Back in 2006, I was asked by Pinnacle Entertainment to write the first of three authorized campaign books to use with the MechWarrior: Age of Destruction game put out by WizKids, LLC.
After some discussion with Pinnacle about the idea, I pitched a product that took the feel of tactical video game, using as many of the MW:AOD resources and game play options as possible and including some new alternatives. The book was supposed to time with the introduction of two new factions, the Free Worlds League and ComStar.
Timeline-wise, we felt it would be a great follow-up to the events in Target of Opportunity. This opened up the availability of several factions, increasing the appeal of the product and setting the stage for a multi-book campaign set.
About six months into development, I had the following document ready for review by Pinnacle and WizKids. The guys at Pinnacle were ecstatic about my progress so far. So it was submitted to the people at WizKids for review and approval.
And so it sat. And sat. And sat.
After nearly a year in this “development hell,” Pinnacle decided to pull the plug on the entire project. No response from WizKids was forthcoming, despite repeated attempts at contact. So the book ended right there.
I’d signed a five year NDA back then and completely forgot about this project until last night. I found it in a backup folder of miscellaneous BattleTech projects. Since my NDA window is over, I thought it’d be interesting to share.
You’ll note that it has some similarity in feel and tone to my Turning Points PDF project for CGL. When I pitched that line to Herb and Randall in the summer of 2008, this is what sparked that idea.
While most of you probably don’t play the MWDA game anymore, I wanted to share more of a “what might have been” moment. Imagine if those books had caught hold and taken off…
Anyway, enjoy.
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