/btg/ is dead, long live /btg/!
Incursion edition
Old Thread: >>48011331
================================================
>/btg/ does a TRO:
http://builtforwar.blog(not spam)spot.com/
>How do I do this Against the Bot thing?
http://pastebin.com/pE2f7TR5
>Overview of the major factions?
http://bg.battletech.com/universe/great-houses/
http://bg.battletech.com/universe/the-clans/
http://bg.battletech.com/universe/other-powers/
>How do I find out what BattleMechs a faction has?
http://masterunitlist.info/
>Map of /btg/ players (WIP):
https://www.zeemaps.com/map?group=1116217&add=1
>BattleTech Introductory Info and PDFs
http://bg.battletech.com/?page_id=400
>Rookie guides
http://pastebin.com/HZvGKuGx
>Sarna.net - BattleTech Wiki
http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Main_Page
>Megamek - computer version of BattleTech. Play with AI or other players
http://megamek.info/
Unit Designing Softwares
>SSW Mech Designer
http://www.solarisskunkwerks.com/
>MegaMek Lab
http://megameklab.sourceforge.net/
>BattleTech IRC
#battletech on irc.rizon.net
>PDF Folders
https://www.mediafire.com/folder/9q792hobnbpw3/Battletech
https://www.mediafire.com/folder/sdckg6j645z4j/Battletech
>>48057110
Falcon katanas are so lame
I often browse through the old art in the hopes of one day understanding who ever thought it was a good idea.
>>48057688
I'm gonna play the Stalker card. The battle dildo would look great with reverse-joint legs. The humanoid ones just make it look derpy.
>>48057688
>"You look like a fucking retard!"
>"Yeah well, have two Gauss Rifles and suck my 96% armoured dick.
>>48057799
I think the Blood Kite wins. Even Saint Plog couldn't unfuck that monstrosity.
>>48057838
I forgot about the BloodKite. It looks like a ten year old designed it.
>>48057838
Holy crap, that looks like the designer was asked "How many weapons can we fit on that?" and replied "All of them."
>>48057906
The sad thing is that it's a substantial improvement on the first art from Field Manual: Crusader Clans and the miniature.
Google them if you want, I'd post another image but I lost 1D6 sanity points from those images when I was nabbing that picture.
My biggest problem with Plog is the monstrous size of his missiles - if those LRMs are supposed to have as many reloads as the Blood Kite has, what does it shoot? Stacked up dinner plates?
Also Clan 9 From Outer Space representin' in the thread. Still wish they'd gone south in 3005 and invaded the Dracs and Lyrans directly. That would have been hilarious, especially with the rest of the Clans coming after them to make sure they don't get to Terra first...
>>48057838
Looks like it belongs in RIFTS desu.
Why is the FWL so popular here? Or is it a meme?
>>48058077
That's not really a Plog issue though, it's a BT issue. Outside OS launchers, rockets, and some Arrow IVs, one must simply accept that everything in BT is a portal to the missile dimension.
>>48058077
I've always figured the BT missiles were something like the ones used in Robotech, the small and stubby ones that the Zentraedi high-ranking officers' mecha used. It would make sense considering their short range and lack of a decent homing system.
Then again, if memory serves, official art has the Clans' LRM have a 120-millimetre diameter, which would make it about the size of a Milan. How and where they stack them, nobody knows.
>>48058281
They're really LRM IICs, and defy the laws of the universe.
>>48058297
It's worse. My memory didn't serve and the LRMs were actually 200mm in diameter, which makes them bigger than a Hellfire. Also: IR homing? With the amount of heat 'Mechs emit in fluff, the missiles ought to be homing on them like sharks to blood.
>>48058203
Mostly it's coincidence, coupled with two of the namefags really liking burd. Last time we did a non-ballot-stuffed poll the FWL got like 20% of the votes, which is only a little bit above what you could normally expect. There's also a solid Blakie contingent here, which bleeds over into liking the FWL a bit. The other major contingent is the peripheryfags, and we have a few vocal Fedrats, Elsies, Hats, and Dracs but only a couple of each at any given time.
Personally I'm a merc/foreverGM, with a fondness for pirates as a "there but for the grace of God go ye" message to my players. Plus you can do all kinds of crazy-ass shit with pirate 'Mechs.
>>48058203
It's a flexible faction, lots of character, its leading House is complex and interesting, and its relative lack of involvement in a lot of story events makes it perfect for AU's up until the Jihad shits the bed for everything.
>>48059217
WoB did nothing wrong.
>>48058077
The whole treatment of missiles in BT is bizzarre from ant realistic perspective. Launching a shit ton of guided missiles with warheads that barely scratch your target individually makes no sense. Having deep bins of ammunition to reload them repeatedly makes no sense.
Even the heat/energy requirements are strange. If anything those should be well below the levels autocanons require.
Of course cataloging all the stuff that flat out makes no sense would take a book on its own.
>>48059217
When was that poll?
>>48059331
>autocannon
Another several cans of worms. Such as: why do the smaller calibre guns (AC/2s and AC/5s) have minimum ranges? Why won't the 100mm rounds of a Pontiac 100 AC/20 fly past 180 metres? Etc.
>>48059217
The Master did nothing wrong
>>48059446
I thought the in universe explanation for the tiny weapon brackets was that mech armour was so tough that the effective range in which a weapon still carries enough energy to damage it is very small
>>48059375
Couple months ago, IIRC. Of course, given how well my brain handles time when I'm off my meds, that could mean "last November".
>>48059217
Who is it besides Muninn?
>>48059483
And yet it still crumples like a tin can when a mech falls over
>>48058203
Here's roughly how I figure it:
/btg/ is in large part comprised of folks as are disgruntled with the OF and TPTB, and so this place would have disproportionately large numbers of folks as like factions that are ignored or disliked by TPTB and/or the OF crew
>>48059774
CA. As a fellow ForeverGM, he's more spread out than Muninn, but IIRC he's made a couple offhand remarks about preferring them for his personal shit.
>>48059483
That and the 2EXTREEEME electronic warfare environment. Of course, with the Extreme Range rules the game gets a lot more interesting, and I highly recommend them.
>>48060376
>CA. As a fellow ForeverGM, he's more spread out than Muninn, but IIRC he's made a couple offhand remarks about preferring them for his personal shit.
While I like the Militia, Free Worlds Guards and the Metal Guards schemes, (what can I say, purple is my favorite color), I used to play the Lyrans and the Coyotes. The SLDF thing is just an outgrowth of my desire for all factions to have a reasonable standing army, I actually find them pretty boring to play... which is probably why I'm stuck playing the RWR a lot.
>>48059791
Astonishingly, materials respond in different ways to different forces delivered at different angles.
