Star Wars Saga RPG Hacks, Part One (Abstract Combat)

[zakarntson]

I grabbed the new Star Wars Saga Edition. The presentation's great, and I really like the rules. I want to play this game, pronto. The good far outweighs the bad, but I'm not here to pile on kudos. Here's what I'm stuck on:

• The experience system gets a scant few pages, and you only get XP for overcoming "encounters." This means that the rewards are based entirely on the GM fiat combined with D&D-style encounters.
• Miniature-based combat. The first chapter even says that miniatures are a component of play. Yikes! This is Star Wars! I can't think of any instances in the films that lend themselves to granular d20 tabletop combat.
• Keeping track of credits seems silly. There's epic storytelling to be had! Why waste much time on knowing your bank account?
• Seemingly no way to begin with a vehicle since they're so expensive. Sorry about that pilot you rolled up.
• GM's advice has some great gems, but there's a pair of items I strongly disagree with:
  • Metagame thinking is discouraged (Metagame Thinking, pp 245). I'm a big fan of players holding a different knowledge set than players. If the character doesn't know there's a bunch of stormtroopers behind a door, but the player does, the player gets to make a metagame choice: Would it be fun to open the door?
  • An item on cheating (Cheating (and Player Perceptions), pp 246) provides advice amounting to System Doesn't Matter, encouraging the GM to fudge die rolls. System Does Matter, but that's a gigantic can of worms I'm not opening here.

To that end, I'm working on some Star Wars hacks. A revised XP system, abstract combat, a new resources skill (to replace credits), and a pair of starting-with-ships options.

Abstract Combat

Without miniatures, you determine the distance between all the combatants at the beginning of the session.

• Unreachable: Across a chasm, separated by a cliff. Combat between flying vehicles don't use this distance. Non-flying
• Long: All ranged attacks are made at -10 (heavy weapons are at a -5).
• Medium: All ranged attacks are made at -5 (heavy weapons are at a -2).
• Short: All ranged attacks are made at -2 (except heavy weapons, which have no penalty).
• Point Blank: No penalty to ranged attacks.
• Melee: Melee weapon attacks allowed.

There are now two new move actions to replace the move and withdraw miniature-centric actions.
New Action: Position

You attempt to shift the distance between you and an opponent.
To shift from any range to another (save Melee) takes two move actions. Shifting from Melee to Point Blank takes one move action (and vice versa). If your speed is less than 5, it takes an extra move action to shift ranges. If your speed is greater than 10, a two move action shift takes one move action, and a single move action shift takes a swift action instead.
If positioning moves you out of Melee, you provoke an attack of opportunity.

Avoid Flank
If you are being flanked, you may choose one of the two flanking combatants to remain in Melee (no attack of opportunity allowed), and place the other in Point Blank (provoking an attack of opportunity). You are no longer flanked.
New Action: Flank

You attempt to maneuver to place your opponent directly between you and an ally. You must be within Point Blank distance of your target, and your opponent must already be engaged in Melee distance with an ally.
If you are already in Melee with other opponents, you provoke an attack of opportunity.