Recent Posts

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General BattleTech Discussion / Re: Won my 1st Megamek game...

« Last post by Paul on Today at 09:24:43 »

Princess had a Cicada (CDA-2A) and a Shadowhawk (SHD-2H), and I had a Commando (COM-2D) and a Phoenix Hawk (PHX-1), for a little 2 on 2 action. The map was a 2x2 custom with horrendous terrain (choked with mountains, rivers, woods, rough terrain, etc).

Interesting marchup. Definitely boosted the PXH as it has the most JJs.

Due to the loss of the Commando's medium laser, his SRM's struggled to do anything to the Shad because they spread the damage around without actually putting any significant holes in the armor.

Likewise, my Pixie had to rely on MGs and Medium Lasers because I couldn't afford to fire that Large Laser very often. It took  a good long while before I managed to deal a significant blow to the Shad, and that crippled him just enough that my superior maneuvering could win the day.

Sounds like you had a good time, and you drew some correct conclusions about some of the things you could change.
One thing to consider: it reads as if the Commando was on its own for several turns. Keeping both Mechs involved on the same target is huge. In that situation, you may have been better off either retreating the Commando, or getting the PXH in to contribute MGs, kicks or punches while it cools down slowly. Especially once you got the gyro hit, being able to get 2 kicks in per turn would've really helped because the target would need to keep applying the 3 penalty whenever a kick lands. (And he'd have a reason to not risk kicks of his own, in case he missed).

Another thing to consider: with your PXH, you should be able to get behind the SHD most any turn where you win init. Even when only throwing punches, eventually that rear armor can't hold. (2 punches to the same spot should start causing critical hits). That can be another way to rapidly degrade it, vs having to shoot through allll that armor.

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A Time of War / Re: Tips/help on GM-ing?

« Last post by Cannonshop on Today at 09:20:20 »

Exactly what Cannonshop said! :)

There are certain truisms that go across all tabletop RPG's.  One of the big ones, is that a good GM knows when to stick narrowly to the rules, and when and how to bend them...and bad GMs will do it and think they know when they don't.

the key in my experience as a player of ANY TTRPG, from ATOW to Twilight 2000 to Gammaworld to the various White Wolf products to Dungeons and Dragons, is that the line of when and where to bend the rules, change the rules, or ignore the rules?

Is all about the players, how their minds work, what will work best with the individuals at your table to keep and hold their interest.  As the person creating and administering the world their characters inhabit, the players are loaning you a piece of power in exchange for entertainment...but it's a loan, not a gift.  You're obligated to give them a cool experience, not to give them a political diatribe or verbal abuse, or a sense their trust is being misused.

I make a joke in an earlier post about being 'god', but that's really not quite true.  God doesn't have to answer, or make sense.  A GM or DM or Storyteller? absolutely must answer for what they deliver.  What you're being asked to deliver, is an experience.   In military terms, you're not there to gain medals, you're there to decide who gets them.

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General BattleTech Discussion / Re: Best Era

« Last post by tassa_kay on Today at 09:01:55 »

There's a lot of big factions taking down little ones all over the timeline, I'll spare us the examples. 

People like underdog stories for the fiction.  But predictable big-takes-down-small is for sourcebooks. 

That said, there are other kinds of stories too.

That's what I was getting at; it doesn't have to be just small-vs-big or big-vs-small. But the lion's share of short stories tend to fall into the former, and it astounds me how often they get praised as much as they do because so many of them read as repetitive and don't bring anything new or interesting to the table (which is why I skip over them when I pick up Shrapnel issues). But that's just me. I fully understand that I'll forever be in the minority on this topic.

I'm not going to say this sarcastically or any other way than honestly.  Tassa Kay, ever think about submitting to Shrapnel?

I've had an idea or two, but I'm not really keen on writing for CGL. But I appreciate the thought, rebs.

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Off Topic / Re: Fallout: Exploding onto your screen April 2024

« Last post by JadeHellbringer on Today at 08:57:34 »

I'm all for it, but only if Todd Howard himself is in the coat and hat, and no explanation is given beyond a distant noir musical tone.

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Off Topic / Re: NHL 2023-2024 Vegas Edition: Mojave, Mo' Problems

« Last post by JadeHellbringer on Today at 08:56:32 »

I'll keep it briefer for Round 2:

Colorado in 6
Vancouver in 6
Boston in 7
New York in 5

I went 7-of-8 in round one (only missed the Isles/Canes series), and this time went 1-of-4. Ow.

New York in 6
Dallas in 5

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Off Topic / Re: What Are We Listening To: This List Goes Up To Eleven!

« Last post by elf25s on Today at 08:32:28 »

the Chemical Brothers - music:response

cant remeber when was last time i listen to them...first time was in game music for burnout series for playstation 2

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General BattleTech Discussion / Re: What is the issue with Aerospace? Why is it supposedly "unpopular" with players?

« Last post by Aotrs Commander on Today at 08:28:55 »

Sounds like you're taking a stance on something you haven't tried.  I get the same thing from my kids about dinner often enough.

Mate, I'm 45. I'm old enough I am perfectly capable of evaluating whether or not I like something without having to try it. For example, I know without having to try I wouldn't like 40K, Rapid Fire, World of Warcraft, Game of Thrones (any version), bungee-jumping, rugby or any form of alcohol you would choose to put in front of me, to pick a selection of random stuff.

Why?  You only want to play a unit when they can dominate all they survey?  One of the scariest combos I faced was 2 REALLY fast VTOLs with TAG and 2 LRM Carriers with Semi-Guided Ammo.  I was effectively running a Level 2 with 3 Celestials, a Wobbie Avatar, and a point of Protomechs.  My 'Mechs got destroyed by them.

Because I want to play with my BattleMechs.

That's it.

