USH'S STAR WARS GAME 2009 (Updated!)- Main Rules

Welcome to the new Core Rules System for my Star Wars game, for 2009 and onwards!

This edition of the rules is known as the ‘Lego’ Edition, based off the fact that the most entertaining Star Wars computer games in years were those from highly simplified ‘Lego Star Wars’ series. Following that trend, over the last few years there has been a general programme from the creative side of my games (that is from my brother and myself) to create much simpler systems that still manage to hit all the important points of a role-playing system, like distinction between characters and meaningful combat tactics.

The new system is the simplest yet, but it is still a system that contains a notable amount of rules. This thread is where all rules for playing the game, and also mechanics for creating characters, are contained. Like all rules systems, getting used to them may take some adjustment. Please feel free to ask questions, though experience is always the best teacher.

This system has now been updated as of December 2009. These changes are being used with immediate efefct in all running games.

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If you wish to create a character, the rules are here:

http://www.killermovies.com/forums/f7/t488673.html

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2012 addendum- drafts of a new template system are here. Greatly preferred if new players use these! All other rules in the character creation thread still apply; just the templates have changed.

http://www.killermovies.com/forums/f7/t561761.html

THE BASICS

Character Basics
Characters are built out of many parts. Attributes tell us the basic physical and mental capacities of the character portrayed, whilst Skills tell us what the character has learned to be good at. On top of these, characters all have a variety of distinctive special abilities, from Force powers to special techniques with the Lightsabre. These special powers tend to be known as ‘Schticks’, the trademark moves of a character.

The Dice
This game uses basic six-sided dice (rolled by myself) in a ‘pool’ system. A pool system is one where the better you are at something, the more dice you roll when trying to do it.

Attributes and Skills
Attributes are rated between 1 (weak) and 5 (legendary). Skills are rated between zero and five. Even having just one dot in a skill makes you well skilled at it.

When coming to determine your competence in any attempted task in the game, a relevant Skill and Attribute will be combined, to make a number out of ten. This is your dice ‘pool’ for that task. Sometimes an Attribute alone will be used.

Examples- Jedi Knight Arin Luxor is trying to persuade a Senator to help him in his investigation. Arin is using his charm and well-spoken words to achieve this. The relevant Skill for this is ‘Persuasion’, and the relevant Attribute is ‘Charisma’. With a Charisma of 4 and a Persuasion of 2, Arin has a six dice pool for this task.

His more ‘direct’ companion Kumar needs to move some heavy crates out of the way of the entrance to an abandoned starship hangar. There is no relevant skill for this, so only Kumar’s Strength of 4 is used for the dice pool.

Some Attributes are ‘Special’. These are outside the normal Attributes any being has. Examples include Force for Jedi, and Fortune for non-Force using characters (like those in Original Trilogy games). These attributes follow their own special rules.

Dice Rolls
When it comes time to make a roll, first you determine your pool, as demonstrated above. Then a number of dice equal to that pool are rolled. The dice are NOT combined; instead, each one is checked to see if it rolled a 5 or 6. If a 5 or 6 is rolled, the task is probably successful. Very difficult tasks may need more than one such ‘successes’ to be rolled. In combat, the more Successes you roll the better your hit is.

If a Skill can be used on a roll but your character does not have that skill, you may still attempt the task, but you only gain successes on a 6, not on a 5.

Example- Arin Luxor rolls his six dice, and they come up as the following- 1, 2, 4, 4, 5, 6. The first four dice are ignored, but those last two are both successes. Arin succeeds in persuading the Senator to aid him.

Kumar, with a Charisma of 3, could also have attempted the roll with three dice, but lacking the ‘Persuade’ skill, he would have had to roll straight 6s to get successes; 5s would not have helped.

Some Skills are ‘Restricted’ and checks involving them may never be made unless you have the skill. One example of this is ‘Jedi Lore’. No characters may make Jedi Lore checks unless they have this skill, as it is simply not trivial knowledge. All Force Templates know a certain amount of Lore, so this restriction is more relevant to Original Trilogy era characters.

COMBAT RULES

The basic rules above will cover the majority of situations, but the most rules intensive part of any standard system is its Combat. Here we will cover how to fight in these games- and let’s face it, Star Wars isn’t much without its big fights…

The Turn System and Initiative
Combat proceeds, simply, turn by turn. Each turn everyone will take one action.

In most fights, there are two different sides. The big question becomes- who acts first? This is what the ‘Initiative’ system decides. A die is rolled for each side every turn. The side that rolls the highest has the Initiative for that turn, and moves first. In the event of a draw, the side that did not have Initiative last turn gets it for that turn. If there is a tie on the very first turn, players win the initiative over whoever they are fighting.

In the rare event of there being a tie in the first turn of a fight between two groups of players… the good guys (as in the Light Side of the Force) get the first turn initiative. That’s how it is!

Mooks, Named Characters and Damage
The majority of enemies you face in Star Wars are ‘Mooks’, like the endless ranks of Stormtroopers or Battle Droids seen in the films. Their main purpose is to be cut down in large numbers by the heroes, though in huge numbers they are dangerous. Mooks don’t have all the rules given to normal characters, they simply have a combat value, which they use to try and hit you with. They can take three successes rolled against them in combat before dying. Mooks do not take damage as such- they die due to successes- so any skills or abilities that raise damage are irrelevant against mooks.

There is also such a being as a 'supermook'. These are individual foes that are notcably more powerful than a Mook, but still faceless and not important enough to be considered a proper character. A good example of a Supermook is a Droideka from the Prequel films. Supermooks can have special abilities and schticks just like characters do. They also take damage like characters do. However, they can be targted by powers that help you against Mooks.

Your more powerful enemies use the same rules as you do. Being important to the plot, they have stories, true personalities- and most importantly, a name. These are your Count Dooku and Boba Fett types.

It is assumed even successful attacks on significant targets are only near misses and glancing blows, until you finally wear down. This is shown by the accumulation of the abstract quantity of ‘Damage’.

All named Characters- players and antagonists alike- can take as much damage equal to ten times their Strength, plus twenty. So if your Strength is 3, you can take 50 damage before you are finally hit and drop.

Supermooks can take a set amount of damage depending in their nature, but it is normally much lower than the amount characters can take. It is rarely more than 20.

Combat Rolls
Players make rolls in Combat to hit targets just as they make skill rolls- the combination of an attribute and a skill.

You can make a combat roll against one target per turn, unless you have a power that lets you do otherwise. If using a melee weapon, your target must, of course, be next to you.

Unless using a power that lets you attack on the move, makng an attack finishes your action, so you cannot keep moving after an attack.

- In Hand to Hand Combat, the combination is your Combat Skill plus your Agility

- In Ranged Combat, the combination is your Guns Skill plus your Dexterity

In both cases, your opponent is (presumably!) trying to get out of the way. Characters have a ‘Defence’ rating, which is subtracted from your dice pool. In Ranged combat, intelligent opposition might also seek ‘Cover’. Cover does not affect your pool, but it does reduce the number of successes you roll, making it very efficient! However, cover will diminish over time as it gets shot away.

When attacking a target, you make that dice roll. Mooks are killed if you roll three or more successes against them. Rolling one or two successe against mooks reduces the amount needed to kill them with future attacks.

Named Characters and supermooks are different. You inflict damage to them equal to the number of successes you roll, PLUS the damage of your weapon. Whenever you hit such a character, you inflict damage equal to the number of successes you rolled, plus the damage of the weapon. So, if a weapon with a base damage of 2 rolled three successes on an attack, it would inflict 5 damage.

Treatment
Characters get a chance to heal at the end of a combat.

Healing requires the skill 'Medicine'. This is combiend with your Intelligence score to form your 'treatment rating'. Each character with Medicine can treat either himself or another character. Each character can only be treated once at the end of a combat. The amount that characters can treat for depends on the circumstances.

- If you are on the run without any decent facilities at all, you can remove damage equal to yuor treatment rating

- If you have access to shelter and access to basic tools (e.g. a medkit), you can remove damage equal to twice your treatment rating

- If you have access to complete medical facilities, you can remove damage equal to three tiems your treatment rating

Characters actively being cared for by medical institutions will also heal extra damage; this does count as being treated for the purposes of this process (so a character can still treat you on top of that).

Heal All Points
At certain significant points of a story- especially an action heavy one- your characters may get significant periods of time to rest and recuperate. These 'Heal All' points allow you to remove all damage.

At a Heal All point, Acolytes and characters with the Light Side power 'Flow of the Force' also restore one Force point. This is the only wa to restore Force points during a story.

