Savage Star Wars

[LibraryOgre]

I'm running a pretty limited Star Wars campaign until Christmas, where everyone is a Padawan whose master was just killed. It's meant some quick bashing of Star Wars Savage Worlds (Adventure Edition), which I've included below. Trandoshans and Devaronnians were literally made at the table last night, when players said they wanted to play them.

Arcane Background: Jedi
Arcane Skill: Force
Beginning Powers: 3
Power Points: No Power Points Rule
The Force skill can also be used to perform minor Telekinesis; it has a strength of d4, and a duration of only 1, but otherwise functions like the Telekinesis power.



The Lure of the Dark Side
In addition to the regular Bennies (called “Force Points”) available to all characters, each character in Savage Star Wars has 3 Dark Side Points. Dark Side points may be spent like bennies, but only to reroll an offensive roll (Fighting, Shooting, Taunt, Intimidation, Pilot, etc.), or to reroll the damage of an attack, and for those with the Arcane Background: Jedi, they may be spent to allow the use of any Force Power for the rest of the session, or to reroll a failed Force skill roll.
However, the Dark Side is seductive. If a character spends all of their Dark Side Points in a single session, they receive Dark Sider as a Minor Hindrance. In subsequent sessions, they will have 1 fewer Dark Side Point. If they run out of those in a single session, their Dark Sider Hindrance is upgraded to a Major Hindrance, and they begin each session with only 1 Dark Side Point. Using their Dark Side Point with the major Dark Sider Hindrance results in the Hindrance, Lost to the Dark Side, a Major Hindrance. These Hindrances may be bought off with Advances as normal; Lost to the Dark Side requires two advances, and Dark Sider may then be reduced from a Major to a Minor Hindrance, then removed entirely.

New Hindrances
Dark Sider (Minor or Major)
Those with the Dark Sider hindrance have begun to succumb to the lure of the Dark Side. As a minor Hindrance, they receive only 2 Dark Side Points each session; as a major Hindrance, they receive only one. Should all their Dark Side Points be spent in a single session, those with the minor Hindrance upgrade to the Major; those with the Major become Lost of the Dark Side.

Lost to the Dark Side (Major)
Prerequisite: Dark Sider Major Hindrance
Those Lost to the Dark Side have perverted the Force for selfish ends. As such, they no longer receive Force Points like regular characters; instead, they begin each session with a single Dark Side Point. They are able to earn Force Points normally during play, but any Force Points earned for acting on negative personality Hindrances (Arrogant, Bloodthirsty, Greedy, Jealous, Mean, Overconfident, Ruthless, Vengeful; others, decided by GM) will instead be earned as Dark Side Points.

Species
Wookiee
Pros: Strength starts at d6 (2), Claws (Str+d4 Damage) (1), Environmental Resistance: Cold (1), Size +1 (1)
Cons: Big -2, Cannot Speak -1, Minor Hindrance (Outsider, -1)

Twi’lek
Pros: Environmental Resistance: Heat (1), Persuasion starts at d6 (1)

Human
Pros: One additional Novice edge of choice

Togruta (Ahsoka Tano’s species)
Pros: Bite (Strength +d4 Damage) (1), Danger Sense Edge (due to montrals) (2)
Cons: Loyal Hindrance (1)

Gungan (Otolla) (Jar-Jar Binks)
Pros: Aquatic (2), +2 on Athletics (2)
Cons: Frail (1), Environmental Weakness: Heat (1)

Gungan (Ankura) (Boss Nass)
Pros: Aquatic (2)

Jawa
Pros: Low Light Vision (1), Repair d6 (2), +2 Repair (2), Immune to Disease (1)
Cons: Small (1), Can’t Speak (2), Outsider (Minor) (1)

Trandoshan
Pros: Regeneration (3)
Cons: Racial Enemy: Wookiee

Devaronnian
Pros: Immune to Poison, +1 Toughness

[Amnoriath]

1. Your system is quite simple and shouldn't have a lot of power creep but there is a lot more to the Force.
2. It is hard to judge the power of your races with just names of the abilities and a point system to say they are balanced.
3. I also can't help but feel that it incentivizes the use of the dark side just enough and the draw back is a rather minor compared getting a new Force skill. While how these skills need to be explained perhaps these die rerolls should be treated as dark or not depending on how you use them rather than just using them. Finally per session while is easy for the DM it is ultimately very arbitrary for the character as one session may cover weeks or a series of battles and tests that happen over an hour or two.

[LibraryOgre]

1. Your system is quite simple and shouldn't have a lot of power creep but there is a lot more to the Force.
2. It is hard to judge the power of your races with just names of the abilities and a point system to say they are balanced.
3. I also can't help but feel that it incentivizes the use of the dark side just enough and the draw back is a rather minor compared getting a new Force skill. While how these skills need to be explained perhaps these die rerolls should be treated as dark or not depending on how you use them rather than just using them. Finally per session while is easy for the DM it is ultimately very arbitrary for the character as one session may cover weeks or a series of battles and tests that happen over an hour or two.

Some of this requires a familiarity with Savage Worlds, especially adventure edition. The racial abilities are directly from SWADE's racial creation tables; if you have that book, they're very straightforward.

