Star Wars with Transformers! System Advice Needed

[The End]

I've got an idea for a Star Wars/Transformers mashup, including an Autobot X-Wing because come on, that'd be cool, but am having trouble finding a system that would accommodate everything I need. Anyone have any ideas?

[Beleriphon]

I've got an idea for a Star Wars/Transformers mashup, including an Autobot X-Wing because come on, that'd be cool, but am having trouble finding a system that would accommodate everything I need. Anyone have any ideas?

A few choices:

• FATE if you want more narrative action/adventure feel with a focus on story conventions rather than mechanical considerations driving the game play.
• Mekton Zeta. I've never played but I understand its a giant robot game in the vein of Gundam or Macross. So it should cover the idea that you have a giant robot, and another mode of movement.
• Muntants & Masterminds Third Edition. Nice crunchy points based system, its just a question of what scale you want to work with. May not work well if you want to integrate normal sized characters, and transformers into one setting.
• Star Wars Saga Edition. My preferred Star Wars game. Derived from the D20 system I think it works very well. It should be easy enough to use some of the supplemental material to build really big droids for to represent the transformers.
• GURPS. Because GURPS, has addons for giant robo action.

Also, that's a neat idea. Are Star Destroyers combiners or one really big robot?

[LibraryOgre]

I would actually go with d6 Star Wars 2nd Edition, Revised and Expanded or, if you can't find that, d6 Space, which is a free download.

I was playing around with sticking Robotech in a section of the Star Wars universe, and came up with the VF-1A Valkyrie in Star Wars stats... rip out the idea that you've got a human pilot and you can turn that into the stats for Skyfire/Jetfire.

Just set everyone on Walker, Speeder, or Starfighter scale and you're good to go.

[The End]

WEG ST: Revised is a good idea, but I think Beleriphon may have hit it with FATE. I'm less concerned about character balance than I am about telling a good story.

I'm thinking that anything larger than an AT-AT would be a combiner, and anything bigger than a troop transport would be a straight-up ship.

Thoughts and ideas are always appreciated!

[Mechalich]

Okay, Star Wars as a setting totally accepts the existence of Transformers as a special kind of droid - their mental nature and societies and weaponry all fit into Star Wars without any need for modification at all, and full on transformation is simply an extension of form shifts that certain Star Wars droid and vehicles already have - Droidekas (the ones that roll along and then unfold in the beginning of Phantom Menace) basically are Transformers already.

So, if you're intending to use any other Star Wars elements at all - like the Force, lightsabers, starfighters, and so forth, I'd really suggest doing a Star Wars system, otherwise you're going to have to do a lot of work to formulate FATE appropriately. You could even do both. The vehicle rules for SAGA are not very good, but the system represents human scale interactions much more effectively - so you could potentially split the system and use FATE for big Transformer actions and shift into SAGA (or Star Wars d6) when operating at the human scale. The human scale includes lots of smaller transformers anyway. The average G1-style autobot is basically a size L droid that has a really rapid overland movement mode if they choose to take a full-round move action (and maybe some really cool transformation based charge attack options).

[Blue Duke]

I would actually go with d6 Star Wars 2nd Edition, Revised and Expanded or, if you can't find that, d6 Space, which is a free download.

I was playing around with sticking Robotech in a section of the Star Wars universe, and came up with the VF-1A Valkyrie in Star Wars stats... rip out the idea that you've got a human pilot and you can turn that into the stats for Skyfire/Jetfire.

Just set everyone on Walker, Speeder, or Starfighter scale and you're good to go.

Can....can i use that in my star wars game ? the idea that Incom or some renegade trade federation designer made a fighter that could double as a walker sounds just....beautiful and like just the sort of thing i'd love for my 'Acqusitions specialist' rebel team to find even if they dont keep it. i want to see them tearing into AT-AT's with it at least once.


on the main topic, use SWD6, make them as walker scale characters with a 'mode' that takes them into starfighter scale and gives them the stats of a chosen alternate mode ?

