Difference between revisions of "BattleTech (Video Game)"

(→‎Featured BattleMechs: https://community.battletechgame.com/forums/threads/3926/comments/70879)
(38 intermediate revisions by 11 users not shown)
Line 13: Line 13:
 
| publisher          = Harebrained Schemes
 
| publisher          = Harebrained Schemes
 
| productioncode      =  
 
| productioncode      =  
| year                = 24 April 2018 <ref name=HBG_KS48>Harebrained Schemes LLC: Kickstarter Update #48: "Battle Stations! This is not a drill!"</ref>
+
| year                = 24 April 2018
 
| ISBN10              =  
 
| ISBN10              =  
 
| ISBN13              =  
 
| ISBN13              =  
 
| MSRP                = $39.99
 
| MSRP                = $39.99
 
| content            =  
 
| content            =  
| era                = [[Succession Wars Era]]
+
| era                = [[Succession Wars era]]
 
| timeline            = 3025
 
| timeline            = 3025
 
| series              =  
 
| series              =  
Line 24: Line 24:
 
| followedby          =  
 
| followedby          =  
 
}}
 
}}
'''BattleTech''' is a computer game set in the [[BattleTech]] universe in [[3025]]. It was announced on July 29, 2015 that a new game would be made via backing from the website Kickstarter, with the [https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/webeharebrained/battletech Kickstarter campaign] running from September 28 to Nov 4 2015. The Backer Beta was released on Steam on 1 of June 2017.
+
'''BattleTech''' is a 2018 computer game by [[Harebrained Schemes]] set in the eponymous [[BattleTech]] universe.
 +
 
 +
It was announced on 29 July 2015 that a new BattleTech-themed game was going to be made, with additional crowfunding via [[w:Kickstarter|Kickstarter]]. The Backer Beta was released via [[w:Steam (software)|Steam]] on 01 June 2017; the finished game was first released on 24 April 2018 although development didn't stop there and several updates and expansions were published since.
  
 
==Canonicity==
 
==Canonicity==
 
Computer games are excluded from the current definition of [[Canon]] for the BattleTech universe. The game thus defaults to [[apocryphal]].
 
Computer games are excluded from the current definition of [[Canon]] for the BattleTech universe. The game thus defaults to [[apocryphal]].
  
[[Catalyst Game Labs]] was particularly closely involved in the making of this game and [[Line Developer]] [[Randall N. Bills]] explicitly stated that it was intended for the game's storyline to be fully canonical.<ref>In [http://community.battletechgame.com/forums/threads/1190 this forum thread] on the game's homepage:<br />Q: ''"[D]oes your work on MWO and HBS-BT mean the Hero 'Mech fluff in the former and the campaign storyline in the latter are canonical for the core (CGL) BatteTech lore?"''<br />A (by Randall Bills): ''"For the Hero 'Mechs, absolutely. And that is the intention with the HBS campaign storyline as well."''</ref> However, no further actions or declarations have been forthcoming so far to suggest the intention was enacted.
+
[[Jordan Weisman]] of [[FASA]] fame, often called the "creator of BattleTech", was involved in the making of this game but it was technically produced under the offshoot license for BattleTech computer games that has been a separate [[w:Intellectual Property|intellectual property]] from the original tabletop BattleTech game, sourcebook and novel line ever since FASA's [[Virtual World Entertainment Group]] (and the computer game rights with it) was sold to [[w:Microsoft|Microsoft]] in 1999.
 +
 
 +
However, there was some cooperation between [[Catalyst Game Labs]] and HBS regarding this game. CGL [[Line Developer]] [[Randall N. Bills]] explicitly stated that it was intended for the game's storyline to be fully canonical.<ref>In [http://community.battletechgame.com/forums/threads/1190 this forum thread] on the game's homepage:<br />Q: ''"[D]oes your work on MWO and HBS-BT mean the Hero 'Mech fluff in the former and the campaign storyline in the latter are canonical for the core (CGL) BatteTech lore?"''<br />A (by Randall Bills): ''"For the Hero 'Mechs, absolutely. And that is the intention with the HBS campaign storyline as well."''</ref> While the game as such was not declared canonical, CGL have announced a sourcebook–''[[House Arano (The Aurigan Coalition)]]''–that is expected to largely canonize the worlds, characters and events from the game.
  