To an extent, it does incentivize the use of the Dark Side, but that comes from both the d6 game and the movies. Using the Dark Side is easy and seductive. You have these points sitting here, ready for you to use. Is it important that you succeed at this task? Can you solve the problem RIGHT NOW if you just knew this ONE Force power? Those points sit there as a temptation. Giving in to temptation a little bit, occasionally, won't be a problem. But relying on them? Pushing the line too much, too often? It's the path to the Dark Side. In d6 Star Wars, this was represented by Dark Side Points giving you a bonus to use the Force that you had to actively suppress... someone with 5 Dark Side Points got +5D to use Force Skills, which was a significant bonus. Here, the temptation is represented by points that can be used (I give them actual poker chips for bennies; blue for force points, red for dark side points), so if they choose to NOT give in to the Dark Side, they do so by resisting spending the points just sitting there.

In Savage Worlds, Bennies flow fairly freely. Without Edges or Hindrances otherwise, most people have 3 per session, and can earn more by playing their character well (especially hindrances) and having good ideas. In this case, there's a pool of additional bennies that they can use... but those freebies have consequences if they're overused.

[Amnoriath]

Some of this requires a familiarity with Savage Worlds, especially adventure edition. The racial abilities are directly from SWADE's racial creation tables; if you have that book, they're very straightforward.

To an extent, it does incentivize the use of the Dark Side, but that comes from both the d6 game and the movies. Using the Dark Side is easy and seductive. You have these points sitting here, ready for you to use. Is it important that you succeed at this task? Can you solve the problem RIGHT NOW if you just knew this ONE Force power? Those points sit there as a temptation. Giving in to temptation a little bit, occasionally, won't be a problem. But relying on them? Pushing the line too much, too often? It's the path to the Dark Side. In d6 Star Wars, this was represented by Dark Side Points giving you a bonus to use the Force that you had to actively suppress... someone with 5 Dark Side Points got +5D to use Force Skills, which was a significant bonus. Here, the temptation is represented by points that can be used (I give them actual poker chips for bennies; blue for force points, red for dark side points), so if they choose to NOT give in to the Dark Side, they do so by resisting spending the points just sitting there.

In Savage Worlds, Bennies flow fairly freely. Without Edges or Hindrances otherwise, most people have 3 per session, and can earn more by playing their character well (especially hindrances) and having good ideas. In this case, there's a pool of additional bennies that they can use... but those freebies have consequences if they're overused.
1. Could you provide a link or something so people can look at them please?
2. I understand what you are saying but right now it is hard to judge as you giving up once per session reroll for a new exclusive skill. Skills we don't see explained for the system. As such is there a point to staying with the light other than to be a good good guy? Is there a goal to not use dark side points?
3. Again I ask why the per session rule rather than in game time and possibly something interactive for the player to do. I understand it is easy this way but this way you can have it make more sense in the story, provide more narrative in your campaign, and make it harder for them to renew their points.

[LibraryOgre]

I can't repost it, as it is several pages of copyrighted material. Most of this goes with the mechanics of Savage Worlds... How bennies are acquired and used, the per session refresh, etc. I think you would have a better handle on this if you familiarized yourself with the basic SW ruleset, first.

[Amnoriath]

I can't repost it, as it is several pages of copyrighted material. Most of this goes with the mechanics of Savage Worlds... How bennies are acquired and used, the per session refresh, etc. I think you would have a better handle on this if you familiarized yourself with the basic SW ruleset, first.
1. Understandable
2. Okay, it probably is not your intention but you are coming off as condescending. You come to this board look for criticism and to see if what you have is balanced, appropriate..etc but you don't give people the information to judge it. When someone asks you to explain it you don't and say go do homework to figure out how a system very different from the D&D 5e header you have on your forum in which you are changing for 5e. You see the problem. You are changing and adding rules for both systems for your campaign looking for criticism and validation. As such you are responsible for providing the information to critique and validate. I can go and look through everything but I don't know what you are using.

[LibraryOgre]

2. Okay, it probably is not your intention but you are coming off as condescending. You come to this board look for criticism and to see if what you have is balanced, appropriate..etc but you don't give people the information to judge it. When someone asks you to explain it you don't and say go do homework to figure out how a system very different from the D&D 5e header you have on your forum in which you are changing for 5e. You see the problem. You are changing and adding rules for both systems for your campaign looking for criticism and validation. As such you are responsible for providing the information to critique and validate. I can go and look through everything but I don't know what you are using.

I have said absolutely NOTHING about D&D 5e, and my post has no such header. It is in the Homebrew Design section, which is for any material which is homebrewed, for any system. The post is titled "Savage Star Wars". The first paragraph says that it's for Savage Worlds: Adventure Edition. The FIRST mention of 5th edition is your post, and none of the mentioned mechanics have anything to do with 5th edition.

I do not think it is condescending to say "Have a basic familiarity with the system before critiquing a post about that system."

[Amnoriath]

I have said absolutely NOTHING about D&D 5e, and my post has no such header. It is in the Homebrew Design section, which is for any material which is homebrewed, for any system. The post is titled "Savage Star Wars". The first paragraph says that it's for Savage Worlds: Adventure Edition. The FIRST mention of 5th edition is your post, and none of the mentioned mechanics have anything to do with 5th edition.

I do not think it is condescending to say "Have a basic familiarity with the system before critiquing a post about that system."
1. I could have sworn it said 5e/next and you talking about telekinesis from Mystic powers. Sorry if my eye caught something else.
2. It is if you aren't answering any of the questions I am asking you. Is a once per session reroll worth access to an exclusive force skill? Why refresh a session when game time and doing something could be more relevant and better for the story. Why is the advantage of the light side is calling on the dark side twice per session? I don't need an in depth knowledge to pose those questions and get an answer. 😕