Heavy Gear

If you can instinctively hear the VREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE , then you're in the right place

Wargame and RPG published by Dream Pod 9
Rule System	Silhouette
No. of Players	2+
Session Time	1/hr
Authors	Micheal Butler and Guy-Francis Vella.
First Publication	1994
Essential Books	Heavy Gear Blitz 3rd edition, Silhouette core deluxe, Force compendium, Heavy Gear RPG 4th edition.

Heavy Gear is a sci-fi setting created by Dream Pod 9 and heavily inspired by Armored Trooper Votoms. Originally a card game that quickly developed into an RPG/Tactical skirmish game (where combat typically involved roughly 5 characters or units per side), has spun off two computer games, an animated series, and is currently supported as a miniatures game generally designed around 10-15 models per side. But before all of that it was a pen and paper game that saw a lot of play testing in the game shops of Montreal before being released. The pen and paper game included the wargame rules as well.

The animated series was awesome at the time; c'mon dude, it's a bunch of mecha fighting each other in low res computer graphics, it was savage at the time!!! The good guys were the Shadow Dragons, who face the bad guys, ironically named the Vanguards of Justice, who always cheat in the games to gain the upper hand in Team Rocket-esque hijinks.

The board game and first video game are generally considered two of the few media focusing on mechs that are not weeaboo in any fashion (one look at the art of Heavy Gear board game tells another story entirely, DP9 tends to wear their love of mecha anime on their forehead, but Activision needed a mechwarrior killer, so no anime for you!) However, TANKS WILL STILL FUCK YOUR SHIT UP! Gears are highly mobile but aren't as heavily armored as they are in other mecha media so this leaves them vulnerable when confronting absolutely anything. In Heavy Gear, speed is life, and life is fleeting. Use of mortars, guided missiles, and lots of stand-off weapons that can actually hit things is heavily recommended.

The first video game had ridiculously complicated and counter-intuitive controls (kinda like real military equipment?) The second video game fixed this issue but created others such as the steep difficulty curve, where self preservation is key in all things. You can't get hit at all without something breaking, ammunition is low and you will find yourself hiding behind something and sniping your enemies more than being a speedy speed boy like a Gear is suppose to.

The danger of piloting a Gear is pretty accurate to the setting, however, as both tabletop and wargame are known to be driven by one of world's deadliest systems - Silhouette. You get shot by a kid with 9mm, even if you are some ninja cyborg commando from space, there's pretty high chance you get owned if you don't use cover or element of surprise. And no "You need to roll 20 and than roll again to confirm a crit" bullshit, it happens all the time. If you are not loosing a character every encounter, you are most likely playing it wrong.

Also: GUIDED MORTARS OF DOOM!

Terra Nova

Confederated Northern City-States

Ate Souf, luv Norf, Simple as.

Consists of the Northern Lights Confederacy, the United Mercantile Federation, and Western Frontier Protectorate Leagues. Their main united army is the Northern Guard. The UMF is the birthplace of the Hunter Gear, the first heavy gear on Terra Nova. Their forces tend to be focused on specializing in one thing, counting on other forces to plug the gaps they do not have. Each of the states' independence remains and they are self-governed but are also represented on the CNCS council. The CNCS has no authority in the internal affairs' of any of the individual states however, making behind the scenes power plays to get legislation to further their specific needs not uncommon.

Staple units: Hunter, Jaguar, Cheetah, Grizzly, Kodiak, and Ferret Gears.

Allied Southern Territories

Ate Norf, luv Souf, Simple as.

Consists of Eastern Sun Emirates, Humanist Alliance, Mekong Dominion, and the Southern Republic. The MILICIA [MILItary and Counter Insurgency Army) is the combined army of the Leagues, although unlike the Northern equivalent, it is extremely underfunded and is considered a place where careers go to die. Their forces typically can fill any role somewhat well, a more jack of all trades approach to warfare, they do however have a hovertank option. Lorded over by the Curia and the three Chancellors of the Republic, the rest of the Allied Southern Territories are mere puppets of the Southern Republic, with dissidents to their rule crushed or silenced.

Staple units: Jager, Black Mamba, Iguana, Spitting Cobra, and King Cobra Gears.

Peace River

Peace sells, but who's buying?

City state/corporation that is the most powerful independent faction on Terra Nova, they typically sell to all sides to ensure maximum profit while maintaining a neutral stance. They even tried to broker peace (hehe) between Terra Nova and the CEF only to get a heaping helping of nuclear radiation for it.

Staple units: Warrior, Warrior IV, Crusader IV, and Skirmisher Gears.

New Coalition

Only the dead may know the end of war.

