|
  The year is 3015. The Third Succession War is winding down, but low-intensity conflicts continue to plague the Inner Sphere. In the Free Worlds League, the Marik Civil War is slowly dragging itself towards its humiliating and ignominious conclusion. In the Lyran Commonwealth, Archon Katrina Steiner plans the first drafts of a peace proposal she hopes will allow her nation’s armies to rest after centuries of warfare. To the east, the Draconis Combine is busy digesting the worlds it has seized from the Federated Suns, reasserting the Dragon’s authority over its southern borders. The Federated Suns are likewise consolidating their gains, ably led by their new Prince, the shrewd and calculating Hanse Davion. In the south, the Capellan Confederation redoubles its efforts in espionage and subterfuge, stoking the fires of rebellion in both of its larger neighbours. Finally, on ancient Terra, ComStar plots and plans and weaves its web of control over the entire Inner Sphere. It is a time of both danger and opportunity. Demand for battlemechs, skilled mechwarriors, and deniable assets remains high. Into this environment steps the Sterling and Sable Company, a freshly minted group of adventurers, eccentrics and former soldiers itching to try their hand at this whole ‘mercenary’ business. About Battletech Battletech is a hex-based Tabletop RPG where teams of bipedal robots battle it out for factional supremacy. There is a whole expanded universe including books, video games, animated cartoons, etc. but the core concept remains the same across all media. Most readers will probably already be familiar with the brilliant Battletech Let’s Plays run by SomethingAwful’s very own PoptartsNinja, whose style I have Running a mercenary company? How will that work? Our mercenary group will begin work in 3015 and continue through the Battletech timeline, until either the company is destroyed or we hit the current franchise end date of 3150. The story will follow the Battletech canon, so the Succession Wars / Clan Invasion / Jihad will all take place on their historical dates and the thread will have to deal with the various difficulties / opportunities those events present. The initial contract is a bog-standard pirate hunt, but after it has concluded the thread will be free to vote on what the company does next. Volunteers from the thread will take control of the company’s mechwarriors for the span of each mission, while I control the enemy forces arrayed against them. For this LP I will be using MekHQ to keep track of the company’s finances, assets and personnel. Battles will be conducted via MegaMek. This will help streamline things since Battletech requires a lot of dice rolls and having everything automated gives me more time to work on the narrative. It also lessens the chance of me making gameplay errors. You said we can vote on things? That’s right. The following will be up for the thread to decide: Contract Votes – The Sterling and Sable Company begins this LP under a pirate-hunting contract. Once this draws to a close, I will draw up a selection of new contracts for the company to pursue. These contracts will vary in their location, mission type, payment, salvage rights and other aspects. It will be up to the thread to read through the details of each contract, weigh up the pros and cons, then choose the one they feel will be the most profitable / interesting / exciting. Salvage Votes – Salvaging enemy equipment is the lifeblood of a mercenary command. Most missions will end with a list of salvageable OpFor units being presented, with the thread deciding which units should go to the mercs and which should be left to the employer. The total amount of salvage the company has a right to will vary by contract, so make sure to think carefully before laying claim to something. Logistical Votes – A logistical vote will take place before the start of each new contract and occasionally between missions. The matters under consideration will include the recruitment of new personnel, the purchasing of new equipment / sale of old equipment, and whether to repair salvaged units or strip them for parts. If there is XP to be assigned this will take place then as well. Ad-Hoc Votes / Event Votes – There may be other events where voting is allowed, for instance, whether to break a contract with a duplicitous or exploitative employer, whether to take a side in the Succession Wars / fight against the Clans, etc. These will happen as and when appropriate. What happens if the company goes bust? Good question. Mercenary life is hard, both in-game and in the canon. If the company goes deep into the red I can take out loans, but these come with nasty conditions and may wind up being merely a stay of execution. If the situation becomes unmanageable I will give the thread a vote to decide whether they disband, join a Great House, or turn to piracy, write a final update about their subsequent fate, then let the thread create a new company for us to follow. I want to be a pilot! How do I sign up? Great. Send me a PM and I’ll add your username to my master list. If you don’t have PMs, I’m afraid you’re out of luck, because I don’t do email communications. You can still take part in the thread discussions and audience votes. What is the deadline for orders? The deadlines for player orders are Tuesday and Saturday, 9:00 PM GMT. If you have the misfortune to live in a country that is not Great Britain, you can use this handy website (https://greenwichmeantime.com/current-time/) to figure out when this is in your local area. Just a quick warning: I won’t be chasing anyone for orders. If I don’t receive any instructions by the deadline, I will take control of your unit for that turn and attempt to make a decent play with it vis-à-vis the mission objectives. If this results in your unit being destroyed or left out of position, then so be it. I know it's not ideal, but I want to keep things moving quickly. If you have a personal crisis and have to pull out midway through a mission, let me know and I’ll call in a substitute. Can we discuss the Battletech rules / sourcebooks? Discussing the rules is fine, as is helping new players understand things. Posting direct links to pirated sourcebooks is not fine and will get you reported to the mods. Can we talk about the Clans / Fed-Com Civil War / Jihad / Dark Age? Go right ahead. Battletech’s lore is one of its strongest aspects. Since we’ll be proceeding through the official timeline anyway, certain events are guaranteed to be topical! --- Current House Rules: OpFor Initiative – For this LP I will be following the standard set by PoptartsNinja in that the OpFor will always lose initiative. This means that players will see my movement ahead of time. -OpFor Aces - OpFor mechwarriors with the 'Tactical Genius' SPA are considered Ace pilots and have higher initiative than the players, allowing them to move in the players' movement phase. This makes them difficult to predict and hard to pin down. An Ace may appear as part of the initial enemy force or as a reinforcing unit. Design Quirks – Design Quirks are in play, both positive and negative. XP, Leveling and Special Pilot Abilities: See this post for more details. Kinder Maintenance – The default maintenance system in MekHQ is absurdly brutal and often results in your technicians doing more damage to your battlemechs than the enemy. Repairing their blunders also costs money, and failed repair rolls can result in your techs destroying the parts they are working on, costing even more money by forcing you to order replacement parts. I have therefore toned things down a bit; maintenance checks will now take place every month rather than every week, era-specific repair rolls have been turned off, and the default maintenance modifier is now -2 rather than -1. Ejection Rules - For this LP, ejection rules have been tailored to increase a pilot’s chances of survival. Ammunition explosions in a unit without CASE will automatically trigger an ejection. I am also using the Skin-Of-Teeth Ejection rule, giving pilots a slim chance to survive even if their mech’s head is blown off. Players can also request a manual ejection if they feel their mech has taken too much damage or if their pilot is in danger of dying. However, players should not feel pressured to do this; ultimately the goal is to have a fun time with stompy robots and if a mech is destroyed or a character dies then I will simply roll with it and continue the story without them. Ejection rules for the OpFor will be determined on a mission-by-mission basis. Mobility Kills – Mechs that lose a leg or suffer a destroyed Gyro will be considered mission-killed and removed from play. Early Mech Destruction – Players who suffer the incredibly bad luck of having their mech shot out from under them early in a mission will be invited to play again during the next mission. Character Death - If a character takes six pilot hits during a mission and dies, I will roll a d6 at the end of the mission. On a roll of 1-4, the character dies permanently. On a roll of 5-6, I will remove one pilot hit from the affected character. The character will miraculously cheat death, albeit with crippling injuries that will take months to recover from and may force them into retirement or a non-combat role. Flamers - Flamers, Vehicle Flamers, ER Flamers and Heavy Flamers deal damage and inflict heat simultaneously instead of choosing one or the other. MegaMek / MekHQ Technical Difficulties – Hopefully this won’t be an issue. I have Paranoid Autosave turned on, so MegaMek will be autosaving after every phase, and I will be saving manually as well. I’m using a stable version of both programs so the chance of glitches is small, but it’s better to be safe. And last but not least… Don’t be a dick. If your favourite character gets killed, don’t give the players crap for it. poo poo happens in Battletech. It’s even canonical – most new mercenary groups don’t even survive their first year. Similarly, don’t whinge if a particular vote doesn’t go your way. -- Table of Contents Contract I: Eliminate Preston's Prowlers Mission 1 - Destroy Pirate Lance: Turn 0, Turn 1, Turn 2, Turn 3, Turn 4, Turn 5, Turn 6, Turn 7, Turn 8, After Action Report Intermission I Mission 2 - Over The Hills: Turn 0, Turn 1, Turn 2, Turn 3, Turn 4, Turn 5, Turn 6, Turn 7, Turn 8, Turn 9, Turn 10, After Action Report Intermission II Mission 3 - Preston's Last Stand: Turn 0, Turn 1, Turn 2, Turn 3, Turn 4, Turn 5, Turn 6, Turn 7, Turn 8, Turn 9, Turn 10, Turn 11, Turn 12, Turn 13, Turn 14, Turn 15, Turn 