So, I have just recently entered into the world of FFG Star Wars RPG. Someone gave me TFA Beginner Game, and then I went out and bought Edge of the Empire. I have had quite a bit of experience with pen and paper RPGs (I have played for 30 years!), but I am quite unfamiliar with all the product related to this particular brand.

For example, I was quite confused by the fact that EotE, AoR and FaD are all marketed as separate games! There are even three different forums here for them. I understand now, of course, that they all have the same mechanics and are basically different modules of the same game - made to use together.

My question is - where do I go next? Should I go all out with EotE, and get rule books, adventures, decks, etc - BEFORE venturing in to AoR and FaD? Or should I get the three core rules first? Would that give me more bang for the buck?

And what about all these decks? Gah! Need some community guidance here!

Ask your PCs what kind of game background they want to play.

The NPC decks are the only ones I bother with.

Yeah, find out what you and your players are interested in as far as Star Wars goes. Smugglers, bounty hunters, scum and villainy? Stick with Edge of the Empire. Rebel soldiers, starfighters, Imperial Stormtroopers (or just the 'Wars' part of Star Wars in different eras)? Age of Rebellion. The mysteries of the Force and lightsabers? Force and Destiny. Maybe a blend of all three? Then picking up all three core rulebooks could serve you well.

Adventure modules are up in the air. If you like premade adventures, then go for it. If not, don't sweat it.

Career books are nice, but if you're on a budget, have your players invest in the book that matches their chosen career.

Area books (so far includes Suns of Fortune, Lords of Nal Hutta, Strongholds of Resistance, and Nexus of Power) offer a wide range of details on locations, groups, and such. If you are quite well versed in Star Wars lore, then this might be less useful, but they do offer a lot of interesting ideas and threads for game world building. Nice selection of player options. Modular encounters are especially nice.

Mostly, just stick with the adversary decks, they are great. The Critical Hit/Injury decks can be useful to some, but the talent decks aren't worth collecting. If your players want them, that's fine, but I wouldn't bother getting them just to have them.

Welcome to the game! Love your Jawa PDFs.

Looking back over my own adventures within the lines, I'd recommend as Essentials:

-- 3 Core Books (if only so that you can get a good grip on the occasional mechanical differences, as well as having the basis for careers outside your preferred line and the critical gear that accompanies them)

-- Splat books in the line you prefer the most or intend to GM in ( all the splat books are nice but honestly if you have zero intention of running a line, don't bother with its splats)
-- NPC decks (just very useful)

-- 2 packs of dice (you should already have one from your TFA box)

Nice-to-Haves:

-- Region books (Hutta, Corellia, Strongholds, Nexus) (For my money, I'd almost consider these in the Essential category -- they are really great. But if you're just starting out, focus on the splats in your preferred line first.)
-- Splat books in the lines outside your preferred ones
-- Specialization decks (I don't know anyone who owns one -- most just use their books)

The "Meh" List:

-- Pre-fab Adventure books (I never play anything out-of-the-box -- I always homebrew my own campaigns)

-- Injury decks (I use post-it notes)

-- Dice apps

It's tough to recommend any one of EotE, AoR, or F&D over the other -- they're all excellent, well-designed, and polished products. I think F&D is the *most* polished in terms of its rules descriptions, mostly because it was published last as a core line and thus incorporated many errata in its rules -- but I would hardly recommend a line on this merit alone. There's just too many other things to consider. Also, it's best to not think of these lines as hermetically sealed off from each other: they're all happening at the same time, just in different venues. They are compatible, as you mention, but some of their unique systems -- Obligation, Duty, Morality -- take some planning to work in concert. But this is still very doable without much workaround.

Probably the biggest thing I've come to realize, and something that is a misconception for a lot of people starting out in this system, is that Jedi/Force Users do not represent the "endgame". They can become immensely powerful, but I think you'll find they are just as mortal as anyone else in the game. The other critical component they are missing out on in focusing on the Force is Skills, which are of critical importance in this system. Jedi can be incredibly fun to play, but for what it's worth, my Edge campaigns have been the most entertaining and enjoyable of the lines I've played. (Admittedly, I've only played a single one-shot of AoR -- but it was fun.)

In my own experience, I've had more fun with this RPG system than any other. Ever. Its rules are deep without being overly complex, and the narrative focus makes the system immensely difficult to metagame/powergame. The rules supplements are remarkably free of much power creep and work very well together. It's hard to make a bad choice of books/lines to buy into, once you've got the core book for that line.

Welcome!

Lots of good advice above. GreyMatter's post about Force-users is quite valid; experienced characters are still fairly fragile compared to most other RPGs. A PC that's sinking a lot of XP into Force powers will be much less skilled and talented than a companion who's not buying Force powers.

