than all of them, not necessarily a better fighter. Meanwhile, I have a Cougar that can do a similar job. Still ugly, just like the Phantom and not worth getting the Alpha Strike box for, in my opinion.
I still remember my crowning moment of awesome with a Pouncer.
Jumped up onto the one of the walls in my first turn. Then had my leg shot out from under me with a lucky critical hit. Instantly conceded as I couldn't get up/get down safely.
Over in 2 turns.
Somehow not my worst Solaris performance. That still goes to my mighty 100-ton Berzerker, ready for a 6 person Free For All in the Factory as the biggest 'Mech on the field that day. First turn, engage MASC, snake-eyes, crippled my 'Mech. Woo!
H.B.M.C. wrote: Somehow not my worst Solaris performance. That still goes to my mighty 100-ton Berzerker, ready for a 6 person Free For All in the Factory as the biggest 'Mech on the field that day. First turn, engage MASC, snake-eyes, crippled my 'Mech. Woo!
Yeesh. That reminds me of a match I did when we were tasked to bring one IS force and one Clan force. I ended up pulling the IS Force for the first round.
I moved up some TAG J. Edgars to spot for 3 LRM Carriers. It was a long shot to hit a Shadow Cat, but hey, I had ammo (90 min rounds don't leave a lot of time to burn ammo). 1 Carrier managed to hit with 2-3 of its launchers. Mech fell down, dislodging its Elementals. The fall damage ended up critting its right arm with all those Gauss Rifle crits. As determined as ever, once he got back up, he lit off his MASC, and sure enough, boxcars. Amazingly, it didn't crit an Actuator, so he was able to run to the forest my LRM Carriers were hiding behind.
Poor thing never made it past the forest as he exposed himself to my Thunderbolt and Banshee S.
Charistoph wrote: .... and the Ice Ferret is a Locust with a cERPPC at twice the weight.
Again, you're comparing apples to oranges.
Not really. I'm talking about 'Mechs I'm willing to have models of and models I won't, and their attending advantages. The Phantom's roles are covered by the Fire Moth and the Dragonfly because it doesn't have the firepower to match an Ice Ferret. Meanwhile, the Ice Ferret can do the same job almost as good and bring some firepower to bear.
The Ice Ferret is a Cicada with clantech sprinkles.
H.B.M.C. wrote: I always saw the Dragonfly as the Clan Cicada.
I always saw at is annoying. our nova cat player uses one.....14" jump in 3d terrain rules with a 4+ mod....
While it doesn't change its TMM, I believe the Dragonfly has a 16" Jump. It may not seem like much, but it can mean the difference between making it to cover or not, or to an irritating position soon enough.
Indeed, it is a 16" jump. sniper with a PPC always a priority target...if i can hit him. one of the top 5 clan mediums in my book, of course as a horse player my heart will always be with the storm crow.
So finally got round to playing my KS Battletech game by Hare Brained something or other. (I had to do terrible things to my broken laptop to do this).
Its ok. Enjoyable enough. I think I preferred the mechcommander (1, though 2 is prettier and has various improvements) style rather than this halfway house between the first person and mechcommander.
Played through campaign and are now trying to 'collect all the mechs' just to see what they are all like.
It's a shame there isn't a place for anything other than heavies and assaults in the majority of missions. Multiple ways of fixing that but they didn't go for it.
I had a gander at the mod scene and honestly the two big ones - bar being too resource hungry to work on my laptop - seem to be flat out better implementations of the core game that the company should consider tidying the code up and releasing as an expansion.
The big mods are too resource hungry for any computer. The Unity Engine is... unfriendly, to say it as kindly as I can.
MechCommander 1 reigns supreme. Just a shame that it crashes every time my screensaver starts, or if it ever goes to a different screen, ever (even a windows notification will crash the game).
That's a good looking boxed set. Neat to see them really giving Alpha strike a push.
Now for the value proposition... I realize the new minis are much better than the old boxed set minis, but here's a set that costs significantly more than the last battletech boxed set, for a game that uses more minis per game, yet comes with less than half as many minis. Still a fair deal but you don't even get the full rulebook.
Hmmm....
Eilif wrote: Now for the value proposition... I realize the new minis are much better than the old boxed set minis, but here's a set that costs significantly more than the last battletech boxed set, for a game that uses more minis per game, yet comes with less than half as many minis. Still a fair deal but you don't even get the full rulebook.
Hmmm....
Eilif wrote: Now for the value proposition... I realize the new minis are much better than the old boxed set minis, but here's a set that costs significantly more than the last battletech boxed set, for a game that uses more minis per game, yet comes with less than half as many minis. Still a fair deal but you don't even get the full rulebook.
Hmmm....
Eilif wrote: Now for the value proposition... I realize the new minis are much better than the old boxed set minis, but here's a set that costs significantly more than the last battletech boxed set, for a game that uses more minis per game, yet comes with less than half as many minis. Still a fair deal but you don't even get the full rulebook.
Hmmm....
Still, it comes with more than any other boxset of the new plastics era. AGoAC came with 8 for $60. Clan Invasion had 7 for $50.
The old Introductory boxes have ridiculously small and poor quality models when compared to what is available with these new ones.
For some examples:
Heck, I have used those old models as Protomech proxies more than actual battlemechs, and most of them fit in that size bracket better.
And remember that it comes with 15 buildings and lots of punch-out trees. I kind of think the value is there just for the printer ink I save not printing out that many buildings, on top of the minis included. Especially as places online have it for a good discount.
AegisGrimm wrote: And remember that it comes with 15 buildings and lots of punch-out trees. I kind of think the value is there just for the printer ink I save not printing out that many buildings, on top of the minis included. Especially as places online have it for a good discount.
And still only 2 dice . Sorry, I watched a Youtube video the other day and it was on the Battletech: Clan Invasion box and they said the one bad thing about the box was not having enough dice to reasonably play the game. I laughed so hard. Seriously any sort of gamer is going to have dice. He should have complained that there wasn't a Dry erase marker in the box more than extra dice.
Again, super cool art! The cover for the upcoming Alternate Eras reprint looms over a demo table.
I keep wondering what battle it is, I gotta remember to ask someone later
aphyon wrote: one of our clan players is obsessed with light and medium clan mechs...he claims he is not an ice hellion but i wonder sometimes....
Could be one of the Warbear's warriors . From page 42 of the IlClan sourcebook:
Tactical Response Star: In special circumstances, the TRC would split off a Tactical Response Star: a reinforced six-Point Star consisting of two teams of three light, fast ’Mechs. TRSs were specifically trained for countering superheavy ’Mechs. Each team within the TRS would attack a superheavy together by circling the target and ensuring that while the superheavy’s gunner had to track two fast-moving targets in their forward view, at least one member of the team would always be at the slow-moving target’s rear and able to exploit the thinner rear armor
So as not to clog up the thread in general with a very BTech-specific discussion:
aphyon wrote: I think the tanks were custom jobs they used the demolishers as proxies Many of the guys like using BV2. while i understand it provides a good framework for mismatched numbers. i prefer to use the basic fixed pilot skills for clan/IS and the 1/1 for same sides or the IS/clan fights of 1.3 to 1 conversion so you can just bring whatever you enjoy playing. rather it be lance on lance, star on star, or 2 lances VS 1 star. i find BV mostly pointless because the crit system exists and i also play with forced withdrawl/safecon rules.
I'm with you on this.
BV I use when I'm looking for relative or broad comparisons, but I'd never use it like I use points in 40k. There are many things that jack battle values up way higher than you'd expect (throw something like a TSEMP on a 'Mech and watch the BV rocket! ). I have actually gone out of my way to design high BV 'Mechs that I'd never field because they're just full of mismatched-but-high-BV equipment/weapons. And there are really solid 'Mechs in the game that have tiny BVs because they don't have obscure tech of unusual weapons.
It's a useful tool - but it's not a balancer like points are in 40k (putting aside 40k's own problems with points).
I agree it has a place. it can be a great framework for an event, or for mix matched units like bringing hordes of infantry against mechs etc... but in most games i look at what my opponent is bringing and i try to come up with something similar.
