After seeing the absolutely kick ass fan produced version of the Mystara campaign setting for the AGE system (Dragon Age’s engine), I am now more than ever inspired to slowly work on a Star Wars version (or at least attempt to contribute to one).
One thing’s for sure, my inspiration for doing something like this would be to make the game a sort of spiritual successor to the West End Games version of SW. I would use that as a source and as a model, instead of the later d20 versions. Not because I dislike d20, I do play Saga myself, but because d6 always felt more cinematic and more SW than the d20 ever has.
Warning, this article assumes some knowledge of the AGE system. 🙂
So what do I think that the SW using the AGE system would look like? Well, I’d try to maintain the 3 class structure of the system. For those of you unfamiliar with it, the game has three classes, warrior, rogue, and mage. Then there are talents that you pick to differentiate between two warriors for example. You gain either a new talent, or a degree in an existing talent every odd level. In Star Wars, I’m seeing three classes: Soldier, Scoundrel, and Noble. Where’s the force user you ask? Well, I wouldn’t make him a class to begin with, but rather I would offer force sensitivity at character generation. Your guy either is, or isn’t a force sensitive. Being force sensitive then “unlocks” force talents you can pick from, regardless of your class, that grant you force powers.
After all, who is to say that smugglers, pilots, or demolition experts can’t also be force users?
I envision three types of force talents. Control, Alter, and Sense force talents. Each has three powers associated with it. At level 3, you pick your first talent (aside from the class one granted at lvl 1). You could pick “Control Force Talent I” and have 3 basic control force powers. At level 5, you could become a journeyman in that talent (increasing the powers’ strength), or rather pick a new talent “Alter Force Talent I” and gain basic alter force powers. Perhaps at level 7 you want to pick up “Control Force Talent II” and have 3 more control force powers, all 6 of them being basic ones (since you haven’t become a journeyman in either one).
Force Powers would come from both the d6 and d20 games, since the d6 game wasn’t around for the prequels and missed things like “force push” for example.
Imagine “force stunts”? Those could be cool.
What about the multitude of species available for SW, how would those come in? Well, obviously the species list would be limited at first. Not every SW book offer every species at the start. And the backgrounds would like be heavily inspired from the d6 game’s templates.
I can see a Wookie Sidekick background for example.
He could choose to go Soldier, or Scoundrel. He’d get a +1 to STR and could pick between the following focuses: Cunning (Explosives) or Cunning (Starship Engineering). He would then roll on his chart for the next two available benefits, be it focuses, talents, or additional weapon groups.
He could also pick force sensitivity at character creation and eventually pick talents that would make him a force using wookie soldier if he chose that route.
For vehicles and starship combat, I’d try to just use the 3d6 system as written, using scales like d6 did. There are no vehicle rules in AGE so far, so this would be a difficult thing to tackle, but by maintaining it abstract, I think it could be done. Perhaps talents open up piloting? I think that would be the way to go, with different focuses for different types of ships (starfighters, transports, capital ships).
Dragon Age is an incomplete system, right now the only available levels are 1-5, of an expected 20. So who knows where the game is going. I know specializations are coming in the next set, so eventually Jedi could be a specialization.
I know I’m thinking about this too much, but I love SW as an rpg, and I’m really digging the old schoolness of the AGE system, so a marriage of the two is inevitable in my mind. There are others working on such a game. @darkcyril on twitter is thinking about one, and there’s also a conversion being done at the Dragon Age forums.
3d6 you must roll. Create this game you will.
www. Newbie DM .com 
Sully
January 17, 2011
I always loved the exploding d6 function in the old star wars rpg. I have a very fond memory of jumping in front of a blaster shot to save a princess and making such a ridiculous roll that the GM ruled that “the force created a shield around me to block the shot and shoot it back at the stormtrooper”. And then i tried it again and critically failed and took a blaster shot straight to the junk. Oh well, it was a helluva adventure!
wrathofzombie
January 17, 2011
I can’t wait to see what you come up with! I actually did a post today talking about using AGE for a Firefly game. lol. Great minds eh?
Glimm the Gnome
January 17, 2011
The AGE system does seem like a good fit for Star Wars. I agree that there doesn’t need to be a Jedi class and instead different types of Jedi can be modeled as members of other classes with force powers. Also, given the number of species in the universe, I think trying to do backgrounds that incorporate species could be a pain, so it might be interesting to split race and background. For example, a player could pick Jedi Sentinel as a background and Zabrak as species and would get aspects of both.
Manuel Diaz
January 17, 2011
I think I read somewhere that they are making a generic setting using the AGE system and that they were gonna add one more class.
Ben Erickson
January 17, 2011
Thanks for the mention, newbie!
I am indeed working on a port of the system for Star Wars. Been going through the rules today and making preliminary notes. When I get something more solid in the works, I’ll definitely let you know so your readers can take a look at it.
As for how I’m envisioning the admittedly tricky inclusion of the Force, you can choose whether or not your sensitive at creation. You can become so later in your career, but it will require a talent buy-in. The Jedi “classes” are then going to be specializations, Noble getting Jedi Consular, Scoundrel getting the Jedi Sentinel, and Soldier getting Jedi Guardian.
Alex Crouzen
January 18, 2011
I’m intrigued. Anything Star Wars will do that. Is there any more generic info on the AGE system anywhere? I don’t have Dragon Age, so I’d like to read up on it if possible. (And yes, I did try to Google before I posted…)
newbiedm
January 18, 2011
Ive written a little about here: https://newbiedm.com/2010/12/23/running-dragon-age/
http://dragonageoracle.wordpress.com/2011/01/13/two-games-under-my-belt/
Alex Crouzen
January 18, 2011
Thanks Newbie. It looks really good! Let’s see if I can squirrel away some money to get it soon.
anarkeith
January 18, 2011
The Mystara piece is amazing. I’m in the process of a move away from traditional 4e, and AGE would be a nice fit for my game, especially with the Mystara work as a reference.
Sweetflying
January 21, 2011
Hey Newbie I just wanted to say that I love your blog and I love the AGE system and am so glad you wrote about it or I would have never been introduced to the system.
But to the real reason I wanted to post was to suggest that anyone that wanted to make an AGE setting for Star Wars should make the time period before the movies. I think it should be set back in the days of the knights of the old republic because then you could use the same classes as the original game: soldier (warrior), scoundrel (rouge), and scout(though i think i would replace this with a Jedi class and treat that as the mage, though i would still let other classes take force talents).
I just think this time period is more exciting for a campaign, with multiple Jedi and Sith still around to fight and the Sith Wars effects still in effect, also the Mandalorians can make sweet allies or terrifying enemies. Plus, though this is really more of a coincidence, Dragon Age and Knights of the Old Republic are both BioWare games so their connected by that.
Just a thought, but whatever you do decide to make please share it with us, and thanks for your blog and for the home encounters program.
Andreas
January 24, 2011
How would you take Jedi and Sith into account? A scale of alignment of some sorts? The «good guys heal, and bad guys zap» stereotype should count for something in a SWAGE setting.
The more «good» powers you take, the less «bad» powers you get to choose next time, perhaps? You can pick basics in all (control, alter, sense) Force Powers, but as you advance, you have to choose some kind of Focus to prevent you from cherry-picking everything.