A Mecha Skirmish

As war rages on Zirconia, the robot invaders and human defenders have taken to mechs to patrol the lines. In this skirmish, opposing mechs clash. Both are MAIMs (Mechanized Armored Infantry Module) as outlined in Samurai Robot Battle Royale.

Note: I don't have any mech models so I pressed a couple of scratch built tanks into service.

The robot mech (top) is progressing down a road. The human mech receives word of the incursion and moves to stop the enemy.

The robot mech reaches the town. The human mech crests the ridge and the opponents both shoot but miss.

Realizing the odds were against him, the human rushes into close combat. The robot mech strikes the human, causing engine damage.

The robot mech punches and kicks its opponent to no avail.

The robot mech destroys the human's shield. The human mech rips away the robot's shield.

This began a flurry of ineffective strikes (my dice rolling was pitiful). Eventually, the mechs broke off the indecisive action. (I tired of the constant misses)

Thoughts
What did I think of SRBR? Here are a few thoughts after my short trial:

• It has a number of interesting mechanics, especially treating each part of the mech separately for activation. There are also tons of different features (weapons, attack modes, etc.)
• I liked that the mechs did not feel like tanks; having a variety of close combat options gave them a different flavor.
• However, in my case, combat did drag. It could be my bad dice rolling, or it could be a feature of the opposed die roll mechanic (I've had similar issues in the past with DBA).
• There is quite a bit of detail, which is good if you want to design unique mechs. However, it means that it is not practical to have several mechs on the board when playing solo. I think I'd prefer a higher level game, with a couple of mechs + some support units per side.
• Nevertheless, I think I can mine SRBR for a ton of ideas.

For now, I am not sure where I am going with my mech project. I'll continue to experiment.

What About Miniatures?

You'll notice that I used a couple of tanks that I scratch built a few years ago. I have some sci fi minis from Germy (sold by GZG) but I have actually packed them up and may sell them off. Even before I went on a mecha kick, I was leaning toward using my scratch built forces. Now, I am even more determined to go that route.