FedCom vs Clan Jade Falcon | CAMPAIGN! Battletech Alpha Strike Battle Report | Clan Invasion

Although Comstar halted the advance of the crusader clans, they did not quench the fire of war.
The clan oppressors struggle to keep the native freebirths under control, and draconian measures are frequently used to cowl the restless populations.
In the Alyina system, a small rebellion has formed to fight Clan Jade Falcon's occupation - and wind of this rebellion has reached the ears of the Archon.
Although focused on more political issues related to a failing alliance with House Davion, Katherine Steiner has just ordered the deployment of Commonwealth troops to assist the rebellion in its gamble to free Alyina…
___________________________________________________________________________
Support us on Patreon!
/ dfawargaming
Don't forget to subscribe, give us a like, and check out our website over at www.dfawargaming.com. Dive in to more Battlytics on all your favorite battlemechs at www.battlytics.com and stream our original soundtrack "Wargames" on amazon music, spotify, itunes and more!
Get official DFA branded gear at teespring.com/...
___________________________________________________________________________
Visit all of our favorite BattleTech vendors:
Aries Games & Miniatures for everything you need from Iron Wind Metals, Catalyst Game Labs, Army Painter, and more!
www.ariesgamesandminis.com
Polygon Masterworks, an expert in .stl file development
www.polygonmasterworks.com
www.patreon.com/polygonmasterworks
Level-up your CityTech experience at Hardware Studios - the absolute best in terms of design and quality for dropships, high-rises, and other amazing 3D printed buildings, terrain, and vehicles.
hardwarestudio...
XMarx, our top choice for awesome and affordable 6mm scale resin scatter terrain to add to your battlegrid!
www.xmarx.com/xmarx-store/
Also check out our collaborators:
Camo Specs Online - dedicated to displaying official canon paint schemes for the Battletech universe!
/ camospecsonline
www.camospecs.com
Colonel Matthew Steiner - one of the best painters in the Inner Sphere
@col.matthew_steiner
ION Radio, purveyors of Armada and BattleTech Campaign Battle Reports
/ @ionradio
___________________________________________________________________________
Bombing Run and other icons courtesy Lorc via game-icons.net under the CC-BY license.
Death From Above Wargaming™, DFA Wargaming™ and Battlytics™ are trademarks of Death From Above Media Group, LLC. in the U.S. and other countries.

[@pierrelindgren5727]

As a loyal Taurian citizen I am compelled to support Jade Falcon. They may be staunch Clanner traditionalists hellbent on conquering Terra, but at least they, and their forefathers, realized you couldn't trust House Davion curs beyond the range of an AC20.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

That’s not very far at all! 😆

[@pierrelindgren5727]

As they say, keep your friends close and your enemies within alpha strike range of your lance.

[@brianhenry152]

Taurians: "I fee sorry for you..." FedSuns: "I don't think about you at all."

[@mechzilla569]

I’d say a long tom is more fitting

[@christopherturco3494]

Don't trust us inside the range of an AC/20, either. ^_^

[@polaris30000]

Jade Falcon plan: "We will take strategic positions, force Inner Sphere surats to come to us and pick them apart as they come." Donegal Guards plan: *Fortunate Son intensifies*

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

LOL

[@LeeGutsy]

I have to reiterate, this channel has production and cinematic quality that punches way outside of it's weight class in subscriber count. I really hope you guys keep succeeding, because this channel is the first thing I show people getting into Battletech for a good first impression. Keep it up boys

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

I can’t tell you enough how much we appreciate not only the nice comment but also introducing your gaming buddies to the channel!

[@kereminde]

I agree, this channel is amazingly well-done for editing and compiling what they're doing so a lot of the "tedious" parts are out of the way (movement, such as debating where to move... setting up the table...) and we get to see the action and dice. I'm very glad I stumbled on this channel some years back, and try to save these videos to watch when I have a mostly uninterrupted block of time to pay attention. (Also for introducing me to buildings by "Hardware Games", where I just need to get access to a resin printer to get the stuff printed...)

