-Nate
Thursday, October 19, 2017
Tuesday, August 8, 2017
The Lost Shuttle
This post takes elements from previous articles and combines them for use in adventures during the era of The Force Awakens.
-Nate
-Nate
The
Lost Shuttle
Previous
articles have introduced an Imperial Inquisitor named Neza Yerg, a
Quarren who traveled the galaxy seeking Force-users who could be
recruited for the New Order or eliminated. This article prevents a
way that his discoveries can be worked into a campaign during the era
of The Force Awakens,
via a Lambda-class
shuttle lost in the wastes of Jakku.
Shuttle
To
find deck plans for the shuttle, the Absolution,
refer to the following article on Wookieepedia.
Guardians
Characters
who want to explore the secrets of this vessel must deal with at
least two different dangers.
One
is the nightwatcher worm that lives in the surrounding sand, feeding
on the scraps of metal that fall off of it. It has become territorial
of this food source, and thus protects it from interlopers.
The
second danger is an IG-100 Magnaguard droid, a holdover from the
Clone Wars and one of two that served Neza Yerg as bodyguards. While
the Quarren eventually perished, trapped as he was aboard the shuttle
buried in the sands, the droid simply entered a state of minimal
power usage. What is more, it could connect to the shuttle's own
power core, thereby maintaining its functionality. Refer to the Force
& Destiny core
rulebook to find stats for it.
Secrets
Most
interesting, however, is the log that Neza Yerg created. Trapped as
he was, the Quarren recorded details from his investigation in case
they might later be of service to the Empire.
|
Obah the Neti
This potential Jedi, in spite of her potential ability, objected to the violence of the Clone Wars, and therefore opted to join the AgriCorps, in which she used her affinity for plant life to help worlds increase the yields of their crops. That was how she avoided Order 66, taking refuge on Corellia. Even so, it seems that she ran afoul of a local criminal named Pel Ontago, and is believed to have been murdered by him. Even so, her remains—and any items related to the Jedi that she might have had in her possession—have still not been found. |
|
“Old Lady” Taya
In Coronet City on Corellia lives this ancient Human woman, one who some say can use a deck of sabacc card-chips to read beings' futures. While I never had time to investigate those claims personally—they seemed, after all, to be of little importance to the Galactic Civil War—I include them here for the sake of completeness. |
|
Zer Noloss
It is no secret that the Gand bounty hunters known as Findsmen possess a mystical ability for finding their quarry, one that some claim is a manifestation of the Force. Whether or not that is true, two facts should be noted about this individual: first, he is among the more highly reputed of his kind; and second, some have claimed that his experience in the criminal underworld of the galaxy has caused him to be sympathetic to the Jedi and thus, possibly, to the Rebellion. What is more, it is believed that he has conducted his own investigations into the history and traditions of various Force-users, and thus might possess information of use to the Inqisitorius. |
|
The Loag
While this organization is a long-time enemy of the Jedi Order, it is believed that they might possess information and items taken from felled foes. For that reason, I recommend that the Inquisitorius keep track of its activities, and perhaps even train agents to infiltrate this organization and thus gain access to those secrets. |
|
Ji-Ad Sarain
In the lead-up to the Clone Wars, this Human was a Jedi Knight sent to investigate the criminal organization run by Riboga the Hutt. It seems that he was eventually betrayed and exposed, and as a result was left frozen in carbonite for years. Eventually a group of beings from the Cularin System managed his release, at which point the details of his story become obscured. Some claim that he was taken back to Coruscant for treatment, but records are unreliable following the Separatist invasion of that world. |
|
The Church of the Force
Among all the possible remnants of the old Jedi Order, this one is perhaps the hardest to isolate. That is because its adherents are ordinary beings who revere the ways of the Jedi, but who go about their mundane daily lives. Even so, I believe that I've found evidence of at least two locations connected to them. One is among the scavengers on this very planet, Jakku, while another is protected by the fierce natives of Barab I. Those who follow up on this report should keep in mind that the scavengers are crafty in their chosen environment, and that the Barabel species holds a peculiar and enduring respect for beings associated with the Jedi. |
Friday, August 4, 2017
RPGaDAY 2017 Posts
I apologize for
the cross-posting, but I'll share my answers to these questions on
all three of my current blogs.
