This series follows the trials, tribulations, successes, and failures of a fairly inexperienced GM who has recently picked up the hobby after a long time away. It aims to assist new GM’s by examining what worked, didn’t work, and what failed miserably as he spins up new campaigns, modules, encounters, and adventures for his friends and family in Fantasy Flight Games’ Edge of the Empire/Age of Rebellion/Force and Destiny system.
The Star Wars RPG narrative dice system by Jay Little, first introduced in the Edge of the Empire line, changed everything about RPGs for me. Finally, I had a system that could help me keep the story at the forefront of everyone’s mind, rather than math, die probabilities, and squares. I love it. For me, I don’t think I’ll use another system very often, if at all. It’s simply the best in the business. So, when Genesys was announced, I was thrilled because it finally meant I wouldn’t have to use another system, regardless of the type of game I want to play. I even wrote a two part series on how to get a superhero campaign going in Genesys recently: Part 1 / Part 2.
Upon examining the Genesys system, almost all of the SWRPG rules are duplicated inside it. There are a few exceptions, and those are rules that make Star Wars, well, Star Wars. The rules in Genesys can’t assume anything, and must make generic (hence the name) enough rules to account for just about every game someone would want to play.
While reading the Genesys Core Rulebook I, like most, came across the vehicle rules and discovered them to be a bit different from that of the Star Wars lines. So, I read them and started thinking, as many have, should you modify the Star Wars RPG game rules to match Genesys if you happen to find yourself in a ship? The SWRPG rules for starships and vehicles are, to some, the most difficult to make work fluidly and narratively. So, I thought it would be worth examining the two rules sets and the differences between each, letting you decide if you prefer one system over the other, as either could easily be used if you’re playing Star Wars. So let’s look at the differences between the two system:
Movement
Moving in the Genesys system is basically a “Forced Move.” Depending on the speed you’re going in the vehicle, you automatically travel forward a certain number of range bands (p. 221). So, the movement you need to do to decide where you go is a “Steering” maneuver, or if it’s dicey, using the Dangerous Driving action to get through things. Another difference is the concept of driving or flying through difficult terrain. In the SWRPG figuring out the check is a combination of vehicle size and speed. In Genesys, however, it’s simpler. On page 227 you’ll find a chart and the number of setback dice one adds to the check depending on how difficult the terrain is.
The reason for this is that the game can’t know what type of vehicles you’re in. In Star Wars, the bigger the ship and faster the ship makes flying more difficult, but in Genesys you never know what you’ll be playing. So the change makes sense.
Opinion: I really like all of these changes, even for Star Wars. If my players are piloting through an asteroid field at breakneck speed, I can always use the old Star Wars calculation, but otherwise, setback dice are much, much simpler, and can make my pilots, who have talents to remove setback dice feel special.
Combat
The big, obvious change in combat is the difference between how combat check difficulties are. In Star Wars, it’s the silhouette difference. In Genesys, it’s the same as personal combat… based on distance, while letting large silhouette differences tweak the check some. This, however, necessitates a bit of discussion as to what to do. So let’s talk about the “why” behind those differences. In Star Wars, you know what you’re getting. Giant capital ships, snub fighters, land speeders, etc. So, it makes sense… small things are hard to hit for large things, and vice versa. However, in Genesys, the game isn’t sure what you’re going to play. Is this a “Fast and the Furious” campaign with nothing but cars? Is it a modern military campaign with fighter jets and helicopters? Well, in these situations, all the vehicles are the same size and same relative speed. So, distance makes more sense. Targeting computers are a thing in Star Wars, but not real life. In Star Wars, those rules make sense, and in Genesys, the rules make sense. So… which should you use?
Opinion: I would use both. When playing Star Wars, if we are in the midst of a big capital ship battle, I would use the good ol’ Star Wars rules. They make sense. Big ships should have trouble hitting small ships. (Just as the Dreadnought found out the hard way.) However, if within close range and in dogfighting situations, I would use the Genesys system. Within close range I would create the range bands from Genesys and let things be based on range. I would also allow speed differentials create boosts and setbacks between the ships. Of course, that’s just my opinion, I may be wrong.
Maneuvers
In Genesys, there are a few new maneuvers. Brace for Impact, letting you trade system strain in lieu of damage is a good one. It also allows you to lessen the amount of a critical hit if you’ve received one. This narratively would be you turning the ship sharply to avoid a large hit, but pushing the limits of the craft. Evade lets you increase the difficulty of all attacks made against the vehicle, and by the folks inside the vehicle. This is similar to Evasive Maneuvers in Star Wars, but more powerful, trading a setback die for a full difficulty upgrade. Reposition is a new maneuver listed, but honestly it’s the same as a normal piloting maneuver in Star Wars.
Opinion: I would allow any/all new maneuvers or talents in Genesys in the Star Wars game. Barrel Roll is a talent created by GM Phil from the Order 66 podcast. You can find it on page 77 of the Genesys Core Rulebook. It is narratively very close to his “Snap Roll” he’s talked about on The Order 66 Podcast on multiple occasions. It allows a vehicle to suffer 3 system strain to reduce damage suffered in an attack equal to the pilot’s ranks in Piloting. I would have no trouble allowing Barrel Roll, Brace for Impact, Evade, etc. in my Star Wars games.
So there you have it, my take on Genesys vehicle rules and their differences with the Star Wars RPG lines. While the Genesys rules simplify some things, they have to in order to match the genre you’re going to play. They don’t necessarily improve on the narrative but tweak the mechanical rules surrounding vehicles. What do you think? Are you going to use parts of the Genesys rules? Stick to the Star Wars RPG rules? A combination of both similar to my thoughts?
Scott Alden
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