Some of the FFG titles (notable recently is Legend of the Five Rings) have gotten fiction written about them. I think it's really cool of FFG to do this, but I think it's be great also if Imperial Assault got some love.

Now, the first and obvious issue with this is canon. Presumably, the stories would have to fit into canon (and licensed). However, assuming FFG could get licensed to write the short stories, I think this shouldn't be too difficult. All of the heroes already have alluded backstories anyway. Building off of them, while steering away from any potential canon issues (don't have the heroes meet Leia, for instance, or visit a problematic planet like Alderaan or Geonosis) could be really cool!

Give us a secret mission of Mak's that causes him to swear vengeance. Let's find out how Vinto got his scar. See a day in the life of Kayn Somos at the academy (with a possible cameo of stormtrooper Biv?)

I think that Imperial Assault does a decent job of telling stories with very little narrative outright spelled out, but just a little more lore on each of the original characters should be easy to do, and could bring a lot to the table as far as really giving these heroes (and villains) character.

Plus, I think it'd be fun for FFG to play around with. Or, if they want, they could hire out someone to do it (Just sayin' ).

IA has some great fiction already, called the Star Wars movies, should check them out!

This kinda feeds into the thread I started about wanting an IA sourcebook. I would love to know more about the hero's and more in-depth info about the overall stories. I could see a book specifically for the IP to facilitate the story-telling aspect, or a player handbook that gives more background to the players.

With respect to short stories, it seems like something like runewars is probably more in need of universe building, when compared to SW. But, it would be cool to read some short stories about the Hero's before the campaigns take place.

To play Devils advocate: To some extent the more is set in stone about each character, the less creative we can be (that sentence turned into Yoda for some reason).

In either event, I want more!

15 minutes ago, FrogTrigger said:

IA has some great fiction already, called the Star Wars movies, should check them out!

14 minutes ago, VadersMarchKazoo said:

With respect to short stories, it seems like something like runewars is probably more in need of universe building, when compared to SW. But, it would be cool to read some short stories about the Hero's before the campaigns take place.

To play Devils advocate: To some extent the more is set in stone about each character, the less creative we can be (that sentence turned into Yoda for some reason)

No, I totally get that, Star Wars is a well fleshed universe by most standards, to be sure.

But as far as our characters go, we know only the barebones about them. Outside of player projection, the characters really don't have any specific development unless you play their specific side mission.

But I do get the argument that it lends itself to less flexibility. Definitely, they'd need to be careful with that. All of the stories would need to take place before any potential campaign that the hero could be used with. Ideally they'd link in some way to that hero's side mission and maybe even provide some context for the side mission. After all, it's a bit odd for players to learn of their nemesis from Back in the Day during the mission that they (hopefully) defeat them.

And maybe short stories isn't quite the way to go. Maybe simply dossiers on the characters that could be read at the start of campaigns, providing a little of their backstory, motivations, and reasons for fighting. I actually started writing up something like that a few months ago, but ended up ditching the project.

Could be fun, and while I love creating just the right amount of backstory to my characters, I think the rest of my table gets bored with it, and has more fun reacting to the situations that show up in gameplay.

The mission that got my group hooked on the game was Temptation. 2nd mission we played. I'd spent a long time setting it up as a big trial/dream sequence for Diala. The player rushed to open the door and face his destiny, ignoring the Royal Guards, and as soon as Vader stepped out and he looked at his stats, saw how surrounded he was, and he ran for his life. Then Gaarkhan rushed in like frickin' Leroy Jenkins, got some lucky rolls, and clobbered him. I just sat there astounded and said "Did you just get upstaged in your OWN vision quest? You RAN AWAY! If anybody should be getting the lightsaber, it's Gaarkhan!" So when the mission ended, I added in script that Diala awoke with Gaarkhan standing over her, gently tending her wounds. The table lore now is that Diala has a crush on Gaarkhan. He may or may not feel the same way. We are totally shipping them.

A source book tailored to IA would be really cool, I would buy that for sure.

1 hour ago, Pollux85 said:

Could be fun, and while I love creating just the right amount of backstory to my characters, I think the rest of my table gets bored with it, and has more fun reacting to the situations that show up in gameplay.

