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6 iron spikes

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Mechwarrior 1e - Mercenary's Handbook Notes

6 iron spikes ·

2025/03/14

Mercenaries don’t become a thing until after the Amaris Rebellion, when his battered forces start hiring out. Soon after, Kerensky leaves, and the 25% of the Star League that stays behind ends up with various houses—these are professional vets, a step above Amaris’s rebels. As house units grow disgruntled, they go mercenary.Merc units fail not in war but economically, often because their employers are jerks. The handbook expands on the idea that a merc company isn’t just mechs—there’s infantry, jump

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Mechwarrior 1e - The Periphery

6 iron spikes ·

2025/03/14

The Periphery is a big book of names and dates, a history lesson focused largely on four of the main Periphery states, their founding, and, in particular, Stefan Amaris' treachery—which is worth the read. It delves into the backstory with far more depth than the canned intro in MW1e, unfolding like a book with chapters written from different characters' perspectives, much like Game of Thrones. I ploughed the Taurian, Rim Worlds, and Outworlds Alliance sections but skipped the Canopus material - I

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Mechwarrior 1e - Man-to-Man Combat - Part VI

6 iron spikes ·

2025/03/07

Man-to-man combat in MW1e is surprisingly crunchy. It follows structured phases: initiative, movement, reaction, ranged, melee, and damage. Winning initiative lets you move last, reacting to others. At first, this seems counterintuitive, but since all damage resolves at the end of the round, it mimics simultaneous action—no getting shot dead before you can retaliate. The Tactics skill is the best way to boost initiative. If you surprise your foe, you automatically win initiative.Movement is overly

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Mechwarrior 1e - Scenarios - Part V

6 iron spikes ·

2025/03/07

Scenarios are where MW1e shows its potential as an adventure game. Every scenario starts as a combat assignment. If the group are mercs, the GM can prepare multiple assignments for players to choose from before the session - that way you can prep it. House-affiliated units, on the other hand, seem to have assignments dictated to them, limiting player choice.Assignments should give players a way to gauge risk, reward, and time investment, much like selecting a dungeon level to delve. Garrison and

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Mechwarrior 1e - Creating a 'Mech Unit - Part IV

6 iron spikes ·

2025/03/07

The game sets some baseline assumptions around a typical Battletech campaign—you start with mostly medium ‘Mechs and maybe a few lights. After character creation, it’s time to generate your ‘Mech unit.Unit size is determined by a 2d6 roll based on the number of players. For 2-4 players, the most likely result is two lances, implying the second lance consists of secondary characters, often on separate missions. It also gives players backup ‘Mechs if their main ride gets totaled. With 5+ players, odds

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Mechwarrior 1e - XP and Character Advancement - Part III

6 iron spikes ·

2025/03/07

You earn XP for passing skill rolls and making saves that genuinely contribute to the adventure—the harder the roll, the more XP you get. Damage dealt in combat also grants XP: ½ XP per point in vehicle/’Mech combat and 2 XP per point in personal combat.XP is also awarded at the group level and ideally split among players. Winning an engagement grants XP equal to the enemy’s BODY ×5 and the total tonnage of defeated vehicles/’Mechs. Objectives also provide XP: 1-10 for simple tasks, 20-100 for major

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Mechwarrior 1e - Creating Mechwarriors - Part II

6 iron spikes ·

2025/03/07

Characters are all part of the same 'Mech unit, ranging from a four 'Mech lance to a full battalion or regiment. Everyone creates a mech-pilot, but you can also use character creation rules for secondary roles like Techs, Aerospace pilots, Dropship/Jumpship crew, scouts, or spies. Not sure how spies would fit—would everyone be a Kurita ninja? Some roles feel restrictive. Everyone should have a character who can always participate in the action. Play your mech-pilot during ‘Mech missions—not your

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Mechwarrior 1e - Background - Part I

6 iron spikes ·

2025/03/07

Some games become foundational to who you are. MechWarrior is one of mine—it’s a core memory and the reason I met my best friend in primary school.I owned the Red Box D&D set but had “played” it for maybe 30 minutes total at lunchtime. I devoured Fighting Fantasy books, loved Star Wars, The Dark Crystal, and the classic cartoons of Robotech and Star Blazers. Then, in grade 6, I changed schools. Everything was new, I had no friends, and I felt awkward.One of the kids had a copy of MechWarrior -

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Thieves’ Den

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/20

(Imagine #24)Imagine magazine targeted young novice players, and its main legacy is the rich city setting, Pelinore. Venetia Lee’s take on Thieves Guilds stood out enough that I figured I would take a look.What’s it about?Lee presents a thieves' guild not as a centralized location—too vulnerable—but as a decentralized network of mutual aid and exploitation. A cell structure ensures survival even if a branch is eradicated. She explores the guild’s use of child thieves, drawing inspiration from Oliver

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Crude But Effective. Simple tactics for humanoids

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/17

(Dragon #199)Derek Jensen explores humanoid tactics with a side of fiction. I loved the Uruk Hai battle manual, so this kind of article is right up my alley.What’s it about?It opens with fiction—something I don’t like in my RPGs. Derek argues that most DMs treat humanoids as disposable, but since they live in a constant state of war, they should rely on patrols, ambushes, traps, and tricks with a complexity that varies based on intelligence.Scouts should be stealthy, fast-moving pairs or trios

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A Guide to Dungeon Mastering. Part II: Monsters &...

