Sometime around 2000-2001 I was made aware of a game called "Heavy Gear". I had been a fan of Battletech for several years at this point (having started in 1995, or maybe earlier), and had vague memories of a game for the Playstation that involved giant armored robot suits in urban style combat. Where Battletech had these several-story tall walking mountains of armor and weapons, Heavy Gear was more about squads of armored suits that, while bigger than a regular infantryman, were not quite the size of buildings. I think it was the rifles (carried like rifles) and shoulder-mounted rocket pods that stuck with me.
So, around that time, I got a copy of the Heavy Gear RPG. I might of actually had it for longer, but I can recall sitting around one day reading about it. It was a fairly rich setting. Based on the planet Terra Nova and set several thousand years in the future, Humanity had reached out to the stars. Terra Nova was one of the colony worlds. At some point, Earth had pulled back, leaving the colony in chaos, until things settled down and there were two major 'nations', the North and South. The planet was similar to earth, but without the water (it was there, just scarce, especially around the equatorial 'badlands'). Anyway, in the setting of the game the two factions had settled into a Cold War of sorts, with combat being mainly carried out by Gears. These were, basically, giant armored suits that fit the gap between unarmored infantry and tanks. Earth had invaded again, had been repulsed, and things were settling back into the North vs South conflict.
What had me interested, in addition to the detailed history, was that none of the technology seemed too far-fetched. Hard Science-Fiction, though I did not know what that meant at the time. The suits were computer assisted (so, no true AI), ran on highly efficient diesel engines (so, no fusion or such), and fired large caliber but otherwise 'normal' rifles. It had more of a military feel to it than other combat games I was interested in at the time.
At a local game store, I saw some of the miniatures for the table-top version (as opposed to the RPG, which was the book I had.. and no one to play with). They looked really good, if slightly bigger than I was expecting, but naturally the cost kept me from even entertaining the idea of playing it. I filed it away in the back of my head as "neat" and eventually sold the rulebook I had, forgetting about the whole thing.
Several years later, I saw some Gears being painted at that same store. They were much smaller, much nicer, and new.. so I asked about it. Turned out, the company had not gone under as I had thought. They had re-released the game in a new scale and it was looking to make a comeback. I think I might of looked at the rules a bit, but never got a chance to try it, and figured it would be one of those obscure games that a few people played, so why invest? I was more interested in other games that were regularly played, so again, filed it away in the back of my head as "neat" and forgot about it.
Again, a few years later, while working on getting some models together for Tomorrow's War, I was browsing bartertown, and came across someone selling a gear for Heavy Gear: Blitz! I had always liked the look of the Gears, and it was fairly close to 15mm (the scale I was using), so I picked it up. HGB is actually 12mm, but for the suits that did not matter. Close enough. After getting it and putting it together, I got to thinking about the game itself. This was 2011. While at the mall in Tucson I went into one of the hobby stores and saw that they stocked the game. Initially I was just looking for more Gears to add to my Tomorrow's War force, but the starter set looked like a pretty good deal to get into the game. Still, more than I was willing to spend, and while I had some folks interested in playing, I already had too many projects on my plate (as you can go back into the archives from 2011 to see, I had plenty to do). I never picked it up, and soon I was busy with life anyway, so it got filed away again.
So, here we are in 2013. Again, back on bartertown, and I saw a post for a lot of Gears for a great price. Again, thinking about Tomorrow's War (and I still am thinking about suits for my UAE army), I picked it up. It was a bunch of Northern Gears that were all ready to be assembled (and a lot of work had been put into them, pinning joints, filing, etc, so I got a smoking deal there). Got it in the mail, looked them over, and put them back in the box. Figured I would work on my models when I got home.
Then I started to read the rulebooks. So, you have models I like, combined with rules that seemed simple enough, and a storyline that was fairly in depth. That got me checking out the webpage, which got me onto the forums, and it turns out the game was more active than I thought. Still, it was yet another game, and I had plenty already, so I packed it all up and moved on.
A few months later I came across another lot on bartertown. Then another, and another. Well, that got the wheels a turning. While there were people playing, there were many others who had gotten into it and decided it was not for them. I started poking through the rules again to get a handle on what was for sale, and one good deal turned into multiple good deals, and the next thing you know.. I have almost enough for three decent sized armies (and for an excellent price!).
Now, I am never the type to miss an opportunity for a good project, and this was just the sort of thing I wish I had done with other games I have played. So, here we are. I have an opportunity to document, from the beginning, the steps I took to acquire, assemble, built, paint, and finish an army for a game. I could combine putting together models for a game I was interested in into something worth writing about, and even if I could not find any other players.. well, I have more than enough for a few armies, so I can always talk other gamers into trying it. If that failed, at least I had enough for Tomorrow's War, or just to paint and display.
So, here we are. That is the scope of my project. Detailing how I got started, how I got my models, cleaning and assembly, painting, and finishing at least one force for Heavy Gear. Then, if the first draft is not where I want it, I can do the whole thing over again with the next force. One way or another, I will have a fairly detailed "Start-to-Finish" guide with how I do things.
Heck, it got me writing, so either way, that's a win!
