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Question for the group - if I've already got the "A Game of Armoured Combat" box, is there any reason to step back and grab the Beginner Box? Are the Mechs/Maps exclusive to it, etc?

 Dysartes wrote:
Question for the group - if I've already got the "A Game of Armoured Combat" box, is there any reason to step back and grab the Beginner Box? Are the Mechs/Maps exclusive to it, etc?

If you want a Vindicator, the Beginner Box is the only product that has it (you can get different Griffin models in other ForcePacks).

The beginner box map is basic, but great for intro games.

So question to our resident cappies, when servitors were still a thing, were they also used in an armed capacity, or only as a source of labour?

A silly if not quick game tonight.

A buddy asked me for a game to try out an assault lance he wanted to run-

All gauss all day-
.fafnir
.devestator
.pillager
.thunderhawk

I was a little under tonnage on him as kurita is not a big fan of 100 tonners it seems so i tossed a close enough assault lance back at him.

.dire wolf-hohiro
.akuma
.orochi
.battle master

The first half of the game he was rolling ghost targeting on his ECM like a champ and i almost never had a decent shot.

He mangled the akuma bad enough it had to withdraw. but then a silly thing happened-crits

the fafnir took 10 to the face with 2 crits killing the pilot. the devestator took crits that pilot shocked the pilot to death, and the pillager took a 15 to the face.

He tried really had to take the battle master with him, but it wasn't quite enough before his remaining mech(thunder hawk) withdrew.

OK so I got the Game of Armoured Combat through at the weekend, pretty excited to get the minis painted up so I can give it a try!

I'm trying to decide on colour schemes, but the impression I'm getting is that it's not as strict as 40k? i.e. although the Capellans have a green theme, they also have plenty of units with little no on green in their colour scheme!

Also can someone just confirm that damage is resolved simultaneously? i.e. If 'Mech A shoots and destroys 'Mech B, 'Mech B still gets to shoot back that phase before being destroyed.

Cheers
Kroem

 Kroem wrote:
Also can someone just confirm that damage is resolved simultaneously? i.e. If 'Mech A shoots and destroys 'Mech B, 'Mech B still gets to shoot back that phase before being destroyed.

Yes, that's the case.

 Kroem wrote:
I'm trying to decide on colour schemes, but the impression I'm getting is that it's not as strict as 40k? i.e. although the Capellans have a green theme, they also have plenty of units with little no on green in their colour scheme!

Yup, you do you! My own early adventures in painting the minis had me worried I did stuff wrong with regards to certain factions but as others have told me, the sky is the limit and you can do whatever you want.

Big example would be the beginner boxed set cover art: a Cappie Vindicator that isn't green?! IIRC, it belongs to the Big M.A.C.

Brill thanks for the confirmation both!
Now I just need the weather to warm up a bit so I can get the undercoat sprayed...

 Kroem wrote:
Brill thanks for the confirmation both!
Now I just need the weather to warm up a bit so I can get the undercoat sprayed...

Also, feel free to come up with your own scheme. Plenty of mercenary units, bandit kings and other odds and ends in the BT universe. Someone posted on reddit an Urbanmech he'd painted in the Judge Dredd colors from the 2000 AD zine. Somebody else did C3PO and R2D2 (don't remember the first mech, but the second was an Urbanmech again). So paint them as you like.

 Kroem wrote:
OK so I got the Game of Armoured Combat through at the weekend, pretty excited to get the minis painted up so I can give it a try!

I'm trying to decide on colour schemes, but the impression I'm getting is that it's not as strict as 40k? i.e. although the Capellans have a green theme, they also have plenty of units with little no on green in their colour scheme!

Also can someone just confirm that damage is resolved simultaneously? i.e. If 'Mech A shoots and destroys 'Mech B, 'Mech B still gets to shoot back that phase before being destroyed.

Cheers
Kroem

Correct on both counts.

While there is 'canon' unit colors (https://camospecs.com/ has a vast selection to refer to), in various sourcebooks there is constant reference to individual Mechwarriors painting their 'Mechs in non-standard colors.

