It seems the conventional wisdom is to spend as much XP as possible on Characteristics during character creation, but I'm looking for some advice on my stat spread.

For RP reasons, I'm human, focused on ranged combat and eventually Force powers.

Initially I thought Agility 3 and Willpower 3 would be good enough. Now I'm wondering if I should do one of the following:

1) Buy Brawn up to 3. I'd prefer to stay out of melee, but at some point it's unavoidable. Also allows heavier weapons and armor.

2) Buy Agility up to 4. Brawn stays at 2, but all my weapon skills get a boost.

3) Buy Willpower up to 4. This is playing the long game, as it will be a while before I can afford a slew of Force powers.

For those of you who've actually played before: Are two 3s enough, or should I have three? Or is a single 3 and a single 4 better? Would I be better off investing in skills? Is it more important to recover from strain or actual wounds?

Thanks for any help!

Why do you need brawn for a ranged fighter?

My previous group and group I will run will most likey make lightsaber its own skill which can fall under either brawn or agility depending on how the character would use it.

You dont need to munchkin/mixmax in this game to have a fun time. Just raise characteristics that you will be using as a force user and on the way getting there.

While I am playing a Gand, I am going a similar route: Survivalist / FSE.

I am happy with 3 Brawn, 3 Agility, 3 Willpower, however the 1 in Presence tends to be troublesome. It makes for some interesting RP moments though.

You certainly don't need to buy up your Characteristics any higher than you already have them, and the extra XP not spent on Characteristics now will let you start with other cool abilities instead (case in point, becoming Force Sensitive takes less XP than any further Characteristic bumps you could make right now).

One thing to point about Brawn, however: note that a lot of higher-end ranged weapon does have a Cumbersome rating of 3 or higher, which means you'll need a Brawn of at least that amount to wield those weapons without penalty.

Now, if you don't plan on using any of those weapons, that's not an issue. Also, there are attachments you can get that will reduce the Cumbersome rating of those weapons (though that of course takes away hard points that could be used for something else).

My overall advice, though, is to play what you want to play. As has been said, this system does not need to be minmaxed to make very effective characters, so go with your gut.

I'd say 4 agility, 3 will.

It will keep you combat effective and assist you with the few (two?) Force talents that require a vigilance check.

The thing is that initial Brawn determines wounds and soak, and this is important in combat. I will take Brawn at 3 even if it is not a relevant characteristic for you character.

The thing is that initial Brawn determines wounds and soak, and this is important in combat. I will take Brawn at 3 even if it is not a relevant characteristic for you character.

I agree. Its really easy to overlook the secondary characteristics of Brawn.

My personal preference is to have 3 3's, and if human, the rest are 2's.

This gives you a wide array of skills to use and I feel is a great investment starting out. One 4 would be good, too...maybe in your main stat.

Our wookie player started with 4 in brawn, and he went total melee and is tearing stuff up.

I would keep the three characteristics. There is a new force power in the age of rebellion that will let you increase your agility, etc. While not readily available, it would give you something to work for.

Also less xp on attributes means more xp for talents, including force powers.

Generally my characters are 3 max for any stat. Any higher and the character runs the risk of being too limited in other situations. One character, a Rodian Doctor has an intellect of 4, and that's just plain handy all over the place, he's also a good shot. (Being a pacifist, he never shoots first.)

In fact, every member of the group has an Agility of 3.

If you plan on being a combat heavy character brawn and agility are the most important imo. I started with a 3 in brawn, agility and cunning.

You can always move abilities up with Dedication though, so I wouldn't sweat it.

Thanks for weighing in, everyone.

I opted for 3s in Brawn, Agility and Willpower. I would have loved the 4 in Agility, but I wanted a bit more toughness and carrying capacity. He's also former Stormtrooper, so those stats match up well, and it lets him use a heavy blaster rifle if he loots one from one of his former comrades.

In fact, every member of the group has an Agility of 3.

Our group started to have this trend and then actively fought against it with two characters reshuffling stats prior to session 2 (I always allow a revision before the second session 'locks in' a character's stats so that players are happy with their character) and dropping Agility to 2. It gave those with the high Agility a chance to shine there and those with a lower Agility put the points elsewhere for a chance to shine in those fields.