16, After Action Report Conclusion Personnel Vote Results I, State of the Company and Contract Vote I Contract II: Boot Camp Introduction Mission 1 - River_Bed_[1268]: Turn 0, Turn 1, Turn 2, Turn 3, Turn 4, Turn 5, Turn 6, Turn 7, Turn 8, Turn 9, Turn 10, Turn 11, Turn 12, Turn 13, Turn 14, After Action Report Intermission I Mission 2 - Snow_Scar_[3901]: Turn 0, Turn 1, Turn 2, Turn 3, Turn 4, Turn 5, Turn 6, Turn 7, Turn 8, Turn 9, Turn 10, Turn 11, Turn 12, Turn 13, Turn 14, After Action Report Intermission II Mission 3 - Cityscape_[9994]: Turn 0, Turn 1, Turn 2, Turn 3, Turn 4, Turn 5, Turn 6, Turn 7, Turn 8, Turn 9, Turn 10, Turn 11, Turn 12, Turn 13, Turn 14, Turn 15, Turn 16, Turn 17, After Action Report Intermission III Mission 4 - Frozen Assets: Turn 0, Turn 1, Turn 2, Turn 3, Turn 4, Turn 5, Turn 6, Turn 7, Turn 8, Turn 9, Turn 10, Turn 11, Turn 12, Turn 13, Turn 14, Turn 15, Turn 16 -- MVP List: Destroy Pirate Lance (Player MVP): Yukiko Ishimura (Panther PNT-9R) (CirclMaster) and Alexander Hanh (Stinger STG-3G) (Otter Madness) Destroy Pirate Lance (OpFor MVP): Lucas Shaw (Shadow Hawk SHD-2H) Over The Hills (Player MVP): Anna Heimer (Jenner JR7-F) (ilmucche) Over The Hills (OpFor MVP): Cletus West (Commando COM-1D) Preston's Last Stand (Player MVP): Louis Belkof (Hunchback HBK-4G) (Gwaihir) Preston's Last Stand (OpFor MVP): Thabo Ngumo (Trebuchet TBT-5S) River_Bed_[1268] (Player MVP): Jenna Sable (Wolverine WVR-6M) (Slavvy) River_Bed_[1268] (OpFor MVP): Jeanne Turgot (Hornett HNT-152) Snow_Scar_[3901] (Player MVP): Tsing Yeoung (Dervish DV-6M) (AJ_Impy) Snow_Scar_[3901] (OpFor MVP): Jean-Paul Camus (Wolverine WVR-6R) Cityscape_[9994] (Player MVP): Roger Sterling (Victor VTR-9B) (Otter Madness) Cityscape_[9994] (OpFor MVP): Etienne Decimis (Griffin GRF-1N) -- Let's Read Wolves on the Border Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 -- Fan Art, Memes and Other Stuff: Cicadas With Hands     Urbanmech Shenanigans  Helpful Links: The Battletech LP by PoptartsNinja that started it all is here. The sequel thread to the above can be found here. PTN's Alpha Strike thread (also featuring mercenaries!) can be found here. PTN's latest thread, featuring Star League adventures in the Deep Periphery, can be found here. Scintilla fucked around with this message at 12:36 on May 15, 2024 |
#
¿
Feb 12, 2023 18:13
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 16, 2024 12:12 |
|
|
 The Sterling and Sable Company was formed in late 3014. The company is named after its two principal founders, Roger Sterling and Jenna Sable. Roger Sterling is a former Hauptmann in the 19th Lyran Guards who resigned his commission after three quarters of his company was wiped out due to faulty intelligence and over-eager superior officers. Many of his former subordinates joined him in exile and now make up a plurality of the company’s forces. On the other hand, Jenna Sable is a mechwarrior-errant and former Davion noble who fronted most of the money needed to get the company started. Other adventurers and misfits quickly joined, giving the company the strength it needed to operate as an effective fighting force. Dramatis Personae Sterling Lance:     Sable Lance:     Ruby Lance:     Other Mechwarriors:   Technicians and Mechanics:    Medical Personnel:  Administrative Staff:  These are the currently named and backstoried characters in the company. I will probably end up making a graveyard for the ones that die, including their length of service, cause of death, etc. --- State of the Company, Castor VI, January 14th 3015  This section will contain a brief overview of the Sterling and Sable Company prior to the start of the game. I won’t be going into the nuts and bolts of MekHQ; this is just to present some basic information about the state of the company. Everything is fairly standard for a brand new company; twelve mechwarriors, some support staff, an entirely mech-based force, and no DropShip.  Most mercenary companies start out at company strength, ie. twelve mechs, and Sterling and Sable are no exception. There are three lances in total; Roger Sterling’s command lance, Jenna Sable’s all-purpose lance, and Mike Clements’ recon lance.  Here are the lances in more detail. I have tried to give the company a good spread of decent units to start out with, but nothing too overpowered. No inexplicable Star League Royal variants here. We do have one Heavy Mech, Sterling’s Warhammer, but that’s all. Heavy and Assault Mechs are rare in this period, so we might not encounter any others for quite a while. Everything else we have is either Medium or Light.  We have some supplies to start out with, but again, nothing too fancy. We have plenty of spare armour, some ammunition, and a few heat sinks. Other spare parts will have to either be purchased from elsewhere or stripped off salvaged units.  Our financial situation is precarious. One and a half million C-Bills may sound like a lot, but a single bad engagement can easily beggar us. Replacing a 1-ton mech gyro costs 300,000 C-Bills. Our current contract also only barely covers our basic expenses.  Here are the details of our current contract. The monthly payout is pretty lacklustre, but basic pay isn’t everything. The planetary government have agreed to a Battle Loss Compensation rate of 50%, which means we get back 50% of the damage we take in cash. Salvage rights are also extremely important, since we can either refit salvaged units for our own use, strip them for parts, or sell them for extra C-Bills. For this particular contract we’ll also be earning a bounty for any enemy personnel taken alive. This isn’t part of MekHQ, just a little something I added on to hopefully earn a bit more money. I can add the cash in and remove the imprisoned pilots using MekHQ’s GM function.  And here’s our first mission of the contract! Each contract we take will have a certain number of missions the company will need to complete before it can be considered fulfilled. In this case our players will be intercepting a pirate lance in the wilderness. Let’s wish them the best of luck! --- Castor VI, January 14th, 3015 Jenna Sable’s boots drummed a steady beat against the hard concrete floor as she trotted down the corridor connecting the barracks with the mech hangar. Alarms blared in the distance, a droning keen that cycled up and down like the territorial shrieks of a predatory bird. Jenna paid the sound no heed and kept walking, pausing only to sidestep a security officer coming from the opposite direction. The young man frowned and paused as if to challenge her, but closed his mouth and hurried on past after noticing the cooling vest and neurohelmet tucked under her arm. Jenna ignored the faux-pas and kept walking. The officer had only been doing his job, and besides, she didn’t look like a mechwarrior. Standing just shy of 4’10, with a slight build and delicate features, Jenna Sable appeared far younger than her actual age of 25. The four years she had spent as a mechwarrior-errant had sharpened her previously doll-like features, but not enough to give her the hard, lean look of a professional soldier. A dozen more steps took Jenna into the mech hangar. A huge expanse of steel and ferrocrete greeted her as she stepped inside. Girders hung like spiderwebs from the vaulted ceiling, supporting a vast network of cranes, pulleys and heavy-duty machine tools. A noxious smell tickled Jenna’s nostrils, an unpleasant mix of grease, lubricating oil, and those rancid cigarettes that Sam Kost insisted on smoking. A small army of astechs dashed hither and thither, the alarms stirring them into action like a swarm of angry fire ants. Jenna plunged into the throng, jogging towards the dozen mech bays set into the opposite wall. Once, those bays would have held battlemechs belonging to the 30th Marik Militia, but they were off-world at the moment, helping to put down Anton Marik’s mad rebellion. Now their sconces were occupied by the battlemechs of the Sterling and Sable Company, the newly minted mercenary company of whom Jenna Sable was a founding member. Weaving between the astechs, Jenna quickly made her way over to the north west corner of the hanger, where the battlemechs of Sable Lance were being prepped for launch. As Jenna reached her Wolverine she caught sight of Sadanobu Muto, her technician, kneeling by her mech’s right foot. He looked up as she approached, then barked some orders to a nearby astech, who quickly disappeared. “Everything okay?” Jenna asked, nodding at the Wolverine’s foot. Going into battle with a sticky foot wouldn’t be pleasant, but Muto’s boyish grin dispelled her worries. “Just a last-minute visual inspection. Wouldn’t want you to trip and fall on your first outing.” Jenna returned his grin. “Indeed not. Sterling and Sable are a serious company. Mechanical pratfalls are not on our agenda.” Muto chuckled, but his expression quickly turned serious. “They’ve made their move more quickly than I expected.” Jenna nodded soberly. The pirates calling themselves Preston’s Prowlers had lain low ever since their DropShip had crashed. What raids they had conducted had been small and limited in scope, targeting provincial towns and villages hundreds of miles from the capital. Nobody had expected them to launch a raid on New Villastellone itself, especially not barely a fortnight after the Silver and Sable Company had arrived to reinforce it. Was it overconfidence? Desperation? Or simple ignorance? Before Jenna could contemplate further the astech Muto had sent away earlier returned driving a mobile scissor-lift. Jenna quickly clambered into the cradle. She could freeclimb up into her Wolverine’s cockpit if she had to, but using the machine was quicker and safer. “Good hunting!” Muto called as the scissor-lift’s arm began to rise. “Bring me back some salvage, yeah? Something good, like a Star League Griffin!” Jenna laughed. “I’ll let you know if we find one!” Then she got to work shrugging into her cooling vest and neurohelmet. Once the lift was level with the Wolverine’s head she swung her legs over the side of the cradle and carefully clambered into the mech’s open cockpit. Wolverines were notorious for two things; their versatility in combat, and the sheer discomfort of actually piloting one. The Magna MKII Medium Laser built into the head provided decent punch at close range, but its bulky cooling assembly ate into the mech’s cockpit space, leaving it cramped and difficult to move in. Thankfully, that wasn’t a problem for Jenna. Her small stature allowed her to easily fit inside, even with her bulky cooling vest and neurohelmet. Ensconced inside, Jenna initiated the mech’s startup sequence. Her fingers danced over the central control panel, muscle memory selecting the correct buttons and switches without her having to consciously consider them. The canopy slid down and sealed itself shut, pressurising with an audible hiss. A soft vibration shuddered through the cockpit as the Wolverine’s engine cycled up out of low-power mode. As the mech’s DI Computer finished booting up, a hauntingly familiar female voice emanated from its speakers. “REACTOR… ONLINE. SENSORS… ONLINE. WEAPONS SYSTEMS… ONLINE. ALL FUNCTIONING SYSTEMS… NOMINAL.” Scintilla fucked around with this message at 18:05 on Aug 24, 2023 |
