I know I know, it is a classic. One of my players wants to play a Chewbacca style character.

For this he has chosen Wookie as race (obvious) and Technician - Mechanic as career and specialization. And of course he wants to start with a Bowcaster!

He was asking me for counsel regarding how to spend the 90xps

One option would be

Brawn: 3 Agility: 2 Cunning: 2 Intelligence: 3 Willpower: 3 Presence: 2

Ranged (Heavy) 1

the second option

Brawn: 3 Agility: 2 Cunning: 2 Intelligence: 4 Willpower: 2 Presence: 2

any thoughts? or alternatives?

I created a wookie mechanic/outlaw tech NPC that helps my group from time to time as they dont have a dedicated mechanic.

I used the 3/3/3/2/2/2 format, but did AGI instead of WIL, since the Wookie is also a co-pilot and will at some point have a bowcaster. I presume you took the willpower to boost your strain threshold?

I like that you are not 'roll' playing and making INT your main stat. Although wookies are tech savy, I just dont see them as 'intelligent' in the traditional sense compared to say an Astrodroid or scholar.

Even a 4 brawn wookie that is a mechanic with 3 int would be interesting to play. Kinda sucks that mechanics dont get any sort of ranged combat skill as career.

I used the 3/3/3/2/2/2 format, but did AGI instead of WIL, since the Wookie is also a co-pilot and will at some point have a bowcaster. I presume you took the willpower to boost your strain threshold?

Yep, and because the player has the wild idea that may be in the future he will like to try the force sensitive path...

Unless they are young adult (like 19 or younger) Force Sensitive Wookiees gets two thumbs down from me.

I don't have a problem with high Int for Wookiees. Characteristics are there, in large part, to make YOUR hero stand out. I played a Agility-monkey Wookiee gunslinger once, very fun.

Also, I really like having a 4 in something. That could just me. I like the big fistful of dice and the greater propensity to drastically affect the adventure by using my character's strong suite(s).

I wouldn't worry too much about having 3's vs. 4's in characteristics. I am playing a human Mechanic (Engineer from AoR) and I did the 3/3/3/3/2/2 array. Willpower and Presence being 2's. I thought about being Force sensitive in the future too, but there is so much good Mechanic stuff that it just wouldn't be worth the XP to spread myself that thin.

The main thing is to get the 3 in Agility, because guns, and a 3 in Intellect with 2 starting ranks in Mechanics and he will love the character regardless of the future. Also Bad Motivator. Get it. Get it fast. So. Much. Fun.

Unless they are young adult (like 19 or younger) Force Sensitive Wookiees gets two thumbs down from me.

Just out of curiosity, why is that?

I like that you are not 'roll' playing and making INT your main stat.

What the hell does this even mean? I mean, "roll-play vs roleplay" is a tired, condescending, holier-than-thou brand typically used by "roleplayers" to be judgmental assholes to other people who choose to have a different outlook on the game, but I don't even get what you're going for here.

I find it super ironic and hypocritical that you then acknowledge and implicitly support taking +1 Willpower for the increase to ST. "Roll-playing" indeed. Pfft.

Back to the OP:

Your player sounds like he wants to be Chewie. Great! As long as he realizes he won't be as good at everything as Chewie was at 100 XP, let alone at chargen.

Int 4 = decent at slicing without buying into Slicer. Good knowledge skills. Can double as an emergency medic rolling 4 green dice + possible boosts from equipment. Solid with 2 Mechanics. That's a great skill check that will get a lot of good results most of the time.

Willpower is not THAT important for using the Force unless you plan to delve into Influence. Willpower is not used for Sense and is only used with Move if you want to throw things at people. I can see the benefit for having 1 more ST and 1 more dice for Vigilance (most initiative) and Discipline (recover Strain post-fight) rolls but that 20 might go to better places, like possibly taking 10 Obligation and raising Agility to 3 if the character is set on using a bowcaster. Of course...then they can't start with a bowcaster. He'll need to decide between rolling another die to hit by buying Agi, or taking credits to afford the bowcaster. Personally I think the Agi is better, he can buy a pistol until he can afford a bowcaster, that shouldn't take TOO long.

