Battletech Public Playtest Thread

[RangerWickett]

I did a playtest with the new aerospace battlefield support rules last night. Has anyone else tried them.

I like that they make it easy to introduce aeros to mech combat, certainly compared to the full Total Warfare ruleset. But while this system is playable and fine, my friend and I thought it has several points of complexity that don't actually yield meaningful improvement in gameplay.

The multiple stages of action declaration and attack resolution didn't feel like they fit with the rest of BT, and if the goal is just to give you a chance to shoot down dive bombers, we came up with a proposal that does that but is much easier to explain and play.

But I have barely seen anyone talking about the aerospace playtest rules. Anyone got an opinion?

 

[Kannik]

I did a playtest with the new aerospace battlefield support rules last night. Has anyone else tried them.

Unfortunately I haven't had a chance to give them a good read through yet. (And now I'm curious if they're similar to how Renegade Legion's Centurion incorporated Interceptor strafing and bombing runs...)

 

[payn]

Just registered for Adepticon. Anyone else going?

Friday im doing Instant action CBT tourney. Saturday im doing the CBT missions narrative events. Sunday im finishing out with Raise your flag faction event for CBT.

 

[MacDhomnuill]

Just registered for Adepticon. Anyone else going?

Friday im doing Instant action CBT tourney. Saturday im doing the CBT missions narrative events. Sunday im finishing out with Raise your flag faction event for CBT.

I wish I could, but new siding on the house has trumped all gaming fun for the next couple years. Going to try to get a game in at our localish con midwest game fest in kansas city in april though!

 

[Kannik]

Just registered for Adepticon. Anyone else going?

Friday im doing Instant action CBT tourney. Saturday im doing the CBT missions narrative events. Sunday im finishing out with Raise your flag faction event for CBT.

Alas no... hoping to make it to a local con in Feb though. Definitively will hang out at the BT game(s) even if I don't sign up due to conflict with other sessions. (Last year I got to play a bit as one player kept going off to check up on an auction they were bidding in.)

(I was also aiming to run a Renegade Legion: Centurion game at the con but events over the past 6 months have kaiboshed those plans for this year.)

Enjoy the con!

 

[payn]

Greetings,

Have not done a follow-up in some time. I was pretty busy getting ready for Adepticon. We got a lot of big news from a posted wrap up on the playtest to Podcasts with marketing and rules devs.

So, lets dive in.

Core rules book is due to drop at Gencon. Ive heard it probably wont be retail until October.

Im gonna cover some items but not everything.

The main item from the playtest that was scrapped was the side torso hit table removal. Not gonna miss that one.

• Ammo bins can be half loaded. (I thought this was already allowed..)
• Front loaded initiative (I know some folks dont like this, but for sake of speed and ease I think its due)
• Roads can assist infantry and vees to make level 2 changes. Cool.
• Height no longer negates partial cover. (At first I didn't like this, but then I realized it makes sub levels kind of crappy.)
• If a charging unit's target can no longer be charged, they can now declare a new physical target. (No lost turn!)

Here are my "whats going on here?" items.

• Floating crits is standard, but still optional. (Pick a lane and make the opposite optional.)
• No ammo dumping any longer. (I think this hurts ammo carrying mechs further. I miss the tactical choice of dumping and the offensive choice of trying to sneak a back shot on somebody. A shame.)
• No skidding anymore. (I was really hoping for a simplification and not complete removal.)

Missions packet. I dont have much to say on this. Its good for a quick set up if you had no idea what you were gonna play before meeting up. I prefer more involved missions with interesting objectives, but I think for a base supplement in the core book the missions are fine.

New starter and Game of Armored Combat Boxes.
I think the new Game of Armored Combat box being in ilclan isnt the worst idea. CGL really wants to promote the current era. I personally dont care for it as its more tactical paper rock sccisors, but its got its fans. I think the real hold back is going to be on ramping. There are zero, zip, ziltch video games set in this era. I think the video games are a top lead in, and CGL cant do much about that as they dont have the rights to make them.

The mechs in the new starter box are a mix of whoa cool (vulture) and WTF? (Raksasha). Though, getting more sculpts of mechs that are not in plastic is a good thing. What about the previous set of mechs like the Battlemaster, locust, catapult??? Those will be moving into force packs so those classic mechs will still be available. Now that I mention it, the Clan Invasion box is done-so as well. The mechs will make a Star force pack and elements will be in their own overpriced box. Look for the existing boxes to go on clearance soon!

The real head scratcher is the new starter box. It has the Hammerhands and Kontio mechs... You know the Kontio mech you take out when you want your friends to feel bad? I guess the idea was that new players will be able to launch into the toughest of ilclan day one. So sure of this CGL is, that they cut the record sheets in half again and made special toned down variants just for the starter box... Im not sure about this one. I dont buy starter boxes anyways.

Final thoughts.
There is a little more clarity now in the Battletech space. The "core" ruleset is intended to be the tournament set going forward. Plans to revise Tactical Operations are in the works, but existing stuff remains usable now even with the rule change. Think of it like 5E 2014 to 5E2024.

There is going to be an adjustment phase as many of these rule changes are simple single digits or movement of the order of operations. Things that have become mental muscle memory will be slightly rejiggered. Most of the changes I like and think will streamline play a bit. A few things im gonna miss (probably keep as local houserules).

Thoughts?

 

[Kannik]

Och, I meant to post here after reading the results document and then lost it in the shuffle... thanks for pinging it back to the top!

Glad they ditched the side torso overkill!