Q1: What published
RPG do you wish you were playing right now?
A1:
Right now I wish that I was playing more of the Star
Wars
RPGs from Fantasy Flight Games, especially Age
of Rebellion.
Right now I really only have time for one weekly campaign, however,
and so something more familiar to my players has taken priority.
We'll see how the 2016-17 school year develops, though.
Q2: What is an RPG
you would like to see published?
A2: I
would love to see a space fantasy setting for Pathfinder
that's in the vein of the old Spelljammer
setting for D&D.
The new Starfinder
setting is interesting, but I'd rather not add so much technology to
a fantasy RPG.
Q3: How do you
find out about new RPGs?
A3: I regularly
visit sites such as ENWorld and RPG.net for my general RPG news, as
well as the message boards for Paizo Publishing and Fantasy Flight
Games when I'm looking for info about their lines.
Q4: Which RPG have
you played the most since August 2016?
A4:
The clear winner here is Pathfinder,
since I'm playing in a monthly campaign (the Skull
& Shackles
adventure path) with some college buddies an I just finished up a
weekly campaign (a more traditional fantasy campaign loosely set on
the Freeport setting's Continent).
Q5: Which RPG
cover best captures the spirit of the game?
A5: For me, this
is an easy one; the cover for The Concordance of Arcane Space
has always been a favorite, capturing the essence of the Spelljammer
space fantasy setting for 2nd
Edition AD&D.
Q6: You can game every day for a week. Describe what you'd do!
A6: My gut reaction here is to say that I'd gather a group of
players, create some OD&D characters, and finish Keep
on the Borderlands once and for all. That's something we tried to
do a number of times when I was younger—including an epic effort on
a snow day in college—but for which we never succeeded.
A more serious answer is to say that I'd run a series using one of
the rulebooks that currently sits idle on my shelf. This could
include Wonderland No More using the Save Worlds rules,
or perhaps Pirates of the Spanish Main using the same.
Q7: What was your most impactful RPG session?
A7: When it comes to sessions in which I've played, the most
impactful is probably a weekend-long, epic campaign finale to a
Spelljammer campaign that my brother ran. He and I, along with
two buddies, had been playing in that campaign for more than a year.
For the finale, my aunt took us all out to the family cabin, where
Nick ran the module Under the Dark Fist. We played for much of
Friday night before going to bed, and then for as much of Saturday as
we could, before finishing things on Sunday. In addition to being the
action-packed conclusion to that campaign, it was the first taste
that I had of really epic adventuring—our characters save the Known
Galaxy from the Vodyanoi threat, and then were granted demi-god
status because of what we'd done. That extended session, to me, set
the bar for what RPG campaign finales could, and should, be.
Q8: What is a good RPG to play for session of 2 hours or less?
A8: For me, the first answer that comes to mind is the d6-based Star
Wars RPG from West End Games. Although it's been out of print
for almost twenty years now, it still strikes me as an excellent
rules-light system that really captures the feel of the setting that
it's supposed to emulate. While other games can be run in such a way
that the rules seem to be “invisible,” that one, to me, still
seems like the best.
Q9: What is a good RPG to play for about 10 sessions?
A9: This, to me, seems like a good chance to try out something
unusual, or something that's not so well suited to extended campaign
play. (Pathfinder or D&D and Star Wars
strike me as really well suited to long campaigns, by the way.) I've
been wanting to use Savage Worlds for a short series inspired
by Ash vs. Evil Dead, for example, or even something based on
RoboCop. Those, in my mind, would make for good ten-game
series: ones that have a higher possibility of PC fatality. For that
reason any incarnation of Call of Cthulhu also comes to mind,
even though I don't have much experience with it.
