Mechwarriors.

I challenge YOU.

To the ones that think the game is going downhill, you have two choices:

A. Get rid of your collection right now. Mechwarrior is dying. Everything is dying. Emo rawks.

B. The game you love is dying out. Get up off your backside and do something about it.

I see posts all the time about how bad things look for Mechwarrior, how it's dying a slow death, how it's not fresh anymore, how we haven't had any new pieces in a while, and so on. You think the game is dying? Then put your collections up for sale and go find something else to do with your time. Wait, you don't want to? WHY NOT? The game is dying! Why stick around?

I know why.

It's because you flip-flop. The minute that everything is sunshine and orange juice you'll come running back saying how much you love the game, how this was the best thing WK has done, and on and on. But you don't realize the damage you cause to gamers who are just starting. Why would they invest their time and money into something that is "dying"? Seriously, if I was just coming into the forums and saw the sort of negative attitudes posted recently, I'd be out and gone.

So you think Mechwarrior is the old boss?

THEN I CHALLENGE YOU TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.

Go to your local venue with a friend on a day when Mechwarrior is not scheduled. Think up a scenario and play it. Do it during other game's schedule sessions if there is room. Stir up some interest. If someone asks you about the game, open up and talk to them! Gamers may be anti-social, but if you put the effort I have seen put into negative posts, your venue will be blossoming in no time! I've seen in happen in two areas in the past year. If I was moving I would find a new venue and grow the interest there as well. But what I would not do is sell short a game that brings me great joy.

Just please...you nay-sayers...don't discount it. It's Mechwarrior. You enjoy it. You love it, and you know it! Play it until the last. If the last is in 6 months, then so be it. Just don't give up.

To the gamers of a like mind and the will to cultivate and grow your venue: I salute you. You are the type that keep a game moving and growing. You are the ones that would play when all else seemed for naught in your venue. If you are still trying to grow your venue, do not give up hope. Do not dispair as so many others have done. Continue to feed the passionate fire that burns each time you face a worthy opponent. Such players are worthy of higher accolades than any other Mechwarrior. You are the ones that keep the game ALIVE.

You are the stuff that LEGENDS are made of.

You have your duties, fellow warriors. Go forth and Godspeed.

"I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day! An hour of woes and shattered shields, when the age of men comes crashing down! But it is NOT THIS DAY! This day WE FIGHT! By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you, STAND!"

- Aragorn, Return of the King

Yeah, what he said!

I am doing both.

1. I am thinning my collection, please IM me for details.

2. Also I am organizing a real tournament at Games Expos March in Vegas. Winner will get cash and a trophy. We already know that wizkids no longer care about Mechwarrior. The Oregon challenge is a joke. There is nothing at stake. I think we should do like $10 entry fee tournament, and winner gets all the money. That's what counts. Put your money where your mouth is. My team and I will be willing to put $50 for 5 of us at least. Don't feel bad if you get beat by a 16 yr old (our youngest squad member)! :D

If you really care about the game but dont have the will to keep going then doate your collection to the new player support group or what ever they called that thread. you will show that you do have heart.

The death of MW has been greatly exaggerated. MW has a tremendously loyal fan base. That alone will keep the game alive whether WK supports it or not. I play in tournaments primarily because that's where I can meet fellow enthusiasts, but Tourneys are not my favorite games. I really prefer multi-player scenerios with actual objectives and lots of friends, trash-talking, and food. Demise of the tourney scene will only affect that a little.

I'm actually glad to see WK pull back from selling blind boosters. Sure they're exciting, but they're expensive and a huge financial drain. I'm thrilled about action packs and about WKs move to get their products into retail stores. I hope MW makes the cut, but if it doesn't, I will still play. My friends and I will still insult each other over faction loyalties. And I will still host my annual Christmas battle with every MW player I know.

This game is sure to change, but I am confident it will not die. BT is eternal.

I agree. There may not be a venue near me ,now, that hosts mechwarrior tournaments but I will open a venue of my own and host. I do not see the game as dying, so much as rebuilding and over comming mechwarrior "writers block" so to speak. Also they have to bring the new people up to speed with the rest of the group.

I look forward to the new ideas they are sure to bring out. This lull gives me a chance to stop and breath. To take stock of what I am missing and find those pieces before the next round comes through.

I, for one, will be a mechwarrior until the day I die.

Well as a battlemaster, I plan on doing everything I can to keep this game alive for as long as I can. I have a couple of players who I'm sure will probably just dissappear whenever WK officially stops making anything, but I have a larger contingency that simply enjoys playing the game, and hanging out together, even if things do start to stink after a while... (showers and deodorant please people...)
I will continue holding tournaments just to have some organized play, but it can be just as fun to hold a MW night where the usual group meets up and just kind of does what they want to in terms of point totals and objectives...
As long as I live in OKC, there will be MW on just about every Sat evening in this little midwestern urban town...

We know this? Really? Oh, you mean because they are not giving away free stuff at the next convention? Right. That clearly means they don't give a flying dead rat about their players.

If that's all that Mechwarrior means to you is the salving of your superiority complex and raking in something as fleeting as cash, then knock yourself out. I get this feeling that you're mad at Wizkids because the Well of Plastic Plenty has dried up for the time being and you can't make any green off of the prizes from your various local venues.

I'll put my money where my mouth is. I may not be able to play in your tournament, but I would do a few things you might not expect. Like shake your hand before and after the match is conducted. Or congratulate you on a game well played, regardless of the outcome. Because the game is far more important than the prize at the end. I hope you figure this out and find a game you can really enjoy. It seems like it's far too late for Mechwarrior in your regard.

