Introduction:
[18:01] <@Habeas2> Hello.....
[18:02] <@Habeas2> And welcome to the second officially official Live BattleChat of 2013, where the questions are made up, and my answers don't matter.
[18:03] <@Habeas2> All standard notices are in play. Be courteous or be kicked, and if you want a log, you're on your own.
[18:03] <@Habeas2> That said, have at you!
Field Manual: 3145
[18:04] <Nerroth> Hello. In the runup to ISP3's release, there was a map preview which showed the spinward sector of the Deep Periphery. Might there be a similar preview for the maps set to be shown in Field Manual:3145?
[18:05] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - There might be a teaser map, but we've not decided.
Origins, GenCon:
[18:04] <Circinus_Enquirer> Mister Habeas! Mister Habeas! Can you drop any teases about what we'll be seeing from Catalyst at Origins and GenCon, Blake willing?
[18:06] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - You will see books!
Loren Coleman:
[18:07] <Slasher> What was this all about "And once more, from Twitter, with feeling: DAMN YOU, LOREN COLEMAN!!!!!!!! >.< -HB"
[18:09] <@Habeas2> Slasher - I had already cursed Loren from my Facebook account, and realized there were Twitter followers who might have missed it, so I repeated the curse there.
Age of Destruction/Interactive Map:
[18:09] <Circinus_Enquirer> Mister Habeas! Mister Habeas! I recall that INN once hosted an interactive Repubic of the Sphere map charting the relative dominance of the various mini-factions post-blackout. Was that part of the canonical progress of the Age of Destruction conflict, or just a marketing tool to tie into in-store tournaments?
[18:12] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - If I remember correctly, that was all part of what was going to be a rather ambitious effort to tie in demo team-managed tournaments with a canonical plan to dismantle the Republic of the Sphere.
[18:15] <Circinus_Enquirer> Will Catalyst's account of the Dark Age troop movements be based in any way on that "ambitious effort," or created totally in-house?
[18:25] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - We are handling that in-house. Fact is, official events are always hard to coordinate with canon in a universe that has a pre-plotted storyline like ours. A rather infamous example (to me) is the Trial of Retribution event that gutted the Ghost Bear fleet on the eve of the Jihad....
Monitors:
[18:12] <Gaiiten> What about Ken horner? Is he still on the run after THE MONITOR?
[18:15] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - The funny part is, Ken is not in trouble about the monitors he referenced in XTR: Boondoggles. He simply took a different path than I preferred for that entry. See, the plan for Boondoggles was "designs that are illegal and/or failed to work in the universe setting". In many cases, Ken worked from the approach that these things would be built and then fail spectacularly, so most units had stats and record sheets as a r
[18:19] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - ...When he put in the monitors (again at my request; remember this is all to explain why they would not work in the setting), he generated no stats at all, so I presumed in my editing process that the entry fluffed a failure that never left the spacedock. When,after publication, I realized he wrote that ships had launched, I felt that--between that detail and the lack of stats--the entry needed a revision. To emphasize
Coming Soon:
[18:20] <bigal> Can you tell us what new PDF's coming out soon?
[18:31] <@Habeas2> Bigal - There are many PDFs currently being worked, including the long-delayed XTR: Gunslingers (over two years in the waiting), Jihad Turning Point: Hesperus II, more of our PDF Map Packs, and a couple of little side projects I put together for fun and surprise.
[18:33] <martian> What products can we expect in next month or two?
[18:39] <@Habeas2> Martian - PDFs. And maybe a book, like Era Report: 3145.
Misjumps:
[18:32] <Circinus_Enquirer> Is the "misjumps" series still one of those little side projects?
[18:39] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - It IS one of my fun side projects, but I still haven't gotten the first of those past concept stage, so not at this time...
Fiction:
[18:20] <Jo_Jo_Monkey> In the fiction arena: Are there any stories in the works or planned expanding on the HPG black out such with the Tucker Harwell character but not limited to him?
[18:31] <@Habeas2> Jo_Jo_Monkey - Yup!
Era Digest: Dark Age:
[18:14] <Nerroth> Speaking of the "pirate factions", is the Era Report: Dark Age pdf mentioned in Field Manual: 3085 the one set to cover their emergence; and if so, is there a particular year or event where the era digest stops and the data in Era Report: 3145 begins?
[18:14] <Nerroth> Sorry, Era Digest: Dark Age.
[18:14] <Nerroth> I keep getting "Digest" and "Report" mixed up for some reason...
[18:22] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Emergence? To be frank, the Era Digest: Dark Age and Era Report: 3145 will have a bit of overlap, but the Digest will deal more thoroughly with the "early Dark Age" of about the mid-3130s, versus Era Report: 3145, which will have a grander scope.
[18:24] <Nerroth> So there is no particular event (such as the activation of the Fortress walls) which will act as an end point for the early period covered in the era digest?
[18:37] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - The basic timeline covered by Era DIgest: Dark Age is largely aimed at covering the events from Devlin Stone's retirement to the election of Jonah Levin as Exarch of the Republic of the Sphere--the period starting a few years before and ending a bit over a year after the HPG collapse. This is the time we saw the pirate factions rise and begin to decline. After 3134, after all, things really started to "get real".
3145/Faction Logos:
[18:17] <Circinus_Enquirer> Can we expect to see "extra fancy" and/or "distressed" (aka bullet riddled) versions of the factionette logos in the 3145 products?
[18:26] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - Not sure about us changing logos too much.
3145/Republic of the Sphere:
[18:47] <Circinus_Enquirer> For the 3145 books, how much insight are we going to get into what Levin's strategy was during the collapse? Reading the ground-level stuff (particularly the Evan Kaiple journal), it seemed like the RAF was scrambling ineffectually from one hot spot to another, and then got taken by surprise when the Fortress walls went up.
[18:49] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - We should get a little insight, yes.
3145/Minor Factions:
[18:53] <Circinus_Enquirer> To what extent will there be a "where are they now" updating minor factions and military/mercenary units from 3085 to 3145, versus introducing new formations and factions? (Thinking here about groups like Hansen's Roughriders, Kell Hounds, Wolf's Dragoons, etc.)
[18:53] <JPArbiter> Kell hounds get Vaporized in 3145, so "Dead" is where they are now.
[18:54] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - Field Manual: 3145 will give an update on the overall military state of the Inner Sphere in 3145. That would include mercenaries as well.
TRO 3145:
[18:18] <bigal> I am Happy with the way things are going in Battletech. My question is with TRO 3145 having 200 units that will make that TRO very big, at least 400 pages The biggest one ever published.
[18:27] <@Habeas2> Bigal - 200 units are being GENERATED for TR 3145, but we will be trying something a little different with this product, so you may find the print book a bit smaller than 400 pages as a result.
[18:29] <bigal> Thank you. Can you describe what the difference is for TRO 3145? Is it hush hush.
[18:38] <@Habeas2> Bigal - Not yet I can't. But expect something soon.
XTRO Boondoggles:
[18:24] <Gaiiten> Boondoggles is a great XTRO, one of the best, IMHO. I hope for a second instalment.
[18:32] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - Whether or not we do a second installment of Boondoggles depends on whether or not we can find enough canonical references to more failed ideas to publish in them.
[18:42] <Gaiiten> Due Boondoogles, has the Enterprise super carrier mentioned in a canon source? I can only think of the artwork.
[18:44] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - That is a darn good question. I want to say the art, in this case, was the sole "canon source" here; Ken did get some lattitude to play, after all.
Liberation of Terra:
[18:27] <Circinus_Enquirer> I want to say that the Historical: Liberation of Terra series was just about everything I could have hoped for in such a product. Maximum kudos to you and the rest of the dev/writing team for pulling it off.
[18:37] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - On behalf of the team, thanks.
Wars of Reaving:
[18:32] <Gaiiten> Do you consider to publish scenarios dealing with big events of the WoR? I think of the huge battles between Vipers and Coyotes on Tamaron or Adders versus Dark Burrocks on the Tanite worlds?
[18:38] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - If such a thing happens at all, it will likely be in the form of an Operational Turning Poin
Dark Age Unit Stats:
[18:39] <Nerroth> Of the various units from MechWarrior Dark Age/Age of Destruction that are set for TRO:3145, are there any in partcicular that have been a challenge in tersm of trying to generate stats for it in BattleTech (or Quick Strike) terms?
