ScrapYard Armory

The Historical Turning Points series gains a new chapter.  This time around we are treated to a Succession War era battle between bitter rivals.

Geoff Swift, a return author for the series is in charge to bring Mallory’s World to life.  Will the Turning Points series continue to impress?

The Desolation of Combat

This single page piece was one of the best and most riveting piece of opening fiction I have read.  The story is an emotional roller coaster beginning with a palpable arrogance that melts away, eventually extracting sympathy from the reader or maybe pity.  The ultimate sacrifice is expertly storied in so few words.  It is a great opening for the PDF and makes me want to read more!

Mallory’s World

After a standard full color map of the world, the Atlas section gives a brief description of the world.  Mallory’s World consists of mainly desert or urban areas in part due to the frequent conflict the world attracts.  I enjoyed reading about the early history of this world which is full of otherwise useless anecdotal information.  While I doubt you or your players will care that Mallory’s World is a major supplier of diapers, you can play your tracks and missions secure in the knowledge that the writers have made such information available to all.

A short list of recommended terrain is included for those wishing to roll suitable random terrain.

Lastly, there is a list of available Tactical Operations terrain enhancements for the adventurous to include in their games.

The Battle for Mallory’s World

In a single page the brief but information packed chronology of the multi-year war at Mallory’s World is presented.  For a single page it packs a significant quantity of details that will form the framework for the tracks presented later.

For anyone unfamiliar with the battle this is a great primer.  If you haven’t read the novels there is a lot to pick up.  The lightweight presentation is a perfect fit and gives a fine overview of this epic Succession Wars era conflict.  From copious combat drops, pincher movements, and single combat between leaders Mallory’s World has it all.

Random Assignment Tables

Tables are provided for Kurita and Davion and include ‘Mechs, Vehicles, and Aerospace.  Infantry tables are absent which is not unexpected given the lack of battle armor during this time.

Interestingly, there are five Land Air ‘Mechs (LAMs) slots included.  Details for their use were provided in TRO: 3085.  No doubt there will be those who will love this addition.  Others won’t be bothered either way.  Now if we could only get official miniatures for the newly imaged LAMs we would be in real business.

Commanders

The commanders section details one commander from each side of the battle.  The first is a relatively unknown from the Davions.  I really appreciate the effort to mix it up.  It would have been more expected to have detailed Ian Davion for the PDF, instead we get to learn more about Eugene Drivers.  The Kurita leader is the slayer of the First Prince, a more obvious choice but well worth the page space.

Each leader is further detailed with a short list of A Time of War skills and attributes.  It does not provide a complete character sheet, more of a framework that players can adapt to use in their campaign if you desire.

Combatants

The combatants for both sides are provided for reference including experience rating, unit abilities, and a brief set of notes.

I found the notes and unit abilities to be especially interesting and entertaining.  I really liked the Mallorian Militia and the Second Legion of Vega.  Both have detrimental abilities that are sure to be a factor if your player group is brave enough to use them.

Tracks

The tracks section includes an amazing eleven tracks to play!

Throughout the tracks the use of conventional and infantry units is heavily encouraged in the game setup and attacker/defender descriptions.  I really appreciate the heavy support of combined arms.

I noted that the individual tracks are not balanced the way I would have expected.  I suspect that the history of the battles was a more important factor in recommended force ratios than game balance.  A perfect example is Just Droppin’ In which looks like a bloodbath for the Hussars.  Looking at the aftermath section of the track, it certainly was.  It is an interesting and I believe deliberate methodology to present an accurate battle even if the results are not likely to change.  I would have liked to see more thought put into the objectives to compensate for the unequal unit strengths but can appreciate the unique perspective at work.

The Defeat of Nobility is a brave new take on the track series which pits Ian Davion in his Atlas against the command lance of the Kurita invaders.  It is historically presented and requires special terrain and a bevy of special rules that force the players to relive history and attempt to rewrite it.  A very bold track.

The final five tracks are built to reflect the massive retaliatory invasion of Mallory’s World by Kurita in 3016.  They are meant to be played in any order as they occur at the same time.

Mr. Swift takes a lot of interesting hooks to make the plethora of tracks in Mallory’s World worth playing.  I felt that the sometimes obvious selection of objectives and mundane bonus options are the only items that detract from this excellent set of tracks.  Like none other, Mallory’s World tells the story of the battles, both the wins and the losses with unwavering focus.

Record Sheets

Record sheets are provided for Morgan Kell and Yorinaga piloting an Archer and Warhammer respectively both of which lack a ‘Mech image.  Oversight or intentional?

Three LAM configurations are also provided for the nostalgic among us.  Here is an excellent chance to get your LAM on if that is the sort of thing that floats your boat.

The Final Word

Mallory’s World is an impressive product as a whole.  A unique mix of terrain, detailed setups and painful regard for historical accuracy offset some more obvious objective and bonus selections.  This PDF is well worth the $5 asking price given the large assortment of tracks.  Your gaming group is sure to find something to like among the tracks on Mallory’s World.  It is a mix of both quality and quantity that make it a must buy for Succession War era buffs and a good investment for casual fans.

