I was thinking about starting a campaign with characters at the Jedi Academy on Yavin IV, but wasn't really sure how I would include the feel of coming up through a study course with actually enjoyable game play.

One thought I'd had was to come up with some different challenges associated with a variety of skills that a Jedi would employ--Athletics, Coordination, Astrogation (pondering the stars), Lore, Discipline, Leadership, and Lightsaber--and "grading" characters on their rolls, with each check passing on boosts, setbacks, or upgrades to the consecutive checks, but that seems kind of dull and too straightforward. Not to mention, I don't know what I would do with someone who failed all their rolls.

So, I suppose I'd like some advice on some thematic challenges that will hit some of the big Jedi Training skills at a variety of difficulties while providing some sense of being trained.

I'd say don't worry about making mechanics for an academy setting, but use it as flavor. Then, use the Young Jedi Knights books as a broad template - the students practice and study, but get caught up in daring adventures at and away from the academy. Then, rather than using a mechanics-based grading system, have their mentors (whether other PC's or NPC's) give an overall appraisal of their performance in training or on the adventure/mission. ("You did good, but you need to keep your shoulder higher when in defensive stance," or, "Work on channeling the Force to enhance your natural abilities...that leap to the low branch on the tree could have been easier or higher that way." Things like that.

One thing that I might do mechanics-wise in an academy setting would be to limit the amount of XP that can be spent between sessions on Force powers...perhaps something like only be in able to purchase one new Force power box, period, between sessions.

Well it looks like an opportune moment to Role-Play. Even if the characters fail their roles, have them come up with new ways to be taught. Failed a force roll too many times? Used the dark side to be successful? Have them search out guidance from a teacher to clear their mind. Then they get bonuses added to their roles that way. Or the teacher might even sit with them and train for hours on end and that training gives them experience to add into that skill. Or for your extremely wayward souls, the teacher could give them an assignment to look for solitude at a force nexus to recenter themselves.

Plenty of options available. It doesn't have to all be mechanical! A good method of DMing is always have a, "but then," or "and then," situation. Rolling until a success is absolutely repetitive.

I hope this helps? Feel out your players and see what would interest them!

I haven't done a Jedi Academy game, but I've played in a game where our characters were students. You can mostly have classwork happen between sessions and otherwise "off-camera." You can use it also as an impetus for the stuff you're actually playing out, as well as for in-jokes and Noodle Incidents.

As much as I'd rather not go here.... This sounds like a job for Harry Potter!

Seriously though, adventuring in a school is only going to be about 15% school. The rest is everything else. Like a Potter film you may want to look into designing an adventure that covers an entire year/semester of study, that contains a few classroom encounters as more of a B-plot while the A-plot runs on a more conventional template. In the case of Potter the A-plot usually a variation on the Mystery/Murder Mystery format, but I suspect you could do other Adventure types as well.

So... for your classes, I'd say figure out the A-plot, and what skills, knowledge or whatever the players will need to resolve the A-plot, and then apply the Classroom encounter to help instruct that. Play it right and you can even have the class take place in Act I or II so the players have the opportunity to spend XP on those skills and talents by the time they need them in Act III.

As much as I'd rather not go here.... This sounds like a job for Harry Potter!

Seriously though, adventuring in a school is only going to be about 15% school. The rest is everything else. Like a Potter film you may want to look into designing an adventure that covers an entire year/semester of study, that contains a few classroom encounters as more of a B-plot while the A-plot runs on a more conventional template. In the case of Potter the A-plot usually a variation on the Mystery/Murder Mystery format, but I suspect you could do other Adventure types as well.

So... for your classes, I'd say figure out the A-plot, and what skills, knowledge or whatever the players will need to resolve the A-plot, and then apply the Classroom encounter to help instruct that. Play it right and you can even have the class take place in Act I or II so the players have the opportunity to spend XP on those skills and talents by the time they need them in Act III.

That's where Young Jedi Knights could come in handy. There were a few over-arcing plots to serve as (using more current vernacular) "seasons," but each book also stood on its own. And, being young readers/young adult books, they read REALLY fast for getting that background template info.

Maybe you begin with lightsaber training sessions, talent/sport contests, school clubs and so on, just handling of the daily activities during school... The thing is, you don't have to play out every school day, only the highlights during the semester...

