SWRPG Campaign Idea: Looking for Thoughts

[Jendekit]

I have a campaign idea for a Star Wars game that started percolating in my head earlier today and I would like the thoughts of the Playground on the idea.

The campaign begins in the first part of 11BBY so ~eight years after Episode III. The PCs are hired by the Hutt Cartel to investigate a derelict wreck on the edge of Hutt Space. The ship was clearly caught in a fight and has been adrift for a very long time. The security on the computers is difficult to crack, not due to firewall issues, but because the basic programing language hasn't been used since before the Ruusan Reformation more than a thousand years ago.

The crew is long dead and mummified due to the vacuum conditions of thee ship, but the main hold still has thirty one blocks of carbonite. Eventually, everything that was in the ship will be taken to a research facility with the PCs staying on as security/researchers.

Finally the databanks of the wreck are cracked by an astromech droid (if any of the players decide to play an astromech they'll be the one to crack the security). The ship was on its way to a planet named Belsavis. The carbonite blocks contained large quantities of supplies and foodstuffs. When the first block of carbonite is thawed out, it isn't supplies or foodstuffs that emerges. Instead what emerges is a miraluka that immediately goes on a murderous, canabalistic rampage. Within a few hours, the miraluka has thawed out all the others that were frozen in carbonite for transport. Including several Sith Lords.

So yeah, obvious breaks from cannon aside, what are everyone's thoughts on what I've got for the campaign thus far?

[prufock]

Instead what emerges is a miraluka that immediately goes on a murderous, canabalistic rampage. Within a few hours, the miraluka has thawed out all the others that were frozen in carbonite for transport. Including several Sith Lords

Up to this point it sounds great. There are cautions I would recommend at this point, though, to keep it from being a combat slog.

1) If the PCs are around when the Miraluka is thawed, they will try to stop her. If they do, the rest of your plot is destroyed. You need to make sure they aren't there, or that the Miraluka has an escape possible (IE the PCs are in an observation room watching the defrosting, but the Miraluka escapes through the employee hatch or whatever.

If your PCs are like mine, they'll be suspicious that the carbonite is sith the minute you say that they find lightsabers. They'll think out of the box and demand that the room is lined with explosives or a laser grid or something before the defrosting occurs, just in case.

2) The Sith aboard have to have some goal beyond "kill everything on board," which you'll need to think about. Is the ship operational? They're still trying to go where they were headed (take control of the bridge).

If not, make sure they have escape pods, shuttles, or some other means of getting off the junker.

All in all I like the idea. The first bit has almost an Event Horizon feel to it.

[Summerstorm]

The crew is long dead, but the main hold has thirty blocks of carbonite, the majority of which reek of the Darkside to any Force sensitive pcs.



Nopenopenope - If you say something even remote to that they will be like: "WHOA there are Sith in those blocks - Danger, danger."

Nah, i would have force-sensitive characters make a check and tell them something like:
"The longer you are on board now, you are getting restless."
"Something is... or WAS not right on this ship. You remember a dream of darkness" <- makes them think there might be something they have to find out - advances the plot maybe
"You feel cold, slow, trapped. The walls of this ship... You should get out"

depending on how good they roll.

So overall there will be some Sith-Lords on the loose afterwards, in a galaxy in turmoil - one thousand years after they were frozen? I like it. They need to build up their strength, find out about how the galaxy works now - while your group is trying to keep them from doing their thing?

So at the end of the adventure, there is the Miraluka laying in his/her blood and the group is like: "We finaly got him/her... but we can't rest. Something terrible has been unleashed upon this world - from another time" "As if things weren't bad enough already" "We are going to need a spaceship, weapons and a whole lot of courage"?

[Magma Armor0]

Alternatively, you could use ysalamiri (sp?). Those things create dead force zones so they wouldnt be able to sense the "ultimate evil"
you could even freeze the ysalamiri too. Would keep things slightly less suspicious. Might make them think theres some sort of artifact inside that creates force holes rather than sith lords.

[Jendekit]

Thanks for the advice thus far, especially the bit about the ysalamir. I hadn't thought that the would have been found in the era that these baddies were frozen in, but when I looked it up it turns out that their planet was discovered between 20k and 15k BBY. So I am definitely using that in the Sith Lord and other dark side Force Sensitive blocks.


1) If the PCs are around when the Miraluka is thawed, they will try to stop her. If they do, the rest of your plot is destroyed. You need to make sure they aren't there, or that the Miraluka has an escape possible (IE the PCs are in an observation room watching the defrosting, but the Miraluka escapes through the employee hatch or whatever.

If your PCs are like mine, they'll be suspicious that the carbonite is sith the minute you say that they find lightsabers. They'll think out of the box and demand that the room is lined with explosives or a laser grid or something before the defrosting occurs, just in case.

2) The Sith aboard have to have some goal beyond "kill everything on board," which you'll need to think about. Is the ship operational? They're still trying to go where they were headed (take control of the bridge).

If not, make sure they have escape pods, shuttles, or some other means of getting off the junker.

All in all I like the idea. The first bit has almost an Event Horizon feel to it.

What I am currently thinking is that the PCs aren't informed that the first carbonite block is being thawed. They only find out about it when the alarm goes off after the miraluka pulls a Hannibal Lecter. A technician decides to show some initiative whilst keeping a firm hold on the Idiot Ball, and thaws the first block without more than two guards.

The initial goals of the Sith on board is to get the heck out of dodge given that in their time period Belsavis was a top secret Republic prison world, and after that their goal will basically be to rebuild the Empire anew without the infighting that nearly tore it apart.

I only have a few of the blocks figured out thus far:

A male Sith pureblood named Darth Caedis
A female human named Eloun that served as the above's apprentice
A male houk dark side force adept named Morg'th
A male chiss mercenary named Oss'siv'kendoh
and a female miraluka fallen jedi named Shoaneb


I have a list on names for the rest but I haven't figured out yet what they've done to warrant going to a prison that doesn't exist.

The main thing I am having trouble thinking of, is why any jedi PCs would be sent on the initial mission instead of being involved in the war.

*EDIT* I have decided that I want one of the big time Sith Lords to be a light side force user, but still be a devout believer in the Sith Code. For those that don't know it:
Peace is a lie, there is only passion
Through passion, I gain strength
Through strength, I gain power
Through power, I gain victory
Through victory, my chains are broken
The Force shall set me free.
I have a good idea as to how I want to roleplay him, but I'd like to hear others' thoughts on how they would do so.

[Jendekit]

A friend made a suggestion about an hour ago that I am seriously considering. Bumping up the timeline by about 5-10 years and using the Edge of the Empire rules as well as the beta for Force and Destiny (both of which he will be willing to loan to me). It solves a few issues that I had been having (namely figuring out why jedi pcs were there and not fighting the war) and I admit to being intrigued by the ruleset.

Any weird races that aren't given stats for the blocks I can either change to a different race entirely (whiphid to wookie for example) or use the stats of another while describing it as the original (houk and miraluka, I'm looking at you two).

I've only played 2-3 sessions of EoE about a year ago but I'm willing to give it another go from the other side of the screen.

*EDIT* I have decided to make the following changes to my campaign plan:
There will be thirty one blocks of carbonite; the last block will contain the weapons and armor of the intended inmates.
Ten of the blocks actually will have supplies and foodstuffs.
The campaign will begin in 11BBY instead of 22BBY, so 8 years after the end of the Clone Wars.
The ones that hired the PCs will be low ranking members of the Hutt Cartel (haven't decided if the employers will be lieutenants or hutts themselves)