Finally got my "Dawn of Rebellion" book! *hugs it to chest and disappears to read it*

12 hours ago, Vestij Jai Galaar said:

Tubby Charm: You gain an automatic advantage when rolling initiative against non-discerning species who think you look cute.

'Gain a Boost to all Interaction checks with characters under ten years old'

17 hours ago, Vestij Jai Galaar said:

Tubby Charm: You gain an automatic advantage when rolling initiative against non-discerning species who think you look cute.

Am I the only person who read that as "Teletubby Charm"?

I suddenly envisaged Darth Tinky-Winky saying "Oh-oh" as he Force-choked someone...

Man, my mind is messed up...

1 hour ago, Daronil said:

Am I the only person who read that as "Teletubby Charm"?

I suddenly envisaged Darth Tinky-Winky saying "Oh-oh" as he Force-choked someone...

Man, my mind is messed up...

‘That’s no sun. It’s a baby.’

’It’s too big to be a baby.’

’I have a very bad feeling about this.’

9 hours ago, OriginalDomingo said:

‘That’s no sun. It’s a baby.’

’It’s too big to be a baby.’

’I have a very bad feeling about this.’

Look at the size of that thing!

Cut the chatter, Laa-Laa. Accelerate to attack speed.

Tinky-Winky, this is Po.

I copy, Po.

We're starting for the target shaft now.

We're in position - we'll cut across their main axis and try to draw their fire. Oh...oh...

5 hours ago, Daronil said:

Look at the size of that thing!

Cut the chatter, Laa-Laa. Accelerate to attack speed.

Tinky-Winky, this is Po.

I copy, Po.

We're starting for the target shaft now.

We're in position - we'll cut across their main axis and try to draw their fire. Oh...oh...

Po Dameron? We are so far off thread...

7 hours ago, OriginalDomingo said:

Po Dameron? We are so far off thread...

Hah! That didn't even occur to me!

Po, along with Laa-Laa and Tinky-Winky, was one of the Teletubbies.

And since I derailed the thread with my silliness, I'll make an effort to get it back on track!

I absolutely love the "Dawn of Rebellion" sourcebook, now that I've had a chance to read through it (not cover-to-cover, mind, but a good, solid skim).

The standout points:

Stats! So much crunch! All the PCs and most of the NPCs from Rebels are finally statted out. I was most gratified to see Leia, Lando, and Darth Vader finally in print; not because I'm going to use them in my games, but it's nice to see the developers' take on well-known NPCs and how to design them. Vader, especially, I liked - we see that an awesomely-powerful Sith Lord has a FR 6, for a start. Secondly - and this is the part I really liked - we see Vader's most commonly-used abilities, not every single thing he might be capable of. I have a tendency to throw in everything but the kitchen sink, so this was a good lesson for me.

My only quibble on the NPC stats - and it's an incredibly minor one - is that (Saw Gerrera and Krennic aside) there are none for the characters from Rogue One . But as I said, it's minor. Rogue One had 2 hours worth of storytelling compared to 4 seasons of Rebels , so I'm not really worried. It did include crunch for vehicles and weapons from Rogue One , so I'm not overly concerned.

So much background on the Empire. Lots of good fluff on what life is like in the Empire. A lot of it is confirmation of things we've all sort of assumed for years, but it's nice to see it in formal print.

The various "types" of rebellion. Not just the Alliance, but smaller cells and how they are put together, operate, and are organised.

Lots of new planetary information. I can never get enough new planets, and putting the Death Star in the planets section made a lot of sense. My initial fears regarding DS stats were unfounded. The stat block took up very little space, and it could easily be a good guide for other stuff.

The modular encounters. Very useful as drop-ins, or to break up an adventure a little, or even just to have a cameo from a famous character.

The artwork. As usual, FFG's artwork is top-notch. I've always loved that they use original art instead of screencaps from the movies, and "Dawn of Rebellion" holds up this tradition nicely.

Slight disappointments:

Really only two things (in addition to the lack of Rogue One NPCs, as mentioned above).

