Hi! I am interested in making (first for myself, also for others) a Sourcebook for Racing Worlds . My idea is to take the eight worlds from the old video game Episode 1: Racer and flesh them out, creating a sort of sandbox world of all things related to racing, and in particular, podracing. However, I have at least two major questions:

1) Factual question: Have any of the seven non-Tatooine podracing worlds been detailed in an FFG supplement? If so, I do not want to contradict what they have already provided. These worlds are:

Ord Ibanna

Malastare

Ando Prime

Oovo IV

Baroonda

Mon Gazza

Aquarius

2) Opinion question: I understand that podracing was outlawed and cracked down on hard in the time of the Empire, and I want the supplement to be within the normal timeframe of Edge of the Empire, i.e., the time of the Empire, so what direction do you think the supplement should take? Here are some options that come to my mind:

a) Detail podracing as it had previously occurred on those eight worlds, and provide information on how these activities might still take place on these or other worlds in the time of Empire (as it is suggested by various sources as having happened).

b) Detail podracing as it had previously occurred on those eight worlds, but suggest a single new sport or numerous sports that may have replaced them on those worlds.

c) Do sort of a combination of a) and b), with a specific framework suggesting, what if the Empire had allowed these worlds to reintroduce a modified form of podracing?

d) Other.

Thanks for your help! I always loved podracing, as well as Episode 1: Racer and its eight single-biome planets (lol), and I think they could provide a fun sandbox area for a group of PCs to play around in.

You could always revive sloop racing. Pod-racing's progenitor.

As for it being cracked down on... Lots of stuff hapens in hutt space and other less controlled areas that isn't quite legal. Heck, pay off a local Moff and s/he will turn a blind eye for a race or two. And much like street racing is illegal now, it still happens anyway. It wouldn't take much for the hutts or another enterprising organization to give out the location at the last minute to the racers and fans. The racers show up, race, and then everyone scatters before the empire can react.

You could do the same thing with small fighter races through dangerous areas in space.

Trying to detail a whole world is pretty ambitious, even to the level of detail provided in, say, Suns of Fortune and its exposition of the Corellian Sector. I'd say you could get away with a one-page write-up for each world and then a more detailed account of each track and hazards and personalities associated with each one.

What about Troiken?

10 minutes ago, Yaccarus said:

What about Troiken?

I thought of that, too, but I think the OP is trying to recreate the worlds specified in the video game he mentioned (which I'm not familiar with). Xexto are pretty much an auto-include, though.

I would suggest adding it anyway to make it feel more like an actual sourcebook, and not a conversion for Racer . (It also breaks the “single biome” trend)

Anyhow, my suggestions if you want to go the “emulating FFG sourcebooks” route:

Chapter 1:

Describe planets as you like: Troiken, Ord Ibanna, Malastare, Ando Prime, Oovo IV, Baroonda, Mon Gazza, and Aquarius. Create info, as Wookieepedia doesn’t seem to have much. Maybe some sidebars for Tatooine and a few other notable worlds. I would include descriptions for how podracing exists illegally under the Empire as well as how it was 30 years ago, to explain both as options.

Chapter 2:

Xexto are an obvious choice for species #1. If you want to stay within FFG, I would add Aleena and Dug. If you want to branch out a bit, dive into the other podracers from Episode 1 and find out what you can create for their species. Toong, for example, are here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1M6u9vVx5XhvutLC0fvuzGxOsnTIrrQhCQ-2iZ5KnMbg (courtesy of myself) As for vehicles, it would seem pretty obvious to describe podracers, other speeders, and some epic modifications. Gear can include some mechanics related stuff perhaps? Also, a handful of things that might be manufactured on those worlds? Finally racing related stuff like cameras, jumbo-trons, microphones, and sabotage devices.

Chapter 3:

As for modular encounters, there should be at least 2 races, potentially 3 or 4. I could also imagine encounters such as some pre-race banter turned brawl, uncovering cheators, escaping an Imperial crackdown, or a wild goose chase require a rare part at the last minute. Make sure you create some solid racing rules to go with it as well.