[18:42] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - This time around, I handed off design work to some volunteers before soliciting writers and artists. The designers will deserve tons of credit for trying to stay faithful to published WizKids-era stats while also giving us a bunch of all-new toys to play with.
[18:42] <Nerroth> In that case, I say think you to the volunterrs involved.
[18:44] <Nerroth> Of those upcoming units, some of them were designed as totem 'Mechs for particualr factions; the Gyrfalcon, Warwolf, Shiro, and so forth. Are there any 'Mechs set for TRO:3145 that will be intended as being a "face" unit for the Republic itself?
[18:44] <Nerroth> (I should note that I'm not 100% familiar with the pre-existinf DA/AoD units, so apologies in advance if such a unit exists already.)
[18:45] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Well, there ARE the Colossi...
[18:47] <Nerroth> Habeas2 - I wasn't sure if the Ares was intended to be a "regular" unit, or a more limited run of machines.
[18:49] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Oh, you wanted a trooper machine? Um, nothing jumps to mind just now.
[18:46] <JPArbiter> wasn't the Scourge suppoused to be a ROTS knockoff of the Lao Hu?
[18:48] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - Scourge is a Decepticon.
Homeworlds:
[18:47] <Gaiiten> Are you concerned about this scary silence from the Homeworlds?
[18:48] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - Not a bit.
[18:51] <Gaiiten> Due the Homewolrds, what would alarm you?
[18:52] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - If they managed to do something I didn't want them to, I would be alarmed, because I kind of thought I had a hand in the story here...
[18:54] <Gaiiten> But if you do not know what they are up to do due the silence, can you be sure you know what they do?
Wolf Hunters:
[18:48] <JPArbiter> Herb, how much attention will the Wolf Hunters be getting in the Dark Age era under Catalysts watch? will they be made as prominent as they were in the late wizkids days or are they going to be reduced to a blip on the merc radar?
[18:51] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - Well, they're still on the radar, but to be honest, the WizKids' plan for the Wolf Hunters and what eventually happened/will happen with them are really divergent now.
Quick Strike Cards:
[18:52] <Nerroth> Atthe moment, there are a number of pdfs available on DriveThruRPG, which gather sets of Quick Strike cards based on which TRO they are from; 3039, 3050, etc. Will there be a similar pdf compilation of the TRO:3145 units worked up, in order to help promote the Dark Age setting?
[18:54] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Yup. Eventually.
[18:54] <Nerroth> Sounds good. But would that file be sooner in line than QS compilations of other TROs, or would they have to wait until the other books' worth of units are done first?
[18:56] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - It really depends on workflow here. As it stands, I have PDF projects that have actually been written 2-3 years ago still waiting to see the light of day. Changing priorities tends to churn these relatively minor products around based on priorities.
[18:57] <Nerroth> So, depending on the backlog involved, would it be as well to expect to see 3145 QS cards added to the MUL first, and wait a while longer for the compilation PDF?
[18:58] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Unknown.
Quick Strike:
[18:59] <Nerroth> Thanks again. Last question (for now): Is there an option for compiling the rule-set for QS, and making it available as its own PDF, or will it remain in StratOps for the foreseeable future?
[19:00] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - We are planning a little something along those lines.
Warship Record Sheets:
[18:56] <EthFawcett> when could we expect the Warship-Record-Sheets? since last year was the year of the star league ... our gaming group is missing several cruisers ... as an example
[18:57] <@Habeas2> EthFawcett - Due to severe technical limitations, WarShip record sheets have become something of a boondoggleunto themselves. You could be in for a long wait.
Snake/sword/sundisk triumvirate conspiracy:
[18:56] <Circinus_Enquirer> Can we look forward to any details on the snake/sword/sundisk triumvirate conspiracy in the era overviews, or is that mystery awaiting resolution down the road, if ever?
[18:58] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - Oh, that one may get an answer eventually.
Battle Armors:
[18:58] <Gaiiten> Will battlearmors replace standard infantry in frontline units?
[18:59] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - That inquiry touches on matters beyond the present scope of what I am permitted to discuss.
Conspiracies:
[18:59] <JPArbiter> has there ever been given any consideration for a product, or portion of a product devoted to "Grand conspiracies that never were." for stuff that sounds great and grand but had a really mundane and silly explanation?
[18:59] <JPArbiter> within the universe of course.
[19:00] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - There was. We called it Interstellar Players 1, 2, and 3.
Technology:
[18:59] <Circinus_Enquirer> What pieces of MWDA-era technology would, in your mind, cause dedicated Blakists to swoon and pass out from sheer joy?
[19:00] <@Habeas2> Cricinus_Equirer - The Colossi.
Dark Age:
[19:01] <JPArbiter> last one for me, any MW dark age stuff that the development team really wanted to say "can we ignore that please"
[19:02] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - Depends on the author you talk to. We all have seen some stuff in the Dark Age setting we wish never existed. For me, it would be House Davion.
[19:03] <Gaiiten> What upcoming DA product do you look forward to?
[19:03] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - The IlClan.
[19:04] <JPArbiter> I thought you got into trouble everytime you brought that up these days
[19:04] <Gaiiten> Any further question due that is a no-Go area, is not it?
[19:05] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - The title is known. I cannot discuss past that.
Texas (fun stuff):
[18:04] <Gaiiten> What would you like to tell us?
[18:06] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - What I'd like to tell you is that a nuclear war has started and Texas has already been wiped off the map, but alas, that would be a lie....
[18:07] <Gaiiten> Does that answer mean you are in a bad or good mood?
[18:08] <Slasher> If Texas still exists, Herb is not exactly happy
[18:09] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - Any time Texas survives, I'm generally in a bad mood.
[18:01] <@Habeas2> Hello.....
[18:02] <@Habeas2> And welcome to the second officially official Live BattleChat of 2013, where the questions are made up, and my answers don't matter.
[18:03] <@Habeas2> All standard notices are in play. Be courteous or be kicked, and if you want a log, you're on your own.
[18:03] <@Habeas2> That said, have at you!
Field Manual: 3145
[18:04] <Nerroth> Hello. In the runup to ISP3's release, there was a map preview which showed the spinward sector of the Deep Periphery. Might there be a similar preview for the maps set to be shown in Field Manual:3145?
[18:05] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - There might be a teaser map, but we've not decided.
Origins, GenCon:
[18:04] <Circinus_Enquirer> Mister Habeas! Mister Habeas! Can you drop any teases about what we'll be seeing from Catalyst at Origins and GenCon, Blake willing?
[18:06] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - You will see books!
Loren Coleman:
[18:07] <Slasher> What was this all about "And once more, from Twitter, with feeling: DAMN YOU, LOREN COLEMAN!!!!!!!! >.< -HB"
[18:09] <@Habeas2> Slasher - I had already cursed Loren from my Facebook account, and realized there were Twitter followers who might have missed it, so I repeated the curse there.
Age of Destruction/Interactive Map:
[18:09] <Circinus_Enquirer> Mister Habeas! Mister Habeas! I recall that INN once hosted an interactive Repubic of the Sphere map charting the relative dominance of the various mini-factions post-blackout. Was that part of the canonical progress of the Age of Destruction conflict, or just a marketing tool to tie into in-store tournaments?
[18:12] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - If I remember correctly, that was all part of what was going to be a rather ambitious effort to tie in demo team-managed tournaments with a canonical plan to dismantle the Republic of the Sphere.
[18:15] <Circinus_Enquirer> Will Catalyst's account of the Dark Age troop movements be based in any way on that "ambitious effort," or created totally in-house?
[18:25] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - We are handling that in-house. Fact is, official events are always hard to coordinate with canon in a universe that has a pre-plotted storyline like ours. A rather infamous example (to me) is the Trial of Retribution event that gutted the Ghost Bear fleet on the eve of the Jihad....
Monitors:
[18:12] <Gaiiten> What about Ken horner? Is he still on the run after THE MONITOR?
[18:15] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - The funny part is, Ken is not in trouble about the monitors he referenced in XTR: Boondoggles. He simply took a different path than I preferred for that entry. See, the plan for Boondoggles was "designs that are illegal and/or failed to work in the universe setting". In many cases, Ken worked from the approach that these things would be built and then fail spectacularly, so most units had stats and record sheets as a r
[18:19] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - ...When he put in the monitors (again at my request; remember this is all to explain why they would not work in the setting), he generated no stats at all, so I presumed in my editing process that the entry fluffed a failure that never left the spacedock. When,after publication, I realized he wrote that ships had launched, I felt that--between that detail and the lack of stats--the entry needed a revision. To emphasize
Coming Soon:
[18:20] <bigal> Can you tell us what new PDF's coming out soon?
