The Total Warfare book introduces many additional combat options beyond the introductory rulebook, as well as extra weapons and tech to spice up any game. It is not intended to introduce new players to the game but rather to serve as a reference work for people who know the game, while expanding on the rules in the basic set. This is the first printing Fanpro edition of the book.
A brilliant game system which has stood the test of over 40 years. The combined -arms ground combat system is genuinely elegant. In contrast, the chapters on aerospace units are byzantine and confusing—seemingly grafted on from another, older game with little thought of how they contribute to the core gameplay loop. They're incredibly convoluted and should be reworked entirely. At the very least they belong in the back of the book. Putting aerospace movement as chapter 2 is insane.
Glad they re-did the rules since they were scattered all over the place. I also like all the pictures in the book to give you a good flavor of what BattleTech might look like.