Expanding the Jedi Library

I recently picked up Vol. 3 and 4 of Knights of the Old Republic for my personal library, which covers issues #13 to 24 of the series, the entirety of the "Days of Fear, Nights of Anger, Daze of Hate, Knights of Suffering" storylines.  Highly recommended if you want to continue the story of Zayne Carrick and his motley crew through the Republic front lines of Serroco, the biological labs of Arkania, and the Mandalorian war zone on Taris.

Also, the new issue of Knights of the Old Republic — #33, part 2 of the 4-part "Vindication" storyline — is now out.  This storyline has Zayne confronting once and for all the Jedi Masters who framed him, resolving the "Zayne on the run" storyline and pushing the series in a new direction.  This issue in particular explores the backstory of Krynda, Haazen, and Barrison Draay, Lucien's father, and is a pretty good read.

There's also a new poll question at the right.

The Force Unleashed video game

I picked up The Force Unleashed for PS2 on the release date (my XBox 360 has been temperamental about crashing).  Even though I knew the entire story going in, having read the graphic novel ahead of time, I was still pretty pumped for it.

Sadly, I don't think the game was worth a year's delay.  At least, definitely not for the PS2.  I'm less than inspired by the incredibly linear levels, lackluster game design, and monotonous waves of stupid, stupid enemies.  The bonus content on the PS2 (the Jedi Temple levels) was awkwardly shoehorned in — you go to the Jedi Temple because Vader demands it.  (The most awkwardly hilarious scene is that after you leave Coruscant to go to Raxus Prime, Juno Eclipse says, "But that's a heavily defended Imperial world!"  Where did we just come from?)  Plus, it was way too short — I don't feel like I should've been able to beat the game in 2 days.  (Knights of the Old Republic has spoiled me, I think.)

Perhaps the most egregious thing for me is that the PS2 version is missing dialogue.  As a Star Wars lore fanatic, that's an unforgivable sin.  I've compared the PS2 endings to video of the PS3 endings, and those have a whole lot more dialogue going on.  There seem to be some plot points missing from the PS2 version — it's never quite clear the Emperor's role in the ending, as was explicitly stated in the graphic novel, or what exactly Juno sees in Starkiller.  The game is also missing content — the scene of crashing a Star Destroyer, which I'm told is some sort of atrocious mini-game on other consoles, is simply a cutscene in the PS2 version, so I wonder what else was cut from my version.  (I never actually saw half the stuff that was hinted at on the Kazdan Paratus level, like the Jedi Master simulacra, or went into the junk Temple itself.)

Sadly, when I want the definitive Force Unleashed experience, I'll read the graphic novel, thankyouverymuch.

The Force Unleashed is here!

Having read The Force Unleashed Campaign Guide, I can sum it up in one sentence: If KotOR was WotC's love letter to Jedi and Force-users, TFU is their love letter to the non-Force-using classes.  (Which is odd, given that the book has the word Force in the title.)

TFU was originally intended to be the first book released after the core book before delays with the video game kept pushing it back, making Starships the first book out instead.  It definitely shows, as a lot of the talents, feats and prestige classes push characters in exciting new directions and borrow some elements from the old Star Wars RPG (particularly the Hero's Guide).

It's definitely the non-Force-users who get the best stuff in this book.  Nobles get talents that let them find out their enemies' stats, let their allies deal an extra die (!) of damage against a single target, or get an automatic 20 on a Persuasion check once per encounter.  Scoundrels get three new Slicer talents, as well as a Smuggling talent tree that is focused on hiding weapons on yourself and fast-talking your way out of trouble.  Scouts get the Spy talent tree, which has abilities focused on surveillance and blending in.  The Soldier gets talents that help shore up his Will Defense and strike fear in the hearts of his enemies.  There's also a ton of new uses for skills in the book, including rules for crafting using Mechanics.

Perhaps the most potentially broken thing in the book is the Unleashed abilities.  You take the Unleashed feat, and you can spend Destiny Points in wild and powerful ways.  Really, really powerful.  I'm a little curious to see how it works out before I pass judgment on it, because these abilities all do require Destiny Points to use, and they're probably no more powerful than an automatic crit or auto-missing an attack.