|
#
¿
Feb 12, 2023 18:14
|
|
|
(This post reserved)
|
|
#
¿
Feb 12, 2023 18:14
|
|
|
Tibbeh posted:Oh man, I love a good Battletech LP. I'll be definitely keeping an eye on this I hope you enjoy it! I saw that PTN was doing an Alpha Strike LP set in 3150, so thought it would be interesting to run a classic campaign in 3015. It seemed like a decent period to start off - everything is still low-tech, but not for too long, because in thirteen years time the Helm Memory Core is going to be discovered. Anyway, I've had one person sign up to be a pilot so far. Just three more and we can do the first mission.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 14, 2023 07:07
|
|
|
painedforever posted:Can I watch for now, and then join in later on? I played a bit along with PoptartsNinja during his big LP, and I really love tabletop (but don't get the chance to, hopefully that will change after we move to Auckland *fingers crossed*). Of course you can join in later! Just send me a PM when you're ready and I'll put you on the pilot list. I had intended to send a link to the quickstart rules to all new pilots, but I might post a primer in the thread explaining all of the basic movement and shooting rules if it proves helpful. 'Battletech Classic' just refers to the classic tabletop game rules. I call it that to differentiate it from Alpha Strike, which is the ruleset PTN is using for his current LP.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 17, 2023 08:26
|
|
|
Okay, so it's been ten days and there's been almost no interest. I could close the thread now, but I want to make a go of it, so I'm going to revise the opening and have a thread vote on the opening mission. Hopefully this will spark some discussion and get people interested. If not, no problem, I'll wait another couple of weeks and then close the thread and we can all move on. -- Galatea, Late 3014 The dying rays of the setting sun swept over Galatea City, settling over its many districts and buildings like a burnt orange blanket. On the fourth floor of one particular building, the light slipped in through the windows of the office of the Sterling and Sable company, bathing the room in a warm amber glow. Streaming in through half-shuttered blinds, the light formed a striking pattern on the opposite wall, alternating bands of light and shadow that quivered and shifted as the sun gradually sank beneath the horizon. Papers rustled as the office’s sole occupant glanced up from his desk. Roger Sterling was a tall man, broad shouldered and thick-limbed, whose craggy face bore the stresses and triumphs of a military career that had spanned a quarter of a century. The remnants of that career still clung to him in the form of his old Hauptmann’s uniform, so immaculately ironed and starched that a casual observer might assume that he was still a serving officer. It would take a keener pair of eyes, or another military man, to notice the slightly lighter patches where the rank insignia and white horsehead patch of the Lyran Guards had been carefully unstitched and removed. Sterling stared at the pattern on the wall, struck by its simple beauty. For a brief moment, it looked to him as though the plain drywall had been replaced with tigerskin. A small smile tugged at Sterling’s mouth as he considered how wealthy they would need to be to purchase a tigerskin tapestry of such immense size. He indulged himself in the fantasy for a few more seconds, then shook his head ruefully and got back to work. The Holovids painted a one-sided picture of mercenaries as heroic wanderers, jetting around the galaxy in their DropShips, endlessly seeking their fortune across the myriad battlefields of the Inner Sphere. They rarely mentioned the other side; the negotiations, the admin work, the maintenance schedules, the tedious discussions about salaries and overheads; in short, the general pen-pushing drudgery that had to happen before the heroic battles could begin. Sterling was no mercenary, but as a former Hauptmann of the Lyran Guards he was well-acquainted with the administrative aspects of a military command, and securing office space had been one of the first things he had done after landing on Galatea. The current office was small, barely bigger than a couple of broom cupboards, but the rent was cheap and it was only a couple of blocks away from the nearest hiring hall. The furnishings, like Sterling himself, were sturdy and without ostentation. His humble oak desk took up most of the north-western corner. Next to it stood a small bookshelf full of literature on some of the Inner Sphere’s most successful established mercenary companies; the Northwind Highlanders, McCarron’s Armored Cavalry, the Eridani Light Horse. A pair of filing cabinets bracketed the doorway, their stout bodywork and sloped tops vaguely resembling a pair of Urbanmechs standing at attention. The floorboards outside the office creaked. Sterling sat back in his chair, anticipation rising inside his chest. He knew that stride. Almost before the knock came, he barked, “Come in.” His voice was clear and strong, able to cut through a rowdy barracks like a PPC through a Javelin’s head armour. The door opened, and Johann Schneider ducked inside. The quartermaster was slightly taller than Sterling, but a great deal thinner, giving him a lanky, gangly profile. His dark complexion meshed poorly with the fading sunlight, making him look more like a bronze statue than a man. He strode up to Sterling’s desk, taking care not to bump his head against the light fixture, and dumped a bundle of beige cardboard folders on his desk. “Found four,” Schneider said simply. He was a blunt man, always speaking in a clipped, hurried tone, as if every second was precious and he could not bear to waste a single one. Sterling regarded the folders for a moment. Each was stamped with the grinning skull of an Atlas battlemech, with the letters ‘MRB’ stencilled boldly underneath. They were mercenary contracts, officially certified by the Mercenary Review Board. “So few?” Sterling asked, picking up the first folder. Schneider shrugged wearily. “Dunno what you were expecting, Rost. We’re a new company, unproven. No record, no brand to trade on. Lucky we could scrape this many.” That much was true. On paper the Sterling and Sable mercenary company was a powerful force, with a company’s worth of battlemechs and more than enough support staff to maintain them. In reality though, that counted for little. Even the most promising new mercenary companies were lucky to last a year, and the ones that did rarely made it two. Those that did survive and made a name for themselves would have their pick of contracts. Everyone else had to make do with whatever they could find. Sterling grunted softly. He had worked his way up through the ranks before. The nepotism of the LCAF was legendary, but he had managed to claw his way past the imbeciles and the favoured nephews to a position that reflected his abilities. Doing it again would be tedious, but that didn’t matter. He owed it to the men who had followed him here, and the newcomers who had signed on afterwards. “Okay, let’s have a look,” Sterling said, flipping open the first contract.  “Pirates, eh?” Sterling frowned, peering down at the contract. “Is that really the right word? They betray their liege for a usurper, then abandon him when things get rough. Surely ‘deserters’ is a better description. Or ‘traitors’. Or ‘traitorous deserters’.” Schneider shrugged again. “League says they’re pirates.” He leant forwards and tapped the page with the financial breakdown. “Pay’s terrible, but salvage favours us.” Sterling nodded. The monthly take barely covered their expenses, but a 60% salvage rate was unbelievably good. Feeling optimistic, he put the file to one side and bent to examine the next contract.  “Doesn’t surprise me that this has happened,” Sterling said. “Intrepid and Bronson have had it in for one another for years. Personally, I’d have gone for the Bulldogs. Vedettes are just too underpowered for my tastes.” “Better not tell Bronson. They’re willing to give us a pair.” Schneider pointed out. “Oh I wouldn’t turn them down. More guns are always good.” Sterling jabbed his thumb down at the section on compensation. “Better be careful, though. They’re not compensating us much for damages.” “This one’s a bit better for that.” Schneider said, pointing to the next contract.  Sterling’s face darkened. “I don’t much like the thought of working for the snakes. I like the idea of shooting at civvies even less.” Schneider nodded in agreement. “Dirty business. But pay is good. Thought I should show you, just in case.” Sterling grunted an acknowledgement. The pay was good, and they were mercenaries now. Still. The thought of it left a bad taste in his mouth. Hoping for something a bit more palatable, he reached for the final contract.  “Garrison Duty. That’s more like it.” Sterling knuckled his moustache and peered down at the briefing. “Strange, though. The AFFS are normally on the ball when it comes to redeployment.” “Could be a trap,” Schneider suggested. “Draw the Capellans out, then smash them.” Sterling nodded. Leaving a border world essentially unguarded was a grievous error, especially when your next door neighbour was Maximillian Liao. Either it was a trap, or the new Prince wasn’t nearly as clever as everyone said he was. Over the next hour, Sterling and Schneider pored over the contracts. Eventually Schneider had to leave in order to take inventory of the company’s supplies, leaving Sterling alone in his office. The former Hauptmann drummed his fingers against his desk, his mind adrift on a sea of possibility. All of the contracts had their merits, even the Combine one. But which should he sign? -- Contract Vote A: Preston's Prowlers B: Corporate Warfare C: Friendly Persuasion D: Border Watch Voting ends next Wednesday!
