Detecting Force-Sensitivity

By P-47 Thunderbolt, in Star Wars: Force and Destiny RPG

8 minutes ago, Daeglan said:

Qui gon didn't sense Anakin. he deduced then ran a test

My memory is that he "sensed something special" about Anakin and had him tested to confirm.

48 minutes ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

My memory is that he "sensed something special" about Anakin and had him tested to confirm.

There was the conversation about podracing where he said jedi reflexes were likely because humans cant do it

I think the something Special about the boy is what he told the council...

Edited by Daeglan
4 hours ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

They do exist in this game, however. Aside from that detail, they are a part of Star Wars, and thus the question is not irrelevant.

Who is a Force-user in a group of mundanes going to sense?

We've seen plenty of Jedi & Sith around people who have the Force without just sensing them as Force-users. Sheev & Anakin in the movies. Cal in the line-up with the Inquisitors in Fallen Order, and him later not realizing that another person was a Jedi. Kanan not sensing that the babies in that one Rebels ep were Force-sensitive.

1 minute ago, Stan Fresh said:

We've seen plenty of Jedi & Sith around people who have the Force without just sensing them as Force-users. Sheev & Anakin in the movies. Cal in the line-up with the Inquisitors in Fallen Order, and him later not realizing that another person was a Jedi. Kanan not sensing that the babies in that one Rebels ep were Force-sensitive.

Easily explained as Sheev having Shroud, but good points on the others. I've always interpreted things like Plo Koon discovering Ahsoka or Qui-Gon discovering Anakin (though I haven't watch Phantom Menace in a while and seem to be misremembering that sequence of events) as the Jedi sensing the forceful presence, thus discovering an individual strong in the force.

I'm no expert on FaD, so is there another power that would make more sense for discovering force-sensitives in the manner the Jedi used to discover new younglings?

12 minutes ago, Stan Fresh said:

Who is a Force-user in a group of mundanes going to sense?

No one. My point was only in response to micheldebruyn suggesting that the question was irrelevant since Emperor's Hands are no longer canon in the same way. I agreed with your comment.

2 minutes ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

Easily explained as Sheev having Shroud, but good points on the others. I've always interpreted things like Plo Koon discovering Ahsoka or Qui-Gon discovering Anakin (though I haven't watch Phantom Menace in a while and seem to be misremembering that sequence of events) as the Jedi sensing the forceful presence, thus discovering an individual strong in the force.

We don't see Plo Koon discovering Ahsoka except for that dialogue-less shot of them in the "previously on" of a TCW episode. The process of how Seekers find Force-sensitive children is still pretty vague in canon. We know about the blood tests and that you can tell by kids displaying extrasensory perception (that's how Anakin is discovered), but I don't think we know how Seekers actually operate.

2 minutes ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

I'm no expert on FaD, so is there another power that would make more sense for discovering force-sensitives in the manner the Jedi used to discover new younglings?

Blood tests :)

5 minutes ago, Stan Fresh said:

We don't see Plo Koon discovering Ahsoka except for that dialogue-less shot of them in the "previously on" of a TCW episode. The process of how Seekers find Force-sensitive children is still pretty vague in canon.

Right, I wasn't saying that made my point, just that that was my interpretation of the circumstances.

6 minutes ago, Stan Fresh said:

Blood tests :)

Not quite what I was looking for, but fair enough! :D

Just now, Stan Fresh said:

Blood tests :)

Some of my players are, um... opposed to the idea of a blood test for force-sensitivity. It's the reason I came up with the mechanics I outlined in an earlier comment in this thread, because if I mention the 'M' word at the table I'm pretty sure two of my players would just get up and leave, never to play again 😅

If your players are fine with the blood test then cool, I'm legitimately happy for you. I personally prefer the slightly more mystical idea that there's something extra-sensory going on; more in keeping with those moments in the movies where Star Wars characters have a sudden awareness of someone/something's presence.

1 minute ago, SufficientlyAdvancedMoronics said:

If your players are fine with the blood test then cool, I'm legitimately happy for you. I personally prefer the slightly more mystical idea that there's something extra-sensory going on; more in keeping with those moments in the movies where Star Wars characters have a sudden awareness of someone/something's presence.

I'm okay with both, but I definitely lean towards the latter. In my opinion, it works best in concert. You discover it in the first place "through the Force" and then you confirm/measure with the blood test.

4 minutes ago, SufficientlyAdvancedMoronics said:

Some of my players are, um... opposed to the idea of a blood test for force-sensitivity. It's the reason I came up with the mechanics I outlined in an earlier comment in this thread, because if I mention the 'M' word at the table I'm pretty sure two of my players would just get up and leave, never to play again 😅

If your players are fine with the blood test then cool, I'm legitimately happy for you. I personally prefer the slightly more mystical idea that there's something extra-sensory going on; more in keeping with those moments in the movies where Star Wars characters have a sudden awareness of someone/something's presence.

