MegaMek Review - A Beginners Guide to BattleTech
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- Опубліковано 7 сер 2024
- Greetings MechWarriors of Clan Jade Falcon, we here at FalTech have been working hard to bring you a detailed guide to an old reliable software package for design, testing and simulation of Mech and Combined arms engagement. We believe this should be of great service in the training of new Sibkos to take of the harsh conditions of the Inner Sphere.
- Lapheal Devalk the 12th, Report to Clan Management 3127
Has it really been six months? Woops my bad, it will happen again if we're being honest here...
A MegaMek Review might not have been what you were expecting to follow up my Fear and Hunger Review, it being my most successful video to date, but here you go. I know I promised part 2 to my Pathfinder WotR review, [And a mass effect 2 video but luckily no one watched the part 1 so I think I'm safe from that obligation]. It is still coming but I was hitting artist block and had being toying around with mech concepts in Mech Lab, and so though, what the hell! A review on java software older than some people watching this video.
MegaMek Settings File:
drive.google.com/file/d/19zQ3...
For those interested in my data on mech weapons it can be found here:
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/...
And if you want to try out using my Okuu it can be found here:
drive.google.com/drive/folder...
As mentioned in the video if you're interested in learning more about BattleTech I'd recommend you check out these guys:
@SvenVanDerPlank
@MechanicalFrog
@theblackpantslegion
Socials:
x.com/Devalk_
/ discord
Anyone mocking Clan Hell's Horse in the comments will receive a free ❤ - Ігри
"EVE Online is nothing but spreadsheets!"
Battletech: "That's cute."
Great and very funny video. Thank you so much for the shoutout.
You are very welcome,
I very much enjoy your channel and I've always got to support a fellow Falcon!
Great game
This came at a strangely good time where I have been looking to finally get into megamek. Thanks.
Right? I downloaded Megamek several years ago, but I've never actually played it. I've been modifying the roughly 200 .stl files I have for mechs so I can print ANY possible model or configuration, and Megamek has been an invaluable resource to ensure I know where all the weapons and equipment are located. I've recently considered firing up a game and trying to figure it out.
That intro made me miss the 90s and early 2000s windows experience.
I know the feeling
I grw up with 2000 and still enjoy its look.
From the slick opening onwards this video was a delight. Outstanding.
8/8 m8 gr8 vid not enough -BattleTech- MegaMek content, and thx for the tinnitus at the end much appreciated.
You're welcome
It's a very special kind of computer readable tinnitus
Thank you so much. I'm a fan of the slime vtuber mech guides and I've played both Mech Commander and Mech Assault.
So I wanted to play a mercenary campaign with light mechs, but had no one to play. I also found MegaMek really intimidating.
Thanks a lot!
I love how the Need For Madness music comes in 2:02.
Not a Devalk video without some classic NFM appreciation.
WoB Hentai seems to be a terrifying prospect. Like imagine their weird curated playlists
I really appreciate the detail summary explanation about battletech as i'm not very knowledgeable on the lore, the vid does help me to understand it very well without going too deep end into it.
Glad to hear it!
The Battletech universe is a great and rich one to learn about.
This was useful and educational, but also had very well done in-jokes to keep people familiar with Battletech but not Megamek amused. Well done!
Nicely done!
(Also, nice to see one of the maps I designed show up in your video. 😀Because, yes, the package includes a map editor.)
Very glad you enjoyed it.
I really appreciate the variety of maps MM has!
Even if I don't personally get to see them all that often, due to that requiring me to leave the mechlab...
@@devalk_ Fully understand that temptation! After all, I've spent more time making maps than I have playing on them. 😀
something about how no matter where i go for Battletech, Tex has semented his hold on Amaris being batshit insane and giggling like a maniac
and i couldnt hope for any better
He is how I learnt a lot of BattleTech lore before I started reading sourcebooks.
Thank you! Haven't laughed that hard in a while. I needed it today!
I'll have you know the tacops ammo explosions will allow you to use your 30 tons of machine ammo offensively. Turn on the engine explosions too while you're at it for extra deep craters.
