The Official Battletech thread

[mrsnrub]

Just I noticed there isnt an official thread and there is for all the other major games. Its been picking up pace lately and we have been getting a lot of new influx of folk after the most recent GW antics.

 

I play as House Steiner for Inner Sphere or Clan Wolf if Im doing clans. 

 

I have attached a few pics of last nights game we played here in Moira in Northern Ireland at Tactical Retreat, a fairly new FLGS.

 

Feel free to talk about Battletech, Mechwarrior Destiny, Alpha Strike or any of the many many Battletech related games released over the years.

 

Sorry if this isnt ok and I will delete if required.

 

 

Edited October 15, 2021 by mrsnrub
Title change

[instasis]

This is absolutely the right place for this!

 

Is there an official game/miniature stream for this or is it all abandonware/STL files now?

[mrsnrub]

Ral Partha Europe still do the older minis but importing them into the UK is prohibitive

 

same with Iron Wind Metals in the USA, I dont think they even ship to the UK under £200 orders

 

Ulisees Spiele are the official subsiduary in Germany where the game is HUGE and they make some lovely items that are region only and can be got online

 

The game is currently owned by Topps (yes the people who made garbage pail kids) but they kind of licence the tabletop out to Catalyst games who have just released a bunch of new plastic minis as sets following a very successful kickstarter. However this stuff is still like hens teeth to get hold of so try and not get gouged online.

 

Personally I purchased an Elegoo Mars Pro resin printer along with several other friends who bought one for themselves. This is really the only practical way to play the game now from within the UK area and while I understand concerns over IP etc, Battletech's many "owners" have played fast and loose with it over the years themselves so have no real place to complain too much (they stole lots of old anime designs and artwork back in the day and got the pants sued off them, also the first edition was called Battledroids and of course came under the gaze of Lucas and his army of lawyers) but so long as you arent selling them for profit I dont see too much harm.

 

As for the game, its quite different to 40k, theres a lot of charts to keep track of and the maps are hex based so no more measuring tapes! Well, unless you play the Alpha Strike variant which is a lot more similar and I would recommend this for newer players to see how they like things.

 

There is also a huge wealth of fantastic (and some not so) novels, video games (microsoft hold the video game rights in a rather odd little twist) and there was even a cartoon and toy line....but we dont talk about those too much lol

 

I am always happy to talk battletech/mechwarrior and am also only too happy to help people get into the game.

 

 

[jonnyalpha]

Change the title of this thread and it is an official Battletech thread.

[Kzo]

Not played Battletech but good to see there's a new FLGS within driving distance! Have they much in the way of board games or is it all wargame/TCG stuff?

[mrsnrub]

Loads of board games, rpgs etc, and they will accept the £100 spend local cards

[Nathan Wind]

I bought the Catalyst starter set (the one with a bunch of mechs in it, not just two) and the Clan Invasion box during the summer. I haven’t managed to get it to the table yet because there’s so much to digest, rules wise. I had the version that came with about 8 million paper standees back in the early 90’s, which we’d play from time to time down at the roleplaying club when we were between campaigns. I’ve always liked the setting, and enjoyed the Mech Warrior and Mech Assault video games, but I’m honestly not sure I can be arsed with learning the tabletop game again at this point in my gaming existence. 
 

I don’t begrudge the cheap price point of these box sets though, just for the cool minis if nothing else. They’ll be rad to paint up.

[Arn X Treme]

https://www.humblebundle.com/books/introduction-to-battletech-catalyst-game-labs-books

 

Bundle featuring the Catalyst Stuff (If you're in the U.S. that is) as well as some books etc. 

[Oracle]

How do you get started with this? 

[Nathan Wind]

The 'Battletech - A Game of Armored Combat' box is a good starting point. You get a solid selection of mechs, the full rules and a couple of maps. If you take to it, then the Clan Invasion box is the next thing to buy. There's a beginner box but it doesn't come with full rules and only contains a couple of mechs. Edit - the former also gives you the Alpha Strike rules, which is a faster way to play.

 

I still haven't got this to the table.