Some pics from the game I ran for my wife and kids.

First, whenever I run something new, I like to make a binder for all of my notes, maps, et cetera.

Not exactly during play, but this is my GM kit.

Pretty unassuming, right?

Ta-da! Pencil case and Imperial dice bag. All the slots and everything on the left I intend to fill with game aids and adversary cards.

Everything unpacked. GM screen, document folder and notebook.

Folder contains printed character sheets, blank character/group sheets/templates and printed campaigns. Notebook is just for doodling, note taking and tracking combat encounters.

Ready to gooooo!

EDIT: Yes, I'm a nerd. Shut up.

Nice! I can almost smell the leather from here. I had something similar once. Still have it, but I can't even recall what's in it now.

Some actual play. Son#2 (he's 11) and I decided to test out the combat. His bounty hunter/assassin and my explorer/fringer were waylaid by some baddies on the way back to our speeder.

My character, with his holdout blaster, decided to close the range.

We made short work of them (they were minions, street thugs I think).

Only to be pulled over by some stormtroopers on the way back to our ship.

But we made quick work of them as well.

And we both agreed, we really enjoyed the system. We were worried about the funny dice, but they add more than they detract from the gaming experience.

This thread rules. I hope to see more!

Thanks. I hope to be able to post more. Thus far, I've only run two or three sessions for my wife and kids. I've been tempted to call an end to my Friday night game, which is currently Traveller, and start up a Star Wars game instead, but I think I'll just wait another month and get something going once Force and Destiny is out.

Not a scene from actual play, but a test shot to see how the Disney snowspeeder compared to the WotC minis.

The miniature I painted up for Son#1's character.

And here we are, back at play. This was the first session with the entire group. In this scene, they've gone back into town to collect the bounty on the thugs they offed (the stormtroopers in the pic up above weren't actual stormtroopers, but worked for the local syndicate; they had a price on their head, so Son#2's bounty hunter wanted to collect). Things got a little hot for our heroes when another group of syndicate thugs arrived, looking for revenge.

And yes, I'm hogging my Dark Side destiny points in this pic.

If you don't mind a non-player asking you a question: I plan on playing and later starting up a story I'm working on. How did you go about determining distances based on the range bands. and what did you decide on?

Additionally, what figures did you use for miniatures and where do you get them?

The miniatures are all Wizards of the Coasts Star Wars figures, except the C-3PO, which is from a pack of plastic figures my kids bought at Disney World.

The landspeeder and the snowspeeder I picked up at a Disney store in the local mall. They were on sale - quite a bargain as the landspeeder was about $3, and the snow about $7.

As for ranges... I was winging it. I don't recall exactly what I was using, but I think I went with some sort of multiples of five for ease of play.

This is so cool, you're a lot more organised than I am.

That grid paper table cloth is practical.

That grid paper table cloth is practical.

Chessex Battlemats — see http://www.chessex.com/mats/Battlemats_&_Megamats.htm

That grid paper table cloth is practical.

Chessex Battlemats — see http://www.chessex.com/mats/Battlemats_&_Megamats.htm

Yeeessssss. I got one of these back when I played in person. Worth every penny.

Yep, Chessex mats for the win!

This is squares on one side, hexes on the other.

Has someone been shopping at Staples? That looks suspiciously like a Better Binder?

I have a file i keep my papers in, rather than a ring binder, and I use a small whiteboard for maps (I dont use grids), as well as a peice of A3 clear perspex I can put preprinted maps under and write on the plastic with dry erase markers.

Its also a Magnetic whiteboard, so I use coloured magnet pins to display the initiative order.

If you have a suitably large SW action figure collection you will never have to buy miniatures to put on the chessex mat.

It's always fun to hear about the different styles of play different groups have.

One logical course of action for me, especially when I'm running a game for the kids, would be to go Lego. They have a ton, and we have used them in the past for both GURPS,

Traveller,

The One Ring,

and Melee/Wizard/Death Test.

So we have set a precedent.

Hmm, LEGO, yes.

I thought about that too (for everybody), but I have an obsessive need to make sure every species option has a figure to go with it. Both the WotC and LEGO are incomplete, which makes me lean towards tokens instead. I can make those myself, at least.

Wow... Melee... that brings back memories. Back in the late 70's, my brother gave me one of his old Analog magazines (December 78, I think it was). After reading the whole thing, I checked out all the ads in the back. I saw something that intrigued my pre-RPG young self: an ad from some unknown company called "Steve Jackson Games", advertising what they called "microgames". They looked cool to me, so I clipped the ad out and sent them my hard-earned allowance. Some time later, I received Melee, Ogre, and Ice Wars, all in these little plastic bags. They all had tiny cardboard chits for pieces, and included paper mats with weird hexagonal grids on them.

Keep in mind this was a couple of years before I discovered D&D, so these simple little games were my first introduction to fantasy and science fiction gaming. Obviously, it took, because over 35 years later, I'm still playing them

Keep in mind this was a couple of years before I discovered D&D, so these simple little games were my first introduction to fantasy and science fiction gaming. Obviously, it took, because over 35 years later, I'm still playing them

I went the other direction. My first introduction to RPGs was D&D in 1980 (only 35 years ago), but then we quickly found out about Chainmail and Car Wars, for those times when we wanted to play something that was a little lighter and not filled with so much drama.

Good times at Central Mid-High!

OP, I love how organized you are!

If you have a suitably large SW action figure collection you will never have to buy miniatures to put on the chessex mat.

I have a ton of Star Wars micro machines from when I was a kid. Perfect for pulling out when we play.

Hey, awesome pics and input, thanks alot! Can you tell me where you got that bag for storing your GM Kit? Looks pretty neat, I'm thinking about getting the same.

If you're looking for a bag, I recommend the Bag of Holding over at ThinkGeek. I even use it for daily work hauling.

Also as a side note, all 3 beginner games fit very nicely in a 1-1 1/2 in. binder with page protectors very nicely.

I agree about the Bag of Holding. One of the guys in my group has one, and it is pretty nice.

I've had my eye on a Bag of Holding for a while. How sturdy is the product?

I've been burned on products from Think Geek before. I still love the place, mind you, but I've grown dubious over the quality products they sell or resell.

The bag of holding is INCREDIBLY sturdy. Very nice canvas like material. I have used it to carry RPG books and board games a lot.