ScrapYard Armory

The War of 3039 is a speed bump relative to some of the other more notable wars within the Inner Sphere.  It’s implications however, are on par with the Succession Wars, the Clan Invasion or the Word of Blake Jihad.  It is the story of a nation at the brink that was pulled from the precipice by an unorthodox yet skilled leader; Theodore Kurita.

Historical: War of 3039 was released in the FanPro days and provides a world by world account of the short lived war between the Draconis Combine and the Federated Commonwealth.  It seemed only natural to me that the Chaos Campaign rules could be used to present the battles fought into a story that BattleTech fans could readily re-live.

Re-released, here is a collection of tracks that I previously released in the Community Created Warchest thread.  This collection is updated, proofed, and put together in a handy PDF download.

For more information on the Chaos Campaign system I recommend the following:

• Chaos Campaign Rules
• Errata From the Forums, Scroll down for the official new calculation for Tech Rating

And here is Chaos Campaign: War of 3039 for your gaming enjoyment.

• Chaos Campaign – War of 3039 (PDF, 205K)

Download it, play it, and enjoy!  And while you are at it, I would be grateful for any additional input that would make it even better!  If you come across any issues with balance, grammar, or anything else that could use some spit and polish please let me know.

I hope you enjoy the campaign as much as it was for me to write it!  Happy gaming!

The Last Day of Zeta: A BattleTech Scenario

This scenario is based on the BattleCorps fiction of the same name.  It is one of the sadder tales within the BattleCorps library. On the barren and desolate surface of Mars one of the most storied units in the Inner Sphere meets it’s end .  The is hope that their sacrifice was not in vain.  Something lies within the sands of Mars.  The Dragoons knew something even ComStar was unaware of.  And that made the Word of Blake very very upset.

SITUATION

The Dismal D’s are gone.  All of the Dragoon Jumpships are either captured or destroyed.  No help is coming.  Zeta is surrounded by the Word of Blake Protectorate and there is no escape.

Weaker Mechwarriors would have given up.  They would have surrendered and prayed for the mercy of their defeaters.

But Zeta are not just any Mechwarriors.  They are the Zeta Battalion of Wolf’s Dragoons.

GAME SETUP

Arrange two maps as shown below.  The west map is Moonscape 1 and the east map is Moonscape 2.

DEFENDER

The Defender consists of elements from Wolf’s Dragoons Zeta Battalion.

Deployment

Zeta may begin the game anywhere on the battlefield.

ATTACKER

The Attacker is made up of several waves of units from the Word of Blake Protectorate.

Wave 1

Wave 2

Wave 3

Deployment

Wave 1 enters the game on turn 1 from any single map edge.  Waves 2 and 3 enter the game from any single map edge at the end of the turn during which the preceding wave is completely crippled or destroyed.

SPECIAL RULES

Buried in the Sand

Before the Defender deploys, the Word of Blake player may deploy up to two squads of Purifier Battle Armor as hidden units anywhere on the battlefield per Total Warfare pg 259.  These units may be hidden in clear hexes.

Extreme Cold (-50 C)

‘Mechs dissipate an additional 2 heat per turn.

Low Gravity (0.38 G)
(Tactical Operations pg 55)

Apply a +3 to-hit modifier to all missile and ballistic weapon attacks.

Multiply falling damage by 0.38 and round up.

‘Mechs and battle armor are capable of moving faster in lower G environments.  Use the following table to determine an adjusted walking and jumping MP.  Then recalculate the running MP normally.

(Game Note: We toned down the actual speed increase associated with Mars gravity due to some rather dramatic results from playtesting.  We knew something was seriously wrong when an assault star of clan Omnis gets steamrolled in four turns by Wave 1.  In this instance, we chose to trump the game rules as written in order to preserve game balance.  I hope you won’t mind.)

Every time a unit spends more MP than it’s standard running MP or jumps farther than it’s normal jumping MP, make a pilot skill roll.  If the roll fails, the ‘Mech takes 1 internal armor damage to each leg for every MP expended over it’s normal running MP and roll for possible criticals.