SPECIAL COMBAT RULES

Beyond the basics, there are often special rules for Combat that have to be borne in mind.

The Refresh System
The flow of combat can be hard to judge. Seconds can seem like minutes, or suddenly half an hour can pass in no time at all. Turns have no fixed length, taking as long as is dramatically appropriate. However, there is a need to track the passage of time in combat. Rules wise, this is for the purpose of refreshing schticks (see below), but there can be special circumstances for a fight that may also wish to use this same system.

This system is the ‘Refresh’ system and is very simple. There is a small deck of nine playing cards- eight random cards of no value, and one Ace. At the start of each turn, a card is drawn from the top. If it is any of the random cards, nothing happens. If one of the Aces is drawn, the turn is a ‘Refresh’ turn. Schticks are refreshed (see below), and any plot-based events that happen in Refresh turns occur. Drawn cards are discarded, so the Refresh turn becomes more and more inevitable as time goes by, but when the Ace is drawn all eight cards are shuffled back into a new deck of eight, and the process begins again.

Armour rating and armour pool
Some characters have means of reducing their damage.

Your 'armour rating' is the protection you have from wearing armour. Armour rating on Mooks allows Mooks to ignroe the first success rolled against them in an attack. On characters, it adds to their armour pool. Armour rating can reduce your abiltiy to perform more difficult tasks. It ALWAYS reduces your Lightsabre pool.

Your 'armour pool' is a measure of your complete protection both from your armour rating and from any special abulities (like defensive schticks) that add to yuor armour. Your armour pool is reduced from all incoming damage, to a minimum of 1.

Note that is is only armour RATING that reduces things like lightsabre pool. Armour pool is not so reduced. Likewise, effects that ignore armour specify that they ignore armour RATING, not pool- that is to say, they bypass the actual literal armour someone is wearing. They do not bypass 'virtual' armour generated by other abilities.

Parrying
‘Parrying’ is a powerful ability that actively subtracts successes (NOT dice, but actual rolled successes) from the attack rolls of those trying to hit you. This can cause otherwise successful attacks to miss completely. Parrying only occurs as the result of the use of schticks (see below).

Cover
Characters in cover from their attackers gain Parry ratings as appropriate whilst the cover lasts. This is always cumulative with other sources of Parry.

Fleeing Melee Combat
Withdrawing from an opponent attacking you in melee is very unsafe. If you move away froim an opponent who is actively attacking you inside melee range (with ANY skill- this counts for gun-armed foes also), that opponent gets a bonus attack on you. This bonus attack is completely unaffected by any defensive measures you have, be they schticks, force powers or fortune points- it is an attack at full pool with no defence, armour or parry available to the defender.

Some powers in the game say that they can be used to disengage safely. This means you can leave a melee combat without taking this bonus attack.

Lightsabre Pools
Obviously an important part of any Prequel Era game, Lightsabres are deadly weapons that vastly increase your combat capacity, so long as you can get close.

As well as simply being high damage weapons, Lightsabre pools are not attached to a stat, so the only thing that determines how good a character is with a sabre is the template they choose and then any xp spent on it.

If two Lightsabre wielders fight each other, they use an entirely different Duelling system to fight (Rules to follow)

The Force
As well as its many passive applications, the Force can be used as a weapon in combat in various ways (note, though, if you plan to be shooting out lightning all the time, you’ve been playing too many of the computer games). Use of the Force is beyond any notion of Skills and Attributes; instead, each character has a ‘Force Attack’ rating which is their total pool to be used in any attacks using Force Powers. Likewise, Force Based templates have a ‘Force Defence’ rating to use when so attacked. Some Force Attacks can be defended with using your normal Defence rating, but some cannot, meaning non-Force characters can run into trouble.

WEAPON LIST

Weapons are subject to certain special abilities:

* ratings: Although Mooks do not take damage, more dangerous weapons still destroy them more easily. A weapon with a * rating needs one fewer success than normal to destroy a mook. With unhit Mooks, this means * weapons only need two successes to kill mooks.

Burst fire: Some rifles are known more for their ability to give out large amounts of fire more than their accuracy. These are commonly used by mook troops who need as much fire coming out of their weapons as possible. Burst fire weapons gtive +2 to attack pool... but only to a maximum of six dice. Hence, they are generally useless for a player character unless there is no alternative. Their function is to give very low skill mooks (like Battle Droids) a chance of actually hitting enemies.

Pistols vs. Rifles: Other than advantages in portability and stealth, pistols are considered stylistically appropriate for player characters. Hence, there are a number of Gun schticks that only work with pistols.

Heavy Weapons: These guns need the Heavy Weapons skill to operate. They also have a penalty to fire and move in the same turn. This penalty is reduced by a high Strength.

Area effect weapons: These are weapons that cause wide devastation. These can hit multiple targets and can do damage even if they do not land dead-on. However, heroes tend to be good at throwing themselves clear of such attacks.

Area effect weapons have two damage ratings. Area effect weapons target all people- friend or foe- in the geenral area of the main target. Main targets of area effect weapons take the first given damage rating, but can make Agility rolls to take the second given damage rating as they jump out of the way. Those nearby the main target take the second damage rating and can make the Agility roll to take no damage at all.

If an area effect weapon rolls only one success, the main target takes the second damage rating (Agility roll to nullify) and those nearby take no damage at all.

Area effect weapons cannot be Reflected.

Lightsabres: These weapons need very precise training and must be handled using the Lightsabre skill, not Combat.

Lightsabres are truly deadly and have a specific advantage that makes them lethal to named characters and mooks alike- when attacking with one, lightsabres only require 4s for successes, not 5s.

Furthermore, Lightsabres are very dangerous to try and engage with using other melee weapons! If an attacker using a melee weapon rolls no successes against a sabre-wielding opponent, then the lightsabre has cut the weapon in half. Mooks affected this way are automatically killed. Supermooks or named characters lose their weapon and take the base damage of the sabre (6). If the attack was barehanded, supermooks and named characters take double that damage.

Some exotic weapons are designated 'safe against Lightsabres' and are exempt from this rule.

Guns
Light Blaster (pistol): Damage 2, +3 dice to attack pool.
Heavy Blaster (pistol): Damage 3*

Assault Blaster (rifle): Damage 2, Burst Fire.
Support Blaster (rifle): Damage 4*
Targetting Blaster (rifle) (e.g. Bowcaster): Damage 3*, +2 to attack pool

Emplaced Gun (heavy weapon): Damage 4*, Burst Fire
Explosive blast weapon (heavy weapon) (e.g. rocket launcher): Damage 4*/2 (area effect with -2 penalty to dodge. 'Lifting' defence works against these weapons).
Energy blast weapon (heavy weapon) (e.g. concussion rifle): Damage 4*/2 (area effect.)

Melee
Bare Hands: Damage 1
Knife: Damage 2
Axe/Sword: Damage 3*
Electro Staff: Damage 3*. Safe against Lightsabres.
Vibro Axe/Pike: Damage 3*. Ignores armour rating.
Lightsabre: Damage 6*. Ignores armour rating. Special Lightsabre rules.

MERITS

At character creration you will be directed to choose some 'Merits'. These represent background advantages to your character. Some Merits cost more than one of your available Merits to 'take', they are noted as such.

Note that Merits are only available to 'buy' at character creation, representing links you have made during your life up until the start of play. Once you start playing, Merits are gained (or lost) entirely though role-playing- you cannot simply buy more with experience. Some Merits- like Lucky- can only ever be gained at character creation.

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JEDI KNIGHT
Restricted- must be specifically given by your template
Yu are an officially vested Knight of the Republic. This brings great advantages but many restricted also. Knights are given great legal authority and generally receive respect and co-operation from the people of the galaxy, but they must also adhere to many moral (easy for the Light Side) and legal (not always so easy) standards. Failure to do so may cause the loss of this merit.

UNCIVILISED UPBRINGING
Restricted- only available to Dark Side or 'Scum & Villainy' templates
You grew up beyond the reach of civilisation, where life is harsh and you had to adjust or die. The connections you made during your upbringing stay with you today. Taking this Merit means you may take two other Merits (obviously, you can only take this Merit once). However, your upbringing has left you socially scarred. You ignore the first success you roll in any social situation where you are trying to fit in with civilised culture (e.g. a Senator's reception).

MENTOR
A Master character with whom you have a special relationship, usually the one who trained you. Although usually unable to help in person, he or she will be around to offer advice. Don't worry if you are a Master yourself and want to take this - Ben had Yoda in the later films.

