Wunderwelten

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Wunderwelten
Product information
Type Magazine
Pages 64-120/issue
Publication information
Publisher Fantasy Productions GmbH
First published 1989-1999
Content

The German fantasy and role-playing magazine Wunderwelten was produced by FanPro Germany and ran for 50 issues, appearing first in April 1989. The discontinuation came as a surprise to many, including the staff, and was only announced in the final issue #50 in 1999.

This article is focused on the magazine's BattleTech-related content.

Overview

As a FanPro House Magazine, Wunderwelten naturally had a broad coverage of FanPro's products, most notably the Das Schwarze Auge, BattleTech and Shadowrun game lines. However, it was aimed at a greater audience and was not limited to FanPro products; it featured general reports and articles about fantasy and science fiction literature and gaming, short stories and reviews of other firms' products as well.

BattleTech content and translations from English sources were usually the work of Reinhold H. Mai, Hartwig Nieder-Gassel and Frank Lenzer.

Canonicity

FanPro held the license to produce the German edition of BattleTech while they published Wunderwelten, and later (from 2001 to 2006) for the entire BattleTech line including original English products. As such, their House Magazine can arguably be regarded as an official soure. However, since it was only published in German, it is not counted among the canonical sources. Original content from Wunderwelten can therefore be regarded as apocryphal at best. (Many articles were translation from articles in official English sources, most notably from BattleTechnology; their canonicity hinges on the canonicity of their original sources.)

Issue 1

  • Portrayal of FASA and a lengthy 5-page interview with Jordan Weisman, L. Ross Babcock III and FASA President Morton Weisman, taken in August 1988 at the FASA offices in Chicago on the eve of the GenCon/Origins game fair. Since Jordan Weisman was called from the room 20 minutes into the interview, the answers were largely given by Ross Babcock and Mort Weisman. This is notable insofar as both of them rarely have had any information published about them otherwise.
  • BTX-7K Battleaxe entry from BattleTechnology #0203 (STX-7K Streitaxt)
  • BattleTech: The Crescent Hawks' Inception review

Issue 2

Issue 3

Issue 4

Issue 5

  • BLP-KS Black Phantom: 'Mech writeup entry for a custom design that made first place in the Phancon tournament 1990 in Ratingen
  • "On the Shores of a Sea on Gordo" from BattleTechnology #0201
  • Optional low gravity and vacuum rules, compiled from "BattleMech combat in Vacuum" (BattleTechnology #0201) and "Low Gravity Combat" (BattleTechnology #11)
  • Technical Readout: 3025 and Technical Readout: 3050 review

Issue 6

Issue 7

  • Painting guide for BattleTech miniatures
  • ODN-1M Odin: 'Mech writeup for a custom design
  • "Die lange Flucht" (The long flight): Short story, set in early 3030. Kurita forces raid Helios 3, a secret Davion test facility, and are defeated by a MechWarrior piloting a prototype Odin.

Issue 8

Issue 9

  • "Worldbook - Wheel" from BattleTechnology #0201
  • "Black Luthien" from BattleTechnology #0102

Issue 10

Issue 11

  • "Junk Yard Dogs" campaign part 2 (Scenarios 3 and 4)

Issue 12

Issue 13

Issue 14

Issue 15

  • Instructions for kitbashing a ODN-1M Odin (see Issue 7) from a Marauder II miniature

Issue 16

  • "Mechwerkstatt: BattleTech-Logistik für Fortgeschrittene" ('Mech garage: Advanced logistics rules): Ruleset and tips for the Game Master to include logistics into a BattleTech campaign, including aspects of the Company Store ploy. Anecdotes from the Cameron's Legion mercenary unit illustrate the application of the rules and procedures.

Issue 17

  • Interview with Detlef "Major" Howe, founding member of MechForce Germany (1st incarnation).

Issue 18

(no BattleTech-specific content)

Issue 19

Issue 20

  • Detailed rules for double-blind play
  • "Schwarzer Tag": Campaign. A series of sophisticated company-vs.-company training scenarios simulating an objective raid (hostage rescue) under double-blind rules. Designed to teach units how to deal with poor intelligence and adapt to a new tactical situation, the scenarios feature minefields, ambushes, unexpected weather extremes and traps. They are presented as a training run carried out by Cameron's Legion during their garrison duty on Suk II against mock opponents from Hansen's Roughriders. Like with Drachentrick, an expansion pack was offered for sale on disk through FanPro with supplements, BattleForce rules and a MechWarrior RPG scenario.

Issue 21

(no BattleTech-specific content)

Issue 22

  • "Inselhüpfen": Extended scenario/mini-campaign, designed for double-blind campaign play. A medium 'Mech company from the 26th Lyran Guards has to find and destroy a submarine base in a Lyran attempt to re-capture the ocean moon Muddy in the Engadin system from the Draconis Combine. The defenders field hovercraft, ships, submarines and water-mobile infantry on water scooters. There is only one island large enough to land a DropShip on, and numerous archipelagos of small, muddy islands that have to be reconnoitered. A strategic world map is provided for strategic movement of units between archipelagos, as are special weather rules including rain season rules.

Issue 23

  • "Cargo Queen": MechWarrior RPG Scenario/annotated short story, detailing the many pitfalls of boarding of a JumpShip by narrating a boarding action by Cameron's Legion's infantry.

Issue 24

Issue 25

(no BattleTech-specific content)

Issue 26

Issue 27

Issue 28

Issue 29

Issue 30

Issue 31

Issue 32

  • "SpielMechaniken", part 1: A guide to playing BattleTech as a boardgame, role-playing game or mixed-type game campaign
  • Ronin! preview

Issue 33

Issue 34

Issue 35

Issue 36

Issue 37

Issue 38

Issue 39

Issue 40

Issue 41

  • "BattleMania": A tongue-in-cheek presentation of rules for BattleTech live-action-play as BattleMechs (not MechWarriors)

Issue 42

Issue 43

Issue 44

  • "Die BattleTech-Kampagne - Interaktive Feldzüge im Vierten Nachfolgekrieg" (The BattleTech Campaign - Interactive campaigns in the Fourth Succession War): A ruleset vaguely resembling the Chaos Campaign rules and the campaign rules from Tactical Handbook
  • Miniatures presentation (Zhukov, Batu, Lineholder and Marshal)

Issue 45

Issue 46

Issue 47

Issue 48

Issue 49

Issue 50

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