Star Wars Art: The Dunne Holiday Special

Just something I whipped up rather quickly.  An idea stuck in my head that wanted to get out.


I really need to learn shading and light control...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, everyone.

And to those playing SW:TOR, as Gonzo likes to say; I'll see you with a name over your head...

Darth Malgus: Phase One

With the upcoming launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic, the work I'm doing on 3 RPG Campaigns, the holiday season, and the funding and planning of a wedding in the next 15 months, doesn't now seem lik a great time to start work on another costume?

I knew you'd agree with me!

This is Darth Malgus; the main Sith villain for Star Wars The Old Republic.

He's quite a bad-ass undertaking.  Heavy armor, hooded cloak, make-up...oh, and thankfully not only is he bald, but he's also got this awesome resperator-thing that would just about perfectly cover up my goatee, so I don't have to shave it.

He's got a unique lightsaber, one that could be a little tricky to aquire or make.  And by "tricky", you should read that as "expensive".  I've got some ideas how to do the armor;

I'm going to probably go with EVA foam and build it out.  Perhaps do some resin or sintra custom pieces for the details.  For the Gauntlets I may try Sintra; I'm not sure about the availability of a Vaccuform machine for making this suit.

One of the more entertaining part will be the gauntlets.  Malgus has all these illuminated buttons and panels all over his armor.  I'm probably going to need 4-6 EL Wire inverters or similar electronics just to light this guy.  I really don't want to have one inverter running all these lights.  While it may work and be handy to have it all on one light rig, I'm worried about wires getting snagged in joints and getting torn.

Another complication are the cloth parts; Malgus has this Vader-esque undersuit.  Kinda pleather/vynil, and quilted.  He's also got the Vader Cape, with a traditional Sith Lord hood.  Attaching that to the armor is one complication.  Another is working with it so I don't step on it too much and making it strong enough because it's actually supposed to be long enough to gather on the ground.

I'm putting together a parts list now, seeing what I can start to gather.

Here we go again...





Anxious Anticipation

I think I’d be remiss if I didn’t post about The Old Republic.  So for anyone who’s been waiting for it, here it is.

I wish I knew what it was about Star Wars; the stories, the visuals, the characters, the music.  I don’t know what it is that runs through me as soon as I see that legendary phrase appear on the screen.

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…

The blank, black canvas replaced by those glowing yellow words, receding into the distance amidst a John Williams created fanfare.  It grabs me, every time.  It hooks onto a part of me and my childhood, every time.

The more interaction I can get with the media, the more it pulls at me.  That’s why I love the various video games that have come out for Star Wars over the years (yes, even the bad ones).  Each one of those either let me adventure as one of my heroes, or allowed me to create one and join in on the epic space opera.

I wish I could explain what it is.  Is it reliving my childhood?  Is it a wish for adventure?  Is it a reliving of something I’ve just “bought into”?  I’ll be the first to admit that I give Lucasfilm way more leeway than they likely should be getting from me, or anyone for that matter.  I don’t know why, but they’ve got me.  Hook, Line, and Sinker.  I am their target audience, and they should just hook up a vacuum cleaner to my wallet, simply to cut out the middle man.

Squadron 11-11-11

It’s been about two weeks since I was finally able to get a taste of that delicious interactive narcotic that is Star Wars, The Old Republic.  For those who have been living under a rock for the past 3 years, or simply trying to ignore me, SWTOR is set about 3,700 years before the Original Trilogy of Films.  It is the descendant of Bioware’s previous jaunts into the Old Republic era, Knights of the Old Republic, and Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords.  It takes place in a time where the Sith Empire has returned, beat up the Republic, settled for an armistice, and now appears to be on the brink of ignoring that peace treaty. 

You play a Jedi, or a Republic Trooper, or a Smuggler, or a Sith, or an Imperial Agent, or a Bounty Hunter.  There are 8 unique storylines, one for every class.  More so than every other MMO I’ve played, you almost want to be an “Alt-a-holic” and make at least one of every character to play through it just to do the storylines.  I can already tell the Jedi Knight’s storyline is going to be epic.  Like “Luke Skywalker across all three films” epic, with his own finale scene against the Emperor (…am I still taking about Luke, or the Jedi in TOR?).