Q10: Where do you go for RPG reviews?
A10: As mentioned above, I spend a good deal of time on ENWorld and
RPG.net. If those don't provide what I want, then I just Google
“Title of RPG Review.”
Q11: Which “dead game” would you like to see reborn?
A11: This is an easy one: the D6 version of the Star Wars
Roleplaying Game.
Q12: Which RPG has the most inspiring interior art?
A12: I'll give a shoutout here to the old Al-Qadim campaign
setting. The art wasn't fancy, but TSR did a nice job of keeping one
artist—Karl Waller—for the whole run of the product line. This
established a really consistent feel, and I liked it.
Q13: Describe a game experience that changed how you play.
A13: Running sessions at conventions and for the RPGA had a big
impact on how I plan for and run sessions. Much of that comes from
the fact that I needed to tell a complete and satisfying story in a
four-hour time period, and one in which all of the characters (and
thus players) play an active part. That also pushed me to work on my
organization and pacing.
Q14: Which RPG do you prefer for open-ended campaign play?
A14: This is a hard one. On the one hand, I think games like
Pathfinder and D&D work really well because the
level-based system of character advancement makes for really
satisfying development. Eventually, however, characters become so
powerful that it's hard to challenge them without having character
death become all too common.
Q15: Which RPG do you enjoy adapting the most?
A15: Savage Worlds stands out for this one because of the ease
of adaptability for it, and because its “Fast, Furious and Fun”
nature makes it a good fit for lots of cinematic genres. I've written
some supplements for using it in the Aliens universe, and have
been kicking around ideas for Ash vs. Evil Dead and RoboCop,
too.
Q16: What RPG do you enjoy using as is?
A16: For me, Pathfinder is the one that just works well in the
setting for which it is intended. While the rules become a little
cumbersome and slow at really high levels, most campaigns don't run
that long.
Q17: Which RPG have you owned the longest but not played?
A17: That award probably goes to the Masterbook system version of The
Adventures of Indiana Jones.
Q18: Which RPG have you played the most in your life?
A18: This one is a toss-up between the various incarnations of D&D
and Pathfinder, or to the range of Star Wars RPGs. When
it comes to Star Wars, I can recall half a dozen D6-System SW
campaigns, along with a few using the d20 System (including lots of
activity for the Living Force campaign), one for Saga Edition (the
Dawn of Defiance series) and a couple for the new system from
Fantasy Flight Games. On the other hand, it feels like I've run or
played in a D&D/Pathfinder campaign just about
every year for the past quarter century: four in the Freeport
setting; a massive Spelljammer epic; various hodgepodges of Dungeon
Magazine scenarios in junior high and high school; one based on
Against the Giants using 3rd edition; two set in
ancient Greece; one in Lankhmar; one that ran to 20th
level and ended with the Coliseum Morpheuon super-module; and
my current one, playing in the Skull & Shackles adventure
path. Additionally, I've run most of those systems and editions at
conventions, game days and the like. Let's call it a draw at a dozen
of each.
Q19: Which RPG features the best writing?
A19: I really enjoyed reading the 1st Edition of the Star
Wars RPG from West End Games because the authors included a good
deal of humor in their explanations of how the rules worked.
Q20: What is the best source for out-of-print RPGs?
A20: For pure efficacy, Amazon is probably the best way to find and
order them. Even so, I still like to hit the used book stores to
peruse the shelves; there's more of a sense of adventure to it.
Q21: What RPG does the most with the least words?
A21: For this one I'll go with the Mini-Six version of the old D6
System, updated by AntiPaladin Games using material from West End
Games. The whole booklet is only some twenty pages long, but provides
a complete RPG.
Q22: Which RPGs are the easiest for you to run?
A22: My answer for this is the same as for previous ones: either
Pathfinder or the D6-System Star Wars.
Q23: Which RPG has the most jaw-dropping layout?
