Battletech Missions campaign in Phoenix, AZ

[Joel47]

The Catalyst Demo Team in the Phoenix area is restarting the Missions campaign that was so rudely interrupted by the pandemic. We're restarting from scratch; players from before don't need to recreate their characters and retain all advancement, but we do ask that if we're at capacity and you've played a scenario before that you step aside for someone who hasn't (and maybe offer to be an assistant GM).

Campaign Synopsis:  Similar to Shadowrun Missions, this campaign will be a series of shorter battles that string together to form a story arc. Players need not play in every game! Each battle will give participating players C-bills and XP, the amounts depending on mission success and damage taken. Spend XP and C-bills to upgrade your pilot and mech.

Campaign Rules: https://bit.ly/35WSBYB

TLDR: Just show up. Pre-generated pilots+mechs will be available.

Slightly longer summary:
    Pilot and Mech:
        You have a pilot, 15 XP, and 2.5M C-Bills
        Choose a faction for your pilot (optional, and can be done later)
        Use your XP to buy one Special Pilot Ability (optional, but recommended)
        Use your C-Bills to purchase a light mech from the list in the rules. (required)
        Get the mini for your mech and paint it (optional, but gives a small bonus to earnings)
    Games:
        Players vs GM
        Beyond six players one (experienced) player gets to be GM for a second table
        Games usually last about four hours.
    Campaign:
        At the end of each game the players get C-Bills and XP based on mission objectives completed.
        Mech destroyed or pilot killed? You earn less money or XP, respectively, but they'll be back next game.
        Miss a game or two? You don't get paid, but you join in with no penalties when you come back.
        Spend XP to upgrade pilot skill or buy a new Special Ability.
        Spend C-Bills to buy a new mech.
            Expect a minimum of 5 games in your initial ride before you upgrade.
        The CDT members will be running the same scenario each month at different stores

Locations:

• The Silver Key Lounge in Mesa
• Games U in Gilbert
• Imperial Outpost in Glendale

Old thread from the Before Times: https://bg.battletech.com/forums/catalyst-game-labs-demo-team/battletech-missions-campaign-tempe-az/

Some extras not in the main rules:

• Bonus for Unpainted Mini: +3 XP
• Bonus for Painted Mini: +5 XP
• Bonus for in-store purchase: +50,000 C-Bills

(Note that the last one isn't "buy a soda for $0.50." The GM reserves the right to set a minimum purchase amount. Be prepared to show your receipt.)

[Joel47]

Mission 01-01: Pirate Defense
Shelby Drop Port, Memphis, Crucis March, Federated Suns
June 27, 3025
"Okay mechwarriors, listen up. Welcome to Memphis, a nowhere world at the far end of the Federated Suns. This part of the ‘suns is always having trouble with periphery pirates, but this time some local noble or another managed to dig up enough funds to hire us to come handle their problem for them. Fortunately for us, Memphis has a regular food shipment delivered around the end of every month, and it looks like the pirates have taken the bait. Last night at about 02:00 we got jump signature at a nearby pirate point.We expect them at the Lake Aswan drop port any minute now.Your job is simple: stop their attack, and make them regret coming here to Memphis. If you can capture one, great -- we’d love to know more about their operation. The good news? You’ve got the drop on them and have plenty of time to get into position. The bad news? These psychos look like a bunch of weirdos out of an early information age flatvid. Watch yourselves out there!"

Locations & Times:

• The Silver Key Lounge, Sat Oct 23 at 2:00 PM
• Games U, Sun Nov 14 at 12:00 PM
• Imperial Outpost, Sat Oct 30 at 2:00 PM

[BirdofPrey]

How does running the same mission again work?  I seem to have missed you signing the page, but I have rewards and salvage from this one already, and it looks like you plan to do missions multiple times.  Not sure I'd enjoy skipping a couple months of games just to avoid replaying a scenario.

[Joel47]

You're welcome to replay missions, but I do ask that priority be given to players who haven't already played them. The plan is to run a new mission each month, with each being run at different locations to reduce crowding (as well as to make it easier for players in far-flung parts of the valley to attend). So the rate of new missions won't change from before, but access to them will improve.

