Hello Stephen, regarding drones I have three thoughts.
First, you can have a neat setting where small robots are ubiquitous, as in Transhuman Space, but more traditional settings prefer to keep the human in the center of attention. So there is a bit of "GM fiat" or "genre convention" at work. Of course that is no fair answer to your proposal, so disregard this one and look at the others ...
Second, a TL11 hardened microframe is 150 lbs. and $50,000, and it has C7, IQ 10, DX 11. A hardened small computer, at 1.5 lbs. just the right size for a little drone, is IQ 8. The neural net and genius options add +1 to IQ each, at ever escalating costs. That means a robot brain with more IQ than a typical human is larger than a human. Even stupid robots can run some impressive skill programs, but they have a problem when the GM calls for IQ rolls. You mentioned a human supported by drones, but in that case why bring the human forward at all?
Third, you are anchoring the flying units to the ground units with the humans. If you reach an obstacle that requires flight (perhaps getting into the top floor of a wrecked building, or crossing a river canyon) the drones can cross but the main unit is stopped.
- Drones could be used as small and somewhat expendable sensor platforms. You hope to get them back, but if the enemy shoots them down, at least that revealed one firing position. - Drones as loitering missiles. You try to find a target to use them, but if not they come back for future use. - Drones as multi-use weapons. They have a beam weapon or gun, not a self-destruct. Still more expendable than the humans, but you really hope to get several shots from each drone before it is hunted down.
What size range where you thinking about for the drones? Attack drones will have to go through several hundred points of DR.
Regarding detection, a suit or drone sensor might have Scan 16-18. The operator will have a decent skill but might be multitasking. A SM+0 target at 450 yards would be -14 for size/range. Call it an even chance of detection. Adding stealth would be very desirable.
Regards, Onno Stephen replied to me:
Onno, Your comment about flanking got me thinking...you don't need to use the entire suit to flank. Even now we have grenades that can flank. I'd think that a single non-flying human supported by a cadre of drones would be more effective than a single man in a flying suit. I think another question is how much cover helps. If I can hide behind a concrete wall and it provides cover and concealment, great. If I'm in an environment that's so lethal that the car doesn't matter and I can expect to be detected anyway...that sort of negates the whole purpose of hiding behind it.
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