It is also very easy to abuse. i can't remember what the BV was for the force but the other players were putting together a lance sized force and to prove a point i ran the numbers and i could bring an entire trinary of Shamash clan hovers with a quad er small turret with 3/4 pilots for the cost of their 4 or 5 mechs.
One time i told a new guy to bring a lance of whatever he wanted....he decided to go all Steiner scout squad on me and brought 4 assaults with lots of gauss etc..
i countered with a thematic kurita C3 fast heavy lance. nothing in my force ever had less than a 3+ move mod (except the shugenja that was running the master but he was way, way, in the back. he basically gave up because he couldn't hit anything as i plinked away at him.
It is just like the game above. he really likes the vapor eagle and conjuror. so, we put together 2 lances of lights and mediums and it was a close fight that could have gone either way and BV was never a consideration.
I think part of the reason why BV isn't the be-all and end-all is that BTech is inherently unbalanced.
There are units and weapons that are just straight up better than other things. Clans don't have to trade anything off to get their power - they're just more powerful. Full stop.
H.B.M.C. wrote: It's a useful tool - but it's not a balancer like points are in 40k (putting aside 40k's own problems with points).
Actually I think they are quite comparable, and for the same reason. They are meant to be a balancing tool, but a lot of the specific price points are as much WAG as trying to be calculated concepts (though, I think BV has a little more calculation than WAG, but I'm rather biased against GW).
You say Clan doesn't trade for anything? In BV, they most assuredly do pay where they get huge discounts in firepower/tonnage ratios. Energy weapons hit harder and farther out, but the heavier ones always provide weight discounts that go to installing something else which BV is needed to pay for. Same applies for the Ballistics. And that's not even considering the general concept that pilot modification adds.
I think the real difference when comparing things like BV for 40K points is that the scale is completely different as well as there not being a comparable critical system. as a skirmish game with only 4 or 5 models for an entire army, hitting the head with a 12+ points of damage weapon and taking out the pilot and the entire mech. or by comparison a critical torso hit that takes out the cockpit, gyro, engine or ammunition (via explosion) completely negates the BV system.
It doesn't matter how many BV you spent upgrading the pilot or the mech.
aphyon wrote: I think the real difference when comparing things like BV for 40K points is that the scale is completely different as well as there not being a comparable critical system. as a skirmish game with only 4 or 5 models for an entire army, hitting the head with a 12+ points of damage weapon and taking out the pilot and the entire mech. or by comparison a critical torso hit that takes out the cockpit, gyro, engine or ammunition (via explosion) completely negates the BV system.
It doesn't matter how many BV you spent upgrading the pilot or the mech.
Someone forgot about how Armor Value worked. Of course, GW still has multi-Damage rolls to replace all that, too.
aphyon wrote: I think the real difference when comparing things like BV for 40K points is that the scale is completely different as well as there not being a comparable critical system. as a skirmish game with only 4 or 5 models for an entire army, hitting the head with a 12+ points of damage weapon and taking out the pilot and the entire mech. or by comparison a critical torso hit that takes out the cockpit, gyro, engine or ammunition (via explosion) completely negates the BV system.
It doesn't matter how many BV you spent upgrading the pilot or the mech.
Someone forgot about how Armor Value worked. Of course, GW still has multi-Damage rolls to replace all that, too.
No i think i pretty well covered that already, it is a matter of scale. losing a rhino to a pen 5+ isn't the same as decapping a pilot in a mech you spent hundreds of BV to upgrade to an elite skill level. the other balance factor is already there- star V star/lance V lance or 2 lances V 1 star. in 20 years it has never proven to be unbalanced without resorting to BV.
aphyon wrote: I think the real difference when comparing things like BV for 40K points is that the scale is completely different as well as there not being a comparable critical system. as a skirmish game with only 4 or 5 models for an entire army, hitting the head with a 12+ points of damage weapon and taking out the pilot and the entire mech. or by comparison a critical torso hit that takes out the cockpit, gyro, engine or ammunition (via explosion) completely negates the BV system.
It doesn't matter how many BV you spent upgrading the pilot or the mech.
Someone forgot about how Armor Value worked. Of course, GW still has multi-Damage rolls to replace all that, too.
No i think i pretty well covered that already, it is a matter of scale. losing a rhino to a pen 5+ isn't the same as decapping a pilot in a mech you spent hundreds of BV to upgrade to an elite skill level. the other balance factor is already there- star V star/lance V lance or 2 lances V 1 star. in 20 years it has never proven to be unbalanced without resorting to BV.
A Rhino, no. That's like a Stinger (which I headcapped with a Large Laser snapshot once). A Land Raider or Leman Russ, though? Not cheap.
And no, Lance v Lance is not inherently balanced. If I have a Lance of Lights and you have a Lance of Heavies, it's not as much of a contest. 2 Lances of Introtech will have a hard time against a Star. Usually you're looking at a full Company of 3 Lances to have a chance. Unless they're Ice Hellions, of course.
Ghaz wrote: I really want to do a Snord's Irregulars company, so here's hoping this comes out in plastic soon...
Same. I have a metal one built already for my Snord company but it's far enough down the paint queue that maybe we'll get news about the plastic by then...
aphyon wrote: I think the real difference when comparing things like BV for 40K points is that the scale is completely different as well as there not being a comparable critical system. as a skirmish game with only 4 or 5 models for an entire army, hitting the head with a 12+ points of damage weapon and taking out the pilot and the entire mech. or by comparison a critical torso hit that takes out the cockpit, gyro, engine or ammunition (via explosion) completely negates the BV system.
It doesn't matter how many BV you spent upgrading the pilot or the mech.
Someone forgot about how Armor Value worked. Of course, GW still has multi-Damage rolls to replace all that, too.
No i think i pretty well covered that already, it is a matter of scale. losing a rhino to a pen 5+ isn't the same as decapping a pilot in a mech you spent hundreds of BV to upgrade to an elite skill level. the other balance factor is already there- star V star/lance V lance or 2 lances V 1 star. in 20 years it has never proven to be unbalanced without resorting to BV.
A Rhino, no. That's like a Stinger (which I headcapped with a Large Laser snapshot once). A Land Raider or Leman Russ, though? Not cheap.
And no, Lance v Lance is not inherently balanced. If I have a Lance of Lights and you have a Lance of Heavies, it's not as much of a contest. 2 Lances of Introtech will have a hard time against a Star. Usually you're looking at a full Company of 3 Lances to have a chance. Unless they're Ice Hellions, of course.
you are arguing for mismatched numbers again, i already said BV can work for that.
when playing the 1 v 1 you also have to not be an obnoxious player. if you are playing succession war era VS clan invasion...of course you will likely lose that matchup without some amazing crit rolls as the game and lore has designed it to be that way. however, if you notice the batreps i post up using this simple system, none of them are unbalanced and BV is never used. if you run a heavy lance and i also run a heavy lance but decide to replace one of my heavy mechs with a light. it does not skew victory one way or the other especially if you are playing era specific.
That last game i posted was 3067 with the clans running 1 light, 3 mediums and a heavy VS a lance of 3 lights and a medium and a lance of 3 mediums and a light. at the end there was an IS medium VS a clan medium and light left on the table. it was a very close game.
the clan honor duel game i ran in july i also posted, my blood spirits VS cloud cobra were actually outclassed but still pulled off a close victory. i ran 2 assaults and 3 mediums and he ran 2 assaults and 3 heavies.
aphyon wrote: I think the real difference when comparing things like BV for 40K points is that the scale is completely different as well as there not being a comparable critical system. as a skirmish game with only 4 or 5 models for an entire army, hitting the head with a 12+ points of damage weapon and taking out the pilot and the entire mech. or by comparison a critical torso hit that takes out the cockpit, gyro, engine or ammunition (via explosion) completely negates the BV system.
It doesn't matter how many BV you spent upgrading the pilot or the mech.
Someone forgot about how Armor Value worked. Of course, GW still has multi-Damage rolls to replace all that, too.
