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Not so long ago, in a decade not so far, far away, George Lucas transformed sci-fi cinema with the release of Star wars, a loving tribute to the space operas of the Golden Age that spawned a franchise of movies, toys, books, TV shows, video games and even tabletop role-playing games. The three major Star wars RPG systems – released by West End Games, Wizards Of The Coast, and Fantasy Flight Games respectively – haven’t just given Star wars fans get the chance to tell their own stories in the Star wars universe; they also added richness and complexity to the Star wars universe, their traditions and mechanisms inspiring books like The Thrawn Trilogy and video games like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.
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The key to Star wars The franchise’s enduring popularity is arguably the sense of childish awe it inspires in viewers. The universe of Star wars, contrary to the sterile and stifling individuality of dystopian sci-fi movies, is a fundamentally interesting place, where strange alien planets can be reached with a quick ride through hyperspace, and the protagonists’ choices can genuinely alter the course of galactic events, for good or evil. In short, the Star wars is a great sandbox for telling good versus evil stories, whether on a large scale (the top three Star warss trilogies) or small ones (TV series like The Mandalorian).
The storytelling potential of Star wars the setting has inspired countless designers to try their hand at Star wars media – not just writers like Timothy Zahn or show producers like The Mandalorian, but also interesting table players to tell stories unfolding in its fascinating universe. The three officials Star wars Role-playing games released over the years give fans different sets of rules and tools to tell theirs about. Star wars stories, from noble Jedi, cunning smugglers, to rebellion frontline soldiers.
Star Wars: The Role Play (1987)
The first one Star wars role-playing game was released by West End Games in 1987, a few years after the release of Return of the Jedi. Unlike competing table games of the time, such as Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition, the rules for Star Wars: The Role Play are quite cinematic and abstract. Players roll a number of six-sided dice based on the strength of their attributes and skills, and spend strength points to increase their rolls at dramatically appropriate times. Character patterns such as “Quixotic jedi“gives players access to some pretty powerful Force abilities, but the narrative and abstract focus of the rules allows even less powerful characters to do cool things.
The sources of Star Wars: The Role Play greatly expanded the Star wars universe, containing incredibly detailed knowledge entries about planets, alien species, spaceships, weapons, factions, tools, and droids. For some time, many people affiliated with LucasFilm used these sources as canonical encyclopedias of Star wars lore, with a notable example being Timothy Zahn, the creator of the “Thrawn Trilogy“ of Star wars novels.
Star Wars Roleplaying Game (2000)
Shortly after the release of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Wizards of the Coast posted on Star Wars role-playing game, built around its internal system d20. As Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition, players of the Star Wars role-playing game Make ability checks and attack attempts by rolling a 20-sided die and adding bonuses to their skills and attributes. The abilities of special characters are determined by the race and class combination players choose, with class options such as Jedi, Scoundrel, and Soldier and race options such as Human, Ewok, Wookiee, and Rodian.
Similar to the RPG West End Games, the Star Wars role-playing game at “Fate points“Players can spend to improve the results of any ability test that brings them closer to fulfilling their destiny. Unlike the West End Games RPG, the Star Wars role-playing game has a better balance of play between the Jedi and non-Force-Sensitive classes, who have access to mundane but still very useful abilities and feats. BioWare’s acclaimed computer RPG Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, released in 2003, was built on a modified version of the d20 system used in the Star Wars role-playing game, Literally rolling virtual dice in the background as the turn-based combat progressed.
Star Wars: Edge Of The Empire, Age of Rebellion, & Force and Destiny (2012)
Most recent official Star wars RPG, released by Fantasy Flight Games, focuses on the timeline of the original Star wars trilogy, where the Rebel Alliance wage a war of liberation against the repressive Galactic Empire. Fittingly, there are three ground rules manuals that focus on three distinct types of Star wars narrative: The first book, Edge of the Empire, contains careers, skill trees, and a debt-based karma system to tell tales of smugglers, bounty hunters, and villains seeking to make a living on the Outer Rim (think The Mandalorian or Solo: A Star Wars Story). The second book, Age of rebellion, focuses on the rules, equipment and skills of the spies, pilots, soldiers and diplomats working for the Rebel Alliance, with a duty-based karma system (think Star Wars: Rogue One). The third book, Strength and fate, focuses on fugitive Jedi and Force-sensitive novices attempting to escape the persecution of the Galactic Empire (as seen in Star Wars: Rebels and Jedi: Fallen Order); Unsurprisingly, the rules for this latest core book focus on the abilities of the Force, lightsaber-based martial arts, and a karma system centered around embracing either the light side or the dark side of the force.
One of the most innovative features of the FFG Star Wars role-playing game the rule set is its unique dice system, distinct from the d6 and d20 systems used by the previous ones Star wars RPG. When a player needs to take an ability check, he and the GM both roll sets of colorful polyhedral dice with futuristic symbols for success and failure instead of numbers or pips. In addition to determining whether a character action succeeds or fails, this dice system also determines a character’s luck, leading to scenarios where a player’s CP can succeed at appalling cost or fail in a way that works to its advantage.
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