Star Wars Arms & Equipment Guide
- Thread starter IronWolf
- Start date
Simon Collins
Explorer
This is not a playtest review.
The Star Wars Arms & Equipment Guide (SWAAEG) is a sourcebook on weapons, armour, droids, vehicles, and equipment for Star Wars d20.
SWAAEG is a 96-page softcover mono book costing $21.95. Whilst margins are slightly large, font is good and there is very little wasted space. The artwork is very technical in style, bland but clear, though the front and back covers (showing a scene from the invasion of Hoth and a bacta tank repectively) are stylish and vibrant. The writing style is much the same. Editing seems good.
The introductory chapter discusses differing levels of equipment availability, from prevalent to rare, and from licensed to illegal. It also discusses availability of the equipment in different eras, with a symbolic representation in the stat blocks for each piece of equipment. It also gives a brief overview of the workings of the black market.
Chapter 1: Weapons
This chapter begins with an explanation of the stat blocks used for each weapon, which covers weapon type, proficiency group, cost, damage, critical threat range, range increment, weight, Fort DC, type of damage dealt, multifire/autofire, size, hardness, wound points, break DC, availability, era, and any special rules. There are also rules for modifying and personalising weapons, and some detail on concealing weapons, with a moification table for varying circumstances. Categories of weapons cover ranged energy weapons (various blaster pistols, blaster rifles and carbines, ion guns, and disruptor weapons), ranged projectile weapons (slugthrower pistols, dart pistols, flechette launchers, crossbows and magna casters, and wrist weapons), melee weapons (standard, vibro, and stun), grenades and other explosives, and miscellaneous weapons (flame projectors, sonic weapons, species-specific ranged weapons, and weaon attachments and accessories).
Chapter 2: Protective Gear
The chapter begins with an explanation of the stat blocks which describe armour type, proficiency group, cost, damage reduction, maximum dex bonus, armor check penalty, speed, weight, era, and any special information relating to the armour. After more information on customising and personalising armour, various light, medium, heavy, and powered armour are described, as well as a few other items of protective gear such as a sonic dampening helmet.
Chapter 3: Droids
Covers astromech droids, repair droids, protocol and commercial droids, medical droids, military droids, security and guard droids, surveillance and probe droids, messenger droids, labour droids, and some miscellaneous droids (such as assassin droids). There is a page-long sidebar giving advice on using the various droids as heroes (or not, as the case may be).
Chapter 4: Vehicles
The chapter again begins with an explanation of the stat block for vehicles, which covers vehicle class, size, passengers, cargo capacity, cost, availability, era, crew, initiative, manoeuvre modifier, defence, shield points, hull points, speed or atmospheric speed, max velocity or altitude, and weapon. There are some rules for customising vehicles. The types of vehicle covered are airspeders and cloud cars, gliders, jetpacks, and rocket packs, speeder bikes and swoops, civilian groundspeeders, military groundspeeders, walkers, seacraft, and other vehicles.
Chapter 5: Equipment
Stat blocks cover cost, weight, availability, and era. Equipment types include breathing devices, communication devices, detection devices, sensor jammers and detection countermeasures, medical equipment, security devices, survival gear, and tools and other sundries. There are some useful sidebars spread throughout this chapter with titles such as 'What's In My Toolkit?', 'Whats In My Escape Pod?', and 'Whats In My Medical Kit?'.
Conclusion:
One of my weaknesses as a Star Wars GM was not really having a clue what all the technology was called or what it did - I got about as far as a light sabre in my interest in the SW technology. So I bought this book with the hope that I could cram into my head some terms and rules regarding some of the tech stuff you see in the movies.
I did this with some dread and the book more or less succeeded in both meeting my needs and living up to my fears. Firstly, as someone ignorant of the technology it gave me all the information I could want (and more) on the subjects covered - I just need to dare to get the Starships book now! But I have to say the book bored me to tears. I keep flipping through it, reading snippets, in the hope of getting excited by the subject matter. But it fails spectacularly.
Here are some questions to test your interest - do you want to know the stats of a binary lifter or scrubber droid? The difference between a Drearian Defense Conglomerate "Light Sport" and a Merr-Sonn LD-1 Target Blaster Rifle? Which is faster, an Aratech 74-Z Military Speeder Bike or an Ikas-Adno R-2000 Raptor Speeder Bike? If you're interested in the answers to these questions, this book is definitely for you. There are, of course, aspects of more general interest. Players will want to use the customising and personalising rules for vehicles and weapons. The GM will be interested in such things as security equipment and assassin droids. But you need to sort the wheat from the chaff.