|
|
#
¿
Feb 22, 2023 22:09
|
|
|
SIGSEGV posted:A seems good. Good shout, I'll post a link in there.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 23, 2023 05:54
|
|
|
Okay, so it looks like we might have enough players to begin soon. I'll give it another couple of days, but before we begin, there's something I'd like to discuss. MegaMek has an option to enable isometric mode in all of its mapsheets, which makes it quite a bit easier to understand differences in elevation. Non-Isometric:  Isometric:  Is there a preference for either of these? I'm currently leaning towards isometric since it might make things a bit easier for new players.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 25, 2023 12:50
|
|
|
Okay, it looks like a consensus has emerged around both the contract vote and whether to use isometric mode for the mapsheets. In the latter case I think I'll provide a non-isometric version of the map for Turn 0 of every mission, but use the isometric version for every turn after that. This will let players cross-reference any hexes whose heights are obscured. I'm happy to announce that we now have enough players to begin. I'm still making a few last-minute preparations, but my current plan is to post Turn 0 on Wednesday. I'll be sending PMs to all players with links to the Quickstart rules and instructions on how to submit orders at that time. Since we're just starting out, and because we have some players who have never played Battletech before, I'll also be giving everyone some extra time to submit their orders.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 27, 2023 19:11
|
|
|
Eliminate Pirate Lance: Turn 0 Thunderous footfalls echoed through the hills as the four battlemechs of Sable Lance slowly pushed their way across the wilderness. The lands north of New Villastellone were wild and untamed, an unbroken vista of rolling hills and scraggy woodland that stretched from horizon to horizon. There was almost no human habitation. There was no mineral wealth or arable land to be found, and most of the trees that grew there were too low-quality to be harvested for timber. The land wasn’t worth developing, so it had been left to nature. Jenna Sable’s heart thudded in anticipation as she drove her Wolverine forwards. After almost an hour of trekking through the brush a magnetic scan had detected four large ferrous objects moving south towards them. A familiar feeling of nervous excitement washed over her as she watched the sensor blips grow closer and closer. In minutes, maybe even seconds, the two lances would come face to face with one another. Behind and to the left of her, Alexander’s Stinger slowed briefly. He had chosen to run along the top of the narrow gully the rest of Sable Lance were travelling through, giving him a slightly better view of what was ahead. Jenna’s radio crackled as her former bodyguard abruptly opened a communications line. “Visual contact. Pirate lance at eleven o’clock. Javelin. Wasp. Shadow Hawk.” He paused for a moment. “Can’t make out the fourth one.” Jenna immediately sprang into action. She kicked her Wolverine into gear, easily outpacing Yukiko’s Panther. Ahead of her the gully suddenly widened, opening out into a broad, flat clearing. On the other side of the plain, four battlemechs stood silhouetted against the surrounding hills. The hulking machines still bore the purple paintwork of the 18th Marik Militia, albeit faded and grimy due to months spent on the run. “Confirm visual contact,” Jenna spoke into her comms. “Fourth pirate mech is a Whitworth. This is it, people. Let’s give ‘em hell!”  N/A  N/A  N/A  N/A  N/A   Player Status  Enemy Status  Primary Objectives: -Destroy Pirate Lance (0/4) Special Abilities: -Toughness: Grants bonus to consciousness rolls. -Small Pilot: Negates ‘Cramped Cockpit’ penalties. Non-Isometric Hexmap:  Next Orders Due: Tuesday 7th 9:00PM GMT. Players, please check your PMs! Feel free to discuss strategies, ask for advice, etc in the thread!
|
|
#
¿
Mar 1, 2023 12:39
|
|
|
Okay, it looks like you guys didn't need the extra time after all! If you're all decided, I'll post the next turn on Sunday instead of next Wednesday. Edit: I've also just had a query about contingency orders. MegaMek resolves all of its shooting and melee phase calculations at once, so you cannot ask for something like 'I fire all my weapons at the Clint in hex 0408, unless it is destroyed by another player, in which case I shoot the Hunchback in hex 0715 instead'. However, I can accept contingencies with regards to line of sight, since that happens before everything gets locked in. Scintilla fucked around with this message at 07:02 on Mar 2, 2023 |
|
#
¿
Mar 2, 2023 06:43
|
|
|
Eliminate Pirate Lance: Turn 1 On the other side of the clearing, the pirate Javelin paused mid-stride. Its pilot dithered, clearly caught off-guard by the sudden appearance of Sable Lance. Their hesitation cost them dearly. In the time it took for her heart to beat twice Jenna Sable raised her Wolverine’s right arm, took aim, and triggered her battlemech’s primary interlock circuit. The blood-red beam of her Large Laser struck the Javelin squarely in its centre of mass, melting an enormous hole into its bulbous chest. Armour ran in molten rivers as the intense heat brought the metal to boiling point, causing it to bubble and slough off the chassis like so much candlewax. At the exact same moment an actinic flash swept across the clearing as Yukiko’s PPC discharged, unleashing a ravening blast of man-made lightning. The azure whip of charged particles lashed the Javelin mercilessly, shattering armour and biting deep into the machine’s left flank. The spindly mech shuddered under the impact, oily black smoke erupting from the massive rent in its side. “Nice one, Nekomata!” Charles Wentworth’s cheery voice crackled over the radio. His Gladiator’s own PPC discharged moments later, but the Javelin suddenly lurched forwards, and the shot narrowly missed. The little mech broke into a sprint, its wedge-shaped feet tearing up the grassy soil as it raced towards a patch of woodland on the west side of the clearing. Belatedly, the other pirate battlemechs returned fire, but their shots were sporadic and unfocused. A smile tugged at Jenna’s lips as a flight of LRM’s from the Whitworth veered off-course and slammed into the ground two hundred metres ahead of her. They had scored first blood. Now it was time for second, and hopefully third as well.  Weapons fire for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Fires PPC at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 5: Misses! Weapons fire for Panther PNT-9R (Player): -Fires PPC at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 12: Hits Left Torso! Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) takes 10 damage to Left Torso, 0/8 Armour, 5/7 Structure remaining. Critical Chance! --Critical Chance in Left Torso! Critical Hit on SRM-6! Weapons fire for Stinger STG-3G (Player): Holds fire! Weapons fire for Wolverine WVR-6M (Player): -Fires Large Laser at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 11, rolls 12: Hits Centre Torso! Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) takes 8 damage to Centre Torso, 0/8 Armour remaining. Weapons fire for Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers): Holds fire! Weapons fire for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Fires LRM 5 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 11, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers): Holds fire! Weapons fire for Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers): -Fires LRM 10 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 12, rolls 8: Misses! -Fires LRM 10 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 12, rolls 7: Misses! No melee attacks made this turn! Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) gains 12 heat, sinks 12 heat and is now at 0 heat. Panther PNT-9R (Player) gains 12 heat, sinks 12 heat and is now at 0 heat. Stinger STG-3G (Player) gains 2 heat, sinks 2 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) gains 10 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 0 heat. Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) gains 0 heat, sinks 0 heat and is now at 0 heat. Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) gains 2 heat, sinks 2 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) gains 0 heat, sinks 0 heat and is now at 0 heat. Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) gains 8 heat, sinks 8 heat and is now at 0 heat.  Player Status Enemy Status  Primary Objectives: -Destroy Pirate Lance (0/4) Special Abilities: -Toughness: Grants bonus to consciousness rolls. -Small Pilot: Negates ‘Cramped Cockpit’ penalties. Next Orders Due: Tuesday 7th 9:00PM GMT.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 5, 2023 07:28
|
|
|
ilmucche posted:Can you put me on the list as a potential future pilot? I've played a bit with the agoac box but don't get many chances to play Sure thing!
|
|
#
¿
Mar 6, 2023 07:25
|
|
|
Otter Madness posted:Facing in rough terrain only costs 1 movement per hex faced right? Rough terrain costs 1 extra MP to move into, but doesn't affect turning MP in any way.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 6, 2023 18:46
|
|
|
Eliminate Pirate Lance: Turn 2 Sweat trickled down Alexander Hanh’s forehead as he manoeuvred his Stinger through the woods to the north of the clearing. The little mech didn’t run nearly as hot as some other battlemechs, but its cockpit had a habit of growing stuffy and close after only a short time in the field. At first Alexander had thought there must be some flaw in the Stinger’s ventilation system, but none of the techs he’d consulted had been able to find anything wrong. Even wearing a different cooling vest hadn’t helped. Grunting irritably, Alexander raised his neurohelmet’s protective visor and wiped the droplet away before it could drip down into his eyes. No, it was probably just him. He had always been sensitive to heat. As a child, he had been unable to sleep if the temperature was above 21 degrees. He coped better now, but even as an adult he had a tendency to sweat himself half to death in warmer climates. Movement flickered up ahead as the pirate Wasp touched down. Banishing his frustrations, Alexander quickly dropped his crosshairs over its silhouette and fired, but the flickering flames from the bug mech’s jump jets obscured its profile and fouled his aim. The Wasp immediately leapt into the air again and snapped off a couple of shots at Yukiko’s Panther, but it’s pilot’s aim was no better and both the laser and missiles slammed harmlessly into the ground. Yukiko’s return fire was far more deadly. The blueish-white lance of her PPC transfixed the Wasp, piercing its centre as if it were a real wasp being pinned to a specimen board. The little mech dropped like a stone, and for a moment Alexander thought the shot had been fatal, but the pilot feathered their jump jets at the last moment and landed heavily on a small outcropping to the north. “Careful, they’re trying to flank us!” Alexander warned as he took note of the other pirate’s movements. His gaze lingered briefly on Jenna’s Wolverine. He knew he should pursue the Wasp, but a small part of him yearned to return to her side. He wasn’t her bodyguard anymore, but the instincts of a lifetime were hard to shake.  Weapons fire for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Fires PPC at Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 7: Misses! Weapons fire for Panther PNT-9R (Player): -Fires PPC at Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 8: Hits Centre Torso! Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) takes 10 damage to Centre Torso, 0/6 Armour, 2/6 Structure remaining. Critical Chance! --Critical Chance in Centre Torso! Critical Hit on Engine! +5 Heat per turn! Weapons fire for Stinger STG-3G (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers); needs 12, rolls 2: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers); needs 12, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Wolverine WVR-6M (Player): -Fires Large Laser at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 11, rolls 9: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 13: Automatic Miss! -Fires Medium Laser at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 13: Automatic Miss! Weapons fire for Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers): -Fires SRM 6 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Players); needs 12, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 11, rolls 3: Misses! -Fires AC/5 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 9, rolls 7: Misses! -Fires LRM 5 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 10, rolls 7: Misses! -Fires SRM 2 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 11, rolls 8: Misses! Weapons fire for Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Panther PNT-9R (Player); needs 11, rolls 7: Misses! -Fires SRM 2 at Panther PNT-9R (Player); needs 11, rolls 8: Misses! Weapons fire for Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers): -Fires LRM 10 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 9, rolls 10: 4 missiles Hit! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 4 damage to Right Torso, 16/20 Armour remaining. -Fires LRM 10 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 9, rolls 4: Misses! No melee attacks made this turn! Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) gains 12 heat, sinks 12 heat and is now at 0 heat. Panther PNT-9R (Player) gains 12 heat, sinks 12 heat and is now at 0 heat. Stinger STG-3G (Player) gains 8 heat, sinks 8 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) gains 15 heat, sinks 14 heat and is now at 1 heat. Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) gains 6 heat, sinks 6 heat and is now at 0 heat. Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) gains 10 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) gains 16 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 6 heat. Overheating! Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) gains 10 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 0 heat.  Player Status  Enemy Status  Primary Objectives: -Destroy Pirate Lance (0/4) Special Abilities: -Toughness: Grants bonus to consciousness rolls. -Small Pilot: Negates ‘Cramped Cockpit’ penalties. Next Orders Due: Saturday 11th 9:00PM GMT.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 8, 2023 15:07