Trace Atmosphere
(Tactical Operations pg. 54)

Whenever any unit takes damage, roll 2D6.  On a result of 12 the section is breached.  Also, if all external armor is destroyed the section is automatically breached.

No End in Sight

In the unlikely event that the Wolf’s Dragoons player makes it past the third wave, simply repeat Wave 1 and so on until all of the Wolf’s Dragoons are destroyed.

VICTORY CONDITIONS

The Dragoons may claim a Marginal Victory if they can defeat Wave 1 and half of Wave 2.  They achieve Complete Victory if they defeat Wave 2 and a Major Victory if they can defeat half of Wave 3.

The Word of Blake may claim a Major Victory if they can destroy the unbelievers with Wave 1 alone.  They achieve a Complete Victory if they defeat the Dragoons with Wave 2 and a Marginal Victory if they have to bring in Wave 3.

Mark of the Jaguar is a scenario I’ve envisioned for some time now.  Ever since I read through the Unique Mech Record Sheets PDF (available as a FREE download at Battlecorps) I knew I wanted to spread the story of Cernunnos.

Do yourself a favor and add this PDF to your own collection.  There are many great stories inside.

I hope you enjoy this scenario.  I had a lot of fun making it!

MARK OF THE JAGUAR

“I wish I could have seen the look on that poor fool Drac pilot when he got visual.  I bet he dumped a load when he saw those damn spots we painted our ‘Mechs in.”

“Yea, I know.” Jacobs chuckled.  “The way he turned tail, he damn near tripped up getting out of his own way.”

The four men around the campfire laughed as the fading sunlight cast a fiery sheet of light on the horizon.  The wind was picking up.  No doubt a storm was heading their way.  Shame they wouldn’t get to enjoy the fire much longer.  The provisions and extra water from their last raid into the Draconis Combine would hold them off for some time no matter how bad the weather got.

“So what’s our next target Jacobs?” One of the other men asked after the laughter had died down.

Jacobs shot to his feet, his face twisting into a scowl.  “That’s Captain Jacobs you twit!”

The rest of the startled pirate lance glanced around uncomfortably, obviously waiting for the other to step in and attempt to calm the fuming lance leader.

“I run this lance and the lot of you should show some respect!”  Jacobs scanned the three seated men back and forth still irate over the apparent insult.

“Hey hey, calm down… Captain Jacobs,” Ryan said after a short silence trying to sound as sincere as possible. “Everybody knows you’re the boss.”

“You’re damn right I am!  It was my idea to paint up our ‘Mechs wasn’t it?!  You know how many times those chicken shit militia have gone walkabout when we showed up!”

A low and almost imperceptible rumble began underneath the four pirates.

“That may have been the best damn idea I’ve ever had!”  Jacobs stopped, suddenly aware of the rhythmic vibrations under his feet. “Hey, what the hell is that noise?”

SITUATION

Pirate forces in the Periphery have taken to painting their ‘Mechs in Clan Smoke Jaguar colors in order to intimidate those who would resist them during raids.  The tactic has proven very successful in striking fear in the hearts of their victims especially as reports of rogue Smoke Jaguar remnants begin to swirl around the Periphery.

Rezak’s Hole, a well known Pirate staging planet was recently the scene of a battle involving what is believed to be rogue elements from Clan Smoke Jaguar that managed to evade destruction on Huntress.  The alleged Smoke Jaguar force ambushed an isolated pirate raiding lance near a badlands oasis.

Hard facts from the encounter are hard to come by.  Operatives have been sent to access the situation and determine if any risk exists to our blessed order.

GAME SETUP

Arrange two Classic Battletech maps as shown below.  The east map is Open Terrain #2.  The west map is the standard Classic Battletech.

DEFENDER

The defenders consist of elements of a pirate raiding force known for painting their Battlemechs in Smoke Jaguar colors in order to intimidate their victims.

Mechwarriors

Battlemechs

DEPLOYMENT

The defender’s ‘Mechs begin the game on the West mapsheet in the locations shown below.  The Pirate player may choose which pilot goes in which ‘Mech and where each ‘Mech will be placed including facing.