A good reference book, bedtime reading for technophiles, but ultimately bland and of questionable usefulness if your group concentrates on story and setting over technical detail.
The Star Wars Arms & Equipment Guide (SWAAEG) is a sourcebook on weapons, armour, droids, vehicles, and equipment for Star Wars d20.
SWAAEG is a 96-page softcover mono book costing $21.95. Whilst margins are slightly large, font is good and there is very little wasted space. The artwork is very technical in style, bland but clear, though the front and back covers (showing a scene from the invasion of Hoth and a bacta tank repectively) are stylish and vibrant. The writing style is much the same. Editing seems good.
The introductory chapter discusses differing levels of equipment availability, from prevalent to rare, and from licensed to illegal. It also discusses availability of the equipment in different eras, with a symbolic representation in the stat blocks for each piece of equipment. It also gives a brief overview of the workings of the black market.
Chapter 1: Weapons
This chapter begins with an explanation of the stat blocks used for each weapon, which covers weapon type, proficiency group, cost, damage, critical threat range, range increment, weight, Fort DC, type of damage dealt, multifire/autofire, size, hardness, wound points, break DC, availability, era, and any special rules. There are also rules for modifying and personalising weapons, and some detail on concealing weapons, with a moification table for varying circumstances. Categories of weapons cover ranged energy weapons (various blaster pistols, blaster rifles and carbines, ion guns, and disruptor weapons), ranged projectile weapons (slugthrower pistols, dart pistols, flechette launchers, crossbows and magna casters, and wrist weapons), melee weapons (standard, vibro, and stun), grenades and other explosives, and miscellaneous weapons (flame projectors, sonic weapons, species-specific ranged weapons, and weaon attachments and accessories).
Chapter 2: Protective Gear
The chapter begins with an explanation of the stat blocks which describe armour type, proficiency group, cost, damage reduction, maximum dex bonus, armor check penalty, speed, weight, era, and any special information relating to the armour. After more information on customising and personalising armour, various light, medium, heavy, and powered armour are described, as well as a few other items of protective gear such as a sonic dampening helmet.
Chapter 3: Droids
Covers astromech droids, repair droids, protocol and commercial droids, medical droids, military droids, security and guard droids, surveillance and probe droids, messenger droids, labour droids, and some miscellaneous droids (such as assassin droids). There is a page-long sidebar giving advice on using the various droids as heroes (or not, as the case may be).
Chapter 4: Vehicles
The chapter again begins with an explanation of the stat block for vehicles, which covers vehicle class, size, passengers, cargo capacity, cost, availability, era, crew, initiative, manoeuvre modifier, defence, shield points, hull points, speed or atmospheric speed, max velocity or altitude, and weapon. There are some rules for customising vehicles. The types of vehicle covered are airspeders and cloud cars, gliders, jetpacks, and rocket packs, speeder bikes and swoops, civilian groundspeeders, military groundspeeders, walkers, seacraft, and other vehicles.
Chapter 5: Equipment
Stat blocks cover cost, weight, availability, and era. Equipment types include breathing devices, communication devices, detection devices, sensor jammers and detection countermeasures, medical equipment, security devices, survival gear, and tools and other sundries. There are some useful sidebars spread throughout this chapter with titles such as 'What's In My Toolkit?', 'Whats In My Escape Pod?', and 'Whats In My Medical Kit?'.
Conclusion:
One of my weaknesses as a Star Wars GM was not really having a clue what all the technology was called or what it did - I got about as far as a light sabre in my interest in the SW technology. So I bought this book with the hope that I could cram into my head some terms and rules regarding some of the tech stuff you see in the movies.
I did this with some dread and the book more or less succeeded in both meeting my needs and living up to my fears. Firstly, as someone ignorant of the technology it gave me all the information I could want (and more) on the subjects covered - I just need to dare to get the Starships book now! But I have to say the book bored me to tears. I keep flipping through it, reading snippets, in the hope of getting excited by the subject matter. But it fails spectacularly.
Here are some questions to test your interest - do you want to know the stats of a binary lifter or scrubber droid? The difference between a Drearian Defense Conglomerate "Light Sport" and a Merr-Sonn LD-1 Target Blaster Rifle? Which is faster, an Aratech 74-Z Military Speeder Bike or an Ikas-Adno R-2000 Raptor Speeder Bike? If you're interested in the answers to these questions, this book is definitely for you. There are, of course, aspects of more general interest. Players will want to use the customising and personalising rules for vehicles and weapons. The GM will be interested in such things as security equipment and assassin droids. But you need to sort the wheat from the chaff.
