BattleTech 3000

Between-Game Actions

Between sessions, let me know what the members of your household are doing throughout the year. Each noble over age 15 has the following options:

• Mech Patrolling (Piloting skill) and/or Gunnery practice (Gunnery skill). May also gain SPs in Leadership skill if patrolling in a group.
• Land Management (Administration skill)
• Diplomacy (Protocol Skill)
• Technician (Tech Skill)
• Intelligence (Strategy Skill)
• Counter-Intelligence (Strategy Skill)
• Ground Force Patrolling (Small Arms or Support Weapons skill)
• General Study (your choice of skills, provided a trainer is available)
• Academy Training (special)

A year on Simpson Desert has 10 months; you can specify your actions for each month, though once per year will be fine. Land Management, Diplomacy and Counter-Intelligence must be declared for the entire year.

Characters gain Skill Points equal to their LRN Attribute each month. 1 point of LRN per month may be allocated to any skill; the other Skill Points must be allocated to the skills being used.

MechWarrior Academy or University

Note that statistics for a backup character do not have to be created until the primary character dies. If the character is generated at age 21 or later, it is assumed that they had time to attend the MechWarrior Academy at Simpson or the University on Tamarind or elsewhere. But if the character starts taking actions before 21, they may not have had time to attend school.

Assume that the character may start Academy Training at age 15. They must attend one year of training for every 3 points of the package they might eventually purchase.

Land Management

Your available Land Management actions for the year depend on your Administration Skill.

• If your skill roll is 7+ or worse, you get no actions; just hope that the money keeps coming in as it always has.
• For a skill of 6+, you may make deals with other players to give them the commodities you produce in your factory. If other arrangements aren’t made, the cost is 5% of the retail value per day traveled(and is vulnerable to raiding if unprotected).
• For a skill of 5+, you can raise or lower the discretionary tax rate. A lower tax rate attracts people to your village; a higher rate pushes them away and may cause an uprising.
• For a skill of 4+, you can begin construction projects (such as new buildings, paved roads, water pipelines and communication lines, none of which you start with due to the protracted warring which has gone on).
• For a skill of 3+, you can attempt to restore your factory’s production capacity if it has declined due to lack of maintenance. There is a limit to this; no one knows how to build new automated factories anymore.
• For a skill of 2+, you can issue bonds to finance your construction projects. The optimum interest rate will be set secretly by the GM, and you will sell more or fewer bonds according to the rate you offer. The bonds are backed by your House; Houses with high Family Honor will command lower rates, and there will be a great loss of Honor in the case of a default. Eventually, the bonds might even become an accepted form of house currency.

Diplomacy

• Improve an NPC house’s attitude towards you from Unfriendly to Neutral or from Neutral to Friendly. Negotiating an end to hostilities or forging a true alliance will require role-playing.
• Arrange a trade of resources of equal wholesale value from a Friendly House (also requires 6+ in Administration).
• Arrange a marriage from a member of a Friendly House. The younger partner joins the other’s house; offering a member of your house (at least 15) gives a -3 bonus to any other Diplomacy action.

Technician

A Tech with a skill target of 6+ provides 100 Maintenance Points, plus 100 points for each additional level up to 500 MPs at 2+.

Intelligence

To gather Intelligence for a month, choose a city to scout. A successful Strategy roll gives you an updated picture of their defenses.

Counter-Intelligence

This is declared for the year; you get a Strategy roll at a +2 penalty (GM rolls) to detect anyone who tries to gather Intelligence on you in a month. You will also be informed of any major events.

BattleTech, MechWarrior and all associated terms are copyright WKGames and none of the above is intended as a challenge to their copyright.