BattleTech Battle Report

Here I present my latest Battletech battle report for the game I played with Dah Masta Cheef last week.
I hope anyone who reads it likes it and feel free to comment and follow for more.


Scenario Selection

Scenario - Scorched Earth

Defenders cannot allow the attacker to capture strategic buildings by destroying the strategic buildings
Attackers cannot allow the defenders to destroy the buildings

Objective buildings

Level 1 CF40 x 8 worth 200 BV destroyed for the Defenders and worth 200 BV intact for the Attackers
50% located in the Southeast and Southwest Mapsheets
Level2 CF40 x 6 worth 200 BV destroyed for the Defenders and worth 200 BV intact for the Attackers
50% located in the Southeast and Southwest Mapsheets

Mapsheet Selection

Mpsheets - 4

Mapset 6

Northeast Mapsheet -  Wide River
Northwest Mapsheet - BattleForce 2

Map Set 6

Southeast Mapsheet - City (Residential)
Southwest Mapsheet - City (Suburbs)


Mapsheey layout

North mapsheet touch short length to short length
North and South mapsheets touch long length to long length
South Mapsheets touch short length to short length

NE | NW
SE  | SW

Forces

Defending Force

Heavy Lance

Kintaro KTO-18
Thunderbolt TDR-5SS
Warhammer WHM-6D
Orion ON1-K

Support Units

Harasser Missile Platform (LRM Variant) - Harasser 01
Harasser Missile Platform (LRM Variant) - Harasser 02

Attacking Force

Heavy Lance

Cicada CDA-3C
Dragon DRG-1G - Dragon 01
Dragon DRG-1G - Dragon 99
Stalker STK-4N

Support Units

Maxim Hover Transport
Foot Infantry Platoon (Laser)

Deployment

Attackers

Northeast Mapsheet -  Wide River

Cicada
Dragon 01
Dragon 99
Maxim

Northwest Mapsheet - BattleForce 2

Stalker

Defenders

Southeast Mapsheet - City (Residential)

Kintaro
Warhammer
Harasser 1

Southwest Mapsheet - City (Suburbs)

Thunderbolt
Orion
Harasser 2


Battle Report

Turn 1
A small city sector sits evacuated, but guarded by a single heavy lance of battlemechs. The reason the heavy lance was sent to guard the city sector was never mentioned to the pilots. The mechwarriors received information enemy units had penetrate defensive lines and where invaded nearby cities in search of valuable resources. Their orders were to destroy buildings targeted for destruction to prevent enemy capture or control. Mission objective coordinates showed the buildings were spread evenly across the two sides of the city. The defending heavy lance chose to split up to destroy more buildings faster. The Orion, the Thunderbolt, and Harasser 01 began destruction operations in the southeast portion of the city. The Kintaro, the Warhammer, and Harasser 02 began destruction operations in the southwest portion of the city. Enemy units were detected outside the city limits before the first building was fired upon. The attacking force was identified as a heavy lance with a Maxim trailing alongside. The Maxim, a Cicada and a pair of Dragons were detected along the Northeast border while a Stalker was detected along the Northwest border. Without pause defending battlemechs opened fire on the first four buildings targeted for destruction.

Turn 2
The Orion, Thunderbolt, and the Warhammer each turned a building to rubble while the Kintaro's short range missile launchers failed to fire enough missiles out of their launchers to keep up the pace. Both Harasser units sped ahead towards the approaching enemy units. All attacking units advanced to towards the city except for the Stalker which slowed its speed.

Turn 3
The heavy battlemechs switched to new targets as the Kintaro finished off its first target. Both Harasser fired their LRMs in vague attempts to soften up the approaching enemy units. All attacking battlemechs entered the Southeast city limits and split up against the two heavy mechs in the Southeast section of the city. The Stalker was still outside of the city limits. The Maxim entered the Southeast city limits stopping long enough to drop its cargo of foot infantry near one objective.

Turn 4
The attackers engaged the defenders. Dragon 01 headed towards the Orion which destroyed another building. Dragon 99 and the Cicada both headed for the Thunderbolt. Dragon 99 prepared to fight the Thunderbolt face to face, heavy battlemech to heavy battlmech, but was denied by a common torso twist to entertain the attention of the Cicada. The Cicada used its speed to sneak behind the Thunderbolt to fire a PPC shot. Both the Dragon and the Tunderbolt exchanged introductory blows with not much worry. The Thunderbolt's earlier torso twist gave the Cicada a PPC shot in return which destroyed the Cicada's own PPC. The Maxim saw quick opportunity to speed in and provide additional support against the Thunderbolt. The Kintaro broke away from building destruction operations and sent SRM rounds towards the Maxim locking its turret in place. Harasser 02 speed toward the Maxim and unloaded LRMs registering critical hits, but the Maxim was able to shrug off any further serious damage. The Warhammer keeping to the Southwest city limits destroyed another building.