It will take some work, I think, to make each track or each leg of the circuit "feel" different. Mechanically, each race will be similar so you'll really need to double down on the flavor text to enhance the differences of a track on Troiken from one on Tatooine, for example.

This thread has several planet write-ups. I'd suggest using a similar format.

15 hours ago, SFC Snuffy said:

It will take some work, I think, to make each track or each leg of the circuit "feel" different. Mechanically, each race will be similar so you'll really need to double down on the flavor text to enhance the differences of a track on Troiken from one on Tatooine, for example.

This thread has several planet write-ups. I'd suggest using a similar format.

/pokes his head up and looks around

I'd be glad to help you out in that respect. @andynorton . Feel free to shoot me a message.

Thanks for the comments, and sorry for just responding! Had not had time to think about this for a while, but, I did some work on this on the weekend, and I have a tentative table of contents:

Fast and Dangerous (A Sourcebook of Worlds on the Galactic Podracing Circuit)

Contents:

Introduction

Chapter 1: Circuit Worlds ("There's podracing on Malastare. Very fast, very dangerous." - Qui-Gon Jinn)

• Ando Prime (Intro, Places of Interest, Creatures & Challenges, with any Gear / Vehicles sprinkled in)
• Aquarius
• Baroonda
• Malastare
• Mon Gazza
• Oovo IV
• Ord Ibanna
• Tatooine
• New Species (Er'kit, Nosaurian, Veknoid, Vulptereen)

Chapter 2: Podracing ("Oh, I don't care what universe you're from, that's got to hurt!" - Fodesinbeed)

• Introduction to Podracing
• Rules for Podracing
• Podracer Parts
• Podracer Profiles
• Podracer Modification
• New Specializations (Podracer Pilot [universal], Podracer Mech [Technician], possibly a Colonist specialization)

Chapter 3: Course Anthology ("Ya kun boska bolia! / Begin the race!" - Jabba the Hutt)

• Course Info (1-3 courses per each of the eight worlds; includes Podracer & Pilot Profiles for specific track favorites, so Ebe E. Endocott and his Podracer would be included in the Fire Mountain Rally, for example).

Chapter 4: Modular Encounters (" I'd hate to see you diced before we race again." - Anakin Skywalker)

• This section would include several encounters, along with more creatures, character profiles, even weapons and gear, all based around the worlds of the Galactic Podracing Circuit and the podracing business.

My reasoning for this table of contents, is that Chapter 1 should be of interest to anyone, really take or leave podracing, and Chapter 4 should be of interest to anyone looking for adventures in the space surrounding podracing without necessarily podracing themselves, while Chapters 2 and 3 really provide the information for podracing itself, no more, no less.

My reasoning for why those eight worlds, not more, is just that I really want to see all eight of those worlds, and that's a lot of work already. There are other worlds connected to podracing or to podracing races (like the Xexto), but, too much. I'm ok with this flagrantly following just the worlds from Star Wars: Episode 1 Racer.

Also, why those four species: Those seemed to me to be (judgment call) the most playable of the podracing species we see, that haven't already been covered by FFG. In the Introduction to Podracing in Chapter 2, however, I would look to note the proficiency of certain species like Dug, Aleena, Bardottan, Xexto, but people can enjoy those species if they own books that have them.

My hope is that this Sourcebook would provide a set of worlds not just connected by the Force or by their allegiance but by a whole world of business and entertainment and opportunities and folks who know each other.

On the actual podracing rules side of things, I am working on some and I feel really good about them! Just trying to figure out their initial balance, then I will post them for people to playtest if they'd like!

Thank you for offers of help, I will let you know if I need anything specific! Most likely would be interested in help with a) suggested ideas for world information that I could then incorporate and b) write-ups for creatures, characters, gear and vehicles on those worlds. Thanks!

I'm proud to present: Rules of Podracing (Draft 1.0).pdf

They are ready for further testing! Again, this is just an initial draft, and I have a whole lot more information to share in the future, but this should give you full ability to test out the rules and find what you like and dislike. Thanks for participating!