[18:31] <@Habeas2> Bigal - There are many PDFs currently being worked, including the long-delayed XTR: Gunslingers (over two years in the waiting), Jihad Turning Point: Hesperus II, more of our PDF Map Packs, and a couple of little side projects I put together for fun and surprise.
[18:33] <martian> What products can we expect in next month or two?
[18:39] <@Habeas2> Martian - PDFs. And maybe a book, like Era Report: 3145.
Misjumps:
[18:32] <Circinus_Enquirer> Is the "misjumps" series still one of those little side projects?
[18:39] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - It IS one of my fun side projects, but I still haven't gotten the first of those past concept stage, so not at this time...
Fiction:
[18:20] <Jo_Jo_Monkey> In the fiction arena: Are there any stories in the works or planned expanding on the HPG black out such with the Tucker Harwell character but not limited to him?
[18:31] <@Habeas2> Jo_Jo_Monkey - Yup!
Era Digest: Dark Age:
[18:14] <Nerroth> Speaking of the "pirate factions", is the Era Report: Dark Age pdf mentioned in Field Manual: 3085 the one set to cover their emergence; and if so, is there a particular year or event where the era digest stops and the data in Era Report: 3145 begins?
[18:14] <Nerroth> Sorry, Era Digest: Dark Age.
[18:14] <Nerroth> I keep getting "Digest" and "Report" mixed up for some reason...
[18:22] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Emergence? To be frank, the Era Digest: Dark Age and Era Report: 3145 will have a bit of overlap, but the Digest will deal more thoroughly with the "early Dark Age" of about the mid-3130s, versus Era Report: 3145, which will have a grander scope.
[18:24] <Nerroth> So there is no particular event (such as the activation of the Fortress walls) which will act as an end point for the early period covered in the era digest?
[18:37] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - The basic timeline covered by Era DIgest: Dark Age is largely aimed at covering the events from Devlin Stone's retirement to the election of Jonah Levin as Exarch of the Republic of the Sphere--the period starting a few years before and ending a bit over a year after the HPG collapse. This is the time we saw the pirate factions rise and begin to decline. After 3134, after all, things really started to "get real".
3145/Faction Logos:
[18:17] <Circinus_Enquirer> Can we expect to see "extra fancy" and/or "distressed" (aka bullet riddled) versions of the factionette logos in the 3145 products?
[18:26] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - Not sure about us changing logos too much.
3145/Republic of the Sphere:
[18:47] <Circinus_Enquirer> For the 3145 books, how much insight are we going to get into what Levin's strategy was during the collapse? Reading the ground-level stuff (particularly the Evan Kaiple journal), it seemed like the RAF was scrambling ineffectually from one hot spot to another, and then got taken by surprise when the Fortress walls went up.
[18:49] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - We should get a little insight, yes.
3145/Minor Factions:
[18:53] <Circinus_Enquirer> To what extent will there be a "where are they now" updating minor factions and military/mercenary units from 3085 to 3145, versus introducing new formations and factions? (Thinking here about groups like Hansen's Roughriders, Kell Hounds, Wolf's Dragoons, etc.)
[18:53] <JPArbiter> Kell hounds get Vaporized in 3145, so "Dead" is where they are now.
[18:54] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - Field Manual: 3145 will give an update on the overall military state of the Inner Sphere in 3145. That would include mercenaries as well.
TRO 3145:
[18:18] <bigal> I am Happy with the way things are going in Battletech. My question is with TRO 3145 having 200 units that will make that TRO very big, at least 400 pages The biggest one ever published.
[18:27] <@Habeas2> Bigal - 200 units are being GENERATED for TR 3145, but we will be trying something a little different with this product, so you may find the print book a bit smaller than 400 pages as a result.
[18:29] <bigal> Thank you. Can you describe what the difference is for TRO 3145? Is it hush hush.
[18:38] <@Habeas2> Bigal - Not yet I can't. But expect something soon.
XTRO Boondoggles:
[18:24] <Gaiiten> Boondoggles is a great XTRO, one of the best, IMHO. I hope for a second instalment.
[18:32] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - Whether or not we do a second installment of Boondoggles depends on whether or not we can find enough canonical references to more failed ideas to publish in them.
[18:42] <Gaiiten> Due Boondoogles, has the Enterprise super carrier mentioned in a canon source? I can only think of the artwork.
[18:44] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - That is a darn good question. I want to say the art, in this case, was the sole "canon source" here; Ken did get some lattitude to play, after all.
Liberation of Terra:
[18:27] <Circinus_Enquirer> I want to say that the Historical: Liberation of Terra series was just about everything I could have hoped for in such a product. Maximum kudos to you and the rest of the dev/writing team for pulling it off.
[18:37] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - On behalf of the team, thanks.
Wars of Reaving:
[18:32] <Gaiiten> Do you consider to publish scenarios dealing with big events of the WoR? I think of the huge battles between Vipers and Coyotes on Tamaron or Adders versus Dark Burrocks on the Tanite worlds?
[18:38] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - If such a thing happens at all, it will likely be in the form of an Operational Turning Poin
Dark Age Unit Stats:
[18:39] <Nerroth> Of the various units from MechWarrior Dark Age/Age of Destruction that are set for TRO:3145, are there any in partcicular that have been a challenge in tersm of trying to generate stats for it in BattleTech (or Quick Strike) terms?
[18:42] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - This time around, I handed off design work to some volunteers before soliciting writers and artists. The designers will deserve tons of credit for trying to stay faithful to published WizKids-era stats while also giving us a bunch of all-new toys to play with.
[18:42] <Nerroth> In that case, I say think you to the volunterrs involved.
[18:44] <Nerroth> Of those upcoming units, some of them were designed as totem 'Mechs for particualr factions; the Gyrfalcon, Warwolf, Shiro, and so forth. Are there any 'Mechs set for TRO:3145 that will be intended as being a "face" unit for the Republic itself?
[18:44] <Nerroth> (I should note that I'm not 100% familiar with the pre-existinf DA/AoD units, so apologies in advance if such a unit exists already.)
[18:45] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Well, there ARE the Colossi...
[18:47] <Nerroth> Habeas2 - I wasn't sure if the Ares was intended to be a "regular" unit, or a more limited run of machines.
[18:49] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Oh, you wanted a trooper machine? Um, nothing jumps to mind just now.
[18:46] <JPArbiter> wasn't the Scourge suppoused to be a ROTS knockoff of the Lao Hu?
[18:48] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - Scourge is a Decepticon.
Homeworlds:
[18:47] <Gaiiten> Are you concerned about this scary silence from the Homeworlds?
[18:48] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - Not a bit.
[18:51] <Gaiiten> Due the Homewolrds, what would alarm you?
[18:52] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - If they managed to do something I didn't want them to, I would be alarmed, because I kind of thought I had a hand in the story here...
[18:54] <Gaiiten> But if you do not know what they are up to do due the silence, can you be sure you know what they do?
Wolf Hunters:
[18:48] <JPArbiter> Herb, how much attention will the Wolf Hunters be getting in the Dark Age era under Catalysts watch? will they be made as prominent as they were in the late wizkids days or are they going to be reduced to a blip on the merc radar?
[18:51] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - Well, they're still on the radar, but to be honest, the WizKids' plan for the Wolf Hunters and what eventually happened/will happen with them are really divergent now.
Quick Strike Cards:
[18:52] <Nerroth> Atthe moment, there are a number of pdfs available on DriveThruRPG, which gather sets of Quick Strike cards based on which TRO they are from; 3039, 3050, etc. Will there be a similar pdf compilation of the TRO:3145 units worked up, in order to help promote the Dark Age setting?
[18:54] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Yup. Eventually.
[18:54] <Nerroth> Sounds good. But would that file be sooner in line than QS compilations of other TROs, or would they have to wait until the other books' worth of units are done first?
[18:56] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - It really depends on workflow here. As it stands, I have PDF projects that have actually been written 2-3 years ago still waiting to see the light of day. Changing priorities tends to churn these relatively minor products around based on priorities.
[18:57] <Nerroth> So, depending on the backlog involved, would it be as well to expect to see 3145 QS cards added to the MUL first, and wait a while longer for the compilation PDF?