Prestige classes are solid.  Elite Troopers get the Critical Master talent tree, which is exactly what it sounds like, and Force Adepts get the Imperial Inquisitor tree, which is some powerful anti-Jedi abilities.  I'm also a fan of the six new prestige classes: 

• Enforcer is like a sector ranger or security agent, and it gives some cool "police-like" mishmash of abilities.  (Also, the illustrated Enforcer bears more than a passing resemblance to Nathan Fillion.)  It's not a very focused prestige class, but it does give some really cool abilities, and the big draw is that like the Wealth talent, it gives out free gear every level.
  
• Independent Droid makes droids really worthwhile to play by shoring up a lot of their weaknesses.  It should also be mentioned that there are no less than 15 droid-only talents in the book as well, divided by degree (1st-degree droids get 3 talents, 2nd-degree droids get 3 talents, etc.) that are treated like Force talents (any droid can take them any time they like), and this book goes a long way to making droids playable and fun.  (It should also be noted that the Independent Droid is the only prestige class that can be taken at 4th level, and one of only two, the Elite Trooper being the other one, that has a d12 hit point die.)
  
• Infiltrator is the quintessential spy: it gets crazy-good stealth and stunning abilities, as well as a Bothan Spynet talent tree that is keyed around using Gather Information to gain bonuses in combat.  It looks like it would be a lot of fun to play.
  
• Master Privateer is a light-side pirate class (it specifically says if you fall to the dark side, you can't take any more levels).  It requires some piloting abilities, and it gives some good abilities both with starship weapons and fighting with both vibroblade and pistol.
  
• Medic is exactly what it sounds like: It is the best healer for its buck.  It doesn't boost Force abilities like Vital Transfer, but it does greatly improve the Treat Injury skill and performing surgery.  It is a strong, focused prestige class that is solely devoted to you getting the most out of your Treat Injury skill, and you will get a lot out of it.
  
• Saboteur loves to screw around with equipment.  It is fantastic with setting explosives and jamming enemy equipment.  It also has a talent tree devoted to building a remote-controlled blaster turret on the fly, which is pretty cool, and it penalizes enemies who roll natural 1s against you.
  

There's 5 new Force powers, 5 new Force talents, 5 new Force secrets, 2 new Force traditions (Agents of Ossus and Felucian shamans), and 10 new Force techniques.  The dark side gets stronger in this book with some really damaging powers and secrets, and the Unleashed Force powers are nothing less than insane.  Force Lightning as an area attack?  Force Thrust shooting enemies like a rocket into walls?  It's really crazy stuff.

There's not a whole lot that stood out in new equipment, droids, or starships — mostly because a lot of it won't be era-appropriate — though there is some good stuff.  The book also has reams and reams of data on the Empire, stats of all kinds of NPCs and enemies and gear — I'm convinced this is the biggest chapter in the book — which would be really cool if we were doing a Dark Times-era campaign.  There are also new rules for organizations, taken straight from the PHB 2 of D&D 3.5, but the jury's still out on them yet.

All in all, a pretty solid book, and I'm definitely impressed with the options it opens up.

A contest! I propose a contest!

As you may have noticed, every planet we've been to in our campaign so far is an established, canon planet.  (Yes, even Sleheyron, the factory world in Hutt Space we traveled to the first two sessions, is mentioned off-hand in KOTOR 1 and was in fact originally slated to be the home of the fifth Star Map before being cut in the game design process.)

I'd like to shake things up a bit, and I'd like your help.

To that end, I propose a contest to design your own original Star Wars planet and submit it to me at my e-mail address (benton.sancho@gmail.com).  The very best planet will be used in future Star Wars sessions, and the winner will get 4,000 XP, enough to push them to 5th level and give them a head start toward 6th.

Questions you should answer are:

• What is the planet's name?
  
• Where is the planet (Deep Core, Core Worlds, Colonies, Inner Rim, Mid Rim, Outer Rim, Unknown Regions, Wild Space, Hutt Space)?
  
• What is its terrain type?  Is it consistent across the planet, or does it vary?
  
• Who lives there now?  Is it uninhabited?  Is it a colony for an already-established Star Wars species?  Is it an ecumenopolis (city planet)?  Does a new species live there?
  
• Who controls the planet, both galactically (Republic, Sith, autonomous, etc.) and locally (governor, democracy, theocracy, etc.)?
  
• What is the planet's history?
  
• What has been the planet's role in recent events?  Did anything significant happen to the planet during the Great Sith War, Mandalorian Wars, or now during the Jedi Civil War?
  

