Post by Darth Kairos on Aug 29, 2019 23:33:11 GMT
There are hundreds of different classes and types of vehicles in the Star Wars Galaxy. From the freighters and luxury shuttles that ply the spacelanes down to airspeeders and up to mighty warships, to get anywhere in the galaxy you need a vehicle.
This document outlines the methods of acquiring and owning vehicles. Generally, a character in the Union doesn't have to worry about locating a vehicle to purchase unless it is particularly rare or exotic, thanks to the Union's focus on independent trade. Actually owning the vehicle is another matter.
You can find details on vehicles (such as their costs) either through Wookieepedia or the Saga Edition Fanwiki. The former has a much larger selection, but the latter includes the specific starship mechanics and statistics required by our system. If you find a vehicle that is on Wookieepedia but has no corresponding stats in Saga Edition, contact a moderator and they will assist you.
Purchasing a Vehicle
There are two main ways to acquire a vehicle. The first is to begin play with it, and the second is to purchase it later on.
If you choose to begin play with a vehicle, you must possess at least one rank in the Pilot Skill and one in the Computer Use Skill (for a ground vehicle), or two ranks in the Pilot Skill and one rank in the Astrogate Skill (for a starship). If you do, you receive 1d4 x 20000 credits with which to purchase a starship and all factors related to it (modifications, crew etc.); players in the Noble Starting Class instead receive 1d4 x 30000 credits. Additionally, if a character possesses ranks in the Resources Asset they receive extra credits equal to their monthly Resources credit gain multiplied by 10. Anything left over from purchasing a starship is lost and cannot be used to purchase other equipment. However, you may use these credits to purchase more than one vehicle.
If you choose to purchase a vehicle after beginning play, you will need to acquire sufficient credits to purchase and (if necessary) crew it. You will also need to meet the above Skill requirements. After that you can simply purchase it like a normal item. As previously mentioned, most vehicles are easy to find in the Union and can simply be bought. However, rare or exotic vehicles are more difficult. If a vehicle is particularly rare or difficult to find (perhaps due to a limited-production run or being produced by a small or distant civilisation), it may require roleplay to explore how the vehicle is found and could carry additional difficulties. Consult a moderator if you think your vehicle falls into this category and they will help you determine the specifics.
A character is limited in what starships they can have. While most characters may have any vehicle they can afford, only Sith Lords may own vehicles of Frigate size (ie. >200m) or larger. Consult a moderator if you want to purchase a vehicle that is Frigate-sized or larger but is weaker due to its armament or shielding.
Lastly, if you want to purchase a vehicle immediately but cannot afford it, you may choose to take out a loan. There are two types of loans: banking, and loanshark.
A banking loan requires you to have at least 40% of the cost of the vehicle before they will provide you with the remaining 60%, and requires you to pay back 5% of the vehicle's total cost per month for 28 months. Thus you will ultimately pay the bank 140% of what the vehicle is worth.
A loanshark loan does not require you to have a minimum amount, bit requires you to pay back 20% of the vehicle's cost per month for 10 months. Thus you will ultimately pay the loanshark 200% of what the vehicle is worth.
The consequences of failing to pay back your loan depend on who gave you the money. Banks will generally pursue legal payback; what form this takes varies by the bank, but know that legal institutions in the Union talk to each other and so failing to pay back a loan may result in a fueling station refusing to serve you. Loansharks take a decidedly more aggressive approach and will often send 'collection agents' after you, among other methods that vary by the loanshark.
Buying Used
Owning and operating a used Starship can be a risky business. Though Used Starships are cheaper and easier to get hold of, they often develop their own unique quirks that prevent them from operating at full capacity. Whenever a Used Starship moves -3 steps on the Condition Track (To the point where the vessel is taking a -5 penalty on attack rolls, Skill and Ability Checks, and Defenses) or lower, the used ship's Condition becomes Persistent. Until the ship receives repairs (using a DC20 Mechanics Skill check, either by a crewmember or by paying a mechanic), it cannot move up the Condition Track by means of the Reroute Power Action (although other means can still be used) and could face additional issues at the worst possible time...