>>48060703
>likes the Guards and Militia
You're welcome to marry my daughter and be given three warships
Proud heel player reporting in: my factions are the Draconis Combine, Jade Falcon and St. Ives, which is sort of the runty member of a heel tag team who has a fit with his mates and goes his own way.
>>48060823
>St Ives
That Capellan commonality? Why?
>>48060837
Dude, the St Ives Compact was independent for 30 years.
>>48060823
Muh Falconbro.
>>48060954
Lol when was that? Long before dark age?
>>48060823
>magic sibkos and logistics
>heel
>>48061269
Are you serious? It was independent from 3029 to 3063.
>>48061294
You're being rused m8
>>48060954
>only around for 30 years
Doesn't even count as a real faction
>>48060954
And 15-ish RL years, which is probably more impressive
>>48061290
Take a look at how they behave in dork age. Smoke Jaguar being evil isn't a meme, but the Falcons being worse than them in the 32nd century is true as all hell.
>>48061348
I misinterpreted the expression.
>>48061290
Is it weird that this never bothered me that much? Jade Falcon's a huge Clan with a lot of captured territory. Big stockpiles of resources and a large sibko pool always seemed to make sense to me.
>>48061442
It's more the application than the concept.
Russians delivered. These aren't bad.
>>48061472
Well, even I thought FASA had them pull out of the post-Refusal War nosedive too quickly, to be fair. But the idea that they saw that shitstorm coming and had a lot of resources banked for when it passed seemed logical enough to me.
>>48061483
>dat Mauler
It's a shitty 'Mech but I want one.
>>48061483
Shimmy's Stalker is well... a bit short in comparison. And dammit, I didn't notice those half formed missile holes until just now.
>>48061503
Same here. It's why I got it.
>>48061490
Definitely. They're frugal and very economic, and a have a Falcon's cunning or whatever.
>>48061525
>and a have
>tfw so tired i'm typing like mario talks
>>48061442
Problem is that if you accept the Falcons' rebuild speed as reasonable given their resources you really have to question why nobody else can do it, even much richer factions with more manpower and manufacturing to draw on.
BT's always going to have an issue with FASAnomics but the rebuild speed of certain factions at certain times is inconsistent with what everyone else can manage.
>>48061643
Specifically which Clans would you list as richer, or with more manpower or manufacturing? For clarification, not a disagreement.
>>48061483
How much did those bad boys set you back? I picked up an intro box a year ago and I hate the old-ass models, so I have been disinclined to expand further. I love the MWO designs though
>>48061688
100 plus 6 in shipping. Just a bit more competitive than IWM, honestly. If CGL can get into the plastics game with this quality I'd be all for it. Though they would need to resculpt the entire 3025 line up for the best results.
>>48061668
Not him (actually the Frodoposter), but...maaaaybe Star Adder?
Though for Inner Sphere factions I always figured technology was the hampering point, whereas the Falcons, being a Clan, didn't have that stumbling block.
>>48060376
took me a moment to figure out what's wrong with this marauder...
nice job.
Reposting mah Clan Cirno banner. So I suppose Kurita is Reimu, Marisa is Davion...what about the other houses or clans? Any chance for some Genspherekyo going on?
>>48059331
>realistic perspective
I think you're in the wrong place.
>>48061515
>Shimmy's Stalker
Who makes the one? On the left?
>>48061924
The left one is IWM's Stalker II.
>>48061643
The FASAnomics thing will probably always be a lingering issue. There are some examples I don't even feel I can mention because they invariably always cause heated arguments.
>>48061969
Will IWM ever have good casts?
I can't believe how much they charge for their shit - they're on par with GW from the early 90s.
>>48061978
Yeah, the only way you'd fully extricate FASAnomics problems from the setting would be to literally wipe the entire slate and start over, I think.
>>48062039
>Yeah, the only way you'd fully extricate FASAnomics problems from the setting would be to literally wipe the entire slate and start over, I think.
On that note, there's something I've always been curious about.
Has anyone ever put together a genuine Alternate Universe for battletech?
Like, not just the alternate history stuff that we see all the time, but a straight-up new setting using battletech ideas and rules
>>48062006
The cast is really letting down the otherwise rather nice design for the Stalker.
The WH Stalker is definitely on the large side of their models though. Looking at my one right now and it's pretty beefy big. Still, Warhansa's overall scale is certainly more consistent than Battletechs's wobbles though not perfect.
>>48062283
They have their odd pieces though.
Their Executioner is only slightly taller and considerably thinner than the Awesome seen in those pictures. It honestly the same size as the Highlander.
The Victor is huge. It's slightly taller than that Highlander, and considerably wider.
Summoner is big. Like, Highlander big.
Hellbringer, at least the one I got, is really fucking disappointing. It came with the summoners legs, but it's arms and torso were scaled properly, so now it looks fucking ridiculous with tiny arms/ torso and big thick legs.
Spider is okay, Commando is okay. Flimsy, but okay.
>>48062529
>Commando is okay. Flimsy, but okay.
Exactly as the actual Commando.
>>48063184
Welcome to Whose Star League is it Anyway, the show where everything's made up and the points don't matter.
Now let's play a game called Themes From A Hat! First topic:
>Phrases you can use to describe your battlemech but not your girlfriend
>>48063333
The most commonly used ride in the IS!
>>48063333
>"She's 100 tons, but she wears it well."
>>48063333
Could use some CASE in the torso
>>48063333
>she's pretty much a fat medium
>>48063333
>"She's a little simple but can take a beating and rides well."
>>48063333
>"The rumble seat quirk means two can ride at the same time!"
>>48063333
She's ugly and obsolete, but I still love her.
Are there any particularly Slavic worlds besides Tikonov and Marik?
>>48059446
The game section has little practical realism in the actual combat gameplay, even though they go pretty hard-SF with their tech in general.
What is important is that it is balanced around a multi-dimensional space of tonnage/heat/damage/range. It plays well.
>>48063333
She's heavier than she looks
>>48063333
"She's got a really roomy cockpit; give it a try and see for yourself."
>>48059446
If you take a look at Renegade Legion, you'll see a game where the real-life weapon caliber/range paradigm holds true. The larger the weapon, the longer the effective range. What that produces in *game* terms is a unit customization system where there's absolutely no incentive to use the largest gun, every time, all the time. The various IRL reasons why you don't do that (such as recoil of your 120mm gun ripping apart the frame of your HMMWV) aren't modeled in the system, so there's no reason *not* to use only 150mm and 200m cannons on every single grav tank in the game, completely ignoring the 25/50/100mm calibres.
BattleTech bypassed that issue by inverting the calibre/range paradigm, and for all that FASA fucked things up by making ACs too heavy (especially in the 3050+ game), they're correct that at least this makes sure all classes of AC at least have niche.
>>48063746
Does Strana Mechty count?