|
|
|
biosterous posted:hmm, don't want to get my wolverine too surrounded, don't want to get punched by the shadow hawk, don't want to expose my back to the whitworth... suggestions, pilots? Jumping into the water means you'll have to take a piloting test. It's not that bad - you only need to roll a 4 - but it's worth being aware of. Heat sinks become doubly efficient while underwater, and since your Wolverine has two leg-mounted heat sinks, being in Depth 1 water means you'll be sinking 16 heat instead of 14. Edit: Also, you don't actually start taking overheat penalties until you're at +5 heat, so there is some wiggle room either way. Scintilla fucked around with this message at 07:24 on Mar 9, 2023 |
|
#
¿
Mar 9, 2023 07:10
|
|
|
evilmiera posted:I never knew isometric was a thing and next time I play I'm absolutely using that, apropos of nothing. MegaMek has a lot of QoL features like that. There are options to show your firing arcs, highlight your LOS range / darken everything outside it, show your possible movement range, and show which hexes you need to go to in order to get the best possible movement modifier. They're all under the 'View' tab and clearly labelled, so you don't even need to faff about in the game options.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 11, 2023 08:58
|
|
|
Welp, we've had our first Through-Armour Critical of the campaign. Also, I should probably have mentioned this sooner, but the rules for accidental fires are in play. It hasn't happened so far, but it might be something to keep in mind.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 12, 2023 11:40
|
|
|
Eliminate Pirate Lance: Turn 3 Charles Wentworth was having the time of his life. A giddy smile spread across his lips as his Gladiator raced across the grassy plain. He felt alive for the first time in years, and nothing could spoil his good mood. Battlemechs had been a childhood obsession for Charles. As an infant, ‘The Littlest Atlas’ had been his favourite storybook. When he and his friends had played ‘mechwarrior’ together he had always wanted to be the Bounty Hunter, Aleksandr Kerensky, and especially Charles Kincaid, whose name he had been honoured to share. As a teenager he had religiously tuned in to watch MechTalk and Immortal Warrior, nurturing the dream that one day he too might pilot a Warhammer, or a Hunchback, or even a humble Locust. Inevitably, the clammy grey mist of adulthood had smothered Charles’s boyish dreams, suffocating them under the cold blanket of reality. Battlemechs were exciting and glamorous, but they were also rare and expensive, and Charles had no way to acquire one. Real estate was mundane and often boring, but Charles had been good at it and it had given him a livelihood he could take a modest amount of pride in. And so, he had locked his old fantasies away, burying them in a dark and distant corner of his soul where they would never see the light again. Until that glorious day, when the diggers had rolled onto that old Merryweather plot and allowed his dreams to rise again, Phoenix-like, from the mind-forged tomb he had buried them in. A thrill of elation surged through Charles as he managed to circle around behind the enemy Shadow Hawk. He jammed his thumb down on the firing stud, triggering every weapon except his PPC. For a moment he worried he’d fired too early. His SRM’s thudded into the forest floor, but one of his Medium Lasers carved an angry red line across the Shadow Hawk’s back. Sparks erupted as the beam traversed the Shad’s jump jet assembly, shearing one of them off completely. The jet’s booster ignited as the heat of the laser touched off its remaining oxidant, causing it to corkscrew off into the sky. “Did you see that?” Charles whooped, unable to contain his excitement. “I shot the thing and it went off like a goddamn bottle rocket!” “Well done, Castle!” Jenna replied, sounding amused. “It’s a bit more exciting than the simulator, right?” Charles grinned wolfishly as the Shadow Hawk turned to face him. “drat right it is!” Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) must make a piloting skill check (entering Depth 1 Water); needs 4, rolls 4: Succeeds!  Weapons fire for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 9: Hits Rear Centre Torso! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Rear Centre Torso, 3/8 Armour remaining. Through Armour Critical! --Critical Chance in Centre Torso! Critical Hit on Jump Jet! -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 8: Misses! -Fires SRM 6 at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Panther PNT-9R (Player): -Fires PPC at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 7, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Stinger STG-3G (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 6: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Wolverine WVR-6M (Player): -Fires Large Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 3: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 9: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 10: Hits Right Torso! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Right Torso, 13/18 Armour remaining. -Fires SRM 6 at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers): -Fires SRM 6 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Players); needs 8, rolls 10: 2 missiles Hit! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 2 damage to Left Arm (16/18 Armour remaining), Right Arm (16/18 Armour remaining). Weapons fire for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Panther PNT-9R (Player); needs 8, rolls 5: Misses! -Fires AC/5 at Panther PNT-9R (Player); needs 6, rolls 6: Hits Left Torso! Panther PNT-9R (Player) takes 5 damage to Left Torso, 5/10 Armour remaining. -Fires LRM 5 at Panther PNT-9R (Player); needs 7, rolls 5: Misses! -Fires SRM 2 at Panther PNT-9R (Player); needs 8, rolls 9: 2 missiles Hit! Panther PNT-9R (Player) takes 2 damage to Left Torso (3/10 Armour remaining), Left Leg (10/12 Armour remaining). Weapons fire for Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Stinger STG-3G (Player); needs 10, rolls 5: Misses! Weapons fire for Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers): -Fires LRM 10 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 10, rolls 4: Misses! -Fires LRM 10 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 10, rolls 4: Misses! Physical attacks for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Kicks Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 6: Misses! Physical attacks for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Punches Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) with Left Arm; needs 9, rolls 7: Misses! Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) gains 12 heat, sinks 12 heat and is now at 0 heat. Panther PNT-9R (Player) gains 11 heat, sinks 11 heat and is now at 0 heat. Stinger STG-3G (Player) gains 12 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 2 heat. Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) gains 22 heat, sinks 16 heat and is now at 7 heat. Overheating! Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) gains 6 heat, sinks 6 heat and is now at 0 heat. Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) gains 10 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) gains 14 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 10 heat. Overheating! Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) gains 12 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 2 heat. Piloting checks for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Missed a Kick: Needs 5, rolls 7: Succeeds! Stray weapons fire from Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) has a chance to start a fire in Hex 0714! -Medium Laser: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 3: Possible fire! --Needs 9 to ignite, rolls 6: Hex fails to ignite. -SRM 6: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 10: No fire. Stray weapons fire from Panther PNT-9R (Player) has a chance to start a fire in Hex 0714! -PPC: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 7: No fire. Stray weapons fire from Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) has a chance to start a fire in Hex 0714! -Large Laser: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 7: No fire. -Medium Laser: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 4: No fire. -SRM 6: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 7: No fire. Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) must make a piloting skill check (entering Depth 1 Water); needs 4, rolls 5: Succeeds!  Player Status  Enemy Status  Primary Objectives: -Destroy Pirate Lance (0/4) Special Abilities: -Toughness: Grants bonus to consciousness rolls. -Small Pilot: Negates ‘Cramped Cockpit’ penalties. Next Orders Due: Tuesday 14th 9:00PM GMT.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 12, 2023 17:47
|
|
|
CirclMastr posted:There goes my 100% hit rate with the PPC. The Javelin is in your arc at the moment, yes.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 12, 2023 18:13
|
|
|
biosterous posted:^ i certainly wouldn't mind you keeping the javelin off my back If you are thinking about backing up to 0617, then the Shadow Hawk will be in your firing arc as long as you torso-twist to face him, which you can easily do thanks to your Wolverine's Extended Torso Twist quirk. Keep in mind that you'll need to make another 4+ piloting test due to moving through Depth 1 water. The elevation difference won't affect your shooting. It will affect enemies trying to shoot at you, since being in Depth 1 water gives you partial cover and causes any hits to your legs to do no damage. Heat calculations are pretty simple, but for some reason the Quickstart rules don't explain them, so I don't blame you for being confused. Units in Battletech mostly generate heat through movement and firing their weapons. You gain 1 heat from walking, 2 from running, and 1 additional heat for every hex you jump (So if you jump five hexes you gain +5 heat). Your weapons also generate heat as per the value on your unit's datasheet, so firing your Large Laser generates 8 heat. Add up the heat from your movement / weapons, then subtract your number of active heat sinks to work out how much heat you'll generate at the end of your turn. If you move to hex 0617 and fire your two Medium Lasers and SRM-6 you'll end up at 2 heat. Firing your Large Laser as well would leave you at 10 heat, which would impose a -2 movement penalty and a +1 accuracy penalty.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 12, 2023 20:55
|
|
|
Otter Madness posted:Question: standing in a forest hex doesn't impose a shooting penalty on yourself correct? That's correct; you only take a penalty if there's a forest between you and your target.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 13, 2023 06:22
|
|
|
Well, we've now had our first headshot, first consciousness roll, and first fall. Things are getting interesting...
