Weekender: Delving On The Best D&D Table Ever & The World Of BattleTech Explored
August 20, 2016 by warzan
Welcome to the Weekender where we're going to be delving into all the awesomeness from this week in tabletop gaming.
As a quick heads up check in to see if you won the Konflikt '47 Boxed Set! If you did then make sure to fill in the Claim Form HERE.
Scatter Terrain Challenge Update
Firstly an update on the Scatter Terrain Challenge. It will come to a close on August 31st at 1pm BST so you have around a week and a half to get your entries into the Hobby & Painting Forum.
We also thought we'd show off some great work by some of our community members.
- Wrecked Roman Artillery by thedoctorwhowargamer
- WW2 German Field Camp by joe190barmybrit
- Frostgrave Scatter Terrain by dugthefug1644
Let us know what you think of the work you've seen so far and maybe have a go yourself.
The Best D&D Table Ever?
Talking of excellent terrain we also HAD to show off his amazing Dungeonscape, put together by the marvellous Ryan Devoto.
Big thanks to Jamie Gogarty for sending this one in. You can check out some more of Ryan's work HERE too.
In the spirit of D&D don't forget to also check out Community Member ceasar's work on these excellent Web Comics.
News
Let's find out what's been happening this week...
- Escenorama Ancient Ruins Terrain - Build yourself a masterful Fantasy table with these resin kits.
- Dark Tower AD&D Range - A taste of the old school from Otherworld Miniatures.
- ZEN Terrain's Badger MTV - ...just what does MTV stand for again?
- Rogue One Star Wars Trailer Hits - Bothan or Botham? Either way the film looks ace!
What did you catch from the news this week that got you talking tabletop?
Talking BattleTech With Oriskany
Coming on Monday we have a new article series starting with community stalwart oriskany. He is putting Historical aside to talk about a classic, BattleTech!
We talk with him about the series aims and the basics of what you need to know about BattleTech.
Kickstarter Time
We're also taking a look at what's out there to be pledged for!
- The Gods War - Which Gods will you side with as you fight to control this fragmented and broken world?
- Unfair - Like take that mechanics and the old Theme Park PC game; try this awesome card game.
Grab A Backstage Free Trial & Join Us For The Weekender XLBS Tomorrow
Have a great weekend folks!
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Happy Saturday!
great show,
here’s one for you @warzan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CehVgQ43pn0
Apparently Kylo Ren was wondering about Bothans as well
Bothans , technically may not be as that was/is Expanded Universe , which has now been shunted off.
Bothans now may just be a planet ala Corilleans or Alderaanians ?
But cat/dog/horse man are lots more appealing
Always had a soft spot for the lore behind the Battletech universe, even if I came to it from the Mechwarrior & Mechcommander videogame series. Always tickled me that it effectively spun out of a love for Macross/Robotech’s mecha designs (the “Unseen” as they became known), then the team at FASA took the shattered post-Roman Empire period and dropped it a thousand years into the future, with tech levels fluctuating as singular facilities are destroyed and caches of LosTech are rediscovered, complete with it’s own barbarian hordes in the form of The Clans.
Impressively it currently encompasses over a hundred novels and dozens of rulebooks & Technical Manuals. The only franchises that come to mind with similar levels of writing behind them would be Star Wars, Star Trek and GW’s Black LIbrary output.
Kindof a shame that Battletech doesn’t have more traction outside those who know about the franchise. Alpha Strike helps, but the new line of plastics (including some superb Mechwarrior Online-inspired chassis redesigns) could give it a real boost, if they can decent distribution….
I’d love to see a new line of minis for Battetech based off the updated designs from Mechwarrior Online it would defiantly help the game get more traction as the currently available minis look very dated in comparison to the rest of the market.
When I had access to a good 3D printer I tried test printing some of the updated designs in the Batteltech scale and even with the lower resolution I was working with they looked amazing.
If someone in the industry could start producing a range of minis based on the updated designs, not necessarily in plastic so as to save on production costs, then there could be a reassurance in the popularity of the system.
@dawfydd – I agree that BattleTech deserves more traction than it seems to have in today’s gaming market. In the days before 40K, BT was huge, and THE sci-fi wargaming franchise in the world with the possible exception of the UK (where 40K was just coming onto the scene) and Japan, where franchises like Mobile Suit Gundam (Gundam Wing wouldn’t come out until 1995, remember) and Robotech (1984, same year as BattleTech).
When FASA fell on hard times in the mid 1990s, I think other franchises like Gundam Wing and 40K were there to step into the void, especially in markets outside the UK and Japan. The BT franchise continued through a great library of video games, until Catalyst Game Labs got the rights from Topps / WizKids for a tabletop wargame and RPG re-release in 2007 I think.
@deepgreenx – While I’m not really a fan of the updated MWO game itself, unlike many older BattleTech players, I actually like many of the revamped mech designs presented in MWO, and agree it would be nice to see some plastic / resin / metal work based on the new designs. It feels like sacrilege to say it, but a lot of the classic BT designs look admittedly “derpy.” Yes, I say it with love, but gotta stay honest and objective. 😀 On the UncleJimmy thread I’ve been posting some informal p/logs on not only painting, but re-designing re-habilitating the actual shape and configuration of some of the mechs.
Thanks for the posts, guys! Of course we’ll cover all this is much more detail in the article series, I really hope you guys like the article and drop a comment! 😀
@oriskany totally agree dude. Hell, I was only really aware of the franchise via the PC games and even then only got into them with Mechwarrior 3 (then 4 & 4Mercs) when I was at university. Didn’t even get into the fiction proper till a few years later when I went to work for Borders and found the first of the Dark Age novels by Mike Stackpole, a name I was inclined to trust for quality military SF action with great characterisation from his work on the X-Wing series of books & comics.
I’ve still got tubs full of those Dark Age & Age of Destruction miniatures and the aesthetic is one I’ve been glad to see the Battletech range slowly adopting, but the designs for Mechwarrior Online are just something else and I’m heartened to see their influence seeping into the core range.
Catalyst have been ding a bang up job of shepherding the Battletech brand since they got the rights back. The last two starter sets have been brilliantly put together, and their system of a rulebook for each “level” of operation was genius. I’m hoping that the upcoming Battletech videogame will bring more people to the franchise…
And comments are a definite. Can’t wait to see what you’ve put together 🙂
You said there was something you didn’t know. I don’t believe it!
@dawfydd and @unclejimmy – just had a four-on-four game today, and used AFVs for the first time. 😀 Still so much to explore in this great universe!
(The following comments are solely in jest, at myself as much as anyone else. I’m really looking forward to Oriskany’s articles on Battle Tech)
The greybeard slowly awoke from his decades long slumber, roused by the sound of pen to paper. Somehow, in mystical fashion, he sensed that the lore of the greatest of all the games was being spoken. Leveraging his creaking bones into position he cast his eyes upon the long-forgotten ‘Mechs which stared down upon him from their perch near the ceiling.
“Come!” he called to the others of his kind. “It is time for us once more to sing the praises of the mighty, from the lowly Locust to the mighty Atlas. Time to describe the beauty of Battleforce and Battletroops! And time”, he growled, his voice shaking in rage, ” to defend the purity of the game against the changes wrought by… the Clans.”
