This ‘Mech will be joining the ranks of my Free Worlds League Militia.  The mini did have some bad mold lines running along the shoulder pads but that was it.  The jumping pose was a bit of a pain to put together although that was expected.

I ended up clipping the foot of the exhaust blast’s base because it would not fit in a standard hex base.  I would think that would be a requirement for minis these days.  A minor gripe on an otherwise gorgeous miniature.

Overall the mini was a joy to paint.  The panel lines were crisp and there was plenty of detail to elaborate on. A great sculpt to paint!

I’m a bit disappointed in my pictures.  I’m afraid that my highlighting efforts on the colored bands ended up being washed out by my camera.  That could very well have been compounded by the fact that I did not have the right lighting available.  The day I took these pictures was very overcast which forced me to reply on spot lighting from desk lamps for illumination.  I’ve always gotten better results when more natural light was available.

After a lot of writing and more than a few delays, the ScrapYardArmory is pleased to bring you our second full length Chaos Campaign.  This time the battles take place during the beginning of the Clan Invasion but in a very unusual location.  Not all is what it seems on the edge of the Federated Commonwealth.

Chaos Campaign – Pirate Haven (PDF, 242 KB)

Chaos Campaign tracks are a blast to write and its even more fun to share.  If you have a great idea, why not write your own track and share it with the community?  There already is a well traveled thread on the official forums with loads of great user generated content.  Do your part to keep it going.

The Community Created Warchest Tracks

I hope you enjoy the tracks.  That said, I am always receptive to feedback so if you find some glaring mistake or find a balance issue while reading or playing, please shoot me an email so I can make the correction.

I’m already thinking about the setting for my next Chaos Campaign.  Should I turn to Operation Klondike?  Or maybe the Succession Wars?  Leave a comment and let me know what you would prefer!

Related: Chaos Campaign: War of 3039

Inevitably the game’s turns begin to grind.  Full turns are measured in hours not minutes.  You spend more time waiting for your turn than actually executing your movement or attacks.  At least you can drive to pick up some pizza without missing much.

The strategy and tactics necessary to win are lost in the confusion.  Each individual player has little to do with the overall outcome.  There are few opportunities to make good strategic advances when six other people on the team are planning their own opportunities.  The game becomes less personnel, where the strategy and tactics of the individual mean less to the overall success of the mission.

There are obvious exceptions to the rule but in my experience a majority of large convention games regress to an impersonal ‘Mech smashing fest (not that there is anything wrong with that).  If there are more than four players at the table, you can probably kiss goodbye any chance you had at making a meaningful impact on the course of the game.  I wanted a change and set out to make a big game with lots of players who all had a chance to make a difference in the big picture.  Here are my goals.

• Make it Personal – Each player should feel they made an impact on the game.
• Make it Fast – Nobody likes a game that does not come to a reasonable conclusion or turns that drag on and on.

Along Came Historicon 2010

I wanted to try something different and Historicon gave me my  opportunity.  I was on the hook to run one big game for up to 12 people.  My plan was to make a massive battle with ‘Mechs, Combat Vehicles, Battle Armor, Aerospace Fighters, and Artillery (Oh My!).

This game would ultimately use Total Warfare, Tactical Operations, and Strategic Operations.  How cool is that?  We have all of these cool rules so why not use them?

How It Works

Break open your Total Warfare books and read along.  These rules in conjunction with Tactical and Strategic Operations are the back bone of this big game experience.

The foundation of the big game came from using a low altitude map for the Aerospace dogfight.  On this map, each hex represents one ground mapsheet on which the ‘Mechs and Vehicles are fighting.  We used four standard battles each two maps large.

Using numbered BattleForce blip counters, I marked the relevant maps on the low altitude maps.  When a fighter ended movement on one of those hexes I carefully notified the ground forces of their presence.

I say carefully since aerospace fighters move after ground troops.  They should have the privilege to see where the ‘Mechs are and how they are facing before determining their final location.  I allowed ground forces to move at the same time as the fighters to save time.

Synchronized Turns

To keep things running smoothly all of the turns need to be aligned.  When the aerospace fighters swoop in for a strafing run, you had better let the ground troops know there is a fighter in their map so they can act accordingly in the weapons attack phase.

I chose to use a relatively simple solution to keep everyone in sync.  Each battle had a half sheet of paper marked READY (green) on one side and NOT READY (red) on the other.  At the beginning of each turn the players flipped the paper to NOT READY.  With a quick glance I could see who was done and who was still resolving combat.

On a few occasions some players finished well ahead of the other battles.  More experienced players will tend to do that.  However, I also think the force selection had something to do with it.  For future battles done in this style I will try harder to match the average weight and tech level in each battle to avoid major mismatches between battles.

