I'd like help with my Togorian Scoundrel, for SWSE

[Mo_ghhh]

First of all, let me say I am completely new, not only to Star Wars RPG, but to this entire style of gaming. I should also apologize for my earlier prejudices, even though none of you knew about those.
Okay, so I'm new--I've said that--and I'd like to do this as well as I can on my first time through. I fear I may have screwed up, already, but I'd rather recover what I can than start anew. So, I'm just gonna post my character, and his stats, and hope that someone can give me advice as to what I should focus on/look out for.

Mo'ghhh
Togorian Scoundrel (currently at Level 3)
Str - 21
Dex - 11
Con - 15
Int - 13
Wis - 14
Cha - 13

HP - 33
Spd - 6
BAB - 2
Force - 6
Destiny - 0

Damage Threshold - 20
Fort - 15
Ref - 15
Will - 16

Skills
Acro (x) - 6 (trained)
Climb - 6
Dece (x) - 7 (trained)
Endu - 3
Info (x) - 2
Init (x) - 1
Jump - 6
Know (x) - 2
Mech (x) - 7 (trained)
Perc (x) - 8 (trained)
Pers (x) - 7 (trained)
Pilot (x) - 1
Ride - 1
Stea (x) - 16 (trained, focus, camo poncho)
Surv - 3
Swim - 6
Inju - 3
Comp (x) - 2
Force - 2

Talents
Find Openings, Risk for Reward

Feats
Point Blank Shot, Weapon Proficiency (pistols, simple weapons), Skill Focus (stealth), Stand Tall, Power Attack
Equipment
1x Axe (1d8+2x5) Equipped, two-handed
1x Camo Poncho (+5 Stealth) Equipped
1x Comlink (short range) Equipped
1x Comlink Earbud Equipped
2x Med Pak

Notes
I had originally planned to get Force Powers, but now I'm not so sure. My group has met twice, now, and I've realized that my character is a menace. I'm easily the most successful player, along with my friend playing a Human Scout force user. I like playing CQB, so if I do get Force Powers, which ones would aid me best? I also realize that Scoundrel may not have been the best choice, but I do like some of the talents. Find Openings and Risk for Reward I've taken, and my next choices will be Slip By, Knack, Lucky Shot, Uncanny Luck, Advantageous Openings, Thrive on Chaos--that will take me to Level 15. The feats, on-the-other-hand, aren't all that impressive, or are they? This is where I think I need the most help. Point Blank Shot and Weapon Proficiency (pistols, simple wimples--inside joke) were given to me, and I took Skill Focus (stealth), Stand Tall, and Power Attack. I'm considering taking Friends in Low Places, Desperate Gambit, Sadistic Strike, Weapon Proficiency (advanced melee, because I want the Power Hammer), and maybe Exotic Weapon Proficiency because I'd like a Verpine Shatter Gun (I was excited and partially surprised to find it available). I think that's everything. I can't think of anything else. So any help would be greatly appreciated. This is also the GM's first time as a GM, and he is also in his first ever game with another group, so he doesn't have the expertise I'm looking for. Thanks a lot.

[The_Snark]

It looks like you've done pretty well for yourself, actually. Nothing wrong with making a chaos-loving melee scoundrel!

Power Attack is a bit of an iffy feat in Saga Edition, as bonuses to hit are harder to come by than in D&D. It's not useless, though, and since you have it already you might consider taking Cleave. Very handy feat if you like leaping into the middle of a bunch of people with guns and wreaking havoc.

Exotic Weapon Proficiency (advanced melee) wouldn't be a bad feat choice at all, but I'd stay away from the Verpine shatter gun; it is cool, but with your Dexterity you're not going to be terribly good at using it. Skill Focus is always a good choice if you find yourself using a particular skill a lot. Desperate Gambit is a really, really good feat and I highly recommend it. Sadistic Strike is an... interesting choice, but I'm not sure how much use you'll get out of it, so I'd take others first.

Your talents look pretty solid too, and very entertaining to use. Advantageous Opening and Thrive on Chaos are good choices, and Knack is handy when you really need to succeed at a skill check. Lucky Shot doesn't seem worth it to me, though, especially if you take Desperate Gambit. Slip By... I probably wouldn't take it, but you'd know better than I how much use you'll get out of it. If you often find yourself wanting to move through an enemy's space, it might be worth it.

You might consider multiclassing to Soldier at some point, as it has some nice talents for melee characters. Stunning Strike and Unrelenting Assault (from the Clone Wars book) are both pretty good, though they require Melee Smash first. The Ambusher talent tree (Rebellion book) has some good stuff too.


Picking up Force powers is going to be a little feat-intensive for you, since you'll need to take Force-Sensitive, Skill Training (Use the Force), and Force Training before you get any, but it's doable if you really want to. A quick multiclass into Jedi would net you the Force-Sensitive feat, and if you increase your Intelligence the next time you get a stat boost you'll get another trained skill, which you can use to pick up Use the Force.

If you do end up going for it, picking powers should be pretty intuitive. Battle Strike and Dark Rage (if you don't mind Dark Side Points) help your melee attacks; outside the core book, there's Crucitorn (Jedi Academy Training Manual), Prescience (Legacy book) and Shatterpoint (Clone Wars book). I don't think there are many other powers that can make you better at hitting things, but can give you more options in and out of combat. Defensive powers like Negate Energy, Force Shield and Intercept help you live longer, Force Slam gives you an area attack, Cloak and Phase make you a master scout and infiltrator, Move Object and Mind Trick have all sorts of uses. Just pick powers that seem like they'll come in handy. If you find yourself with a lot of Force powers that target enemy defenses, you should consider picking up Skill Focus (Use the Force), but again, this is starting to get feat-intensive.

