Hi All, so im about to embark upon my first Star Wars campaign. I know nothing of the system, yet, but would like to play a Jedi. I of course want to be the best i could be so i dont want to make any "mistakes" during initial character creation. Now while i dont need a comprehensive build, i could use some help in getting started. So im looking for suggestions and guidance on what i should do to start off on the right foot.

Well, first of all, what is your character concept ? What will be your strong points ? In other words, what will be your career ?

A general rule is to max the xp you spend on characteristics at creation, since you can't do it later.

Also, for the force powers, reinforce, sense, and move are probably the best as starting power, as they don't require much xp to be useful.

And since you are new to the system, I'll give you an advice : don't try to overspecialize. Optimised character builds are the plague of this game, and can easily ruin the experience

7 minutes ago, AbsatSolo said:

reinforce

Influence?

9 minutes ago, GroggyGolem said:

Influence?

No... The power that buffs tour Brawn and Agility... Isn't that reinforce ?

I don't have the books in english, so I can't tell

Also the power that creates illusions is a nice starter too (misdirect, if I remember well)

13 minutes ago, AbsatSolo said:

Well, first of all, what is your character concept ? What will be your strong points ? In other words, what will be your career ?

A general rule is to max the xp you spend on characteristics at creation, since you can't do it later.

Also, for the force powers, reinforce, sense, and move are probably the best as starting power, as they don't require much xp to be useful.

And since you are new to the system, I'll give you an advice : don't try to overspecialize. Optimised character builds are the plague of this game, and can easily ruin the experience

Thanks for the advice on the Over specialized thing, ill do my best to avoid that. As far as concept, i of course want to be powerful with the lightsaber. I also want to be strong in the force regarding physical movement and reflexes, as i do intend to specialize in piloting.

Without sounding too cliche's, i would go for a Boba Fett version of a Jedi. So mostly combat and instinct stuff.

I dont care to force folks to take republican credits, discourage a droid search, or sense, that my ex-girlfriend is at the same night club as me.

15 minutes ago, SlaveOne said:

Thanks for the advice on the Over specialized thing, ill do my best to avoid that. As far as concept, i of course want to be powerful with the lightsaber. I also want to be strong in the force regarding physical movement and reflexes, as i do intend to specialize in piloting.

Without sounding too cliche's, i would go for a Boba Fett version of a Jedi. So mostly combat and instinct stuff.

I dont care to force folks to take republican credits, discourage a droid search, or sense, that my ex-girlfriend is at the same night club as me.

Sounds like you are looking for a warrior career. It even has a piloting specialization in the core, the Starfighter Ace. So you could start with that or if you want to star focusing more on the combat side you could go Shi-Cho Knight, which is a lightsaber form.

19 minutes ago, SlaveOne said:

Thanks for the advice on the Over specialized thing, ill do my best to avoid that. As far as concept, i of course want to be powerful with the lightsaber. I also want to be strong in the force regarding physical movement and reflexes, as i do intend to specialize in piloting.

Without sounding too cliche's, i would go for a Boba Fett version of a Jedi. So mostly combat and instinct stuff.

I dont care to force folks to take republican credits, discourage a droid search, or sense, that my ex-girlfriend is at the same night club as me.

Definitely sound like a Warrior to me.

Increase both Brawn and Willpower at creation, at least both to 3 (Spend the reste as you like)

The specialisation you choose will depend of your priorities. Go for Schi-Cho Knight to get good with with a lightsaber first, or Aggressor to have that "menacing" aspect, and a quicker access to additional Force rating.

You'll be able to get the stafighter ace tree later.

About the Force :

if you want Force reflexes to make you hit harder, and evade better, the left side of the Sense tree is made for you. Just throw 20 of your starting xp in that branch.

Or just take "reinforce" (or whatever the name of the power is) and enjoy a cheap, versatile power.

This is exactly what i needed. Thank you kind sir, may the force be with you.

1 hour ago, AbsatSolo said:

No... The power that buffs tour Brawn and Agility... Isn't that reinforce ?

I don't have the books in english, so I can't tell

Also the power that creates illusions is a nice starter too (misdirect, if I remember well)

Enhance is the power you're looking for.

Misdirect starts rather weak if you play it strictly as written, and it can be rather expensive in XP to make it useful.

1 hour ago, AbsatSolo said:

Definitely sound like a Warrior to me.

Increase both Brawn and Willpower at creation, at least both to 3 (Spend the reste as you like)

The specialisation you choose will depend of your priorities. Go for Schi-Cho Knight to get good with with a lightsaber first, or Aggressor to have that "menacing" aspect, and a quicker access to additional Force rating.

