Welcome to the Sandbox!

Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, Rodians and Jawas of all walks of life! I welcome you to the first article in a series that will focus on giving GMs of the FFG Star Wars Edge of the Empire RPG a collection of one-shot adventures they can drop into any “Sandbox” style campaign. These adventures are also going to be tied directly to each of the Career options available in the system. So that GMs can make sure they give each type of character their chance to be in the limelight, as the adventure will highlight the path they narratively chose to walk in the Galaxy far…far away!

It never fails, does it? Just when you think to yourself that you got it all figured out as a GM. That you got the Players sufficiently hooked for the upcoming session, that you have them really invested in something. And can go about doing the little bit of planning that is required for this system to give them a fun-filled session the next time you meet up. Then… for whatever reasons I am sure not even the Force itself could tell you, your Players decide that instead of finishing the story arc that you all so beautifully and lovingly crafted together the last time you played, and which you spent this week planning for and expanding upon…that they want to go another way. Even if just for a little bit.

Perhaps it’s something as simple as they lose some of the momentum for the story, seeing as they have put it down and walked away for however long it is in between your sessions. Or, maybe it’s the harder fact to swallow as a GM, that you are perhaps more invested in the story than they are at the time.

Or maybe, just maybe, your Player happens to be scanning her character sheet between sessions. And she looks down at that little box labeled “Career,” and she thinks to herself, aside from this choice dictating which specialization I could start off with, what else has this done to shape my character’s story so far? And then, right then and there, she decides to herself. If I am supposed to be a Bounty Hunter, then by the stars, I need to go out and get me some bounties!

Well my fellow GMs, if this ever happens to you in the future. And one of your players turns to you out of the blue, and asks you “What open Bounties are there in the area?” Then fear not, because at least one such bounty is right here for you, just a mouse click away. Ready and willing to test the mettle of whatever Hunter decides to come to chase him down. And save you from the hassle of trying to come up with an entire investigation on the fly. While it is not an impossible task to do, let me assure you as a GM that has had this recently happen to him at the table, it’s not as easy as you might think either!

So strap in, and let’s delve into Episode 1 of the GM Sandbox… The Rodian Bomber.

In this adventure, the players are hot on the heels of a Terrorist that has been striking out with violent attacks all across the capital city of Temmell on the Planet Belderone. The Rodian man has unleashed a handful of homemade biological weapons at several targets across the city in recent months and only seems to grow more and more emboldened with each attack. Can the players track him down and bring him to justice before he strikes again? Or will they instead have a front row seat to another tragic attack upon the general populace?

Only time, and the dice, will tell!

Aside from the Bounty Listing handout that was shown above, The Rodian Bomber module also comes with 14 additional pages worth of Investigation Notes. That detail out the 7 suggested encounter’s that the PCs must traverse to get their chance at capturing their quarry. It also includes suggested ways to play out the NPCs they will encounter along the way to give the encounters as much life as possible.

And to those familiar with the Investigations listed out on the Bounty Hunter Career Book No Disintegrations, than the layout of this module should be very familiar to you, as I have tried to keep the formatting and layout of this investigation as close as possible to that supplement for ease of use.

The goal of this specific investigation was aimed at taking roughly 3-4 hours to complete from beginning to end. The Rodian Bomber should be easily modified to drop into any planet needed, if the default planet of Belderone out in the Outer Rim does not fit as well into your current campaign.

Hopefully, your players will have as much fun with this investigation as mine did, and feel proud that they have made the Galaxy a little bit safer with their efforts!

So until next time fellow GMs, may your threats be plentiful, and your despairs the stuff of legends!