Permanently repairing a Used vehicle requires a minimum of an encounter-level roleplay (and could be higher depending on the vehicle). This is left to the GM and player's imagination in terms of credit cost and time - it could be a simple fix to replace faulty wiring and cost 500 credits...or it could require a brand new hyperdrive motivator that the mechanic just sold the last of, so he can order it in especially for 20,000 credits or you could do this one simple job for him...
Crewing a Vehicle
Many vehicles require more than just one being to operate. Crewing a Vehicle will ensure that is is fully operational. There are two factors affecting a Crew: their size, and their Quality.
A Crew's size determines whether a vehicle is under-manned or fully-manned. Each vessel requires a minimum crew to operate, which is given in the vehicle's statblock. If a crew meets its minimum requirements but not its full size requirements, it is considered to be under-manned. An under-manned vessel cannot use all of its features and must rotate crewmembers between them; for example, if a vehicle has only 2/5 gunners only 2 of its weapons can fire per round, and each gunner must spend one turn moving to a new weapon before they can fire it. How this plays out is determined by the GM depending on the situation, vehicle, and crew available.
If a vessel meets its full-size requirements is is fully-manned and does not face any of these issues; all of its systems can be used at once at full capacity.
There are three ways to acquire Crew members. The first and most simple is to pay for them. The second is to use the Companion Asset. The third, only available to certain Classes & Paths, is to use Minions.
Paying for a crew requires a cost of 1000 credits for each crew member, paid at half-yearly intervals. The effectiveness of the Crew is determined by their Quality (see below). Paid Crew members will fulfill their jobs but have little loyalty to you personally and will rarely, if ever, leave the ship to help you.
Companion Crew members do not require credits as they are loyalty to you personally. They are individually vastly more skilled than a paid-for crew member, but the scarcity of Asset points makes it difficult to fully crew a vehicle this way. Quite often, spacers will use Companions to fill important places on their ship, and paid crew to fill out the rest.
When they are used to crew a ship, Minions (such as those used by Sith Lords) function similarly to paid crew members except they do not actively require payment.
There is a fourth method that can be used to acquire crew members, and that is through roleplay. There are no hard rules for this method and it is determined by a GM, but it generally requires several Adventures to obtain a full crew.
Crew Quality
Rather than providing statistics for every member of a Vehicle's crew, most Vehicle descriptions provide a general "Crew Quality" descriptor.
The following chart lists the five levels of Crew Quality for Vehicle crews, along with the appropriate check modifiers. Use the number in the Attack Bonus column for all Attack Rolls performed by the crew. Use the number in the Check Modifier column for all Skill Checks related to the operation of the vessel (Including Mechanics, Pilot, and Use Computer checks). Crew Quality modifiers a Vehicle's Combat Level (CL), as shown in the CL Modifier column. These modifiers are already included in the Vehicle's statistics.
For unique Vehicles where the crew's statistics are included, this table is unnecessary. All crewmembers of a general Crew Quality are considered to only have Nonheroic levels. If a unique Vehicle lists a certain Crew Quality, you may choose to modify it so long as you meet the new credit cost.
When paying for a crew, the standard rate of 1000 credits per crew member applies to Normal quality. Multiply this amount by the number corresponding to the crew type: Untrained x0.5, Skilled x2, Expert x5, Ace x10.
Minions do not generally worry about Crew Quality as they use the statblocks associated with each vessel to determine it.
Maintaining a Vehicle
Vehicle overhead and maintenance is not generally considered on a meta-level. Your crew is considered to take care of the vehicle enough that it is fully repaired and refueled at the start of each roleplay (though the GM may change this). However, within roleplay (such as in an Adventure deep into Wild Space), you may face factors such as repair issues and fuel and food shortages. This is up to the GM and what sort of roleplay is taking place. Sometimes a vehicle is there to get you from point A to point B, othertimes the journey is the real focus.