[@fistofthetiger1591]

Absolutely! The value in this channel is on point! I can't understand why this channel doesn't have 100K Plus subscribers because what I'm seeing here is quality of that caliber.

[@Dmorris556]

Loving to see that denser cover. Good movement and firing lanes. Terrain has leveled up dudes.

[@brianhenry152]

That terrain looks amazing! I got the notification about the terrainify stuff, but the new job keeps me from getting to see your vids as much as before. It's definitely going to be worth checking out.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Yes! Watch when you can. Great stuff.

[@elijahsnow3119]

Regular Battletech: “who cares about helicopters?” Alpha Strike: “HELIKOPTER HELIKOPTER”

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

lol nailed it

[@elijahsnow3119]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming the number of Alpha Strike games I’ve seen where the Taurian Militia with airmobile infantry and helicopters have flattened clan stars proves some abstractions don’t work as well as others. Although the Black Hawk Down memes almost make it worth it.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

I hear you - AS has its pros for sure, but in some areas can get wonky. 🙂

[@JonasPeltomaeki]

speedpaint reactivation solutions: #1: airbrush or spray a matte varnish layer first before painting ontop of the speedpaints. #2: it IS the water you use to thin the acrylic paints that reactivate the speedpaints. solution is that if you want to paint regular acrylic on top and still have it thinned and smooth, add the speedpaint medium, as much as you hit the right consistency. this stops the paint from reactivating.

[@kereminde]

Okay, this makes me more willing to get some Speed Paints to play around with sometime when I get a chance to soak/clean some old CGL plastic minis...

[@sebastiang.5032]

Super amazing battlefield setup and forces, can't wait for the battle to begin!

[@duskhaunters3025]

Good show, Dan. Don't give the Clanner barbarians an inch!

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Even I was cheering for Dan….

[@donaldcampbell3043]

I don't have a gaming group anymore, but enjoy watching battles, good to see the long game being considered and not just fighting to the death...

[@jimdee5319]

Such awesome content here. I'm glad the Green Birds got driven off.

[@randyewing4566]

I'm glad to see all the flavors of BT getting some attention.

[@madcat3525]

Great Alpha Strike Battle Report! Great battlefield setup. Congrats to Dan! The Dice is still not favoring Aaron.I am hoping to see a decal tutorial in the future. Looking forward to more videos.

[@supersiamesisk]

Man, I love this channel! I've been out of the loop for a while but boy it's good to be back.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Welcome back!

[@GorefatherXII]

Battle Armor really works when you use the Nova formation bonus to let them shoot while riding on an Omni. Of all the formation bonuses it's the only one that really "fixes" a major flaw in running Elementals.

[@berserkerdad2490]

Great battle!! Congrats to Dan on a hard fought and well deserved victory. Vehicles proving that battlemechs are not the undisputed kings of the battlefield. Keep the batrep s coming, gents!

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Thanks for watching!

[@AlxParrish]

Loved the analysis at the end. I think he is correct that tactically, clan mechs should engage at range. The rules as adapted from classic and especially the lore come into conflict with players' real-life limitations of space and time. Battletech is firstly a role play system adopted by fans as a wargame system. It just means the AS rules need a little more polishing probably. Playing AS at 1:1 scale seems like the best answer too.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Yes yes and yes. I agree 100% with what you said regarding the lore and the table top “reality”. The rules need to help out a little more here.

[@wesdyer9085]

A few tips for using clans. 1. They usually are best at longer ranges 2. Use their speed to set the tempo of the battle, getting better shots, limiting return fire, determining range and flanking 3. Use elementals to screen

[@kereminde]

Seeing the Terranify painted up has me going "this is what I was trying to do with my packing foam and couldn't get to work!"... definitely going on The List (of things to buy should I win lotteries).