On 12/20/2017 at 4:39 PM, andynorton said:

I'm proud to present: Rules of Podracing (Draft 1.0).pdf

They are ready for further testing! Again, this is just an initial draft, and I have a whole lot more information to share in the future, but this should give you full ability to test out the rules and find what you like and dislike. Thanks for participating!

That looks great!

I created another course, the classic Fire Mountain Rally on Baroonda:

Here’s a transcript of a Fire Mountain Rally race. The racers are Melange Menoit, a PC racer my wife created, and NPC track favorite, Discus Tith. Here are their relevant stats:

In the first stretch, Baroo Speedway, Melange’s Accel does not surpass 3, so she gains no bonus, and her Breaks are deficient by 2, so one of the purple dice of the PPP check is upgraded to a challenge die. She rolls 4 success, 3 threat; so, she succeeds, moving to +1 on the pole, but the GM says the 3 threat represent her blasting through a fence, not damaging her racer, but shaking it up and upgrading her next check.

Discus’ Accel of 4 surpasses 3 by 1, so he gains a boost die, but his Breaks are deficient by 4, so the Hard check is upgraded twice! His roll completely cancels out, so he does not advance on the pole, remaining at +0; he couldn’t escape the pack, instead bashing up violently against the city walls, taking 4 damage.

In the second stretch, Mountain Paths, Melange’s Speed surpasses 2 by 2, so she upgrades her roll once, but her Traction is deficient by 2, so she upgrades the difficulty, too, changing the PR to RR. She still rolls 3 success! She moves to +2 on the pole.

Discus has the same Speed and Traction, so his roll and difficulty are affected the same, and he rolls 1 success. This moves him to +1 on the pole. If the two racers were at the same rank on the pole, Melange would still lead since she has more successes, but she leads by default since he is lower on the pole (narratively, he is not even in the same pack as her).

In the third stretch, Great Hall, Melange’s Cooling of 2 does not surpass 3, so she gains no bonus (though neither is she affected negatively by this, since this is a green characteristic), and her Breaks are only deficient by 2 so she upgrades the PP check just once to PR. Her podracer has a “tricked out” repulsorgrip, allowing her a boost die once per race in a city environment, so she applies this to the roll. She rolls 4 successes and 1 advantage, moving to +3 on the pole. She blasts through the hall at great pace, and the crowds go wild!

Discus has strong Cooling of 4, surpassing 3 by 1, so he gains a boost die. His breaks are terrible, however, deficient by 4, so the check is changed from PP to RR. The GM spends a Destiny Point: Discus is pouring everything into his boosters at this point and sees an opportunity to gain lost ground; Melange spends a Destiny Point in response, suggesting, perhaps this breakneck pace may come back to bite him with the wretched hard turns of the Hall. She’s right: he fails the roll, though he has two advantage and a Triumph! Due to his failure, he does not advance on the pole, and takes another 4 damage as his racer smacks hard against the walls. He applies his Triumph to gaining +1 on the pole (which he can do, since he trails) - his boosters did gain him some ground - and he applies his two advantage to a boost to the next roll, as his adrenaline kicks in.

In the fourth stretch, Seismic Zones, the racers have entered the second lap. Here the racers have a choice, and Melange chooses to try the possible shortcut. Melange’s Accel surpasses 2 by 1, so she gains a boost die; her Turning is only deficient by 1, so the PRR check gains only a setback die, which her Skilled Jockey talent removes. She rolls 4 success and 1 threat; the threat translates to 1 damage as her racer smacks through debris, and her success moves her to +5 on the pole!

Discus follows her down the same route. His Accel surpasses 2 by 2, so he upgrades his roll. He has a boost from the last check, also. His Turning is deficient by 2, so the check becomes RRR! Still, he rolls 1 success, moving +2 on the pole, too, to a total of +4.

