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Been mulling the idea of drop pod rules and one thing that I always thought was weird was the way that you couldn't actually land on infantry. I always thought that drop pods should be able to tank shock or should be treated as a template attack with all surviving models underneath it moved an inch away from the base. This would happen friend or foe. I can see it auto-correcting for terrain pieces via the inertial guidance system as those are fixed, but could the system really keep up with constantly moving infantry? Also, it's a several ton metal box falling from low orbit, so why should it care if you land on top of infantry?

I brought this up to some guys at a store and though they liked the concept of it, the general consensus is that imperial armies don't need something to strengthen them any further, but thought I'd get some of dakka's opinion on the idea of home brewing rules to make drop pods more of a weapon instead of just a delivery system.

I think there are some rules like that in APOC, I never had an issue with the drop pod avoiding stuff. Now the deepstriking land raider/monolith mishapping when it hits a grot never made sense to me.

If also would make it very iffy with units disembarking from the pod. Say you land in a mob of orks, how far do they need to move? 1" away? Then all your models cannot disembark and they die?

Just easier the way it is due to the forced disembark, it works for things like Mawlocs (and would work for a Monolith/Land Raider because you don't have to disembark.) for a drop pod I think things just get messy.

Sure, just as long as you also change the rules so that pods arrive as zooming flyers and can be shot down before they land.

 Peregrine wrote:
Sure, just as long as you also change the rules so that pods arrive as zooming flyers and can be shot down before they land.

That could balance nicely. My missile sides would love to shoot down some drop pods full of sternguard.

I certainly would like for Drop Pods to fit into the game a little bit better. Here are the issues I see:

Can't be affected until they have completed their mission, which they can do VERY reliably with a crazy Inertial Guidance rule.

Not saying both need to go, but SOMETHING needs to give to make them feel more like their fluff.

 Peregrine wrote:
Sure, just as long as you also change the rules so that pods arrive as zooming flyers and can be shot down before they land.

I could get behind that, I wouldn't want them to be essentially a template that can also deliver troops, there should be some inherent danger for the troops inside.

of course do drop pods make way for infantry. imagine them falling on top of some fire dragons, who quickly grab all their meltabombs and detonate them. it would result in having a drop pod killing a few of the Eldar, while the others came away. but it also stands on a gakload of meltabombs, explodes and the infantry inside is still stuck trying to get their safety 'belts' off.