Metal Storm (Serious problem!) (UPDATE: Check comments)

That sounds like a very cool game, i've played PotSM and SW pocketmodels a few times and always liked the concept of these "Constructible Strategy Games" (which does seem to be underutilized).

The component problem however is not something which I can see an easy solution to. Standard cardstock is obviously not a realistic option and something similar to the polystyrene cards used in PotSM would probably be the best option for a material. They would need to be designed to fairly precise specifications using some sort of 3D modelling and then the actual construction would need to be done by a programable cutting machine (similar to the create wooden puzzles and the like) or possibly through injection molding.

Unfortunately none of this sounds cheap to do and especially not on a small scale. A fact which may behind why even large companies like Wizkids have moved away from this style of game (as evidenced by their dropping of their pocketmodels line and relaunch of PotSM as a card only game). I wish I could be of more assistance, best of luck i'd love to see this come to fruition.

I suppose you don't want to use only cards.

But miniatures with miniature weapons attached to it.
This sounds like a plan. But one that requires a lot of time, money and resources.

Have you play tested your game with the cards only? I mean with other players. Make sure the game is good and finished before you go 3D.

You could try to get your hands on a 3D printer. But it will be costly. I have seen prices ranging from 700 to 2000. And the material doesn't come cheap either.

But if you have your 3D models ready in a computer. You could contact a company to do the 3D printing.

Don't go 3D with paper. Unless you find some good cardboard and the models are easy to create. It will require crafting by hand. Just so happens that I know someone who is trying the same but with tanks. He has the cardboard pieces cut out. Then he places some sort of sticky foil over the pieces which allows bending. And it gives a shiny surface. Yet still not the best if you ask me.

The biggest problem would be having the weapons being de-attachable from the mech.

I've been using tiny rare earth magnets to do weapon swapping or base mounting for miniatures.

If you're not going producing the game any time soon, there are a lot of mech minis all over the internet.
These two came to mind writing this:
http://www.reapermini.com/Miniatures/CAV:StrikeOperations
https://store.dp9.com

I have started to read your thread and you made me thought about 2 NES video game:

Metal Storm: A mecha game where the mecha can reverse gravity.

Dinowarz: A mecha game where you eventually walk on foot to enter a building and destroy a core of some kind.

Here are some pictures:

http://tcgameclub.com/media/uploads/giant_robot_list/metal_storm.jpg

http://img.gamefaqs.net/screens/0/5/6/gfs_29017_2_4.jpg

http://www.vgmpf.com/Wiki/images/9/9a/Dynowarz_-_NES_-_Gameplay_1.png

The models should be fairly easy to design. I think they would normally use a plastic card or polystyrene sandwich. You should easily be able to find a manufacturer if you move to mass production.

I've only got limited access to tools, so they're a bit rough, but you get the idea. Separate parts for the shoulders, hips, canopy, arms, and legs. You could easily add connections for back components.

• Pieces
• With tracks
• With legs

It looks like foxconnmold is dredging up any posts they can find that talk about miniatures. But not to worry, since sometimes letting an idea lie dormant for a while and then picking it up again is exactly what you need. I've had some game concepts sitting around for years and then I read or see something that sparks a fresh wave of inspiration.

Another alternative to card models is something like what neurobota posted recently:
http://www.bgdf.com/node/15447

But ultimately, basic cards/card models/plastic models is just a production decision. While cool models would definitely make the game more engaging/appealing, it makes no difference to the gameplay.

I think you're right to be concerned about tracking hit points on individual components. Battletech did this, and the amount of paperwork was one of the major things that discouraged me from playing that game even though I liked the idea of giant robots shooting each other.

There are plenty of other ways to achieve the effect you want, though, without the paperwork. Examples:

- Components all have 1 HP, but the to-hit roll is more difficult. This means that you take less damage per round so you don't lose all your components in the first round. The downside is that rolling misses round after round is not fun, so you don't want to make the to-hit roll too difficult or the players get discouraged.

- Components have variable HP (say, 1-3), but you must inflict all the damage in 1 round. Any leftover damage is discarded at the end of the round. This lets you design components specifically as damage sinks (e.g. armor plates), while other components are more vulnerable (e.g. missile launcher). With this method you would need to carefully balance the weapon damage vs to-hit roll vs HP rating vs component cost.

- Components have only 1 HP but robots have an armor/shield rating. Armor/Shield rating is affected by the chassis and/or components. E.g. Reactive Armor component adds +2 armor, Force Field component adds +1 armor. The armor rating subtracts from damage received in the round. Any leftover damage is discarded at the end of the round. You lose one component for each attack (not each damage point) that penetrates the armor. This method means that you want high damage weapons to wipe out the armor, and then you want low-damage high rate-of-fire weapons to inflict multiple critical hits.

- Mechs have ablative armor (hit points) which can be represented by tokens, chits, etc. You only take critical hits (i.e. lose components) once your hit points reach zero.

All the best with your game.

Regards,
kos

There are a few ways you could handle it. For example:

1 - Each part can only soak 1 hit per turn, until all parts have soaked 1 hit.

2 - Create special targetting parts (laser designator, optics, or something like that) which lets the attacker choose the target part.

3 - Let the attacker choose the target part if they get close enough (e.g. melee range).

4 - Alternate who gets to choose the target part: Defender allocates the first hit, attacker allocates the second hit, etc.

Of the ideas above, I personally like #1 the best. It would mean that a riot shield would be great against high-damage single-shot weapons, but not so good against low-damage multi-shot weapons. In contrast, a mech with 3x medium-level armor parts would be the opposite. So it means you have to specialise your load-out based on what you think your enemy is going to take.

#2 could be used in combination with any of the others, but I wouldn't rely on this as the sole solution.

#3 could also be used in combination with #1 or #4, if you want melee combat to be especially deadly.

#4 could work, but on the surface I'd be a bit wary about it slowing down the game while waiting for the attacker to deliberate over picking the target part. (In contrast, defenders know their mechs inside out, so they are more likely to already know which part they want to hit first.)

Still, with regard to all of the above I would say just playtest it and see what works. You may find that it's not a problem anyway, since if the mech uses its riot shield to block all the incoming hits then it's going to get blown off pretty quick, and after that it's going to get ripped apart unless it's got some backup armor. You can always tweak the damages and armor ratings to get the results that you want.

Regards,
kos