Agi 2 + no Ranged Heavy + bowcaster = not great, but a Technician's Talents don't really play towards a mainline combat character. 2 Greens is not a great roll by itself, but after 10 XP (aka 1 session) and Aiming, you might have Yellow/Green/2 Blue, which is pretty good.

I know I know, it is a classic. One of my players wants to play a Chewbacca style character.

I kind of like the second one, if the player is in a party with complementary characters. The first is fine for a more well-rounded character, but I'd steer away from investing in non-career skills right off the bat. If he wants to use that bowcaster, Agility 3 will be more useful.

Somebody will probably accuse me of min-maxing, but consider: it's 10 points to bring a non-career skill to rank 1. It's 30 points for a second non-career talent tree that has Ranged (Heavy), and presumably other useful skills, as a career skill. So taking a second talent tree that is non-career will pay for itself within 6 ranks. With, say, Bodyguard or Mercenary, there is only one skill overlap. With Assassin there are none.

So I'd suggest the player invest in characteristics, and use his first in-game XP to purchase a new Talent tree, and maybe taking Ranged (Heavy) right after.

Bodyguard/Mechanic is a pretty good depiction of Chewbacca, imo.

IIRC, one Force Sensitive Wookiee, on average, is born every 300 years. I think I remember reading a source that said less than one F-S Wookiee was produced every generation. This means that the Jedi (with Yoda as the Watchman for the Kashyyyk system) would have easily and readily identified any such Wookiee youngling shortly after birth. And the Jedi Order was dismantled in 19 BBY.

In any case, a Force-Sensitive Wookiee is a "big deal" in-universe. And, IMHO, it should be treated as so in one's games as well.

IIRC, one Force Sensitive Wookiee, on average, is born every 300 years. I think I remember reading a source that said less than one F-S Wookiee was produced every generation. This means that the Jedi (with Yoda as the Watchman for the Kashyyyk system) would have easily and readily identified any such Wookiee youngling shortly after birth. And the Jedi Order was dismantled in 19 BBY.

In any case, a Force-Sensitive Wookiee is a "big deal" in-universe. And, IMHO, it should be treated as so in one's games as well.

So for canon reasons more or less. Cool, cool.

In any case, a Force-Sensitive Wookiee is a "big deal" in-universe. And, IMHO, it should be treated as so in one's games as well.

Why?

I mean, I don't really like FS wookiees either really, but we're not beholden to Lucas' bizarre peccadilloes

There's nothing in the rules that say FS wookiees are limited in any way.

It's his game. If he wants to say all NPC wookies are Force-sensitive, he can.

To hell with canon. Take a cannon to it.

Unless they are young adult (like 19 or younger) Force Sensitive Wookiees gets two thumbs down from me.

Just out of curiosity, why is that?

IIRC, one Force Sensitive Wookiee, on average, is born every 300 years. I think I remember reading a source that said less than one F-S Wookiee was produced every generation. This means that the Jedi (with Yoda as the Watchman for the Kashyyyk system) would have easily and readily identified any such Wookiee youngling shortly after birth. And the Jedi Order was dismantled in 19 BBY.

In any case, a Force-Sensitive Wookiee is a "big deal" in-universe. And, IMHO, it should be treated as so in one's games as well.

Lucas also said "no Force-Sensitive Wookies" aside from, like, Lowbacca. Not that that really matters, but I'm sure that out-of-setting rule by Lucas is what directed the in-setting rule of their rarity.

In other words, it only matters if that bit of canon is relevant to you. It's a small enough detail that it can easily be expunged without any far-reaching repercussions to other pieces of the canon setting you might be utilizing.

In other words, it only matters if that bit of canon is relevant to you. It's a small enough detail that it can easily be expunged without any far-reaching repercussions to other pieces of the canon setting you might be utilizing.

Agreed. This stuff just really grinds my gears though. I'd sooner use the EU as an occasional reference or source for ideas at most, not any kind of 'canon'.

It's like playing in the Forgotten Realms and saying that your character is a priest of Mystra, but doesn't belong to any organisation, the goddess spoke to him one day through a statue and blessed him. And some smart-alec saying they can't do that, because it says in Obscure Splatbook #2637 that Mystra only speaks to Elminster and Drizzle, and that a player character can't do that...