No i think i pretty well covered that already, it is a matter of scale. losing a rhino to a pen 5+ isn't the same as decapping a pilot in a mech you spent hundreds of BV to upgrade to an elite skill level. the other balance factor is already there- star V star/lance V lance or 2 lances V 1 star. in 20 years it has never proven to be unbalanced without resorting to BV.
A Rhino, no. That's like a Stinger (which I headcapped with a Large Laser snapshot once). A Land Raider or Leman Russ, though? Not cheap.
And no, Lance v Lance is not inherently balanced. If I have a Lance of Lights and you have a Lance of Heavies, it's not as much of a contest. 2 Lances of Introtech will have a hard time against a Star. Usually you're looking at a full Company of 3 Lances to have a chance. Unless they're Ice Hellions, of course.
you are arguing for mismatched numbers again, i already said BV can work for that.
Yes, because that was the point. Someone complained how much better GW Points were better than BV. I said they were both wonky because there was a lot of WAG. And then the first quote above was concerned about the Crit system.
Of course, Armor Value did have a Crit system for a very long time, with zero health capacity at all. Land Raiders and Leman Russes were just devils to kill. Then they (very poorly) added Hull Points, but kept the Crit system. So I'm pointing that out. While a Stinger is still "hundreds of BV", it's impact on a battle will probably be about the same as a Rhino. Meanwhile, the Land Raider or Leman Russ takes up a much higher proportion of your force's points that it's more like the equivalent of an Assault.
aphyon wrote: when playing the 1 v 1 you also have to not be an obnoxious player.
Redundant statement as that's pretty much required no matter what list development system you use.
Either way you look at it, though, if one side is running IS tech and the other is running Clan tech, there is going to be some imbalance, be it numbers, BV, or tonnage. I think BV is easier to track because it allows someone who is new to not need to know if it's Clan or Inner Sphere, and can run a mixed unit.
H.B.M.C. wrote: If one side is running IS tech and the other side is running Clan tech there's going to be a lot of imbalance. And there should be.
Hence the official 2 lance VS 1 star conversion with standard pilots. the IS have numbers the clans have superior equipment/pilots. in over 20 years of never using BV, it hasn't been a problem in hundreds of games.
I'm looking for a little help designing a scenario for a club game in March.
I've got a Merc company that I'd like to go up against a Kuritan force in 3039.
The mercs have a company of three lances:
Battlemaster
Awesome
Rifleman
Catapult
Warhammer
Thunderbolt
Shadow Hawk
Wolverine
Phoenix Hawk
Wasp
Commando
Locust
I'm looking for a decent Kuritan force from the IS Lance Packs. I figure the Support Lance pack and the Strike Lance packs would work, as long as I swap the Wolfound for something else (maybe one of the mechs from the new 2 player starter set). But I don't know what third Lance pack to add to balance out the Kuritans.
H.B.M.C. wrote: If one side is running IS tech and the other side is running Clan tech there's going to be a lot of imbalance. And there should be.
Hence the official 2 lance VS 1 star conversion with standard pilots. the IS have numbers the clans have superior equipment/pilots. in over 20 years of never using BV, it hasn't been a problem in hundreds of games.
And with BV, that usually works out, though the numbers won't be exactly the same. Either the IS units will have 2-3 more models on their line up, the units will outweigh the Clanners, or both.
But again, a lot depends on how those 2 Lances are filled out, too. 12 Introtech Stingers won't be very effective against a Star of Hellions. I doubt even a Company of Introtech Wolfhounds would be as effective against a Star of Hellions. Heck, even 8 Stingers from a later TRO than 3025/Succession Wars won't be very effective against a Star of Hellions, and while 8 Wolfhounds might have a chance, they'd still be struggling.
It's not uncommon when I make lists with BV, I'll have a lighter Clan force of 4 (one of each weight class), while the Inner Sphere force will be 5-6 with the extras being in Heavies and Mediums. If I went for a lighter IS force, the number difference would increase.
Whirlwind Scout Hover Tank
LT-MOB-25F Mobile Long Tom Artillery
Sturmfeur Heavy Tank
Tinstar Battle Armor
Skulker
Warrior
Firestarter
Spector
Cicada
Devastator
infinite_array wrote: I'm looking for a little help designing a scenario for a club game in March.
I'm looking for a decent Kuritan force from the IS Lance Packs. I figure the Support Lance pack and the Strike Lance packs would work, as long as I swap the Wolfound for something else (maybe one of the mechs from the new 2 player starter set). But I don't know what third Lance pack to add to balance out the Kuritans.
By 3039, you've got a lot of stuff that fell off of Comstar's trucks. Everything but the Flashman in the Comstar Battle Level II is used by Kurita. You can even field a Katana! And although it's not the first thing you think of- the Wolverine K is a Kuritan variant. I'd suggest the Inner Sphere Command Lance as well- Archer has a Kuritan variant, the Marauder doesn't... but it is used by them, like the Stinger. Valk's a little out of place, but perfectly expected salvage. Plus, it gives you 2 lights and 2 heavies, which helps that Kurita mediums suck flavor come through.
Thank you for purchasing our latest expansion pack for the award-winning Arcade Operations system: UrbanFest! As you wait for your system to install this new, exciting, downloadable content, please take a few moments to review our updated Terms of Service… [Click!] Are you sure you want to skip the ToS? [Click!] Are you really sure you want to skip— [Click!Click!Click!] Okay, if you insist…but don’t say we didn’t give you a chance…
Welcome back to the combat-enhancing extravaganza of madness that is PseudoTech: Arcade Operations! And prepare yourselves for a real treat with this, our first (and only?) expansion to the game catalog meant to spice up your BattleTech games in a variety of new (and, frankly, ridiculous) ways: UrbanFest! Feel the power and excitement that can only come from thirty tons of slow-moving metal, and limited firepower! Thrill to the tales of heroism and adventure that only the most unassuming of BattleMechs can deliver. Anyone can be a champion in a Marauder or a Turkina! But if you really want to know the meaning of challenge, try to forge a glorious career from the cockpit of the infamous UrbanMech!
UrbanFest! expands on the playability of the sim-game rules first introduced in PseudoTech: Arcade Operations, with new features ranging from the amazing Urbify! power-up, to all new medal-worthy achievements, and a host of new scenario types with which to earn them! Even better yet, this expansion introduces new UrbanMech variants and never-before-seen technologies bound to raise an eyebrow or two both on and off the arena circuit! So, park your favorite standby in the garage, don your neurohelmet, and climb into the giant trashcan-’Mech of your choice; it’s time to show the Inner Sphere that size (and speed, and firepower, and armor, and fully actuated arms) isn’t everything!
Resumed weapons testing with the coyotes this weekend. decided to change things up with some weird second line mechs.
His star-
.savage coyote
.canis
.rabid coyote
.coyotl
.timber wolf
My star-
.marauder IIC
.warhawk
.bruin
.bowman 2
.jackalope
Last time we only managed 2 turns before it was all over, this time was just as brutal but it went over twice as long.
We managed 4 head hits with 2 direct pilot kills, multiple center torso crits on both sides as well as a crit leg shearing. i think it was turn 3 that 5 mechs went down between both of us. the turn before that i think half the mechs on the table fell down.
at the end it was an assault and a medium on his side VS an assault and a light on my side. The hells horsemanaged another victory but by a narrow margin.
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
On an interesting not the bruin performed surprisingly well for a ghost bear dominion/Rasalhague joint design that looked to be inspired by the clan grizzly.
It hits like a truck, first time it fired it connected with 2 large lasers and 3 of the 4 ultra 10 AC shots. all of our mechs performed pretty well, i don't remember how the Canis died exactly. but it was the next to last mech to die when it engaged the Warhawk.
They haven't built it yet. Its a concept video put in the terms of a customer promotional video.
Charistoph wrote: I
Still, Not only Clanner concepts, but Khan Noonian Sing concepts might come in to play.
Is there a difference?
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Flinty wrote: Well thank goodness it’s run by renewable energy…
It probably gets is power from the local supply grid, it would 100% need backup.
'I am sorry your unborn son died, but we had no wind for three days' just doesn't cut it.
They haven't built it yet. Its a concept video put in the terms of a customer promotional video.