The other half of that problem is when one battle lags behind the others.  That happened twice where a relatively inexperienced player was playing.  Given that no fighters were in their hex, I waited a few minutes and started the other turns.  I simply asked them to head right into their next turn when ready.  That will always be a judgment call based on the activity of the fighter battle but it worked out for us.

Aerospace Support

Using fighters in low altitude requires a good read through of the rules and demands the attention of your most experienced players.  It is a very critical role to fill with many crucial decisions.  When to make a strike run?  Where to position your forces?  How low do you go for fear of becoming a lawn dart?

Total Warfare is not the best tome for parsing all the various rules required to play Aerospace.  That said, I had prepared a cheat sheet to help players who are new to the dog fighting and strafing world of air-to-ground combat.

Fighter Reference Sheet – PDF (45 KB)

The coup de grâce of the game was going to be a fully loaded Leapord Dropship for each side.  Combat drop rules would be used to inject ‘Mechs into the various battles.  Watching the pace of the ground battles I chose to keep the dropships in reserve.  I didn’t see the kind of casualties I thought would require the use of a new lance per side and instead let the battles run their course.

Having thought about it, I wish I had let the players have at it.  The downside would be the potential unbalancing of one battle or another.  However, I believe the coolness factor of combat dropping ‘Mechs would have been worth it.  Plus, any combat dropped ‘Mechs are sitting ducks for at least one turn at best.  Ample opportunity to take cover from opposing ‘Mechs on the ground and point all weapons to the skies!

Fire for Effect

Artillery is an inspiring tool for some and ignored by others.  Each team had access to off board artillery (1 turn flight time) in the form of one Sniper and one Long Tom.  Requests for artillery were delivered to me on note cards and I assigned rounds to the battles in the event that there were more requests than available strikes.

Artillery made for some very interesting situations but did not turn the tide in any battle by itself.  A beautiful example was the city fight.  The first turn, both called artillery on the other when most units were walking along the roads out of LOS.  The damage was brilliant.  Each round struck multiple targets and delivered consequential damage.  The turn after, the ‘Mechs moved the hell off the roads!  It changed the dynamic of the game without breaking it.

‘Mechs are still kings of the battlefield.  Artillery is a spice that was fun and managed to change the tempo for some but not all of the games.  With  a GM running the battle on the sidelines, the note card system worked well but could have used a standard format for requests.

The Report

In a stunning display of combined arms antics, the opening turn saw all four fighters from the Marik side diving into the nearest battle to strike at an enemy Warhammer.  Unfortunately for the fighter group, without any other targets to worry about on turn 1, the entire Lyran lance opened up on the Transit and blasted it out of the sky with a(n) (un-)fortunate fuel tank hit.  Already one fighter down, the Marik player continued to harass ground targets while being picked apart by enemy fighters in the air.

Meanwhile on the ground, the battle raged back and forth but saw a distinct advantage starting to build for the Lyrans.

It was late in the game when the Lyrans won complete air superiority but still the Lyran air commander decided to mostly concentrate on the last remaining Marik fighter.

In the end, the Lyrans had enough of an edge in the ground games to secure final victory for the overall battle.  And with air superiority firmly in grasp there was no stopping the Lyrans.

I had lots of compliments on the game.  Every player with a few obvious exceptions was 100% engaged in the game the entire time.  There were a few turns where one battle finished way early and two occasions where the group was waiting on one battle to finish.  Still, turns averaged a half hour a piece and we got through 8 complete turns in our allotted time with a clear winner at the end.

There was a base battle value (not accounting for pilot’s skill) of over 55,000 in play which included 32 ‘Mechs, 8 vehicles, 1 Battle Armor, and 8 aerospace fighters and we finished the game in less than 5 hours to a clear victor.  Given the opportunity, I’d love to do it again and I bet it would be even better having learned from this first go.

It was a late night and thus a relatively late morning on Sunday.  I had a short list of games to demo and things to buy.  Sunday is the opportunity to shop for all the items that caught your eye during the weekend.

Iron Wind Metals with all the archive figures available (at regular retail prices) and newly organized Battle Armor was too much for me to ignore.  I stocked up on a few archived Solaris ‘Mechs and augmented my supply of Battle Armor.  Shame that some of the Word of Blake Battle Armor were sold out.  I came just a bit too late to snag them.

The Iron Wind Metals booth was being mobbed in the morning.  There were a lot of people who had the same idea as I did and planned to do their shopping on Sunday.

The Iron Wind Metals crew were doing a great job getting product into the hands of happy gamers.  Each had access to alphabetized product list to quickly point gamers towards their desired forces from the neatly organized product shelves.  Well done by all.

