Hey fellow GM's!

I'm currently thinking about changing the milestones in the Morality system to something more interesting and impactful. I want to make going Darkside more tempting (As I feel it should be!) by removing the loss of strain and the generation of the Dark Side Destiny point, I feel these are real turnoffs for players, and the temptation to go that route is less appealing than working up to Paragon.

Now, please go easy, dont bite my head off if you think nothing should be changed. That's cool if you believe that, I'm not here to convince you otherwise. This is simply an adaptation I'd like to work on and implement in my home game, and I'd like to employ the creativity of the community here if they are willing.

So, I'm opening it up here to get opinions and suggestions. This is where I'm at currently, but I'm sure it could be more creative and interesting.

Paragon

80 - Calming Aura*

This Character finds it easier to make friends and put people to ease. There's just something about them that people find attractive.

Increase Strain Threshold by 1. Gain 1 Boost Dice to Charm/Leadership checks. 1 setback to Coercion checks.


90 - Serene Aura (Calming Aura Improved)

This Character is liked by most people they meet and come into contact with. They have a strange ability to to calm even the most hostile of people. Their appearance is kind and approachable, even beautiful.

- Increase Strain Threshold by 2. Gain 2 Boost Dice to Charm/Leadership checks. 1 Setback to Coercion checks.

- Once per encounter, generate one free Lightside Pip when making a Force Power check.

100 - Enlightenment

This Character is a model of uprightness and a beacon in a dark world. Many look to them for advice and see them as a person who always tries to do the right thing, even at the expense of themselves.They are the champion of the poor and lowly, and the forever adversary against evil and corruption.

- Once per session, flip a Destiny Point to remain conscious when exceeding your Strain Threshold. At the end of your next turn, fall unconscious as normal if still below your threshold. While in this Enlightened state, upgrade Intellect/Willpower checks twice.

- Gain the Natural Mystic Talent: Once per session, may reroll a Force Power Check.


Darksider

20 - Peace is a lie

This character gives off an uneasy aura and can be off-putting or even intimidating to be around. Generally, most people steer clear and view them with ill-repute, but actively avoid getting on their bad side.

- Wound Threshhold increases by 1. Gain 1 Boost to Coercion/Deception checks, 1 Setback to Charm checks.

10 - Through Power, I gain Victory

This character gives off a very unsettling aura. Being around them can make some feel physically Ill or cold. Their skin seems pale and their eyes are unsightly. People regard them as generally heartless or evil and give them a wide berth. Angering this one could cost you your life.

- Wound Threshold increases by 2. Gain 2 Boost Dice to Coercion/Deception checks. 1 setback to Charm checks.

- Once per encounter, Character can generate 1 free darkside pip when making a Force Power check

0 - My Chains Are Broken!

This character is thought to have no good in them, they are consumed by selfish motive and greed and are perhaps wholly evil. Sometimes known to execute or severely punish their followers for minor mistakes. They generally draw a bad breed of companions, most becoming underlings.

- Once per session, flip a Destiny Point to remain conscious if the character exceeds their Wound Threshold. At the end of their next turn, fall incapacitated as normal if still below threshold. While in this powerful state, increase Brawn/Agility checks twice.

- Gain the Fearsome (3) Talent: When an adversary becomes engaged with the character, force the adversary to make a fear check, with the difficulty being equal to ranks in fearsome.

As you will notice, I removed the Destiny Point Generation for a Paragon. You can keep this in your own games if you use this adaption of course, however I'm changing the way destiny points are accrued in my home game, due to them being so abundant and valued a little like chump change in your piggy-bank instead of a valuable $100 bill in your wallet. (That's not a discussion for here though)

Aside from that, what would you change or add to make this more interesting and impactful in the games of our players, so that they really feel that their choices are rewarded or can have a real effect on the world around them?

* Names subject to change. Placeholders

Edit - Edited to reflect suggestions.

Main issue I see is that you were somewhat inconsistent in how you describe things (2 Boost to Charm vs. 1 further Boost to Coercion, for example).

1 pip once per session seems a bit weak to me. Perhaps once per encounter?

