Hey fellow GMs!

I decided to jump straight it and give GMing a shot as it looks like I wouldn't be joining any games soon as a player. It will be online using G+ in a group I recently made for Aussies/kiwis to find a game.

Besides never GMing i'm also not a huge Star Wars buff outside of the movies and the Kotor games so i'm a little nervous but i'm dealing with that and generally excited to be on the other side of the screen.

I've asked the prospective players to drop some character Ideas and than add a character background/personality/friends-enemies etc to help me create some content as I wish to write my own game up. Not sure if I should start with one of the modules, it might help sort out why they are all in the same place?

It kind of sounds silly but I think i'm going to get attached to the PC party like I do when I'm a player and get attached to my PC.

Anyway thanks for reading my ramble and fingers crossed it goes well!

Good luck and relax! I am in the same boat as far as knowledge goes. Two of my players know way more than I do but I have had only a few minor problems from one being nitpicky. The starting modules are great to run and I highly reccomend them, but read them before hand and really understand what is happening. Also, be prepared for your PC's to do things that the book doesn't account for it will happen! Just do your best to go with it and steer them onto the next event in anyway necassary that feels natural and not forced. After the game get feedback from the players especially since this sounds like their strangers. Ask what they like and dislike. Have fun!

Have a great time, and don't worry if things get stressful or weird. It happens. Just make sure everyone is having fun and you will go just fine.

It's all about the fun, that's for certain.

I would highly reccomend using one of the pre published adventures to help everyone get used to the system, and to give you and the players a chance to figure out who their characters really are. For my first several sessions, I've got a standing rewrite rule, allowing them to completely change their characters for the first month or so. I've already had 2 of them completely change race/spec, but the game is much better for it.

Also, do your best to never say "no" outright, unless the request would imballance the game, but always be willing to work with them to resolve the interesting ingame things that come up.

Rule 0: Have fun.

Rule 1: Make it your game. Meaning, don't get drowned out by the Know-It-Alls in the group. It's a pretty big galaxy, and as much as they have read, there is always more to discover.

"Yes Kashyyyk is the Wookiee homeworld you're familiar with, BUT their true origins lie in the Walking Carpet Sector, on a small unknown planet called Wootown."

Use the resources lists to help with check lists and other rules you may have to look up during play.

It also helps to assign one of the players a certain responsibility if you're feeling swamped. Like, if you need a rule check or a combat action explained... have an "assistant" do that while you keep the game flowing as best you can. It also helps to say give one player personal combat and another vehicle combat to learn - you'll have to know it too, but it helps if you've got back up. Choose people who you know would love those sections or is a bit of a rules mongerer.

And good luck. I'm in the same boat knowledge wise. Reading a lot of fluff and lore... wow it just keeps on growing in my mind. Watching the clone war tv series that I thought was too kiddy, but is actually not bad at all. I'm a long time rp'er, so I've been he in a new world, in a new system before... and it's really exciting to me when there is so much potential. I played WEG's SW back in the 80s and loved that game, but we never played it enough (too hung up on Shadowrun at the time). This time I'm jumping in with both legs.

Cheers everyone for the advice.

What i'm aiming for is to create a game I would want to be a player in and want to turn up on time and be excited about game day.

I have asked the players for some details about their characters past to help nut out a story and what kind of things they want to be doing. One wants to be a Scholar relic hunter which i'm excited to work with the player to add it in!

Banelight, I would recommend watching a bit of Firefly when you get the chance, if you haven't yet done it. It fits the fringe-y feel of this campaign's setting. Additionally, if you can get the Thrawn trilogy books by Timothy Zahn, you might get a lot out of them (even as audiobooks). They're the first of the "expanded universe" novels and they don't suffer the issues of later books (frantic attempts to fit conflicting continuity in; poor writing; fan service; too much Force; trying to give modern analogies like food, Xboxes and politics a SW analogue, when SW is space opera; and not enough originality). Whilst they deal with a period of +5yrs after ROTJ, they evoke the feel of the films like no other book. Part of the story centers around a smuggling group, all original characters and you could easily get ideas from there.

My other advice is this - we've become increasingly addicted to "realism" in our entertainment (people laughingly praised the Bourne films for their "realism", for example). Space opera is not science fiction. A lot of nerds have spend a lot of time trying to explain Star Wars in terms of physics and real world science - ignore them. This is fantasy in space, so look to works like Forgotten Realms or LOTR for inspiration.

What kind of characters are your players playing?

When in doubt, the WEG books are a great source for inspiration, and there's a lot of it that hasn't been retconned! Heck, some of it can give you ideas not just for story ideas but particular twists.

For example, think that your players need a reminder that stormtroopers are supposed to be elites within the Imperial military and no slouches? Well, maybe the next group your players run into has a distinctly effective one who seems to be particularly good at pinning them down with blaster fire while he closes in, unlike the rest of his comrades... then he pulls out a force pike.

Welcome to the madness of being on our side of the screen! Sorry for hopping in so late; I finally got around to setting up here to take part of conversations, and apparently a lot of the good advice was already given!

Regardless, here's a few more bits:

As someone posted, Rule 0 is to have fun. This can NEVER be emphasized enough, and is often brought up in every GM book I've had the (dis)pleasure of reading.

To quote 7th Sea'ss Gm Guide (one of my favourite games regarding swashbuckling):

Rule #1: There are no rules.

Rule #2: Cheat Anyway!

