Classic Battletech?

Glad to hear it includes designing units in the intro set, as that is such a key to the longevity of battletech.

I think I'm more interested in designing my own mechs than anything else. I was surprised with how involving and detailed it is - like building a car from scratch almost.

It gets a bit easier once you figure out what you like to play with. For me it was always a par of gauss cannons or PPCs. After that it was just however much armor and heat sinks I could put into the weight limit I was looking to hit.

LvT

Mr. Bistro wrote:

In some ways I wonder if the boxed set is a good business move for Catalyst. For people not looking to immerse themselves in Battletech it really is amazingly complete. You get a buttload of mechs, stats for all them including a few variants, very complete rules, including rules for designing your own units. I really dig this set, but it in no way makes me want to purchase more books.

Well, maybe. They attempt to entice intro-box players with Starterbook: Sword and Dragon, which is meant as a fiction and rules bridge into Total Warfare, the main rulebook. I'm sure there are quite a few who stop with the box, but there are probably also quite a few who want to dig deeper, beyond the basic-level tech.

As far as "giving it away," Catalyst actually goes further than the box. You can download the quick-start rules, the intro rules, and the universe book for free--or at least rougher-looking "screen" versions.

www.classicbattletech.com/downloads/FP_3...uick_Start_Rules.pdf
www.classicbattletech.com/downloads/CBT_...ductory_Rulebook.pdf
www.classicbattletech.com/downloads/CBTUniverse.pdf

Anyway, I agree with you on the paper quality ... mostly. The maps, at least the ones I have, are quite poor, and the quick-start rules are really no better. But the main rulebook and universe book are decent enough, and the former has held up pretty well under repeated playing and referencing.

Edit: I forgot that they also have the old Great House books online for download as well in the Downloads section.

I just increased my 'mech collection considerably through ebay. You can get them surprisingly cheap.

I have a copy of an old edition of this game you can have for the cost of postage if you want. I turned it up in my parents' attic the last time I was round there. Never even knew I owned it and I'm sure I've never played it - I suspect a friend must have left it there way, way back in the mists of time.

MattDP wrote:

I have a copy of an old edition of this game you can have for the cost of postage if you want. I turned it up in my parents' attic the last time I was round there. Never even knew I owned it and I'm sure I've never played it - I suspect a friend must have left it there way, way back in the mists of time.

PM sent!

I tried Battletech twice. It seemed like Car Wars for Beginners. The first time was pretty fun, as I figured out a way to abuse the heat sink rules, but the second time was unmemorable. Car Wars was a much more interesting game, even though the movement rules could be burdensome and the vehicle design process was a hassle.

I shouldn't have read this thread.

I've been wanting a mech game of some kind for awhile.

Now I think i'll pick up this Classic Battletech set.

Shellhead wrote:

I tried Battletech twice. It seemed like Car Wars for Beginners. The first time was pretty fun, as I figured out a way to abuse the heat sink rules, but the second time was unmemorable. Car Wars was a much more interesting game, even though the movement rules could be burdensome and the vehicle design process was a hassle.

I can't get into Car Wars for those same reasons. Moving in a game that's all about driving should be one of the most fun parts of the game.

So... I'm slipping farther into the Battletech abyss. I now have about 50 mechs I'm painting (and I swore I wouldn't paint minis again), just bought the Technical Readouts book that accompanies the Introductory Box Set. I've also designed a few mechs which was very satisfying.

*sigh*

So now I'm eyeing Total Warfare and the accompanying Tech Manual, which of course means I'll need another Technical Readouts book.

I take back everything I said about the boxed set being "too good" a deal.

Oh, and a question for those who play: what's with the IW minis looking different from the illustrations on my technical readouts? Are they supposed to be from a different time period? It seems only the old Ral Partha minis match the illustrations.

Mr. Bistro wrote:

Oh, and a question for those who play: what's with the IW minis looking different from the illustrations on my technical readouts? Are they supposed to be from a different time period? It seems only the old Ral Partha minis match the illustrations.

Hmm...That is an interesting question. Perhaps when IW gained the rights to produce the minis they had to start from scratch and didn't obtain the moulds from RP. That'd be my guess. Do the mechs look drastically different? Like a really big style change, or are they pretty slight?

LvT

Different enough in my opinion. And they still sell some mechs that are RP originals.

Mr. Bistro wrote:

Oh, and a question for those who play: what's with the IW minis looking different from the illustrations on my technical readouts? Are they supposed to be from a different time period? It seems only the old Ral Partha minis match the illustrations.

Could be some differences in time periods/game eras. There are different versions of some 'Mechs with similar names.

Another issue would be what sort of 'Mechs we're talking about here. When FASA developed BattleTech (originally BattleDroids), they copied images from other people's IP for some of the BT 'Mechs. Here's one list of the 'Mechs (and other figures) and their likely anime sources. I'm no expert on the matter, but I believe all of them got new art and most/all of them got new castings.

Edit: A more official list .

The Battletech 2nd edition boxed set was my first non-mainstream boardgame that I purchased 15+ years ago. What I find remarkable is that other than a few rules tweaks the game plays the same in its most recent incarnation as it did back then. Sure it drags ass when each player is moving 8+ mechs per turn, referencing heat tables/weapons/movement/etc.. But the game provides depth and narrative that is unmatched by many modern minis games.

The CBT forums (no, not THOSE CBT forums!!!) provided me with some innovative ways to make the game run smoother. Initiave cards and movement dice help the pacing, and the newest version of the record sheets that include weapon stats reduces much of the referencing. Of course having many of the hit location/missle hits tables memorized helps quite a bit as well.

This game is the reason I first purchased Heroscape, 3d terrain in the late-80s was well beyond my budget (anyone remember Groxblox?). Of course, HS turned out to be an entirely seperate can of worms....

If you want to test the waters kick around www.classicbattletech.com for awhile, there is a shitload of downloads out there to minimize the buy-in cost. I went ahead and bought the Intro set for the 24 minis, it is worth the $$$ but hardly an exceptional value.......