I think it should be implemented as a way to start the game and another tactical decision a commander can make during the play of the game. NOT as a respawn mechanic. Definitely not. I see it playing out like this:
Commander 1 has level 'X' in a certain infiltration skill and/or a certain level command module that allows him to Hot Drop in 'Y' tonnage of Mechs if he so chooses, he starts the game with Total - 'Y' tonnage of Mechs on the battle field and can then choose to either drop those Mechs he has sitting in orbit onto the battle field in an area around his own teams objectives/starting areas, (the distance is finite so he can't just drop Mechs willy nilly around the map and deep strike 10 Assault Mechs behind/on top of the opposing teams objective/start point) or within a certain distance of mechs sporting a certain module that allows a lock from the Dropship, the amount of time he has to drop the Mechs in orbit depends on his command skill / module. Once he has chosen where to drop one of his Mechs the pilot then has a chance, depending on a certain commander skill/ the quality of the terrain he is landing on/ the level of the module the commander had/ the level of the module of the mech who's zone the drop ship targeted/the quality of the dropship to take 'Z' damage upon landing. Once all those things have been accounted for the Mech is in play in it's new spot.
So a real example of this would be...
A commander with a level 11 infiltration skill and a lvl 3 Dropship beacon module can Hot Drop in 200 Tons of Mech per encounter and has 3 minutes of the game to do so before the 200 Tons of Mech are automatically jettisoned onto the battle field at random. Before the battle he chooses a Catapult and an Atlas to stay in the Dropship. As the game begins his already deployed force is assembled around their starting location below a high spot on the battle field, the commander sends his Jenner out who happens to have a level 4 Dropship beacon to scout ahead of the main force, as the Jenner moves forward his Dropship beacon zone reaches out far enough so the commander can Initiate an orbital drop of the Catapult onto the strategic high point. The Jenner pauses in place, the Dropship gets a lock on the target area, initiates the Hot drop timer and after a certain amount of time the Catapult pilot adds all the modifiers previously stated, taking in to account his Hot drop pilot skill and the soft soil on top of the high point, the modifiers come out positive and as the Catapult lands he takes no damage from his drop, takes up the high point and gives his team a strategic advantage.
Now, the Jenner moves forward more and finds an objective that is relevant to the interests of both teams, the commander wanting to seize this objective first decides to Hot drop in the Atlas sitting in orbit, as the Hot drop is initiated the Jenner takes critical damage from enemy fire and as destroyed, the Dropship loses its lock and tries to abort the Hot drop, but it's too late. The Atlas hurtles to the ground lacking a correct lock on target area, the ground is hard and rocky and the Atlas pilot lacks the Hot drop skill of the Catapult, the Hot drop timer was drawing near so the dropship crew was rushed (not a good thing) and the Commander is so far away he can't influence the outcome of the situation with his own modifiers, also the close proximity of an enemy Mech with a Jamming module has affected the situation (this means a lot of bad Juju coming the way of the earthbound Atlas). The Mech strikes the ground, takes MASSIVE leg damage and in the process is crippled and now has a lance of enemy Mechs bearing down on his location. However the crippled Atlas is now spotting targets for the Catapult in the perfect fire support position which is able to keep the enemy lance at bay until the cavalry arrive.
If that doesn't sound like an awesome game play mechanic I don't know what is.
It would add an extra dimension to tactics, would require team play / good communications / good leadership and a bit of luck.
It would offer great flexibility and the possibility of a game winning drop, the trade off would be the chance of damage / extra experience / extra modules / the purchase of a dropship.
Also death from above out of a Dropship would be an awesome trophy/achievement.
That is all.
Edit: Oh wow, I didn't realise how much I had written until I read over it after...
TL:DR Hotdrops would rawk.
Edited by Unruly Gentleman, 31 January 2012 - 10:22 AM.