Obviously, but if they don't have a reliably working single unit they can provide a non-CGI model of, my faith that they could construct a facility that holds 30,000 is on the shelf.
Charistoph wrote: I
Still, Not only Clanner concepts, but Khan Noonian Sing concepts might come in to play.
Is there a difference?
Noonian Singh was created on Earth and then left. The Clanners were created away from Earth and are seaking to go there.
Singh also didn't have his own tech base, and when offered a world didn't set up a nursery. Of course, the planet was turned in to a wasteland pretty early in the original timeline, so...
Severe population decline? Last I checked world populations were still on the rise and its generally considered that we are overpopulated in general! Not to mention the utterly insane growth in the last 100-150 years that the population has undergone.
Nope can't see any reason to suddenly raise the panic button for "underpopulation." If anything we need a long period of declining populations!
Now with the rise of women seeking a life outside of childbirth and thus often putting off having a child until later, yes I can see a very viable need for the option to procreate for a population where women might well be considering having a child much later in life where complications are much more likely to be a high risk.
Overread wrote: See I'm FAR more interested in that longtom artillery!
The 3D render of the Shogun is new. The concept sketch of the Long Tom is back on page 82 and the finished artwork was in the RecGuide that came out last Friday, making it so last week
H.B.M.C. wrote: I like the MW4: Vengeance menu music in the background of the video.
Back in the day before i left the dumpster fire that MWO became, i patched the audio files to replace all the sound effects with the ones from Mechwarrior 3.
BattleTech: Mercenaries Kickstarter Preview #1 PDF Only: Free!
In 2018, Catalyst Game Labs built upon the thirty-five-year legacy of BattleTech with the release of the A Game of Armored Combat and Beginner Box sets. Those boxed sets included re-imagined miniatures which retained the core of each ’Mech’s identity, updated with modern aesthetics. Upon that foundation, our Clan Invasion Kickstarter unleashed nearly one hundred additional miniatures and finished among the top 100 Kickstarter campaigns ever.
In the last four years, the avalanche of high-quality, affordable, ready-to-play plastics–coinciding withexciting original fiction and campaign play set in the new ilClan Era–has unleashed a massive wave of BattleTech interest, with more gamers of every age and type playing than ever before. By the end of this year, more than four million high-quality, affordable, ready-to-play plastic ’Mech miniatures will have hit gaming tables in just four years.
And soon we’ll be leaping back into that action: the Mercenaries Kickstarter launches on March 23, 2023, live from AdeptiCon!
We found during the Clan Invasion Kickstarter that the community loved behind-the-scenes looks at how we transitioned fan-favorite BattleMechs into our modern plastics. And we want to offer that again. This time, well before the Mercenaries Kickstarter launches, as we are so much further along on the project!
Today we’re launching the first of a series of preview PDFs that will roll out over the coming weeks. Each PDF walks you through that re-imagining process: basing each, of course, off of Duane Loose’s amazing original illustrations (as well as other artists). And then, starting with sketches (often several), through the renders, into the final plastic samples, and finally gloriously painted miniatures by the Camos Specs team.
We hope you love this journey as much as we have, and look forward to joining you on launch day!
Seriously? If you're going to do pre-KS marketing info why complicate it with a PDF? Free sure, but you have to go to a separate site and register and enter personal details to get access to the free pdf when a simple wordpress free website page or two could have done the same work; be totally free; be google indexed and all for searching.
Overread wrote: Seriously? If you're going to do pre-KS marketing info why complicate it with a PDF? Free sure, but you have to go to a separate site and register and enter personal details to get access to the free pdf when a simple wordpress free website page or two could have done the same work; be totally free; be google indexed and all for searching.
Don't hassle people when you're doing marketing
A PDF on its own isn't too bad. If it's posted in an open link, even Google can index it. But, I agree, putting it behind a registration system and all that, even if free? Kind of a PITA, and limiting who gets the marketing materials, which seems... counterproductive?
Kanluwen wrote: It does kinda/sorta make sense in that it can let them gauge interest.
Naw it more seems like they've just used an online store host to make it simple to release and not really thought it through properly. Marketing like this is only going to appeal to those who are already sold on the product. It's going to bypass many who are on the fence; who are debating or who are not even all that interested or aware of it. It's marketing that's only going to reinforce your existing market. Which is fine, marketing really should do that; but it just seems like there's nothing in this special to existing customers and there's a lot in it that would be useful and interesting to reach out to new people or previous Battletech fans who aren't in the current system and all.
Basically it's a barrier which shouldn't be there and in this day and age a good many resent having to sign up for stuff on websites and give away their details. So they can be turned off just by the practice of having this kind of marketing material.
As a counterpoint- I'd say releasing your marketing through premium channels to people who are definitely already backing is a great way to harpoon whales for the kickstarter.
You're already paying per month to see images a few weeks ahead of everyone else. You have disposable income and interest. Put aside another fifty or a hundred dollars for us, and get ready for this.
It's no accident this image is on a very faction limited, late era mech, while the totally free, full color writeup of the Assassin and Quickdraw focused on 2 ubiquitous, usable in any era mechs to build interest in the casual buyer.
H.B.M.C. wrote: Why would they bother redesigning a Loki Mk.II when there are other 'Mechs with far older/worse line art to update?
I believe they will redesign a 'Mech and create a 3D model for it if they need artwork for it (e.g., a novel or sourcebook cover, etc.). I don't believe it's always for a miniature (despite that being the popular opinion on the BattleTech Forums.).
Hmm, looks like a Warhammer, could it be a Hammerhands? Wait, with the sunken head it's a bit like a Hellbringer. Could it be a Loki mk II?
Kanluwen wrote:WAIT, IS THAT A LOKI MARK II?!?!
DANG IT. It's what I get for not checking in here more often.
H.B.M.C. wrote:Why would they bother redesigning a Loki Mk.II when there are other 'Mechs with far older/worse line art to update?
Why are they putting the Regent and Sagittaire in when they haven't even finished with all the ones missing from every TRO before them?
Heck, if anything, I think the Inner Sphere's first gen Omnimechs deserve a shot before a few of these. My Avatar gets confused for being a Medium Mech and my poor Hauptmann looks like a dwarf. Does make it easier to fit in to the tackle boxes I use for storing and carrying my 'Mechs, though.
I am actually quite happy with my Hauptmann from IWM, it is a newer sculpt like the blood asp (that they finally got right after 3 tries) ...my blood kite on the other hand is in need of a remake.
I already own IWM versions of most of the plastics catalyst are releasing so even though they look really good i have no need or desire to get them again (or space or desire to paint them).
Charistoph wrote: Why are they putting the Regent and Sagittaire in when they haven't even finished with all the ones missing from every TRO before them?
Heck, if anything, I think the Inner Sphere's first gen Omnimechs deserve a shot before a few of these. My Avatar gets confused for being a Medium Mech and my poor Hauptmann looks like a dwarf. Does make it easier to fit in to the tackle boxes I use for storing and carrying my 'Mechs, though.
You must remember that the Mercenary Force Packs will initially be exclusives. The Eridani Light Horse Hunter Lance and Grey Death Legion Heavy Battle Lance will initially be exclusive to Barnes & Noble, the Hansen's Roughriders Battle Lance will initially be exclusive to Alliance Game Distributors, the Northwind Highlanders Command Lance will initially be exclusive to ACD Distribution and the Kell Hounds Striker Lance will initially be exclusive to the Catalyst Game Labs web store.
We're not privy to what went into those deals for the initial exclusivity on those Force Packs, but I imagine that the Sagittaire, Regent, Penetrator, Gunslinger and Nightsky along with the jumping Thunderbolt, Shadow Hawk, Hatchetman, Highlander, and Crusader in those Force Packs went into Barnes & Noble, Alliance Game Distributors and ACD Distribution deciding to pony up some money for their production, something they might not have decided to do for a generic Force Pack.