>>48063333
>She can jump 180 meters and weighs 35 tons.
>>48063333
>she can run twice as fast as normal for her weight, but only when she gets hot
>>48063728
I thought they updated those to keep them relevant?
>>48064617
I can't just trade her in for a new model, she's got sentimental value!
>>48063333
Ever since Hanse gave her that strap-on things have been so much hotter in here.
What unit eventually wound up replacing the Jagermech and units like the Centurion by the time of the Dark Age?
>>48061748
Thanks. It was for a special scenario involving Greenburg's Godzillas fucking with the WoB, I kept and repainted it later.
Daily reminder that FUCK DAVION
>>48064886
Newer versions. Centurion came out with the same thing just in omni even.
>>48064912
From LAW and Luthien with love?
>>48064886
>What unit eventually wound up replacing the Jagermech
The JaegerMech 3 and the Reseen Riflemen (ironic that the original replaces the upgrade in this case). The JM3 is ugly as sin but actually works kinda okay, and some of the Reseen RFLs are very much NOT shit.
>Centurion
The Centurion Omni, mostly. If by "like the Centurion" you mean "trooper Mediums" then that's a much broader question.
>>48064912
>"HAHA, BAKA GAIJIN. DRAGON KICK YOUR ASS INTO THE MILKY WAY!"
>"But we're already in the Milky Way!"
>"HAHA, OKAY. I KICK YOUR ASS RIGHT HERE THEN!"
>>48065002
>the post-sex cigarette after being snu-snu'd by an Elemental.png
>>48064069
I wouldn't say they entirely bypassed the issue though. I mean, the AC/2s main niche of plinking planes is small as hell, and one that isn't all that present in your average ground unit only game. And the AC/5 is just kind of there, and the only real niche I can think of is when you want to do autocannon things and simply don't have the weight for a 10.
Though the weight issue is certainly a big part of that as well, given that there are other things much better for punching holes for the same weight, and the fact that bringing multiple ends up with things like the Jagermech being a 65 ton mech instead of maybe a 40-45 ton one, where its AV wouldn't be quite as hideous.
>>48066206
I thought the AC/2's main niche was making grown men cry like babies after one scores a triple-critting TAC on your heaviest 'Mech and knocks out its engine in the first shooting phase of the game.
>https://benhrome.wordpress.com/2016/07/01/deconstructing-campaigns/
>short story about Julian retaking New Sirtys was cut to pander the grognards
Fucking grogs ruining everything they touch
>>48066672
Normally I'd disagree and shake my old man fist, but "We had a cover with a classic 'Mech on it so we couldn't have a Dark Age story in the book!" actually is pretty stupid.
>>48066816
The worst part is that I *understand* why they did. After reading Harebrained's forum I wondered how Battletech attracted so many bitter (for a lack of a better word) people. I have seen children more mature and respectful than those guys and I wouldn't be surprised more than a bunch would get touchy for buying anything Dark Age related
>>48066968
There are enough legitimate...issues with Dark Age's storyline that it doesn't mystify me as much, but personally I still would have bought the book. I just would have ignored the fiction since Dark Age isn't my cuppa joe.
>>48066968
Wait, the HBS forums got infected by OF grogs?
>>48066968
Daily reminder that Dark Age could've been a lot worse, though.
Anybody remember when they were gonna rebrand the factions entirely with outright Age of Sigmar-esque names like SWORDSWORN (Davion) and STORMFISTS (Steiner)?
>>48061668
At that time? The Bears (not that they had to rebuild), the Wolves were at least the Falcon's equals, and the Adders. Perhaps the Diamond Sharks (but again, no need to rebuild then).
I was more thinking of IS factions when I said that though. And more specifically the way the Suns got magic warehouses that were similar to the Falcons' whole "Galaxies outta nowhere" schtick after the Refusal War, but other factions rebuild much slower.
>>48067040
AFAIK the game is being done with 3025 tech and the Clans, if they ever appear, won't for several IRL years. It's basically the BT setting they want, minus being able to play as the Suns smashing slanty-eye fucks a la 3028.
>>48067258
>>Anybody remember when they were gonna rebrand the factions entirely with outright Age of Sigmar-esque names like SWORDSWORN (Davion) and STORMFISTS (Steiner)?
Yep. And that the Houses themselves were subsumed into the Republic, with diehards basically being motorcycle gangs with those names.
>>48067335
>AFAIK the game is being done with 3025 tech and the Clans, if they ever appear, won't for several IRL years. It's basically the BT setting they want, minus being able to play as the Suns smashing slanty-eye fucks a la 3028.
I look forward to the booty-blistering that will happen when that game gets its Clan Invasion.
>>48058379
>LRM-15
>20 tubes
Fucking clanner bullshit.
>>48067356
Surprised they didn't try to change 'Mechs into 'Mekkz or something.
>>48067390
It's literally set as far the fuck away from the Clans as you can possibly get while having any way to interact with the Inner Sphere in any capacity.
>>48067452
Atlas did it first.
>>48067452
Anon
It's a fucking LRM-20
Look at the fucking prime sheet.
>>48067466
>yfw you just realized the Aurigan Coalition's location means a Medron Pryde mission pack can't be far behind.
>>48067466
I maintain my expectation of future butthurt.
>>48067568
I kind of expect the Coalition is going to end up being kind of like Ustio from Ace Combat Zero. Small country that initially gets picked on by all its neighbors, and then its elite super team forms and kicks all their asses at once.
>>48067571
What, fan butthurt about something BattleTech related? Say it ain't so, Joe. Say it ain't so.
So wants to put odds this unspecified butthurt happening? Anyone think it's going to be anything worse than 1:1?
>>48067677
Oh it's specified, read up.
![leviathan_refit_by_mattplog-da8gsxr[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/d1EWtXH.jpg "leviathan_refit_by_mattplog-da8gsxr[1].jpg")
Plog just dumped a bunch of top-notch art on his DA page...
![dark_ages_cyclops_by_mattplog-da8gwm0[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/MItJAhO.jpg "dark_ages_cyclops_by_mattplog-da8gwm0[1].jpg")
>>48067781
>Make the Cyclops Great Again
>>48067806
We are going to build a Shield Wall and the IS is going to pay for it!
>>48067571
Oh,if they ever introduce the Clans? Very probably. I was debating buying into the Kickstarter but the (seeming?) lack of high tech and the Clans not being a factor eventually no-sold me. I might pick it up if it's on sale via Steam at some point but the stuff they were doing didn't interest me much when my Steam backlog already had so many unplayed games in it.
Also by the time the autists at Tides of Numenara are finally happy with their game* it'll probably come out at the same time as HBS BT any way.