This game was played at Cold Wars 2011 in Lancaster, Pa.  Thanks go to Scott “Wemic9” for hosting the event and doing so on short notice due a mishap of my own.  Standard BattleTech rules are in effect for this fast and furious battle for the power of the bottle!

Stirring the Hornet’s Nest

Rumor has it that some backwater bumpkins have developed the best whiskey in the galaxy and it’s worth more than can be imagined on the black market.  This is the raid for you and your pirate brothers.  Get in, take out the local defenders, and take the reported shipment of booze that is being prepped for shipment off-world.

In and out, easy job.  No problem. These hicks won’t know what hit them.  Heck, the only two things that these rednecks can do is make whiskey and race on the weekends.

Pirate Raiders

• WTH-2 Whitworth
• VND-5L Vindicator
• PXH-3D Phoenix Hawk
• JR7-D Jenner
• CLNT-6S Clint
• BJ-1 Blackjack
• PNT-10K Panther
• TR1 Wraith
• WVR-7M Wolverine
• END-6J Enfield
• COM-1B Commando
• WLF-1 Wolfhound

Planetary Militia

• HNT-151 Hornet (Red)
• HNT-151 Hornet (Blue)
• HNT-151 Hornet (Green)
• HNT-151 Hornet (White)

Objectives

The Pirate forces are searching for a cache of Whiskey.  The Whiskey is hidden in one of the warehouses inside the city gates.  The Militia player secretly selected a building to hold the booze.  The Pirate player must find the Whiskey, load it onto a ‘Mech and escape off the map.  The Militia must stop the Pirates at all costs.

Turn 1 – Pirates win Initiative

The start of the game is a bit boring.  The Militia Hornets are spread out and hiding behind buildings.  The Pirate horde marches ominously forward, no doubt counting their lucky stars that the planet is so lightly defended.

Easy money!

Turn 2 – Militia win Initiative

The Pirates continue to move forward in two main groups.  The Hornets continue to hide but manage to let loose a few volleys of LRMs all of which miss.

Turn 3 – Pirates win Initiative

The Pirates are now at the gates of the city.  The lead units, a Phoenix Hawk and a Commando are shot at with LRMs but only the Commando takes any damage.  Return fire from the Pirates is ineffective.

Turn 4 – Pirates win Initiative

As the Pirates push into the city the Militia back off and find better cover further away from the attackers.  The first warehouse building is scanned by the Pirates.  Nothing yet.

Then suddenly, a lance of Savannah Masters burst out of one of the warehouses to the North!

One of the fearless hovercraft pilots charges the Pirate Commando while the others pour in laser fire.  A Pirate Wraith blasts the charging hovercraft before it can do any damage.  The medium laser barrage manages to critically hit one of the Commando’s engine slots.

Turn 5 – Pirates win Initiative

The Pirates fan out at best speed to cover as many warehouses as possible.

Suddenly a buzz is heard across the battlefield as a horde of hover fans turn on.  Three Gabriels and 17 Savannah Masters burst from their hiding spots to envelop the attacking Pirates!

The mass of hover tanks concentrate fire on the Wolfhound, Commando, and Clint while the Pirates lash out at targets of opportunity.

The Wolfhound is crushed from behind.  After a gyro hit the Wolfhound is almost brought down when its rear armor fails.  The Commando loses a few heatsinks and takes an engine critical but is alive for now.  The Clint sees a whole lot of armor peeled off but stands through the punishment.

In return fire a lucky strike from the Wolverine critical hits one of the Hornet’s ammo slots sending the ‘Mech to the scrapyard.

In a stunning turn the whiskey is located by the Wolfhound!

Turn 6 – Pirates win Initiative

The Pirate force is stunned by the sudden influx of hovers and moves three ‘Mechs to surround the whiskey stores.  The hovers scatter to maintain top speed while the Pirate Wraith stalks them with it’s pulse lasers.  A Hornet manages to get behind the Pirate Phoenix Hawk.

The hovers concentrate fire on the Wraith, Whitworth, and Clint.  The Pirates again fire at whatever hover craft are in range.

All told four hovers were cored, kicked or otherwise dispatched by the Pirates.  Return fire slags some armor but the Pirates keep their backs to the buildings to maximize protection.

One of the Hornets together with a couple hovercraft attempt to blow up the Whiskey! Their concentrated fire power is enough to take the building down a notch but is not enough to punch through to ignite the booze.  The Pirates successfully load up their precious cargo at the end of the turn.

Turn 7 – Pirates win Initiative

The Pirates use their initiative advantage to pick their lanes and begin moving units towards their home edge.  The Pirate Enfield, who is carrying the booze, moves last and dekes his way behind a building away from most of the danger.

The Pirate Commando is ganged up on and is cored through by a Hornet and a trio of hovers.  The Wolfhound is destroyed by engine criticals.  Both the Whitworth and Phoenix Hawk fall due to damage.

