"Can anyone recommend a Mech game for a 6 year old" Topic

Hello: My son is 6 going on 7 and saw some Mechs the other day and now would like to learn to play a Mech game, unfortunately I am not a Mech gamer, so can anyone steer me in the right direction. I'm hoping that they are pre-painted.

Hi'

Try using legos and Brikwars

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When my son was that age he had Lego pirate ships and wanted to play a game. I made real simple rules, move so far, fire so far, turning the ship was one whole move, etc,etc.
As he picked up on the game we slowly advanced.

I think Old Glory has the method for that age range. It's a variation on the "first one's free, kid" theme.

When my own son was that age, I taught him Battletech. He's now 22 and it remains his favorite game (though we play a lot of other stuff). If you think BT is too much for him, you could try Alpha Strike, which is pretty basic.

I think I've heard of battle tech, I'll look that up thanks.

Battletech may be a bit much for a six year old, but they've released a faster playing version called Alpha Strike that shaves off some of the detail for a quicker game.

Battletech is moderately complicated. I've taught first grade, and I wouldn't suggest it or alpha strike for a six-year old. Most of the uniqueness of battletech is the extensive background material. Horizon Wars or GunFrame are both simpler games, and every bit as tactically and fun. Wackamole's suggestion for Brikwars is good or Mobileframe zero, both are pretty decent, mobileframe is focused on mechs. Abbadon is a board game with mechs that might be good for you guys, BGG has it listed as 8+.

I think if you make it beyond a half hour game at the most you will have problems.

You could look at Squad Hammer: link

It's pay what you want, so download and read it. If you don't like it, no harm. I've not played (yet), but it seems pretty straight forward. You'll have to build up army lists and stats, but that doesn't look hard to do.

Another option is coming up with simple rules yourself.
Everyone moves 6 inches (add variations later).
Everyone fires with 1d6, hits scored on a 5 or 6.
Damage results of 1-3 = just a scratch, 4-5 = major damage, 6 = kaboom!

The fun is in moving the minis around and rolling dice (and getting a few kaboom results). The rules can grow as he grasps the concepts.

And there's a free set of Battle Tech -ish rules, Meka Tac:
link

May be a bit much, though. Weapons roll odd-ball values, ie. small laser rolls 1d4, medium laser rolls 1d4+2, heavy laser rolls 1d6+1, laser canon rolls 1d6+1d4

Here are two super simple sets link

link

It depends on how smart your kid is. Mine picked up the nuances pretty quick. If you stick to basic Battletech (the starter set) it's pretty simple. My son picked up the rules pretty quickly at age six. He was pretty bright then, but I wouldn't underestimate how smart six year olds can be, especially if you are playing it together.

Alpha Strike is pretty simple comparatively, though, and set in the same universe.

Neither I'd just hand over and say ‘go play,' but if it is a father/child shared experience, either should work.

When my son was six I taught him to play Songs of Blades and Heroes by Ganesha Games. They have a set of rules for mechs called Mighty Monsters, I would use those.

WOW, thanks everyone.

Armor Grid is pretty simple. You can cut out and glue the cardstock mechs, or use something else.

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andy

Mechaton is an old game, so I don't even know if it's available anymore. But I taught it to my nephew many years ago, and he loved it, but that was maybe twenty years ago (and it was a free download then). You build mechs out of LEGO and go at it. Damage is recorded by breaking the damaged part off your LEGO mech. Easy to grasp, quick to play.

Here's the BGG page for the commercial version ($6 PDF back in 2006). I have no idea if it's still out there on the web, though.

link

You can probably do something like Battletech does for their rules, but just pare them down a lot. Say a drawing with various Mech body parts, and a few circles inside each, to track hits. Say no more than 2 – 3 for arms and legs. Maybe 5 – 6 for the body, and 1 – 2 for the head.

They make dice with body hit locations spelled out on them, so you don't have to remember that a 6 equals a headshot.

Perhaps some weapons like rocket salvoes can gain multiple hits at one time. Let the kiddie roll lots of dice for those, say perhaps 6, and hits occur on a 5 – 6, or 4 – 6 on a D6.

Think I saw some Mechs at the Dollar Store the other day too, if you need some of those. Pretty decent size – guessing about 5" – 6" tall, or so.

Mech Attack from Armor Grid is easy

If it lasts to long, the kid will play a couple games and then avoid it. Attention span you know.