[BirdofPrey]

Oh so something like mission 2 will be done also in November?  That's definitely good,  I've missed games because I was busy that weekend.  I'm alright sitting a game out if need be; don't think I have enough experience to qualify to help GM.
Anyway my concern was more if we can get salvage more than once that seems like it'd turn into a "collect the whole set" sorta thing.

Any word on Game Depot?

[Joel47]

Oh so something like mission 2 will be done also in November?

That is the plan. The holidays may make it more a "goal" at first, but we should be into a proper groove after a couple of months.

Anyway my concern was more if we can get salvage more than once that seems like it'd turn into a "collect the whole set" sorta thing.

Salvage depends on what you kill and/or objectives completed, so yes, you might get something different by playing again. The mission rewards (e.g., the improvised A-pods given for the first mission) do not stack, however. (That's a rule I just came up with, because while that particular one wouldn't be a problem, later rewards might be.)

Any word on Game Depot?

I'd love to play there, but they're still in a phased re-opening of their gaming room, keeping it empty most of the time. If/when it becomes available, I'll likely start running there again if I can twist some arms to get someone in the west valley to become a Demo Agent (allowing me to run just east/central stuff and still have a game at IO without me having to drive there).

[Joel47]

Added Imperial Outpost game to the scenario post above. Sat Oct 30 @ 2pm.

[Joel47]

This is how sign-up will work for campaign games: I'll get there early with a sign-up sheet. Hopefully I'll get there before twelve players do.
Overflow will be directed to any available spare tables for pickup games; I'll have the previous month's scenario on me if there's a second volunteer GM.

Reasoning: An in-store sign-up sheet leaves out people who don't regularly frequent a given store, and an online sign-up sheet leaves out people walking in to the store. Having both would require some sort of synchronization which would invariably fail. While this method is a problem for someone coming from across the valley, that should be mitigated by having multiple games across the valley. It also helps solve the problem of someone who's signed up arriving just a few minutes late -- it's really annoying to give someone's slot away just as they're walking in, and it's also annoying as the GM to not know the players until the start time.

We'll see how it goes this month and revisit if necessary.

[Hellraiser]

For the record..... upon googling directions to this Silver Key location I found out 3 things.

1.  The plaza has a Cornish Pasty location
2.  The plaza has a Korean BBQ
3.  The plaza has a Padme Massage & Wellness

All I'm saying is...... "Who doesn't like Cornish Pasties, Korean BBQ, & Massages from Padme ?!?!?!?!"

[BirdofPrey]

I've never heard of it before, but it seems to be next to the high school I went to. 

[Joel47]

Mission 01-02: Pirate Defense pt 2
Memphis Supply Depot, Crucis March, Federated Suns
July 1, 3025
"Okay mechwarriors, listen up. First, I’ll start with a brief refresher, given that we’re out in the boring end of the Federated Suns. Anyway, we got hired by this local Nobleman here on Memphis to defend his planet from some highly annoying Pirates. He’s a bit of a prat, but his C-Bills are good, and the Pirates are a good enemy for us to cut our teeth on. Some of you probably remember our fight on the tarmac of Memphis’ main dropport, but it seems like another group are hell bent on a supply depot outside of town.
"Anyway, it seems like Lord Stephenson has a serious bug up his butt about this depot, and really wants to make sure that it doesn’t fall to the Pirates. If you ask me, though, there’s something funny about this depot – it’s out in the middle of nowhere, without even roads leading to it. If you ask me, given the location, it looks more like a military resupply depot than any kind of consumer goods supply.
"So while I really want to get paid, I also want to know what Stephenson is so paranoid about. So you’ve got two jobs: First, make sure the pirates don’t loot the warehouse. Second, I want you to scan what’s inside. But I don’t want you to look like you’re scanning what’s inside, if you catch my drift. Alternatively, I suppose, if the pirates were to, say, load a truckload of stuff and you were to say, capture that truck, then of course we’d have to inspect whatever was in it. You know, to make sure it wasn’t damaged. Of course, that plan’s a lot more dangerous, as if the pirates get away with the loot then we don’t get paid.
"And I hate not getting paid…
"Oh yeah – one more thing. Stephenson was really reticent to tell me about the supply depot’s location until he was absolutely sure that’s where the pirates were heading. Sadly, that means I’m gonna have to ask you to hightail it out there, and even so you’re gonna get there at pretty much the same time that the bad guys do. Eh, whatcha gonna do?"

