Please forgive the Kickstarter plug.
Mekton is back! The original mecha anime tabletop RPG is back!
While so many gamers were plodding around the battlefield, micromanaging heat output of a couple of walking tanks in that other game in the mid-1980’s*, the rest of us were recreating what we saw on Mazinger, Gundam, Macross, Dougram, Votoms, Escaflowne, Five Star Stories, or any number of other mecha anime worlds with Mekton. And, unlike some other, more well know RPGs, Mekton kept getting better with each new edition!
Mekton was always a great mecha anime wargame wrapped in a very good RPG. This time, Mekton Zero will be a specifically designed to work as a wargame as well as an RPG. Mekton Zero is also designed to be compatible with Mekton Zeta, so you can port over your characters and mecha. And there will be new miniatures.
Yes, it’s a Kickstarter, but Mr. Pondsmith and R. Talsorian Games have been making tabletop RPGs for over 30 years; classics like Castle Falkenstein, Teenagers from Outer Space, Cyberpunk, and series specific games like Bubblegum Crisis and V.O.T.O.M.S.
From the Kickstarter page:
”What about previous editions?
Zero is based on same systems as Mekton Zeta and Zeta +
Build your own Mekton using Zeta and Zeta+ and use it in the Zero setting.
Play as a role-playing game
Play as a squad based tabletop wargame
Play in customized arena combat.
What's next?
New gaming miniatures for Mekton Zero.
New mecha figures
New hero character figures
Giant alien beast and monster figures
Follow-on books with new mecha for factions in the Zero setting
New and interesting hero/villain characters
Novels and manga planned to support the RPG.
Future online world and video games being developed”
Give it a look. If it’s for you, then become a backer.
* Please note: there’s nothing wrong with plodding around the battlefield, micromanaging heat output of a couple of walking tanks, but it didn’t do on the table what the mecha did on the TV screen – which is what got me interested in gaming giant, stompy robots to begin with!
<< UPDATE >>
I have no idea what happened to this project. The last official word was back in March of 2014. Rumors abound. It's sad that this happened to my favorite RPG. But Mekton Zeta is still available as a PDF download (and of this posting - on discount!) from Drive Thru RPG.