*I don't mind this so much, I'd rather get a really good game finished much later than expected like what happened with Witcher 2 and 3, but the trend is usually "AAAAHHHH THE RELEASE DATE IS HERE, SHOVEL THAT SHIT OUT THE DOOR EVEN WHEN IT'S NOT READY!"
>>48067677
>So wants to put odds this unspecified butthurt happening? Anyone think it's going to be anything worse than 1:1?
It's already begun
>>48067568
>>48067568
Honestly, I think that that'd actually be a good thing. If medron pryde and co are putting all their effort into assembling something like that, it keeps them busy, and when they DO finish, they'll be busy shilling it, and all this will mean that their posting and therefore shitposting rate will be severely down.
Why do so many mechs have these giant assfuck cockpits larger than their torsos?
Why would they need cockpits in 3025, anyways?
Why not put the pilot in the heart of the mech, where he would be safest?
This has always been the thing to fluster me the most in battletech.
Do you lovely folk know some place I could get some Battletech/Mechwarrior merch? I remember playing MW2 as a real little kid (was the first game I ever played) and would love to have some stuff for nostalgia's sake
Looking for posters or clothings or schematics or anything like that
>>48064069
>so there's no reason *not* to use only 150mm and 200m cannons
Wouldn't that be easily solvable by having larger autocannons which have more damage and range take up more tonnage, more crits, generate more heat, have less ammo per ton, etc than their smaller counterparts?
It seems to me you should always be able to balance on tonnage, crit, etc. no matter what.
>>48068342
Gundam-style torso-mounted cockpits are an option. I believe the problem with them has to do with being too crammed with the engine, gyro, and the other assorted bits inside there. Protos also mount the cockpit in the torso.
>>48068419
The main problem is that your mech is still kill if it gets its head blown off, since the sensors and such are still mounted in the head. The pilot is relatively fine (and I say relatively because the pilot trades the chance of a headshot for the chance of stackpoling and cooking like an egg if the CT gets cored).
>>48067806
Plog sure has come a long way hasn't he
>>48068419
Protos make room for the cockpit by removing the need for a gyro
>>48068570
So do Interface Cockpits. Both are pretty suicidal in the long run.
>>48068494
That's kind of what I was getting at - a system without glass and having many sensors through the machine, including redundancies - would be ideal.
It's like they went into some hard science detail for certain elements, then just shrugged and said 'whatever' for others.
>>48068630
>It's like they went into some hard science detail for certain elements, then just shrugged and said 'whatever' for others.
It's kind of what you need to have this specific sort of giant robot actually be something approaching a viable weapon.
>>48068630
The neurohelmet is the issue. The pilot has to be "seeing" (either visual from a head cockpit or relayed from head sensors in a torso cockpit) or else the whole thing stops working
>>48068630
yes
>>48067806
Who has the most Cyclopes anyway?
And did any follow Kerensky into exile or was it like the Atlas in that regard?
>>48069820
>Who has the most Cyclopes anyway?
It seems to be one of the most evenly-distributed mechs, actually. Nobody seems to have any particular concentration of them, except maybe the second SLDF, but they aren't really a faction. It's up there with the Archer and thud in terms of mechs that could turn up just about anywhere
>>48068395
Such as the Heavy Gauss and HAG 40?
>>48060376
But Muninn's favorite faction is WoB
>>48059217
DRAC PRIDE SPHERE WIDE
THE DRAGON ROARS, BAKA GAIJIN
>>48066206
We already have a 45t JagerMech, it's called the Blackjack.
>>48067556
I'm assuming he's referring to the fact that all the Mad Cat artwork released back when the Clans were new had LRM15s rather than the LRM20s the mech actually carried.
>>48071981
Depending on your interpretation they could also be called LRM-16s.
>>48071990
Nope. There's one of those cutaway diagrams of the original artwork Mad Cat out there, the 16th tube position had some sort of sensor in it instead.
>>48071981
...isn't there a canon Mad Cat variant that *does* have LRM-15s?
>>48072042
Ah, I always figured "huh, one missile door yet to open".
>>48071990
>>48072042
Pic related. Took less effort to find than I thought.
>>48072043
The C config does, but it doesn't have the arm and torso gun mounts from the old artwork. No official config actually matches that artwork.
>>48072059
Aha, okay.
Regardless, I'm glad that most more recent artwork for the Prime variant actually gets the tube count correct for the launchers.
>>48065284
Son of a bitch, now the song's going to play in my head for a week again. "God power keeps my pimp hand strong!" One of the greatest songs to come from video games along with that "first you try to trap me, then you bust a cap in my ass" song and MW2's Pyre Light.
Or the official theme of the Draconis Combine space cowboys of Dieron:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAbGwVGWJ9o
>>48072138
That fuckin' game was hilarious. Never heard the original JP intro before, I just remember the goofy English version.
You're traveling along with your lance and then suddenly this big motherfucker slaps your 'Mechfu on the ass. What do? Keep in mind it weighs 90 tons, is equipped with jump jets, and can take your head off with a Gauss Rifle.
I'm soon to end up doing a 3025 game for the first time. I've heard the pace is a lot different from later eras; any tips?
>>48067806
Are there any stats for this monster?
Looks like RAC/5 in CT, HPPC + ERML in RT, LRM 10 in LT plus ERML in each hand.
>>48073360
Kinda
DA Dossier has its weaponry and other details, but no full stats
>>48064289
Sort of, I guess. But it doesn't really work for an origin world for Inner Sphere merc player characters.
>>48072094
If they maintain that one of the tubes is a sensor wouldn't it still be off though, since now there are exactly 20 tubes?
>>48072788
>MWO Highlander
Pffft, damn thing's a much slower and shittier jumper in that game than it is on the TT. I wreck the shit out of his CT with pinpoint laser vomit.
>>48067806
damn, he posted before me
sorry, btg. I had a surprise for you
a really stupid, dumb surprise. I was commissioning him some mechs and other units I think it would never see the light if not made by fans. That's it, some DA mechs, other mechs based on pop culture, redesigns, and so on...
It is supposed to be a mix of XTRO and Interstellar Players. Instead of canon-rumor fluff I was making "non-canon rumor mechs/Battle Armors" and such. Sadly my writing is horrible and I'll ask your help if anyone is interested.
Anyway, here's a fixed Black Lanner...
>>48074274
... and here a Metal Gear Rex. I was thinking to fluff this one as a mech used by a merc force trying to force peace on a Periphery region by being the only military force around with nuclear weapons.
Silly, yeah, but that's the point
>>48074360
Oh my, I have a surprise for you too. have to dig it up. Heres an Adder for your awesome work tho.
>>48074360
The art the weapons load out are mirrored
This bothers me more than it should
>>48073257
The game in general will run longer, especially the more flashbulbs are on the table, assuming everything is a 4G/5P.
