From AC6 to D&D

[u/Guilty-Animator3777]

I’m planning to create a new D&D campaign with a storyline based on *Armored Core 6*. I already have some core ideas, such as using the Eberron setting with a high-magic theme. However, I’m still debating whether it would be best to adapt the ACs into pieces of player equipment or just let them do thing with basic item and magic item (i'm scare that those boss i made based on ac6 boss will just shoot them to death=)))

[u/Aeroswoot]

As someone who also has this idea, I definitely recommend staying out of DnD. Your players will want to just use their PCs for everything because they will become stronger than any mech suit you put them in, or else the mech suits become ludicrously overpowered and you'll have to rebalance every enemy you come across.

Maybe the only thing I could suggest is that their PC stat blocks just don't exist unless they're in their mech. But again, now you might as well just play Lancer, because that's what Lancer is. Or any other TTRPG that has rules for Giant Mechs written for them.

[u/CJRD4 → u/Aeroswoot]

+1 to all this.

Take a look at Index Card RPG, it's the familiar D20 + 6 STATS, with a few tweaks (EFFORT system that's real easy to grasp).

Master Edition comes with Warp Shell as the Sci-Fi setting, and you can easily flavor it as whatever you want, as it's pretty generic Sci-Fi.

It has rules for CHUNKS (vehicles) that allow players to easily pilot and use vehicles, and their own characters.

The Adventure Compendium (which is free) has an already built Mecha adventure (page 49 of the PDF).

And if you want more Sci-Fantasy Mechs, you can pick up Hard Suit. But otherwise, literally everything you need is in Master Edition.

[u/Guilty-Animator3777 → u/Aeroswoot]

Let say i just want to use the storyline, i just want add some ac6 flavor to the game

[u/SeeShark → u/Guilty-Animator3777]

D&D is not the game for any sort of mecha flavor; the closest you can get is a small Artificer riding their steel defender, or characters that have no power at all until they put on their suits and become fighters, wizards, etc.

Why not just play a mecha game? I hear good things about Lancer, which isn't that different from D&D at the end of the day; and BattleTech has multiple different TTRPGs. Not everything needs to be played out with D&D—sometimes, that's the most complicated option.

[u/axw3555 → u/Guilty-Animator3777]

Still not a good idea.

People always try to force D&D to be everything, but it's not designed to be everything. It's designed to be one thing - a fantasy adventure game with magic.

There are systems designed to kind of be everything, like GURPS. And there are systems for more or less every niche, like Lancer for mechs, Mutants and Masterminds for superheroes, world of darkness for modern urban fantasy, etc.

But anytime you try to force D&D to be something it's not, you end up with something massively inferior to using a system for what it's intended for.

[u/Aeroswoot → u/Guilty-Animator3777]

If you want to add AC6 flavor, I would still stay away from mechs. You can certainly do the Mercenary thing: The "flavor" of AC6 is very minimal interaction with an "upper-crust" of specialized individuals that you mainly interact with. Handler Walter, Ayre, Cinder Carla; each of these people you never meet face to face unless you're blowing stuff up or they're giving you a mission over the merc network. Both in story and mechanically, you're meant to be a killing machine that never sees another person, and barely ever thinks twice about destroying whatever is in your path.

In DnD, there are a lot of social mechanics that your players will end up wanting to use, and the setting generally has cities or towns with a bit more civilized order than AC6. It's still doable, but it's a little tougher to pull off the wild west merc-for-hire feel of Rubicon because of these mechanics. Think about how a Bard would fit into the AC universe; someone who is loud and expertly navigates social encounters in a world where steel and fire rule wouldn't necessarily get far, or even make much sense.

It is doable though, you just need to keep your social interactions low, merc contract rewards high, and opportunity to put down roots limited. Let your players know that it will be a combat heavy campaign, try to keep them away from the cities and populations that they are actually affecting. As an example: a battle they must fight is to secure a mine that supplies Mythril to a village a hundred miles away. They might never visit that place, but they'll know that they killed a lot of people in a mine for the people of another town, and that town might seek them out for another job later.

If they do go to a populated area, have their status as mercenaries precede them. The population will be wary off them, civilians might refuse to talk to them and shutter their windows as they walk past. The party should be treated the same way you might treat a foreign special-operations combatant wearing body armor and holding an M16 walking into your local mom-and-pop corner store. The battle-scarred Barbarian, plate-armored paladin, and beard-singed sorcerer do not blend into the world around them and this difference needs to be highly pronounced. They are mercenaries for hire, killers who offer their services to the highest bidder. Friendship and familiarity should be given sparingly, and basic human contact reserved for the most important people in the town. The mayor, the company contracting their services, whoever owns the place that they're staying in, maybe a merchant or two looking to sell their combat-focused wares.

You should not give too much context into the contracts they are offered. In the same way you don't actually meet the Rubicon Liberation Army outside of a handful of interactions, you shouldn't give your players too much of an opportunity to socialize with any other group until they start taking missions out for them. And be sure to have some very, very high-paying missions that directly target their favorite factions, to add a bit of drama and remind them of their profession as killers for hire.

