First time GM here and I have my first game coming up soon.

I'm not very experienced with RPGs in general but what I do know is they tend to have a lot of maps and other visual representation for where the PCs are and what they're doing in a fight. This seems intuitive for any game really, especially when I've come from a long history of war gaming.

Now the core book makes it very clear that this game is about story and imagery driven games, which I'm totally down for. From what I've heard D&D can get convoluted and DEEP and I would rather focus on building a good adventure. But for battles its telling you to just establish vague distances between the PCs and enemies and then to just wing it verbally within the battle mechanics without any visual or physical representation.

With multiple enemies it just seems like this method can get really...lost and instead of being enthralled with the "story" I imagine arguments of "Well where was he? Behind me at what distance? But in relation to what or who? What happens when I move closer to this guy?"

What's funny is the beginners set comes with maps and tokens for its adventure.

I'm wondering how other GMs have handled this aspect of the game or if you've just totally ignored it. Any input would be appreciated.

We use a largish (24"x18") dry-erase board. Hand drawn floor layouts, glass beads, or bottle caps, or what have you (non-FFG polygonal dice) as minis. It is good to have SOMETHING for visual literacy of the situation, IMO, so ppl can envision options better (including cover, and other environment they can manipulate) but that's all. Always trust your judgement as to what creates the best encounter, and what will lead the story to develope in the most interesting way, when you are telling PCs their ranges and difficulties, etc. Even when this includes retcons of the map.

Make this approach clear to your PCs from the get-go, and you really shouldn't have any problems.

This is an area of considerable debate on the boards amongst the three product lines. People who came to this product from other RPGs are mostly in favor of just fudging it like the rules seem to intend. People who came from a wargaming background or from the last few editions of D&D (3.X & 4, especially) really appreciate the clarity provided by a table full of minis, often on some sort of gridded map. The maps & tokens in the beginner games don't really seem intended for use like you would in a wargame (i.e. base-to-base contact, etc.), more just to keep track of where everyone is in a general sense, particularly if the party splits.

Personally, I like a table full of scenery, scatter terrain, minis, etc. to help evoke certain feelings. If the sniper is atop a water tower with a commanding view of the town, having a Pringles can with a laser pointer on top or something to provide some elevation really drives that home to the PCs. I find that using minis helps a lot with consistency and cuts down on note-taking. Using miniatures, everyone can see what range they are to each group of enemies; there's no need to write it all down and try to keep up with the notation every time someone moves.

The beauty of the FFG system is that you can be as free-form or as strict as you like with maps & minis. If you have a chase or a simple ambush encounter with just one or two groups of minions, there's no reason to bust out the map; you can do it all "theater of the mind"-style. If you have an intricate encounter with lots of moving pieces, you can go all-out with as much detail as you can cram on the table. I've not gotten into any starship combat yet, but when I do, I definitely plan to bust out some X-Wing and/or Armada minis to help everyone visualize what's going on.

As an aside, you can find the official Star Wars soundboard here , which really helps suspend disbelief. Judicious use of that will definitely help put your players in the game.

Minis can be helpful, maps too, but bannish the grid for this game.

Throw off the shackles and embrace narrative play

Throw off the shackles and embrace narrative play

It's just not that easy for a lot of us.

It's all up to your group. We do a mix of theater of the mind and maps/minis play with my old Saga Edition figures.

For the most part, I use a Chessex Battlemat and do a quick sketch. If it's an area I don't have heavily defined, I ask my players to set the scene. They usually come up with a fun arena for battle and it gets them even more engaged.

I also grabbed a bunch of Armored Cartographer maps on clearance a while back. They're fun to throw down if I need something quick to set a scene.

My players are very visual. I use a lot of WotC minis, and a Cheesex Battlemat as my primary means of communication the scene for combat.

sometimes it can be this simple

I appreciate everyone's input and honestly I got the responses I figured I'd get, haha. I think I'm going to try the whole "theater of the mind" route for our first play through and not attempt anything intricate, get their impressions, and then move on from there.

I think the beauty is that if I do move on to visual representation I'm not bound by serious measurements and what not.