What to get started?

[Ronin84]

Hello!

I have been a fan of the game for a long time and I have run a few one shots but now my boys 12, 12 and 9 want to play some Star Wars.

My question which books do you all think are essential to get the ball rolling? They all like the Knights of the Old Republic Era OR the Clone Wars...I'm not sure how they feel about playing during the rebellion. I know my youngest wants to be a Padawan in such a bad way.

Any suggestions are very much appreciated!

Ronin
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Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.

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Roninsgames.proboards85.com

[cheshire]

Hmm... if you want to do a KotOR era, then I would suggest having the core book (R&E is my favorite), the Tales of the Jedi Companion (though disregard the NPCs), and then maybe have the Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide D6 Conversion (you can find a links to it several places including in the link in my sig). Perhaps having some extra setting books might help, such as Platt's Starport Guide.

If you go with a Clone Wars, then there's also the Clone Wars Campaign Guide conversion pdf (also in my sig), but then some military-oriented books may help. For example the Rules of Engagement may be a good jumping point. There are a few Clone Wars era ships scattered about the D6 supplements, including a few in the Thrawn Trilogy Sourcebook, and the Han Solo and the Corporate Sector Sourcebook.

For both campaigns there are ships from those eras in the Starships of the Galaxy D6 Conversion (and if you haven't guessed that I've got a link for it in my sig.... well...).

The only major cavet that I have about using the stuff that's been converted from the SAGA edition books is that the EU has continued to try to wow people with "the cool factor." So, there are a few things that seem out of sync with a normal timeline. For example, the cartoon had some cloaked tanks. Ergo, cloaking devices are now statted out in some of the ships. Likewise some of the stats for the ships are a bit over the top for the era. Many GMs decide to tone them down a bit to fit a more gradual progression toward the original trilogy tech levels.

Please let me know if this isn't quite what you were looking for.
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Before we take any of this too seriously, just remember that in the middle episode a little rubber puppet moves a spaceship with his mind.

[atgxtg]

It a bit tricker to run a Clone Wars or KOTR era game with D6, but possible. It just means a bit more work for the GM, since you can't use the standard ships (TIE fighters, X-Wings).

The one essential thing you need is a core rulebook. Each is good, but different. I'd go along with chesire and say 2R&E is probably the best overall, but 2E is temping as well. Plus 2E is usually cheaper to buy, and you can download the changes between the two editions from rancorpit. !E with the rules companion isn't bad either.

Then you should probably get some sort of source book for the setting. Unless you are going to run D20 Star Wars, you will need to download D6 sousebooks or conversions for the appropriate era. The nice thing about the conversions is that they are free, so you can get as many as you want. THe bad thing is the conversions won't give you the descriptive detail the D20 and SAGA supplements have, so you will either need to dig up the D20 supplement converted, or just do a bit of research on the stuff you don't know about.

The compiled stats books, available for free, are great, but not as helpful for the early eras, since a lot of the ships and equipment won't exist yet.



I ran a Clone Wars campaign for four years, and didn't have the Clone Wars conversion book when I started. I was able to get along fairly well using the fan-based Galaxy Guides for TMP and AOTC, and D20 conversion stats for battledroids and vulture droids. When the conversion book came out, it helped.

I'd suggest getting some index cards and filling them pout (or printing them) with stats for the common opponents, allies, ships, and gear you will need, so you can have them handy. since the stats won't be in the core book. Maybe even print of a looseleaf folder to have on hand for reference. In my experience it was the ship and vehicle stats that were the biggest pain in the neck.

[cheshire]

Oh, yes. And we can't forget about Gry's Attack of the Clones Galaxy Guide.
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Before we take any of this too seriously, just remember that in the middle episode a little rubber puppet moves a spaceship with his mind.

[vanir]

The good thing about the Tales of the Old Republic era (the Kotor games are an adaptation of this Dark Horse comic series but there were intellectual property/canonical issues so Nomi Sunrider became Bastila Shan, with some setting/tech changes but some themes remained), is there are Jedi Academies all over the place and the galaxy is in general more diversely governed and regional, Coruscant is just the home of one civilisation/empire among many and alternative cultures are powerful.

It's more classical sci-fi adventuring with an open universe, where the Rebellion, prequel and post Endor eras tend to tie up PCs in a static plot line.

This unfinished book style of setting is engrossing and easy to get into for starting players, it's more RPG-like. Sourcebooks like Tales of the Jedi Companion and Dark Side Sourcebook, plus the Core Rulebook can give most of what you need to run campaigns. It's also a good idea to get your hands on some Tales of the Old Republic Dark Horse comics for inspiration and to fill in planetary information for the settings.

The Kotor games also helps with this, the way the game has you visiting a number of planets in your own ship is probably the kind of theme which is attracting your kids to this setting. The thing about Kotor is a set storyline so it's a one shot RPG game that gets boring and restrictive to play more than a couple of times, but the first time you play it's astonishing and totally engrossing in visual splendor and variety of settings, and sense of adventure.