FAMOUS MASTER
Your Master was/is a famed man, and some of the respect he gets rubs off on to you. If you are a Jedi, this means people will treat you as having extra authority and respect compared to your peers, more akin to being a Master (Masters cannot take this Merit). If you are a Renegade, this means that although you are not offically working for the Council, people are much more likely to treat you as being so. If you are a Dark Sider this also increases the respect you get from people, but in this case it is based upon your teacher's fearsome reputation. Note that if you want your Master to still be around to give advice, you should take 'Mentor' as well.

ALLY
A non-Jedi NPC who you can count on for support and help. Note that allies are your friends, not your slaves, and their availability is dependent on how broad/useful they are.

Hence, Allies tend to come in two types. The first is an ally with a very specific function who is always around (e.g. an Astromech droid). The second is a generally competent person (a mercenary, smuggler, Senator etc.) who has a life of their own. This latter type of ally can do all sorts for you but if you call on them they become unavailable for use for a while after, to simulate the fact that they have their own issues to be busy with.

CONTACT
An information source. This can be bought several times. Each time it is bought you must state where your contact is. If you need inspiration try one of these: Jedi Archive, Jedi Council (worth 2 merits), the Hutts, the Senate, the Pirate Clans, Corellian Navy, Bounty Hunters...

Contacts will only provide information; they never come and help you out. Unlike Allies, though, they are always available.

STARSHIP
A ship of your own, up to small freighter (e.g. Milennium Falcon) sized. Consult the starship rules below for more information. Note- this Merit isn't much good to you unless you have the Pilot skill!

HIGHER PURPOSE/POWER HUNGRY
You believe you are in the Galaxy for bigger things- some destiny, if you are Light Sided, or desperation to rule for the Dark. This effectively adds one to your Willpower score, except for the purposes of increasing it with xp. This is the only way to affect Willpower at character creation.

REPUTATION (costs 2)
You are famous throughout the Galaxy- whilst not a guarantee that every slave in the back alleys will know you, your name is well known enough for there to be a good chance you will be recognised. For Light Siders, your fame is for acheiving some heroic achievement that the Galaxy heard about. For a Dark Sider, this is normally for some great crime you have committed (be that a famous robbery or a horrific massacre). In any case, your Reputation will often put people in awe of you and this can open many doors- though it can sometimes bring unwanted attention.

TIES (costs 3)
A more powerful version of Contacts, meaning you also have some official standing, or even rank, inside the organisation, meaning you can influence them and they may on occasion provide you with Allies. This also comes with some responsibiltiy on your end of course. Note this has to be appropriate- Jedi cannot have Ties to pirate clans, or Dark Siders to the Jedi Archives- you simply would not be members of such things!

LUCKY (costs 3)
The Force is with you... you may re-roll two failed rolls per game.

SCHTICKS

‘Schticks’ are the trademark moves of your character- effectively your ‘special’ in-game powers. They allow extraordinary moves, normally in combat, that greatly increase your effectiveness and provide a much greater distinction between named characters and Mooks than simply having higher combat skills.

‘Star Wars’ is a setting- and a system- that covers many sorts of areas where Schticks can be had. The types of Schtick available are:

Gun Schticks- neat fancy firing tricks with guns, from quick draws to double pistol use. Available to Force and non-Force using named characters, though more common with non-force.

Combat Schticks- special moves for use in close combat, armed or unarmed, practised by Jedi and non-Jedi alike. Note these do NOT work with Lightsabres, which require very specialised training indeed.

Blade Schticks- Fancy- and deadly- moves performed with a Lightsabre. Generally speaking only Jedi may take Blade Schticks as their use assumes the ability to use the Force, though specific exceptions for General Grievous types can be made.

Pilot Schticks- special moves pulled off whilst flying a small ship. Good for flying down narrow trenches. As these schticks obviously relate to starfighter combat, they are used independently in such scenarios away from other schticks.

Force Powers- Special powers related to the Force that, obviously, only force-based templates can have. Force Powers use their own rules system that is explained later.

Selecting and using Schticks

Schticks tell you which moves your character can possibly pull, but that doesn’t mean they are all available all at once- you can only concentrate on so many special moves at a time!

Out of all the Schticks your character has, only three may be ‘active’ at a time. You decide which three are active at the start of a fight, or other action scene. Some schticks ‘conflict’ with other schticks; you may not have conflicting schticks active at the same time.

There is nothing to stop you having different types of schtick loaded, but you may not attempt to actually use different types of schtick in the same turn. So if you have, say, two blade and one gun schtick loaded, you must choose whether to use the single gun schtick or the two blade schticks in any given turn.

Each of your active schticks gives you some sort of continuous bonus, as listed in the description below. Furthermore, each schtick can be pushed to maximum effect for a turn, known as ‘tapping’ the schtick. This supreme effort, however, leaves the schtick completely deactivated afterwards, giving no continuous bonus at all. Tapping can generally be declared after the dice roll, unless otherwise specified.

These expended schticks can be swapped out, of course. But they do not stay dormant forever. When a ‘Refresh’ turn is called (see above), you may ‘refresh’ two of your schticks so that they start working again. However, you can only refresh schticks that are inactive, so make sure you swapped them out first!

Example- Jedi Knight Kumar is taking on a squad of Battle Droids, as his investigation turns violent. Kumar has both Blade and Combat Schticks, but this is a ‘maximum violence’ situation, needing the use of his Lightsabre, so he will not use Combat schticks which would prevent him using his Lightsabre to attack. His use of Blade Schticks means he cannot use his Combat skill to attack, but that’s fine by him.

Kumar chooses three of his schticks- the ‘Forward Guard’, which increases his attack pool, ‘Cleave’, which allows him to destroy multiple mooks in one blow, and ‘Reflection’, in order to return laser fire on his attackers.

But time is against Kumar and he wishes the fight finished quickly. To that end, he taps his ‘Forward Guard’ schtick, so that instead of providing him with five extra dice, it provides him with 15! A mighty bonus indeed. But his Forward Guard will not work after this turn, so next turn he will swap it for the ‘Orthodox Guard’ schtick instead. When a Refresh turn comes, he will be able to restore his Forward Guard to functionality, so he can swap it back in. But he could only do that because he had swapped it out! Remember, you can only restore schticks that are not one of the three you currently have selected, so swap out those expended schticks as soon as possible!

Combined effect of Schticks

Even having just three schticks active can cause some confusion if they affect the same thing. Here are some rules to use of schticks have some ‘crossover’.

- Only the highest single bonus to an area is used. So if one schtick increases your attack pool by three and another by five, your bonus is the highest of the two (so the five), not the two combined (NOT eight). However, these bonuses are cumulative with bonuses from other, non-schtick sources (like using a light blaster).
- Sometimes different schticks affect the same value in different ways, not just adding. If this happens, follow this order: Multiply, Add, Divide, Subtract.

Special Effects
Uses of schticks give special effects not seen in standard combat rolling.

Knockback
Some spectacular attacks will knock even the greatest characters to the ground or into a wall! A character affected by knockback loses his next action as he gets up.

Stun
Some attacks can Stun an opponent. A stunned opponent halves all pools on his next action.

Unstoppable:
Certain special effects can make damage 'unstoppable'. Unstoppable damage cannot be reduced by any means. It also is immune to Parry.

Bonus attacks:
Schticks can allow you to kill more than one target a turn, normally a Mook. Please note that bonus attacks can only come from your FIRST main attack in a turn, not from other bonus attacks.

For example, the power 'Cleave' allows you to kill more than one mook a turn. The second kill is a bonus attack. You could not use Cleave to get an extra kill from an attack that was already a bonus attack

GUN SCHTICKS

Both Guns Blazing

Wield two guns at once! This only works with pistols. This combines your two weapons into one more dangerous weapons.

Light Pistols: Damage 4*. +3 to attack pool
Heavy Pistols: Damage 5*

TAP: Also attack the same target twice

Conflicts with: Carnival of Carnage, Marksman, 10000 Bolts

Carnival of Carnage

Your killer instinct to taking out lesser targets makes you fearsome against such foes- and quick to deal with them. You may attack twice a turn, so long as you only target Mooks. All targets must be in the same direction. Each attack must be on a different target.

TAP: You attack a total of four times this turn, so long as you target only Mooks. The same targeting restrictions apply.