[Mando Knight]

You might want to look into boosting that Ref, though. It's not a good idea to rush into melee with only moderately high HP (Soldier does this better) and Ref as tied for your lowest defense. Anyone who's not a Force user will fire almost everything against that defense: lasers, missiles, giant mecha, giant mecha that shoot laser-tipped missiles...

[Seatbelt]

You might want to look into boosting that Ref, though. It's not a good idea to rush into melee with only moderately high HP (Soldier does this better) and Ref as tied for your lowest defense. Anyone who's not a Force user will fire almost everything against that defense: lasers, missiles, giant mecha, giant mecha that shoot laser-tipped missiles...

He's not joking. The Galaxy Gun fired missiles with point defense on them.

[Mo_ghhh]

Thanks for the quick responses.


Power Attack is a bit of an iffy feat in Saga Edition, as bonuses to hit are harder to come by than in D&D. It's not useless, though, and since you have it already you might consider taking Cleave. Very handy feat if you like leaping into the middle of a bunch of people with guns and wreaking havoc.

Yeah, I only took Power Attack to get Cleave. I think I might take Rapid Strike--it'll probably be more successful.


Exotic Weapon Proficiency (advanced melee) wouldn't be a bad feat choice at all, but I'd stay away from the Verpine shatter gun; it is cool, but with your Dexterity you're not going to be terribly good at using it. Skill Focus is always a good choice if you find yourself using a particular skill a lot.

At level 4, I plan to spend my two points on DEX, giving me more options.


Knack is handy when you really need to succeed at a skill check. Lucky Shot doesn't seem worth it to me, though, especially if you take Desperate Gambit.

I'm only taking Knack and Lucky Shot to get Uncanny Luck.



You might want to look into boosting that Ref, though. It's not a good idea to rush into melee with only moderately high HP (Soldier does this better) and Ref as tied for your lowest defense. Anyone who's not a Force user will fire almost everything against that defense: lasers, missiles, giant mecha, giant mecha that shoot laser-tipped missiles...

He's not joking. The Galaxy Gun fired missiles with point defense on them.

Yeah, I'm doing what I can to up my REF. It, with my HP, is the one thing I'm worried about.

[The_Snark]

Yeah, I only took Power Attack to get Cleave. I think I might take Rapid Strike--it'll probably be more successful.

Ah. Well, in that case, you should check out Wicked Strike (feat from Scum and Villainy). It fulfills sort of the same function as Cleave, in that it lets you attack a secondary target after you hit with a melee attack; the second attack only does half damage, but you don't need to drop the first target to trigger it, so it balances out.


At level 4, I plan to spend my two points on DEX, giving me more options.

I don't think you can spend them both on the same ability score; the text says you pick two abilities and increase each of them by 1. Your GM may change this, of course, but the book's pretty clear.


I'm only taking Knack and Lucky Shot to get Uncanny Luck.

Hmm. That is a pretty good talent, though I'm not sure I'd be willing to spend three talents getting it... but if you do, you should look at Lucky Stop (Knights of the Old Republic book) as well- negating off a fatal attack once per encounter is not a bad thing to have if you're concerned about low defenses and HP.

[Mando Knight]

At level 4, I plan to spend my two points on DEX, giving me more options.
You need to divide the bonuses between two stats.

Yeah, I'm doing what I can to up my REF. It, with my HP, is the one thing I'm worried about.
I'd recommend playing with a Soldier base instead of a Scoundrel one, but you've already taken your first three levels. Improved Armored Defense is probably the best talent out there for low-Dex characters in need of some Reflex.

[Mo_ghhh]

You need to divide the bonuses between two stats.

I'd recommend playing with a Soldier base instead of a Scoundrel one, but you've already taken your first three levels. Improved Armored Defense is probably the best talent out there for low-Dex characters in need of some Reflex.

Ah, then I might give one to STR to bring my modifier to +6, and maybe one to INT to give me another Tained Skill, or maybe I should still give it to DEX. I know I should've have gone with Soldier, but, as I said earlier, I wanna try and salvage what I can. Someone else, recommended me looking into the Gladiator Prestige class.

[Mando Knight]

You could try multiclassing into Soldier: it'll get you a d10 hit die, +1 BAB, proficiency in light armor (or rifles), and a Soldier talent. You can then take Armored Defense and two more Soldier levels to get IAD. If you're still concerned about your Reflex after that, invest in Medium armor, which will usually slow you down, but give you even better protection for your Dexterity.

[The_Snark]

Medium Armor would also get you started towards qualifying for the Elite Soldier prestige class, which has some good talents (check the Clone Wars book for melee-related ones). Even if you don't want armor, taking soldier levels would make you a bit tougher and gives you access to the Brawler talent tree.

Gladiator would be easier to get into though, and it also has some handy talents. Though I'd stay away from the ones that force people to attack you instead of other people until you've found a way to make yourself a bit tougher.

[Mo_ghhh]

Thanks a lot, guys. Looks like I have quite a bit to consider. Last night's session was brutal. I really need to increase my Reflex Defense, so I'll probably multiclass into Soldier, next level. But, even with all that increased, it means nothing if we can't roll worth ****. Seriously, one fo the guys talks big, dreams up cool ideas--he's very creative--but he can't seem to roll higher than a 5. I'm usually not that bad, but last night I only made two successful attacks. It was kinda ridiculous.

[The_Snark]

This is why you want Desperate Gambit. All those poor attack rolls? Reroll 'em. -2 Reflex Defense hurts a bit, but it's worth it more often than not, I find.