[18:58] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Unknown.
Quick Strike:
[18:59] <Nerroth> Thanks again. Last question (for now): Is there an option for compiling the rule-set for QS, and making it available as its own PDF, or will it remain in StratOps for the foreseeable future?
[19:00] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - We are planning a little something along those lines.
Warship Record Sheets:
[18:56] <EthFawcett> when could we expect the Warship-Record-Sheets? since last year was the year of the star league ... our gaming group is missing several cruisers ... as an example
[18:57] <@Habeas2> EthFawcett - Due to severe technical limitations, WarShip record sheets have become something of a boondoggleunto themselves. You could be in for a long wait.
Snake/sword/sundisk triumvirate conspiracy:
[18:56] <Circinus_Enquirer> Can we look forward to any details on the snake/sword/sundisk triumvirate conspiracy in the era overviews, or is that mystery awaiting resolution down the road, if ever?
[18:58] <@Habeas2> Circinus_Enquirer - Oh, that one may get an answer eventually.
Battle Armors:
[18:58] <Gaiiten> Will battlearmors replace standard infantry in frontline units?
[18:59] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - That inquiry touches on matters beyond the present scope of what I am permitted to discuss.
Conspiracies:
[18:59] <JPArbiter> has there ever been given any consideration for a product, or portion of a product devoted to "Grand conspiracies that never were." for stuff that sounds great and grand but had a really mundane and silly explanation?
[18:59] <JPArbiter> within the universe of course.
[19:00] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - There was. We called it Interstellar Players 1, 2, and 3.
Technology:
[18:59] <Circinus_Enquirer> What pieces of MWDA-era technology would, in your mind, cause dedicated Blakists to swoon and pass out from sheer joy?
[19:00] <@Habeas2> Cricinus_Equirer - The Colossi.
Dark Age:
[19:01] <JPArbiter> last one for me, any MW dark age stuff that the development team really wanted to say "can we ignore that please"
[19:02] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - Depends on the author you talk to. We all have seen some stuff in the Dark Age setting we wish never existed. For me, it would be House Davion.
[19:03] <Gaiiten> What upcoming DA product do you look forward to?
[19:03] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - The IlClan.
[19:04] <JPArbiter> I thought you got into trouble everytime you brought that up these days
[19:04] <Gaiiten> Any further question due that is a no-Go area, is not it?
[19:05] <@Habeas2> JPArbiter - The title is known. I cannot discuss past that.
Texas (fun stuff):
[18:04] <Gaiiten> What would you like to tell us?
[18:06] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - What I'd like to tell you is that a nuclear war has started and Texas has already been wiped off the map, but alas, that would be a lie....
[18:07] <Gaiiten> Does that answer mean you are in a bad or good mood?
[18:08] <Slasher> If Texas still exists, Herb is not exactly happy
[18:09] <@Habeas2> Gaiiten - Any time Texas survives, I'm generally in a bad mood.
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Второй чат
Introduction:
[01:59] <@Habeas2> Hello, all, and welcome to the second chat of this month's official BattleChat day.
[01:59] <@Habeas2> As always, I'm your host and sole guest, and the standard notes apply: Be courteous or be kicked, and log on your own recognizance
[02:00] <@Habeas2> With that said, I open the floor to everyone's questions, and announce that this chat is cheduled to end in one hour (give or take relative activity).
[02:00] <@Habeas2> Thanks!
HPG Blackout/Fiction:
[02:00] <JoJoMonkey> Continuation to my earlier chat question: Are the HPG blackout stories going to be BattleCorps fiction and/or fiction in a print (non novel) book?
[02:03] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey - I don't recall you being in the earlier chat, but yes. You should see fiction in both of those sources.
[02:06] <JoJoMonkey> Can/will you give a rough time frame on such stories coming out? Can you give a rough idea of where they will show up in the print form?
[02:09] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey - Expect Dark Age-era stories in Dark Age-era products. Print-wise, that basically means most of the stuff coing out this year, at least.
[02:10] <JoJoMonkey> Cool. Thank you
HPG Blackout/Periphery:
[02:05] <Trboturtle> Grey Monday -- The Inner Sphere lost 80% of it's HPG stations, but what about the Periphecy states? did they lose thrs too?
[02:08] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle – Yes
Dark Age/Products:
[02:01] <BirdofPrey> So we've already heard about a TRO field manual and era report for the dark ages. Are there any smaller PDF only releases planned for that time period (era digest, XTRO Dark Ages etc.)?
[02:03] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - Yes, an Era Digest: Dark Age and at least one XTR for the period are being worked on.
[02:19] <BirdofPrey> Is the plan still to spend this year in the dark ages and move on to a new time period next year?
[02:20] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - I cannot discuss plans beyond the Dark Age setting at this time.
Dark Age/Technology:
[02:08] <Gus> The entry for TRO3145 in the Coming Releases section alludes to new technologies invented after the JIhad. What book would contain the rules for these?
[02:12] <@Habeas2> Gus - Maybe Interstellar Ops.
Dark Age/Factions:
[02:42] <Sarcasmo> What's your favorite dark age faction?
[02:44] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo - The Republic of the Sphere
Dark Age/INN:
[03:11] <Mendrugo> Do you plan to revisit any of the lesser characters, like Evan Kaiple or Deandra Lowe from the INN website fiction, in your treatment of the Dark Age?
[03:13] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - If so, it will likely be in passing.
Dark Age:
[02:28] <Sarcasmo> what aspect of the dark age or you most looking forward to fleshing out?
[02:30] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo - All of it.
[03:12] <JoJoMonkey> Will the Dark Age be officially concluded this year (2013)?
[03:13] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey - I cannot anser that question at this time.
Dark Age/And Beyond:
[03:31] <Spaceman> Are there any other books after the IlClan in the Dark Age Era?
[03:31] <@Habeas2> Spaceman - I cannot discuss the period beyond the Dark Age.
Master Equipment List:
[02:13] <BirdofPrey> well there sure have been a lot of techs introduced in a lot of different books, a rules roundup could be useful, or at least a master equipment list
[02:15] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - We tried that in TechManual. Then in TacOps for advanced stuff. But given how the timeline isn't static, there's always new items coming down the pipe, so... Interstellar Ops for more.
Game Levels:
[02:02] <Nerroth> In terms of play level, do you believe that a game level which sat somewhere in between "classic" BattleTech and Quick Strike - which still had some sort of record sheet and weapon distinction, but had a more streamlined level of detail - could find a niche at some future point?
[02:03] <Nerroth> I think of how Federation Commander streamlines starship combat pay relative to Star Fleet battles, but doesn't abstract things in quite so much a way as games like A Call to Arms: Star Fleet and Starmada do.
[02:04] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - No.
[02:07] <Mendrugo> Herb, how abstract can a ruleset get for resolving combat before it loses the BattleTech "feel"? By way of illustration, the Succession Wars game simplified it to trying to roll under a target number on 1D10 to kill an enemy regiment. Fast, sure, but somewhat generic.
[02:10] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - In my opinion, any more abstract than Quick-Strike/BatleForce and we may be in any old game system. Heck, even Succession Wars felt basically like Risk to me
XTROs:
[02:07] <BirdofPrey> Speaking of XTROs what time period are they in? 3085-3090 like protoypes? Are there plans to add more timer period series like XTRO Prototypes (which covers age of war if im not mistaken) and XTRO Sucession wars (could there perhaps be more than one dark ages XTRO or some civil war era xtros?)
[02:11] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - At this time, we have plans for at least three more XTRs focused on the Sar League/Age of War period, and several more in the Succession Wars period, plus many beyond that (such as one for the Dark Age)
Era Report 3145:
[02:13] <Sarcasmo> How would you rate the fans anticipation for ER:3145? and an ancillary question, how does it feel to finally write a book who's general course hasn't been charted out by another company?
[02:16] <@Habeas2> Sracasmo - The fans seem to be looking forward to 3145 and finally moving well past the Jihad, and it feels fine since, you know, we helped chart that course from the start anyway.
Era Report 3145/Release:
[02:50] <Fletch> Will Era Report: 3145 be released before the FM and TRO to those of us that are DA illiterate to catch up?
