What kind of Battletech player are you

[Pat Payne]

I play Alpha Strike almost exclusively these days (nothing against TW/Classic, but while I love the granularity of that system, it takes quite a bit of time and can be complex, especially for new or impatient players) both on hexes and hexless. But due to just finding time to play (real life, amirite?) and availability of other players, I spend more "Battletech time" painting minis and making up new homebrew merc units.

[Cannonshop]

'other' in my case means "a very bad player who has terrible ideas and worse dice luck."

[MarauderD]

I found it hard to choose only 3.  Currently, I play Alpha Strike like 3 or 4 times a year, and play Classic maybe once  or twice a year.  Keeping up with the lore has been something I've done on and off since the late 1987 or so when I was 12 years old.  The Lore definitely kept me around these long years.  So I picked those three.

But on a day to day basis, I paint the new CGL plastic minis on weekend mornings before my wife and kids wake up.  Probably an hour on Saturday and Sunday mornings.  So I spend more time doing that than anything else--and yet it isn't what 'kept me in the game' but it has become 'what keeps me sane' in my day to day life.

Life is weird that way, eh?

[Charistoph]

My favorite gameplay lately is our campaigns, most of which is prosecuted in Total Warfare's rules with a lot of Advanced Optional Rules.

Still, I have fun with one-offs and Alpha Strike gameplay, too.  We just did an Easter Egg Hunt with Alpha Strike rules.  A lot of fun, particularly for group brawls.

[Brym]

I'm a basic Total Warfare player because I've been able to find a buddy or two to regularly play that way in the last year or so.  Prior to that I was playing Destiny/Alpha Strike with my kids (we've since moved on to D&D) or Alpha Strike with my own solo rules (which I abandoned when Aces was announced / when I started getting regular games of TW).

I think my ideal way to play would be to have a regular game night where people would bring lists for Alpha Strike and play a few games, but that just doesn't exist near me.  My LGS only consistently runs Magic, with sporadic other card games and Warhammer when there is enough interest.  It doesn't carry Battletech.  Other nearby game stores are similarly Magic or Warhammer focused.  I've got one that's 45-60 minutes away that runs a weekly X-Wing night, and another 60-90 minutes away that does a monthly TW Battletech event.

Maybe at some point I'll convince the guy I've been playing TW with most recently to try Alpha Strike, and if he gets into it, I can talk to the LGS about stocking Battletech and running a monthly AS event.

[Gladius-XC]

I’ve been able to play Alpha Strike with my son at least a couple of times a month, which has been a lot of fun. I’m also a huge fan of the lore. More than any of that though, I’m a painter.  I love spending an hour or two just working on a miniature, seeing the vision in my head become real.

[butchbird]

Interesting, altough expected since this is the BT forum which's format probably suits a certain kind of BT enthusiast, that the lore option is leading the poll.

Didn't know which TW option to take. Playing a half dozen games a year and often having new players (heck, even my core has changed in the last year, although this time it should be locked for a fair deal of time, I hope) means you have to keep it super simple...but we always wish we could delve further. Also, to me, painting the miniatures is part of the experience of playing CBT, don't really count it as "another aspect", but then that's just my view on wargames using miniatures.

As an aside but connected, having at the same time one of my ex-regular players being too taken with other things to play and having two complete newbies (well, they're getting better) in my core all at the same time made me fully realize this: CBT is actually a skill. Its something you hone, its something that dulls whithout use, its something your oddly proud of as you master the basics and manage to delve further all the way to "intermediate" rules. Found it kind of neat when they made me light up on this.

Play video games in single player, guess that's "other"? I'd guess that's what others consider, hence why "other" is ahead of MWO.

[Nerroth]

My main interaction with this IP has been through sourcebooks and fiction, though I finally got around to playing HareBrainedSchemes' BattleTech once I got a device capable of actually running it properly.

(Since there is no separate option for the HBS BT game, I placed it under "Other".)

I do collect PDFs of the various rulebooks (for Alpha Strike, Total Warfare, etc.) and not too long ago got a copy of the AS Boxed Set - but I haven't had a chance to properly play any of the former, and still need to get around to actually painting the minis from the latter properly. So I don't feel like either would be enough to warrant any of the (non-Lore and non-Other) other options listed above.

[Cannon_Fodder]

It's hard for me to play standard BattleTech anymore. I think I will always be a 2D10 Heretic.

[Aotrs Commander]

It's hard for me to play standard BattleTech anymore. I think I will always be a 2D10 Heretic.

Pfft, I'm worse, I use a D20...

