ScrapYard Armory

NJCon is in the books for 2009.  Here is a brief recap of what went down.

The Grinder

I had three people play in the Grinder.  Each made it at least into their heavy ‘Mech before either the session ended or they had to leave.  I ended up handing out five CDs filled with introductory materials to both players and passers-by.  I had a lot of compliments on the terrain setup as well as my use of Mechwarrior figures.

Twilight of the Clans

There was only one taker for the Twilight of the Clans event.  Together we finished two battles before the Con began cleaning up.  The Clans and Inner Sphere each won one battle.  Look for an After Action Report in the near future covering the St.Ives Compact versus Clan Wolf battle!

There were lots of compliments on the terrain and miniatures by on lookers.  I hope that future Cons will be a little bit better attended but the way I see things, I won’t get anyone to play if I don’t ever try.

Painting Contest

I ended up entering the bring in painting contest with my 15th Lyran Warhammer.  I did not originally intend to enter that particular miniature but the fates were against me as I rushed to complete a new miniature in time for the Con.  Long story short (I’m saving the long version for a later post) I ended up ruining the mini in the eleventh hour and used the Warhammer instead.

The Warhammer was a strong entry and placed third in a popular vote.  I’m proud that my painting skills consistently place but I need to learn a few more tricks in order to vault myself to the next level.  I plan on taking advanced painting classes at GenCon this year.  I hope to learn as much as I can and use those new skills to bring home a first place in the future.

Other Event Photos

Here is a collection of photos from around the Con.  There were a lot of great games to play besides Battletech.  Between running games I played in a medieval wargame using the Hack in the Dark rule set.  The game board was gorgeous and the rules well done.

The internet is a wonderful thing.  I spotted some great videos on YouTube the other day from Terrainaholic.  He has two videos (>10 min each) that detail how he makes 6mm buildings for epic scale games.  This scale would also work well for Battletech and even Mechwarrior AoD.

Terrainaholic’s…

• YouTube Channel

• photobucket

• 6mm Buildings Part 1

• 6mm Buildings Part 2

Not everyone out there has such an amazing workshop.  I’m definately jealous.  I’m not sure exactly how he gets his pink foam sheets so thin but the final outcome makes me want to give it a try for some of my 3D terrain.

With a lot of patience I think these could work very well on both 2″ hexes and standard map sheets.  Hope this gives you some inspiration for you own terrain projects.

NJCon 2009 is getting close and the preliminary events list is up at the convention website.  I will be running three games this year, two grinders and Twilight of the Clans.  Both events are ones I ran last year, but if you weren’t at NJCon last year, you have a lot to see.

The Grinder will make use of Mechwarrior figures on an oversize (2″) hex mat with hills woods, water and maybe a building or two.  Twilight of the Clans will have an impressive array of painted miniatures in fast paced games that will put you in direct control of forces on sculpted 3D terrain.  All materials for all games are provided for you so you only have to bring yourself (and a lucky pair of dice if that’s your preference).

There is finally a good reason to come to Jersey.  So come on out and blast apart a ‘Mech or two!

Friday Evening, 6pm-10pm
FE-7: Battletech Grinder
Description: Leap into action with the Grinder! The Grinder is a fast paced game of armored combat in the 31st century. Battle it out in an every ‘Mech for itself brawl!
No experience required. Rules taught. All materials provided.
Club or Sponsor: http://www.ScrapYardArmory.com
No. of Players: 12

Saturday Morning, 9am-1pm
SM-14: Battletech Grinder
Description: Leap into action with the Grinder! The Grinder is a fast paced game of armored combat in the 31st century. Battle it out in an every ‘Mech for itself brawl! No experience required. Rules taught. All materials provided.
Club or Sponsor: http://www.ScrapYardArmory.com
No. of Players: 12

Saturday Evening, 7pm-11pm
SE-38: Twilight of the Clans: The Great Refusal (Battletech)
Description: The brave warriors of Task Force Serpent secretly made the thousand-light-year journey to the Smoke Jaguar home world of Huntress to eliminate the last of the Clan’s holdings. What they find there will test the limits of their skills, their endurance and their loyalty. Come and relive a pinnacle moment in Battletech history as the combined forces of the Inner Sphere, under the banner of the Star League, seek to end the threat of the Clan invasion once and for all. All materials provided. Some experience recommended.
Club or Sponsor: http://www.ScrapYardArmory.com
No. of Players: 12

Just this month illustrator David White leaked some images on his blog that were very interesting.  He is responsible for a lot of the art work that went into the MechWarrior 4 video game.