I have both rules on
It's the Boobytrap that doesn't work in the current version of MegaMek
In rules it allows for garneted instant explosion rather relying on the enemy critting you, or the rather slow method of normal self destruction.
Fantastic video. I help run a group that does in person BT and MegaMek tournaments and we get a lot of new people who are always asking for a good intro to MM, going to start using this as my go to recommendation.
That really cool!
I'm glad I can be of assistance to getting more people into the hobby
Great video! Y'know, all of us Jade Falcon enthusiast need to show up at Catalyst and get them to do something with our clan other than using them as a foil for the wolves.
Ture,
We are often given the Vegita roll a lot...
Maybe now /the bitch/ is gone, the Clan can gain a better future
The option for truly hidden units/forces (blind drop etc) makes this a huge improvement over the tabletop imo. Means light mechs really do have to go out and scout.
Definately,
Double blind is so much of a pain on tabletop,
Digital also has advantages for things like rolling locations for boated srm6s or lbx20s that take forever normally.
Excellent video, loved the intro.
Glad you liked it!
Cool video. I like the edits
There _is_ a dark mode, and there's an optional rule to allow ammo explosions to affect adjacent units, allowing for the suicide 'Mech (although, you'll have to rely on the enemy to set it off).
Yeah it goes someway to replicating it, but the boobie trap equipment also sets off a guaranteed engine explosion, which is what they've not implemented yet.
It's just not the same if it's not Stackpoleing
@@devalk_ Stackpoling is possible, too. And, I believe you can actually combine the two rules if you're really lucky. But, yeah, there's no way to guarantee a giant boom (well, unless you just launch a nuke. But that's a whole different ball game).
I was literally thinking about how I hadnt seen ya in a while! I may have to try this out
haha yeah sorry for the delay,
It will happen again
@@devalk_ Of course! I suffer from the same chronic "putting off, doing a shitton at once, burning out, getting better, putting off" cycle so I get it. Your videos are always a treat, them coming out so infrequently feels like an occaision. Like you're having fun with it!
Thank you,
I every much am, my biggest problem is scope creep
I can just have a shot that doesn't have something moving in it or other visual interest.
@@devalk_ If you have the funds for it, maybe hiring a video editor would help? That visually interesting flair coupled with your humor are a huge part of what makes these videos so fun. Having another set of hands assisting with it might make it easier
This was absolutely brilliant, bravo!
Thank you!
I'm so glad so many people from the battletech community seem to enjoy it and that I can contribute in my own way.
Awesome stuff!
let's go new video, so exciting🤩🤩😍😍
10:47 when I gain the high ground in my Whammy and punt the Dragon's cockpit clean off *biig brane*
Standing by 1 high terrain can be quite the dangerous position to be in
@@devalk_ absolutely, however being king of da castle also brings some danger; in a Destiny campaign I moved my Wolverine to higher ground to rain AC5 fire down on pirates, however becoming the longest range and biggest damage dealer in the field also means i was the biggest, silhouetted target in the field.
Thankfully my teammates backed me up lol
insanely well made!!!
Nice video!
Great video. I've not looked at Megamek for a while, so I should probably dig it out for another play. Your guide to BT history was remarkably thorough, considering how fast you raced through it. Treating is as 'the far future of the 1980's' does make the most sense, though. What do I even know - I've refused to read past 3025. I just assume the Capellans are going to do fucking fantastically well. 😁👍
I know a lot of people don't like going past 4th succession war or Fed-Com Civil war times.
Wizkidz certainly did a number on it after that.
That said I do quire enjoy some of the ilclan stuff, especially for the technology it's added, helps make a lot of builds more interesting.
