5 Scenarios

5.1 Scenario Formats
5.2 Scenario Forces
5.3 Mismatch
5.4 Optional Rules
5.5 Battlefield Support
5.6 Scenario Balancing
5.7 Scenario Scoring
5.8 Casual Scenarios
5.9 Chaos Campaign Conversion
5.10 Narrative Scenarios

Commanders earn C-bills to spend on their forces through completing scenarios and accomplishing objectives. Scenarios are often be built to represent lore and objectives relevant to specific worlds in the Outworlds Wastes. Narrative based scenarios may include special rewards, such as recovering equipment from the 61st Royal Jump Infantry Division so a commander can add advanced jump infantry units to their force.

5.1 Scenario Formats

Outworlds Wastes forces are created and tracked using Battle Value (BV), but scenarios may be played in many formats. Common formats for the scenarios include

Regardless of the scenario format, force maintenance and improvement costs are always calculated per the Force Management rules. Use the rules for the scenario format to define terms such as destroyed, internal damage, and critical damage for the purposes of calculating repair, replacement, and salvage costs.

Alpha Strike cards for all units are available on the Master Unit List. To convert a unit skill levels from BattleTech to Alpha Strike, take the average of the Piloting and Gunnery skills, rounded down (see p. 29, AS: CE).

League organizers may use additional formats, such as BattleTroops. The scenario format must define terms such as destroyed, internal damage, and critical damage for the purposes of calculating repair, replacement, and salvage costs.

5.2 Scenario Forces

Both sides should agree upon a BV (or Point Value, PV) and unit count limit before starting the scenario. A typical BV limit would be 6,000 BV per side for 1v1 or 10,000 BV per side for 2v2 with BattleTech. A typical PV limit would be 150 PV per side for 1v1 or 250 PV per side for 2v2 for Alpha Strike. A typical unit limit depends upon the format but would be approximately 7 units per side for 1v1 or 10 units per side for 2v2. Additional limits on specific unit types, such as 2 infantry/Battle Armor units per side, can be imposed as well.

Scenario forces should include all applicable adjustments in their BV/PV calculations, to include TAG, C3, and pilot skill adjustments. See Force BV Adjustments (p. 110) for a summary of the most common adjustments. See BattleTech: TechManual p. 202 and all relevant errata for full details on calculating BV.

Scenarios can be played with higher BV/PV limits, but the C-bills awarded should be adjusted if the limits are more than 25% above or below the typical limits. For example, an Alpha Strike 300 PV per side 1v1 scenario would have its C-bill payments doubled compared to the standard Alpha Strike 150 PV per side 1v1 scenario. A Total Warfare 4,000 BV per side 1v1 scenario would have its C-bills payments scaled by 2/3 compared to the standard Total Warfare 6,000 BV per side 1v1 scenario.

Alpha Strike scenarios may be played with BV limits instead of PV limits. Commanders would select units to meet the BV limit but use the Alpha Strike cards and rules for the scenario.

5.3 Mismatch

"Snow Raven Atlas II surprising a Phoenix Hawk PHX-1b ’Lucky 13’ from St Ives"

Snow Raven Atlas II surprising Phoenix Hawk ’Lucky 13’ from St Ives - Matt Plog

5.4 Optional Rules

Scenarios may use optional rules if each side agrees. Some common optional rules include

Forced Withdrawal: BattleTech: Total Warfare p. 258, BattleTech: Alpha Strike Commander’s Edition p. 127

Sprinting: BattleTech: Tactical Operations Advanced Rules p. 16

Vehicle Lance Movement: BattleTech: Tactical Operations Advanced Rules p. 22

Floating Criticals: BattleTech: Tactical Operations Advanced Rules p. 75

Firing When Down: BattleTech: Tactical Operations Advanced Rules p. 83

Multiple Attack Rolls: BattleTech: Alpha Strike Commander’s Edition p. 175

Front Loaded Initiative: If, prior to any pair of movement or attack declarations, one team has more units left to declare for as the other team, the team with more units declares for two units rather than one. If one team has at least twice as many units, it declares for three each time, and so on.

Fire For Effect: Weapon attack declaration and resolution occur simultaneously during the Weapon Attack Phase. Attacks are resolved in initiative order, per the usual rules. A unit destroyed during the Weapon Attack Phase will still fire.

5.5 Battlefield Support

By default, BattleTech: Outworlds Wastes assumes commanders are using the full rules for combined arms from BattleTech: Total Warfare and Alpha Strike: Commander’s Edition. League organizers may allow Battlefield Support: Strikes rules (p. 75, BMM and p.55, AS: CE) to provide simplified aerospace and artillery support and off-board artillery rules for Alpha Strike (see p. 151, AS: CE). League organizers may also allow Battlefield Support: Assets rules (BattleTech: Mercenaries box set) to provide simplified non-’Mech units, such as combat vehicles and infantry.

