Juggling projects

I havent been posting too much due to real world issues, booking myself heavily with projects and some new distractions. I'm not dead or anything but until Im done with prep for my con games I dont expect to me posting again soon. Most likely the Saturday 5th will be a drop tourney game as I dont need to plan anything.

New Official Units

Until Catalyst provides official sheets for some of the mechs listed on the availability lists I, Friar and Scott have been tinkering with some stand-ins. Heres the Archer, in its most basic form Archer ARC-1A Mass: 70 tons Tech Base: Inner Sphere (Primitive) Chassis Config: Biped Rules Level: Era Specific Era: Age of War/Star League Tech Rating/Era Availability: D/E-X-F Production Year: 2580 Cost: 5,591,640 C-Bills Battle Value: 1,229 - Show quoted text - 2 (R) Medium Lasers CT 6 2 2.00 LRM-20 RT 6 5 10.00 LRM-20 LT 6 5 10.00 Medium Laser RA 3 1 1.00 Medium Laser LA 3 1 1.00 @LRM-20 (12) RT - 2 2.00 @LRM-20 (12) LT - 2 2.00 Free Critical Slots: 29 I still have another vehicle entering final formatting and several ideas, but I can always use extra ideas - what roles are under served? I have a variant hovertank and a couple prototype VTOLs to test - and Im open to suggestion on how to get them posted on here from Heavy Metal Vee

Unit Spreadsheet

Here is the initial spreadsheet covering all units in the campaign. Unit Spreadsheet

Updates for the Reunification War Campaign

Heres some documents for the campaign, nailing down a few more ideas into facts. There are some changes so I strongly suggest reading them over. BV logistics document Equipment Availability I still have a unit roster to write up for everyone but at the moment I am having issues with my laptop, so it'll need to wait for my patience to recover.

Quick notes for the campaign

Objectives One of the biggest problems I have with mini games is the nasty habit of the game crawling down to one side battering the other to bits. Virtually all battles in this campaign will have a primary and secondary objective for each side, and they will not be directly related. The primary objective will be worth 2/3rds of the value rolled for the battle. This will represent the primary thrust for that side, and is priced accordingly. The secondary objective is not critical but will net a tidy bonus of 1/3rd of the total. So remember, the BV you receive for a battle represents materials provided by your side, scavenging, salvaging and other backdoor resource gathering. Do not forget that withdrawing from the field is a valid option to conserve your forces Salvage Salvage is a touchy topic but this is my initial thoughts for how to handle this in the game. The first thing a side needs to do is either hold the field of battle at the end of the game, or drag off the unit they want to salvage. Assuming they manage this the players on that side need to decide which player will get the salvage (yes it is possible to give an npc unit the downed mech with the goal of upgrading their force too). If players dont want to give away the unit, a player on that side has the option of "purchasing" the damaged unit for its BV (adjusted by condition) given to the other players (evenly) to represent the haggling and trading needed to unload the unit. There is also the option of selling off the unit to gain its BV for that side, adjusted for the tech on it, as the advanced electronics of an SLDF unit are quite valuable to the Periphery. As issues come up, I will post on here for what changes occur. Militia reliability As the militia troopers of the Outworlds Alliance are fighting for their homes, occasionally they will break ranks and attack the SLDF, even when its not a sound tactical choice. Each unit will roll for reliability on creation or introduction, with famous advisers mitigating this slightly. Since the players dont pay for their militia units, they DO NOT get to pick the quality level. Militia check when WMDs are used, when a civilian unit are fired upon, a civilian building is destroyed, or when an adviser is knocked out of action or communication. Reliability 2d6 roll to maintain composure Fanatical 3+ Regular 5+ Questionable 7+

Saturday 8/27

Saturday we will be playing. I am aiming for around noon (let me know if that wont work) to pick which era to run in and any sub-details that need hashed out.

I will have demo forces for two of the eras to give a feel for what makes them unique.

And it begins again...

As Friar is done with his story arc its time to start a new story. I plan on using a variation of Friar's Logistic system as its much faster and easier to run than previous systems, and the variations are intended to cover the quirks of specific eras. Yes, there are several different eras we can run in.

