I am running this years final session next month and I was hoping this community could help with a few cool ideas and twists to help me along. I am rushing around with hosting 2 Thanksgivings, and a whole lot on my plate at the moment so I was hoping to get some ideas from you lot!

Group: The group consists of 4 Force-sensitive PC's (one is Dark side) getting followed from planet to planet by a Sith Inquisitor.

Previous Session: The group responded to a cry for help from a previous mentor only to find her dead with ISB agents "investigating" the body. They decided to leave the planet, but the ship they came on is locked and the pilot is missing. Two Sith Spawn Rancors burst from out of nowhere and the party defeated them. One PC is down and another is gravely wounded.

The party was able to unlock the ship and get aboard, only to notice they can't take off because the docking clamps are locked down. There are stormtroopers outside the ship firing and prepared to do battle with them.

They are wounded, locked in a confined space, and unable to go anywhere...

Next Session: The key points for the next session would be to save the pilot, fight the Sith Inquisitor, and get away from the planet.

1) I assume the pilot is an npc?

Might I suggest you let the downed player run the pilot and provide the other players NPCs to run as you play out how and why the ship was locked down?

The idea is in case you do lose a pc you have a ready made replacement in case of that eventuality but for now give them a distraction until you're ready to continue their side of the story!

2) who killed the mentor?

Maybe it wasn't the Empire and that's who the Inquisitor is currently chasing so as long as your players don't overplay their hand they might be able to bluff their way out?

3) is their ship armed?

Does it have the means to hold off the stormtroopers long enough for your players to cut through the docking clamps I assume they have lightsabers?

If not can they hack them?

4) Do they have any local help like the rebels for instance?

5) Worst case I can imagine is them fleeing the ship and having it self destruct to divert attention long enough to either steal another ship or get offworld by another means before the Empire seals off all escape routes?

Is this intended as the last game for your campaign?

Lightsabers might make short work of the docking clamps, it's not like they are a hard target.



Possible plot turns.

• Force Ghosts and Force Projections, either that mentor character, Yoda or an unknown third party might contact the characters and lend them a hand or idea to get running fast.
• After the start into their daring escape an Inquisitor as Star Fighter Ace turns up for a change of pace. (Works only well if the group has a pilot themselves)
• Rebels save the day
• The Darksider gets an job opportunity. (or all of them)
• Turns out the mentor died by the hands of the guy who the inquisitors are actually after and that guy if offering the PCs a chance to escape. (Classic darth maul rebels episode ;-))
• The reason the mentor ask for help is still relevant, and the PCs find out what the mentor wanted to have help with … and it is not even related to his death, but still important. (You can here basically enter any unrelated plot)
• etc

1) I assume the pilot is an npc?

Might I suggest you let the downed player run the pilot and provide the other players NPCs to run as you play out how and why the ship was locked down?

The idea is in case you do lose a pc you have a ready made replacement in case of that eventuality but for now give them a distraction until you're ready to continue their side of the story!

--Yes the pilot is an NPC, he has been stuck with them for a few months now but they have come to be friends and have a good rapport. I have never had the group run an alternate scene as other NPC's before...I've always focused on them and how they see things. That's an interesting idea, can you elaborate more on how to do that?

2) who killed the mentor?

Maybe it wasn't the Empire and that's who the Inquisitor is currently chasing so as long as your players don't overplay their hand they might be able to bluff their way out?

-- I originally thought that the Sith Inquisitor would be the one responsible for her death via a 3rd party (hired assassin). I wanted to use that as bait to draw them back to the planet. It's not set in stone, but I do want a fight between the group and the Inquisitor to happen though.

3) is their ship armed?

Does it have the means to hold off the stormtroopers long enough for your players to cut through the docking clamps I assume they have lightsabers?

If not can they hack them?

--The ship is armed but they haven't asked about that yet. They could try to distract the guards with the weapons from the ship and cut the docking clamps away...I don't want them to hack them, but if they do I will allow it.

4) Do they have any local help like the rebels for instance?

-- There used to be a rebel contingency in the city they are in, however since they left the Empire has taken a strong hold of the planet. They bombed the temple the group was using in the far mountains, killed a majority of villagers who interacted with them in the nearby village, turned the university into a barracks for Stormtroopers (so many you could see them when making a landing on the planet, and set curfews and locked everything down. I was going to say the rebels have been wiped out, but I could still utilize them if they can't figure anything else out.