5.5.1 Battlefield Support: Strikes and Off-Board Artillery

Each side for a scenario must agree to use Battlefield Support: Strikes or off-board artillery rules. When using Battlefield Support: Strikes rules, each side receives the same number of Battlefield Support Points (BSP). Consult the Battlefield Support rules in Alpha Strike: Commander’s Edition or BattleTech: Mercenaries box set, as appropriate, to help determine the number of BSP and the cost of each support type. Each side may also agree to use any unused BV from force selection to purchase additional BSP, where 1 BSP costs 20 BV. Commanders may increase their BSP by up to half of the BSP limit.

The following additional rules apply when using Battlefield Support: Strikes or off-board artillery.

Counter-Battery Support is a new form of Battlefield Support for BattleTech that mirrors the Counter-Battery Fire rule from Alpha Strike.

Counter-Battery Support: Counter-Battery Support costs 14 BSP and can only be used once enemy Artillery Support has been used. The Target Number for Counter-Battery Support is 7. Reduce the Target Number by 1 for each use of enemy Artillery Support where a friendly unit had LOS to the point of impact. Reset the Target Number to 7 if the enemy artillery unit is destroyed by 2 successful Counter-Battery Support attacks.

5.5.2 Battlefield Support: Assets

Each side for a scenario must agree to use Battlefield Support: Assets rules. Commanders may agree to only use Battlefield Support: Assets rules for some types of units, such as conventional infantry units. Commanders should use the same rules for every unit of the same type in the scenario, BattleTech: Total Warfare or Battlefield Support: Assets.

When converting a unit in a force to an Asset, first compute the Asset skill level by taking the average of the Gunnery and Driving skills, rounding down, and adding 2. Only BV values for skill 5 and skill 6 are provided on the Asset cards, so unit skill levels may be temporarily degraded for a scenario to a higher skill level. Use the BV cost of the Asset at the computed skill level.

For BattleTech: Outworlds Wastes, an Asset is considered damaged if the Destroy Check Target Number is reduced to (base Destroy Check Target Number + 4) / 2, rounded down. For example, the Manticore Heavy Tank Asset is considered damaged when the Destroy Check Target Number is reduced to (10 + 4) / 2 = 7 while the Warrior H-7 Asset is considered damaged when the Destroy Check Target Number is reduced to (5 + 4) / 2 = 4.

If the BV of the Asset at skill 6 is lower than the BV of the unit at Gunnery 4/Driving 5 under Total Warfare rules, scale the repair and replace costs to account for the unit being less combat effective. For example, a Manticore Heavy Tank Asset is 420 BV at skill 6, while the Manticore Heavy Tank under Total Warfare rules costs 993 BV. The Manticore Heavy Tank Asset has 42% of the BV, so it only costs 279,196 C-bills to repair or 558,392 C-bills to replace instead of the 660,100 C-bills to repair or 1,320,200 C-bills to replace the unit using full Total Warfare rules. Do not apply any modifiers for quirks or DropShip modifications when repairing or replacing Assets.

5.6 Scenario Balancing

One of the goals of BattleTech: Outworlds Wastes is to foster a friendly and welcoming environment. A mix of experience levels between commanders is expected. Here are some options to help balance scenarios so game play is welcoming while also staying fresh and challenging:

Setup: When setting up a scenario, slight preference should generally be given to the commander whose force has the lower total BV, including all units and pilots. For example, the commander with the lowest total BV could be offered the choice between attacking and defending. For a scenario with a terrain setup phase, the commander with the lowest total BV could be offered the first placement of terrain pieces.

2v2: Many scenarios are described as 1v1; however, these scenarios often support team play, such as 2 players on each side. When playing on teams, experience should be divided roughly equally between the two teams. Teammates are encouraged to collaborate on strategy for the scenario.

5.7 Scenario Scoring

Scenarios award C-bills through completing objectives or receiving base pay. The C-bills awarded in a scenario will tend to follow these guidelines:

Objectives: Forces earn C-bills for completing primary and secondary objectives. This C-bill payment represents bonus pay in a mercenary contract and the value of resources or technology acquired by completing mission objectives. Objective payments should be proportionally adjusted if the BV limit for the scenario differs from the typical limit.

  • The primary objective is typically worth 7,000,000 C-bills and is split between the two sides based upon the portion of the primary objective completed.
  • The secondary objectives are typically worth 3,000,000 C-bills and each objective is awarded to each side separately.

