Hello all, I'm developing a new arc for one of my groups and I'd love to get some suggestions from the pros around here.

I'm introducing the characters to a large city environment where they can set up a base of operations. They're all Force users and have been exploring that side of things, but some of the players also want to add in some classic fetch quest play. I figure instead of mindlessly hopping around the galaxy, I can give them a base with a ton of life happening around them. That way there are always side quests while a main story arc is also playing out within their city/planet/sector.

If it helps, much of that group are video gamers so I'm styling this like Mass Effect : A hub of activity and quest givers while large story missions are also occurring. Also, one player is a Sentinel and is considering the My City signature ability and I want him to have a really meaty city to play in.

I have a location: Abhean , which exists in Canon/Legends, but has spare enough detail that I can mold it as I see fit. I invented a massive walled city of Cyrene, which sits in a large fjord on the coast and extends both up the cliffside and down into caverns. It's a city of millions, many who work in the Imperial shipyards in orbit, building bulk freighters for the Empire.

Their first encounter is a classic hit the Space DMV to register your ship and--what's that? A street urchin swiped your lightsaber! What I really need is more flavor and activities that are going on. So far I have:

• Swoop racing through the caverns, both sanctioned and illegal
• Boat racing on the ocean, but watch out for bigger fish
• Grav-ball leagues
• Casinos, not Canto Bight levels, but some are really quite nice, others, y'know....
• Mynok hunting in the shipyards in orbit
• Bazaars and shops galore
• Large spaceports that sit on the top of the cliff, with all the smuggling and seediness that comes with

This art from 2P51's thread is the concept art I'm using for the city.

What other fun things should I include? Thanks in advance!

One thing to think about are living expenses. Most games forget about this because they have other priorities. They're off saving the Galaxy so they assume that the credits they have will cover it. But since you're basically playing a domestic setting I would add in the challenge of upkeep.

Sure you have a base of operations. Presumably a large domicile.

How much is the rent/mortgage? Did they pay for it in lump sum credits?

What about taxes?

What about food?

Is there a vehicle on the premises?

If they have jobs do they have aliases? They would need fake IDs.

While your players are all busy presumably plotting against the Empire would you run across the law? Maybe the ISB?

It's the principle of keeping your players busy and hungry.

Endless Vigil will have lots of stuff to help out. Far Horizons (Colonist source book) will also have a lot of applicable stuff. They may want a "homestead" as a starting resource or a resource they buy or fall into (Obligation to "pay" for it, etc).

I'd work on developing the various factions, movers and shakers, power centers of the city.

Gangs, guilds, corporations, government entities and departments. These can play the role of both good guys and bad guys or somewhere-in-between.

If they're all Force sensitive and that's something they want to play up maybe a Jedi connection to the place - a failed Padawan, Knight (quit the Jedi or survived Order 66), and/or a hidden cache of Jedi "stuff" like Holocrons, records, basics of construction lightsabers and lightsaber instruction and force use and philosophy. Maybe a "mentor" who tests them to see if they are worthy without being obvious about it (a quest giver turns out to be a Jedi).

Sounds like a fun setting to play in.

2 hours ago, sithlord78 said:

How much is the rent/mortgage? Did they pay for it in lump sum credits?

What about taxes?

What about food?

While I get where you're coming from, I think generally speaking, these can be pulled from an untracked operating expenses budget in much the same way that docking fees can often be ignored...

What about active parties there? How strong is the Imperium, how independent is the local government, what are other interested(interesting) parties: criminal underground, rebel/insurgent/political factions, political houses (nobles, companies, guilds,...), powerful individual players.