Well spoken

And before I simply reply to folks like Mr. doc.sk75, I did want to thank the rest of you for taking the time to read my challenge and respond. I tell you, I have found some really good friends in my group of players. We all went out for a bite to eat tonight, and it was just felt, RIGHT. Like when you've been away from your family for a long time and you finally come home. We are rarely concerned with the outcome of the tournament, (although truth be told, I REALLY wanted to win the final match tonight :-P) because it really does not matter. That's something we are trying to get across to our younger players, and for the most part they have the right idea. If they were in it just for the prizes, they wouldn't keep coming back. :rolleyes:

To my fellow Warriors, keep fighting the good fight. Remember above all else, it's just a game. Have fun with it! The prize is the friends you will make, not the piece of plastic you might walk away with. Yeah, that sounds corny. But believe you me, it's true.

Here, here. I know some of the things scooby is saying might rub some the wrong way, specifically those considering leaving, but I think he does have a point.

To those who believe the game is dying, I respect the fact that is your opinion and you have the right to hold that opinion. You also have the right to leave the game. What you don't have the right to do is dampen the rest of our enjoyment via negative posts or in some cases wage protests of persecution on this forum by other members. If you wanna leave, leave. If you wanna ##### and moan on your way out, then leave and don't let the door hit you in the @$$ on the way out.

I never thought about MW might be a huge financial drain compare to other collectable games until Thaddeus mention it in the previous post. Maybe I base my view by comparing it to other games like Warhammer or Warmachine which you have to spend like at least $10 on a model and then have to glue them and paint them... MW units are already built and painted. All I need to do is collect and play them. If I am missing an unit, there is a huge support on Ebay to buy the missing units or even trade at local event or on the board like we have here.

I think WK knows there is a market for this game. Battletech, Mechwarrior are hardcore folks. They will play the game till the end of time :). Also WK can easily look at the schedule for events posted on the wizkid board to know how many people are playing weekly unless... some of these envoy are lying about events to just get prizes to sell on ebay or so on which has happen before.

We try to hold demo games ourselves to get friends interested in the game. One of the guys here is trying to contact and bring back those that quit the game because issues with "retired units" but most have moved on to another game or so.

The thing that upset me happened last year when I notice a local BM was selling prize mechs or mechs used for demo like Echo 1 and Headmaster... on ebay. He could easily have kept them to run demo games and use them as prizes to get new players to play.... but nope... it is profit for them :(

As for people's generousity, I don't mind donating units to folks too but I bet many of us that did have some folks asking for a specific mech instead of going out there to buy or trade for the units they need for themselves. I mean most of the extra stuff we got, we spend money on it. The units doesn't just grow on trees :) People have to realize this and if they want to get into this game they too have to spend the money. My comment might be a little harsh but that is the reality.

My take on keeping MW strong is instead of focus on bringing in new folks maybe we should focus on keeping the folks who is playing now who might have doubts of quitting. If everyone that is currently playing stays... more will come. The best promoter is the player and a happy player is what matters. We need to have a more positive attitude and instead of complaining about the rules, the units and the game.

Talk to much...might even make sense but it is late and I just want to get it off my chest.

Excellent post, Jolene. It is unfortunate that the BM you mentioned decided that financial gain was the only use for Headmaster and Echo 1; we've given enough away to the point that every MW player at our venue has them both! This was mostly due to prizes for unrestricted or non-Approved Play games, other times they were given to new players who wanted a decent force to start with. I understand that they can be bought and sold for 10-15 bucks online, but that is no excuse. I heard there are more War College packages on the way, and we are planning on running another WC event once they arrive. If you are still around that BM, I would sit down with them and have a chat. If he still intends to sell the pieces, I'd look into reporting him. That is NOT the kind of BM that promotes a new player base; he's in it for his own gain.

As far as keeping the players we have, I definitely agree. The problem I am seeing though is that the players who are whining and crying are usually just looking for sympathy. I'm not about to pat someone on the back and go "there, there..." when they are accusing WK of not caring about their players. That's simply not true. WK doesn't have to ship out thousands of free prizes every month, but they still do! We still have March coming yet, and no sign of stopping. It's like listening to someone say the sky is red with fuscia polka dots, and you can clearly see it's blue. Not buying it.

New players are more difficult to work with because they are green. Some of our vet players get frustrated when playing against a green player who needs more time to consider all their options. This frustration is understandable, but if the game is ever going to expand, we need to get other people interested in it. Heck, one of our regulars brought his dad in the other day, because his Axis and Allies game group keeps wanting to play different games! When I wasn't playing, I was helping him out (much to the chargin of his opponent, but hey, I did that for them once before:grin:).

Overall I am still positive in my thinking about Wizkids. Now if they say they are dropping the line tomorrow, then naturally I would be upset. But they have shown every indication possible that they are continuing the game's production and I have no reason to doubt their intentions.

MW is a game, games are fun, all good things come to an end. keep playing if you enjoy it, otherwise dont waste my time #####ing about it. Get out and try battletech with the real men. I still play for fun, but i never expected this game to outlast new ownership. so to summerize MW=fun keep playing stop whining, MW=not fun=ebay.

finally, ScoobySchmitty puts into words what I've been feeling since I started playing MW!

this game is NOT dying... heck, CBT survived the collapse of an ENTIRE GAME COMPANY (and now is popular as ever) and it is my beleif that MW will survive this rough patch...what business/game line hasn't hit rough times? i always admired other MW fans for their dedication to the game and the universe.