The mission that got my group hooked on the game was Temptation. 2nd mission we played. I'd spent a long time setting it up as a big trial/dream sequence for Diala. The player rushed to open the door and face his destiny, ignoring the Royal Guards, and as soon as Vader stepped out and he looked at his stats, saw how surrounded he was, and he ran for his life. Then Gaarkhan rushed in like frickin' Leroy Jenkins, got some lucky rolls, and clobbered him. I just sat there astounded and said "Did you just get upstaged in your OWN vision quest? You RAN AWAY! If anybody should be getting the lightsaber, it's Gaarkhan!" So when the mission ended, I added in script that Diala awoke with Gaarkhan standing over her, gently tending her wounds. The table lore now is that Diala has a crush on Gaarkhan. He may or may not feel the same way. We are totally shipping them.

That's fantastic!

Yeah, I wish I was better about that kind of thing. I love creative writing, but I'm just afraid something like that might be cringey with the wrong crowd- especially when it's not an official part of the game. Sounds like your player base works really well with it, though!

Temptation is definitely one of the best done missions in the game. The first time my group played it they were just enthralled. That was the thing with the core, it was so hit or miss but when it was a hit man people loved it.

27 minutes ago, FrogTrigger said:

A source book tailored to IA would be really cool, I would buy that for sure.

Yeah!

I want to know Mak's blodtype favourite food and favourite holonet celebrity.

Sorry i was unable to stop my self.

Bad Ace bad boy.

36 minutes ago, subtrendy2 said:

That's fantastic!

Yeah, I wish I was better about that kind of thing. I love creative writing, but I'm just afraid something like that might be cringey with the wrong crowd- especially when it's not an official part of the game. Sounds like your player base works really well with it, though!

Yeah, I'm really worried that if I try this with another group it won't be the same. They can't be overly concerned about winning, and they have to be okay with not knowing how everything works. What allowed them to win that mission? Was it defeating Vader? Was it the number of times they took that healing bonus? Could they have "won" this mission and not gotten that reward? They had no idea at the time, and for now I think the game is better for it. It creates a space where they fill in stuff that's better than anything you will think up.

Another helpful thing is to give them opportunities to contribute and get invested. Let them say that Vader tripped over his own cape when Diala rolls an dodge, or that she parries it with expert skill. Before I gave him the reward card, I asked the player "Do you remember the color of your master's lightsaber?" He said green, and damnit, that's the color now. Someone else asked "What would have happened if he'd said blue?" and I told them "Nothing. He could have said rainbow. I just thought he'd like to pick the color."

And even if it is cringey, it can still fit in the feel of Star Wars. Star Wars is frequently cringey, especially the prequels and A New Hope. If you commit to it, and keep it fun, no one will care. If they do, hit them with something rad and all will be forgiven. And nothing you say will ever be as cringey as "Hold me like you did by the lake on Naboo."

49 minutes ago, FrogTrigger said:

Temptation is definitely one of the best done missions in the game. The first time my group played it they were just enthralled. That was the thing with the core, it was so hit or miss but when it was a hit man people loved it.

Yeah, it's one of those side missions where it's easy to get invested. I see it played pretty frequently, and I think there's a reason for that:

1) Diala's character model doesn't match her starting set: Diala's character model (especially when painted) seems to be holding a lightsaber. When players start with Diala, they typically expect to start with a lightsaber, too. When they learn that they don't yet have their lightsaber, it becomes a pretty important mini-goal for them to get it.

2) It's a welldone, fun mission. Pretty good flavor, somewhat clear references to motivations, and a neat boss.

Some of the other character side missions have elements of these, too, but I think Diala's excells the best in both categories. For instance, consider Mak's side mission: Vague revenge against.. well it's frankly not all that clear. And the goal? An otherwise seemingly random shadow suit. I mean, it's a nice reward, but it doesn't have that punch that a former master's lightsaber does. With just a little bit of backstory, players might actually be more motivated to get it, though. Was Mak undercover as an Imperial Operative in the project developing these suits, but failed to sabotage them? How does he know to operate Imperial machinery? Just a little context could give the players their own motivation, and I think Temptation does that well enough (partly because its such an archetypal Star Wars story, anyway, so it does have a head start).

20 minutes ago, Pollux85 said:

Another helpful thing is to give them opportunities to contribute and get invested. Let them say that Vader tripped over his own cape when Diala rolls an dodge, or that she parries it with expert skill. Before I gave him the reward card, I asked the player "Do you remember the color of your master's lightsaber?" He said green, and damnit, that's the color now. Someone else asked "What would have happened if he'd said blue?" and I told them "Nothing. He could have said rainbow. I just thought he'd like to pick the color."

