Tatooine Manhunt Revisited

[JT Swift]

"Jedi Heirlooms" was the inspiration for my side-trip too!

I just figured that if Obi-Wan kept Anakin's sabre he probalby kept Qui-Gon's too. And that it was probably rattling around in the hut somewhere.

It ended up acting as something of a focal point for the Qui-Gon Shade to communicate with the NPC and instruct her in the ways of the Force.
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- J.T. Swift

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[Whill]

Interesting.
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[Kaloth Varsk]

A little bit of thread necromancy here, but I found this on google, and it was exactly the topic I was looking for. It's still as relevant a topic today as when it was written, so instead of opening a new thread to discuss Tatooine Manhunt changes, I decided to go ahead and add on here where there are already some nice insights.

Anyway, this was the intro to "Tatooine Manhunt: Revisited" as I was rewriting after a number of times running the module (and once going through as a player.)

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With several Star Wars Roleplaying games introduced by various companies of the years, I still find my closest connection to be with the original D6 version of the game introduced by West End Games. Within that game, I believe a few modules stood above all others with both their characters and their ability to bring the players into the galaxy of the original movies. Tatooine Manhunt is the example I hold above all others in this regard. It made great use of extras from the first movie, along with introducing a number of characters and elements that have transcended the original module, showing up in comic books, toy lines, novels, and short stories to become part of the larger expanded universe.
However, being one of the first publications of West End Games, and taking place in such a key location as Tatooine, many elements of the module were written without knowledge about how the setting would continue to grow. Additional characters, plotlines, and creatures that fit into the module seamlessly, didn’t really exist at the time of the writing. I’d like to revisit how some of those elements can build onto the module, in addition to incorporating information that was expanded on about existing characters.
In addition, although I loved the overall adventure, I always felt that there were some areas of it that just didn’t click for me. A couple of the encounters seemed too heavy handed, and I thought characters had opportunities for more development to build up the big fights. Most of all, I thought the investigation portion of things was really lacking, making for a very linear plotline.
Key Adjustments:
• There are at least 4 rebel sympathizers/operatives in Mos Eisley at the time of the adventure, yet not one of them is used or even mentioned (some of them due to not being added into the expanded universe until well after the module was written.)
• According to other resources, the imperial stormtrooper presence in Mos Eisley should be over triple what is set in the module. In addition the imperials should have access to greater equipment (such as speeder bikes) which could play a big part in the module. In addition, I was always disappointed that Garindan was never used in this module, watching from afar and reporting on activities.
• Almost all of the “standard” characters of Mos Eisley were taken out of the cantina. This made sense, however, some of these characters might be of use elsewhere in the module to advance some investigations. Even those in the module, could be used more. (Example: Gamble with Firgin Da’n to get info between band sets.)
• I always felt there was too high a percentage of deadly encounters in the module, and the second half of the module is stacked with too many fights. Episode 1-3 contains 1 fight that is part of the plot, and then optional fights with bullies or bounty hunters. Episode 4-6 however was a stream of fight to fight to fight, with 6 combat events (and one other encounter with someone shooting at the PC’s.) In particular, I never was satisfied with the womp rat or especially the krayt dragon events and how they play out.
• The environment of Tatooine never came into play. Heat issues? Lack of water? Sand Storms? At least one environmental hazard (I prefer a standstorm coming up) adds to the setting and gives another non-combat event in the module.
• A chase scene is something that should happen in almost all Star Wars adventures (along with a land combat, a space combat, and an investigation). There is one chase scene written into the module, however, I have found that 50% of the time, this optional scene never occurs as the module is written. Adding a chase scene utilizing speeder imperial speeder bikes in to go with the Tatooine Canyons provides some nice visuals to fill this gap.
• The investigative opportunities are not only very light in this module, they don’t matter one bit to the plot. There is literally nothing you find out during investigations that will have any effect on later events. This should be changed so that good investigation actually gives some advantages later on.
• I actually think a beast riding opportunity should present itself somewhere. With riding beasts in the setting such as dewbacks, banthas, rontos and Eopies, it’s a shame they aren’t taken advantage of more. (I do like the Bantha stampede, which is the only opportunity for the beast riding skill as written.)
• Many key skills never come into play as written. Beauracracy to get info out of the government? Streetwise should be used quite a bit in this setting. Value could be nice for actually getting something out of jawas. Hide? Investigation? Persuasion? Repulsor repair? The fact that half of these skills aren’t written into the module is a good indicator of how weak the investigative portion of the module really is.
• An alternative I like is having the character's ship impounded at the nd, giving the option of either fighting their way to the ship, or hiding out (with Nadon being a good option for that) while arranging to hire a ship to get out. (Having to hire a ship to get off Mos Eisley just feels right some times.)

Edits: Left off rontos from beast riding. Added alternative to getting off the planet.

