Star Scoundrels : A rules lite Sci Fi RPG

 Greetings,

 Hope everyone is well, we are in the single digit temps here with what is a heavy snow for us. So, since I have some downtime, and am still on a Sci Fi kick, I thought I would look at Star Scoundrels a bit more. I do like the Black Star RPG, but Star Scoundrels does seem to give just a bit more "something" to differentiate characters and such. 

     Love that cover art!  One of my favorite things to do in Space Opera campaigns is to work up alien species.  Since Star Scoundrels is Star Wars with the serial numbers filed off, thought I would do an alien species loosely based on a Star Wars alien species that shows up in the background from time to time.  I'll let you see if you can determine which species this one is based upon.  Oh, and the art is A.I. I'm no artist so I figured for a blog post, A.I. art should be ok.  

Species: Sluskan  

Species Traits: (Amphibious, Aquatic Survival, Swim, Low-Light Vision, Persuasive, Hardy)

  And just like that we have a species written up.  More to come!  

Gaming Update (EZD6 and Star Scoundrels)

Gamer Greetings,

     Hope everyone is doing well, been sickly winter already around here.  Work and illness have derailed any gaming for quite a while, but we can still think about gaming, right?

     I still find myself in a Sci Fi mindset.  As well as an ongoing interest in Post-Apocalyptic gaming. I saw where the EZD6 Wasted World will be released soon, I haven't picked up the EZD6 core rules, but a P.A. version? that's my jam.  I'll be grabbing that one for sure.  I'll try to post more about it when I pick it up. Check out the cover of the softback! Kewel! From what I know of EZD6 looks to be rules lite, might even try some online play, since in person scheduling is such a challenge of late.  More to come on EZD6 Wasted World.   

     I've been following Trey's posts over on From the Sorcerer's Skull lately about Black Star and Star Scoundrels. He even did a brief comparison of two alien species in the systems.   I've done several posts about Black Star, but have not had chance to play it yet.  

     After reading Trey's posts I picked up Star Scoundrels. Star Scoundrels has a tad bit more stuff to it than Black Star, but not excessively so, your character gets a couple of Flaws and a little bit more tweaks.  I'm gonna read over it some more. 

          I will say I love the random generator tables in the back of Star Scoundrels.  Definitely give you that Star Warsian/80's Sci Fi vibe (is that a word?).  Let me do some random rolls and show you what I mean.

Objective: Kidnap (abduct a Dominion scientist and their research)

Location: Abandoned Construction: Machinery that's become a battleground for control.

Antagonists: Dark Matter Entity: An alien being with an agenda of its own.

Complications: Time Dilation: Near a massive object, time moves differently, altering the mission timeline.

     And just like that you have the makings of a pretty wild adventure, the Time Dilation makes me think of the old 80's Ice Pirates movie. 

Good Gaming -B.B. 

More Musings about Black Star RPG

      As I was convalescing from this unpleasant respiratory illness I've had for a month, I watched Solo: A Star Wars Story again.  I found I actually enjoyed it.  Especially the "things" hinted at in the background.

     Like the Cloud Riders, these guys look really cool, and I'd like to have seen more done with them. This got me to thinking about running a Star Wars Sci Fi RPG.  I realized I don't want to really run a game IN the Star Wars Universe, but Star Wars adjacent with the serial numbers filed off would be pretty cool.  I remembered I had picked up the Black Star RPG recently, even did several posts about it, but never got a change to run/play it.  Maybe I need to dust-off my notes and rectify that situation? 

                                                                   

     Oh and I love the digest size of Black Star, perfect to place in your GM kit and take on the road or whatever. Doesn't take up much room, so if you end up not being able to run your regular D&D Campaign or whatever, you can quickly and easily run a Black Star One shot, with minimal fuss or prep. The Black Star Companion adds a bit of extra coolness that make the game even better! 

     That's all for now, hope you all are well and healthy and have a safe and Happy New Year!

-B.B. 

Troopers RedHack

 

     I've been on a bit of a Military Sci Fi kick lately.  Gaming-wise, I was recently posting about and looking at BlackStar, which is a fun rules lite Space Opera Sci Fi RPG, but it is very much a Star Wars with the serial numbers filed off game/setting.  Not that I consider that a bad thing, but those of you who know me, know that I love post-apocalyptic RPG's and I recently found a OSR game that allows me to run a Military Sci Fi game with P.A. elements or whatever else I want to throw into the mix! I'm talking about:  Troopers RedHack!  You can easily see the B/X elements of this one, and author Pertros Moros designed the game to allow you to use modules and adventures from your gaming library. Petros has used Mutant Crawl Classics adventures along with OSE adventures and other systems, just tweaking some things to fit into the Troopers setting. 

     Troopers RedHack, is a classless system, allowing players to create the kind of character (Trooper) that they want to play.  Wanna be a Combat Medic skilled in Guerilla Fighting or even a Psionic Trooper? easy peasy! The game is humancentric, although you can be an android and working up an alien pc looks pretty easy if you wanted to houserule some into the game.  There is a default setting loosely baked into the game, but you can easily tweak/adjust or do your own thing, which I love. The print book is even digest sized which is awesome!  