Ghaz wrote: You must remember that the Mercenary Force Packs will initially be exclusives. The Eridani Light Horse Hunter Lance and Grey Death Legion Heavy Battle Lance will initially be exclusive to Barnes & Noble, the Hansen's Roughriders Battle Lance will initially be exclusive to Alliance Game Distributors, the Northwind Highlanders Command Lance will initially be exclusive to ACD Distribution and the Kell Hounds Striker Lance will initially be exclusive to the Catalyst Game Labs web store.
None of that really addresses the question as to why they're doing these latter designs first.
H.B.M.C. wrote: None of that really addresses the question as to why they're doing these latter designs first.
Maybe because they're more popular than any other earlier designs? The only one that's really 'new' is the Regent, with the Penetrator, Gunslinger and Nightsky all being from TRO: 3055 and the Sagittaire from TRO: 3067.
H.B.M.C. wrote: None of that really addresses the question as to why they're doing these latter designs first.
Maybe because they're more popular than any other earlier designs? The only one that's really 'new' is the Regent, with the Penetrator, Gunslinger and Nightsky all being from TRO: 3055 and the Sagittaire from TRO: 3067.
But also consider how many 'Mechs we don't have from TRO 3025 and 2750. Sure, they aren't the greatest, most anticipated models, but they still exist and they do have fans.
Of course that doesn't include other decisions like why the Mongrel was in the Clan Invasion box instead of the Ice Ferret.
But that's their decision to make as they are managing the IP.
Ghaz wrote: You must remember that the Mercenary Force Packs will initially be exclusives. The Eridani Light Horse Hunter Lance and Grey Death Legion Heavy Battle Lance will initially be exclusive to Barnes & Noble, the Hansen's Roughriders Battle Lance will initially be exclusive to Alliance Game Distributors, the Northwind Highlanders Command Lance will initially be exclusive to ACD Distribution and the Kell Hounds Striker Lance will initially be exclusive to the Catalyst Game Labs web store.
None of that really addresses the question as to why they're doing these latter designs first.
Also, it makes everything from this new KS a raw deal for anyone outside of the USA: you either buy into the KS, with the current shipping costs situation for overseas shipping... or get fethed by many of the KS stuff being US stores exclusives.
As many of you already know, we’ve begun rolling out preview PDFs of the coming Mercenaries Kickstarter; Preview 02 went live yesterday. However, we are aware there are still some outstanding digital items from the Clan Invasion campaign.
Here’s a rundown on those items and their current status:
Scenario #4: Grand Melee, Scenario #5: Batchall, Expanded Military Briefing: The Clans: These are all in process and will be released to backers before the end of February.
Camospecs: A Guide to Faction Paint Schemes: The first six issues are done, and they will start to release before the end of February as well.
Camospecs: A unit Art Manual: This project ended up far larger than anything we expected. It was always a call between this or getting other books and miniatures out the door. And new items for your tables are the priority. As such, we are officially canceling this release.
New chapter-serial to showcase new canon characters: The author is finalizing this as we speak, and the first part will release by the end of January.
Senior backer as main character in a new novella: This will begin work in January with a projected release of March to backers.
Den of Wolves: Half of the novel is written. Principle writing will be finished by mid year 2023, with a release to backers by the end of 2023.
The final three items all required us working with personnel and companies outside of our control. And the world shutting down obviously made this impossible. We do not yet have specific plans for how to address these final three, but will have updates before the launch of the Mercenaries Kickstarter.
Video of authors playing tabletop RPG as various BattleTech characters
Randall and Brent play Russ and team from PGI at MechWarrior 5
Randall, Brent, Loren face Jordan, Mitch and Mike from HBS in livestream charity event playing BattleTech
We appreciate your patience as we work to wrap up these last items, while preparing the massive launch of the next Kickstarter.
Team Catalyst
And a reminder of what was in the cancelled CamoSpecs: A Unit Art Manual and what is in Camospecs: A Guide to Faction Paint Schemes.
Shrapnelsmile wrote: How do all of you feel about Alpha Strike? I'm considering giving the new box set a try.
If you take it for what it is, it is a tremendous amount of fun. It will never deliver better mech on mech combat than Battletech. But if you want to fight a company vs company action in a few hours, it does it wonderfully. Especially if you'd like air support, some vehicles, infantry and artillery. It's a really quick and fun total battlefield game.
It plays perfectly for a skirmish at the starter box size, and it'll show you how to use formations, and start fighting like a lance or star.
But to really see what it's got to offer, I'd drop the money for the electronic Commander's edition, and add a lance of vehicles to the Inner Sphere and a star of Elementals to the Clans. Alpha Strike shines when combined arms are on the field.
Honestly, even though I already have lots of the new mechs painted for Battletech (the kickstarter finally pushed me into getting fully into the game after 25+ years of "knowing about it"), I'm planning on getting the Alpha Strike starter. I really feel that the box set is a damn-near perfect entry into Battletech, and wargaming as a whole, for the general public. I know that lots of people love the hexmaps and the gritty-ness of standard battletech, and they have their place for sure. But man, open tabletops and 1-1 scale terrain is what really does it for me.
The modern pre-assembled mechs, and adding in a ton of easy-to-assemble and stackable buildings, and including trees for cover terrain, on top of the usual cards and assorted tokens for a complete game was genius move. It brings me back to the old grognard days of 90's Games Workshop starter sets (especially Necromunda and Mordheim, that came with tons of terrain).
With things like the included rules for destructible buildings, army composition (with the two different types of each mech), and different types of off-table battlefield assets, I feel that for 80 bucks you get a TON more gameplay depth in one box than with a comparable GW starter set nowadays.
The only thing weirdly lacking was a good measuring device for complete plebs who are opening a miniatures game for the first time. They should have included one of the little 6-10' tape measure rolls (essentially the guts of a fabric tape measure) like I remember used to come in old starters for games like Mage Knight.
I feel like the variable damage rules from the Commanders Edition make Alpha Strike "feel" more like Battletech, though. I hate how a single successful roll can just immediately delete some mechs, without even worrying about critical damage. It's too much "all or nothing" for me.
Shrapnelsmile wrote: How do all of you feel about Alpha Strike? I'm considering giving the new box set a try.
My local group runs it every last Friday of the month (though for the last 6-7, I've been doing family stuff).
It definitely moves a LOT quicker and Clan stuff is a lot more fragile than in Total Warfare. They still hit like a ton of bricks, though.
When running TW rules, we tend to have 90 minute time limits and can barely get close enough for 2-3 exchanges. With Alpah Strike, we run 70 minute time limits and it is not uncommon for people to be done before the end of that time (admittedly, we're usually playing about a Star or Lance in size).
Our narrative campaign GM usually has us run Alpha Strike for when the whole unit is on deck. It has tended to be the deadliest, with the last one seeing the smashing of 2 of our irreplaceable Minnesota Tribe 'Mechs (one of which was my fault when I sent the otherwise-near-immortal Mercury II in to the firing line of 3 different Vehicle Lances).
It's also a good introductory format for those coming from a certain game format where the Wounds are relatively low and things die rather quickly and they are used to rolling a block of dice for their attacks. Once they get used to the math there, doing Total Warfare rules gets a lot easier.
Hist first couple of turns were just terrible dice luck, later in the game he managed to turn it around with some amazing crits.....and finally hitting with his ATM 9s
All of my units were pretty solid but when some gnomes blow off a turret, and you end up taking 130+ damage to the face in one turn (those ATMs) things go sideways very fast.
In total he lost both shodens (surprisingly well armored for clan vehicles), a single garuda, a single protomech and about half his battle armor.
On my side all i had left was the challenger MK XI and the ASF.
In all a good game. i was kind of invested in the game and didn't remember to take many pictures
As the calendar turns to 2023, and we prepare another exciting year of BattleTech for customers and fans, we thought it appropriate to pause, and look back at the unbelievable success of the line over the past few years.
January 2023 will mark four years since the release of the A Game of Armored Combat and Beginner Box sets, the match which set off the current explosion of the game we all love so much. It’s the perfect time to journey back to see the arc that brought us here, reveal some data about that success, and talk a little about the shape of things to come.
