See also: Droids, Droid Systems
A Droid can be modified to carry additional Equipment simply by attaching the new Equipment to the Droid's chassis and connecting the new component to the Droid's Processor. Adding Equipment increases the Droid's weight. Droids suffer from Encumbrance penalties the same way organics characters do: they slow down. Adding, removing, or replacing the systems on a Droid requires a Mechanics check, the DC set by the type of Droid System.
- Locomotion: DC 25 Mechanics check, representing 1 day of work.
- Processor: DC 20 Use Computer check and DC 20 Mechanics check, representing 1 day of work.
- Appendage: DC 20 Mechanics check, representing 1 hour of work.
- Droid Accessory: DC 15 Mechanics check, representing 1 hour of work.
- Tool or Instrument Mounted on Appendage: DC 15 Mechanics check, representing 10 minutes of work. You take a -5 penalty on your Mechanics check when installing a weapon on a 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 5th Degree Droid.
- Self-Modification: A Droid may install or replace a Locomotion System, Appendage, or Droid Accessory on itself, but it takes a -5 penalty on it's Mechanics checks. A Droid cannot replace or install a Processor on itself.
Adjudicating Droid Modifications[]
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Scavenger's Guide to Droids
One of the biggest challenges a Gamemaster faces when dealing with Droids in the party is what to do when the players start modifying the Droids. Through the Droid Modification rules, players might attempt modifications that seriously alter the nature of the game in a way that you have not anticipated. The best thing to do when a player attempts to introduce a modification that isn't appropriate for the game is to stop it before it happens. Be up-front in explaining that you don't think the modification is appropriate for the game, and try to find another solution that works for both you and the player. Remember, just because a piece of equipment or modification appears in a book doesn't mean that your players should automatically be able to perform that modification or install that equipment. There are a number of factors- social, economic, and legal- that can preclude the production or modification of a particular Droid.
With all that said, sometimes Droids in your game may be modified to a point where they are disrupting the game. Below is some advice on handling problematic Droids and Droid Modifications. Note that most of this advice centers on Droids introduced as Gamemaster characters and possessions, not on Droids as heroes.
Unbalancing Modification[]
One of the most obvious problems you will come across as a Gamemaster is a Droid that has been modified in such a way as to be unbalancing in encounters. Either the Droid is making encounters too easy, or the Droid is overshadowing the contributions of the other heroes, or the Droid just makes one player too much the focus of the combat round. Maybe the player installed shields on the Droid that make it nigh invincible. Whatever the actual modification, your best bet is to consider complications that can arise as a result of owning this Droid.
Suppose a Droid is a combat monster, blowing through your encounters. Let the player have his or her fun for a few encounters. Then create complications. Maybe the Droid isn't as precise as it should be, and it ends up causing collateral damage. Maybe the Droid ends up firing on innocent bystanders, or destroys a passing Airspeeder just to take out some Stormtroopers. The Droid then becomes a liability, and the heroes need to decide whether or not it's worth keeping the Droid around. Likewise, a savvy slicer might reprogram the Droid, turning it against the heroes. Even after the heroes subdue it, there will always be some lingering doubt as to whether or not all of the traitorous programming was eradicated. When a Droid is too powerful, introduce drawbacks that require the heroes to carefully consider the droid's value.
Redundant Modification[]
Another troubling aspect of Droids and Droid Modifications is that sometimes a modified Droid can make other Droids, and even other heroes, feel obsolete. Maybe the Droid has every Knowledge skill Trained, making the Noble who invested Trained Skills in Knowledge skills feel like they wasted resources. Maybe the Ace Pilot suddenly finds himself sitting in the copilot's chair while the Droid takes the helm. By raw statistics, there are many ways in which a Droid can be modified to do things that the heroes do, and better.
When this happens, consider altering the way the Droid performs its task so that, while it gets the job done, maybe it doesn't do so by the easiest means. When the Droid is turned loose to make a Mechanics check to repair the ship, it starts installing "Improvements" that manifest elsewhere. When the Protocol Droid programmed with every Knowledge skill is brought along to answer every question, perhaps it answers in roundabout ways that reveal information that the players want to keep secret. Droids, like all beings, are flawed, and whenever a Droid has been modified to obviate other characters or Droids, those flaws should be brought to the forefront. As with the situation above, it's more interesting to create a choice for your players (keep the Droid or get rid of it) than to simply take the droid away.
Taking Away Toys[]
There may be times when you have no choice but to take the Droid away from the players. This is a last resort, but it's always a possibility. Whether you have the Droid blasted, smashed, disassembled, stolen, or simply have its memory wiped, your players are going to feel as though you're taking away their toys. When you have no other option but to take the droid away from the heroes, consider the following guidelines:
- Make the Droid's removal part of the plot: Don't just have a Stormtrooper shoot the Droid; have a Droid thief steal it in order to learn more about the heroes. Have the droid's memory wiped by a malicious slicer hired by the heroes' enemies, or have its memory copied first and held as blackmail by an unscrupulous crime lord. Have the Droid destroyed as a part of a failed assassination attempt. Whatever form your removal of the Droid takes, set it up to create a new adventure and story possibilities.
- Offer a replacement for the Droid: When you take something away from the heroes, don't forget to give something back. The replacement for the Droid doesn't always have to be another Droid, either; maybe the heroes meet a Squib mechanic with many of the same skills as the stolen Droid, or perhaps the heroes' Starship gets upgraded with a Droid Brain thanks to their benefactor. Whatever you give as a replacement should obviously be free of the same problems that caused you to take the Droid away in the first place, but figure out what good things the Droid brought to the group and find a suitable replacement for that.
- Give the heroes a chance to recover the Droid: If you simply take the Droid away, it will likely be very obvious to your players that you removed it because you didn't like what it was doing to the game. If a Droid is stolen, or its memories taken, or its parts scavenged by Jawas, sometimes you'll have the option of letting your players try and get those things back. Of course, when the Droid is restored it may not be exactly the same as before, but this is an opportunity to remove the modifications that created the problem, and it helps make the Droid into an evolving character.