Conventions 2004: Hell on Tiber

Ten years back, I was one of the three people helping FanPro produce the big canon event games for Origins and GenCon. (The other two being Chris Smith and Christopher “Bones” Trossen.) One of the most successful games we ran pitted Clan Wolf against Clan Hell’s Horses on the world of Tiber.

The game is one of the most memorable that I ran. The players really got into the story and the setting, playing as Clanners should. Insults were tossed wildly as the units clashed repeatedly across a canyon and river. The single bridge connecting the two sides became a deathtrap for the Wolves, who saw things quickly get out of hand after one of their players kicked in a Horse hovertank. (The move was done completely in character, which everyone loved.) This escalated the conflict in the later hours into a grand brawl that saw both sides heavily damaged.

In the end, the Horses held out for the win. There were many epic moments; I memorialized two of them in my write-ups for Jihad Hot Spots: 3070 (and later, Wars of Reaving).

Anyway, I mention all of this because for years, fans have asked us to post the scenarios and force lists for the canon games, which we’ve steadfastly refused for a variety of reasons.

The other week I was cleaning out my junk computer drawer and happened upon an unlabelled CD-R. Curious, I checked the contents and found that it was full of all the 2004 Origins event information we’d used.

Now, this doesn’t constitute an official notice or document by CGL. I’m sharing this only because I feel like it, and because I thought some people might find the information interesting. BT nerds can rage/debate/pontificate all they want about the units, decisions, etc, and it’ll be pointless because though the game and result was official, this document ISN’T.

Here’s the official description from the Origins Event listing:

The Hell’s Horses may have been ejected from the Inner Sphere, but that doesn’t mean they’ve lost their edge. It’s time for Clan Wolf to pay for their crimes against the Horses, and Tiber is the battlefield. Which Clan will have the strength to put down the other and claim Tiber? Here’s your opportunity to participate in an official storyline event! Generics welcome! Prizes awarded! Event continues on through 10:00 p.m.

(This was a three-day event that ran 10 hours each day.)

And here is the Hell on Tiber Storyline scenario TOE, crafted for both sides, along with a list of miniatures we needed from the demo team stock at the time. The TOEs were chosen mostly due to what minis we had on hand. We added extras to the lists as these games were proving popular, so we needed backup. If I remember correctly, we ended up running out of units and just started cycling “old” units from the start with fresh record sheets to accommodate attendance.

And the rest was BattleTech history.