On a related note: will this gear protect from the laser's heat?

Heat-Dissipating Armor (G-113)
This gear may be used with this unit’s other non–Heat-Dissipating Armor special equipment.
When this unit is the target of an attack, subtract 2 from the total of any heat it gains from the attack, to a minimum of 0, before applying heat to it.

Or does the orbital laser not count as an 'attack'? Or does it come down to the 'target of an attack' line (what with the laser not targeting the unit)?

No one's tried that tactic (yet) in any of the 2 games I've already run, but you never know... ;-)

ALL gear and special equipment are ignored by the laser so the only way to reduce damage or heat would be Faction Prides, Situational Alliances and pilot abilities.

qoute from ScrummyRAT (from WK rules forum)

The laser is hungry...it wants to eat your soul...and your tanks...and your VC2...and anything else it can get its focused-radiation jaws around.

I shoulda played me Hyper Laser as opposed to the drop army. Drop was fun, but that Laser sure liked the taste of Marksman.

That's funny. In Beckley, ours had a taste for VTOLS...

Actually, Mad Murdoc, I wasn't referring to the damage, just the heat. The scenario states:

"Any unit whose base is crossed by this line is dealt 2 damage of the energy range type. This damage ignores gear and special equipment and is not reduced to 1 against infantry."

I'm ready and willing to believe my armor will be ignored for the _damage_, but would it soak the heat?

Just wondering...

As it is energy damage that deals the click of heat, it'll ignore heat reducing too...

When hit by the laser treat the unit as though it has no gear, spec. equipm. or infantry designation. at least that is my interpetation

Game last Saturday.
Thought my wolf transport, wolf hunter tank and mech in a "safer" part of the board got smacked around in the 3rd game. Second game my opponent got one gyrfalcon smashed repeatedly