Turn 5
Harasser 01 finding it difficult to achieve a good shot against the attackers found it easy to achieve a good shot against an objective building. The Orion's destruction operations were interrupted by Dragon 01 wanting to pick a fight. The mechs traded weapons fire and then proceeded to start a kicking match. The Orion's kick was true while Dragon 01's kick was false. The Thunderbolt and Dragon 99 continued to fight each other, although Dragon 99 was caught off guard by the Thunderbolt's flamer causing rapid heat buildup.  The Thunderbolt and Dragon 99 started a kicking match as well with both mech kicks being true. Despite all of the serious damage Dragon 99' pilot was holding. The Kintaro resumed building destruction operations picking up at the location the Thunderbolt had damaged prior to Dragon 01's interference. The Warhammer continued building destruction operations and moved to a new target as the other mechs were fairing well and the Stalker still had not joined the fight.

Turn 6
Harasser 01 attempted a quick turn to achieve a clear firing line to Dragon 99, the driver lost control of the vehicle crashing into a nearby building damaging the front armor slightly. The attacking Dragons were a mirror image fight of one another trying to stall the defending Orion and Thunderbolt from destroying anymore buildings. Weapons fire on both side was proving useful, but not useful enough to cause serious harm. The defending heavy battlemechs kicking attacks were causing major problems for both Dragons as their leg armor was disappearing fast leaving only the internal structure to hold the mechs upright. Dragon 01 was suffering from major leg damage from the Orion's superior weight induced kicks. Dragon 99 although fared better in the leg armor was severely over heated reducing available weapons fire. The Kintaro was also showering Dragon 99 with SRM missiles further shredding the armor exposing vital critical elements. The Stalker, taking advantage of the stalled heavy mech brawl between Dragon 99 and the Thunderbolt, covered the distance to assist Dragon 99. The Stalker found an opening between the buildings and opened fire with as much firepower as it could dish out to the Thunderbolt while saving some for the Kintaro. The Stalker's large amount of damage was shrugged of by the Thunderbolt, but a single large laser seared the Thunderbolt's head armor down to the last armor plate.
The Cicada having been chased off by the Thunderbolt headed towards Harasser 01 stopping next to it in order to fire its machine guns at close range. The Cicada's machine guns ripped apart an air skirt causing massive critical damage which resulted in a complete hover ability system failure. The Cicada took anger on the Harasser further and kicked the vehicle causing the already weakened side armor to collapse in and render the vehicle useless.

Turn 7
The Stalker's intervention was successful at scattering the defending battlemechs away from Dragon 99 which needed to remain stationary and expel excess heat. The Thunderbolt having suffered a dangerous head hit broke off from fighting Dragon 99 and smashed through a nearby building escaping the view of the Stalker. The Kintaro followed the actions of the Thunderbolt and escaped the view of the Stalker as well. The Thunderbolt was not completely out of sight, the Maxim happened to be stationary on the side of the building where the Thunderbolt had emerged. The Thunderbolt fired its SRMs with great affect, but a few extra medium lasers finally tore through the remaining armor rendering the vehicle useless. The Orion and Dragon 01 established some distance from each other. The Orion, feeling a lower threat level from Dragon 01 split fire between Dragon 01 and a nearby building targeted for destruction. Dragon 01 relieved from having to face another potentially crippling kick attack was able to keep a steady weapons fire rate against the Orion. Dragon 01's relief was short lived as the Orion's AC/10 shot stuck the head tearing all the remaining armor off along with some of the internal structure. Along the main road connecting the Southeast and Southwest city limits the Warhammer emerged to attract the attention of the stalker. Both battlemechs fire their long range weaponry at each other to little affect. The Stalker's pilot was amazed as a large laser blast seared the same amount of armor off of the Warhammer's head just like the Thunderbolt moments earlier.