Don't take torso bomb mechs, if possible.
Some mechs actually do more damage with kicks than their weapon loadout.
>>48074504
>>48074360
you're right. I am used to place equipments on SSW like I am seeing the mech from the front. Fixed it
Which successor state has the most free society?
anyone know what happened to these? I remember them being brought out at gencon saying they where gonna start producing new one's but haven't heard anything since.
>>48074557
Neat
>>48075023
Runs the gambit kinda.
Freest will be certain worlds or provinces in the Free Worlds League (but alternatively, some provinces will be very restrained and dictatorial), the the Federated Suns with its guaranteed liberties, then probably the Lyrans since obviously the Dracs and Capellans are authoritarian shitholes.
>>48075635
Do want.
>>48075635
Right, those are part of a new box set, from what CGL was saying. All the classic Unseen are to be resculpted and put in one box. But we have no idea what the status of the redesigns are.
>>48074360
>>48074441
Metal Gear!?
>>48074274
Thinking of this mech, new release
>>48076257
And oddly enough this too.
>>48073360
It did inspire me to create a zombie cyclops.
Any thoughts?
>>48076257
>>48076305
These remind me of how much I want a MW4-style Bushwacker mini.
Am I weird for liking the MW4 version?
>>48076114
*All* of the classic Unseen? Does this mean we get new Archers and Shimmyseen Thuds? Because I want them really badly. And those Warhammers too.
>>48076517
My intro to Battletech was Mechwarrior 4, so that's also my favorite Bushwacker.
>>48076559
Yes. We've already got a vague outline of what the Thud will look like from CGL's tumblr, and Shimmy implied the Archer will be similar to the one he's already drawn.
>>48076517
No, but the miniature is already pretty close to it aside from the launcher in the torso.
>>48076559
>*All* of the classic Unseen?
Yep, all of them
>>48076625
>>48076639
Holy crap, that is more awesome than an AWS-9Q. Seems like its time to acquire giant robots.
>>48076559
>*All* of the classic Unseen?
Correct, Catalyst Game Labs is re-vamping all of the the original Unseen in a complete and game-wide retcon. As of that decision (which was made public last year), the Unseen have now NEVER looked like the stuff from Dougram/Macross/Crusher Joe. If you see somebody playing with Unseen minis, or somebody posting pictures containing them, please let Catalyst know and we will gather that as evidence along with any identifying information. If sufficient information is gathered, that evidence and identifying information will be forwarded to Harmony Gold's legal department so they will be better able to protect their own intellectual property.
For your own legal protection, Catalyst Game Labs highly recommends immediately disposing of any and all Unseen models which you may own. Our Demonstration Team Agents have been instructed to report any and all persons using illegal minis and to document it with photographic evidence (to be used as described above), and to disallow anyone from participating in BattleTech games with these illegal miniatures. At a minimum, persons who are on the list of persons submitted to Harmony Gold will also be banned from purchasing items through the BattleShip or at official events and conventions; people who are willing to knowingly break the law are people whom we don't want as part of the BattleTech community.
Thank you,
-The Catalyst Observer
>>48076741
I can hardly wait.
>>48076760
Destroy
e
s
t
r
o
i
d
>>48076257
W-w-warhansa got the black lanner?
...my dick. I cannot handle it!
>>48076760
If only FASA or CGL had the cash to defend themselves in court. Every time Harmony Gold has tried to sue someone else over their supposed copyright ownership - someone who has the legal capacity to defend themselves - their shit winds up being dismissed.
If only the courts had more alacrity so a single case couldn't stretch for months and years.
Whachu' think famalam, this seem right?
>>48076760
You'll never take me alive, copper! I special order from my LGS by proxy!
>>48077001
wow, did they finally rescale a bunch of stuff?
>>48077062
Yeah, and it seems pretty close to canon scale overall
>>48077062
Yeah, they did.
Games fucking awful for lights and dire wolves, but the mechs are rather well scaled.
>>48077096
>Games fucking awful
All you needed to say. I'm fairly certain by this point most Battletech fans have battered spouse syndrome.
>>48076203
and here is the camo tile for it.
>>48077062
They did, but I'd argue that a lot of it is for the worse as it has really hurt humanoid mechs that were already weak due to how easy they are to pick apart with focused fire which is even easier now.
>>48077331
The basically gutted all of the 35 ton mechs with the massive size increase they gave them. The locust is actually the top tier IS light right now, simply because everything else got nerfed into worthlessness. I think very few mechs actually came out of this for the better.
My FLGS just got a copy of Interstellar Operation. Is it worth getting?
>>48077467
Dire whale shrank, lots of clan stuff benefitted from the reduced frontal profile. So yeah, more consistent by whatever measurements they used didn't exactly do the smart thing for an fps game.
>>48077467
>>48077331
Problem is they didn't reduce 35 and 30 tonner quirks that much, but they changed the movement archetype from "tiny" to "small," which some of the faster medium mechs also share, which means those 30 and 35 ton lights now behave like mediums (in terms of hill climbing, turning, movement control capacities) while the locust kept it's "tiny" archetype and was made smaller and kept all it's quirks (literally 90% acceleration and deceleration rates).
This makes the locust the best IS light, not because it's got firepower, but because it's nigh impossible to hit on PGI's awful servers with any latency.
Locust without lag shield = annoying as fuck, but could be killed with conventional, non-streak missile weaponry.
But considering PGI is notoriously bad at coding and improvements to netcode are out of their realm of possibility, the locust will lose it's movement quirks to make it fast, but not capable of dancing around OTHER LIGHTS like a damned ballerina.
>>48077604
Dire Whales are also the second slowest mech in the game after the Urbanmech, so despite being like 2% smaller it doesn't do anything about the fact that a dire wolf dies the second it doesn't get the jump on a target.
>>48077582
>My FLGS just got a copy of Interstellar Operation. Is it worth getting?
It depends. Are you interested in running stuff set in weird eras, like the Age of War, or systems that TPTB hate like LAMS? Do you want a shitty boardgame that isn't balanced? Are you a completionist?
Less-sarcastically, it's got all the rules for tech progression by era and the hitherto sourcebook-only tech items like Superheavies and RISC stuff. So if you're interested in playing in side eras or customizing era-appropriate designs it's pretty cool. The Inner Sphere In Flames ruleset is kinda shit, but the hex-and-chit operations-level game is pretty interesting.
Personally I'm getting a hard-copy, but most folks won't really need one, and I had the discount for getting a beta copy; I'd wait for the reprint or get a PDF. Campaign Ops is the book I'm really looking forward to right now, but Lord only knows when we're finally getting it.
>>48073710
>Pffft, damn thing's a much slower and shittier jumper in that game than it is on the TT.
Never was sure if that was a good thing or a damn shame.
