So I've asked on the rules sections and realized there wasn't any rules concerning riding a Dragonkin even though they talk about it in multiple instances.
I have 2 players that wants to make a Dragonkin-Rider duo, and I want to make it as fair as possible for them without making them broken OP, but I'm not sure how to do it. I'll admit that mounted combat was never a thing when I was playing Pathfinder, DnD or SW, so my knowledge is pretty bad there.
-How should the penalties be for the Dragonkin? He's the one moving around with someone on his back, surely this would affect his AC, Reflex, Fly ability (Average on Dragonkin)?
-Should it be an armor upgrade slot for a saddle?
-The Dragonkin wants to be a Solarian, and since they usually do AoE damage, should it affect the Rider as well? (Supernova, Corona, etc) I'd say yes and it doesn't really matter much since the Rider is gonna be a Summerborn Ryphorian anyway.
-Rider wants to make a Mystic, should spellcasting be affected when riding?
-Should I invent a feat for the Rider to be able to ride?
-What can the rider do in the "Ride a Creature" from the survival skill section? Since his mount is a PC, I'd imagine he wouldn't be able to control its movements?
-If he melee attacks, does he uses any of the 4 squares that the Dragon takes to determine his Threatening range? I'd say yes.
There's more to ask I guess, but I want to start there and develop something more consistent.
I would probably want to start with making an encumbrance rate, for how strong the dragonkin needs to be to handle the weight of the person without encumbrance penalties, and then do something like reduce the riders effective weight by a third if the dragonkin has a saddle built into his armor.
If I was houseruling in concentration checks, I would have concentration checks to cast while riding a dragonkin who is actively fighting, but not during calm flight. If I was not, casting would be unaffected.
I would not use any of the survival rolls to control a mount, but would keep the one to avoid being knocked from the saddle and possibly the one to drop onto the mount's side and use it as cover, though I would make the dragonkin off-targer, because that would be super awkward. I would allow quick mount and soft fall rolls.
I would have the rider threaten from, and be threatened in, all 4 squares, instead of messing with any nonsense about shifting which square the rider occupies.
I would absolutely have the rider take damage from Corona or supernova. I probably wouldn't even allow a reflex save against supernova, unless the rider jumped off. I would allow a reaction to jump off and attempt the save.
I probably would not do a feat to be able to ride, though I might consider a feat to reduce the effective weight of the rider, from section 1, resulting in a sort of tiered encumbrance, moving from carrying a person being awkward and encumbering, to carrying a person in a saddle with less difficulty, to carrying a person who knows how to work with you in a saddle, making it fairly easy.
I'd just have the the Dragonkin also have to add the Rider's Stuff to his Weight limit and handwave the Rider's Weight in favor of the Rule of Cool
Probably would make the Exotic Saddle part a Armor Mod, but maybe add like +1 KAC