He stepped from his rooms and, upon spying the nearest waif, proclaimed: “You there! Come here and let me tell you of my 100ton Battlemech! With Jump Jets!”
🙂 I like it, @basilard99 – but what’s this antipathy against the Clans? I get it, to be honest. I lot of the really old-core BT gamers feel about the Clans the way I feel about elves in Fantasy or Vulcans in Star Trek … just pointlessly over-idealized races that love flaunting how much better than they are than everyone else.
Well, except Clan Ghost Bear. 😀 Not only were “we” one of the first to assimilate into Inner Sphere society (almost Viking-like into the kingdoms of medieval Britain), but … yeah! We’re Clan Ghost Bear! We really ARE that great! 😀
Actually, I liked the back story of the clans. It was a cool way to shake up the universe. What I didn’t like (and this is pure personal preference) was the changes they caused in play style. One of the things I enjoyed the most about BT was the minutia of managing heat, especially on earlier (pre-3050) mech designs. But, let’s be honest, that’s what a lot of people DIDN’T like about BT. And softening those rules up through new technology brought in by the Clans was also a lead-in to being able to play larger battles in less time.
But anything that helps BT rise again, I’m all for.
BTW: If you’re interested in digging up even more old FASA goodness, check out Renegade Legion. Especially their tank game: Centurion.
Oh . . . trust me, sir. As much as I am getting into BattleTech now, I was definitely into Renegade Legions back in the day. Here’s my whole library from 1,000 years ago 😀 . . . Designed my own grav tanks, APCs, had all the technical updates, etc. Interceptor, Centurion, Leviathan, Prefect, Legionnaire . . .
Awesome! Looks amazingly similar to mine. One of these days I’ll have to break it out again. (Full disclosure: I never actually got to play Prefect.)
Best hobby knife injury for me. I dropped my knife, panicing I brought my hand down to try to catch it, I did this just as the knife had landed handle down on my leg. I then proceeded to karate chop the blade forcing the entirety of it into the side of my hand.
Bloomin hell!
Non hobby related but I also stabbed myself in the stomach with a brand new kitchen knife, trying to remove it from its plastic packaging.
Looking forward to watching the Battletech series from @oriskani we broke out my old copy at the club recently and had some great games. The means may look a little dated now but the game system still works. Having to manage your heat is a favourite mechanic of mine and really makes you think about when to take the risk to unleash everything.
Good timing on the Battletech front – I always loved the sprawling universe they created and I’ve been playing it with my kids for the last few months. I just have to paint up the mechs I ordered for them and we will start on a little campaign which I’m really looking forward to 😀
I might even track down some 15mm scale versions of their mechs just to put on their shelves so they can look up at them and say “I piloted that!”
Thanks, @tonysilvey and @siygess – Managing your mech’s overheating is indeed one of my favorite mechanics in the game, for a whole list of reasons we’ll cover in detail in the articles. Of course, one of the big ones (especially if you play Clan mechs armed to the teeth) is the decision to sometimes NOT fire off all your weapons at once.
And siygess – man, 15mm versions of the BT mechs! That must look awesome! Scale has always been kind of an issue with the old games (minis have been manufactured by four different companies I think and the game was originally designed as hex-based where scale doesn’t really matter). But most are about 8mm – 1/200 (Mechs that are described as “10 meters” are about 2 inches high). So a 15mm Timberwolf or Atlas or Orion or Battlemaster would indeed look epic! 😀
I’ve got a Tundra Wolf stood next to an Atlas and no heavy chassis should tower over the King like that….
Haha yeah my son really likes the look of the MWO Thunderbolt so I put together a TDR5-SS using the TDR-1C legs and body, with arms from a 9M to slim it down and a little conversion work on the weapon and a scratch built SRM. I was pretty happy with it until I put it next to the metal Marauder I purchased and it is huge in comparison! Just one of the things you have to contend with I suppose.. a noticable gap in terms of sculpt quality, scale and design between each of the eras of mini production. Luckily even the derpy mechs have their charm 😀
Happy Saturday!
Ah ah it’s always nice to have more John on the weekender … well and everyone else … you need a bigger table mates! I just love the dynamic between all of you.
And battletech … man how much i love this universe. I never played the wargame a lot, thanks to the fact there where not many players in my region. But i just loved the story, the mechs, everything. How much i miss the good old novells. I wish they would make more of them again, but i guess that time is long gone now. I hated it wenn Dark Ages came out. Hmmm guess it’s time to get some of the old books out again. Or maybe install Mech Commander or Mechwarrior Online again … .hmmm.
But i’m really looking forward to that article series … it would be nice if battletech could reach a wider audience again.
Thanks, @querion – I think the Dark Age was set up as kind of a “reboot” for the setting, level the playing field with the collapse of the HPG network for FTL communications, break up (or at least weaken) all of the old factions and empires, and basically let any player jump in anywhere he / she / they want, with whatever mechs they want, in any play in the BT universe. I agree it’s not my absolute favorite part of the timeline (I like the Clan Invasions through the Word of Blake / Jihad).
Thanks for the post! Of course we’ll cover all this is much more detail in the article series, I really hope you guys like the article and drop a comment! 😀
It’s the weekend! Time to finish painting the 30+ Malifaux models I’ve been catching up on the last few days. Clearing the decks for Dropfleet Commander and a few other items on the backlog.
Question is… does spending time watching this help or hinder that goal?
In the day where I put the finishing touches to my terrain entry, that table gives me something to aspire to. Actually a terrain project with fewer cock-ups would be something to aspire to but ah you know.
That table is outstanding is what I’m trying to say!
is it something saga’ry?
There is a Saga piece in there. I’m currently working on the Youtube vid. Just 17 clips to edit 🙂
huzzah, I need to finish off a watch tower and pop the vid up myself
Ooh splendid.
I also am looking forward to @oriskany having a go at Battletech.
Mechs have always been a temptation. Actually I think I have a MadCat somewhere..guess I’ll have to build and paint it up today 😎
Have a great weekend all!
Thanks, @suetoniuspaullinus – the Mad Cat / Timberwolf is indeed one of those iconic images from BattleTech. It’s been on more book covers, video game covers, websites, etc, than probably all other mech types put together. And holy crap do they maul out some damage on the table! I have three myself. 😀 Not all in the same faction, that just wouldn’t be fair!
Few blade saftey tips:
1) As mentioned sharp blades prevent accidents
2) Always cut away from you, so if you slip you stab thin air not your self
3) If you use scalpel blade holders (good enough surgeons, good enough for me, if standard round craft knifes were that good that would use them) follow this guide for blade changes: http://www.swann-morton.com/view_reading.php?reading_id=1
4) get a good set of forceps (fishing tackle shops sell them) or pliers for gripping broken blades
5) If you have a resistance when you are cutting with a sharp blade your angle of attack is to steep, go in shallower and shave the material away
6) use the right tool for the job, if you are cutting through sprues or dowels use clippers or a razor saw
7) Change your blade frequently when cutting polystyrene it takes the edge off any blade quicker than you can imagine, for large chunks of polystyrene use an old bread knife, or if your feeling fancy/have a fetish for the right tool for the job buy a foam knife from an upholstery suppliers.