A good reference book, bedtime reading for technophiles, but ultimately bland and of questionable usefulness if your group concentrates on story and setting over technical detail.
Paul_Klein
Explorer
Star Wars Arms and Equipment Guide
96 pages, soft cover, B&W. Written by Jeff Grubb and Owen K.C. Stephens.
The Star Wars Roleplaying Game Arms and Equipment Guide has been a much clamored for product for a long time now. The weapons and equipment chapter in the Revised Rulebook is quite sufficient, but it won’t take long before your players are going to want more. This book, from what I have gathered, is also quite possibly going to be the last soft cover book released for the SW RPG.
DISCLAIMER: Star Wars, unlike D&D, is not about the weapons and gear your character has. This is not a knock on D&D. Star Wars has never, and hopefully will never, place prime importance on *loot*. This book is merely an *option* book, for players and Gamemasters who want to look for something more than a ‘Blaster Pistol’.
Introduction: Unlike the introductions of most roleplaying books, this introduction is actually useful and necessary to understanding the rest of the book. There are definitions on item availability and lawfulness (a hold-over from WEG that is a wonderful thing), and a listing on the main eras of play, as well as primer information on the black market (for actual rules on finding, using and dealing with the black market, see Starships of the Galaxy).
Chapter 1 - WEAPONS: Weighing in at 33 pages in length, this chapter gives information and stat blocks on 130 different weapons from every imaginable category (with the exception of lightsabers - sorry Jedi!). 55 of the 130 weapons are illustrated. A note on the illustrations: they are all computer-drafted line drawings that I absolutely love. This means basically that each entry in the book follows the same set of rules, and are not left up to a pool of artist’s interpretations. The drawings are clear, concise, full of detail, and best of all, they are not, at all, artistic (as they should not be, in my opinion).
At the beginning of this chapter are rules on modifying your weapon. The ruleset for this is very simple and elegant (fairly abstract), yet somehow, very complete. It leaves very little, if at all, to be desired. However, some of the choices you can make when modifying your weapon might be a bit unbalancing. For example: you can choose to increase the threat range of your weapon by one. The is exactly what the feat Improved Critical does, except that feat is hindered by the very high requirements (BAB 8+). Also, while some of the modifications have a drawback (increase your damage, decrease your attack), some have no drawback, except that the modifications cost money. To some, this may be unbalancing. I do not have enough experience with this to quit determine if that is so.
Chapter 2 - PROTECTIVE GEAR: A short chapter (6 pages), chapter 2 deals with armor and other protective gear. There is only 14 different suits of armor (however, each and everyone as an accompanying illustration). I think the designers are trying to emphasize that armor in Star Wars, while not rare, is not that much better than going without. Hero’s in Star Wars don’t wear armor except when they need to (flying starfighters, in the vacuum of space, etc). However, with this chapter, and the armor found the Revised Rulebook, there should be enough armor for whatever purpose you want. One note: some people have complained that the infamous Mandalorian armor was not in this book. That’s because its already established in the Revised Rulebook that Mandalorian armor is either modified padded battle armor or modified medium battle armor - see page 316.
Like with weapons, there is a simple and elegant ruleset for modifying your armor. One thing people have noticed is that, using these rules, you cannot increase the DR of your armor. This is done on purpose for balance purposes, purposes I completely agree with.
Chapter 3 - DROIDS: At 19 pages, this chapter gives complete history and background information, as well as stat blocks, on 45 different droids. Best part is, every single one is illustrated! Also included (Thank the Maker!) is a full-page sidebar on information concerning each of the 45 droids as PCs!. There is, sadly, no information on customizing and modifying droids at all however.
Chapter 4 - VEHICLES: 47 total vehicles are written up in 15 pages. 20 of the 47 are illustrated. Also in this chapter, for the first time, is complete information pertaining to jet and rocket packs! There is, like with the weapons and armor chapters, the same set of rules on how to upgrade your vehicles. Again, in my opinion, these rules work very well and are quite simple.
Chapter 5 - EQUIPMENT: In 11 pages, 68 pieces of general equipment are included. Nothing completely lavish or incredible in here, but every bith of the technology in this chapters adds more depth and flavor to your Star Wars campaign. Sadly, only 13 of them are accompanied by an illustration.