You'll be able to get the stafighter ace tree later.

About the Force :

if you want Force reflexes to make you hit harder, and evade better, the left side of the Sense tree is made for you. Just throw 20 of your starting xp in that branch.

Or just take "reinforce" (or whatever the name of the power is) and enjoy a cheap, versatile power.

Just be advised of 2 issues here:

1) Shii-Cho doesn't have the "reflect" talent, so mitigating ranged attacks is going to be difficult for you. You'll mostly be relying on getting into saber-range as fast as possible and hoping the other guy isn't willing to risk hitting his own guy to hit you.

2) Operating a Starfighter is an Agility-based skill, so Brawn and Willpower won't help you there.

This is the largest challenge of being a Force-user in this system, so much power, but it all comes at a cost. You get the Force, but in exchange you're goingot have to make some tough choices about when you become good at what. The most important thing a force user can do is Drill down his concept, identify the minimum combination of Skills, Talents, and XP to get there, and then make an advancement plan and stick to it.

That said, here's a few tips:

• Being a Pilot in this system doesn't require you specialize that much. Learning the vehicle system is probably the hardest part, as it's strange and not very intuitive. But, if you learn that and just put some skill points in Initiative skills, Gunnery, and Piloting (probably in that order) You'll be fine, and probably better off than someone who dumped it all into a Pilot Spec but didn't bother learning the system.
• The Battle of Yavin is rather representative of Starfighter combat in this system. Fast, ugly, and 1-2 hits is all it takes. If you're in a lone fighter and see a dozen TIEs headed your way, you should run.
• Don't overdo it. There's a temptation to try and max out Force Rating, Force Powers, and Get 5 different specializations. Don't do that or you'll never get there. Figure out what you REALLY REALLY want to do and what it'll take. You don't need to buy 180 XP of talent tree when 25 XP of Skill Ranks will do.
• Don't be afraid to earn conflict here and there.
• Talk to your GM. Find out how he interprets things. Does flavorful description work for you? Will it work for him? Is he going to interpret things loose or literally (for example can you say you parried a missed attack, or will he demand you have the Parry talent. If you're a Smuggler:Thief do you have to be a Thief, or can you play it as a Private Investigator since the skills and abilities work for both.)

5 hours ago, SlaveOne said:

As far as concept, i       of course want to be powerful with the lightsaber. I also want to be strong in the force regarding physical movement and  reflexes, as i do intend to specialize in piloting. 

A couple things:

First, I realize it may just be the nomenclature that you're using, but you should know, no matter what Specialization you take, you will not begin play with a PC that feels or plays like a Jedi.

A Jedi, with capabilities as commonly understood by the canon media, is something like a 500-1000 earned-XP PC.

You will likely (unless GM is giving you bonus starting XP) start as a mere "Force Sensitive" or "Force User", with abilities more like a Youngling from canon. Sorry if you knew that, but wanted to temper your expectations, if not.

Next, RE: you're concept; Lightsaber, Physical movement, Reflexes, Bobba Fett. There's a number of ways to do this. But let's start with Force Powers, as those are pretty clear based on your wants.

You need Enhance with the Leap Control Upgrades for your "Physical Movement". And you need Sense, with Combat Difficulty Control Upgrades for your "Reflexes". About 100 XP all told, plus 100 more for the Brawn or/and Agility "Commits" (which would further increase the demands in your Force Rating).

RE: Lightsaber and Bobba Fett-ness... I would recommend you take the Guardian Career, and Armorer Specialization (so, you'll need a good Brawn and Intelligence) and here's why. You need some Force Rating, because you're gonna need 2 Force Die to commit to your Force Sense"Reflexes" eventually, and you're still gonna want a spare Force Die to Leap around. You take a Lightsaber Spec, and you're looking at probably a couple hundred XP before you hit Force Rating 2 , and remember you need Force Rating 3. Plus, Armorer will allow you to buff your Armor, like Bobba Fett (as well as trick out your Lightsaber, which is great fun) AND it still has Lightsaber as a Career Skill, as well as a Force Rating bump (and Dedication). It's gonna be the most XP efficient way to achieve ALL your character concept goals as quickly as possible.

If you want to play a longer XP game plan, yea, there's a bunch of ways to capture your concept.

Have fun, good luck.

3 hours ago, HappyDaze said:

Enhance is the power you're looking for.

That's it ! Thanks a lot

3 hours ago, HappyDaze said:

Misdirect starts rather weak if you play it strictly as written, and it can be rather expensive in XP to make it useful.