A) Star League era, specifically the Reunification War. There are two variations for this era, either playing as Star League forces or the Periphery forces. If we run as Star League forces, then you will play rather elite warriors fighting to unify the human race and fighting against unwashed hordes of under-trained forces. Playing as Periphery forces would be a game of under equipped, freedom fighters against tyrannical enemies.
**If you are familiar with Firefly/Serenity, this war is very similar to the war that the Browncoats lost - so do you want to be an Alliance soldier or a Browncoat? **

B) Founding of the Clans, Operation Klondike. This is a favorite of Brian, and works well for competitive play as different factions try to show up each other while fighting off their enemies. There will be advanced tech but a large chunk of the forces used will be limited or irregular forces like armed industrial mechs or converted vehicles.

C) Succession Wars. This is the original setting/era for Battletech, with the least available goodies. Repairing units is much more difficult as humanity did a good job of blowing up everything that can make replacement parts, and a technical support crew is as necessary for the long term as any warrior or unit. Pilots will somewhat tied to the units they own, so musical mech pilots is NOT an option.

D) Davion Civil War - nothing like a brutal civil war to drum up battles, though in a long running human tradition mercs are viewed as party crashers. Many weapon systems gained their baptism of fire in this era, as Inner Sphere technology tends to reach parity with the Clans.

E) Jihad era - when religious nuts decide to declare war on everyone, battle becomes a fact of life. As warfare spreads all over the known realm of mankind, the human tradition of finding new and interesting ways to harm each other results in another burst of technological development.

Regardless of which era we play in there are several caveats.
- I will be enforcing time periods, so some mechs, vehicles and weapons will only be available after certain years. Each mission will take place roughly 1d3 weeks after the last game.
- Each player will have to pick a faction their force is from, and this includes mercenary and pirate forces. Each faction will change the units easily purchased and give a bonus to represent what they are good at, like House Steiner having impressive mech production facilities, resulting in a small decrease in mech costs and access to more of the heavy and assault chassis.
- In some eras, technical support becomes much much more critical than usual, specifically the Succession Wars and Operation Klondike. Many of the battles in this era will end when one side signals defeat and withdraws. These are eras when units are hard to replace and a victory that results in a large number of casualties will destroy a force more thoroughly than any weapon strike.
- Do NOT expect all units or technologies to be available - I plan to hold to time periods and availability.

So I need votes on what era you are interested in playing most.

And the blood shall flow...

Some thoughts on the first real session using Friar's mercenary rules.

The first session under the new Battlevalue based rules was rather interesting, in the Chinese sense of the word. We had the first use of the oppposition mission, the first breaking of the mission definitions, the first subcontracting, and the potential bankrupting of a player.

My quick reaction force of two Savannah Masters performed admirably until my mistake at planning turns resulted changing the wording of mission success. JT came out worse for the wear as his taste for fast but fragile units may have crushed him.

Next session will be the 11th.

Documents for Friars Game

Friar is starting up his mercenary campaign so Im posting copies of the special rules and mission list for the campaign.

Rules

Mission list

So post what you think

Scenario results for 4/2 and other notes

Our mercs managed to carry the day again, but not without casualties. Sadly the commander of the Mercenary company and Jons pilot both died due to head shots (luckily Jons character was unconscious at the time, so he never saw it coming). We are looking at about 2 games left in this arc, and then any surviving pilots can retire.

On another note I will not be running games the next two Saturdays, first because of my commitment at GASP and secondly for some family things. However Friar has mentioned running a game on the 16th though Ill let him comment with details

Scenario for 4/2

Having crippled the enemy dropship, the mercs were left waiting for the Word of Blake Militia column to arrive. Two of the three downed enemy mech pilots were outright executed by the WoB commander, with the third taken for "processing". After that was dealt with, he turned back to the mercs and pointed out that the enemy was now trapped and should be dealt with.

The question is do you charge after them or take your time and methodically follow - how much time will you allow the enemy to lick its wounds?

Quick update for 3/26

We've come to another decision for the party. Do you take a contract with Word of Blake that sends you to the Liao Front or one that has you defending the critical worlds of the Blake Protectorate?

for the drop tournament

Ok - lets try this again since mobile blogger ate the first entry.

Brian wants everyone to look up a mech mini that they want their 5 dollar signup fee to go towards on http://www.ironwindmetals.com/store/index.php and pick out a mech they are interested in.