8) Never trust the lock on retractable blade knifes, and again if it its not cutting easily and cleanly your blade is dull or the cutting angle is too acute.
9) Buy a mini sharps bin from amazon if you have young ‘uns about, saves them getting inquisitive fingers onto sharp things https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_fb_3_15?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=small+sharps+bin&sprefix=small+sharps+bi%2Coffice-products%2C188
10) When using a round handled blade holder have a pen tin or something to put the handle in when not in use, so that it cant roll off the table and land in your foot or leg, i have done both and DONT recomend doing that (its why i use scalpel handles now).
for a non saftey tip: Ask at your local vets or dr’s surgery if they have any expired surgical blades you could have, as surgery rated blades have a use before date, by doing this i obtained 1000 swann morton #11 blades for a few quid in a charity jar, that way you have no excuse to ever use a dull blade!
Sharps bin is a great idea from both a safety and general blade management perspective – often find I’m trying to separate my dull from sharp blades.
@coxjul scuse the pun but good point 😉
You can also get them for free if you ever have to administer injections at home either to pet or family…
On the Rescue the Wounded game idea: best setting for that would probably be WWI rescuing wounded soldiers from no man’s land because then you could just reuse the board for regular WWI games 😉
On the genesplicing tangent: @warzan, your mind hoed to some scary places sometimes. O.o
On orangutan watching: you might want to be careful with that @warzan – a few years ago on QI they mentioned that in a Dutch zoo there was a gorilla and a woman went to see him every day and looked into his eyes thinking she was connecting with him, then one day he got out and attacked her.
Bothans… look like the Grinch…
I can speak from personal experience in regards to safety when using blades:
Towards the end of May this year I slipped with an Xacto knife and stabbed myself in the wrist, the wound was no larger than a cm in length but this meant emergency surgery and a weekend in the hospital (with just a half dead kindle, no means of charging it, to keep me entertained, rationing reading is not fun). turns out the wound led to three blood clots from my wrist to my elbow, resulting in me now sporting a (un)sexy skin graft down my forearm. It took several weeks for me to get movement in my hands and 3 months later I still lack pretty much all strength in my wrist (which is irritating more than anything as its not like where you would usually struggle to lift something heavy, you dont feel strain, the wrist simply gives way if it cannot support the weight)
moral of the story, dont arse about with blades x
@bcup nasty, hope your on the road to recovery physio can help with regaining strength in the wrist…, I have nerve damage in my left thumb from stabbing my palm so can sympathise with the random things you find the injury causes down the line…
Battletech! Get in!
I’m going to be glued to these articles; Battletech has always struck me as being the most grounded sci-fi setting, in fact reading Battletech novels awakened my teenage mind to real world history and politics.
I’m really looking forward to the new computer game when it happens – looks like it’s being done so well and if a new range of miniatures happens, I’ll be back into the boardgame, too.
Just a pity that that stravag, Oriskany is writing the articles with his Ghost Bear bias… you better pay due respect to Aiden Pryde, or you’re going to be getting some serious batchalls issued to you by Jade Falcon!
Always been a fan of the Battletech universe and got into it pretty much the same way as John. I have to admit I have never played it as a tabletop game although I did play the RPG for a bit due to the lovely mech sheets that you used to get. Unfortunately it is not supported at any of the gaming clubs that are local but would love to have a game sometime to see what it is like.
Thanks – @chillreaper – I too am really looking forward to Hairbrained Schemes new 2017 BattleTech PC title next year. They have Jordan Weisman on board (the original developer) and seems to be a true PC adaptation of the original BT tactical wargame (as opposed to the WoT-style 12-on-12 shooter in MWO). I think each player will have a lance of 4 mechs, campaign or scenario style play, mercenaries-based, set in the Third Succession War of 3025 (to placate those who dislike the Clans or feel they unbalanced the game).
Thanks, @noyjatat – very glad to hear you weren’t “put off” by the BattleTech / Mechwarrior record sheets. These sheets are (I believe) part of the reason BattleTech suffers this largely undeserved reputation for “too complex” and “too much paperwork.” What people don’t realize is that the reason these sheets are designed with all that information is so you DON’T have to keep it in your head. Every number and datapoint on those sheets is one less time you’re referring to a rulebook or a chart or a tiny little card or whatever. There are no tokens to track damage (and clutter up the board). In short, those sheets don’t generate paperwork or complexity, they reduce it. 😀
Battletech complex?….Really?
One of the things that I love about about the boardgame is that there are different levels of complexity, depending on how people wanted to play it.
Personally, I spent most of my time just playing Level 1 rules with the odd bit of Level 2. Level 3 just intimidated the hell out of me and I went nowhere near it.
We more or less stick to the basics most of the time. Today was our first game with AFVs, which was great since it gave our Rasalhague player more of a chance to use the combined arms doctrine more common with IS armies. Next week we may try some infantry (something else I have to paint now) . . . Not playing too much with customization / mech construction yet, tagging / target acquisition for indirect fire weapons, nothing with Aerotech yet, etc. We’re building into it gradually. 😀
Yas! I finallly get to do the jammie dance!
Congrats – enjoy 😀
Happy Weekend Weekenders 🙂
so I do like the discussion on @oriskany and his new Battletech series coming in like two days from now 🙂 I enjoy reading them during the coffee break at work. Plus, I recently bought the first and only Polish edition of Battletech and Aerotech. It waits for me at my parents’ place. I hoped I will get to visit them last week but I didn’t manage.
Battletech is a setting I’ve loved since I first booted up Mechwarrior 2 on my old PC back in the day. Honestly, if someone (Catalyst probably) produced a 28mm battletech wargame I’d be all in. Of course, if they ever got around to producing their Shadowrun: Street Gangs skirmish game I’d also be all in.
Get your crap together Catalyst.
I warned you this was coming, @yavasa . 😀 I have heard (I don’t know first hand) that Poland has (or used to have) a huge BattleTech community. I admit Aerotech is one part of the ‘verse I haven’t looked into yet outside of some battle report videos on YouTube), I look forward to hearing what you say about it. 😀
@zethnar – While I admit that BattleTech in the Catalyst Game Labs era isn’t as big as it used to be in the glory days of FASA, I think they are doing a pretty good job at getting this franchise back on its feet. When BT first came out, 40K wasn’t released yet. Now, 33 years later, with huge sci-fi games like 40K, Infinity, DZC, Warmachine, etc., that’s an uphill battle.
Also, Catalyst Game Labs doesn’t own the franchise. They only have permissions to release PART of it, licensed by WizKids, who are in turn owned by Topps, I think, a company pretty serious about control of its IP. Even Topps doesn’t own everything, all the electronics rights are still owned by Microsoft I believe, who has leased it out to companies like Piranha (MWO) and HBS (upcoming BT PC release in 2017).
So they can only work with part of a franchise that even the owners don’t possess completely. The $50 starter set (over my shoulder in the video) is was an Origins Award Winner and is really helping get the community started again. But I admit and agree . . . they have a long way to go and BT may never really reach the pinnacle it once held in the late 80s.