Conflicts with: Both Guns Blazing, Marksman, 10000 Bolts

Close Quarters Gunman

Some gunmen need to stay at range and fall apart when foes get close. You don’t want to be like them- in fact, you are damn good with your guns up close. Add three to your attack pool if using your Guns skill in close combat, and add two to your Defence rating against all close combat attacks.

TAP: Gives you another +3 to your pool for attacks at melee range and also gives a further +2 Defence against close combat attacks.

Covering Fire

This allows you to make volleys of firepower designed to keep the heads of enemies down rather than to kill them- to the benefit of your friends who might otherwise be under fire! If yoiu use Covering Fire in a turn, you get no attack. Instead, choose up to three friends within range and sight of you. Enemy ranged attacks need 6s to hit these friends this turn.

TAP: As above, but you are protected also, and you can make an attack as well.

Eagle Eye

You know just the right place to hit the most protected targets, be that from cover or armour. Ignore all armour and/or cover issues with your target.

TAP: Each success rolled on your attack does two points of damage rather than one

Eye of the Storm

You stand calmly in the most fierce of gunfights, bolts landing all around you, but not ON you. Gain +1 Parry when under attack from Guns or Heavy Weapons.

TAP: Cause a successful Guns or Heavy Weapons attack on you to miss.

Gunslinger

There’s something just so right about a gunman with a sidearm… this ability makes you a particularly deadly shot- with pistols. Obviously, therefore, it requires a pistol; when using one, every attack you make allows you to turn one ‘1’ rolled on a die into a ‘6’, and hence a success.

TAP: ALL ‘1s’ you roll on the dice become ‘6s’ instead, and hence are successes.

Ka-Boom!

Some people like making stuff blow up too darn much... this schtick works with any weapon with an area effect- including Heavy Weapons (this is the only Gun schtick that works with Heavies). Rolls made to avoid the area effect of your weapon have a three dice penalty.

TAP: Also, 4s count as successes on your attack this turn, and those avoding the area effect need to roll 6s.

Marksman

Maybe not the glamourous of schticks, there is no denying that simply being a great shot is valuable… if using a gun that adds an Accuracy bonus (e.g. light pistols, sniper rifles) you may double that bonus. Otherwise increase your attack pool by one.

TAP: Quadruple the bonus of an Accurate weapon. Otherwise increase your attack pool by three.

Conflicts with: Both Guns Blazing, Carnival of Carnage, 10000 Bolts

10000 Bolts

You are an expert at firing again and again and again and again… which is overwhelming but inaccurate. It becomes Hard to hit your target (6s needed for successes) when attacking using this schtick, and you cannot gain any Accuracy bonuses from your weapon. However, if you hit your target, you may make a second attack with three fewer dice.

TAP: The second attack is at two fewer dice, and if that hits you may make a third with another two dice taken away, and this continues until you either miss or run out of dice.

Conflicts with: Both Guns Blazing, Carnival of Carnage, Marksman

COMBAT SCHTICKS

Combat Schticks have no conflicts. However, some can only be used if wielding a weapon, and some only if fighting unarmed.

Assault (Barehanded or Armed)
For the discerning beserker nutter, a totally aggressive pose that is desructive and risky! Gain +4 to your attack pool, but all attacks on you this turn get +2 dice.

TAP: Re-roll all your attack dice that failed to score a success this turn.

Dodge and Weave (Barehanded or Armed)
A general defensive posture. Gain +1 Defence and +1 Armour

TAP: Instead, increase Defence and Armour by 5 this turn

Duck (Barehanded or Armed)
Get out the way of someone about to beat you up up close! Get Defence +2 against attacks made at melee range

TAP: Instead, gain +3 Parry against attacks made at melee range this turn

Feint (Barehanded or Armed)
A classic deceptive attack. If your attack roll rolled any 1s, immediately roll 3 extra dice.

TAP: Gain successes on 4 or more instead of 5 or more this turn.

Focussed Blow (Barehanded or Armed)
A style designed to disable an opponent. Stun your opponent if your attack has two or more 6s in it.

TAP: As above, and your attack this turn is Unstoppable

Impervious (Barehanded or Armed)
A combination of training and mental resistance to pain that makes it very hard to take you down unarmed. Gain +3 armour against barehanded attacks.

TAP: Ignore all damage from barehanded attacks this turn, and get +3 armour against all other attacks.

Martial Arts (Barehanded only)
A useful general fighting style. Gain +2 attack and +1 damage.

TAP: Instead, gain +6 Attack and +3 damage.

Street Fighting (Barehanded only)
A rough and deadly general style. Gain +2 damage and ignore armour

TAP: Gain a bonus attack on a foe attacking you in close combat; this resolves before his attack.

Flying Attack (Barehanded only)
Throw your whole attack into one leaping superblow! Lose three attack dice this turn, but gain damage +4

TAP: Use after this attack is successful. Gain extra successes on this attack equal to your Combat rating..

Power Attack (Armed only)
For those who like to take mighty swings with a weapon! Gain Attack +2 and Damage +2.

TAP: Instead, gain Attack +4, Damage +2 and inflict Knockback.

Twin Weapons (Armed only)
If wielding two weapons, you become very dangerous indeed! Gain Attack +2 and Defence +2 against attacks at melee range. However, you cannot tap any schtick other than Twin Weapons whilst it is active and used in a turn.

TAP: Use after a successful attack to immediately apply the same hit again.

Whirling Strike (Armed only)
A rapid armed style, great at dispatching crowds. Gain Attack +2, and hit Mooks on 4 or more with your attacks.

TAP: Use after a successful hit to safely disengage from combat and take a Move action away.

PILOT SCHTICKS

Barnstormer
You have a fantastic capacity for stunt flying- useful in the chaos of battle! Add three dice to your Pilot pool for any stunts or tests demanded by cards in starfighter combat.

Daredevil
You love to get the maximum out any ship you fly, pulling the stick as far as it goes, your instincts still working evem at maximum G-Force. Any ship you fly has 1 added to its Manoeuvrability Rating.

Deadshot
You have a real nerve and steady hand when making a target run on a large opponent. Increase the Payload rating of any ship you are flying that has a Payload rating by 1.

Favourite Ride
You do more than own your own ship, you are almost one with it; you know every part of how all of it works, like a Jedi knows everything about his Lightsabre. You must have youer own ship (via the Starship merit) to take this Schtick. When flying that particular vessel, you get one extra die on ALL Pilot rolls made with that ship.

Jinks Master
You have a knack for flying defensively whilst still concentrating on yuor target. Reduce all damage taken by enemy fighters by one, to a minimum of 1.

Killer Instinct
You have a phenomenal sense during a battle of where the opportunities to get kills are. About half of the 'Melee' Starfighter Combat Event types can be converted into 'Closing In' instead if you have Killer Instinct; the event will say if this can happen.

Ruthless Hunter
Inferior opponents are easy kills for you; you pick them off without thinking about it. The amount of successes you need to destroy an enemy Pilot is reduced by one.

Soft Landings
Even in a crisis you have a knack for getting your crate down safely. If you crash you may make a Pilot roll with a difficulty set by the GM depending on circumstance. If the roll is successful, no-one in the ship is hurt in the crash and the ship will always be salvageable.

Speed King
You can handle a ship at extreme speed, and love to tweak power settings to get the most out its engines, going where others would not dare. Any ship you fly has its Thrust rating increased by one.

Tactical Awareness
You have a great sense for the position of ships around you and are rarely caught off guard. About half of the 'On Your Six!' Starfighter Combat Event types can be converted into 'Melee' instead if you have Tactical Awareness; the event will say if this can happen.

BLADE SCHTICKS

Some Blade Schticks are ‘Guards’. Guards represent the fundamental way in which you hold your sabre in a fight. They are very powerful, but although you may take more than one Guard, you may only have one active at a time (they Conflict with each other, the only Conflicts Blade Schticks have).

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Balanced Guard
A mobile posture using speed, agility and a good sense of balance to keep out of harm’s away as you deal with your foes. Gain +2 Armour and +1 Attack; if a foe attacking you rolls any 1s on his dice, you gain an additional armour.

TAP: Instead, gain +2 attack, +3 Armour and Defence, and all 1s and 2s rolled by enemies attacking you this turn add an extra +1 armour to you against that attack.

Focussed Guard
A defensive posture, particularly effective against one target you have picked out as dangerous. Gain +2 Defence. Nominate one enemy each turn; you also get +1 Parry against that enemy.

You require 5+ to hit with your lightsabre whilst this is your Guard.

TAP: Any attacks from your nominated target miss. Ignore all 5s rolled on other attacks against you this turn.