[Matthias777]

First off, I've never played Tatooine Manhunt. Cue the shocked gasps! Kaloth, could you go into more detail about the different Rebel operatives/sympathizers present in Mos Eisly/on Tatooine at the time? And forgive my ignorance, but when exactly is Tatooine Manhunt set? From reading on Wookieepedia, it seems to be set during the events of A New Hope. Is this correct?
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Arek | Kage

[Kaloth Varsk]

Lets tackle the timing first. The adventure is set soon after the events on ANH in the city of Mos Eisley (and then the wastes of Tatooine.) Timing it there isn't completely necessary, but its a good fit, and some details make the assumption that this is the timing. (For example, some bounty hunters are haggling for Luke's landspeeder that he sold when you walk into the speeder shop.)

As for rebel sympathizers, let me give sources and brief intros:

Davin Felth - Davin was Introduced in Tales of the Mos Eisley Cantina as one of the stormtroopers who got assigned to Mos Eisley during the search for C3P0 and R2D2. It was a "punishment" assignment for figuring out flaws in ATAT design and tactics that his superiors wanted covered up. He felt sympathies towards the rebellion, and actually shot his commander in the back during the firefight in the docking bay where the Millenium Falcon escapes. I understand many don't care for the EU, but for those that do, this character should exist right in the middle of this adventure (which should counter balance the fact that there should also be about 20 stormtroopers as well as speeder bikes on site instead of 6 stormtroopers.)

R5-D4 - This one comes right out of the Galaxy Guide for A New Hope. A rebel agent bought R5D4 from the jawas after the events of A New Hope. Before leaving the planet, he set up the droid as a spy and "donated" it to the Imperial Prefect. Once again, having a potential spy in the prefect's office could help balance the fact there is a much higher imperial presence, by giving them false leads, reporting on patrol patters or guarded locations, or even report on the Relentless' timeline if the local imperials get an updated.

Sivrak - This is another one straight out of a galaxy guide. This Shivestan scout is a rebel sympathizer, and could make for an alternate guide if the rebels if their investigations reveal the locations in the wastes. (As the adventure is written, it doesn't matter what you uncover, you have to wait for Old Arno to take you where you need to go.

Momah Nadon - Another rebel sympathizer from the galaxy guide. I actually think this character is useful if you want to add hiding out from Imperials while smuggling out Talon. (Maybe R5D4 reports that Imperials are camped at docking bay 94, so a distraction needs to be set up to draw them away, and while this is being organized, Talon needs to hide in Momah's hiding spot.

Edit: Left out one. Unut Poll, the owner of Spaceport Speeders works with Sivrak and Nadon to support the rebellion. I will note that officially, Davin, R5D4, and the rebell cell containing the other three don't know about each other, so this is also the opportunity for the rebels (PC's) to unite the rebel forces in the city to one cause.

[Fallon Kell]

I like most of your thinking, Kaloth. I've had great success with inclement weather, and a canyon is the perfect place for a speeder bike chase. It's been ages since I played Tatooine Manhunt, though. Do you have any ideas about how to integrate something like beast riding?

Also, I generally use streetwise as an at-will type of skill, that players can use to get things they want or think they need. I generally avoid writing it into stories, but that's just my style.
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[Kaloth Varsk]

1) Instead of leaving 1 speeder left at the shop to purchase, perhaps the last one sold, and the PC's are required to use transport animals until they get another opportunity to acquire a speeder.

2) During the explorations of the wastes, there are plenty of opportunities to ground the rebels' speeder. The Krayt dragon encounter (as much as I dislike that one) could easily result in speeder damage. Encounters with bounty hunters also provide that opportunity. Then give the opportunity either to acquire some animals (Oasis would be a good spot), or to capture some in order to continue their travels.

3) Perhaps instead of giving a cargo skiff to Old Arno to meet Slag Flats, he has some animals instead. This would allow for a short riding scene that doesn't have to play a long term part in the adventure, but lets them get acquainted with one or more of the native speicies of riding animals. (Note, this makes running the chase scene harder if you have the intention to run it here.)

4) The rebels can find out that there was a sensor array purchased recently that would pick up speeders with easy, but which might not pick up life forms, allowing transport by animals to allow closer approaches to Tusken fort. (Maybe they find out Shrike, Quist, or Thunden purchased the sensor array.)

Edit: By the way, I also left off Rontos on my list of Tatooine riding beasts.

[ZzaphodD]

Having the rebels lose access to their ship is actually critical...

The whole desert part of the adventure would otherwise be replaced with the PCs simply flying wherever they want to go with their ship...
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[JT Swift]

I had the Empire declare a "No Fly Zone" over that hemisphere of the planet. I figured that since the Empire knew Talon was down there somewhere they wouldn't want him escaping.

So the players wouldn't want to start flying their ship around until they were ready to run the blockade and leave the planet. Otherwise they keep getting shot at CONTINUOUSLY by inept but persistent security forces in air-speeders. Also they end up leading the Empire wherever they go on the planet!