After getting my fill of ‘Mechs and BattleArmor I wandered around and got in a few more demos before being forced to wrap it all up and head to the airport.

Hell Dorado

Hell Dorado takes place in the 16th century where mankind finds a way to open a portal to hell.  And then someone had a great idea to try to colonize the place.  Mayhem ensues.

While the story is compelling and the miniature range gorgeous, the combat rules were a very vanilla D6 system.  The command and faith stats and related abilities gives a certain amount of uniqueness from other games, but not enough to redeem the system.  It was fun don’t get me wrong, but like most other games I had the opportunity to demo, it lacked a hook to differentiate it from the crowd.

Super Dungeon from Soda Pop Miniatures

The crew from Soda Pop Miniatures was in a booth with Cool Mini Or Not with their lineup of products and a curiously delicious looking 3D game board (I swear it looks like cotton candy from a distance).  This game had the best pitch of any game I demo’d while at the con.  That’s pretty good considering this was the last day when most vendors have lost their voice and perhaps some of their motivation.

So I approach the booth interested in the colorful table and the miniatures.  The vendor asks me if I have time for a demonstration and I say yes.  Last day of the convention, why not?

“You’ve already played this game.”, he says to me.

I pause long enough to give him a funny look.  He senses my confusion and goes in for the kill.  This game is the physical embodiment of the 8-bit/16-bit classic dungeon crawls we all grew up playing on our Nintendo and Sega machines.  From the heroic party to the Kobold hordes, every miniature and gameplay mechanic has a nostalgic purpose.

In the quick demo, I chose two heros (the dwarf fighter and the mage) and my mission was to knock out the two monster generators on the board.  Each generator spawns up to four Kobolds each turn.  Hilarious combat and gratuitous loot gathering ensues.

For every three monsters you kill on your turn you get to pick out of the loot deck.  Each card has it’s stats in a particular orientation to denote its slot.  A fully loaded hero can use four items, one on each of its sides.

About half way through the dungeon my Dwarf was taking heavy damage and was having a difficult time dealing with the Kobold Shaman and Knights.  I needed potions in a bad way.  And now for a hook.  Each attack has a particular color describing a custom die to be thrown.  All die have stars that indicate how much power an attack does but there are also hearts on red dice and potions on blue dice.  If you manage to do damage to a monster with hearts or potions showing on other dice, you get healed or receive potions!

My choice was clear, equip a staff of thwacking (+3 blue dice) and bop all of the weakest Kobolds on the head until they spit out enough potions.  My newly healed Dwarf cleaved his way into the pack giving the Mage enough time to sneak into range of the last generator and blast it for the win.

All together this was a super super cute game.  I think even my wife would love to play it just for the aesthetics.  The combat system is unique and has a fresh nostalgic feel that you will instantly understand and make good use of.  The standard game will have one player play the Heros while the other takes the role of the Dungeon Keeper.

I had lots of fun in the brief demonstration and a refreshing break from the QuickStrike beatdown I received late last night.

The Tower of Gygax

Before leaving the convention my arm was twisted and I begrudgingly took a turn in the Tower of Gygax role playing game.  My thief character lasted a whole 32 minutes before being killed by a blind Gargoyle.

Admittedly it was a good bit of fun and the money generated from the tickets will go to charity which is another bonus.  Not a bad way to kill the last hour or so of GenCon.

Game Over

GenCon this year was great.  Part of the fun I had was just knowing my way around and using my time wisely.  I think I saw and did more and had more fun this year due to my knowledge of years past.

I hope everyone enjoyed the BattleTech and non-BattleTech pictures and information.  I hope that I will have the opportunity to make it next year.

The BattleTech Open

I participated in the open this year and had a blast.  Each round features a choice of six ‘Mech pairings.  The first round is Inner Sphere Introductory Tech.  The second round is Inner Sphere Tournament Tech and the last round is Clan.

My first game I won with heavy losses.  Early in the game my opponent set up his Hammerhands on a map edge.  I took a chance and lined up my Chameleon for a push.  I survived weapons fire and made a 7 in the physical phase.  Poof, no more Hammerhands.  The Chameleon’s luck ran out quickly and was de-legged in one last gasp by the Hammerhands. The rest of the match was a slug fest by the two remaining units.  My slightly better pilot and heavier ‘Mech was the decider and I moved on to the next round with a win.

Not a great start but good enough to still be in the running.

My second match was a nail biter.  The battle was played on only one mapsheet which made it fast and brutal.  The TSM on my Vindicator was not the game changer I thought it could be and in the final three or so turns, my opponent deftly maneuvered his last mobile ‘Mech into positions where I could not get shots to his front or side arc.  Having not finished off an earlier tactical kill, I got the short end of the points.  Still a close game where both players got decent scores.