Also, a 28mm (1/56) version of BattleTech? I’ll wholeheartedly agree the mechs would look amazing, especially since a Mad Cat would stand about eight inches high. 😀 I would certainly like to have one of those on my display shelf, but an actual wargame on that scale would be tough.
Then again, I say the same thing about tanks and assault guns in other 28mm games like Bolt Action. 😀
Great posts, guys. I hope you like the articles starting Monday and drop a comment!
Anyone remember the old Armourcast 28mm-scale Madcat, Vulture and Atlas? Damn those things were BIG…
I am very much looking forward to this series. I actually have one of the Armorcast Timberwolves, and I have been able to get my hands on some of the newer 28mm ‘Mech’s: MWO-style Atlas, T-Wolf IV, Archer… and we’ve had a couple games. It’s BIG.. but fun..
I recently began using a scalpel for cleaning minis. Before I used a small knife. With the knife I always cut towards my thumb, which I used as a stop for the blade. Since knives aren’t super sharp (especially fter a year of cutting plastics/resin) my thumb was never cut. When I switched to the scalpel I went around cleaning minis as usual but cut my thumb almost instantly, I forgot to take into account its sharpness 😉
Also, GO WARREN! I can always trust you to make at least one lewd joke in the weekenders ;P
Thanks again lads see you tomorrow ….. normally I agree with most things you say , but hoping into a bath with Ian Botham holds no appeal at all for me ……………..
if you like the human animal hybrid have a look at the Ito Clan for Bushido
My safety tips for hobbying are:
Always cut with a sharp blade, dull blades generally cause more accidents
)
Wear safety goggles when cutting, whether with Clippers or knives because you can end up with bits of flying plastic or metal even with a sharp blade
Take a couple of these before you start doing any cutting
great show guys, love the warrenutan!
on the subjects of bothan’s:
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Battletech was my entrance into the wargaming world. That game has now become nothing but a disappointment as it has so much potential as a universe and IP but has not been brought up to modern standards of wargaming.
I’ll agree with about 90% of what you say, @stryker778 . Yes, the ‘verse and IP are great (and honestly probably the game’s best feature). And I’ll admit the mechs you get in the starter box aren’t up to the quality of Infinity (although you are getting the mechs for about 75 cents a piece, to be fair).
As far as they “modern standards of gaming?”
Oversimplified rules? Unit attributes so thin they can fit on a 3×5 card? Play-times lasting an hour or less and trumpeted as a “good thing?” All flash, no substance? Rules supplements not-so-subtly designed to compel players to buy more overpriced miniatures?
Indeed, BattleTech doesn’t match up to those “modern gaming” standards. 😀
Awesome show once again guys, and thanks to Justin and John for another great interview. 😀
Great “onagre” catapult by the “Junior Beasts Division!” Meanwhile, I think Justin deserves some credit for even coming close to onagre. @redben and @huscarle can keep me honest here, but when people were asking what “onagre” is (besides a Roman catapult as Ben says), I think onagre = Latin for “mule” or “donkey”, a reference to the weapon’s powerful kick.
Again, deferring to the more Classical History-minded people in our community, there have been big “fight for the dead” battles in history. Never mind what we see in the insulting travesty of the “300” movie, in the actual Battle of Thermopylae, King Leonidas was killed earlier in the battle and most of the most horrific and intense fighting raged near the end of the battle over possession of his corpse.
It refers to a type of ass. They may have pulled the very earliest chariots.
A very famous fictional account of a battle over a corpse is found with regards to Patroclus in Book XVII of The Iliad.
The Sumerians were said to have used them as I am sure you already know though not sure if there is any proof through Stele ,wall art,grave goods etc
I was also under the impression that “onager” was pronounced with a soft “g” as in “Onajer”.
Ben – it’s pronounced ‘Glor-an- tha’, and is the world in which the Runequest and Heroquest RPG’s are set.
Loved Battletech – first serious gaming campaign I ran, in 1985-6 (or about then). Fell out of love with it when the Clan appeared, though was still reading the novels, due to the rapid change in technical background that that started (pre Clan – very limited mech production, ‘crappy’ tech, set mech designs (around 40) : post Clan – vastly expanded mech production (one planet is mentioned to produce around 500 mechs a year (in the old version that would possibly be half the year production for a Successor State).
That said, my favourite period (and I fully agree with Jim that once you get into this, it’s almost like a historical setting – certain Mechs and weapons are only available at/from set times, for certain forces, etc.) is around the 4th Succession War/War of 3039. Theoducdore Kurita being sneaky, introduction of ‘Lostech’ and League Era mechs from Comstar stocks and then the formation of the FRR between Kurita and Steiner space, and the following ‘Ronin War’
I may even have to start playing this again – d!*n it.
I am realizing that, too. Many people that are getting back into it are sticking with 3025/3039 and going no further. The love of the old stuff abides. I got stuck in well after the Clans were introduced, but still love the Succession Wars.
Rogue One
ok I guess I asked for that and so by proxy have you by indulging me.
quite right warren,the anthology films are a great move by Lucas film and Disney.
we are going to see a lot more star wars movies branching out away from the main storyline.
recently one of the story group was asked about stories he wanted to see. he said he wanted to see stories about the impact of the war on everyday people.
he also mentioned a noir detective film ,no jedi he said that would be cheating.(excited for this)
I think the politics between hutts internally, their rivals like blacksun and the controlling interests of the empire as a back drop with the stories of the bountyhunters and pirates woven around this is something we are likely going to see.
there is no story they can’t tell.
Rouge One clean up is a big topic. they asked Gareth Edwards for a gritty war film and he delivered in spades. but the STAR WARS story group have decided to tone down the blood and guts. we only have one shot so far of before and after and that is of a rebel pilot whose head is bandaged .he was covered in blood and now hes not but the shot is the same.
the story board have no issue in the grittiness of the setting or story telling .so people getting shot, blown up or chopped in half, but no guys on the floor with their guts all over the place.
this touches on a deeper issue and that is some of the STAR WARS generation expect the films to follow them through life. so they want films that are shot as they want to see them now.
but here is the thing, STAR WARS is for everybody.it speaks to people across all ages and backgrounds. so violence , death plus dark and gritty story line yes. unnecessary blood and guts no. love, yes .sex, no.
if you break these two rules it stops being STAR WARS.
I personally am cool seeing a rebel speaking to his friend as he is dying from the shoulders up ,if I saw him after he steps on a mine ect. you don’t need to be blunt to get the sentiment. I am happy to see this trade off when I think back to the impact STAR WARS had on me as a young boy, still haven’t got over it.
all that being said I so what to see the uncut version.i can see Gareth Edwards hiring some bothan spies .
the things i’m looking forward to the most in Rogue One.
1)hearing the imperial march kick in and seeing Lord Vader come into shot. hearing James Earl Jones say “power”.hopefully seeing a scene where that famous red light sabre ignites and witnessing “the power of the dark side “.
2)Donnie yen as Chirrut is going to be awesome, loving the direction they are going with the force and its context both inside and out side the sith and the jedi.