[02:51] <Fletch> to = for
[02:52] <@Habeas2> Fletch – Yes
Era Report 3145/Free Worlds League:
[02:53] <Nerroth> For the purposes of the Era Report and Field Manual, are the former Free Worlds League states which have (as of Bonfire) devlined to join the re-born League still listed under the "Marik" section of each work?
[02:53] <Nerroth> *declined
[02:55] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - The Free Worlds section will include both the reborn League and the "associated realms" (including Regulan Fiefs and Duchy of Andurien), yes.
[03:01] <Fletch> On the FWL, when reborn are they going to learn from the lessons of the past or let history repeat itself and get caught up in internal bickering and politics
Era Report 3145/Periphery:
[02:57] <Sarcasmo> Will ER3145 cover some of the lesser periphery realms?
[03:01] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo - To a modest degree, yes.
3145:
[02:18] <trboturtle2> Are you glad to hit 3145?
[02:18] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle2 - Yes.
Wizkids/Catalyst Staff:
[02:14] <Mendrugo> What was the overlap (if any) between the current Catalyst staff and the WizKids MWDA development/writing team?
[02:18] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Pretty much all of the core writers and developers in CGL now worked with WizKids to develop the Dark Age.
Interstellar Operations:
[02:18] <bigal> So are we to expect Intersteller Ops this year?
[02:18] <@Habeas2> Bigal - Signs point to no.
Interstellar Operations/Jokes:
[02:19] <trboturtle2> Randall decided to out-SFB SFB.......
[02:21] <Mendrugo> When historians looked back to the origins of hyperspace travel, it was with surprise that they found the original fully functional equations on p. 437 of Interstellar Operations...
[02:22] <trboturtle2> Mendrugo -- is that Vol 1 or Vol
[02:27] <trboturtle2> So the jump shield might be one hundred billion copies of IO?
[02:29] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle2 - Huh?
Conventions:
[02:19] <Sarcasmo> Are you still hitting other cons outside of Origins and GenCon this year?
[02:22] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo - I know we'll be at PAX East since I'm scheduled to be there. I know nothing more for certain.
Field Report 2765:
[02:21] <Maelwys> There's been some talk on the forums about a Field Report or Field Manual like book for the 2765 era. Is this actually planned, or fan hope, and if it is planned, what will it cover?
[02:21] <DarkISI> Maelwys: http://bg.battletech.com/?page_id=474 Coming Soon page
[02:23] <@Habeas2> Maelwys - You already had Field Manual: SLDF. A set of companion PDFs for the other 2765 factions are underway.
[02:23] <Maelwys> Ah well, that's easy. I assume the standard 6 then? Kurita, Marik, Liao, Davions, Steiner and Periphery?
[02:25] <@Habeas2> Maelwys – Yes
Fortress Republic:
[02:25] <Sarcasmo> Herb, will there be any...description on how the jump shield worked or was developed?
[02:26] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo – Maybe
[03:01] <Mendrugo> Given that a Republic skunkworks seems to have come up with the Fortress Republic shield and/or Clarion Call, can we expect to see a slew of Blakist-style superweapons emerging from the Republic in the Dark Age (beyond the Colossi)? Superjump fleets? Whatever tech it was that blew Wyatt out of existence for half an hour?
[03:03] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Not really, no.
Fortress Republic/Field Manual: 3145:
[03:04] <Nerroth> Will the data in Field Manual: 3145 give any indication as to how much longer the RAF is expecting the Fortress walls to stay up, or is that the kind of infomation beyond the pay grade of whowever is authoring that file?
[03:05] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Possibly.
WMDs:
[02:26] <Mendrugo> Can we expect any more in-depth WMD rules for the 1st Succession War products, or do the Jihad-book rules cover the waterfront on that score?
[02:27] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Interstellar Ops will cover more WMDs.
WarShips:
[02:27] <Maelwys> Are there still plans to flesh out the age of War/Star League/Succession Wars/Clans WarShips, even if just with stats, and not necessarily record sheets?Sheets
[02:28] <@Habeas2> Maelwys - By the time the 2765 FIeld Reports are done, we hope to have covered all WarShips left in the setting, barring any Clan interim ships.
Turning Points/Bonfire of Worlds:
[02:27] <Nerroth> Are there plans for any more Dark Age Turning Points, perhaps set on worlds (like Tharkad) featured in A Bonfire of Worlds?
[02:29] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Some, yes.
Novels/ePub:
[02:29] <Spaceman> Anything new to update on the Novel front? Any chance we can see the epub novels return this year?
[02:31] <@Habeas2> Spaceman - I have no news on the novel front. I do not believe we will see epub novels return this year.
ilClan:
[02:30] <Fletch> Is it true the ilClan will be shared on a rotating basis between the council of six after they return to and destroy the remaining homeworld clans thereby removing the threat of a renewed invasion of the inner sphere?
[02:31] <@Habeas2> Fletch - I am not permitted to discuss anything about that
[02:32] <Fletch> worth a try
[02:33] <@Habeas2> Fletch - It really wasn't.
[02:48] <Spaceman> Besides the IlClan is there anything WizKids had penciled in that you can share with us?
[02:49] <@Habeas2> Spaceman - WizKids didn't exctly plan the IlClan....
[03:28] <Nerroth> Is there a general sense yet of how many pages the ilClan sourcebook would need, or is it possible that it might be split into more than one volume (as was done for Liberation of Terra)?
[03:29] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - The book is being planned as a single volume.
Devlin Stone:
[02:30] <Mendrugo> Are we likely to see any stories and/or sourcebook accounts that show Devlin Stone in action? The MWDA material began just after he exited stage left, so he was sort of an enigma on that scale, and the Jihad references are mostly second hand news accounts. Is he a character you want to delve more into?
[02:32] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo – Yes
[03:07] <Spaceman> Will we find out about Devlin Stone's fate after he "retires"?
[03:08] <@Habeas2> Spaceman – Yes
Hex Packs:
[02:31] <BirdofPrey> So hex packs: what do you have in the pipe? Volcanos? sand dunes? Anything that's just hexes or just maps?
[02:33] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - HexPacks are mainly aimed at providing one double-sided maps and tiles, so none will be "just maps". We have a TacOps counters Hex Pack coming up this year, I believe.
[02:34] <BirdofPrey> tac ops counters? is that just going to be the hexes? what terrain are we looking at in that?
[02:35] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - I do not ave the templates right in front of me, I'm afraid.
Cover Art:
[02:33] <Nerroth> How close are the other 3145-era cover art images to being fit for viewing on the site; and when they are, will they be offered as wallpapers alongsie those already offered for Era Report: 3145?
[02:34] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - I have no information on those covers at this time, nor whether or not they will be offerred as wallpapers.
A Time of War/Adventures:
[02:34] <SeeM2> Are there any plans for Time of War? Now we have core rolebook and fluff sourcebooks/era reports, with is how it worked in the past. But will be any more campaigns, scenarios, etc...?
[02:38] <@Habeas2> SeeM2 - We actually have a few adventures in circulation already, such as the 2012 Free RPG Adventure and the supporting materia in the ERa Reports and Era Digests. Full-sized Adventures (in PDF form) have actually been written as far back as 2010, but we simply haven't been able to publish them as yet due to technical considerations.
Posters, Patches etc.:
[02:34] <Fletch> Is catalyst able to do up posters, banners etc that can be sold outside of the cons?
[02:39] <@Habeas2> Fletch - At this time, I believe the majority of our poster-size art tends to be material we can only produce in short supply for the cons, or for packaging with Box Sets.
[02:35] <Trboturtle> ANy chances for patches, or is that out of the picture?
[02:40] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle - At best, only for conventions.
House Book: House Kurita:
[02:34] <bigal> Are you glad that House Book: Kurita will be coming out soon?
[02:39] <@Habeas2> Bigal - Yes! Dear Cat, YES!
Misjumps/Tetatae:
[02:42] <Nerroth> In a prior podcast, you noted that no-one had yet made a proposal to do a Misjump or PseudoTech file covering the Tetatae. Is that the kind of area where, if no-one volunteers to try it, it won't happen?
[02:44] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - A proposal on the Tetatae has been made since then.
[02:45] <Nerroth> Is there anything that can be said about it, or is it still too early to be discussed?
[02:48] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - It will likely be a PseudoTech
Long Awaited Products:
[02:44] <Fletch> Any other interesting stuff you can tell us about that's been sitting on the hard drive for 2+ years?
[02:45] <@Habeas2> Fletch - I dunno. Ask something.
