Author Topic: Against the bot Campaign?  (Read 17276 times)

NomadWanderer

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Against the bot Campaign?
« on: 16 January 2017, 14:04:38 »
Could someone outline the broad steps to get this going? I've looked around these forums a bit, and there's just too much info.  Multiple versions of instructions, not sure which is required, which is expired?  There are threads that literally span 3+ years.

For example.. Do I still need the Dylan versions of things?

One thread says to download the ATB rules from a link. Another thread says their included in a MHQ docs folder?

I have played CBT from the 90's, and all of the computer game versions.. even played campaign in MW4:Mercs.  (NBT was an amazing thing). 

I'd like to get started on this, but can't seem to sort out where the actual start point is.

Thanks for your help.

PurpleDragon

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #1 on: 16 January 2017, 16:56:20 »
It is set up to run pretty much however you want.  What I did (and still do with each new release) was to start a new campaign then go look at the options available under each tab before making any decisions as to how I would run my game.  I already had an idea of how I wanted a RP game run so I tried to set it up as close to that as I could. 
give a man a fire, keep him warm for a night. 
Set him on fire, keep him warm for the rest of his life!

The secret to winning the land/air battle is that you must always remain rigidly flexible.

I like tabletop more anyway, computer games are for nerds!  -  Knallogfall

MoleMan

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #2 on: 16 January 2017, 17:14:48 »
I can get you on your way, download the latest 0.42.0 build and the AtB rules are in the docs > AtB stuff.

A couple of good documents in there too about how to play. ThomasMarik on youtube has some good lets plays, however, they're using a quite old version. He has some download links in the description of his videos that might help too.

NomadWanderer

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #3 on: 18 January 2017, 09:30:02 »
Thanks.. This was insanely helpful.

The videos were also a help. Even if they are a little old.

To be clear, I can do most things in MekHQ, but I still need to pull out dice for some thing?

I.e. I have a Merc company setup.. with a commander, mechs and everything. I accepted a contract, and travelled there.. But then nothing.. There were no missions/scenarios, etc.

Do I have to use the excel sheet, and dice to populate the contract with scenario's/missions to then play?
« Last Edit: 18 January 2017, 10:08:45 by NomadWanderer »

BLOODWOLF

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #4 on: 18 January 2017, 10:21:19 »
Scenarios will pop-up as you advance the day in HQ with the use AtB option checked.  And in that same AtB tab you can set your intensity for how often scenarios occur.  You also need to assign your forces to roles in the mission briefing tab RH-side bottom but, scenarios will still generate if you dont.  At the top of the screen on the manage campaign drop-down I think it is you can advance multiple days at a time.

MoleMan

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #5 on: 18 January 2017, 12:58:24 »
Scenarios will pop-up as you advance the day in HQ with the use AtB option checked.  And in that same AtB tab you can set your intensity for how often scenarios occur.  You also need to assign your forces to roles in the mission briefing tab RH-side bottom but, scenarios will still generate if you dont.  At the top of the screen on the manage campaign drop-down I think it is you can advance multiple days at a time.
This is found in the 'campaign options' in one of the menus at the top of MHQ.

PurpleDragon

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #6 on: 19 January 2017, 05:44:06 »
So, to summarize what others have said:

To have AtB generate scenarios; go to File/Campaign Options.   Go to the AtB tab.  Make sure use AtB is checked.  Then after accepting a contract and arriving on the contract location, go to the briefing tab and make sure that you have units assigned to the mission type(s) required. 

My experience has been that if you have all of them set to "unassigned" no scenarios will generate.  Generally, I will set the minimum required lances to each mission type then I will set all other combat lances to "training".  This will cause all combat lances to have a chance at generating scenarios such that you may get multiple encounters per week. 
give a man a fire, keep him warm for a night. 
Set him on fire, keep him warm for the rest of his life!

The secret to winning the land/air battle is that you must always remain rigidly flexible.

