Death

Thanks to the advances of modern medicine you can live longer and healthier than ever before; even reaching the brink of death before being brought back. Lost arms can be replaced with robotic limbs, and even eyesight can be restored.

Moments before a ship explodes, the pilot has a chance to eject into space. At this point, a distress signal may be used to attract hospital ships or friendly pilots to pick them up and return the pilot to the nearest station. However, if the pilot is blasted in space or killed in a boarding action, they will wake up in a med bay with damaged limbs or heavy scars. Every "Death" creates a more scarred and damaged character, which will eventually give out and die permanently.

After Death
After a pilot finally dies, they are Regenerated into a new body as long as their Imprint Viability Score is high enough to create a copy.

Once a pilot suffers true death, their old belongings move on to a beneficiary chosen early in the persons' life. This new character inherits the ships, equipment, and some of the reputation of the deceased character.

However, any reputation or sway with NPC factions a pilot might have had are going to diminish somewhat but the 'friend' or 'son' or 'daughter' of the pilot are still going to be judged somewhat by the old pilots actions. For example, if a deceased pilot was a notorious pirate, The pilot's next of kin is not going to have a good time getting along with the UEE with that shadow hanging over their head. At the same time, they will have some sway with other pirates that the old pilot may have had deals with.

Trivia

 * Star Citizen's death mechanic is inspired by the funeral sequence from Wing Commander.
 * Death is about real consequences and achieving something.