Also released in 1984, Battletech, the hex-based tactical game of mech combat, is one of the most prolific mecha franchises ever, with spinoff projects ranging from comic books and novels to a TV show and VR simulator pods. Originally created by the FASA Corporation, the property has switched hands a few times over the years, and currently resides with Topps, who has licensed it out to Catalyst Game Labs. The first Battletech roleplaying game, MechWarrior, was created by FASA in 1986 and went through multiple editions before the company sold the rights tot he franchise. More recently, in 2010 Catalyst Game Labs released A Time of War as a roleplaying addition to their line of Battletech products.
The System
A Time of War uses 6-sided dice for all of its mechanics. The basic roll is 2S6 plus any modifiers, most commonly one or more attributes and the relevant skill, versus a set target number. The combat rules are geared mostly towards the personal scale, with each round broken into multiple phases and available actions classified as complex, simple, and incidental. Combats involving a group of infanty or battlesuits vs. mechs or combat vehicles are possible using a chapter of tactical combat rules bridging the gap between the stats used in personal-scale combat and the stats used in Total Warfare, the main rulebook for the tactical game. Fights between multiple mechs can be simulated using the tactical combat system, but the book recommends using the chapter to convert pilot stats to the Total Warfare mechanics and playing out the battle with those rules.
Character creation starts with a pool of 5,000 XP used to purchase Attributes, Skills, and Traits. Players can either spend the XP directly on stats as they desire, or they can choose to use Life Modules to shape their character. Life Modules are a set of packages divided into stages that reflect a character origin, childhood, schooling, and life experience. Each module has an XP cost to buy it, and once purchased, applies XP bonuses or penalties to various skills, attributes, and traits. Once a player has selected all the life modules they want, the final XP totals for each statistic are converted into levels, and XP remaining in the pool is spent as the player sees fit.
The Setting
In the early 22nd century, humans perfect FTL spaceflight and begin colonizing other solar systems. Over the next four centuries, the various colonies, collectively known as the Inner Sphere, consolidate into power blocs and begin warring with one another for power and control. This period saw the development of BattleMechs as the premier war machine in the universe. Eventually, peace is obtained under the unification of the Star League, and maintained for almost two centuries. In the late 28th century, the ruling family of the League is assassinated in a well-planned coup, shattering the alliance of the Great Houses. The head of the Star League's military forces, unwilling to involve himself in the renewed warfare, leads most of the forces under his command outside of known space, while the Lords of the various houses engage in vicious warfare over territory for the next 300 years. At that point, the descendants of the self-exiled Star League military, now organized into caste-based and heavily martial Clans, invade the Inner Sphere and seize numerous systems on their march towards Earth. An alliance between the various factions manages to drive back the clans, but the truce is temporary, and many of the Clans still hold systems inside the Inner Sphere. The Great Houses have reverted to infighting once again, and a holy war incited to reform the Star League rages across space.
A Time of War's setting lives up to its name, with open warfare between factions occurring regularly, and low-level skirmishes and sponsored mecenary assaults happening constantly. The politics between the various power blocs are complex and ever-shifting, with several Houses suffering infighting as nasty as anything they face at the hands of their enemies. Having high rank and status can be vital to navigate the social playing field, and the Gamemaster's chapter provides a section on the various titles available to the Houses and Clans, suggesting benefits and drawbacks each provides. The GM chapter also includes a brief overview of social and cultural norms and economic and industrial capabilities across the Inner Sphere. A description of each of the major players rounds out the setting material in the book. The real resource for setting information comes from the four decades of material produced for the various editions of Battletech. From game sourcebooks to novels to video games, there is a wealth of information on virtually every time period in the history of the Inner Sphere, giving a GM plenty of resources no matter when he chooses to set his campaign.
The Mecha
Mecha in A Time of War, referred to as Battlemechs or Mechs, are massive war machines that range from 10 to 14 meters in height and weigh anywhere from 20 to 100 tons. Mechs are more tanklike than most mecha, fielding heavy armor and most designs lacking manipulator hands or arms. Mech control is accomplished with joysticks and pedals, augmented by a neurohelmet that uses the pilot's sense of balance to stabilize the mech. All mechs use fusion engines to provide the power for their various systems, and managing the excessive heat such a power source generates is an important part of mech combat. Mechs are armed with lasers, projectile weapons, and missles, with melee combat receiving very little attention.
Despite being set in the Battletech universe, there are absolutely no mech stats in A Time of War. Information for everything from the heaviest assault Mech down to the simplest of powered armors must be taken from resources for the tactical game. Even combat vehicles have no support in the equipment section. (The Total Warfare rulebook doesn't contain any vehicle stats either, so players will need one of the Technical Readout supplements unless they have the Introductory Box Set or are willing to use the TechManual to create their own Mechs and vehicles.)
My Opinion
I was a big fan of Battletech back in high school. (I still have my Battletech and Battleforce 2 box sets tucked away with my other games, in fact.) I remember seeing the Mechwarrior RPG at the game store and being excited to have a chance to play individual pilots and characters in the Battletech world. Imagine my disappointment when I looked over the rules and realized that the game's only option for actual Mech combat was to break out the hex maps and just play a round of the tactical game.
10 years later, with a different company creating Battletech products, and I'm still met with the same disappointment. A Time of War actually takes a step backwards, as the old Mechwarrior game at least had stats for powered armor in the rulebook. In a setting where warfare is almost a constant, and several of the character options are specialists in mechanized warfare, a complete lack of support for combat vehicles without purchasing a separate game is ridiculous. An unnecessarily complicated character creation system where you spend a pool of XP to receive investments of XP in various stats that you then have to convert to actual stat values further sours me on this game. I suppose that if you enjoy the tactical miniatures aspect of Battletech, and want to expand beyond just the battlefield, A Time of War is a great addition to your games. Other than that, however, I wouldn't recommend it.
A Time of War, and associated Battletech products, are available in print or PDF at Catalyst Game Labs' online store, or as PDFs from DriveThruRPG.
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