Hey all, I have another question for the knowledge base here. How does ejecting work, when should it be done and is it something that needs to be agreed upon before play begins? As always thanks in advance!
Before the game starts, you must mark on your record sheet if you will have the auto-eject system enabled or disabled. During Succession Wars it was good to have it switched on because ammo explosion usually destroyed your 'Mech and killed your pilot (unless you were really lucky, e.g. last autocannon round in the ammo bin).
With the return of Lostech and C.A.S.E. (which contains ammo or Gauss rifle explosion in one location), it may be sometimes good to have auto-eject disabled because it would be pity to eject from relatively functional 'Mech.
There are two possible ways of how to eject from the 'Mech:
1. Ejection seatOne thing to remember is that you will land one hex behind your 'Mech - so it's not the best idea to eject and then land in burning woods or lava flow ...
Another problem is that ejecting MechWarrior must make pilot skill roll to see if he takes damage from landing. There are different modifiers depending if the terrain is "soft" (such as snow or water) or "not-so-soft" (Jungle or Ultra rubble for example). If pilot fails, he will take damage. So you must choose if you have badly wounded pilot in cockpit and want him to eject, if said pilot survives rough landing. Additional modifiers make ejection even more difficult, such as if the 'Mech is prone, pilot is unconscious etc.
Atmosphere or lack thereof. Do you really want your pilot to eject into vacuum if the only thing he's wearing is cooling vest and briefs? Or if the air is so tainted that it can't be breathed?
2. Full-Head ejection systemFirst invented for use on HCT-3F
Hatchetman, this system ejects whole "head" of 'Mech. Lyrans used this system on number of their 'Mechs, some newer Project Phoenix 'Mechs are equipped with it too. The negative side is relatively rough ride - pilot takes 1 point of damage for ejection and another one if he fails PSR when landing. With a bit of luck the severed head lands up to 12 hexes of the 'Mech.
Important positive is that cockpit floats as lifeboat in water, and it protects pilot in toxic atmosphere or vacuum. After landing your pilot can stay inside or get out and continue on foot with 1 MP.