     Troopers RedHack has a nice Appendix N, and while I had read many of the books listed many I have not, so I've been picking those up and reading them to get me in the Military Sci Fi mindset. 

Some of my resent reading material, some are from recommendations from the book, others I just wanted to reread that seemed to fit the vibe I was interested in right now. 

      I also recently picked up the Aliens Colonial Marines Technical Manual! This should be a nice resource for my campaign. Not that I am planning to go full blown ALIENS, but the Colonial Marines gear, general info, etc. should be a cool resource to help me fill in a few details to the Troopers Campaign. 

Well, that's all for now, I hope to post more about this game soon.  Work has kept me pretty busy of late, hope you can get some gaming time in, enjoy time with friends and family!

-Good Gaming  B.B. 

Black Star RPG - The Crew: Wyatt

Wyatt

Name: Wyatt Cole

Species: Human

Archetypes: Tech, Fringer

Resolve 7

Wealth 0

Blasting 2                   Brawling 2

Diplomacy 1              Discipline 3

Instinct 2                    Intellect 2

Speed 1                      Strength 2

Tools 3                       Transports 2

 

Talents

● Tech

Upgrades

● Fringer

Scavenger

Arsenal

Flaw: Heartbroken: Grieving the loss of his wife and daughter, he has not yet found a way to fully move on with his life

Bonus Talent: Improvise

Gear:

Link: A personal communicator, computer, and holoviewer.

Pulse Pistol

Bonding Tape

Deck of Cards

Backpack

Flashlight

Toolkit

     Wyatt lived out on the Fringe of settled space his entire life. He never aspired of being anything other than a hard worker, a husband, and a father.  From an early age he found he had a knack with tools and tech. Being able to jury rig functioning gear from what others considered junk, never made him rich but it made him a living. He was content, with his small home, his wife and his young daughter, life was not too bad.  That all changed when the local crime baron learned of his talents. The baron seized his humble shop and demanded he work for the baron, at first, he managed it, but as the demands grew and he realized they were hurting innocent people, he quietly rebelled, he began to sabotage the gear and equipment he was charged with working on and repairing, this worked for a while, but eventually his actions were discovered. The baron decided to make an example of Wyatt, things went awry and in the aftermath Wyatt’s wife and daughter were killed, along with several of the baron’s enforcers sent to make an example of this willful Fringer.  Wyatt was locked up and was basically waiting to die.  Cyrha was in the cell next to him and sensed his grief and despair, she worked to convince him he still had a purpose and a reason to exist.  When Kasra freed Cyrha, she insisted they free Wyatt as well, reluctantly Kasra agreed.  While Wyatt is still wracked with grief over the loss of his family, he is trying to find a new purpose in his existence and to do something that would make his wife and daughter proud of him. While not always sure about Kasra, Wyatt is protective of Cyrha, and while nothing could ever replace his family, he does feel an almost familial bond with her and a growing respect for Kasra. 

Black Star RPG - The Crew: Cyrha

 

Cyrha

Name: Cyrha Genesee

Species: Ohlani

Archetypes: Fringer, Psychic

Resolve 7

Psi Points 6

Wealth 0

Blasting 1                  Brawling 1  

Diplomacy 3              Discipline 3

Instinct 2                    Intellect 3

Speed 2                      Strength 1

Tools 1                        Transports 1

Talents

● Fringer

Beneath Notice

● Psychic

  Psychic Powers:

                Telepathy 2

                Tamper 2

                Mind Blast

*Flaw: Flashbacks: She has flashbacks of the destruction of her village and the murder of her parents. They were destroyed due to their innate Psychic abilities.

Stealth

Gear:

Link: A personal communicator, computer, and holoviewer.

Pulse Pistol

Link Jammer

Backpack

Flashlight

          Cyrha was born on the temperate world of Ohlan. Ohlan was a garden world of temperate climes, captivating landscapes, and beautiful forests.  That all changed when the Imperials came.  Most Ohlani possess innate psychic powers, and while they practiced a life of peace and harmony with their environment, the Imperials considered them a threat.  The assault on the Ohlani homeworld was quick and brutal.  Only a few thousand Ohlani escaped and now live as refugees on other worlds.  Cyrha, was 8 years old when the Imperials came.  She still has flashbacks of the death of her parents and total annihilation of her village. Ohlan is an uninhabitable wasteworld now.  Cyrha grew up to join the Resistance, using her psychic abilities to spy on and subvert the tyrannical regime, but when her rebel cell was destroyed and she was captured by a corrupt Crime Baron, she thought her life was over. While locked up she befriended a fellow prisoner, another Fringer named Wyatt, she sensed the grief and despair within him and realized she could still help others. Then unexpectedly, Kasra, one of her captors freed her, she insisted they free Wyatt as well, and the small group have been on the run ever since.  Cyrha does not necessarliy want to feel a bond with Kasra, but she has seen into his mind and knows deep down he is not evil. She sees Wyatt as a dear uncle like figure that she thinks the world of, although she worries about his deep moments of melancholy and sadness. 