I don't think the blood test is meant to be peak Jedi mysticism, for what it's worth. It's the Jedi trying to codify something magical - one of the ways in which their relationship with the Force had become too utilitarian, too bureaucratic during the prequel era.

We do know there is a Holocron with a list. We have no idea how they end up on that list on the Holocron that was a McGuffin for some Clone Wars Episodes.

5 minutes ago, SufficientlyAdvancedMoronics said:

Some of my players are, um... opposed to the idea of a blood test for force-sensitivity. It's the reason I came up with the mechanics I outlined in an earlier comment in this thread, because if I mention the 'M' word at the table I'm pretty sure two of my players would just get up and leave, never to play again.

My headcanon for midichlorians is that they're harmless bacteria without any special abilities whatsoever, except they need Force-rich environments, like the bowels of a Jedi, to thrive. A midichlorian count would give a rough estimate of a person's Force potential, but they would not be the cause of that Force potential.

6 minutes ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

You discover it in the first place "through the Force" and then you confirm/measure with the blood test.

I dunno, giving them no way to confirm it by eliminating blood tests leads to some hilarious scenarios.

Picture a PC group of ex-padawans who survived Order 66 and are trying to maintain the Jedi order in secret. They meet a kid on a station who tries to pickpocket them, and he's so sneaky that the party (who fails their rolls) are convinced he's force-sensitive and take it on themselves to train him.

Imagine the hilarity of trying to train this kid until they realize their mistake! 🤣

2 minutes ago, Stan Fresh said:

I don't think the blood test is meant to be peak Jedi mysticism, for what it's worth. It's the Jedi trying to codify something magical - one of the ways in which their relationship with the Force had become too utilitarian, too bureaucratic during the prequel era.

A very interesting take on it... I had never considered it that way.

2 minutes ago, Daeglan said:

We do know there is a Holocron with a list. We have no idea how they end up on that list on the Holocron that was a McGuffin for some Clone Wars Episodes.

Technically the list was on the Kyber Crystal, you just needed a holocron to decode it. To my recollection, the episode didn't go into how this information was compiled.

16 minutes ago, micheldebruyn said:

Technically the list was on the Kyber Crystal, you just needed a holocron to decode it. To my recollection, the episode didn't go into how this information was compiled.

Yeah the Seeking process is still pretty vague in canon. I enjoy the mystery, but also want to learn more about it for gaming purposes.

3 minutes ago, Stan Fresh said:

Yeah the Seeking process is still pretty vague in canon. I enjoy the mystery, but also want to learn more about it for gaming purposes.

A dozen Jedi Masters meditating on a special Kyber crystal for a few years and letting the Force inscribe the crystal with the new kids for the next decade or so works for me. Makes it neatly non-exploitable.

1 minute ago, micheldebruyn said:

A dozen Jedi Masters meditating on a special Kyber crystal for a few years and letting the Force inscribe the crystal with the new kids for the next decade or so works for me. Makes it neatly non-exploitable.

Yeah, "meditation" was the word that immediately leapt to mind for me. I like your specific take, it's very atmospheric.

This was a way more involved question than I had expected. :D

1 minute ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

This was a way more involved question than I had expected. :D

Well I'm glad you asked it. It's given me some really good food for thought. 🤯

I do wish they gave more guidance on things like this. For example they have indistinguishable and concealing robes which modify rolls but I never see rules for how to set up that roll

Here's my suggestion for Perception checks made to positively ID someone:

Range=Difficulty (same as Ranged combat checks)

Setbacks for crowds, darkness, concealment, etc.

Add modifiers for gear, like Boost/Setback or even reduction in difficulty for something like Electrobinoculars or a Telescopic Optical Sight (reducing difficulty by one at Long and Extreme range, binoculars should probably reduce by 2 at Long/Extreme, and by 1 at Medium range).

2 minutes ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

Here's my suggestion for Perception checks made to positively ID someone:

Range=Difficulty (same as Ranged combat checks)

Setbacks for crowds, darkness, concealment, etc.

Add modifiers for gear, like Boost/Setback or even reduction in difficulty for something like Electrobinoculars or a Telescopic Optical Sight (reducing difficulty by one at Long and Extreme range, binoculars should probably reduce by 2 at Long/Extreme, and by 1 at Medium range).

That is perfect. I just wish sometimes they would give guidance for stuff like this in the books.

55 minutes ago, Daeglan said:

I do wish they gave more guidance on things like this. For example they have indistinguishable and concealing robes which modify rolls but I never see rules for how to set up that roll

It's an opposed check most of the time. The difficulty is set by the participants' traits.