“i fear nothing , all is as the force wills it”.
speaking of which a side note to tom baker as the bendu monk in STAR WARS Rebels season three.an order of force sensitive masters who have spent thousands of years studying the force anyone?
3) best leave it at two or know one will get through this, well done if your still with me.
Kylo Ren
where to start with this one?
we will start simple.
sound
music for Kylo Ren is awesome.
look
his look is awesome ,the cowl the mask and that dangerous aggressive light sabre.(yes Justin his hair is a bit week).but a lightsabre to the face is going to make anyone look scary and once he completes his training with Snoke he is going to be dark.(look what happened to palpatine if you want to go from bad hair to bad ass)
character
he is going to be the most complex villain in STAR WARS yet. i echo all the points made by Warren and BEN but would add a bit of background.i won’t say too much as I don’t want to spoil the novels for anyone which set the political and emotional backdrop.read bloodlines and aftermath if you want to know more about the landscape the character is in and its inferences.it will give some insight into the many conflicting emotions and ideologies that we will see played out in the character .( I deleted a paragraph here because I didn’t want to upset anyone, no real spoilers but if you wanted to read the novels I thought it wise .)
as soon as I see a bothan in the marvel comics I will let you know.
everything else mentioned is cannon.
Kind of disagree about Star Wars feeling like Star Wars. In my opinion, the “main timeline” films should be general audience films with a common feel, But I want to see storytelling risk-taking being done with the secondary films. Like I would like to see a sci-fi heist/gangster pic for the Boba Fett movie.
Battletech is still a favourite although we do use different combat rules now. We began playing when Battletech was released so 3025 still has a soft spot for us. We gave up on our campaign after years and stopped when the Clans arrived as we felt it ruined the background
Normally I would disagree about the Clans, @torros . . . But I freely admit I heave heard / read a lot of people say the same thing, and how Clan Tech has unbalanced the game. Also, HBS’s upcoming 2017 release is set right where you guys play, at 3025 (end of Third Succession War), i.e., deliberately leaving out the Clans by setting the game 25 years before they arrive. So when so many fans, and with major forces in the BT development (including Jordan Weisman, one of the original creators of BattleTech), seem to be moving in an “un-Clan” direction, maybe there’s something to it?
Now to be fair, my friends and I are not playing the initial 3050-52 Clan Invasions (i.e., when ONLY the Clans have access to Clan technology). We’re further along in the history, when catastrophic losses to the Clans have forced them to use a lot of Inner Sphere mechs and technology, while (conversely), IS factions now have their hands on a lot of Clan Tech via capture, sale, reverse engineering, etc.
Basically, we use a “play what you like” model, and have fun. So if an IS player wants a Clan mech, we work it into the unit’s backstory. Also, even my Ghost Bear Clan force only has 4 out out of 12 “Clan” mechs (Mad Cat heavy/omnis and Bear Cub lights)
We also strictly play by the “Build Value” (BV) points available for all 3000+ mech models and variants available for BattleTech (depending on era). Yes, my Clan-Tech Mad Cat is a monster, but she also costs nearly 2500 BV. By contrast, my Inner Sphere opponent (Rasalhague Republic) regularly outnumbers me 2, 3, or 4 to one.
I’m not sure if game balance is your specific problem with the Clans (admittedly, we ignore a fair amount of the Clan-specific “test-tube baby” fluff), but in terms of mechanics and balance, we find that sticking with the BV value usually puts outnumbered Clan forces up against more numerous IS forces, and results in a good game. Otherwise, we run the risk of saying things like: “Well, I like WW2 gaming, but those Tigers and Panthers that come in halfway through just ruin the whole balance of the game. We don’t like it, even though we have 3, 5, or 10 Shermans / T-34s per “big cat.”
Then again, some people just don’t like the Big Cats. 😀 Nothing wrong with that, either.
It wasn’t anything about the points values. We just didn’t like the direction the history was taking and I guess after so many years we were getting a little tired of it and some friends moving away
Though if we did go back to the campaign where we did put more emphasis on the roleplaying as much as the miniatures game I am sure it would be back to kicking the crap out of Kurita and Liao again in 3025/26
Great show and good weekend to all 🙂
Battletech Wow what a blast from the past! I remember we used to play this on the weekend’s in the company area when stateside. We had permission form the CO to use the the sandtable and we would play lance on lance fights.
That’s awesome! How long ago was that?
It’s always cool to see how much of the military community is into Battletech. Hard finding any at Fort Stewart, GA, though…
First encountered BattleTech back when I was in the military as well (25+ years ago, sadly), although we certainly didn’t get to play on any sand tables!
Awesome to see them talk about Battletech. I’ve been a huge BTech fan for over 14 years now and still love the universe. I’m a Clan Ghost Bear fan myself, and Lyran Commonwealth for the Inner Sphere. Glad more people are still getting into it and look forward to the posts.
May have to post some myself. 🙂
@omaharenegade – please do post comments on the articles as they start rolling out. Also, we usually start a “support thread” in the forums, where people can post their own photos, links, battle reports, etc. I hope you’ll post some material. 😀
Always good to run across another Ghost Bear.
MTV in the current military generally stands for Medium Tactical Vehicle, or Multipurpose Tactical Vehicle. Not sure if that is what they were going for in this instance though.
Cool show, was taken by surprise when I popped up in the running order. Look forward to tonight’s as usual
Those cartoons are about awesome. 😀
Looking forward to the Battletech series. I’m slogging my way through the novels and enjoy the heck out of the succession wars era. Maybe as I read more novels I can get more excited by the later eras. There’s something appealing to me about the underdog Capellan Confederation. They may have a wicked government, but there are still good people answering the call to defend the realm.
Highly entertaining show, really looking forward to Oriskany’s sci- fi articles series Battletech a great game and great world. going to a wargaming show tomorrow so you never know what we will pick up there 🙂 🙂
Thanks, @rfernandz2001 and @chrisg . 😀 Indeed the Capellan Confederation is always kind of an underdog, being the last of the major states to launch into the stars in the age of expansion. And as far as them having a “wicked government,” well, they all do really, to one degree or another. 😀
Have a great time at the show tomorrow, Chris! Hope you find some great stuff!
YES! Finally I can come out of the BattleTech closet! BattleTech was my gateway into wargaming. Not so much because of the MechWarrior PC games or the short-lived tv show, but rather through one of the awesomely illustrated Technical Readouts (TR: 3050 which introduced the Clans). My favorite part about BattleTech is the management of the ‘Mech itself (heat, ammo, armor/structure, pilot injury). What I also appreciate about it is the 2d6 mechanic rolling against a set of conditional modifiers (rather than a simple 4+/5+ sort of mechanic). It’s self-consistency is rather nice – it easily allows for a lot of custom house rules or campaign-based rules.
as @oriskany mentioned, the scale and integration with the RPG set in the universe was always so delightful. Between AeroTech, BattleSpace, and BattleForce, one could really spend an entire weekend on a mega-game set in the BattleTech universe: invading a planet with JumpShips and DropShips using BattleSpace, large-scale regimental movements in BattleForce, critical skirmishes at BattleTech scale, and finally some fun character-driven moments use MechWarrior (RPG).