The last game was a matter of dice rolls.  What would we expect from Clan Heavies and Assaults?  I took the pairing with 3 ERPPCs and 2 Large Pulse Lasers.  The pulse weapons did not turn out to be the boon I was expecting.  After killing one ‘Mech each, we brutalized each other until each of us had a single ‘Mech with an ERPPC and an AP Gauss Rifle each.  For at least three rounds we circled each other until the final blow was delivered.  This was the closest game and could have gone either way with one fortunate dice roll.  It was a defeat but a high scoring one.

I know I didn’t win but I’m anxious to see how my final score compared with the rest of the field.  Supposedly this will be posted on the forums.  I can’t wait.

The tournament was good fun but could have been better prepared.  All of the record sheets for the pairings were not available at the start of the tournament.  Spots at the provided tables and chairs could also have been sectioned off in some way to guarantee space for the pairings to play their games.

Finally there has to be a way for the Demo Agents running the event to communicate information to the players without straining their already frayed voices.  By Saturday every other Agent had lost their voice from yelling over the crowds of Battletech fans.  Maybe a projector or a bull horn would help them herd the cats necessary to pull off the tournament efficiently.

Diorama Take Two

Each day the diorama takes on a slightly different layout as pieces are moved around and put in different places.  There is so much detail to see that I don’t always catch everything the first time.  Here are a few more pictures of the display for those unable to be here to see it in person.

The null sig Executioner was custom cast out of an Alumilite mold.  The acrylic casting material was supposed to be clear but the catalyst agent used to make the mold (which is yellow) leached into the finished product.  It still looks amazing and I wouldn’t have known it was an undesired effect without having talked to the CamoSpecs guys.

Flight School

Flight school, the introduction to low altitude fighter combat was a small draw this year.  Part of the low turnout was due to a scheduling error but certainly there was not as much interest in fighters as there was for the grinders.  That said, I hope they don’t get discouraged from offering it next year.  Variety is a strength of the BattleTech system that should be promoted.

Battle The Masters

This year the format for the game changed and for the better.  Instead of one massive game that lasted only three short turns, this time around the Masters were split up across five different games.  The fans banded together to take on the Masters and show them what for.

The event had a rocky start and did not begin until a full hour after it’s scheduled start.  Setup wasn’t even begun until 10PM which is a shame.  Catalyst owes their fans better, especially when most have paid quite a bit to get themselves to the convention and entry into the event.  I’m sure most had a good time despite, but I would rather see the Demo Team deliver on the expectation of well prepared and on time events.

I don’t think that is too much to ask.

Appropriately enough, the game ended with a tactical nuke strike on one of the battles courtesy of “Teh Pope”!

Mini Contest Results!

The CamoSpecs crew did a great job this year and took a first and fourth place finish.  It wasn’t the sweep of years past but still a great showing from some great artists.  The exposure for Iron Wind Metals is fantastic.  Seeing these ‘Mechs painted so well is inspiration for  gamers such as myself that even ‘Mechs can be beautiful.

Return of Late Night Quick Strike

One night of QuickStrike just isn’t enough especially when we are in the late hours of a GenCon Saturday.  This mission featured two Inner Sphere companies and one Clan Binary per side.  That would be 68 units in total.

By the end of the night it was seven on about fourteen (~70% casualties).  The game was fast paced and lots of fun.  If you have not played QuickStrike you need to.  It is the highlight of Strategic Operations.

The terrain for this event was provided by Wild Child Gaming, a new terrain company that is in the process of forming.  I can’t say enough about their work, the game looked fantastic.

GenCon Moment

It’s around dinner time and I’m running around dropping stuff off at the hotel.  For those who have experienced rush hour convention hotel elevators, you know it can be a mess.  They are crammed with people all trying to get from point A to point B and it always takes longer than you ever think possible to get to the damn lobby.

So I finally get into an elevator packed with people and am heading down to the ground floor.  I look left, I look right, and I realize that I am in an elevator with the entire cast of The Guild!  I geek out and am able to take one poorly framed picture before I reach my destination floor.

Of course they were busy with their own conversations/phone calls, so there was no time to ask questions or say more than a quick greeting.  Still, I was in an elevator with The Guild at GenCon.  Sweet!

Claustrophobia

Back to some non-BattleTech games.  I originally saw an online video for Claustrophobia and liked it enough to give it a try at the demo tables in the Asmodee booth.  The game has a similar feel to Decent.  It’s a dungeon crawl game where one player plays the heros trying to escape the dungeon while another plays the monsters, intent on killing the dungeon divers at all costs.

