NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Water Bob" data-source="post: 7481817" data-attributes="member: 92305">TOOTHLESS STORMTROOPERS?Sometimes it is argued that stormtroopers are under-powered.  I argue that they're not.  They're exactly the strength that they should be.In Galaxy Guide 1 - A New Hope, a typical stormtrooper has Blaster 3D, after adjustment for armor.  And, this is typical of all base-line stormtroopers in the game.Luke Skywalker, the HERO of all HEROES, has Dodge 6D.  And Dodge, in 1E, is computed by the Dodge roll + Range number.So...troopers do look toothless, yes?Let's take a deeper look.  And, as we do, remember that the Heroes in Star Wars (original trilogy) rarely, if ever, got hurt, even though all the combats that they encountered.  Luke had his hand chopped off, but that's a special case.  Darth Vader did the cutting.  And, the two droids were both blasted once each.  C-3PO was blasted to bits at Cloud City.  R2D2 took a bad hit in space combat during Luke's trench run.  The only character actually hurt in blaster combat was Leia, when she was grazed on the Moon of Endor.First off, Luke, as stated above, is the GALAXY'S HOPE!  He's not your typical PC.  Let's first compare a starting character, Roark Garnet, from page 8 of the 1E core rulebook.Roark has Dodge 4D+1.Now, let's put Roark in Luke's position on the Death Star.  He's got his synthrope grappled around some piping.  A princess is clinging to his kneck and hip.  And Roark is about to shove off, crossing the chasm.Behind Roark, 4 stormtroopers have gotten the blast door open, and they are ready to fire at him.  Just above his destination are 4 more troopers gunning for him.  Other doors open to ledges around the circumference of the shaft:  there are 2 there, 3 over there, and 2 more there.  All 15 stormtroopers are going to fire at Roark and the princess has he swings.The troopers all have effective 3D Blaster skills.  Range is Short, requiring a 10+ attack roll.  And, Roark will of course use his Dodge, which is now effectively 3D+1 because he's got to use his Climbing/Jumping skill in order to swing across the chasm.In effect, Stormtroopers are firing 3D vs. 3D +11.  Chances are, Roark is going to swing across unmolested.Unless...the troopers roll very high and Roark rolls very low.  The chance is low...but there is a chance.  The troopers could get lucky and roll a 16.  And, Roark could get un-lucky and roll a 4.  And that means at least one of the troopers will hit, spelling disaster for our hero.That small chance is how it should be with heroes.With a different game--a grittier, more realistic game--I might be arguing something different.  But, man!  THIS IS STAR WARS!  Where Heroes are BIGGER THAN LIFE!That, to me, is how it should be in D6 Star Wars.And, it's not like GMs don't have other options.  In GG1, Death Star Troopers are mentioned.  These guys are elites.  Their Blaster skill is 5D+1.Sometimes, taking two shots will get the Dodge defense low enough for an attack.If troopers have time, they can aim.  This adds +1D to their attack codes.If a PC gets action happy, taking too many actions, this lowers his Dodge defense due to the multiple action penalty.And, let's not forget that stormtroopers almost always outnumber PCs, giving the troopers a lot more "at bats" to score a home run.</blockquote>

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