>>48077001
The Phoenix Hawk looks twice as big as the Spider (30% bigger on every dimension). Is the actual volume a better match than that?
>>48076305
yeah, cool
>>48068395
>>48071586
Sure. Those could be balanced with the right stats. But so could small short range autocannons.
>>48077467
Ravens haven't changed, and they're still good.
Oxides no longer OP but still very useable.
Frankly, locusts being common in games is a good thing.
>very few mechs actually came out of this for the better
That's not true. Besides locusts, novas, catapults, dragons, quickdraws, thunderbolts, awesomes all benefit noticably from their new scaling.
Why are a Jenner's missile ports directly behind the cockpit?
>>48070102
Are they not extremely popular then?
I don't hear of them being used frequently in the lore.
>>48076341
Better late than never I guess, but that has a bit more ammo than I tend to like in my 'zombie' units.
>>48068395
>>48078482
Tonnage isn't for balance, Tonnage exists to prevent custom mechs from being 6,000BV deathblobs. Not because 6kBV deathblobs are overpowered, but because they're un-fun. And when such a mech gets fielded and they lose to an equal amount of BV in more reasonable designs, it leads to shitfits and bitch tears rather than handshakes and sportsmanlike conduct.
>>48078740
That is (usually) a vent for the engine, not a missile rack.
>>48078776
Cyclopses are normally thought of as command mechs, not really something to use en-masse.
>>48078776
Well, they're mostly command rides, so they stay away from the front line. Also, they really aren't that great in combat and rather mediocre looking so they aren't sexy enough to get a lot of "screen time".
The best description of the cyclops rarity-wise would be " widespread but uncommon"; pretty much every regiment in known space has one or two, but there aren't any major concentrations or iconic users
>>48078867
>That is (usually) a vent for the engine, not a missile rack.
This. The SRM-4 tube pack is actually on top of that vent grid, behind and well above the line of the cockpit.
>>48078867
>Tonnage isn't for balance
Just because bv or bv2 is available for balancing, doesn't mean that tonnage and other variables aren't perfectly acceptable means of balancing weapons as a whole, allowing for more realistic smaller short range autocannons and larger longer range ones.
>>48078776
>Are they not extremely popular then?
>I don't hear of them being used frequently in the lore.
They're rare, but very widespread. A Cyclops is one of those things that should surprise nobody when it turns up, but it's also not something that anyone has very many of at any given time. The combat role and scale they were originally designed for (theater or regimental subcommand during a full planetary invasion) is rare in the late SW. The command duties on a raid are generally being handled from Dropships and command vans by that point.
It's noteworthy that somewhere between 20-33% of them still have working combat computers, with the rest being malfed out or stolen for the aforementioned command centers; in that case, it makes more sense to only push the >un<equipped ones up to the front line, and keep the command units back at the dropper coordinating the attack unless you're actually doing a full-on multi-regiment invasion. That means you're going to see even fewer at the front lines, since somewhere between one in five and one in three is getting held back if the commander has any damned sens at all.Yes, I know. Battletech. Still..
>>48079425
The thing is that having less tonnage efficient weapons (like ACs) gives the option for lower-BV heavier mechs so a player can choose a force with higher-tonnage for tonnage's sake.
The Mauler for instance. Great fun mech if using BV, but if you're balancing on tonnage I wouldn't touch it with a borrowed ten foot pole.
>>48079425
>Just because bv or bv2 is available for balancing, doesn't mean that tonnage and other variables aren't perfectly acceptable means of balancing weapons as a whole, allowing for more realistic smaller short range autocannons and larger longer range ones.
I'm pretty sure what NEA meant is that if you make light ACs have shit range on top of shit damage, then there's no reason to always mount the heaviest sort of AC possible all the time. Mounting several lighter ACs in place of a heavier AC would cease to be even a slightly viable option.
Something like the Mauler wouldn't exist; while it's certainly not an optimized Mech, it's a unit completely kitted out for long range fighting. Taking away its AC/2s makes it even worse at that. When you balance by tonnage alone, then you're always going to want the biggest gun possible by tonnage. That limits design variety significantly.
>>48073656
Nope, new Mad Cat artwork lost the sensor.
>>48073710
Well, that's because JJs in MWO are purely good for bypassing rough terrain. But it is pathetic that you have to perform an engine upgrade to get to the same speed as the other 3/5 mechs.
>>48080762
Even though I love the MWO look for the Timber Wolf, this pic still brings joy to my black little Clannerfag heart.
>>48080897
awoooo
>>48080897
Must remove affyiff, one bulldog not enough, Tukayyid best day of my life, ect, ect.
After the stalker, what would be the most widespread assault mech?
On a sorta-related note, what would be the best way to keep the Mackie around into the 3025 era?
>>48080408
>>I'm pretty sure what NEA meant is that if you make light ACs have shit range on top of shit damage, then there's no reason to always mount the heaviest sort of AC possible all the time. Mounting several lighter ACs in place of a heavier AC would cease to be even a slightly viable option.
Except that's just not true. You can always balance things. If one is always better than the other, then it simply doesn't cost enough in points, tonnage, crits, accuracy, heat, ammo, whatever.
>>48081581
>If one is always better than the other, then it simply doesn't cost enough in points, tonnage, crits, accuracy, heat, ammo, whatever.
OK, lets look at ACs via your method. Assume that we're inverting the ranges. So an AC/2 goes out to 9 hexes, and an AC/20 goes out to 24, with the AC/10 and /5 switching range brackets. Now you've got more "realistic" weapon range bands per caliber.
How are you possibly going to balance those by crits/tonnage/ammo and still have them as useable weapon options? An AC/20 is already 14 tons/10 crits/5 shots per ton when it reaches NINE hexes. How the shit are you going to balance that when it can reach 20+ hexes and still have it as a useable option that can fit on a Mech? 20 ton/20 crits? More?
>>48081453
>After the stalker, what would be the most widespread assault mech?
The Awesome seems to be pretty popular with everyone.
>>48081800
Both in universe and with the fans
>>48082022
It's just such a perfect mech
>>48081453
>On a sorta-related note, what would be the best way to keep the Mackie around into the 3025 era?
Modern fluff basically makes that easy, and almost weird that any didn't, given that it got upgrades over the centuries and there were still a few hundred kicking around militias into the start of the Succession Wars. Stuff like the Assassin only saw a few hundred ever built in the first place.
What's more, one of the reasons of its decline is that the only factories were on Terra, so just have some in the hands of the ComGuards, especially since they'd have the ability to keep the BAPs of the 9H functioning.
>>48082061
>Been around since the Star League
>Its best variant is still the original AWS-8Q
Truly the pinnacle of mech design
>>48082140
I like the-9Q a bit better, but the-8Q is nearly as good
>>48082140
>Its best variant is still the original AWS-8Q
Someone hasn't seen the -9Q.