I will judge based on originality, detail, and creativity, and I will reveal the results at the start of the next session, October 12.

September Session Recap (or, RIP T3-H8)

The party found itself on Nar Shaddaa with a datapad of blackmail information acquired from Beryl Fisto.  Fisto had just revealed that Marina was last seen on Alderaan and the slaver who captured Logger's kin was a Corellian named Sair Arcturus, who was on Taris.  When the PCs get back to the Raraza, they find T3 deactivated, his behavior core removed, and the hyperdrive sabotaged.  Thus began a long spending spree of picking up the latest in KotOR-era gear, as well as picking up parts for the hyperdrive.  During the spree, Rek got a call from a Selkath who said he knew Rek had just acquired a lot of information from Riga and wanted to discuss it.  Also, Gobmush presented Rek with a contract for service, which, with a little revision, Rek accepted.

Rek and Gobmush met with the Selkath (named Vursha, though it never came up in the game), mistakenly thinking he worked for Gorrak.  Instead, he was a go-between who worked for Riga and wanted to see if he could arrange a deal to keep the information from getting out.  Rek deduced that there was nothing Riga could offer that he wanted, but also, upon realizing just how much dirt was in the datapad, realized that exposing this much blackmail information could earn them a lot of enemies.  When Vursha hinted that there may be things on the datapad that Rek wouldn't want to see, a closer look (and lucky roll) by Kazbich found that Riga had blackmail information on Rek's father, Areta: Areta cut deals with the Mandalorians during the Mandalorian Wars, letting some ships be raided for weapons and conscripts in exchange for most of the rest to go through space unimpeded.  While a rather reasonable and not ghastly action, Rek recognized it was the kind of thing that should not get out, and he agreed to Vursha's terms: he received 25,000 credits in exchange for turning over the datapad and destroying all copies, making sure to hold onto his dad's blackmail: a video recording and some intercepted communications.  (DM's note: It's a good thing Rek checked the datapad, as it would have dramatically changed what happened to him had he released it not knowing that he was exposing his own father.)

With that matter taken care of, the party fixed up the hyperdrive and prepared to leave, only for Gobmush to be suddenly attacked by cloaked assassins!  As he moved to stop them, Logger was attacked by Aya Lim, who wielded dark side powers against him.  The party quickly dispatched the assassins, but fought Aya to a standstill, ending with her attempting to escape but Logger stopping her just inside the exit ramp.  The party decided to drug her to keep her imprisoned while they traveled to nearby Druckenwell, and Logger made contact with On-Warr on Coruscant to figure out what to do with her.  On-Warr apologized profusely, saying he didn't know Aya would attack him, and said that a Jedi Watchman named Imbet would arrive at Druckenwell with a Republic team to bring her to Coruscant.  When Logger said that he had discovered that the Ewoks had been taken to Taris, On-Warr said he would meet him there and help however he could.

On Druckenwell, the party relaxed for a while while the ship was retrofitted with a luxury upgrade (making the ship the equivalent of an upper-scale luxury hotel) and a faster hyperdrive.  Rek also made some connections to bring a new employee into the Luk Shipping family and help boost his own income and expand their market.  Kazbich made some money gambling while most of the rest of the crew continued shopping.  After the ship was ready, the party decided to go to Taris, as Logger knew that the slaver who had taken the Ewoks was there, Kazbich had a history with the Exchange there, and Dhiel was looking for his commanding officer during the Mandalorian Wars — Canderous Ordo.

On Taris, the PCs were forced to land in the Lower City, as the Upper City was strictly anti-alien and very unfriendly.  Rek and Gobmush sought out GE-3-RX-34, an old business contact of Gobmush's — a protocol droid who went rogue and now worked as a corporate go-between and information broker.  RX-34 said he'd help Rek look up more information on Riga, including trying to gain access to his zealously guarded blackmail files, and gave Gobmush a connect for Corellian powersuit armor — a Snivvian named Dezzen who ran an armory in the Lower City.  Dhiel went to the Jekk'Jekk Seev, an alien bar, and met a human who he'd served with in the Mandalorian army.  The man rudely refused to talk to him, insisting that the war was over and there was no more point in looking for more Mandalorians, but Dhiel's persistence eventually got him a name: Davik Kang.  When Dhiel asked the Devaronian bartender for details, he suggested talking to Calo Nord, one of Davik's lieutenants, who could probably be reached through Ajuur the Hutt.