|
|
#
¿
Mar 15, 2023 09:09
|
|
|
Eliminate Pirate Lance: Turn 4 Lucas Shaw’s weather-beaten brow furrowed as his Shadow Hawk, Simurgh, rocked under a withering barrage from the enemy Wolverine. Diagnostics flashed on his heads-up display as his mech’s DI computer calculated the amount of damage he’d just taken, but Shaw ignored them. Simurgh was a tough old bird, and he trusted her to protect him, just as she had protected his mother before him, and his grandfather before her. As the gunfire petered out, Shaw stoically took stock of his situation. His dark eyes examined the enemy battlemechs, with their curious chequerboard paintwork and eclectic mix of designs. Mercenaries, no doubt, come to collect the bounties on all of their heads. Their initial assault had been ferocious, but now they seemed to be losing focus, each unit breaking off to chase their own targets. Was it a lack of experience, or were they simply unused to working together? Either way, it was a basic error. A mirthless smile spread across Shaw’s lips as a plan began to form inside his mind. His gnarled hands quickly played over Simurgh’s controls, bringing all of her weapons to bear on the Wolverine and the Panther. “Thabo. I need two volleys into that Wolverine,” he demanded over the comms, the words grinding in his throat like chunks of granite. “Eh?” Thabo responded irascibly. “What’s the magic word, motherfucker?” Shaw rolled his eyes. “Two volleys, right now, or I’ll loving shoot you myself.” Then he fired, not bothering to wait for a response. Simurgh’s guns spoke in unison, raking the Wolverine’s frontal armour. The heavy scout mech staggered as every shot hit home, its gyro struggling to bleed off the force of so many impacts. For a moment, it looked like it might succeed. Then two flights of LRM’s from Thabo’s Whitworth smashed down on top of it like the hammer of God Almighty. The Wolverine overbalanced and toppled over, throwing up a huge wave of dark water as it crashed down into the shallow lake below. At the same moment, Simurgh’s LRMs struck the Panther squarely in its broad, angular head. The light mech recoiled as the warheads detonated, but remained on its feet. Not a killshot, but the pilot would definitely have felt it. Shaw’s smile widened. Splitting fire was always a gamble, but this time it had absolutely paid off for him. “You lads hosed up big time,” he growled, backing Simurgh up while he waited for his weapons to rearm and reload. “I’m gonna kill every last one of you fuckers. Just you loving wait.” Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) must make a piloting skill check (entering Depth 1 Water). Needs 4, rolls 7: Succeeds!  Weapons fire for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 6, rolls 8: Hits Right Arm! Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Right Arm, 7/12 Armour remaining. -Fires Medium Laser at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 6, rolls 12: Hits Right Torso! Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Right Torso, 7/12 Armour remaining. -Fires SRM 6 at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 6, rolls 4: Misses! Weapons fire for Panther PNT-9R (Player): -Fires PPC at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 7, rolls 6: Misses! -Fires SRM 4 at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Stinger STG-3G (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 7: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 7: Misses! Weapons fire for Wolverine WVR-6M (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 6, rolls 6: Hits Left Torso! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Left Torso, 13/18 Armour remaining. -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 6, rolls 7: Hits Centre Torso! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Centre Torso, 18/23 Armour remaining. -Fires SRM 6 at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 6, rolls 8: 5 missiles Hit! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 2 damage to Right Torso (11/18 Armour remaining), Right Arm (14/16 Armour remaining), Left Leg (14/16 Armour remaining), Right Torso (9/18 Armour remaining), Left Leg (12/16 Armour remaining). Weapons fire for Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers): -Fires SRM 6 at Panther PNT-9R (Players); needs 8, rolls 4: Misses! Weapons fire for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 6, rolls 8: Hits Left Arm! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 5 damage to Left Arm, 11/18 Armour remaining. -Fires AC/5 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 8, rolls 10: Hits Right Torso! Panther PNT-9R (Player) takes 5 damage to Right Torso, 11/20 Armour remaining. -Fires SRM 2 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 6, rolls 8: 2 missiles Hit! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 2 damage to Left Torso (18/20 Armour remaining), Head (7/10 Armour remaining). Pilot Hit! -Fires LRM 5 at Panther PNT-9R (Player); needs 9, rolls 10: 3 missiles Hit! Panther PNT-9R (Player) takes 3 damage to Head (6/9 Armour remaining). Pilot Hit! Weapons fire for Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers): Holds fire! Weapons fire for Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers): -Fires LRM 10 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 6, rolls 9: 4 missiles Hit! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 4 damage to Right Arm (12/18 Armour remaining). -Fires LRM 10 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 6, rolls 11: 6 missiles Hit! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 5 damage to Centre Torso (20/25 Armour remaining), 1 damage to Right Arm (11/18 Armour remaining). Physical attacks for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Would like to punch Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) but cannot do so due to firing arm-mounted weapons in the Shooting Phase! Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) gains 12 heat, sinks 12 heat and is now at 0 heat. Panther PNT-9R (Player) gains 13 heat, sinks 13 heat and is now at 0 heat. Stinger STG-3G (Player) gains 11 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 3 heat. Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) gains 11 heat, sinks 18 heat and is now at 0 heat. Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) gains 6 heat, sinks 6 heat and is now at 0 heat. Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) gains 10 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) gains 11 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 11 heat. Overheating! Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) gains 8 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 0 heat. Jenna Sable (Wolverine WVR-6M) has taken 1 damage this turn! Jenna Sable must pass a consciousness test or fall unconscious! -Jenna Sable must roll a 3 to remain conscious! Toughness bonus reduces target to 2. Automatic Success! Yukiko Ishimura (Panther PNT-9R) has taken 1 damage this turn! Yukiko Ishimura must pass a consciousness test or fall unconscious! -Yukiko Ishimura must roll a 3 to remain conscious! Rolls 8: Succeeds! -- Piloting checks for Wolverine WVR-6M (Player): -Took 20+ damage this turn: Needs 6, rolls 5: Fails! --Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) falls on its rear, suffering 3 damage to Rear Right Torso (3/6 Armour Remaining). --Jenna Sable must roll a 6 to avoid a pilot hit; rolls 9: Succeeds! --Possible breach due to falling in water! Rolls 5; No breach sustained! Piloting checks for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Took 20+ damage this turn: Needs 6, rolls 10: Succeeds! --- Stray weapons fire from Panther PNT-9R (Player) has a chance to start a fire in Hex 1119! -PPC: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 8: No fire. -SRM 4: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 9: No fire.  Player Status  Enemy Status  Primary Objectives: -Destroy Pirate Lance (0/4) Special Abilities: -Toughness: Grants bonus to consciousness rolls. -Small Pilot: Negates ‘Cramped Cockpit’ penalties. Next Orders Due: Saturday 18th 9:00PM GMT.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 15, 2023 17:45
|
|
|
biosterous posted:what are my options with standing up + movement? it's not in the quickstart pdf or the lpix guide There are two methods for standing up. You can try to stand up normally, which costs 2 MP and requires a 5+ piloting test, after which you can move as usual. The other option is to stand up carefully, which only requires a 3+ piloting test but prevents you from moving afterwards. You can still change your facing however. There are a couple of other things to note as well. Battlemechs cannot jump after standing up from a fall; they can only walk or run. Since you fell in water, your mech was fully submerged at the end of last turn, which means you sank all of your heat, which is nice. My advice would be to stand carefully this turn, then jump out of the water next turn. Failing the piloting test means falling back down again, which means potentially taking another pilot hit, and possibly a breach, which could cripple you. My Shadow Hawk can't do enough damage to knock you down again by itself, and the Whitworth is probably going to be a bit distracted this turn, so you should be fine.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 17, 2023 06:42
|
|
|
Eliminate Pirate Lance: Turn 5 After taking a moment to steady his aim, Alexander fired his Stinger’s lasers at the Whitworth. One of his shots missed, but the other speared the Whitworth in the chest. The armour there must have been fatigued, because the narrow beam of energy punched straight through, leaving a smoking hole in the middle of the plate. Flames flickered within the breach, thin at first but rapidly growing in strength and fury. A hollow boom split the air as something exploded deep within the Whitworth’s chest, and Alexander’s heart leapt as he realised he must have hit an ammunition bin. “Watch out, people! The Tin Woodsman’s about to pop!” he warned. The Whitworth jerked and spasmed as its remaining LRM ammunition cooked off. Armour plates buckled and burst outwards as the shaped charges inside each warhead detonated one after another, a cataclysmic chorus of destruction that tore the stocky medium mech open from shoulder to hip. Gutted and broken, the Whitworth collapsed in a mangled heap, flames belching from its charred and mutilated corpse. “Good grief…” Charles murmured, clearly shocked by the carnage. “Keep your eye on the ball, Castle,” Alexander chided, although he couldn’t help but wince. Ammunition explosions were never pretty. The mech’s DI computer transmitted the concussive force into the pilot’s neurohelmet, essentially delivering a burst of mental static directly into the mechwarrior’s brain. The pain was excruciating, and could have fatal consequences if the pilot passed out before they could pull the ejection handle. The damage done to the mech was even worse. Alexander doubted they would be able to salvage anything of value from the Whitworth. The explosions would have broken the mech’s skeleton and mangled its internals beyond recovery. Once, long ago, the Star League had developed technology that could vent such destructive explosions outwards, limiting the damage somewhat, but the blueprints and production lines had been lost in the chaos and slaughter of the Succession Wars. Alexander sighed and forced himself to focus on the task at hand. With the Whitworth down, the pirates had lost their fire support. The scales of battle were tipping back in Sable Lance’s favour. Now they just had to capitalise on it. Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) must make a piloting skill check (standing carefully). Needs 3, rolls 10: Succeeds!  Weapons fire for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 3: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 11: Hits Left Leg! Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Left Leg, 13/18 Armour remaining. -Fires SRM 6 at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 4: Misses! Weapons fire for Panther PNT-9R (Player): -Fires PPC at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 7: Misses! Weapons fire for Stinger STG-3G (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 7, rolls 4: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers); needs 7, rolls 8: Hits Right Torso! Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Right Torso, 2/12 Armour remaining. Through Armour Critical! --Critical Chance in Right Torso! Critical Hit on LRM 10 Ammo (12)! LRM 10 Ammo explodes, dealing 120 damage! Pilot Hit x2! ---Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) takes 120 damage to Right Torso, 0/10 Structure remaining. Right Torso destroyed! Right Arm blown off! 110 damage transfers to Centre Torso, 0/12 Structure remaining. Centre Torso destroyed! Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) destroyed by ammunition explosion! Weapons fire for Wolverine WVR-6M (Player): -Fires Large Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 6, rolls 7: Hits Left Torso! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 8 damage to Left Torso, 5/18 Armour remaining. -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 7: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 9: Hits Left Leg! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Left Leg, 7/16 Armour remaining. -Fires SRM 6 at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 7: Misses! Weapons fire for Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers): -Fires SRM 6 at Panther PNT-9R (Players); needs 10, rolls 9: Misses! Weapons fire for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 7, rolls 9: Hits Right Torso! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 5 damage to Right Torso, 6/20 Armour remaining. -Fires AC/5 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 7, rolls 7: Hits Left Torso! Panther PNT-9R (Player) takes 5 damage to Left Torso, 13/20 Armour remaining. -Fires LRM 5 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 7, rolls 7: 4 missiles Hit! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 4 damage to Right Arm, 7/18 Armour remaining. -Fires SRM 2 at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 7, rolls 10: 1 missile Hit! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 2 damage to Right Arm, 5/18 Armour remaining. Weapons fire for Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers): Holds fire! Weapons fire for Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 11, rolls 8: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 11, rolls 3: Misses! Physical attacks for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Would like to kick Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) but cannot do so because the target has already been destroyed. Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) gains 15 heat, sinks 13 heat and is now at 2 heat. Panther PNT-9R (Player) gains 13 heat, sinks 13 heat and is now at 0 heat. Stinger STG-3G (Player) gains 6 heat, sinks 9 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) gains 20 heat, sinks 16 heat and is now at 4 heat. Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) gains 6 heat, sinks 6 heat and is now at 0 heat. Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) gains 9 heat, sinks 9 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) gains 9 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 10 heat. Overheating! Thabo Ngumo ( Whitworth WTH-1) has taken 2 damage this turn! Thabo Ngumo must pass a consciousness test or fall unconscious! -Thabo Ngumo must roll a 3+ to remain conscious! Rolls 7: Succeeds! -Thabo Ngumo must roll a 5+ to remain conscious! Rolls 7: Succeeds! -Thabo Ngumo safely ejects from Whitworth WTH-1! --- Stray weapons fire from Whitworth WTH-1 (Prowlers) has a chance to start a fire in Hex 1205! -Medium Laser: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 5: No fire. -Medium Laser: Checking for accidental fire; needs 3 or below, rolls 6: No fire.  Player Status  Enemy Status  Primary Objectives: -Destroy Pirate Lance (1/4) Special Abilities: -Toughness: Grants bonus to consciousness rolls. -Small Pilot: Negates ‘Cramped Cockpit’ penalties. Next Orders Due: Tuesday 21st 9:00PM GMT. Scintilla fucked around with this message at 14:55 on Mar 19, 2023 |
|
#
¿
Mar 19, 2023 13:50
|
|
|
biosterous posted:panther jumping behind the wasp to try and finish it off sounds great, as does the gladiator and stinger focusing on the javelin Moving out of Depth 1 water costs 2 MP total, without any piloting checks. It can only be done using Walking MP, so the only way you can leave the lake from your current position is by turning upwards and walking into hex 0616. After that you can use your full MP to move, so you could choose to run around to hex 0416 and shoot the Shadow Hawk in the back if you wanted. Also, you actually can jump if you want to; the Wolverine actually has all of its jump jets in its torso sections, so they aren't submerged in Depth 1 water. Edit: Also, just as a general note, the fluff wasn't exaggerating about ammunition explosions utterly destroying a unit. Anything that suffers one and isn't protected by CASE is removed from the salvage pool at the end of a given mission. It's an extra thing to consider when you see an enemy unit that looks like it might be a nice acquisition. Scintilla fucked around with this message at 20:53 on Mar 19, 2023 |
|
#
¿
Mar 19, 2023 20:38
|
|
|
wedgekree posted:Consider hiring the pilot given he ejected! I mean, fresh meat, with the alternatives being leaving him on the battlefield to wander home (unlikely, given however many dozens or hundreds of kilometers it is), ransom him (even more unlikely, given if he's a pirate it doesn't involve a family of high worth ad the pirates aren't gonna wanna pay to get him back given they just lost a highly expensive Mech with him in it). I'll be letting the thread decide what to do with captured mechwarriors at the end of each contract. Bear in mind that some of them might refuse to sign on for narrative reasons, eg. a captured DCMS Tai-sa will probably not be keen to join the company due to cultural reasons, especially once the Death To Mercenaries edict is signed. AJ_Impy posted:Does the Whitworth crater hex count as rough terrain, or can I run 7 (spending a move to change elevation) to help focus on the Javelin and get in kicking range of the wasp? Yep, destroyed mechs count as rough terrain.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 20, 2023 07:21
|
|
|
CirclMastr posted:Just to confirm, this move would generate 12 heat, correct? So I don't think firing would be wise for me. Jumping costs +1 heat per hex traveled, so jumping to 1610 would cost 4 heat.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 21, 2023 05:10
|
|
|
Eliminate Pirate Lance: Turn 6 Yukiko Ishimura watched dispassionately as the pirate Wasp and Javelin attempted to encircle her. At the last possible moment she feathered her Panther’s jump jets and leapt into the air. Beneath her, the enemy light mechs looked on helplessly as she soared away, carried to safety on wings of fire. As she landed, she took aim at the Javelin and fired her PPC, determined to finally finish the wretched thing once and for all. A simmering frustration bubbled up from deep within Yukiko’s chest as the beam of charged particles passed over the Javelin’s shoulder, missing it by the barest fraction of an inch. Her teeth made an audible grinding noise as she fought to control her fury. What was wrong with her today? Her first two shots had been flawless. How could she have lost her focus so easily? Why was it so hard to- Yukiko grimaced as a familiar pain began to spread across her back, the same dull ache she always felt whenever she lost her composure. The doctors insisted that her scars had healed years ago, and that the feeling was psychosomatic, but Yukiko knew better. The pain was a curse, the last clinging remnants of her father’s hatred and contempt. His enmity dogged her footsteps, clawing at her in moments of weakness, trying to drag her down into the mud – but she wouldn’t let it. Not now. Not ever. With a supreme effort of will, Yukiko forced her furious heartbeat into a calmer rhythm. As the pain in her back slowly ebbed away she examined the remaining pirates, trying to decide which one to engage next. One more hit. Just one more solid hit, and she could banish the ghosts of her past for another day.  Weapons fire for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 9: Hits Centre Torso! Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Centre Torso, 5/10 Armour remaining. Critical Chance! --Critical Chance in Centre Torso! No critical hit sustained. -Fires Medium Laser at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 5: Misses! -Fires SRM 6 at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Panther PNT-9R (Player): -Fires PPC at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 8: Misses! Weapons fire for Stinger STG-3G (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 8: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers); needs 10, rolls 12: Hits Right Torso! Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Right Torso, 0/7 Structure remaining. Right Torso destroyed! Right Arm blown off! Weapons fire for Wolverine WVR-6M (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 7, rolls 6: Misses! -Fires SRM 6 at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 7, rolls 8: 5 missiles Hit! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 2 damage to Rear Left Torso (4/6 Armour remaining), Rear Centre Torso (1/8 Armour remaining), Rear Left Torso (2/6 Armour remaining), Left Leg (5/16 Armour remaining), Head (7/9 Armour remaining). Pilot Hit! Weapons fire for Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers): -Fires SRM 6 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 8, rolls 5: Misses! Weapons fire for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 11, rolls 10: Misses! -Fires AC/5 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 9, rolls 9: Hits Centre Torso! Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) takes 5 damage to Centre Torso, 21/26 Armour remaining. -Fires LRM 5 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 9, rolls 5: Misses! -Fires SRM 2 at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 11, rolls 9: Misses! Weapons fire for Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 10, rolls 11: Hits Right Leg! Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) takes 5 damage to Right Leg, 14/19 Armour remaining. Physical attacks for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Kicks Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 7: Misses! Physical attacks for Wolverine WVR-6M (Player): -Punches Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) with Left Arm; needs 8, rolls 11: Hits Right Arm! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 6 damage to Right Arm, 8/16 Armour remaining. -Punches Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) with Right Arm; needs 8, rolls 6: Misses! Physical attacks for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Punches Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) with Left Arm; needs 6, rolls 6: Hits Right Torso! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 6 damage to Right Torso, 0/20 Armour remaining. Physical attacks for Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers): -Kicks Gladiator GLD-4R (Player); needs 8, rolls 6: Misses! Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) gains 12 heat, sinks 13 heat and is now at 1 heat. Panther PNT-9R (Player) gains 14 heat, sinks 13 heat and is now at 1 heat. Stinger STG-3G (Player) gains 8 heat, sinks 8 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) gains 9 heat, sinks 13 heat and is now at 0 heat. Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) gains 6 heat, sinks 6 heat and is now at 0 heat. Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) gains 9 heat, sinks 9 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) gains 14 heat, sinks 10 heat and is now at 14 heat. Overheating! -Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) must roll a 4+ to avoid automatic shutdown! Rolls 6: Succeeds! Lucas Shaw (Shadow Hawk SHD-2H) has taken 1 damage this turn! Lucas Shaw must pass a consciousness test or fall unconscious! -Lucas Shaw must roll a 3+ to remain conscious! Rolls 3: Succeeds! -- Piloting checks for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): Missed a kick: needs 5, rolls 7; Succeeds! Piloting checks for Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers): Missed a kick: needs 5, rolls 9; Succeeds!  Player Status  Enemy Status  Primary Objectives: -Destroy Pirate Lance (1/4) Special Abilities: -Toughness: Grants bonus to consciousness rolls. -Small Pilot: Negates ‘Cramped Cockpit’ penalties. Next Orders Due: Saturday 25th 9:00PM GMT.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 22, 2023 18:45
|
|
|
ilmucche posted:The opfor has to be running away at this point no? They're down a mech, the wasp is a strong breeze away from CT destruction, the javelin is missing an arm. It's time to run for the drat hills against a mostly intact enemy lance. Running away carries its own risks. The Stinger is fast enough to keep up with and destroy the lighter mechs, while the Shadow Hawk can only outrun the Panther. If the battle somehow manages to drag on for another three turns then the Wasp and Javelin will definitely try to make a break for it, but the Shadow Hawk at least is fighting to the bitter end.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 23, 2023 07:11
|
|
|
CirclMastr posted:Also thinking about the current Battletech kickstarter. How much more complex is the tabletop game compared to this here? MegaMek is basically a computerised version of the tabletop game, using software to faithfully reproduce all of the published rules and quirks of Battletech. In terms of complexity, I would say that the tabletop has a slight edge since there are still a few things that MegaMek hasn't been able to implement yet, but mechanically they are more or less identical. As an aside, a simplified version of the tabletop rules also exists. It's called Alpha Strike, and PoptartsNinja is currently doing a Let's Play for it right now.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 24, 2023 21:19
|
|
|
Glad to have you all aboard!