Now, EoE says droids can't be FS, and that other races are FS to a lesser or greater extent. And that's enough.

And hell, if some group absolutely MUST play Skippy the Jedi Droid, or Darth Rustbucket, Gonk Droid of the Sith, nobody is going to break down their doors and confiscate their books.

The only people who need to approve are your players.

Strict adherance to canon and outright gleeful rejection of it seem to me to be to be equally valid approaches to a game.

Strict adherance to canon and outright gleeful rejection of it seem to me to be to be equally valid approaches to a game.

Absolutely. Let's all enjoy our own games without telling anyone they're 'doing it wrong'.

I'm pretty sure purists would hate my games, but that's fine, the only ones who need approve are your fellow players.

Whoa there. Not saying anyone's "doing it wrong."

Further, people quoting Lucas saying "no more Wookiee Jedi" has gotten WAY out of hand. I mean, he okay'd a Wookiee Jedi youngling in the Clone Wars TV series. And I can't even find the original conversation he had about them, but I do remember reading it and thinking "that isn't as bad as some people are saying, and certainly isn't anything close to a 'decree' like Wookieepedia is saying."

In any case, that has no bearing on what I was saying.

And really, it's not obscure. For me, this is something intrinsic to Wookiees. Hell, the recent Clone Wars TV serial (if you haven't seen it, please don't comment saying "I don't care") perpetuated it: "Rare you are among your people. Proud your parents must be!" For someone to whom canon matters (I'll throw it out the window for my players as a GM), this is a "big deal." It's a readily available bit of Star Wars lore, and HARDLY obscure. IMO, making a Wookiee Force User and NOT acting like it's special would be like making a Wookiee who always attacks with his claws and NOT treating it as a big deal in Wookiee culture.

And that's all I was saying: that it should be a "big deal" as far as the SW Universe goes. Not that it can't happen, or is unheard of, but that it is RARE and SPECIAL should be treated as such. If you wanna make a Kel-Dor Force User with Silver Irises, then do it! You're a rare, strong-in-the-Force Kel-Dor. If you want to be Mandalorian, great. There aren't a lot of them running around, and so your'e rare to a degree, but that "Big Deal" factor is what can make you stand out as a character. If you want to be an Aing-Tii trained Gray Jedi Exile with a double lightsaber and Force lighting, well...forget it.

Anyway. I'm not like, "Canon rules all; bow down before the Lucas." I just mean that players should be given the opportunity to make their characters special and unique. And a player who wants a Wookiee Jedi might not even know that it's a bid deal. So tell them, and have them come up with a cool bit of story that explains it. Perhaps either the Wookiee was born during/after the Purge, or he's a few hundred years old and dropped out of the order centuries ago. Either one is a great backstory and can serve to explain other aspects of the character.

Sure, those are a couple of great ways to do it. That's the way I'd do it. But if somebody wants to say that Wookiees are primarily Force-sensitive ascetics who are rarely roused to anger and have little or no mechanical aptitude, well, that might take a lot of work, but it would also be an interesting and cool and great to do it, too. According to my way of thinking, anyway.*

*I pretty much hew to canon as closely as I know how to in my own game.

Guys thanks for the input!

I may be have to say something else. In the group there is already a Doctor with Int 4 and a Slicer with Int 4. Additionally, the slicer has two ranks in mechanics, although he does not plan to rise mechanics (too much at least).

Cheers,

Yepes

Training someone in the force whose race is known for violent uncontrolled outbursts...prob bad idea!

Training someone in the force whose race is known for violent uncontrolled outbursts...prob bad idea!

Yeah. Those filthy humans!

What the hell does this even mean? I mean, "roll-play vs roleplay" is a tired, condescending, holier-than-thou brand typically used by "roleplayers" to be judgmental assholes to other people who choose to have a different outlook on the game

Good thing you 're not the judgmental sort.

George Lucas originally said only 3 colors for Lightsabers, Red, blue and green. until Samuel L Jackson convinced him otherwise.

the flanneled one has altered the universe, pray he does not alter it further.

if someone wants to play something, let him. A wookie mechanic, with maybe an aptitude for the force would be a great idea.

One of my players wanted to play a Jawa, after further questioning they just wanted to be a small overlooked mechanic. Got them to play a Chadra-fan instead.