Does anyone know of live play examples of the SWRP system where players or NPCs use Force Powers?

I've listened to a variety of EOTE and AOR live play examples, most of them using the Beginner Boxes or one of the modules like Under the Black Sun.

In these cases they're usually simple characters or pregens, and no Force is involved.

In our EOTE campaign there hasn't been any force use, and I haven't played in any games where there were.

I'm just curious to hear some examples of how others do it.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

What exactly are you looking for here, if I may ask?

In the game I'm about to run (first official session is next Friday), one of my players is starting the game with the Enhance power, so it's more of a supplemental thing than anything.

Narrative-wise, he just taps into it thinking it's just his overall physical prowess (Brawn 4), not realizing that it's something much, much more.

I'll know more once we start gaming, but as this isn't a big power, I'm not sure if it meets whatever it is you are looking for.

I'm just looking for examples of how people have used the Force powers in actual play.

For example, the Order 66 episode on space with Sam Stewart features a lot of good examples of doing space combat in live play.

Many people's live play videos/podcasts feature good examples of how to do combat, how to do stealth, investigation, etc.

I just haven't heard any specific examples of actually using Force powers and am curious to do so. I may end up incorporating them into my game at some point, but I'd love to have some experience with them so I don't end up confusing my players or myself.

Ah, okay.

Well, from a few test runs I had to explain things to my groups:

It all depends on the power.

But before I begin, I should note how I explained Committing a Die. You give up the Force Die you'd roll for another effect of the power or even your talents in exchange for an "always on" and possibly greater reward.

You basically give up the gamble for a few things for a promised effect of one thing.

Also remember that unless otherwise noted in the power (like with certain parts of Enhance), the player rolls JUST the Force Die (Dice) to utilize a Force Power. There isn't another roll.

Enhance: Mechanically, any time the player rolled Athletics with his practice pool (I usually give newbies examples to roll dice to make sure they like the pool), he added his Force Die to the roll. Each Light Side pip nets him either a success or advantage, his choice.

Narratively, we have it set up that he thinks he's physically that strong, so his power is "always on" until he learns how to control it.

Sense: I'll open up by saying we were tampering with Sense as a possibility to allow a Zeltron to sense emotions. It didn't get past the testing round, but we did test how the power is used.

Narratively, I've always seen Sense as a power you need to concentrate on, but it still works as a random "There's someone here" or "He's nervous. I don't know why, but he's really nervous about something."

On the roll, the testing player rolled JUST the Force Die and used the result to get the desired effect. Since the effect is solely narrative (know what is nearby or how someone is feeling), it was easy to give examples for.

Influence: Again, we were tampering for a Zeltron and did some test rolls, but ruled it out for the idea the player had (for that moment). IT also would have taken 20XP to bring the power that really mattered for the species: the first Control upgrade.

Influence is the first direct damage power we've seen, as it deals strain. Narratively, it's making suggestions and altering emotions that the mind is resisting.

In the end, it's roll a Force Die and see if you deal 1 strain. The control elements make it closer to a Force Die added to certain skills; the Jedi Mind Tricks that we see in the film work in this regard.

My groups and I haven't used Move or Foresee, even in tests, so I can't help you much there.

Librarian, a tiny clarification if you would?

Re: Committing a die. Do you mean that the die is committed permanently, and therefore that power is always on? If not when is it committed, and how can the player switch between committed die and using it for other powers?

Thanks!

From my understanding:

Committed Force die takes the die out of play for that round.

Example:

My Force user has Sense basic Power, Control (attack upgrade), Control (sense thoughts upgrade), Range.

If he uses Control (attack upgrade) he can upgrade the difficulty of one attack once per round, but the die is used up for that whole round. He could not also try to Control (sense thoughts upgrade) since his Force Die is already committed (spent) on his Control (attack upgrade). If he had a Force rating of 2, he could do Control (attack upgrade), and try to Control (sense thoughts upgrade), Range 1 for two pips, but he would only roll Force Die, as the first one is committed. Committing is like like rolling with zero chance of failure, but is used up in the process.