Locations & Times:

• The Silver Key Lounge, Sat Nov 20, 2p
• Games U, Sun Dec 12, 1pm
• Imperial Outpost, Sat Dec 4, 2p

[Hellraiser]

I see tomorrow's game starts at 2PM.

How long does it go till?

[Joel47]

Going to try and be done by 6. If we go over, it won't be by much.

[BirdofPrey]

I hope my table can finish this time.  Everyone had to leave last time so we called it before managing to kill anything.

[Joel47]

If there's a second table, I'll be keeping a closer eye on it to make sure things keep moving.

[BirdofPrey]

I don't think we got bogged down or anything.  It seemed like everything was running fine for the most part; maybe one or two indecisive moments.
We just couldn't actually manage to kill anything, and we packed it in before you were done.

[BirdofPrey]

So, I was going over the record sheets I have for this campaign, and according to the tracking tables, both of the 01-01 games I was in were the exact same number of turns (6), but the first time we killed two mechs, and the second we killed nothing, so I think it's just a luck thing.

Yesterday's game did seem like it bogged down a bit, but we still manages a turn more than the 01-01 I was in.  This is the first time I've played this one, so I can't compare it to last time.  01-03 is an outlier for me at 11 turns. 


Also, for reference, is the optional rules list the same as listed in the old thread?  It's not listed here or in the emails that I saw; wanted to double check (I asked about expanded backwards movement and you said no).

[Joel47]

The second running of Missions scenario 2 is today at Imperial Outpost at 2. Can't make it? The third running will be a week from tomorrow at Games U.

[Joel47]

Also, for reference, is the optional rules list the same as listed in the old thread?  It's not listed here or in the emails that I saw; wanted to double check (I asked about expanded backwards movement and you said no).

It's much shorter, the better to keep the number of exceptions manageable for new players. Floating crits, careful stand, and (I think) propping with one arm.
Edit: and sprinting + evading.

[Joel47]

Mark that one down as a minor pirate victory -- they escaped with about 40% of the loot, leaving behind a dead PC Stinger and their own decapitated* Whitworth.

* Two PPCs, both head shots, same turn!

[Hellraiser]

What are the details for the next game?

[Joel47]

Sunday's game info is a few posts up: https://bg.battletech.com/forums/challenges-and-gatherings/battletech-missions-campaign-in-phoenix-az/msg1776480/#msg1776480

Scenario #3 has not yet been scheduled. It will be in January, and we'll try to get it up soon.

[Hellraiser]

Okay I'm blind, I just now saw this.

The second running of Missions scenario 2 is today at Imperial Outpost at 2. Can't make it? The third running will be a week from tomorrow at Games U.

Is there a time when it will start?

[Joel47]

1pm. Sorry was on my phone and didn't see that the post I linked said TBD.

[Joel47]

Posting one more time because these forums don't handle mobile well and I had to edit that post several times. (By making a new post, anyone who checked immediately after getting the initial new post notification will get another, and upon reading this will see they should reread my previous post.)

[Hellraiser]

Got it,  1PM,  Games-U,  Sunday the 12th.

[Joel47]

Mission #3 dates will be TBD for a while. I want to see what the combination of holidays + Omicron does to COVID numbers. Expect end of January at the earliest.