Consists of several badlands city states allied with the remnants of the first Earth invasion. Has some of the best tech available to the Terra Nova people as well as some minor CEF tech. Lives in constant fear of the North and South, so decided to go into the business for themselves. Seeing as how the big two get into it over something new every week, you can't really blame them.

Staple units: Chasseur, Cuirassier, Chevalier and Jerboa Gears.

Black Talons

CEF git off muh lawn REEEEEEEEE.

A combined effort by all nations of Terra Nova to fight the CEF on the colonies that the CEF has invaded. Has lots of stealth and some of the best tech. They also can ally with some of the resistance cells of other planets. These are the guys you played as in HG2.

Staple units: All the best stuff from Terra Nova.

Badlands/Leagueless factions

Consisting of bandits, independent city states, and homesteaders. Uses the cast offs of the other leagues basic tech. You won't get the best of the best, but Terra Novans make do.

Staple units: All the bad stuff from Terra Nova.

Earth

Colonial Expeditionary Force

We never approve your independence from our federation!

The force of Earth setting out to retake the Colonies that Earth originally abandoned. They have some of the most advanced military tech. Their forces are made mainly of hover tanks and Vat Grown super soldiers called Genetically Recombined Experimental Legionaries (GRELs). Now they have access to their own form of Gears called Frames along with some of their Super Soldiers with access to power armor. Not to mention auxiliary forces from the other colonies they have conquered. As with most Sci-Fi, if Earth is not the good guy they are typically the bad guy. Controlled by the New Earth Commonwealth (NEC) that was created after the nations of Earth started dumping nukes on each other then getting mad when it was revealed that wasn't such a good idea. They have now come to take their taxes to pay for the rebuilding of Earth BY FORCE....for the 2nd time!

Staple units: Hovertanks, Frames, GRELs and FLAIL power armor.

Caprice

Workan for you, doing mighty things they're, MIGHTY MACHINES!

The Caprice Corporate Forces are currently torn between kowtowing to the masters of earth and the resistance, the forces of Caprice use special mechs called Mounts which are able to climb with ease and are noticeably heavier and better armored than gears. They also use a new-type of GREl called SLEDGE, who are made for insurgency and espionage as opposed to the GREL's "kill them all and let the NEC sort their taxes" approach.

Staple units: Bashan, Acco, Kadesh, Aplheic and Meggido Mounts.

Utopia

Remember the Mobile dolls from Wing? This' them now. Feel old yet? (yes, :( )

The forces of Utopia are technically the most advanced faction of Heavy Gear, this comes from bombing their planet to an irradiated mess and having to live in huge vault cities where their tech was the only way to survive. Their armies consist of Gears called Armigers, who have bays filled with drones, semi-Intelligent robots, and power armored troopers able to survive in the wasteland of their home. The Earth is currently in control of the planet with the help of the two most powerful nations.

Staple units: Armigers and N-KIDU drone spam.

Eden

They're knights of the round table, they fight when they are able.

A feudal world ruled by the kings and nobles of the former resort owners. Eden used to be the prime spot for people to go on vacation, they eventually become knights in the techno medieval style. Their army consist of power armor equipped troops. Knightly Gears would do quite nicely however, since their army consists of only two EIGHT different types of power armor and Beast-Mounted infantry/Dragon riders now. Looks like we're moving on up, squires!

Staple units: Marshall, Constable, Man-at-Arms, Druid, Doppel, Centaur and Warlock GOLEM power armor.

Other

There are a couple of other factions/worlds that not much is known about them/their units are not available for playing in the wargame.

Until Atlantis gets their own army, this' what your force is gonna look like.

Atlantis is a water world where the people have developed some really good Navies, better than anything the CEF can make or use which they use to keep the majority of their planet under their control, the land masses are firmly under the control of the CEF however.

Jotenheim was bought by private citizens and set up by them. Always have been independent minded. Not much is known about them other than they kicked the asses of one of the CEF fleets. They are probably Techno Vikings with some really good stealth tech. So good that the CEF did not even know where their ships and troops came from.

New Jerusalem is owned by the Roman Catholic church, like Jotenheim not much is known about them other than that they beat back the CEF armies on their own and probable DEUS VULT. Even less is known about their forces than the ones on Jotenheim, they wiped out the CEF fleet before they could report back anything.

Home is owned by a corporation and is firmly under the control of the CEF. Not much is known about them other than the Corporation who owns the planet is willingly working with the CEF.

Botany Bay like its namesake was originally a planet filled with prisoners. They evolved into a strict warrior society over the generations, but were conquered by the CEF, they are maintaining a stiff resistance force however.

So choose your faction, your mech, and LOOK ALIVE, GEARHEADS!

Gallery

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  Because it's a mecha game. OF COURSE it's gonna have an arena.

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  When the guys at DP9 watched too much IGPX.

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  Oh yeah, they're weebs alright.