 
==Gameplay==
 
==Gameplay==
{{quote|''Steeped in the feudal political intrigue of the BattleTech universe, the game will feature an open-ended Mercenaries-style campaign that blends RPG ‘Mech and MechWarrior management with modern turn-based tactics.''}}<ref>[http://battletechgame.com] battletechgame.com</ref>
+
{{quote|''Steeped in the feudal political intrigue of the BattleTech universe, the game will feature an open-ended Mercenaries-style campaign that blends RPG ‘Mech and MechWarrior management with modern turn-based tactics.''}}<ref>[http://battletechgame.com battletechgame.com]</ref>
 +
 
 +
The game features turn-based 'Mech combat scenarios at its core, where the player gets to control up to four 'Mechs. Game rules and unit stats were altered significantly compared to standard "[[classic BattleTech]]" tabletop play.
 +
 
 +
Mission objectives vary, and while missions are procedurally generated there are also a number of pre-generated missions that serve to narrate the storyline (see Plot Synopsis below).
  
==Plot synopsis==
+
In addition, there is a meta-game with economic and role-playing elements where the player gets to run his or her own [[mercenary unit]] (default name "Marauders", though the player is free to give it any other name) and manage their assets including [[MechWarrior (pilot)|MechWarrior]] characters between missions.
 +
 
 +
==Plot Synopsis==
 
===Setting===
 
===Setting===
The game is set in the year [[3025]], around the end the [[Third Succession War]], and its optional storyline (to be told via a "breadcrumbs" trail of storyline missions that the player may follow or ignore) will revolve around a small area in the rimward area of the [[periphery]] called the [[Aurigan Reach]], located between the [[Capellan Confederation]], the [[Magistracy of Canopus]], and the [[Taurian Concordat]]. In [[2910]], after the major factions abandoned the area for more than a hundred years, a new state or area—the [[Aurigan Coalition]]—sprang up, centered around the noble families of the trade worlds [[Coromodir]], [[Guldra]] and [[Tyrlon]]. Coromodir was chosen as the capital and the noble Arano and Espinosa families became the leaders, when in [[2820]], the Arano family displaced the figurehead governor the Taurians had left behind. In 3025 border tensions with the Taurian Concordat rose to a point where war was inevitable, as the Taurians led claims to certain border worlds like [[Qalzi]]. On the other side lies the Capellan Confederation, claiming former Confederate worlds. After High Lord [[Tamati Arano II]] died in an space travel accident, his daughter and heir, Lady [[Kamea Arano]], has to shield her state against the events to come.<ref name=HBG_KS28>Harebrained Schemes LLC: Kickstarter Update #28: "History of the Aurigan Reach"</ref>
+
The game is set in the [[Aurigan Reach]] region in the rimward [[periphery]], beyond the [[Free Worlds League]], the [[Capellan Confederation]] and the [[Federated Suns]] and between the [[Taurian Concordat]] and the [[Magistracy of Canopus]].
 +
 
 +
The Aurigan Reach was created for this game, including many of its named worlds that had not been mentioned in canon before, by fleshing out what had mostly been a blank slate in previous BattleTech canon. Given that many named worlds will belong to one of the other, larger powers on canonical star maps set later in the timeline, it is understood that the Aurigan Reach and the realms therein are struggling minor periphery powers barely considered noteworthy by the [[Inner Sphere]].
  
 
===Storyline===
 
===Storyline===
The player will take control of a group of [[mercenaries]]. They will have to develop their [[MechWarrior (pilot)|MechWarriors]] and will be able to take contracts with different [[Great Houses|factions]].<ref>[http://www.alistdaily.com/news/harebrained-schemes-plans-the-return-of-battletech http://www.alistdaily.com/news/harebrained-schemes-plans-the-return-of-battletech]</ref>
+
The game is (mostly) set around the year [[3025]], near the end the [[Third Succession War]]. Its optional storyline, narrated via a "breadcrumbs" trail of storyline missions that the player may follow or ignore, is broadly concerned with the [[Arano Restoration]]:<br />In [[2910]], after the major factions abandoned the area for more than a hundred years, a new state—the [[Aurigan Coalition]]—sprang up, centered around the noble families of the trade worlds [[Coromodir]], [[Guldra]] and [[Tyrlon]]. Coromodir was chosen as the capital and the noble [[House Arano]] and [[House Espinosa]] became the leaders when the Arano family displaced the figurehead governor the Taurians had left behind in [[2820]]. In 3025 border tensions with the Taurian Concordat rose to a point where war was inevitable, as the Taurians laid claims to border worlds like [[Qalzi]]. At the same time, the Capellan Confederation is claiming former Confederate worlds on the other side of the Aurigan Coalition. After High Lord [[Tamati Arano II]] died in an space travel accident, the rule of his daughter and heir, Lady [[Kamea Arano]], is ursurped by House Espinosa. With the help of a mercenary unit—the player unit—she sets out to restore her rule over the Aurigan Coalition.
  
