I don't know if this has been brought up before, but it is an issue that I feel needs discussing. What does everyone think about the stimpack/emergancy repair kit mechanics. Obviously, this game is very deadly at every level because of nearly static Wounds that are almost always pretty low compared to damage dealt, at least relative to d20 systems. This makes stimpacks a near necessity for all parties. However, not once (alright, very rarely I guess, I'm not an expert) in the books, movies, comics, ect do we see folks yanking out a needle and sticking it into themselves when they're near death and suddenly being fine. The whole mechanic feels very, well, mechanical and un-cinematic. Not that I mind, but it feels very different from what I've come to expect from the Star Wars setting.

Thoughts?

I think that's a fair summary of opinions. People generally feel that they're too "video-gamey" and don't like them in theory, but in practice they're kind of necessary with the lethality of the game system.

I suggested in another thread that PCs be allowed to instead spend destiny points to get a similar effect, which would negate the main need for them IMO (a bad round resulting in PCs going down).

I don't see a major problem with them. Its more a descriptive/narrative thing, not nessecarily closing wounds.

My character could have only one more damage before going over my wound threshold, but I'm still fully functional.

Using a stim (addrenaline, drugs, etc.) and removing 5 or 4 or 3 -2- 1 more wounds will just keep you in the fight longer.

There also is no defined "time" for using the Medicine skill, but a good roll removes an hour from something?

I kinda had that issue with stimpacks myself at first, but after giving it some thought, I got over it by remembering the fundamental tenement of the Vitality/Wound system from OCR/RCR version of Star Wars.

In short, damage taken that doesn't exceed your Wound Threshold is not actual "damage" but more a case of increasing physical fatigue as you twist and juke to avoid getting pelted, or a growing series of bumps, bruises, and grazes from attacks you couldn't completely avoid. As such, they can fixed by stimpack (which I see as combo of adrenaline and mild painkillers) as you're not really healing major injuries, but rather clearing away some the physical fatigue and mitigating the pain of those minor bruises, but you can only get so much benefit from repeated adrenaline/painkiller shots.

When you suffer a Critical Hit, that's when it becomes a "real injury" and not something you can just "sleep off," but rather need to seek out medical attention. Think Leia's shoulder injury in RotJ. Even in the immediate aftermath of that battle, she was favoring that arm and shoulder while Han was patching her up; by the time of the Ewok Dance Party, she'd gotten proper medical attention and removed the Critical Injury.

Granted, we don't see characters using stimpacks or anything along those in the movies or most of the EU, but rather just in video games such as the KOTOR games, but then again watching or reading about the lead heroes getting patched up after a fight is fairly boring for a space opera setting, so those 'minor injuries' tend to get glossed over for the sake of expediency. But without the option of a "second wind" mechanic that Saga Edition (not quite enough?) and D&D4e (way too many?) had, it's an acceptable break from 'reality' given how dangerous combat can be in this game. Heck, in prior editions, seeing a guy with a lightsaber was "Okay, possible Jedi, so not a huge deal" where now it's "oh crap, those things are fraking dangerous!"

I think they are ok. In a game with a combat system like this one you have to walk a very fine line between mitigating damage (via soak and talents like dodge) and simply eating damage with bloated WT scores. On one hand, if you tip too much in the favor of mitigation you end up with scenarios such as our current Warhammer fantasy campaign (the system which EoE is based off) where between the armor the characters are wearing, and their dodge/parry percentage they are not taking any damage. Often they can't afford to as one or two hits will spell certain death. As opposed to the DnD type system of, I took 20 wounds I am at half my health now. That kind of damage absorbtion will not fit in a narrative RPG.

I think that stims are the balancing factor in the equation. The PC's have low health and moderate mitigation (not nearly as much as is available in Warhammer) but the stims are there to ensure they can last more than 2 hits if the need to. This keeps the combat level fairly lethal but without the boring repetition of Parry, Dodge, Dodge, Parry or the alternative of 40-30-25-15 ect. I think this helps to keep the combat exciting.

Are they a perfect fix? Probably not, as people have mentioned it does feel a little bit video-gamey. On the other hand however it also seems quite realistic, Think of a Marine in a combat situation popping a few pills to fight through the pain or taking a whiff of smelling salts to get back to their senses.

The view I try to take on Stimpacks … is a bit like the view on strain … takign a stimpack equates to the character covering up taking a breather…in effect rallying himself (though I would prefer to have had this covered by descipline) …while at the same time applying a healing-tax on the players