This document outlines the methods of acquiring and owning vehicles. Generally, a character in the Union doesn't have to worry about locating a vehicle to purchase unless it is particularly rare or exotic, thanks to the Union's focus on independent trade. Actually owning the vehicle is another matter.
You can find details on vehicles (such as their costs) either through Wookieepedia or the Saga Edition Fanwiki. The former has a much larger selection, but the latter includes the specific starship mechanics and statistics required by our system. If you find a vehicle that is on Wookieepedia but has no corresponding stats in Saga Edition, contact a moderator and they will assist you.
Purchasing a Vehicle
There are two main ways to acquire a vehicle. The first is to begin play with it, and the second is to purchase it later on.
If you choose to begin play with a vehicle, you must possess at least one rank in the Pilot Skill and one in the Computer Use Skill (for a ground vehicle), or two ranks in the Pilot Skill and one rank in the Astrogate Skill (for a starship). If you do, you receive 1d4 x 20000 credits with which to purchase a starship and all factors related to it (modifications, crew etc.); players in the Noble Starting Class instead receive 1d4 x 30000 credits. Additionally, if a character possesses ranks in the Resources Asset they receive extra credits equal to their monthly Resources credit gain multiplied by 10. Anything left over from purchasing a starship is lost and cannot be used to purchase other equipment. However, you may use these credits to purchase more than one vehicle.
If you choose to purchase a vehicle after beginning play, you will need to acquire sufficient credits to purchase and (if necessary) crew it. You will also need to meet the above Skill requirements. After that you can simply purchase it like a normal item. As previously mentioned, most vehicles are easy to find in the Union and can simply be bought. However, rare or exotic vehicles are more difficult. If a vehicle is particularly rare or difficult to find (perhaps due to a limited-production run or being produced by a small or distant civilisation), it may require roleplay to explore how the vehicle is found and could carry additional difficulties. Consult a moderator if you think your vehicle falls into this category and they will help you determine the specifics.
A character is limited in what starships they can have. While most characters may have any vehicle they can afford, only Sith Lords may own vehicles of Frigate size (ie. >200m) or larger. Consult a moderator if you want to purchase a vehicle that is Frigate-sized or larger but is weaker due to its armament or shielding.
Lastly, if you want to purchase a vehicle immediately but cannot afford it, you may choose to take out a loan. There are two types of loans: banking, and loanshark.
A banking loan requires you to have at least 40% of the cost of the vehicle before they will provide you with the remaining 60%, and requires you to pay back 5% of the vehicle's total cost per month for 28 months. Thus you will ultimately pay the bank 140% of what the vehicle is worth.
A loanshark loan does not require you to have a minimum amount, bit requires you to pay back 20% of the vehicle's cost per month for 10 months. Thus you will ultimately pay the loanshark 200% of what the vehicle is worth.
The consequences of failing to pay back your loan depend on who gave you the money. Banks will generally pursue legal payback; what form this takes varies by the bank, but know that legal institutions in the Union talk to each other and so failing to pay back a loan may result in a fueling station refusing to serve you. Loansharks take a decidedly more aggressive approach and will often send 'collection agents' after you, among other methods that vary by the loanshark.
Buying Used
Owning and operating a used Starship can be a risky business. Though Used Starships are cheaper and easier to get hold of, they often develop their own unique quirks that prevent them from operating at full capacity. Whenever a Used Starship moves -3 steps on the Condition Track (To the point where the vessel is taking a -5 penalty on attack rolls, Skill and Ability Checks, and Defenses) or lower, the used ship's Condition becomes Persistent. Until the ship receives repairs (using a DC20 Mechanics Skill check, either by a crewmember or by paying a mechanic), it cannot move up the Condition Track by means of the Reroute Power Action (although other means can still be used) and could face additional issues at the worst possible time...
Permanently repairing a Used vehicle requires a minimum of an encounter-level roleplay (and could be higher depending on the vehicle). This is left to the GM and player's imagination in terms of credit cost and time - it could be a simple fix to replace faulty wiring and cost 500 credits...or it could require a brand new hyperdrive motivator that the mechanic just sold the last of, so he can order it in especially for 20,000 credits or you could do this one simple job for him...