True, but the base power still has some uses,for infiltration, or to hide something (unlike influence for exemple). And with only the first controle upgrade, duration and range and the ability to affect people up to Presence,(45 xp) it is a very useful tool

So, not that expensive. I may have a bias, though, since I am an absolute fan of this power

6 hours ago, HappyDaze said:

Misdirect starts rather weak if you play it strictly as written

Do you play it not as written? If so I wanna know how (I know this is a total tangent but I'm curious).

20 hours ago, AbsatSolo said:

True, but the base power still has some uses,for infiltration, or to hide something (unlike influence for exemple). And with only the first controle upgrade, duration and range and the ability to affect people up to Presence,(45 xp) it is a very useful tool

So, not that expensive. I may have a bias, though, since I am an absolute fan of this power

I think he just means how like the Base ability is limited to one of target at short range. A decent Stealth check can usually handle that sort of challenge, in essence requiring the GM to set up scenarios specifically to give the player and opportunity to use it. Its not until you increase range, duration, and target count that you can really start to become "invisible." And of course by the time you hit Mastery you're essentially Mysterio...

It's also the blink on/off that happens since it deactivates at the start of your turn and you momentarily become visible again until you spend the action to reactivate it. You don't get a continuous effect until you get the duration upgrade.

Yeah I rolled that in with the whole "just use a stealth check" since both would essentially require you to start and end your turn hidden to be "invisible."

3 hours ago, Ghostofman said:

I think   he just means how like the B  ase ability is limited to one of target at short  range.  A decent Stealth  check can usually handle that sort of  challenge

You would allow a Stealth check for a PC to sneak by in plain view of something like a bouncer in a fully-lit foyer/crossing-gate attendant/isolated check-point guard/bodyguard outside a door/etc. etc. etc.?

It certainly becomes virtually exponentially more useful as you get Upgrades, but it by no means requires highly contrived set-ups to be incredibly useful at it's Basic level, if you're smart in how you use it.

For instance, if you just pretend like you show the one immediate guy guarding the entry point what he needed to see, and everyone at a distance sees you doing that and continuing on your way because obviously the guard in charge of checking stuff saw nothing wrong and the distant guys can't see that wasn't actual credentials you were "showing" them... You just used a one person effect to get by a dozen in plain sight.

Or if your face uses their disguise and social infiltration skills to talk their way in and open does and you just "piggy back" along in a disguise, no talking, but invisible to the critical interfaces... Again, you're feeling everyone by fooling a critical actor.

Not to mention the possible emergency combat (escape) applications.

Misdirect is in my opinion and experience one of the best Basic Powers.

2 minutes ago, emsquared said:

You would allow a Stealth check for a PC to sneak by in plain view of something like a bouncer in a fully-lit foyer/crossing-gate attendant/isolated check-point guard/bodyguard outside a door/etc. etc. etc.?

Why not? I never said it'd be easy, but it's not impossible.

As Happy says, the issue isn't that it doesn't work, just that it's one-target, short range, and only good until the player's turn ends. So it's good for like, running across a hallway or something. Put simply anything where you can start the turn hidden from the target, and end the turn hidden from the target.

While there's plenty of situations where that can work, they are also kinda limited. The GM almost has to set you up with a situation for it to work perfectly. While there's nothing wrong with that once in a while, if it happens every session it gets stupid.

Compounding the problem is that people like to specialize. The guy that has misdirect usually also has decent Stealth. If you were playing a dude with garbage Agility, no ranks in Stealth, and Stealth as a non-career skill, Misdirect is a fantastic investment to fill in that hole. But if you're already playing a Shadow with Agility 4, Stealth 2, Slight of Mind and so on... Misdirect is the force power that does what you're already stupid good at...

The range can also be a problem if you can't use it from afar to sneak up on a target and you often can't use it to sneak away either.

Misdirect is a useful ability even in it's basic form, in that you are effectively able to break the rules. Being able to spend a action in a scene to be undetectable to one person who, by any other right would have seen you is awesome. One action in a scene is enough to bypass a potential direct encounter completely against a single adversary which is much more useful if the party is capable of spillting up on a regular basis, misdirect is much more useful when there are less friendly characters involved in a scene, unless your fine slipping past while distractions are going on.

My character, despite being a fairly mediocre force user (5 ranks in dis, but only 1 willpower.) invested a fair bit in that ability and even mastered it. Though it's main use was actually in conveying messages when speech wasn't an option; one time me and another PC were able to have an entire conversation by using misdirect on each other so that we were able to formulate a situation in which we could get the drop on an unsuspecting opponent.

