The Culture: Explaining How To Play The Real Game Made Simple

This past week, Sven van der Plank released a new BattleTech lore video- the second about the Third Succession War.

I want you to watch it, because Sven's excellent work (as with that of the Black Pants Legion) inadvertently reveals how to make a property like BattleTech into a proper hobby campaign game instead of a Brand slaved to the commercial concerns of a publisher.

Specifically, it presents a way to explain how the Real Hobby works to those unfamiliar with it- including a lot of Cargo Cultists.

"Replace all of those publisher-dicatated actions by nobles, generals, admirals, Comstar officials, etc. with the decisions of players running those characters and the factions at their command. That's how you begin a positive feedback loop of perpetual gameplay."

"Where's the stompy robot action?"

"Created as a consequence of the big picture action, along with the scnerios for aerospace fighter action and space fleet action, including what the objectives are and what the consequences of success or failure will be."

Watch the lights go on between their ears. Those with any time spent watching military history videos or reading the (often superior) books will instantly grok all of that. Alas, too few in the hobby have such familiarity these days so you do have to spell it out in small words very patiently to them.

Now a lot of things make sense: restrictions on available designs, available technologies, morale issues, logistics issues, strict timekeeping, strict rules adherance (because, again, Player-v-Player always compels this), and the restoration of the Referee as neutral and disinterested arbiter.

Why? Simple: it is now a game to be won, not a passtime to vibe with.

The two other notable Real Robot game properties in the hobby can work the same way: Totally Not VOTOMS Heavy Gear and Totally Not UC Gundam Jovian Chronicles. Each of the states on Terra Nova (and a few other notable organizations or groups) as well as every state and organization in the future solar system of JC can be set up as a campaign in the same manner.

I see you there, Mike. Yes, your precious Algol (Mekton) can be set up the same way.

Take away the robots and you can do this with something like Renegade Legion.

Take away the space adventure and you can do this with Twilight 2000.

Take away the real world and you can do this with D&D.

Because the real hobby is a fantastic adventure game, which is a wargame, and this structure will always work no matter what trappings you put on it.

Yes, even for Super Robots.

Yes, even for Super Robot Wars.