@oriskany – Funny you should mention that Panther – that’s actually one of my favorite light ‘Mechs. Although, the BattleTech panther has more than a dozen variants – a few more than the WWII tank 😉 I was always partial to Clan Jade Falcon, but then the more recent fiction surrounding the Ghose Bears changed my mind.
Keen to read your articles @oriskany given your track record on previous article series, these should be a great read.
@rangerruss – I kid you not, I am 100% serious here, I was painting a Panther from the Catalyst Game Labs starter kit earlier today. 😀 I hipe to get it finished tonight or tomorrow morning. True story.
The 2d6 system is always a favorite, in just about any system where it appears. The bell curve is just so elegant (like another of my favorites, WW2 Battlegroup). Wild things can certainly happen just often enough to where the game stays cinematic and never gets boring, but not too frequently so the game feels “chancey” random or chaotic.
We’ve played multi-echelon games like the one you mentioned, although these were admittedly in decades past when we had more endurance points on our character sheets. 😀
Jade Falcons are another great Clan, probably one of the more aggressive and politically devious clans. Definitely a “crusader” clan rather than the more laid-back “warden” clans like Ghost Bear.
OH, AND QUICK NOTE: While Justin was getting the interview equipment set up, John and I were talking about the old BattleTech TV show. Since then, I’ve finally seen a little of it on YouTube, and, eh . . . yeah, John was right. It was probably okay for a 90s kid’s show. But, wow. It . . . hasn’t aged well. 🙁
Why @ckbrenneke – is that a Mad Cat / Timberwolf in your BoW icon? I’m counting on all the other Battletech fans to keep me honest in the comments and fill in the gaps where I either don’t have the space or the expertise to really flesh out this IP.
The Tabletop World table is amazing, probably one of the best tables I’ve ever seen. But is it the best D&D table I’ve ever seen, hard to say. It’s visually impressive but it’s not the greatest D&D table simply because it’s only going to let you play pretty much one adventure, and probably quite a short one at that – that dungeon isn’t huge.
That was my thoughts as well
Ah Battletech … still has a sour taste in my mouth from when I went to the Origins game fair, and was in on a demo .. the teacher kept on leaving ..and not teaching. *sigh*, my friend and I just left and went to check out the guildball booth.
BUT, I do have fond memories of the books as a kid, and of course playing the COLLECTIBLE game from Wizkids … ah those precious heat-sink dials .. those were the days. Unfortunately it was near the end of the WK era (before it came back a few years later).
Interesting show guys,
@warzan the interesting thing about orang-utan’s is that when a male takes over from a sitting alpha the new male/alpha starts to grow again getting larger n stronger with the big cheeks forming on the face, similar to a 40K marine when getting the implant’s.
Battletech not played that in donkies on the PS (1) should bring back some nice/harrowing? Gaming moments.
@pojoh – Sorry to hear you had an initially poor experience with BattleTech. When you say “COLLECTIBLE”, are you referring to the CCG?
@zorg – Played Mechwarrior 2 on my old PC in the late 90s. Really looking forward to the new Hairbrained Schemes Battletech PC release next year. I may finally have to buy a new computer . . . 😐
yes I think it was one of the MechWarrior games I played.
your reports should be interesting & fun have some of the programs buried in a corner on video! of all things showing when I got them then. @oriskany
Battletech! Great, i haven’t delve into this universe in a long long time! I’ll be following @oriskany articles for sure. I did not know that the Battlemech similators were still going, i’ve played a few evenings in Montréal when it was running and our gang had a blast!
See you guys tomorow.
Hello Folks, hope all is well. @oriskany Man you are making me go into the attic and pull my old Battletech stuff, found all my Fasa books. Looking thru them you brought back my love for the early mechs. The first Rifleman, the Warhammer, My Love the BattleMaster. Dam you man to bring back my old love for BattleTech, Thank you man waiting for the show can not wait till its here, thank you again.
@duster – I haven’t seen the new Battletech simulators personally, but I’m going off what I’ve seen from Dawn and Gianna’s recent coverage of GenCon. They photographed the simulator pods on the convention floor, it might have to do with the upcoming HBS release.
@pepsidan – Damning me and thanking me in the same post, eh? No worries, I know exxactly what you mean. I don’t have any of the old FASA books myself anymore, but in recent months I’ve been finding them online and steadily building a library of old .pdfs. What a walk down memory lane. The really great thing is that it doesn’t have to just be nostalgia, the rules have been trimmed down, organized into “levels of complexity” (as others on this thread have pointed out), allowing a re-entry (or new entry) into this great IP.
Thanks of the posts, guys! Hope you check out the articles (starting Monday). I know I keep saying this, but comments on the article series is part of what determines what kind of articles and material I put together going forward. Frankly I’m already surprised by the response (and the series hasn’t even started yet). Let’s please keep it up!
oriskanny’s cheating! Battletech not only transplants post-fall of the Western Roman Empire history into space, they also have a stupendious amount of units with TO&Es for every faction! His not straying far from his historical comfort zone at all!
Kidding aside, Battletech is one of my favorite Sci-Fi settings, partly for the above. You even get the Catholic Church stand in with Comstar. But one of the biggest things for me is all the units. I don’t play House Davion. I play the 7th Crucis Lancers RCT, the best RCT in the whole Armed Forces of the Federated Suns. Those pretty boys in the Davion Guards be damned!
Interesting view we always reckoned that it was more the Macedonian Empire after the death of Alexsnder. Maybe we were reading too much into the Successor bit
I would have said Renegade Legion was more Roman in its background
Aaaaugh . . . Renegade Legions! 😀 😀 Don’t open THAT wonderful can of worms! 😀
Sorry didn’t mean to bring back the hot flushes
(catching my breath) . . . 😀
Battletech you say? @oriskany you could say I’m a fan…
Cheating, you say, @wayton ? Okay, okay. Maybe just a little. What can I say? I even admit this in the interview, the fact that the history of BattleTech is one of the big draws for me, and how the “mechanics” of that history seem to follow the trends and general “principles” of real history.
An individual person is unique and can be very unpredictable. But there are few things in the ‘verse less unpredictable than LARGE groups of people. This is why “history repeats itself” is one of the most blunt understatements in, well . . . in history. 😀 History seems to follow almost “physical laws” that we have to assume would continue going forward.
Indeed, ComStar could be looked at as the medieval Vatican, combined a healthy dose of Microsoft, AT&T, or Cisco. 😀 Its when they split off into the “Word of Blake” (I guess the historical analogy would be the Inquisition) that things start to get hairy.
Haven’t got into House Davion or the Federated Suns yet. As a Ghost bear, most of my research has gone into (predictably) Rasalhague, Kurita, Draconis Combine, Clan Wolf, etc. One look at a 3050s-3080s map shows why. 😀
@ghostbear – Aha! I was hoping you’d show up. 😀 May I compliment you, sir, on your fine BoW ID and that amazing user icon. Truly inspired, I hope you don’t mind that I have it emblazoned on quite a few of my ‘mechs!
Again, I hope you guys check out the articles, running each Monday, and the support thread I’ll be starting up. Not just for comments, but to help keep me straight. Seriously, when I write WW2 articles I’m comfortable (perhaps too comfortable) in the knowledge that I’m one of the more knowledgeable guys on the site about the material. That isn’t the case here.
