BattleTech: Mercenaries Unboxing - RIB14

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BattleTech: Mercenaries Unboxing

Disclaimer: Seeing this on Kickstarter was actually my first experience with BattleTech as a franchise and despite disliking some of CGL’s choices, I love the franchise itself. At time of writing I haven’t gotten the opportunity to play a game with this expansion, but I hope to indulge more fully whenever possible.

TLDR:

        The appearance of the game campaign page for BattleTech: Mercenaries on Kickstarter was my first time ever seeing what this franchise is. Since then, I’ve learned a lot about the game, its history, and the community around it. I have opinions about its stewardship by CGL that are shared by a not-insignificant number of people, but this article is really just an attempt to focus on the Kickstarter and the product I received. Some of the tangential stuff seemed lazy (like copying online recipes for a themed cookbook) but overall I got a lot of items for $80 and I’ve become a big fan of the actual game through its video games and lore (which is super cool by the way, a lot of people say it’s like Game of Thrones in space, and that’s a pretty close analogy, though definitely not exact in my opinion).

        I feel like it’s important to mention that none of this campaign stuff is even necessary to enjoy the game. It uses an evergreen system, has heaps of supplemental material from its past, and like any minis game, once you’ve got a 3D printer and an internet connection you’ve got everything at your fingertips. Speaking of intellectual property, I won’t actually be showing any of the interiors for the printed material in the core box. The reason for this, if you’re familiar with some recent WotC drama, is that this is grounds for copyright issues, and I wouldn’t put it past any company to abuse such a concept.

        Allow me to run down what I received during the campaign, I’ll only be talking about the physical items, the only digital item I received was a free short story. I received the special edition core box, a challenge coin for a faction of my choice (I went with the Gray Death Legion), 3 double sided posters, a clan codex dog tag necklace, a 4 inch Timberwolf mini, a pair of laser effect dice, a Savannah Masters box, and 3 random Legendary MechWarrior boxes (2 Callandre Kells and 1 Jeremiah Rose). I’ll attach pictures of everything below, please excuse the poor lighting and camera work. I have no equipment and just used my phone and the normal lighting I have in my room.

        Overall, I feel like I got my money’s worth. I think that what the Mercenaries set adds to the game is pretty good for people who want to stick to playing modern CGL products. It added a lot of different types of vehicles and rules such as aerospace strikes, artillery, and minefields. My background for games as a hobby is in TTRPGs and I’ve heard good things about Battletech’s system from long time players (barring the crunch that is an inherent part of the game). The concept of running a mercenary unit or campaign and incorporating the elements from this box intrigues me. The gameplay and lore still draw me in and I can see myself being a fan of this fictional universe for a long time to come.

Core Box:

Back of Core Box:

Core Box Interior:

Timberwolf Mini:

Jeremiah Rose Mini:

Callandre Kell Mini:

Savannah Masters Mini:

GDL Challenge Coin Heads Side:

GDL Challenge Coin Tails Side:

Clan Codex Dog Tag:

Dice:

Poster 1 Side 1:

Poster 1 Side 2:

Poster 2 Side 1:

Poster 2 Side 2:

Poster 3 Side 1:

Poster 3 Side 2:

Nikhil Saxena

Founder, Destrier Studios

https://linktr.ee/destrierstudios

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