Mekton Z

[YPU]

I was looking for a good Mecha rpg a few days ago, and what I found afther asking here on the forum as Mekton. But since I have totally no experience at this game, I was hoping some people around here do and can give me some advice. My players will be focusing on combat, and fight in a role-playing way. The “my character is hot headed and impulsive, I know that storming al those enemy’s is stupid but he doesn’t think about it.” Style of play. To give a good example. Any pitfalls, or perhaps scenario’s I should try?

[TheGreatJabu]

Well, I guess it all depends on how powerful the Mechas your players will be piloting are. If they're good enough to survive the "charge headlong into superior numbers", then it's all a matter of picking your Antagonists. If the "bag guys" are poorly organized or dumb, they'll keep lining up and your players will keep knocking them down. If they have a unified system where they can communicate with each other, it's more likely that field commanders would have heard about your Heroes and have started working on counter-strategies to beat them. Here's a few random examples of ways that the enemy COULD potentially try to pound your players. They're divided into two categories: one for when the enemies are almost caught completely by surprise, and the other for when a wiley commander knows that they are on their way ahead of time and can get a few tricks up his sleeve.

Little preparation time:

1. Reinforcements - only have about 40% of the enemies deployed when the heroes arrive. THEN have the other 60% come in from a flank if possible, or simply just to reinforce or create a 2nd line for the heroes to attack and breach.

2. Divide and Conquer - when the heroes attack, have the enemies begin falling back in about 3 different directions. If the heroes take the bait, you've got them split up. Keep in mind that if you have enough troops, combining 1 and 2 is a good idea.

3. Flexible front - try to keep the heroes from getting close. Have one group of enemies fall back while a group (already further back) gives them covering fire.

Plenty of Preparation time:

1. Minefields. If they fly, you could create a floating minefield. This is a high-tech game, who says there wouldn't be floating mines?

2. Friendly fire - send up a small group of skirmishers to BARELY slow the heroes' assault. As they move in, open up with artillery from much further away. Probably won't hit them, but by golly it'll shake them up and make for a more exciting battle situation.

3. Heavily entrenched positions - every one of your bad guys has a defended position, and there's another set of bad guys who can cover THAT bad guy from THEIR defended position. Just like in #3 from No-Prep-Time, Heroes don't like it when they can't sink their teeth into a whole group of baddies.

Or the classic, you said it yourself! 4. Pitfalls. The ol' gigantic Burmese Tiger trap! If the heroes' mecha don't fly, and they're not carefully observing their surroundings, they could charge straight into - a hole. It'd be unreasonable to make it SUPER deep, but deep enough to possibly get them stuck, or at least deep enough to fill the bottom with MINES and blow some legs off.

But anyways, I wouldn't recommend using ANY of those strategies if the group of baddies the Good Guys are currently fighting are stupid / inexperienced. Classic rule of roleplaying bad guys - play them as smart as THEY are, not as smart as YOU are.

Did that help, or were you more looking for plot hooks or specific mission ideas?

[YPU]

Did that help, or were you more looking for plot hooks or specific mission ideas?

does help. i was looking for both.
One book had something on swamp mecha jumping from pitfalls in a swamp. I think that would work for the ambush as well, also in a desert or something like that. having 60% of the enemy hidden.

[TheGreatJabu]

Well heck, when it comes to mission profiles it's all a matter of your universe, your villains, the motivations of your Heroes, and your imagination.

Just think of typical army-type stuff, but make it on a grander, more animé scale. There's still timeless classic military manuevers!

Raiding a Supply Depot
Attacking Supply Convoy
Attacking Power Plant supporting enemy installations
Attempting to capture enemy VIPs
Attempting to kill enemy VIPs
Launch attack against base as a distraction for a larger friendly force
BE the larger friendly force attacking the base
Defend friendly installations
Escort important allies
Scout out enemy locations
Skirmish with enemy raiders
Serve as Honor Guard at an important function, only to have ALL HELL BREAK LOOSE (because seriously - when in any RPG has the Honor Guard ever had a boring time?)

Or incorporate fun ideas from more typically fantasy RPG settings!

Rescue an important person
Face down a notorious bandit/enemy leader
Charge headlong into an enemy stronghold
Lead a "hopeless" attack against a super-powerful enemy weapon/army
Overthrow a tyrant

Mekton Zeta is a set of rules created for animé-style dramatic combat, so by golly you could convert any fun setting for D&D, D20 Modern, or Star Wars into this mechanic simply by adding the disclaimer "Replace Person A with Mecha A - repeat". :smallbiggrin:

[YPU]

Thanks jabu, those will help for some quick inspiration indeed. I am trying to start a pbp here as well.