Forward Guard
An aggressive posture, seeking to advance against your enemies destroy them quickly against your enemies. Gain +5 attack pool.

TAP: Instead, gain +15 attack pool.

Orthodox Guard
The standard sabre Guard as taught at the Temple, defensive but looking for opportunity to make a deadly strike. Gain +2 Defence and +1 to your attack pool. When attacking, you may turn a single ‘1’ rolled on a die into a 4 (which is a success with a Lightsabre).

TAP: Additionally, gain +2 Parry against all attacks this turn and +2 attack pool, and all 1s and 2s you roll on the dice this turn becomes 4s

Bodyguard
Allows you to protect those around you. Nominate one nearby person to protect each turn; that person may use your Defence and Parry rating, and any Armour gained by your schticks. Just to avoid confusion because of the name, this is NOT a ‘Guard’ schtick.

TAP: This turn, you Bodyguard ALL friends and allies near you.

Block
A flexible approach to defending- with an option to switch to the offence if suddenly needed! Choose to gain either +1 Defence or +1 Armour.

TAP: Instead, gain +3 to attack pool this round.

Charge
Swordplay is a static skill, but Jedi are extraordinary and some can attack with great skill on the move. Having 'Charge' ready means that your attack this round can be at any point of your move. This includes attacking in mid-run, in mid-air, or even attacking an opponent next to you and then running away. This also means that you can always safely disengage from melee combat whilst Charge is active.

TAP: Target an opponent who you did not attack last turn. Either:

A. Move to and attack that target (if in range) before ANY other person moves this round, regardless of initiative

or

B. Gain +6 attack pool against that target this round

Cleave
The Lightsabre can cut straight through a foe; you are skilled at making use of this to bring it into another. If you roll enough successes to destroy two mooks in your roll, you may destroy two, so long as two are in range. This must be a kill; you cannot only wound a second mook with Cleave.

TAP: Your ferocious attack disrupts the efforts of nearby Mooks. Use when killing a second Mook with Cleave. The total number of successes made on that roll now protect you; you ignore that number of successes Mooks roll against you this combat (so if your attack roll had six successes, the next six successes Mooks roll against you will be ignored). Note: this tap power is under review

Reflection
Jedi are skilled at deflecting incoming fire with their sabres, but aiming it back at the attacker is a particular skill. An attack is reflected if:

a. The attack missed
b. The TOTAL rolled on the attack dice is seven or less
c. You have not reflected any other attacks this turn

If these conditions are met, you reflect the attack on the firer. This automatically kills Mooks or inflicts base damage of the weapon if the firer is a Supermook or named character.

TAP: For this turn, the conditions are:

a. The attack missed
b. The TOTAL rolled on the attack dice is thirteen or less
c. You have reflected fewer than 3 other attacks this turn

This tap can be declared after the dice are rolled

Riposte
You are always on the look out for a chance to strike a foe up close. Riposte will give you a bonus attack on any enemy in close combat if the total of his dice rolled is a multiple of five (so, if your attacker rolls 4, 5, 6, 5, that is three successes so you are hit, but the total of the dice is 20, which is a multiple of five, so you get a bonus attack). Your foe’s attack resolves first.

TAP: Riposte works this turn on a multiple of 4, 5 or 6, and you get +5 dice to your Riposte attack.

Perfect Strike
Traditional swordplay teaches that the perfect offensive combination will kill any foe in three strikes; you ever strike to make this combination against all foes- but you can fall back on the defence if need be. Gain +2 to your attack pool. A single '1' in your own attack roll this turn turns into a 4, making it a probable extra success.

TAP: Instead, gain +2 Defence this turn. You must declare this before your attack in a turn.

FORCE POWERS

Whilst they are Schticks, Force Powers work differently from others.

Requirements
You cannot just pick any Force power. You must learn basic ones before you learn powerful ones. Force Powers will list what other powers you must know before you can pick that power.

Learning and Mastery
If you take a Force Power, you have ‘learned’ it. Learning a Force Power gives you a permanent bonus. These bonuses never conflict, run at the same time as different types of schticks, and may even have non-combat effects.

However, you make take a Force Power a second time. This is called ‘Mastering’ the power. When you Master a Power, this means you can push it to extreme effects, eoither generally or in combat. One or more special options will be given to you when you Master a power. However, using these powers represents an extreme effort and cannot be done casually.

Some Mastery effects are non-combat, these are special and will be described with the Force Power. Remember that Force Rolls are made on your Force rating, whilst Force Attack rolls are made on your Force attack rating- some templates are better at one than the other, and vice versa.

Using any Mastery effect of a Force power costs you a Force point (unless stated otherwise). This cost is taken out of your ‘Force Pool’. Characters start each story with a Force Pool equal to their Force Power rating. Note that this pool DOES NOT REFRESH during a story- it must last you an entire game. In very long stories (or during VERY special events), you may receive a one point. The Power ‘Flow of the Force’ gives some Power regeneration, as does the special ability of the Acolyte. But generally, Force Pool is a very scarce resource; you should use Mastery powers only at times of grave emergency (or near the end of a story if you have some left- that’s drama for you!)

You may only Master a Force power if you have also Mastered the pre-requisites for that Force power. This makes some powers effectively inaccessible to starting characters, or indeed even experienced characters until a great deal of stories have been played.

Force Powers are split into four different categories- Kinetic, Martial, Living and Cosmic. There are also some speicifc Light and Dark side additions to the Living and Cosmic selections.

KINETIC FORCE POWERS

One of the more dramatically obvious uses of the Force, Kinetic powers are about using the Force as telekinesis, to remotely affect objects or people. Used either as a tool or as a weapon, remember that such powers only compliment your abilities as a warrior. They cannot substitute entirely for the use of a Lightsabre.

Powers are listed with their requirements, and the extra abilities granted by Mastering the power. The number in brackets is the cost of using that power. An ‘x’ means the cost is variable, whilst ‘S’ stands for ‘Special’, and you should read the power to get details.

Remember, you do not need to buy each Mastery power separately. If you Master a Force power, you gain access to all its Master abilities.

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PUSH/PULL

Requirements: None

The first discernable ‘power’ that young Force learners get taught, this is the ability to repel or attract small objects, often in a hurry. Generally this power works automatically, though a Force roll may be needed to receive a stuck or inaccessible item. This power may not be used on anything you could not pick up and throw easily yourself, and may not be used offensively.

MASTERY POWERS

Combat Push: A short, sharp, concentrated Push designed as a weapon to knock someone over at close range.

Against Mooks, this is a ranged Force attack that can kill them. It can target multiple Mooks if you have Twirl (see below)

Against Supermooks and named characters, this is a Force attack that inflicts no damage. Instead, if it is successful, gain a bonus attack on the target with extra dice equal to the successs rolled on the force attack. You can move before this bonus attack, but if you are unable to actually get a conventional attack on your target then this power is poointless.

Sabre Throw: Hurl your Sabre as a weapon. Allows you to use your Sabre at range (within reason), but until your next action none of your Blade Schticks function, which will likely reduce your defence. This attack needs 5+ to hit.

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LIFTING

Requirements: Push/Pull

This power allows you to move much larger objects than Push/Pull, though at a gentle pace. A Force roll is used to move larger and heavier objects, and the difficulty of that roll is the only limitation on this power.

If you have ‘Lifting’ you may also deflect incoming projectiles, like primitive weapons (arrows etc) or grenades and such. This adds your Force Defence rating to your Defence.

You may forego your action to actively deflect incoming slow projectiles. If you do this, make a Force roll. Successes on your Force roll subtract from successes made on the attack.

MASTERY POWERS

Super Lift: Request to move any object you like; the GM will give you the amount of Force points you require. In theory, this could even be used to bring down buildings, though you might blow your whole force allocation for the story.

Grip: The classic use of the Force to choke someone. Grip can be used in three ways:

Against Mooks, it is a free Force attack (no Force expenditure). When sustained for a second turn, it will automatically kill the target Mook.

Against Supermooks and named characters, it inflicts five damage for each turn it is used. This damage is Unstoppable. The character can make rolls on his highest combat roll to escape, needing to beat the successes rolled on the original Force roll. He can take no other action until he breaks free.

Grip is undramatic (and hence hard to use) against the same target more than once in a fight. Every time a taregt becomes Gripped, he gains one Parry against all further uses of Grip against him in that fight.

Outside of combat, Grip can also be used to intimidate someone, increasing your Intimidation pool by three.

