Anyone play Mekton Zeta? Does anyone have any recommended tactics for mecha combat? Or is it basically shooting gallery where mechs stay in place and there is no advantage to maneuver?
I'm thinking about running a game, but I wonder how much depth the combat system has.
Quote from: j123456;777908Anyone play Mekton Zeta? Does anyone have any recommended tactics for mecha combat? Or is it basically shooting gallery where mechs stay in place and there is no advantage to maneuver?
I'm thinking about running a game, but I wonder how much depth the combat system has.
Reflexes are king in this game, mecha pilots should have high scores in that. Power plant is queen for the mecha in this game, an oversized power plant gives you extra actions in combat and lowers the reflex modifier.A lot will depend on the design of your mecha, but one tactic that I have found that works well is use a weapon that rapid fires low damage hits in order to knock down your target's armor first and then hit it with a heavier weapon once the armor has been ablated away.
And Use The Internet! There are supporting websites which are filled to the brim with mecha designs and optional rules for
Mekton.
Good advice. I really liked what I saw of the optional rules on MektonZeta.com.
But what's your advice on maneuver?
1. Is it better to keep MA low in order to keep a small turn radius? Do you find it valuable in practice to keep a high MA in order to get behind opponents?
Or
2. Is the advantage to attacking the rear of a Mech so low that maneuver is a non-factor?
Based on my experience, which is admittedly hazy due to time lapsed:
A lot of it really depends on how your mecha is built. If the weaponry is sufficiently dangerous, being able to maneuver out of firing arcs is a big advantage. Even in the same setting, you could have the stand and slug it out types and the more nimble types doing their own things and succeeding just by merit of being designed to do so.
A lot depends on your mecha, and your weapons load. I've played games where you had to hammer on things to take them out, and ones where cockpit or called shots to other systems were possible due to the mecha builds.
Generally speaking a lot depends on if you aim to build towards "semi-real mecha" and tactics make a lot of difference, or more "super-mecha" which means its mostly awesome sword fights that take a while to shift the game.
Hmmm. I missed this one.
Like Silverlion says, it mainly depends on what mecha and technology are in your campaign. Here are a few things that work in a generic sense:
- Flirt with the Combat Range/Extreme Range divide. Ideally, you want to dart into Combat range, take your shot, and dart out a range equal to your opponent's Combat Range + 1/2 MA + 1. This makes your enemy have to take disadvantageous shots at you (-4 to hit), which is a huge penalty in Interlock. This is harder to do in MZ where APT are pegged at 2, but if bonus action rules are being used, then it's an extremely potent trick.
- When fighting opponents of fairly equal skill, it's always better to rely on your single hit high damage weapons. You only have to get slightly lucky once, as opposed to getting really lucky multiple times with low damage high BV weapons.
- Mecha Pool is far more important than you might initially think. Increasing Mecha Pilot above 5 and/or putting modifications on your mech which boost Mecha Pool (like ACE) should be foremost in your mind. If the optional rule for bonus APT for high Mecha Pool is being used, it is even more important to boost your Pilot skill above 5 as soon as possible.
- By the rules, melee weapons get to aim at major locations without additional aiming modifiers. This also applies to hand to hand attacks which have predefined places they strike. This makes them preferable for directed damage, and makes them capable of easy quick kills
- Definitely don't forget the hand to hand attacks while you're in a mecha. Sometimes it can come in incredibly handy to knock a mech back into another hex (such as off a cliff, or into a disruptor field). Grab can also be used to pilfer hand weapons, which is pretty useful when your nova beam saber is out of charge but your opponent's still has 2 turns of charge left.
FWIW, I have a near complete set of Mekton books up through MZ+ I'm looking to unload.