We got more specs, which is fantastic, but it would have been a good opportunity to demonstrate how to build a character, using a well-known character from the series to demonstrate it. We could be shown how Hera would be built, for example, taking us through what specs would be used (eg: Ship Captain, a leadery-type spec, and so on). Not to give a definitive finished Hera, mind you, just to use as a guide, showing how the game mechanics can reflect the cinematics we see.

Though I wasn't bothered by having the Death Star stats, as I mentioned above, it was a bit odd that the Death Star got full stats, but Bendu was only referred to as a plot device. It seemed to me that the reverse ought to be more true: the DS was a force of nature that was taken out by a singular twist of destiny. Bendu was a personality with whom the characters interacted with a lot and who ended up in combat with the PCs and NPCs alike, until finally being taken out by a blaster shot.

But overall, I'd rate "Dawn of Rebellion" at 8.5/10

3 hours ago, Daronil said:

And since I derailed the thread with my silliness, I'll make an effort to get it back on track!

I absolutely love the "Dawn of Rebellion" sourcebook, now that I've had a chance to read through it (not cover-to-cover, mind, but a good, solid skim).

The standout points:

Stats! So much crunch! All the PCs and most of the NPCs from Rebels are finally statted out. I was most gratified to see Leia, Lando, and Darth Vader finally in print; not because I'm going to use them in my games, but it's nice to see the developers' take on well-known NPCs and how to design them. Vader, especially, I liked - we see that an awesomely-powerful Sith Lord has a FR 6, for a start. Secondly - and this is the part I really liked - we see Vader's most commonly-used abilities, not every single thing he might be capable of. I have a tendency to throw in everything but the kitchen sink, so this was a good lesson for me.

My only quibble on the NPC stats - and it's an incredibly minor one - is that (Saw Gerrera and Krennic aside) there are none for the characters from Rogue One . But as I said, it's minor. Rogue One had 2 hours worth of storytelling compared to 4 seasons of Rebels , so I'm not really worried. It did include crunch for vehicles and weapons from Rogue One , so I'm not overly concerned.

So much background on the Empire. Lots of good fluff on what life is like in the Empire. A lot of it is confirmation of things we've all sort of assumed for years, but it's nice to see it in formal print.

The various "types" of rebellion. Not just the Alliance, but smaller cells and how they are put together, operate, and are organised.

Lots of new planetary information. I can never get enough new planets, and putting the Death Star in the planets section made a lot of sense. My initial fears regarding DS stats were unfounded. The stat block took up very little space, and it could easily be a good guide for other stuff.

The modular encounters. Very useful as drop-ins, or to break up an adventure a little, or even just to have a cameo from a famous character.

The artwork. As usual, FFG's artwork is top-notch. I've always loved that they use original art instead of screencaps from the movies, and "Dawn of Rebellion" holds up this tradition nicely.

Slight disappointments:

Really only two things (in addition to the lack of Rogue One NPCs, as mentioned above).

We got more specs, which is fantastic, but it would have been a good opportunity to demonstrate how to build a character, using a well-known character from the series to demonstrate it. We could be shown how Hera would be built, for example, taking us through what specs would be used (eg: Ship Captain, a leadery-type spec, and so on). Not to give a definitive finished Hera, mind you, just to use as a guide, showing how the game mechanics can reflect the cinematics we see.

Though I wasn't bothered by having the Death Star stats, as I mentioned above, it was a bit odd that the Death Star got full stats, but Bendu was only referred to as a plot device. It seemed to me that the reverse ought to be more true: the DS was a force of nature that was taken out by a singular twist of destiny. Bendu was a personality with whom the characters interacted with a lot and who ended up in combat with the PCs and NPCs alike, until finally being taken out by a blaster shot.

But overall, I'd rate "Dawn of Rebellion" at 8.5/10

Spoilers???

Unforgivable.

Is it just me, or was this cover printed differently? I only on this and one Core Rulebook, but Dawn of Rebellion has an all-matte cover whereas the core book has glossy text and art. Sadly, Dawn lacks the pop of the core book. Sad because the Kanan art is awesome.

This may not be a new change, as I’m pretty new to this. Just curious when/if they stopped the glossy printing, or if perhaps I got an error.