[@terrainify9389]

Thank you so much for the kind words, glad you liked what you saw! Our fingers are crossed for your lottery winnings to come through! But if they don't, we offer three different types of terrain models: STL files for 3D printing at home (

[@kereminde]

@@terrainify9389 Thanks for the reply! I've been making do with cutting foamcore posterboard and layering it. And quietly trying to find other people around me at gaming stores who have printers and are willing to go through the effort :) (And be compensated for the time/materials!) I won't likely be changing over to looking into acquiring this stuff until the current campaign is over and we start planning the next one :)

[@theredbeardbard]

That new terrain on the board is fanta-stick!

[@terrainify9389]

Why thank you! Glad you like it!

[@derekburge5294]

Omega Galaxy! It's my snek-hatin' lads! Beautiful. Excellent game, gents, and thanks for your continued good work.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Thanks for your continued viewership!

[@basement1908]

Great Job Gents! I'm slowly getting more interested in trying Alpha Strike thanks to Ya'll. Can't wait to see how Salty Tom gets in the next battle!

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Heheheh SO salty. Or maybe not? Next week another vid drops!

[@larabicsworkshop]

Terrainify is great, glad they are getting exposure!

[@terrainify9389]

Oh wow, thanks! We are glad, too - thanks DFA!!!!!

[@Boseeinsteinshake]

Your minis allways look gorgeous and those where some super interesting build forces. Thanks for the amazing battle report!

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Thanks for watching!

[@markbrown8154]

We have house ruled the Clan mech's structure to that of inner sphere mech's, and as Aaron suggested, we take and engine critical hit on a roll of 5 of 9. It makes the clan force more survivable, that's for Shure. Well, at least if you don't keep coping engine hits.😁

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

I like it. Something definitely needs to be rethought re XL engines across the board. Even IS XLs are ridiculously fragile!

[@shaneflickinger]

Man it was nice to see that Star Commander get run off the field by those vehicles. I can just imagine how furious that warrior must have been. Anyway, my real comment is that I think you are playing the wrong game Aaron. With all those 1's I think you should go pro on the Yahtzee circuit. Thanks as always gentlemen.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

I used to be, but the American Yahtzee Committee banned me on account of too many 1s. Sad day in my life.

[@Kaiju-Driver]

Yep...an absolutely gorgeous table. I'm super jelly. I'd love to see your terrain storage solution. 1/2 of my game workshop is just labeled storage crates.

[@Ichaerus]

Oh boy! Been waiting all week for a new DFAW episode! Been needing my fix like no other.😁Whaaaaaaat???? Dan trimmed his beard? He looks so much younger now! Not quite as babyfaced as Aaron though. 😄

[@redbaronsnoopy2346]

A always, Great Stuff. Absolutely gorgeous topography art/icons, helps set a story book scene for the battle soon to be engaged! Go FedCOM Go! No good filthy Clanners, Kerensky was a Coward, & Long Live the Periphery!!!

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

😆 Periphery is always doing it right.

[@terrainify9389]

Thank you!!! Absolutely love your user name!!!

[@FleetfootMike]

Delighted to note the Terrainify code is still valid. Firing up the 3D printer now :D

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Love it!! Enjoy!

[@stormcrow28]

Sad to see AS and Destiny always dominating the battle reports. I would love to see Classic make a return

[@kereminde]

As would I, but getting to see these two things I don't play being employed lets me get a window into what I'm missing.

[@markbrown8154]

While I do understand why you use the Pilot Die system, and I still Love to watch your bat-reps, the seven point attack roll at 1:06:00, to me proves how a bad pilot die roll can severely affect the outcome of a potentially devastating attack. Still, an Awesome game none the less.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

I argue this only for fun: but the effect of the pilot die on the roll is your perception only. I could show you the maths side by side, and it may surprise you. Compare the 2d6 method to pilot die to the multiple attack rolls… 2d6: fast gameplay, can really whiff bug damage on critical/key rolls, can also really melt things with near-guaranteed hits when TN is 5 or less. High TMM are massively beneficial. The most boomy or busty. Multiple attack rolls: a published optional rule where you roll 2d6 per pip. slows down game play. screws over light high TMM light mechs (lots of chances to deal a couple points of damage) but also the most “like classic” in terms of damage distribution. Pilot die: somewhere in between the official rules. Half raw, half multiple attacks. Its not for everyone, but you can’t cherry pick one dice roll and says its bad. The RAW method would have missed too. And sandblasting multiple attack rolls probably could have netted damage - but there are serious cons to that system that affect PV imo as mentioned above.

