I'm a new GM so bare with me... And have tolerance with my posts........

If a player starts as s bounty hunter ( non force sensitive) and then picks a force sensitive talent tree.... Does that automatically make them force sensitive? Or does their character have to be force sensitive? Or can any character develop force sensitive powers regardless of previous careers?

It depends on what kind of Force sensitive talent tree you're talking about.

In the case of the specs under the Force and Destiny careers; no, taking one of them does not make you Force sensitive. That said, you can still take those trees; and while you cannot use any talents marked as Force talents, you can still buy those talents in order to get to other talents further down the tree.

On the other hand, there are also universal Force-sensitive trees (Force Sensitive in Exile, Force Sensitive Emergent, and Padawan Survivor) which actually give you a Force Rating of 1 just for taking them.

Basically what I'm asking is... Is there a way to become force sensitive when you didn't set out being force sensitive?

I always thought you would have been born force sensitive....

5 minutes ago, Vipersfang00000 said:

Basically what I'm asking is... Is there a way to become force sensitive when you didn't set out being force sensitive?

Yes, just take one of the specs @Vorzakk mentioned.

6 minutes ago, Vipersfang00000 said:

I always thought you would have been born force sensitive....

There's no rule about that in the game, nor is it really settled in canon. Lucas originally felt that anyone could "learn the ways of the Force" with enough practice and study, I don't think that's ever been contradicted.

If you need a story-reason, maybe the PC has always been "lucky" and never knew why. Taking a spec that grants Force Sensitivity just means they finally understand where it's coming from.

I think it's one of those that's treated as deliberately vague. The PT indicates that some individuals are "pre-conditioned" to be force sensitive if they meet certain cateria, e.g. the tests and midacholoians as a bio-marker of sorts, but I don't think either is too strict.

Basically, if you pick up any tree that grants force rating 1: You either had latent powers you were unaware of or you developed them with mental exercises until like a muscle you can make small changes to reality around you. Both are perfectly legit in my book.

2 hours ago, Vipersfang00000 said:

Basically what I'm asking is... Is there a way to become force sensitive when you didn't set out being force sensitive?

The only way to "become" Force sensitive after chargen is to take a universal spec that specifically grants a FR of 1. To my knowledge, that includes the Force Sensitive Exile, Force Sensitive Emergent and the Force Sensitive Outcast.

Note that F&D specs don't grant a FR, it's the careers that grant the FR1, so that won't do it. Another note, though, is that you can take a F&D spec without a Force Rating, but until you get FR1 you can't benefit from any Force talent (and yes, that includes the Force Rating talent that gives you +1 FR).

2 hours ago, Vipersfang00000 said:

I always thought you would have been born force sensitive....

Who's to say the character wasn't born Force sensitive? It's just not until the player takes the FR-granting spec that their Force sensitivity manifests.

All sentient species are Force Sensitive by default. Those who aren't Force Sensitive are clearly indicated as such in their description, an I don't remember seeing any in any SW FFG books. So, it's impossible for a character to not be born Force Sensitive. But that doesn't mean a character is aware of the Force or can manipulate it. Only characters with a Force Rating 1+ can do that. For a character whose career doesn't grant a FR 1, the only way to get one is to buy one of the Universal Force Sensitive specializations, since F&D specs don't give any FR only F&D careers do. Well, that's how I understand it and how I rule it at my table.

As for the OP, the universal Force Sensitive spec are designed for characters who don't start with a FR1 and discover after sometimes their connection with the Force. But if a character buys a spec form F&D he / she doesn't become more aware about the Force than he was before... Except that being unable to use all the Force talents in the tree might be a good incentive to pick a spec that grants a FR 1.

Your PCs are playing fictional characters. They may not start out as Force-sensitives but decide later down the road that they want to be. The easiest explanation is that they didn't know about their Force sensitivity until they were put into a stressful situation.

You'll find that this game system offers you a lot of narrative freedom but with that freedom comes a bit more of a heavy lift for the Game Master. Learning to be flexible and improvise a little when the PCs go off script is very helpful. Have a starting in mind and have an ending in mind but work with the PCs to fill out the middle while guiding them to the end.