==Featured BattleMechs==
+
==Featured BattleTech==
 +
==='Mechs===
 
{{seealso|BattleTech (Video Game)/BattleMechs}}
 
{{seealso|BattleTech (Video Game)/BattleMechs}}
===Light===
+
====Light====
*''[[Locust]]'' (20 tons)
+
*''[[Locust]]''  
*''[[Commando]]'' (25 tons)
+
*''[[Commando]]''  
*''[[Spider]]'' (30 tons)
+
*''[[Spider]]''  
*''[[UrbanMech]]'' (30 tons)
+
*''[[UrbanMech]]''  
*''[[Firestarter (BattleMech)|Firestarter]]'' (35 tons)
+
*''[[Firestarter (BattleMech)|Firestarter]]''  
*''[[Jenner]]'' (35 tons)
+
*''[[Jenner]]''
*''[[Panther]]'' (35 tons)
+
*''[[Javelin]]'' *
*''[[Raven]]'' (35 tons)
+
*''[[Panther]]''
 
+
*''[[Raven]]'' *
===Medium===
 
*''[[Cicada]]'' (40 tons)
 
*''[[Blackjack (BattleMech)|Blackjack]]'' (45 tons)
 
*''[[Vindicator]]'' (45 tons)
 
*''[[Centurion (BattleMech)|Centurion]]'' (50 tons)
 
*''[[Enforcer]]'' (50 tons)
 
*''[[Hunchback]]'' (50 tons)
 
*''[[Trebuchet]]'' (50 tons)
 
*''[[Griffin]]'' (55 tons)
 
*''[[Kintaro]]'' (55 tons)
 
*''[[Shadow Hawk]]'' (55 tons)
 
*''[[Wolverine]]'' (55 tons)
 
  
===Heavy===
+
====Medium====
*''[[Dragon]]'' (60 tons)
+
*''[[Cicada]]''  
*''[[Quickdraw]]'' (60 tons)
+
*''[[Blackjack (BattleMech)|Blackjack]]''
*''[[Catapult]]'' (65 tons)
+
*''[[Hatchetman]]'' *
*''[[JagerMech]]'' (65 tons)
+
*''[[Vindicator]]''  
*''[[Thunderbolt]]'' (65 tons)
+
*''[[Centurion (BattleMech)|Centurion]]''
*''[[Cataphract]]'' (70 tons)
+
*''[[Crab]]'' *
*''[[Grasshopper]]'' (70 tons)
+
*''[[Enforcer]]''
*''[[Black Knight]]'' (75 tons)
+
*''[[Hunchback]]''
*''[[Orion]]'' (75 tons)
+
*''[[Trebuchet]]''
 +
*''[[Griffin]]''
 +
*''[[Kintaro]]''
 +
*''[[Shadow Hawk]]''
 +
*''[[Wolverine]]''
 +
====Heavy====
 +
*''[[Dragon]]''
 +
*''[[Quickdraw]]''
 +
*''[[Catapult]]''  
 +
*''[[JagerMech]]''  
 +
*''[[Thunderbolt]]''  
 +
*''[[Cataphract]]''  
 +
*''[[Grasshopper]]''  
 +
*''[[Black Knight]]''  
 +
*''[[Orion]]''
 +
====Assault====
 +
*''[[Awesome]]''
 +
*''[[Victor]]''
 +
*''[[Zeus]]''
 +
*''[[BattleMaster]]''
 +
*''[[Stalker]]''
 +
*''[[Cyclops]]'' *
 +
*''[[Highlander]]''
 +
*''[[Banshee (BattleMech)|Banshee]]''
 +
*''[[Atlas (BattleMech)|Atlas]]''
 +
*''[[Atlas II|Atlas II]]''
 +
*''[[King Crab]]''
  