A23: Right now, any full-color RPG is in contention. My collection is
not the most diverse, so there are probably a lot of them with really
pretty aesthetics of which I'm not aware. Even so, I do recall that
the One Ring RPG looked really nice.
Q24: Share a PWYW publisher who should be charging more.
A24: While I don't buy as many PDF products as I used to, one
publisher stands out here: Rite Publishing. I know that they have
lots of material with normal prices, but their Pathways e-zine
has consistently provided quality content for more than sixty issues.
Q25: What is the best way to thank your GM?
A25: For me, having players tell stories from sessions is the highest
form of praise. While not every session is memorable—indeed, I
think I have forgotten the majority of them—it's the ones that
players tell again and again that make me feel like I've done good
work.
Q26: Which RPG provides the most useful resources?
A26: I'll go with the various Star Wars RPGs on this one,
since they've helped explore and expand that Galaxy Far, Far Away.
Q27: What are your essential tools for good gaming?
A27: In addition to books, minis, maps and dice, I always have note
cards for keeping the initiative order and paper for taking notes.
Throw in some poker chips, too, if I'm running Savage Worlds.
Q28: What film/series is the biggest source of quotes in your group?
A28: I'm not sure about this one, since people will quote from many
different sources. When we're playing a Star Wars RPG it's
usually the clear winner, but beyond that I don't know.
Q29: What has been the best-run Kickstarter you have backed?
A29: Far and away, the Kickstarter for the Sixth Gun RPG went
the most smoothly; the book was released on time and is beautiful.
Beyond that, one was late, I'm still waiting on one, and one just
disappeared. I'll give a shoutout, though, for Buccaneer: Come
Hell and High Water and Harlem Unbound, both of which are
currently in progress.
Q30: What is an RPG genre-mashup you would most like to see?
A30: I would love to see a mashup of games with various setting and
rules, all linked together using a time-traveling and world-spanning
plot via Army of Darkness.
Q31: What do you anticipate most for gaming in 2018?
A31: At the risk of being self-serving, I'm excited to run a couple
of scenarios at Con of the North in February, 2018, using the
Aetherial Adventures material that I've been writing for this
blog. I think it's going to be a lot of fun.
Thursday, June 29, 2017
Spoils of War
I've been slow in creating new content recently, but I'm starting to feel some excitement with the approach of Episode VIII. As such, here's a short scenario that's a follow-up (or more of an add-on, really) to "Rescue at Hosnian Prime."
The Spoils of War
-Nate
The Spoils of War
-Nate
Tuesday, June 27, 2017
Forces of Destiny
I'd heard about this series some months back, and wasn't sure what to think, but now, having seen some of the footage, I'm definitely intrigued. We'll see how it is next week.
-Nate
-Nate
Monday, April 17, 2017
Hints and Allegations, Part 2
In a previous post (linked below), I speculated about some of the possible connections between kyber crystals, the planet Ilum and the group of beings known as the Whills. Now that the trailer for The Last Jedi has been released, I have a few more ideas.
Hints and Allegations
1. I finished reading Ahsoka. While it provides a little more information about Ilum, there's not a whole lot of detail with which to work. It seems that the Empire stripmined that planet, but we still don't know with any certainty if it was converted into Starkiller Base. My gut tells me yes, but my brain can't corroborate that.
2. Do we finally see the Journal of the Whills in the trailer for The Last Jedi? A couple of different articles online tipped me off to that possibility. Given the reference to it in the novelization of The Force Awakens, and the fact that Chirrut Imwe and Baze Malbus are described as former Guardians of the Wills in Rogue One, my money here again is on yes.
3. The end of the novel Aftermath: Empire's End introduces a big, fancy computer in a hidden facility on Jakku that the Emperor was using to plot expeditions into the Unknown Regions. What is more, the beings who seemed destined to found the First Order were headed into that area at the end of the novel. It seems clear that this is where we'll see the base of operations to which Supreme Leader Snoke orders General Hux and Kylo Ren to return. It's curious that we don't see any of them in the new trailer, though.
