Battletech and Alpha Strike

[Brother Glacius]

I guess I was thinking that an RPG was like D&D RPG, not a company level campaign system.

[Ish]

Destiny is a roleplaying game like D&D. But you have to have the characters do something and typically in of the BattleTech RPGs that something is “be mercenary mechwarriors.” You could play a game where everyone is any other possible profession or occupation you think would fit in the universe… But just as D&D sort of has the built in default assumption of “heroic hobos who search for treasure to loot and evil-doers to vanquish” the default assumption of a BattleTech RPG is “guys in giant robots shootin’ other giant robots.”

So in D&D a DM needs to come up with a story that serves to provide a reason for heroes to wander around vanquishing evil and acquiring treasure. A BattleTech RPG DM needs to provide a reason for the player characters to get into their giant robots and shoot other giant robots.

There are primarily three ways to find yourself piloting a BattleMech in the narrative of the universe:

• Join the military of an Inner Sphere major power or one of the larger Periphery states; attend their military academy and train as a MechWarrior; get assigned a ‘Mech; and go off to die for your country.

• Be born the scion of a noble house in the Inner Sphere or Periphery; get trained as a MechWarrior by tutors or household soldiers; inherit your parent’s ‘Mech; and go off to die for your family’s honor.

• Be genetically engineered as a zygote in a test tube to be a MechWarrior; get plucked out of a giant vat and shoved into the cockpit of a ‘Mech; and go off to die honorably because some dishonorable jerk dared to refuse your batchall!

• Be born literally anywhere; maybe figure out how to pilot a ‘Mech at some point; acquire a ‘Mech that “fell off the back of a truck”; convince a mercenary company or pirate bang to sign you; and go off to die for somebody else’s money.

The first three options – PC’s are all military / all nobility / all clanners – limits the possible origins for the PCs and to a certain lesser degree limits the sort of adventures they can go on. Having the PCs all be mercs grants the greatest degree of narrative flexibility without having to give up on the giant robots shootin’ other giant robots action.

[Brother Glacius]

But not everyone is a mechwarrior in that game....you could have a mechanic, or a spy....so its not all about just mech combat...not much of an RPG if that is all it was...just play battletech. So how do you fill in the rest and still have mech combat where half your group isn't doing nothing?

[Ish]

1 hour ago, Brother Glacius said:

But not everyone is a mechwarrior in that game....you could have a mechanic, or a spy....so its not all about just mech combat...not much of an RPG if that is all it was...just play battletech. So how do you fill in the rest and still have mech combat where half your group isn't doing nothing?

That’s the point of the “troupe style” game that I mentioned before. Everyone makes a “main character” and a “supporting character.”

So if Alice and Bob makes their “main characters” MechWarriors, they’d be the stars of the show during ‘mech combat scenes. But Alice and Bob would also play a “supporting character” like the company’s quartermaster or an assistant technician.

Meanwhile, Charlie and Diana make their “main characters” the company’s Commanding Officer and Intel Analyst (a.k.a. Spy). These aren’t frontline combat roles, they stay at the base, negotiating with clients, making campaign plans, and the like. So these two players also play “supporting characters” who serve in the same lance as Alice and Bob’s “star” MechWarriors.

So even though only half the “main characters” are MechWarriors, all four of the players get to be involved in the giant stompy robot action. Likewise, even though only half the “main characters” are directly involved in the drama going on in the base, all four of the players get to be involved in those scenes.

[Kelharis]

I have always liked the idea of starting with nothing and having to capture small arms, then vehicles, then light mechs etc. Although that might make a campaign draw out for a considerable time. Basically playing out the Gray Death Legion trilogy in essence. 

[Brother Glacius]

I have this fantastic battletech comic from ages ago (might even be a 3D comic) which is the story of a group of Kurita dispossessed formed into a suicide unit. They stumble on a enemy mech encampment, sneak in, kill some dudes, and then actually steal a few battlemechs. Upon return, the Kurita command thanks them for the mechs, but basically states that since they were going on a suicide mission, they have already been listed as dead, and are told to basically commit seppuke. Instead, they steal the mechs they stole and turn into mercs. Very cool comic.

 

[Ish]

In 3072 a veteran lance was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn't commit. These MechWarriors  promptly escaped from a maximum-security stockade to the Deep Periphery. Today, still wanted by the Cappellan government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem... if no one else can help... and if you can find them... maybe you can hire... The ’M-Team.

[Ish]

3 hours ago, Brother Glacius said:

[S]ince they were going on a suicide mission, they have already been listed as dead, and are told to basically commit seppuke.

Curse you. Ever since lunch, I’ve been singing to myself “seppuke, seppuke” to the tune of Shipoopi from The Music Man.

Seppuke, seppuke, seppuke
When dishonored you do get
Seppuke, seppuke, seppuke
It’s time your ancestors and you met

[Brother Glacius]

I'd love to play in a mechwarrior campaign that started like that....loyal soldiers turned into mercs due to circumstances and trying to keep their heads above water.... Mechwarrior meets Firefly 🙂

[Ish]

The more I leaf through MechWarrior Destiny the more I kinda don’t like it. It seems fine, I’d probably enjoy playing it alright… But I think I’d prefer something a bit more traditional (but without the complexity of A Time of War).

Stars Without Number seems almost perfect. Just don’t let anyone pick the psionic classes or feats, replace what little setting background material there is with the BattleTech lore, and either use SWN’s mecha system or (even better) just play Alpha Strike/Classic BattleTech for those fight scenes.

SWN uses Attribute Modifiers not too dissimilar from D&D (-5 to +5) and Skill ranks (+0 to +5), it wouldn’t be hard to transfer that information into derived statistics for play Alpha Strike/Classic BattleTech. You could just say take your Intelligence modifier plus Shoot skill bonus equals Gunnery and your Dexterity mod plus Pilot skill bonus equals Piloting. Easy.

Edit because of Derp: I forgot that for Piloting and Gunnery skills in BattleTech lower numbers are better. So do the math above, subtract from some sort of baseline number (maybe 6?) and use the result.

Edited April 7, 2023 by Ish

[Brother Glacius]

I've not dived deep into the rules of Destiney. Can't really speak to them. Traveler could probably be used quite easily as well.

[Ish]

SWN is basically Traveller, but quicker to play.