Turn 8
The defenders in the Southeast city slightly scattered from the Stalker's intervention changed combat roles. The Thunderbolt moved away from Dragon 99 and the Stalker while raining LRM and PPC fire at the building Harasser 01 started earlier. The thunderbolt was attacked by laser fire from an infantry platoon, but returned laser fire causing large amount of casualties. The Kintaro using speed against the Stalker to remain hidden engaged Dragon 99 and showered the battlemech in SRM glory. The SRMs were not enough to take down Dragon 99, but enough to cause an upper leg actuator on the mech's right leg to give out decreasing Dragon's movement to the speed of the slower Stalker. The Orion and Dragon 01 traded weapons fire with little effects, but Dragon 01 had removed enough to armor on the Orion's right torso giving rise to the fear of an ammo explosion. While contemplating the ammo issue, the Orion's pilot continued to focus fire on the objective building. The Warhammer moved back out of sight and resumed building destruction operations.

Turn 9
The defenders felt they had thwarted the attackers efforts to stop them from accomplishing their objective.  The Thunderbolt moved towards the upper limits of the Southeast city and starting destroying another building. The Orion began dumping AC/10 ammunition and destroyed another building. The Warhammer reported another building destroyed. The Kintaro stood fast for a kill and fired multiple medium lasers and multiple SRMs at Dragon 99. The projected firepower and SRM shower struck Dragon 99 all over shredding armor on multiple locations. When the pilot thought all was fine,  the battlemech released sounds of tearing, then a large pop followed by a blow to the head. The battlemechs sensors alarmed registering large amounts of critical systems hit. By the time Dragon 99 had recovered from the onslaught, the right arm PPC was offline and lifting the battlemech's right arm's revealed it had been blown completely off the right torso. The pilot noticed a large lean to the right side and saw the right foot was destroyed. When the pilot's eyes raised back up to those of the Kintaro, the pilot felt the road underneath the battlemech drop. The Kintaro kicked Dragon 99 so hard the left leg came loose and Dragon 99 felt face first to the ground. Despite the serious damage, Dragon 99's pilot was still in the battle.

Turn 10
Harasser 02 finished destroying the building started by Hrasser 01 and the Thunderbolt. The Kintaro needing to cool down, left Dragon 99 on its face and used the somewhat convenient rubble of an earlier destroyed building to cut across and put some buildings between it and the Stalker. Both the Thunderbolt and the Warhammer each reported another building destroyed. The Orion having destroyed all available objective buildings in the immediate area turned its focus on Dragon 01. In pursuit of Dragon 01, the Orion smashed through a building causing slight damage and registering a critical failure. When the Orion emerged the AC/10 had been silenced and mangled by the building's interior. Dragon 01 traded firepower with Orion in a last attempt to stop the Orion from crossing to the Southwest city to destroy more buildings. The Orion's armor held, but Dragon 01's frail leg armor finally gave in. Incoming SRMs completely blew off the left leg. Dragon 01 went crashing to the ground face to the sky.

Turn 11
With most of the objective buildings destroyed on the far east side of the Southeast city the defenders all moved to whatever objective buildings were left to destroy before moving to the Southwest city.
The Harasser 02 stopped to fire LRM missiles at the helpless out ranged infantry platoon leaving them with two active infantrymen. The Harasser left its guard down long enough for the Stalker to approach with enough laser fire to allow one large laser shot to burn the front armor all the way through the internal structure rendering the vehicle useless. The Kintaro used the same somewhat convenient rubble pass to pass by the fallen Dragon 99. The somewhat convenient rubble pass became somewhat inconvenient as the Kintaro lost its footing and fell in the rubble. The enraged Kintaro lifted upwards towards the fallen crippled Dragon 99 and fired a single medium laser and sliced its remaining arm off. The Orion determined to leave the area without anymore trouble stood before Dragon 01 and fired on the still downed mech. Dragon 01's pilot cockpit was blinded by bright laser fire and SRM explosions. Dragon 01's right arm PPC had been destroyed. To persuade Dragon 01 from any further pursuit the Orion kicked Dragon 01 while down severing the left leg completely. The Warhammer still keeping out of sight started destroying another building. The Thunderbolt moved towards another objective building towards the southeast city' northern limits. The Thunderbolt had been followed by the Cicada trying to pick at its exposed internal structure points. The Cicada's machine gun rounds tore through what was still protecting the Thunderbolt's left leg and damaged the upper leg actuator. The Thunderbolt' reponse was a perfect PPC shot to te Cicada's right side completely removing the right arm and what was left of the right torso. The Cicada' respone to the Thunderbolt's PPC shot was a swift kick which did nothing to cause the pilot any further worry.