5) Worst case I can imagine is them fleeing the ship and having it self destruct to divert attention long enough to either steal another ship or get offworld by another means before the Empire seals off all escape routes?

--That would be an option, but their benefactor just used her influence and some money to buy the pilot NPC (Jerris) this new ship because his old one got blown up over Nal Hutta. I bet they would all feel like that would be the extreme last resort.

Is this intended as the last game for your campaign?

--It is the last session of this leg of the campaign. We only play once a month so everything has been building to this last big boss battle. If they defeat him then they will get the Emperor/Vader's attention otherwise if they lose then they will be imprisoned and have to escape from being tortured and possibly killed by the Empire. This will be a 7-8 hour session so we will have ample time, but I wanted to have them save Jerris (pilot NPC) and then fight the Big Bad as the main plot points.

Well, you know some people will drive off with a boot attached to their car.

So, what are the odds that the pilot NPC could just make a really hard roll to rip the docking clamps right out of their mountings, and then fly off? How would that appear on the other end, once they try to land somewhere?

Or maybe one of the PCs is a strong enough Force user that they can use the Move power to rip the docking clamps out of their mountings?

Well, you know some people will drive off with a boot attached to their car.

So, what are the odds that the pilot NPC could just make a really hard roll to rip the docking clamps right out of their mountings, and then fly off? How would that appear on the other end, once they try to land somewhere?

Or maybe one of the PCs is a strong enough Force user that they can use the Move power to rip the docking clamps out of their mountings?

Or has mental tools and a fully skilled force move to just disassemble the docking clamps without being noticed.

Maybe the mentor faked his own death as part of an elaborate ambush he has planned for the Sith inquisitor. Once he's helped the party deal with the inquisitor it's their turn to help solve his problem.

1) I assume the pilot is an npc? Might I suggest you let the downed player run the pilot and provide the other players NPCs to run as you play out how and why the ship was locked down? The idea is in case you do lose a pc you have a ready made replacement in case of that eventuality but for now give them a distraction until you're ready to continue their side of the story!

--Yes the pilot is an NPC, he has been stuck with them for a few months now but they have come to be friends and have a good rapport. I have never had the group run an alternate scene as other NPC's before...I've always focused on them and how they see things. That's an interesting idea, can you elaborate more on how to do that?

If you do have your players run those pre-generated characters supplied with those sets?

Now I noticed you said the Empire stomped on the local Rebel base, but there may still be a few stragglers?

In the Edge set the characters were fleeing a Hutt here they could be linked to that benefactor who undoubtedly would want to see some repayment for the new ship they provided and what better than some recruits that can be relied upon to help maintain that new ship?

So maybe they were sent to meet the pilot and now have to rescue him and get back to his ship... oh it's clamped?

Well given the stormtroopers think the crew are already aboard it wouldn't stretch things if the PCs learn their pilot is heading for them and brought help?!

Of course nothing stops you having an encounter with that Inquisitor perhaps introduce the assassin responsible for their mentor's death do if they want to the assassin is now their new characters nemesis?

Using the pre-gens avoids having to create new characters if you don't want to if you don't have any of the sets there are at least 6 downloadable characters from all 3 core rules that you should still be able to use?

If you have the Age of Rebellion set instead of infiltrating an Imperial base they broke out of one thanks to their mentor and help free the pilot to escape on their ship?

The Force & Destiny set they witnessed their mentor's death and was meeting the pilot to pass on a last message from their former mentor to the other padawans getting a little crowded on that ship of theirs isn't it?

Anyway if you go with any of my suggestions let them pick whichever pre-gen they want and run your own version of the Rogue One introductory battle on Jedai or when Kanan & co stole Princess Leia's ships on Star Wars Rebels?!

Okay, here's a thought.

PC's are "trapped, wounded, and surrounded by Storm Troopers with NO escape possible!"

As much as I hate this literary device, it sounds like you need a Deus es Machina.

At the beginning of the next session, a splinter rebel cell hits the troopers from the back/flank and run off the troopers.

The rebels come in to find that the PC's AREN'T fellow rebels (opps, our bad. Never mind?).

Still this group of Rebels needs to get off planet, and fast and offer to pay fare to the PC's (who are also on the Empire's short list of enemies of the state).

Rebels DO have a slicer who can unlock the ship, but the PC's still need to rescue the pilot. (Rebels may even have some useful intel for the PC's).