Crewing a Vehicle
Many vehicles require more than just one being to operate. Crewing a Vehicle will ensure that is is fully operational. There are two factors affecting a Crew: their size, and their Quality.
A Crew's size determines whether a vehicle is under-manned or fully-manned. Each vessel requires a minimum crew to operate, which is given in the vehicle's statblock. If a crew meets its minimum requirements but not its full size requirements, it is considered to be under-manned. An under-manned vessel cannot use all of its features and must rotate crewmembers between them; for example, if a vehicle has only 2/5 gunners only 2 of its weapons can fire per round, and each gunner must spend one turn moving to a new weapon before they can fire it. How this plays out is determined by the GM depending on the situation, vehicle, and crew available.
If a vessel meets its full-size requirements is is fully-manned and does not face any of these issues; all of its systems can be used at once at full capacity.
There are three ways to acquire Crew members. The first and most simple is to pay for them. The second is to use the Companion Asset. The third, only available to certain Classes & Paths, is to use Minions.
Paying for a crew requires a cost of 1000 credits for each crew member, paid at half-yearly intervals. The effectiveness of the Crew is determined by their Quality (see below). Paid Crew members will fulfill their jobs but have little loyalty to you personally and will rarely, if ever, leave the ship to help you.
Companion Crew members do not require credits as they are loyalty to you personally. They are individually vastly more skilled than a paid-for crew member, but the scarcity of Asset points makes it difficult to fully crew a vehicle this way. Quite often, spacers will use Companions to fill important places on their ship, and paid crew to fill out the rest.
When they are used to crew a ship, Minions (such as those used by Sith Lords) function similarly to paid crew members except they do not actively require payment.
There is a fourth method that can be used to acquire crew members, and that is through roleplay. There are no hard rules for this method and it is determined by a GM, but it generally requires several Adventures to obtain a full crew.
Crew Quality
Rather than providing statistics for every member of a Vehicle's crew, most Vehicle descriptions provide a general "Crew Quality" descriptor.
The following chart lists the five levels of Crew Quality for Vehicle crews, along with the appropriate check modifiers. Use the number in the Attack Bonus column for all Attack Rolls performed by the crew. Use the number in the Check Modifier column for all Skill Checks related to the operation of the vessel (Including Mechanics, Pilot, and Use Computer checks). Crew Quality modifiers a Vehicle's Combat Level (CL), as shown in the CL Modifier column. These modifiers are already included in the Vehicle's statistics.
For unique Vehicles where the crew's statistics are included, this table is unnecessary. All crewmembers of a general Crew Quality are considered to only have Nonheroic levels. If a unique Vehicle lists a certain Crew Quality, you may choose to modify it so long as you meet the new credit cost.
CREW QUALITY | ATTACK BONUS | CHECK MODIFIER | CL MODIFIER |
Untrained | -5 | +0 | -1 |
Normal | 0 | +5 | 0 |
Skilled | +2 | +6 | +1 |
Expert | +5 | +8 | +2 |
Ace | +10 | +12 | +4 |
When paying for a crew, the standard rate of 1000 credits per crew member applies to Normal quality. Multiply this amount by the number corresponding to the crew type: Untrained x0.5, Skilled x2, Expert x5, Ace x10.
Minions do not generally worry about Crew Quality as they use the statblocks associated with each vessel to determine it.
Maintaining a Vehicle
Vehicle overhead and maintenance is not generally considered on a meta-level. Your crew is considered to take care of the vehicle enough that it is fully repaired and refueled at the start of each roleplay (though the GM may change this). However, within roleplay (such as in an Adventure deep into Wild Space), you may face factors such as repair issues and fuel and food shortages. This is up to the GM and what sort of roleplay is taking place. Sometimes a vehicle is there to get you from point A to point B, othertimes the journey is the real focus.