(1.1) Improvised attacks
Yep, I nearly missed improvised attacks myself. That was almost going to be one of the feedback points until I saw the mention snuck in at the end of the Improvise description, lol.
I will say, it should probably not do DMG equal to Hits, since that’s the going rate (i.e. the standard) for Basic ATKs and Stratagems. Basic ATKs generate +2 SYN to self and Stratagems usually have more going on, so there is still a distinction, but to me it wouldn’t quite feel like an improvised attack unless the DMG was lower.
Off the top of my head, I would consider [Each Double] = +1 DMG, to a minimum of 1 DMG, or else a base of 1 DMG with +1 per double. There’s higher DMG potential than the Summons who simply get 1 Action = 1 DMG, while not stepping on the toes of other ATKs. But maybe the +2 SYN of proper Basic ATKs is already value enough.
(1.2) MEC Stat Involvement
Alright, that’s understandable. Maybe in the future, Stat contributions can be the effect of specific Parts, Stratagems, or Perks. In the meantime, probably better to remove MOB from the Speed calculation, in the interests of leveling the playing field.
(2) Integrity and Armor
Maybe consider dropping both Integrity and Armor in favor of a new term, like Hull? There’s a certain elegance to having the three survivability stats being one syllable each: Shields, Hull, and Soak. Then you could have the parallelism between Max Shields and Max Hull.
(3) Chances
Some Chances are gambles, while others are totally within the players’ control. A Pilot can actively pursue e.g. the added Dice after Boosting for Blaze Rush → Diving In on the Heat Hatchet (Squire), or position themselves to include an Ally in the Blinding Flash AoE to trigger Beacon of Hope (Knight).
This is in direct contrast compared to the likes of True Slash and Charged Shot, which was the thrust of the original point. The player only has so much control over those, and while that does provide variety, I’d argue that it’s not necessarily the good kind of variety. At that point, I would almost rather see a different kind of keyword, if they’re going to be so completely different.
I can give a pass to the ones that require a Target not have an Effect or not have taken DMG because that’s something that can be controlled as a team simply by deciding Action order; the gameplay demands are fairly low. The Gambler High Roller gets a pass, too, since that’s the entire gimmick. Double Tap → Third Time’s the Charm (Ranger) leaves a bitter taste in the mouth to be “punished” for killing one Target with a good Roll.
For the ones that check for a mechanical Target (Shaman’s Ghost in the Shell and Warlock’s Built to Fail), I have mixed feelings. It’s thematic, but again, not really in the player’s control. The ones based on downing Targets, mhmm, I guess they’re fine since learning a given opponent’s approximate DMG tolerance is something the player can do.
But all the rest of the Stratagems I checked don’t demand opponent cooperation the way that True Slash and Charged Shot do. Again, it’s rougher for the former due to the short Range. And I acknowledged the opponent control tools and multiplayer cooperation in my original post. However, most everything else is something the player can choose to do self-sufficiently. For the ones that require a particular Effect on the Target, the player can include a way to apply the Effect on another Part of their MEC if needed and use their first Action in a phase for setup.
That’s why I wanted to try floating the idea of Stratagems with Action Point costs greater than 1. Even if using those Stratagems locks the Pilot out of other Actions for that Turn, that’s still a choice they make on their own.