Aside from a character tossing around X-wings with his(her) mind grapes and igniting lightsabers in the mall, how are force users detected?

In an age where force users are hunted down and killed or converted, what are the methods the hunters use?

The scene in episode IV comes to mind when Vader is behind Luke and says "The force is strong with this one."

qui gon does a midiclorean search of blood

Our GM has been chalking that up to Force Sense, but I think only one of us has that power.

This is one of those things that are probably better off either being narrated or houseruled.

If narrated, a GM could just tell any Force-sensitive PC that he feels something when someone else is using the Force nearby, or when a powerful Force user is in the vicinity. This would just be for sensing someone, somewhere; anyone wanting more exact information would have to rely on powers like Sense or Seek.

If you want a quick-and-dirty houserule, just have the Force-sensitive player roll a Perception or Vigilance check with his Force dice included. I'd start the difficulty off at Formidable for a FR 1 character and then decrease it by one for every additional Force Rating the character has. Add setback dice for circumstances like distance, the target concealing itself, etc. Then use Successes to zero in on the target's general location, Advantage to offer additional details (approximate power, have they met before, etc.) and the light (or dark) side pips to give additional Successes.

I use the Sense Power but only if the PC is actively searching in the general area. However I let them know that it is an active "ping" and that they will show up like a flashlight in the dark where they will be noticed far easier and at a much further distance than they can "see". Otherwise it's a narrative plot thing and I tell the PC if and when it's important to the storyline.

I've generally been using the Sense power since the days of EotE, with the idea that the PC has to be actively looking for other Force-sensitives, and that they only thing they get is if there's any Force-sensitives within their range.

Beyond that, I'd say go with a narrative approach. For instance, both Kanan and Ezra picked up on the other in the opening sequence of Spark of Rebellion, and I doubt either of them were actively searching for other Force-sensitives. If anything, both of them may have been using the Sense power (Ezra unconsciously) to get an idea of who was around them, and both just happened to "ping" the other as part of the GM's plot and a means to introduce Ezra into the group and make it clear to the other players that he's not just some random street rat.

I'd agree with the proximity sensing thing. Also, if you're in mind of having a PC be detected by the Empire or other organizations then that should be easy. Think 1984 star wars style with citizens reporting any and all suspicious behavior/phenomenon. I've used this method partnered with the player receiving Criminal Obligation.

You detect Force users by reading their diabetic blood sugars! Sorry, midichodrians, or whatever they're called.

But seriously, no. I just use Sense. In our last story, I had one of the EoE PCs do this to recognise one of the F&D PCs as a fellow 'biotic', even though the player knew what was going on, the character didn't.

In our campaign, Force sensitives are very rare and the citizenry as a whole doesn't have any stigma towards them. The Empire couldn't care less, but the Jedi/Sith do hunt 'apostates', trying to convert or destroy them, so characters can't be totally casual about using their powers. The Exile class is really useful with all its emphasis on stealth and subtlety.

qui gon does a midiclorean search of blood

TAKE THAT BAAAAACK!!! Nooooooo!!

Thanks for all the replies, more than looking for a strictly game mechanics approach to detecting users I was wondering what lore there is regarding the detection of force use.

I recently reached FR 3 and my character uses enhance and influence to add force die to many of his rolls. At FR3 when rolling a negotiation check, which I have no ranks in, I'm rolling with a pretty potent pool. (No possibility of a triumph though)

As a result, I'm trying to find thematic reasons why he wouldn't use his FR to enhance his rolls for fear of being caught.

I really like the Nazi Germany approach to force users being reported on. I also like the mentioned sense pinging as well, thank you for your suggestions.

I must admit I'm not very well versed in SW EU, I loved the original trilogy, hated the prequels, and I'm only just now working through the 2nd season of Clone Wars, so I don't know what's canon regarding whether someone can tell if another is tapping into the force regardless of how innocuous it appears on the outside.

My takeaway from the EU stuff, during the Rise of the Empire era, was that the force users are creatures in a pond. Once the big fish are all caught and gutted, those remaining are like moths on the surface - the more they flutter, the more disturbances ripple outward. And while at the edge of the pond it may not be noticeable, there are plenty of lurking lunkers perfectly happy to snap up one that flutters too much.

In-game, I'm running it dependent on how often the players use their powers. If they stick with passive use (and I count general Sense as being passive) on occasion it's not going to draw much heat on them. If they go with the flashy powers, Move, Unleash, etc it's gonna get noticed - and not solely because of the word of mouth spread.