In 2015, Catalyst embarked on a radical plan to redesign all of the unseen ’Mechs that, for legal reasons, had been removed from the universe. Our publication of those first redone images–in the Warhammer and Marauder–spurred other BattleTech licenses to embark on their own redesign efforts, resulting in all of the fan-loved classics appearing in Piranha Games’ amazing MechWarrior Online and MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries, along with Harebrained Schemes’ award-winning BattleTech.
But we wanted to take it further. That meant all-new, ready-to-play, high-quality plastics–and completely redesigning the core products to match that quality, including a brand-new, never-before-seen item for BattleTech: the Beginner Box. These were a success from the moment they became available in January 2018; advance order sales were so high that we began second printings before the first even got to market. The seventh printing of A Game of Armored Combat and the eighth printing of the Beginner Box were being loaded on ships at the end of 2022, and once they go on sale there will have been 160,000 copies between these two boxes moved into the market in four years.
But this was just the foundation. While it was brilliant to see the core products in the market again, they offered redesigns of just nine ’Mechs. What we really wanted was a massive redesign of a huge swath of ’Mechs, with corresponding plastics. So, in July 2018, we ran what became one of the Top 100 Kickstarters of all time, unlocking nearly a hundred additional BattleMechs. It was amazing, stunning, and fantastic!
Yet, the question remained of whether those 15,000 backers–awesome, brilliant backers!–were the ceiling of this new resurgence? Or was this success only a taste of what was possible? Once the nearly two dozen different ForcePacks from the Kickstarter hit the market, once again, they exploded. More than 600,000 ForcePacks have been printed, with more than 500,000 selling within the last two years.
Coming out of the Kickstarter, the Clan Invasion boxed set has absolutely kept up with the first two boxes, despite releasing two years later: the fourth printing is being put on a ship at the end of 2022, and will bring the total number of copies of that box in the market to 55,000.
Four new mercenary ForcePacks–Eridani Light Horse, Kell Hounds, Northwind Highlanders, and Hansen’s Roughriders–will reach Catalyst’s warehouse in January, and four more ForcePacks will finish printing by March, including theGray Death Legion and Snord’s Irregulars ForcePacks, along with an UrbanMech Lance–four different variants of that iconic ’Mech–and a surprise pack. All told, this will total another 160,000 ForcePacks.
Of course, we can’t discuss the success of those ForcePacks without talking about our new Alpha Strike box set, showcasing the BattleTech game designed for the modern tabletop player. The initial run of this box set was the largest amount we’ve ever printed before: 25,000 copies. We retained 5,000 of those for shipping to Australia and Europe (they’re on ships now). The rest, we brought to the U.S. We sold through two thirds of that printing in mere days, and worked with our fantastic printer to quickly get a second printing of 20,000 copies done ASAP; that will get loaded on a ship in mid-January.
Once all that material moves through game stores by mid-summer 2023, we’re looking at more than nine million plastic miniatures put into the market in four-and-a-half years!
But it’s not just the miniatures. Sales of our rulebooks and sourcebooks have exploded as well.. Every single rule, campaign, and plot book we’ve published has immediately gone back to reprint. This includes the brand new ilClan Era campaign books. One of the best sellers is Total Warfare, whose tenth printing hits the warehouse in January. All told, we’ve sold more than 100,000 books in that same time frame. Supporting these products are our numerous digital-only items as well, such as the long-running Recognition Guides, arguably the best-selling digital-only series in our history. Not to mention all the ancillary products: for example, in the last four years we’ve published nearly fifty new BattleTech maps via paper and our deluxe neoprene, and we’ve got many more to come.
The BattleTech fiction line has also grown to match the game’s current lofty heights. We republished the entire Dark Age Era novel line–all 30 volumes–with all-new covers. Eleven issues of the official BattleTech magazine, Shrapnel, have seen print, as well as twenty-two new novels, eight short novels, eleven novellas, and fifty-seven short stories. All told, we’ve published more than 6.2 million words of new and re-issued fiction in the last four years!
And we’re just getting started! We’ve paired up with AdeptiCon, “The World’s Premier Tabletop Miniatures Convention,” to live-stream the launch of the Mercenaries Kickstarter on March 23, 2023.
Our upcoming Kickstarter will unlock more than fifty new plastic designs, including a slew of long-desired, fan-favorite ’Mechs, such as the “Ost” series; the Goliath and Scorpion, the first four-legged ’Mechs; as well as the original Technical Readout: 3055 Clan IIC ’Mechs. Plus, we’re beyond excited to bring more than a dozen vehicles to game tables, all molded in the same high-quality plastics and ready to play straight out of the box–including working turrets! The Kickstarter will also deliver a new Mercenaries box, a dozen new ForcePacks, new challenge coins, patches, pins, and all of the paraphernalia needed to celebrate mercenary life!
We’ve started releasing behind-the-scenes PDF previews of those coming designs; Preview 02 is available right now! That preview also teases the launch of The Mercenary Tales in January, a monthly installment of mercenary action all throughout next year!
Dominions Divided, the third ilClan Era campaign book, releases in January, along with a new series of Recognition Guide PDFs. New premium miniatures, fiction, t-shirts, plushies, and always more epic tabletop play, both at conventions and at your local friendly game stores….
By any metric, BattleTech is now more successful and more popular than ever before. With the coming Mercenaries Kickstarter and the lead-up to BattleTech’s 40th anniversary, there’s an excellent chance our current staggering success will be eclipsed as BattleTech reaches even more fans.
Thank you. To all the fans that have stuck with us through all these years. To the returning fans, and to the new fans finding us now. Welcome to all of you. This explosion of popularity–where we watch actual-play videos, painting photos, lore videos, excited discussions and more, happening every day on social media channels–is because of all of you! We could not do what we do without you by our sides.
We hope you love what’s happened with BattleTech over the last four years, and will join us as we charge onto even larger battlefields in our desire to ensure that everyone, everywhere knows how amazing BattleTech is, and have them give it a try.
As the calendar turns to 2023, and we prepare another exciting year of BattleTech for customers and fans, we thought it appropriate to pause, and look back at the unbelievable success of the line over the past few years.
January 2023 will mark four years since the release of the A Game of Armored Combat and Beginner Box sets, the match which set off the current explosion of the game we all love so much. It’s the perfect time to journey back to see the arc that brought us here, reveal some data about that success, and talk a little about the shape of things to come.
In 2015, Catalyst embarked on a radical plan to redesign all of the unseen ’Mechs that, for legal reasons, had been removed from the universe. Our publication of those first redone images–in the Warhammer and Marauder–spurred other BattleTech licenses to embark on their own redesign efforts, resulting in all of the fan-loved classics appearing in Piranha Games’ amazing MechWarrior Online and MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries, along with Harebrained Schemes’ award-winning BattleTech.
But we wanted to take it further. That meant all-new, ready-to-play, high-quality plastics–and completely redesigning the core products to match that quality, including a brand-new, never-before-seen item for BattleTech: the Beginner Box. These were a success from the moment they became available in January 2018; advance order sales were so high that we began second printings before the first even got to market. The seventh printing of A Game of Armored Combat and the eighth printing of the Beginner Box were being loaded on ships at the end of 2022, and once they go on sale there will have been 160,000 copies between these two boxes moved into the market in four years.
But this was just the foundation. While it was brilliant to see the core products in the market again, they offered redesigns of just nine ’Mechs. What we really wanted was a massive redesign of a huge swath of ’Mechs, with corresponding plastics. So, in July 2018, we ran what became one of the Top 100 Kickstarters of all time, unlocking nearly a hundred additional BattleMechs. It was amazing, stunning, and fantastic!
Yet, the question remained of whether those 15,000 backers–awesome, brilliant backers!–were the ceiling of this new resurgence? Or was this success only a taste of what was possible? Once the nearly two dozen different ForcePacks from the Kickstarter hit the market, once again, they exploded. More than 600,000 ForcePacks have been printed, with more than 500,000 selling within the last two years.
Coming out of the Kickstarter, the Clan Invasion boxed set has absolutely kept up with the first two boxes, despite releasing two years later: the fourth printing is being put on a ship at the end of 2022, and will bring the total number of copies of that box in the market to 55,000.