Hah, I even have the logo tattooed on my forearm!
You win! I thought @oriskany was a Ghost Bear fan, but he is nowhere near fan enough to get inked! You’ll have to post some pics of your mechs on the forum he usually starts to go with the articles.
That’s hard-core, @ghostbear . 😀 Hats off to you!
So excited for the BattleTech coverage! It’s the first miniature game I ever played back in the day.
We were playing when the clan was introduced – and trying and IS (3045- so no 3050 tech, but some of the previous refits – Grand Dragon PPC version) Kurita Company vs Clan Star (12 vs 5 mechs, no elements). the look on the IS layer face when a 35tonner fired an LRM 20 at him was choice, and the Clan won the match up but lost 3 Mechs and the other 2 needed attention before the IS stuff ran having lost a minimum of 8 mechs – some to one 1 shot kills.
Don’t not play Clan (I’m a Ghost Bear player too – funny how it was set up that the Wolves were the ‘go to’ ‘good’ clan, and yet most people seem to favour the smaller ones), otherwise tend to fall in with Draconis Combine, been particularly drawn to the Legion of Vega, any of the ‘Ghost Regiments’ during the war of 3039 or the Genyoshi Regiments (love Wolves on the Border novel, and Heir to the Dragon – read them at least once a year).
So looking forward to this, and will help out where I can – I have almost no knowledge after around 3055, other than the major changes – Word of Blake and so on.
@blackspiral – awesome! I remember 1990-92, company-on-company uber-battles going on the back room of a crappy little gaming store until the wee hours of the morning. 😀
@kbog – Clan mechs can indeed be scary. My friend and I were just trying out our very first skirmish game (well, first game for me in 20+ years), and I wanted to play my Mad Cat. My buddy took two or three Cicadas. I know, I know . . . we had no idea what we were doing yet. So these sacrificial lambs start walking toward my Mad Cat, first ER PPC hit struck one of them square in the face (hell yeah I rolled box cars on my hit location) and took his head off from halfway across the board.
Of course, I didn’t know how double heat-sinks worked yet, so I also overheated my Mad Cat to the point where the Streak SRM system suffered an ammo explosion and blew off my own right arm and shoulder.
Ah, the joys of learning a new game. 😀
Any comments on the articles or the upcoming forum thread would be especially appreciated on pre-3050 lore and material. As incomplete as it is, that’s where most of my knowledge starts.
@oriskany The old House books give a pretty good rundown of individual House histories up to 3025, the original setting for Battletech. The books themselves are long out of print, but you can get PDF copies from Catalyst Labs if I remember right.
Sadly if you look at Ghost Bears and their role, House Davion is pretty much absent. The Davion’s main role against the Clans was fighting Jade Falcons with Steiner…and providing aid to their hated foe House Kurita to stop the Smoke Jaguars and Nova Cats.
A little aside on my own favorite of Davion units: The 7th Crucis Lancers Regimental Combat Team. The Crucis Lancers, named for the central March of the Federate Suns, all trace their lineage back to some of the old Star League Defense Force units that choose to not follow Kerensky. From that core of professional soldiers the Davion’s built one of their premier fighting forces.
Of particular, and sadly dark, note was their role in the Kentares IV massacre. In the First Succession War, back before the Houses had so destroyed their industry that provisions of War had to be put into place to save what was left, House Kurita sized up their opponents and realized the Davions were probably their greatest threat. So they launched a full scale invasion into the Federate Suns. Due to speed and lack of preparedness on the part of the Davions, their First Prince was preoccupied with his own plans to invade Liao territory, combining with the surprise decapitation of administrative control on the Draconis/Suns border, the Federated Suns was nearly overrun to their capital. However a raid by the 7th Crucis Lancers on Kentares prompted the Kuritans to pause and reorganize. Part of that was an effort to destroy FedSuns units that the Combine had left cutoff in their advance. On Kentares IV in particular, the Lord of Kurita himself decided to participate in the battle. After mopping up some forces on the planet, the Kuritan found himself entranced by the beauty of the surrounding countryside. Taking only a Buddhist Priest, the Coordinator ascended into the mountains to meditate and enjoy the scenery. Waiting in the woods was a unit of 7th Crucis infantry, their sergeant had been performing reconnaissance and watched the earlier battle. After ordering his men to retreat, the sergeant decided to give the Kuritans one last present and took aim at what he thought was an elderly Draconis Colonel. With the death of the Coordinator, his son and heir…the insane Jinjiro…gathered his generals and gave one three word order “Kill them all”. What followed was a bloody and senseless slaughter of civilians on Kentares IV. The incident would become a rallying cry to the Davion armies, who know threw themselves at the Kuritans with near suicidal fury. And just as importantly the massacre would so sicken the Draconis Soldiers that many of them meekly surrendered ground, so disgusted with their Lord’s breech of honor. By the time the Kuritans managed to overcome their disgust, House Davion had reclaimed most of the territory taken.
One other side note…someone needs to send Warren information about Snord’s Irregulars. That’s basically what a mercenary unit run by him would look like. They even have an Atlas with a steam engine paint scheme.
REMEMBER KENTARES!
Our long running campaign we ran as the 5th Crucis
Silly tablet….I meant 4th
@oriskany Oh…and as far as Comstar/Word of Blake goes, I think their whole arc is more drawn from religious schisms of the past. The East/West split of the Church, the Reformation, etc.
Comstar itself was originally setup to preserve technology and the safeguard the fragile FTL communications network. They started off being more of a business/corporate state under Jerome Blake, selling their services and offering a neutral third party in negotiations between Houses. But his successor grew fearful that the Houses would just supplant Comstar and run their own HPG stations, also said successor may have been mentally unstable. His solution was shrouding Comstar’s function in religious mysticism. Over the years the religious dogma grew along with Comstar’s wealth and influence. No House can fight if Comstar turns off their phones, a trick they love to do, and Comstar’s intelligence branch ROM is the most pervasive and best in the Inner Sphere. With all this in mind Comstar began to not just safeguard lost tech, they began to actively destroy records, murder scientists, and basically do everything in their power to push the Inner Sphere further into technological decline. Their vision was to then descend on the battered ignorant masses and create a new social order and Star League.
Then the Clans showed up. Seeing an opportunity Comstar approached the Clan leadership and offered to help them in exchange for being left alone. Their ultimate goal was to use the Clans to accelerate the decline of the Houses and execute that whole new order plan. Unfortunately for them two things happened: One, the Clans revealed their ultimate goal was Terra, Comstar HQ. Two, several powerful members…chiefly the head of Comstar’s defense force…had grown disillusioned with the plan. In an effort to save Terra, Comstar proposed a ritual combat for possession of the planet to be fought on Tukayyid. The Primus, Comstar’s Pope, expected they would lose and began a plot to basically disrupt the Inner Sphere and hopefully come out on top. I am honestly not sure what the plan was there, the Primus probably wasn’t either…she was going downhill mentally at that point. Anyway Comstar managed to win Tukayyid, don’t worry your Ghost Bears were one of just 2 ties in the battle, and the Precentor-Martial(titular army chief) decided to clean house. Some of the First Circuit, the College of Cardinals stand in, realized that a military coup had basically just happened and were further infuriated by several reforms the new Primus pushed through. Basically Comstar started secularizing. Thus several high ranking Precentors(Bishops/Cardinals) took their followers and formed the Word of Blake, which become more fanatical then even old Comstar.