If you're a Capellan though... yeah maybe it's best to stick to the better days of the early 3000s
22:58 Just a note, most Metal Gears are *way* bigger than BattleMechs, and you need to use the "Mobile Structure" rules to represent the 555 ton Metal Gear Rex, for instance. Metal Gears, Gundams, and Jaegers, just for example, are all grossly outsized compared to the relatively small mechs of BattleTech, and cannot easily be represented in universe due to either massive expense / size superiority (eg: Jaegers, Metal Gears) and need to be considered something very different in the rules, and/or sheer extreme technological superiority (eg: basically any Gundam, with few exceptions for both size and tech) leading to no decent method of representation in BattleTech. Let's be real, a Gundam could almost fight Goku and Superman at the same time and survive, and a Metal Gear of any type could just step on a BattleMech that only makes it up the Ray's knee. Even PeaceWalker would outclass most BattleMechs due to size, and Zeke being among the smallest of Metal Gear could still go toe to toe with most Heavy-class mechs despite technological inferiority. No Jaeger could be defeated by even the strongest of BattleMech.
Do note, Macross mechs are directly representable in BattleTech, as are mechs/vehicles from Fang of the Sun: Dougram and Crusher Joe (and by extension specifically Jetfire / Skyfire from Transformers), but that's because these series were the licensed origins (and legal bane thanks to Harmony Gold) of the entire IP.
On the other hand, more "realistic" or "practical" mechs easily translate to BT; the whole of Titanfall could probably just take place in a cut-off section of the BattleTech universe and almost nothing would need to be changed. The same could be said for Phantom Brigade as well. Armored Core, depending on continuity, would run the gambit of being *way* more advanced than BattleTech or fitting in perfectly, though most ACs are a bit on the small (and thus technologically superior) side of the calculous, but might still fit in as just advanced Medium-class OmniMechs.
Yeah you have to make more Battlemechs flavoured after others
It goes the other way too, as the Villkiss is only meant to be 4.3 tons.
Hard to build anything close to it at that weight.
Not gonna lie...the endless tables available in Battletech is one of the things I love the most about the game.
I started playing Battletech and AD&D 2e at roughly the same time, and the D&D tables are probably responsible for my love.
Yeah. It honestly feels like the Mechwarrior RPG is how the game was intended to be played most.
I do too,
I wouldn't spend hours pouring over TechManual and TacOps to find interesting new pieces of gear to try and work into designs otherwise
I always DFA when I have the chance. Sometimes the wrong decision leads to the funest outcome.
The clans are just lucky the concordat are on the other side of the sphere or we wouldn't have ever heard about the return of the exiled children of kerensky
God bless space Texas
green birb squaks in approval
thanks for reminding me of this
I wish I could give a superlike for Battletech, Wing Zero, and all 6 Toa Mata being in one video without a hint of disdain for any of them.
I love them all!
Glad you enjoyed the video
In MekHQ you can also choose to play as part of a faction other than mercenaries. As far as I can tell the primary difference is that you will only get contracts from the faction you chose.
Currently going through a campaign as an Outworlds Alliance militia company in 3045. I'm sure nothing bad will happen in our neck of the woods in the next few decades. Wish Davion and Kurita would stop raiding us...
What a great ass video!!! I very much enjoyed this!
Thank you!
Glad you did
I played MegaMek once to see how good Infantry was in the tabletop and i was not disappointed (Cue a platoon of rifle infantry doing a critical on an armor-stripped Cicada only to be annihilated in the following reactor explosion)
While they may not have the presence of a BattleMech,
When used correctly infantry are not to be overlooked.
@devalk_ yeah, too bad infantry was never featured in any of the battletech videogames (as far as i know anyway)
I also loved messing around in MegaMekLab and making just the most weird-yet-optimized things I could think of, costs be damned.
Take out a loan to build battlemechs
If they try to collect, well, you have batllemechs
I at times use it for roleplay scenarios and similar. Eg, "We've got access to these specific toys and a bunch of stock 3025 Mech models, so what can we do with that?"
actually a pretty good video and very interesting universe
Glad you liked it,
BattleTech is a favourite of mine
Such a Cultured Birb
Thank you
I don't think that triangle thing you showed when you talked about ion engines is an ion engine; it looks like an ionocraft. The operating principle of an ionocraft exploits the Biefeld-Brown effect (i.e. electrohydrodynamic) while ion thrusters seen on spacecraft use either the Coulomb force (i.e. electrostatic) or the Lorenz force (i.e. electromagnetic) . Either way the thrust is very feeble.