ATTACKER

The attackers consists of elements from a renegade Smoke Jaguar Trinary led by a Clan Mechwarrior known only as Cernunnos.

DEPLOYMENT

The attacker enters the game on turn 1 from the east map edge.

SPECIAL CASE RULES

Caught With Their Pants Down

The Pirates are caught unprepared and need time to get all of their Battlemechs started up.

The Pirate player must nominate two of his ‘Mechs to start the game shutdown and immobile.  Before the game begins, the Pirate player writes down in secret one ‘Mech to start up on turn 3.  The remaining ‘Mech will start up on turn 6.

Dusk

Cernunnos often attacks at night in order to catch his prey off guard and out of their Battlemechs.

Apply a +1 to-hit modifier to all weapon attacks (not physical attacks).  For every 25 points of heat apply a -1 modifier  to all weapon attacks on that unit.

Moderate Gale

A brewing storm is the perfect opportunity to further disorient Cerunnos’ opponents.

Apply a +1 to-hit modifier to all missile weapon attacks.

VICTORY CONDITIONS

None Shall Live

These Dezgra will pay for their insult.  The Jaguar will show them no honor, no mercy!

The Smoke Jaguar player achieves a complete victory if all of the pirate ‘Mechs are crippled or destroyed.  A partial victory can be achieved by destroying three of the pirates and exiting Cernunnos off any map edge.

Escape!

Save who we can and get the hell out of here!

The Pirate player must exit at least half of his force through the Attacker’s home edge on turn seven or later to achieve a complete victory.  A partial victory can be achieved by destroying Cernunnos and escaping at least one ‘Mech off the Attacker’s home edge.

AFTERMATH

Another lance of Pirates were ambushed in the Periphery last week.  Investigators from the Explorer Corps once again are late to the show and found only a cold trail.  The local population remains uncooperative with media attempts to identify the source of the attack.  Rumors have been flying across the Periphery concerning the continued presence of these mysterious Clan forces and their ability to attack and evade capture seemingly at will.

No civilian casualties or collateral damage were reported.

The real question remains, what’s so bad about a few jittery Pirates anyhow?

This holiday scenario is based on the short story Ghost of Christmas Present by Michael Stackpole, available in the Battlecorps Anthology Volume I.

ANTI-NICK COMES TO TOWN

SITUATION

It is early Christmas morning and Anti-Nick is up to his old tricks again.  He’s making a list and checking it twice.  Have you and your lance mates been naughty or nice this year?  It’s time to find out in this Holiday slugfest!

GAME SET-UP

Included for this scenario is a custom map made from Heavy Metal Map inspired by the standard Battletech map we all know and love.  In lieu of the included map, use any map with at least some level three terrain.

ScrapYardArmory – Winter Wonderland

Printable PDF (1.75MB)

Low Resolution JPEG (2.69MB)

High Resolution JPEG (8.73MB)

DEFENDER

Deployment

The Defenders begin the game deployed anywhere on the mapsheet opposite the Attacker’s chosen map edge.

ATTACKER

Deployment

The Attackers choose a map edge at the beginning of the game.  They enter the game on turn one from the chosen map edge.

SPECIAL RULES

Not a Fit Night Out for Man Nor Beast

If you don’t like the weather, just wait. At the beginning of each turn, roll 1D6 and use the table below to determine the weather conditions in effect for that turn.

1. Light Snowfall, -1 Heat Points per Turn
2. Moderate Snowfall, -2 Heat Points per Turn, +1 To-Hit for all Ranged Weapon Attacks
3. Heavy Snowfall, -2 Heat Points per Turn, +1 To-Hit for all Ranged Weapon Attacks, +1 to all Piloting Rolls
4. Snow Flurries, -2 Heat Points per Turn, +2 To-Hit for Missile Attacks, +1 To-Hit all other Ranged Attacks
5. Ice Storm, -3 Heat Points per Turn, +1 To-Hit for Missile Attacks
6. Blizzard, -2 Heat Points per Turn, +2 To-Hit for all Direct Fire Ballistic Attacks, +3 To-Hit for Missile Attacks, +1 to all Piloting Rolls