@torros Big fan of the Crucis Lancers, not quite as prestigious as the Davion Guards assorted regiments but I’d argue more effective.
We were useless bunch of layabouts but loyal to Davion to the core. We almost mutinied when we heard Davion were forming a pact with those Steiner scum
Though presenting the Cappellan Confederation as a wedding present to Melissa Steiner was funny
Nothing good came out of that union. Victor was kind of mediocre as a ruler, regardless of his personal bravery and charisma, and Katherine was just a monster.
Not to mention the AFFS probably stared dumbfounded at their counterparts in LCAF, the Lyrans had what 5 good regiments and the best mercenaries keeping them afloot? The rest being more concerned with looking good on the parade ground and politicking. Have to love the last Archon though, with her love of shaming the Social Generals of her army by wearing only combat awards.
I need to read it all again. It’s 20 years since our campaign finished and I’ve forgotten a lot of it
Holy crap, @torros and @wayton – you guys know your s**t. 😀
Thanks for the tip on the Reformation / Schism. So far I thought the Word of Blake was more of a radicalized / fundamentalist faction within ComStar, rather than a “50-50” split of the ComStar / Terra faction.
Pleeeease keep commenting on the articles starting tomorrow. I have a feeling I may need detail on the lore in the comment threads! 😀
It was more of a 25-75 split publicly and WoB only took over the HPG stations in the Free Worlds League, the Marik at the time had been a member of old Comstar before being forced to leave and take up leadership of the FWL. But significantly the Intelligence Department ROM had an unsettling number of fanatics who jumped ship…or went deep cover and stayed in ComStar. At least one, and I want to say two, heads of ROM turned out to be WoB moles. The ComGuards seemed to be more loyal to their Precentor-Martial and the new ComStar, but enough of them left to form a WoB equivalent and helped overrun Terra.
Happy Sunday afternoon guy`s, i know this is Saturday`s show and yes i did watch it yesterday, but i did`t get time to leave any comment`s. So i`m re-watching it again to day, so i can refresh the old grey matter and leave some comments………………….
First of i`m loving all the entries for the scatter terrain comp, there are some really nice pieces being made. I`ve not entered anything myself, not that i did`t want to it`s just “Real Life`s” being a right pain in the rear, and i would`t have had the time to do anything. I am liking the look of the Wrecked Roman Artillery, a very well executed piece.
@Warren mentioned that there will be other type comp`s, i`ve got my finger`s crossed for a “Conversion” comp………..Mini – Vehicle or even a flier it makes no difference to me, i`ll have a crack at anything, and i have done.
After seeing the Rogue One Star Wars Trailer, i can`t wait for it to hit the cinema`s. I wont just be watching it once, i`ll prob see it quite a few time`s on the big screen (ya i`m that type of person, once is never enough). Wonder what they`ll do next…………………
I`m loving the Ancient Ruins Terrain, and if i had the time – the room and the money then i would build one, but until that day get`s here i`ll make do with sitting round a table with friend`s for night of AD&D. Nothing beat`s a night of gaming, where you have nothing but your imagination armed with pencil – paper and your bag of all winning dice (Dice God`s Allowing that is, as i`m no Vin Diesel)
Thank you for the kind comments about my scatter terrain.
I have really enjoyed making the most out of the dozens of left over components from a bits box I got on ebay. Buying the Frostgrave book gave me the inspiration I needed.
I have to make some slightly larger pieces of terrain soon to try to flesh out a small table because I am dying to get into Frostgrave with my son.
The scatter terrain challenge has shown to me that Beasts of War isn’t always about just craving praise for your efforts, I think we truly are a community.
I offered Zombieking some praise and an alternative materiel for the flames on his ‘Firestarter’ scatter terrain entry. Superglue and tissue paper looked awesome, but sounded like an awkward materiel to handle without getting stuck to the terrain myself. I offered the alternative of cutting up plastic milk bottles. Not only did he acknowledge and appreciate the comments he actually trialled the idea, posted more photos and thanked me for the comments.
I love posting here at Beasts of War, love the weekender every week and love the excuse it gives me to be creative and to offer a gaming experience to my son that isn’t stale and straight out of a box.
Great weekender. Thank you Ben, Justin and Warren again for your comments.
Ah Battletech. How I like thee even after all these decades and not having chances to play for long time. What has mostly kept my interest is lore as well as how classic some of PC games based on it are (mostly MechWarrior 2 by old school Activision). From Inner Sphere I have always liked House Kurita (Draconis Combine) but I have always been die hard clanner with Ghost Bear, Jade Falcon and Wolf being my favorites.
Thanks, @mecha82 – I think I had the Mechwarrior 2 game as well. Sounds like you used to play right in the same neck of the woods we’re running now, right along the “left wing” of the Clan Invasion corridor, with Ghost Bear, Wolf, and Kurita / Draconis.
@oriskany. It has been over twenty years since I played Battletech, but I still have most of my BT minis and the core rules. What I remember of the rules was the tracking of heat being a significant book keeping burden. Just recently I learned there is a new rules set for BT named Alpha Strike, which I have been told is a more stream lined rules set resulting in faster game play. Will you be using the original rules set for your battle report? Any chance of a quick comparison of the two rules set?
Thanks for the comment, @lorddgort – our battle report will actually use the original classic BattleTech system. Honestly, we haven’t found the heat tracking to be a major issue yet, especially since of the of the records sheets you can find online these days have “Total Weapons Heat” and “Heat Dissipation” pre-totaled for you, simplifying the process.
But we will be having a look at Alpha Strike. Based loosely on the old “Battleforce” macro-wargame from the Classic BattleTech era, it combines this with the Quick-Strike game system in BattleTech: Strategic Operations. Basically, it boils everything down to a card that comes when you buy the great Lance Packs from Catalyst Game Labs. It allows players to play hex-based or hex-less, and much faster battles or larger battles with more units (yet still stayiung manageable).
It strives to retain the feel of BattleTech, but of course has to abstract a lot of the nuts-and-bolts detail of classic BattleTech.
But even the “full” rules for BattleTech in recent releases have been slimmed down considerably for easier game play. 😀
@doomzombie
I with you .midnight showing with a room full of STAR WARS fans,its going to be awesome.
@warzan can you tell me where I can find the Dungeon Saga video’s from you and Justin? I want a cool dungeon crawler for a long time, but I have a harde time to decide wich one’s the best for me 😀
You can find them here @soldaan
http://www.beastsofwar.com/dungeon-saga/page/2/
…as well as other bits and pieces on Dungeon Saga
Aye, I think the zoo glass is a bit mirrored on the inside – so the beasts only see vague shapes…
the alternative is:
http://www.collegehumor.com/post/6976184/zoo-visitors-wear-creepy-glasses-to-avoid-eye-contact-with-grollias
I need a pair of those for work 🙂