The art is amazing.  But 3063?  It seems like such an odd year since we have already received TRO 3075.  3063 would be sandwiched between TRO3060 and TRO3067 making it a Civil War era release.  Why would we backtrack to this particular era when there is still such a wide gap to fill between the Jihad and the Dark Age?

Interestingly enough the post title was changed sometime today.  Google cache still has both post titles as Battletech TRO:3063 Commissions.  Here is a sample of the original post text that was recently removed.

I had a little down time recently while I was waiting for project approvals so I looked for some work to fill the gap. I contacted the people responsible for the recent Battletech Technical Readouts and asked if they needed anyone to draw some mechs. Sure enough, they needed some more help so now we are working together. Thanks Steven!!!

Two out of the four ‘Mechs mentioned contain Stealth armor.  Stealth armor just so happens to have been released in 3063 by the Capellans.  Oversight, coincidence, or something all together stranger?

POST UPDATE: Check out the comments for some clarifications from the man himself, David White!

See the full transcript.

Lots of interesting tidbits in this chat.  Sadly, I missed the live version due to issues at work.  No worries though.  The good folks at Catalyst have once again posted a neatly put together transcript for all to read.  Here are the best facts in the bunch in case you’d prefer an executive summary.

• Classic Battletech will from now on be known only as Battletech.
• Interstellar Operation is increasingly looking more like a 2010 release.
• Next Handbooks will be Major Periphery States followed by House Liao.
• HexPacks, terrain and game aids for playing Battletech this year.  Perhaps this will include counters for buildings and such?
• The GenCon and Origins canon event will take place on Dieron.
• Business is very brisk on the retail side.  Good news for the long term viability of the game.

I’m lukewarm on the removal of the “Classic” moniker.  Even though it has been a pain to explain to returning players what the Classic meant, after all of the time invested in the re-branding of the game, there are going to be naysayers out there.

Knowing what is in the pipeline is good to hear.  An active line of communication with fans is very appreciated and I believe in the long run that it is a necessary characteristic for a successful game company.

From the chat, we may also be treated to a new book release.  Perhaps soon, so keep an eye on the main page for big news.

Cold Wars 2009 is in the books and it was a great one.  There were plenty of ‘Mechs being smashed all weekend long. I’ve got some great content lined up and am anxious to share with all of my readers.

Lawyers, Guns, and Money: The Mistake

Look for a full after action report from this fast paced and popular scenario in the near future here at the ScrapYard!  The Lone Star Company faces off against Redfields Renegades after a terrible misunderstanding pits the two Inner Sphere mercenaries against each other to avenge an apparent wrong.

Coming Soon!

Other Classic Battletech Events

Demo Agent “Speck” and company held many events throughout the weekend including the Fall of Hesperus II, The Demise of Delta Company, and Damnation: Luthien 3074.  Every event was well attended and provided the opportunity for any convention goer to take a shot at reliving Battletech history.

Sadly I could not make every event.  Other priorities like food and the occasional non-Battletech game (gasp!) take precedence.  Here are a few scattered pictures from some of those events.

The Grinder and Demo

Both the grinder and demo games were once again very popular.  I ended up playing quite a bit in the Grinder between games or whenever I had a spare hour to kill.  There was a steady stream of players at the Grinder all weekend long.  A great showing for Classic Battletech!

The demo table likewise was full of new players playing Battletech for the first time.  Nothing says convention like blowing up your first ‘Mech!

The Painting Competition

As part of the bring in painting contest, I entered my 15th Lyran Regulars Warhammer.  The competition was fierce.  There were a lot of deserving miniatures this year, far more than I saw last year.  I am pleased to say I managed to take Third Place among the Single Figure Other category.

The best in show for the event happened to be my very favorite and I just had to share the quick photo I took while it was on the judging table.  I forgot to get the artist so if anyone happens to know the painter send me an email so I can give credit for this great miniature.

Iron Wind Metals

Iron Wind brought all of the newest Battletech miniatures including several resin kits to Cold Wars.  I picked up a HPG grid resin and pewter kit and I have to say it looks great.  Look for a terrain post using the HPG later on this month.

Many Thanks to Go Around

My thanks go to Mark “Speck” Yingling and everyone who helps him out during the Con for putting on another great show.  There were plenty of games and lots of amazing moments as Lasers Missiles and Cannon shells flew all weekend long.

Also thanks to Iron Wind Metals for not only attending but helping support the Classic Battletech events by providing product vouchers.  Always a welcome treat at any convention.

The painting competition I entered on the Classic Battletech forums has finally begun the voting process.  The first round is to determine among submitters with multiple entrants which will be used in the final painting showdown.