If the characters reach 50 XP. They could start with simple trainings mission. At 100 XP a little bit harder missions and then at 150 XP they become Jedi Knights.

As much as I'd rather not go here.... This sounds like a job for Harry Potter!

Seriously though, adventuring in a school is only going to be about 15% school. The rest is everything else. Like a Potter film you may want to look into designing an adventure that covers an entire year/semester of study, that contains a few classroom encounters as more of a B-plot while the A-plot runs on a more conventional template. In the case of Potter the A-plot usually a variation on the Mystery/Murder Mystery format, but I suspect you could do other Adventure types as well.

So... for your classes, I'd say figure out the A-plot, and what skills, knowledge or whatever the players will need to resolve the A-plot, and then apply the Classroom encounter to help instruct that. Play it right and you can even have the class take place in Act I or II so the players have the opportunity to spend XP on those skills and talents by the time they need them in Act III.

This. 100 times this^^^^^^^

Maybe you begin with lightsaber training sessions, talent/sport contests, school clubs and so on, just handling of the daily activities during school... The thing is, you don't have to play out every school day, only the highlights during the semester...

If the characters reach 50 XP. They could start with simple trainings mission. At 100 XP a little bit harder missions and then at 150 XP they become Jedi Knights.

This is something that you need to kick around. At what point will you consider your players "Jedi Knights" and cut them loose? While you can certainly keep everyone in school as long as you like, eventually it will be time to go on field trips, escorted assignments, and eventually independent study missions and graduation.

Assuming you're talking about about the typical 15XP per Adventure Act and using a 3-Act format, you'll be giving out 45 XP per adventure.

Now... if you take FFG's "Knight Level" literally, and assume that around +150XP the player is a Knight. that means it's time to hand out diplomas after adventure 3 or 4.

If you treat it more as "Able to use the force with some proficiency" level, you can probably keep the players in school for another adventure or two, for a total of about 6 adventures.

And of course if you assume a Knight XP level to be what some of the novels suggest, you can keep the players in school until they have somewhere around +500 to +1 Billion XP.

Also there's always an option to give out less XP per Act... Giving out only 5 XP per act will probably allow the game to triple it's Adventure run.

Ultimately it's up to you and how you want to run things. It's probably a good idea to kick this one around with your players a bit and iron out these details before you get to character creation.

Thanks everyone! Lot's of good ideas here!

Personally, I don't want to keep them in school for too long, but pre-Knight characters were out doing stuff in the galaxy, though I think I'd want to hold them until they attain "knight level".

Was considering giving out some free skill ranks over the course of the arc as learned through training stuff.

Thinking there should be some lightsaber training classes (battles against each other, then against the better-trained/graduated students/Masters), and some wilderness exploration on Yavin IV. For one of the earlier adventures, I'm thinking that the instructors are off-world doing some good in the galaxy and the class is told to expect a new recruit by spacecraft any day, when they see a ship burn its way down from orbit and appear to crash out in the jungle. The students take it upon themselves to go to the rescue. Some dangerous wilderness encounters, terrain challenges, and a time factor.

Hmm...speaking of: how do you handle time constraints in your game(s)?

Rather than handling a question about time constraints (I'm terrible at those), I think it would be an excellent time to point out....

Keeping the Peace 's "learn as you go" rules. Those would be awesome for an Academy session. Maybe bring up a power the player wants to learn in a class, but they can't commit the XP to getting it. Then, an applicable situation crops up in an adventure and they need to rely on the power to succeed! Or, you know, other things like that. I see the potential, but I'll leave the fun of actual use up to you.

Hmm...speaking of: how do you handle time constraints in your game(s)?

Not sure quite what you mean as "time constraints." Are you referring to a limited amount of time in order to accomplish something? I tend to track time narratively, though the mass combat rules in Lead By Example have some useful tips for tracking time in phases. Each phase is still determined by narrative requirements, though. And if my PCs are close to H-Hour and really trying to get there in time, I'll usually let them... unless it's more dramatic that they don't.

If you're talking about time constraints such as students having a limited amount of time outside of classes to do stuff, that's a little different. For the most part, you can gloss over it by saying, "You guys have finished your studies for the day and have the rest of the day free. There's about four hours of daylight left, after which you're expected to stay inside the Praxeum. You know it'll take about an hour to travel out to the crashed TIE fighter and an hour back. What do you want to do?" You can also use upcoming assignments to shorten the amount of free time they have, or holidays to increase it.