Four new mercenary ForcePacks–Eridani Light Horse, Kell Hounds, Northwind Highlanders, and Hansen’s Roughriders–will reach Catalyst’s warehouse in January, and four more ForcePacks will finish printing by March, including the Gray Death Legion and Snord’s Irregulars ForcePacks, along with an UrbanMech Lance–four different variants of that iconic ’Mech–and a surprise pack. All told, this will total another 160,000 ForcePacks.
Of course, we can’t discuss the success of those ForcePacks without talking about our new Alpha Strike box set, showcasing the BattleTech game designed for the modern tabletop player. The initial run of this box set was the largest amount we’ve ever printed before: 25,000 copies. We retained 5,000 of those for shipping to Australia and Europe (they’re on ships now). The rest, we brought to the U.S. We sold through two thirds of that printing in mere days, and worked with our fantastic printer to quickly get a second printing of 20,000 copies done ASAP; that will get loaded on a ship in mid-January.
Once all that material moves through game stores by mid-summer 2023, we’re looking at more than nine million plastic miniatures put into the market in four-and-a-half years!
But it’s not just the miniatures. Sales of our rulebooks and sourcebooks have exploded as well.. Every single rule, campaign, and plot book we’ve published has immediately gone back to reprint. This includes the brand new ilClan Era campaign books. One of the best sellers is Total Warfare, whose tenth printing hits the warehouse in January. All told, we’ve sold more than 100,000 books in that same time frame. Supporting these products are our numerous digital-only items as well, such as the long-running Recognition Guides, arguably the best-selling digital-only series in our history. Not to mention all the ancillary products: for example, in the last four years we’ve published nearly fifty new BattleTech maps via paper and our deluxe neoprene, and we’ve got many more to come.
The BattleTech fiction line has also grown to match the game’s current lofty heights. We republished the entire Dark Age Era novel line–all 30 volumes–with all-new covers. Eleven issues of the official BattleTech magazine, Shrapnel, have seen print, as well as twenty-two new novels, eight short novels, eleven novellas, and fifty-seven short stories. All told, we’ve published more than 6.2 million words of new and re-issued fiction in the last four years!
And we’re just getting started! We’ve paired up with AdeptiCon, “The World’s Premier Tabletop Miniatures Convention,” to live-stream the launch of the Mercenaries Kickstarter on March 23, 2023.
Our upcoming Kickstarter will unlock more than fifty new plastic designs, including a slew of long-desired, fan-favorite ’Mechs, such as the “Ost” series; the Goliath and Scorpion, the first four-legged ’Mechs; as well as the original Technical Readout: 3055 Clan IIC ’Mechs. Plus, we’re beyond excited to bring more than a dozen vehicles to game tables, all molded in the same high-quality plastics and ready to play straight out of the box–including working turrets! The Kickstarter will also deliver a new Mercenaries box, a dozen new ForcePacks, new challenge coins, patches, pins, and all of the paraphernalia needed to celebrate mercenary life!
We’ve started releasing behind-the-scenes PDF previews of those coming designs; Preview 02 is available right now! That preview also teases the launch of The Mercenary Tales in January, a monthly installment of mercenary action all throughout next year!
Dominions Divided, the third ilClan Era campaign book, releases in January, along with a new series of Recognition Guide PDFs. New premium miniatures, fiction, t-shirts, plushies, and always more epic tabletop play, both at conventions and at your local friendly game stores….
By any metric, BattleTech is now more successful and more popular than ever before. With the coming Mercenaries Kickstarter and the lead-up to BattleTech’s 40th anniversary, there’s an excellent chance our current staggering success will be eclipsed as BattleTech reaches even more fans.
Thank you. To all the fans that have stuck with us through all these years. To the returning fans, and to the new fans finding us now. Welcome to all of you. This explosion of popularity–where we watch actual-play videos, painting photos, lore videos, excited discussions and more, happening every day on social media channels–is because of all of you! We could not do what we do without you by our sides.
We hope you love what’s happened with BattleTech over the last four years, and will join us as we charge onto even larger battlefields in our desire to ensure that everyone, everywhere knows how amazing BattleTech is, and have them give it a try.
Team Catalyst
A Snord's Irregulars Force Pack! I think I know where that Spartan is going to show up...
A Snord's Irregulars Force Pack! I think I know where that Spartan is going to show up...
I've been trying to figure all day what could be in that back and totally blanked on the Spartan art. You are probably right! I already have a metal one built for my Irregulars that I haven't painted yet, wouldn't mind swapping it out. The other one that would be nice but we don't have art for is the Excalibur.
Death_from_above wrote:Overview taking into consideration all Mechs/vees shown/mentioned/hinted at so far
(ACS Patreon, KS announcements/updates, KerenskyCon, WolfNet Ep. 50, GenCon).
Items in italics have yet to be confirmed as being part of below mentioned packs.
Comments in italics are assumptions/personal opinion.
Taking a cue from the Retaliation Pack from the Clan Invasion KS, we might also
see the Mechs from the Box Set as a standalone pack (or possibly a pair of Lances).
No official confirmation that Battle Armor will also be included in the Mercenaries Box.
The number of ForcePacks already shown + the conjectured 4th "Battlefield Support"
Pack would add up to a dozen (as mentioned in Cubby's latest announcement).
57 - Aerospace Fighter - Mercenaries on the Move update confirmed
Not an IS design as per Adrian Gideon, so possibly an OmniFighter
Not Inner Sphere could also refer to the Tech Base, so maybe a Star League design ?
Redesigned, but no indication of being included in the KS Glass Spider (confirmed by Anthony not to be part of the KS)
Raijin
Fujin
Grand Crusader
Bulldog
Patton
SturmFeur
Hetzer
Phantom
Icarus II
Spartan (high probability of being part of Snord's Irregulars ForcePack)
Loki MkII (possibly part of the "surprise" pack from Cubby's latest announcement)
H.B.M.C. wrote: All that "Size 1, striker" nonsense just clutters everything up.
All of the Mercenaries Force Packs (excpet for the Objectives Force Pack) are supposed to be legal Alpha Strike formations (e.g., all units in a Striker/Cavalry Lance must have a minimum ground Move of 10” or a jumping Move of 8”j. No units in a Striker/Cavalry Lance may be of Size 4 or above and at least 50 percent of the Striker/Cavalry Lance must be of the Striker or Skirmisher unit roles.). This comes into determining where the unallocated 'Mechs such as the Shogun and Merlin might fit in the Lances/Stars that still need to be filled out.
Gotta love having 4 APCs, but only 2 units of Infantry...
Maxim's the only troop transport there, barring the experimental Galleon Maxwell variant. Despite it's very cargo transport name, the Galleon's a scout vehicle. I suspect they mixed it up with the Goblin early on, and just kind of ran with it.
The galleon is iconic, one of the original unseen's, the design is taken from the crusher joe movie. so, i understand why they went with it, even though i do love my goblin IFVs.
Gitzbitah wrote: Maxim's the only troop transport there, barring the experimental Galleon Maxwell variant. Despite it's very cargo transport name, the Galleon's a scout vehicle. I suspect they mixed it up with the Goblin early on, and just kind of ran with it.
That moment when one's memory gets mixed up and you don't check and verify...
Well, I finally jumped in with the Alpha Strike box set. I actually have no idea what I want to do with the models outside of a painting project at this point, and I'm kind of at a loss what to do next. Couple questions:
- Are their any Lance/Star packs that people consider must haves? I was surprised to see the AS box mixed up the other starters and had a few iconic units I was originally looking at already packed in, but I still feel like a couple packs would flesh out my collection.
- I am at a complete loss for a paint scheme. I know it doesn't really matter but I'm feeling very stuck. Kind of liking the Raven Alliance fluff lately, though I'm not a big teal fan. Seen plenty of examples, I'm just.... completely paralyzed by choice, which is kind of how I feel about everything in the franchise.
LunarSol wrote: - I am at a complete loss for a paint scheme. I know it doesn't really matter but I'm feeling very stuck. Kind of liking the Raven Alliance fluff lately, though I'm not a big teal fan. Seen plenty of examples, I'm just.... completely paralyzed by choice, which is kind of how I feel about everything in the franchise.
