Author Topic: First time AToW - starting a homebrew campaign in the Succession Wars era  (Read 163 times)

3C273

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I'm working on a homebrew campaign for AtoW. We are 4 players and myself as DM; 2 of us are familiar with the BattleTech universe, none of us have played A Time of War before. The campaign will take place entirely digitally via Roll20 due to the physical distance between us.
You know who you are: if you're reading this thread, get out! :wink:

Era: Third Succession War (April 3015)
Starting Location: Port Krin, Antallos

After the dropship on which the players had previously signed on is stranded in Port Krin, the crew is on the lookout for a new job. Without a big name or heavy machinery behind them, the players come across an independent job offer:

‘Seeking crew for salvage operation. Fair pay, no questions asked.
149,850 MHz’

There are practically no other jobs on offer in Port Krin for a crew of this size and equipment. Pirates hire through direct contacts, while the local security forces don't trust outsiders. Righteous corps and mercenary units don't hire nobodies in this pirate nest.
(I'm open to more reasons why this job is a perfect fit for the crew)
The first plot points are set in a semi-linear fashion so that the players (and I as an inexperienced DM) can get used to the setting and the game system, which is completely new to all of us.
Low-tech to keep the abundance of equipment under control and no clan or WoB nonsense to introduce the players to the universe a little more ‘gently’.
Start in the periphery for narrative freedom.

This forum has already given me a lot of inspiration. Thank you very much for all the creative ideas.

Our BBEG will be the non-canon syndicate ‘Black Talon’: a criminal organisation of the worst kind that is involved in every kind of machination you can imagine.
For some years now, however, they have been increasingly coming to the fore and gaining more and more influence across the system, even in the fringe worlds of the Outworlds Alliance.
This syndicate is developing M4-ND13 ‘Mindgrip’, an artificial, zombifying virus that makes people susceptible to simple commands and, in the worst case, completely robs them of their minds and any will of their own. Black Talon intends to use this dangerous bioweapon as a means of blackmail against planetary governments and possibly even Great Houses.

Black Talon will only gradually come to the fore as an antagonist over the first few sessions once we have become comfortable with AToW.
The players start with practically no equipment as stranded good-for-nothings on a pile of dust. I've already prepared a small quest that will give our crew a vehicle and an old dropship (a modified Ignis IFV and an old, abandoned Hoshiryokou-class DropShip).

What are some interesting plot hooks I could put in front of my players? We want to stay in the RPG for now and not go into the tactical scale.
I'm also always looking for interesting battlemaps for my encounters and constructive input from more experienced players or DMs for this system.
On Robsart back in '81, hurrah, hurrah
Though beaten, our fleet on the run, hurrah, hurrah!
In spite of Franklin's cowardice we still remained and kicked their ass
And we blew the Star League dogs to hell once more

Daryk

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Sounds like a fun game, best of luck!  If you need any help with character creation, just let me know... :)

The Brant

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This sounds awesome! Keep us up-to-date on your player's shenanigans.

I'm looking to start my own campaign with similar goals in mind, but I've been delayed in starting since I'm also working on this project (https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=86294.0) and teaching myself how to paint miniatures.

For the Black Talon, have you thought of them being a secret Comstar operation parading as a criminal organization? Before the Comstar / Word of Blake split there was a lot of shady projects different Precentors had, and didn't tell their peers about. Bioweapons used during the Jihad had to be developed sometime somewhere beforehand, right? The big reveal could be many sessions or years later in-game. But even with the reveal, who would believe a rag-tag group of mercs out in the Periphery?

3C273

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Thanks, will do!

We are just going for the Life Modules to hopefully end up with somewhat balanced characters.

I have a few ideas for Black Talon - one of them being they were ruthless enough to be financed and at one point being taken over by Maskirovka to create a diversion and be a general problem for the FS and DC far away from the Capellan border, thus relieving some pressure off their FedSuns-Border

Them being a ComStar-ploy would be excellent non-sense. I already have an Npc who is an ex-ComStar agent on the run.
« Last Edit: 11 October 2024, 11:38:15 by 3C273 »
On Robsart back in '81, hurrah, hurrah
Though beaten, our fleet on the run, hurrah, hurrah!
In spite of Franklin's cowardice we still remained and kicked their ass
And we blew the Star League dogs to hell once more

Daryk

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  • The Double Deuce II/II-σ
Life Modules are definitely the way to go!  Characters made that way organically fit into the universe.  As I've said elsewhere, when I get down to writing the back story of characters with them, the stories almost write themselves! :)

 

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