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BrianDavion wrote:

 Miguelsan wrote:
Capellan Confederation!

M.

Don't make me "liberate" you.

Spoiler:

Last time a Davion went liberating something you ended up saddled with Katherine…

M.

Look at all dat new stuff a'comin'!!!

1. The reprint of TechManual boasting the 35th anniversary vintage cover is now available.
2. Alpha Strike: Commander’s Edition has a street date of Wednesday, July 10, 2019 (honestly don't know what this product entails).
3. The BattleTech: A Game of Armored Combat boxed set is back in stock in the Catalyst Game Labs store, and will be making its way back into distribution to retailers as before.
4. Another reprint of the BattleTech Beginner Box is making its way to our U.S. fulfillment center.
5. A full re-order of all four previously-released mats has been placed. They will be available in the Catalyst Game Labs store and in retail stores by October.

And the KS is less than two weeks away!

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
Look at all dat new stuff a'comin'!!!

1. The reprint of TechManual boasting the 35th anniversary vintage cover is now available.
2. Alpha Strike: Commander’s Edition has a street date of Wednesday, July 10, 2019 (honestly don't know what this product entails).
3. The BattleTech: A Game of Armored Combat boxed set is back in stock in the Catalyst Game Labs store, and will be making its way back into distribution to retailers as before.
4. Another reprint of the BattleTech Beginner Box is making its way to our U.S. fulfillment center.
5. A full re-order of all four previously-released mats has been placed. They will be available in the Catalyst Game Labs store and in retail stores by October.

And the KS is less than two weeks away!

Just got my Game of Armored Combat box set in the mail the other day. Still trying to convince my friend to play it with me. lol.

The alpha strike thing sounds like a repackage of the two big alpha strike books that are already out.

Which book is the techmanual? I know the mechmanual is the core rules if you only want to use mechs, and Total Warfare is the core rules if you want to do the big armies.

I've got a collection of heroscape so the mats probably are skips for me.

Tech Manual is the book that has all the construction rules.

Those neoprene mats look awesome and I didn't even know they existed, but like Balmong, I horded 7-8 core sets worth of Heroscape tiles for events like this.

Glad to see all those restocks, but i'm still waiting of the Game of Armored Combat box I ordered from Catalyst last week to even ship...

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
Those neoprene mats look awesome and I didn't even know they existed, but like Balmong, I horded 7-8 core sets worth of Heroscape tiles for events like this.

Glad to see all those restocks, but i'm still waiting of the Game of Armored Combat box I ordered from Catalyst last week to even ship...

It will probably ship end of this week/early next week. That was the delay on mine.

Well, the one I bought this morning from "not CGL store" was sent already...

I'm going to regret having ordered directly, won't I?

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I'm going to regret having ordered directly, won't I?

That’s the business model Catalyst seems to work on - they seem utterly incapable of forecasting demand for stuff, and it goes through long stretches of unavailability. Then, six months to a year later, they maybe do a reprint, which is almost always grossly too few copies...wash, rinse, repeat until the next ‘new’ edition.

If that is the case they either need to tell me the product is unavailable, or not take my order. The boxed set was listed as in-stock, but they've been "preparing my order" for seven days now.

Don't worry, the long period of waiting will prepare you for the experience of playing the game.

/I keed

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
If that is the case they either need to tell me the product is unavailable, or not take my order. The boxed set was listed as in-stock, but they've been "preparing my order" for seven days now.

They aren't out of stock. They just take a while to ship. Mine took like 2 weeks. But I have it now. You will get yours as well.

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
Tech Manual is the book that has all the construction rules.

which can be one of the funnest parts of battletech. although most people use a design software for it (solaris skunkworks last I checked was the prefered choice)

BrianDavion wrote:

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
Tech Manual is the book that has all the construction rules.

which can be one of the funnest parts of battletech. although most people use a design software for it (solaris skunkworks last I checked was the prefered choice)

I've been in hardcore Battletech research mode this week, and have found out Skunkworks is at least four years out of date and missing loads of options. Megamek Labs is a little tricky to use, and isn't the prettiest, but it is content complete.

Also as someone new to the game, a piece of advice i'd share is to not read/get the Tech Manual yet. I did and it is a monumentally cool, but utterly overwhelming exercise. Playing a bunch of games using stock mechs has made my ability to understand the subtleties the game much better, and I still don't feel bold enough to tackle the design process.

I've found the last week+ incredibly overwhelming as even an experienced wargamer, but also deeply fulfilling. First game i've mucked with in quite a while that I don't feel I instantly both get, and can figure out how to break. I love that, and just wish the models existed to do wysiwyg when I do eventually want to build my own stuff. I picked up a couple of those Ironwind metals, and they're f***ing hideous.