At the players start of the next round, he can choose to keep "Committing' or not too, and use the die in other ways.

I hope I did not confuse you further...

No R2builder that's exactly how I understand it, and I'm probably misunderstanding what Librarian is saying

When you commit a die do you have to roll it or do you just commit it?

You just commit it. You put it aside, it's no longer available to power other force abilities.

I believe it takes an action to commit a force die and the force power stays on (and you can't use the die for anything else) until you un-commit it or the GM says you can't sustain it any more.

Yes, to Commit the Force Die is an action. You are "Activating" a power. And unless stated otherwise, activating a power is an action. The "on going effect" is not an action though. So in the first round a Force User(FU) can activate Sense:Control (upgrade combat check) as as his action. In subsequent rounds, he can make his combat checks with an upgrade once per round; if for some reason he could make two checks, only one gets the upgrade.

My apologies for not coming back and replying; I was without computer access all weekend and couldn't check in.

It seems like everyone else has already answered the question, though.

You spend an action and "commit" a die to the effect. As long as it is committed, it cannot be used for ANYTHING else until it is freed up again. It's the difference between having a spare battery on hand for whatever comes up vs putting that battery into a smoke detector. Both are useful, but you need one there all the time and the other is as-needed.

Does that help make sense?

And as far as I can tell, the die remains committed until you either deactivate the power or the GM rules it's no longer activated, like when you get knocked out.

Committing a Force die is explained on the top og page 279, under the Ongoing Effects header. As LibrariaNPC said, it's an action to commit, since that's activating the power (and activating a Force power is an action, per page 278). That die is now committed to that effect, and it can't be used for anything else, even rolling, until you end the ongoing effect as an incidental.

-EF

Committing a Force die is explained on the top og page 279, under the Ongoing Effects header. As LibrariaNPC said, it's an action to commit, since that's activating the power (and activating a Force power is an action, per page 278). That die is now committed to that effect, and it can't be used for anything else, even rolling, until you end the ongoing effect as an incidental.

-EF

Keep in mind that "rolling" also includes using that Force Die for talents. I know a few talents allow you to roll a Force Die when making certain rolls, so when it's committed, you don't have it available for those rolls.

Okay, just so I have it right with Move.

On "round 1", the Force user rolls his Force Dice to spend Light Side pips as he wishes to on the power. This is the user's Action for that round. The power itself plus any Magnitudes, Ranges, and Strengths the player needs to use all cost Light side pips to enact. Depending on what the Force user wants to move around and how far, this could add up to needing several pips.

On "round 2," the Force user can maintain what he's doing by committing a Force Die to the activity. This is his Action for the round.

Every round thereafter, does he keep spending his Action to continue committing, or is the commitment in place and now he can perform other Actions? Which is it?

While we're on Move.... If the Force user purchases three more Magnitudes, he can move four objects total, right? Can he move them in four different directions if he likes? Could he smash four baddies with four crates with one Action?

Nope. Move doesn't have any ongoing effects, so you can't commit any Force dice for it. Sense is the only EotE Force power that has a commit option.

In order to use Move, it's a rolled action each round you want to use it, unless the GM decides otherwise (see sidebar on page 283). As for moving 4 objects, you'd need 3 magnitude upgrades and spend one light side pip—in addition to the 1 LS pip needed to activate the power. There is nothing in the rules that prohibits moving them in different directions, but you need to spend one LS pip to activate any range upgrades you have to get them beyond short range.

Smashing 4 baddies requires the control upgrade to allow for attacks and is treated just like any other auto-fire attack (per the rules for said upgrade on page 284).

-EF

In order to use Move, it's a rolled action each round you want to use it, unless the GM decides otherwise (see sidebar on page 283).

Right. Which is where I got that you can commit a Force die to maintain the duration. Granted, if the GM allows it.

So, assuming the GM is allowing it, does maintaining (committing the Force die each subsequent round) count as the Force user's Action each round? Or is it that once the Force die is committed, the power is maintained, and the user can do other things for his Action?