Holy shit this is quality! the memes especially are just *chefs kiss*
ywnbaw
hummm, sengoku rance!
also, you truly have encoded yourself into SSTV lol
Hilariously Catalyst is pretty cool with megamek for the rather understandable reason they themselves use the meklab application while building cannon mech designs.
That does not surprise me lol
Its nice to see another Vtuber into Battletech! tell me whats your Favorite Mech? 🥰
This may have been given away by the thumbnail,
but it's the Gyrfalcon
I have quite a soft spot for the Turkina too
ok i actually like battletech the wargame, consider this and the comment on the other vid for engadgement
Much appreciated!
Moar!
WHEEEEW HE UPLOADED!
I AM BACK (for now)
@devalk_ keep doing this, you already got some long term fans!
This channel came to me completely out of the blue but I appreciate this video, I've been looking into MegaMek since I can't seem to convince my RPG group to try any wargames that aren't Warhammer/Mordheim. Don't wanna play toy soldiers and big kaboom robots with me? Fine, I'll do it myself...
Personally I wanted to try Heavy Gear but I'll take what I can get.
Glad you liked the video,
If you are trying to wean Warhammer players to other games Alpha Strike is basically designed to appeal to them.
It's also much quicker (And significantly cheaper than warhammer) to get into.
@@devalk_ Is that some sort of BT starter pack? Sounds interesting. Also I did call them an RPG group because we mostly play Pathfinder and Cyberpunk, Mordheim was a one off. This time a couple of them *think* they want to play Warhammer but the reality is that they just overdosed on lore videos again.
@@Ramash440 Alpha strike is a simpler version of BT that doesn't use hex movement and instead runs on inches like warhammer
It does have it's own starter box that's more than enough for two players
14:21 Huh, I guess that kinda fits the anime.
my fav vtuber finally got out of hibernation, only to go back into hibernation again 😭😭🙏🙏🙏
I have been re-frozen,
See you in the next 6 months
It's funny, I had heard of Battletech through just nerd cultural osmosis but never got into it mostly due to the logistical hassle that comes with tabletop and miniatures, and having seen this video I now recognize the Atlas mech from those old Mechassult and Mech Warrior games I used to play all the time with my dad back on the Classic Xbox and realized those are Battletech so technically I was into it for quite awhile counting those.
Yeah the MechAssult and MechWarrior game franchises are both set in the BattleTech universe,
Although their events are mostly non-cannon.
That said a bunch of mechs from MechAssult have slowly been getting added into the cannon,
Even including the battle armour
Man the MegaMek ding must be a hardcoded, impossible to separate feature at this point.
😀 (You can actually switch it off, or replace it with a sound of your choice, but I'm not sure how many folk do more than just switch it off.)
I looked at the tweet you made and went "That looks either like Elona or MegaMek" lol
lol
The Gyrfalcon in the thumbnail probably gives away which one
@@devalk_ I only saw the teaser of the timeline, and looked at the bottom video track. If I paid more attention I'd also notice the mechas on the other tracks
Ah I see
There is a dark theme lol. I forgot how I found it though but it's there.
Ah so I have now heard...
If you ever do find it again, let me know, would certainly save me some eyestrain
Proxy will always be allowed at a table I am playing on. It's part of the spirit of the game. I also never pass on an opportunity to use the skipping stone I glued sticks on for arms and legs, then called a King Crab.
CGL going anti-proxy is not the way to help bring new people in. Them being so political, also pushing people away, is why I buy after market and 3D prints exclusively now.
For sure, I use a Tarantula that is in fact: a block of wood, 2mm wire and electrical tape.
The worst part is CGL aren't even anti-3d print or proxy themselves, a lot of that is from Tops who actually own the BT licence.
The demo teams I've spoken to at events have stated that, while them as official reps at official events have to use official models, that only applies to them and everyone else is free to do what they want outside of that.