The game plays fast once the rules are taught and the damage and dice initiative system is unique and refreshing.

I don’t know that I would run out and buy it today, but it is an interesting game with a lot of promise.

Dark Age

Dark Age is a far future skirmish game on a distant planet long forgotten by a collapsed galactic empire.  The story and the miniatures are excellent.  The visuals are stunning and the game has a distinct flavor to it that is unique.

However the actual combat system is a bit mundane.  It’s a D20 system with the usual stat lines you would expect from the genre.  Par for the course unfortunately.  The one interesting element I took away from the demo was the possibility of cascading charges.  Whenever a unit bases another, it gets a free action to attack (charging).  Units with several actions can bounce from one enemy to another assuming they kill each in succession.

All together not a bad game but not one I would want to pick up.

I spoke with the Iron Wind Metals guys for a bit.  The smaller BattleForce Mechs are indeed going to be for sale sometime in 2011.  There are a few more sculpts being made to fill out the line before being offered up.

What’s Up with Catalyst and BattleTech

First up, Loren Colman took the floor and dealt with the elephant in the room.  There are lots of rumors flying around but it is not the intent of these seminars to confirm or deny rumors or missinformation.  Yes the company is having problems.  Problems they are dealing with.  They would much rather spend their time focusing on what is important, the fans and the game.

Topps is in fact flying in to GenCon to spend time with Catalyst and is in talks for a long term licensing deal.

On BattleTech:

The box set missed GenCon but as Brent the Art Director pointed out, “For what is worth, it’s not our fault.”  To which Randall had to add.

I’ve never wanted to punch a baby seal doll more in my life. -RB

That said, the box set is due in the fall.  A Time if War is due in the winter (December).  Era Report 3052 will be a sourcebook with roleplay support.  Moving into 2011 we are looking at two Jihad books, Reckoning and field manual 3085.  Reckoning will cover the founding of the Republic as well as Word of Blake weapons and systems that were not widely deployed and/or kept under wraps after the war.

2011 will also see the Liao Handbook, Interstellar Ops, the Clan Box Set, and Historical: Reunification War.

There was little revealed about the War of Reaving or the Ares class BattleMech.  That said, there was ample innuendo that after the Jihad wraps up, the Clan Homeworlds would be due for some attention.

One interesting note is the fact that the Starterbook line did not do as well as was hoped.  Future releases if any would most likely be a PDF release only.

On Leviathans:

It’s a cool game and Catalyst wants to be a cool company that makes cool stuff.  There is no release date yet.  Catalyst wants to make the box set the biggest and baddest box set they have ever produced.  That would make for a price point around $80-100 which is roughly on par with the biggest from companies like Fantasy Flight Games.

That could all fall through if they can’t make it all fit in that price package but they are striving for it.

Here are some fun quotes, paraphrased of course.

Herb is the Line Developer for BattleTech when I let him. – RB

Ergo, it’s like a BattleTech rules debate. -HB

Painting Contest

Here are the BattleTech entries I saw in the painting display yesterday.  No doubt they are from some of the best at CamoSpecs.  Lets wish them the best as the compete against the field in the Machines of War category.

Late Night Quick Strike

Late at night what else is there to do but bash ‘Mechs in an impromptu Quick Strike battle with the Camo Specs artists and a few battalions of our nearest and dearest ‘Mechs.  We were looking at around 50% casualties after the second turn and at the end there were far more broken ‘Mech carcasses than there were active.  It was a lot of fun and I hope that QuickStrike makes it into the official schedule next year.

Other Games

I can’t write about everything I do and see in the exhibitor hall but here are a few highlights.  I wanted to get into a few others but crowds made it impossible to squeeze into a demo.  I have two more days to get those in and I expect I’ll get my chance eventually.

AE-WWII

I took a quick demo to try out this game.  It features a D6 system similar to WH40K. Roll to hit, roll to save.  The miniatures look great and stat cards are not official but fans have found ways to make their own.  Not a bad game but I felt it lacked a hook to make it unique and interesting.

Castle Panic

Not every game has to be a dark and scary theme.  This light hearted co-op board game has you protecting the castle from a swarm of orcs, goblins and other monsters intent on sacking and pillaging.  The board is divided into rings and colors.  The players will take their turns using their hand to attack specific locations on the board to keep the monsters away.  You can also repair walls and fortify defenses if you fall behind.  A very interesting game and fun too.  Not for everyone but this is one you can bring home for younger children.