Blitzkrieg Novels:
[02:45] <Spaceman> Are we going to see more Blitzkrieg and Battles corps fiction in epud format?
[02:48] <@Habeas2> Spaceman - BattleCorps yes. Blitzkrieg is unknown.
Most Anticipated:
[02:47] <BirdofPrey> So herb, what product are you most anticipating
[02:49] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - The IlClan.
Lego Battle Mech:
[02:49] <Mendrugo> Have you seen the new Lego mini-figure called the "Battle Mech"? Is that an official Topps/Lego cross license?
[02:50] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Yes. And No. It's an independent deal.
Core Rule Books/ePub:
[02:51] <SeeM2> Are there any plans for core rulebooks in epub? I would really like to have Total War on a phone for quick rule checks during play.
[02:52] <BirdofPrey> SeeM2 you can already get the rulebooks in pdf format, though reading anything on a phone is troublesome
[02:53] <@Habeas2> SeeM2 - Maybe, someday, though as BirdofPrey says, we already have the PDFs and I wouldn't recommend these rulebooks for something as small as a phone.
Clan Tech:
[02:57] <Fletch> With clan tech spreading throughout the IS, will factions forces start to become more homogeneous? And if not, how will 'faction flavour' be maintained?
[03:30] <@Habeas2> Fletch - Depends on the time period you are thinking of.
[03:30] <Fletch> sorry, Dark age and beyond
[03:31] <@Habeas2> Fletch - I cannot discuss the period beyond the Dark Age.
PDF Exclusives/TROs:
[03:00] <BirdofPrey> hmm anyways back to questions and answers. Are there going to be any pdf exclusive tros that have tournament legal units?
[03:02] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey – Yes
Clan Invasion/Free Worlds League:
[03:03] <Fletch> and did the FWL ever get paid for all the tech they produced in the clan invasion under the agreement with the fed suns?
[03:03] <@Habeas2> Fletch - Those debts were nullified when the realm disbanded in the Jihad.
Silly Academy Award Related Questions:
[03:04] <Ken> Does Oscar watch the Academy Awards?
[03:05] <@Habeas2> Ken - No. He sees nothing about Hollywood humans should congratulate themselves for.
[03:06] <Mendrugo> That's a question - does the Inner Sphere have movie awards? Who was Katherine (Steiner-Davion) Wolf wearing on the red carpet in 3140?
[03:08] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Yes. We do not know.
[03:11] <DarkISI> While I think that Katherine was really crazy... to ask who she was wearing... even she wouldn't be crazy enough to wear people (where there are witnesses)
Historical: Wars of the Republic Era:
[03:08] <Nerroth> Will Historical: Wars of the Republic Era go into much detail on the Council of Six Clans' "Great Reavings" from the late 3090s, or will they be covered in some other work instead?
[03:09] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Not really.
[03:10] <Nerroth> In that case, will there be some sort of reference to those events in the Clan section of one of the 3145 books?
Homeworlds:
[03:10] <BirdofPrey> Just how much are we going to hear about the homeworld clans in the Dark ages? the focus has always been on the inner sphere so the invading clans have always gotten all the face time
[03:12] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - Little to nothing.
[03:12] <SeeM2> Will Era Report: 3145 cover Clan homeworlds? Is clans communications broken, too?
The Wars of Reaving:
[03:15] <Nerroth> Has the reception of The Wars of Reaving (and the supplemental file) made it more likely that the Homeworld Clans will be revisited at some future point; or, if that isn't the kind of question that can be answered right now, has it generated more of an interest in seeing that storyline picked up at some point?
[03:19] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - There has always been an interest in what the Homewold Clans are/will be up to. Wars of Reaving has been well received, but not enough, we feel, to sufficiently support a Homeworlds-based product.
[03:21] <Nerroth> So, does that mean the Homeworld Clans are officially out of the running for ilClan, or are you referring to products that only look at the Homeworlds (and-or the Hansa and Imperio) that don't directly affect the Inner Sphere?
[03:26] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - I cannot answer that question.
Shadow Run:
[03:16] <Trboturtle> Will any of the stuff from SR bleed over to BT down the road (Person to person skimish game, card game, ect)
[03:20] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle - Dear Cat! Why?
Faction Numbers:
[03:17] <Mendrugo> The BattleTech universe started out with just the five major factions and about ten minor ones in 1984 (going by MechWarrior 1st Edition). What do you feel is the optimal number of factions to get the best balance between having variety and not overly dispersing fan interest?
[03:20] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Ten or less.
Source Book Fiction:
[03:21] <JoJoMonkey> Are there plans to release fiction from source books, Core books, etc as a stand-alone PDF product?
[03:26] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey – No
Smoke Jaguar Remnants:
[03:25] <Mendrugo> Will we get any look at the cloak'n'dagger side of the Dark Age with updates to the intel agencies and special ops teams (particularly the Smoke Jaguar remnants) running around, or do the Great House assets look pretty much like they did when Covert Operations was penned?
[03:27] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - We have not planned an update to our Covert Ops products at this time.
April Fools:
[03:30] <JoJoMonkey> Anything planned for 1 April 2013;)
[03:30] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey – Yes
Good Byes:
[03:32] <@Habeas2> Thank you for participating in this Catalyst Game Labs BattleTech Line Developer-aided Public Realtions activity.
[01:59] <@Habeas2> Hello, all, and welcome to the second chat of this month's official BattleChat day.
[01:59] <@Habeas2> As always, I'm your host and sole guest, and the standard notes apply: Be courteous or be kicked, and log on your own recognizance
[02:00] <@Habeas2> With that said, I open the floor to everyone's questions, and announce that this chat is cheduled to end in one hour (give or take relative activity).
[02:00] <@Habeas2> Thanks!
HPG Blackout/Fiction:
[02:00] <JoJoMonkey> Continuation to my earlier chat question: Are the HPG blackout stories going to be BattleCorps fiction and/or fiction in a print (non novel) book?
[02:03] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey - I don't recall you being in the earlier chat, but yes. You should see fiction in both of those sources.
[02:06] <JoJoMonkey> Can/will you give a rough time frame on such stories coming out? Can you give a rough idea of where they will show up in the print form?
[02:09] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey - Expect Dark Age-era stories in Dark Age-era products. Print-wise, that basically means most of the stuff coing out this year, at least.
[02:10] <JoJoMonkey> Cool. Thank you
HPG Blackout/Periphery:
[02:05] <Trboturtle> Grey Monday -- The Inner Sphere lost 80% of it's HPG stations, but what about the Periphecy states? did they lose thrs too?
[02:08] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle – Yes
Dark Age/Products:
[02:01] <BirdofPrey> So we've already heard about a TRO field manual and era report for the dark ages. Are there any smaller PDF only releases planned for that time period (era digest, XTRO Dark Ages etc.)?
[02:03] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - Yes, an Era Digest: Dark Age and at least one XTR for the period are being worked on.
[02:19] <BirdofPrey> Is the plan still to spend this year in the dark ages and move on to a new time period next year?
[02:20] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - I cannot discuss plans beyond the Dark Age setting at this time.
Dark Age/Technology:
[02:08] <Gus> The entry for TRO3145 in the Coming Releases section alludes to new technologies invented after the JIhad. What book would contain the rules for these?
[02:12] <@Habeas2> Gus - Maybe Interstellar Ops.
Dark Age/Factions:
[02:42] <Sarcasmo> What's your favorite dark age faction?
[02:44] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo - The Republic of the Sphere
Dark Age/INN:
[03:11] <Mendrugo> Do you plan to revisit any of the lesser characters, like Evan Kaiple or Deandra Lowe from the INN website fiction, in your treatment of the Dark Age?
[03:13] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - If so, it will likely be in passing.
Dark Age:
[02:28] <Sarcasmo> what aspect of the dark age or you most looking forward to fleshing out?
[02:30] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo - All of it.
[03:12] <JoJoMonkey> Will the Dark Age be officially concluded this year (2013)?
[03:13] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey - I cannot anser that question at this time.
Dark Age/And Beyond:
[03:31] <Spaceman> Are there any other books after the IlClan in the Dark Age Era?
[03:31] <@Habeas2> Spaceman - I cannot discuss the period beyond the Dark Age.
