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FFG: Star Wars RPG – Special Modifications Rolls Out

4 Minute Read
Mar 31 2016

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FFG shows off some new toys that YOU can build in the new Special Modifications Sourcebook!

One of the many, many things that makes Star Wars so great is it’s technology. It’s this great mix of Futuristic & Retro, of Hard & Fantastical Sci-Fi, and it’s ideals of swashbuckling space travel. It’s an incredible place that feels right around the corner and yet far, far away. One thing is for sure – it would not be Star Wars without the Droids and Blasters that inhabit the universe and Special Modifications is just what the Technicians ordered!

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via Fantasy Flight Games

Star Wars: Edge of the Empire: Special Modifications $29.95

Without the brilliance of Technicians, the Star Wars® galaxy would be unrecognizable. Their work has created sentient artificial beings, put the most distant systems within reach via hyperdrive, and defined the ways that wars are fought. Yet even with such advanced technological marvels, there is no replacement for good, old-fashioned, spur-of-the-moment ingenuity, particularly inthe Outer Rim. There, Technicians must be as resourceful as they are intelligent, in order to invent solutions for the myriad troubles they daily face.

Build a Better Blaster

No matter how wondrous existing technological marvels are, there is no replacement for good old-fashioned ingenuity. On the fringes of the Empire, Technicians must be as resourceful as they are brilliant to come up with solutions to the problems that they face…

One of the places you’ll find that ingenuity embraced within Special Modifications is in the rules for creating custom weapons. Whether you find yourself completely without a weapon or you simply want a better one, your Technician can follow the steps outlined in this book to choose a template for a melee or ranged weapon, gather all the necessary materials, and then create it.

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Design a Droid

Special Modifications also introduces rules for creating droids, which utilize the same three-step framework as those for creating weapons, but then allow you to add a personality to the hardware, complete with special talents and quirks. Plucky astromech? Sure. Prim and proper protocol droid? No problem. Enthusiastic, combat-ready assassin droid? It will certainly be more expensive and more challenging, but it can be done.

When you use the rules from Special Modification to craft a droid, you select one of the available chassis templates, program it with a set of directives, and spend any Advantages and Triumphs on the droid’s personality. Of course, the Game Master then gets to spend any remaining Threat and Despair on the less savory parts of the droid’s personality. Though your droid’s personality options are technically divided between categories for “positive” and “negative” traits, they’re all beneficial in the sense that they help bring your droid to life as a character.

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The Builders Behind the Galaxy

The rules for crafting weapons, droids, gadgets, and other tech are only one part of Special Modifications. As this book explores ways for you to more fully incorporate your Technician into your adventures at the Edge of the Empire, it also offers new specializations, signature abilities, and a wide range of new gear. Game Masters will find tips for getting the most from their Technician-focused encounters, as well as new takes on integrating slicing into your campaign. Moreover, if GMs truly wish to reward their Technicians, they can even follow the book’s suggestions for the types of rewards that might best suit Technicians, and they can allow their Technicians to sell their wares and designs on the market.

Build a blaster, or build a friend. With Special Modifications, your Technician’s powers of invention are limited only by your imagination!

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If you’d like to read more, then check out the full article direct from Fantasy Flight Games. It’s a great read and it goes into even more detail on some of the “flaws” that could follow your creations. In a lot of ways this feels the way Magic works in some other open-ended RPG systems. Using spells in unique and thoughtful (some would say unintended) ways was a fun challenge. Creating your own weapons and droids seems like it scratches that itch! I can’t wait to take a closer look at this one.

This is in Stores NOW.

Does that droid come with an “off” switch?

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Author: Adam Harrison
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