To avoid hijacking the thread of another, I am posting a build I made based around the idea of buffing skills through the Force. I had some interest in the build, so I figured it probably needed its own post. Here is a link to the “Forced Skill” build on RPGSessions. It is not a complete sheet yet, and I am still finishing all the details, but the playable essence is all there now.
The builds was originally a failed experiment into not spending experience on skills, which I failed by still focusing on skills. However, the build is very versatile, and a lot of fun to play, as you can almost always do something. Anyone have any thoughts? Thanks for checking it out!
Yup, there are a few others out there. In the original thread, I mention that there are a few others that I did not list grabbing as I only took the build to about 650 Xp. I think, if you were diligent and had all the XP the galaxy could throw at you, you can enhance some 26-28 skills this way. I need to go count again. The problem is, they become so spread out across the various trees, that the XP totals just get unreasonable.
Ace Pilot is pretty nice though! I may look at that for just after Navigator. I mean, if you are going to roll Star Wars style, you HAVE to be a good pilot right? RIGHT?!
I think it is worth pointing out that the build breaks up nicely across the various tiers of play. If you are in a beginning game, the build tells you how it spent the first 120 XP (all on Characteristics and Force Rating). In the notes I explain how to get down to Heroic/Knight level, which has the neat side effect of allowing the character to actually play through the two modules where the special force powers are learned (Jenserra’s Influence and Warde’s Foresight). The build as presented sits at 500 XP, but the offered advancement options take it to around 650 XP. What is more, the build is very linear, making getting from point A to point B, a clear and direct path, almost the whole way.
Stay away from Intuitive Evasion in the Starfighter Ace talent tree. It’s a trap that will remove your Force Rating that you’d want to be spending on skill rolls.
Oh yeah, good point! There is a talent like that in Executioner. You definitely want to avoid using abilities that require the commitment of Force dice, that will DRAMATICALLY effect your ability to do things. Such powers and talents are ‘for emergency use only’—
I’m not particularly well-versed in the specifics of FaD trees, so maybe, but I’d make sure to keep a defined difference between adding Force rating and adding Force di(c)e. I believe there are a couple talents that allow you to add a single Force die, while others allow you to add dice up to your rating. In Force powers too, possibly. Also between “add di(c)e to checks” versus “make a check with di(c)e.”
Ace/Smuggler: Pilot is an interesting tree. It’s very mechanically sound, but narratively uninteresting. Just from the name, it sounds quite bland, and it has no particularly flavorful talents. Even its unique talents aren’t narratively interesting.