So, around that time, I got a copy of the Heavy Gear RPG. I might of actually had it for longer, but I can recall sitting around one day reading about it. It was a fairly rich setting. Based on the planet Terra Nova and set several thousand years in the future, Humanity had reached out to the stars. Terra Nova was one of the colony worlds. At some point, Earth had pulled back, leaving the colony in chaos, until things settled down and there were two major 'nations', the North and South. The planet was similar to earth, but without the water (it was there, just scarce, especially around the equatorial 'badlands'). Anyway, in the setting of the game the two factions had settled into a Cold War of sorts, with combat being mainly carried out by Gears. These were, basically, giant armored suits that fit the gap between unarmored infantry and tanks. Earth had invaded again, had been repulsed, and things were settling back into the North vs South conflict.
What had me interested, in addition to the detailed history, was that none of the technology seemed too far-fetched. Hard Science-Fiction, though I did not know what that meant at the time. The suits were computer assisted (so, no true AI), ran on highly efficient diesel engines (so, no fusion or such), and fired large caliber but otherwise 'normal' rifles. It had more of a military feel to it than other combat games I was interested in at the time.
At a local game store, I saw some of the miniatures for the table-top version (as opposed to the RPG, which was the book I had.. and no one to play with). They looked really good, if slightly bigger than I was expecting, but naturally the cost kept me from even entertaining the idea of playing it. I filed it away in the back of my head as "neat" and eventually sold the rulebook I had, forgetting about the whole thing.
Several years later, I saw some Gears being painted at that same store. They were much smaller, much nicer, and new.. so I asked about it. Turned out, the company had not gone under as I had thought. They had re-released the game in a new scale and it was looking to make a comeback. I think I might of looked at the rules a bit, but never got a chance to try it, and figured it would be one of those obscure games that a few people played, so why invest? I was more interested in other games that were regularly played, so again, filed it away in the back of my head as "neat" and forgot about it.
Again, a few years later, while working on getting some models together for Tomorrow's War, I was browsing bartertown, and came across someone selling a gear for Heavy Gear: Blitz! I had always liked the look of the Gears, and it was fairly close to 15mm (the scale I was using), so I picked it up. HGB is actually 12mm, but for the suits that did not matter. Close enough. After getting it and putting it together, I got to thinking about the game itself. This was 2011. While at the mall in Tucson I went into one of the hobby stores and saw that they stocked the game. Initially I was just looking for more Gears to add to my Tomorrow's War force, but the starter set looked like a pretty good deal to get into the game. Still, more than I was willing to spend, and while I had some folks interested in playing, I already had too many projects on my plate (as you can go back into the archives from 2011 to see, I had plenty to do). I never picked it up, and soon I was busy with life anyway, so it got filed away again.
So, here we are in 2013. Again, back on bartertown, and I saw a post for a lot of Gears for a great price. Again, thinking about Tomorrow's War (and I still am thinking about suits for my UAE army), I picked it up. It was a bunch of Northern Gears that were all ready to be assembled (and a lot of work had been put into them, pinning joints, filing, etc, so I got a smoking deal there). Got it in the mail, looked them over, and put them back in the box. Figured I would work on my models when I got home.
Then I started to read the rulebooks. So, you have models I like, combined with rules that seemed simple enough, and a storyline that was fairly in depth. That got me checking out the webpage, which got me onto the forums, and it turns out the game was more active than I thought. Still, it was yet another game, and I had plenty already, so I packed it all up and moved on.
A few months later I came across another lot on bartertown. Then another, and another. Well, that got the wheels a turning. While there were people playing, there were many others who had gotten into it and decided it was not for them. I started poking through the rules again to get a handle on what was for sale, and one good deal turned into multiple good deals, and the next thing you know.. I have almost enough for three decent sized armies (and for an excellent price!).
Now, I am never the type to miss an opportunity for a good project, and this was just the sort of thing I wish I had done with other games I have played. So, here we are. I have an opportunity to document, from the beginning, the steps I took to acquire, assemble, built, paint, and finish an army for a game. I could combine putting together models for a game I was interested in into something worth writing about, and even if I could not find any other players.. well, I have more than enough for a few armies, so I can always talk other gamers into trying it. If that failed, at least I had enough for Tomorrow's War, or just to paint and display.
So, here we are. That is the scope of my project. Detailing how I got started, how I got my models, cleaning and assembly, painting, and finishing at least one force for Heavy Gear. Then, if the first draft is not where I want it, I can do the whole thing over again with the next force. One way or another, I will have a fairly detailed "Start-to-Finish" guide with how I do things.
Heck, it got me writing, so either way, that's a win!
Welcome to Heavy Gears minis modelling and gaming! Multiple different armies should hopefully help you get a local scene started and that seems like the biggest issue for players.
ReplyDeleteThat was my thought. Finding players for my hobbies has never been a problem, generally, but lack of forces to play with is. I get to work on a project, indulge in some modelling/painting, and if I can play, all the better!
DeleteOne thing I'd recommend is including a variety of units in your armies. I purposely modelled my entire southern force (up until just a few weeks ago) as 100% gears because that was my specific draw to the game. I didn't realize it would have the added side effect of making people think (in conjunction with the name of the game) that there is nothing else in the game but gears. A friend who played 40k that accepted a demo (but ultimately didn't like the game) was very suprised months later when I told him that there are tanks, APCs, infantry, and giant robots in the game as well.
ReplyDeleteI had initially planned on all-Gear armies, because that was my focus as well.
DeleteMight do some infantry/APC's with my peace river force, for that variety. Already planning to add a coyote. Then again, I guess that depends on what changes when the book comes out.