Let’s learn the basics of the Force in West End Games’ Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game 30th Anniversary Edition. You can learn more about Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars:_The_Roleplaying_Game
You can pick up the original sourcebooks as PDF’s here: https://www.starwarstimeline.net/Westendgames.htm
Time Stamps:
- 0:00 Intro
- 0:24 About
- 1:31 Trusting to the Force
- 3:42 The Jedi Code
- 4:49 The Powers of the Force
- 7:17 Using Force Powers
- 8:11 Resisting Force Powers
- 8:33 Lightsabers
- 9:29 Outro
About Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game 30th Anniversary Edition
Few books or games have had as enduring an impact upon the Star Wars galaxy and its fans as Star Wars™: The Roleplaying Game. Originally published by West End Games in 1987, it arrived at a time when the future of the Star Wars galaxy was uncertain, and it captivated a whole generation of gamers with rules and guidelines that made it possible to design and enjoy adventures truly worthy of the Star Wars universe and its ongoing space opera.
Now Fantasy Flight Games is proud to offer faithful recreations of this influential rulebook and The Star Wars™ Sourcebook. Our Star Wars™: The Roleplaying Game 30th Anniversary Edition is a limited edition set of both books, printed with higher quality than the originals and packaged in a stylized slipcase.
These books were sent to Timothy Zahn as references when he started to develop Grand Admiral Thrawn and his Thrawn trilogy. They introduced materials that were later adopted into Star Wars canon, such as the names of alien races like the Twi’lek, Rodians, and Quarren. They even inspired members of the Lucasfilm Story Group as they worked on their writers’ bible.
Now, Fantasy Flight Games is proud to return Star Wars: The Roleplaying to print as a collectible set of two high-quality, hardbound books presented in a stylized slipcase. You’ll find all the original game materials—just as playable as ever—and they’re presented with the same graphic design and fake, in-universe Star Wars advertisements for the Imperial Navy, the R2 astromech Droid, and more.
Even the books’ use of black-and-white, blue ink, and full color sections have been recreated, along with its use of still photos and concept art, some of which have been updated for this new 30th Anniversary Edition. Finally, the books come with a foreword by Pablo Hidalgo, one of the creative executives on the Lucasfilm Story Group.
Transcript
Intro
Welcome to The Infernal Brotherhood of the Scruffy Looking, Nerf Herders! In this episode of How to Play West End Games’ Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game 30th Anniversary Edition, we are discussing The Force.
Discussion
The Force is everywhere. It is in all things. Some learn its nature and become a master of life, thought and matter. The Force in Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game is only available to certain templates like Alien Student of the Force or Failed Jedi for example. If the character template doesn’t have a force skill listed, then there is no way for you to tap into this aspect of the game. This is not without good reason. As this roleplaying game is set between Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope, and Star Wars Episode V The Empire Strikes Back initially, there are no known Jedi.
The hero of the films, Luke Skywalker, had to be instructed in secret as The Empire has hunted down and killed all other Jedi besides Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi. This is not to say there aren’t other cultures or characters who have skill in the Force or understand it in different ways that can train force users, but they are incredibly difficult to find, or the Empire would have done away with them already. Discovering someone to train you in the Force would be the basis for a campaign, for example, and should not be easily obtained.
Trusting to the Force
That being said, every character begins play with a Force Point. This is meant to illustrate the Force manifesting in various ways, aiding the player characters or PC’s in overcoming difficult, and often cinematic situations or opponents. You are able, at any time that you have a Force Point available, to tell the Game Master or GM that you will trust in the Force. This tells them that you are spending your Force Point. When you do this, your chances of doing what you want increase dramatically! For the round which you spent the Force Point in, all skill and attribute codes are doubled! That means you can do more in a single combat round, or virtually guarantee that you will succeed in whatever it is you are doing.
Be aware that this is a game designed for Good characters to overcome Bad characters, so if you use your Force Point to do evil, as defined by the GM, it is permanently lost, you will not recover it, and you gain a Dark Side Point. Each time you earn a Dark Side Point, you have a chance of falling to the Dark Side and losing your PC as a non-player character or NPC and villain. Again, all PC’s are heroes in this game! If you use the Force Point to do something not quite evil or good, as defined by the GM, you will lose the Force Point permanently, but not earn a Dark Side Point. If you use it in a heroic way, to save others or defeat evil, you do not lose it at all, and will recover it at the end of the adventure. And finally, if you use it heroically and dramatically appropriately, you will recover it at the end of the adventure and possibly be rewarded with another force point!