At which point the group heads out to a "safe house" where the PC"s can get healed, regroup and advance the next plot point.

Another idea, the bounty hunter who was hired by the inquisitor, may still be on the pay, with the job of locating the PC's. He may also be at the port, shadowing the PC's and reporting their movements. (So much for the quiet respite at the safe house).

Another line of thought to consider; what planet are they on? Is there a separate sub-plot that could rear its ugly head that is planet specific? Are there fourth or fifth parties on this world not yet involved who could become so involved? You may want to put together a handful of contingencies, but it sounds like there are enough plot pieces on the chess board already.

Hope this helps.

One other question...Should I make my Inquisitor have 2 attacks during a round, or use improved parry? Most of my players have really good lightsaber skill so I am worried he would get beaten too quickly unless he either has some sort of cortosis armor and/or improved parry...

I'm very unfamiliar with Force Sensitives (I just can't get interested in the Force sensitive rules, but with all of the available talent trees to distract me, I'm fine with that).

BUT

I read briefly a talent or a force skill with I think might be called "Duel"? Or Forced Duel? I can't remember, but go looking for it.

Basically when active it forces a one-on-one duel for three rounds and no outside faction (on either side) can interfere with the "Duel." Check it out, it might be useful for your purposes.

I can hardly wait to see what other advice people have for this latest question!

Why would you need to if the Inquisitor has reinforcements present?

Why would you need to if the Inquisitor has reinforcements present?

I guess I was just curious if other people used one over the other. I could put groups of stormtroopers in the mix and maybe even a Magnaguard Droid or 2, but I figured the group will probably go pretty hard at the BBG so I wanted to see how other would run that sort of fight.

I also assumed that the Inquisitor would have guards accompanying him. Lots of capable guards, based on how many PC's are involved.

Anything stopping you having the Inquisitor turning up in stormtrooper armour with maybe 2 others trained to use lightsabers to throw off your players?

Sure they could use the force but those 12 stormtroopers aren't going to let them gang up on the Inquisitor if it means showing they can take down one of them?!

The mountain temple the PC's used to use was destroyed, but the bombing also revealed a much older Sith temple underneath. The Sith temple is the real reason for the heavy imperial presence on the planet.

The mentor led the last few remnants of the rebels, his plan was to destroy the temple and hopefully remove the only reason for the empire to keep such large force on the planet.

He was unable to access the temple because of the rule of two, requiring 2 force users to gain access, so he reached out to the only other force users he knew (the party). This also means there must be two inquisitors on the planet.

Not all of the PC's old friends were killed, some survivors will have been taken to the temple for experimentation using Sith alchemy.

There are a few ways to get the PC's to the temple:

They could be captured and taken there

They could defeat the inquisitor and find a map to his secret lair

The NPC pilot could be taken there and the party set off in pursuit

The rebel cell could rescue the party and enlist them in the plan

There are hundreds of adventures that could be had inside a Sith temple.

Or pull a Taris and the bombardment released something bound deep below the now destroyed Jedi Temple evidence of an ancient Sith Laboratory and the likelihood this place was once a Sith Temple during the KOTOR era perhaps?

So maybe the Empire is getting ready to unleash a BDZ and the siege is an attempt to isolate this variation of the Rakghoul plague?

Maybe an Imperial Agent helps them escape so he can report on his findings as well as save his own skin... would the Inquisitor share what he knows about the PCs to anyone they usually come across as downright rude to anyone else when it comes to their mission maybe the Agent is quite happy to foil that Inquisitor especially if their Inqy has deliberately ignored what's happened at the temple something both the Emperor and Lord Vader would be interested in... so what if Inqy ordered its destruction before it could be properly checked?

Some interesting possibilities there!

Not sure how this is going or if feedback is still needed, but it seems like all the elements are right here:

Next Session: The key points for the next session would be to (1) save the pilot, (2) fight the Sith Inquisitor, and (3) get away from the planet.

A few questions:

1) Have the PCs met the Inquisitor and established a dislike?

2) Have the players ever flown the ship without Jerris?

3) Do we know where Jerris and the Inquisitor are?

Contingent on the answers to those questions, I would recommend re-ordering the goals of the session as follows:

To get away from the planet, they players need to rescue the pilot, and to rescue the pilot, they need to fight the Inquisitor.