Just in case someone forgets or doesn't get the link for some reason I will have a small list of mechs but they will be focused on the mechs in the mercenary campaign.

Fixing the roster, an experiment

ACTIVE ROSTER

Pilot	Mech	Skills	Skill points	Gunnery/Piloting
Hauptmann Krauthammer  (NPC Unit Commander)	Thunderbolt TDR-10M	Maneuver Ace	-	2/3
Hunter	Lightray 4W2	Medium Mech Lvl 1           Laser Specialist Lvl 2	3	3/5
Jon	Madcat 3	Medium Mech Specialist Lvl 1	10	4/5
JT	Locust 6X2	Evasion 3         Melee Specialist 3           Light Mech Specialist 2           Lone Gunner 1	6	4/5
Matt	Orion Custom		17	4/5
Scott	Odin OD-1N	PPC Specialist 1	14	4/5
Friar	Archangel (WoB Omni)	Tactics 1            Assault Mech 2           Crackshot	3	3/5
AJ	Wight WGT-2SC	Targeting Ace           Crackshot	6
Patrick	Phoenix Hawk PXH-6D		11

RESERVE ROSTER

Pilot	Mech	Skills	Skill points	Gunnery/Piloting
Dave	Longbow 12X	Missile Lock	11
Steven	Centurion CN9-D5	Rapid Fire AC	4
Garrett	BlackJack Omni	Medium Mech Lvl 1        Jump and Shoot	18	4/5
George	Blackjack BJ-3	PPC Specialist 1            Shoot & Scoot 1	9	3/5
Tony	Hunchback 5P	Scoot and Shoot 1	8	4/5
Virus	Blood Asp (Clan Omni)	Pulse Laser Spc. 3	6	4/5
Jake	Phoenix Hawk	Medium Mech Lvl 2	3	4/5
Billy	Wolverine WVR-9W2	Jump & Shoot	5	4/5
Alex	Hollander BZK-F6X	Crackshot	9	4/5
Typhoon Alpha	Typhoon RAC		2

KILL BOARD

Name	Mechs	Vehicles	Infantry	Others
Dave	4	6	0	0
Garrett	3	4	2	0
George	3	5	0	0
AJ	3	1	0	0
Jon	0	0	0	0
Billy	1	1	0	0
Steven	1	1	0	0
Friar	7	1	0	0
Matt	1	0	0	0
Scott	1	0	0	0
Virus	1	0	0	0
Alex	1	0	0	0
Hunter	1	0	0	0
JT	2	0	0	0

Let me know how it looks, and if you like it thank Scott for doing the Html coding

Scenario for 2/19

***Flash***

Unknown traces have been detected near your location, on a bearing of 90'09 at a distance of 1.75 km. Proceed to the location and neutralize all hostiles. We believe the traces are the Liao terrorist's dropships preparing to escape their rightful punishment. To be so thoroughly hidden from our scans they must be hidden and shrouded, unable to use their main weapons. Computer estimates give you a window of 2 minutes before weapons hot on the dropship and 4 before take off.

Prosecute and terminate...

Roster for 2/5

Unit roster

Pilot            Mech            Skills            Skill points left
Hauptmann Krauthammer Thunderbolt TDR-10M    Maneuver Ace        11
(the NPC commander of the merc unit)
    G3, P4
Garrett            BlackJack Omni        Medium Mech Lvl 1     18
    G4, P5                    Jump and Shoot
George            Blackjack BJ-3        PPC Specialist 1    9
    G4, P5                    Scoot and Shoot 1
Hunter            Lightray 4W2        Medium Mech Lvl 1    20
    G4, P5
Jon            Madcat 3                    8
    G4, P5
JT            Locust 6X2        Evasion 3        13-x
    G4, P5                    Melee Specialist 1
Matt            Orion Custom        none            17
    G4, P5
Scott            Xanthos XNT-3P        PPC Specialist 1    10
    G4, P5
Friar            Archangel omni        Tactics 1        3
    G 3, P5                    Assault Mech Lvl 2
AJ            Wight            ?            X+12
Patrick        Phoenix Hawk        ?        11


