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misterfiveseven wrote:Battletech has some of the best fluff I've run across; if you like beer and pretzel sci-fi, this is where to look. The mechs look boxy and simplistic because... wait for it... THEY ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE WAR MACHINES. I love 40k, but sometimes a dose of asthetic realism is refreshing.

Also, these "overly complex rules" don't need errata/FAQ/fist-fights like GW rules do, and the fact that they've made it 25 years must mean something good. I started wargaming with Battletech when I was 8, so it clearly can't be too tough

i can't comment on the fluff because the rules and minis turned me off enought that i didn't get into battletech. some people like the rules but others find them cumbersome and clunky; if they want to *GROW*, that requires new players and most rulesets in the past 20 years have moved to a faster abstracted (and IMHO elegant) style. while i completely understand that there is plenty of nostalgia regarding battletech after all these years/minis/books/videogames/novels/movie, nostalgia doesn't attract new players. also, are you really... "wait for it"... TELLING ME THESE LOOK LIKE A REAL WAR MACHINES?



considering that there is *NO* reference to determine what a real 40ft and up tall bipedal warmachine actually looks like (and frankly the trojan horse is the only quasi-historical reference i can recall at the moment and we have no images of it)... i don't consider any toy soldier variant to be a *real* war machine. what i was commenting on is the simplistic design (classic btech minis and their concept drawings look like they were designed by a 1st year engineering student doodling during his intro to technical drawing class) which hasn't changed in 20+ years despite the rest of the industry/scifi changing. brotherSRM brought up an interesting point that i hadn't considered in that there are plenty of designs in the clix version of the game that do have the newer styling/feel that they could use but it doesn't seem like they are. i just don't know if catalyst/battletech team is falling into the palladium trap (where they don't want to risk alienating their small but loyal player base by changing up things in order to *possibly* gain new ones) but this starter set seems to me to be aimed more at double-dipping old veteran players more than a complete style reboot that one aimed at new players would be.

Mattlov wrote:

megatrons2nd wrote:I was hoping for a bit of new in the release as well. As a intro it is great. As a 20th anniversary must have(for me anyway) a pass. Battletech is pretty dead in Necronlord3 and My area. I can't seem to get any interest.

Have you checked the Demo Agent site just to be sure it's dead?

http://www.catalystdemos.com

Might have to sign up, but you can then search for players and Agents (like me) nearby.

Yeah woo-hoo maximum search of 150 miles and we get a whopping 2 events.

Necros wrote:Looks cool but I woulda liked to see worthwhile pics of the minis, painted of course.

All but 2 of the minis are pretty low quality. They are better than the cardboard, but no where near the metals or the 2 "premium" minis that come in the box.

This is basically a rehash of the Introductory box set. It has the 2 premium mechs, and the books have some extra content and artwork.

It is also worth noting that this is replacing the current intro box set.

For all its faults Ill always have a soft spot for battletech. It not for it I wouldnt have ever gotten into gaming. I know Ill be picking up a copy of this.

The rules for battletech are simple for most people to learn and play. Streamlining rules AKA dumbing them down for the masses has never appealed to me. While honestly the mechs are not the best looking and the weapon ranges are laughable I still enjoy the game better than warhammer.

But as with anything 25 years plus old it could use some updating and new mini's as long as they keep the same feel of the classic game.

paulson games wrote:I am disappointed with the crappy new warhammer on the cover and that there is no warhammer or marauder in the mech list as those are the two greatest battletech mechs ever.

I thought the original locust was pretty sweet.

I have two of these box sets on pre-order so it is nice to see a finalized date for release.

The vitriol in this thread makes me chuckle. While I am not a big fan of Catalyst and their business practices or how they have handled their stewardship of the license, some of their contributions to the Battletech line have been very positive. The 25th Anniversary Art book is a prime example of the kind of high quality product they are capable of producing and from everything I have read about this boxed set it will be a wonderful tool for capturing the attention of new players due to the premium quality materials inside (the 24 plastic minis excepted).

Woah, that's a large set. A pity I won't be able to afford it :(

I'm stoked, even though that mech list looks identicle to the last box set I had. Plastic is nicer than cardboard standups though.

yeenoghu wrote:I'm stoked, even though that mech list looks identicle to the last box set I had. Plastic is nicer than cardboard standups though.

