Troll Lord Games

With SW TFA out and having just watched it, it gotten my gaming juices flowing in the SW direction (well the fleeting few seconds of free time I have to think about gaming).

That got me to wondering about which system would fit SW better:

C&C – The big issues, it is written with classes that fit only a fantasy medieval type setting. I guess one could use the D3.5 / Saga rules for classes etc, and retro fir it for C&C … The good thing is that this would be take the classes, cut out all the d3.5 clunky bloat and then run a C&C game. Even then, there would still be lots of work there I don’t know if it would be worth it.

Star Siege - …. I never had a chance to play it much less run it, but it should be an easy fit . It is a future setting and a tool box so has lots of choices to work with … The issue would be the toolbox frame work would have to be tooled and focused. Plus, the Jedi would have to be defined and created

Amazing Adventures – Again I’ve never played it so I don’t know what needs to be reworked but I think it is a close fit. Pulp to star opra isn’t that far of a leap. Again, you’d have to retool some of the classes and create others. Then the jedi and the force would have to be worked

Victorious – Again (boy I say this a lot) I’ve never played it, and I’ve only given the rules I have a glance or 3, but I think it is a closer fit. Like the pulp to space opera, steam punk to space opera isn’t a stretch … again, classes and Jedi / force issues to work

I guess, I’m asking which system would more easily fit with the lest work.

I’ll admit that when I think SW RPG, I default to D6 as that is the rules I played SW in back in the say, so I’m more used to a skills system than a class system, though the kits infer a class starting out, but do give you a lot of flexibility in the ‘class’, but I digress … So, with you all having played more of the TLG rules than I, what do you think?

Spitballing: You could just call them professions, set up basic skill sets, use the different HD for races rather than professions, and run everything off of CL checks. At the core of things it is the SIEGE Engine that makes if run.

I know at some point I am going to take a hard look at it for doing an RPG version of my Wardogs! universe if I ever get enough motivation and energy up.

My first instinct would be to start with White Star and slap the SIEGE engine on top of it. Or just import the relevant material from White Star into your TLG game of choice.

White Star is a Star Wars version of OD&D/S&W. It came out last January (I think) and has been in the top 10 downloads at RPGNow.com for almost that entire time. The PDF is something like $10 and periodically goes on sale. You should check it out to get an idea how someone used the D&D engine to create a Star Wars-style game.

As I mentioned when we were talking last night, I think StarSIEGE would be perfect for a Star Wars game. You would just have to spend some time "creating" things. Maybe over the holiday break, I'll have some time to look into it again. I really, really like SS and wish it had gotten a little better treatment/support from the Trolls. Who know, maybe I'll get super ambitious and do a re-organization for myself and maybe add some other things to boot.

You could also go the way of the d20/SAGA route.

R-

It wouldn't really take any tinkering to play Star Wars with Amazing Adventures. Jedi abilities sound just like the ones described for Mentalists. The Force is a good way to describe their mysterious inner ability. Someone like Han Solo is a pretty much a Raider or Hooligan. General Leia Organa could be a socialite multiclassed with whatever abilities you wanted to add on. Keep the stats but just call the weapons different names and you'd probably be good to go.

I don't think it would be hard. In fact, one could develop specific families of powers to base on Primes, like "mind tricks" could be Charisma-oriented. In a manner not dissimilar to the C&C psionics conversion someone (apologies for forgetting who) did. Jedi could simply be fighter (or knight) - psionicist class-and-a-half.

I don't know (or care) enough about the Star Wars stuff to say for sure, but I have no doubt it could be done. How canonical it remained is a different Wookie.

serleran wrote:I don't think it would be hard. In fact, one could develop specific families of powers to base on Primes, like "mind tricks" could be Charisma-oriented. In a manner not dissimilar to the C&C psionics conversion someone (apologies for forgetting who) did. Jedi could simply be fighter (or knight) - psionicist class-and-a-half.