[@lesjames2478]

The terrain looks great. I purchased STLs after your terrain review. Definitely at the top of the list for my next terrain project after seeing this video's layout. Also, glad to see some more alpha strike action. Like the Destiny BatReps but alpha strike has a special place in my heart.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

We’ve got some more on the way!

[@lesjames2478]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming Awesome, I look forward to seeing it

[@terrainify9389]

Thanks for your purchase! Let us know if you want any help with painting tutorials! [e-mail]

[@theyellowjesters]

Nice to see some alpha strike again. i'd love to see some classic again too please :) also, can you guys put include stats like damage output at each range and any special abilities a unit has please? i don't play alpha and as the units are reviewed in the opening i have no idea what they're capable of in terms of alpha strike gameplay.

[@negawan]

Good game! Warhammer took a beating but survived. The Heli/ VTOL's got to do something too which is great!

[@EricVulgaris]

Gotta say the music really hits. Good bat rep too

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Thank you kind sir!!

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

And dont forget the music is available to stream on all the platforms! 🎸

[@deleonfrancis60]

Alpha strike is the only you love you NEED too get be faithful to it and it will love you back.

[@treybaker5440]

32nd century is on iTunes? Good! Now I can listen to Reloading in repeat for hours.on end while I paint big stompy robots!

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Hehe yes! Amazon, spotify, itunes. All of them! Listen away!!

[@NRSGuardian]

I think part of the reason why the Clans are struggling is because of a lack of experience. As an experienced IS player you already know which IS Mechs are great and which are sub-optimal, and you know exactly what you need to do to do well with IS forces, but you admittedly don't have that same sort of experience with the Clans. If you had the same amount of experience with the Clans as you do with the IS, the Clans would be doing just as well as the IS in your games. There are a lot of counter-intuitive things about the way the Clans play compared to the way IS plays. Like the Ice Ferret and Viper, which are medium Mechs should be played more like IS light Mechs. The best advice I ever received about using Elementals, or BA in general is: if you aren't using them to do what can be described as shenanigans, then you are doing it wrong. Elementals when properly used should be just as frustrating as VTOLs and hovercraft to face. One of their biggest uses is as terrain denial units. If there's woods or some other piece of terrain you don't want the enemy using, use your fastest Mechs to place them there, and force your opponent to choose between not being able to use that cover, or having to deal with the Elementals. The experience gap can sort of be seen in the force selection for this match. After all, why not take the similar PV WHM-7S or ON1-M over the WHM-6D and ON1-K, when by the Clan Invasion era the WHM-7S and ON-1M would be much more common than their Succession Wars counterparts? If the answer is: because the WHM-6D and ON-1K are more optimal picks, then there you go. I would argue especially going up against an IS force the Clan Mechs chosen were sub-optimal. For the same PV the Jade Falcons could have fielded a Turkina Prime, Night Gyr B, Summoner M, Crossbow Prime, Mad Dog C, and 2 Points of Flamer Elementals, which would have been a far more capable force than the Clan force used in this battle, with the added benefit of being more representative of a Jade Falcon force. Even if you wanted to keep it at mostly medium Mechs and since this is supposed to be a garrison force you could have gone with second-line Mechs like the Vapor Eagle, Conjurer, Peregrine, Incubus, and Marauder IIC or even include things like the Shadow Hawk C, Thunderbolt C, Archer C, or other Clan upgrades of IS Mechs. Many of the previously mentioned Mechs have standard engines which would bring Clan resilience up, while not hurting Clan firepower overly much, if at all.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

