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Pilots would be purchased just like any other item and would be equipped in the cockpit slot of a mech. Mechs with command consoles could have two pilots. Players could own any number of pilots and pilots could be swapped out of mechs anytime between games. All mechs would require a pilot to launch into a game. Just like how mechs require an engine. If you dont have a pilot it wont let you launch the game.
Pilots would have hitpoints. Pilots would take damage from headshots, ammo explosions, overheating with a damaged life support system, etc.. If a pilots health is reduced to 0 he dies and that pilot is deleted from your inventory permanently (have to buy a new pilot). Pilot death should be a fairly uncommon occurrence. There should also be a way to eject to ensure your pilot doesnt die (an eject sequence is something players have been asking for since closed beta). In the event a pilot does die or eject your mech would effectively be destroyed.
There would be 6 different pilot classes (command, support, assault, strike, recon, and pursuit).
Command- artillery/airstrike, satillite uplink, uav/drones, commanding friendly mechs
Support- indirect damage, utility, sniping
Assault- tanking, sieging, leading the charge
Strike- direct damage, brawling, flanking
Recon- sensors, stealth, detection, spotting
Pursuit- speed, harassment, hit-and-run, evasion, capturing
Each pilot class would have its own unique skill tree and access to its own class modules. The skill tree would contain passive/active skills related to that class. As pilots rank up their mech would gain class module slots that can be used to install modules specific to that pilot's class. Since pilots can be swapped freely in between matches, changing a mech's role would be as easy as changing its pilot. Also as I mentioned earlier, the command console would let you have two pilots. Obviously this would have to be balanced somehow by limiting what skills/modules you gain from the second pilot. But the command console would now have a use.
Players would spend GXP to level up their pilots, so the whole pilot idea is monetized by GXP and PGI stands to profit from it, especially since pilots can die. There would be 20 levels divided into 4 ranks (green, regular, veteran, elite). Each level would give you 1 skill point to spend in the pilot's skill tree. Additionally, every time you max out a rank (i.e. every 5 levels) you would gain an additional "class" module slot for your mech. For a maximum of +4 class modules at level 20.
Mechs would also have "affinities" with certain types of pilots. For example, an Atlas would have an affinity with command pilots and a Catapult would have affinity with support pilots. When a mech equips a pilot it has affinity with it would gain a unique power (like Catapults might gain the ability to hotload LRMs and fire LRMs without a minimum range at risk of the LRM Launcher exploding if it gets critted).
Overall this would be fairly easily to implement in the current framework of the game. The hardest part is the creation of skill trees and class modules for each of the pilot classes. But it will add some much needed variation to the game. The addition of affinities would also help differentiate mechs a lot more by giving them unique bonuses when used in their canon roles.
Thats about it...
Edited by Khobai, 10 May 2014 - 12:26 PM.