Balance of Power

Balance of Power has super simple rules with very complex strategy.  There are three kinds of pieces; bankers, generals, and kings.  On your turn you can move or duplicate.  You gain points for taking over territories.  But you can only move one of each type of piece and you can’t have more than three units per territory.  My brain is spinning at the possibilities of this game.  When it comes out, it is sure to win over some fans.

Last Night on Earth

This zombie board game has been out for a while but I’ve never played it before.  They also had a martian invader themed addition which will be compatible with the original.  Long story short the zombies ate us in short order but we had fun splattering what brains we could.  A fun game and a worthy addition to a zombie fans board game library.

M.E.R.C.S Take Two

I did another game of M.E.R.C.S because I enjoyed it so much the first time.  We incorporated some advanced rules like bounding (coordinated move-fire actions to cover more ground than normal) and played two complete games in the time allowed.  Each faction won one game which I think is good news for game balance.

One of the most important features I saw was that an individual initiative system with over 10 figures on the board will work.

All The Rest

Conventions are awesome…

Catalyst Game Labs gaming area moved this year.  The Wabash room just a stones throw away from the exhibitor hall was the previous home for Catalyst as well as Privateer.  This year there is a long corridor that snakes its way behind the exhibitor room and out into an enormous gaming space known as Hall F.

Catalyst is tucked in the middle between Heroscape and Heroclicks.  Privateer our pseudo convention gaming competitor (all in good fun…) is within spitting distance.

Wabash was always a noisy venue.  It will be interesting to see if the new space changes the audio quality at all.  More on that at the end of the convention.

Catalyst and Iron Wind Metals

Catalyst Game Labs in in their usual location within the exhibitor hall in a huge space in front of the main doors.  Iron Wind is tucked into a nearby space which is small but jam packed.  The shelves are filled with thousands of ‘Mechs, Vehicles, and Infantry including every single archive unit at regular prices.

The only thing I really missed was the Introductory Box set.  It’s unfortunate that they could not get them in for GenCon but I’m sure they tried their hardest.

The seminars are tomorrow so perhaps there is still hope that they have a surprise waiting.

CamoSpecs Diorama

This years diorama takes place on Terra near Cairo.  It’s the Liberation of Terra and there is little else to talk about so lets just get to some pictures.

Other Games and More Pictures

There is more to GenCon than BattleTech alone and I made a full day of games and demos.  Here are just a  few highlights.

Leviathans

I took in a quick Leviathans demo for an hour outside the massive hall F.  The event was filled and at least three people turned away when they saw the huddle of gamers around the single map.

I like the basic system.  The attack and damage system is robust and unique.  It was very easy to learn and after the first turn, myself and the rest of the group were rolling dice themselves.  We had three chances to crack the keel on various targets but didn’t have the dice rolls to make it happen.  An enjoyable system and perhaps worth a box set purchase in the future.

The only thing I found lacking was the movement portion of the turn.  There was little to do strategically besides rotate your ship around to spread damage.  I’ve heard that torpedoes (damn the torpedoes!!!) and other advanced features would make the movement phase more interesting.  As it is, there is no terrain in the air.  No way to jump into woods for cover.

M.E.R.C.S

MERCS is a new gaming company who originally made miniatures alone but is now expanding with an infantry skirmish rules set.

I was late to the demo but still managed to get in a complete game from start to finish in under an hour all while learning the rules.

The premise of the game is small unit tactics.  Each unit has a card that has stats but also serves as a movement template.  Each stat card is packed with information which can be foreboding for a new player but it gets easy quickly.  I enjoyed the game and may look into getting some of the miniatures.  Some of them could be stand ins for light battle armor in a Time of War game.

Warlord: Ebentop Cavern Crawl

Like massive dungeon crawls?  This map was amazing.  The Warlord rules were simple and easy to learn.  The combat was fast and furious.  What else can you ask for?  ‘Mechs will always have their place, but sometimes you just need to bury a sword in the skull of a Gnoll.

All The Rest

Welcome to Cairo

Arrival and Badge Pickup

I had a much earlier arrival time this year which gave me additional time to explore the area, eat and stock up on the essentials.

There is a lot of media and advertising about a major expansion in the works to expand the Indiana Convention Center in part to accommodate the growing needs of GenCon and other conventions.  The construction is obvious and I’m optimistic about the proposal.  Allegedly this expansion will provide extra room for the big dogs but is not intended to bring the entire Convention within the confines of the Indiana Convention center.  The need for intimate settings will require the use of outside connected hotels.  That’s the theory anyways.  Time will be the judge.

Pickup BattleTech Game

Amid the scramble of late comers waiting to pick up their badges and tickets, I found the time to get in some impromptu BattleTech games using basic maps, introductory box set miniatures and a binder filled with record sheets from battles long past.