Master Equipment List:
[02:13] <BirdofPrey> well there sure have been a lot of techs introduced in a lot of different books, a rules roundup could be useful, or at least a master equipment list
[02:15] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - We tried that in TechManual. Then in TacOps for advanced stuff. But given how the timeline isn't static, there's always new items coming down the pipe, so... Interstellar Ops for more.
Game Levels:
[02:02] <Nerroth> In terms of play level, do you believe that a game level which sat somewhere in between "classic" BattleTech and Quick Strike - which still had some sort of record sheet and weapon distinction, but had a more streamlined level of detail - could find a niche at some future point?
[02:03] <Nerroth> I think of how Federation Commander streamlines starship combat pay relative to Star Fleet battles, but doesn't abstract things in quite so much a way as games like A Call to Arms: Star Fleet and Starmada do.
[02:04] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - No.
[02:07] <Mendrugo> Herb, how abstract can a ruleset get for resolving combat before it loses the BattleTech "feel"? By way of illustration, the Succession Wars game simplified it to trying to roll under a target number on 1D10 to kill an enemy regiment. Fast, sure, but somewhat generic.
[02:10] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - In my opinion, any more abstract than Quick-Strike/BatleForce and we may be in any old game system. Heck, even Succession Wars felt basically like Risk to me
XTROs:
[02:07] <BirdofPrey> Speaking of XTROs what time period are they in? 3085-3090 like protoypes? Are there plans to add more timer period series like XTRO Prototypes (which covers age of war if im not mistaken) and XTRO Sucession wars (could there perhaps be more than one dark ages XTRO or some civil war era xtros?)
[02:11] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - At this time, we have plans for at least three more XTRs focused on the Sar League/Age of War period, and several more in the Succession Wars period, plus many beyond that (such as one for the Dark Age)
Era Report 3145:
[02:13] <Sarcasmo> How would you rate the fans anticipation for ER:3145? and an ancillary question, how does it feel to finally write a book who's general course hasn't been charted out by another company?
[02:16] <@Habeas2> Sracasmo - The fans seem to be looking forward to 3145 and finally moving well past the Jihad, and it feels fine since, you know, we helped chart that course from the start anyway.
Era Report 3145/Release:
[02:50] <Fletch> Will Era Report: 3145 be released before the FM and TRO to those of us that are DA illiterate to catch up?
[02:51] <Fletch> to = for
[02:52] <@Habeas2> Fletch – Yes
Era Report 3145/Free Worlds League:
[02:53] <Nerroth> For the purposes of the Era Report and Field Manual, are the former Free Worlds League states which have (as of Bonfire) devlined to join the re-born League still listed under the "Marik" section of each work?
[02:53] <Nerroth> *declined
[02:55] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - The Free Worlds section will include both the reborn League and the "associated realms" (including Regulan Fiefs and Duchy of Andurien), yes.
[03:01] <Fletch> On the FWL, when reborn are they going to learn from the lessons of the past or let history repeat itself and get caught up in internal bickering and politics
Era Report 3145/Periphery:
[02:57] <Sarcasmo> Will ER3145 cover some of the lesser periphery realms?
[03:01] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo - To a modest degree, yes.
3145:
[02:18] <trboturtle2> Are you glad to hit 3145?
[02:18] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle2 - Yes.
Wizkids/Catalyst Staff:
[02:14] <Mendrugo> What was the overlap (if any) between the current Catalyst staff and the WizKids MWDA development/writing team?
[02:18] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Pretty much all of the core writers and developers in CGL now worked with WizKids to develop the Dark Age.
Interstellar Operations:
[02:18] <bigal> So are we to expect Intersteller Ops this year?
[02:18] <@Habeas2> Bigal - Signs point to no.
Interstellar Operations/Jokes:
[02:19] <trboturtle2> Randall decided to out-SFB SFB.......
[02:21] <Mendrugo> When historians looked back to the origins of hyperspace travel, it was with surprise that they found the original fully functional equations on p. 437 of Interstellar Operations...
[02:22] <trboturtle2> Mendrugo -- is that Vol 1 or Vol
[02:27] <trboturtle2> So the jump shield might be one hundred billion copies of IO?
[02:29] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle2 - Huh?
Conventions:
[02:19] <Sarcasmo> Are you still hitting other cons outside of Origins and GenCon this year?
[02:22] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo - I know we'll be at PAX East since I'm scheduled to be there. I know nothing more for certain.
Field Report 2765:
[02:21] <Maelwys> There's been some talk on the forums about a Field Report or Field Manual like book for the 2765 era. Is this actually planned, or fan hope, and if it is planned, what will it cover?
[02:21] <DarkISI> Maelwys: http://bg.battletech.com/?page_id=474 Coming Soon page
[02:23] <@Habeas2> Maelwys - You already had Field Manual: SLDF. A set of companion PDFs for the other 2765 factions are underway.
[02:23] <Maelwys> Ah well, that's easy. I assume the standard 6 then? Kurita, Marik, Liao, Davions, Steiner and Periphery?
[02:25] <@Habeas2> Maelwys – Yes
Fortress Republic:
[02:25] <Sarcasmo> Herb, will there be any...description on how the jump shield worked or was developed?
[02:26] <@Habeas2> Sarcasmo – Maybe
[03:01] <Mendrugo> Given that a Republic skunkworks seems to have come up with the Fortress Republic shield and/or Clarion Call, can we expect to see a slew of Blakist-style superweapons emerging from the Republic in the Dark Age (beyond the Colossi)? Superjump fleets? Whatever tech it was that blew Wyatt out of existence for half an hour?
[03:03] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Not really, no.
Fortress Republic/Field Manual: 3145:
[03:04] <Nerroth> Will the data in Field Manual: 3145 give any indication as to how much longer the RAF is expecting the Fortress walls to stay up, or is that the kind of infomation beyond the pay grade of whowever is authoring that file?
[03:05] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Possibly.
WMDs:
[02:26] <Mendrugo> Can we expect any more in-depth WMD rules for the 1st Succession War products, or do the Jihad-book rules cover the waterfront on that score?
[02:27] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Interstellar Ops will cover more WMDs.
WarShips:
[02:27] <Maelwys> Are there still plans to flesh out the age of War/Star League/Succession Wars/Clans WarShips, even if just with stats, and not necessarily record sheets?Sheets
[02:28] <@Habeas2> Maelwys - By the time the 2765 FIeld Reports are done, we hope to have covered all WarShips left in the setting, barring any Clan interim ships.
Turning Points/Bonfire of Worlds:
[02:27] <Nerroth> Are there plans for any more Dark Age Turning Points, perhaps set on worlds (like Tharkad) featured in A Bonfire of Worlds?
[02:29] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Some, yes.
Novels/ePub:
[02:29] <Spaceman> Anything new to update on the Novel front? Any chance we can see the epub novels return this year?
[02:31] <@Habeas2> Spaceman - I have no news on the novel front. I do not believe we will see epub novels return this year.
ilClan:
[02:30] <Fletch> Is it true the ilClan will be shared on a rotating basis between the council of six after they return to and destroy the remaining homeworld clans thereby removing the threat of a renewed invasion of the inner sphere?
[02:31] <@Habeas2> Fletch - I am not permitted to discuss anything about that
[02:32] <Fletch> worth a try
[02:33] <@Habeas2> Fletch - It really wasn't.
[02:48] <Spaceman> Besides the IlClan is there anything WizKids had penciled in that you can share with us?
[02:49] <@Habeas2> Spaceman - WizKids didn't exctly plan the IlClan....
[03:28] <Nerroth> Is there a general sense yet of how many pages the ilClan sourcebook would need, or is it possible that it might be split into more than one volume (as was done for Liberation of Terra)?
[03:29] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - The book is being planned as a single volume.
Devlin Stone:
[02:30] <Mendrugo> Are we likely to see any stories and/or sourcebook accounts that show Devlin Stone in action? The MWDA material began just after he exited stage left, so he was sort of an enigma on that scale, and the Jihad references are mostly second hand news accounts. Is he a character you want to delve more into?
[02:32] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo – Yes
[03:07] <Spaceman> Will we find out about Devlin Stone's fate after he "retires"?
[03:08] <@Habeas2> Spaceman – Yes
Hex Packs:
[02:31] <BirdofPrey> So hex packs: what do you have in the pipe? Volcanos? sand dunes? Anything that's just hexes or just maps?
[02:33] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - HexPacks are mainly aimed at providing one double-sided maps and tiles, so none will be "just maps". We have a TacOps counters Hex Pack coming up this year, I believe.
