Starfinder 2e - Darkstar

Creating your character

Characters will be created during session 0, or before the session if you aren't a founding player. I allow the use of any common released official Starfinder 2e character options by default. Uncommon or rare ones will need my ok, which will be based on how well it gels with the setting so far, and on if they would upset the game's balance. Your character should have a major goal and some sub or side goals, have a set of beliefs they hold to, or are trying to figure out, and a set of prior connections, such as: friends, family, rivals, institutions, gangs, enemies, and so on depending on their circumstances. Try to fit your character into the setting, rather than make the setting to adapt to your character. Starfinder 2e has many factions, worlds and institutions that your character can be part of, be against, or simply exist within or between. Characters will start at level 1 (unless you join later, you'll join at the party's level,) and as such your backstory should be limited to learning the basics of your class, a little bit of personal history that paints the major theme of why your character is pursuing their primary goal, and one or more of places of origin that most strongly affects who they are currently. (Characters who join later on can fill in mostly the same things, but add a few details on what previous goals they reached to be at their current level and if reaching them changed who they are from who they once were.)

Preparing for the session

You will need Discord and a well functioning microphone for voice chat and a computer capable of internet browsing. The Starfinder Wiki can help you learn about the setting so you can be familiar with it. The Archives of Nethys website lists all kinds of character options to help you pick your ancestry and class.

What Mike brings to the table

I usually create all my own maps using Dungeondraft. I like to bring in music that will suit each scene, and while I don't create music, I do like to edit music into proper seamless loops if possible. Some characters I will do voices or voice filters or a fun accent for, but others I just speak plainly. Please throw on a voice for your character if you would enjoy it. Starfinder 2e will ask for tactical play, and I will attempt to use easier combats to introduce particular enemy tactics and and perhaps highlight counters to that tactic before throwing hard battles using that tactic. To be clear, this campaign will not be a meat grinder, but also I don't expect everyone to survive all the way to level 20. Sometimes the dice are simply cruel. Also, villains might gather information on you, including tactics. It would be wise for the party to have well rounded defenses. Since I like making maps, I like hiding secrets in my maps, whether it's just hidden treasure, lore, or even hidden characters, and enemies. I like when exploration requires skill checks, especially at lower levels. From hacking door controls or picking locks, but also what would be considered platforming in a video game, like climbing, jumping, squeezing, balancing etc. For social encounters, I might have you roll initiative using a social skill, almost like combat, but mostly just to give all players fair turns to influence the conversation. In these cases PCs would be attempting to score well with the NPC by meeting their measure as a group (or at least appearing to,) in order to build some kind of relationship, which in turn will grant some measure of access or safety, (or the reverse). Often characters can spot something with perception checks and then reveal the secret something, (which may then be locked or need a password) or a wall might be simply fake and you will have to literally drag your token through it to find a new passage or chamber. The Recall Knowledge action is also a good way to glean information out of a scene. For secrets I don't bake into the map itself, you can assume there is always a chance that a squeeze path can be found behind a wall panel or floor tile in a starship, or a catwalk might span the ceiling of a large enough chamber; So even outside what I have planned you can always take the initiative to find out if there are more ways to sneak around or set up an ambush in an area. And even if these might not offer alternate exits, they might offer you different tactics, or give you a chance to discover other things. I may give cutscenes to you as players to reveal a plot pont, even if your PCs shouldn't know. As a final note, the Starfinder 2e Foundry system is not quite out, so we will be using Pathfinder 2e with Starfinder support modules. Once Foundry's Starfinder 2e system is out, I will work to transfer all relevant stuff over to that one, which may take some time, or maybe none at all, but just a heads up in any case.

Homebrew rules

Session 0 will be free. When players introduce a cool idea that doesn't strictly work with Starfinder's rules or the situation - if I think it could be doable or it's cool enough - I may ask you for high or low, then roll a d100, and if you match the roll, I will allow the cool idea. It would still need to pass a relevant check, of course. I typically run Pathfinder 2e with Free Archetype, so I figure I will run Starfinder 2e with it as well, though I would ask that since this is Starfinder, we leave Pathfinder classes and archetypes out of this campaign, at least to begin with, Pathfinder ancestries are fine though.

How Mike creates a safe table

I simply ask that we read the room and keep things enjoyable for everyone, anything a character would do that is the risk of crossing the line of a modern movie should happen in a fade to black kind of scene - if it even happens. Otherwise DM me.