Some of the drama about IP usage came off the back of people ripping the models from MWO or 5 and then selling those, which is understandable why that would not be allowed.
That said CGL are TERRIBLE at properly communicating this online.
I know there's some other reddit drama too but I refuse to touch that hellsite
CGL aren't strictly anti-proxy as such (and the published rules still permit it) - the biggest issue was, as Devalk mentions, to do with folk ripping off models from other licensed properties and then selling them.
There's some new lore for jump jets: a lot utilize directed plasma instead of ionization, usually from the mechs reactor
Same as how the flamers on mechs utilize the engine to make fire hot enough to start melting myomer
Same as how tb
Wouldn't be BT without there being conflicting ways of doing everything lol
my boyfriend enjoys your content
Glad to hear it
Getting it to connect with my friend's game so we can play ahs been a challenge that i havent solved yet, I may be stupid.
You might need you to set up port forwarding to allow external connections.
didn't expect mofu
waaait a minute, Okuu Touhou reference?
Yes, our beloved nuclear bird-brain
She's based of the mythical three legged crow so when making a three legged mech it she seemed like a good namesake for it.
@@devalk_ ...are you loading that thing up with Davy Crockett Arrow IVs, by any chance?
Yay you are back can i reccomend you a game
Yup!
Digital devil saga 1&2 its a jrpg made by atlus @@devalk_
@@devalk_ digital devil saga its a ps2 game about people voring eachother to go to nirvana concert
Based Okuu and Chris enjoyer.
Best Girls!
We don't talk about the clix version of the game
This isnt part 2 of the pathfinder review? :(
It's still coming I promise!
@@devalk_ the only reconciliation i would accept is an emperor of the fading stars review
@@giorgilobjanidze5667 That's not one I'm aware of, I'll have to give it a look
Couldn’t get the MekLab to launch, gave up.
It's most likely a Java version issue.
@@devalk_ probably. I did the Java version Hokey Pokey a few times to no avail.
The only other recommendation I found was to keep MekLab in a separate install folder entirely, which makes sense.
@@workshoptelescope Right that's fair enough,
I wonder if he knows about Tex.
using d6 location dice and rolling another time to confirm double1 or 6 cuts down so much unnecessary hassle in tabletop
Interested in how that works, as there are 8 locations
Also wouldn't that change the hit distribution as it would move from a Pyramid distribution to a flat one?
@@devalk_ extra locations come in the form of left/right, to emulate that I simply use the facing of the mech to determine what side got hit and suddenly torso twisting/positioning become even more relevant and it adds to the immersion. Statistically it's the same distribution since you roll a second time if you get a head/engine hit to confirm them, so it's the same 1/36 chance for them aand pretty much the same for all the rest.
This little change lets you skip the "hit location" chart and that's the biggest time hog in classic BT
What does Devalk mean? I always have to search for your channel typing something like "pathfinder wrath harpy"
Originally it was just a name I came up with to replace my fairly boring IRL surname
But it turned out to be Dutch for "the falcon"
And that lead to the Peregrine Falcon persona
Cute, maybe that'll make me remember. Thank you
NGL being know as the "Wrath Harpy" would be pretty cool too
Fal-tech? Jade Falcon thinks it is being sneaky
We here at Fal-Tech have been proudly producing mech since the days of the first succession war,
Any accusations that we quietly assassinated the planetary government during the early days of the Clan invasion. In order to sell out the planet to the Falcons in exchange for preferential manufacturing contracts and access to clan tech. Are slandeous and will be met with the full might of our legal team.
How do I use the lab to create hybrid-movement units I wanted to make a seaplane that can switch to naval movement to evade AA weapons, a shark submarine that uses jump jets to leap out of the water and fire laser beams, and an aeroplane that has sharpened wingtips for melee attacks but alas i couldnt build any of this
Do genetics in the setting work similar to rimworld where you can add positive and negative traits to a person to specialize your colonists and stretch the definition of "human" while certain combinations of genes are common enough to be consider an ethnic group? And did any of the clanner groups make themselves dependent on combat drugs to survive?
