Custom Droid Guidelines

[MrNexx]

So, what guidelines do you use for designing custom droids, either PC or NPC?

One I have a experimented with, just to provide a framework, is to invert the normal PC rules... instead of 18D of Attributes and 7D of skills, droids get 7D of attributes and 18D of skills, with no cap on how many dice can be added to a given skill.

So, while a Human mechanic might have a 4D Tech and 4D Mech, with 2D in the other attributes, then sink their skill points into a combination of "being a good mechanic" and "being broadly useful" (so, they may have a 1D in Blaster and Dodge, hoping they don't have to fight in melee), a repair droid would have 1D in everything, but 2D in Technical, and use their skills to make them great mechanics, but little else of use. A protocol droid would have 2D Knowledge and a bunch of skills to make them a useful protocol droid.

From there, attachments can be sourced more or less like equipment.

Does that sound reasonable? What do you use, instead?
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[Kytross]

My take on PC droids is here.

For NPCs I use the droid sourcebook from WEG.

[KageRyu]

Guidelines?
Is that a real thing?

When I am making new droids I generally spend some time trying to figure out what it's primary and secondary functions are going to be. I try to get imagine a visual reference, or work from one I have seen (before my arthritis problems I used to draw them up at least in sketch). Once I know what it does and what it looks like I will begin roughing out some stats and equipment. I try to consider how good it is at it's job and use the Universal Ratings Chart available in numerous places in D6 to assign appropriate skill levels - at this stage I also try to take into account whether it is a top of the line droid in it's field, or merely the economy model. I also try to take into account discrepancies that may occur sometimes with the D6 system and certain types of stats - for example I want the droid to be average durability (3D STRENGTH) but be able to lift a Starfighter and tow it (?) - and will give the droid a note of special equipment such as Hydraulic Lift Loader or similar. I generally don't use any set limit to dice or skills when designing non-player droids - I focus on form and function and trying to get the stats representative.

I was trying to create an updated set of rules for the creation of artificial life forms like droids for my D6 project, but aside from a few notes on new gear I made, it is relatively incomplete as I had not reached that chapter yet.
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