Kazbich and Logger wandered the Lower City and eventually encountered On-Warr.  On-Warr explained that Aya Lim had grown up in poverty not knowing what species she was or what her homeworld was, and so she devoted her life to helping the poor, but was increasingly frustrated by the Hutts interfering with her efforts on Nar Shaddaa.  He deduced that she had made a deal with the Sith to turn Logger over to them in exchange for their help taking down the Hutts.  On-Warr revealed that the Sith were searching for Logger, having known that it was him who freed On-Warr on the Sith battleship over Ithor.  As Logger expressed some frustration over his inability to see the future lately, On-Warr advised him not to try to impose his will on the Force, but let it come to him naturally, and volunteered to meditate with his apprentice to help him achieve greater clarity.  Kazbich was less than enthusiastic about hearing about the Force, just as Dhiel called for help getting to the Upper City and Ajuur the Hutt.  After a mind trick from On-Warr to "be more respectful about the Force," Kazbich led Dhiel through the Upper City, provoking stares and some violence.  In the Upper City cantina, Ajuur rebuffed Dhiel's efforts to contact Calo Nord, but eventually said that Calo would once in a while watch the dueling matches.  Dhiel decided to sign up to be a duelist, and Ajuur said he'd see about getting him into a match.  At the same time, RX-34 recommended that Gobmush enter the dueling ring as well, for a few extra credits on the side.  Kazbich began making contacts around the Lower City, hoping to set up a meeting with the Exchange for his own shadowy purposes.

Meditating together, Logger and On-Warr had a vision of the past and future.  Future events they saw were:

• The Sith woman they encountered while rescuing On-Warr, with both of her lightsabers drawn.
• Kazbich engaged in a vicious firefight in a smooth, white room that looked like a museum.
  
• Dhiel and Gobmush opening the hatch of a crashed starship on a desert planet, only to find a Twi'lek woman holding pistols to them inside.
  
• Ewoks in an ice cave, cold and miserable.
  

Preliminary Force Unleashed Report

No, I don't have the book yet, but someone on the Star Wars RPG forums does, and I thought I'd post what I've learned so far about the Force Unleashed Campaign Guide, due September 16:

• 12 new species: Chiss, Noghri, Aleena, Caamasi, Felucian, Gran, Nosaurian, Talz, Togorian, Togruta, Whiphid, and Yarkora.  (The Noghri has already been revealed in the Revised Core to Saga conversion document, but the other 11 are brand-new.)
  
• 6 new prestige classes: Enforcer, Independent Droid, Infiltrator, Master Privateer, Medic, and Saboteur.
  
• New talents and talent trees for all five base classes, as well as for Jedi Knight, Elite Trooper, Force Adept, and Bounty Hunter.  There is an Ideologue talent tree for nobles, and a Spy talent tree for scouts.
  
• Two new destinies: Champion and Liberation.
  
• New Force powers: corruption, Force blast, Force shield, Force storm, repulse.  There are also now rules for a Force-user to spontaneously draw on the dark side: spend a Force point to add a dark side power (one use only) to your Force powers for the encounter.  Now when the chips are down, a Force-user can be tempted to draw on the dark side for just one more Force power or for that little extra oomph.
  

More information as it becomes available.

Update: The new talent trees are Ideologue (noble), Smuggling (scoundrel), and Spy (scout).  The Soldier also gets a large Mercenary talent tree (which technically debuted in Threats of the Galaxy, but all the talents here are new).  The Slicer tree (for scoundrels) and Lineage tree (for nobles) look like they get the most additional talents, too.

In terms of Force powers, Corruption deals damage over several rounds; Force blast is pretty much the same thing but only hits for one round; Force shield gives a Jedi a temporary Shield Rating to absorb damage; Force storm damages all adjacent enemies; and Repulse pushes back all adjacent targets, kind of like a group Force thrust.  There are also 10 new Force techniques in the book.

I'm a little unclear on how it works, but the Unleashed feat lets you spend Destiny Points to do incredible things with existing powers.  For example, Unleashed Battle Meditation gives the attack bonus to all of your allies in the same system, and Unleashed Extreme Effort lets you add +20 to a roll instead of +5.

Where's Marina?

According to Beryl Fisto, Marina was last seen in the Alderaan system.