Hard disagree on the setting being stuck in the 80's. I would love this to be the case but from what've i seen the fanbase doesn't want 80's cyberpunk tropes in their battletech. And don't get my started on jumpships
wait why does machinegun ammo explode i thought machineguns worked off of disposable heatsink/batteries that are fed to the machinegun by belt to fire 80's scifi laser bullets and the melted battery is jettisoned out of the weapon in prep for another shot
For those constructions you would not be able to,
They are not legal under BattleTech's constructions rules.
That said naval stuff is quite underserved just in general.
For clan genetics it's not direct genetic engineering, it's more of a selective breeding program, as you would for dogs. They take the strongest, fastest, brightest, and breed them to encourage more of those specific genes.
In regards to using drugs to survive that is something people who get Enhanced Imaging fitted need to do, or they go crazy.
For machineguns, yeah they're just regular ballistic machine guns.
Why do I have a feeling this person knows about the Black Pants Legion.
Tex, Frog, BigRed and Razorfist are the 4 biggest names in BattleTech that I know. They all eclipse CGL themselves and do a better job of bringing people in.
More vtubers in the battletech space please
To tell the truth I only became a vtuber by accident
But happy to be here
omg
I know this is a weird question, but are you gonna do another degrees of lewdity video since it's been like two years
At present no.
While a lot has been added it's not really enough to make a coherent through line for a video.
If the game ever reaches a proper 1.0 release I will.
MegaMek without MekHQ is a snoozefest.
>Chris as best girl
Damn straight (Unlike Chris)
15:02 this is proof to me that humanity strives to become either centaurs or cat girls or general anything other than just normal humans because we are a sub optimal physical form
There is a dark mode tho...
Listen you UA-camr. A half ton of Machinegun ammo can support about 10 MGs for 10 turns of shooting. By that point you are dead or your target is. Or ideally is unconscious on the ground as between all those shots and punches they have probably passed out or have taken through armor crits and their robot no work good any more. Or you have turned a whole lot of infantry into fresh hamburger. And isn't that worth the risk of 200 points of damage if the ammo is hit? Bonus points if you just fill the torsos with MGs. Extra space is just for your xl engine so you can get fast enough to make your stupid gimmick robot work. Make sure to bring at least 12 different pairs of distinctly colored dice your opponent can read.
"Listen you UA-camr" makes it sound like some kind of epithet,
Joking aside I do actually like running MGs, and often stick the ammo in the head as further encouragement for my Mechwarriors to not let themselves get shot there.
@@devalk_ trying more to be funny since I've been playing BT off and on since 1988 and I'm old now and need anything I can to feel better. But ammo in the head? That's just begging for death. But the real trick to Battletech fun is to play non urban overland terrain with 3050s Inner Sphere tech, Mechs and Tanks only. Use Battle Value and a minimum\maximum unit and skill stat value otherwise you are asking for trouble. Or just play Alpha Strike instead. Most people are doing that outside of ones older than my 50 year old no life ass.
I've only got into battletech about 5 or 6 years ago after asking a friend who that funny blonde man with the green face tattoos that he was using as an avatar was.
I mostly play Classic BT but have played some Alpha Strike and do enjoy it as well.
Been running a sort of narrative campaign utilizing some stuff from A Time of War for my friends over the past 18months. Set in the early days of the clan invasion. So almost all IS tech, but if they're very lucky maybe they can get the occasional piece of clan tech. You know, as a treat.
Meh i prefer the epyon
The Epyon is a great suit
A close second favourite in Wing.
yah uhhh.... I think I'm good
>blurred someone's video out of the search results
555-CMON-NOW
It was shitty clickbait by someone trying to farm rage clicks
You're not missing out
@@devalk_
Fair play to you then I suppose.
This is a very cool video. By the by, do you happen to know who made that re-edit of malthus' day in court at 19:12? We never found out who added the green parakeet costume but it is fantastic. 🤌💋
I do not off the top of my head, as I got it from a certain Mongolian basket weaving forum
Once I'm back from the office I'll see if I can run the thing through some reverse image searches and let you know if I find anything.