All in all:
301 entries in the book (not including specialized ammo, see below) accompanied by a total of 147 illustrations (49%). Plus sidebars on: Blast Radius, Droid Heroes (almost full page), Vehicles Aces, Medical Kits, Escape Pods and Tool Kits. Rules for customizing and personalizing weapons, armor, droids, vehicles, equipment, and a note on the black market are included.
CONCLUSION:
Before the book was released, I was afraid 96 pages would not do the book's topics justice (I spoke with author Owen Stephens about this same topic). Well with the exception of armor, I was wrong. Well over 300 total entries with about half illustrated? I'm very impressed.
This book has 45 droid entries, whereas WEG's Fantastic Technology: Droids book had 47 (but droids is only 1 of 5 topics in this book). This book has 224 weapons, armor suits and pieces of equipment, whereas WEG's Gundark's Fantastic Technology Personal Gear had a total of 196 (and that book was 16 pages longer). Of course WEG also had Galladinium's Fantastic Technology as well (about 200 entries in all 5 categories weapons, armor, droids, vehicles, equipment), but that is in a second book. And, of course, WEG never compiled a pretty comprehensive list of vehicles in one source, so having 47 here is pretty substantial.
I have but one gripe with the book: the editing stinks! There are no gaffs in editing that will affect gameplay that I could find (you won’t be seeing an Arms and Equipment Errata anytime soon), but there are numerous errors in layout, typesetting and spelling. Some words runtogether. Other times, in a list of things where each entry is in bold, one of the entries won’t have bold. The entry for one of the vehicles is called the zZip Motor Concepts Astral-8, yet its illustration refers to it as the zZPI Motor. (zZip is the correct spelling, by the way). There are literally dozens of these errors littered throughout the book.
The question is, is that enough to downgrade the books score, considering none of them affect the actual stats? I’m going to say no. The editing, the fact that is the soft cover, and the fact that not EVERYTHING is illustrated are the only three things that bother me about the book (and I understand the feasibility of have illustrations for 301 entries and making a 96 pages book hardcover. Then again, that’s why you make the book 128 pages, illustrate everything, and give it a hardcover
). But I really don’t believe that they are enough to bring the score down any (at least on a 5 point scale). Therefore, I give it a perfect 5. I really think the book is borderline essential for any sort of ‘in-depth’ Star Wars campaign.
-Paul Klein
96 pages, soft cover, B&W. Written by Jeff Grubb and Owen K.C. Stephens.
The Star Wars Roleplaying Game Arms and Equipment Guide has been a much clamored for product for a long time now. The weapons and equipment chapter in the Revised Rulebook is quite sufficient, but it won’t take long before your players are going to want more. This book, from what I have gathered, is also quite possibly going to be the last soft cover book released for the SW RPG.
DISCLAIMER: Star Wars, unlike D&D, is not about the weapons and gear your character has. This is not a knock on D&D. Star Wars has never, and hopefully will never, place prime importance on *loot*. This book is merely an *option* book, for players and Gamemasters who want to look for something more than a ‘Blaster Pistol’.
Introduction: Unlike the introductions of most roleplaying books, this introduction is actually useful and necessary to understanding the rest of the book. There are definitions on item availability and lawfulness (a hold-over from WEG that is a wonderful thing), and a listing on the main eras of play, as well as primer information on the black market (for actual rules on finding, using and dealing with the black market, see Starships of the Galaxy).
Chapter 1 - WEAPONS: Weighing in at 33 pages in length, this chapter gives information and stat blocks on 130 different weapons from every imaginable category (with the exception of lightsabers - sorry Jedi!). 55 of the 130 weapons are illustrated. A note on the illustrations: they are all computer-drafted line drawings that I absolutely love. This means basically that each entry in the book follows the same set of rules, and are not left up to a pool of artist’s interpretations. The drawings are clear, concise, full of detail, and best of all, they are not, at all, artistic (as they should not be, in my opinion).
At the beginning of this chapter are rules on modifying your weapon. The ruleset for this is very simple and elegant (fairly abstract), yet somehow, very complete. It leaves very little, if at all, to be desired. However, some of the choices you can make when modifying your weapon might be a bit unbalancing. For example: you can choose to increase the threat range of your weapon by one. The is exactly what the feat Improved Critical does, except that feat is hindered by the very high requirements (BAB 8+). Also, while some of the modifications have a drawback (increase your damage, decrease your attack), some have no drawback, except that the modifications cost money. To some, this may be unbalancing. I do not have enough experience with this to quit determine if that is so.
