Tools and sources for designing mechs

[bjorn]

Hello everyone.

I am returning to the BattleTech Universe after several years of absence and have a few questions. Actually, I have many questions about the state of the hobby, but to start I am curious about what resources and sourcebooks one would use to design new mechs and combat vehicles. Is there an omnibus text that would be helpful in designing mechs, even with all of the newer advanced equipment. Thanks in advance for any answers you can provide.


bjorn

[Tai Dai Cultist]

The new BattleMech Manual has all the rules you need for playing games with BattleMechs.

It doesn't however have construction rules for making your own, that'd be the Tech Manual.  It's out of print in hard copy, but a book like that is probably more useful in pdf format anyway since you can more easily search for passages you need.

The "full" rules for standard play is Total Warfare.  Optional expansions to gameplay are in Tactical Operations, Strategic Operations, Campaign Operations, and Interstellar Operations.  The RPG game is made to be compatible with everything else, and is called A Time of War.

The difference between BMM and the "full" rules series is BMM doesn't give space to things like tanks and infantry, but it does incorporate some mech-relevant optional rules from TO and SO.

To make it even more complex, Alpha Strike is an alternate game system that is ostensibly compatible with all of the above, but is in practice it's own different game engine.  It covers larger scale fights (company on company, battalion on battalion whereas 'regular' battletech tends to be no bigger than lance on lance).  Alpha Strike is a heavily evolved version of BattleForce.. large unit combats but the granularity retains individual mechs as discrete game units unlike BattleForce's earliest iterations)

Edit: Another resource that's super duper handy that you may not know about as a new returnee is the Master Unit List.  It's got priceless info about every canonical unit's Alpha Strike stats, but also fluff stuff like who uses it and when... which can be useful no matter which rules you're using.

[Sartris]

Check out our super helpful pal mbear’s thread for returning players
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,7783.0.html

And I humbly submit my own article for getting started in the current environment
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=44730.msg1030134

[Daryk]

The other thing to know is that Interstellar Operations has the most comprehensive list of equipment, if you're looking for new toys.

[RifleMech]

Hello everyone.

I am returning to the BattleTech Universe after several years of absence and have a few questions. Actually, I have many questions about the state of the hobby, but to start I am curious about what resources and sourcebooks one would use to design new mechs and combat vehicles. Is there an omnibus text that would be helpful in designing mechs, even with all of the newer advanced equipment. Thanks in advance for any answers you can provide.


bjorn

You'll want the Core Books.  TechManual and TotalWarfare have the construction and game rules for most units, but the other books have new units and tech items as well. You could probably get away with not getting Campaign Operations although the pilot abilities are cool. You might also want BattleTech Manual as it includes more quirks for Mechs.

Not everything has been included in the CoreBooks though. I believe those items are either illegal or limited to a very narrow time period. Some like Quad LAMs and Submersible Fighters are fun to use though. I can try to make a list but I'm sure others already have one.

[Daryk]

Interstellar Ops lists the eras various things are available in, so that's the one I'd recommend for that.

[RifleMech]

It desn't have everything though.

[Daryk]

I can't think of any technology examples... can you give me one?

[Sartris]

For unit construction rules:

TechManual:
BattleMechs, OmniMechs, IndustrialMechs, ProtoMechs, Combat Vehicles, Support Vehicles, Conventional Infantry, Battle Armor, Conventional Fighters, Aerospace Fighters, Small Craft, Dropships (Spherical and Aerodyne)

Tactical Operations:
Advanced Buildings, Advanced Support Vehicles (Satellites, Large Naval Vessels, Airships, Mobile Structures), Superheavy Vehicles, Ultralight Mechs

Strategic Operations:
Space Stations, Jumpships, Warships

Interstellar Operations:
Expanded ProtoMech rules (quads, superheavies), LAMs, Modular Space Stations, Primitive and Retrotech units, Quadvees, Robotic and Drone Systems, Superheavy Mechs, Tripod Mechs

[RifleMech]

(Snip)

Tactical Operations:
Advanced Buildings, Advanced Support Vehicles (Satellites, Large Naval Vessels, Airships, Mobile Structures), Superheavy Vehicles, Ultralight Mechs

Strategic Operations:
Space Stations, Jumpships, Warships

Interstellar Operations:
Expanded ProtoMech rules (quads, superheavies), LAMs, Modular Space Stations, Primitive and Retrotech units, Quadvees, Robotic and Drone Systems, Superheavy Mechs, Tripod Mechs
(Snip)

TacOs also has Advanced Infantry.

Strategic Ops has FrankenMech rules. The need updating though.

Interstellar operations also has some advanced infantry types.

A Time of War an its Companion also have some infantry options with conversions to Total Warfare.

XTRO: Succession Wars? has prototype improved jump jets.

NON LEGAL CONSTRUCTION but may be of interest.
MaxTech has some vehicles and items that are no longer legal.