Turn 12
The Kintaro stood up from the ground and traveled past Dragon 99. The Kintaro stopped momentarily to fire upon the crippled mech with a determination to turn the crippled mech instead a pile of useless slag and severed mech parts. The Orion, satisfied about trashing Dragon 01 moved towards the Southwest city. The Orion's sensors registered an unscathed objective building near the border of the Southern cities and fired upon it. The Warhammer destroyed another building. The Thunderbolt continued to move towards more objectives dumping SRM rounds. The Cicada followed close by followed by the Stalker.

Turn 13
The Kintaro and the Warhammer moved towards any leftover objective buildings. The Orion destroyed another building. The Thunderbolt was now caught between the Cicada and the Stalker. The Thunderbolt's rear ammunition bays were struck by the Cicada's machine gun rounds causing the SRM ammo to explode. The Thunderbolt's pilot ejected seconds before a large barrage of firepower from the Stalker struck what was left of the mech. The intense firepower blew off the left arm and smashed what was left of the head and cockpit. In the end, defying the odds, Dragon 01 stood up.

The attackers having the Cicada critically damaged, both Dragons crippled, and only two objective buildings left to be destroyed ended their attack and the game was at an end.

Objective BV

Defenders
Objective Buildings Destroyed
14 Buildings x 200 BV = 2800 BV
Attacking Units Destroyed (Gunnery and Pilot skilled included in BV)
1 Vehicles (Maxim) - 879 BV

Total BV = 3679 BV

Attackers
Objective Buildings Intact
2 Buildings x 200 BV = 400 BV
Defending Units Destroyed (Gunnery and Pilot skilled included in BV)
1 Battlemech (Thunderbolt) - 1845 BV
2 Vehicles (Harasser 01, Harasser 02) - 391 BV x 2 = 782 BV

Total BV = 3027 BV

The defending heavy lance was victorious!


Defender damage report


Heavy Lance

Kintaro KTO-18
Pilot hit (Fall)
Thunderbolt TDR-5SS
Pilot hit (Head hit)
Pilot hit x 2 (Ammo explosion)
Left leg upper leg actuator destroyed
Remaining SRM ammo dumped
SRM ammo explosion
Center torso destroyed
Head destroyed
Cockpit destroyed
Battlemech Destroyed
Warhammer WHM-6D
Pilot hit (Head hit)
Orion ON1-K
50% of remaining AC/10 ammo dumped
Remaining AC/10 ammo down to 1 round

Support Units

Harasser Missile Platform (LRM Variant) - Harasser 01
Air skirt damaged
Hover system damaged
Vehicle Destroyed
Harasser Missile Platform (LRM Variant) - Harasser 02
Vehicle Destroyed

25%     Battlemechs destroyed
0%       Pilots killed
100%   Vehicles destroyed
0%       Drivers killed

Attacker damage report

Heavy Lance

Cicada CDA-3C
PPC damaged
Right arm destroyed
Right torso destroyed
Dragon DRG-1G - Dragon 01
Pilot hit (Head Hit)
Pilot hit (Fall)
PPC damaged
Left arm destroyed
Left leg blown off
Battlemech Crippled
Dragon DRG-1G - Dragon 99
Pilot Hit (Head Hit)
Pilot Hit (Fall)
PPC damaged
Left arm destroyed
Right arm blown off
Left leg destroyed
Right leg upper leg actuator destroyed
Right leg foot actuator destroyed
Battlemech Fallen
Stalker STK-4N

Support Units

Maxim Hover Transport
Turret locked
Vehicle Destroyed
Foot Infantry Platoon (Laser)
90% Casualties

0%       Battlemechs destroyed
0%       Pilots killed
100%   Vehicles destroyed
0%       Drivers killed

Thoughts

• The mechs were chosen in advance and the scenario and mapsheets later. This made both forces somewhat unprepared for the battle.
• Roads can be a blessing and a nightmare for movement.
• Buildings not only block your enemy's LOS, but also your own LOS.
• The Kintaro was a good pick and really shined as a mech finisher.
• The Orion was interesting to use. I swapped the dual SRM for the LRM variant, however all of the buildings really mitigated most long range LOS.
• The Warhammer should have seen more combat, but the amount of BV it was racking up was worth it despite being chosen for heavy mech to heavy mech combat.
• Dah Masta Cheef actually said he liked the map sheets. +1
• The look on Dah Masta Cheef's face when he noticed the Thunderbolt had a flamer pointed at his overheating Dragon was priceless.
• The Stalker's speed limited its effectiveness at times, but the amount of large laser head shots it was able to achieve was heroic. 
• I enjoy scenarios compared to just a plain fight.

Till next time.