GM Rules & Tools.

So in prep for this campaign I found the following very useful:

1) A mechlab creator.  I am using a custom modified version of remlab which allows primitive armor (my own work).  I run it locally.  If you want a copy, get it here:  https://drive.google.com/open?id=1TJZnEY-K0BVgjOWMlcJF0zaxSsaOf2py

(Note: to use this, download php, edit the start.bat file and put the php path in there), then open it up in your browser @ http://localhost:8000.

2) BTCC Battletech Character Creator - available here: https://github.com/bearchik/Battletech-Character-Creator

3) A copy of the ATOW core rules purchased via drivethrurpg.com

4) A copy of the 'quick start' (free) via drivethrurpg.com

5) A copy of the GM Screen (super useful) via drivethrurpg.com

6) A copy of the ATOW Companion guide - this is only useful for me because I have creatures in my campaign, specifically Branth as a player sidecar.

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Beyond that I did my planning in microsoft project/evernote (depending on what pc I'm on).

GM rules as they stand:

Title/Rank will be treated same as 'vehicle' and can add to it.  

        - What this means is that if you have a vehicle 3 and a title 1 and a rank 1, you add them together and get a 5.  If you have a title 3, but no rank, no vehicle, then it's the same as vehicle 3.  This was to ease my players into all having mechs, which is important for my campaign.

Anyone with property 5 gets 1 personal NPC attendant, non combat only unless under extreme circumstances.  I created the NPC for one player in this case using a 4000 XP custom build.  It says in the rules that players with a property 5 basically own a 10x10km area somewhere and are in charge of it's denizens.  It makes sense to me they'd have NPC's available to them (not just via connection).

Linked attribute value gets added to roll for initiative.  I think the initiative rolling system is kind of stupid.  As it stands the only modifiers are combat sense, combat paralysis, and tactics/your specific combat type you are in.  So ... yeah.  I added the reflex linked attribute value to their rolls because it makes sense when you have a guy pushing 6 RFL that he'd be faster.

Holding action means end of player turns only - so during initiative rolls, players higher up can choose NOT to go.  However the official rule is they can inject themselves wherever.  I feel this allows too much metagaming so I say 'you go after the player with lowest initiative instead.

Only mobs capable of using edge are the Elite or Rare mobs.  No one else can do it.  Base mobs cannot use edge.  I.e. my minions might have 4 edge but they won't use it.  This is because they are minions.

When a player reaches 0 HP, they are incapacitated.  Players then have 4 turns to successfully revive them with a medtech roll.  If they aren't revived, they die.  If they during those 4 turns exceed their BOD score in damage beyond that, they die. If they are revived, they come back with 1 hp.

There are other little ones, but that's the bulk of the big ones.