One of my favorite examples of this is Sorenson's Sabres (Company), Tarwater's Battalion, 5th Sword of Light Regiment of House Kurita. House Kurita is known for being very traditionalistic, and the Sword of Light Regiments are basically THE elite of the Kurita military. However, out of the 11 'mechs and one aerospace fighter in Sorenson's Sabres, only five are painted in the standard 'Sword of Light' overall red color scheme - and one of those is listed 'in desperate need of a paint job'. The other seven have various custom color schemes including countershading, blue-and-gold vertical stripes, two different camo schemes, and white with red polka-dots...

If even this elite unit can get away with a majority of the unit in non-standard colors, YOU certainly can paint your 'Mechs however you like.

 BrookM wrote:
The beginner box map is basic, but great for intro games.

So question to our resident cappies, when servitors were still a thing, were they also used in an armed capacity, or only as a source of labour?

IIRC my House Liao sourcebook if you fail to be useful to the state in some capacity you fall into the servitor caste. By that metric I don't think servitors can be trusted with defending the Confederation after failing to become a citizen though desperate times call for desperate measures, and also the reigning Celestial Light's will reflects (pun intented) on the policies of the state. So under Kalvin, or Tormano servitors are lucky if they get to eat...

M.

I've been quietly following this thread for months and finally picked up the beginner box after many years of knowing about Battletech but never seeing it being played. Figured I'd just have to just in and see what all the fuss is about!

Slowly but surely finding the spare moments to paint up my first lance of mechs, 100% just going with the ones I find most visually appealing so I guess I'll figure out the tactical aspect of how they'll fight when they get onto the battlefield later.

Currently got a Wolverine and a Flea finished with an Urbie (in black and white police livery complete with police lights!) sat on the desk.





Particularly happy with how the bases turned out, really wanted to get a lot of detail into them and show the scale of the mechs with some recognisable objects.




Thanks for all the inspiration in here, it gave me the motivation to finally add some paint to them!

Cheers
Chris

That's some good highlighting there. The Wolverine's legs remind me of Tron.

That's some fine work, Snotcatcher. And adding the cars to the bases is a nice touch.

 Miguelsan wrote:
IIRC my House Liao sourcebook if you fail to be useful to the state in some capacity you fall into the servitor caste. By that metric I don't think servitors can be trusted with defending the Confederation after failing to become a citizen though desperate times call for desperate measures, and also the reigning Celestial Light's will reflects (pun intented) on the policies of the state. So under Kalvin, or Tormano servitors are lucky if they get to eat...

M.

Thanks, some interesting food for thought!

 Snotcatcher wrote:
Awesome stuff.

Hell yes, always go with rule of cool and the cars are a nice addition to the bases, indeed helps convey that scale just a bit more.

On my end, snatched up some more lance boxes, including the Snord's Irregulars, which I thought had the jumping Highlander, but didn't.. derp! Will have to keep an eye out for the Northwind Highlanders box, rare as it is around here. But it did include this thing, which is just stupidly awesome, as it combines a few of the mechs I really like: Archer and Rifleman, with a dash of Warhammer and if I go for the OG build, a Phoenix Hawk head as well? Sold! Not sure what the two remaining bits (claws?) are for though.

 BrookM wrote:
Not sure what the two remaining bits (claws?) are for though.

From Sarna:

The Guillotine comes with a large jump jet plume that mounts into its back and two smaller plumes that mount into its legs.

 Ghaz wrote:

 BrookM wrote:
Not sure what the two remaining bits (claws?) are for though.

From Sarna:

The Guillotine comes with a large jump jet plume that mounts into its back and two smaller plumes that mount into its legs.

Ooh, thanks! 🤘🏻

It's apparently time to upgrade. I've been using the BattleMech Manual for all of my games, since I prefer to play with 'Mechs and have an undying hatred for Boomerang Spotter Planes.

I was told that there have been some updates. What am I missing, and what do I need to invest in to keep up to date?

I'd link to the Errata, but the page is currently down.

Hopefully that's an indication that the MUL 2.0 is close to coming online.

You should be able to get to the file via a Google search, I found out I could get the mercenary set record sheets that way after Catalyst for some reason pulled that page.