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:

BrianDavion wrote:

 H.B.M.C. wrote:
Tech Manual is the book that has all the construction rules.

which can be one of the funnest parts of battletech. although most people use a design software for it (solaris skunkworks last I checked was the prefered choice)

I've been in hardcore Battletech research mode this week, and have found out Skunkworks is at least four years out of date and missing loads of options. Megamek Labs is a little tricky to use, and isn't the prettiest, but it is content complete.

Also as someone new to the game, a piece of advice i'd share is to not read/get the Tech Manual yet. I did and it is a monumentally cool, but utterly overwhelming exercise. Playing a bunch of games using stock mechs has made my ability to understand the subtleties the game much better, and I still don't feel bold enough to tackle the design process.

I've found the last week+ incredibly overwhelming as even an experienced wargamer, but also deeply fulfilling. First game i've mucked with in quite a while that I don't feel I instantly both get, and can figure out how to break. I love that, and just wish the models existed to do wysiwyg when I do eventually want to build my own stuff. I picked up a couple of those Ironwind metals, and they're f***ing hideous.

designing custom mechs is fun and all but ultimately I prefer stock mechs these days, I've found unless I'm specificly pushing a certain... character onto a mech customs all end up more or less similer.

Are there any particularly good books for pure volume of stock mechs and their record sheets?

I think part of the problem with the Iron Wind models is the scale (1/285, I think). I much prefer the z-scale size of the Mechwarrior: Dark Age clicks models, as you can get more detail and they’re properly impressive in size, but not too big. Some of the models are actually decent looking too (Madcats, for example, but not the squatting Warhammer).

 totalfailure wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I'm going to regret having ordered directly, won't I?

That’s the business model Catalyst seems to work on - they seem utterly incapable

You can honestly stop there. Catalyst is a wreck.
They managed to produce the worst edition of Shadowrun to date (5th) and decided to up the complete flailing disaster with even worse decisions for 6th.

I was very unimpressed with the quality of figures in their first battletech box- the two clan mechs were OK, but the IS mechs were pretty rubbish when compared to the CityTech boxed set from decades ago.

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I picked up a couple of those Ironwind metals, and they're f***ing hideous.

Hah, yeah, a lot of those sculpts are really showing their age. Partly it's because they were constrained by the concept art sticking true to the old design ethos for so long, partly it was their slow adoption of modern sculpting techniques.. but most of all it is because the designs are not iterative. It would be like GW offering the entire range of space marines ever made, with a timeline that followed the release schedule. Not too many people would buy those Rogue Trader era guys if the new hotness Primaris marines were also for sale, but if you were playing games set in year 40,001 and the Rogue Trader models were the marines from that era.. what are you gonna do?

If you look at models like IWMs Super Griffin, Wraith X or the Marauder 4X, those are some really nice sculpts that hold up well alongside the new plastics. The problem is that they are simply newer sculpts representing newer designs that just weren't around in 3025. If you want a metal 3025 mech then it is probably a 15 year old model! That's why the new plastics are so cool - we end up with some 3025 stuff that is as good (or better) than the best IWM have put out.

Up until now I have been using a kitbash of two IWM models for a Thunderbolt 5SS and a Super Griffin as my Griffin 1N.. but now I don't have to anymore

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
Are there any particularly good books for pure volume of stock mechs and their record sheets?

kinda, Battletech splits it's mech books into two catagories, the first is the technical readout which is mostly fluff, then there is the records sheets books which contain the mechs described in the technical read out. Imagine if you would if warhammer 40k put their fluff from the codex in one book, and the datasheets to play in another book. (it says something about the culture of battletech as a whole when I note that TROs outsell record sheets books by a considerable margin)

now that said, with the mech software I mentioned, you can download it and then get saved files of all the various mechs out there. which tends to be what people prefer as then they can print off the sheet as needed, instead of having to dick around with a photocopier or whatever.

 Siygess wrote:
If you look at models like IWMs Super Griffin, Wraith X or the Marauder 4X, those are some really nice sculpts that hold up well alongside the new plastics. The problem is that they are simply newer sculpts representing newer designs that just weren't around in 3025.

The Super Griffin was a prototype built in 3020 that never saw production. The problem with the 3025 miniatures is that 3025 is the first time period covered when the game was released back in the mid 80's and have never really had an update outside of the Reseen (which didn't really help as they exist alongside the old Unseens in canon). It was not until recently that CGL has gone back and retconned what those 3025 'mechs look like.

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I've been in hardcore Battletech research mode this week, and have found out Skunkworks is at least four years out of date and missing loads of options. Megamek Labs is a little tricky to use, and isn't the prettiest, but it is content complete.

I still use Skunkworks as it's the closest to The Drawing Board, which was the good 'Mech builder back in the day.

I've not run into anything that I've needed that hasn't been in Skunkworks.

 H.B.M.C. wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
I've been in hardcore Battletech research mode this week, and have found out Skunkworks is at least four years out of date and missing loads of options. Megamek Labs is a little tricky to use, and isn't the prettiest, but it is content complete.