Chapter 2 - PROTECTIVE GEAR: A short chapter (6 pages), chapter 2 deals with armor and other protective gear. There is only 14 different suits of armor (however, each and everyone as an accompanying illustration). I think the designers are trying to emphasize that armor in Star Wars, while not rare, is not that much better than going without. Hero’s in Star Wars don’t wear armor except when they need to (flying starfighters, in the vacuum of space, etc). However, with this chapter, and the armor found the Revised Rulebook, there should be enough armor for whatever purpose you want. One note: some people have complained that the infamous Mandalorian armor was not in this book. That’s because its already established in the Revised Rulebook that Mandalorian armor is either modified padded battle armor or modified medium battle armor - see page 316.
Like with weapons, there is a simple and elegant ruleset for modifying your armor. One thing people have noticed is that, using these rules, you cannot increase the DR of your armor. This is done on purpose for balance purposes, purposes I completely agree with.
Chapter 3 - DROIDS: At 19 pages, this chapter gives complete history and background information, as well as stat blocks, on 45 different droids. Best part is, every single one is illustrated! Also included (Thank the Maker!) is a full-page sidebar on information concerning each of the 45 droids as PCs!. There is, sadly, no information on customizing and modifying droids at all however.
Chapter 4 - VEHICLES: 47 total vehicles are written up in 15 pages. 20 of the 47 are illustrated. Also in this chapter, for the first time, is complete information pertaining to jet and rocket packs! There is, like with the weapons and armor chapters, the same set of rules on how to upgrade your vehicles. Again, in my opinion, these rules work very well and are quite simple.
Chapter 5 - EQUIPMENT: In 11 pages, 68 pieces of general equipment are included. Nothing completely lavish or incredible in here, but every bith of the technology in this chapters adds more depth and flavor to your Star Wars campaign. Sadly, only 13 of them are accompanied by an illustration.
All in all:
301 entries in the book (not including specialized ammo, see below) accompanied by a total of 147 illustrations (49%). Plus sidebars on: Blast Radius, Droid Heroes (almost full page), Vehicles Aces, Medical Kits, Escape Pods and Tool Kits. Rules for customizing and personalizing weapons, armor, droids, vehicles, equipment, and a note on the black market are included.
CONCLUSION:
Before the book was released, I was afraid 96 pages would not do the book's topics justice (I spoke with author Owen Stephens about this same topic). Well with the exception of armor, I was wrong. Well over 300 total entries with about half illustrated? I'm very impressed.
This book has 45 droid entries, whereas WEG's Fantastic Technology: Droids book had 47 (but droids is only 1 of 5 topics in this book). This book has 224 weapons, armor suits and pieces of equipment, whereas WEG's Gundark's Fantastic Technology Personal Gear had a total of 196 (and that book was 16 pages longer). Of course WEG also had Galladinium's Fantastic Technology as well (about 200 entries in all 5 categories weapons, armor, droids, vehicles, equipment), but that is in a second book. And, of course, WEG never compiled a pretty comprehensive list of vehicles in one source, so having 47 here is pretty substantial.
I have but one gripe with the book: the editing stinks! There are no gaffs in editing that will affect gameplay that I could find (you won’t be seeing an Arms and Equipment Errata anytime soon), but there are numerous errors in layout, typesetting and spelling. Some words runtogether. Other times, in a list of things where each entry is in bold, one of the entries won’t have bold. The entry for one of the vehicles is called the zZip Motor Concepts Astral-8, yet its illustration refers to it as the zZPI Motor. (zZip is the correct spelling, by the way). There are literally dozens of these errors littered throughout the book.
The question is, is that enough to downgrade the books score, considering none of them affect the actual stats? I’m going to say no. The editing, the fact that is the soft cover, and the fact that not EVERYTHING is illustrated are the only three things that bother me about the book (and I understand the feasibility of have illustrations for 301 entries and making a 96 pages book hardcover. Then again, that’s why you make the book 128 pages, illustrate everything, and give it a hardcover
). But I really don’t believe that they are enough to bring the score down any (at least on a 5 point scale). Therefore, I give it a perfect 5. I really think the book is borderline essential for any sort of ‘in-depth’ Star Wars campaign. -Paul Klein
Messageboard Golem
First Post
By John Grigsby, Staff Reviewer d20 Magazine Rack
Sizing Up the Target
The STAR WARS: Arms & Equipment Guide is a 96-page supplement for the STAR WARS Role-Playing Game produced by Wizards of the Coast. It is written by Jeff Grubb and Owen K. C. Stephens, with a Ralph McQuarrie cover and interior art by Christopher Trevas of Lucasfilm Ltd. It retails for $21.95.