>>48082174
>>48082188
Personally i prefer the 8Q because it has a free offhand for pitch slapping, but it is hard to beat 4 PPCs.
I think my favourite Awesome is that one some annon posted with a hatched
>>48081767
>How the shit are you going to balance that when it can reach 20+ hexes and still have it as a useable option that can fit on a Mech? 20 ton/20 crits? More?
TBF, though, that's the cost for a Sniper.
>>48081453
>After the stalker, what would be the most widespread assault mech?
Unfortunately, the other Assaults really don't get much in the way of numbers.
My guesses and reasoning for the most common assaults:
• Banshee and Charger: held back for rear-line missions, which means more survived the initial years of the SW and the fall of the League. Both have been in active production on multiple lines since their inception, and both are ancient designs. The Charger's overall numbers fell when the Combine started gutting theirs for Hatamotos, but (see 3050r) they had >at least< three lines making them in the SW, and other powers also had some lines. The 'Shee is old, common, and cheap even if it's kinda shit. The Lyran refit packages have to be making them more popular these days.
• Awesome. Widespread and popular, with multiple nations producing. Lighter than the Atlas, which means it's cheaper and probably easier to make - especially since it's missing a number of complex mechanical features like hands and a rotating head.
• Zeus - despite basically being a single-state design, it's extremely popular in that state, and they have the wealth to make a shit-ton.
• Atlas - Everybody loves them, and everybody makes them.
We know the Thug and Highlander are locally common in ComStar/WoB/Star League forces, but not so much in the House units. The Striker was really popular for a while, but it's been OoP for centuries and is called out as being severely attrited by the late SW in TRO3058. Everything else is either too new, called out as too rare, or was extinct for so long that it's not likely to be on the list.
>>48081453
>After the stalker, what would be the most widespread assault mech?
Probably the awesome, maybe the beemer
>On a sorta-related note, what would be the best way to keep the Mackie around into the 3025 era?
Just have the IS powers moderately upgrade and mothball all their old Mackie knockoffs instead of scrapping them, and then they get reactivated as the succession wars kick off to replace losses.
If you want a factory to still be around, there could easily be one in one of the big periphery states, turning out a couple a year for local and export use without really straining plausibility
>>48082299
>Atlas
Are those any good with Stealth armor?
I'm curious to know how the Capellans treat their Assault Mechs given they don't seem big on them in general (unless this has changed).
guys
guys
GUYS
new book just uploaded!!!
>>48082988
Do they ever do any major planets like Sudeten, Tamar, Luthien, Liao or the like with those?
>>48083025
I will guess not. These planets are already covered on other books, TtS will be always shitty planets no one cares aboutbtw Campaign Operations was also released. Wait a second
>Today is the day the Coyote stalks forward and carves our own path. Today, we begin our quest to end that of the repugnant Imperio. This Galaxy has won the honor of being the vanguard, carrying forward our Khan’s vision of a new life, establishing ourselves away from the shadow of the Adder Collective.
>Take your objectives, seize them with the speed of our Founders. But be warned; excessive casualties are not to be tolerated—both within and without. We will establish our new home with care, in a manner that outshines the paltry efforts of the once-mighty Scorpions.
>Seize the day, Coyote. And may our howls carry forth across space and time to our distant blood, lost in the arrogance of their own Taint.”
>Beta Galaxy Commander Petr Winson; 15 March, 3103
>>48081767
Easy. Give the long range ac/20 more tonnage. Give it an accuracy penalty. Make it take two rounds to reload. Make it not do 20 damage but make it an ac/12. There's a thousand ways to balance it. You're not really even trying to consider the possibilities.
Campaign Operations
http://www.mediafire.com/download/b7e9bgevanjxf3y/E-CAT35007_Campaign_Operations.pdf
TtS McEvedy's Folly
http://www.mediafire.com/download/0i6ldp6u1qxbfh5/E-CAT35SN209_BattleTech_Touring_the_Stars_McEvedys_Folly.pdf
remember to update next thread's OP with those links
>>48082933
>Are those any good with Stealth armor?
You'd have to build one since AFAIK there aren't any canon ones.
>I'm curious to know how the Capellans treat their Assault Mechs given they don't seem big on them in general (unless this has changed).
Changed big-time in the mid-50s when they plopped down new lines for the Pillager, Sunder and Emperor, then again not long after when they added the Yu Huang and re-captured the St. Ives Compact which also had assault lines.
The Capellans have some of the best Assaults going for Gausswall tactics.
>>48083025
Haha no.
>>48083043
>>48083191
Holy shit whoa, and thanks anon.
>>48083025
>Do they ever do any major planets like Sudeten, Tamar, Luthien, Liao or the like with those?
>>48083246
>Haha no.
This is BattleTech, bruh. "Do the words 'fact-checking nightmare' mean anything to you?"
>>48083347
>This is BattleTech, bruh. "Do the words 'fact-checking nightmare' mean anything to you?"
This implies they give a shit about fact-checking or editing to begin with.
Besides, it's their job. If they put out TtS products for worlds that actually mattered, people might buy them. They'd be a lot more useful for BT scenarios and AToW campaigns than TtS: Another World That Dies And Nobody Gives A Fuck About.
you know what really pisses me of with Touring the Stars? They don't have a star map showing where the planet is located, instead you have the same planetary map 3 times
Hilariously, going by these rules, my AtB mercenaries should be running a huge deficit every month from ammo expenditure almost entirely. Damn Clan expenses. HOW AM I GOING TO AFFORD THAT AEGIS NOW?!
>>48083439
Seriously, the hydrogen costs out of this are insane; the fact that it assumes a DropShip runs 24/7 every day of the month in peacetime is ludicrous.
Still, at least it's nice to see my conversations with Cray about getting FUCKING OFFICER RULES into the game have finally paid off.
Oh, and this is written a lot more sarcastically (one might say "passive-aggressively" if one was being uncharitable - which I expect most of you will be - but I find this writing style amusing) than previous books. Pic very definitely related (pg 30).
>>48083507
yeah, that shit is really funny
>>48083507
Well to be fair, I think a lot of it is I'm up to um... a battalion of mechs and I'm at 50 tons of expenditure a month, just in Clan LRM-15 ammo. Kids, don't decide deeper bins = better.
>>48083123
Where's that from?
>>48083553
Point.
Also, it's kinda buried in the text, but holy HELL are ATOW rules important for making your CO. The Pg.30 rules for using your CO's traits in relation to your starting budget are *huge* in impact. You shouldn't be getting out of character creation for a CO without at least +3 ratings in each of Negotiation and Administration, and at LEAST 10 TP of Positive Traits (the Rank of Captain, which you'll need to be a merc company CO, is +6 TP by itself). Assume a +3 in each of those skills and 10 TP in traits, and that's a modifier to your starting budget of *1.6*. An extra 60% starting C-bills for your force is *gigantic*.
