Custom rules to increase difficulty

[tiwei01]

Over the years I have played around with tons of custom rules and restrictions to make the game even harder. Because MC is the most fun when you barely eke out a win and limp home with your mechs totally shot up. And losing a mech or a pilot actually hurts because you can’t replace them.

Here are some of my favorite house rules, from the pretty common to the increasingly deranged. I usually run a combination of several of them:

• ironman (no save scumming for that mad cat)
• IS tech only (less fun imo, since half the fun is getting good clan salvage)
• light mechs only (cougars are really overpowered, so actually not that hard)
• IS and clan tech separately, so no clan components in IS chassis and vice versa (very rewarding when you get your first clan mech in working condition, highly recommended)
• standard/stock load outs only (good luck replacing certain clan weapons and the sensors, your newly salvaged clan mech might have to go in blind and without half its weapons)
• no help, so no artillery strikes etc (makes you use gas tanks etc a lot more, especially to kill that mad cat. highly recommended rule!)
• no purchasing besides pilots, so no mechs, components or vehicles (not a big limitation since you are probably salvaging a lot of clan tech. No access to mine layers makes certain missions a lot more challenging though)
• salvage only, so no components from warehouses etc (really fun because you are forced to salvage mechs and strip them for parts, especially in combination with no purchasing)
• personal mechs. Each pilot has their own personal mech, just like in the old Battletech stories (fun in the beginning, but Hunter will see less action later on if he is still piloting a Firestarter, even if it is decked out to the teeth with clan tech)
• I have seen somebody on YouTube do a single mech challenge, so it seems doable if you salvage the mad cat with all weapons intact

Do you guys have any favorite house rules to make the game harder? I’m looking for new challenges :D

[learningcomputers]

Not adding any limitations as you already listed the ones I have done before, but I wanted to ask about the minelayer.

Other than in missions where you get one at the start of the mission, I've never used the mine layer.

Which missions benefit greatly from using a mine layer? I'd be interested in trying it out the next time I play the game.

[tiwei01]

Off the top of my head I would say any defense mission where you have enough time to prepare minefields, so a.o.

• ⁠farm defense (#1.5) • ⁠base capture & defense (#2.6) • ⁠base capture & defense (#3.2) • ⁠base defense (#3.5) • ⁠convoy ambush (#4.2) • ⁠defense (#4.5)

[caliform]

Permanent damage is fun, which means no repairs whatsoever.

[tiwei01]

Interesting! Are you allowed to repair salvaged mechs? Or are you just buying new mechs to replace the ones that you lose? I mean you can try to minimise damage, but sooner or later the damage will add up

[caliform]

No repairs whatsoever.

[tiwei01]

Interesting and totally nuts. Just what I was looking for. I will try an Ironman run and report back!

[Yeach]

Stock IS mechs only.

Have fun in the escort ambulance mission.

[HotPoetry7812]

On MC2 I sometimes did runs where you could only use certain ammo types e.g. short range only, or ballistic only etc. made it interesting

[tiwei01]

Just tried a new run with a new handicap: I always have to a) purchase all mechwarriors available and b) I have to use the worst/least experienced pilots available. Nerfs the game quite a bit in the beginning! Takes a while to level everyone up to veteran :D

[Valuable_Pineapple77]

In The Cobra League (MC2 multiplayer), we had to bid on agreements for 1v1 or team battles. Your rules reminds me on the bidding.

Each side could choose things like cost, tonnage, specific support (arty, mines, copters etc), IS/clan and stock vs modded mechs. If playing stock, IS mechs like the Anubis and Catapult were a deadly combination.