So, fair advice on the elementals - and I’ll concede I am not the “best” clan player in the universe. Buuuut the 7S and ON1-M suck. XL engines are a curse in AS, so I’d argue they are definitively worse mechs. Not optimal at all. As for the clan selections, anyone can Monday morning quarterback a list. But it’s a campaign. It’s not how forces are picked. And you’re coming at this with two assumptions: 1. That I have every mech painted in every faction’s colors, and 2. I am trying to min/max the force like I hate my opponents. 🙂

[@NRSGuardian]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming Sorry if I came off sounding overly critical. My intent in both the IS and Clan examples of force building were to show that after years of playing IS you have the intuitive grasp on what IS Mechs are good and which are not, but I think you don't yet have that same grasp on selecting forces for the Clans. I don't assume you have every Mech available, in fact if you notice I kept my suggestions limited to only those Mechs included in the Clan Invasion Kickstarter, when I could have suggested Mechs like the Bane, Rifleman IIC, and Glass Spider as other good second-line Clan Mechs. I didn't suggest them precisely because they aren't in the CI Kickstarter. I don't know what you have available so I tried to provide as many options as possible. Also, my example equivalent PV Clan force was less a serious suggestion of "you should have just used this force instead" and more to show just how nasty a force the Clans can field for the same PV compared to the force you actually fielded. In my opinion you should hold off on any rules mods or buffs for the Clans until you have played with and against the Clans a bit more. I don't think the Clans necessarily need a buff, but due to the abstracted nature of Alpha Strike I do think Clan versus IS is more balanced in Alpha Strike than in CBT. So, I do think that you may expect more out of the Clans than they can necessarily deliver in AS. You say you aren't trying to min/max the force like you hate your opponents, but I would argue whoever built that IS force was doing exactly that. I think the IS force was basically a hard counter to a Clan Medium Star with a couple Points of Elementals. A lance of 1 Assault and 3 Heavies all with Standard engines backed by fast VTOLs and hovertanks is a force that any Clan force of 1 Heavy, 3 Mediums, and 1 Light, plus Elementals would struggle to deal with, even if min/maxed. Especially in an objective-based game that forces them to stand toe-to-toe with the IS Mechs, and robs the Clans of their ability to use their mobility and range to best effect. Especially, when half the IS force is faster and more mobile than anything the Clan force was fielding. That the game was as close as it was is a tribute to your skill as a player.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

All fair points! If you will believe it, the forces are picked on the blind. We know the overall formations and units in the campaign force, but the mission selections are done “in secret”. But yes, I am picking up what you’re laying down - and honestly, I think Clans are just going to have a tougher time when the force is mostly glass cannons. In our strike operations force selection method, the Clans get a little bit of a free bump in skill - but it just doesn’t really matter at the end of the day. I think my dice rolling could use some work… I whiffed hard on some key rolls, and that hurts when you have limited numbers.

[@DrDetroit941]

glad to see you guys back to one of the core games. Would be cool to see your guy's take on the chaos campaign tukayyid book

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

We did a series using it. In AS I think. Look in the batrep playlist.

[@chadevans7519]

Hey guys awesome battle report. I would like to see in stuff that happens in between games, talk about the salvage and what happenms to pilots and there mechs after the battles if possible.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

We’ll have an animation showing repairs and remaining SP in the next mission!

[@blackberryrobloxt2153]

Highly recommend SRM Elementals: they're absolute killers at close range and the Anti-Mech auto-critical against mechs in melee range is a game changer

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

These ones do have SRMs still! Agree on the AM.

[@blackberryrobloxt2153]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming AH! I thought they were pure flamer with short range only! Dan hits it right, though, it's hard to get Elementals into good positions in open terrain

[@Magermh]

Jade Turkey. Best roast at 400 degrees for 45 minutes then serve. Well played. If there is a tank needed for clanners. I consider the Ku and Tyr IFV's.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Thanks! I’ll check them out!

[@Magermh]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming Happy to help a little. If you're in need of an outstanding vehicle it's the Athena. That Tank is a tournament winner. But I never see Jade Falcon players using vehicles.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Mmmmman that thing is expensive!!