Bombard: Throw bits of the scenery at your enemies! A Force attack with a damage of 5* and is Unstoppable. Use the total of Defence or Force Defence to defend against this. Depending on available debris, Bombard may allow you to split your pool to attack multiple targets as with Twirl (see below).

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PRECISION

Requirements: Lifting

This power represents advanced techniques and skill when using kinetic powers. Gives three extra dice when using any abilities related to Push/Pull, Lifting or Precision.

MASTERY POWERS

Advanced Sabre Throw: As Sabre Throw, except without the restrictions (your blade scthicks function and you hit on 4+ as normal)

Advanced Bombard: As Bombard, but the base damage is 6 and it kills Mooks with just one success.

Fling: An extreme use of power as you pick up your foe and hurl him across the room. A Force Attack with a damage of 6*, it also causes Knockback to the affected target.

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LEAPING

Requirements: None

Use the Force to propel yourself to amazing feats of jumping. Doubles your Agility for the purpose of making jumps, and halves all damage from falling.

MASTERY POWERS:

Great Leap: Massively increases your Jump range, depending on your Force rating.

Defensive Leap: Gain +1 Parry and be able to safely disengage from Melee this turn. You may not attack this turn.

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MARTIAL FORCE POWERS

These powers use the Force to affect your timing and speed to perform combat manoeuvres impossible for normal people. In many ways not dissimilar to Blade Schticks, they can be used with any weapon (though many offensive ones are close range only).

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SWIFTNESS

Requirement: None

A great increase in your reaction times. With this power, it takes (effectively) no time to draw your Lightsabre, and the difficulty of all checks involving reactions is reduced by one (so normal reaction checks become Easy, and Hard ones become Normal)

MASTERY POWERS:

Strike: Use with a single melee attack to make that attack count all 1s as successes. Can be used after rolling the dice.

Evade: Use when being targeted by an enemy. His attack pool is halved (before Defence) this turn.

Dash: Move at double speed this turn. An Agility roll may be needed for difficult routes.

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CO-ORDINATION

Requirement: Swiftness

Gives you almost superhuman reflexes and defensive movement against incoming fire. You may activate this power at the cost of making any attacks this turn. All Ranged attacks need 6s to score successes against you, if activated.

MASTERY POWERS:

Flurry: Launch a deadly series of blows on one opponent. Half your attack pool for this attack. Ignore any successes beyond the fourth rolled. Your total damage of this attack is equal to the base damage of your weapon multiplied by the successes rolled.

Ward: Use the Co-ordination effect without having to forego your attack.

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BALANCE

Requirement: Swiftness

Gives you amazing positional agility in a close combat. You may activate this power at the cost of making any attacks this turn. All close combat attacks need 6s to score successes against you, if activated.

MASTERY POWERS:

Twirl: Target up to four mooks within melee range. Make one attack roll at half your pool. Ignore the first success on this roll unless your weapon has a * rating. For each success rolled, either kill a mook or score a one-success hit on a Supermook.

Evasion: Use the Balance effect without having to forego your attack.

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ALACRITY

Requirements: Co-ordination and Balance

Represents you having become extremely quick and sure-footed. Reduces the difficulty of all non-aggressive agility and jump rolls (so normal jumping checks become Easy, and Hard ones become Normal).

MASTERY POWERS:

Sidestep: When hit by an attack, use to reduce its damage by three (even down to zero). This is not armour, but can be used in addition to armour.

Quickness: If the other side in a fight has initiative, use this power to act before them. If you have initiative, you may use this power to act before someone on the other side who is using this power!

LIVING FORCE POWERS

The Living Force is a Jedi’s attachment to the world around him. It makes a Jedi sensitive to the thoughts and emotions of others (and later on, to be able to influence them), and also makes a Jedi sensitive to the world itself- disturbances in the Force, great amounts of death, and the like.

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SENSE

Requirement: None

Often the very first ‘power’ ever demonstrated by a force user, even before being trained, Sense is a general feel for the ebb and flow of the Universe. The ‘always on’ version of this power means that you will sense disturbances in the Force (the usefulness of which will be determined by a Force roll), whilst you can actively use it to sense the presence of people nearby, and their emotional state. Note that Living Force Powers are generally useless against Droids. Luckily Lightsabres work against Droids just fine.

MASTERY POWERS:

Empathy: Gives a detailed feel for the emotional connections between a group of people you are with. Has no set effect but is very useful for judging the mood of people and using that information to your advantage.

Scan: Gives more detailed information about the thoughts of one being. Scan costs nothing but needs a Force roll to succeed. You can spend a Force point to automatically bypass the roll, though this will not bypass Force-based defences like Shroud.

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PRESENCE

Requirement: Sense

You have a great ability to affect the emotions of those around you. You may either become highly noticeable (gain +3 dice to a social roll) or distract others so they do not see you (gain +3 dice to any sneaking roll).

MASTERY POWERS:

Persuade: The ultimate use of this power allows you to affect the minds of others so they think a lie is true. Only affects the weak-minded and the lie has to be blended with reality (These are not the droids you are looking for” is good, “These droids are actually giant pink jellys” is not.) Requires a Force roll. Persuade does not affect anyone with a Force rating or a Willpower above 3.

Quietening: Calm an enraged or aggressive animal. Requires a Force roll.

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LEADERSHIP

Requirement: Sense

An imposing ability to direct others to your will. This is an active ability and requires a Force roll on the dominant person in a group. If successful, that group will accept your authority in a situation. This cannot be used mid-fight, or even pre-fight, to stop people who have hostile intention towards you.

MASTERY POWERS:

Stare Down: Actively makes you so imposing that an opponent dares not strike you, for a moment. Use when hit by an attack. If your Willpower is higher than their Willpower and Force Defence combined, the attack automatically misses. This power only works on living beings (not droids).

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CHARISMA

Requirements: Presence and Leadership

Represents increased skill and ability when using the Living Force to influence others. Add three to your Force Power or Force Attack rating when using any power where your target uses Willpower to defend.

MASTERY POWERS:

Bewilder: Confuses your opponent’s senses momentarily. Make a Force roll which is defended by your opponent's Willpower. Your opponent is Stunned for one turn for each success rolled.

Illusion: A long-term deception of people’s senses, creates a false set of images and sounds. To work, you must expend two force points and make a Force roll, rolling as many successes as your target has Willpower (Jedi may add their Force Defence rating to their Willpower, making them very hard to affect). May affect a group by rolling two more successes than the highest Willpower in the group. The Illusion cannot actually affect anything in the long term, so cannot inflict damage etc.

COSMIC FORCE POWERS

The Cosmic Force is the Force in the sense of the grander scale of things- of Destiny, the future, the essence of being itself. Using the Cosmic Force is a very passive thing, but it is also the source of the greatest power of the Jedi, to be able to interpret and act upon things yet to come. It also brings great wisdom, as those who master it understand their place in things, and the secrets of existence.

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INTUITION

Requirement: None

Another power that manifests before training (though is rarely understood by the user), Intuition gives the user an innate feel for the way things are. When a Jedi has a bad feeling about something but doesn’t have any logical reason why, that is their Cosmic Intuition. This power is always on and the GM can tell players with high Force ratings that they often feel bad or good about something, but players can try and pro-actively see whether a course of action or situaiton feels good to them, the results of which depend on a Force roll.

MASTERY POWERS:

Dreams: A vague connection with events that have not yet happened, which manifests to the Jedi in his/her dreams. This is a Premonition power. Only one Premonition power can be used per story, and must be declared as your first action in that story. ‘Dreams’ will give you a vague and obscure- though also truthful- vision about the future events of the story you are about to play. If you decide to use it, Dreams will activate for you if a 5 or 6 is rolled on a single D6 die roll. If the story ahead is personally important to you, it may become more likely to work. Alternatively you may spend a Force point to automatically receive a Dream.

Guidance: At times of great need, the Jedi can perform the most amazing feats of skill (like hitting the exhaust port on the Death Star). For every Force Point you spend on Guidance, you may change the value of a die just rolled by two (so you may change a die that rolled a 3 into a 5 instead, making it a success).

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INNER CALM/IRON WILL

Requirement: Intuition

Represents great discipline of the mind (peaceful calm for a Light Sider, iron-willed self-dominance for the Dark Side). Adds one to your Willpower when used to resist any effect. This also increases the difficulty of Force rolls made to sense your presence.

MASTERY POWERS:

Shroud: Conceals your mind from the Force. Sense and Scan cannot find you for the duration of the scene, regardless of rolls made.

Revitalise: Refreshes your body at the end of a combat/action scene, removing 10 damage. Can only be used once at the end of each scene.

