Tag: Gundam

MechaStellar Battle Report Defend the City Game 2 featuring Gundam & Pacific Rim

Note: This was a battle report from MechaStellar VER7 there are a number of updates to gameplay and victory points since that time. For instance in this version only a single armor save was rolled but failing it was instant death.

The 2nd game that day we were able to accommodate another player who was joyfully able to play as Epyon as well as a Kaiju from Pacific Rim.  Wing and Heavy Arms returned as Attackers while Gipsy, Big Zam, Gundam and Guncannon returned as Defenders along with Deathscythe.  You’ll find the Battle Report below the break.

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MechaStellar Battle Report Defend the City Game 1 featuring Gundam & Pacific Rim

Note: This was a battle report from MechaStellar VER7 there are a number of updates to gameplay and victory points since that time. For instance in this version only a single armor save was rolled but failing it was instant death.

This is probably my favorite game we had of Defend the City. We had a tag team match with two players on each side. Defend the City is a game mode where the Defenders are trying to preserve the city while the Attackers attempt to destroy it.

The Attacker side had units from Gundam Wing (Wing & Heavy Arms) plus units from Gundam SEED (Freedom & Justice). In the 2v2 game each player picked a Commander trait, Wing had Vigilant Leader and Justice had Three Times as Fast.

The Defender side focused on Mobile Suit Gundam with an unlikely alliance between the Federation and Zeon. They had Big Zam, Zaku IIs, Gelgoogs, Amuro in the Gundam plus two Guncannons along with Gipsy Danger from Pacific Rim. In the 2v2 game each player picked a Commander trait, Big Zam had Resourceful while Amuro had Unyielding.

The players were using the Battle Damage and Climactic Events modules.

Below the break you’ll find the battle report. We were having a lot of fun with everyone at the table and the audience and so only remembered to take a few photos per Round.

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Where to Start Mobile Suit Gundam

Kunio Okawara painting of the original RX-78-2 Gundam

Mobile Suit Gundam is a long running mecha franchise that created the “Real Robot” genre. To give a brief explanation, the Real Robot genre typically has a more militaristic feel where logistics, geopolitics, and the fragility of human life in a conflict are often at the forefront. That’s not to say Super Robot shows cannot do the exact same (and have done so), but Real Robot shows generally embody those traits while trying to stay as grounded and realistic as they can within the boundaries of their setting.

Trying to shoehorn every single mecha anime into a strictly Super or Real Robot classification is generally an exercise in futility, but the broad strokes of Super Robot and Real Robot can be useful when describing a show to someone else.

Mobile Suit Gundam (1979) followed in the footsteps of Space Battleship Yamato (1974) by delivering a science fiction show with the main theme being “War is Hell”.

We’ll update this post periodically as we add more Gundam series to the MechaStellar game roster.

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MechaStellar VER 9 – Tabletop Gundam Gameplay Example – Round 2

Gundam Ground Type Zaku II Dom

In this series of posts we are going to do a Tabletop Gundam Gameplay Example for MechaStellar usings units from the 08th MS Team. You can look at the Mecha Unit Profiles for the Federation and Zeon on the downloads page. Click here to for Game Setup and Round 1.

Below the break we will cover the 2nd round of a 5 round game of MechaStellar. We will go turn by turn each round and include some insights into the Gundam Tactics.

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MechaStellar VER 9 – Tabletop Gundam Gameplay Example – Setup and Round 1

Tabletop Gundam Tactics

In this series of posts we are going to do a Gameplay Example for MechaStellar using units from Mobile Suit Gundam. We are using some fan favorites from the 08th MS Team including Shiro Amada, Karen Joshua, and Terry Sanders Jr, who will be referred to as Shiro, Karen and Sanders for short.

On the Zeon side we have an assortment of Zaku IIs, Zaku Cannons & Doms all being led by an amphibious Acguy. You can look at the Mecha Unit Profiles for the Federation and Zeon on the downloads page. The Gundam models used for this example are from the Gundam 1/400 collection. You can use larger size figures such as Gundam 1/144 scale, here’s an example battle report of what figures of those scale look like on the tabletop.

Below the break we will cover the game setup, deployment, and the 1st round of a 5 round game of MechaStellar. We will go by turn by turn each round and include some insights into the Gundam Tactics.

Continue reading “MechaStellar VER 9 – Tabletop Gundam Gameplay Example – Setup and Round 1” →

Salamis & Musai Update

Just a quick update. While prototyping some powerful warships (Ra Cailum, Arcadia, J-Ark, etc.) we decided to alter the cost formula since these units were becoming too costly. This also affects Frame 1 units like the Salamis and Musai to a smaller degree. Their new costs allow them to have a full crew for 300pts with 5 Zaku IIs to a Musai and 4 GMs to a Salamis. The Salamis also got a slight equipment adjustment with more missiles available.

Additionally VER 8.5 of the core rules was updated to R2. This update adds in a [Reload] action for Stellar Warships.

Stellar Warships

  • All ships received Move+1, HP+1000, and a Cost decrease
  • AA Guns now ignore the Defense array trait