Essentially, make sure you and the players have fun. If something contradicts what you say, go by what you say and correct it later if you have to. It's easier than stalling the game to look up some odd tibit.

Also remember that Star Wars is closer to Sci-Fantasy than Science Fiction. As previously mentioned, some people will want to throw in physics and realism. There is a place for it, but always remember that the characters are better than "average" and can do things most cannot.

Beyond the advice everyone else brought up, here's a few other things:

For fluff:

1) Look at Wookiepedia. I always keep it on hand on my tablet if I need a picture of something or a fast fact.

2) If you can, look into some of the older RPG supplements for Star Wars. I'm lucky enough to have a collection from WEG and my d20 days, and I know not everyone can have that on hand. There's some REALLY useful things there setting wise that may be of use, so if you can, check them out.

3) As mentioned, the Thrawn trilogy is amazing. You may also want to consider some of the "Tales Of.." or "Tales From.." books. This can give you a view into not only Jedi, but also bounty hunters, smugglers, and Imperial Officers. Another good one, in my opinion, is Shadows of the Empire. This one takes place between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.

4) A lot of the video games have some interesting information that may or may not be useful to your style of gameplay. My group loved elements from The Old Republic I threw in my Rebellion Era game last year, and a friend of mine swears by the Star Wars Battlefront and Battlegrounds games for not only story ideas, but locations and action.

For rules and running:

1) Cheatsheets. Oh dear god, cheatsheets. I don't think I could run long-term games without them.

2) Understand the rules, but don't feel as though you MUST memorize them. You're more like a referee than a god, and what you say goes.

3) Use your players. They are fountains of knowledge and ideas, and since they don't have to have an entire stage to worry about designing, make them do heavy lifting. This includes tracking things for you, moving things on battlemaps (if used), or helping a new player understand the rules.

4) On that note, be prepared for your players to ruin EVERYTHING first chance they get. I had a scenario where the players were supposed to be stuck on a planet for some time to gain a few levels and contacts before taking on the dangerous part where a few crashed ships with presumably working hyperdrives were located. Second game, they decided to take the deadly zone as a challenge and go storming in.

I was NOT prepared for this.

I also wasn't prepared for the insanity from my first Star Wars game, which included Mister Houtini, a Jawa "Jedi," or my third campaign where we had "The Psycho Bun-Bun" as the ship owned and piloted by a Squib, or the players ignoring the plot hook for game one because two of them could care less about the credits being offered.

In short, "expect the unexpected," but don't let it deter you. Roll with it, make them describe it, bring some life into it, and try to use it to get them back "on track" if needed. Otherwise, be prepared with notes just in case.

5) Pre-made adventures are a big help at first, but don't rely on them entirely or as-is.

6) Just enjoy it! You are here to play a game, just like everyone else. If you aren't having fun, it will show, and no one will have fun. Have fun, party on, and enjoy that madness!

Whilst there was no "Tales From The Rebellion", there was a "Tales from the New Republic" which contained excellent short stories about mercenaries working for the New Republic. Before we had Jedi rammed down our throat as the only possible character in Star Wars literature (Thanks, Obama Prequel Trilogy) the NR setting was essentially the same as the Rebellion except the Rebels now had their own government.

And if you're of an age, the Droids cartoon is also a great reference. Little hammy, but for a kid's show you expect that. But Ben Burtt worked on it so there's some interesting stuff you could mine for a campaign.

Hi gang,

This felt like the right thread to make my first post. I only recently picked up Edge of the Empire. I had been GMing d20 Star Wars for a group of friends, and a few of them go way back to a WEG d6 campaign.

In that time, I've run games that were immensely fun. I've also run some miserable flops.

Based on a past experience, let me put a spin on Tenrousi's advice. Try not to say "no" outright; however, don't always say "yes." The places I had the most requests in d20 were, "can a trade out a starting feat?" or "can I have XYZ piece of gear?" I used to think "why not? what harm can it do?" Well let me tel you... on second thought, I'll save that for a separate thread.

I cannot recommend the WEG supplements enough ; they hold up that well to this day, and the essential elements of some of them are already in the EotE core rulebook.

Wookieepedia

Well I have given it a bit of thought and have come up with the main plot line.

http://starwars.com/play/online-activities/crawl-creator/?cs=f42ue9pxqn

There is someone going around killing influential people to cover their movements. So much so that the Emperor has re called Vadar. So the Empire has less influence in the outer rim and the Black Sun is on the brink of collapse.

So it's a bit of a **** storm that the PC's can manipulate, attempt to support the right underworld figures to power and aquire some of their own.

My PCs so far include a Pro-Empire Scholar. This character will tie in very closely to the main plot and is a Jedi relic hunter.

A human assassin who is recently questioning his angle after his last mission included killing an unarmed woman and child.

A Chiss Bodyguard who was the Prime Ministers personal body guard who was approached to "turn his back" at a certain location in exchange for a large sum of creds which he needed for his family. He is trying to re build his honor and professionalism.

Last character is a Human(i believe) scoundrel. Yet to hear more about this character.

Open space for one more but might just kick off with 4. See how it goes.

For a new group, 4 is probably a good number. From the brief descriptions, it sounds like those first three have a good grasp of character motivation.

Banelight, is your campaign set after the events of Shadows of the Empire ?

No it is still set around the time the core book suggests however I though going with an 'alternate universe' would be better off.

In that case, won't you have to explain to the players where your point of divergence was, since it's not occurring during (however early) in the campaign?