PRO TIP: This is also a great way to account for missing players. If they have a major project or a practical coming up, their character isn't available due to needing to prepare.

I meant time in the action sense. A lot of skill descriptions say that extra success means you get the skill done faster, but time has to be a factor for that to be relevant.

If the Time is needed like in an stealth operation, or during an battle, I normaly do one of the following things:

1. I give a time needed: e.g. You´ll need 5 minutes to crack that lock open (aka 5 rounds if in battle) if the char reduces by talent the time it will be done in 3 rounds (I round always up) any 3 advantages reduce the time by one minute a triumph by two minutes.

2. I give out a total number of successes needed an the player may try each turn to add some successes: e.g. To sliece that enemy turrent you´ll need 10 successes in total. every two advantages will give a boost on the next try, Any triumph may grate up the skill or reduce the difficulty for the next try. - First round 3 successes, second round 2, third 4 and fourth round 2 = total of 11 succsesses.

First I prior when ever an whole operation has a Countdown like "you have one hour before this Stardestroyer jumps to hyperspace... you must escape in time"

Second I love to use whenever the players are in an situation where speed can decide how hard everything can get. Like during a fight with some Stormis: "You need to crack that lock! at the moment your comrades can still fend the enemy of but there will be more and more of them, each minute..." the stressed face of a player when he rolls only one or even no successes during his turn while the rest has to keep the enemy of and telling him to do faster, is priceless... (yeah sometimes I am an a$$, I know that )

No Jedi in this game! You must start from scratch

We havent done it under FFG's engine, but we ran a game in the Republic era where several masters and their padawan were sent to an outer rimworld to establish a embassy, get some experiance in the real world and establish a training facility. We didnt do "Okay, today class we'll all stand our heads and levitate rocks", more like we did scenes of training inbetween doing Jedi missions and stuff.

It worked out pretty well. We started in 99 or there abouts just before the Naboo crisis and we played the game until 06 or so when Order 66 dropped. It was fun to play as the universe unfolded around us.

Just an update from my end: Nexus of Power has EXACTLY what I was looking for: it has a section on Jedi Padawan trials, and suggestions as to how to reward players in a "you've been trained" sense--it suggests giving a 5 XP discount on a rank of the related skill or Force power the next time the character spends XP.

Not a Jedi Academy no. But I'm writing a campaign where my PCs have been arrested by Imperial forces (various) and have been conscripted to be agents of the Inquisitorius. That isn't giving away a plot point as they will be getting that information in the first 5 minutes of Day 1, Week 1.

So after the first game, I can report that my players enjoyed a training montage wherein I described a little bit of an activity, and had them roll an appropriate skill, then moved onto the next, carrying strain, boosts, or setbacks as they went. It didn't take long, and culminated with a scene I lifted from one of the books with everyone joining Luke in a hot spring to ponder the universe.

Then I sent them off on a small adventure tromping through the wilderness of Yavin IV. At the end, I gave them an option of receiving a 5 XP discount on a rank of either Athletics or Survival. They were all happy with this.

Just read the first post so if I'm repeating someone else then I apologize.

While I haven't played a F&D Academy game, the old JK: Jedi Academy computer game could help solve your dilemma. In it, all of the new students are at the youngest in their early teens and instead of spending gameplay focused on the hours in the library and practicing saber forms they instead focus on the more enjoyable aspect of Luke's academy. Luke adopted the philosophy of 'learning by doing' and students would be sent out on missions with their masters that would double as training exercises.

My Inquisiition boot camp has been run for 3 weeks to mixed results. I've enjoyed it. The players have enjoyed it (once they've seen how things were going in a scene). The Player Character's however (as distinct from the players themselves) have been screamed at my monster drill-pigs and PTIs, intimidated by one Inquisitor that can beat up wookiees empty handed, dropped in a jungle and barely escaped being chew-toys for the local wild life, and most memorably were all taken out on an obstacle course by cunningly employed balistic footwear.

Tonight they go on their first "real" mission. I have twists, turns and generalised nasiness all planned. So far no one has suffered a break-down and started sobbing but I live in hope