Base Pay: If the force did not complete any objectives, then the force earns 2,000 C-bills for every 10 BV for the scenario, with a minimum of 600,000 C-bills. For example, a 6,000 BV vs 6,000 BV scenario will have a base payout of 1,200,000 C-bills. This C-bill payment represents the baseline cost of a mercenary contract or supplies sent by a faction.

Scenarios do not typically require a Game Master to run additional third party forces. If there are third party forces that require an additional person, this person may receive C-bills for one of their Outworlds Wastes forces. This C-bill payment should not exceed the maximum C-bill payment for the scenario, and it should be close to the average of the payments that the players in the scenario received. The exact conditions for the payout should be agreed upon before the scenario starts.

5.8 Casual Scenarios

Narrative scenarios are provided by the league organizers, but BattleTech: Outworlds Wastes also supports casual games between forces. Each side must agree upon the format, force limits, optional rules, and scoring before the scenario starts. Some sample objectives are included below.

5.8.1 Primary Objectives

  1. Reconnaissance: The map contains 15 buildings that are at least 1 hex large, 7 of which contain hidden objectives. These buildings can be distributed randomly or by each player taking turns placing a building. The defender rolls in secret to determine which buildings hold the hidden objectives. The attacker earns 1,000,000 C-bills for each hidden objective they find. The defender earns 1,000,000 C-bills for each hidden objective the attacker does not find.
  2. Supply Raid: 3-7 supply depots are on the map, near the center. Each supply depot has 1-3 loads of supplies. Any unit with hands or cargo capacity can load supplies from the depot if they end the Movement Phase in the same hex. Standard cargo loading rules apply. A ’Mech carrying supplies can’t fire arm weapons (BattleTech) or does -2 damage (Alpha Strike). A unit carrying supplies earns a portion of 7,000,000 C-bills for bringing the supplies to their home edge. Each side cannot score from the same supply depot twice until they score from every other supply depot.
  3. Zone Control: 3, 5, or 7 key points are distributed on the map. The locations of the key points dramatically changes the gameplay. The basic configuration is 3 key points along the center of the map and 1 key point halfway between the center and each home edge. A side controls a key point if only their units are in or adjacent to the key point. During the End Phase, the side that controls the most key points earns 1,000,000 C-bills. If each side controls the same number of points and controls at least 1 point, then each side earns 500,000 C-bills for that round.
  4. Base Defense: 7 buildings are on the defenders side of the map. Each building is medium with a construction factor of 60 and 1-3 levels high, unless the players agree upon a different configuration. The attacker earns 1,000,000 C-bills for each building destroyed and the defender earns 1,000,000 C-bills for each building remaining.
  5. King of the Hill: A hex in the center of the map contains a building with valuable files. The building is medium with a construction factor of 60, unless the players agree upon a different configuration. The force earns 1,000,000 C-bills for every turn that they have the only infantry/Battle Armor units inside of the building at the end of the turn.
  6. Assassination: A local militia commander needs to be escorted across the battlefield. The defender selects a medium or heavy ’Mech from the Periphery General or Pirates list. The commander is a Gunnery 5/ Piloting 4 pilot and half of the adjusted BV of the ’Mech counts against the defender’s BV limit. The militia commander pilots this ’Mech and must transit the map from the defender’s home edge to the attacker’s home edge. The attacker earns 7,000,000 C-bills if the commander’s ’Mech is destroyed or 3,500,000 C-bills if the commander’s ’Mech receives crippling damage. The defender 7,000,000 C-bills if the commander’s ’Mech does not receive crippling damage or 3,500,000 C-bills if the commander’s ’Mech is crippled but not destroyed.
  7. Extraction: Extract 1-3 hidden infantry teams. For each hidden unit, the attackers select a hex within 4 rows of the defenders home edge and more than 4 hexes away from the other edges of the map. A unit with at least 1 ton of cargo capacity can pick up the target by being in the same hex as a target during the End Phase. The target is not destroyed if the carrying unit is destroyed. A unit earns a portion of 7,000,000 C-bills by exiting their home edge while carrying a target.
  8. Recovery: 4-6 disabled ’Mechs are equally spaced along the map diagonal. A unit of equal or higher weight class can drag a target ’Mech. A friendly unit must be in the same hex as the target ’Mech during the End Phase to start dragging it. Units without hand actuators must use 1 turn securing the target ’Mech. The dragging unit has a 1/2 reduction in their walking MP and cannot jump. A target ’Mech cannot fire weapons in one arm (BattleTech) or does -1 damage (Alpha Strike). A unit earns a proportion of 7,000,000 C-bills for each ’Mech returned to their home map edge.

5.8.2 Secondary Objectives

There are three ways to select secondary objectives. First, a single secondary objective that both sides share could be selected, randomly or by mutual agreement. Alternatively, each side could randomly roll a secondary objective in secret. Finally, each player could randomly roll a secondary objective in secret.