It's worth noting that while all of the actual tabletop game mechanics (skill checks, opposed rolls, combat, etc.) are identical between the three lines, there is an additional unique mechanic that encompasses the "feel" of each setting. Edge of the Empire has Obligation, which represents the hold that someone else has over a PC (or group). Age of Rebellion has Duty, which describes the PC's (and group's) relationship with the Alliance. Force and Destiny's unique mechanic is Morality, which is about each individual's relationship with the Force. These can have both narrative and in-game effects on both the story and play.

The F&D core book has the most comprehensive set of rules for cross-game line compatibility. I should point out that while Obligation and Duty can affect both an individual PC and the group as a whole, Morality is tracked separately for each individual.

I am really grateful for your help. Love the community here - you guys have given me a royal welcome.

I will go ahead and get the other two core books (I already have two sets of dice), and the NPC decks... That sounds great. I will probably add more stuff later, but that sounds that a great start (and fortunately my birthday is coming up!).

I would actually tell you not to get the other two corebooks. They are very redundant because all the core rules are the same (except for duty, obligation and Morality). Only get the one you know will dominate your campaign and then get that one. If your campaign will be mostly bout the struggles of the galactic war get AoR, if you want to dabble more in PC's finding their own destiny in the force get F&D.

Also, depending on your way of gaming (I always have my laptop open as well as physical notes) and your access to cheap printing you don't need the NPC decks. There are numerous ressources that compile the stats of NPC's. Personally, I would never buy any of the cards because I have them in digital form, but if you like them I can imagine they are nice to have.

I would actually tell you not to get the other two corebooks. They are very redundant because all the core rules are the same (except for duty, obligation and Morality). Only get the one you know will dominate your campaign and then get that one. If your campaign will be mostly bout the struggles of the galactic war get AoR, if you want to dabble more in PC's finding their own destiny in the force get F&D.

Also, depending on your way of gaming (I always have my laptop open as well as physical notes) and your access to cheap printing you don't need the NPC decks. There are numerous ressources that compile the stats of NPC's. Personally, I would never buy any of the cards because I have them in digital form, but if you like them I can imagine they are nice to have.

Not actually true. while yes the mechanics are the same. There is a LOT of other information that is not the same. Carees, talents, equipment, Species, Planets, etc. So all of the core books have value beyond just the mechanics. You don't need to go out and buy all 3 at once. But they are worth having.

Also it is worth listening to the order 66 podcast. a LOT of really good info advice GM advice discussions with devs about the design and clarifying of rules. etc.

You have all forgotten the most critical resource to get! Oggdude's character generator is essential!

But otherwise, I would say getting the core books is nice (but if you are not going to run force-users, you could skip F&D). Having extra core books at the table is always helpful. I would say the others are pick up as you can. Look at what you are planning to do. If you are exploring, get Enter the Unknown. If you want homesteads, get Far Horizons. If they are working for Hutts, get Lords of Nal Hutta. But eventually, if you are like me, you will get it all!

Also, I highly recommend the dice roller app by Fantasy Flight Games. It is especially good for new players who need help cancelling results, or if you get an obscene dice pool and don't have enough dice. Plus it supports all their other star wars lines too. (If you play them anyway).

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I would actually tell you not to get the other two corebooks. They are very redundant because all the core rules are the same (except for duty, obligation and Morality). Only get the one you know will dominate your campaign and then get that one. If your campaign will be mostly bout the struggles of the galactic war get AoR, if you want to dabble more in PC's finding their own destiny in the force get F&D.

Also, depending on your way of gaming (I always have my laptop open as well as physical notes) and your access to cheap printing you don't need the NPC decks. There are numerous ressources that compile the stats of NPC's. Personally, I would never buy any of the cards because I have them in digital form, but if you like them I can imagine they are nice to have.

Just to toss another perspective out there...

While I always have my laptop going when I run a session, and have the NPC's in digital form as well, I find that the NPC cards come in quite handy for quickie NPC's that may not have been part of the original mix for the session. I find it easier to flip through the small card folder that I have them in to find a particular NPC type that I might need than to scroll through a listing on the laptop. But that's just me.

OggDudes Generator is a really useful program and I heartily recommend it! Also it's free!!. However due to copyright stuff he only has the mechanical side of things in there, NOT the description. This means you will get a talent trees but not what the talents do. You can manually enter talent descriptions (and I heartily recommend it) but if you don't the talent trees will just say "see page xxx of edge of the empire". This means you still need the books for trees you to play something else.

Trees would also be my pointer for what to buy. Players want to play X then X book is worth buying by you or them, plus any kind of crafter will want Special Modifications. You will want the area books too in the medium term but a lot can be run from the CRBs and wookiepaedia.