OBT Forum
General BattleTech => Cartography Central => Topic started by: Bad_Syntax on November 09, 2013, 12:48:12 AM
-
This is mostly for Volt, but anybody else can chime in as well.
We have had a lot of new maps come out the past year+ since I stopped, and then Volt stopped, updating the planet coordinate list.
HBHK is supposedly coming out soon (though I think it was 'soon' last year too), and added with all the maps it'd be nice to finally get all those coordinates for all those eras finalized and updated.
I know my Cartographer app was a big part of doing this, and I stopped working on it a while back when I threw a temper tantrum about getting banned, but I still have a desire to finish it.
Anybody else out there interested in helping get some of the 3145 or so maps integrated?
Along the same lines, all the units for each era. If I had all those units inputted (I have a lot, but my data format keeps changing) I could also do unit deployment maps. I could update the http://goodsects.gotdns.com/ZoomMap/3025_Small.html (http://goodsects.gotdns.com/ZoomMap/3025_Small.html) site so it has support for maps of every era, or just make a new website that can handle it. I could also redo something like the old IS Atlas with all the new data pretty easily.
Guess I was just seeing what kind of interest level there is out there in getting that data updated to the latest published documents.
-
Hi Syntax, actually i have the 3145 coordinates in my xlsx file before i stopped updating it, and i've used your Cartographer to view it, pretty impressive app still. If you want, send me the format you want the data in so you can port them on your app/site with ease. Right now the only BT related thing i do is mw4 mercs, and not even a whole lot of that. I need something to pass the time while waiting for hb:hk (or another book with new maps), though i'm still leaning towards the idea that it's been relegated to vaporware.
-
HB:HK? No, it's still alive.
-
sure hope so, that book would fill in a lot of pre-3025 holes on my database.
-
I have assurances that it WILL see release in '14... though my source would not specify precisely when.
he even told me witout making me promise to root for the penguins.
-
he even told me witout making me promise to root for the penguins.
That's good. Those stains are impossible to wash off your soul.
-
his response "Don't give up he Blues, they are awesome this year!"
-
CGL said in 2012 that it'd be out in 2013 for sure. I think Herb actually said it in a battle chat, though my memory could be wrong.
Lets hope I can't repeat that statement in 2015.
-
if people had actually bought the handbook products, it might have been a higher priority on the production list.
-
Honestly the handbooks I didn't care for. I bought them all, but only really for the maps and the couple of units/weapons in the back. 90% of them I didn't care for.
The originals I only liked the unit rosters, and some of them weren't so complete (steiner).
My favorite books were the 2 volumes of the NAIS atlases. I've read both of those dozens of times, and if it wasn't for those I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have invested tens of thousands in the game since. Unfortunately, they weren't that popular, and the new management tries to avoid detailing the universe like that (and aren't very military oriented, which may be a bit of a reason too) so the chances of seeing those again are nil.
TROs sell, so we see LOTS of them. Rulebooks sell, so we've seen a bunch of those too. The old scenario books apparently didn't sell well (I thought the starter books were EXTREMELY well done) so they are pretty much discontinued as well.
It all comes down to popularity. Unfortunately the BT fan base isn't large enough that anything but the highest popularity books see repeats. Perhaps if we could get a LOT more fans, the less popular books could still justify the costs to produce.
I really wish they'd do a "we'll make it if you pre-order enough of them" sorta system. Kinda like kickstarter. Lets say I want a book on some big age of war battle on 1 individual planet that was some obscure reference. The book would be 100 pages, have X count of various pics, and require X amount of time to produce. They start a KS and if they get to 1000 pre-orders, they'll write it. Stupid folks like me could buy 10, other folks maybe half, but if they get enough the book gets printed. I would think that'd work, though I'm no line developer.
But hopefully we will see it soon, so they can wash their hands of it and work on the future products (which I hope are 2500-3025, as all the new rules/system are slowing the game down immensely).
-
Have you tried Alpha Strike? Those games are super quick, even with the optional rules. Plus they allow for some large battles.
-
Have you tried Alpha Strike? Those games are super quick, even with the optional rules. Plus they allow for some large battles.
Yeap, and made a card maker for it at http://btengineer.blogspot.com/2013/08/alpha-strike-card-maker-update.html (http://btengineer.blogspot.com/2013/08/alpha-strike-card-maker-update.html) (which is due for an update)
But 3025 battletech is fast enough, its just all the new equipment is really slowing things down. C3, ECM, special armors, special movements, attacks requiring multiple dice, and with advanced tech plenty of tonnage and heat sinks to pile on even more weapons.
-
I agree on the starter books being of superb quality, actually they are my two favorite books of the "Modern" era of the game. I would have loved to have seen Starters for every tier of the rules (Battleforce, Inner Sphere At War, and now Alpha Strike).
Such is life though.