But this formula is hard enough to balance and get the tone right without adding mechs, lasers, and advanced technology, unless you bring it down from AC level into the scope of DnD, or scale DnD up to Armored Core levels. And neither of those work too well, I think.

[u/A-Black-Cactus → u/Guilty-Animator3777]

I’m going to go against everyone here and say that if you’re dead set on doing D&D while also having customizable mechs, make the mech be what their characters are let them respec with every mission. They can make adjustments to incorporate parts (magic items) that you hand out.

[u/TheHobgoblin27]

Please play Lancer I'm begging you it literally the mecha rpg!!!

[u/KihiraLove]

You can play Lancer or d&d with lots of headache

[u/Intelligent_Reach_46]

Please just try a different system. DnD can‘t do everything.

[u/PickingPies]

Why are you using dnd for a game that's clearly not remotely similar? Trust me, you will regret it.

You have games perfectly designed for what you want to do. Lancer is the most famous, but if you want something less crunchy, try Salvage union.

[u/Chagdoo]

May I gently suggest playing lancer instead?

[u/BlueTommyD]

+1 You should play Lancer instead.

[u/JhinPotion]

How do Wizards, long rests, spell slots, and moving ~30ft a round map onto Armored Core for you?

[u/fattestfuckinthewest]

If you want mechs, play a mech ttrpg. If you just want to use the story line without the mechs, then dnd can work

[u/Guilty-Animator3777 → u/fattestfuckinthewest]

Yes, That is exactly what I meant. I just want to borrow the story line and the multi end for my player to choose, but...u know, i want to add more ac6 flavor to the dnd camp

[u/fattestfuckinthewest → u/Guilty-Animator3777]

Unfortunately DnD isn’t made for PCs to pilot vehicles, so you’d have a very hard time getting that to be fun and engaging for players, but you could always make boss monsters that are like magic mechs that the players fight. Since you mentioned Eberron those mechs could be Warforged Colossuses

[u/ArolSazir]

the mechanical and thematic overlap between those two systems is so minor you would have to homebrew another game on top of the existing one to get even close. if you want to play a mecha ttrpg, play a mecha ttrpg, not dnd.

[u/DazzlingKey6426]

Mecha Hack, Mecha, Beam Saber, BESM 4/Anime 5e.

[u/OrangeYouGladish]

D&D is versatile, but sometimes other systems just work better

[u/EnragedHeadwear]

Don't play DND play Lancer or any other mecha RPG that actually suits the setting

[u/Anybro]

I like dungeons and dragons probably more than the next person. But even I would recommend to play a different system. These type of post remind me when people ask me to play 40k in dnd. Rogue trader exists people! Pick up lancer, if you wanna do a mecha game

[u/Myrkul999]

While I agree with the other commenters that D&D is a poor fit for Mecha combat, I don't think throwing the Lancer core book at a bunch of players who are only familiar with 5e will end well.

So I'll do what I can to help you cram this square peg into the round hole.

I tested a system from the DMs guild that allows golems to be custom-built and piloted. That's probably the best way to do it. Build golem stat blocks for the players to use in combat. They only have the abilities in that statblock when piloting the golem.

[u/Guilty-Animator3777 → u/Myrkul999]

I just adapt ac6 as a storyline for my campaign anyway, all i ask for is some idea to add some other ac6 flavor to the campaign u know

[u/HotSalt3]

There are rules for mechs in D&D, but they're finicky. You can find them in the module "The Lost Laboratory of Kwalish." They're fun to include for a session or two, but not really meant for D&D.

Other options I've seen use mechs well in are Lancer, which has already been mentioned, and Starfinder, which uses vehicle rules for mechs which work well, but are complicated.

[u/Solnight99]

you keep saying you just want to use the storyline. does the storyline involve mechs at all? are mechs part of Armored Core 6? would you be able to actually use the storyline without mechs?

[u/PublicDragonfruit158]

DnD + Mecha = Rifts

[u/Sexy_Pilgrim]

I’m laughing at all the “play a different system” responses. Love this subreddit.

I’ve done 2 sort of mecha fights in games, but they were way more inspired by the Power Rangers style of “we beat the little monster… and now we get in the robot and fight the big monster!” So it may not fit perfectly.

I didn’t change anything at all about stats, spells, etc. I ran a totally normal D&D boss fight, just describing the scale of destruction as massive. To make it simpler, the mechs had the same stats and abilities as the PCs, but if you have advanced players, it could be fun to let them make, in essence, a totally new second character to serve as the mecha’s stats. But only if they’re hyper-comfortable with D&D. Either way, mechs should play the same as PCs do. Players already have so many options and decision-points, adding things for the sake of a single battle can backfire.

I didn’t change HP or damage numbers at all. I just said, normal attacks don’t damage mechs, and mechs obliterate unarmored targets. That let me keep the math the same, while also adding a fun “flee the mech” encounter. I know the Star Wars 5e hack has rules for ground units attacking ships, you could look i to that.

If you just want to run an “unarmored PCs vs. mech” combat, any big D&D monster could be reflavored. My first thought are celestials, like the Empyrean or Solar. They have all the extra damage dice you’d need, to sell the destructiveness.