Post-Game: Scum & Villainy - WTF Happened?

Admiral Duck Sauce 2005-06-04 21:00:46
What if the Q-ship was the main transport vessel? Like an Action IV bulk freighter type converted for fighter bays and capital-class power generators? The only problem with an actual carrier as the ... well... carrier, is that it IS a carrier and would have more trouble entering the areas that a bulk freighter could easily pass through.
Gatac 2005-06-04 21:03:04
That's a good idea. A stealthed carrier, with a few fightercraft as "cargo".

Gatac
DatonKallandor 2005-06-04 21:09:43
If you dont mind I will try to find out which vessels would be the most likely to be converted beyond their original purpose.


Daton
Aihal the Silent 2005-06-04 22:20:25
I should have picked up the essential guide to vehicles while I was out today :-)

Sounds like we have quite a few takers for this one, Adam.
Dieter 2005-06-04 22:48:07
Quote:

Quote: from admiralducksauce on 11:27 am on June 4, 2005

Kind of like what MACVSOG did in Vietnam, actually. They were notorious for "making their own fun" when on a base with "normal" grunts.

Tour of Duty in space! I like the idea of interacting with others of our own, sort of one big disfunctional family of regular soldiers, mercenaries, and pilots.

Maybe run the operation out of a rebuilt Victory II Class Star Destroyer. It's horribly understaffed, constantly in need for parts, but overall a tough ship. It also has the ability to be parked semi-inconspicously in Imperial space without getting a squadron on Tie Fighters pouncing on it.
DatonKallandor 2005-06-04 22:56:41
It would be nice to know the time when this would be set.

Does the empire still exist?
Pre- or Post-Palpatine Clones?



Daton
Admiral Duck Sauce 2005-06-05 06:18:49
I don't truck with a great deal of the Expanded Universe; most of it is harmless to me from a GMing perspective, but the Palpatine clone thing/Dark Empire always struck me as a tragedy equal to killing off Newt and Hicks in Alien 3. If Palpatine's not reeeally dead, then Vader's redemption means nothing. The EU also seems to have an unhealthy preoccupation with superweapons and weird bio-organic aliens. Like I said before about not being able to have a "Darth Anything" as cool as Darth Vader, I'm not going to try to make up an Imperial superweapon. The Death Star was done twice; I can't beat that, and the Empire doesn't have the resources to squander on another huge single target.

The way I see it (and run it), the destruction of the Death Star II and the Emperor broke the back of the Empire. Instead of a rebellion, always guerilla fighting, hitting and running, the Rebel Alliance is now able to scale it up to a "real" war. The sides are even now, but the outcome isn't set in stone. People who use the phrase "New Republic" are usually optimists or Rebel politicians. :) Most common folk still call 'em Rebels.

Dieter seems to like the idea of regular interaction with other teams similar to yours. That might require a larger main vessel; Daton, thanks for your help in trying to find a ship. Whatever you find, I can probably find a picture of.

I'm setting fairly soon after the battle of Endor, so the main starfighters are what you all know from the films: B-Wings, Y-Wings, X-Wings, A-Wings for the Alliance; TIE Bombers, Fighters, and Interceptors for the Empire. There hopefully shouldn't be any reason to pull out the antiques like the Z-95 or N-1 or Jedi starfighters, unless it's a signature thing for your character or you would need those specific fossils for a mission.
fanchergw 2005-06-05 07:48:17
Depending on exactly how rag-tag they are and who's backing them, it's possible they could end up with ships from both sides. It could be really strange yet cool to see them flying off on a mission as a squad made up of two X-wings, an A-wing, a TIE fighter and a TIE interceptor (for example).

While I kind of like the idea of a carrier or station (floating, asteroid-based or whatever) and multiple squads, I'd be willing to play it either way. A fixed base, rather than a carrier, might actually be easier to GM because then they would be tied to a particular sector of space.
DatonKallandor 2005-06-05 09:38:56
Will you allow customized versions of ships, or purely stock vessels?

Like having a slower Interceptor with shield generator and hyperdrive. Maybe even uglies? :)

If you want I can make pictures of the ships, I'll recommend.


Daton
Admiral Duck Sauce 2005-06-05 14:00:52
If you guys want a specific ship for your character, it will likely be fine with me. Any customizations will be done by the characters and rolled for, though (although it can be assumed that the work was done before the actual play starts). Make sure you're on the good side of whoever's the chief mechanic. :)
Gatac 2005-06-05 14:58:41
Well, I guess we should settle on characters first. Standard rules?

Gatac
Aihal the Silent 2005-06-05 15:48:55
Are we leaning more toward the starfighter or transport type of crew? If we're going to be doing a more transport style game then we might want to coordinate character creation.
Admiral Duck Sauce 2005-06-05 16:04:14
Almost.

First, does anyone want to reprise their role from Scum & Villainy? Get caught up in the Rebellion for whatever reason and fly dangerous missions in exchange for a fair share of any loot? :)

---

If you've got a character idea, sure, we can stat them up. Although I'm not 100% sure just how up-to-date my PDF is, the basic rules for what I'm running can be found here:
http://www.headonastick.com/starwarsbuskit.pdf

Characters have five Traits: Physical, Combat, Knowledge, Wits, and Spirit.