Anyway, on Friday the 11^th, I logged in to play.  Apparently, every Weekend Test that had come before was assigned a “Squadron Number” by Bioware.  I’m not really sure why they stopped the practice with this test, but they did.  So the community named themselves, and dubbed those testing that particular weekend as “Squadron 11-11-11”.  So with the rest of my “wingmen”, I logged into the game, went to the character creation screen, and made myself a Jedi Knight named Vyktor Khoth.

And then the screen went dark.  And the phrase appeared.  And the fanfare started.  And once again, I bought into it all.

Technical Stuff

Gameplay in TOR is about what you’d expect from a modern day MMO.  Move with the WADS keys or the mouse, look around by holding down the right mouse button.  Strafe left and right.  You’ve got your radar, and your tool bars filled with various powers and abilities, consumables and attacks.  It’s still in Beta, and I’m hoping they’ve fixed some things, like the fact that the “Follow” command wasn’t working.   Anyone who’s played City of Heroes for any length of time knows the easiest way to get to melee combat range with a mob is to “Follow” the damn thing.

Combat was smooth.  REAL smooth.  Bioware has gone nuts, making it so your character reacts and responds to various attacks.  If something with a vibrosword runs up to you and swings, your character model with drop into a guard and try to parry the thing.  A series of attacks between you and the opponent reveal a beautiful dance of strikes, parries, and counter-attacks.

Powers are fun and balanced.  You feel like a hero, being able to take on multiple opponents at a time, but is still challenging.  Companions are a huge bonus in this game; after level 8 you get to have one of 5 companions follow you around, helping you our in areas you're deficient.  You can play and level a healer or a tank easily (or easier) in this game becuase your companion could be a tank, protecting you from harm, or a Damage machine, pumping out lightsaber attacks or blaster fire to help take out your opponets.

Meh, I could go on about the Tech stuff for a while...but I won't.

Adventure!

What gets me about TOR is that the storyline is compelling, and it matters.  In previous MMOs, you talk to quest givers, get the plot dump on why you're going off the kill Lord High MucketyMuck, or gather 15 reagents for the Potion of Awesome Stabbing, but that's it.  In TOR, you engage in dialouge; fully voiced from both the NPC's perspective and the PC's perspective.  During every interaction you generally have 3-8 chances to choose your response, and your response matters.  Your choice could earn you progress along the Dark or Light side paths, improve or worsen your relationship with the NPC (or your own companions).

It helps with the immersion.  The ability to "buy in" to the Star Wars experience.  You really get a sense that your choices matter, and that the story is truely influenced by what you do and say, even if it's only an illusion.  I'm sure that if I roll-up a bunch of Jedi Knights over the time I'm playing this game, I'll be able to see that my choices in my main quest dialouge don't really matter all that much with how the story unfolds.  But that's well in the future, this is now when the game's all shinney and new and full of awe.

The Last Squadron

I mentioned the whole squadron-thing the Beta Testers have had.  This coming weekend represents the last Beta Test Weekend for The Old Republic.  After Monday the 28th, it's on to polish, refine, and set up for the big Early Start weekend, beginning on December 15th.  I've got whatever time I can squeeze in from Friday the 25th until sometime late on Monday the 28th to absorb all the excitement, and play experience, until the official launch on December 15th. 

It's crazy; it feels like Bioware put visual narcotics in their game.  I can't get enough of it.  I've always considered my biggest Sin was Gluttony, and no, not because I'm an over-weight nerd (although that's a related factor).  I want to overload my senses, I want to take in so much I'm full, and then I want to take in more.  I want my cravings satisfied, and it seems like they never can be.

That is certainly the case with The Old Republic.

I'm not going to quit my job to play all the day until my money runs out.  I'm not going to neglect my responsibilities as an adult, nor my RPGs, my hobbies, and especially not my fiancee.  What I am going to do is try to take in all I can of The Old Republic, when I can, and as often as possible.

I'll be doing that this weekend, getting in all the TOR I can.  If you're playing this weekend, or any time after the 15th, drop me a line.  I'll let you know what server I'm on.

And as my buddy likes to say, "See you with a name over your head".