For a potential paint scheme, check out CamoSpecs and Unit Color Compendium. Once you find a paint scheme that you like, you can check out the unit's background at the BattleTech Wiki.
LunarSol wrote: - I am at a complete loss for a paint scheme. I know it doesn't really matter but I'm feeling very stuck. Kind of liking the Raven Alliance fluff lately, though I'm not a big teal fan. Seen plenty of examples, I'm just.... completely paralyzed by choice, which is kind of how I feel about everything in the franchise.
For a potential paint scheme, check out CamoSpecs and Unit Color Compendium. Once you find a paint scheme that you like, you can check out the unit's background at the BattleTech Wiki.
Yeah, been spending days there. Lots of things I like is the problem, nothing I'm wildly in love with though.
At the moment, I'm thinking of doing something like painting an urban camo scheme with blue highlights. Might do something like leave the Inner Sphere stuff mostly grey while making the Clan stuff more predominantly blue. Still not sure I'm in love with that idea though.
Given the various organisational levels within the Inner Sphere, is 4 bases of BA the right amount? Or is there so much variation across the IS, that 4 bases is 'close enough' to most of the ways the Great Houses organise their BA?
Ghaz wrote: All of the Mercenaries Force Packs (excpet for the Objectives Force Pack) are supposed to be legal Alpha Strike formations (e.g., all units in a Striker/Cavalry Lance must have a minimum ground Move of 10” or a jumping Move of 8”j. No units in a Striker/Cavalry Lance may be of Size 4 or above and at least 50 percent of the Striker/Cavalry Lance must be of the Striker or Skirmisher unit roles.). This comes into determining where the unallocated 'Mechs such as the Shogun and Merlin might fit in the Lances/Stars that still need to be filled out.
Good stuff. Doesn't make it any less cluttered. And I doubt most people give a gak about the AS rules anyway.
Overread wrote: So question - as I was lucky enough to get a few models over christmas.
What do you all find best for cleaning these plastics? Simple hobby blade and careful scrape/cut/trim? Or is there a trick I'm missing?
Sharp blade and cutting/shaving, rather than scraping, has worked pretty well for me. I think these are PVC, or at least behave very much like it, so scraping seems to give more burrs than a clean finish.
H.B.M.C. wrote: And I doubt most people give a gak about the AS rules anyway.
It's from the BattleTech Forums, so I would have to disagree with you on that (plus it will be coming to Total Warfare in the Force Manuals).
I think his point is that alpha strike isn't real BattleTech for most of us. several of the guys in our group play both classic and AS, i have no interest in it because it removes all the depth that makes BattleTech what it is.
H.B.M.C. wrote:Given the various organisational levels within the Inner Sphere, is 4 bases of BA the right amount? Or is there so much variation across the IS, that 4 bases is 'close enough' to most of the ways the Great Houses organise their BA?
A BA Platoon can number between 3-5 Squads. A Company is 3 Platoons. Most Inner Sphere Lances (either Mech or Vehicle) run as 4, so Omnimechs will usually run in that number (if CGL will ever put the IS ones in to plastic). So a base 4 bases would make sense.
What doesn't make sense is putting them on the same base size as the Battlemechs as it doesn't leave room to put two of them in a hex.
H.B.M.C. wrote:Good stuff. Doesn't make it any less cluttered. And I doubt most people give a gak about the AS rules anyway.
Honestly, I think that those who really care already know, and those who don't know wouldn't understand it.
Alpha Strike is picking up, especially as it is a good gateway system for those coming from another less-detailed system like Warhammer.
I don't personally think that AS plays Battletech well, but it doesn't really have to, not more than Epic needs to play 40k. It's simply to games in the same setting that do different things at different scales (engagement scale in both cases, actual scale in the second too).
I would not really play AS to scratch the Btech itch, but it's a cool game for what it is.
H.B.M.C. wrote: And I doubt most people give a gak about the AS rules anyway.
It's from the BattleTech Forums, so I would have to disagree with you on that (plus it will be coming to Total Warfare in the Force Manuals).
I think his point is that alpha strike isn't real BattleTech for most of us. several of the guys in our group play both classic and AS, i have no interest in it because it removes all the depth that makes BattleTech what it is.
And my point was that the post came from the BattleTech Forums, where Alpha Strike is as much BattleTech as Total War is and they would disagree with his opinion.
My FLGS's group doesn't use the force construction rules in the AS book and a few of the more swingy special rules - pilot traits for one - are excised. So, YMMV.
Ghaz wrote: And my point was that the post came from the BattleTech Forums, where Alpha Strike is as much BattleTech as Total War is and they would disagree with his opinion.
Don't know why you're calling it "Total War". That'd be like saying "Oh I play BattleMech Manual! Have you heard of that game?". It's the name of a book. Not the game.
BattleTech is BattleTech. AlphaStrike is a different game, and it is decidedly not BattleTech.
Albertorius wrote:I don't personally think that AS plays Battletech well, but it doesn't really have to, not more than Epic needs to play 40k. It's simply to games in the same setting that do different things at different scales (engagement scale in both cases, actual scale in the second too).
I would not really play AS to scratch the Btech itch, but it's a cool game for what it is.
It depends on what you're qualifying as "Battletech". Battletech is an vast network of systems, some of which have nothing to do with active 'Mechs on the battlefield, yet still involve many of the same base mechanics in determining roll targets. Alpha Strike is actually a little more forgiving since the target numbers are usually lower, over all.
H.B.M.C. wrote:
Ghaz wrote: And my point was that the post came from the BattleTech Forums, where Alpha Strike is as much BattleTech as Total War is and they would disagree with his opinion.
Don't know why you're calling it "Total War". That'd be like saying "Oh I play BattleMech Manual! Have you heard of that game?". It's the name of a book. Not the game.
BattleTech is BattleTech. AlphaStrike is a different game, and it is decidedly not BattleTech.
Total Warfare and Battlemech Manual are actually the same ruleset. Since there are multiple systems in the Battletech universe, noting which base system you're using is rather important. Alpha Strike IS part of Battletech now as much as Total Warfare is. The earliest forms of it were in the Valley of Death scenario of the Luthien Sourcebook.
Ghaz wrote: And my point was that the post came from the BattleTech Forums, where Alpha Strike is as much BattleTech as Total War is and they would disagree with his opinion.
Don't know why you're calling it "Total War". That'd be like saying "Oh I play BattleMech Manual! Have you heard of that game?". It's the name of a book. Not the game.
BattleTech is BattleTech. AlphaStrike is a different game, and it is decidedly not BattleTech.
Yeah, it's a lot more like BattleForce than BattleTech. Same universe, different feel.
That doesn't make it a bad game, mind you. Just not the same as BattleTech.
Albertorius wrote:I don't personally think that AS plays Battletech well, but it doesn't really have to, not more than Epic needs to play 40k. It's simply to games in the same setting that do different things at different scales (engagement scale in both cases, actual scale in the second too).
I would not really play AS to scratch the Btech itch, but it's a cool game for what it is.
It depends on what you're qualifying as "Battletech". Battletech is an vast network of systems, some of which have nothing to do with active 'Mechs on the battlefield, yet still involve many of the same base mechanics in determining roll targets. Alpha Strike is actually a little more forgiving since the target numbers are usually lower, over all.
So, same as 40k and Epic, then. Different systems in the same setting.
Ghaz wrote: And my point was that the post came from the BattleTech Forums, where Alpha Strike is as much BattleTech as Total War is and they would disagree with his opinion.
Don't know why you're calling it "Total War". That'd be like saying "Oh I play BattleMech Manual! Have you heard of that game?". It's the name of a book. Not the game.
BattleTech is BattleTech. AlphaStrike is a different game, and it is decidedly not BattleTech.
AlphaStrike isn't BattleTech in the same way that Kill Team isn't Warhammer 40,000.
Actually, it seems to be your dislike of Alpha Strike coming through again. I also see you didn't bother to address the fact that CGL made the same distinction first.
The BattleTech Hetzer has always had wheels.