[@Magermh]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming Ok how about I do a little R&D and offer the 2 Ishtar "Paint Roller" , 2 Odin "Big Wheely" and 4 Ku Wheeled vehicles. The advantage of the Ku is the standard model could be replaced with the 4 IFV variant to carry 10 tons of infantry. So your able to move 4 points of Ironhold Anti-Tank that is known to one hit Urbanmechs. If your really interested in cheep use the Kokou "Coconuts Tank" It uses the Burke as a miny and has 3 Clan LPL and your able to get away with a 4/6 crew. :) I hope to see a game one of these days showcasing clan armor. Look forwards to your next game.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Does IWM have models for these? I couldn’t find some… like the Coconuts Tank (Lmao)

[@cmbunit01]

Great start to the campaign. Nice board setup as usual :)

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Thanks!

[@richmcgee434]

Honestly kind of wonder if Iron Wind can survive as they gradually lose the BT minis audience. They'll probably always sell some of it to folks who don't like plastics or are heavily invested in their range and refuse to switch or just prefer the look, but I've no idea how big a percentage of their overall sales come from there. I'm betting it's quite a lot, despite their quite large and generally very inexpensive catalog of other figs from the Ral Partha ranges and newer stuff like Wolfstar Shipyards. Not that I'm at all unhappy to see BT get the new plastics at much better prices and arguably with a better design style, but some of my first minis were Ral Partha and losing IWM would make me pretty sad.

[@usekungfu]

Great to see some alpha strike!

[@Clasteau]

Am I the only one that laughs every time they see the J. Edgar hover?

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Definitely not 😆

[@stephenyates1415]

The hoover tank?

[@Magermh]

No I have had a Hunchback get humbled by that hover tank.

[@benharkins_]

Thanks!

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Thank you!

[@yurdonebacon]

Aaron, check out the Lightning hovercraft. It's a good skirmisher/harasser for the Clans. Also, where are your Kit Foxes and Battle Cobras? I bet you don't even do the CJF "screee!" when you get out of the bed in the morning. For shame...

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Hahaha I hang my head in shame! I will check out the lightning!

[@gavincross2902]

Great game. Please teach Dan how to use cover more Aaron. lol Awesome!!

[@adammorey9882]

clan demolisher is what you need

[@barryxanchez2965]

Awesomeness! Great battle!

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Ty for watching!

[@barryxanchez2965]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming for sure. Keep em comin

[@jasonrucker4722]

As Dan said, Clan Omnimechs have to be played with high skilled pilots and engage at L and X ranges. Clans typically have the advantage of speed along with TM and that should be used to their advantage. I always take Clan mechs that can do 3+ damage at L range and just keep stepping back even at the risk of objectives. Most IS mechs can only do 1 - 2 damage (or nothing) at L range and eventually you can start picking them off. If you try and trade with them at M range, you will likely loose. Clan elementals are used to drop and hold objectives, really nothing else. Clan vehicles are not worth it, take Aerospace or more mechs.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Good advice! Perhaps there will be some omni fighter action in the future as there is one on the roster!

[@richardolierii5419]

Speed paints are the only ones that reactivate

[@jeffbrown1958]

2 questions 1) why aren't you rolling to fire individual weapons like in other videos. 2) why aren't you rolling for damage locations like in other videos? did you streamline things so to take less time?

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Hey Jeff - this version of the game (Alpha Strike) is a more streamlined system. The latest book is called Alpha Strike: Commander’s Edition. It is very abstract - so you do lose some detail - but its also fast paced and still had that BattleTech feel!

[@richmcgee434]

45:00 "So many cats, I hate cats..." But how do you feel about mandrills? Especially when they're on fire? :)

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Who doesnt love a flaming mandrill?? 🔥🔥

[@jeffjr84]

for fedcom vs jade falcon, you need more guys at the table, since its such an impressive table.. discord and a live stream are an option here for remote players..

[@steffangordon6444]

The Terrainify rock formations look awesome! In the review video I'd only imagined them in arid terrain, but that mossy foliage makes them look great on that map. Semi-unrelated question: I've been thinking about getting some DeepCut maps and was wondering if you find your minis tend to slide down slopes and, if so, how you deal with it?

