Yeah, I think that those parts would be highly derivative, but that's part of fitting it into an existing ruleset and universe.
I am gradually working on an actual writeup with tables and such. Here's what I have so far as a request for comment:
(Images linked due to size)
Modifiers for non-combat, non-vehicular checks:
https://i.imgur.com/CKGAos3.pngMostly self-explanatory, I think. Conditions are an aggregate of poor lighting, poor weather, and other confounding situations. Disposition is only used for social checks and the GM may rule that certain technical tasks cannot be accomplished without tools at all.
Character tiers:
https://i.imgur.com/t4X5uTn.pngThis shows the skill points and other things given to a starting character of a particular experience level or "tier" as I call it. As you gain skill points in play, if your skill point total meets or exceeds a higher tier you "level up" and gain the abilities of the new tier. This will stop a player from being able to make an elite pilot unless they are supposed to start as such. The skill point totals are based on being able to purchase 1 skill equal to your minimum, 2 of minimum+1, and 4 of minimum+2. So a Regular starting pilot can purchase 4 gunnery, 5 piloting, and have skill points leftover for other skills.
I also think there is room for traits given at each tier, and that SPAs could be traded in for extra traits especially for character types that don't have available SPAs. If I add those I'll probably adjust the SPA progression.
Skill Point costs:
https://i.imgur.com/GhTDbXf.pngCurrently using a simple linear progression. It goes in 2s so that the tier SP totals do not have odd numbers in them, which I felt was awkward.
Other little bits of note:
-Hexes for foot combat are 5 meters, and the time scale is 10 seconds per turn.
-Characters have 30 meters/6 hexes of movement per turn and lose 5 meters/1 hex per point of damage.
-Injured characters can exert themselves to move at the full speed. After they finish moving they make a consciousness check at their current damage level. (on a vehicular-scale map a GM can rule that injured characters have to do this in order to move a 30 meter hex instead of keeping track of fractional distance.)
-It takes 6 damage points to kill a character. 10 foot damage points equals 1 vehicular/BA damage point and vice-versa. A full burst from most on-foot weapons will therefore do 1-20 foot damage.
-Body armor reduces the damage of a hit by a fixed amount. A 6 damage hit against someone with a particularly heavy 4 armor suit will only take 2 damage instead of killing them.
-Damage to a character and consciousness work like they do in BattleTech proper. Each point of damage requires a consciousness roll at the given damage level, and loss of consciousness can be recovered from at the end of every subsequent turn.
-A GM can rule that a character death is merely a grevous injury and is unconscious until medical attention is provided. However, a single hit doing 20 foot damage/2 vehicular damage or more constitutes enough damage to make this unlikely.
So this is just a rough sketch so far and I don't know if it will ever be anything other than a thought experiment, but so far I don't think it's an unworkable idea.
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No debate at all? :'(