EDIT: Reddit has told me all splat books are like this. That true?

3 hours ago, astronautcowboy said:

Is it just me, or was this cover printed differently? I only on this and one Core Rulebook, but Dawn of Rebellion has an all-matte cover whereas the core book has glossy text and art. Sadly, Dawn lacks the pop of the core book. Sad because the Kanan art is awesome.

This may not be a new change, as I’m pretty new to this. Just curious when/if they stopped the glossy printing, or if perhaps I got an error.

EDIT: Reddit has told me all splat books are like this. That true?

All my books have matte covers, yes.

I know this might not be a popular opinion, but I wish they wouldn’t stat main characters.

I don’t know about other GMs on here, but presenting a named character who is a big deal in a franchised licensed rpg always brings out the worst in players (in my experience, of course). They always want to fight them, every time. No matter if said named npc is good or bad.

I don’t know what it is about them that does that, but it tends to happen more often than not, even if it’s not how the player character normally acts.

Anyone else get this kind of thing?

44 minutes ago, Flavorabledeez said:

I know this might not be a popular opinion, but I wish they wouldn’t stat main characters.

I don’t know about other GMs on here, but presenting a named character who is a big deal in a franchised licensed rpg always brings out the worst in players (in my experience, of course). They always want to fight them, every time. No matter if said named npc is good or bad.

I don’t know what it is about them that does that, but it tends to happen more often than not, even if it’s not how the player character normally acts.

Anyone else get this kind of thing?

I’ve seen it happen, sure.

Which is why such characters don’t often appear in my games.

Meanwhile, I appreciate having those stats to use as a benchmark, at the very least. And, I just plain find them fun to read. It pleases my inner fanboy.

44 minutes ago, Flavorabledeez said:

I know this might not be a popular opinion, but I wish they wouldn’t stat main characters.

I don’t know about other GMs on here, but presenting a named character who is a big deal in a franchised licensed rpg always brings out the worst in players (in my experience, of course). They always want to fight them, every time. No matter if said named npc is good or bad.

I don’t know what it is about them that does that, but it tends to happen more often than not, even if it’s not how the player character normally acts.

Anyone else get this kind of thing?

I’ve seen it happen, sure.

Which is why such characters don’t often appear in my games.

Meanwhile, I appreciate having those stats to use as a benchmark, at the very least. And, I just plain find them fun to read. It pleases my inner fanboy.

We haven't encountered many in our campaigns.

The campaign I am running has had two. Hondo, who I introduced (knowing that that party face hadn't seen Rebels or Clone Wars, and would be doing most of the talking, and that the rest of the group had, and would be pissing themselves) as an adversary/ally was the first, but before this book, so I used my own (similar) stats. The other occurred when a player decided to follow the force near Lothal, and ended up at the (rather collapsed) Vergence there, whereupon another player decided that rather than take a bunch of rescued slaves to Sanctuary, they would contact the local Rebels on Lothal. Fortunately Rebels had ended and this sourcebook was out, so I knew that only Sabine Wren of Pheonix would still be present on planet at this time period, so I did use her stat block. Neither stat block ended up being significant. I tend to stick to Canon unless player action changes it.

The campaign I am playing in has had a few, mainly small roles. We have seen images of Luke Skywalker, and heard his name, though linking the two is currently a guess. We have met Gungi, much older than in Rebels. We have met Kalgrath. We met unknown force user with a purple lightsaber. We haven't so far met Exar Kun, just some cultists trying to resurrect him. We have fought alongside Kalgrath, but not against any.

4 hours ago, Flavorabledeez said:

I know this might not be a popular opinion, but I wish they wouldn’t stat main characters.

I don’t know about other GMs on here, but presenting a named character who is a big deal in a franchised licensed rpg always brings out the worst in players (in my experience, of course). They always want to fight them, every time. No matter if said named npc is good or bad.

I don’t know what it is about them that does that, but it tends to happen more often than not, even if it’s not how the player character normally acts.

Anyone else get this kind of thing?