Another good sourcebook is the Essential Star Wars Atlas, not only as a starship navigation tool for the PCs but also for how much it fills out the settings of each era, and tons of background information to make the SWG seem like a real place with real locations you can visit. It makes it a large and detailed galaxy.

With Jedi Academies at Ossus, Arkania, Coruscant, Empress Teta, Dorin, Teya, Dantooine, H'rath, Truuine; then the Sith Empire around Korriban and Ziost, Sith cults at Yavin, Tapani Sector, Malachor, occupations at various times throughout the galaxy and battles between them involving the Mandalorians; plus the number of new alien civilisations being discovered as the galaxy was being explored, it's a more exciting kind of setting with greater diversity than the black and white Empire period.

Really I think if you get a copy of the Tales of the Jedi Companion and read it through it'll give you most of what your kids are looking for.
The PC templates for starting characters as Miraluka Healer, Battlemaster, Beast Master Jedi, Freedom Fighter, they've got great personality and adventure. I'll bet your youngest would want to be the Battlemaster.
It's also fun the way lightsabres have more detail, with different damage ratings for the different crystals and blade colours used. It's a real Jedi adventuring campaign era.

[Ronin84]

Everyone thanks!

You have given me plenty to work on and to find! Please if anyone else has suggestions I would appreciate them!
_________________
Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.

_________________________

Roninsgames.proboards85.com

[lurker]

[atgxtg]

Suggestion #1: Find out what kind of characters the players want to play and what sort of campaign and adventures they are expecting before you get too heavy into your prep work.

If you got an idea of what the characters arew going to be like and what the players want, it REALLY helps you to plan out adventures. You don;t want to give them everything they want, all the time, but you do want to be sure that you are all on the same page.

Suggestion #2: Hope they don't want to play Jedi!. The learning curve for Jedi character is pretty steep, and just about everybody is disappointed the first time around. THey expect to be able to do cool things like the characters do in the films, and find out they aren;t even as good as Luke in Epsiode IV. Jedi are really best left for later.

If they want to play Jedi anyway, then keep in mind how weak Jedi are at the start, and wimp up the opposition. One stromtrooper, normally not much of a threat for most PCs, can take down a starting Jedi fairly easily. So give the PCs weaker foes.

Also, give a Jedi PC a mentor to start with. This helps you to point them on the right path, teach them the powers that are easy to use, and a way to bail them out behind the scnese until they get competent enough to protect themselves. Then you can do what you want with the mentor.

But still, Jedi are probably not going to go over well.

[cheshire]

Well... if they're ALL Jedi, it's not too bad. Or if they're all non-Jedi it's not too bad. We only had one game where we had a mixed party. I think we had two Jedi and two non-Jedi, and we just found ways of giving the non-Jedi means of being competitive. Obscure specializations such as Whip techniques (See D6 Magazine #1) and martial arts (Rules of Engagement: Specforce Handbook) helped.
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Before we take any of this too seriously, just remember that in the middle episode a little rubber puppet moves a spaceship with his mind.

[Ronin84]

I would probably be able to have at least three of their friends join. One of them is going to want to play a Jedi. Sounds like I have a lot of reading to do then.

I remember force powers being an issue but I will take a look!
_________________
Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.

_________________________

Roninsgames.proboards85.com

[atgxtg]

[Ronin84]

The boys want to do something in the Clone Wars...I have one who wants to be a Padawan and the other two are thinking Clone Troopers...oh this could be bad.

I am concerned about powers for the Padawan, though I am thinking that going up against the droids might balance out pretty nicely. I am thinking one die in each of the three different powers and then looking at what would be good from there.

For Clone Troopers I am going to use the templates from the Rebel Spec Force book, might add a few different skills but I think that would work.

Thoughts?
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Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.

_________________________

Roninsgames.proboards85.com

[Raven Redstar]

Templates from the Rebel spec force books are a good place. Rather than making them standard troopers. I would make them ARC troopers, which are un-brainwashed and smarter than the other versions of Jango. This would also fit with the spec force templates. ARC Heavy weapons. ARC Infiltrator. ARC Pilot. ARC Wilderness Fighter. Etc...

This would allow you to bypass the whole nastiness of Order 66, since they didn't have any of the subliminal implanting, only advanced training. So if or when your game reaches order 66, the ARCs may find they have enough loyalty to the padawan, or his master to help in his escape.
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RR
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[cheshire]

It sounds like a good way to do it. It seems like a tried and true method of making a military character.

You also have the option of using the clone trooper "species" in the conversion guide, but I'll be honest, I've not playtested that. Gry Sarth often has great ideas, but I have yet to see how well balanced this turns out. The math looks right, and it appears balanced though. It's on page six of:

http://www.4shared.com/office/6Qfsv1ku/Star_Wars_D6_-_Conversion_-_Th.html
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Before we take any of this too seriously, just remember that in the middle episode a little rubber puppet moves a spaceship with his mind.

[Ronin84]