In this MechaStellar battle report we are using the VER11 rules testing our some units from Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans including the infamous Hashmal Mobile Armor. The opposing player isn’t run Barbatos, but as a close stand-in they have the well known Berseker the Gundam Blue Destiny. Supporting it are a host of ground combat forces includes a squad of Gundam Ground Types, GM Ground Types, 2x Guncannon Mass Produced and 1 Guntank Mass Produced.
With heavy artillery and the a newtype ghost on their side, can they defeat this relic of the calamity war, the Mobile Armor Hashmal and it’s army of Plumas? Find out in this MechaStellar Battle report.
The battle opens with Hashmal going first, the player off course reasons
Well, what else would Hashmal do besides wiping out the landscape with its beam cannon
So Hashmal on its high perch fires off it’s AOE weapon, instantly vaporizing one of the GM Ground Types, despite their hefty HP. It then advanced up to the mid field.
The GM Ground types advanced, too far to retaliate, then the plumas began taking railgun shots at them. Next up the Gundam Ground types moved forward, unleashing their artillery cannons into a squad of Plumas.
Likewise the Guntanks and Guncannons began shelling the Plumas on the western flank. Their opponent that was flush with Morale Points and protected his swarms well. He later remarked
Man I love playing the villain
In later rounds, the Plumas began swarming over the west and east Control Points, the slower Gundam and GM Ground Types offering volleys of fire. Of the 6 Plumas on this side, 2 were destroyed.
Things were getting pretty dicey on the Eastern side. The Plumas ignored shooting and opted to charge into the Blue Destiny Unit 1 and Hashmal as well, who valiantly defending himself. The worst part is, by Round 3 with all forces in melee, the Guncannons and Guntanks were out of targets to shoot.
Designer’s note: Both players forgot about the “Overwhelm” tactical advantage which would have applied here
Surrounded, one team of Plumas managed to backstab the Blue Destiny bring it to low HP and activating it’s Berserker mode.
The Pluma Squads brought down the GM Ground Types with their drill tails. But the Gundam Ground types proved more than a match for them. Slow and steady they brought down all 6 Plumas on the Eastern front.
Alas, even while Berserk the Blue Destiny could not fight off Hashmal and all the Plumas backstabbing it.
It was a fun battle and did bring up several conversations on:
P2: Well, we know beams don’t really work against Nanolaminate armor
P1: Right. The pilot would melt before the Mobile Suit Does
P2: Yeah, but how about Beam Sabers
P1: How indeed!
This conversation governed how Nanolaminate would be treated, and the ability would be revised. But more on that later.
With the Blue Destiny defeated, the Guncannons went in swinging and crushed a few more Plumas with their mighty fists.
Still, there were no match for Hashmal.
In Round 5, Hashmal blasted the low HP Guntank from afar with its Beam Cannon.
A close match! While the Federation player hit the objectives well, Hashmal’s wake of devastation wrecking so many units earned them a ton of Victory Points.
After Action Report
Ironically this is the first game we’ve played where both players were hitting the Morale Point cap of 10 often. Early game, players weren’t spending that many Morale Points and there weren’t too many casualties until Round 3.
The Hashmal player had a lot of fun, the profile will get a few more revisions until it’s ready for full release. Currently, having 3 different Counter weapons is a bit overboard. Likewise, Nanolaminate need another pass before its ready.
The Earth Federation Ground Forces did very well, and with significantly more HP and far less Armor Saves compared to VER10 the were very robust and most units survived until Round 5.
Looking forward to the rematch!
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