For that to work best, they have to NEED Jerris. Perhaps he has a code or password or physical key they need to take off? In my current Firefly campaign, the captain is short on trust and when she can't leave one of the crew members she trusts on the ship, she removes a small but key part so no one can steal it out from under her. Bonus points: Tie whatever is needed into the loss of the previous ship, if possible. If you want the players to be a little mobile, maybe it's just that they can't go to hyperspace without the code/McGuffin.

So, establish that the players NEED to get Jerris for some reason.

Where's Jerris? If you don't already know, I have to assume that he is, for some reason, with the Inquisitor. Perhaps the Inquisitor is doing this to draw the players out, or to learn about the mentor (who, if I'm understanding things correctly, may have had a relationship with Jerris besides whatever the players are involved in). Even if Jerris isn't WITH the Inquisitor, the Inquisitor should somehow be a gatekeeper.

All things being equal, if it were me, I would probably let the players try to escape/fight their way out of their current situation, and possibly have some surviving Rebel partisans show up to help. Those folks know that Jerris has been captured by the Empire and he's been taken to the bombed out temple and/or village, where the final fight can occur. Lots of fun to have Force users duking it out in the midst of unstable rubble, plus if the players cared about the location, there's added emotional value. Heck, if there are signature items that were left behind, let them show up during the fight, having partially survived the assault.

If you are concerned that the Inquisitor might not be powerful enough, I present three options, two tied to the temple.

1) Perhaps the temple is some sort of locus in the Force and the Inquisitor is able to tap into it.

2) Perhaps there was something hidden underneath (I think a few people suggested this) - and it is now UNLEASHED for the PCs to fight. Heck, the PCs might even need to team up with the Inquisitor!

3) The assassin who killed the mentor is also on hand, so now the PCs are basically fighting Vader AND Fett.

If you feel there's not enough meat to the story, then I suggest a "middle act" where the PCs and the partisans recover. And perhaps they don't know where Jerris was taken, just that he was taken by the Imperials, so now the PCs need to get that information by capturing an officer or something.

If you're viewing this as a "season finale," this is the time to bring back familiar faces, if there are any to be had.

I would also note that, although you want the PCs to fight the Inquisitor, it may not have to be all of them. Star Wars is often at it's best when the heroes have multiple, interlocking goals. Perhaps two of the PCs hold off the Inquisitor while the others go to rescue Jerris... only to be ambushed by the assassin.

A lot of it, I suppose, depends on what you're players like, and how the characters have evolved. For example, if one character has bonded with Jerris more than others, that one should try to rescue him. If one is favored by the mentor, that should be the one who stumbles across the assassin - and the truth of what happened. If any of them are susceptible to falling to the Dark Side, let them be one of the two facing the Inquisitor - and the Inquisitor tries to seduce them into switching sides.

Good luck!

Wow! I am sorry I haven't replied back sooner, but this thread had an amazing response and has helped me generate a bunch of good ideas to utilize during the next session.

I will be utilizing the pilot (Jerris) as the key to getting off the planet, either with a key or password to allow the starship to take flight, that way they will be forced to save him before cutting and running. I think having the assassin kidnap him, and bring him to the Inquisitor to start experimenting on drawing thoughts and memories out of his mind so they can gain more info on the group.

In order for the PC's to get out of the predicament they have found themselves in will probably require some fast thinking (using the ships guns, etc.) to get away alone...otherwise I may have to Deus Ex Machina the battle and have some of the remaining Rebels show up to help drive them back. Once free from the current situation they can go with the Rebels and attempt to gain some more knowledge on how different things have been since they left.

Once they find out that there has been a lot of Imperial activity where they used to train, they will *hopefully* head in that direction and then come into contact with multiple stormtroopers and possibly a familiar face or 2 from when they used to live there.

Once they get to the Temple they will have to split up to rescue Jerris from a Sith Apprentice and the others will have to hold off the Inquisitor. The dark side PC will be tempted by the Inquisitor to help him and join his side, which should play out nicely to see what happens there. I may throw the assassin into the fray, but I will have to see how it is going first before I commit to that.

Once the dust settles they will either be captured at the hands of the Imps, or have to get off-world very very quickly.

After reading through everything I had a few more ideas. Here are 3 other things that might be fun to utilize...