Another Longshot: Go Big or Go Home

I'm returning to discussing the development of a new Star Wars Campaign, Another Longshot.  For those who may not know, this is a sequel campaign to one I ran back in 2005.  Ending in 2007 a few months before one of the players moved to Georgia on "temporary exile", the game had simply intended to be a "welcome back!" reward for when his life-choice responsibilities finished.  It's slowly growing beyond that, and it's not even slated to get on the table until the summer of 2013*.

Histroy Lessons

The original Longshot Game, run in the previous Revised Core Rules for D20 Star Wars, took place in the Rebellion Era.  It centered around a doomed-but-hopeful mission for the Rebel Alliance to steal an old, moth-balled Venator-Star Destroyer.  This particular ship was part of General Kenobi's Open Circle Fleet, bring it to Mon Cala, and have the Mon Cala shipyards restore it to fighting condition, along with it's original paint job.  The ship would then serve as a symbol from the Republic Era, and as an ambassadorial ship to travel the Outer Rim gathering support for the Rebel Alliance (and the New Republic after the Rebels won at Endor).

Most of the PCs were fighter pilots in some capacity (some were better than others), flying a variety of Alliance fightercraft.  The initial attack on the shipyard went belly-up the moment the ships jumped into the system.  The Corellian Corvette that was carrying the command staff and crew for the Venator blew up due upon arrival dueto sabotage.  The PC's fighter carrier suffered a similar fate mid-way through the raid.  The shipyard was well defended, much more than anticipated, with a Victory II Star Destroyer maintaining watch over the battle and swarms of TIE Fighters coming out of the woodwork.  Somehow, the PCs were able to cover the escape shuttles from their dead carrier to the Venator, power it up, and jump out using the Star Destroyer's back-up hyperdrive (the main one was removed long ago).

No shields, only a back-up hyperdrive, no guns, a barely functional flight deck; it's no wonder the survivors of the raid dubbed the ship "The Longshot".  It would take the Longshot fourteen months to get to Mon Cala in it's current state, and it would have to do it on a multi-jump trek to take on food, water, and supplies at regular intervals.  The Rebel Alliance wanted them to scrap the mission, stating they didn't have any more resources to devote to this "malfed-up mission", but the PCs and the command staff NPCs were able to talk the Alliance Command into letting them try.  The PCs, more resourceful than anyone expected, were able to assist in getting the Longshot to where she needed to be.  Chased by Imperial Inquisitors, bounty hunters, and Imperial seek-and-destroy fleets, the group made it to Mon Cala sixteen months later with the Longshot mostly intact.

The campaign was kind of "Battlestar Galactica meets Hunt for Red October"; that's how I ran it anyway.  The players loved it.  They all had a grand old time and looked forward to the next session.  More so, they looked forward to playing the sequel, already promised when Alex left for Georgia. 

As with all great stories (or preceived great stories), the legend grew, and more people wanted in on the sequel to "The Longshot Campaign".

Many more people.

Many...



Names That Mean Nothing To Many

I did an inventory of the players from the original game; Andrew, Joe, Sarah T, Bob, Pete, Kimber, and Special Guest Tim W.  Then there's the list of the potential players to add to the party; Erich, Ann Marie, Heather, Sarah G**, Brett, and Jeffo.  There's also the list of the "Unknown Horde", folks who may want to be in this game but are not yet considered; Random, Tim B, Whitney, Johanna, Sam Witwer***

Given these numbers, I could be looking at a 10-16 person party.  That would be an excessive number of PCs, way more than I've ever had or even wanted to have.  I could write it like the Dawn of Defiance campaign, and run it three times.  But that means that every session is scripted, with little opportunity for PC action to send it far off the rails.  Or if I let that happen, I'm going to end up writing three campaigns that vaguely use the same antagonists and story line.  At that point I might as well cut to the chase and just write one big campaign and have two parties of 6-8 players that are all working towards the same goal, just through different means...

...now that sounds like a kick ass campaign.

Prelude to an Epic

The thought of running a multi-party campaign in the Legacy Era of Star Wars...it really throws a ton of fuel onto the Fires of Inspiration.  Two parties, one more Galactic Alliance and Jedi focused, the other more Empire-In-Exile focused.  Each operating agaisnt the Sith Empire.  Both sharing stories and objectives, actively or in-advertently helping the other team with their goals.  Big Bad Evil Guys that threaten both teams.  NPCs that like some characters but not others.  Plus, there's the opportunity for "cross-over" teams and "special guest stars".