===Assault===
+
Asterisk * - Denotes a Content-Only Mech
*''[[Awesome]]'' (80 tons)
 
*''[[Victor]]'' (80 tons)
 
*''[[Zeus]]'' (80 tons)
 
*''[[BattleMaster]]'' (85 tons)
 
*''[[Stalker]]'' (85 tons)
 
*''[[Highlander]]'' (90 tons)
 
*''[[Banshee (BattleMech)|Banshee]]'' (95 tons)
 
*''[[King Crab]]'' (100 tons)
 
*''[[Atlas (BattleMech)|Atlas]]'' (100 tons)
 
  
==Featured Vehicles==
+
===Vehicles===
 
{{seealso|BattleTech (Video Game)/Vehicles}}
 
{{seealso|BattleTech (Video Game)/Vehicles}}
 
*[[Ammunition Transporter]]
 
*[[Ammunition Transporter]]
Line 97: Line 115:
 
*[[Manticore]]
 
*[[Manticore]]
 
*[[Mobile HQ]]
 
*[[Mobile HQ]]
 +
*[[Mobile Long Tom]] (model used as scenery only)
 
*[[Scorpion (Combat Vehicle)|Scorpion]]
 
*[[Scorpion (Combat Vehicle)|Scorpion]]
 
*[[Schrek|Schrek PPC Carrier]]
 
*[[Schrek|Schrek PPC Carrier]]
Line 105: Line 124:
 
*[[Vargr]]
 
*[[Vargr]]
 
*[[Wheeled APC]]
 
*[[Wheeled APC]]
*[[Zephyr |Zephyr (as SLDF Medium Drone and SLDF Heavy Drone)]]
+
*[[Zephyr|Zephyr (as SLDF Medium Drone and SLDF Heavy Drone)]]
 +
*[[Gallant (Combat Vehicle)|Gallant]] *
 +
*[[Packrat]] *
 +
*[[Rotunda]] *
  
==Featured Dropships==
+
Asterisk * - Denotes a Content-Only Vehicle
*[[Argo (Individual Argo-class DropShip)|Argo]], Argo-class DropShip
 
*[[Hysteria]], [[Leopard]]-class DropShip
 
*[[Coranach|ADV Coranach]], Dropship of unspecified type
 
*[[Newgrange (Individual Union-class DropShip)|Newgrange]], [[Union]]-class DropShip
 
*[[Delfinas|ARS Delfinas]], Leopard-Class Dropship
 
*[[Iberia]], [[Fortress]]-class Dropship
 
  
==Other Tech==
+
===Dropships===
 +
*''[[Argo (DropShip class)|Argo]]'' (''[[Argo (Individual Argo-class DropShip)|Argo]]'')
 +
*''[[Fortress]]'' (''[[Iberia]]'')
 +
*''[[Leopard]]'' (''[[Delfinas]]'', ''[[Hysteria]]'')
 +
*''[[Union]]'' (''[[Newgrange (Individual Union-class DropShip)|Newgrange]]'')
 +
*[[Coranach|ADV ''Coranach'']], DropShip of unspecified type
 +
 
 +
===JumpShips===
 +
*''[[Invader]]''
 +
===Other===
 
*[[Laser Turret]]
 
*[[Laser Turret]]
 
*[[LRM Turret]]
 
*[[LRM Turret]]
Line 176: Line 201:
 
***[[Non Diz]]
 
***[[Non Diz]]
 
**[[Free Worlds League]]
 
**[[Free Worlds League]]
 +
*** [[Alamagordo]]
 
***[[Calseraigne]]
 
***[[Calseraigne]]
 
***[[Claybrooke]]
 
***[[Claybrooke]]
Line 194: Line 220:
 
***[[Aea]]
 
***[[Aea]]
 
***[[Artru]]
 
***[[Artru]]
 +
***[[Bringdam]]
 
***[[Coromodir]]
 
***[[Coromodir]]
 
***[[Enkra]]
 
***[[Enkra]]
Line 254: Line 281:
 
***[[Samantha]]
 
***[[Samantha]]
 
***[[Taurus]]
 
***[[Taurus]]
**The Rimward Frontier (Neutral / Independent / Abandoned)
+
**The Rimward Frontier (Neutral/Independent/Abandoned)
 
***[[Adrar]]
 
***[[Adrar]]
 
***[[Alloway]]
 
***[[Alloway]]
Line 265: Line 292:
 
***[[Cassilda]]
 
***[[Cassilda]]
 
***[[Chadan]]
 
***[[Chadan]]
***[[Chiff's Stand]]
+
***[[Cluff's Stand]]
 
***[[Cygnus]]
 
***[[Cygnus]]
 
***[[Detroit]]
 
***[[Detroit]]
Line 302: Line 329:
  
 
==Featured Characters==
 
==Featured Characters==
Characters who are actively involved in the main story.
 