Reserves
Dave (Inactive)        Longbow 12X        Missile lock        11
Steven (Inactive)    Centurion CN9-D5    Rapid Fire Autocannon    4
Tony (inactive)        Hunchback 5P        Scoot and Shoot 1    8
    G4, P5
Virus (inactive)    Blood Asp omni        Pulse Laser Spec 3    6
    G4, P5
Jake (inactive)        Phoenix Hawk        Medium Mech Lvl 2    3
    G4, P5
Billy (inactive)    Wolverine WVR-9W2    Jump and Shoot        5
    G4, P5
Alex (inactive)        Hollander BZK-F6X    Crackshot        9
    G4, P5

Typhoon Alpha        Typhoon RAC        none            2


Kill Tally - whose the deadliest?
Name  Mechs Vehicles Infantry Other
Dave    4    6    0    0
Garret    3    4    2    0
George    3    5    0    0
AJ    3    1    0    0
Jon    0    0    0    0
Billy    1    1    0    0
Steven    1    1    0    0 

Friar    1    1    0    0 

Matt    1    0    0    0
Scott    1    0    0    0
Virus    1    0    0    0
Alex    1    0    0    0
Hunter    1    0    0    0
JT    1    0    0    0

preliminary thoughts on revamping the skills

Here are the changes Im considering

Instead of the current Chassis specialists

• Natural Born Pilot - the piloting spin off of the current chassis specialist, inspired by the fiction as there are certain pilots who remain in the same weight class their whole career.
• Protective Piloting - the damage reduction spin off. 

Instead of the existing autocannon breakdowns the new tech requires;

• Standard and Light ACs
• Rapidfire ACs (Ultras and Rotaries)
• Cluster ACs

 Missles need to be broken into the following

• LRM
• MRM
• SRM
• Rockets

Artillery needs its own ability, to represent additional ability at ranging in a target hex

Range Abilities will be rewritten the range brackets in the rules rather than arbitrary ranges, as the distances written are written for 3025.

To address the disparity that arrays of small guns have on the skills I am considering instituting a skill point bonus for killing a mech in one fell blow.

Roster as of 1/23

Due to the importance and campaign value of the destruction of the Loyal Opposition players receive 3 skill points for participation instead of the usual 1. And we had our first pilot death, as Jon received a faceful of LRMs. I am listing piloting and gunnery skills under your pilots name as we are starting to get varied results, if youve changed yours and I dont have it marked let me know.

Unit roster

Pilot            Mech            Skills            Skill points left
Hauptmann Krauthammer Thunderbolt TDR-10M    Maneuver Ace        11
(the NPC commander of the merc unit)
    G3, P4
Alex            Hollander BZK-F6X    Crackshot        9
    G4, P5
Billy            Wolverine WVR-9W2    Jump and Shoot        5
    G4, P5
Garrett            BlackJack Omni        Medium Mech Lvl 1     18
    G4, P5                    Jump and Shoot
George            Blackjack BJ-3        PPC Specialist 1    6
    G4, P5                    Scoot and Shoot 1
Hunter            Lightray 4W2        Medium Mech Lvl 1    13
    G4, P5
Jake            Phoenix Hawk         Medium Mech Lvl 2    3
    G4, P5
Jon            Deceased                    8
    G4, P5
JT            Locust 6X2        Evasion 3        13-x
    G4, P5                    Melee Specialist 1
Matt            Orion Custom        none            14
    G4, P5
Scott            Xanthos XNT-3P        PPC Specialist 1    10
    G4, P5
Tony            Hunchback 5P        Scoot and Shoot 1    8
    G4, P5
Virus            Blood Asp omni        Pulse Laser Spec 3    6
    G4, P5
Friar            Archangel omni        Tactics 1        9
    G 3, P5                    Assault Mech Lvl 1
AJ            Wight            ?            X+9


Reserves
Dave (Inactive)        Longbow 12X        Missile lock        11
Steven (Inactive)        Centurion CN9-D5    Rapid Fire Autocannon    4

Typhoon Alpha        Typhoon RAC        none            2
Typhoon Beta        Typhoon RAC        none            4


Kill Tally - whose the deadliest?
Name  Mechs Vehicles Infantry Other
Dave    4    6    0    0
Garret    3    4    2    0
George    3    5    0    0
Jon    1    3    0    0
AJ    2    1    0    0
Billy    1    1    0    0
Steven    1    1    0    0 

Friar    1    1    0    0 

Matt    1    0    0    0
Scott    1    0    0    0
Virus    1    0    0    0
Alex    1    0    0    0
Hunter    1    0    0    0
JT    1    0    0    0

Battletech 1/22

Due to family events we will be starting Battletech at noon, and I mean roll initiative time. I need to be out the door by 4:30 - just to let you know.

