"This is Madness, This is BattleTech" Topic

after some considerable time without any posts about BattleTech on my blog I've gone and broken the silence with some opinions on the game. Please feel free to add your comments.

link

Didn't Alpha Strike already cover some of this?

I don't know, does it?

AFAIK Alpha strike is an updated variant on BattleForce, where the time and ground scale have been changed. So far, having played BattleForce, I'm not convinced. Also small matter of no one who plays it too, but the real issue is that it is a different game IMO.

I still only play 3025 games using the old Battletech Manual: Rules of Warfare. The introduction of the Clans and all the new weaponry and tech bogged it all down for me and took away the essence of the game in my opinion…

I gree Mick, I remember when dispossesed meant something. I stop at right at the start of the Clans.

another ditto Mick

Alpha strike is more of a mix of CBT and Battleforce, it has more detail than Battleforce.

What turned me off from the game itself was all of the weapons that do 5-10 points of damage, yet on most medium or larger mechs you need to hit a location so many time & cross off what can seem like endless amounts of dots just to penetrate the armor. If they instituted a system that allowed for more chances of obtaining critical hits or internal damage before going through all of that, then the game might be more fun.

I remember my first game, many moons ago.
I was immediately not impressed with the paper hex maps that had creases in them or the card counters.
However, I figured that if the game was good I could upgrade to metal models and a board.
But then I played it.
Now, this was years ago, back when I had an attention span and could digest large volumes of text and not get a headache like I do now.

But even then I found it overly cumbersome.
I wanted to run around and blow big stuff up with my big robots.
All I can recall was looking for water to stand in to cool my mech down.
I only played it that first day…

That has put me off mechs ever since as wargames.
Heavy Gear was played for years as an RPG but even then not in gears.

Mind you saying that..
If someone offered me the chance to play Adeptus Titanicus today I would.
No hesitation.

All these opinions are similar to my own. I actually enjoyed playing Battletech when it first came out. It's really more of a 1 person/1 mech game though. The tracking is just too much. We tried to do a 6 player miniature game once, with 1 lance/person and it just failed miserably. It bogged down with tracking distance moved etc..

That's why I wrote Mini Mech. I wanted to be able to run large groups of mechs per person and keep the game moving. I'll never get tired of mechs, but I prefer a beer & pretzels rules for them, rather than a complex simulation that tracks all the systems.

Here are my rules, which can work with any miniatures, and you can easily convert the hex movement to inches.

link

I played Battletech when it first came out, and what is forgotten about now, is what everyone said about it then.

It's Starfleet Battles with giant robots instead of starships. It plays the same, and with the expansions, ends up the same problems of Starfleet battles, each expansion added more rolls and slowing the game down more.

That's it really. You can get into the individual rules mechanics but the whole design is one person / one mech or one lance vs one lance, and it pretty much plays like Starfleet battles plays out. You end up with the same problems. But, that was the design style back then, Starfleet Battles was so successful in the 80's everyone tried to copy it.

Interesting post. I'm not sure that any of the suggestions will be taken by the authors, which leaves you pretty much playing BT in 3026.

As for Alpha Strike. It's a great game, but it moves so fast and deadly that your really need more than a lance to play a good game. It's a great way to play bigger battles in the BT universe, and runs well with 10+ units per pserson. However, it's not going to satisfy those who year for the pre-clan BT experience.

I find BT (even at the 3026 "introductory" level of play) to be to chunky. I settled on Mech Attack as my lance v lance game. It's BT'ish, with a fraction of the rules. I love it, but fans of BT, might find it too light.

I love the BT universe and fluff and the Alpha Strike rules, but I can't imagine anything will tempt me back to the standard Classic/Total Warfare Battletech game.

My understanding is that in Alpha Strike the ground scale is such that you can walk farther than you can shoot, which for me is a no-no for a game with ranged weapons.