I like tabletop more anyway, computer games are for nerds!  -  Knallogfall

BLOODWOLF

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #7 on: 19 January 2017, 11:00:16 »
Yeah I tested it and Neo explained what was going on.  You will still get special missions and big battles if you dont have any forces assigned to roles because those scenarios are generated by the monthly special event rolls but, normal scenarios will not occur if you dont have any forces assigned.  My mistake.

NomadWanderer

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #8 on: 19 January 2017, 16:11:37 »
Thanks guys! I was able to get some missions to show up on my contract.

I ran into two problems.

1) I had a mission that for some strange reason, my mechs were doubled. The mechs were doubled, the pilots were doubled, etc. I said "That's weird" and right clicked and deleted the doubles. Little did I realize that I was now dropping into a battle with half the BV the enemy had..  Why did this happen? if it happens again, what is the right way to fix it?

2) I had a mission where I had rioting going on. I had to assist a set of loyalist vehicles defeat a bunch of rebel ones. Looking at the win conditions, I think I won, but I can't get MegaMek to exit.. it keeps going turn after turn.  perhaps I didn't make the win conditions, but also didn't fail? How does one signal to megamek that the battle is over, and how is that communicated to mekhq?

a couple unrelated questions..

1) on the Thomas Marik video, he additional images to flesh out his mechwarriors and additional unit badges etc.. Are these downloadable somewhere? are they included and my 20 seconds of looking wasn't good enough to find them?

2) what are 'normal' start parameters for a small mercenary company (1 lance of mechs)?  I'm looking for a RP sort of start where a MW has decided he's done working for the man, (yes has a rich uncle that has XXX; or maybe a solaris championship, or something), and decides to start a merc unit up on his own... Starting small, 1 lance, just enough techs/support to survive, and not enough extra cash laying around that all the decisions don't really matter (i.e. contract evaluaation (is this actually profitable?) weapon loadout, etc..

and finally.. how many times do I have to prove I'm human before the forum remembers :)

Thanks again for your help.. I really do appreciate it!
« Last Edit: 19 January 2017, 16:25:37 by NomadWanderer »

BLOODWOLF

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #9 on: 19 January 2017, 17:39:43 »
1) Never heard of that happening.

2) Some of the AtB scenarios that dont require you to destroy 100% of the enemy BV you will have to /victory into the MM chat box to declare victory and complete the scenario.

1a) Megamek.info click the downloads tab and at the bottom is user created camo packs and the colored ink portraits.  This site has moved to megamek.org but .info is still up.

2a) is very opinionated.

Sir Chaos

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #10 on: 19 January 2017, 18:11:46 »
2) what are 'normal' start parameters for a small mercenary company (1 lance of mechs)?  I'm looking for a RP sort of start where a MW has decided he's done working for the man, (yes has a rich uncle that has XXX; or maybe a solaris championship, or something), and decides to start a merc unit up on his own... Starting small, 1 lance, just enough techs/support to survive, and not enough extra cash laying around that all the decisions don't really matter (i.e. contract evaluaation (is this actually profitable?) weapon loadout, etc..

There are probably at least as many opinions on "normal" as there are players. IIRC Against the Bot was meant to be started with a company-sized unit, though.

Quote
and finally.. how many times do I have to prove I'm human before the forum remembers :)

I think it´s for the first five or ten posts.
"Artillery adds dignity to what would otherwise be a vulgar brawl."
-Frederick the Great

"Ultima Ratio Regis" ("The Last Resort of the King")
- Inscription on cannon barrel, 18th century

Southernskies

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #11 on: 20 January 2017, 05:53:28 »
2.  Most missions require you to manually type "/victory" or "/defeat".

Make sure you pay attention to the mission win conditions in AtB (refer back during the game if needed).  The 'kill X%' or 'survive X%' may need comparison to AtB and the current unit list, as it only summarises BV in the end-turn report.

JenniferinaMAD

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #12 on: 20 January 2017, 06:44:47 »
2) what are 'normal' start parameters for a small mercenary company (1 lance of mechs)?  I'm looking for a RP sort of start where a MW has decided he's done working for the man, (yes has a rich uncle that has XXX; or maybe a solaris championship, or something), and decides to start a merc unit up on his own... Starting small, 1 lance, just enough techs/support to survive, and not enough extra cash laying around that all the decisions don't really matter (i.e. contract evaluaation (is this actually profitable?) weapon loadout, etc..