[02:34] <BirdofPrey> tac ops counters? is that just going to be the hexes? what terrain are we looking at in that?
[02:35] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - I do not ave the templates right in front of me, I'm afraid.
Cover Art:
[02:33] <Nerroth> How close are the other 3145-era cover art images to being fit for viewing on the site; and when they are, will they be offered as wallpapers alongsie those already offered for Era Report: 3145?
[02:34] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - I have no information on those covers at this time, nor whether or not they will be offerred as wallpapers.
A Time of War/Adventures:
[02:34] <SeeM2> Are there any plans for Time of War? Now we have core rolebook and fluff sourcebooks/era reports, with is how it worked in the past. But will be any more campaigns, scenarios, etc...?
[02:38] <@Habeas2> SeeM2 - We actually have a few adventures in circulation already, such as the 2012 Free RPG Adventure and the supporting materia in the ERa Reports and Era Digests. Full-sized Adventures (in PDF form) have actually been written as far back as 2010, but we simply haven't been able to publish them as yet due to technical considerations.
Posters, Patches etc.:
[02:34] <Fletch> Is catalyst able to do up posters, banners etc that can be sold outside of the cons?
[02:39] <@Habeas2> Fletch - At this time, I believe the majority of our poster-size art tends to be material we can only produce in short supply for the cons, or for packaging with Box Sets.
[02:35] <Trboturtle> ANy chances for patches, or is that out of the picture?
[02:40] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle - At best, only for conventions.
House Book: House Kurita:
[02:34] <bigal> Are you glad that House Book: Kurita will be coming out soon?
[02:39] <@Habeas2> Bigal - Yes! Dear Cat, YES!
Misjumps/Tetatae:
[02:42] <Nerroth> In a prior podcast, you noted that no-one had yet made a proposal to do a Misjump or PseudoTech file covering the Tetatae. Is that the kind of area where, if no-one volunteers to try it, it won't happen?
[02:44] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - A proposal on the Tetatae has been made since then.
[02:45] <Nerroth> Is there anything that can be said about it, or is it still too early to be discussed?
[02:48] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - It will likely be a PseudoTech
Long Awaited Products:
[02:44] <Fletch> Any other interesting stuff you can tell us about that's been sitting on the hard drive for 2+ years?
[02:45] <@Habeas2> Fletch - I dunno. Ask something.
Blitzkrieg Novels:
[02:45] <Spaceman> Are we going to see more Blitzkrieg and Battles corps fiction in epud format?
[02:48] <@Habeas2> Spaceman - BattleCorps yes. Blitzkrieg is unknown.
Most Anticipated:
[02:47] <BirdofPrey> So herb, what product are you most anticipating
[02:49] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - The IlClan.
Lego Battle Mech:
[02:49] <Mendrugo> Have you seen the new Lego mini-figure called the "Battle Mech"? Is that an official Topps/Lego cross license?
[02:50] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Yes. And No. It's an independent deal.
Core Rule Books/ePub:
[02:51] <SeeM2> Are there any plans for core rulebooks in epub? I would really like to have Total War on a phone for quick rule checks during play.
[02:52] <BirdofPrey> SeeM2 you can already get the rulebooks in pdf format, though reading anything on a phone is troublesome
[02:53] <@Habeas2> SeeM2 - Maybe, someday, though as BirdofPrey says, we already have the PDFs and I wouldn't recommend these rulebooks for something as small as a phone.
Clan Tech:
[02:57] <Fletch> With clan tech spreading throughout the IS, will factions forces start to become more homogeneous? And if not, how will 'faction flavour' be maintained?
[03:30] <@Habeas2> Fletch - Depends on the time period you are thinking of.
[03:30] <Fletch> sorry, Dark age and beyond
[03:31] <@Habeas2> Fletch - I cannot discuss the period beyond the Dark Age.
PDF Exclusives/TROs:
[03:00] <BirdofPrey> hmm anyways back to questions and answers. Are there going to be any pdf exclusive tros that have tournament legal units?
[03:02] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey – Yes
Clan Invasion/Free Worlds League:
[03:03] <Fletch> and did the FWL ever get paid for all the tech they produced in the clan invasion under the agreement with the fed suns?
[03:03] <@Habeas2> Fletch - Those debts were nullified when the realm disbanded in the Jihad.
Silly Academy Award Related Questions:
[03:04] <Ken> Does Oscar watch the Academy Awards?
[03:05] <@Habeas2> Ken - No. He sees nothing about Hollywood humans should congratulate themselves for.
[03:06] <Mendrugo> That's a question - does the Inner Sphere have movie awards? Who was Katherine (Steiner-Davion) Wolf wearing on the red carpet in 3140?
[03:08] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Yes. We do not know.
[03:11] <DarkISI> While I think that Katherine was really crazy... to ask who she was wearing... even she wouldn't be crazy enough to wear people (where there are witnesses)
Historical: Wars of the Republic Era:
[03:08] <Nerroth> Will Historical: Wars of the Republic Era go into much detail on the Council of Six Clans' "Great Reavings" from the late 3090s, or will they be covered in some other work instead?
[03:09] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - Not really.
[03:10] <Nerroth> In that case, will there be some sort of reference to those events in the Clan section of one of the 3145 books?
Homeworlds:
[03:10] <BirdofPrey> Just how much are we going to hear about the homeworld clans in the Dark ages? the focus has always been on the inner sphere so the invading clans have always gotten all the face time
[03:12] <@Habeas2> BirdofPrey - Little to nothing.
[03:12] <SeeM2> Will Era Report: 3145 cover Clan homeworlds? Is clans communications broken, too?
The Wars of Reaving:
[03:15] <Nerroth> Has the reception of The Wars of Reaving (and the supplemental file) made it more likely that the Homeworld Clans will be revisited at some future point; or, if that isn't the kind of question that can be answered right now, has it generated more of an interest in seeing that storyline picked up at some point?
[03:19] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - There has always been an interest in what the Homewold Clans are/will be up to. Wars of Reaving has been well received, but not enough, we feel, to sufficiently support a Homeworlds-based product.
[03:21] <Nerroth> So, does that mean the Homeworld Clans are officially out of the running for ilClan, or are you referring to products that only look at the Homeworlds (and-or the Hansa and Imperio) that don't directly affect the Inner Sphere?
[03:26] <@Habeas2> Nerroth - I cannot answer that question.
Shadow Run:
[03:16] <Trboturtle> Will any of the stuff from SR bleed over to BT down the road (Person to person skimish game, card game, ect)
[03:20] <@Habeas2> Trboturtle - Dear Cat! Why?
Faction Numbers:
[03:17] <Mendrugo> The BattleTech universe started out with just the five major factions and about ten minor ones in 1984 (going by MechWarrior 1st Edition). What do you feel is the optimal number of factions to get the best balance between having variety and not overly dispersing fan interest?
[03:20] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - Ten or less.
Source Book Fiction:
[03:21] <JoJoMonkey> Are there plans to release fiction from source books, Core books, etc as a stand-alone PDF product?
[03:26] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey – No
Smoke Jaguar Remnants:
[03:25] <Mendrugo> Will we get any look at the cloak'n'dagger side of the Dark Age with updates to the intel agencies and special ops teams (particularly the Smoke Jaguar remnants) running around, or do the Great House assets look pretty much like they did when Covert Operations was penned?
[03:27] <@Habeas2> Mendrugo - We have not planned an update to our Covert Ops products at this time.
April Fools:
[03:30] <JoJoMonkey> Anything planned for 1 April 2013;)
[03:30] <@Habeas2> JoJoMonkey – Yes
Good Byes:
[03:32] <@Habeas2> Thank you for participating in this Catalyst Game Labs BattleTech Line Developer-aided Public Realtions activity.
Дома (5)+кланы(как 1 дом)+переферия (как ничего не значащая мелочь и декорация) - такая схема мне нравилась. В ней можно не тратьть время на фракции/подразделения/героев, которые важны для 3-7% фанатов, а дать больше инфы про основных игроков. Мне более симпатична схема с конечным небольшим числом участников, про которых известно все сразу на одну дату, чем куски из разных регионов переферии, которые для таймлайна и основного сюжета имеют минимальное значение.
Остальное по диагонали. Кроме разве что "любой ценой" , которая ИМХО укрошение всей серии. А вот после вообще печаль стала.