First Blood
“Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side.” — Han Solo, Star Wars: A New Hope
Though the Jedi might be ones to disagree, this is a credo that has kept many smugglers, bounty hunters, and even soldiers alive. The galaxy is a dangerous place, full of hazards both unseen and unexpected. You never know when your life may depend on the equipment you carry and when it comes down to the wire, you want to know exactly how much weight that syntherope can hold or whether those binder cuffs are going to be sufficient to contain that raging wookie.
Chapter by chapter, this book takes a comprehensive look at the arms and equipment of the STAR WARS galaxy, from blasters to med-pacs. Each item is covered in expansive detail and many are illustrated. The chapters are divided into weapons, protective gear (including armor), droids, vehicles, and general equipment.
One of the questions that I have been asked as a STAR WARS GM is, “Can I modify my weapon?” It’s a valid question. After all, we know for a fact that Han Solo has modified both his ship and his weaponry, and isn’t Boba Fett’s battle armor a modified Mandalorian outfit? Well, I’m pleased to say that if you’ve ever been on the delivering or receiving end of this question (or even if you haven’t but I’ve piqued your interest), there is an answer. Yes, it can be done and this book tells you how.
Modifications come in two categories: personalization and customization. Customization means that anyone who uses the item can make use of the modifications, while personalization improves performance only for the owner. An item can either be customized or personalized, but not both. Modification can be costly and time-consuming, but is often worth the extra effort put into it.
Another thing that makes the book unique is that each item is given an availability rating and the eras in which it is available are indicated, meaning that GMs won’t have to ponder whether the T-16 Skyhopper is available for their game set in the days of the Old Republic [it is]. Availability helps you determine is anybody could own one or if it is restricted to certain groups of people or even if the item in question is considered illegal. Obtaining restricted or illegal items may even require calling in a favor.
The weapons chapter is pretty expansive, covering everything from swords to the basic blaster to the best that military science has to offer. All the necessary game data is provided with each entry, including Hardness, Wound Points, and Break DCs. The section on armor also offers a wide selection, though I did notice certain staples like the aforementioned Madalorian battle armor or the clone trooper armor (which would later become the infamous storm trooper armor) missing. As with weapons, all game essential data is included with each entry.
The section on droids is the one that immediately caught my attention. Those who own the revised rulebook know that droids are now available as hero characters, so any new material on these beings is welcomed. There is are a lot of variety provided here, with a selection of over 50 droid templates to choose from, including the fan-favorite from A New Hope, the mouse droid. A sidebar provides details on playing droids as heroes, particularly useful when a player wants to introduce an infantry droid or other high-level droid into a low-level campaign.
You won’t find any starships in the vehicles chapter, because they’re covered in a book of their own (called, coincidentally enough, Starships of the Galaxy), but if it is designed to get you around the surface of a planet, you’ll likely find it in here. Airspeeders, landspeeders, watercraft, speeder bikes, personal flight devices, and walkers are all statted out, ready to drop into your campaign. I found familiar sights in the T-16 Skyhopper and the SoroSuub XP-38 Sport Landspeeder, but I also felt there was so much more that could have been included; the Imperial shuttle or the AT-AT, for example.
The last chapter is dedicated to equipment and serves as a catch-all for anything that didn’t fit into other chapters. From the breathing masks used by our heroes in The Empire Strikes Back to the personal comlink, you can find it in this section if it isn’t a weapon, armor, a vehicle, or a droid.
Critical Hits
I like having a solid set of rules to handle weapon, armor, and vehicle modification. Sure, it’s nothing I couldn’t have kit-bashed myself, but hey, since they were kind enough to do it for me, I’ll make good use of it. My players can expect to see a lot more customized and personalized weaponry in my games.
In addition, the availability guide and the era codes are an invaluable resource for the GM, who will no doubt be besieged by players wanting to know if they can have this, that, or the other thing for their character. Now you can give them a definitive answer without having to reference it or making a decision that might be later proven wrong.