Both my entries are represented.  I hope you have the opportunity to cast a vote.  Just looking at the double entries so far there is a lot of great competition.  I’m looking forward to seeing the full field.

Voting Link Here

Can anyone guess which ones are mine?  ScrapYard contributors and NJ residents need not apply!

As reported in an earlier post, I had planned to attend NJCon this year as I had last year and host several beginner and advanced games of Battletech.  One thing about last year that made the convention a beast to endure was the lack of air conditioning during one of the worst heat waves of the year.

Well this year the planning crew is moving the venue and the subsequently the date to Fort Dix NJ which among other things has air conditioning!

No more sweating on our record sheets!

http://www.njcon.org

I’m looking forward to hosting games all weekend so if you are in the NJ area come on over and roll some dice!

And I am less than impressed.

Honestly, it’s great to have a little extra exposure for the game and it is also nice that they have made each token available separately as well as in a set.

However, I just don’t think that the token set is going to prove useful for most players.  Lets take a look at what is being offered.

Core Breach Marker

Interesting, but this piece is almost useless for 95% of Battletech players.  How many people honestly use the Stackpole rule for catastrophic ‘Mech engine failure?  And even if you do play with the Stackpole rule and get it to trigger, you are going to put out this token for what?  To mark the spot where the exploding mech is until you resolve all of the damage?

If you needed a nuke token, they already have them available in their store, and they look cooler also.

Mech Destroyed – Salvage

Potentially useful if you play with ‘Mech rubble (or double-rubble Oh My!).  But I think most players don’t need to be reminded that a ‘Mech is salvaged, just ask for the record sheet.

Shutdown

Very useful.  Fits under your ‘Mech as well.  Good idea.  If only they came in different colors.

Torso Twist

We haven’t had a reaction phase for years.  And since hit locations do not depend on torso twisting, these tokens are about as useful as a set of screen doors on a submarine.

Run- Walk

Useless.  Movement dice do everything you need including jump and movement mods.  A truly unnecessary token.

To Ground – Standing Up

If you need a token to remind yourself that your ‘Mech is standing, you have other problems.  To Ground sounds like something an infantry unit would do. Maybe I never got to that section of TacOps yet.

Prone – Kneeling

Prone is useful and kneeling only if you and your players are actually using such rules from TacOps.  Ultimately confusing for someone who may not have TacOps and not realize that such a rule exists for players who must have everything.

Jump – Skid

Jump is useless as described above.  Skid is nice to have if you run lots of urban games or hovercraft or VTOLs.

What’s NOT Included

• Pilot Roll Markers?
• Target Assignment Markers?
• Pilot Unconscious?

There are a bunch more I’m sure.  Chime in with a comment if you think of any more that would be useful.

I’m not here to bash on Litko.  I think they make good products but this set misses the mark.  I am still a fan of their Custom Token Sets for all things Battletech, Aerospace, and everything in between.  You can have all of the control you really want by creating your own custom token set with the colors you want, the text you want.  You can make it work for your game rather than be forced to use a token set built for somebody else’s game.

Find out more about Litko Custom Token sets here.

It’s never too early to start thinking about conventions!

Conventions are a great way to meet new people, play new games, and otherwise have some fun blowing up ‘Mechs with your buddies!

Here is the shortlist of conventions you may see me at this year.

• HMGS Cold Wars, March 12-15 (www.coldwars.org)
• HMGS Historicon, July 16-19 (www.historicon.org)

Both of these HMGS conventions are great conventions.  Catalyst Demo Agent “Speck” always has a full weekend of games running and they are all well attended.

As an added bonus, Iron Wind Metals makes the trip and has all of their Battletech miniatures on display at their booth.  IWM brings way too many goodies to the show.  Where else besides GenCon are you going to be able to buy battlearmor by the singles?

• NJCon, June 5-6 June 12-13 (www.njcon.org)

I’ll be attending and running games in this second running of NJCon.  I’m already plotting new maps and miniatures for this convention.  If you are in the area come on over and roll some dice!

• GenCon, Aug 13-16 (www.gencon.com)

If you were waiting for a year to attend GenCon, this is it.  It is Battletech’s 25th anniversary and there are sure to be some special offerings from the good folks at Catalyst.

• UberCon, Oct 23-25 (www.ubercon.com)

UberCon is new to my target list of conventions.  There doesn’t seem to be a large miniature wargaming support or any Classic Battletech.  It is a perfect opportunity to stick my flag in the sand like I did at NJCon.  I’m willing to give it a go this year to see anyways.

I hope to see some of my readers here and there this year.  Obviously, if you live on the east coast near the state of New Jersey, you have a much better chance.  There is always GenCon, though.

Hoping for a great 2009 to you and yours!