This screams "Comic Book Super-Team", doesn't it?  Cuz that's what it certainly feels like.

Were I to plan and run a game like this, it would pretty much necessitate the ending, or indefinite hiatus, of all my other Campaigns (maybe with the exception of my Earthdawn game, because I may need a change of pace, and I don't see me being able to get that to it's conclusion in 18 months.)  I'll be running two seperate campaigns, but more than that I'll be juggling the connective tissue between the two campaigns, tracking how actions affect the overall plot, and coming up with ways to make each team affected by the failure or success of the other.

So Order 65, you're on notice.  Brothers in Arms, your time is nigh(-ish).  I will have to finish both of you by Summer Blockbuster Season, 2013.  I have a campaign to write, dammit.

 A potential PC Party...?

* "Coming Summer 2013"...sounds like a movie teaser trailer.  Note to self; make a teaser trailer for Another Longshot...
** I hold out hope against hope that I can get her back to the table.
*** Why the frell not invite him, am I right?  I hear he's got a girlfriend who lives in MA...

Alpocalypse 2011

Quite simply, there are times I love this damn hobby I'm in.

This is one of those times.

I'm the scout leading us in.


This is my second time performing with Al.  Damn it's fun, and dammit he's such a nice guy.

Costuming...Costuming Never Changes

When I first went to Dragon*Con in 2009, one of the outfits I brought with me was a Lone Wanderer outfit from the game Fallout 3.  My lovely fiancee made a jumpsuit that looked pretty good, I made a Pipboy 3000 out of an old armor bracer and MDF wood, and I wandered around Dragon*Con with it on.  What was more fun was walking around Washington D.C. on the way home in it (Fallout 3 takes place in "The Capitol Wastes", and you can go to many of the National Monuments and Museums in-game).  I hit the Air and Space Museum, Jefferson Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, the Mall (with the Washington Monument in the background)...good fun.  Got some decent photos which I should probably post up one of these days, but I knew I could make it look better. 

I wasn't happy with my Pipboy, so I ended up selling it when someone asked me about it.  Since then I know someone on the Replica Movie Props forums has used the Pipboy Clock that came with the very expensive Survivalists Edition of the game to make some realistic looking and wearable Pipboy 3000s.  I have a lead on one of them, and with my replaying/finally-getting-around-to-finishing Fallout: New Vegas I have a sudden hankering to break out the Vault-suit, fix it up, and make it look all nice for Halloween.



"I'm sorry, I can't hear you over how awesome this armor is..."



(...I wonder if I can get my fiancee to go as a Raider girl.  Or Joana.  Or Red Lucy.  Or Moria...no wait, if she does the accent I might have to choke her...)

One thing I did notice in my explorations of the Internet; there are some awesome folks out there making props for Fallout games.  There is no way I could afford to pick up a suit of T-45a Power Armor, like I saw at Dragon*Con this year.  It looked great, but...gah.  Too Expensive for me.

I dig my Vault Suit, that's for sure.  What I really want to do is make it look even better.  There are leather pieces I didn't do when I put the suit together.



Vault Jumpsuit


There are some Leather cuffs I should make.  If I make them removable, I can differentiate between the standard Vault Jumpsuit and the Utility Suit.  Not sure I like the look of the boots for the Utility Jumpsuit, however.

The Vault Jumpsuit also has this leather...half collar/strap that runs over the left shoulder.  I should be able to make that, but how to attach it?  If I want to just leave it as the Vault Jumpsuit, and not make the cuffs removable to do the Utility Suit, I could use Velcro.  I wouldn't want to permanently attach it, in case it needs to go through the wash (mmmm...co-funk).  Maybe it's something I can work out with an old friend; Rare-Earth Magnets...



Utility Jumpsuit

 And then there's the belt; that shouldn't be too tough.  Belt blank, maybe buy and cut up a second one to make the leather squares that run along it, and do a custom leather piece for the back.  Make the buckle out of Styrene over a metal belt-buckle blank and it's good to go.