An additional detail that might have otherwise been overlooked in a book filled with science-fiction weapons was the sidebar that discusses alternate ammunition for slug-throwers, including explosive, mercy, and pyro. Kudos to the design team for thinking to put that in there. It would have been easy to ignore that this kind of thing exists and it’s nice to see that someone remembered it.
Critical Misses
An arms & equipment guide for STAR WARS has been a much-needed volume since the days of West End Games. There is such a plethora of equipment available that it’s nice to have it all in one place. Unfortunately, that’s where this product breaks down. It isn’t all there. While there is a lot of good stuff in here, there’s also a lot of stuff that seems to be missing.
I’ve already mentioned the Madalorian battle armor, or the clone trooper armor, but I could also ask, “Where are the stats for the power droid, the 21-B medical droid seen in The Empire Strikes Back, or the EE3 blaster rifle that Boba Fett favors (according to the databank at starwars.com)? Even if these things are covered in another resource, shouldn’t they be included in an Arms & Equipment Guide?
Finally, while Hardness, Wound Points, and Break DCs are provided for weapons, they are not given for general equipment (except for a few notable exceptions). Okay, so it isn’t going to happen often, but if my character drops his comlink and it gets trampled by a crowd before he can retrieve it, I’d like to know if it’s worth salvaging or if I need to go looking for a new one. I’d just like to know why no one felt it was important (and this topic must have come up at some point, because the syntherope has this information).
Coup de Grace
As is typical for a Wizards of the Coast product, there is no Open Gaming Content here. As might be expected, d20 Compliance is right on target (they wrote the book on it, after all) and I award high marks for originality, both because there has never been a work like this before and because what is covered in here is stuff that isn’t found elsewhere. Both players and GMs will find plenty of good resource material and it’s a delight to read as well as use and the price is reasonable for what you get.
This is a good resource, but in my opinion, not a great one. I would have been willing to pay a little more for completeness, even if it meant rehashing some things that have appeared elsewhere, if only for the sake of having everything in one place. As far as it goes, this is a fine book, but I think that hard-core fans will feel a little slighted that their personal favorite wasn’t included. Still, there is a lot of new material here, making it a worthwhile purchase for any STAR WARS gamer.
To see the graded evaluation of this product and to leave comments, go to The Critic's Corner at www.d20zines.com.
Sizing Up the Target
The STAR WARS: Arms & Equipment Guide is a 96-page supplement for the STAR WARS Role-Playing Game produced by Wizards of the Coast. It is written by Jeff Grubb and Owen K. C. Stephens, with a Ralph McQuarrie cover and interior art by Christopher Trevas of Lucasfilm Ltd. It retails for $21.95.
First Blood
“Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side.” — Han Solo, Star Wars: A New Hope
Though the Jedi might be ones to disagree, this is a credo that has kept many smugglers, bounty hunters, and even soldiers alive. The galaxy is a dangerous place, full of hazards both unseen and unexpected. You never know when your life may depend on the equipment you carry and when it comes down to the wire, you want to know exactly how much weight that syntherope can hold or whether those binder cuffs are going to be sufficient to contain that raging wookie.
Chapter by chapter, this book takes a comprehensive look at the arms and equipment of the STAR WARS galaxy, from blasters to med-pacs. Each item is covered in expansive detail and many are illustrated. The chapters are divided into weapons, protective gear (including armor), droids, vehicles, and general equipment.
One of the questions that I have been asked as a STAR WARS GM is, “Can I modify my weapon?” It’s a valid question. After all, we know for a fact that Han Solo has modified both his ship and his weaponry, and isn’t Boba Fett’s battle armor a modified Mandalorian outfit? Well, I’m pleased to say that if you’ve ever been on the delivering or receiving end of this question (or even if you haven’t but I’ve piqued your interest), there is an answer. Yes, it can be done and this book tells you how.
Modifications come in two categories: personalization and customization. Customization means that anyone who uses the item can make use of the modifications, while personalization improves performance only for the owner. An item can either be customized or personalized, but not both. Modification can be costly and time-consuming, but is often worth the extra effort put into it.
Another thing that makes the book unique is that each item is given an availability rating and the eras in which it is available are indicated, meaning that GMs won’t have to ponder whether the T-16 Skyhopper is available for their game set in the days of the Old Republic [it is]. Availability helps you determine is anybody could own one or if it is restricted to certain groups of people or even if the item in question is considered illegal. Obtaining restricted or illegal items may even require calling in a favor.