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TRANQUILITY/TOTAL FOCUS

Requirement: Inner Calm/Iron Will

This further immense mental discipline (the peace of the Light Side or the single-minded determination of the Dark) grants resistance even against the Force itself. Increases your Force Defence by one, except for the purposes of increasing it with xp.

MASTERY POWERS:

Dissipate: Either take an action de-activate a lasting Force power (e.g. Grip), or spend x to increase your Force Defence by 2x for one turn.

Channel: Use when affected by a successful Force Attack. Roll your Force Defence, and spend more Force points to gain extra successes on the roll. If you match the successes rolled on the attack it is successfully deflected away from you, harmlessly.

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INSIGHT

Requirement: Intuition

The Jedi now understands his/her link to the future, and can try to influence and control that link. Adds two to the dice roll result of a Premonition roll.

MASTERY POWERS:

Foresight: Actively navigate the future via meditation. Foresight is a Premonition power. Only one Premonition power can be used per story, and must be declared as your first action in that story. When using Foresight, roll a single d6. On a 3-5, you receive a Revelation- a clue about the upcoming story that will be of use to you. On a 6, you instead receive a major revelation, which will give you the opportunity to have foreknowledge of a major development, giving you great potential influence over events. However, the future rarely reveals itself clearly and Revelations still tend to appear in the form of allegorical images and visions that sometimes only make sense when you have seen and understood the events around them.

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JUDGMENT/CUNNING:

Requirement: Insight

Represents an innate understanding of the desires and motivations of sentient beings. Light Siders tend to become great judges of the true power of arguments for and against a subject, whilst Dark Siders cunningly manipulate viewpoints to match their own. Allows you to re-roll any failed non-aggressive social roll.

MASTERY POWERS:

Wisdom: Meditate and gain knowledge of an event that is foremost in your thoughts. Allows you to either substitute your Force rating for your Intelligence for one roll, OR to ask a simple question of the GM (representing the wisdom you receive from the Force), who will answer truthfully. The question cannot be specific (“Which ship is the best choice against the Zanxion invaders?”) and so should be broadly phrased (“Is it a good idea to fight the Zanxion invaders?”). The answer, whilst truthful, can give you more to ponder (e.g. “To fight the Zanxions will start a war that will kill many innocents, but the alternative is slavery to many more.”).

LIGHT SIDE FORCE POWERS

There are some applications of the Force that require a peace of mind and symbiotic understanding of the Universe that Dark Siders not only do not have, but do not understand.

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AWARENESS

Requirements: Leadership and Inner Calm

Symbiosis is the true key to the Light Side and Balance, all things living in harmony with other things. True Awareness of this gives a heightened sense of the Force. A Jedi with this power rolls an extra die with all Force (not Force attack) rolls and restores 10 extra health when using Revitalise.

MASTERY POWERS:

Harmony: True Harmony with the Force makes everything easier. Increases your Force Rating by another three for any Cosmic or Living Force roll.

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FLOW OF THE FORCE

Requirements: Awareness, Tranquillity and Judgment

A peak reached by very few, this represents an understanding of the very nature of the Force itself. This being so, it becomes ever harder for the Force to affect you. Add 1 to your Force Defence rating, except for the purposes of increasing it with xp. This is cumulative with Tranquillity.

MASTERY POWERS:

Disruption: Interferes with another’s ability to use the Force. This is a Force Attack. If successful, it prevents the target from using any but the five Force powers with no pre-requisites for two turns, plus one turn for every success rolled. The target may break this power by spending two force points. This power does not work on a target with Flow of the Force (in the highly unlikely situation that two such Light Siders clash so... or IS that the only time such a thing would happen?)

Absorption: Not only is the Force unlikely to affect you, it actively turns against those who would will it so! This acts like Channel (above), but if the attack is defeated you may make a bonus Force attack on your attacker, using any Force Power you wish. The cost to use this attack discounted by the cost of the attack made on you.

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DARK SIDE FORCE POWERS

There are some applications of the Force that require a selfishness and understanding of the power of Emotion that Light Siders not only do not have, but do not dare to tinker with…

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OBFUSCATE

Requirements: Iron Will and Insight

The Dark Side hides all, which is how the Sith found their power. By taking this power the Dark Sider now corrupts the Force itself to his will. It aids the Dark Sider by shielding him from the Force so that sensing him is near impossible. Sense/Scan rolls on you will show nothing unusual unless double the normal successes are rolled, in which case your violent emotions will be glimpsed. Furthermore, a Dark Sider with this power fades from the views of the future the Cosmic Force gives, unless your connection with the person sensing the future is very personal. This was the great weapon of the Sith that enabled them to plot unknown against the Jedi- and each other.

MASTERY POWERS:

Manifest Destiny: The Sith sensed the future as much as the Jedi did, but their techniques became perverted to benefit the user alone. Manifest Destiny is a Premonition power. Only one Premonition power can be used per story, and must be declared as your first action in that story. Manifest Destiny works like Foresight, but the Revelations will not help you complete the story. Instead, they will aid you in attaining personal power. As well as having plot-based implications, acting properly upon the visions granted by Manifest Destiny grants the user bonus experience points at the end of the game. Manifest Destiny ALWAYS works, but costs 2 Force points.

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SUBTERFUGE

Requirements: Charisma and Obfuscate

Perhaps the greatest power of the Dark Side is the power of deceit. Mastery of such Deceit can bring empires to their knees. When making a Lying roll, all your dice automatically roll successes. Your target must specifically know what you say is untrue to sense you are Lying (and even then will likely think you are just misinformed). Good use of this power has amazing effect even against those who know you have it, as you mix lies and truth.

MASTERY POWERS:

Temptation: The Dark Side beckons all. Normally only those sensitive to the Force can act upon this (as all Dark Siders fell they have done, very wisely). Those great with the Dark Side can act as its emissaries, bringing it to all. Temptation brings those around you onto your side, changing their nature to that of the Dark Side, and of your servant. This does not affect other players or major antagonists! It is designed to be used to take control of people in power in the Galaxy, twisting them until they see you as the good guy. Corruption can be used up to four times between stories (and only then). The first use is free, other uses cost a Force Point each. You may only target each person once. Corruption’s use is subtle, giving you +1 on all social rolls on that target, and subtracting one success on all rolls made on that target to try and persuade them that something you have said is not so, or that you are evil. This effect is cumulative; each use of Corruption between stories increases your social bonus and the subtraction of other’s social rolls by one more until the person is completely in your power.

Domination: The problem with groups of Dark Siders is internal conflict. But those powerful enough can dominate even other Force users- only the most extreme circumstances can break this lock.

Domination can only target those with a lower Force Power rating than yourself. You can target people up to half your Force Power rating each game. The ‘X’ you spend on Domination increases your Force rating for the purposes of using this power, both for those who can target and how many you can target.

Those affected by Domination accept the user as their leader and cannot turn against him. They must always be trying to fulfil his wishes, though they will also fulfil their own as much as they can. The only way to resist Domination is to increase your Force rating and make it too hard for the user to target you each game. You can also acquire Domination yourself and being a battle of wills.

If more than one Dark Sider is using Domination, things become complex...

SHIPS AND SPACE COMBAT

An important part of Star Wars- Prequel and Original Trilogy alike- is ship to ship combat, somewhere where Jedi have less of an edge than they do on the ground... though that said, it is Jedi that pull off all the amazing ship feats in the films.

In this game, a different action system from normal is used to represent such fights. It is a more abstract system where you do not say precisely what you are trying to do, more which area of the fight you are trying to affect. Events then happen to you and you attempt to match them as best you can.

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Pilot Pool

Pilot is the only relevant skill in ship-based situations- both how well you fly and how well you shoot (as a stop gap, turrets can currently be fired using either Pilot or Heavy Weapons). The default Pilot pool is Dexterity + Pilot, and this will be used for the vast majority of Piloting rolls.

Pilots and Aces

Ship combat recognises two types of general combatant- Pilots, the equivalent of mooks (including the possibility of superpilots taking the place of supermooks), and Aces, which are named characters.

Pilots can be represented individually, for small-scale actions. However, in large fleet engagements, individual Pilots are not counted. Instead, both sides have generic 'Wings' of ships of various types. Wings make one roll (as if one ship was making the roll) each during an engagement, and the results of these rolls decide hoiw the engagement is going. It is not the roll of Aces to try and hunt down all Pilots, as they are not being numerically tracked. Instead, Aces can affect the situation much more directly than Pilots, to turn the battle in their favour.

