Signature Specializations?

By Absol197, in Star Wars: Force and Destiny RPG

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Hi all!

I had a question I was mulling over, and I thought I’d see what the rest of you thought:

If you had to pick one specialization for each Signature Ability as the “best fit”/”most iconic,” what would it be? To put it another way, which of a career’s specializations do you think mesh best with each Signature Ability in terms of theme and mechanics? If you absolutely HAD to have a houserule that said that each Signature Ability is inexorably tied to one specific spec, what would the ties be, and why?

Here’s what I’m thinking so far, but please let me know if you feel differently!

EDGE OF THE EMPIRE:

Colonist

Insightful Revelation – Scholar

IR is basically being really, really smart and making connections that other people miss out on. The Colonist spec that emphasizes intelligence the most is the Scholar, so it seems the best fit for me.

Unmatched Expertise – Politico

This is the one I have a hard time with. Basically, this Signature Ability is all about being really, really, REALLY good at, well, everything. Or at least being really good at the stuff you’re good at. All the Colonist specs could potentially mesh with it, but I chose the Politico because it’s the one spec that matches three of the Colonist’s career skills, so it seemed like it most exemplified the career in that respect.

Explorer

Sudden Discovery – Archaeologist

…Do I really need to explain this one?

Unmatched Mobility – Scout

I debated with myself between the Scout and the Driver, but the Scout won out because Unmatched Mobility feels like more of a personal-scale ability, whereas a Driver prefers to be operating on vehicle-scale. But I can see it both ways.

Hired Gun

Last One Standing – Heavy

I call this one “the Mulan” (think about it), and it seems pretty obvious that the Heavy is the best fit. The Heavy is all about tearing people apart with auto-fire and taking down lots of people at once, which is what this Signature Ability does.

Unmatched Protection – Bodyguard

Since UP gives the effect of Improved Bodyguard, something the Bodyguard should really have, I think this is a good fit.

Smuggler

Narrow Escape – Thief

I can see this one fitting tangentially into a lot of different specs: the Charmer or Scoundrel could use it’s upgrade to escape from social encounters, the Pilot could use it’s upgrade to escape from vehicle encounters, but the base ability is to disappear into the shadows during a fight, something best exemplified by the Thief.

Unmatched Fortune – Gambler

…Once again, do I really need to explain this?

Technician

Inventive Creation – Mechanic

While there are a lot that fit this one, the Mechanic’s Contraption talent makes me feel that it’s the best fit. It’s a general Signature Ability, and the Mechanic is the best general tech spec that the Technician has. Cyber and Droid Techs are too focused on their one spiel, and the Modder is about, well, modding things not inventing new things.

Unmatched Calibration – Outlaw Tech

Unmatched Calibration, to me, seems to be about thinking on your feet and finding the answer spur of the moment. Outlaw Tech seems like the best fit to me.

AGE OF REBELLION:

Ace

This One is Mine – Hotshot

This One is Mine is a cocky ability, where you single out another ship and duke it out, no assistance from no one, no how. That seems to fit the profile of a Hotshot, to me!

Unmatched Survivability – Rigger

I flip-flopped back and forth between Rigger and Pilot on this one. I can see this Ability working two ways: either you use it by having intense focus when your ship is held together by a single wire and piloting better than you have in your life, or you use it by having an intimate knowledge of the mechanics of your ship and exactly how far you can push them. The Pilot would be the former, the Rigger the latter, and I felt the Rigger made more sense.

Commander

Rousing Oratory – Figurehead

I think this one is pretty obvious. This is the ability where you go, “TODAY WE ARE CANCELIN’ THE APOCALYPSE!” And everyone cheers and forgets they were afraid. The spec with Inspiring Rhetoric and Improved Confidence seemed like the best fit.

Unmatched Authority – Strategist

This one is a bit tricky. It’s about not only having authority, but in people trusting implicitly in both that authority and that you have a plan in mind to win the day. The Strategist seems like the best fit, although I could understand arguments for both the Commodore and Tactician. Maybe even Instructor.

Diplomat

Diplomatic Solution – Ambassador

I don’t have a real reason for this, I just thought it seemed like the kind of ability an Ambassador should have. That’s what they do all day, isn’t it?

Unmatched Insight – Advocate

I really didn’t have a reason for this one. Any ideas?

Soldier

Unmatched Valor – Vanguard

I know, I know, we don’t know what the Soldier’s Signature Abilities are going to be, and we also don’t know exactly what sort of talents the Vanguard has. But I have a strong feeling that one of the Soldier’s Abilities is going to revolve around courage, and from the description I think the Vanguard fits that best.

FORCE AND DESTINY:

Guardian

Fated Duel – Soresu Defender

Like when Obi-Wan triggers this ability in Episode IV, it’s main purpose is to keep a big bad occupied so the rest of the party can do all the things, and so it works best when the Duel lasts as long as it can. The Soresu Defender is great at making fights last a long time, because it’s so good at defending itself.

Unmatched Heroism – Protector

The Soresu Defender is about protecting yourself, the Protector is all about protecting others. Since Unmatched Heroism is about the same thing, I figure they fit together beautifully!

Seeker

Unexpected Demise – Executioner

I really don’t think this warrants an explanation.

Unmatched Pursuit – Navigator

I really wanted to put this one under the Hunter, but my Brain kept pointing out that the Navigator has Improved Shortcut, which makes it fit better mechanically with UP.

Sentinel

My City – Sentry

Once again we don’t have much information, but from what little we know, the Sentry is the Batman spec, and My City seems like a very Batman thing to say, so…

Unmatched Foresight – Racer

This one I actually think makes sense. The Racer is described as having keen spatial and temporal senses, so an ability called Unmatched Foresight seems to fit.