#1. Their first mentor was not a Force sensitive, she was a professor at the local university and tried to learn as much as she could about the Jedi of old and the Order. She taught the PC's much of their history and was able to help them get the holocrons running from the Mountain Temple they were training at. (We started with the F&D BG with original characters). Since she was found dead in the last session, I was thinking about the Inquisitor conducting various Sith-Alchemy type experiments under the Temple and bring her back to life. But instead of she will be a shell of what she was and now have extreme strength (or something like that). That way they have to determine that she really isn't alive and then fight her.

#2. One of my players had his first PC die on this planet from a blaster shot by a Rebel Captain that was shooting at an enemy he was engaged with (he rolled a despair). The group gave him a funeral at the temple and lit a pyre and burned his body. The player went on to create a new character that was the brother of the one who died...Since his departed brothers "spirit" could be remaining here I was thinking that might come into play.

#3. Going along with #2 I could bring the Rebels in as backup, the Captain who killed the PC's brother (by accident) could show up and we could see how that would unfold.

If they're experimenting what if one of their creations is possessed by the spirit of that slain character?

Think masked figure dressed in black who randomly appears and helps out allies they remember but can't quite figure out why?

What's scarier to your players?

A resurrected mentor turned into a horrific monster or an enigmatic rival who makes remarks and acts like a slain former colleague whose been brought back with Sith Alchemy?!

The finale session was a success! It took the PC's hours to finish, but they managed to save the NPC Pilot Jerris, meet with the Rebels and see some familiar faces, find a hidden Sith labyrinth beneath the ancient Jedi Temple they used to train in, and find the Sith Inquisitor and an AT-ST! It was very epic, the fight(s) at the end lasted a long time but they managed to get both the Inquisitor and the AT-ST through some fancy Force moves and Lightsaber skills!

They didn't come away unscathed however, they set Jerris' brand new starship (wayfarer class) on fire to make a distraction while they got away with the Rebels...even though they took care of the group of stormtroopers after them....most of them have at least 1 crit right now...and to bring Jerris back to consciousness they used a "home-remedy stimpack" which makes the person receiving it drunk for 1 hour. He was also the only pilot. So now they are trying to get away all crammed in a TIE-Fighter with a drunk guy at the helm.

So I am thinking that next steps might be to integrate some obligation into the game (even though it's not EotE) because they owe some people money and now owe Jerris a new ship. I don't know where we may go after that just yet...but it should be interesting!

I need some idea for my today´s session as I had tiring week and I am totally out of the ideas....

The PCs went to Raxus Prime (the garbage planet) to assasinate a merc leader who had a small base in the underground city of salvagers, smugglers, homeless, Jawasssss. There is an imperial shipyard on the orbit and an ironworks on the planet. There is a small rebel base in the north pole which they know.

The PCs assasinated the leader but while running away, they were shot down by the mercs fighters. They managed heroically to snipe one pilot from the ground and force the other to retreat before the Empire appeared. They went into hiding and after the Empire departed, they started walking ... and we finished the session. They are far away from the underground city with no idea about the directions. Only 1 PC is not known by the mercs so if they reach the city, only he can go down there. Their starship is beyond any repair.

What would you add apart from the standard survival problems. I really dont want to drag them too long as I need to finish the season on this session, so they need to get some transport, go to few places to show proofs that they did the jobs, get rewards and accomplish their seasonal objective. However, I dont want to make it too easy.

Thx!

Whilst that lone pc is trying to figure out a way to make their ship fly the others are spotted and come under attack by the surviving mercs.

Holed up they're being slowly surrounded meanwhile back down at the crashed ship the lone pc is drafted to fly a merc ship maybe a variant of Slave One or another freighter to deliver reinforcements to help deal with a problem (the other PCs).

He delivers the troops and then moves the ship clear only to signal the PCs to prepare for evacuation and blows a hole in whatever they using as cover and in the confusion lands to pick them up and then flees offworld hopefully before the mercs realise whats happening?

Would that help?

The merc that was forced to retire with his damaged starship knows that the Imperials will come (as they did) alerted by a crash of two starships, so the mercs would keep low for a moment after returning to the underground city. In theory Raxus Prime is a closed planet. Also the mercs have a problem cause their leader was just killed. The second in command took over, but he is not the smartest type and he needs to secure his leadership.

Anyway, if the PCs roll a despair during the session and there will be nothing else reasonable to spend it on, surely the mercs will come back looking for them.

Thx!