8 replies to this topic

[StompingOnTanks]

Hi everyone!

My little brother and I are getting into Battletech and so far we're really enjoying it. We have the basic rules memorized and we have an old Hasbro 3D hex-based board game to play on (I can't remember what it's called, but it's the one with the plastic hex pieces that stack and lock together). The only problem is minis. So far we've been using Legos and hand-made paper stand-ups to represent our units, but they're pretty flimsy and not too giant-stompy-robot-looking. I'm looking for a place to buy cheap BT minis or a substitute that looks "mechy" enough to pass as them, perhaps in the form of small one-piece plastic robot toys or something.

Can anybody point me in the right direction with this?

Edit: Just remembered the board game, it's called Heroscape.

Edited by StompingOnTanks, 03 February 2014 - 08:30 AM.

[Egomane]

With the size of the heroscape hexes, you could look for cheap batches of old mechwarrior dark age minatures. You should be able to find a few batches cheap on ebay.

[theGerf]

The Battletech starter box comes with 24 plastic Inner Sphere mechs, and 2 clan mechs. It's a decent collection for the price, a bit more than $2 per mech in the end. Plus you get the rest of the stuff.

http://bg.battletech...ductory-box-set

[Blood Rose]

theGerf, on 03 February 2014 - 10:35 PM, said:

The Battletech starter box comes with 24 plastic Inner Sphere mechs, and 2 clan mechs. It's a decent collection for the price, a bit more than $2 per mech in the end. Plus you get the rest of the stuff.

http://bg.battletech...ductory-box-set

That ones out of production.
Your best waiting for the new Classic Battletech starter set. Its exactly the same as the 25th anniverssary set, except that the minis will be of a better quality, and the hi tech mechs will be a Battlemaster, and a Timberwolf.

I also suggest you try Ebay.

[Surtr]

check shapeways.com for some good knockoff stuff. Also Reaper CAV can work too. Also GHQ Micro Armour and anything in 1:285 scale can be used for support vehicles/custom tanks/aircraft.

Edited by Surtr, 05 February 2014 - 07:49 PM.

[PieRat]

Search Ebay for Battletech miniatures. Even though I have the 25th anniversary set here that comes with a bunch of plastic pieces I have been slowly replacing said pieces with the metal ones from Ebay, and more recently been collecting the Mechs from MWO here in metal miniature form. For example here is a Shadow Hawk. http://www.ebay.com/...=item51b82a2948

Edited by PieRat, 05 February 2014 - 10:52 PM.

[S3dition]

I had posted some stuff before, but the thread would be more than 3 years old now so I'm not going to try to find it.

A great company to grab some vehicles from is GHQ. Their stuff is still used by the military to train unit identification and war games. They also have frequent 15% off sales (you have to order off their website though. They'll mail you a post card when the sale begins).

Of particular note for good battletech use:

Merkava
Namer
Magach
ZBD-2000
LAV AT
Stryker AT
T-95
Gepard
Warrior
TOS-1 Buratino
MTSA-S
Tunguska
ZSU-23
SA-6 Gainful
SA-15 Gauntlet

Plus pretty much any of the infantry and whatever aircraft your group will accept. Depending on where you live, the vehicles may be relatively unknown and readily accepted. The ones I listed tend to not be well known, and therefore not obvious.

For actual mechs, you should look at the premade mechwarrior clix game pieces on ebay. They aren't the best quality, but they're pre-assembled and painted.

[Dakkaface]

StompingOnTanks, on 03 February 2014 - 08:28 AM, said:

Hi everyone!

My little brother and I are getting into Battletech and so far we're really enjoying it. We have the basic rules memorized and we have an old Hasbro 3D hex-based board game to play on (I can't remember what it's called, but it's the one with the plastic hex pieces that stack and lock together). The only problem is minis. So far we've been using Legos and hand-made paper stand-ups to represent our units, but they're pretty flimsy and not too giant-stompy-robot-looking. I'm looking for a place to buy cheap BT minis or a substitute that looks "mechy" enough to pass as them, perhaps in the form of small one-piece plastic robot toys or something.

Can anybody point me in the right direction with this?

Edit: Just remembered the board game, it's called Heroscape.

Heroscape tiles are pretty boss for playing CBT on. I have a few of the base sets myself for the same reason.

That said - I don't advise you to pick up Mechwarrior: Dark Age minis like some are here - DA minis are N scale, while CBT minis are a little bit smaller than Z-scale at 1:285. for comparison - N-scale models in the back and the Z-scale models in the front right.


Buying the N-scale MW:DA minis will be cheaper, but they're a little large for playing on Heroscape tiles. I'd recommend trying to get a hold of the 25th anniversary intro box, or wait for the new one they'll be coming out with shortly - those will run you $50 for 25-ish basic mechs. so around $2 per. Alternately, if you don't mind scaling DOWN you can get Battleforce packs of 4-5 mechs for $20, but they're itty bitty.



In general, any pewter mini of the right scale is going to run you around $10 per. Reaper's CAV line is probably the best scale match, but be aware that it does run larger than CBT - not so as to make it unplayable on Heroscape tiles, but they will be more massive than CBT minis. They run about $7-12 dollars apiece as opposed to IWM's $9-15, so you won't be saving all that much unless you're buying 20+ mechs.

Unfortunately, unlike 28mm scale fantasy, there isn't a huge variety of Z-scale robot walkers.

[CarnifexMaximus]

buying minis is still cheaper than buying mechs in MWO. And you will have them for the rest of your life not when the game is finished.

I would check your local game store and see if they put older stuff on sale. I picked up a few minis this way by getting what was marked down at the time.

Amazon.com has them through 3rd party sellers. Sometimes they are cheaper there but you still have to deal with shipping.

Personally, I like buying direct from http://ironwindmetals.com/

The prices are not cheap by any means, but the selection is excellent and I usually combine orders with a friend to maximize on shipping. Also they will sell you spare parts from their scrap yard. I've been picking up odd gun barrels, legs and stuff for a kit bashing project I have in mind.

Edited by CarnifexMaximus, 12 February 2014 - 03:51 PM.