What is Transformers: Heavy Metal War?
It’s an unofficial Transformers tabletop miniatures game that is designed to be played solo or cooperatively against an AI enemy that is activated by a deck of behavior cards. It is inspired by “boss battler” games, where a team of characters will have to work together to defeat a powerful enemy in an encounter.
How much will the game cost?
Nothing! I don’t own Transformers. I’ve always wanted a Transformers miniatures game and I’m tired of waiting for someone else to make one. The rules will be available to download for free, along with any other printable assets needed to play (ie. cards, tokens).
What will I need to play?
- A 3 foot by 3 foot playing area
- Terrain and objects to populate the playing area (can either be fancy wargaming terrain or everyday household objects)
- At least 6 but preferably 10 dice of the following varieties: d4, d6, d8, d10
- Access to a printer (to print cards and tokens)
- Figures to represent your team of characters and the enemy they’re fighting
- I plan to use figures from the Blokees Defender toyline, but you can use other figures or even just print tokens in the appropriate size.
- I’ll be using blue poster tak to temporarily mount the figures onto 50mm plastic wargaming bases.
What is the first encounter?
Your team of four heroic Autobots will attempt to foil the plans of the evil Decepticon Shockwave as he attempts to extract samples of Ore-13.
What characters will initially be available?
The first set of playable Autobots will be Optimus Prime, Ironhide, Prowl, and Bumblebee.
How will the aspect of transforming be portrayed?
Two recent official Transformers tabletop games (The Transformers Trading Card Game and The Transformers Deck-Building Game) have used double sided character cards to give characters different abilities in their robot and alt modes. I’ll be using the same concept here. You do not need a different miniature to represent a character’s alt mode (but you’re welcome to do so if you’d like).
When will the game be released for playtesting?
My goal is to have an initial publicly available alpha playtest available by February 1st, 2026. From there, I’ll be collecting feedback and making appropriate changes.
How many people can play?
The game can handle anywhere between 1-4 players.
Are there any plans for a PVP (player vs player) mode instead of PVE (player vs environment)?
Not by me, but I believe the system could easily be adapted for PVP play.
What plans are there for additional characters and encounters?
A whole bunch! For now, though, I want to get the basics of the game system and experience in a solid place. If you’re impatient, I’d say Waves 1-3 of the Blokees Defender line are a good preview of some of my early plans.
What if I want to make my own characters or encounters?
Please do! Once the foundation of the game is in a solid place, I’ll release the templates for cards so people can make their own creations.
Where can I find additional information and updates?
I’m starting with this Facebook group, but look for more (Discord?) soon: https://www.facebook.com/groups/tfheavymetalwar
Wreck 'N Rule 