Armored Vault Suit

I could even upgrade and do the Armored Jumpsuit.  That could be fun, and it gives me some neat add on pieces that I might be able to use for other costumes, at LARPs or the like.  Problem is, that's a lot of leatherwork, something I have little experience with.  Ah well, anything worth doing is worth learning how to do...

I'd love a Nuka-Cola cap, but custom embroidery is expensive...

I'm also interested in authentic weaponry from the game...

• The Shishkabob would be fun, but I might have some problems getting the gas tank...
• This Combat Shotgun is okay, and kinda neat, but were I to make it, I'd want to build the "trap-version" and mount it at head height by a door in my house.
• I really want to make one of these Laser Rifles.  It looks sweet, and it's made mostly out of MDF.  Mostly.
• I could always start with a Laser Pistol, and see how that goes.  (EDIT: Oh look...awesomeness in a step-by-step basis!)
• A cop-out would be turning a Nerf Maverick into a 10mm Pistol.  I should be able to do that on a weekend...

Then there's just the neat accessories, like Stim-packs, Skill Books, and the other items that can be found lying around the world of Fallout.

So I've got some propmaking to do, and looking at the calendar I've got very little time to do it.  With two LARP weekends creeping up, the only time to make props will be during the week.  We'll see if and how that goes.

Still, it's worth doing, because I think a well-done Vault Dweller/Lone Wanderer looks really, really good.

Or maybe I'll just break down and do the Courier...



A Matter of Great Import, Part Two: Elites

After a few days of exploration and jotting down ideas, I have a general idea on how the import of "Solo" and "Elite" could work.  As mentioned previously, the idea is to add in tougher and more tactically interesting opponents without needing to go through the time consuming hassle of advancing NPCs and assigning new Talents and Feats, and giving them unreasonable amounts of Force Points and Destiny Points just to help them survive an entire round of PC actions. 

In the Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide, there's a section that covers the creation of new Elites and Solos, and adapting lower creatures to be Elites and Solos.  That provided a very basic and general guideline to follow.  I also went through the Monster Manual and picked out some abilities that I liked, monster powers and effects that I felt would be not only easy to adapt to Star Wars, but also fit what we've seen in the Movies and Cartoons.

Elites: The Best of the Best

The DMG talks about Elites as tough monsters, worth twice the normal amount of XP.  In a previous post I applied one of the pre-made Elite templates to a Stormtrooper to make a Stormtrooper Sergeant.  It worked otu pretty well, and after digging into the DMG even further I came across the rules to create a new elite creature.  Some of it applies, some of it does not.

Adjust Hit Points: In 4E, an elite has a number of Hit Points equal to twice the base creature's hit points, plus twice it's constitution score.  That doesn't really transfer exactly to SAGA edition, so let's just leave it as "Double the base NPC's hit points".

Adjust Defenses: Here it states to increase up to three Defenses by +2.  In SAGA, there are only three Defenses, so let's change that to only two increases.

Add 1 Action Point: Here I'll give the Elite a Destiny Point, and require that it only be spent on another set of actions during the encounter.

Adjust Powers and Abilities: Now here's where things get creative and interesting.  It's als where a lot of my discoveries in the Monster Manual can come into play.  We're looking for additional opportunities for the Elite to make actions or attacks, since it's supposed to be representing two creature's worth of opponents.

Recharge when first bloodied: This is a little hard to work since SAGA doesn't have a "bloodied" status, technically.  It does have the Second Wind ability, which can only be used when the character's Hit Points are at half their maximum or below.  Also, there aren't a whole lot of "Encounter only" powers unless you're a Force-user with Force Powers.

What I think will work is allowing an Encounter Abilitly, Talent, or Power to recharge when the character takes their Second Wind.  Doing so is only a Swift Action in SAGA, so they'll still have their Move action and Standard actions.  If the NPC doesn't have any Encounter abilities, then maybe have it get another Destiny Point specifically for another set of actions.  This only happens when the character first takes a Second Wind, so if they have many Second Wind opportunities, this won't occur multiple times.