Auto-Fire! Thank you. I see that now.

My apologies for not coming back and replying; I was without computer access all weekend and couldn't check in.

Phew... Apologies NOT accepted!! Away from from your computer! Sheesh, do you think this is some game!? Is that all, just a game to you!!??

No probs man, that why we are all here, to get each other's back and help each other out!! I think we have a pretty (Hover) dam good community here!

So, assuming the GM is allowing it, does maintaining (committing the Force die each subsequent round) count as the Force user's Action each round? Or is it that once the Force die is committed, the power is maintained, and the user can do other things for his Action?

I'd say it depends on the use of the power and the capability of the individual Force user. If the Force user is of sufficient power or rolls a triumph or something, and if Move is being used to simply keep a baddie or other object in place (or some other relatively benign or simple use), then I'd allow the Force user to commit a Force die and keep up the power. Might make him suffer strain or take a setback die if he tries to do other stuff like attack with a blaster or lightsaber, again depending on the level of his strength in the Force.

Another issue with Sense. I have a player who was arguing that the power should be on 24/7 as long as he had the die committed. The debate being that in the movies jedi know when attacks are coming and deflect blaster bolts etc. I said there are also plenty of situations where jedi are surprised: Obi Wan in Ep III with the ray shield, or Luke (a classic FSE if ever there was one!) with the tusken in Ep IV.

Our agreement was that if the character is clearly expecting trouble (they're gearing up to ambush some pirates in a docking bay) then the die can be committed before combat. If they are ambushed, then it needs to be an action in round 1 and is therefore available from round 2.

The question then remains -how long does it run? RAW is 'until cancelled as an incidental' but then why would the PC ever turn it off? To use another power? Turn off, use another ability, turn on again: it's still effectively a perma-ability.

We decided that committing the die is akin to concentration, and that concentration can't be maintained 24/7. We don t apply strain or anything, we just treat it as a combat, or pre-combat ability.

Another issue with Sense. I have a player who was arguing that the power should be on 24/7 as long as he had the die committed. The debate being that in the movies jedi know when attacks are coming and deflect blaster bolts etc. I said there are also plenty of situations where jedi are surprised: Obi Wan in Ep III with the ray shield, or Luke (a classic FSE if ever there was one!) with the tusken in Ep IV.

Our agreement was that if the character is clearly expecting trouble (they're gearing up to ambush some pirates in a docking bay) then the die can be committed before combat. If they are ambushed, then it needs to be an action in round 1 and is therefore available from round 2.

The question then remains -how long does it run? RAW is 'until cancelled as an incidental' but then why would the PC ever turn it off? To use another power? Turn off, use another ability, turn on again: it's still effectively a perma-ability.

We decided that committing the die is akin to concentration, and that concentration can't be maintained 24/7. We don t apply strain or anything, we just treat it as a combat, or pre-combat ability.

I have a FS that picked up Sense as his first ability,

I try and use common sense. My character isn't super paranoid so there is no reason to keep sense active at all time. But when combat breaks out, he usually focuses on anticipating his enemies actions so clearly that's when he activates sense.

It's also reasonable that shortly after combat, the FS would still be on high alert, so even if you are not in structured play, you can still have sense active.

There's no right or wrong answer. If it makes sense in the story and for the character, allow it.

RAW, there isn't a duration on the power. However, I'd strongly recommend that the GM put a duration on it. When the time starts running out, perhaps start throwing black dice on things to show stress from trying to maintain it. Or cause Strain damage. Don't be afraid to change the duration on the fly too. In the middle of a mass battle? It may need to be turned off and on again more often for a breather. Just sitting still while meditating on guard duity? Could last a lot longer.

It sounds like how MrDodger is running Sense pretty much how I'd run it as well.

We decided that committing the die is akin to concentration, and that concentration can't be maintained 24/7. We don t apply strain or anything, we just treat it as a combat, or pre-combat ability.

This is also how I read it. If the character is ever asleep, unconscious or horribly distracted, the power could be deactivated.