And even if it is cringey, it can still fit in the feel of Star Wars. Star Wars is frequently cringey, especially the prequels and A New Hope. If you commit to it, and keep it fun, no one will care. If they do, hit them with something rad and all will be forgiven. And nothing you say will ever be as cringey as "Hold me like you did by the lake on Naboo."

Those are some great ideas. Again, I could see them falling flat with the wrong group, but it would be a ton of fun when it works.

The problem that I would like addressed is: When you are IP, you are trying to guide your players through a story. As previously mentioned, we often don't even know much about certain plot points and struggle to explain. SPOILERS FOLLOW - for example Biv and Captain what's his face, and moreover Hawkbat and his alleged handler the Duke. It was really hard as IP to take my group through these stories without having any context. Someone on the forums has written some Hero backstories that I found useful but I'm not sure where that thread went (they are nicely done and utilize the best available info in the game). Anyways, I think some narrative boxes that are only visible to the IP would be helpful (similar to the RPG).

Just now, VadersMarchKazoo said:

The problem that I would like addressed is: When you are IP, you are trying to guide your players through a story. As previously mentioned, we often don't even know much about certain plot points and struggle to explain. SPOILERS FOLLOW - for example Biv and Captain what's his face, and moreover Hawkbat and his alleged handler the Duke. It was really hard as IP to take my group through these stories without having any context. Someone on the forums has written some Hero backstories that I found useful but I'm not sure where that thread went (they are nicely done and utilize the best available info in the game). Anyways, I think some narrative boxes that are only visible to the IP would be helpful (similar to the RPG).

I will agree that (especially if you try to play all the missions), this can get very hairy. My table is playing RtH, and they HATE Benex. They know they can't kill him, they don't trust him, and yet they are stuck doing errands for him and defending him all the time. I wish I could give them a reason to cooperate with him, but I'm stuck. I mean, why don't the Rebels just bring Benex and his people on to a cruiser for "protection" and then not allow them to leave? Or buy them off? Or just go to some other planet? They've got all of space for God's sake! And in Jabba's Realm, the idea that the heroes would leave without killing Jabba after all he put them through is... man, Hoth is hard enough. I am SO glad that I do not have to think up a story for that one.

But if I was FFG, I would not want to try and assemble backstories for each mission that can accommodate every possible version of play. If the Rebels have been doing really well the entire campaign, they won't encounter Weiss until Chain of Command. They've been a thorn in his side for a long time and now he's finally encountered them. Maybe he's afraid. Maybe he's angry. He's going to react differently to them then he would if the Rebels played A New Threat or Forest Ambush and he's been winning a lot. The only solution is for the IP to fill in the blanks themselves.

4 hours ago, subtrendy2 said:

Some of the FFG titles (notable recently is Legend of the Five Rings) have gotten fiction written about them. I think it's really cool of FFG to do this, but I think it's be great also if Imperial Assault got some love.

Now, the first and obvious issue with this is canon. Presumably, the stories would have to fit into canon (and licensed). However, assuming FFG could get licensed to write the short stories, I think this shouldn't be too difficult. All of the heroes already have alluded backstories anyway. Building off of them, while steering away from any potential canon issues (don't have the heroes meet Leia, for instance, or visit a problematic planet like Alderaan or Geonosis) could be really cool!

Give us a secret mission of Mak's that causes him to swear vengeance. Let's find out how Vinto got his scar. See a day in the life of Kayn Somos at the academy (with a possible cameo of stormtrooper Biv?)

I think that Imperial Assault does a decent job of telling stories with very little narrative outright spelled out, but just a little more lore on each of the original characters should be easy to do, and could bring a lot to the table as far as really giving these heroes (and villains) character.

Plus, I think it'd be fun for FFG to play around with. Or, if they want, they could hire out someone to do it (Just sayin' ).

I actually played around one day and wrote a short story that detailed the events of the mission Aftermath with Biv, Fenn, Jyn, and Mak going to the bunker, but also having Gideon back at the base.