4. What's not so clear is the possible connection between the Chiss species in general, and Grand Admiral Thrawn in particular, to activity in the Unknown Regions. Timothy Zahn explored that in his novel Outbound Flight, so I wonder if the creative team from Lucasfilm is bring back some of those elements along with the blue-skinned, red-eyed, art-loving officer.
5. In Aftermath: Empire's End there's also a reference to a ship called the Eclipse. This seems like a throwback to the old Dark Empire comics, in which the Eclipse was a Star Destroyer that put even Super Star Destroyers to shame.
6. Finally, the new trailer includes Luke's line about the Jedi needing to end. Could this be a reference to the Jedi Order's old rule of celibacy that caused so much trouble for Anakin Skywalker? That may be a stretch, but it could be his intention to create a new organization in which Force-users are more integral parts of their communities. Could that, then, be the notion of bringing balance to the Force?
I'll add: One of the biggest questions about Episode VII is that of Rey's heritage. Maybe the "New Jedi Order" will be one in which Force-users can raise their own children, instead of turning them over to a monastic order?
This is all, of course, speculation. If you have feedback or ideas of your own, then please share them as comments.
-Nate
Hints and Allegations
1. I finished reading Ahsoka. While it provides a little more information about Ilum, there's not a whole lot of detail with which to work. It seems that the Empire stripmined that planet, but we still don't know with any certainty if it was converted into Starkiller Base. My gut tells me yes, but my brain can't corroborate that.
2. Do we finally see the Journal of the Whills in the trailer for The Last Jedi? A couple of different articles online tipped me off to that possibility. Given the reference to it in the novelization of The Force Awakens, and the fact that Chirrut Imwe and Baze Malbus are described as former Guardians of the Wills in Rogue One, my money here again is on yes.
3. The end of the novel Aftermath: Empire's End introduces a big, fancy computer in a hidden facility on Jakku that the Emperor was using to plot expeditions into the Unknown Regions. What is more, the beings who seemed destined to found the First Order were headed into that area at the end of the novel. It seems clear that this is where we'll see the base of operations to which Supreme Leader Snoke orders General Hux and Kylo Ren to return. It's curious that we don't see any of them in the new trailer, though.
4. What's not so clear is the possible connection between the Chiss species in general, and Grand Admiral Thrawn in particular, to activity in the Unknown Regions. Timothy Zahn explored that in his novel Outbound Flight, so I wonder if the creative team from Lucasfilm is bring back some of those elements along with the blue-skinned, red-eyed, art-loving officer.
5. In Aftermath: Empire's End there's also a reference to a ship called the Eclipse. This seems like a throwback to the old Dark Empire comics, in which the Eclipse was a Star Destroyer that put even Super Star Destroyers to shame.
6. Finally, the new trailer includes Luke's line about the Jedi needing to end. Could this be a reference to the Jedi Order's old rule of celibacy that caused so much trouble for Anakin Skywalker? That may be a stretch, but it could be his intention to create a new organization in which Force-users are more integral parts of their communities. Could that, then, be the notion of bringing balance to the Force?
I'll add: One of the biggest questions about Episode VII is that of Rey's heritage. Maybe the "New Jedi Order" will be one in which Force-users can raise their own children, instead of turning them over to a monastic order?
This is all, of course, speculation. If you have feedback or ideas of your own, then please share them as comments.
-Nate
Saturday, April 15, 2017
The Last Jedi
Things have been a little slow on this blog for a while. Part of that is due to school, and part of it is from me focusing more attention on my nautical/space fantasy blog. Another factor, though, is the fact that I'd like to focus more on the Awakened Era of Star Wars, and that's been slow in developing.
We finally had the first trailer for Episode VIII, and it has me excited.
-Nate
We finally had the first trailer for Episode VIII, and it has me excited.
-Nate
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