My approach to people wanting the power "always on":

--Picking up more than expected. Think Obi-Wan in Episode IV as he was forced to sit down and focus on breathing/staying conscious by the destruction of Alderaan. Granted, that's just a general use of Sense, but imagine getting things like that ALL THE TIME because the power is on.

It'd be more roleplaying based, but it could make things rather difficult for the player who wants it on "all the time."

--Feedback. Linked to above, sometimes things happen around you that really throw you off and can make you want to either shut down the power or roll to maintain it.

--Horribly Distracted. If you have the Sense power on and walk into a night club, you're probably going to be horribly distracted by things both physically and extrasensory. I'd call for a Discipline roll to hold focus.

--Emotionally Unstable. Remember in Episode V when Luke was dueling Vader, and Vader kept trying to throw him off balance by throwing things at him and overall just toying with him? This could be a loss of that focus needed to maintain the ability.

If a player argues over these, point to the movies. Most characters can't maintain a Move power without concentration. Yoda has to pause to sense things through the Force. Obi-Wan and Anakin don't realize the danger Padme is in because they are too busy talking and getting emotional reactions from each other. Not all Jedi know where an attack is coming from because they are too busy keeping other abilities activated (like Yoda using Enhance instead of Sense during his fight against Palpatine/Sidious).

As the game is based on what we see and read, it makes sense for this degree of "realism" to be tied in.

I honestly won't be surprised if we see Discipline rolls being tied to some Force Powers or maintaining them when we see Force and Destiny in the near future.

In order to use Move, it's a rolled action each round you want to use it, unless the GM decides otherwise (see sidebar on page 283).

Right. Which is where I got that you can commit a Force die to maintain the duration. Granted, if the GM allows it.

So, assuming the GM is allowing it, does maintaining (committing the Force die each subsequent round) count as the Force user's Action each round? Or is it that once the Force die is committed, the power is maintained, and the user can do other things for his Action?

Auto-Fire! Thank you. I see that now.

The normal rules for committing a Force die says that it stays committed, but doesn't count as an action. However, since the Move power doesn't have a normal ongoing effect, I'd "downgrade" the commit rules to make it be their action.

Really, though, that's between you and your GM, since there is no set rules on how to handle it. It also depends on what you're trying to do with it. Using Move to hold a blaster to someones face (sil. 0 at engaged range) when interrogating them for the intimidation factor, I wouldn't even call that using a power–it's a boost die to the PCs Coercion check.

-EF

Another issue with Sense. I have a player who was arguing that the power should be on 24/7 as long as he had the die committed. The debate being that in the movies jedi know when attacks are coming and deflect blaster bolts etc. I said there are also plenty of situations where jedi are surprised: Obi Wan in Ep III with the ray shield, or Luke (a classic FSE if ever there was one!) with the tusken in Ep IV.

Our agreement was that if the character is clearly expecting trouble (they're gearing up to ambush some pirates in a docking bay) then the die can be committed before combat. If they are ambushed, then it needs to be an action in round 1 and is therefore available from round 2.

The question then remains -how long does it run? RAW is 'until cancelled as an incidental' but then why would the PC ever turn it off? To use another power? Turn off, use another ability, turn on again: it's still effectively a perma-ability.

Yeah, I'd also suggest that the players exercise common sense, and that the GM be lenient and give the players the benefit of the doubt. As a GM, I feel comfortable (in general) with my players telling me when their characters are alert, not the other way around.

If it is sliding into the ridiculous, the GM can step in, but IMO this is an issue of player agency that doesn't really break the game.

However, if a GM feels that a player is abusing this ability, he could impose strain for the player not taking the chance to rest. Additionally, Failure, Threat, or Despair (or even Advantage/Triumph from an enemy) on an appropriate dice roll could mean that the ongoing effect ends until a certain duration.

This also means that their "presence in the Force" is WIDE open, and the more powerful they are the more chance they have of being detected by Vader or one of his minions.

If a problem in this area persists (and if it is indeed a problem), the GM should talk to the player privately and ask that he exercise more prudence when it comes to the ongoing effect.