As was said, AtB is recommended for a company, but I have tried it with a lance and while a little tougher, if you land a favourable first contract you should be able to start with a lance and expand later.

As for stuff, here is a purely made up suggestion for you to use/ignore/tweak:
add 4 free mechs
add 4 free random mechwarriors (set one to have leadership 1, if you want a second officer, give them either tactics 1 or strategy 1)
Add randomly for free: 1 mech tech, 1 doctor, 2 admins of your choice
Bring astech and medic teams to full strength
Set account to 1,000,000 spacebucks
buy supplies as you think are needed for your mechs
get a contract and fly off to fame and fortune!

You will need a second mech tech and more admins very soon. If you're not facing nasty transport costs to your first contract, you might even try to make paid recruitment rolls for a few weeks before you get going, but don't overdo it.

MoleMan

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #13 on: 20 January 2017, 09:00:47 »
I'm thinking of making a video next week going through exactly how to get started in MM, in fact, I'll start a thread asking people exactly what they think should be included.

PurpleDragon

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #14 on: 20 January 2017, 12:05:48 »
I start with one mechwarrior (or whatever I want my force commander to be) with no units.  I then roll on a table to randomly assign C-Bills.  Various tables for this can be found throughout various battletech publications.  I then spend the next few months of game time "building" my force based on what is available in the unit market and personnel market.  I check personnel every day and units every month as they seem to refresh at those times.  After I take my first contract, I then go to week to week operations, not including repairs that take more than one day of course. 
give a man a fire, keep him warm for a night. 
Set him on fire, keep him warm for the rest of his life!

The secret to winning the land/air battle is that you must always remain rigidly flexible.

I like tabletop more anyway, computer games are for nerds!  -  Knallogfall

NomadWanderer

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #15 on: 22 January 2017, 09:24:41 »
I've gotten a few more games in. it's been great playing the old 'tabletop' version.. I had switched to electronic/video game versions because of lack of players.

Last night I accepted a contract, move out to the planet, and took my lance into battle.  The scenario was a city fight. I was also allied with two additional mechs, bringing the BV to aroun 7500 or so

TBH, it was a slaughter.. My mech force did have a mixture of ranged weapons, but I wasn't able to kite effectively to keep at range for even a moderate amount of time. The swarm reached me quickly.. and the 2ac20's (behind 100 points of armor :() started slicing me to pieces fairly quickly. I did use alleys/corners effectively, and even physical attacks, but still lost all 6 mechs; leaving them controlling the board with 4 tanks remaining.

I have no experience with vehicles in Battletech.  It seemed like an equivalent BV of vehicles (maybe a few mechs) was more than a match for my force.  I will definitely admit that the 4 PPC's, and 4 LRM20's, I had scattered across my mechs were not appropriate for the fight.. I had too many long range weapons.. But even with more shorter and medium range weapons, I'm not sure it would have been a win... how do people deal with Largee amounts of vehicles vs mechs?

a few questions

1) I had two "forces' on the the planet doing garrison duty.  It selected one for me for the particular scenario.. Is there any way at that point to select the other force?  Part of the problems I experienced were related to having the wrong tools for the job.

2) Is there any way to 'tune' megamek/mekHq?  The scenario I was placed into was very difficult.  Against my 6 mechs was a mixed force, only 2 mechs, and instead a bunch of tanks/vehicles.. Bulldogs, Vendetta's, etc.

PurpleDragon

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #16 on: 22 January 2017, 12:26:09 »
I've gotten a few more games in. it's been great playing the old 'tabletop' version.. I had switched to electronic/video game versions because of lack of players.