For ship-to-ship combat, the following 3 Traits govern these important actions:
Combat governs your chance to hit with all weapons, vehicular or handheld. You roll Combat for initiative in personal combat. Tactics are also part of the Combat Trait.

Knowledge is important for repairing broken things, customizing ships and equipment, demolitions work, slicing security systems, medicine, and astrogation.

Wits is the Trait used for piloting spacecraft. It is also used in space combat as a sort of initiative; instead of rolling Combat, you roll Wits and the highest-rolling pilot chooses who they wish to be lining up an attack on. Wits is also used for stealth and observation.

That said, when you need to roll Physical or Spirit, it is normally a situation where you don't want to screw up. :)

OK, so those 5 Traits all start at d6. You will have FIVE "raises" to assign to them.

A Specialization is a skill-like area of expertise within a Trait. When you perform an action that would benefit from your Specialization, you roll two Trait dice instead of one. A good example would be "Pilot" under Wits, or "Toughness" under Physical. You do not get any free Specializations; if you want one, it will cost one of your Trait raises.

Finally, Aspects are elements of your character that may not fall into the simple categories of traits or specializations. They add a bonus die when performing actions that would fall under the realm of the aspect in question. As an example, you might not want to Specialize in Pilot, but you could take "Great Pilot" or "Top Gun" as an Aspect. Or you could take "Hates the Empire", or "Easy-Going", or "Crack Shot", or "Brawler", or "Hunts Like Panther".

You may choose:
ONE Aspect at d10;
or
TWO Aspects at d8;
or
ONE Aspect at d8 and TWO at d6.

Oh... I forgot. Like Spycraft's Action Dice, and WEG d6's Character Points, I use "Wild Dice". You get a number equal to your Spirit die type. (a d10 Spirit would get 10d6 Wild Dice). Wild Dice are d6s that you can spend at will. They can open-end once, producing a range from 1-12, obviously weighted towards 1-6. You can spend as many as you want on a roll, they can be rolled one at a time or many at once. I find they work best for preventing a bad roll at a critical juncture (like when you've been shot, or roll a 1 trying to dodge an asteroid) rather than trying to bolster a mildly successful result.

You could call it luck or the Force, if you like. :)
Admiral Duck Sauce 2005-06-05 16:11:24
Aihal brings up a fine point. Keep in mind that you may be flying single craft, or crewing a larger one.

Oh, and for comparison, I've been running most Stormtroopers as having d6 Combat, d6 Physical. That might change; if I make them d8 Combat, I don't have to use as many to threaten you guys but they will drop just as easily when you guys DO hit them. TIE Pilots will likely be rolling d8 for piloting and a d6 to shoot at you, although the aces and stuff out there will obviously have higher stats. Pirates, who knows?
Gatac 2005-06-05 16:30:18
Mandall Daygon
Human (or Corellian, whatever:) )

Physical d6
Combat d8
Knowledge d6
Wits d12 (Specialisation: Pilot)
Spirit d6

Aspects:
Lightning Reflexes, Genetically Engineered

Description:

Mandall is, without doubt, one of the most frustratingly effective reconnaissance pilots for the Rebel Alliance.

To be frank, he's a bit of a jerk with a taste for partying. This wouldn't be half as bad if he didn't also have a famous tendency to complain about the aftereffects of those parties. Couple all of that with a sort of arrogant dismissal of "unimportant" missions bordering on insubordination, and it's clear that he won't win any popularity contest.

The problem with all that? Even people who hate him have to admit that he's really freaking good at what he does.

Mandall's reflexes have been augmented to impressive levels, as has the general speed at which he can perceive the world around him. That coupled with a latent force affinity make Mandall a feared pilot of small, nimble craft, able to fly circles around his opponents or dodge enemy fire even if it looks like they've got him dead to rights. Everything he does, he does quickly. Even if dropped into a completely alien situation, he can instantly determine a cause of action, and chances are, he'll be right. The bastard.

He's a generally twitchy guy, always with one eye on his surroundings. It's not paranoia - he's simply used to being aware of everything around him. Out there, it helps him survive. Off duty - well, it's not exactly the most alluring trait when it seems like he's not even listening to you while his eyes dart around.

However, somewhere under the mass of hypercharged synapses lies a guy who'd like nothing more than be a stunt pilot for a travelling show. He doesn't actively resent being a soldier, but he's prone to thoughts of just running away from the war and be one with his true and only passion: speed.

Gatac
DatonKallandor 2005-06-05 16:38:30
I still dont know if you are allowing new players or just the guys that were in the Scum & Villiany Roleplay.


Daton
Aihal the Silent 2005-06-05 17:19:05
I was pondering two roles:

1. A ship's systems (sensors, sheilds, power, etc..) guy
2. A tactical officer (shooting ships, shooting people, etc.) guy


anyone have either of those pegged?