If your hero earns a Dark Side Point, you may be able to atone through fasting, deep meditation and ritual to rid yourself of the stain of darkness. You may continue to play, but you must be purer than pure in your actions. If you can accomplish this after five sessions, you may be rewarded for your efforts by having one of your Dark Side Points removed by the GM.
The Jedi Code
Now, because characters who are Force sensitive are inherently more powerful, there is the Jedi Code they must adhere to. If they fail to live up to the code, they can earn a Dark Side Point, so it is very important for the integrity of the game and lore to follow the Jedi Code. While any other character can only earn a Dark Side Point when using a Force Point to act evil, a Jedi can earn a Dark Side Point anytime they do evil, as defined by the GM. The Jedi Code is as follows:
There is no emotion; there is peace.
There is no ignorance; there is knowledge.
There is no passion; there is serenity.
There is no death; there is the Force.
In game terms for the sake of a force sensitive character this breaks down to the following:
You may not kill, except in self-defense or the defense of others.
You may not act for personal gain, of wealth or power.
You must never act from hatred, anger, fear or aggression.
The Powers of the Force
The Force itself is not good or Evil; it’s a reflection of nature, and nature itself can be cruel and cold. The Force is presented in this roleplaying game through three specific Force Skills: Control, Sense, and Alter. It is rumored there are skills beyond these three, but as the Jedi have been exterminated from the galaxy, the other methods and disciplines are unknown. Each Force skill has effects on their own, or used together to greater or varying effects. I will cover each Force skill in more detail in further episodes. You may only learn force skills from a Master, and then, they can only teach you up to their own level of each Force Skill. Masters train Force skills beginning with Control, then Sense, then Alter. Improving your skill beyond your masters is at a cost of double the skill points for one force skill point. For example increasing a Force skill from 5D+1 to 5D+2 would normally cose 5 skill points. But if it’s higher than your Master’s skill, it would cost 10 skill points!
Control
The Force Control Skill allows you to control the Force in your own body. You may control your hunger, pain, thirst and exhaustion. You may aid your body in fighting poisons and diseases, and even accelerate your natural healing. There are even abilities like heightening your natural alertness and putting your body into a hibernating trance!
Sense
The Force Sense Skill allows you to feel the ebb and flow of the Force, feeling how it connects all things. You can use your sense skill to parry blaster bolts with your lightsaber, read the feelings of others, heighten your own senses and know how badly damaged or diseased an organism is. If you possess the Sense and Control skill, you may read minds, project thoughts and feelings into others’ minds and even see the past, present and possible futures!
Alter
The Force Alter Skill allows you to move objects with your mind. If you have both the control and alter skills, you can assist others in withstanding pain, fatigue, hunger and thirst. Even accelerating their healing and more! If you have all three Force Skills you can change the contents of the minds of others, causing them to see something that is not there, remember things incorrectly, or come to false conclusions.
Using Force Powers
Using a Force skill takes one combat round. If the power requires more than one skill, you use the same game mechanic for using more than one action in a combat round, and reduce the power by 1D. If the power uses three Force Skills, you reduce the power by 2D. However, if you wish to only use one of each skill in successive combat rounds, you would only make one skill roll per round until the power skills are finished.
You may keep up a power by announcing it before the Force skill roll. If successful, it remains up until you drop it voluntarily or you are stunned, wounded, or otherwise distracted. Keeping a force power up requires concentration, so if you want to use other skills or actions, those actions would be reduced as normally by 1D per action or Skill.
Resisting Force Powers
Whenever a Force Skill is used to affect another character against their will, the target may attempt to resist with their Perception attribute. The target simply makes a perception attribute roll and if it’s higher than the attacker’s force skill roll, they resist it. If the Force skill roll is equal to or greater than the perception roll, it’s successful.
Lightsabers
Lightsabers are the tools of a Jedi. At its core it is simply a melee weapon, and literally anyone with opposable thumbs can wield one. But in the hands of a Jedi, it is something much more. Rather than using their melee weapons skill to wield a lightsaber, a PC uses their lightsaber skill. Also, a lightsaber’s damage does not depend on your Strength Attribute, but rather your Force Control Skill. You can also parry with a lightsaber, using either your melee parry or Force Sense Skill, whichever is better.
The only weapon that can parry a lightsaber however, is another lightsaber. Though a lightsaber can parry melee or brawling attacks, with a chance of wounding the attacker or destroying their melee weapon. If you have the Force Sense skill, you may attempt to parry blaster bolts, and even reflect them back at the firer or another target!
Outro
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Until the Infernal Brotherhood convenes again my fellow scruffy looking, nerf herders “May the Force be with you.”