I don't know (or care) enough about the Star Wars stuff to say for sure, but I have no doubt it could be done. How canonical it remained is a different Wookie.

Rigon did one. Its still linked to in his sig area on any post he makes.

I agree, thats a good approach to start from.

Edit: Yep, just click on his "whatnots".

Treebore wrote:

serleran wrote:I don't think it would be hard. In fact, one could develop specific families of powers to base on Primes, like "mind tricks" could be Charisma-oriented. In a manner not dissimilar to the C&C psionics conversion someone (apologies for forgetting who) did. Jedi could simply be fighter (or knight) - psionicist class-and-a-half.

I don't know (or care) enough about the Star Wars stuff to say for sure, but I have no doubt it could be done. How canonical it remained is a different Wookie.

Rigon did one. Its still linked to in his sig area on any post he makes.

I agree, thats a good approach to start from.

Edit: Yep, just click on his "whatnots".

Grey Elf did one also. It's what basically ended up going into AA.

R-

I suspect if Starsiege or some sort of sci-fi game were to be re-released or released, it will have to fall more in line with the Siege Engine, etc.

tylermo wrote:I suspect if Starsiege or some sort of sci-fi game were to be re-released or released, it will have to fall more in line with the Siege Engine, etc.

I know it has been hinted at that it might be an add on for AA.

R-

Ok, I’ve looked at the various options and here is what comes to mind:

Looked into the D3.5/Saga edition of SW. There are some good ideas there, but after I dug into them … I can only say … ACK, skills, talents, & feats oh my ! Part of me does like the ideas in saga, the separate ‘talent trees’ for each class. However, less is not more in the game ( or any of the 3.5 based games as we all well know). As I read through it I went from thinking about a scalpel needed to trim out the excess crunch, to a hatchet, and then to a chain saw … Then there were things I expected to easily find that didn’t exist ore were hidden and had to be teased out and inferred. Things like a pilot class or a true tramp freight flying smuggler. Yes, they can be built – to a point – but nothing right out of the box that fit. So, at best, I’d argue to use it as ideas to feed into which ever TLG system that fits best – off the top of my head the 3 talent trees for Jedi being made into separate classes (or a sub class of a generic Jedi). Also, some of the ‘prestige classes’ should be a base class of their own. But, I don’t know how to easily trim it down to fit TLG/Seige games.

Star Wars D6 – WEG and then some fan made rules books – Like I said earlier, this is what I played SW as originally, so I know and like the system. My biggest issue is that the rules try to hamstring the Jedi/Force users out of the gate for ‘game balance’. But I digress. Looking at it as a game to convert to TLG … There is a lot that would need to be done. It is a ‘skill based’ game instead of a class/level game. So there are no true classes or class skills. That said there are ‘kits’ that would easily morph into classes. However, to get a good star wars movie type character, you’d have to expand assumed class skills or heavily use multi class rules. It sounds like a lot of work, but I don’t know. I’ve never been strong in converting other rules into TLG/Seige based games. Unlike Serl, Tree, & others around here. With that, I may be seeing a hard job where it doesn’t exist. Now if there was a TLG system that was skill based instead of class based, this would be a great system to mine

BM’s ‘White Star’ … Sadly, I don’t have an extra 10 spot lying around to drop on a game … It does sound like it has possibility and would be easy to convert … But I don’t have it so can’t comment smartly . If someone does … nudge nudge, wink wink …

Now for the TLG games

AA. It has possibility, with some re naming and retooling. But there is a lot that would be need to be created or heavily reworked. Yes a mentalist is close to a Jedi, but not really one. A gadgetier could easily be a mechanic on the tramp freighter or a hacker/slicer but that isn’t the strength of the class in A&A. Gumshoe, pugilist and raider, easy fit with the SW setting … However, there isn’t anything I’ve seen that fits a pilot, a soldier, a bounty hunter, so using this and pulling in ideas from d3.5/Saga has possibilities. Plus, as Rigon mentioned, there may be a sci fi add on for A&A in the future, so that would help once it comes out. However, and I admit this is personal preference, I prefer a futures game to be more skill based than class based, or at least a 50 50 blend of skills and class abilities. So, A&A isn’t a perfect fit, but it has a good start

Victorious, (this is based off a quick read through of the rules, and no in-depth knowledge of the game, so take it with a little salt and then a bigger pinch of salt for good measure) The game looks interesting with lots of fun possibilities. However, … it doesn’t fit as Star Wars. Great for supers regardless of the setting/era, not so much for how I picture SW. It wouldn’t surprise me to find gems hidden in it to mine to add to whatever is used to make SW TLG style, but as the foundational rules for it … not so much.

Star Siege, I pulled up my PDFs of it and gave it a read through to re-familiarize myself with it again. I’ll say this …. LOVE & Hate … It could be almost a perfect fit with only some minor retooling to make SW specific items. However, it is disorganized (or I don’t follow the organization as easily as I’d like) there is no index or table of contents to help find things, and there are sooooo few examples to work from . I like the skills / skill bundle outlook in the game and other items (very similar to d6 / SW) . However, there are no foundational examples in the rules to work from. If there were examples of a pilot, a gambler, a psi, anything … you could easily morph and blend it to make a very good TLG SW . With that, I think it could be (could have been, as it is basically a dead abandoned game in the TLG line up) the better fit, but it needs a lot of work to a point where the A&A line may have to be used. That said, if anyone wanted to do the reorg of the game or to clean up the clunky build process (or provide focused examples to work from) this could be great, and then pull in things from D6 to polish it up.

Lurker wrote:
Star Siege, I pulled up my PDFs of it and gave it a read through to re-familiarize myself with it again. I’ll say this …. LOVE & Hate … It could be almost a perfect fit with only some minor retooling to make SW specific items. However, it is disorganized (or I don’t follow the organization as easily as I’d like) there is no index or table of contents to help find things, and there are sooooo few examples to work from . I like the skills / skill bundle outlook in the game and other items (very similar to d6 / SW) . However, there are no foundational examples in the rules to work from. If there were examples of a pilot, a gambler, a psi, anything … you could easily morph and blend it to make a very good TLG SW . With that, I think it could be (could have been, as it is basically a dead abandoned game in the TLG line up) the better fit, but it needs a lot of work to a point where the A&A line may have to be used. That said, if anyone wanted to do the reorg of the game or to clean up the clunky build process (or provide focused examples to work from) this could be great, and then pull in things from D6 to polish it up.

Yep. That has been the "problem" with Star SIEGE since its release. They put it out like a big jumbled tool box, with no real organization. So its a great jumbled toolbox, with lots of stuff in it, but it would be a far better game if the tool box was given proper organization and more guidance on how to get the most use out of the tools we are provided with.

After a quick read through of Victorious!, it could be used as a SW game with some tweaking, but I still think SS is the way to go if it was reorganized and cleaned up some. And I personally would like to see that. Maybe if I get ambitious, I'll try a reorganization of the rules.

R-

I agree, ... I even think that d6 would easily port into it. Use the d6 skills as the SS skill bundles - very little work there, use the siege engine as the mechanics and run with it. A little work and a little massaging of the kits into the SS rules. The hard part is the ships weapons & equipment ...

However, there is no way I could do it, hard part or not, not now. Heck I can't even keep up on the game summaries ...

This thread has got me thinking again about a StarSIEGE/Star Wars game. I looked back through some old posts that I made a looooong time ago and broke out my box set. I think Star Wars can easily be done with SS right out of the box with a few trappings included. Something else to work on along with my KoK game. Thanks Lurker, it's not like I didn't have enough other things to do.

R-

Thank you I'm here to please.

And remember, if I do not have time to do my work, handle thins from real life, and write the summaries of our exploits every week, then I'm duty bound to do my best to make sure no one else has time to do everything they want to do too !!!!!