Updating the Rules

[edgookin]

I don't know what you have started already, but you don't seem to have very much for starships. Would that be a good place to start?

Also, as far as starships go, in my games I have 4 scales for starship combat

Starfighter 6d
Corvette 8d
Frigate 10d
Capital 12d

I also use a slightly more detailed damage system, especially for the larger ships, so it would take a very powerful single shot to destroy a capital ship. It tends to turn capital combat into a slugfest, more like the movies.

Also, I'm not sure whether you want to discuss progress on the board or via e-mail. Let me know. In any case, my email is edgookin@cox.net.

Would you like to incorporate these ideas?

[Tupteq]

[Tupteq]

[cunning_kindred]

[awfulalex]

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***witty remark under construction - coming soon to a board near you***

[cunning_kindred]

Hello again everyone.

Been a while since I had a chance to visit. Thought I would pop by to let everyone know that I've finally got around to updating the site again. Lots of little changes but the major stuff people might find interesting includes new rules for shields and some tweaks to the damage rules. As usual would love to know what anyone thinks.

[awfulalex]

Looking good
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***witty remark under construction - coming soon to a board near you***

[cunning_kindred]

The last update spurred me to do a bit of an overhaul in the pdf files on the site. Hopefully they are lot cleaner and easier to read (but that's for you all to judge). Recently updated to Word 2007 (which is more trouble than its worth with pdf generation but every update has a downside I suppose) and I thought I would use it as an excuse to clean up a few things.

Anyway, added a few things to the site you might appreciate. I have added a technique-skill index listing all the techniques by their associated skills. This brought some obvious gaps to light so I took the opportunity to fill them in:

You will now find some basic rules for build/repair skills and engineering

Common equipment (basically all the stuff from the original expanded 2nd edition)

Sith Alchemy and other dark side powers (lots of dark side stuff with which to tempt the players)

Force Spirit rules (I'm particularly happy with these since I think they represent the way things happened in the films and comics well)

A smattering of stuff for some of the smaller Force traditions - I know I've put a lot of stuff for them up (proportionally far more than they need) but I have a soft touch for the little traditions - I think they give the Force added character - still no Flow Walking or whatever it is Jacen does (if anyone has any suggestions about how you might write that up as a power in an even half-way balanced fashion I would love to hear them)

And a large miscellaneous techniques chapter with lots of wierd stuff. Just to fill in some of the strange little gaps I noticed in the index.

Hope you will find the time to visit.

[cunning_kindred]

Just a quick e-mail to let everyone know that the Aliens chapter is finally finished (had a few days off work and nothing better to do with my time). Its all up and ready to view.

P.S. I know (although I can't find the original posts now) that one or more of you is responsible for the Aliens pdf I found on my trips around the internet.

Its a fantastic compilation and without it I don't think I would ever have finished this. We've played, meddled with and just generally had fun with the rules for many aliens but there is still so many aliens we probably would never even have known existed without this book (plus you had the references for us to go look them up afterward... very very useful!) Thanks everyone (whoever you are)!

[Matthias777]

That'd be Gry Sarth.
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Arek | Kage

[cunning_kindred]

Well then, thank you Gry Sarth.

I hope something I've put on the internet turns out to be even half as useful to you as your document was to us.

(That seems unlikely however because I really don't think we could have finished this without your file. Wookieepedia is cool and all but searching through all of that takes forever and with your document we at least had some d6 rules for each of the races to start with - even if we did re-think a lot of them).

Thanks.

[Mogul76]

Wow... I really like this. You must have invested a LOT of time and effort in this project. Congratulations! I for one like the technique rules. True... Perhaps there are too many of them, but a GM does not necessarily need to use them all. They also give a new flavour to the Force, which feels very Star Wars-like to me: A Force adept can use quite a few powers from the start, as long as he has at least +1 in the Force attribute. But for more advanced powers a number of prerequisites (that are not necessarily linked to the Force attribute) must be met. I read the novel “Darth Bane: Path of Destruction” a couple of months ago. Contrary to his fellow Sith students, Bane puts a lot of effort into studying the old ways and history of the Sith (instead of purely training his aptitude for wielding the Force), spending hours in the Sith library on Korriban. In the end, as we all know, he becomes the most powerful Sith of his time. Your technique rules very much reflect this. I have not yet read all the details, but I assume a Sith would require a high score in the specialisation Scholar: Sith lore in order to have access to the more advanced Sith powers. Moreover, you would probably need to have a minimum number of Dark Side points (suggesting that a Sith must fully embrace the Dark Side in order to manipulate superior Sith powers)... I really do like this! Thanks to the technique system the various forms of lightsaber combat can also be explained in terms of rules. Hence, we get rid of the, in my opinion, rigid system of “buying” Force powers by increasing the Control, Sense and/or Alter skills (which never felt like Star Wars to me). At the same time, this explains why not all Jedi have access to Force powers such as Battle Meditation (this would be an advanced technique).