Just a playful jab, yeenoghu, but if you think the Hammerhands looks identical to a Warhammer then your avatar is extremely appropriate.


Similar sure, but identical?

Good to see BT somehow still getting releases. Its like a curse or something on whoever picks up BT. /tg/ I know are frothing at their mouths to get this set. Maybe I should look into it

I'm holding off until I see pictures of the mechs. But I am excited about the news.

The 'Mechs are very simple cheap plastics (other than the two Clan ones, which are multi-part plastics of a much higher quality). They can look pretty decent when painted, but we're not talking 40K starter-set level detail.

Catalyst are not a miniature company. If anything, they're the opposite of GW - caring more about the rules and the universe than the models and how they can write rules to sell them.

It's a refreshing difference.

kronk wrote:I'm holding off until I see pictures of the mechs. But I am excited about the news.

This is a pretty good review of the original box set and the new one is nearly identical: http://www.tabletopgamingnews.com/2008/01/02/11742

DarkTraveler777 wrote:

yeenoghu wrote:I'm stoked, even though that mech list looks identicle to the last box set I had. Plastic is nicer than cardboard standups though.

Just a playful jab, yeenoghu, but if you think the Hammerhands looks identical to a Warhammer then your avatar is extremely appropriate.


Similar sure, but identical?

Haven't seen the figs, I was talking about the list of which designs are featured as the standard mechs.

Brother SRM wrote:
After asking on the official forums, the set is confirmed to have the following mechs:

COM-2D Commando
SDR-5V Spider
JR7-D Jenner
PNT-9R Panther
ASN-21 Assassin
CDA-2A Cicada
CLNT-2-3T Clint
HER-2S Hermes II
WTH-1 Whitworth
VND-1R Vindicator
ENF-4R Enforcer
HBK-4G Hunchback
TBT-5N Trebuchet
DV-6M Dervish
DRG-1N Dragon
QKD-4G Quickdraw
CPLT-C1 Catapult
JM6-S JagerMech
GHR-5H Grasshopper
AWS-8Q Awesome
ZEU-6S Zeus
CP-10-Z Cyclops
BNC-3E Banshee
AS7-D Atlas
Thor
Loki

The Thor and Loki are the premium mechs if I recall, and will have swappable arms. Unfortunately, there's no Madcat/Timberwolf in here, as it's always been one of my favorites. Most of the plastics from this set are from the previous Battletech starter, so they won't be of Assault on Black Reach quality, they'll be servicable. Either way, it's two companies worth of battlemechs for $50 plus all kinds of other cool stuff, so I can't complain!

If it doesn't have a Wasp, Stinger, Locust, Phoenix Hawk, Griffin, Wolverine, Shadowhawk, Rifleman, Thunderbolt, Warhammer, Archer, Marauder, and Battlemaster, it ain't Battletech (Battledroid, anyone? ) to me!

Valete,

JohnS

Most of those 'Mechs would be in there, but sadly a SNAFU happened with the liscending rights last year (again) and while the Unseen became Reseen, then became Unseen again (well, most of them did - some stayed this time).

Is it too much to ask for 28mm scaled Elementals? The Grey Death Suits call to me

No Madcat for the premiums??? Strange, that is like the most recognisable mech.

I still have all my books from when I played, but no models as some bastard stole them all.

Anyone know where I can get models in the UK???

Ral Partha Europe still does mail order for BT products as do Leisure Games and Keep Wargaming. All have online stores to order from. As for big, B&M stockists... I'm a tad out of touch. With Close to 300 battlemechs on my shelves it's been a while since I bought any. The more recent releases just haven't grabbed me with their aesthetic.

Disclaimer before the next bit. I'm a Mod on the Battletech forum and an on again / off again playtester for Catalyst. So there may be some bias.

As a 20 year player I'll just add that Battletech has a very strong following, not GW levels of course and not without our hotheads and TFGs, but a generally mature and helpful crowd. I know for a fact that Catalyst have big plans for the future of the game. Heck, they're still enacting a grand plan that was started back in the FASA days. The Jihad storyline was first dreamed up back in the halcyon days of FASA and you can see the early threads in some of the FASA published materials and novels.

