one of the few benefits of using an ai is so you can keep a mech fighting while the pilot is out of the mech, and can therefore jockey, when is that going to happen? also shutdown/boot up?
Mecha RPG adapted from Lancer tabletop · By
Cascades are on the todo list (no time estimation; they’ve been low priority since they’re both somewhat niche and potentially a lot of work). Shutdown/boot up will be a lot more relevant once we have cascades so I expect we’ll add them together.
We made the call pretty early on to not include the mechanics for pilots. On the RP side, they’re too open ended and narrative for a direct computer adaptation. On the battle side, they present a few key problems:
Really enjoying the game so far, amazing job with everything from the music to the art. Everything below is from the context of someone who hasn't actually engaged with Lancer outside of reading the rules a few times, so take it with a huge grain of salt :3
While the Pilot mechanics are 100% lacking, I do think it could be really unique and worth including down the line if It were to be implemented, it definitely shouldn't be encouraged. Narratively I could see letting your Lancer, or a named NPC, outright die lead to a 'game over' or mission failure.
Having pilot mechanics definitely shouldn't be top of the priority list, as I think the attention is best served elsewhere, but down the line I could see them opening up a whole host of cool scenarios for either official of community missions. Even as a DLC if you're into those.
Like I said earlier, I don't know how these mechanics play out in actual gameplay most of the time, but I really like the idea of:
- You need to exit your mech to complete an objective, a la hacking or disabling something while your mech fights with your team outside
- You need to escape a building to get back to your mech in a facility crawling with 1/2 mechs
- Last ditch effort to escape from your mech while it self destructs in the last round of a capture mission
My favourite mech game by far is Titanfall 2, just because I love the dynamic between the Pilot and the Titan, I feel like that would add so much potential, especially with the option to customise your mech's dossier as your can with the Lancer.
Either way, keep up the phenomenal work, I look forward to see what you come up with. :3
Hi! I think it’s very unlikely we’ll ever fully include pilot mechanics in the combat layer in LT. I know the Titanfall fantasy is strong, but Lancer as-written does not support it well (ie running it RAW with a computerized OPFOR would not be a good experience) & running it at the table requires a lot of human judgement calls and flexibility from the GM, which is why we decided to not take a swing at it.
As seen in the tutorial, there’s basic support for scripted interactions with pilots which map/mod makers can utilize on a case-by-case basis, but that’s the creator taking the player experience into their own hands.