In return, three hovers die a sudden death by a combination of lucky weapon hits and kicks.

Turn 8 – Militia win Initiative

The Pirate force consolidates their force and seeks cover from a nearby building.  They strategically place their backs to the wall to avoid rear shots.  The hovers envelope the Pirates while keeping their speed up.

The Green Hornet is cored while two hovers are destroyed.  Another hover is immobilized and then killed by a sword attack from the Pirate Vindicator.  The hovers damage armor on the Wraith, Enfield and Jenner but do no major damage.  The Jenner misses a kick and falls flat on his face.

Turn 9 – Militia win Initiative

Time is running out and the Pirates can’t afford to make a run for it!  Its a final stand.

(our time slot at the convention was running out)

The Pirates put their backs to the wall again as the hovers swarm around them.  The Pirates scatter their fire at available targets while the hovers concentrate all fire on the Enfield!

Pirate weapons fire brings down no less than four hovercraft.  The hovers brutalize the Enfield, stripping armor in several locations.  The Enfield loses two engine criticals, a gyro hit and loses a number of weapon systems but manages to stay alive and upright.

End Game

Unfortunately, our time slot ran out and we were not able to completely finish this game.

So, who do you think would have been able to pull off the victory?  Do the Pirates have enough gusto to put the Militia in their place or will the stalwart defenders of the greatest vice in the Inner Sphere have the last word?

Regardless, this was a fun and spirited game.  My hat goes off to Scott for having the twisted mind to put it all together.

The Youling Zhanshi lance pack dossier is the second in the series and covers the Jihad Era.  Once again we have a new remarkable ‘Mech lance fully fleshed out and ready for a mini-campaign on your tabletop.  These two PDF exclusives are budget priced at $3.95 and $1.95 respectively and are meant to be used together for best effect.  Newcomer Craig K. Erne is at the helm for this PDF exclusive.

On My Signal

The opening fiction is a great thrill.  The ambush sequence demonstrates the cutthroat tactics the Liao warriors are willing to use to ensure victory and notoriety.  Like wolves lying in wait the Capellans unleash brutal tactics against trapped foes.  What else would we expect when MechWarriors defend their own turf?

A very good start to the PDF.  The action is fast and a welcome introduction to the Ghost Warriors.

Unit Profile

The unit profile section covers each member of the lance including a black and white portrait, a CamoSpecs painted miniature as well as a small write up on both the pilot and the ‘Mech.

The ‘Mech descriptions offer additional fluff in the way of Quirks.  These Quirks come right out of Strategic Operations and give additional flavor to the unit while increasing complexity.

Missions

There are three missions included for the Youling Zhanshi.  Two of them are standard warchest missions while one is an A Time of War adventure.

The warchest tracks are hit and miss.  Both contain a very well done fluff and description.  I thought that Thieves in the Night was far superior a track than The Head of the Serpent.  Thieves in the Night features an excellent array of non-typical objectives and some interesting special rules and bonuses.  It is everything a Chaos Campaign fan likes in a mission.

The Head of the Serpent falls back on standard objectives and an uninspiring situation report.  Still given the nature of the mission, I can accept that it was the only way to portray the final climactic battle after a long guerrilla campaign.

The A Time of War Adventure is a bit of a mystery for me.  There are two pages of descriptions, one for the players and a GM only section.  The adventure objectives are open ended and the GM is expected to fill in details and prepare additional ‘Mech battles (or none at all depending on the players actions) as necessary to fill in the several months long guerrilla campaign.  Your mileage will undoubtedly vary depending on the strength of your GM.

All together, Youling Zhanshi follows the Lamenkov’s Liabilities formula almost too well.  There is even a copy-paste error on page two identifying the Liabilities as the lance of interest.  My comments on the Liabilities PDF are applicable here, there is not enough in the way of hard content to keep the usual BattleTech group interested.  The Turning Points PDF series seems to be a much better value when you look at the total package.

Character Sheets and Record Sheets

Each member of the lance gets a fully fleshed out RPG record sheet and a ‘Mech record sheet.  Nothing notable here except for perhaps running a bit low on places to fit the copious amount of RPG skills typical for A Time of War.

Jason Zaklan

This add-on PDF features a brief description of Jason Zaklan a covert Death Commando operative on planet at the time of the Fed Suns invasion.  Zaklan has a direct role in the last mission and also potentially the A Time of War adventure.

Given the fact that Jason Zaklan is an inescapable part of the last mission in the Youling Zhanshi PDF I find it curious that the two PDFs were not simply merged together into a $5 product.  I felt the same way with the Liabilities PDF.

Final Words

At a combined price of $5.90, the Youling Zhanshi and Jason Zaklan PDF combo is a potentially short series of BattleTech missions along with an RPG adventure.

The writing is excellent throughout the PDF and is enjoyable to learn the history of this Jihad era battle. I would love to see what Mr. Erne can do with a Turning Points PDF.  He showed some excellent form in the first mission.