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/16

(White Dwarf #35 & #36)I’m combining two articles to wrap up the Lew Pulsipher articles I picked out to read. High hopes!What’s it about?In Monsters & Magic, Lew advises against random monster and magic item placement. Avoid homogenous monster groups—balance encounters as you would a party. Consider how monsters interact—slaves, allies, enemies—and place them accordingly. Intelligent monsters should use light to see beyond infravision. While you can kill PCs anytime, that’s not the point -

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A Guide to Dungeon Mastering. Part I: Setting up...

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/15

(White Dwarf #34)Lew Pulsipher tends to repeat his advice, making it hard to track where certain tips originated. Hopefully, this Dungeon Mastering series offers some fresh insights.What’s it about?Lew suggests generating ideas by reading the rules and considering their implications—what would you do as a beholder? He recommends carrying a notebook to capture ideas immediately, even if they sit unused for months, and reading fiction and folklore voraciously. Borrowing from other DMs and players is

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Oldhammer Rogue Trader - Imperial Guard

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/14

My first army was Space Orks, but I foolishly sold them to a mate I lost touch with decades ago. Along with them went my Imperial Guard—something I now realize I really liked, especially the early 'Army' labeled models from the Rogue Trader era. A few years back, some of those old minis popped up for sale, and I managed to grab a few—should have bought the whole lot in hindsight. Batch painting them wasn’t exactly fun, but I’m happy with how they turned out. Here are the first couple; I’ll post the

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That’s life in the big city

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/14

(Dragon #99)The Town Planner series in White Dwarf has worn me down—hopefully, Dragon’s take on cities is an easier read.What’s it about?The article emphasizes that fantasy cities shouldn't resemble modern ones but should still be grounded in historical reality. It provides population benchmarks: towns at 2,000 people, cities between 20,000 and 100,000. Russian villages and towns are occasionally cited as examples.Settlements arise for religious, economic, or political reasons, often forming around

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Banditry Inc - A Referee’s Guide to Thieves Guilds

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/12

(White Dwarf #76)White Dwarf’s best era for AD&D-focused content spans issues 10–40, with later issues featuring broader system-agnostic material. Here, Olivier Legrand explores thieves guilds—an underdeveloped aspect of the core game.What’s it about?The article frames thieves guilds as medieval mafias. Not all thieves are members—muggers operate independently—but specialists like locksmiths and burglars are typically involved. PC thieves, unless incognito, are approached within 24 hours and

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The 7-sentence NPC

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/11

(Dragon #184)I’m wary - Dragon #184 is deep into 2e. C. M. Cline’s short article on creating gameable NPCs gets lots of love online. Is it deserved?What’s it about?We put effort into major antagonists and allies but neglect minor NPCs, defaulting to repetitive stereotypes. Guilty as charged—my town watch, innkeepers, and blacksmiths all blend together. Cline offers a fix that keeps the workload manageable: 7 sentences to define an NPC.Occupation and History - Consider what the NPC did before their

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Monsters Have Feelings Too

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/11

(White Dwarf #38)Oliver opens with a story showing a contrast: a dull goblin ambush versus a well-planned evil party assaulting a merchant caravan. His point? There's no reason monsters shouldn’t be as tactical as players.What’s it about?Monsters—aside from the undead and constructs—value their lives and shouldn’t attack without reason, whether it's racial hatred or sadism. Oliver states 'If a monster can achieve its aims without resorting to out-and-out violence, and therefore putting its life at

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The Naked Orc - A Study in Orcish Society

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/10

(White Dwarf #53)A short article on Orc’s with lots of evocative John Blanche artwork to fire the imagination.What’s it about?Art inspires the reader and elevates RPGs. Russ Nicholson and John Blanche make White Dwarf feel so much bigger. In this article Rufus Wedderburn looks to move orcs beyond their Monster Manual depiction towards Tolkien.The article introduces various orc types: cowardly Snaga slave-orcs, disciplined Soldier Orcs, elite Uruks, and the fearsome Olag-Hai (an orc-troll hybrid)

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Town Planner - Part II: Designing towns and cities

6 iron spikes ·

2025/02/09

(White Dwarf #32)Paul Vernon's 'Town Planner' series continues this time looking at the layout of towns and cities.What’s it about?Paul looks asks did the town grow from a village or is the town planned? If planned, it’s likely owned by a noble, church, or merchant group, often near a castle, abbey, or river crossing. Like villages, towns need an economic foundation—trade is their lifeblood. Streets are often named after trades (e.g., Pot Row, Fish Row). Fairs occur outside town up to twice a year,

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6 iron spikes

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