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

The heavy IWM used to have issues with sliding, I do not have that problem with the new plastics… but nothing a little sticky tack can’t solve 🙂

[@steffangordon6444]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming That's the solution I'd been mulling, so good to know it's been field tested.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

We used to put tiny wads under the bases in the older vids!

[@terrainify9389]

Thank you!!!!

[@stormwing9123]

I do have a question - when withdrawing, don't you have to make it to the edge of the board? Dan could have easily killed that Vulture and maybe the Nova if the battle had kept going, which could have been crucial in an extended campaign. He probably would have lost some vehicles in the doing, but that's a damn fine trade against Green Chicken omnis.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

As long as you are closer to the board edge than any opponent, you’re fine. In this case, Dan decided it was not worth the risk of losing more units as he sufficiently kicked in my teeth 🙂

[@stormwing9123]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming Huh. Interesting. I suppose there was a possibility that your Ice Ferret/Elemental combo could have gone on a punitive raid against the Warhammer, but I still expected him to at least finish the Vulture - a 2/3 Vulture Prime is no small threat to bring back later. Then again, he had already taken the teeth out of your force quite effectively... probably wanted to preserve the airborne and the armour. Looking forwards to the next bit, I always love a good campaign! These decisions are so interesting.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Yah - and by our repair rules, that Vulture is a costly repair and will be out of commission for at least two battles!

[@briane8627]

Alpha Strike: Who has the most helicopters and the fewest XL engines...

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

LOL shhh don’t give away the secret!

[@uialion1740]

Ouch. I felt that whiff from the Nova on the Warrior in my gut. Five ones... Aaron, you're a numbers guy. What are the odds of actually getting that?

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

The odds are YAHTZEE!

[@brianhenry152]

Man! I thought I was the only gamer capable of that kind of dice luck! sometimes RNGeezus is NOT kind...

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

They are usually good to me, so I wasn’t too upset. Plus I was playing Jade Falcon.

[@scolack123]

Odds are 1 in 6×6×6×6×6 So 1 in 7776

[@marasmusine]

31:35 I'm still learning the rules, but isn't it the case that vehicles can't get partial cover? So although you ruled the J. Edgar didn't have the cover, it wouldn't have anyway (If I'm reading the rules correctly)

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

You are 100% correct. We house-rule that vehicles can claim partial cover… seems fair considering some of them are 100 ton monsters!

[@marasmusine]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming Okay, thaks for the reply! I interpreted it as the advantage mechs have in being able to lean/crouch/etc

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Yah definitely makes sense. I always assumed it was a “left over” from Classic where partial cover could only be from a level 1 hill or similar - which would hide vehicles entirely. Who knows 🙂

[@lunatantric6060]

I love this Report. Though we like to play at a min of 500pts per game and even done about 1500 mech only and at that size we can't get into the detailed games. Though we are doing a full on defencive playtests for a Maega game. 2k Defenders vs 2.5K attackers with the defenders having mines and hidden units. Any suggestions on how to speed up the play as we have about 8 hours for 4 players palying each side.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Sounds like fun! Game length is a function of units… maybe try time boxing movement, or moving by lance/star… idk. 1500 points is a lot!

[@lunatantric6060]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming YEah even at 500pts we do full unit movement by star....the way we do it is you assign the star/lance before the game starts. If you lose somoene that full lance/star still moves. It really gets intersting halfway thorugh when you may have a lance that only has one mech/unit it it but counts as a full movement.. Also for outnumbering we give pass tokens so the person can pass activating no one..but can't pass the first inititavive actoin. Were thinking so as not to get TOOO bogged down only 20% of the attacking and 25% of the defending can be other then mechs..though i personally love mech on mech combat.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

You can also try setting a 3 minute timer and make everyone move at once! Takes the strategy element away obviously but could be fun to simulate the chaos of war!

[@scottwilliams3665]

Why don't he attack with the hover tank because damage isn't calculated till both turns are done

[@jacobc3266]

Dan is Discount Dan?