The weapons chapter is pretty expansive, covering everything from swords to the basic blaster to the best that military science has to offer. All the necessary game data is provided with each entry, including Hardness, Wound Points, and Break DCs. The section on armor also offers a wide selection, though I did notice certain staples like the aforementioned Madalorian battle armor or the clone trooper armor (which would later become the infamous storm trooper armor) missing. As with weapons, all game essential data is included with each entry.
The section on droids is the one that immediately caught my attention. Those who own the revised rulebook know that droids are now available as hero characters, so any new material on these beings is welcomed. There is are a lot of variety provided here, with a selection of over 50 droid templates to choose from, including the fan-favorite from A New Hope, the mouse droid. A sidebar provides details on playing droids as heroes, particularly useful when a player wants to introduce an infantry droid or other high-level droid into a low-level campaign.
You won’t find any starships in the vehicles chapter, because they’re covered in a book of their own (called, coincidentally enough, Starships of the Galaxy), but if it is designed to get you around the surface of a planet, you’ll likely find it in here. Airspeeders, landspeeders, watercraft, speeder bikes, personal flight devices, and walkers are all statted out, ready to drop into your campaign. I found familiar sights in the T-16 Skyhopper and the SoroSuub XP-38 Sport Landspeeder, but I also felt there was so much more that could have been included; the Imperial shuttle or the AT-AT, for example.
The last chapter is dedicated to equipment and serves as a catch-all for anything that didn’t fit into other chapters. From the breathing masks used by our heroes in The Empire Strikes Back to the personal comlink, you can find it in this section if it isn’t a weapon, armor, a vehicle, or a droid.
Critical Hits
I like having a solid set of rules to handle weapon, armor, and vehicle modification. Sure, it’s nothing I couldn’t have kit-bashed myself, but hey, since they were kind enough to do it for me, I’ll make good use of it. My players can expect to see a lot more customized and personalized weaponry in my games.
In addition, the availability guide and the era codes are an invaluable resource for the GM, who will no doubt be besieged by players wanting to know if they can have this, that, or the other thing for their character. Now you can give them a definitive answer without having to reference it or making a decision that might be later proven wrong.
An additional detail that might have otherwise been overlooked in a book filled with science-fiction weapons was the sidebar that discusses alternate ammunition for slug-throwers, including explosive, mercy, and pyro. Kudos to the design team for thinking to put that in there. It would have been easy to ignore that this kind of thing exists and it’s nice to see that someone remembered it.
Critical Misses
An arms & equipment guide for STAR WARS has been a much-needed volume since the days of West End Games. There is such a plethora of equipment available that it’s nice to have it all in one place. Unfortunately, that’s where this product breaks down. It isn’t all there. While there is a lot of good stuff in here, there’s also a lot of stuff that seems to be missing.
I’ve already mentioned the Madalorian battle armor, or the clone trooper armor, but I could also ask, “Where are the stats for the power droid, the 21-B medical droid seen in The Empire Strikes Back, or the EE3 blaster rifle that Boba Fett favors (according to the databank at starwars.com)? Even if these things are covered in another resource, shouldn’t they be included in an Arms & Equipment Guide?
Finally, while Hardness, Wound Points, and Break DCs are provided for weapons, they are not given for general equipment (except for a few notable exceptions). Okay, so it isn’t going to happen often, but if my character drops his comlink and it gets trampled by a crowd before he can retrieve it, I’d like to know if it’s worth salvaging or if I need to go looking for a new one. I’d just like to know why no one felt it was important (and this topic must have come up at some point, because the syntherope has this information).
Coup de Grace
As is typical for a Wizards of the Coast product, there is no Open Gaming Content here. As might be expected, d20 Compliance is right on target (they wrote the book on it, after all) and I award high marks for originality, both because there has never been a work like this before and because what is covered in here is stuff that isn’t found elsewhere. Both players and GMs will find plenty of good resource material and it’s a delight to read as well as use and the price is reasonable for what you get.
This is a good resource, but in my opinion, not a great one. I would have been willing to pay a little more for completeness, even if it meant rehashing some things that have appeared elsewhere, if only for the sake of having everything in one place. As far as it goes, this is a fine book, but I think that hard-core fans will feel a little slighted that their personal favorite wasn’t included. Still, there is a lot of new material here, making it a worthwhile purchase for any STAR WARS gamer.
To see the graded evaluation of this product and to leave comments, go to The Critic's Corner at www.d20zines.com.
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