At the beginning of the game, all hexes are considered thin snow which has no effect on game play.  Any unit with a flamer or incendiary missiles may attack a thin snow hex to turn it into mud.  Roll 2D6 for each attempt.  A result of 8 or better turns the hex into mud.  Mud requires 1 additional MP to enter and inflict a +1 modifier to all piloting skill rolls.  Units in mud may become bogged down.  See Tactical Operations page 62 for details.  (Feel free to skip the bogged down rules if you don’t own Tactical Operations or you just don’t feel like it)

On turn 6, all thin snow hexes become deep snow (mud stays as mud).  Deep snow requires an additional 1 MP to enter and all piloting skill rolls suffer a +1 modifier.  All leg mounted heat sinks will sink 1 additional heat per turn.  Prone ‘Mechs will sink an additional 3 heat per turn.  Detailed rules for thin and deep snow are in Tactical Operations if players wish to have the full experience.  However, the rules as presented here are more than enough to play the scenario.

Avalanche!

On or after turn 6 an avalanche is possible.  Deep snow at level three or higher may be attacked in order to trigger an avalanche.  For each 20 points of damage delivered per phase (That’s right, you could get two rolls a turn if you manage to do 20 points of damage by kicking the snow drifts!), roll 2D6.  On an 8 or better an avalanche is triggered.

An avalanche is resolved during the end phase of the turn it is triggered.  Once a hex begins an avalanche, all adjacent level 3 hexes also avalanche.  An avalanche begins slowly and then picks up steam following the fall line.   ‘Mechs in the path of an avalanche will take damage and be forced to make a piloting roll to avoid falling.

Use the chart below to determine damage based on where the ‘Mech is in relation to the fall line.  Note: If a ‘Mech is swept away in an avalanche, the unit takes damage in this way for each additional hex it is forced to enter (see below).

The base damage is the victim’s tonnage divided by 10.  Multiply this value by the damage multiplier in the chart below.  The base damage is multiplied by the difference in levels between the ‘Mech and the top of the avalanche minus the number of level 0 hexes traversed by the avalanche.   ie. A ‘Mech on level 1 terrain is 2 hexes lower than the level of the avalanche.  The damage suffered is the base damage times 2.  A ‘Mech on level 0 terrain with 2 intervening level 0 terrain between it and the avalanche start point would only have a multiplier of 1.

‘Mechs need to make a piloting skill roll to determine if they fall from the impact of the snow.  Make a piloting roll with the modifiers listed in the chart below.  The piloting roll is also modified by the number of intervening level 0 hexes similar to the damage roll.  If the piloting roll fails, the ‘Mech falls and is swept away in the direction of the fall line.  Take damage and make a seat belt check normally before continuing.  If two or more possible routes exist, choose the destination hex randomly.  Modify the piloting skill roll using the chart below.

‘Mechs with jump jets get a -2 modifier to this check but only once on the first attempt.  A piloting roll is made for every hex the unit is swept into to attempt to stop using the same modifiers.

An avalanche will not continue past 3 hexes on level 0 terrain and never goes uphill.  An avalanche may only be started once per hill.

An Example

‘Mech A has triggered an avalanche in 1403.  Since 1304 is adjacent to the avalanche start point, it also begins to avalanche.  ‘Mech A is on level 2 terrain and takes damage equal to it’s tonnage divided by 10 times 1.  After assigning damage, ‘Mech A makes a check to see if he falls and is swept away.  Looking at the chart, he sees that his piloting skill (3) is modified by +4 since he is 1 hex lower than the start point, level 3.  However, he has jump jets and gets a -2 modifier for the first attempt!  ‘Mech A needs a 5 to avoid the avalanche and rolls a 6, success!  Good thing he had jump jets to evade the snow!

