20 Year Anniversary of BattleTech logo BattleTech (MechWarrior) is a science-fiction board game (wargame) (designed by FASA in 1984); which simulates warfare in the distant future of the 31st. Century, where humans battle in gigantic walking machines powered by fusion reactors (known as BattleMechs), tanks, spaceships and other aircraft, wielding weapons such as lasers, Particle Projection Cannons (PPC), Gauss Rifles and Autocannons. As the game and related stories are centered around the BattleMechs warfare, it can be considered a type of a military space opera. Battletech has won three Origins Awards and its various spinoffs and expansions several more.
A role playing game, Mechwarrior called was released soon after the BattleTech wargame. Several computer games and forum games have been based off the game, as well as a collectible card game, a collectible miniature-based wargame, a televised animation, and numerous books.
The computer games for the most part bear the same name as the role playing game: Mechwarrior. Those game are mostly mech simulation/first person shooter games, with some real time strategy games.
An unofficial, online, open source version of the Classic BattleTech game, MegaMek, has been created. It is licensed under GPL. Currently, nearly all level 1 BattleTech rules and technology are working. Work is progressing on level 2 rules and technology, and most of those are functional at this point. Even some level 3 rules have been added.
An estimated twenty-five million people have played a BattleTech or MechWarrior game or read a BattleTech or MechWarrior novel, and at least ten million people have played the BattleTech/ MechWarrior computer games. More than eleven million copies of MechWarrior PC games and a similar number of MechWarrior: Dark Age Collectable Miniatures Game figure shave been sold to date. More than seventy full-length BattleTech or MechWarrior novels have been published (by Penguin Books) and translated into at least fifteen languages. Over three hundred and fifty different BattleTech/MechWarrior game and toy products have been produced to date; several products, such as the Technical Readout series, the core rulebook and base box set, have been in continuous print (in on form or another) since publication. More than five thousand World Wide web pages have been created to date by the online BattleTech/MechWarrior community.
Battlemechs from cover of the book The Legend of the Jade Phoenix by Robert Thurston Battlemechs from cover of the book Patriots and Tyrants by Loren L. Coleman Battlemechs from cover of the book Storms of Fate by Loren L. Coleman After FASA ceased active operations, the rights to BattleTech were sold to WizKids, a game company founded by Jordan K Weissman (one of BattleTech's creators). A new game in the BattleTech universe, known as , was released in 2002 using the same "Clix" system as Mage Knight. The original BattleTech, now known as the Classic BattleTech, has been licensed by WizKids to FanPro, who continue to release rules updates, sourcebooks, and other new material.
Political entities of BattleTech
BattleTech's universe is comprised of numerous interstellar human governments; these remnants of the effectively defunct Star League are fighting a war over the Inner Sphere.
- Inner Sphere: Primarily dominated by the five Successor States and the Great Houses that rule them, the Inner Sphere has always been the heart of the BattleTech Universe.
- Major Factions
- Minor/Historical Factions
- ComStar is a powerful semi-religious order which controlled Terra from the end of the Star League until after the Clan invasion. ComStar (which claims to be a neutral power) maintained a near-perfect monopoly over FTL communication (through their control of HyperPulse Generators) until the Word of Blake schism.
- Word of Blake is a radical splinter group of ComStar, formed after the death of Primus Myndo Waterly. Conquered Terra in 3058.
- Initiated a massive interstellar Jihad in 3067, eventually leading directly to the founding of the Republic of the Sphere. This Jihad marks the ending of the Classic Battletech storyline and the start of the MechWarrior: Dark Age storyline.
- Rasalhague Dominion
- Formerly the Free Rasalhague Republic (FRR) and Ghost Bear occupation zone.
- St. Ives Compact
- Short lived independence from the Capellan Confederation, created after the 4th succession war, absorbed back into the Confederation in 3062.
- Terran Hegemony
- The first star spanning government, ended with the fall of the Star League.
- Republic of the Sphere
- Formed from the ashes of the Word of Blake jihad. Devlin Stone asked for and received all worlds with 120 light years of Terra in his effort to once and for all end war. The collapse of the HPG grid in 3130 lead to the Dark Age and the splintering of the Republic into several factions including:
- Bannson's Raiders: Mercenary unit. Possibly might fold into House Liao.
- Dragon's Fury: Draconis Combine allied faction.
- Highlanders: Republic allied mercenary unit. Possibly might fold back into Republic military.
- Swordsworn: Federated Suns allied faction.
- Spirit Cats: Clan Nova Cat allied faction.
- Stormhammers: Lyran Commonwealth allied faction.
- Steel Wolves: Clan Wolf allied faction.
- The Clans: Descendants of Aleksandr Kerensky's Star League Army, they returned to the Inner Sphere as would-be conquerers in the late 3040s.
- The Periphery: Surrounding the Inner Sphere are a number of independant nations, known collectively as the Periphery. Some colonized even before the time of the Star League, these nations range from single independant planets, minor merchant alliances and pirate havens all the way up to major nations rivaling the Successor States themselves in power.
- Circinus Federation (annihilated during the Jihad)
- Elysian Fields (conquered by the Clans during their invasion)
- Fiefdom of Randis
- Filtvelt Coalition
- Greater Valkyrate (conquered by the Clans during their invasion)
- Lothian League
- Magistracy of Canopus
- Marian Hegemony
- Mica Majority
- Niops Association
- Oberon Confederation (conquered by the Clans during their invasion)
- Outworlds Alliance (peacefully merged with Clan Snow Raven and renamed the Raven Alliance)
- Rim Collection
- Rim Territories
- Taurian Concordat
- Tortuga Dominions
Technology of BattleTech
Notable Battletech artists, designers, and writers
- Jim Nelson
- Bryan Nystul
- Loren L. Coleman
- Michael Stackpole
- Randall Bills
- Franz Vohwinkel
- Herbert Beas III
- Chris Hartford
- Christoffer Trossen
- Øystein Tvedten
- Chris Smith
- Robert Thurston
- Rick Raisley
- Thomas Gressman
- Blaine Pardoe
- Andreas Zuber
- Robert Charrette
- William H. Keith, Jr.
- Peter Smith
- Warner Doles
- Peter LaCasse
- Ardath Mayhar
See also
External links
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