[S2pidiT]

I selected Other, History/Lore, and Alpha Strike.

I collect minis, but most of them are crying out for paint, or at least primer... But my primary interactions with BattleTech are playing the video games (HBS BT, MW5, and MegaMek), reading the fiction, and writing lyrics. The writing often means I'm going through books I've got, or reading on Sarna.

When I play BattleTech the tabletop game, I primarily play Alpha Strike. My oldest likes to play with me, which is nice because otherwise I wouldn't really be able to play right now. I'm sure we do some stuff wrong, but we still have a good time of it.

[GoGo Yubari]

In a way, I consider myself a full spectrum Battletech enthusiast, so I'm not limited by principle. Practically though, the focus tends to narrow as life also includes other stuff to pursue, so it's mainly about taking part as a lore enthusiast and computer gamer. My other = MegaMek btw, which should have deserved it's own tab!

[klarg1]

It's hard for me to play standard BattleTech anymore. I think I will always be a 2D10 Heretic.

Pfft, I'm worse, I use a D20...

I propose that we team up and construct a system based around 1d12+1d8 for maximum uniqueness.

[ActionButler]

It's hard for me to play standard BattleTech anymore. I think I will always be a 2D10 Heretic.

Pfft, I'm worse, I use a D20...

I propose that we team up and construct a system based around 1d12+1d8 for maximum uniqueness.

*laughs in using the Memoir 44 dice and board to play Alpha Strike*

[Wrangler]

I rarely get a chance to play anymore, but keep up on the fiction (not a big fan of the IlClan era, I tend to stay in my 3039-3080 timeframe), and regularly paint as a way to relax. (Current workbench consists of a Blue Star Irregulars Grasshopper, tundra-camo Kodiak, and a Griffin that was going to be bright green but may need a new plan)

I think you should try finding megamek group to join.

[I am Belch II]

Played a lot more AS lately but not in the competitive games. I do like all the new rules in TW, but also love a very easy basic rules game. I love the history and lore for the game. I love the collection of it too. I have lots of Battletech product and want more and cant wait for more to come out.

[Gray_Noton_4lfe]

I love adding advance rules to my games to give them depth

[Gray_Noton_4lfe]

BattleForce added

[Orion]

I will happily use vehicles.  Infantry is reluctantly used, and only put on the board to give the others something easy to kill when I run the OpFor.  I've never used aerospace or artillery.  I can be happy with the intro box set and nothing more.

[Gray_Noton_4lfe]

Is BattleForce still played?

[Wrangler]

Is BattleForce still played?

I think so, you could ask on sarna.net discord server or Catalyst one.  You may pickup attention of more people.

[willydstyle]

I like to play with Total Warfare, and have used all unit types other than aerospace, which I honestly don't have that much interest in.

I'm down with advanced rules/tech as long as they are discussed ahead of time so everyone has an even playing field. If my opponent is going to try to win by spamming off-board arty or field guns without giving me the appropriate opportunity to design counter-play into my list it just doesn't feel like a fun fight to me.

And that's mostly what I want to do with battletech: have a fun fight where victory is determined by the chaos of the dice rolls and the tactics of the players, not because one player decided to bring 30 savannah masters.

I prefer hex maps over 3d terrain, and I like the unambiguous nature of the line of sight rules on hex maps.

With that in mind, I like to agree on a BV limit, a rules level (most commonly "Total Warfare only" and a force size limit with my opponent before we set up a game.

I would *also* love to start picking mapsheets and scenario before forces are drawn up so both players can pick their forces based on the terrain and the objectives, but that's not very normalized yet amongst the people I tend to play with.

[Gray_Noton_4lfe]

I like to play with Total Warfare, and have used all unit types other than aerospace, which I honestly don't have that much interest in.

I'm down with advanced rules/tech as long as they are discussed ahead of time so everyone has an even playing field. If my opponent is going to try to win by spamming off-board arty or field guns without giving me the appropriate opportunity to design counter-play into my list it just doesn't feel like a fun fight to me.

And that's mostly what I want to do with battletech: have a fun fight where victory is determined by the chaos of the dice rolls and the tactics of the players, not because one player decided to bring 30 savannah masters.

I prefer hex maps over 3d terrain, and I like the unambiguous nature of the line of sight rules on hex maps.

With that in mind, I like to agree on a BV limit, a rules level (most commonly "Total Warfare only" and a force size limit with my opponent before we set up a game.

I would *also* love to start picking mapsheets and scenario before forces are drawn up so both players can pick their forces based on the terrain and the objectives, but that's not very normalized yet amongst the people I tend to play with.

Well put, I agree.