What you guys are describing is what is fun about these games. I prefer games were the map is laid out rather than free form games like AD&D games where you don't always position your miniatures (or even have them). The Campaign allows you, if you don't play it as a blood sport, some room for personalization, which I think is great. My heroes probably have different head cannon than yours do, but that is what is great. I much prefer they limit the amount of backstory they give the heroes, and not "canonize" them. They aren't canon, they are semi-fleshed out role-playing characters you'd invent yourself if you were playing the role-playing game. As an amateur 3d modeler I've considered trying to make a hero of my own.

1 hour ago, Rikalonius said:

What you guys are describing is what is fun about these games. I prefer games were the map is laid out rather than free form games like AD&D games where you don't always position your miniatures (or even have them). The Campaign allows you, if you don't play it as a blood sport, some room for personalization, which I think is great. My heroes probably have different head cannon than yours do, but that is what is great. I much prefer they limit the amount of backstory they give the heroes, and not "canonize" them. They aren't canon, they are semi-fleshed out role-playing characters you'd invent yourself if you were playing the role-playing game. As an amateur 3d modeler I've considered trying to make a hero of my own.

I agree with much of that. I also like the imagination component. One thing I have started to do is reading ahead. It can be a little difficult because there are so many possible paths, but if I know what is coming, it's easier to be a good guide.

Reviving this thread to talk about an experience I had in my last game, where we played High Moon.

At the start of the mission, I had my players encounter a Hired Gun figure on the way to Szark's hideout named Vinto. Vinto was there to sell them tips about Szark's hideout. Jyn could pay some credits and make a couple Insight rolls to determine/learn some things about the mission in advance. The deal ended with Biv being able to infiltrate a stormtrooper patrol and start the mission MUCH closer to the E-web engineer than he would have otherwise, but he was unarmed (obeying the same rules for unarmed combat as in Captured) and had to interact with Jyn to recover his weapon. They also learned that Szark had made friends with the Sand People, so the elite Nexu got swapped out with a Bantha. If the players had even rolled enough surges on their Insight rolls, I would have allowed them to take Vinto with them as an ally (obeying the same rules as allies, but with his JR deployment card). With this intel, and the advantage for Biv, they ended up crushing the IP in about 3 or 4 rounds, but they agreed it was much more fun.

I think the key to really boosting the story is to provide opportunities for the player to change the circumstances of the mission itself. In most missions, the Rebels are choosing which mission they play next, but their choices don't really have much impact on the mission itself (The bonuses available to them, the enemies they face, etc). The great thing about Temptation is that it gives Diala's player a chance to really impact the flow and feel of the mission and it does so in an way that makes sense thematically. Player choice determines whether certain people make it through, and how much damage they take. Does the player do what's good for the party, or the objective? The fact that the mission remains pretty balanced regardless of which choices are made is also great, but not always essential when giving players choice, and could actually limit the kinds of choices you give them.

43 minutes ago, Pollux85 said:

Reviving this thread to talk about an experience I had in my last game, where we played High Moon.

At the start of the mission, I had my players encounter a Hired Gun figure on the way to Szark's hideout named Vinto. Vinto was there to sell them tips about Szark's hideout. Jyn could pay some credits and make a couple Insight rolls to determine/learn some things about the mission in advance. The deal ended with Biv being able to infiltrate a stormtrooper patrol and start the mission MUCH closer to the E-web engineer than he would have otherwise, but he was unarmed (obeying the same rules for unarmed combat as in Captured) and had to interact with Jyn to recover his weapon. They also learned that Szark had made friends with the Sand People, so the elite Nexu got swapped out with a Bantha. If the players had even rolled enough surges on their Insight rolls, I would have allowed them to take Vinto with them as an ally (obeying the same rules as allies, but with his JR deployment card). With this intel, and the advantage for Biv, they ended up crushing the IP in about 3 or 4 rounds, but they agreed it was much more fun.

I think the key to really boosting the story is to provide opportunities for the player to change the circumstances of the mission itself. In most missions, the Rebels are choosing which mission they play next, but their choices don't really have much impact on the mission itself (The bonuses available to them, the enemies they face, etc). The great thing about Temptation is that it gives Diala's player a chance to really impact the flow and feel of the mission and it does so in an way that makes sense thematically. Player choice determines whether certain people make it through, and how much damage they take. Does the player do what's good for the party, or the objective? The fact that the mission remains pretty balanced regardless of which choices are made is also great, but not always essential when giving players choice, and could actually limit the kinds of choices you give them.