In the fifth stretch, Under The Fire Mountain, Melange’s Turning is deficient by just 1, and her Breaks by 2, so the PR check turns to RR with a setback die that Skilled Jockey again removes. The GM spends a Destiny Point, bringing in a challenge: a trailing racer on a prior lap crashed hard into a vein of the mountain, and lava is flowing freely over the course! If she can narrate effectively, she can lessen the upgraded difficulty. Melange describes in detail how she expertly weaves toward the lava flow and underneath the spout, hoping to thus dodge the flow by seeming to turn into it. The GM loves it and says it adds no difficulty. She spends a Destiny Point, too, to upgrade her roll, citing her goggles as particularly useful in the dark, lava-filled tunnels. And yet: she fails the roll! Though with 3 advantage. Her racer blasts through the lava flow, taking 5 damage; she uses 1 advantage to lessen the damage by 1, and applies the other 2 advantage to gaining a boost on the next roll. She does not advance on the pole.

Discus spends a Destiny Point, seeing his opportunity to break even with Melange. She flips it back, citing his engines heating dangerously as he blasts over the lava pits. His Turning is deficient by 3, adding a setback and upgrading the difficulty to PRR; his Breaks are deficient by 2, upgrading it again to RRR. Not too surprisingly... he fails the roll! He has 2 advantage to lessen the damage from 5 to 3, but 3 is still too much, putting him just over his hull trauma threshold. His racer blasts straight through the great lava flow, comes out the other side awash in flames, and explodes just behind Melange. Discus is no more!

The GM negotiates with Melange: she is still far ahead of the pack, not in danger of losing her lead, as long as she keeps the pace, so she mainly needs to survive the next roll. Furthermore, with success and double Triumph, she could have a chance at the course record (since the default course record is equal to the number of stretches, so it takes +7 on the pole to gain a new course record). Her Cooling gains her no bonus, and her Breaks are deficient by 2, so the PP check is upgraded to PR. The GM spends a Destiny Point, citing the roar of her rivals behind her distracting her. She has no counter narration, so she does not lessen this upgrade, though the GM might have allowed it. She does spend a Destiny Point, too, however, as she milks her below-average boosters for all they can give her along this stretch. She has a boost dice from the last check. She rolls 3 success and 3 advantage! She closes out the race beautifully, weaving between the pillars through the Great Hall.

Melange’s rank of +6 puts her about on par with the course record, but not surpassing it. She negotiates, though: could her 3 advantage mean a new lap record as she crushed the first lap? The GM says yes. “It’s a new lap record!”

Also, a new alternate cover:

9 hours ago, themensch said:

That looks great!

Thank you! It's been a lot of fun! Really shows the amazing versatility of the FFG system, I think.

3 hours ago, andynorton said:

Thank you! It's been a lot of fun! Really shows the amazing versatility of the FFG system, I think.

I think so too. After the holidays I might actually get a chance to play with this a bit.

*Creates a Shisivastan podracer named James McCloud*

This thread is awesome.

I did the stats and write up for the Xexto in Stay On Target and the world Mon Cala for Strongholds of Resistance, both of which have some references to the Podracer video games and tracks.

Some other things to consider for this supplement:

More Podracer add-ons/modifications

Mini modular encounters that show a bit more of what's happening between races. An encounter that deals with getting registered to enter a race, repairing a podracer, locating a much-needed part in a junkyard, gambling and fixing the outcome of a race (or stopping someone else from fixing the outcome).

Tracks that have great specific feel and flavor for both racing and just as locations other GMs might use for non-podracing related activities. Some of the tracks in teh game look like cool places to just explore in their own right.

I don't know where you're coming up with this cover art, but I like it! It warrants a monthly publication of a new track in some sort of zine. Hot stuff you got there.

10 hours ago, KRKappel said:

This thread is awesome.

I did the stats and write up for the Xexto in Stay On Target and the world Mon Cala for Strongholds of Resistance, both of which have some references to the Podracer video games and tracks.

Some other things to consider for this supplement:

More Podracer add-ons/modifications

Mini modular encounters that show a bit more of what's happening between races. An encounter that deals with getting registered to enter a race, repairing a podracer, locating a much-needed part in a junkyard, gambling and fixing the outcome of a race (or stopping someone else from fixing the outcome).

Tracks that have great specific feel and flavor for both racing and just as locations other GMs might use for non-podracing related activities. Some of the tracks in teh game look like cool places to just explore in their own right.