As for complains about the clans, the Word of Blake etc... Battletech is a progressing timeline. It's not static like a lot of other games. The universe goes on, factions wax and wane and characters die. It's part of what attracts me to the game. I can understand the people the hanker back to the simplicity of a water raid on some backwater planet in the depths of Liao space, I'm a 3025 player more than a clan era player myself. But I love the progression of the universe too. I used to love the idea of worldwide events played by the fans of the game that actually had an effect on the way the universe progressed and Battletech had those for a while.

Right, rambled long enough, work calls. TL/DR - Battletech is alive, thriving, progressing, and well worth dropping a few bucks on.

I did have a Ral Partha Europe link in my favorites, but it is doing some weird link/asking for a login. NecronLord3 has the website address and better luck with online stuff.



On a side note: I do spend money on Battletech material both online and off when I can, and I think it will get bigger, and better as time goes on. I just felt the 25th anniversary edition box set should offer a bit more "new" than it does.

I've been keeping an eye on this. I've never played battletech EVAR (although I did play the hell out of the MW Clix game, which I adored).

If the minis are as poor as people say, and the PDF of the rules are free, perhaps it might make sense to make my own box with the ironwind metal minis? Not sure how much is really in the box other then a bound copy of the rules and the plastic minis. I'm waiting till this is on Amazon before ordering.

Ouze wrote:I've been keeping an eye on this. I've never played battletech EVAR (although I did play the hell out of the MW Clix game, which I adored).

If the minis are as poor as people say, and the PDF of the rules are free, perhaps it might make sense to make my own box with the ironwind metal minis? Not sure how much is really in the box other then a bound copy of the rules and the plastic minis. I'm waiting till this is on Amazon before ordering.

It is worth it to get the box. The minis can paint up pretty well if you put some work into them. And it is a hell of a lot cheaper than getting them in metal.

Box should contain:
26 'Mechs
2 Board Game quality Mapsheets
Quick Start Rules
Quick Start 'Mech stat cards/sheets
Universe Fluff book

I think that's it. There might be another book in there. It is a great deal.

All these posters hating on non-GW products! What is this, warseer? Personally I can't wait to get my hands on this thing.

I played a couple of games of someone's Battletech set once. I remember really enjoying it, despite thinking the plastic minis were really, well, pants. About half of the problem was just bad robot design and the other half was just sloppy execution. But for that price I think I can live with that.

In fact, Battletech may be pretty much what I'm looking for at the moment. A small, fun, very detailed game that would allow future expansion but doesn't require hundreds or even thousands of dollars to get a decent starting force.

What kind of terrain would work with this sort of scale?

Just pre-ordered mine, there goes my hobby fund for the month April.

How well does this game work with say, three or four players?

cygnnus wrote:

If it doesn't have a Wasp, Stinger, Locust, Phoenix Hawk, Griffin, Wolverine, Shadowhawk, Rifleman, Thunderbolt, Warhammer, Archer, Marauder, and Battlemaster, it ain't Battletech (Battlemech, anyone? ) to me!

Valete,

JohnS

You do realize that all the original versions of those, the ones that were taken from Japanese anime, are no longer allowed to be made right?

They are the whole reason FASA went out of business, they got sued, lost, and the original versions of those mechs lost as well. There are new versions, but most arent as cool as the old ones.

Mad4Minis wrote:They are the whole reason FASA went out of business...

The unseen thing didn't put them out of business. FASA closed down because those in charge (foolishly) saw no future in miniature wargaming.

Ouze wrote:What kind of terrain would work with this sort of scale?

Some people actually use Heroscape, the hex-based prepainted miniatures game that Hasbro put out. I'm pretty sure the game isn't supported anymore, but the starter comes with a ton of hexes you can use to make your own maps.

Ouze wrote:What kind of terrain would work with this sort of scale?

You actually don't need terrain. The boards are hex-grid 2d maps, making it pretty straight foward (and lord knows i have like 200+ of them).

However, you can use scale terrain. Problem is, a battlemech is 10 meters, while a hex is actually 30 meters wide; the mini is more a placeholder than a scale model. That means when you're using scale terrain and TLOS, you have to multiply everything by 3 (ranges movement, etc.). This makes for a very large game table.

However, I haven't played with the rereleased rules, so they may be different...

ninja'd by 2 min :(