Selkath Species Stat-Block

By rendrin, in Star Wars: Edge of the Empire RPG

Posted at

Hey everyone, I'm looking for opinions and a discussion on creating a Selkath species stat-block.

B-2 | A-2 | I-2 | C-2 | W-2 | P-2 |

  • In Clone Wars they were beefier and tougher than other species, but didn't seem especially strong
  • In Clone Wars they didn't seem very graceful out of water, but seemed to shoot fine; may be graceful in water
  • In Saga Edition they had Cha +2, but as I'm replaying KOTOR none of them seem overly friendly

WT 11 or 12 | ST 11 or 12 |

  • In Clone Wars they seemed tougher and beefier than other species
  • In KOTOR they seemed pretty resolute and they seemed like shrewd negotiators

Starting XP-100

Skills -1 of the below skills, 2 of the below skills, or a this or that option between 2 skills

  • Medicine
    • Known to heal the sick
  • Xenology
    • Heal the sick & care for oceans
  • Cool
    • Useful for a bounty hunter; useful for medical personnel; in KOTOR they stayed neutral
  • Discipline
    • Useful for a bounty hunter; useful for medical personnel; in KOTOR they had strict laws
  • Negotiation
    • Can be useful for bounty hunters; in KOTOR they seemed to be shrewd negotiators

Special Abilities -

  • Amphibious
    • Definitely
  • Water Dependence (as per Ishi Tib in Lead by Example [if not doused in salt water within a 24-hour period take -2 to WT until doused in water])
    • Maybe
    • See Chata Hyoki's armor with water misting capabilities (Mantu could just tough it out occasionally & Morgo was nabbed against his will)
  • Fish Out of Water (Home brew [+1 Setback to Coordination (also maybe Athletics and/or Stealth) when out of water])
    • Maybe
    • They seem a bit less-than graceful in the Clone Wars

I've dug into the canon about Selkath, which is largely what we see in Clone Wars and a few posts on www.StarWars.com.

www.StarWars.com

Observations from Clone Wars

  • They have broader shoulders than pretty much everyone else we see them next to
  • They seem tough
    • Chata Hyoki hit several hard objects while being drug behind a speeder bike at high speed
    • Mantu was used as a bridge and electrocuted before he fell into the ray shield and still lasted about as long as the Rodian
  • They don't seem very graceful on dry land
    • Chata Hyoki didn't avoid hitting all those objects
    • Mantu didn't nimbly jump down like most of the other bounty hunters, he awkwardly climbed down instead
    • Morgo failed to get out of the line of fire of the Trandoshan ship guns (granted, he seemed to be favoring a knee as well)
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Selkath were statted in @Kualan 's Heroes on Both Sides supplement. Here are the stats:

Selkath: 223212, 11+Br, 9+Will, 100XP, 1 Medicine, Amphibious.

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I've seen that. I can see the precedent for a higher Intellect, but not lowered Willpower & Strain Threshold.

D20 Radio also has some stats.

2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |

10+Br | 10+Wi

XP: 100

1 Rank in Medicine or Negotiation

1 rank in Surgeon.

Amphibious.

I think this is great, but I'm trying to bring in some extra sauce from the canon appearances in Clone Wars.

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There’s also a version of them in the Unofficial Species Menagerie.

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CSG has Selkath as well, but they're pretty similar to the USM version.

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19 hours ago, rendrin said:

I've seen that. I can see the precedent for a higher Intellect, but not lowered Willpower & Strain Threshold.

YMMV of course, but the logic behind the lowered Willpower was that the Selkath in KOTOR (and later TOR) seem to be highly susceptible to outside influences that make them go violently insane.

Edited by Kualan
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There should be a penalty to interacting with creatures with a audio receptors.

Ugh I have to volume down my device when I visit that planet in KotOR.

Posted at
4 hours ago, Kualan said:

YMMV of course, but the logic behind the lowered Willpower was that the Selkath in KOTOR (and later TOR) seem to be highly susceptible to outside influences that make them go violently insane.

Ah, the underwater base. I haven't got to that yet in this replay & can't remember why they went nutso. Okay, thanks.

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7 hours ago, Kualan said:

YMMV of course, but the logic behind the lowered Willpower was that the Selkath in KOTOR (and later TOR) seem to be highly susceptible to outside influences that make them go violently insane.

I'm in the base now and I wouldn't say they're highly susceptible to outside influences. There is one ancient creature that can make them go bonkers, which, to me, sounds like an ability of that creature specifically. There were also several crazy non-Selkath down there, but instead of bestial rage-monsters they were all fearfully insane. The firaxan sharks also went into an insane frenzy.

Their youth were swayed by Sith, but they're youth, they would be more susceptible in any species.

Edited by rendrin
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On 5/21/2020 at 2:47 AM, rendrin said:

In Saga Edition they had Cha +2, but as I'm replaying KOTOR none of them seem overly friendly

Since when does the Charisma stat translate into friendliness?

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Fair enough. Okay, here's a definition from Merriam-Webster online.

1 : a personal magic of leadership arousing special popular loyalty or enthusiasm for a public figure (such as a political leader)
2 : a special magnetic charm or appeal

Can you name one instance in KOTOR where a Selkath displayed this? I j ust re-played that planet and I can't. At least half of them were just rude and I didn't want to keep talking to them.

They demonstrated more stubbornness, steadfastness, and willpower in my opinion. They were always focused on the business at hand and wanted no interruptions. They were very strict in enforcing their laws. Overall, or on average, they were adamant about maintaining neutrality in the war.

Edited by rendrin
them, not the.