The selected secondary objectives must be achievable by the forces selected for the scenario. If a secondary objective is impossible to accomplish based upon the scenario, map, or enemy force, determine a new secondary objective before play begins.

  1. Cripple or destroy a ’Mech.
  2. Cripple or destroy a ProtoMech.
  3. Cripple or destroy a Combat Vehicle.
  4. Cause critical or motive damage on a VTOL or aerospace unit.
  5. Kill at least half of the troops in an infantry unit.
  6. Swarm a ’Mech or Combat Vehicle with an infantry unit.
  7. Successfully complete a Death from Above attack.
  8. Damage an internal section of an opponent’s highest BV unit.
  9. Capture a vehicle crew or ’Mech pilot.
  10. Extract a hidden unit from within 4 hexes of the far map edge.

5.8.3 Additional Options

This list of scenario objectives is not exhaustive. Commanders may develop and play alternative scenarios as long as the scenarios are not intended to cheat the rules or otherwise give the commanders unfair advantages. Commanders are encouraged to develop scenarios that match the lore of their forces. For example, a pair of commanders for Clan forces may agree to a Trial of Possession or a commander of a Solaris VII force may challenge another force to a televised duel.

Any additional restrictions or conditions for the scenario need to be agreed upon by all commanders before the scenario starts. The outcome of the scenario may result in transfer of C-bills, personnel, or units between forces if that is agreed upon before the scenario starts.

These alternative scenarios may include a C-bill payment but do not have to. If the scenario includes a C-bill payment, it should stay close to the guidelines provided in the Scenario Scoring section. For example, a duel between two 1,500 BV ’Mechs could have a maximum of 1,750,000 C-bills as a primary objective payment, if there is a primary objective payment.

5.9 Chaos Campaign Conversion

BattleTech: Chaos Campaign provides campaign rules that have lower complexity than BattleTech: Campaign Operations or BattleTech: Outworlds Wastes and is available as a free PDF. The Chaos Campaign rules are used for campaigns in BattleTech: Chaos Campaign: Succession Wars as well as BattleTech: Spotlight On and BattleTech: Turning Points publications and Shrapnel, the BattleTech magazine.

Campaigns written with Chaos Campaign tracks can be converted to BattleTech: Outworlds Wastes.

  1. Pick the BV/PV limit for the track with highest Warchest Points (WP) track cost.
  2. Determine the BV/PV limits for each track in the campaign. These limits are given by multiplying the maximum BV/PV limit by the ratio between the current track’s WP cost and the highest WP cost for a track. For example, in a campaign with a max WP track cost of 300 WP commanders might agree upon setting the BV limit for that track at 8,000 BV. A track with a 100 WP cost would then have a 2,667 BV limit. If one side may only field a smaller portion of their force, set their BV limit proportional to the full limit. For example, if the defender may only field 75% of their force while the attacker may field up to 50% of their force in a track with a 3,000 BV limit, then the defender may only use 2,000 BV.
  3. Compute the WP to C-bills conversion: (7,000,000 C-bills) ÷ (6,000 BV/150 PV) × (BV/PV limit) ÷ (max WP track cost), rounding up. For example, for a campaign with a max WP track cost of 300 WP where the largest track will be played with 8,000 BV, the WP to C-bills conversion is 31,112 C-bills per WP.
  4. Determine the C-bill payouts for objectives in the campaign. In the example above, objectives worth 100 WP would earn 3,111,200 C-bills and 200 WP objectives earn 6,222,400 C-bills.
  5. Compute the maximum C-bill payment for each track. The maximum C-bill payment should remain close to 10,000,000 C-bills for a 6,000 BV/150 PV track, or appropriately scaled for a track with different BV/PV limits. However, some tracks intentionally pay out significantly more or less WP than their WP cost. Secondary objectives may be added to individual tracks to increase their maximum payout, such as those given in the Casual Scenarios section. If all of the tracks are significantly higher or lower than this target maximum payment, adjust the WP to C-bills conversion rate computed above.
  6. The optional Warchest costs can be added to any scenario at no C-bill cost, as long as these options do not grant additional forces or Battlefield Support to either side. For example, an option that adds weather conditions may be selected while an option that adds a minefield may not.
  7. Additional rules or setup are included in some tracks. These additional rules do not always fit well with BattleTech: Outworlds Wastes and league organizers will need to decide how to best meet the spirit of these rules.
  8. All tracks must be converted and agreed upon, before commanders begin the campaign.

League organizers may make adjustments to these guidelines to best suit the Chaos Campaign content they are converting.

5.10 Narrative Scenarios

The following narrative scenario packs are available: