Alternate Droid Design Rules

for the Star Wars RPG


Starting Template

All player-character droids use the following template: 1D Min/4D Max (3D Max for Dexterity and Perception), Move 10/12, 18D to assign to stats, and 7D to assign to skills. Note that a droid will generally exceed 3D only in one stat, maybe two. Excess stat dice are used to buy skills or attachments (see below).

Stats and Skills

Players may alter the droid template to an extent. Move can be raised by 1 per 1 pip sacrificed from stats, or lowered by 1 to give an additional pip for skills. The player may also choose to sacrifice 1D of stats for 2D of skills, that do not count towards the die maximum for skills. However, no combat skill can start higher than 6D, and no other skill can start higher than 10D. This special rule does not apply to Perception skills, which cannot start above 5D (or, 2D above the starting stat).

Example: A R2 unit with 4D in Technical, who recieves an extra 2D in skills by this method, can use the dice to have up 8D in a specific Technical skill (such as Starfighter Repair).

Attachments

Droids do not have standard Equipment. Instead, they have Attachments, which are divided into two types - Tools, and Enhancements. Tools are generally defined as anything that a human could garner with money alone, though their are exceptions (such as weapons). Enhancements modify a droid's abilities, similar to cyberware for a human. They are paid for out of the 18D for stats. If in doubt, the item in question should be considered an Enhancement. Some items may be considered an Enhancement simply because they include the permission for the droid to have them (such as a blaster attachment on a Law Enforcement droid). Weapons and armor are always Enhancements.

Tools should be treated in the same fashion as a normal character's equipment. Enhancements are rated as either Trivial, Minor, or Major. Trivial enhancements have little game effect, and cost 1 pip of the character's stat dice. Minor attachments generally have more of an effect on game play (an example would be 3PO's ability to make any sound it wishes via its voice box), and cost 2 pips. Major attachments (such as a blaster mount) cost 1D of the character's stat dice, sometimes more.

Programming

Any player wishing to play a droid must submit at least three basic tenets of their programming, and abide by them at all times - no exceptions. Almost all droids have the tenet "will never, directly or indirectly, harm a sentient being" in their core programming. A droid who violates its programming by accident will be unable to function properly until they are either given a memory wipe, or recieve 'forgiveness' from their owner (the latter is much more involved and time-consuming than the former).

Social Stigma

One of the main restrictions on droids is their status. With a few exceeptions, droids are not citizens of the Empire - they are property, with a social class below that of a slave. They can be subject to memory wipes at the discretion of their owner - a process that will effectively 'kill' a player character (but see below). Droids are only armed on rare occasions, mostly with non-lethal weapons.

Droids and the Force

Droids do not get Force points at the start of the game, and cannot become Force-sensitive. It is possible for a droid to gain a Force point during play, using the guidelines listed in the book for those without Force points. Once a Force point is gained, they use the standard rules to gain further points, and have a maximum of 5. By the same token, droids can only gain Dark Side points in the same way as any other character who is not Force-Sensitive.

Personality Update

Some droid owners prefer to have their droids develop unique personalities, and do not want to have their droid's memories wiped. To protect their droid should it fall into the wrong hands, or take serious damage, it is possible to update the hardware that contains their core programming. This is a Very Easy task, but takes a +30 modifier because the permanent memory is being changed. If the droid has somehow bypassed portions of its core programming, the task becomes Heroic.

It is recommened that a new copy of the player's sheet be created and stored whever this is done. Should a memory wife or other problem occur (such as severe battle damage), the permanent memory can be used to restore the character to its hardwired state.