If I didn't want to play with giant stompy robot toys, I would not be on this board or a BattleTech fan at all.

Sorry, mate, it's just that simple.

My choice of mech purchases has always been 99% based on "do I think the model looks cool?" (The new plastic resculpts are, by and large Much Cooler, and so my selection of mechs has expanded to include mechs I would never have bought the metal sculpt of.) That is why I have not until the kickstarter bought any IS vehicles, because I didn't think the old art looked cool. I am unlikely to ever have a protomech, because I've never seen one I think looks cool. I only have a few Clan vehicles because I thought They Looked Cool (and most of 'em are lights), and only have about a pack of vehicles from the Mercs kickstarter because they have missile launchers that I thought were Cool Enough. (If I ever wanted to use infantry or BattleArmour, I'd be using old Space Marine (from Before It Was Epic) infantry.)

I'll go further and say, I'm sorry, but I don't even take BattleTech particularly seriously. Frack, mate, everytime I play Clans I roll two D100 on a table of made-up adjective/noun and play them almost as a parody of the worse Jade Falcon steriotypes. (I mean, there's a whole thread called "Bleakbane Ruins BattleTech" in the fan rules section is you wanted to see how seriously I take it all.) I play it because occasionally, I want to play with cool-looking giant stompy robots.



I hesitiate to say it, but when I want to play a game that behaves as a reasonable facsimile of real-world warfare tactics[1], with vehicles and infantry, I play (sci-fi) Maneouvre Group. (In which walkers struggle to survive on account of them simply being too visible even at half the relative height of a BattleMech.) I simply don't look for that out of BattleTech.

Again - and I feel I really must emphasise this again, especially in light of that previous paragraph - that BattleTech does try to have comprehensive rules for everything is a strong point in its favour and I would never advocate it didn't. (Hell, as I've said to people, BattleTech has oddly more in common with Maneouvre Group than either do with most other wargames.) That has an appeal to a lot of folk, and that's cool. And I like that, even if I choose never to exercise those options, it is there if I ever changed my mind.

But I really am evidence that part of the fanbase is genuinely just here for the cool giant stompy-robots and everything else is secondary to that.



Does that make me a Filthy Casual? I mean, prob'bly? I only get to play solo once, maybe twice a year these days? I don't really play "six-pack and boldy-go" as Full Thrust so elegantly described itself once, but BT is as close as it gets for "casual". I'm invested in the lore really only insofar as it informs the Techinical Readouts (which I love), but really not giving much of a frag about the characters or anything. Does that meet the criterion? You decide.

But, like, at least it makes me an informed filthy casual with 500-odd mechs and about a foot's worth of BT rulebooks. I am well aware of what is on offer and an engaged enough to read the main forums. And, here getting back to topic, I bought both BattleSpace and Aerotech 2 played the latter once and decided, nope, too much like hard work, Full Thrust was still better and I didn't think BT's ships and fighters didn't look particularly cool, so I went back to FT (until I ended up writing my own sets of fighter and  starship rules.




[1]Standard proviso: All simulations are wrong, some simulations are useful.

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Ground Combat / Re: TSM in game: Walk with me so I understand it better....

« Last post by Cannonshop on Today at 07:51:43 »

You’re right.  Brain fart on my part.  That gives the design even fewer choices to activate TSM.  It has to turn off a couple freezers, alpha strike, and walk to activate.  That’s the only way to hit 9 overheat.  No running or standing — those are even numbers.  The implication is that if you want to punch/kick with TSM, you have to telegraph it to your opponent by turning off freezers and have started within 4 hexes or less (terrain aside) of the target the prior turn.  Most opponents paying attention will catch that.

And to keep TSM activated the following turn, no walking is allowed.  Now you have to stand still or run to hit 9 overheat because you need even numbers to maintain the odd-numbered 9 overheat from the prior turn, regardless of what weapons you fire or freezers you turn off.  If the target (or a new target) doesn’t stay right next to you or move/appear 7+ (cause now you’re 5/8 speed) hexes away (terrain aside), you’re outta luck for TSM melee attacks the next turn.

Again, for want of a small laser that could face to the rear for WYSIWYG — and there’s actually a crit slot in the head for it and the design can certainly spare a half-ton of the maximally thick ballistic-reinforced armor — the TSM is needlessly constrained.  It feels like the designer didn’t bother to read/understand TSM rules, which is frustrating because otherwise the design could be a real challenging nut to crack.  I don’t mind these kind of forehead smack designs in XTROs, but I wish they’d stay out of TROs/RGs.

Just remember, procurement officials don't always make good judgments.

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Fan Articles / Re: Mech of the Week: HEL Helios

« Last post by JadeHellbringer on Today at 07:51:24 »

Two things in reply to XenopusTex:

1) Agreeing with me is hazardous. My wife has spent years refusing to do so as a general rule. 

2) Jokes aside, I honestly never really thought about it before, but your post made me think of this as a slow-Dragon, and it actually kind of feels like it. Big ballistic weapon in the right arm, torso missiles, couple of lasers to back it up. Of course, the Dragon's LRM goes away in favor of the slightly-heavier dual-SRM systems (an upgrade I normally prefer, if ammo backs it up), and the engine clearly gives weight up to beef the big gun from an anemic AC/5 to the Gauss, but it would be interesting to be a fly on the wall in the Helios development rooms and see if they had DRG-schematics up on the walls at all.

...which begs the question of why one would choose the Dragon, of all things, to emulate, but whatever.

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Fan Fiction / Re: It's a family curse.

« Last post by Cannonshop on Today at 07:42:51 »

Centurions, I'm betting. Five tons heavier, still fast, same armament, and way more armor.

https://www.sarna.net/wiki/Centurion_(Aerospace_Fighter_class)

yah, I think he might've been trying that very thing.