With that said, I don't think you can actually make an ATOW character on the starting 5000 XP budget in that system that still have the necessary attributes (4s in everything not RLF [5], DEX [5], CHA [5], and whatever the BDY score is that's required to actually get you your full complement of MechWarrior Hits in the normal BattleTech game), AND have a Mech, AND own that Mech so you can take it with you into the unit, AND have a skill level above Green, AND have the office skills necessary to run a merc company, AND have the appropriate Rank Trait. I'll screw around in a bit and see if I can make a starting PC that can actually lead a Mech company...but I'm pretty sure I'll either have to min-max like a motherfucker to do it, or I'll have to start with some bonus points.
>>48083708
Campaign Operations
>>48083191
>>48083725
Yeah I'd assume extra bonus points. Default ATOW character creation generally assumes you're an up-and-comer with at most maybe a single tour of not-super-notable duty under your belt, from what I recall.
>>48083725
>>48083824
So, following this up, I looked at what it would take to make a fairly un-impressive company-level CO for a merc unit under the ATOW rules. I haven't actually done this before; since all the merc rules (and MekHQ/AtB) use FM:M(r) rules, I've been RPing exclusively with MW3e.
So here's the PC I came up with. So you don't have to do a lot of reading, this PC required about 7300 XP to build, with the Fast Learner Trait. I'd expect around 7500 without it, but I haven't done that math.
This much XP expenditure gets us a CO who has no innate attribute bonuses or penalties at all (although they're the lowest "+/- 0" possible on several attributes). He has about average RFL/DEX for a MechWarrior, a slightly-nice CHA (no bonus, but high enough to explain why people might follow him), and a pretty low EDG. He has a 3/4 G/P rating with no SPAs, and has a Heavy Mech, as befits his status as a company CO. He has the minimum rank required to be a Company CO (this *must* be bought), and has a single helpful Trait (Gregarious) set against two negative Traits (Enemy; old Battalion CO, and a mild drinking problem most likely due to over-thinking about how fucked the ATOW character creation system is).
His skills aren't min-maxed. 3 Fields are mandatory, and IMO a +3-4 rating is a *minimum* professional competency. He's got +3s in the important skills; Admin, Negotiation, Ldrshp, Strategy, and a +4 in Tactics. Mech fighting skills are the minimum to make him a Vet. All other skills should be mostly-self-explanatory for making a "complete" PC and not one min-maxed just for BattleTech. Note that Career/Soldier is very high, because I feel its one of the most overlooked skills; he wouldn't GET to be an O-3 in the first place without a good score here.
The takeaway is that if you're looking to build a company CO for Campaign Companion games, you should probably think about giving the CO between 7k-8k in XP. I'd personally lean towards 8k. Thoughts?
>>48081450
One Revival not enough, remove stravag grognard, absorption of Rasalhague best day of my life, etc, etc.
>>48084472
Sounds logical to me. Allows veterancy without going into overdrive too fast.
>>48084472
>most likely due to over-thinking about how fucked the ATOW character creation system is
kek
So yeah, 8K probably is best, just to give your Captain a little more interest. What about going all the way up to a Battalion commander, then? Say a Lt. Colonel, are you talking 10 or 11,000 XP? And just how flexible would it be with your background/lifepath?
>>48084577
>>48084543
Since I was up against the character limit (big surprise), I will say that I prefer my company COs to be Veteran Skill level, with 1-2 SPAs (preferably 1), to start out with. Using 8K as a base allows me to spend 200-500 XP on buying the Attributes and Traits that *most* SPAs require as a pre-requisite (and which I don't currently have), and then allows for 150-300 XP to actually buy the SPAs. Which would put me at around 7900 or so.
In the case of a Battalion CO, I'd only increase it to about 8500-8700. The things you'd need to increase are actually pretty cheap at that point. You'd need 2 more Rank Points (200 XP), upgrade Strategy and Tactics by 2 each (about 100 XP in total), upgrade the relevant Admin/Negotiation/Leadership up to about +5 each (about 150 in total). MAYBE upgrade to an Assault, but I don't think that should be a given for *every* Battalion CO. Just like I don't think that any given Battalion CO should start off as Elite; if you want to be Elite or you want to have an Assault Mech, those *should* require sacrifices elsewhere.
I'm thinking about putting some "Merc Commander" templates together that gives the ranges of skills/attributes and pre-done Trait packages that you *should* have to be a CO. Yeah, it's a game and it's your PC...but reasonably-speaking, nobody's going to follow the Elite-rated CO with Rank and an Assault Mech (but who has Combat Paralysis, 3 Enemies, no ability to actually do logistics, and who's missing 3 limbs, all of which he had to take to pay for the Elite and Assault stuff).
Oh, and I'm not touching Lifepaths. They make the maths on this practically impossible to speak to. "Lump-sum" XP only is the way to figure the maths here in the time I'm willing to spend on this.
>>48084749
>Oh, and I'm not touching Lifepaths. They make the maths on this practically impossible to speak to. "Lump-sum" XP only is the way to figure the maths here in the time I'm willing to spend on this.
As someone who lives and dies by the lifepath system, I actually agree. It's something for if you have several fuggin' hours to hammer out a character and backstory. Still my favorite way to do it though, because I'm a grog like that.
>>48084749
>I'm thinking about putting some "Merc Commander" templates together that gives the ranges of skills/attributes and pre-done Trait packages that you *should* have to be a CO.
Hey, I can't sleep. Does anyone want to critique a 1st draft of this idea?
Basically it works like this:
1) Choose one of the 3 Attribute Fields and add +1 to any 2 (or +2 to one) attribute(s).
2) Choose one of the 6 Trait Groups, and add 3 more TP of positive Traits of your choice. You can increase a negative trait by 1 (or choose a new one) in order to get a 4th TP, and you can reduce yourself to a Medium Mech in order to get 1 bonus TP.
3) You get each of the 3 groups of Field Skills. For each field, choose one of the 3 skill point arrays and apply them.
4) You get one group of miscellaneous skills. Choose one groups and apply the relevant listed point modifiers from that array to your miscellaneous skills.
Done.
Too much, too simple? Too cookie-cutter (this is what I'm really more worried about...)? I don't have a provision for SPAs yet either; I'm thinking you can take one of your 3 "free" TPs and exchange them for any one SPA for which you meet the pre-reqs.
>>48085484
Nothing shouts out at me as "THIS IS FUCKING STUPID" on a first look, so you're probably on the right track. I may end up using this in my next campaign. Especially if you can also put stuff down for other kinds of combat fields later on.