But a Landspeeder sticks low enough to the terrain that the Imperial Patrol Craft in orbit can't track it.
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- J.T. Swift

For Everything about the TARDIS check out
http://www.whoniverse.net/tardis/

For all things Gallifreyan check out
http://meshyfish.com/~roo/index.html

[Kaloth Varsk]

I actually finally ran through "Tatooine Manhunt - Revisited". I had 2 old time players who had played through the original module decades ago, and 2 brand new players to startwars.

This was the third adventure we ran, after a couple of others to introduce people to the game.

I made huge use of miniatures. (I have hundreds of starwars miniatures, and many were originally bought specifically to be able to run this module.) We also used game maps for combats, speeder chases, etc. Running this module was as fun as I remember it, as it really does a good job capturing a Star Wars feel, and the familiar characters were a big hit. One of the older players in particular remembered the module well, and was caught very much offguard by the changes and depth added.

I did us a lot of adjustments I listed above. The canyon speeder chase was a big hit, as was taking shelter during a sandstorm and finding they'd taken shelter in the womp rat nest at the farm.

Players made contact with a couple of the rebel agents and sympathizers in Mos Eisley, which actually is sets up nicely for a "Return to Mos Eisley" adventure in the future.

[Jedi Skyler]

I was reading through this thread, and had an idea concerning Bel Iblis.

For those who aren't as familiar with him, he was indeed one of the charter members of the Alliance. However, his militaristic views were considered a bit extreme by Mothma and Organa, and so he eventually did split off to run his own campaign against the Empire. He ends up coming back into the fold in the Heir to the Empire trilogy, if memory serves. But at the time of Tatooine Manhunt, I believe he is freshly removed from Alliance Command.

That being said, if one chooses to use Bel Iblis in this campaign, it would give an intrepid GM the chance to develop a story line about a not-as-well-known individual and his efforts against the Empire while the more popular and more widely-known Rebel Alliance was in full swing. Bel Iblis could be involved to actively recruit Adar Talon to his own private war, rather than trying to bring him into the Alliance. After all, Bel Iblis had to go on his own recruiting campaigns and acquire his own personnel, materiel, and funding in order to wage his war. I think this would be an ideal opportunity for the GM who loves this universe, but also likes to operate in areas that were not really talked about in the movies or even the books.

[pistoladrummer]

This thread has been of great use to me as I am a brand new GM and this will be the first mission i will be running.

Does anyone have any advice on how best to run combat in locations you do not have maps for at all?

I know it will mostly come down to me drawing the players a map from what it described in the gm notes but does anyone know of any PDF's i can download for reference? Such as the combat sequence in Kwenn space station at the beginning.

[schnarre]

[allinonemove]

i'm yet another new GM who thinks that tatooine manhunt sounds like a great introduction - for me and for my players. i've been behind the screen before, but not for a long time and never for d6 (it was AD&D for me). i've wanted to tweak some things in the module and this thread has helped immensely.

i don't have much grounding in SW outside the movies and a couple of novels, so i'm not looking to add a lot of flavour, characters, or additional story. my concern is more with mechanics and the amount of combat.

* first of all, like kaolth varsk said earlier, what about the heat? i'm thinking of giving armoured characters -1D to STR and DEX. mandalorian and desert stormtrooper armour excepted. also thinking about heat exposure like "the need for sleep" - moderate stamina checks required after 6 hours out and about or lose 1D from all attribute/skills until reasonable time in shade or cool.

* i don't like the railroad-y nature of the encounters in episodes 5 and 6. the krayt dragons, sedi fisk's manor, lank's farm, and the defeated bounty hunters could happen at any time over the two days. i'm thinking about giving the players a loose map and distances, allowing them to choose locales to search based on old arno's suggestions.

* the womp rat encounter is weak and i'd love to replace it with an environmental encounter - an increasingly deadly sandstorm that they need to outrun. not a chase, but threatening with increasing consequences the longer they explore the ruins.

* replacing the bantha stampede/sand people ambush with an imperial chase sounds brilliant. but how could that work with the story and mechanics? why would imperial troopers be out there? at the conclusion of the chase, wouldn't it be possible that the imperial troopers end up on adar tallon's doorstep? this could require some significant reworking.


comments are appreciated

[Guardian_A]

I like the idea of a sand storm encounter in place of the womp rat encounter. That said, you could do both as a single encounter. The characters could be racing for a small cave system for shelter from the storm, only to find that it is actually a womp rat den. Once the characters are settled into the tight confines of the cave, they realize that they arent alone, and the womp rats dont like the company. The characters are forced into a position where they have to either fight the womp rats, or retreat back into the storm. If they stay and fight, it quickly becomes obvious that its going to be difficult to shoot around each other without the risk of hitting each other.