Clearly, this is just a thought experiment. I’m not suggesting Signature Abilities be limited to certain specs, I think that would be an awful idea. But, I just wanted to get some opinions on what people thought were the specs that most closely matched with their career’s Sig Abs.

Cheers!

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Last One Standing could be a Marauder too, thats the Blade master coming through, tearing through the ranks of enemies like a steamroller. Dynasty Warriors?

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I'm not familiar with Dynasty Warriors, but Marauder was actually a spec that I had in the running for both Hired Gun Signature Abilities, so yes, I agree :) !

The only trouble I had with it is that in larger encounters, eliminating every Minion could be difficult when you're limited to a melee weapon, but that's really a quibble. Although since I used that argument to go with Heavy instead of Marauder, perhaps it's not just a quibble, is it?

Hmm...

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Youtube gameplay here... not quite Star Wars, but you get the picture.

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My computer didn't like that video, but yes, even with only the first 8 seconds of the video, I did get the idea :P !

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I think Cyber Tech would make a solid thematic connection for Unmatched Calibration, as the character's finely tuned enhancements help them respond to fast-paced, high-stakes situations.

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I can see it, sure. The only reason I'm iffy on it is because it sort of depends on the kind of cybernetics the character is investing in. Someone who's using Cyber Tech to become a Terminator fits a bit less than someone who's using it to become a organic super-computer.

And maybe I just like the Outlaw Tech spec, and so I was subconsciously biased towards it when deciding. That's a possibility too :P !

Edited by Absol197
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I love the Beast Rider spec, the small side bar is oft overlooked clarifying that a Beast Rider may re-word them to apply to beasts instead... in which case i think that the "Unmatched Survivability" signature ability is incredibly well suited to that Specialisation. Keeping that beast up and moving during an extended encounter is just so thematically cool.

I understand Rigger is great too though

Edited by Richardbuxton
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I often picture the Fringer as a wanderer and drifter, a character prone to getting dragged into hot situations, warranted or not. Unmatched Mobility for a quick getaway.

Unmatched Expertise and Marshal fit good; lawman, peacekeeper, defender, deterrent, investigator, a Marshal has a lot of roles to play, so the ability to beat their challenges with expertise is needed.

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Hey, we just got the names of the Soldier Signature Abilities! Looks like I was pretty close on one of them: Unmatched Courage instead of Unmatched Valor. It let's you ignore your Critical Injuries for a couple of rounds.

Also The Bigger They Are..., which lets you beach soak and armor with impunity.

The Bigger They Are... feels like it would probably best fit with the Heavy, although I could hear an argument for anything but Medic or Trailblazer. Unmatched Courage still feels Vanguard to me.

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I think Unmatched Courage fits Commando pretty well thematically, given the spec's emphasis on withstanding crits and soaking damage.

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Hey couldn't Fated Duel also be a signature spec of the Armorer, in the same reason that a Soresu Defender could keep a fight going on through sheer skill with the Blade, an Armorer could just well Tank till he can't tank no more by enchanting his armor, The Soresu defender stalls through not taking hits, the Armorer stalls through taking the hits and reducing the damage to 2 or less.

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OK, what's the deal with these so-called "Signature Abilities"? They're not in the F&D core book. Where do they come from?

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OK, what's the deal with these so-called "Signature Abilities"? They're not in the F&D core book. Where do they come from?

They're from the various career supplements, and are a reward to PCs that focus on getting to the bottom of an in-career spec, namely in that they allow the PC "break the rules" in some very specific ways at the cost of 2 Destiny Points.

They're about as close to "epic tier" abilities as this system is likely going to ever provide.

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OK, what's the deal with these so-called "Signature Abilities"? They're not in the F&D core book. Where do they come from?

They're from the various career supplements, and are a reward to PCs that focus on getting to the bottom of an in-career spec, namely in that they allow the PC "break the rules" in some very specific ways at the cost of 2 Destiny Points.

They're about as close to "epic tier" abilities as this system is likely going to ever provide.

Cool. So, does that mean you need to get every talent in a given Spec's tree or simply reach the bottom tier in one or more columns?

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Each Signature Ability has two "nodes," as they're called, which correspond to a bottom-tier talent. If you have both of the talents that correspond to the nodes, you can attach the Signature Ability to the bottom of your Specialization tree, essentially making the tree bigger.

As an example: Fated Duel, one of the Guardian Abilities, has nodes in the first and fourth position. If you want to add that ability to the bottom of your Soresu Defender tree, you need to have the bottom-tier talents in the first and forth columns, so Supreme Parry and Strategic Form. If you wanted to attach it to the Peacekeeper instead, you'd need to have Unity Assault and Natural Leader.

Posted at

Each Signature Ability has two "nodes," as they're called, which correspond to a bottom-tier talent. If you have both of the talents that correspond to the nodes, you can attach the Signature Ability to the bottom of your Specialization tree, essentially making the tree bigger.

As an example: Fated Duel, one of the Guardian Abilities, has nodes in the first and fourth position. If you want to add that ability to the bottom of your Soresu Defender tree, you need to have the bottom-tier talents in the first and forth columns, so Supreme Parry and Strategic Form. If you wanted to attach it to the Peacekeeper instead, you'd need to have Unity Assault and Natural Leader.

OK, Thanks.

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You know, I was afraid that "Frightful Presence" didn't translate well to this RPG from Saga Edition. But thank goodness the Aggressor class had that covered with "Fearsome" ability. I love it that enemies have to roll fear check when my character engages them.

I really like that skill and that's why I went to Aggressor tree! :)

Not a signature ability, but it's the best one in the tree for me.

Edited by SuperArppis
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Ironically, I think "Fated Duel" works best with a Makashi Duelist. Which is why, in the game I GM, the Peacekeeper/Makashi Duelist is extremely excited to eventually take it. :P