If you click on the BT links on my blog you will see a lot of posts where I have tinkered with the rules and played games with a Battalion per side. So there is life in the old girl yet.

I've played both Battledroids and Battletech, and agree with your conclusions. Our group currently uses Meka Tac – GSRE to scratch its mecha battling itch. Warning: no heat.

Al | link

Thnak you Broadsword, and BTW I like your site and have it bookmarked.

Or you could try this
link

I actually don't mind Battletech the way it is. It's complex, but that doesn't bother me so much.

Thanks, Paint it Pink!

We ran into problems with BT when a player tried to run more than one mech, having more than 4 mechs on the board, and few other things. There have been various home-brews and edits over the decades with mixed results, but Meka Tak does a good job and the price is right.

I would really like to give Robotech Tactics a try. Mekton II and Mekton Zeta were both very good mech battling games wrapped in good RPGs. Heavy Gear never caught on locally, though I've played it elsewhere. The quest continues.

As OrdinaryBass said, I use Mech Attack. I have a file somewhere on my computer with a big conversion chart on how I transfer BT to MA. It actually works out rather nicely.

There's also a document that I posted at the Armor Grid (Mech Attack publisher) forum with a batch of BT Mechs converted to MA stats. My collection is rebased Mechwarrior Clix models, so many of them are 3085-3136, but it's a good starting point.
link

Ethanjt21,
I'd like to see that conversion chart if you find it. Sounds really useful and more accurate than my "it feels right" method.

I've been recently trying to figure out how to get BattleTech into our wargaming group's general rotation. Currently we play it on rare occasion and due to that none of the players know it all that well, also we play a very wide variety of games so few players are incredibly invested in any given set of rules. The result is that the big expanse of equipment in BT is potentially cumbersome. This has me pondering if running 3025 games would be a better way to drive the game.

Perhaps it is just my impression but though I've enjoyed and played a lot of post 3050 games, I've consistently felt that pre-Helm Memory Core (i.e. 3025 available tech) is an era dominated by stock designs where post-Helm Memory Core (and especially post-Clan Invasion) is an era where success on the tabletop can really be driven by custom design 'Mecha. I bring this up because custom designs require a greater knowledge of the rules & equipment in addition to greater off-table commitment prior to game.

Thoughts?

Cheers,

The Bandit

I playu with weapons adding heat to fire – matches the books, and makes some weapons really "interesting" to use.

Otherwise, I play original only, and limit ammo explosions.

Quite like the idea of critical hits BEFORE the armour is pierced – so may look at that for a game sometime to see if it works.

Playing Alpha Strike, won't look back. Huge games done in two hours – perfect for my group!

Judge Doug: how many players & mechs in a game?

Last game was 4 players, I think 19 units total? I'm running a RPG-style campaign for the players who are members of a Merc outfit and basically giving them fluff before/after the scenario, etc.

Judge Doug: Cool! Are the exploits being blogged?

No, but not a bad idea. I even neglected to take pics of the last game! doh! Basically the players are new recruits into the Black Band merc group which has been hired by the FedCom to assist in the War of 3039. Their last mission was garrison/guard duty for a FedCom occupied comm center. They had to deal with hazy transmissions from the front line, incoming artillery, possible incorrect data on enemy unit movements, and guarding three different objectives (mobile communications trucks, power station, and ammo dump) before the enemy struck with armor and a mixed (L,L,M,H) lance (they were all piloting lights). Excellent coordination and usage of their own allied armor helped save the day with only one of their mechs lost (a Wasp) but the FedCom had negotiated salvage rights in the Black Band's favor so a Stinger they took out will help repair that Wasp, haha. They managed to take out a Thunderbolt but of course the higher ups in their Merc group will be using that for their command lance… ;)

I took Mini-Mech 1.3 out for a spin and wrote up an action report on my blog. Thanks Sean for a fun fast set of rules. First game was a solo test and had a lot to like about it. Second game was a street fight shoot out and I took a beating.

link