These items travel light and make it possible to enjoy BattleTech with a minimum of inconvenience.  Sure beats sitting in the hotel room with nothing to do but watch bad television.

There was an almost constant stream of on lookers and passers by whose interest ranged from a quick glance to detailed conversations.  The refrain from the most interested had a common theme.  “I haven’t  played BattleTech in years!”

Even with the surge BattleTech experienced in the last three to five years, there is a huge community of gamers who moved on long ago and haven’t yet been brought back to the BattleTech world.  Nostalgia is a strong pull.

Lets hope my luck turns as the weekend continues.  I decidedly lost my first game and my second is not looking good.

Requests Taken

Please please let me know if there are any specific events you’d like a photograph of or a question you would like to be asked.  GenCon comes but once a year and I’d hate to have squandered an opportunity to help a fan who can’t be here in person. Part of the fun of coming to GenCon is being able to share it with all my readers.

So, if you have a request, leave a comment and I’ll do my best to make it happen.

Radstat

In 3074 The Word of Blake assaulted Radstadt, a core world in the newly formed Ghost Bear Dominion.  Elements of the Bear’s Sigma Galaxy were on a training assignment when the 43rd Shadow division clashed with the trueborn warriors of the Third Claw and 5th Bear regulars.

Clan Ghost Bear – Sigma Galaxy

• Arcas (3/4)
• Warhammer IIC 4 (3/4)
• Supernova 2 (3/3)
• Bane 2 (3/5)
• Kodiak 3 (2/3)
• Tyr Infantry Support Tank (2/2) x 2
• Golem Battle Armor (2/2)
• Rogue Bear Battle Armor (2/2)

Word of Blake – 43rd Shadow Division

• Preta Dominus (2/2) *
• Flashman 7B (2/3)
• Seraph Dominus (3/3) *
• Seraph Infernus (3/3)
• Archangel Infernus (2/1)
• Archangel Dominus (3/3) *
• Purifier Battle Armor (2/2)
• Challenger MK XI (3/3)

* indicate Manei Domini pilots

Turn 1 and 2 – Ghost Bears win Initiative Both Turns

The armies are separated by a large winding hill in the center of the battle.  As such, the first two turns feature little action.  Line of sight is blocked as each force slowly stalks forward in a foreboding line.

The Word of Blake stay relatively concentrated in a tight group to the North.  A Preta and Flashman are the point ‘Mechs, running fast but keeping out of view for the time being.

The Ghost Bears are fanned out in a wide attack line.  The slower ‘Mechs steadily climb up the mountain face.  The speedy Tyr Infantry carriers sweep around the hill instead of going over the top.

Turn 3 - Word of Blake wins Initiative

Both forces cautiously approach the other at first but begin making bolder moves to attack.  The Bears get close to the top but still cannot see the main force of Blakists.  Both Tyr deploy infantry behind partial cover.  The threat of the heavy Battle Armor will have to be dealt with eventually.

In a quick attack, the forward Preta jumps over the top of the mountain and puts itself behind the lumbering SuperNova.  A flurry of PPC and laser fire shed 25 points of armor in the left leg and arm.

No other fire is successful this turn.

Turn 4 – Ghost Bears win Initiative

All Clan ‘Mechs except the slightly bruised SuperNova crest the mountain and line up shots against the Blakists.  The Tyr Infantry carriers speed into short range to harass.

A Ghost Bear Arcas makes a long jump behind the Blakist Flashman.  Meanwhile, the Blakist Preta assumes a harasser role and lurks just out of sight behind the Clan force, positioning for an attack.

The Ghost Bears spread their shots across available targets.  Critical hits are scored on the Blakist vehicles.  One of the Seraphs takes enormous damage from PPCs but manages to keep its balance.  In a surprising long range hit, the Preta gets tagged with an AC20 shell from the far off Kodiak.

The Blakists choose to pile most weapons on the Arcas who jumped into their midst.  Even at such short range the Wobbies managed to miss far too many Heavy PPC shots for their liking.  One Snub Nose PPC did hit the head but failed to score a critical hit.

Turn 5 – Ghost Bears win Initiative

Both Archangels and one Seraph stay back while the Flashman and the second Seraph push forward.

The wounded Arcas jumps to cover as the Supernova finally brings its weapons to bear.  The Warhammer IIC and Bane hold their ground behind partial cover.  The Kodiak brings up the rear and is flanked by the lurking Preta.  The Tyr infantry carriers sprint behind the big Archangels for rear shots.

This turn featured a lot of misses (some due to partial cover) with lots of damage soaking.  A significant amount of armor was shed by both sides without hitting any internal structure.  That would change in the physical attack phase.