Maybe it’s a difference in the people at the table as I usually play with older, seasoned gamers but I’ve never seen this happen and would quickly handle it anyways. Imagine your players decide to try and attack Grand Admiral Thrawn whose investigating their cell and finally caught up to them in a confrontation you’ve been planning for some time. Player X decides his character is gonna kill Thrawn and attacks. We roll the dice and it’s a hit, player rolls damage and it’s gonna be awesome, maybe he might kill Thrawn?!?! Nope. Turns out that was a holoprojection of Thrawn and the shot hits the wall. As the image rematerializes before the players he chides them for their violence as a ray shield descends over the group, “Now, now. We have only just met, we haven’t even been properly introduced. I’m Grand Admiral Thrawn and you must be the Rebel fell known as Phalanx Group. I trust that you will forgive my appearance but I couldn’t help but notice that it was likely player X would skip these necessary pleasantries. And oh, how I do love them.....”

Iconic figures ground your player experience in the established universe and help create those amazing memories and narrative highlights that will form lasting memories on your players. No one questions the inclusion of Halaster Blackcloak in Forgotten Realms or Iuz in Greyhawk yet they complain at Star Wars lore figures? GMs are given the freedom to use figures as they will. I like to think about the inclusion in Rebels of key figures like Saw Guerrera, Thrawn or Bail Organa who are interspersed in the story to tie the new heroes and their stories to existing canon and further those tales. We would have no extended universe or legends canon if we didn’t build upon the foundation that exists.

Have you included Talon Karrde or Booster Terik in your EOTE campaign? Did you ever encounter a nest of gundarks or try to shoot out the panel to prevent someone from coming through the door behind you? References, cameos and Easter eggs are great ways to build your own tale within the established IP imho.

21 hours ago, Daronil said:

<snip>

Though I wasn't bothered by having the Death Star stats, as I mentioned above, it was a bit odd that the Death Star got full stats, but Bendu was only referred to as a plot device. It seemed to me that the reverse ought to be more true: the DS was a force of nature that was taken out by a singular twist of destiny. Bendu was a personality with whom the characters interacted with a lot and who ended up in combat with the PCs and NPCs alike, until finally being taken out by a blaster shot.

But overall, I'd rate "Dawn of Rebellion" at 8.5/10

Well, considering that the Deathstar can be attacked and blown up , it makes perfect sense for it to have stats.

7 hours ago, Tramp Graphics said:

Well, considering that the Deathstar can be attacked and blown up , it makes perfect sense for it to have stats.

The "stats" don't really have anything to do with it being attacked and blown up.

8 hours ago, Tramp Graphics said:

Well, considering that the Deathstar can be attacked and blown up , it makes perfect sense for it to have stats.

But that's why I referred to " the DS was a force of nature that was taken out by a singular twist of destiny".

If I was gaming out the Battle of Yavin, for example, the DS's stats would be utterly irrelevant. There'd be a couple of runs on some turbolasers and deflector shield towers, some dogfighting, some skill rolls for the run on the trench, and the shot to hit the exhaust port. The stats of the DS would be irrelevant.

In fact, the DS stats don't include anything about the only way it could be attacked and blown up; ie: the exhaust port.

48 minutes ago, Daronil said:

But that's why I referred to " the DS was a force of nature that was taken out by a singular twist of destiny".

If I was gaming out the Battle of Yavin, for example, the DS's stats would be utterly irrelevant. There'd be a couple of runs on some turbolasers and deflector shield towers, some dogfighting, some skill rolls for the run on the trench, and the shot to hit the exhaust port. The stats of the DS would be irrelevant.

In fact, the DS stats don't include anything about the only way it could be attacked and blown up; ie: the exhaust port.

I don’t think many groups are likely to set out to recreate the trench run but I do see the potential for Rebel cells to be present at Yavin or Endor and to play a role in that battle. While they need not be the decisive factor, it would be an amazing thing to say you flew against a Death Star and for that... you need stats.

4 hours ago, Khazadune said:

I don’t think many groups are likely to set out to recreate the trench run but I do see the potential for Rebel cells to be present at Yavin or Endor and to play a role in that battle. While they need not be the decisive factor, it would be an amazing thing to say you flew against a Death Star and for that... you need stats.