Well, you’ve probably noticed how content I am with your version of the rules.
As they stand now, I rather consider them as a toolkit than a set of rules that need be strictly adhered to in order to work in the intended manner. But that's perfectly fine with me.

Keep up the good work!

Mogul76

[Mogul76]

Ok... I’ve finished reading most of the stuff and must say that I still love your rules, especially the technique system, which is excellent in my opinion.
I also very much like how you handle the dark side. Well done!

You have completely split attributes, skills and specialisations as well as their advancements.
I’m not sure whether this was necessary in order for your system to work.
I never felt that WEG’s rules needed improvement in this area. Perhaps you could give us some details as to why you have separated them (NOTE: In Cunning Kindred’s version of the rules a character may have DEX 3D+1, firearms: 1D+1 and a firearms: blaster pistols +2 specialisation. When the character fires his blaster pistol the dice of the attribute, skill and specialisation are added up, giving a total of 6D+1. Buying additional pips is handled in a somewhat different way than in WEG’s rules). This may be linked to the technique system, but I’m not sure...

Second question: Why have you implemented so many Force skills? Wouldn’t it have been easier to simply stick to Control, Sense and Alter instead of having a dozen Force skills?

I’m not criticising your system. Like I mentioned before, I find it excellent.
But I have the feeling that some things that didn’t need fixing in the first place have been adapted anyway, for instance making conversions from official supplements and fan-made books more complicated.
But then again, I have not play tested the system (yet) and it may perfectly work as is...

The only part that really needs to be rewritten in my opinion is the chapter “Game Master Characters”. Let’s have a look at the statistics of a typical Imperial Army Trooper:

All stats are 2D except: Dexterity 3D: athletics: running 2D/2D,
firearms: blaster rifle 2D/2D+1,thrown weapons: grenades
2D/1D+2, vehicle blasters: specific vehicle of choice 2D/2D,
Knowledge 1D+1: survival: one environment 2D/+1,
Mechanical 1D+1: repulsorlift operation: specific vehicle of
choice 2D/+1, Strength 3D+1: brawling: punch 2D/2D+1,
Technical ID. Move: 12 (running). Equipment: Blaster rifle
(5D), field armour and helmet (+1D physical, +2 energy),
grenades (5D), helmet commlink, survival gear, utility belt with
supplies.

If one adds up the trooper’s dice for dexterity, the firearms skill and the firearms: blaster rifle specialisation, he has a total of 7D+1(!).
These guys must be really tough to beat in your campaign!
This may especially confuse and irritate GM’s and players new to the game...

I also believe that Stormtroopers (the elite of the Imperial armed forces) should be more skilled than a standard trooper. But hey... you’re not the first one to make this assumption

There are more oddities like this in this chapter.

Perhaps it would also be nice to add a few characters from the movies and the official supplements.
Even though they are not likely to appear in a campaign, their templates give an overview on how attributes, skills and specialisations may develop over time.
Is Darth Vader’s Force attribute score slightly higher than the official cap (2D) or much, much higher? At the moment, I really can't know.

I believe that 3 or 4 examples (2 characters from the movies like Darth Vader and Han Solo as well as 2 others from the official supplements like Jodo Kast and Suskafoo) should be enough to give us a feeling for this.

What about some guidelines for converting PC's and NPC's?

Last question: Do you plan to create a message board on your website, so that we can discuss these kind of issues? I think that this would be very beneficial.

Once again, thanks a lot for the time and effort you have invested in creating these excellent house rules and sharing them with us. May the Force be with you, always!

[cunning_kindred]

thanks for the feedback mogul76. It's nice to know people are reading the site. I hope you will have the opportunity to use some of the stuff you found there.

As to your questions. I think I'll just go through them in order.

[Mogul76]

Thanks for your answers and explanations, cunning kindred.

Like I mentioned before, I find your system intelligent, innovative and very flexible. Looking forward to the next updates.

Mogul76