[IonControl]

Games U. 
1550 N Stonehenge Dr #102, Gilbert, AZ 85234
Feb 13th 1200

Mission 01-03: Pirate Hunting

Battletech Missions
Mission 01-03: Pirate Hunting
Outside of Shelby City, Memphis, Crucis March, Federated Suns
July 7, 3025

Hey boys, listen up! So we’ve had some luck defending both the Shelby Drop-Port and a
suspiciously important supply depot outside of town. We appear to have the pirates on the run.
We’re fairly confident that they have a base, or perhaps a dropship somewhere in the wilds
outside of Shelby City, but we’re not at all certain as to where.
Right now, we’ve got bigger issues, however, There’s roughly a lance of pirates making
a run for the wilds. We need you to run them down and make sure they don’t bother Memphis
anymore - regardless of any weird shenanigans that Lord Stephenson might be up to. I expect
you’ll catch up with them here at what I’m calling Grid Point Alpha.
If possible, you should let one of them escape - but make sure it’s someone at least one
of you can outrun. We’d like to shadow them back to their dropship. If that gets away, we’re just
going to see them again in a few months when they can put together another lance of
mechwarriors with their own ‘mechs and little interest in following society’s rules.

Campaign Rules: https://bit.ly/35WSBYB

* Player Limit 9 players over 2 tables
* You can start the campaign at any point -- you don't need to have played prior missions to play in the current one.
* Pre-generated pilots+mechs will be available.
* Unit selection summary: Purchase a light mech from the list in the rules.
* Pilot skills: G4/P5. Special abilities can be purchased at the start (or you can save the XP so you can improve skills sooner).
* If we end up with too many players for a single game (6+) we'll split into two tables, with a player tapped to be GM. Being a GM earns C-bills and XP!
* Session Schedule:
1200-1230 Confirming Player characters
1230-1245 Collecting BV total from PCs and determining OPFOR
1245-1300 Mission Briefing and player setup
If you arrive after 1300, you will be drafted to be the GM (before 1330 you will get GM credit)
After 1330, we will see what we can do about getting a game going on the side.

[Joel47]

Mission 01-03: Pirate Hunting (same as above post)
Silver Key Lounge (Mesa), Sat Feb 26, 2pm.
Imperial Outpost (Glendale), Sat, Mar 12 @ 2pm

[IonControl]

March 13 Noon
Games U.
1550 N. Stonehenge Drive #102
Gilbert, AZ 85233

Battletech Missions
Mission 01-04: Have fun stormin’ the castle!
Outside of Shelby City, Memphis, Crucis March, Federated Suns
July 8, 3025

Okay boys, listen up! We’ve managed to track those pirates back to their base, and it’s
not what we expected. Instead of a dropship it appears as though the pirates have been staging
out of an old star league era fort of some sort. Most of their ‘mechs have already been
destroyed, but they do still have some conventional forces, and they may still have a ‘mech or
two.
This attack is going to be at night, with the hopes of catching the pirates off guard. We’d
really like to get into that fort quickly, as we’re pretty sure from all of the evidence that we’ve
gathered so far that something funny is going on. If you can get in there fast enough, we can
hopefully prevent them from destroying all of the evidence about what they’ve been up to. Each
of your mechs will be outfitted with a special searchlight that you can use to illuminate a target.
Be careful, however, as they act like pretty powerful beacons pointing at you as well.

Other rules of note in effect:
Floating Crits, Sprinting, Careful Stand

Campaign Rules: https://bit.ly/35WSBYB

* Player Limit 9 players over 2 tables
* You can start the campaign at any point -- you don't need to have played prior missions to play in the current one.
* Pre-generated pilots+mechs will be available.
* Unit selection summary: Purchase a light mech from the list in the rules.
* Pilot skills: G4/P5. Special abilities can be purchased at the start (or you can save the XP so you can improve skills sooner).
* If we end up with too many players for a single game (6+) we'll split into two tables, with a player tapped to be GM. Being a GM earns C-bills and XP!
* Session Schedule:
1200-1230 Confirming Player characters
1230-1245 Collecting BV total from PCs and determining OPFOR
1245-1300 Mission Briefing and player setup
If you arrive after 1300, you will be drafted to be the GM (before 1330 you will get GM credit)
After 1330, we will see what we can do about getting a game going on the side.