So you’ve found a Star Wars campaign here on StartPlaying, and now you need to tackle the mechanics of building a new inhabitant of the galaxy? Fear not, young Padawan. We’ve got you covered.
Step 1: Who Before What
FFG’s Star Wars is a story-first game, meaning the concepts and ideas behind your character are frequently more important overall than the number of dice in their pools. You’ll want to begin by determining who your character is – a tough Wookiee mechanic, down on her luck? A Rebel firebrand politician, fighting for freedom using his family’s wealth? A novice Jedi apprentice, struggling with the fear that they’ll never truly understand the Force?
Step 2: What Drives Your Story
Good Star Wars characters always come with a level of conflict built in, and the game puts a bit of crunch behind that. Edge of the Empire characters are driven by their debts using the Obligation system, the fighters from Age of Rebellion advance their standing via Duty, and Force and Destiny’s Jedi must contend with Morality as part of daily life. By taking on more (or less) of the burden, your character can adjust their spendable XP (or credits!) budget later in the process.
Step 3: Alien Heritages
Everyone knows that humans are only one of the many species in the galaxy, and if you want to play something else, this is where you decide. Different species start with different attributes (called Characteristics) and XP budgets, and each book provides a few new options in the long list of character choices – and yes, you can absolutely be a droid. Check with your GM to see what options fit best for the story, however!
If you’re planning to optimize, this is a good starting point. Playing a sneaky burglar? Try a species starting with a decent Cunning rating. Building a quick-draw bounty hunter that can take a lot of punishment? Choose something with higher Agility and Brawn Characteristics.
Steps 4 and 5: How The Job Gets Done
In terms of skills and capabilities, your character’s Career and Specialization determine how they’ve learned to approach situations. The Career forms an individual’s foundational approach, with the associated Specialization being an area of frequent (but not constant) expertise. Princess Leia Organa, for example, is clearly a Diplomat Ambassador, using politics and negotiation to achieve her goals. Other Diplomats can function as Agitators or Quartermasters, but Leia is generally most comfortable in her senatorial role, even when she’s taking on espionage duties for the Rebellion.
Your specialization and career also give you a number of free skill ranks to start with. A competent Technician Mechanic, after all, will likely have learned far different skills than a Soldier Medic. Each Specialization also comes with a whole Talent tree, giving your character both active and passive abilities. As you gain and spend XP through the game, you can pick up new Specializations, but you’ll only ever have one Career, so choose wisely!
Step 6: Special Modifications
Depending on your choices in Steps 2 and 3, your character will currently be sitting on a stack of starting XP points that you can spend on Characteristics, Skills, and Talents. Each step of improvement must be purchased separately, and higher ranks cost more XP. Starting out, Skill ranks are capped at 2, and Characteristics at 5. Star Wars is a setting where a person’s training and learning makes the most difference and tends to be a core part of their story, so it is very difficult to increase Characteristics over the course of a game. If you want a high rating in those fields, do it now. Skills and Talents are far easier to earn with XP later in the game – don’t be scared to start out as a bit of a novice prodigy!
Step 7: Shields Up!
At this point, your character has enough on the sheet to determine what keeps them alive and kicking. FFG’s Star Wars characters effective have two health bars: Wounds and Strain. Wounds represent the physical damage a character can sustain and are based off your Brawn Characteristic. Strain is the mental stress the character can suffer and is determined by your Willpower. Your character can also have a Defense rating (gained by either armor or defensive positioning), making them harder to hit. Your Brawn and armor also contributes to your character’s Soak value, reducing the incoming damage when they are successfully attacked.
Step 8: Why We Do What We Do
Straddling the line between roleplay and rule mechanics is your character’s Motivation. Whether driven by ambition, ideology, relationships, personal quests, or something else entirely, it is imperative to have a hook built in to keep your character engaged in the ongoing story. The books offer a series of helpful ideas for player inspiration in determining what pushes their character forward. Your GM is also encouraged to draw on these factors to pull your character into the narrative, and even provide mechanical bonuses when the character takes action that aligns with their motivation.
Step 9: Shopping!
A standard budget of 500 credits can now be spent on tools, gear, weapons, and whatnot! If you chose to diverge from the default in Step 2, you might even have more. Rarity restrictions are part of the item rules in FFG’s Star Wars, however, so be sure to clear your shopping list with your GM just in case. Frequently, games start off with a starship as well, but you’ll want to confer with the rest of the table for group resources like that.
Congratulations – you’re all geared up and ready for life in a galaxy far, far away!
Jack Gregory is a Washington-based professional writer, player, and storyteller in the TTRPG industry.
