Mechwarrior Online: HOLY SMOKES BATMECH! LOTS OF STUFF! (Part 1)

Yes.  Mechwarrior Online rocked out with it robotic crotch ER Medium Laser out over the last two months.  I have so much to talk about it needs to be two posts!

(This one covers the actual patches, the next one will pretty much be tons of screenshots and commentary.)

 We start by remembering remembering the early something of November.  Ing. Quirks get another tweak pass and stuff is modified a bit.

 LRMs get a tiny debuff that doesn't stop people from spamming the things and AMS gets more ammo.  Nice.  Most lasers get a buff of some kind.  I approve.

A good suite of balance changes.  Still doesn't keep idiots from hiding in their backfield and just spamming LRMs as artillery.  Which is boring.

Here is an example of what Quirks do.  The freebie AH Centurion most of us suckers who spent money on the game got has these tweaks.  Quirks really make more mechs viable and encourage people to take more than just the "optimal" current mech of a size class with the same loadout.  It encourages variety which is good for the game.

Here is some of the GIVE US MONEY NOW PLEASE stuff these patches gave us.

 More Clan mechs to get.  Yay.  Sadly I can't use C Bills for the Loki to have a 60 ton Clan mech with ECM until March or so.  

 And now you can spend money on your friends!  THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING.  (To PGI.  Money.)

Now the Mad Dog (Vulture), and King Crab can be purchased with real money as opposed to just being reward purchase things.  I have already declared I will use C Bills if not real life money on King Crabs provided I can paint mine like Rampage from Beast Wars.

( http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Rampage_%28BW%29  http://tfwiki.net/mediawiki/images2/thumb/0/0f/BW_Rampage_toy.jpg/646px-BW_Rampage_toy.jpg )

Now more November Rain!

 A great new map (see next post for in match pictures) and a 25 ton Clan mech.  

 More fun but stupid cockpit items and some bug fixes.

 The aforementioned Hellbringer (Loki) is here for real money and some other minor bits.

Not too thrilled with Beagle Probe getting a nerf but eh.  Sometimes you still gotta take it.  It just loses the HAVE THIS appeal it did for Streak Boats.

December had a double content patch then some patches to the patch.

 New cosmetic goodies to waste cash on and some more quirk stuff and patches.

 Two new maps?  Community... Warfare?

IS THE SKY FALLING?  

CAN IT BE?

IT

HAS

BEGUN

(Mortal Kombat!  Doot doo dooot doo.... FIGHT!)

Join us next post (probably next week) for pictures and more info on the fun, lucrative, player bringing back,

Which is good because this game needed a shot in the arm.

Robotech RPG Tactics: Miniature Box First Look/Unboxing

  Like I mentioned in my Kickstarter rant http://wargamedork.blogspot.com/2014/08/kickshart-my-heart-or-why-kickstarter.html I had gotten into the Robotech RPG Tactics Kickstarter yet not only is it stupidly late (something most Kickstarter projects tend to be, and Palladium stuff is anyhow) but my picks would not only be later, but the damned game would be out at retail before my stuff came in!  So one of the local FLGSes had gotten in a shipment of the main game and a number of the box expansions, running around 36-39 dollars MSRP.  (Around 30ish shipped on ebay right now.)

  So what did my 36.50 get me?

 The box is kind of pretty enough.  

 The back shows you what you are getting.  4 models, 2 of each chassis.

 There is a helpful (ish) computer rendered instruction sheet, data cards, the bases, a BIG pack of waterslide decals, and squad cards.

 The other mech is on the back, and there are squadron cards for larger units, including some that require other boxes.  But it seems as if both factions can use the models included, which is very nice.

This however is the problem.  A pair of mechs per sprue.  Not really poseable as they have a default pose pretty much.  Except the way they are assembled requires you to build both mechs at once, and many of them have three or more sprue gates.  It does look to be normal plastic you can use model cement on thoughI am not 100% sure of this yet.  The detail looks pretty solid but..

Around 30 pieces per roughly two inch tall mini?  These are supposed to be GAMING MINIATURES.  To put together a decent army is going to take forever just to assemble, much less paint and finish.  This was not very well thought out.  At least a third of these parts shouldn't be there especially with the generally static poses.

Expect a follow up whenever I get around to building the models so I can compare and contrast to their Battletech cousins and similarly sized Macross models.