*Note: I used the Flaw rules in the companion and allow characters that select a Flaw to gain a Bonus Talent. 

Black Star RPG - The Crew: Kasra Voth

 One of the first things I do when learning/studying a new RPG, even a rules lite one is to make up a character.  Thus, Kasra Voth came into existence, I also made up his alien race kind of on the fly, the Xaeksians, a race of humanoid aliens, from a stormy, cloud heavy moon, giving them the innate Talent of Night Vision.  

Kasra

Name: Kasra Voth

Species: Xaeksian

Archetypes: Outlaw, Soldier

Resolve 7

Wealth 0

Blasting 3                   Brawling 2  

Diplomacy 1              Discipline 1

Instinct 2                    Intellect 2

Speed 3                      Strength 2

Tools 2                        Transports 2

 Talents

Outlaw

Underworld

Soldier

Quick Draw

(Species Talent) Night Vision

Flaw: Secret- Kasra once provided information to the Authorities, betraying certain Underworld elements to save his own hide, he hopes this betrayal never comes to light.

(Bonus Talent) Thief

Gear:

Link: A personal communicator, computer, and holo-viewer.

Pulse Pistol

Lighter

Backpack

Pulse Rifle

Survival Kit

      Kasra is from the polluted, dark and storm clouded moon of Xaeksa 4. He grew up in the urban underbelly of the moon’s main starport, and was orphaned at an early age (his parents were allegedly Rebel sympathizers and were taken away by Imperial Authorities never to be seen again).  He turned to a life of crime to support himself, and grew up hating the Imperials, his parents, and the Rebels.   He was a decent enough thief, and outlaw, and found he had a talent for fighting as well.  Working as an enforcer in the criminal underworld, he was on a job that went sideways, that led to his capture by the authorities. Rather than face a lifetime of working the mines, he ratted out some high-level criminal elements, and in exchange was given a reduced sentence that allowed him to escape and flee to the Black Star Sector.  His deep fear is that the Underworld elements that he betrayed will one day learn of his betrayal and come to seek vengeance.  He spent time working as a soldier in a local baron’s garrison for a time, but when the baron captured and was going to hand over Cyrha, a suspected Resistance Operative to the Imperium, he found himself having a crisis of conscious and helped Cyrha escape, now they have fled Baron’s forces and find themselves out on their own, unlikely partners trying to survive.   

Note- I'm considering using Wretched Space as Campaign Inspiration, Black Star has a "not" Star Wars vibe, which is cool, but I may end up using some of the options from the Wretched Space setting.  May change this moving forward, we shall see...

Oh, and the image is AI art that I generated.  I'm no artist, but I like having visual representations when I can. 

Have a Black Star Weekend!

 Happy Friday Everyone!!

I got an unexpected treat in the mail this week.  

My buddy Matt sent me the print version of Black Star, you can't tell from the picture, but it is a digest sized book, could just about fit in your pocket! Fun!  Thanks Matt you rock!  

It's been a busy week so haven't had time to do anything gaming related, but hopefully this weekend!

I wish you all a great and blessed weekend! Do something fun! play some games, hang out with friends and family! Enjoy the weekend! You earned it! 

Black Star RPG

 

     Thanks to a friend, I recently became aware of the Black Star RPG from LakeSide Game. This is a rules lite Space Opera RPG, with a good bit of a certain "War in the Stars" with the serial numbers filed off thrown into the very loose setting.  Those who read my blog know I've been on a Sci Fi kick for a bit, even though up until recently I had an active 5E Campaign going, I still want to play some Sci Fi!  With my work/life schedule, I've had to put my face-to-face game on hiatus, so I've been looking at trying more Solo, especially Sci Fi Solo.  Given that rolls in Black Star are player facing, this system seems perfectly suited for Solo play, although it looks like it will work just fine for group play as well.  

Here is the official blurb about the game,"Darkness has fallen over the galaxy. The once-noble Galactic Imperium now serves only the Grand Imperator and his inner circle. But the galaxy is vast. While the core worlds may be caught in the Imperium’s grip, many more exist beyond the galactic core, in the barely charted expanse of space known as the black star sector. A haven for criminals and unsavory characters of every stripe, the black star sector is also where the resistance against the Imperium is strongest. If there is any hope of overthrowing the Imperium, the galaxy will need heroes, and those heroes will come from under a Black Star.

Black Star is a rules light sci-fi roleplaying game you can carry around in your pocket. Using the latest version of the Furious Games Engine first used in Magnum Fury and refined in Six-Gun Fury, Black Star is designed for fast play and high-flying action, perfect for classic space opera and heroic science fantasy.

While not a big PDF guy, I prefer book in hand, there is now a print version of the core rules available via lulu. There is also a companion book that was recently released adding more options to the game.

As time permits, I'm going to be trying out this ruleset in Solo mode and maybe even try some Online play?  I don't usually do online, but with this rules lite system, I may just have to take the system for a spin. More to come!