Sounds like a really clever way to give the Rebels more freedom in the mission. Also, given some of what I've heard of High Moon (never played it, my Rebels never seem to bring Jyn) it sounds like 3-4 rounds is actually pretty good for the Empire. I've heard it's not that tough to get a one turn kill on Szark.

14 minutes ago, subtrendy2 said:

Sounds like a really clever way to give the Rebels more freedom in the mission. Also, given some of what I've heard of High Moon (never played it, my Rebels never seem to bring Jyn) it sounds like 3-4 rounds is actually pretty good for the Empire. I've heard it's not that tough to get a one turn kill on Szark.

You heard right. Jyn had Overcharger and Diala used Precise Strike. He was wearing Assault Armor and he was still cut down before he could use Restorative Supplies. I thought the Bantha would clog things up and make the mission a bit more balanced. I was wrong.

On 7/17/2017 at 2:07 PM, Pollux85 said:

Reviving this thread to talk about an experience I had in my last game, where we played High Moon.

At the start of the mission, I had my players encounter a Hired Gun figure on the way to Szark's hideout named Vinto. Vinto was there to sell them tips about Szark's hideout. Jyn could pay some credits and make a couple Insight rolls to determine/learn some things about the mission in advance. The deal ended with Biv being able to infiltrate a stormtrooper patrol and start the mission MUCH closer to the E-web engineer than he would have otherwise, but he was unarmed (obeying the same rules for unarmed combat as in Captured) and had to interact with Jyn to recover his weapon. They also learned that Szark had made friends with the Sand People, so the elite Nexu got swapped out with a Bantha. If the players had even rolled enough surges on their Insight rolls, I would have allowed them to take Vinto with them as an ally (obeying the same rules as allies, but with his JR deployment card). With this intel, and the advantage for Biv, they ended up crushing the IP in about 3 or 4 rounds, but they agreed it was much more fun.

I think the key to really boosting the story is to provide opportunities for the player to change the circumstances of the mission itself. In most missions, the Rebels are choosing which mission they play next, but their choices don't really have much impact on the mission itself (The bonuses available to them, the enemies they face, etc). The great thing about Temptation is that it gives Diala's player a chance to really impact the flow and feel of the mission and it does so in an way that makes sense thematically. Player choice determines whether certain people make it through, and how much damage they take. Does the player do what's good for the party, or the objective? The fact that the mission remains pretty balanced regardless of which choices are made is also great, but not always essential when giving players choice, and could actually limit the kinds of choices you give them.

Sounds fun! Gave me the idea to try something similar but for the equipment upgrade step. I'll set up a cantina with some scums around : Maybe an ex-Imperial officer willing to sell some imperial guns on the black market (Heroes might have to avoid saying they work for the rebellion if they don't want to pay their weapons overpriced!) A trandoshan hunter named Krandt (from a certain side mission the heroes could eventually come across again) with a cache of weapons for sale. Maybe a few bounty hunters that the heroes could hire for the next mission if they are willing to pay the credits (as an ally without threat cost since they will pay a certain amount of credit. It's like a big gun upgrade but for a single mission). Each seller will have their own deck of weapon cards. And each will also have a few big guns from the upper tier in their "back store" if they are pleased with the heroes.

Heroes will collectively be able to influence prices via the 3 attribute tests : They might want to bully the seller to get a fair price (strenght test). They could try to be more persuasive (Insight test). Finally each seller will have a tech test related option. For example, my trandoshan seller will be busy working on a broken astro-mech when the heroes will come in. Heroes may offer to have a shot at fixing the droid. If they do good the seller may be willing to lower his price as appreciation.

I'll have various option (hidden to the heroes) depending on how many surges they get. The more success they collectively get, the better the chance to get what they want. Since the set-up will take place in a cantina, I might even let the heroes pay to have drink in hope to increase (or not?) they chances at succeeding a test. Maybe after a couple of drinks a hero will become more persuasive but at the expanse of his tech attribute test?

This set-up will definitely be some sort of gamble. If you do well (attribute tests) you will get goods at a discount price. If you don't you may pay more than the price printed on the card or you may not even get the chance to see what the seller has in stock. To counter balance that, there will also be a less risky rebel alliance affiliated seller. Heroes will go see him in case they want to pay the price printed on the card without any chance to see prices increase or decrease.

Should be fun!