‘Mech B is 2 hexes from the nearest avalanche start point.  He is on level 0, which means he would take 3 times the base damage from the snow.  However, since there are two intervening level 0 terrain, the multiplier is only 1.  After assigning damage ‘Mech B looks at the chart and subtracts 2 (the number of intervening level 0 terrain) from the piloting modifier.  His piloting skill is 4 and his modifier is +4 (base +6 – 2 for intervening level 0 terrain).  He has no jump jets so he needs an 8.  ‘Mech B rolls a 7, curses!  ‘Mech B will take falling damage normally and then be swept away along the fall line of the avalanche.  There are two possible locations after being swept away, 0903 and 0904.  The players agree to dice off the location.  After moving to 0903, ‘Mech B is done because there are now 3 intervening level 0 hexes between him and the top of the avalanche.  Had the ‘Mech been closer to the hill, he would have taken another round of damage at his new location and another piloting skill roll to avoid being swept away again!

‘Mech C can count 3 hexes of intervening level 0 terrain so the avalanche stops just short of his hex!

VICTORY CONDITIONS

Whoever cries uncle first is declared naughty for the rest of the evening!  The loser must serve the winner a cup of hot chocolate after the game (or whatever their beverage of choice is).

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Announcing the very first scenario available at the Scrapyard Armory.

The scenario is based on the MechWarrior: Dark Age novel Masters of War by Michael A. Stackpole.  I hope you get the chance to give it a try.  I’ve playtested it with my gaming group.  I have to admit it is a bit rough on the Clan Wolf player but not impossible. Enjoy!

I want to offer more of these in the future including some scenarios that feature the Warchest system.  Stay tuned!

MASTERS OF WAR

SITUATION

Clan Wolf, a coordinated series of raids and invasions is striking at the heart of the Inner Sphere.  The Republic is in disarray and quite possibly, may shatter as the Wolves reach for what has evaded every Clan since the initial invasion in 3050, Terra.

Not all is as it seems and Alaric Wolf, a legend among the Wolves, has a personal vendetta to fulfill.  While on Nusakan he faces down a full lance against his lone ‘Omni to take back what is rightfully his and further his own agenda.

GAME SETUP

Arrange two Classic Battletech maps as shown below.  The West Map is a standard Classic Battletech map.  The East Map is River Delta #2.

DEFENDER

The defenders consist of the command lance of the mercenary Colton’s Screaming Demons.

DEPLOYMENT

The Screaming Demons begin the scenario within three hexes of the right most map edge.

ATTACKER

The attacker is Alaric Wolf of Clan Wolf.

DEPLOYMENT

Alaric Wolf begins the scenario within three hexes of the left most map edge.

SPECIAL CASE RULES

Each side starts the scenario with one EDGE point. EDGE can be used to re-roll any die roll such as a to-hit roll, hit-location roll, etc. The new roll stands and may not be re-rolled again.

The Screaming Demons are infuriated after losing a significant number of ‘Mechs to aerospace fighter strafing runs prior to the trial being called. Alaric Wolf wins initiative automatically the first three turns.

If Aynn Colton’s Axeman is destroyed, the Screaming Demons suffer from a -2 Initiative modifier for the remainder of the game.

VICTORY CONDITIONS

The Cameras are Rolling

Aynn Colton’s Screaming Demons are more bravado than actual fighting skill. Since this fight is pre-arranged, she made sure to alert the local media. The Screaming Demons achieve a partial victory if she performs a successful close combat attack with her hatchet.

The Screaming Demons win a complete victory if they are able to defeat Alaric Wolf.

The Strong Command the Weak

Alaric Wolf is using this battle as a proxy for a Trial of Position. He needs to be able to prove to the units under his command that he is fit to lead them. Alaric achieves a partial victory if he can destroy three of the four mercenaries. Alaric achieves a complete victory if he manages to destroy all the mercenaries.

AFTERMATH

Alaric Wolf put his amazing skill on display and picked apart the opposing Mercenary force one by one until only Aynn Colton remained.  In a daring move, Ann attempted to rush the dangerous Clan ‘Omni only to be cut down by Alaric’s deadly array of particle cannons and lasers.

By eliminating the Screaming Demons in combat, Alaric won the battle for the planet and set the table for his next confrontation, one that would test his skills even further.

Posted under Scenario