The forward Seraph is running hot with TSM active and gives a solid kick destroying 34 points of armor from the SuperNova’s right leg.  There is one critical hit, and it finds the Advanced Tactical Missile ammunition stores.  The resulting explosion takes off the leg and severely injures the pilot.  The return kick is not quite so successful but manages to topple the TSM monster.

Turn 6 – Ghost Bears win Initiative

The Flashman and Preta get bolder and pick spots directly in front of the camping Bane and Warhammer IIC.  The Seraph stands his ground in front of the downed SuperNova while the remaining Blakist force inches closer while keeping the top of the mountain in sight.

The Kodiak runs to close with the main fray.  The Warhammer IIC and Bane continue to hold their position.  The battle armor all the while have been pestering the main Blakist force but fail to make a significant dent in their impressive armor.

The Blakist pile most of their fire on the Warhammer IIC while spreading enough fire to hit every target in some way.  The Ghost Bears consolidate fire on the two targets on top of the hill, leaving the Archangels and their Seraph cohort to the harassing Battle Armor and Tyr combat vehicles.

The Flashman is receives a heap of PPCs and is gutted by three engine hits.  The Seraph beside him is just as lucky.  After soaking two AC20 rounds and taking it, one last medium laser severs the the remaining structure holding  the right arm on.  Further fire from the Arcas peppers the torso and head with SRM hits.  After the pilot takes his damage (needing only a 3 to stay awake), he promptly falls unconscious.  And then it got worse.  The resulting fall would end with critical hits to BOTH hips.  Without an arm to prop with, the red Seraph was now out of the battle.

Return fire from the Blakists is just as cruel.  The Warhammer IIC takes a beating from multiple sources and finally takes an ammo critical hit.  Combined with a prior head hit and damage from the fall, the Warhammer pilot is knocked unconscious, needing a 10+ to wake up.  The Arcas, although not heavily targeted, meets a similar fate and takes pilot hits from ammo explosions and fall damage.  Both lie knocked out on the battlefield.

Turn 7 – Ghost Bears win Initiative

The main Blakist force slowly moves back, still being harassed by the Tyr.  They remain wary of the slowly approaching battle armor.  The Preta makes a long jump away from the thick of the battle.

The Ghost Bears stand their ground where they can while the Warhammer and Arcas dream sweet dreams in their cockpits.

Weapons fire is well spread as available targets show the fatigue of battle.  The downed Seraph soaks hits from the SuperNova in front of him.  The damage inflicts an engine and gyro hit and also destroys a leg.  Interesting choice of targets since the Seraph was unable to prop and fire.  Return fire from the other Seraph at the bottom of the hill sends two Heavy PPCs to the center torso, coring the SuperNova.

The Kraken is successful in hitting with both Ultra AC10s at double rate but manages to find fresh armor on an Archangel when very little remains anywhere else.

Turn 8 – Ghost Bears win Initiative

The Blakists reverse their previous course and walk forward toward the mountain into the awaiting arms of the Rouge Bear battle armor.  The Preta makes a long jump again, preferring to stay at a distance.

The conscious Ghost Bear pilots concentrate fire on the closest Archangel while the Blakist return in kind with fire directed mostly at the Bane.

The Ghost Bears tear into the Archangel but fail to shed enough armor to reveal internal structure.  The first Heavy PPC shot directed at the Bane evaporates the cockpit.  The remaining three Blakist ‘Mech’s pummel the headless ‘Mech.

In a surprise turn, the immobilized and almost forgotten Tyr combat vehicles score two engine hits on the Seraph from rear shots.  The Seraph is staggered but not out of the action.

Turn 9 – Ghost Bears win Initiative

The Ghost Bears rolled a 3 for initiative.  The Blakists did them one better with snake eyes.

The Warhammer IIC wakes up!  Meanwhile the battle armor are now out of missiles.  The Blakists move back again trying to get the troublesome Tyr out of rear arc.

The Warhammer is quickly put down again by a gyro hit causing him to fall behind partial cover.  The advancing Kodiak’s head is disintegrated by a Heavy PPC from an Archangel.

Return fire from the active Ghost Bears only manages to score a gyro hit and destroy a Heavy PPC in the Seraph.

End Game

All that remains of the Ghost Bear force is an unconscious Arcas, some battle armor without missiles and the immobilized Tyr.  The remaining Archangels and Seraph are more than a match for what’s left and are victorious on the battle field.

This was an excellent game with lots of action.  When the Word of Blake and the Clans meet with their best equipment, you are bound to see lots of fireworks.  This battle did not disappoint.  Kudos to Chuck for putting together this well thought out game.