Well, we ran the BoY way, way back in the old WEG d6 days, with one of the PCs piloting an X-Wing in it.

But my point was more that having stats for the Death Star because it could be attacked and blown up was irrelevant from the point of view of the stats . I used the example of the BoY because if that was being run as a game, at no point would a half-decent GM say: "Okay. Roll the damage of your proton torpedos against the DS's Hull trauma and armour."

Instead, it would be run as a series of encounters against various elements of the DS. Turrets. Deflector towers. The defending TIEs. The exhaust port. Maybe an attack on the Emperor's throne room tower. But at no time would anyone launch an attack on the Death Star the way they might against a corvette or even a star destroyer.

I had already said I had no problem with it having stats, because they could be used as a baseline for other large weapons systems or stations or ships. The only "issue" I had with it having stats was that the DS did while Bendu - who interacted with the characters and fought a pitched battle with them - didn't.

Honestly, with Fully Operational out I’m getting a new perspective on what kind of firepower some groups apparently fly around with - I’m not so sure anymore some of them won’t just say “screw it, we’ll just blast that thing out of space” when facing a Death Star.

1 hour ago, Daronil said:

Well, we ran the BoY way, way back in the old WEG d6 days, with one of the PCs piloting an X-Wing in it.

But my point was more that having stats for the Death Star because it could be attacked and blown up was irrelevant from the point of view of the stats . I used the example of the BoY because if that was being run as a game, at no point would a half-decent GM say: "Okay. Roll the damage of your proton torpedos against the DS's Hull trauma and armour."

Instead, it would be run as a series of encounters against various elements of the DS. Turrets. Deflector towers. The defending TIEs. The exhaust port. Maybe an attack on the Emperor's throne room tower. But at no time would anyone launch an attack on the Death Star the way they might against a corvette or even a star destroyer.

I had already said I had no problem with it having stats, because they could be used as a baseline for other large weapons systems or stations or ships. The only "issue" I had with it having stats was that the DS did while Bendu - who interacted with the characters and fought a pitched battle with them - didn't.

That would be an interesting way to deal with the Death Star and I would buy that as an adventure (especially if they had both DS1 and DS2 battles highlighted) but what about the group that has a destroyer by Endor and wants to attack the station directly? I just can’t imagine how having the stats is a bad thing. Also, Bendu looks like an ugly *** Moose-thing and I think if you put a fight against that or the DS before a group there would be no question which they chose. (Rebels spoilers are still unwanted btw.)

16 hours ago, Khazadune said:

That would be an interesting way to deal with the Death Star and I would buy that as an adventure (especially if they had both DS1 and DS2 battles highlighted) but what about the group that has a destroyer by Endor and wants to attack the station directly? I just can’t imagine how having the stats is a bad thing. Also, Bendu looks like an ugly *** Moose-thing and I think if you put a fight against that or the DS before a group there would be no question which they chose. (Rebels spoilers are still unwanted btw.)

Then they could. Note that I never said I thought having stats for the DS were a bad thing . I just said that it seemed odd that the reason behind Bendu not having stats seems like precisely the reason the DS stats were unnecessary. In other words, I wasn't saying the DS shouldn't have stats, but that Bendu should .

As to the rest, I can't really make my argument without Rebels spoilers, so let me know when you've watched it and we'll continue.

Just as a side-note, I would still argue that a rebel group in charge of an MC80 cruiser would still only be able to attack aspects of the Death Star (turrets, a particular shield generator, etc). As Motti said, "Any attack against this station would be a useless gesture." Even the Executor crashing into DS2 barely made a dent - I doubt all batteries from the entire Alliance fleet at Endor would have done much more than scratch the paint.

8 hours ago, Daronil said:

Just as a side-note, I would still argue that a rebel group in charge of an MC80 cruiser would still only be able to attack aspects of the Death Star (turrets, a particular shield generator, etc). As Motti said, "Any attack against this station would be a useless gesture." Even the Executor crashing into DS2 barely made a dent - I doubt all batteries from the entire Alliance fleet at Endor would have done much more than scratch the paint.

Maybe if they engaged the hyperdrive and flew into it...