|
|
#
¿
Mar 26, 2023 07:14
|
|
|
Well, if we're doing music, I may as well post my own favourite track. My first introduction to Battletech was as a twelve year old boy, when one of my friends let me play Mechwarrior 4: Vengeance at his house. It might not be the best Battletech video game, but the introductory cutscene is amazing and it has some great music, particularly the Davion theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdUsE10EwTs Hearing this while storming the palace at the end of the game was simply fantastic (Even if William was a cheating bastard with his magical aimbot bullshit headshotting you right after the cutscene ends).
|
|
#
¿
Mar 26, 2023 10:41
|
|
|
Eliminate Pirate Lance: Turn 7 “poo poo, poo poo, poo poo,” Gudrun Magos hissed. Overheat warnings screamed in her ears as her Wasp’s wounded engine vented another wave of waste heat directly into its own chassis, sending the temperature inside her cockpit soaring to dangerous levels. Gudrun had tried to tune the warnings out at first, but now her situation had become critical. If she didn’t find a way to cool down soon, her mech’s automatic shutdown protocols would do it for her. For the umpteenth time, Gudrun triggered her Wasp’s jump jets and rocketed into the air, angling for a nearby patch of woodland. A few seconds. Just a few seconds unmolested, and she could sink her excess heat back down to manageable levels. After that, she could start to think about bugging out. Far below, Lucas’s Shadow Hawk surged into battle. The old man seemed to have a death wish, recklessly charging forwards without bothering to cover his rear. A hail of fire burst around him as the enemy battlemechs tried to bring him down, but by some miracle nearly every shot missed. Gudrun grinned fiercely, but deep down she knew his luck couldn’t last. His Shadow Hawk’s armour was blackened and scarred, both front and back, and it was only a matter of time before the enemy lance dragged him down like a pack of wolves. Twisting slightly to avoid a large branch, Gudrun landed her Wasp in the thickest part of the woods. She turned and pressed her little mech’s back against a small ridge, hoping the loamy soil would absorb the heat more efficiently. “Well, this turned out to be a clusterfuck and a half,” she muttered to herself, slumping back in her command couch. After a couple of heartbeats she reached out and keyed into her mech’s emergency radio frequency. “Eagle Standard, this is Magos,” she spoke into the receiver, far more calmly than she felt. “Tiger Lance is fubar. Ambushed by unknown battlemechs. Thabo down. Sarah and I crippled. Shaw still fighting. Will try to withdraw when able.” The radio clicked as it processed her message. Gudrun relaxed slightly. At least now the captain would know what had happened to them. A warbling alert from her Wasp’s seismic sensors was all the warning Gudrun had that something had landed behind her. Cursing, she reached for her mech’s controls, but too late. An enormous force slammed into her Wasp’s back, throwing her forwards into her seat’s restraints. The overheat alarm gurgled and died as her cockpit lost power. Gudrun cried out as her mech toppled forwards, the sound swallowed up by the sudden darkness descending around her.  Weapons fire for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 3: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 7: Misses! -Fires SRM 6 at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Panther PNT-9R (Player): -Fires SRM 4 at Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers); needs 11, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Stinger STG-3G (Player): -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 4: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 8: Hits Left Leg! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 5 damage to Left Leg, 0/16 Armour remaining. Weapons fire for Wolverine WVR-6M (Player): -Fires Large Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 8: Misses! -Fires Medium Laser at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 7: Misses! -Fires SRM 6 at Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 9, rolls 5: Misses! Weapons fire for Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers): -Fires SRM 6 at Panther PNT-9R (Player); needs 12, rolls 6: Misses! Weapons fire for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): -Fires Medium Laser at Wolverine WVR-6M (Player); needs 8, rolls 9: Hits Right Leg! Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) takes 5 damage to Right Leg, 14/19 Armour remaining. Weapons fire for Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers): Holds fire! Physical attacks for Gladiator GLD-4R (Player): -Kicks Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers); needs 8, rolls 9: Hits Left Leg! Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) takes 11 damage to Left Leg, 2/13 Structure remaining. Critical Hit! --Critical Chance in Left Leg! No critical hit sustained. Physical attacks for Panther PNT-9R (Player): -Kicks Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers); needs 11, rolls 11: Hits Rear Centre Torso! Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) takes 7 damage to Rear Centre Torso, 0/4 Armour, 0/6 Structure remaining. Centre Torso destroyed! Wasp WSP-1A (Prowlers) destroyed due to damage! Gladiator GLD-4R (Player) gains 12 heat, sinks 13 heat and is now at 0 heat. Panther PNT-9R (Player) gains 7 heat, sinks 8 heat and is now at 0 heat. Stinger STG-3G (Player) gains 7 heat, sinks 7 heat and is now at 0 heat. Wolverine WVR-6M (Player) gains 17 heat, sinks 14 heat and is now at 3 heat. Javelin JVN-10N (Prowlers) gains 10 heat, sinks 9 heat and is now at 1 heat. Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers) gains 5 heat, sinks 5 heat and is now at 0 heat. Piloting checks for Shadow Hawk SHD-2H (Prowlers): Kicked: needs 5, rolls 11; Succeeds!  Player Status  Enemy Status  Primary Objectives: -Destroy Pirate Lance (2/4) Special Abilities: -Toughness: Grants bonus to consciousness rolls. -Small Pilot: Negates ‘Cramped Cockpit’ penalties. Next Orders Due: Tuesday 28th 9:00PM GMT.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 26, 2023 16:15
|
|
|
CirclMastr posted:Welp. I guess there'll be no salvage from the Wasp either. Actually this isn't true - unlike ammo explosions, centre torso destruction doesn't destroy the mech. It just renders it impossible to repair. You can still drag the carcass off the battlefield and strip it for parts, which could be very useful since the company has a number of 20-ton mechs which might need repairing in the future. You can also sell it on for cold, hard C-Bills, which the company is desperately short of right now.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 26, 2023 16:55
|
|
|
Space Kablooey posted:At what point is a mech out of the fight but still able to be repaired, other than leg destruction? Ways to knock out a mech so that it is still recoverable include: -Blow off the head. -Kill the pilot by dealing them six pilot hits. -Kill the pilot by scoring a critical hit on the cockpit. -Destroy the engine. -Destroy the gyro. -Blow off a leg (You'll need to blow off two legs for quad mechs). -Deal enough damage that the enemy pilot decides to eject. If we keep getting scenarios where the players don't manage to get any usable salvage I might houserule it so that centre torso destruction simply renders the mech inoperable. You'll have to replace everything in there - engine, gyro, etc - but repairing it should be possible with lots of time and money. Scintilla fucked around with this message at 17:38 on Mar 26, 2023 |
|
#
¿
Mar 26, 2023 17:24
|
|
|
Captain Foo posted:Is single leg destruction = mission kill a house rule here? Usually it takes both legs to count as a kill Losing one leg counts as a mission kill, yes. It streamlines combat a bit while also giving more opportunities for the players to obtain viable salvage.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 26, 2023 19:16
|
|
|
Otter Madness posted:I think I might back into 0613 and take shots at the Javelin, though I think my TH is 12. I am unsure how much armor costs for the company to replace, but having a mech come in pristine can't be a bad thing right? Armour is pretty cheap at 10,000 C-Bills per ton, and the company has 25 spare tons to start with. It's also one of the easier things to repair - a skilled tech can repair all of the armour on a light or medium mech in less than a day.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 27, 2023 06:15
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 16, 2024 12:12 |
|
|
CirclMastr posted:I broke down and ordered a Battletech Beginner Box today. One of us! One of us!
|
|
#
¿
Mar 29, 2023 08:25
|
|