With yesterday's arrival of my Inner Sphere direct fire lance I find that I am now unintentionally one Atlas short of a Steiner Scout Lance. 😅

Well, you can proxy in the Atlas II readily enough if you have the 1st Star League box.

I am tempted to get it and try my best to do the iconic bone-daddy paintjob.

But first.. decided to pick up the brush again after ages to try and paint Mean Woman. Never done pink before. 😅

 Lathe Biosas wrote:
It's apparently time to upgrade. I've been using the BattleMech Manual for all of my games, since I prefer to play with 'Mechs and have an undying hatred for Boomerang Spotter Planes.

I was told that there have been some updates. What am I missing, and what do I need to invest in to keep up to date?

Nothing major has changed, aside from new technologies being introduced. IIRC, the biggest rule change is for partial cover. Instead of giving a +3 modifier to hit, now you roll to-hit normally but any hits to legs are discarded. The core rules have withstood the test of time remarkably well.

In between doing many-many layers of pinks, I wound up wrapping up my Liao Raven instead, with a merc Catapult ("Koffin 2.0") for my brother hopefully wrapped up today:



Keeping my Liao mechs simple as I need to paint a small horde of those for later this year (2 Blackjacks, Urbie, Catapult and Axman), though when I get around to the Vindicator and Cataphract, I'll be giving those more attention for sure.

 Vulcan wrote:

 Lathe Biosas wrote:
It's apparently time to upgrade. I've been using the BattleMech Manual for all of my games, since I prefer to play with 'Mechs and have an undying hatred for Boomerang Spotter Planes.

I was told that there have been some updates. What am I missing, and what do I need to invest in to keep up to date?

Nothing major has changed, aside from new technologies being introduced. IIRC, the biggest rule change is for partial cover. Instead of giving a +3 modifier to hit, now you roll to-hit normally but any hits to legs are discarded. The core rules have withstood the test of time remarkably well.

That changed with Total warfare, 11 years before The Battlemech Manual was printed.

There have been 7 reprintings and 1 additional Errata since then, though. Much of it is either changes in rulings over the last 8 years, typos, or where a couple more words were needed for clarity.

The latest errata since I last checked a month or two ago was on September 17, 2023, roughly a year and a half ago. I don't know of there has been one since, as the page that it is found is currently down.

Stil, there are about 5 pages of updates for the 7th printing and later that comprise pages 21-26 of the errata document. They also show up in the previous 20 pages, but they add a section for the latest set in case someone already has the latest printing, and so can minimize any printouts/PDF space.

Koffin 2.0, the Catapult my brother used throughout the early days of our mercs campaign. Taken as salvage from pirates, he never bothered to repaint it. The name is a tongue-in-cheek reference to his habit of taking a mech, stripping out everything but the bare minimum in armour and heat dissipation, then loading it up with as many LRM's and ammo as it could fit. He did the same with his Stalker and Atlas builds.. ever seen an Atlas be bullied to death by a Commando because it ran out of missiles (he always alpha-striked) and couldn't land a punch?



Kinda hating myself for not having a decent pink paint with more pigment now.

Inherited a vulcan tonight....even got to use it, briefly until it got double tapped by an ultra 20.

This game went over 18 turns.....i know be cause i ran my valkyrie out of the 16 rounds of LRM 15 ammo i had. After which he had to withdraw....as he had already lost both arms and his back up energy weapon.

OK I tried to paint up some 'Mechs today and the damn paint won't stick to them! ?

I've sprayed them with GW leadbelcher and tried to paint them with GW base paints and contrast paints and neither will stick unless I keep applying again and again.

Did I need to wash them first or something? What should I have used? I'm only used to GW miniatures where I can paint them straight out of the box :-(

It's rare, but sometimes yeah, they can be a bit greasy and need a good wash.

On my end, wrapped up, minus decals and tidying tiny spots that always show up in pictures, my "hero" mech, "Punch-out", named as such by my brother because either I'd wind up ejecting due to poor piloting (one mech too many wound up utterly destroyed with me dangling from a parachute..), or the enemy getting a fist through their cockpit, because why else would they put those massive mitts on a missile boat?

Primer (even a thin coat) is usually recommended: