“The Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It’s an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us. It binds the galaxy together.” — Obi-Wan Kenobi
The Nature Of The Force
The Force is an essential part of nature — like energy or matter — but it has yet to be quantified and analyzed.
The Force is not to be understood in the same manner as the physical qualities of the universe. The laws of physics are observable; technology is predictable and readily-controlled. The Force is neither controlled nor controlling — it is a part of life itself; asking if it controls or can be controlled is like asking if a person controls his component cells, or the cells control him.
It is not known whether the Force has always been, came about as life evolved into intelligence, or if it coerced the evolution of intelligence. To the Jedi, it does not matter. It’s enough to know that the Force is.
The Force is like any element of nature — it has both positive and negative aspects: the light side and the dark side.
The light teaches peace and harmony. It is the constructive side of the Force from which all love, understanding and knowledge originate—it is the essence of life. Those who are at peace with themselves can learn to harness the amazing powers of the Force.
The dark side is the counterweight to the light. Many young students falsely believe that the dark side is stronger than the light — in truth, it is only easier. The dark side springs from the negative and destructive impulses of all living beings — anger, fear and hatred are its symptoms. Death and war are the byproducts of the dark side. It is dangerously seductive to those who lack the ability to control their emotions and passions. Those who give in to the dark side find their abilities greatly enhanced at first, but as time passes, the dark side does not respond so readily. The dark side demands more and more of those in its power.
Those who are sensitive to the Force soon learn that there is no middle ground between the dark and the light. For most beings — unaware of the power of the Force — the struggle between good and evil is not as powerful, not as compelling. For those attuned to the Force, the struggle of good versus evil, life versus death, is of utmost importance. Those who learn the ways of the Force must be careful to remember their own inner peace or they will surrender
themselves to the dark side, as Anakin Skywalker did many, many years ago. They must be careful not to start down the path of the dark side, for its self-destructive ways are difficult to leave once embraced.
Even those who don’t believe in the Force can unconsciously manipulate it and be manipulated by it. They may not be truly “sensitive” to its flow, but they still call upon the Force without even realizing. These people seem to have an almost unnatural ability to accomplish their objectives, whether their intent is good, evil, or somewhere in between. The skeptical call it luck. The unbelievers may call it destiny or fate. It is the Force. (In game terms, the use of Character Points represents very small, almost subconscious manifestations of the Force. The use of Force Points represents more powerful and deliberate use of the Force.)
Among those who learn to manipulate the Force, the most common path is that of the Jedi. Each Jedi relates to the Force in a different way, drawing upon a wide variety of powers — different manifestations of how the Jedi can manipulate her internal Force and the Force of the universe around her. Students of the Force can learn to slow or stop their own life functions, accomplish physical tasks that others would consider impossible, and even move physical objects by the power of the mind alone.
Others beside the Jedi Knights know how to manipulate the Force. They often attribute their powers to different sources — magic, shamanism, religion, meditation, ancestor worship, or any of a million other forms of insight — but through whatever means, they are using this mystic energy to change the world around them.
Force-Users in the Galaxy
Of the galaxy’s countless inhabitants, only a few beings are “Force-sensitive.” They have the ability to concentrate and sometimes bring about their will by subconsciously tapping into the Force. They have the potential to learn Force skills and powers, although only a fraction ever will.
During the reign of the Empire (before the Battle of Endor), the Emperor and Darth Vader expended a great deal of time and effort exterminating Force-users. Young Jedi had to hide
their presence from the Empire lest they be hunted down by the Emperor’s servants and assassins. The only surviving Force-users generally fit into one of the following categories:
• Those who somehow hid from the Empire. This would include Jedi such as Yoda and Vima-Da-Boda (from Dark Empire).
• Those from isolated planets and cultures. These beings may study the Jedi way, or they may know some other means of using the Force, such as the “spells” used by the witches of Dathomir or the mystic way of the Tyia.
• Those who were too weak or unstable to be a threat to the Empire. This would include the quixotic Jedi character template, Halla (from Splinter of the Mind’s Eye) and Joruus C’baoth, the mad Jedi who guarded the Emperor’s storehouse at Mount Tantiss.
• Force-users completely in thrall to the Emperor. This includes beings such as Darth Vader, Mara Jade, the Emperor’s Dark Side Adepts (from Dark Empire) and High Inquisitor Tremayne (from Galaxy Guide 9: Fragments from the Rim).
• Force-users held captive by the Empire. While some eventually escape, most face a horrid existence. The Empire’s motives in holding such beings varies: some are used for experiments in the Force, while in other cases the Emperor siphons off their life energies to support himself. Still others may have some Jedi knowledge that the Emperor wishes to pry from their minds. Vima-Da-Boda and the Jedi Corwin Shelvay (from Galaxy Guide 9) were once held by the Empire but managed to escape its clutches.
Most Force-users will be of a relatively low level of ability. Any characters above those skill levels have been exceptionally careful in avoiding the attention of the Empire … or they may be servants of Palpatine.
In the era of the New Republic, Force-users are more numerous, but they still tend to be of a low level of ability since there are so few teachers. Some train under Luke Skywalker, while others learn what can be passed down from aging instructors and what is recorded in the few remaining texts and datatapes. However, despite the New Republic’s acceptance of Force-users, the remnants of the Empire (and many other groups) have a keen interest in using Force-users to accomplish their own ends.
The Jedi
“Forovera thousand generations the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times, before the Empire.” — Obi-Wan Kenobi
Long ago, those who studied and practiced manipulating the Force gathered together to establish the Jedi Knights, an order dedicated to protecting the galaxy from evil. The Jedi helped bring order and strength to a galaxy plagued far too long by conflict and fear.
Their deeds became famous. Aided by the Force and armed with their unique lightsabers, they came to be respected and honored throughout the galaxy. They were known as scholars, warriors and philosophers. They were all those things — and much more. The Jedi spread across the galaxy, protecting the Republic and watching over its many systems.
However, within their knowledge lay the seeds of their destruction. Early on, the Jedi realized the differences between the light side and the dark side; they emphasized the importance of following the path of light. For some, the warnings were not enough and the temptation was too great: inevitably, some Jedi embraced the dark side and used their powers to bring great evil upon the galaxy.
Such tragic events endured in Jedi lore. One of these infamous incidents occurred four millennia prior to the rise of the Empire: the fall of the Jedi Exar Kun and Ulic Qel-Droma helped bring about the Great Sith War.
In recent times, great evil rose again. The darkness engulfed the Republic, replacing it with the corrupt and evil Galactic Empire. The Emperor’s New Order seized control. Palpatine and his servant, Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith, virtually exterminated the Jedi. The august order that had protected the galaxy for 25,000 years — that had seemed invincible — was struck down in a heartbeat.
However, the destruction of the Jedi wasn’t complete. One who escaped the purge was Obi-Wan Kenobi, Vader’s teacher when the Dark Jedi was known as Anakin Skywalker.
Anakin’s twin children — both strong in the Force — were hidden from their father. While the girl was raised as Leia Organa, princess of the Royal House of Alderaan, Kenobi kept a close watch on Anakin’s son, the young boy known as Luke Skywalker.
Luke learned the ways of the Jedi from Kenobi and Yoda, the Jedi Master. Luke’s belief and strength in the Force helped return Darth Vader to the light, and Vader turned on the Emperor, ending the reign of evil that had dominated the galaxy.
In the years following, Luke has set out to rebuild the order of the Jedi Knights. After establishing his academy on the fourth moon of Yavin, Luke now concentrates on preparing a new generation of Jedi to protect the galaxy and the Republic. The Jedi have returned …
The Jedi Code
One of the first things that a Jedi must learn is the Jedi code; this philosophy lays the groundwork for the mastery of the use of the Force.
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.
The Jedi must carefully observe the rules of the light side of the Force to maintain harmony with herself and the universe around her.
The light side is created and sustained by life. The Jedi acts to preserve life. To kill is wrong.
Sometimes it is necessary to kill. The Jedi may kill in self defense or in defense of others, especially the weak and the good. The Jedi may kill, if by her action she preserves the existence of life. However, the Jedi must never forget that killing is inherently wrong. The death is a stain upon the Jedi’s spirit.
The Jedi seeks knowledge and enlightenment, peace and harmony. The Jedi wishes to defeat those who would wipe out such qualities — those who would inflict death, tyranny or ignorance upon others—yet the Jedi should never act out of fear or hatred. A Jedi must act when calm and at peace with the Force. To act with anger filling one’s spirit is to risk temptation to the dark side.
Jedi should seek nonviolent solutions to problems — but this isn’t always possible. Sometimes, killing or fighting is the only answer available. Sometimes it is even the best answer. But that doesn’t mean the Jedi shouldn’t try to find an alternative.
The Responsible Use of Power.
A Jedi acts from wisdom, using persuasion and counsel over violence and Force powers. Force powers are to be used to serve the interests of the light. Using the Force for personal aggrandizement, for personal power or wealth, for convenience when other means would be more prudent — all of these traits are of the dark side.
A Call to Action.
A Jedi cannot allow evil to occur by inaction — a Jedi who voluntarily stands by and allows evil to be committed is encouraging the forces of darkness. Jedi are also bound by the actions of those around them. It is not acceptable for a Jedi to associate with those who willfully choose to commit evil.
When a Jedi is confronted by a situation where evil is being committed, the Jedi must act to prevent that evil. There are a variety of means at the Jedi’s disposal — persuasion, creating a distraction, armed action or simple mind tricks — but intervention is necessary.
Tremors in the Force.
The Jedi lives in harmony with the Force, sensing its flow, drawing upon its energies … and sometimes perceiving “disturbances” and “presences” in that flow.
The actions of others can cause disturbances in the Force. A lone individual’s impression might be like a candle flickering in the wind, while a great tragedy or act of great good may be like a sudden burst of lightning. Those who manipulate the Force often and with great power shine like the light of a sun.
Each time a Jedi draws upon the Force, there is a slight tremor as the Force is subtly altered. If the Force is used sparingly and with harmony in the natural order of things, such tremors are slight and barely detectable even at close ranges.
Those who frequently use the Force cause many, many tremors. When the Force is relied upon — used constantly to bend the universe to fit the will of the user — such tremors
may be great enough that Jedi on distant planets may detect the user. Those who use the Force as a crude instrument of power are very likely to come to the attention of others.
New Jedi students are particularly likely to be detected. In their desire to master their powers, they often manipulate the Force … yet their dabblings, if too frequent, draw the attentions of other nearby Force-users. The purge of the Jedi was facilitated by servants of the Emperor who detected, tracked and exterminated novice Jedi.
Premonitions and Visions.
Some Jedi experience premonitions, dreams and visions. Sometimes these events seem
to be little more than random, impressionistic images, but at other times they are crystal clear glimpses of past, present or possible future events. There is much debate as to the cause of these phenomena — perhaps it’s the Jedi’s subconscious at work, or perhaps it’s simply a different way of sensing tremors in the Force — but these occurrences have been known to warn Jedi of impending danger or to summon them to “crisis areas” where their unique abilities are needed.
Jedi Training
The Star Wars roleplaying game allows Jedi player characters. Only Force-sensitive characters can learn Force skills and powers.
Several character templates start the game with Force skills, including the alien student of the Force, the failed Jedi, the minor Jedi, the quixotic Jedi, the Revwien Tyia adept and the young Jedi. Other Force Sensitive characters may learn Force skills and powers if a teacher is found.
Finding A Teacher.
A character who wishes to learn one of the three Force skills (control, sense or alter) must have a teacher; characters who already have Force skills find them easier to master with a teacher to instruct them.
A character who begins the game with Jedi skills must have had a teacher before the game began. Whether or not the student can still contact the teacher is left to the discretion of the gamemaster. Perhaps the character mastered all the powers the teacher knew and moved on. Maybe the teacher was killed; maybe the student and teacher had a falling out; or perhaps it was just time to “move on.” The teacher may have even turned to the dark side and watches the student from a distance, hoping to eventually lure the former pupil down the path of darkness.
In a universe where the Jedi have nearly been eradicated, finding a teacher is a most difficult task. A character’s search for a suitable Jedi teacher should be the focus of an epic quest, probably spanning several game adventures. The character must prove the commitment to becoming a Jedi even in the process of finding a teacher.
Once found, the teacher may not be quite what is expected. Obi-Wan, Yoda and Luke are exceptions since almost all Jedi were hunted down by Darth Vader and the Emperor. A prospective teacher is likely to have never fully completed her Force training—someone who knows enough to begin instructing the character, but lacks a full understanding of the Jedi way.
The prospective Jedi character may have to turn to one of the other “ways of knowing the Force,” such as the Tyia (discussed later). Individuals who know these ways will often be isolated on a primitive world or hiding from the forces of the Empire.
No matter the circumstance, the quest for a Jedi teacher should not be an easy one. It should be filled with danger, designed to test the mettle of those who seek this powerful knowledge.
When you gamemaster, you are expected to exercise firm control when it comes to Jedi characters. You can add whatever limitations you feel are necessary to maintain
“game balance.” You’re not even obligated to allow Jedi characters — you don’t have to provide a teacher simply because a character wants to become a Jedi. Other Forms of Learning. While teachers are the preferred means of mastering the Force, potential Jedi have other routes open to them. They may be able to find a Holocron, an extremely rare device used by Jedi to record
lore and lessons. (Holocrons are detailed in the Dark Empire Sourcebook and Tales of the Jedi Sourcebook.)
Jedi also used datatapes, old-fashioned paper books and many other means of recording their knowledge of the Force. While most of these items were destroyed during the reign of the Empire, a few objects were hidden away in secret retreats and on distant worlds, waiting to be accessed by new generations of Jedi. Luke Skywalker searched many worlds for documents containing lost Jedi lore; many of his lessons at the Jedi praxeum on Yavin IV were based on the information he gathered in his journeys.
(For your game, you are free to decide whether the use of a Holocron or text counts as “having a teacher.” In some cases, the texts will be so detailed that they are fine substitutes for a living instructor; in other cases, the Jedi may need to seek out a living instructor to master the skills and powers the texts describe.)
Taking on Pupils. Jedi characters can instruct others in the ways of the Force. A character must have a Force skill of at least 3D to teach it and the Jedi can only teach Force powers that she knows.
By tradition, a character studying with a master may not take on a pupil. A Jedi character will seldom take on more than one pupil at a time, but some instructors — such as Luke Skywalker — will accept several students at once.
A character should be wary of teaching anyone with Dark Side Points Jedi abilities — any time a character teaches such a person a Force skill or power, the teacher receives a
Dark Side Point.
Jedi characters are also responsible for the actions of those they teach. If a Jedi’s pupil turns to the dark side, the Jedi is morally obligated to resolve the situation if at all possible.
Force Skills
Teachers. A teacher must have at least 3D in the Force skill to be taught; the teacher’s skill level must exceed the student’s skill level.
A Jedi student must have a teacher to learn a Force skill. Learning a Force skill requires one week of intensive study and costs 10 Character Points. (The training time may be reduced one day per additional Character Point spent; the minimum training time is one day.)
The character gets the skill at ID. (The character is also taught one Force power pertaining to the skill; see “Force Powers.”)
A Jedi student will most often be taught control first, although some teachers begin instruction with the sense skill. Alter is usually taught last.
Example: Ana wants to learn the control skill. After finding a teacher, she goes through a week
of intensive study and training, and spends 10 Character Points. Ana receives control at ID and
learns one control Force power.
Use the following rules when improving Force skills:
Force skills (Control, sense and alter).
Character Point cost: To improve a Force skill by one pip costs a number of Character Points equal to the current number before the “D.” Double the Character Point cost without a teacher. Training Time: Characters with a teacher must train one day for each Character Point spent; two days per Character Point without a teacher. Training time may be reduced by one day for each additional Character Point spent (minimum of one day).
Note: A character may be taught a new power each time a Force skill is improved one pip.
Force Powers: A character may be taught a new power each time a Force skill is improved one pip. The new power is chosen by the teacher and must use the improved Force skill (for instance, a Jedi improving control could not learn a power based solely on alter).
Example: Ana’s control is 3D+1. Advancing Control to 3D+2 under the instruction of a teacher costs three Character Points and takes three days of training. If Ana were to try to advance control to 3D+2 without a teacher, it would cost six Character Points and take 12 days of intensive study. When Ana improves control, she may learn a new control power; again, it is a power of her teacher’s choosing.
Control
Control is the Jedi’s ability to control her own body. A Jedi with control can access her own internal well of Force energy, learning harmony with and mastery over the functions of her
own body.
Sense
Sense teaches a Jedi to sense the Force in other things beyond her own body. The Jedi learns to feel the bonds that connect all living things and gains the ability to understand how all things are interconnected. Sense governs powers such as detecting danger and learning information about the world around the Jedi.
Alter
A Jedi with alter learns how to change the distribution and nature of the Force. Jedi who have mastered alter can move physical objects with their minds, can help others control their own Force, or can manipulate the Force in the bodies of others. This power can be used to change the perceptions of others and make them come to incorrect conclusions.
Other Skills
It is believed that the Jedi Knights once had skills and abilities far beyond what is currently known. If these powers existed, they were no doubt lost in the great Jedi purge during the rise of the Empire. It was whispered that the Jedi could alter the structure of the universe, live beyond death, and accomplish other miraculous feats. Now, however, these secrets, if they exist at all, await rediscovery …
The Lure of the Dark Side
When a character with Dark Side Points uses a Force skill, her skill roll gets a bonus of ID per Dark Side Point. Characters who accept this bonus are particularly susceptible to its temptations and must be sure to act with the purest intent or they will receive more Dark Side Points and risk going over to the dark side.
A Jedi may refuse this bonus, but the difficulties of all Force powers should be increased by at least one difficulty level to reflect the intense concentration the Jedi must have to avoid the dark side’s temptations A character who has gone over to the dark side (as described in Chapter Four, “The Rules”) no longer receives this bonus.
Example: Ana has three Dark Side Points; she receives a bonus of +3D to all her Force skills. Later, Ana has removed a Dark Side Point and has only two left — she receives a bonus of +2D to her Force skills.
Force Powers
Each Force skill governs a multitude of powers. A character rolls the appropriate Force skill (or skills) when trying to use a particular power; the gamemaster uses the description of the power to determine the difficulty for the task.
A Jedi character must be taught a Force power to use it. (Powers can be taught by a teacher, Holocron or some other document or item specifically intended to teach the power). Since most Jedi teachers know only a few powers, at a certain point Jedi characters will have to seek out other teachers and sources of instruction to learn new powers.
A Jedi cannot use a power that has not been learned. Learning Powers. When a character first learns a Force skill, the teacher also teaches one Force power pertaining to that skill.
A character may be taught a new power each time a Force skill is improved one pip.
A character may be taught a Force power without improving a Force skill, but the character must spend five Character Points.
A power that uses two skills — control and sense — counts as two powers when being taught powers.
This chapter has a partial listing of Force powers, paying particular attention to those that Jedi students are likely to be taught by their masters. A complete listing of currently known Force powers appears in the Tales of the Jedi Sourcebook.
What Are Force Powers? “Force powers” are an easy way to describe the different ways that the Force skills can be applied. Learning a Force power is like learning to use a muscle you didn’t know you had — it’s virtually impossible until you’ve been taught how to use it.
For the convenience of both the player and the gamemaster, the powers are very specific. When you are a gamemaster, you may wish to let players “stretch” powers to try tasks that aren’t specifically described but seem to be in the “spirit” of the power. To do this, fall back on the rule of thumb: the difficulty should correspond to how much the power is being stretched. A modest extension of the power might only increase the difficulty increased by one or two levels. Trying to push the power to its conceivable outermost limits may call for a difficulty of Heroic+50 (or more) … and some things are still going to be flat out impossible. It is entirely up to you to decide how much a power can be “stretched” in game play.
Using Powers
Many of these powers use a combination of the three Jedi skills. Calling upon each Force skill is a separate action.
The Jedi may roll each skill in consecutive rounds at no penalty, or may attempt to fully activate the power in one round, incurring normal multiple action penalties.
Example: Ana is trying to activate projective telepathy, which requires both a control and sense roll. Ana can make the control roll in the first round and the sense roll in the second. She gets to roll her full die code for both Force skills, but it takes her two rounds to activate the power. If the situation is urgent, Ana may try to activate the power in one round by rolling both control and sense in that round. This counts as two actions, so Ana would roll both control and sense at -1D.
Force Power Descriptions
Force power descriptions use the format described here.
Control Difficulty, Sense Difficulty and/or Alter Difficulty: Each Force power lists the Force skills used and the difficulty rolls needed to activate the power. Gamemasters may add any other modifiers that they feel are appropriate to the situation. Power difficulties may be affected by other modifiers:
• As listed in the difficulty description, the target may roll control or Perception to resist the effects of the power.
• Relationship: Some powers are affected by the Jedi’s relationship to the target.
| User and target are: | Add to difficulty: |
| Close relatives (spouse,siblings, parent and child, etc.) | — |
| Close friends | +2 |
| Friends | +5 |
| Acquaintances | +7 |
| Slight acquaintances | +10 |
| Met once | +12 |
| Never met, but knoweach other by reputation | +15 |
| Complete strangers | +20 |
| Complete strangers andnot of the same species | +30 |
• Proximity: Some powers are affected by proximity — a target that is far away is harder to affect than one that is nearby.
| User and target are: | Add to difficulty: |
| Touching | — |
| In line of sight but not touching | +2 |
| Not in line of sight, but 1-100 meters away | +5 |
| 101 meters to 10 km away | +7 |
| 11 to 1,000 km away | +10 |
| Same planet but more than 1,000 km away | +15 |
| Same star system but not on the same planet | +20 |
| Not in the same star system | +30 |
Required Powers. The Jedi must know all powers listed before being able to learn this power.
This Power May Be Kept “Up.” Jedi may keep some powers “up” — operating constantly without having to make new Force skill rolls every round.
If the power can be kept “up,” the power description will state this; otherwise the power drops at the end of the round in which it was activated.
If a player wishes to keep a power “up,” it must be announced when the power is activated. If the power roll is successful, the power operates continuously until the character drops the power.
If a character is stunned, wounded or worse, all “up” powers are automatically dropped.
A character who is keeping a power “up” is using the power’s Force skills as long as the power is operating, and loses die codes as if taking actions.
Example: Resist stun, a control power, maybe kept “up.” The power is activated if the Jedi rolls the sense difficulty. The Jedi may keep the power “up,” but loses -ID to all other actions. Lightsaber combat is a control and sense power and may be kept up. The Jedi may keep the power up, but loses -2D to all other actions because lightsaber combat requires two Force skills.
Warning. Some powers are inherently evil and automatically cause a character to receive a Dark Side Point whenever they are used. (Of course, characters receive a Dark Side Point if any powers are used for evil.)
Time to Use. The “Time to Use” listing indicates how long it takes for the effect to occur. If there is no “Time to Use” listing, the power requires one round to take effect.
Effect. This is a description of how the power works.
Control Powers
Absorb/Dissipate Energy
Control Difficulty: Very Easy for sunburn and other very minor energy sources; Easy for intense sun; Moderate for solar wind and other modest energy sources; Difficult for radiation storms and other intense energy sources. Characters may use this power to absorb energy attacks (such as blaster bolts and force lightning) — the difficulty is Moderate plus the attack’s damage roll.
The power may be kept “up ” as long as the source of energy is constant — it may not be kept “up ” for blaster bolts or Force lightning.
Effect: This power allows the Jedi to absorb or dissipate energy, including light, heat, radiation and blaster bolts. A successful control roll means that the energy is dissipated. If the user fails the roll, she takes full damage from the energy.
This power may be used to ward off sunburn, heat-stroke and radiation exposure, as well as withstand intense heat. This power may also be used to absorb blaster bolts, as Darth Vader did on Cloud City.
The character must activate the power in the same round to absorb the blaster bolt or Force lightning — the character must be able to roll the power before the attack lands. The power can’t be used after the attack has hit.
Example: A stormtrooper is shooting at Ana. Rather than dodge behind cover, she decides to use absorb/dissipate energy to absorb the shot. The difficulty is Moderate plus the damage of the blaster bolt. For the Moderate difficulty, the gamemaster picks a difficulty number of 14. Ana rolls control and gets a 21. If the blaster’s damage roll is less than seven, then Ana absorbs the blaster bolt and takes no damage. If the blaster’s damage roll is seven or higher, she takes full damage from the blaster shot.
Accelerate Healing
Control Difficulty: Easy for wounded characters, Moderate for incapacitated characters, Difficult for mortally wounded characters.
Time To Use: One minute.
Effect: A Jedi who uses this power successfully may make two natural healing rolls for the current day (12 hours apart) regardless of the severity of the injury. The Jedi gets a +2
modifier to both Strength rolls to heal. See Chapter Five, “Combat and Injuries” for healing rules. Accelerate healing may only be attempted once per day.
“Remarkable, sir. I wouldn ‘t have believed it possible for a human to heal so quickly.”— Too-Onebee
Example: Ana has been incapacitated; normally a full two weeks of rest are necessary before she can roll to heal. She makes her Moderate control roll to activate accelerate healing. She now gets to make two Strength rolls to heal and gets to add +2 to both rolls. Since she’s incapacitated, Ana needs a total of 9 or better to improve to wounded. Ana’s first Strength roll is an eight; adding the +2 gives her a total of 10. She improves from incapacitated to wounded twice (she’s at -2D to all actions).
Twelve hours later, Ana gets to make her second healing roll. Since she’s wounded, she only needs a Strength total of 7 to improve from wounded twice (at -2D) to wounded (-ID to all actions). Her Strength roll is a seven; the +2 gives her a total of nine. She now heals to wounded.
Concentration
Control Difficulty: Easy if the Jedi is relaxed and at peace; Difficult if the Jedi is filled with aggression, fear or other negative emotions; Very Difficult if the Jedi is acting on those negative emotions.
Effect: When using this power, the Jedi clears all negative thoughts from her mind, feeling the Force flowing through the universe and her own being.
The individual Jedi concentrates on one specific task at hand. If the skill roll is successful, the Jedi may add +4D to any one action in that round. The Jedi may do nothing other than using the concentration power and using that one skill for one action. The Jedi receives no bonus if anything else is done in that round, including duplicate uses of the same skill or dodges or parries.
This power may be used in conjunction with Force Points or Character Points. This power is only in effect for one round and may not be kept “up.”
Example: Luke is flying down the trench of the Death Star. With Ben’s urging, he clears his mind of negative thoughts, and feels the Force flowing through him. Using the Force, he concentrates on the task of firing a proton torpedo into the unshielded exhaust port. Since he has cleared his mind, the control difficulty is Easy. Luke’s player declares that Luke is also spending a Force Point to accomplish the task this round. Luke’s starship gunnery skill is 6D. He loses -ID for doing one other thing in the round (using the Force counts as an action), reducing his starship gunnery skill to 5D. Because he rolls successfully for his control, he receives the bonus of +4D, making his effective skill for that round 9D. Because he is spending a Force Point, his skill level is doubled to 18D! If Luke attempted any other action in that round, including firing another proton torpedo or blaster, or dodging enemy shots, he would receive no bonus.
Control Disease
Control Difficulty: Very Easy for a mild infection, such as a cold; Easy for a modest infection or illness, such as a high fever or severe flu; Moderate for a severe illness, such as gangrene or a hive virus; Difficult for a life-threatening disease; Very Difficult for a massive, long-standing disease; Heroic for a rapid-acting life-threatening disease.
Required Powers: Accelerate healing
Time to Use: 30 minutes to several uses over the course of weeks.
Effect: Control disease allows the Jedi to direct and control the anti-bodies and healing resources of her body to throw off an infection or to resist diseases within the body.
Using the power requires the Jedi to meditate for half an hour.
If the disease is life-threatening or long-standing, the Jedi must make repeated skill attempts over the course of several weeks or months to cure the disease entirely. (Gamemaster’s
discretion as to how many rolls are needed and how often.)
Control Pain
Control Difficulty: Very Easy for wounded or stunned characters, Easy for incapacitated characters, Difficult for mortally wounded characters.
The power can be kept “up, “so the character can ignore the pain of injuries for a long period of time. However, whenever the character is injured again, the Jedi must make a new control pain roll, with the difficulty being the new level of Injury.
Effect: A wounded Jedi who controls pain can act as if she has not been wounded, starting with the round after the power roll has been made. The wound is not healed, but the character doesn’t suffer the penalties of being wounded: a wounded Jedi doesn’t suffer any die code penalties; an incapacitated character can still act normally, as can a mortally wounded character. This power can also be used to shrug off any stun results.
However, the character is still injured, and thus is prone to getting worse, even if the Jedi doesn’t feel the pain. For example, a character who’s been wounded twice and is wounded again would still become incapacitated. Mortally wounded Jedi may still die from their injuries, even if they aren’t feeling any pain.
Detoxify Poison
Control Difficulty: Very Easy for a very mild poison, such as alcohol; Easy for a mild poison; Moderate for an average poison; Difficult for a virulent poison; Very Difficult to Heroic for a neurotoxin.
Time To Use: Five minutes.
Effect: This power allows a Jedi to detoxify or eject poisons that have entered her body. If the Jedi makes the power roll, the poison doesn’t affect her.
Emptiness
Control Difficulty: Moderate.
Note: Characters who are consumed by the dark side of the Force may not use this power.
Required Powers: Hibernation trance
Effect: The user empties her mind and allows the Force to flow through her. The character seems to be in deep meditation and is oblivious to her surroundings. A character in emptiness may not move or take any action except to try to disengage from the emptiness.
While in emptiness, a character is difficult to sense or affect with the Force. When another character attempts to use a Force power on the user in emptiness, add the user’s emptiness roll to the difficulty for the other character’s sense roll (if the power doesn’t use the sense skill, add the difficulty to the control roll). This difficulty is added regardless of whether or not the empty character would willingly receive the power’s effect.
Once the character comes out of emptiness, the character gets a +6 bonus modifier to all Force skill rolls for a period of time equal to the amount of time spent in emptiness. This bonus is reduced by -1 for each Dark Side Point that the character has.
When in emptiness, characters dehydrate and hunger normally — some initiates have died because they lacked enough control to bring themselves out of emptiness.
A character must make a Difficult control skill roll to bring herself out of emptiness. When the character enters into emptiness, the player must state for how long the character will be in meditation. The character may attempt to come out of meditation under the following circumstances:
• When the stated time has passed.
• Once each hour beyond the original time limit.
• The character’s body takes any damage more serious than stun damage.
Hibernation Trance
Control Difficulty: Difficult This power may be kept “up.”
Effect: This power allows a Jedi to place herself into a deep trance, remarkably slowing all body functions. The Jedi’s heartbeat slows, her breathing drops to barely perceivable levels, and she falls unconscious. A Jedi can heal while in a hibernation trance, but can do nothing else.
Anyone who comes across a Jedi in hibernation trance assumes that the Jedi is dead unless she makes a point of testing him. Another Jedi with the sense skill or the life detection power will be able to detect the Force within the hibernating character and realize that she is alive.
When a Jedi enters a hibernation trance, the player must declare under what circumstances the character will awaken: after a specific amount of time, or what stimuli need to be present (noise or someone touching them, for example). Another Jedi can use the power place another in hibernation trance to bring the user out of the trance.
Hibernation trance serves two purposes. It allows a Jedi to “play dead” and it can be used to survive when food or air supplies are low.
A character in hibernation uses only about a tenth as much air as someone who is sleeping — she can hibernate for a week in a dry climate or for up to a month in a wet climate before dying from lack of water. It is possible to hook the character up to an intravenous water drip to survive indefinitely.
A character can hibernate for up to three months before dying of starvation. An intravenous sugar solution can extend that to one year
Reduce Injury
Control Difficulty: Moderate for incapacitated characters, Difficult for mortally wounded characters, Very Difficult for dead characters.
Required Powers: Control pain
Effect: A Jedi may use this power to reduce the amount of injury she suffers. This power is normally only used in desperation because of its long-term repercussions. The power must be used in the round that the injury is suffered or in the round immediately following. When the power is successful, the Jedi loses a Force Point.
Any injury that is suffered is reduced to wounded. If the original injury would have killed the character, the gamemaster will inflict a relevant permanent injury on the character.
Example: Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader are fighting in the Emperor’s chambers on the Second Death Star. Luke batters down Vader’s defenses and makes a killing strike — but Vader uses the reduce injury power and spends a Force Point. He is now only wounded, but his hand is severed.
Note: It is not always a “selfish” act to save one’s life, so the character might be able to get the Force Point back. If the character was fighting to save her friends from certain doom — and if she fails, they certainly die — then this could even be considered an heroic action.
Remain Conscious
Control Difficulty: Easy for stunned characters, Moderate for incapacitated characters, Difficult for mortally wounded characters.
Required Powers: Control pain
Effect: Remain conscious allows a Jedi to remain conscious even after suffering injuries which would knock her unconscious. When a character with this power suffers this kind of injury, she loses all other actions for the rest of the round but she is still conscious (a character without this power would simply pass out).
At the beginning of the next round, the character may attempt to activate the power — this must be the first action of that round; the Jedi cannot even dodge or parry.
If the roll is unsuccessful, the character passes out immediately. If the roll is successful, the Jedi may only perform one other action that round — often the character will attempt to control pain. The character may make a last-ditch heroic effort before passing out. After that other action has been completed, the Jedi will lapse into unconsciousness (unless she has activated control pain or done something else to stay conscious).
Example: Ana suffers several stuns and should be knocked unconscious … but she has remain conscious. Ana loses her remaining actions for that round, but she is still awake. At the beginning of the next round, Ana’s player declares that she will try to activate remain conscious and control pain. The player makes the Moderate control roll to activate remain conscious, so Ana stays awake for the rest of the round. (If the roll had failed or Ana hadn’t activated remain conscious, she would have passed out at the beginning of the round.) Ana must now make a Very Easy control roll to activate control pain. If she succeeds, she may now act normally; if the roll fails, Ana is overwhelmed by the pain and slips into unconsciousness.
Resist Stun
Control Difficulty: Moderate.
Time To Use: One minute. This power may be kept “up.”
Effect: Resist stun allows the Jedi to prepare her body to resist the effects of stun damage. The power must be activated before the character has suffered any damage.
A successful result allows the Jedi to resist all stun results (except for unconscious). An unconscious result forces the Jedi to drop the power, and she is considered stunned. Other
injuries — wounded, incapacitated, mortally wounded and killed — are treated normally.
Example: Ana has a Strength of 3D; if she suffers three stun results, she is knocked unconscious. She activates the resist stun power and decides to keep it “up”. (Since the power is kept “up”, she suffers a -ID penalty to all actions.) In the first round of combat, Ana suffers two
stun results … but since she is using the resist stun power, she is not affected by the stuns. When she suffers a third stunned result, Ana must drop the resist stun power, but she is only
considered stunned (-ID to actions).
Sense Powers
Life Detection
Sense Difficulty: Very Easy if the subject has Force skills or is Force-sensitive; Moderate if not. Modified by relationship. This power may be kept “up. “
Effect: This power allows Jedi to detect live sentient beings who might otherwise remain hidden. When the power is activated, the Jedi knows the location of all sentients within 10 meters — if the power is kept “up,” the Jedi may know whenever a sentient approaches within 10 meters of them or vice versa.
When approached by or approaching sentient creatures, the Jedi should make a sense roll; each creature makes an opposed control or Perception roll to avoid detection. (These rolls don’t count as actions, so there are no die code penalties except those caused by injury.)
The Jedi detects each being that she ties or beats. If the Jedi beats the target’s roll by 10 or more points, she is aware if this person has Force skills (yes or no), is Force-sensitive (yes or no), if she has met the person before (yes or no), and if yes, their identity.
Example: Ana has her life detection power “up.” Bill, the gamemaster, knows that three Gamorreans are approaching Ana from behind. She rolls her sense to see if she can detect the beings — she rolls a 22.
The first Gamorrean’s roll is a 9; Ana’s roll beats his by 13 points. Ana knows the being is not Force-sensitive, doesn’t have Force skills; since Ana’s never met the being before, she doesn’t know its identity, not even its species. The second Gamorrean rolls a 15 — Ana only knows about the existence and location of the second being.
Ana’s roll beats the third Gamorrean’s by 11 points, so she knows that this being is also not Force-sensitive and doesn’t have Force skills. However, Ana has met the creature before—she knows the third being is Draughckt, a Gamorrean she met a few years earlier on the planet Seltos.
Life Sense
Sense Difficulty: Very Easy. Modified by proximity and relationship.
Required Powers: Life detection This power may be kept “up” to track a target.
Effect: The user can sense the presence and identity of a specific person for whom she searches. The user can sense how badly wounded, diseased or otherwise physically disturbed
the target is. A target may hide his identity from the Jedi using life sense by rolling his control skill and adding it to the difficulty.
Magnify Senses
Sense Difficulty: Very Easy. Modified by proximity.
Time To Use: Three rounds.
Effect: This power allows a Jedi to increase the effectiveness of her normal senses to perceive things that otherwise
would be impossible without artificial aids. She can hear noises beyond her normal hearing due to distance or softness (she can’t hear beyond normal frequencies). Likewise, she can see normally visible things over distances that would require the use of macrobinoculars; she can identify scents and odors that are normally too faint for human olfactory senses.
Receptive Telepathy
Sense Difficulty: Very Easy for friendly, non-resisting targets. A resisting target makes a Perception or control roll to determine the difficulty. Modified by proximity and relationship.
Required Powers: Life detection, life sense This power may be kept “up” if the target is willing and the proximity modifier doesn’t increase.
Effect: A Jedi who makes the power roll can read the surface thoughts and emotions of the target. The Jedi “hears” what the target is thinking, but cannot probe for deeper Information.
If the sense roll doubles the difficulty number, the Jedi can sift through any memories up to 24 hours old. A Jedi cannot sift through memories in the same round that contact is made — this process takes a full round.
A Jedi can read the minds of more than one person at a time, but each additional target requires a new receptive telepathy roll. This power may be used on creatures and other sentient species, although it cannot be used on droids.
Postcognition
Sense Difficulty: Easy if seeing less than two hours into the past; Moderate for seeing more than two hours but less than a week into the past; Difficult for seeing more than a week but less than six months into the past; Very Difficult for seeing more than six months but less than a year into the past; Heroic for seeing more than a year but less than two years into the past; +10 for each additional year.
Required Powers: Hibernation trance, life detection, sense Force
Time to Use: Five minutes; the time to use may be reduced by adding +10 for each minute cut. Minimum time to use of one minute.
Effect: Postcognition allows a Jedi to investigate the tenuous imprints of the Force left on objects when they are handled by living beings. The character must be able to handle the target object.
The Jedi must declare how far in the past is being reviewed prior to rolling postcognition. If the roll is successful, the Jedi can determine who has handled or touched the object and what events have transpired around it. The Jedi may “search” for specific incidents or simply review past events, somewhat like viewing a hologram.
If the postcognition roll is equal to or higher than three times the difficulty number, the character can witness events when the object was present as if she were there herself.
If the postcognition roll is greater than or equal to twice the difficulty number, the Jedi gains a good sensory impression of the event, but is limited in that the primary sense (the
sense which gives the most information, usually sight) is wavery or obscured; the other sensory impressions come through clearly.
If the postcognition roll is simply greater than the difficulty number, then all sensory impressions are muffled, tactile sense is dulled, smells or tastes are indistinct or mixed. The Jedi receives a vague sense of who handled the object and what events transpired around it.
Example: Ana is going to use postcognition on a blaster to see if it was used to murder an
Alliance officer. She declares that she will search back a full year (a Very Difficult task) — her
The Star Wars Roleplaying Game postcognition total is 24, which just barely beats
the difficulty number. Ana gets several sensory impressions — blurry images of a woman grabbing the gun, a muffled scream as a man is shot and falls to the ground. Unfortunately, the images are so indistinct that Ana can’t tell exactly who is using the gun and who was shot.
If Ana had limited her postcognition viewing to less than two hours — an Easy task — her roll of
24 would have been more than three times the difficulty. She would have seen any events with
crystal clear clarity.
Sense Force
Sense Difficulty: Moderate for an area; Difficult for sensing details or specific objects within the area. Modified by proximity.
Effect: This power is used to sense the ambient Force within a place. It cannot be used to specifically detect sentient beings, but there are many forms of life and many areas of the galaxy intertwined with the Force which can be sensed with this power.
Sense Force will tell a character the rough magnitude of the Force in an area or object (rich, moderate or poor in the Force), the rough type and quantity of life-forms (“many insects,” “only microbes and bacteria,” “teeming with plant and animal life, including higher predators”) and whether the area or object tends toward the dark side or the light (for example, the tree on Dagobah which Luke Skywalker entered is a “dark side nexus” rich in the negative energies of the dark side of the Force). An area rich in negative or positive energies may indicate past events or the activities of past inhabitants. The Jedi may also receive “vague premonitions” about the area, such as “I sense something wrong,” or “I sense a great impending tragedy.”
Alter Powers
Injure/Kill
Alter Difficulty: Target’s control or Perception roll.
Required Power: Life detection, life sense
Warning: A character who uses this power receives a Dark Side Point.
Effect: An attacker must be touching the target to use this power. In combat, this means making a successful brawling attack in the same round that the power is to be used. When the power is activated, if the attacker’s alter roll is higher than the character’s resisting control or Perception
total, figure damage as if the power roll was a damage total and the control or Perception roll was a Strength roll to resist damage.
Example: A Dark Jedi grabs Ana by the shoulder and uses injure/kill on her. The Dark Jedi’s
alter roll is 15; Ana’s control roll is an 8. That’s a difference of seven, which on the damage chart
means Ana is wounded. Ana falls to the ground, clutching her shoulder.
Telekinesis
Alter Difficulty: Very Easy for objects weighing one kilogram or less; Easy for objects weighing one to ten kilograms; Moderate for objects 11 to 100 kilograms; Difficult for 101 kilograms to one metric ton; Very Difficult for 1,001 kilograms to ten metric tons; Heroic for objects weighing 10,001 kilograms to 100 metric tons.
Object may be moved at 10 meters per round; add +5 per additional 10 meters per round. The target must be in sight of the Jedi.
Increased difficulty if object isn’t moving in simple, straight-line movement:
+ 1 to +5 for gentle turns.
+ 6 to +10 for easy maneuvers.
+11 to +25 or more for complex maneuvers, such as using a levitated lightsaber to attack.
Modified by proximity.
This power may be kept “up.”
Effect: This power allows the Jedi to levitate and move objects with the power of her mind alone. If used successfully, the object moves as the Jedi desires.
A Jedi can levitate several objects simultaneously, but each additional object requires a new telekinesis roll.
This power can be used to levitate oneself or others. It can be used as a primitive space drive in emergencies.
When used to levitate someone against their will, the target may resist by adding her Perception or control roll to the difficulty number.
Levitated objects can be used to attack other characters, but this automatically gives the Jedi a Dark Side Point. Such objects do ID damage if under a kilogram, 2D if one to ten kilos, 4D if 11 to 100 kilos, 3D speeder-scale damage if 101 kilos to one metric ton, 3D starfighter-scale damage if one to ten tons and 5D starfighter-scale damage if 11 to 100 metric tons.
Such attacks require an additional control roll by the Jedi, which acts as an attack roll against the target’s dodge. If the target doesn’t dodge the attack, the difficulty is Easy.
Control and Sense Powers
Lightsaber Combat
Control Difficulty: Moderate.
Sense Difficulty: Easy. This power may be kept “up.”
Effect: Jedi use this power to wield this elegant but difficult-to-control weapon while also sensing their opponents’ actions through the Force.
This power is called upon at the start of a battle and remains “up” until the Jedi is stunned, wounded or worse; a Jedi who has been injured or stunned may attempt to bring the power back “up.”
If the Jedi is successful in using this power, she adds her sense dice to her lightsaber skill roll when attacking and parrying. The Jedi may add or subtract part or all of her control dice to the lightsaber’s damage; players must decide how many control dice they are adding or subtracting when the power is activated.
Example: Ana is entering combat: she has a lightsaber skill of 4D, a control of 5D and a sense
of 4D+2. She activates lightsaber combat by making her Moderate control roll and her Easy sense roll; she decides to keep the power “up.” Since she is making both the control and sense rolls in the same round, each suffers a -ID penalty. She adds her sense of 3D+2 (4D+2 – ID) to her lightsaber skill roll of 4D, for a total lightsaber of 7D+2. She adds her control of 4D (5D-1D) to her lightsaber’s damage of 5D, for a total of 9D. When Ana attacks in a round, that’s another
action, for an additional -ID to all actions (total penalty of-2D): she’d only roll 6D+2 to attack and
would roll 8D for damage.
A Jedi who fails when trying to activate lightsaber combat may only use the lightsaber skill for the duration of the combat. Finally, the Jedi may use lightsaber combat to parry blaster bolts as a “reaction skill.”
The Jedi may also attempt to control where deflected blaster bolts go; this is a “reaction skill” and counts as an additional action. (The Jedi cannot full parry when trying to control deflected bolts.)
If the Jedi tries to control the blaster bolt, she makes a control roll: the difficulty is the range of the target (use the original weapon’s ranges) or the target’s dodge roll. The blaster bolt’s damage stays the same.
Example: Ana decides to parry a blaster bolt and control where it goes. This is two more
actions in a round, which means a total of four actions (don’t forget the control and sense to
keep the power “up”), for a penalty of -3D: Ana’s lightsaber skill is 5D+2, and her lightsaber’s
damage is 7D
.
Ana’s attacker is using a blaster pistol that causes 4D damage.
First, Ana makes her parry roll with her lightsaber: her parry roll of 18 is higher than the attacker’s blasterroll of 13, so Ana parries the bolt.
Now, Ana tries to control the blaster bolt. Her target is 20 meters away — that’s a Moderate
difficulty for the blaster pistol. Ana rolls a 14 with her control—just barely good enough to hit. The blaster bolt bounces off Ana’s lightsaber blade and hits another goon, causing 4D damage.
Projective Telepathy
Control Difficulty: Very Easy. Increase difficulty by +5 to +10 if the Jedi cannot verbalize the thoughts she is transmitting (she is gagged or doesn’t want to make a sound). Modified by proximity.
Sense Difficulty: Very Easy if the target is friendly and doesn’t resist. If target resists, roll Perception or control to determine the difficulty. Modified by relationship.
Required Powers: Life detection, life sense, receptive telepathy
Effect: If the Jedi successfully projects her thoughts, the target “hears” her thoughts and “feels” her emotions. The Jedi can only broadcast feelings, emotions and perhaps a couple of words — this power cannot be used to send sentences or to hold conversations.
The target understands that the thoughts and feelings he is experiencing are not his own and that they belong to the user of the power. If the Jedi doesn’t “verbally” identify herself, the target doesn’t know who is projecting the
thoughts. This power can only be used to communicate with other minds, not control them.
Control and Alter Powers
Accelerate Another’s Healing
Control Difficulty: Very Easy. Modified by relationship.
Alter Difficulty: Very Easy.
Required Powers: Control another’s pain, control pain
Time To Use: One minute
Effect: The target is allowed to make extra healing rolls, as outlined in accelerate healing. The Jedi must be touching the character whenever she activates this power. Control Another’s Disease
Control Difficulty: Very Easy, as modified by relationship. Alter Difficulty: Same as control disease.
Required Powers: Accelerate healing, control disease
Time to Use: 30 minutes to several uses over the course of several weeks.
Effect: This power allows a Jedi to heal another character, using the same rules and conditions as outlined in control disease. The Jedi must be touching the character to be healed.
Control Another’s Pain
Control Difficulty: Very Easy. Modified by relationship.
Alter Difficulty: Easy for wounded characters; Moderate for incapacitated characters; Difficult for mortally wounded Characters.
Required Powers: Control pain
Effect: This power allows a Jedi to help another character control pain, under the same rules and conditions outlined in the control pain power. The Jedi must be touching the character to use this power
.
Place Another in Hibernation Trance
Control Difficulty: Very Easy, as modified by the target’s relationship.
Alter Difficulty: Very Easy, as modified by proximity.
Required Powers: Hibernation trance
Time to Use: Five minutes.
Effect: This power allows a Jedi to put another character into a hibernation trance. The affected character must be in physical contact with the power’s user and must agree to be shut down — the power cannot be used as an “attack” to knock others unconscious.
This power can be used to bring another character out of a hibernation trance, but the alter difficulty is increased by +10.
Return Another To Consciousness
Control Difficulty: Easy. Modified by proximity and relationship.
Alter Difficulty: Easy for incapacitated characters; Difficult for mortally wounded characters.
Required Powers: Remain conscious, control pain
Effect: The target returns to consciousness. The target has the same restrictions as imposed by the remain conscious power, and must be touching the Jedi.
Transfer Force
Control Difficulty: Easy. Modified by relationship.
Alter Difficulty: Moderate.
Required Powers: Control another’s pain, control pain
Time To Use: One minute.
Effect: This power will save a mortally wounded character from dying because the Jedi is transferring her life force to the target. The target character remains mortally wounded
but will not die unless injured again. The injured character is in hibernation and will stay alive in this state for up to six weeks. The Jedi must be touching the target character when the power is activated.
When this power is used, the Jedi must spend a Force Point (this is the life force that is transferred to the target). This use is always considered heroic, so the Jedi will get the
Force Point back at the end of the adventure.
The recipient of this power must be willing.
Control, Sense and Alter Powers
Affect Mind
Control Difficulty: Very Easy for perceptions; Easy for memories; Moderate for conclusions. Modified by proximity.
Sense Difficulty: The target’s control or Perception roll.
Alter Difficulty: Very Easy for slight, momentary misperceptions, minor changes to distant memories, or if the character doesn’t care one way or another. Easy for brief, visible phenomena, for memories less than a year old, or if the character feels only minor emotion regarding the conclusion he is reaching. Moderate for short hallucinations, for memories less than a day old, or if the target has strict orders about the conclusion. Difficult for slight disguises
to facial features, hallucinations which can be sensed with two senses (sight and sound, for example), for memories less than a minute old, or if the matter involving the conclusion is very important to the target. Very Difficult for hallucinations which can be sensed by all five senses, if the memory change is a major one, or if the logic is absolutely clear and coming to the wrong conclusion is virtually impossible.
Effect: The target character’s perceptions are altered so that he senses an illusion or fails to see what the user of the power doesn’t want him to see. This power is used to permanently alter a target character’s memories so that he remembers things incorrectly or fails to remember something.
This power can also be used to alter a character’s conclusions so that he comes to an incorrect conclusion.
Before making skill rolls, the Jedi must describe exactly what effect she is trying to achieve. The power is normally used on only one target; two or more targets can only be affected if the power is used two or more times.
The target character believes he is affected by any successful illusions — a character who thinks he is struck by an illusory object would feel the blow. If he thought he was injured, he would feel pain, or if he thought he had been killed, he would go unconscious. However, the character suffers no true injury.
This power cannot affect droids or recording devices.
Other Ways of Knowing the Force
Many cultures have different understandings of the workings of the Force; the “witches” of Dathomir, the students of the Tyia and the Force-users of Ossus are but three such groups. Some ways of knowing the Force are different but no less noble or “good” than the Jedi way, while others are clearly more neutral or even evil in intent. Because of the unique ways in which these viewpoints manipulate the Force, their skills and powers can vary dramatically. If you want to create and use one of these other ways, you must define it in game terms. Here are a few points to consider:
• That way’s rules, skills and powers. Because of different perspectives, each “way of knowing the Force” may have different Force skills and powers. The Tyia is an example of a way which is only slightly different from the traditional Jedi powers. Some methods use radically different skills and powers — you must define all these rules.
• How does the student gain skills and powers? Is there a set ritual or training regimen to educate students? Some ways may use academies, while others may emphasize a close student and master relationship. Still other ways of the Force may be known only through meditation, myths, hidden writings or ancient rituals.
• What standards are the student expected to adhere to? Some methods of knowing the Force require students and practitioners to adhere to a strict code of conduct. Other methods may offer the student a great deal of personal freedom. What are the method’s rules? What are the punishments for disobeying the rules —will the student be cast out, not be taught new skills and powers … or will the student face involuntary servitude, imprisonment or worse?
• The definitions of “good” and “evil” vary from culture to culture … although the rules of the Force do not. Some ways of knowing the Force may be rooted in the dark side, requiring a student to commit evil to progress in her studies. The student, due to her culture, may accept these teachings as “perfectly natural,” yet they will still drive the student to the brink of the dark side. When confronted with this moral challenge, those who are strong in the light side may be forced to leave the discipline and seek out another method of mastering the Force.
The Tyia
The Tyia is an example of an alternate way of knowing the Force. The Revwien Tyia adept character template follows this method.
Tyia teaches that individual introspection is the way to -learn the true way of the universe — students are taught to control their own personal Force (called “Tyia”) through meditation and ceremony. Because of the unique way in which the Tyia studies the Force, there are some special rules regarding its use:
• A Tyia student learning control at ID automatically learns hibernation trance and emptiness (which is Easy difficulty for Tyia). The character learns an additional three control powers.
• All alter powers have their difficulty increased by one level. All powers have a minimum time to use of one minute.
Gamemastering Jedi Characters
Jedi and Force-using characters are exceptionally powerful; while they can be a great challenge for an experienced player, a Jedi in the hands of an inexperienced or immature player can lead to problems.
The most typical problem is a player who insists on using the Force for everything … to the extent of completely overshadowing the other player characters. As a gamemaster, you have the right to limit Jedi in your game: more than one such character is generally excessive (except in the Tales of the Jedi-era) and you can even rule that no Force-users will be allowed. You should also spend some time talking with the player to make sure that the responsibilities of playing a Jedi are understood.
Force-Users. It’s well established that Force-users are very rare in the galaxy. (At least in the era of the Empire.) Therefore, any Jedi character should be more than just a collection of game statistics. The player should invest some time in developing a truly interesting background which justifies the character’s knowledge of Force powers. Typically, such characters have only on limited knowledge of the Force (since there are not many Jedi instructors remaining). Most Jedi are also haunted by the knowledge that the Empire places a top priority on their capture and possible execution.
There is also a fascinating adventure hook in this background. Rumors of Jedi in hiding or lost Jedi writings, artifacts or lightsabers are certainly powerful motivators in the game. Jedi player characters may also be drawn by the presence of other Force-users: will the Jedi want to intercede to save a young Force-sensitive from the clutches of the Empire? What happens if a Jedi encounters another novice Jedi character: will they become friends, comrades, rivals… or even mortal enemies?
The Dark Side
The dark side is perhaps the greatest threat a Jedi can face. It’s always lurking in the shadows, a quick and easy temptation for an undisciplined Jedi filled with anger and frustration. The Jedi must be honorable and noble since Force-sensitives who act ambiguously are easily corrupted to the dark side.
You can use the temptation to embrace the dark side and the necessity to prevent evil from occurring as motivations for your adventures.
However, you must be reasonable in using these elements. The player must strive for her Jedi to be honorable and noble. You should be reasonable in not abusing the Jedi’s commitment to good by forcing characters along a predetermined path every step of the way. This will aggravate the players and ruin the fun for everyone.
A Jedi’s commitment to stop evil should be the dramatic focus of an adventure, not a hassle. In short, the Jedi is committed to stop evil, but she shouldn’t have to confront evil every time she goes out for a walk …
While the rules say that players should be warned whenever they are about to receive a Dark Side Point, it is the player’s responsibility to live up to the spirit of the Jedi Code. A player who pushes to see how far she can go before being warned about receiving a Dark Side Point — who clearly is not living up to the spirit of the Jedi Code — may find that her character is given a Dark Side Point without a warning when the character commits evil.
The final determination of whether or not the Jedi deserves a Dark Side Point is up to the gamemaster. These rules are intended to encourage taking the role of a Jedi seriously — playing a Jedi is not a frivolous decision. On the other hand, the rules aren’t intended to cause philosophical arguments in the middle of a game session. As a rule of thumb, if the players have to spend a lot of time justifying why their actions aren’t evil, chances are the actions are indeed evil. If the players don’t like your decision — well, you’re the gamemaster.
Responsible Use of Power. Inherent in the Jedi Code is the concept of responsibility for one’s actions.
A Jedi who uses Force powers to coerce or control others is surely tending toward the dark side. But other, more subtle abuses of power also lead to the darkness — Jedi should never use their powers for fame, wealth or power. A Jedi who constantly uses the Force for personal gain is on the path of corruption — perhaps more slowly than the Dark Jedi who chooses to serve evil, but she is on that path nonetheless.
True Jedi use their powers sparingly and only when necessary to fulfill the tenets of the Jedi Code. A Jedi who depends on Force powers is abusing them, which leads to folly.
Tremors in the Force. The Jedi who acts with restraint and thought may seldom be confronted by the Emperor’s minions. A Jedi who constantly uses the Force will create many tremors in the Force, making it very easy for the Emperor’s servants to hunt her down. A Jedi who uses the Force too frequently will surely draw the attention of people that she’d really much rather avoid.
Premonitions, visions and disturbances in the Force can be used to involve characters in a larger adventure. While players will not enjoy constantly being “haunted” by such events, the occasional vision can be used quite effectively to allude to future events or trigger truly important adventures.
Teachers. A teacher is essential to a Jedi student’s progress. Only after a Jedi has achieved a relatively high level of skill can the character rely on herself … and even Luke, despite a high level of experience, needed to study under Yoda to become a full-fledged Jedi Knight.
Teachers do more than teach Force skills and powers — they instruct students in the disciplines needed to maintain balance and adhere to the tenets of the light. A good teacher can help a young student learn patience and responsibility, while a poor teacher may allow a student to slip to the dark side; teachers consumed by the dark side may be able to corrupt even the purest Jedi adepts.
Limiting Powers. As noted, Jedi characters can only use powers they’ve been taught. Of course, they have to find someone to teach them each power.
This gives you a potent tool. The quest for a new teacher, new powers and lost lore is a great motivator for Jedi Adventures.
This rule also allows you to limit the Force powers allowed in your game: if a Jedi can’t find a teacher, there is no way to learn the power. Of course, your villains may be able to use these powers, but that’s another matter …
Intuitive Powers. It is well-known that some beings can push themselves to feats of great strength or endurance in crisis situations. This is true of Jedi characters, who, when faced with an incredible challenge, may exhibit powers she hasn’t learned.
At the gamemaster’s discretion only, characters may temporarily be “granted” powers in exceptional circumstances. This reflects the Force’s mystic and often unpredictable nature.
You may grant the power for “free,” require the Jedi to spend a number of Character Points or Force Points to learn the power or set other conditions you deem reasonable. You may grant a Jedi a power on a one-time basis to indicate the importance of a particular task, or you may “reward” characters who have performed exceptionally well by allowing them to “subconsciously” learn a new power.
Creating New Powers. While it is true that the greatest Jedi of the Galactic Republic created new Force powers, this was only accomplished with years of dedicated study and training.
You have the absolute right to prevent Jedi characters from trying to create new powers. To the best of current knowledge, the creation of new powers appears to be the province of highly-skilled Jedi such as Yoda and Luke Skywalker and beyond the abilities of most Jedi students.
Dark Side Characters
The dark side seduces individuals with promises of power, but once someone takes up the darkness, the only rewards are pain and helplessness. The dark side controls her, rather than her controlling it.
Playing Dark Side Characters. It is strongly suggested that player characters seduced by the dark side become gamemaster characters, to be used as a continuing villain. (The player must create a new character.)
However, if there is one thing that Star Wars teaches us, it’s that good triumphs over evil. If you and the player agree, she may be allowed to continue playing a character consumed by the dark side with the understanding that she will attempt to bring the character back to the light side of the Force. This kind of character is very difficult to play properly. The player has an evil character — even if she’s trying to be good.
On the other hand, allowing a player to portray the fall and redemption of her character has the makings of a truly epic story. True redemption often requires the character to commit a heroic sacrifice, and may involve the character’s death. If you feel the character is not being played properly, you can take her as a gamemaster character (to be used as a continuing villain) and the player must design a new character.
Most characters consumed by the dark side began the game with other characters dedicated to the cause of the Rebel Alliance and the light. Such a character may try to hide her new path (perhaps betraying the rest of the characters at a critical point) or may simply leave the group. Playing a dark side character can be a lonely, challenging undertaking.
Some groups use Imperial characters. A dark side character would naturally be much more appropriate to this type of group. However, such characters shouldn’t have it easy: they get what they deserve. Not only will a dark side character face dangerous foes who embrace the light, but other, more powerful dark side characters (such as Dark Jedi) may try to control or kill the player character. A dark side character who is being played in an immature manner is going to have a very short life span.
Rules. Characters who have turned to the dark side must use the following rules.
• A character consumed by the dark side retains all Force Points and Character Points.
• Force Points. A dark side character only receives Force Points when spending Force Points while committing evil at the dramatically appropriate time. The Force Point is returned at the end of the adventure and the character gains another. Any other time a dark side character spends a Force Point, it is lost, even if spent while committing evil. The dark side requires greater and greater evil to fulfill its needs.
• Character Points. Characters consumed by the dark side no longer receive Character Points for adventuring. Instead, they receive one Character Point every time they receive one Dark Side Point.
• Dark Side Points. Dark side characters receive Dark Side Points for committing or actively bringing about evil actions. Examples of this include when Darth Vader strangles the Rebel soldier in the first scene of Star Wars; when Darth Vader orders the torture of Princess Leia; and when Grand Moff Tarkin orders the destruction of Alderaan.
• Calling Upon the Dark Side. Dark side characters may call upon the dark side to get Force Points. The difficulty is Easy the first time the dark side is called upon in an adventure; add two difficulty levels if the action will not bring pain or harm to other beings. Increase the difficulty by one level for each additional time in an adventure the character calls upon the dark side.
• It Demands More Than it Gives. If a character fails in an attempt to call upon the dark side, it demands something of her. The dark side’s corrupting influence is dominating the character.
Roll 1D — the character must lose that number of Character Points or the dark side will “take” 1D from either an attribute or Force skill (character’s choice as to which attribute or Force skill). If any attribute or skill is reduced to 0D, the character is consumed by the dark side and dies.
Returning to the Light. Dark side characters can return to the light, but it’s not easy — the dark side is never eager to release those it has enslaved.
Such a character must truly begin to believe in the light, forsaking the path of darkness. The influence of others — particularly Jedi of the light — may cause a dark side character to have a “moment of doubt.”
A dark side character must prove her commitment to the light by spending a Force Point in a selfless manner at a dramatically appropriate time. Often, this requires the character to make a heroic sacrifice, such as risking certain death in defense of the innocent and good. (As gamemaster, you have final say over whether the character is redeemed—the effort must be sincere and the character must show that she will not lapse back onto the path of darkness.)
When a character is redeemed, the dark side exacts a final toll: she loses all Force Points and Character Points. The character’s Dark Side Point total drops to five.
The character is now part of the light (and earns Force Points and Character Points normally), but the presence of the Dark Side Points indicates the character’s precarious position. The character should atone to remove her Dark Side Points or even the slightest transgressions can send her back on the path of darkness.
(The dark side will not be so “giving” for a character who returns. You can use special rules to reflect the almost punitive conditions the character will face. Perhaps the dark side takes ID from an attribute or Force skill as soon as the character returns to the darkness. The character may also find it much more difficulty to earn Force Points and Character Points and slowly be consumed by the dark side.)
That’s it, you now are ready to play. Enjoy and May the Force Be With You!