1 hour ago, Ghostofman said:

Why   not  ? 

Right, so of course if you allow regular Skills to defy reality, of course Force Powers are not gonna have as much value. Which of course can stifle a games Morality ecosystem.

Also a round is as much as a minute, so if it takes a minute to get across a hall, that's a big hall.

Remember that most important (non-minions or "bulk" rivals) instinctively attempt to resist powers like this, and minions tend to run in groups which require upgrades.

Misdirect is fun when you start to make enemies disappear from view from other enemies. Or make your tank disappear from view as he moves in to strike. Or make dropped weapons disappear from enemy view. Or get the illusion-creating upgrades. At its basic level, I run it like Emsquared. It's useful, but maybe not as much as some of the other basic powers.

On 1/30/2019 at 1:15 PM, SlaveOne said:

Thanks for the advice on the Over specialized thing, ill do my best to avoid that. As far as concept, i of course want to be powerful with the lightsaber. I also want to be strong in the force regarding physical movement and reflexes, as i do intend to specialize in piloting.

Without sounding too cliche's, i would go for a Boba Fett version of a Jedi. So mostly combat and instinct stuff.

I dont care to force folks to take republican credits, discourage a droid search, or sense, that my ex-girlfriend is at the same night club as me.

On 1/30/2019 at 1:33 PM, Nihil84 said:

Sounds like you are looking for a warrior career. It even has a piloting specialization in the core, the Starfighter Ace. So you could start with that or if you want to star focusing more on the combat side you could go Shi-Cho Knight, which is a lightsaber form.

On 1/30/2019 at 1:34 PM, AbsatSolo said:

Definitely sound like a Warrior to me.

Increase both Brawn and Willpower at creation, at least both to 3 (Spend the reste as you like)

The specialisation you choose will depend of your priorities. Go for Schi-Cho Knight to get good with with a lightsaber first, or Aggressor to have that "menacing" aspect, and a quicker access to additional Force rating.

You'll be able to get the stafighter ace tree later.

About the Force :

if you want Force reflexes to make you hit harder, and evade better, the left side of the Sense tree is made for you. Just throw 20 of your starting xp in that branch.

Or just take "reinforce" (or whatever the name of the power is) and enjoy a cheap, versatile power.

On 1/30/2019 at 6:09 PM, emsquared said:

A couple things:

First, I realize it may just be the nomenclature that you're using, but you should know, no matter what Specialization you take, you will not begin play with a PC that feels or plays like a Jedi.

A Jedi, with capabilities as commonly understood by the canon media, is something like a 500-1000 earned-XP PC.

You will likely (unless GM is giving you bonus starting XP) start as a mere "Force Sensitive" or "Force User", with abilities more like a Youngling from canon. Sorry if you knew that, but wanted to temper your expectations, if not.

Next, RE: you're concept; Lightsaber, Physical movement, Reflexes, Bobba Fett. There's a number of ways to do this. But let's start with Force Powers, as those are pretty clear based on your wants.

You need Enhance with the Leap Control Upgrades for your "Physical Movement". And you need Sense, with Combat Difficulty Control Upgrades for your "Reflexes". About 100 XP all told, plus 100 more for the Brawn or/and Agility "Commits" (which would further increase the demands in your Force Rating).

RE: Lightsaber and Bobba Fett-ness... I would recommend you take the Guardian Career, and Armorer Specialization (so, you'll need a good Brawn and Intelligence) and here's why. You need some Force Rating, because you're gonna need 2 Force Die to commit to your Force Sense"Reflexes" eventually, and you're still gonna want a spare Force Die to Leap around. You take a Lightsaber Spec, and you're looking at probably a couple hundred XP before you hit Force Rating 2 , and remember you need Force Rating 3. Plus, Armorer will allow you to buff your Armor, like Bobba Fett (as well as trick out your Lightsaber, which is great fun) AND it still has Lightsaber as a Career Skill, as well as a Force Rating bump (and Dedication). It's gonna be the most XP efficient way to achieve ALL your character concept goals as quickly as possible.

If you want to play a longer XP game plan, yea, there's a bunch of ways to capture your concept.

Have fun, good luck.

I second the Guardian/Armorer build; either that or Sentinel/ Sentry (the “I’m Batman” spec.), and add in Racer as a second (or third) spec for piloting.

Be an Ataru Striker, 4 Agility 3 Brawn, Get ataru talent. Perhaps go for 5 agility