Reddit reviews Classic Battletech: Map Set Compilation 2 (FPR35012)
We found 2 Reddit comments about Classic Battletech: Map Set Compilation 2 (FPR35012). Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Since the box set is out of print. I would get:
Or just want until the reprint happens. The boxes are better deals.
Here's my mini guide to the intellectual property.
Tabletop
For the Classic BattleTech miniature tabletop approach, ideally you want to buy miniatures (plastic lance packs or pewter at Iron Wind Metals), the main Total Warfare rulebook at Amazon or DriveThruRPG pdfs, and buy or print hex maps. There is also the option to buy the new BattleMech Manual instead of Total Warfare, which has reorganized the mech vs mech rules, and has everything you need to play a game with Mechs, only (Total Warfare also includes vehicles, airships, and infantry rules).
Alternatively, you could go 'tabletop lite' and get the aforementioned lance packs/IWM minis and the Alpha Strike rulebook (hard cover or pdf) for a slimmed down version of BattleTech that plays faster and uses open terrain boards like 40k, not hex maps. The Alpha Strike rules also include conversion for hex map play if you prefer it, and the Total Warfare rulebook includes Classic conversion for open board play rules as well.
There is also a way to "test" play for free or with minimal investment for both Classic and Alpha Strike:
Classic BattleTech:
Alpha Strike:
You can print the Alpha Strike stat cards for your mechs from the Master Unit List online. They also come with the Lance Packs if you bought them, and I believe are also in MekHQ (see below).
Note: BattleTech game products are supported by tons of lore literature, with different editions and publishers over the years. 90% of literature out there is fluff, not rules. Ask here and we'll help you navigate that world, it's deep and confusing. We'll help you understand which books are good next steps for rules, and good next steps for lore if you care about that.
Also, if you end up reading about other mechs in sourcebooks or novels or find
something on Sarna.net you like, you can find their stats on MechHQ, a free companion software from the makers of the free MegaMek. MechHQ can print record sheets for pretty much any mech, or you can copy stats from the program into blank record sheets, which you can get here. MechHQ is just generally useful.
If you go the Classic route you can also wait for the next release of the intro box due out in a few months. Note that Classic is the most versatile experience; there are rule books to turn your tabletop battles into campaigns, abstract from mech vs. mech to battalion vs. battalion, mix the RPG into the game to control a single MechWarrior that fights individual battles or commands entire planetary invasions, simulate space battles and even entire mercenary or great house campaigns that give you missions. Sky is the limit on the rulesets for this kind of play, but requires books. Lots of books.
This is mostly a 1v1 experience.
Pen and Paper RPG
This really is an extension of Classic BattleTech, fully integratable with the tabletop war game, but I'm putting it separate because some people prefer just an RPG.
The latest version of the RPG rules can be found in the book A Time of War, and you can buy any and all sourcebooks and novels for your history fix and setting-building. Others would be better than I to recommend where to start in the novels, but the 5 main house sourcebooks are the best historical overview. Almost all books can be found cheap on DriveThruRPG as pdfs, and some hardcopies are available at places like Amazon. This is mostly a 2+ group experience.
Keep in mind, the combat rules are very simple, character vs. character. If you want to play an RPG as a mech pilot (MechWarrior) and then fight in mechs, you'll have to convert into Classic BattleTech. The RPG really was designed as a supplemental game system for the Classic BattleTech world to satisfy RPGers, but it isn't really that well-regarded as a stand-alone RPG system like D&D and other deep RPGs.
Video Games
For computer gaming, check out the free-to-play (with IAP) MechWarrior Online for the FPS, the old MechWarrior 2, 3, and 4 abandonware games for simulation style play, or the new tactical BattleTech game released by Hairbrained Schemes. You could also poke around with MechCommander Gold, an old RTS style game. Very dated, but being limped along by longtime fans as abandonware, free. There is also the fan-supported MechWarrior: Living Legends, an insanely extensive mod for Crysis Wars made by fans, and is free. And finally, you can wait for MechWarrior 5, the latest in the simulation franchise, when it gets released in a year or two. These are solo experiences outside multiplayer.
Hybrid Tabletop and Video Games
Mixing tabletop and video games, you can also download the fan-made MegaMek that is a 2d version of tabletop (warning, huge learning curve, it's open source, free). It can be combined with companion software MekHQ to run a campaign, and you could join the online campaign community at mekwars.org that run a global persistent campaign using MegaMek. They are quite newbie friendly. You can also attempt to play tabletop straight on Tabletop Simulator(TTS), the popular $20 Steam board game physics engine (note you can play tons of boardgames on TTS, not just BattleTech). These are mostly 1v1 experiences, but MegaMek does come with (shitty) bot play. You really should have the full tabletop rules before cracking MegaMek, because it does a lot behind the scenes, but you can get away with quickstart or more on TTS. Also TTS can be used to run campaigns with multiple players remotely.
I would say those are the primary ways to get into BattleTech.
I started off with a map pack, some random minis, and bought Total Warfare. From there, I downloaded blank record sheets and filled them out using MekHQ. That was my start for a few months of gaming.
After that, I bought the expanded rules compilation published by Catalyst over a few years (TechManual, Tactical Operations, Strategic Operations, Campaign Operations, Interstellar Operations, and finally A Time of War to complete the collection). They did a good job of taking all the disparate rules and spinoff products from the past and brought them into one consistent and updated book series. Some haven't been printed in a bit, but should be reprinted soon. All are available as pdfs on DriveThruRPG.
That's pretty much the core line of all rules most recently published for any conceivable scope, scale, and advanced rule you might ever be interested in. After that, I downloaded MegaMek and spent hours working out how it works, with help from here.
Then I started to buy up lore. I picked up PDFs of the main House Sourcebooks, and then Technical Readouts for a few of the eras that were interesting. I bought some old sourcebooks from garage sales and online because they looked cool and interesting. Grabbed a Historical (like a Sourcebook but for a particular event or period of history), and an eyeing getting into the novels soon. DriveThruRPG sells much of them in PDF.
I think that's a reasonable way into the franchise. There is a lot out there, but if you focus on the core rules for Classic BattleTech from Catalyst and realize most of the rest is either lore or expansion content, the rest is gravy.