I still use Skunkworks as it's the closest to The Drawing Board, which was the good 'Mech builder back in the day.

I've not run into anything that I've needed that hasn't been in Skunkworks.

yeah a lotta the tech introduced in 3150 is just uber unnesscary, introduced to introduce tech more then anything

 Ghaz wrote:

 Siygess wrote:
If you look at models like IWMs Super Griffin, Wraith X or the Marauder 4X, those are some really nice sculpts that hold up well alongside the new plastics. The problem is that they are simply newer sculpts representing newer designs that just weren't around in 3025.

The Super Griffin was a prototype built in 3020 that never saw production. The problem with the 3025 miniatures is that 3025 is the first time period covered when the game was released back in the mid 80's and have never really had an update outside of the Reseen (which didn't really help as they exist alongside the old Unseens in canon). It was not until recently that CGL has gone back and retconned what those 3025 'mechs look like.

Right, that's what I said; It has never been an iterative design process. CGL never stopped advancing the timeline in.. 2005 and said "Ok, lets go back to 3025 and redo everything" with a similar visual reboot followed in 2015. They just kept on trucking. Good catch on the Super Griffin though. I remembered it was a prototype, but forgot it was technically pre 3025.

in fairness CGL has been prone to looking back (although strangly avoiding 3025), FASA however kept trucking forward for sure.

Well, the box I ordered yesterday arrived today, so that's good.

The Battlemaster doesn't have a base, so that's less good.

BrianDavion wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
Are there any particularly good books for pure volume of stock mechs and their record sheets?

kinda, Battletech splits it's mech books into two catagories, the first is the technical readout which is mostly fluff, then there is the records sheets books which contain the mechs described in the technical read out. Imagine if you would if warhammer 40k put their fluff from the codex in one book, and the datasheets to play in another book. (it says something about the culture of battletech as a whole when I note that TROs outsell record sheets books by a considerable margin)

now that said, with the mech software I mentioned, you can download it and then get saved files of all the various mechs out there. which tends to be what people prefer as then they can print off the sheet as needed, instead of having to dick around with a photocopier or whatever.

The Technical Readout books do contain all the game stats for every unit described in them - but you have to transfer that information to a blank record sheet yourself. In fact, since each unit entry describes several variants, you get the data for four or five record sheets on each unit entry in a TRO.

Yeah, what Siygess said.

I like IWM’s newer sculpts a lot. But I’m a new player. I’m still stuck in 3025, because it has a less-overwhelming quantity of mechs and weapons. Most of their 3025 models look like they’re original sculpts from the ‘80s. There’s no way I’m going to buy a Blackjack or Quickdraw, just based on how they look.

They did release a new Shadow Hawk that matches CGL’s new art. That might mean they’ll slowly redo all of the 3025 mechs. I hope so, because other than the horrible chipping I always get with metal minis, I prefer metal to the PVC plastic that CGL’s starter boxes use. (I’d prefer hard polystyrene above metal, but I can’t figure out how to clean up that PVC.)

You can sometimes use newer sculpts to represent older mechs. If you don’t care about WYSIWYG, use a Raven II as a Raven, or one of the newer primitive sculpts of old mechs, like the Swordsman, Rifleman, Longbow, or the upcoming Emperor. I bought a Cataphract -0X instead of the -1X. Looks oversized, but it’s an improvement.

There are some that seem impossible to find out about unless you’re really on top of late-era mechs, like the Lu Wei Bing that looks an awful lot like a MWO Victor. I wish I’d found out about it before buying a Victor.

 AndrewGPaul wrote:

BrianDavion wrote:

NewTruthNeomaxim wrote:
Are there any particularly good books for pure volume of stock mechs and their record sheets?

kinda, Battletech splits it's mech books into two catagories, the first is the technical readout which is mostly fluff, then there is the records sheets books which contain the mechs described in the technical read out. Imagine if you would if warhammer 40k put their fluff from the codex in one book, and the datasheets to play in another book. (it says something about the culture of battletech as a whole when I note that TROs outsell record sheets books by a considerable margin)

now that said, with the mech software I mentioned, you can download it and then get saved files of all the various mechs out there. which tends to be what people prefer as then they can print off the sheet as needed, instead of having to dick around with a photocopier or whatever.

The Technical Readout books do contain all the game stats for every unit described in them - but you have to transfer that information to a blank record sheet yourself. In fact, since each unit entry describes several variants, you get the data for four or five record sheets on each unit entry in a TRO.

maybe but it doesn't tell you, just for example, where the ammo for the autocanon is stored etc. so the info is insufficant to produce exact record sheets fo them.

That's honestly never been a problem for us. We just put the ammo where it feels more logical (like in the same location as the weapon or the ones besides it).

And if we're "wrong" when comparing it with the official ones, who cares?