Other than those, looks great to me.

48 minutes ago, CloudyLemonade92 said:

Aside from that, what would you change or add to make this more interesting and impactful in the games of our players, so that they really feel that their choices are rewarded or can have a real effect on the world around them?

If I stuck with the Morality scale, I think I'd adopt something similar. I'm not really a fan of modifying the Strain and Wound thresholds. Although it's technically useful, it's not exactly exciting for the player. I'd probably go a little further overboard, something like:

• 80/20: Once per Encounter, add 2 boost to any Charm/Leadership (80) or Coercion/Deception (20). The character has a permanent setback on Coercion (80) or Charm (20)
• 90/10: In addition to the above, once per Encounter add a light/dark pip to any Force roll.
• 100/0: Once per Session the character may Commit a Force die without reducing their Force Rating.

58 minutes ago, CloudyLemonade92 said:

I want to make going Darkside more tempting (As I feel it should be!) by removing the loss of strain and the generation of the Dark Side Destiny point, I feel these are real turnoffs for players, and the temptation to go that route is less appealing than working up to Paragon.

I do similar. I don't use the scale, but instead treat dark side actions like "moral critical hits" that have effects similar to your 20/10/0. Some actions are worse than others, and you can't remove them without some act of redemption. So usage of dark pips without "converting them" to the light side (spending Strain) causes a moral crit, but it does allow the player to make difficult choices.

1 hour ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

Main issue I see is that you were somewhat inconsistent in how you describe things (2 Boost to Charm vs. 1 further Boost to Coercion, for example).

1 pip once per session seems a bit weak to me. Perhaps once per encounter?

Other than those, looks great to me.

Haha, yeah reading back I was like "Doh!", but too lazy to edit it.

Once per encounter might be better I agree. I added that to the OP

1 hour ago, whafrog said:

If I stuck with the Morality scale, I think I'd adopt something similar. I'm not really a fan of modifying the Strain and Wound thresholds. Although it's technically useful, it's not exactly exciting for the player. I'd probably go a little further overboard, something like:

• 80/20: Once per Encounter, add 2 boost to any Charm/Leadership (80) or Coercion/Deception (20). The character has a permanent setback on Coercion (80) or Charm (20)
• 90/10: In addition to the above, once per Encounter add a light/dark pip to any Force roll.
• 100/0: Once per Session the character may Commit a Force die without reducing their Force Rating.

I do similar. I don't use the scale, but instead treat dark side actions like "moral critical hits" that have effects similar to your 20/10/0. Some actions are worse than others, and you can't remove them without some act of redemption. So usage of dark pips without "converting them" to the light side (spending Strain) causes a moral crit, but it does allow the player to make difficult choices.

Interesting! I do like those suggestions. Especially adding Leadership/Deception. Added to OP. Not sold completely on the Force Dice commit though.

I might go even further with the scaling, providing 1 boost dice and setback dice sooner (30/70) and scale it up even further.

Just for a slight progress, to ascend / descend to your side of the Force

6 hours ago, Rimsen said:

I might go even further with the scaling, providing 1 boost dice and setback dice sooner (30/70) and scale it up even further.

Just for a slight progress, to ascend / descend to your side of the Force

Good idea! It might be nicer to give them out sooner

Buffed the 100/0 milestones

1 hour ago, CloudyLemonade92 said:

Buffed the 100/0 milestones

Nice buffs in principle and flavour, but what if the PC already has them?

3 hours ago, whafrog said:

Nice buffs in principle and flavour, but what if the PC already has them?

Mmm, good question. I'll have to think on this

7 hours ago, CloudyLemonade92 said:

Mmm, good question. I'll have to think on this

Probably should change it to some stacking talent, Resolve, for example?

Even stacking talents kind of run out of room. Fearsome makes sense, but it's pretty easy to get Fearsome...if you know you're heading to the dark side you probably want it anyway. You'll end up with Vader-level fear checks pretty quickly.

The flip side of Fearsome is Confidence, but it has the same problem, if you have any prior ranks in Confidence you're basically not afraid of anything (which leads to hubris, which leads to the dark side... 🙂 )