 
{{seealso|BattleTech (Video Game)/Characters}}
 
{{seealso|BattleTech (Video Game)/Characters}}
 
 
===Arano Restoration===
 
===Arano Restoration===
 
*[[Kamea Arano]]
 
*[[Kamea Arano]]
Line 310: Line 335:
 
*[[Raju Montgomery]]
 
*[[Raju Montgomery]]
 
*Dr [[Farah Murad]]
 
*Dr [[Farah Murad]]
 
 
===Aurigan Directorate===
 
===Aurigan Directorate===
 
*[[Santiago Espinosa]]
 
*[[Santiago Espinosa]]
 
*[[Victoria Espinosa]]
 
*[[Victoria Espinosa]]
 
 
===Magistracy of Canopus===
 
===Magistracy of Canopus===
 
*[[Ana Maria Centrella]]
 
*[[Ana Maria Centrella]]
 
 
===Taurian Concordat===
 
===Taurian Concordat===
 
*[[Samuel Ostergaard]]
 
*[[Samuel Ostergaard]]
 
 
===Marauders===
 
===Marauders===
The player character's mercenary unit, the "Marauders" (which may be changed by the player at any time), consisting of three non-player characters plus four initial playable MechWarriors.
+
The player character's mercenary unit, the "Marauders" (the name may be changed by the player at any time), consists of three non-player characters serving in non-combat roles, plus four initial playable MechWarriors.
 
 
 
*[[Darius Oliveira]]
 
*[[Darius Oliveira]]
 
*[[Sumire Meyer]]
 
*[[Sumire Meyer]]
Line 331: Line 351:
 
*[[Jessica Chernovskaya|"Glitch"]]
 
*[[Jessica Chernovskaya|"Glitch"]]
 
*[[Mohammed Benitez|"Medusa"]]
 
*[[Mohammed Benitez|"Medusa"]]
 +
Over the course of the game there is a wide range of further possible recruits for the unit.
 +
 +
==BattleTech: Flashpoint Expansion Pack==
 +
Announced 21st August 2018 was the game's first expansion pack dubbed Flashpoint, due to release in November 2018. The expansion includes a new challenging mission type "Target Acquisition" which is focused on territory control best suited to light and medium 'Mechs, new tropical biome and three new 'Mechs including the ''[[Crab]]'', ''[[Cyclops]]'', and ''[[Hatchetman]]'' - the first 'Mech not taken from ''MechWarrior Online''.
 +
 +
The expansion's key feature is Flashpoints, high-stakes branches short-stories which are comprised of procedural missions, like all non-story missions in the base game, linked together by new crew conversions and special events. To ramp up the intensity, some Flashpoint stories feature "Consecutive Deployments" in which players will not be able to repair their 'Mechs between missions.
 +
 +
==BattleTech: Urban Warfare Expansion Pack==
 +
The second expansion pack Urban Warfare was announced 18th October 2018 as part of the promotional materials for the ''season pass'' for the game, with a release date announced on 23rd April 2019 as being 4th June 2019.
 +
 +
As its name implies, the pack's focus is the introduction of urban environments to the game with tall fully destructible buildings hindering line of site offering a new challenge. The Urban Warfare pack also adds new Flashpoints and a host of new equipment including [[ECM]] and [[Active Probe]]s, three new vehicles - the [[Gallant (Combat Vehicle)|Gallant Urban Assault Tank]], the [[Packrat]] and [[Rotunda]] - and two new BattleMechs, the ''[[Raven]]'' and ''[[Javelin]]''.[https://store.steampowered.com/app/1047180/BATTLETECH_Urban_Warfare/]
 +
 +
==BattleTech: Heavy Metal Expansion Pack==
 +
The name of the game's third planned expansion pack "Heavy Metal" was announced at the same time as the release date for ''Urban Warefare'' was announced with a Winter 2019 release date. With the announcement at [[MechCon 2018]] that the [[Unseen]] were intended to be included after ''Urban Warfare'', information released about ''Heavy Metal'' teases that the third expansion introduces a host of new 'Mechs including several Unseen as well as other surprises.[https://store.steampowered.com/app/799750/BATTLETECH_Season_Pass]
  
