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BattleTech. Tell me more...
That is, how complicated are the rules compared to say GW (any) or Silent Death. How long do games take to play? 24 minis...does this cover two factions? 3? 4? Can the game be played multiplayer? I see it's called 'Classic' BattelTech. Is there another BattleTech line? What books/supplements will I need later? How's the fluff?
I like the idea of getting a lot of minis/game in a starter and expanding. It also doesn't look like it takes up at lot of space being at a much smaller scale (28mm terrain can be a _pain_ to store).
Very interested in giving this a shot when it comes out.
Thanks!
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I haven't played in a long time but this game is fun. I believe you would normally play out a two player game with a "Lance" of 4 mech's each. There is a point system worked out on tonnage with the heaviest of the mech's being 100 tonnes and the little scouts coming in at 20 or so.
They have infinite variety already and quite a bit of backstory to get you interested if you like it.
The only complex part is the book keeping as Mik states but it really isn't that bad. We used to play battle campaigns that centered more on the outfits (companies ,divisions etc...)rather than the individual pilots but there are rules for everything in Battletech.
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Remembering to move this chit, then flip that card, to then reset stack three which sets off the 3rd phase of the turn, I do not enjoy.
I'm assuming this bookkeeping is the former.
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Will the new set still have 24 plastic mechs? And when is the damned thing coming out?
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Yes. There are generally sheets with boxes for the amount of damage a certain area can take. Once it has taken that damage it is gone. There are also boxes for ammo expenditure (for rockets and machine guns). I think there are also your heat sinks.There is a type of bookkeeping that I like. A page with your vehicle's image with lots of little check-boxes to cross out as you take damage and weapons to scratch through when you receive a certain amount (like in Silent Death and Dark Future) etc are fun for me. It helps me see the narrative and imagine my wing blown off and the ship destabilized. I dig that.
Remembering to move this chit, then flip that card, to then reset stack three which sets off the 3rd phase of the turn, I do not enjoy.
I'm assuming this bookkeeping is the former.
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The game is as difficult as you want to make it. If you just want mech skirmishes then the starter set should provide you with plenty to have some good 100-200 ton skirmishes (tons are the point system in the game).
If you want to add Aerotech (space battles, drop pods, aircraft to come strafe the battlefield), ground units and have the complete rule set then you'll need the Total Warfare book. Mech creation is under the Tactical Readout book. I haven't looked at BT in a while, but it looks like there's another book for advanced Aerotech and another book out to customize battlefield conditions to create different planet environments. And it looks like you can pick and choose what you want out of the various books to customize the difficulty as you see fitting.
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Remembering to move this chit, then flip that card, to then reset stack three which sets off the 3rd phase of the turn, I do not enjoy.
I'm assuming this bookkeeping is the former.
Yes and no. There's hardly any actual record keeping, but you still have to remember how far each mech moved this turn, what type of movement it used, which direction its turret is facing relative to its legs, etc. There are also a quite a few die rolls you have to remember to make when you move into certain terrain or take damage in certain spots to see if your mech falls. There are a lot of modifiers, and each shot, you have to determine whether you hit your target, where you hit it, and how much damage you did.
It's about as simple as Silent Death, and plays quite a bit like it, but it's a little fussier with the math.
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At Gen Con we were using different colored dice by our Mechs after we moved depending on what movement mode we used (walk, run, jump) and then setting them on a modifier for how fast we moved (the faster you move the harder you are to hit but your accuracy decreases also.)
There are a lot of modifiers and rolls to be made but most of them make sense so they aren't too bad.
And if you do Heroscape at all you have terrain ready made.
I am a little biased though. I've been playing pretty much off and on since it came out and used to really enjoy playing the computer game at lan parties.
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There are two "levels" of rules in the box. There's a set of quick-start rules that really are quick. Those rules are divided up into (I think) three tracks, from basic battles between (I think) one 'Mech apiece to some light combined-arms stuff with 'Mechs, vehicles, and infantry. My friend and I played all three tracks and had a good time. It was a nice, smooth introduction for him and reintroduction for me.
The main rulebook is the introductory level rules. These are 'Mech-only but they are not a dumbed-down version of the main hardcover rules book; they merely omit material that's not applicable (e.g., vehicle information or advanced weapons). The introductory rulebook also includes construction rules for this intro-level tech, so you can create your own units. There should be at least 24 pre-filled record sheets, one for each mini. I don't know what they'll do with the two "high-quality" minis because those are for a higher tech level if they're the 'Mechs everyone thinks they are.
Contra the 2007 intro box, you'll also get game board-quality maps. The 2007 maps were thin, slick paper and were much worse, in my opinion, than either the cardstock maps of yore or the map compilation paper maps that are OOP but still findable.
Time-wise, BT can run the gamut. A one-on-one 'Mech battle using the quick-start rules can easily finish under an hour. A four-on-four (lance-on-lance) engagement could take two to four hours, depending on play style, rules familiarity, etc. (Ironically, the lower tech level at which the box is pitched makes the game easier to learn but reduces the lethality of the machines.)
The minis are decent, some better than others, but it is virtually impossible to complain about getting 24 or 26 of them for the price. BT is not a what-you-see-is-what-you-get game, so you can use proxies for any unit. Older versions of the game used cardboard standups, for example. The minis do not represent one or another faction per se. There are no army lists or anything like that in BT. Most factions had some 'Mech preferences, but (especially in the early years of the setting when there was more of a focus on salvage) pretty much any 'Mech could be found in any faction.
As someone else said, there's a shitload of backstory and supplementary material. The box comes with a universe guide, which is a decent introduction to all of that.
Maybe you can tell, but I find BT to be one of the most satisfying game experiences possible. It's as simple or as deep as you want to go.
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Edit:
Link for quick-start rules:
www.classicbattletech.com/downloads/QSR_BattleTech_EN.pdf
Link to universe book:
www.classicbattletech.com/downloads/CBTUniverse.pdf
Link to intro rules:
www.classicbattletech.com/downloads/CBT_...ductory_Rulebook.pdf
I hope by the linking that I'm not discouraging a purchase. The box is a great value for the maps and minis alone. Plus, it's nicer to have bound versions of the intro rules.
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