[@matthewneuendorf5763]

Re. XL engines, could you do something based on the vehicle motive crit rules? I assume that restoring structure would significantly increase defensive PV, which should reduce the balance concerns for giving Clan tech their full structure points.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Yah it’s a really tough one to solve… would end up being a large overhaul with lots of tendrils. I think I’m content to just leave it be.

[@lesjames2478]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming I have often thought about reducing the internal structure penalty a unit takes for XL engines and doing something like creating an "XLE/LFE" special ability that makes it so one of the blank spaces on the crit result table is replaced with another engine hit critical. But when you start comparing actual internal pips and looking at the table in the companion book, it all really depends on weight of the mech. A lot of tonnages really only have a 1 or 2 pip differences between a standard fusion and XLE variant. So in a lot of cases there just isn't a lot of "wiggle room" to make such changes so to speak. At least not without overhauling internal structures in general (like to create more wiggle room). I think the real issues is that even though it is easier to hit in general in alpha strike, TMM is overly taxed after you break 2. High movement is heavily taxed in classic but it feels really heavy handed in alpha strike. Statistically, rolling a 7 or better isn't that much harder than rolling a 6 or better but if it is a TMM of 3 that is making the target number a 7 instead of a 6, you are paying an absolute premium for that one point of difference. With attacker modifiers being reduced from classic (-1/0/2 AS compared to 0/1/2/3 CBT) there is less opportunity to leverage your TMM 3 against your opponent (for example moving a TMM 3 unit closer to a unit that jumped or ran in classic has a bigger impact than in alpha strike).

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Yes! We talked about the same thing, even reducing the number of engine hits (to one and dead). Still, lots of implications there.

[@lesjames2478]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming apropos of all this the horned owl, battle cobra, conjurer, crossbow, Warhammer IIC, marauder IIC, and Kingfisher all have standard engines. Seems like you could make a pretty hardy second-line steel viper force And of what is supposed to be in the up coming KS, the locust IIC, griffin IIC, shadow hawk IIC, glass spider, and rifleman IIC all have standard engines as well. Wonder how a clan standard engine list would perform against an equivalent priced typical XL toting clan list...

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

It would be an interesting batrep for sure!

[@steveguziec8050]

How long did it take to wash that Jade Falcon stink off?

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

5d6 days

[@steveguziec8050]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming 😆

[@Anthony-ve3dy]

In a continuing campaign, until your units make it off the table then they can still get shot at to try to destroy them so they can not be taken in later battles. Your Vulture should be dead.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

Says who? Is the edge of the table a mystical barrier that the opponent can’t shoot past? Nah. We have rules in place on how to handle withdrawing. Dan agreed to allow a withdraw as he did not want to lose more units and had enough of an upper hand.

[@richmcgee434]

Annoying that elementals work so poorly here - and not great most of the time in Classic, even. I really regard them as a signature part of a Clan force and want them to be a reasoanble threat for their cost, but they seem to fall flat an awful lot of the time. Have you tried playtesting IS XL engines as-is (half structure IIRC?) and Clan XLs (or IS light engines) as 75% structure rounded down?

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

(i think) Clans do have a slightly different structure loss than IS in the rules as written, though I dont know if its as high as 75%. May be negligible at some tonnages - I’d have to look at the table in the old compendium.

[@richmcgee434]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming Weird, I thought it was a flat penalty regardless for XL engines. Every time I see Clans on the table in AS they seem hopelessly fragile.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

They are hopeless fragile. The values are slightly different, sometimes overlapping. Like at 100 tons the IS XL has 4 pips and Clan XL has 5. At 80 tons both XLs have 4. And so on.

[@richmcgee434]

@@DeathfromAboveWargaming Yeesh. That's so excessive compared to the effects of a Clan XL in Classic. Might even be too much for IS XL, although those things are a death trap.

[@DeathfromAboveWargaming]

I agree!

[@sachad964]

VTOLS in roguetech suck, especially with that runaway bug, chasing them down wastes so much time