One of the Mercenary books has rules primitive vehicle construction.
Mercenaries Supplemental II has rules for units by era including primitive vehicle and aerospace fighter construction.

Welcome to Nebula California (not canon but fun)
Magic, ancient tech, and superpower infantry.
Non-Standard weight Mecha and Fighters with interesting tech.
Automechs

XTRO:Boondoggles has heavy and Quad LAMs and vehicles with multiple motive types.

XTRO:1945 has tech and rules for units from WWII.

Necromo nightmare has zombies and mecha carrying battle armor. (Not sure about legality/canon of this one.)

There's a household with incendiary AC ammo.

Field Manual Federated Suns has Incendiary AC Ammo.

I'll get the names of those books later.

Have fun  :)

[AdmiralObvious]

My go toos(?) for construction are Tech Manual, Tacops, and StratOps. If you want, as mentioned InterstellarOps has a lot of extra info, but none of the actual rules about what some items do, like the usual Autocannon prototypes, since it should be obvious if you have other books. I generally don't use AToW Companion, since I don't RP much, it's usually single games or short campaigns with RP out of the picture, but the formulas are pretty useful if you don't use the data already in the tech manual.

I can also suggest MegaMek and MekLab to tinker with building units, mostly because it does all the math for you.

[Matti]

Let's not forget computer software:
HeavyMetal Software series are the officially licensed BattleTech software which have been used to make some PDF record sheets (original RS3039 with Grasshopper in cover page).
Solaris Skunkwerks
MegaMekLab
Drawing Board (if I remember it right)

[Sartris]

Haven’t used the drawing board since win 2000 so I dunno if it works any more on modern systems but it was my favorite designer for a long time. If you stick to designs from 3065 and before it will be serviceable, though it doesn’t do BV2 (for obvious reasons) and any bugs are not fixable.

Heavy Metal Pro is official but it hasn’t been updated in forever. I would not recommend spending money on it

Solaris skunkwerks is also mostly discontinued but it has most of the stuff you need. It does mechs and (most?) combat vehicles

MegaMekLab is the most comprehensive and up to date. It also has almost every extant canon unit included. Some don’t like the GUI as much as skunkwerks but it’s not hard to adapt to

[RifleMech]

I think everything from Tactical Handbook has been included in the new rule books but some are so different the ones in TacHandbook could used as prototypes. Unbound and Solaris VII Map Pack have also been mostly included except for Prototype Thunderbolt Missiles and Cosmetics. Maybe a couple more but I'm going from memory.

[mbear]

Hello everyone.

I am returning to the BattleTech Universe after several years of absence and have a few questions. Actually, I have many questions about the state of the hobby, but to start I am curious about what resources and sourcebooks one would use to design new mechs and combat vehicles. Is there an omnibus text that would be helpful in designing mechs, even with all of the newer advanced equipment. Thanks in advance for any answers you can provide.


bjorn

Check out our super helpful pal mbear’s thread for returning players
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php/topic,7783.0.html

And I humbly submit my own article for getting started in the current environment
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=44730.msg1030134

And Bjorn, if you read my post and have questions or suggestions about how to improve it or you have questions, please by all means add them to that thread. I'd love to have it be a single place for returning players to have their questions answered, and if you have a question that wasn't answered, someone else will too. Thanks!

The other thing to know is that Interstellar Operations has the most comprehensive list of equipment, if you're looking for new toys.

With the usual caveat that anything published after Interstellar Operations isn't in there.

I think everything from Tactical Handbook has been included in the new rule books but some are so different the ones in TacHandbook could used as prototypes. Unbound and Solaris VII Map Pack have also been mostly included except for Prototype Thunderbolt Missiles and Cosmetics. Maybe a couple more but I'm going from memory.

The Tactical Handbook stuff has all been brought over to later products, according to my quick review of it. Well, except Interlocking Streak launchers.

Unbound had a different thunderbolt missile system and silver bullet gauss rifle.

Hope that helps.

[RifleMech]

I know almost everything in Tactical Handbook has been brought over but there are some things that are so different that they could be used as prototypes if one wanted to. A couple are actually mentioned in TacOps.

Replaced by TacOps but good for prototypes:
Caseless Autocannons, not just ammo but actual Autocannons. TacOps mentions a weapon being briefly explored.
Command Console is heavier and takes more slots.
Mechanical Jump Boosters come in 2 classes, generate heat, have fixed Jump MP, differences in number of crits and factor weight differently.
Blazer Armor (Reactive) takes up 16 critical slots. 2 more than IS Reactive.
Glazed Armor (Reflective) takes 17 critical slots. 7 more than IS Reflective. PPCs do 50% more damage.  Its mentioned in TacOps.
Laser AMS rolls for heat.

Not brought over.
Anti-Personnel Missiles
Dead Fire Missiles

There might be some more differences but these are the ones that stand out for me.
(edit)
Bloodhound Active Probe weighs 5 tons and can detect hidden infantry. It doesn't make a distinction on whether they're using ECM or not. The TacOps version can't.