 
==Resources==
 
==Resources==
 +
*[[BattleTech (Video Game)/BattleMechs|BattleMechs in BattleTech Video Game]]
 +
*[[BattleTech (Video Game)/Characters|Characters in BattleTech Video Game]]
 
*[[BattleTech (Video Game)/Equipment|Equipment in BattleTech Video Game]]
 
*[[BattleTech (Video Game)/Equipment|Equipment in BattleTech Video Game]]
*[[BattleTech (Video Game)/BattleMechs|BattleMechs in BattleTech Video Game]]
+
*[[BattleTech (Video Game)/Planets|Planets in BattleTech Video Game]]
 
*[[BattleTech (Video Game)/Vehicles|Vehicles in BattleTech Video Game]]
 
*[[BattleTech (Video Game)/Vehicles|Vehicles in BattleTech Video Game]]
*[[BattleTech (Video Game)/Characters|Characters in BattleTech Video Game]]
 
  
 
[[Category:Video Games]]
 
[[Category:Video Games]]
Line 351: Line 386:
 
*[https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?forums/battletech.994/ Official Forums]
 
*[https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?forums/battletech.994/ Official Forums]
 
*[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/webeharebrained/battletech BattleTech Kickstarter Campaign]
 
*[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/webeharebrained/battletech BattleTech Kickstarter Campaign]
 +
*[https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?threads/first-battletech-expansion-flashpoint-coming-this-november.1115724/ Flashpoint Expansion Announcement]
  
[[Category:Video Games]]
+
[[Category:Video Games|BattleTech 2018]]

Revision as of 04:11, 13 May 2019

BT Video Game Logo.png
BattleTech
Product information
Type Computer game
Development Harebrained Schemes
Publication information
Publisher Harebrained Schemes
First published 24 April 2018
MSRP $39.99
Content
Era Succession Wars era
Timeline 3025

BattleTech is a 2018 computer game by Harebrained Schemes set in the eponymous BattleTech universe.

It was announced on 29 July 2015 that a new BattleTech-themed game was going to be made, with additional crowfunding via Kickstarter. The Backer Beta was released via Steam on 01 June 2017; the finished game was first released on 24 April 2018 although development didn't stop there and several updates and expansions were published since.

Canonicity

Computer games are excluded from the current definition of Canon for the BattleTech universe. The game thus defaults to apocryphal.

Jordan Weisman of FASA fame, often called the "creator of BattleTech", was involved in the making of this game but it was technically produced under the offshoot license for BattleTech computer games that has been a separate intellectual property from the original tabletop BattleTech game, sourcebook and novel line ever since FASA's Virtual World Entertainment Group (and the computer game rights with it) was sold to Microsoft in 1999.

However, there was some cooperation between Catalyst Game Labs and HBS regarding this game. CGL Line Developer Randall N. Bills explicitly stated that it was intended for the game's storyline to be fully canonical.[1] While the game as such was not declared canonical, CGL have announced a sourcebook–House Arano (The Aurigan Coalition)–that is expected to largely canonize the worlds, characters and events from the game.

Gameplay

Steeped in the feudal political intrigue of the BattleTech universe, the game will feature an open-ended Mercenaries-style campaign that blends RPG ‘Mech and MechWarrior management with modern turn-based tactics.

[2]

The game features turn-based 'Mech combat scenarios at its core, where the player gets to control up to four 'Mechs. Game rules and unit stats were altered significantly compared to standard "classic BattleTech" tabletop play.

Mission objectives vary, and while missions are procedurally generated there are also a number of pre-generated missions that serve to narrate the storyline (see Plot Synopsis below).

In addition, there is a meta-game with economic and role-playing elements where the player gets to run his or her own mercenary unit (default name "Marauders", though the player is free to give it any other name) and manage their assets including MechWarrior characters between missions.