Kickstarter Ogre Battle Report!

After nearly a year I FINALLY got to run a game of the Kickstarter Edition of Ogre, in all its massive backbreaking glory.  It is not a game one just throws in the car.  It almost needs its own parking spot in a garage.

But I got a game in and even used the Ogre App for my iPad Air.  And now I will share it.

And to make it REALLY special?

COMIC FORMAT!  Another thing I haven't done in an age.  In this case the orange caption boxes are out of fiction commentary.

Given my serious lack of actual hobby games content on this blog as of late (because posting how I lose horribly at Warmachine/Hordes most weeks doesn't really count as content really), I think I have some inspiration now.

Ogre miniatures are 1/285th scale.  And what else do I have in that scale?

Lots and lots of Titan Legions/Space Marine Epic Warhammer 40K miniatures.

But first I have an Ogre scenario to prepare for this upcoming Saturday at Ellis Con in Danielson CT

I am thinking a GEV scenario of my own devising.

So look out around 4pm for Dude, Where's My Ogre, or Why is That Ogre Talking About a Blood God?

Mechwarrior Online Update: Mehtober.

Yeah some minor but eh changes and free robot.

Let's see what we got in the patches this month yes?

 The preference option?  Well it lasted a couple days till outrage basically had them backtrack.  I can kind of see why they would just make it a preference to speed up the Matchmaker process but the people have spoken.

 New stuff for morons to spend real money on fake things.  Moving on.

 It is kind of sad Clan XL engines are only NOW getting damage penalties to heat but better late than never I suppose.   HUD Reward info is now moved around.  Its mostly a thing that makes the next patch more useful.

 Yay more money and GXP sinks!  The real way to make players grind!

 Thank you sweet Raptor Jesus for hiding Trial Mechs from my inventory!

 The big spender players got a free 100 ton Atlas.  I did not.  It seems to be an ok mech to build on.  Still not worth replacing the D-DC model with the ECM.  On the upside you get 30% more C Bills using this one.  Like the next one I did get:

 The Centurion is.. flawed but interesting.  It is a 50 ton mech that needs SERIOUS C Bills spent on it to make it viable as it is a 3025 tech machines.  One that is penalized by being an ammunition weapon only mech.  As a Medium class.  But like the Atlas, 30% C Bill bonus, and a fancy paint scheme.

 A MASSIVE change to XP and C Bill rewards in game.  Now more ways to make bank that will hopefully encourage play other than MASS UP AND KILL ANYONE DUMB ENOUGH TO STICK THEIR HEAD OUT.  A small step towards causing other play styles.

 I am VERY happy there are rewards for causing the most damage to a target as opposed to just for component destruction and kill.

 More tweaks to stuff.  

 Yes we have more stupid Clan mechs coming you can waste money on.  

 And Inner Sphere too!  The Panther, Enforcer (LEPUS CAN LIVE AGAIN), Grasshopper, and Zeus will be coming in.  Most of these are.. ok looking.  Not better nor worse than the 3025 Readout originals really.    Maybe a little better.  Maybe.

And a bonus Assault class, the mighty KING CRAB, 100 tons of cool looking.  Sadly I doubt it can be painted to look like Rampage from BEAST WARS.  Because then I would need one.

Let us finish this post with some screenshots in game as is my wont. (Click for bigger as always.)

 Just an absolutely lovely shot where I had found a really nifty perch to see a huge percentage of the map without Jump Jets.

An absolutely GORGEOUS Dire Wolf.

A lovely hero Jagermech.

The Mad Dog (Vulture) in Project Phoenix colors.

In the cockpit.  Oh god that monkey.  I CAN SEE FOREVER.

 Now your XP and C Bill gains for doing things are in the lower center of your HUD.  But in a smaller font to not get in your way but still give you info where you can see it.

Getting a whole bunch of money and XP due to breaking a robot. 

 The free Centurion with all the gear ripped out of it.  Notice how much money I currently have.

Now with my preferred colors and fully kitted out, accepting what gear I already had stocked up.  About 9 million C bills to turn my "free" robot into something I might enjoy running in.

 But was it worth getting a small C bill bonus each match I use it?  Eh.. not really?  If I didn't already have three of this chassis already Elite skill mastered I wouldn't even bother honestly.

So another month, another pile of tweaks, patches, and more ways to mooch money off of players to keep doing the same damn thing we have for a few years now.