The scenario is nice and straightforward, go to the base of "Loyal Opposition" and leave nothing standing

Roster as of 1/15

Unit roster

Pilot   Mech   Skills   Skill points left
Hauptmann Krauthammer Thunderbolt TDR-10M Maneuver Ace  8
(the NPC commander of the merc unit)
Alex   Hollander BZK-F6X Crackshot  9
Billy   Wolverine WVR-9W2 Jump and Shoot  5
Garrett   BlackJack Omni  Medium Mech Lvl 1 6
      Jump and Shoot
George   Blackjack BJ-3  PPC Specialist 1 6
      Scoot and Shoot 1
Hunter   Lightray 4W2  Medium Mech Lvl 1 7
Jake   Phoenix Hawk LAM? Medium Mech Lvl 2 3
Jon   Thunder Thr-2L  Crackshot  15
JT   Locust 6X2  Evasion 3  9
Matt   Orion Custom  none   11
Scott   Xanthos XNT-3P  PPC Specialist 1 5
Tony   Hunchback 5P  Scoot and Shoot 1 8
Virus   Blood Asp omni  Pulse Laser Spec 3 6

Friar   Archangel omni  Tactics 1 6

Reserves
Dave (Inactive)  Longbow 12X  Missile lock  11
Steven (Inactive) Centurion CN9-D5 Rapid Fire Autocannon 4

Typhoon Alpha  Typhoon RAC  none   2
Typhoon Beta  Typhoon RAC  none   4


Kill Tally - whose the deadliest?
Name  Mechs Vehicles Infantry Other
Dave  4 6  0  0
George  3 5  0  0
Jon  1 2  0  0
Billy  1 1  0  0
Steven  1 1  0  0
Garret  1 0  2  0
Matt  1 0  0  0
Scott  1 0  0  0
Virus  1 0  0  0
Alex  1 0  0  0

Options for the game 1/15

Current Resources total: 763

Here are the two options Im getting ready for Saturday

Chaos in the Streets!
Cost: 300
People are rioting in the streets! Anger over the perceived inability of the government to prevent the recent spate of "terrorist" attacks caused people to march in protest. No one knows for sure who fired first but when the police riot squads met the protesters shots flew and the protest became a riot. While not the best tool to herd a riot, your units mechs are the closest unit to the scene of the disturbance.
Goals:
1) Rescue the Police - police vehicles and several Copper security mechs have been damaged and pinned down, rescue them (150 pts)
2) Stay off my Lawn! - keep the rioter squads away from the gated community of the Keystone's management by any means necessary (200 pts)
3) Stain fighting - complete Stay off my lawn without using lethal weapons, including close combat - SRM, LRM and MG ammo that is non lethal is available (200 pts)
Additional Points Options;
Low Visibility - no line of sight beyond 9 hexs - + 100
Pitchforks and Torches - the rioters are armed with rifles - +150
                                    - the rioters are armed with heavy weapons - +250


Bogies Inbound!
Spies/sensors are showing multiple inbound enemies, take them out

Pick your opponent
Cost 400
"The Loyal Opposition" - some Mechs
Cost 200
Freedom Now! - vehicles and infantry

Goals:
1) Repel the enemy! (150 pts)
2) Protect Earthwerks property (225 pts)
3) Dont kill the civilians! (50 pts)

Additional Points Options;
Traffic jam - all road hexes cost an additional movement point, or no additional cost and piloting check (with no chance of falling) to avoid crushing cars - +150
Ambush! - enemy deploys 1/2 of their force using Hidden Units rules - +100

Security questionnaire XZZ347

Please provide any identifying markings or characteristics of the customized Victor previously piloted by Jon to your Liason Official. Any leads resulting in the discovery or recovery of the Mech will result in generous rewards