Battletech Unboxing: Battletech Alpha Strike
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- čas přidán 10. 09. 2024
- Tune in today as I check out a copy of Battletech Alpha Strike which I was able to snag while I was at Kerensky Kon.
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I’m new to BT and I love classic but not played alpha yet. I started with the beginner box with the Vindicator then got GOAC and CI after. Now I have the proliferation cycle and the urbies! Binged Tex Talks and so on. I think the other boxes have great value compared to most games especially if it’s classic you want to learn which was the case for me. I plan on getting Alpha not for the game but the mechs with an option to play alpha if I feel like it. This box is amazing and perfect for getting players into a game and other companies should learn from BT and I thought the other boxes were good to begin with. Catalysts whole approach for getting beginners into the series is something other games should try to emulate.
Been slowly going through your older content, really enjoying your channel!
Thanks! It’s not the most polished stuff ever but I do hope it brings a little hobby happiness to anyone who stumbles across the videos :)
I got the box just before Christmas, and I have to say it's probably the best product CGL has put out for a beginner. Having the scenarios and pilot cards tie in to the short story is a great way to draw players into the universe naturally. Having the rulebook use a similar concept to the Infinity starter boxes of presenting some rules, then a scenario using just those rules, then more rules and a scenario that uses those rules is very good as well. The Primer is a fantastic update to the Game of Armoured Combat one to boot, I especially like that the eras page indicates which era each box is set in. My only real complaint on that front is that the pilot cards are actually formatted for Alpha Strike - the special rules are the AS versions rather than the BattleTech ones, yet they show Piloting and Gunnery skills and the rulebook instructs you to ignore the piloting skill for Alpha Strike play. For clarity I would have preferred them either do BattleTech pilot cards or not include piloting skill on them.
For veteran players it's less essential. I'm a little bit frustrated that the support deck doesn't include all the options in the Commander's Edition, but instead the limited selection from the enclosed rulebook. It means that I'm going to either use a list of selected options like I would have if I had no deck at all, or wait for CGL to make one. Similarly the reference card is designed to be used with the contents of the box and has limited utility for full games of Alpha Strike, as opposed to the Game of Armoured Combat one which has more utility for full games of BattleTech.
That said, the main attraction of the box for me was the minis, the buildings and the movement counters, which are all brilliant - I especially love the movement counters as a Quality of life improvement and have run off a very basic-looking set for full BattleTech that match the colour-coding suggested for movement dice. I've even scanned the counters and buildings and printed out many copies for the larger games my group tends to run to in Alpha Strike.
Overall this is 100% the product I'm going to recommend to new players interested of the Beginner box unless they express a major preference for BattleTech's granularity but don't want to slash out on GoAC.
100% agree and your critique of the pilot cards has been an issue for me since I got into the game. When I was getting into AS I was confused by those cards and the gunnery / piloting as well. That’s a minor issue though and if a player gets past the box and into MUL, we’ve won :)
@@Thearmedpainter Yeah, the big problem right now is that the box has almost sold out and it takes a while for a reprint! A friend of mine is starting up a webstore at the moment, he ordered 18 copies to be on the safe side, sold them in less than a week and can't get more from his distributor!
And apparently this was the biggest initial print run CGL has done to boot. There are more copies of the Beginner's Box and GoAC in circulation, but they've each been reprinted multiple times.
Both A Game of Armored Combat and the Clan Invasion boxed sets come with hex maps, which I've been enjoying more with Alpha Strike over regular table top rules. It's much, much easier to tell if someone is or isn't in range or in LOS when you can just count hexes.
Elevation and intervening terrain are much more difficult to calculate with the hex maps. Because it’s flat you can’t visualize from a quick look who or what is at what elevation for example and that plays a major role in whether or not a unit can fire at another or whether shots can even hit the bottom half of a mech.
Add to this that sometimes the text printed on the hexes blends in with the darker areas on the maps and it can be even more difficult to determine stuff quickly.
I come from a wargaming background so pulling out a measuring tape and getting a distance isn’t a real issue for me. The same with determining LOS. With Alpha Strike the range bands are 0-6 6-24 24-42 and 42+. Given it’s typically played on a 4x4 table it’s not too much of an issue to determine range bands and the majority of the time the fights are handled inside of medium range. It’s pretty rare that I’ve had split hairs occur with a range band that for some reason gave difficulty for determining. Because the weapons and such are simplified as well in AS you only have to measure to a target once where as in Classic you have to check for each weapon’s individual modifiers for its specific range band once you’ve know how far away they are. Then, all the granular dice rolling.
The only time I personally have interest in Classic is if space is an issue for gaming. A couple mechs on a hex mat can fit on a variety of surfaces. If I want larger scale battles or find myself on a time constraint I’ll go for AS 99/100 times. My mileage though, everyone has different preferences and experiences.
@@Thearmedpainter I to come from a background with wargaming, 40k and Warmachine being the 2 I have the most experience with. Warmachine easily having the better ruleset and despite having 3D models can essentially be played with flat cutouts for terrain as it's base size not model size that matters there. 40k is...well it's GW, no one really expects a good rule set from them. The closest it's come to parity I think having played it so long had to have been either 4 or 5th when each faction could reliably put together a list or 2 for competitive and plenty for casual. As far as hex readability, I've introduced about a dozen people to AS with just the hex maps and they've picked up on most things surprisingly quickly so I think it only trips up people used to games that use 3D terrain more often.
I will agree on the deathmatch style game being a little boring after a while but I haven't found many other scenarios save the ones in the Commanders Edition rule set. Sadly CGL doesn't seem quite as interested in supporting AS as it is base Battletech.