[LibraryOgre]

Can....can i use that in my star wars game ? the idea that Incom or some renegade trade federation designer made a fighter that could double as a walker sounds just....beautiful and like just the sort of thing i'd love for my 'Acqusitions specialist' rebel team to find even if they dont keep it. i want to see them tearing into AT-AT's with it at least once.

By all means! If you like, I've also go stats for Zentraedi. I want to do some of the other mecha, later, but haven't sat down with the books and time to do it.

[The End]

Great stuff from everyone! I'm going to wade back into my D6 SW Revised as soon as I'm done reading through FATE and see which system might work best for my purposes.

Any thoughts on using Rifts? I was thinking it'd fit to have Transformers as MDC RCC's with lightsabers capable of MDC damage. Plus, it seems to scale well since Rifts has never been interested in character balance.

[Beleriphon]

Great stuff from everyone! I'm going to wade back into my D6 SW Revised as soon as I'm done reading through FATE and see which system might work best for my purposes.

Any thoughts on using Rifts? I was thinking it'd fit to have Transformers as MDC RCC's with lightsabers capable of MDC damage. Plus, it seems to scale well since Rifts has never been interested in character balance.

Palladium has a I think a Robotech game line, which is compatible with Rifts.

[LibraryOgre]

Great stuff from everyone! I'm going to wade back into my D6 SW Revised as soon as I'm done reading through FATE and see which system might work best for my purposes.

Any thoughts on using Rifts? I was thinking it'd fit to have Transformers as MDC RCC's with lightsabers capable of MDC damage. Plus, it seems to scale well since Rifts has never been interested in character balance.

Rifts would work, and I'm sure there are unofficial conversions out there if you poke around. I generally wouldn't use Rifts because the system is really rough, and combat tends towards obscene slugfests, rather than a more Transformery thirty seconds of shooting followed by people running away. However, if you look at the Savage Worlds version of Rifts, it would also work well.

[lightningcat]

I remember a Gundum/Star Wars fan crossover, although I don't remember what system it was using. Now if I can just find it again...
Apparently my GoogleFu is weak. But it covered many of the basis of giant robots is a Star Wars universe. While I don't remember if they had any transforming rules, those are generally fairly easy to figure out.

[Spamotron]

Unfortunately I have no system advice. However I wanted to point out that the Transformers Wiki is an excellent source for looking into some of the weirder metaphysical aspects of Cybertronians and possibly get you thinking on how they would interact with the Force. I'd suggest starting with the Spark and then exploring related links from there.

[The End]

Combining the Force with Transformers would be easy-peasy: there's an EU species called the Shard who can be Force-sensitive. They place themselves into droid bodies in order to move, and even have their own order, called the Iron Knights (apologies, I don't have enough posts yet to hyperlink). Just place one inside a Transformer, and voila!

[lightningcat]

There are actually two crystalline races, the Shard and the Tsil, both of which can be/are force sensitive. While the Iron Knights are a subsect of the Jedi Order. Both d20 Revised and Saga have more information about Shards and Iron Knights.

[Spamotron]

A big theme in a Star Wars/Transformers crossover is the treatment of Star Wars Droids.

In the original Sunbow cartoon the Transformers were created by the Quintessons as a slave race for sale. In more modern works like the IDW comics and Transformers: Prime Orion Pax/Optimus Prime and Megatron were opposing a ruthless caste system on Cybertron where the bottom rung labor caste was often treated as disposable property. Megatron fell into extremism and refused to stop the violence even after the corrupt Cybertron council was dead at his hands.

In Star Wars Droids are property that are routinely treated as disposable and when they become "unreliable," (start developing true sapience and start questioning their purpose) they are mind-wiped. Even by good guy factions like the Rebellion and New Republic.

Autobots and Decepticons alike will likely be appalled by their treatment. Autobots will of course attempt to change things through dialogue and attempting to convince the people of the galaxy to free the droids. Decepticons will probably just murder all the droid owners they come across and attempt to recruit the droids into their ranks.