Ship Stats

Ships have three stats- Thrust, Manoeuvrability and Armour.

'Thrust' is a general representation of a ship's sheer power, be that outright speed, acceleration or reactor systems. 'Manoeuvrability' is a representation of how agile the ship is.

These stats have two uses. First of all, your Pilot pool is increased when fighting a ship that has a lower thrust and/or manoeuvrability than you. Furthermore, a ship with a higher Thrust gets to attack an enemy first, which can be important when fighting Pilots as it is very useful to be able to shoot them down before they hit you. Manoeuvrability, however, gives larger pool bonuses.

Secondly, Thrust or Manoeuvrability is added to your Pilot Pool when making skill checks due to various events that can happen to you in space. Outrunning a giant explosion would be a Thrust check, whilst dodging incoming asteroids would be Manoeuvrability. However, such checks also come with a difficulty, which is subtracted from your Pilot pool.

The third stat, 'Armour', is a generic representation of how tough your ship is, based on size, shield systems and literal armour plating.

For Plots, Armour is a stat that details how hard it is to blow them up in one shot. For every shot that does not kill a Pilot, their Armour rating is reduced, meaning the next shot is more likely to kill them.

Superpilots and Aces instead use their armour rating like hit points- they are fine until their armour reaches zero. Superpilots have ten times a ship's armour rating as hit points, whilst Aces have twenty times.

Pilot Combat Rolls

Making an attack is very simple. You make your Pilot roll- as modified by your Thrust and Manoeuvrability ratings- and see how many successes you got. Against a superpilot or named opponents, you reduce their remaining armour points by the successes you rolled.

Against a Pilot, if you rolled twice as many successes as the pilot has armour, he is instantly killed. Else, his armour rating is permanently reduced by one. If a Pilot is hit when his armour rating is 0, he is automatically destroyed.

Examples- Obi-Wan is firing upon a Vulture Droid fighter. These fighter droids are very nippy but exceptionally fragile- their armour rating is 1. This means it takes just two successes to destroy such a fighter. If Obi-Wan flakes out and rolls just one success, this does not destroy the Vulture, but it reduces its armour to zero. This means any further hits would destroy it.

Even a TIE Fighter is a bit more sturdy than a Vulture. With an armour rating of two, Luke Skywalker needs four successes on an attack roll to destroy it outright. Anything less than that reduces its armour by one.

If our heroes are fired upon, they are never destroyed in one go. Obi-Wan's Jedi Starfighter has an Armour rating of 40, whilst Luke's X-Wing has 60. Successes rolled against them simply reduce this rating on a one-to-one basis; they will be shot down when their rating reaches zero.

Below is how Thrust and Manoeuvrability affect your Pilot Pool:

THRUST: a higher thrust than your opponent gives you +1 pool. If your Thrust is three or more points higher than your opponent's, this bonus is instead +3.

MANOEUVRABILITY: a higher manoeuvrability than your opponent gives you +2 pool. If your Manoeuvrability is three or more points higher than your opponent's, this bonus is instead +4

Capital Ships and Payload

Capital Ships do not take an active part in scenarios except in Events or as dictated by scenario rules (see below). However, they are often targets for attack. Capital Ships are attacked using Pilot rolls as normal.

Sufficiently large capital ships have to be attacked using torpedoes. Only ships with a 'Payload' rating can do this. Your Payload rating is your base damage against Capital ships when making runs on them. Very heavily shielded capital ships may reduce damage taken against them, but so long as your ship has a payload rating you can make bombing runs.

Wings of Pilots make bombing runs as dictated by scenario rules. Aces make bombing runs both when scenario rules say they can, and when the event system gives them an opportunity. Capital Ships can take as much damage as the scenario rules dictate.

Scenario Rules and Hits

A Scenario is a single space battle. Its special rules dictate what the objectives of each side are to win the battle. Scenario rules can dictate when capital ships can attack, how they might fire back, when the Death Star fires and blows up your flagship...

Most Scenarios revolve around the concept of trying to 'win' a round of battle. By default, the winner of a round is the side that scored the most HITS (not kills) on the other side that turn. Aces can directly affect this outcome by scoring hits on enemy ships, or by events that allow them to rescue colleagues, which means fewer hits have been scored against their side.

A short skirmish might simply say that the first side to win five rounds will cause the enemy to withdraw. A survival scenario might been that the players have to survive ten rounds and take extra damage for each round they lose. A strike against an enemy fleet might rule that Pilot Wings can make one attack on enemy capital ships for every three rounds they win.

There are no limits on scenario rules other than that which the GM desires.

Events

Aces do not choose specifically what they are doing. Instead, each round they decide on which part of the battle they are helping out with, normally by attaching themselves to a Wing.

A deck of Events then decides what happens to an Ace in a given turn- be that a straight fight against an enemy, a chance to save a colleague, being fired at by capital ships, an opportunity for a bombing run or trying to avoid a collision. Some scenarios may allow Aces to encounter more than one event in a turn.

Some events are 'Scenarios', which instead represent lasting situations that affect an Ace for several turns.

Certain Pilot Schticks can make Events more favourable to you; this is noted on the Event itself.

Ship Stats

Below is a list of what ships are represented by the rules at this time.

If you take a Starship at character creation, you may take any of these ships available for your era, or make up your own ship that has identical stats to those listed below.

The second armour rating listed for each ship is what an Ace would get in it, for reference.

PREQUEL ERA:

Jedi Fighter (generic light template): Thrust: 4 Manoeuvrability: 6. Armour: 2/40

Naboo Fighter (generic medium template): Thrust: 3 Manoeuvrability: 5. Payload: 1. Armour: 3/60

Aluran Interceptor (generic heavy template): Thrust: 4 Manoeuvrability: 4 Payload: 1 Armour: 3/60

Vulture Droid: Thrust: 6 Manoeuvrability: 6 Armour: 1

Damagran Scout: Thrust: 2 Manoeuvrability: 5 Armour: 3/60

P110 Interceptor (Red Lance fighters): Thrust: 5 Manoeuvrability: 3 Armour: 3/60

Modified Jedi Fighter (Anakin's as an example): Thrust: 5 Manoeuvrability: 5 Armour: 2/40

Firespray (generic larger ship template): Thrust: 3 Manoeuvrability: 3 Payload: 2 Armour: 4/80

YT-1300 freighter (generic small freighter template):: Thrust: 4 Manoeuvrability: 2 Payload: 1 Armour: 5/100

ORIGINAL TRILOGY ERA

X-Wing: Thrust 6 Manoeuvrability 4 Payload 1 Armour 3/60

Y-Wing: Thrust 3 Manoeuvrability 4 Payload 2 Armour 3/75

TIE Fighter: Thrust 5 Manoeuvrability 6 Armour 2/30

TIE Bomber: Thrust 3 Manoeuvrability 4 Payload 2 Armour 3/40

Notes

''Clone Wars" is its own era, but we have not designed enough ships for it yet.

Note that player armour is sometimes tweaked- higher in a Y-Wing, lower in a TIE (players should really avoid flying TIEs... Vader had the right idea)

We assign most EU ships to one of the above templates. Z-95s, for example, are as Jedi Fighters.

Two tweaks- removed the rule saying that Guards can stack with other schticks (now, as per default, you can only improve one area once, so having a +2 and a _3 to Defence only gives you +3, not +2, reagrdless whether you are using a Guard or not).

Secondly- added the Pilot Schticks!

I will type up the ful Pilot rules sometime but basically they now consist of one of a wide possiblity of random events happening to each pilot each turn, drawn from a card deck (off-line, flashily produced for you on a laptop computer by clicking the 'next event' button, but I cannot emulate thart I am afraid) and you react as appropriate.

The event deck may grow as time goes by (indeed we hope it will, and we'll be keeping an eye on all SW space battles for more events that tend to happen in them), and so more Pilot Schticks may appear in future to help deal with them.

The basic system of Aces and Pilots is the same as in the old days, as is the way you shoot down mook Pilots.

Oh, another rules update that I shpuld have mentioned before- * ratings add dice to your dice pool against Mooks, rather than making them easier to kill.

Aren`t some of the martial mastery powers a bit weak compared to blade schticks? For example compare twirl to cleave, and schticks don`t cost force.

Blade Schticks are better than Force Powers. Even a Swordsman gets almost twice as many Force Powers as Blade Schticks; an Adventurer gets four times as many.

Twirl (and Spin) is actually best used when attacking larger targets; it is almost never worth blowing Force points on mooks.