There is a Box in the Rule books about disturbance in the force.

IT says Force users are ALWAYS aware of when they are in the presence of another force user.

Not sure why rolls are needed.

There is a Box in the Rule books about disturbance in the force.

IT says Force users are ALWAYS aware of when they are in the presence of another force user.

Not sure why rolls are needed.

Yea, thats why it's generally a narrative thing. The counter point though is that one of the first things a trained FU is likely to learn is to shield themselves. Maybe not as effectively as (I can't remember the Talent's name in the F&D beta), but at least not to stand out any more than the norm. In any case FUs trying to remain hidden is why people are asking and for now I'm going with requiring a Sense roll to pinpoint a FU.

I imagine we will see some sidebar on this in the F&D CRB.

I'll let to a "plot thing".

There is a Box in the Rule books about disturbance in the force.

IT says Force users are ALWAYS aware of when they are in the presence of another force user.

Not sure why rolls are needed.

Yea, thats why it's generally a narrative thing. The counter point though is that one of the first things a trained FU is likely to learn is to shield themselves. Maybe not as effectively as (I can't remember the Talent's name in the F&D beta), but at least not to stand out any more than the norm. In any case FUs trying to remain hidden is why people are asking and for now I'm going with requiring a Sense roll to pinpoint a FU.

I imagine we will see some sidebar on this in the F&D CRB.

So what does a force user use to conceal them self's?? the FORCE?

Then they are using the force and are detected...

So what does a force user use to conceal them self's?? the FORCE?

Then they are using the force and are detected...

Not for a Force Shadow. Just ask Uncle Palpy.

So what does a force user use to conceal them self's?? the FORCE?

Then they are using the force and are detected...

Not for a Force Shadow. Just ask Uncle Palpy.

There's actually a talent in the Shadow specialization that makes it impossible for others to detect your Force usage. So odds are, Palps would have some version of that talent that doesn't require a Destiny Point to activate, and likely hand-waved as his sheer malevolence causing the imbalance in the Force that lead to the dark side clouding everything, particularly once he really started putting his grand "take over the galaxy" scheme into motion during the events of TPM.

So what does a force user use to conceal them self's?? the FORCE?

Then they are using the force and are detected...

Not for a Force Shadow. Just ask Uncle Palpy.

There's actually a talent in the Shadow specialization that makes it impossible for others to detect your Force usage. So odds are, Palps would have some version of that talent that doesn't require a Destiny Point to activate, and likely hand-waved as his sheer malevolence causing the imbalance in the Force that lead to the dark side clouding everything, particularly once he really started putting his grand "take over the galaxy" scheme into motion during the events of TPM.

Or he was flipping destiny points to lightside. He only needed to use it when he was havinga meeting with the jedi. Which i suspect was not super often.

+1 for "mind grapes"

I'm beginning to wonder if the Force really can be detected by Jedi. When Vader sensed Kenobi on the death star it was a familiar presence he sensed, not Force users (like Luke). Vader didn't detect Leia as being Force sensitive, nor did Luke. Vader saying "the force is strong with this one" is the Jedi version of saying this pilot is good. Qui gon suspected Anakin had the force from what he knew about the boy’s unusual abilties as opposed to a Force bell going off in his head. Even the Shroud ability seems to be directed toward using Force powers unnoticed. I would say it should really be a narrative thing rather than use Sense to pick the Force sensitive out of a lineup.

I'd say, at the very least, Palpatine can mold his Force to blend in with the rest of it, in his vicinity; the Force is an energy field created by all living things, and he just forces his to seem like nothing more than what's already there. I can't remember the novel, but I know that it has scenes where Senator Palpatine and Darth Plageus are BOTH having lunch with Chancellor Valorum AND Yoda, and they are purported to do so regularly, and Yoda is none the wiser that he frequently has lunch with both of the two only Sith Lords in the galaxy. Plageus uses it as a test for Palpy's skill at masking his darkness, and it works quite well.

Blah, blah, blah, the Jedi, and the Sith, can both certainly mask their presence in the Force somehow. In KOTOR 2, Kreia is so good at it Mical doesn't even know she's aboard ship, and when he does find her twice, she makes him forget he saw her. It might be a thing where you "invest" your Force dice, sort of like Sense, and can't use them while so invested, but instead they are "undetectable". If you don't plan to use your powers much, it certainly seems you could suppress them, and hide your Soul-self from would-be searchers.