Will need to look again at the consolidated piloting revisions, but alleviating the "I took more damage from falling down and failing to stand back up" conga of humiliation will be appreciated by me. Hip crit revisions should keep things more streamlined. Like the road rule for vehicles and slopes.

Skidding I can sort of get why it was removed. I'd assume it was put there to help make vehicles more valuable for urban defenses, but I think skidding was removed from Alpha Strike and if they didn't see much effect from that removal (or if so few ppl play with vehicles) then perhaps it seemed to only add extra complexity without benefit.

Will have to wait and see if the sturdy AC rule makes much of a difference, but given their hard rule of not invalidating (nearly) any record sheet ever published they could only tinker at the edges. Which is why they couldn't really pulse lasers much either (except hope they're properly costed in BV (which personally I've never used, so don't know if they are or not).

I'm also puzzled why they're removing ammo dumping -- I can am guessing that it's due to tournament play, ie, taking a mech that's good except for the bomb in its centre and removing the bomb first thing. I've played with a few who have done that first turn in a game, like with a Warhammer, dumping all MG ammo first thing. Assuming the bomb nature of ammo is accounted for in BV, that could've been a way to game the system/balance. But if not, then I'm not sure again why... unless they think that the new ammo explosion rules are now balanced that it is no longer needed?

The floating crits is now core but also an option threw me for a bit of a loop as well. Again it might be if we look at it through a tournament lens. Moving it from the "variant/optional" rules into the main core means it'd be tourney legal. Otherwise it doesn't seem to accomplish much.

Flat +1 for secondary target and getting rid of the rear arc extra penalty might actually make the (r) firing weapons on assaults a bit more worth it now.

Punches getting more accurate (and kicks getting less accurate so they're the same as punches now) is interesting. Might make it more of a reasonable choice then it was before.

Falls always go in the direction you're facing is a bit curious. Not sure why that change.

Like the piloting revisions, a Single Consciousness roll to avoid the conga of bad chances is appreciated by me.

Quad mechs I will have to see what they've done, but I bet they still get the shaft and I really need to get a revised version of my variant rules out for them.

 

[payn]

Skidding I can sort of get why it was removed. I'd assume it was put there to help make vehicles more valuable for urban defenses, but I think skidding was removed from Alpha Strike and if they didn't see much effect from that removal (or if so few ppl play with vehicles) then perhaps it seemed to only add extra complexity without benefit.

Skidding is/was a nightmare. /inhale You had to have the modifer table out, and if you failed you had to calculate how far you moved beforehand to see how far you skid. Lord help you if a mech or vee was in the path of your skid and had to figure out an unintentional charge, Then, pray to jeebus you dont crash into a building have to find out if it has a basement, if you did enough damage to make it collapse, and if you mech can actually survive all that damage... /exhale

I was hoping for something more like PSR every time you turn on pavement or fall over and skid a hex.

I'm also puzzled why they're removing ammo dumping -- I can am guessing that it's due to tournament play, ie, taking a mech that's good except for the bomb in its centre and removing the bomb first thing. I've played with a few who have done that first turn in a game, like with a Warhammer, dumping all MG ammo first thing.

I always thought turn one dumping was silly. Just deploy with an empty bin! Though, im guessing folks were rules sticklers about it and thats why it was a thing.

Assuming the bomb nature of ammo is accounted for in BV, that could've been a way to game the system/balance. But if not, then I'm not sure again why... unless they think that the new ammo explosion rules are now balanced that it is no longer needed?

My guess is that a lot of folks gave feedback that they love when ammo is hit and explodes killing the mech. Im guessing thats a lot of energy boat folks saying that I feel like the ammo dump removal was to make this happen more often, which is just going to make folks take ammo loaded mechs less often.

The floating crits is now core but also an option threw me for a bit of a loop as well. Again it might be if we look at it through a tournament lens. Moving it from the "variant/optional" rules into the main core means it'd be tourney legal. Otherwise it doesn't seem to accomplish much.

Flat +1 for secondary target and getting rid of the rear arc extra penalty might actually make the (r) firing weapons on assaults a bit more worth it now.

Punches getting more accurate (and kicks getting less accurate so they're the same as punches now) is interesting. Might make it more of a reasonable choice then it was before.

Kicks always seemed a bit too easy to me. This makes it more of a choice for melee builds and its faster as you dont have to think about the differences anymore.

Falls always go in the direction you're facing is a bit curious. Not sure why that change.

I think they want to speed up the game. Falling is a bit of a chain reaction, causing numerous rolls. Personally, I liked the direction because we always used one arm firing while prone advanced rule. Where you fall determines your arc of fire. Its even more curious because you still have to roll to see if its front or back damage now. So, its not that much faster.

Like the piloting revisions, a Single Consciousness roll to avoid the conga of bad chances is appreciated by me.

We always liked the spiral of death. I would split the difference and keep consciousness (it doesnt happen that often) but ditch multiple PSR for actuator hits. Im also sad that ammo exploding only causes 1 injury now...

Quad mechs I will have to see what they've done, but I bet they still get the shaft and I really need to get a revised version of my variant rules out for them.

Quads have a lot of benefits in CBT, its AS they suck hard. Though, yeah im curious to see what they did.

The big one for me is I didnt see anything with LRMs. In fact, it sounds like they are changing the only thing that made them good, which is semi-guided ammo. Well, I think spotting is getting a rework but im not sure how. Anyways, I always felt LRMs are pretty weak and was sad to not see any attempts to buff them.