Oh my gosh, I'll have to check out Stay On Target and Strongholds of Resistance when I have a chance! Great job, love that you included references to the game.

To all your suggestions: totally, those sound like what I'm thinking. I'm also considering a suggested "campaign" that might string together many of the modular encounters; I have in my mind the probably cliche idea of having to cobble together a racer in order to enter an upcoming race for a higher reason (mom's sick in a hospital that needs the charity grant that the podracer could give, that sort of thing). The cool thing about a campaign like this is that it would give all of the party a reason-for-being, since it would take all their skills in order to track down that Rotary Power Plug on Malastare, steal an R-300 Repulsorgrip from a gang on Baroonda, explore that vergence on Ando Prime for the villagers in exchange for their Mark-V Air Brake, et cetera. Then, even if only one or two PCs are in the race, it's still everyone's podracer and everyone's invested!

First draft of a Podracer specialization:

For those following: I have actually been working on this a LOT, and I wanted to share with you a little preview of what it's looking like so far! Here is the link to the Google Drive file:

Fast & Dangerous REDUCED (3MB)

It's a reduced file, so it's just 3 MB instead of 200; so, of course, the images are not how they look on my computer. But it gives you a sense of the work so far.

I am super happy with how it's been progressing. Sadly, I need to take a break for the next three weeks or so, but will continue after that.

For those looking to help: I think if you could write original information, based on canon/legends/whatever-we-know, about the planets and species (Vulptereen, Nosaurian, and Er'kit), that would be fantastic, if you allow me to use and modify it as I wish. Thank you!

Another way to help, that could just be a lot of fun, would also be plot hooks for the missions/jobs/encounters/campaign section in the last chapter.

Thanks for following this project!

On 1/8/2018 at 6:05 PM, andynorton said:

For those following: I have actually been working on this a LOT, and I wanted to share with you a little preview of what it's looking like so far! Here is the link to the Google Drive file:

Fast & Dangerous REDUCED (3MB)

It's a reduced file, so it's just 3 MB instead of 200; so, of course, the images are not how they look on my computer. But it gives you a sense of the work so far.

I am super happy with how it's been progressing. Sadly, I need to take a break for the next three weeks or so, but will continue after that.

For those looking to help: I think if you could write original information, based on canon/legends/whatever-we-know, about the planets and species (Vulptereen, Nosaurian, and Er'kit), that would be fantastic, if you allow me to use and modify it as I wish. Thank you!

Another way to help, that could just be a lot of fun, would also be plot hooks for the missions/jobs/encounters/campaign section in the last chapter.

Thanks for following this project!

On 12/23/2017 at 8:34 AM, andynorton said:

This has promise are you still working on it Andy?

Racer was just rereleased on PC a few days ago.

I'm excited to see what you do - I'm pretty sure the stuff about pod racing getting shut down is now non-canon (as is the racing game) for what that's worth. I say make whatever narrative you like - individual GMs can do what they like with the material ("podracing" could easily become "swoop-racing" if they aren't a fan). Honestly, a fan-supplement about RACING, full-stop, is going to be really useful for everyone. Especially topical as I expect we will see a lot of chase scenes and such in "Solo".

I love what you have done with the layout so far and I'm excited to see what you cook up for the individual courses. I'm also intrigued about the "build a custom podracer" idea, but I'd be careful about balance issues (note the starship creation rules in Fully Operational). I think that model could work well, it just needs to be more carefully balanced against the other vehicles. I personally would like to see a little section about how different careers fit into the racing world, like we see in the splat books. I honestly think it would be a blast to play a full "racing team" with managers, pilots, mechanics, and maybe even saboteurs/fixers. I could see a whole mini arc on that theme.

Also there is the OG Boonta Speeder Race from the Droids cartoon: http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Boonta_Speeder_Race Not a Podrace per se, but could still be a source of inspiration (I'm always pushing a Droids agenda!)

In case anyone want to take a stab here are the three requested races, basic info on wookiepedia

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Vulptereen/Legends

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Nosaurian/Legends

Is already on pg 44 of the Complete Species, fan source book for reference.

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Er'Kit/Legends