Harrisburg PA BattleTech

[Warhawktbc]

First session starts this Saturday.   Will be playing monthly at this point.  If anyone else is interested please let me know.

[Kovax]

It's a bit of a haul from Reading (hour and a half....ish), but I could conceivably show up for a session once in a while, not every month though.  What BT era are you considering (tech level, rules, etc.), and where would this be held?  I've accumulate a "reasonably large" collection of older minis over the years (I've seen "unreasonably large" collections of more than 500 minis), but it's almost all 3025-3050, with maybe a handful of pieces from 3055-3060.

Started playing before the introduction of the Clans, and the local BT game group folded a couple of years after.  Over the last few years, I've mainly just played at game conventions and an occasional MegaMek battle versus the 'bot.

[Warhawktbc]

First session, three of us got together. We've known each other for years, some others didn't come because of weather. 

Me and the other gentleman that got the started because he contacted me about playing through a Facebook group, both agree that we want to eventually get the game to include everything.  But we are starting at the beginning he's never really played BattleTech he has played some megamek and some computer games.   

We also have a one or two other people who are totally new.  So we're starting at the beginning with just 3025, so that we can teach some people the basics. 

I've done so much BattleTech over the years and started way back at the end of the Battledroids era, that I have done so much 3025 I want to grow beyond at with this group. 

The February session is February 2nd.   This will be a series of 2 on 2 fights on some bass maps so we can teach moving firing etc.  The first ones will be just some mediums shooting at each other and then as the night progresses will expand to some guys that can jump etc.   Depending on how far we get the next session will build upon that. 

Faster where we play we play at my house.  Presently it's around the giant dining room table that seats 8 to 10.  By the end of spring when we're done teaching everyone the basics there should be room in the basement to have a 4 by 4 table set up that we can all sit around and conceivably leave set up. 

After the basic set up, we plan to expand to tactical operations beyond that it depends what we decide to do as a campaign etc. 

since some of the people have never played before I have no plans to mess with the timeline or do anything weird we will just take a group and progress through it as the game goes on.  Who knows maybe we will get stuck into clans and people will have fun with a bidding etc. Everything's is somewhat open.  Again for now we're just at teaching people how to play.

[Warhawktbc]

I realized I didn't answer your question about miniatures. 

I can field a regiment of Mechs from the 3025 to 3050 era probably two companies of vehicles a couple of flights of aerospace.

[Kovax]

Actually, I didn't really ask a question about the miniatures, other than what you already answered about starting out with the basic 3025 rules.  I'm well set for that, other than perhaps 2 or 3 of the 3025 designs which I somehow never scrounged up a miniature for. I've got somewhere around 2 companies of armor and some infantry for combined arms scenarios, plus a handful of ASFs and a softball-sized spheroid dropship, if needed further down the road.  Currently working on some 3D terrain.

With a bunch of mostly new players, I might wait a month or three before making the drive.  Learning in a small group (1 vs 1 or 2 vs 2) is better than trying to pick up the ideas in the kind of conversational free-for-all that's inevitable with any larger informal group, so I'm probably going to be more hindrance than help for the first few sessions until they come up to speed.  They say that people learn best from their own mistakes, so make as many as possible and you should be a genius in no time...right?  Somehow my boss doesn't seem to like that idea.

I'll be keeping an occasional eye out for further information.  Hopefully the weather will also be a bit more hospitable in a couple of months.

[Warhawktbc]

Sounds like a great idea actually.  I'll try to keep coming in here and putting the monthly updates and when we're going to play each month depends on the group they get the pic of the two Saturdays I'm off

[speck]

I am pretty sure we crossed paths before years ago. I was living in York before moving to Gettysburg. These day I might get to play if I can at the HMGS convention in the Battletech games that we run there. Cold Wars is a little over two weeks away in Lancaster and we have several games.

[Kovax]

I am pretty sure we crossed paths before years ago. I was living in York before moving to Gettysburg. These day I might get to play if I can at the HMGS convention in the Battletech games that we run there. Cold Wars is a little over two weeks away in Lancaster and we have several games.

I'll see you there at Cold Wars, as usual.  Lancaster is about as far from me as my daily drive to work, which to me counts as "almost local".

[AnimateVirus]

Just stumbled upon this post. I'm in the Harrisburg/Hershey area and a new player myself. I bought the newer box sets from Catalyst, and my friends and i learned the "Quick Play" rules.  Wondering if someone would be willing to show me how to play using the complete rules?

[Warhawktbc]

We are willing to teach people the wonderful game of battletech and its rules. 

We have finished our warm up period and are starting a campaign against periphery pirates and that will in turn lead the the Clans coming in.  We just showed around 3 people into the game and had a refresher for one or two elder statesman of the game. 

Our next game is Aug 17th at 1600 hours.  We normally know the next 2 sessions, but July sucked for most people and we couldn't mesh so we only know that date so far.  On August we will decide on September and October meeting days.  Almost always Saturday in the evening.

PM me if you have interest in coming to play and/or learn.

[Warhawktbc]

Next game day is Sept. 28th.   Time is somewhat undecided, early to late afternoon to start.

[Warhawktbc]

We're starting early 2:00 p.m. doing some alpha strike in the afternoon and then the evening will be standard battletech.

[savagecoyote79]

Are you playing at a FLGS? if so, which one?