Last night I accepted a contract, move out to the planet, and took my lance into battle.  The scenario was a city fight. I was also allied with two additional mechs, bringing the BV to aroun 7500 or so

TBH, it was a slaughter.. My mech force did have a mixture of ranged weapons, but I wasn't able to kite effectively to keep at range for even a moderate amount of time. The swarm reached me quickly.. and the 2ac20's (behind 100 points of armor :( ) started slicing me to pieces fairly quickly. I did use alleys/corners effectively, and even physical attacks, but still lost all 6 mechs; leaving them controlling the board with 4 tanks remaining.

I have no experience with vehicles in Battletech.  It seemed like an equivalent BV of vehicles (maybe a few mechs) was more than a match for my force.  I will definitely admit that the 4 PPC's, and 4 LRM20's, I had scattered across my mechs were not appropriate for the fight.. I had too many long range weapons.. But even with more shorter and medium range weapons, I'm not sure it would have been a win... how do people deal with Largee amounts of vehicles vs mechs?

a few questions

1) I had two "forces' on the the planet doing garrison duty.  It selected one for me for the particular scenario.. Is there any way at that point to select the other force?  Part of the problems I experienced were related to having the wrong tools for the job.

2) Is there any way to 'tune' megamek/mekHq?  The scenario I was placed into was very difficult.  Against my 6 mechs was a mixed force, only 2 mechs, and instead a bunch of tanks/vehicles.. Bulldogs, Vendetta's, etc.

You can go to your TO&E, right click on the lance/force you want in the fight and choose deploy.  It will then guide you down a tree to the scenario in question.  These will show up as reinforcements on a later time, unless they are really fast units.  The speed of the units determine which turn they show up.  I do not know if it will allow you to undeploy a chosen unit without giving you a minor contract breech.  Minor breeches are really no big deal as long as they do not accumulate on you. 
give a man a fire, keep him warm for a night. 
Set him on fire, keep him warm for the rest of his life!

The secret to winning the land/air battle is that you must always remain rigidly flexible.

I like tabletop more anyway, computer games are for nerds!  -  Knallogfall

JenniferinaMAD

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #17 on: 22 January 2017, 19:12:20 »
Vehicles are vulnerable to immobilisation, the Princessbot AI AtB uses by default will abandon vehicles with a speed of 0. Your best bet to score immobilising hits is by firing scattershot weapons into their flanks (cluster rounds, srms). Hovers are more vulnerable to this than tanks, wheeled vehicles are in between.

Another trick for dealing with vehicles: you can enter their hex, unlike with mechs. If you can end the movement phase in the same hex as an isolated vehicle, you can't shoot each other, but your mech can still kick (and will hit a random facing). Not a quick way to take them out, but if you can keep it up, a reasonably safe one. It's tricky with several vehicles supporting each other though.

Further notes: Not all scenarios will be balanced. It sounds like you got a Hide and Seek(Attacker) mission, which tends to dump you into a smallish map with many heavy enemy units (with a strong tendency for AC20s to show up in multiples). Those scenarios can be very rough. If they're too rough, withdraw and take the loss. You don't get paid for actually dying.

In the AtB tab of the campaign options, there should be a difficulty setting (scroll up if you can't see it, the tab likes to start scrolled down). Ultra-green will almost guarantee that you'll mostly face lance vs lance battles, though you might want to up the ratio of enemy mech to vehicle lances to keep this interesting (4 vedettes are a boring pushover).

Part of what AtB wants to simulate is that you don't know what you'll run into where too far ahead of time. So when it generates missions, it assigns them to a specific deployed force. The key is thus to make sure each lance you deploy has a good mix of gear to be prepared for a variety of tasks.
There is a way to overcome this and change what's in the deployed lance, in addition to the reinforcement option PurpleDragon described: you can still add and remove units from the lance until the day it is deployed. It can get a bit fiddly, though.


Southernskies

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #18 on: 23 January 2017, 06:32:15 »
Also, check your AtB settings to see if "Vees are doubled" in the opfor lance generation.

When you have a large number of optional rules turned on (like I do), doubled vehicles is suicidal.

NomadWanderer

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Re: Against the bot Campaign?
« Reply #19 on: 23 January 2017, 08:46:48 »
Double Enemy Vehicles!  OMG I did have this checked. Teach me to not look closely at the options.