Plot Synopsis

Setting

The game is set in the Aurigan Reach region in the rimward periphery, beyond the Free Worlds League, the Capellan Confederation and the Federated Suns and between the Taurian Concordat and the Magistracy of Canopus.

The Aurigan Reach was created for this game, including many of its named worlds that had not been mentioned in canon before, by fleshing out what had mostly been a blank slate in previous BattleTech canon. Given that many named worlds will belong to one of the other, larger powers on canonical star maps set later in the timeline, it is understood that the Aurigan Reach and the realms therein are struggling minor periphery powers barely considered noteworthy by the Inner Sphere.

Storyline

The game is (mostly) set around the year 3025, near the end the Third Succession War. Its optional storyline, narrated via a "breadcrumbs" trail of storyline missions that the player may follow or ignore, is broadly concerned with the Arano Restoration:
In 2910, after the major factions abandoned the area for more than a hundred years, a new state—the Aurigan Coalition—sprang up, centered around the noble families of the trade worlds Coromodir, Guldra and Tyrlon. Coromodir was chosen as the capital and the noble House Arano and House Espinosa became the leaders when the Arano family displaced the figurehead governor the Taurians had left behind in 2820. In 3025 border tensions with the Taurian Concordat rose to a point where war was inevitable, as the Taurians laid claims to border worlds like Qalzi. At the same time, the Capellan Confederation is claiming former Confederate worlds on the other side of the Aurigan Coalition. After High Lord Tamati Arano II died in an space travel accident, the rule of his daughter and heir, Lady Kamea Arano, is ursurped by House Espinosa. With the help of a mercenary unit—the player unit—she sets out to restore her rule over the Aurigan Coalition.

Featured BattleTech

'Mechs

Light

Medium

Heavy

Assault

Asterisk * - Denotes a Content-Only Mech

Vehicles

Asterisk * - Denotes a Content-Only Vehicle

Dropships

JumpShips

Other

Featured Planets

Featured Characters

Arano Restoration

Aurigan Directorate

Magistracy of Canopus

Taurian Concordat

Marauders

The player character's mercenary unit, the "Marauders" (the name may be changed by the player at any time), consists of three non-player characters serving in non-combat roles, plus four initial playable MechWarriors.

Over the course of the game there is a wide range of further possible recruits for the unit.

BattleTech: Flashpoint Expansion Pack

Announced 21st August 2018 was the game's first expansion pack dubbed Flashpoint, due to release in November 2018. The expansion includes a new challenging mission type "Target Acquisition" which is focused on territory control best suited to light and medium 'Mechs, new tropical biome and three new 'Mechs including the Crab, Cyclops, and Hatchetman - the first 'Mech not taken from MechWarrior Online.

The expansion's key feature is Flashpoints, high-stakes branches short-stories which are comprised of procedural missions, like all non-story missions in the base game, linked together by new crew conversions and special events. To ramp up the intensity, some Flashpoint stories feature "Consecutive Deployments" in which players will not be able to repair their 'Mechs between missions.

BattleTech: Urban Warfare Expansion Pack

The second expansion pack Urban Warfare was announced 18th October 2018 as part of the promotional materials for the season pass for the game, with a release date announced on 23rd April 2019 as being 4th June 2019.

As its name implies, the pack's focus is the introduction of urban environments to the game with tall fully destructible buildings hindering line of site offering a new challenge. The Urban Warfare pack also adds new Flashpoints and a host of new equipment including ECM and Active Probes, three new vehicles - the Gallant Urban Assault Tank, the Packrat and Rotunda - and two new BattleMechs, the Raven and Javelin.[1]

BattleTech: Heavy Metal Expansion Pack

The name of the game's third planned expansion pack "Heavy Metal" was announced at the same time as the release date for Urban Warefare was announced with a Winter 2019 release date. With the announcement at MechCon 2018 that the Unseen were intended to be included after Urban Warfare, information released about Heavy Metal teases that the third expansion introduces a host of new 'Mechs including several Unseen as well as other surprises.[2]

Resources

References

  1. In this forum thread on the game's homepage:
    Q: "[D]oes your work on MWO and HBS-BT mean the Hero 'Mech fluff in the former and the campaign storyline in the latter are canonical for the core (CGL) BatteTech lore?"
    A (by Randall Bills): "For the Hero 'Mechs, absolutely. And that is the intention with the HBS campaign storyline as well."
  2. battletechgame.com

Bibliography

External Links