Immediate Actions: Next the DMG recommends giving the NPC the ability to attack in response to something the PCs do.  Some options include "when attacked and missed", or "when attacked and hit", or even "when the PC's more adjacent to them".  It could be an immediate reaction, in the case of attack rolls, or immediate interrupts, in the case of movement.  How nasty could a vibro-axe weilding Elite wookie be if any time a PC hits him, he howls in range and hits back?  What about a grappler that can take an immediate interrupt any time a PC enters and adjacent square and make a trip attack?  Or a Sith Lord that can activate a Force Power when someone moves adjacent to them?

Multiple Attacks: This is another way for an NPC to beef up it's damage capabilities; give it another attack during it's turn.  Either as a swift action, or allowing to use Double or Triple Attack as a Standard Action each turn.  This has the potential to be nasty...or useless.  In SAGA, Double attack imposes a -5 penalty to all attacks that round.  Triple attack imposes a -10 penaly to all attacks that round.  Add in the penalites for Dual Wielding weapons and your BBEG will be making a lot of attacks, but is unlikely to hit with any of them. But then again, having Double Attack is a big deal, and being able to use it often is key.

So what I do?  I think that depends on the character in question, and their abilities.  I think for melee characters, allow them to make an immediate attack against someone who either hits or misses them in melee combat.  For ranged attackers, allow them to use Double or Triple attack as a Standard action.  For Grapplers or Martial Artists, I love the idea of Tripping your opponent as they come within range.

For the stacking multi-attack penalites, I'd say reduce the penalty by 5 unles for some reason their attack rolls are very high to begin with.  Then they may not need the bonus.

Elites are supposed to be tough creatures on their own, but supported by allies.  They're tough nuts to crack, and a serious threat on the field, but they can be handled with good tactics and a little luck.

Finally, let's see how this could all work by applying the Elite status to a Super Battle Droid...


Sergeant Dae

On rare occasions a Super Battle Droid will manage to survive several campaigns against Republic forces and Jedi Knights.  When this occurs, that Battle Droid can retain a bredth of knowledge and experience in battlefield combat.  These droids are allowed to keep their experiences, and are not subjected to standard memory wipes.

Such a series of events has occured for SBD-43, a droid known as "Sergeant Dae" to his masters.  Sergeant Dae fought in several campaigns in the Outer Rim Seiges, somehow able to survive several encounters with Clone Troopers and even a few Jedi Padawans.  His superiors recognized that Dae could be a valuable commodity when the usual Tactical Droids or humanoid commanders were unavailable.  They also saw that Dae had gained some savagry and ferocity over other Super Battle Droids.  Sepratist Commanders usually assign Dae to front-line action, where his ability and skills can be used to their fullest.  They don't send him out to be needlessly slaughtered; Sergeant Dae is usually assigned a group of Super Battle Droids to assist him in his tasks, and to provide defense and support in combat. 

SBD-43 "Sergeant Dae"
Elite Medium droid (4th-degree) nonheroic 6
Init +3; Senses Perception +8
Destiny 1 (only for free set of actions)
Languages: Basic, Binary
----------------------------------------------
Defenses Ref 14 (flat-footed 14), Fort 14, Will 10
hp 42; Threshold 14
Immune: droid traits
----------------------------------------------
Speed 6 squares (walking)
Melee unarmed +6 (1d3+1)
Ranged wrist blasters +4 (3d8) or
Ranged wrist blasters +2 (4d8) with Rapid Fire
Fighting Space 1 square;  Reach 1 square
Base Atk +4, Grp +6
Attack Options: autofire (wrist blasters), Charging Fire, Rapid Fire, aid another (+4)
-----------------------------------------------
Abilities Str 14, Dex 11, Con -, Int 10, Wis 11, Cha 7
Feats:  Armor Proficiency (light), Charging Fire, Rapid Shot, Toughness, Weapon Proficency (heavy weapons, rifles, simple)
Skills Perception +8
Systems: walking locomotion, remote receiver, backup processor, synchronized fire circuits, 2 hand appendages, integrated comlink, vocabulator, plasteel shell (2 armor)
Posessions: wrist blasters (blaster rifle)

Veteran Droid: When Sergeant Dae is first reduced to 21 hit points or less, Dae immediately gains and spends a Destiny Point to get a full turn of actions.

Droid Reflex Response: When Dae is hit by an attack, he may make a ranged attack as an immediate reaction.



Interesting...but it still looks...cluttered.  I'm going to have to see how this looks with the standard 4E format for stat blocks...