I'm imagining an Atlas quickly tip-toeing across a battlefield accompanied by a little piano tinkle, cartoon style 🤣
Also, did you ever get around to realising that the 'second' Phoenix Hawk pilot card was actually the Wasp Pilots?
I probably never noticed lol 😂
the atlas model is the AS7-S with 2 streak 2 racks in the back
The heavy strike cards were missing from the battlefield support deck for classic Battletech
Use sandwich bags to store small stuff from the box so they do not go missing. Also before departing count the pieces so you know you did not leave anything behind.
Great video! Looking forward to getting a copy when it comes out.
We need more Battletech on CZcams. Good work!
Thanks! :)
I'm actually disappointed with the Atlas model as it's clearly the AS7-S model (2x Streak SRM 2 and 2x Medium Lasers at the rear torsos, not to mention the forward-facing LRM). I was eagerly anticipating the box set because I thought we were getting a proper AS7-S4 mini (should have had bigger guns attached to the arm since they're ER PPCs, no LRM and any rear weapons, and only two mediums in the LT, I could have imagined the AC-20 in the model as a Gauss).
For the Timberwolf, if you count the TC variant Premium Mech, then we already have 5. I'm still hoping they give us a D variant, my all time favorite (or at least until the Mad Cat Mk IV Prime came along)!
Great review! Once I pick up a copy, I'm planning to use the trees as those comm towers that are made to look like trees, maybe making a few additions to improve the effect.
You miss the point that the other boxes have parts of the Battletech Rules in it, here you only have AS. You pretty much need both if you want to play CBT,but then you have 16 IS Mechs 10 Clan Mechs
All of my videos are generally from the AS perspective. I don’t do much with classic.
@@Thearmedpainter if it is only the Number of Minis you are right with the comparison, but the CBT boxes come with maps and Rules too. Therefore the price is ok if you compare a mapset price.
Plus you can convert AS to Hex too and CBT to "
I love your Videos but your compared Apples and Oranges here imho. As your forgot to mention why the CBT box is a bit more expensive.
I just bought myself the Box for CBT usage (Gimme that Wraith!)
The thing is:
If you only play AS this Box is the cheapest, but i guess i am not the only CBT Player who watches, and new CBT players need the other boxes, due to the rules in it, if they don't allready have Total Warfare 😊
@@Thearmedpainterbtw where do yu get the CBT Battlefield Support cards?
Thanks for showing nice closeups of all the cards as always. That's why I watch your videos! Though I think you forgot the Warhammer pilot card.
I’ll see about digging it out and posting a photo :) I feel like I was missing a card in my box but I’ll check when I can.
uuhhh the Phoenix Hawk is not a WASP lol you did the Wasp pilot cards with the P-Hawk AS card
Can't wait for this box to come out. Great video!
Me too! I need a second one so I can paint up a demo set for teaching the game to locals :)
you never showed the Warhammer pilot cards only the AS cards
Is the box the same thickness as A Game of Armored combat? I too use the boxes to store minis. It is nice how they are just the right size where you can stand up the Mechs inside the box without issues.
I believe so :) looks the same to me.
Can you share your battletech collection? I'd be really interested 🤩
Like my painted minis? I could probably do a breakdown of them :) I’ve just finished up more Dragoons.
@@Thearmedpainter I think they look really great. What you describe as tabletop ready is a few levels above my standard 😅
I just bought a game of armored combat, does it work with this set? Or are they completely different?
The mechs work for both the rules included in the box are for AS. You can use models for both Classic and AS.
masterunitlist.info is also a good source for list building and cards :)
@@Thearmedpainter sweet! Thanks brother.
Certainly a great starter set but if you have anything else its probably not worth while. None of it is hard to come by with the possible exception of the wraith.
There are two mechs that release here that aren’t in other boxes. For a new player this is the most efficient way to get into the game. It’s essentially AGOG and Clan Invasion crammed into one box for $30 less msrp for the same stuff plus extra buildings and such. It’s a pretty solid value. For players who already have all of the plastics it may be less appealing but in general I think it’s solid and a much needed box for FLGS shelves.
Can't forget on top of the 2 new mechs, all but 4 of them are also reposed with weapon changes. For those that want multiple of one mech or like variants without having to chop and mod, this is a good way to bulk up and have variety.
@@ShimmeringSword the interesting thing for me is using bo 5 and 6 of this set for my chopshop =)
hopefully this box ill be availeavle when the kickstarter starts.
I find it weird that they used this particular Timby mold. Out of the 3, it by far always has the wonkiest ears. The WD one is what I'd have gone with, those are always super even looking
It's about how our molds are grouped. Usually we can't pick a single mech out. The Timby and Nova come together.
@@ShimmeringSword Ohh, well, that makes sense.
The way you confused the Phoenix Hawk and Wasp pilot cards really gets under my skin. I mean, the 'Mech's name is ON the pilot card!
I’m a visual/tactile learner. Because I read slow my immediate instinct is to identify something by what it looks like first and to read text second. I think some of this is also why I resonate so much with the art side of things. Sorry this was annoying for you.
@@Thearmedpainter You're far from the first person I've seen confuse a Wasp and a Phoenix Hawk in a video, especially the old artwork/minis. It's not surprising, given their genealogy. In fact, the original Battledroids Wasp mini was essentially identical to the original Phoenix Hawk mini, just minus the jump jets and in a different pose.
@@Thearmedpainter No worries. I'm not really angry, just going a little OCD.
Phoenix Hawk has 2 boosters in the back. Stinger and Wasp are easier to confuse.
When does it come out
Hearing November sometime.
when will it be purchasable?
I’m hearing sometime in November.
Any release date announced yet?
I don’t think they gave us a date specifically other than before the end of the year.
Amazon advertising a November 16th release date.