When non-Player Characters and creatures suf-
fer wounds greater than their wound threshold, they
are defeated (unless they are a high-level opponent
such as a nemesis). Being defeated by exceeding their
wound threshold usually entails death, but the overall
interpretation is up to the CM. The
CM can decide that they pass out
due to shock, are so crippled
that they can no longer fight,
are knocked unconscious,
or any other option
that fits his plans
for the ongo-
ing narra-
tive. Since
non-nem-
esis char-
acters do
not track
strain sepa-
rately, but
apply strain
damage as
wounds to their
wound thresh-
old, what hap-
pens once they are
defeated may also de-
pend on whether they were
defeated due to strain damage
or wound damage.
When wounds exceed a charac-
ter's wound threshold, the charac-
ter should track how many wounds
he's exceeded the threshold by,
to a maximum of twice the wound
threshold. He must heal wounds until his
wounds are below his wound threshold before he is no
longer incapacitated.
STRAIN AND STRAIN
THRESHOLD
While wounds and injury represent potentially life-
threatening damage, a number of other stressors
and effects can impair a character. Collectively,
this is referred to as strain. Any effect that impairs
the character, but does not inflict physical harm or
wounds, is considered strain. Spending hours wan-
dering through Tatooine's blistering deserts, a mi-
nor shock from an electric console, being battered
around the inside of a trash compactor—all of these
could represent types of strain. Weapons with a
stun setting or other effects that impair or hinder a
character generate strain.
Additionally, effects that would cause stress, fear,
anxiety, or emotional turmoil also generate strain.
Losing one's cool in combat during a bombardment,
being berated by a superior officer, waking up to re-
alize one has been imprisoned by the Hutts, or be-
ing boarded by an Imperial search team while smug-
gling goods could all represent incidents that result in
strain on a character.
Strain can accumulate slowly as environmen-
tal effects, or be gained in chunks when a PC
is rattled by an effect that doesn't cause dam-
age, but does impair him.
Characters can also voluntarily suffer
strain to trigger certain effects. The most
common use is to voluntarily suffer two
points of strain to gain one additional ma-
neuver during a character's turn.
Some special talents
may require the char-
acter to suffer one or
more points of strain to
activate.
EXCEEDING
STRAIN
THRESHOLD
When a character has
suffered strain greater
than his strain thresh-
old, he becomes inca-
pacitated until his strain
is reduced so that it no
longer exceeds his strain
threshold. He is likely
unconscious, or may just
be so dazed and stag-
gered that he's completely un-
aware of his surroundings and unable to
interact with them.
When Non-Player Characters and creatures suf-
fer strain, they generally apply them directly to their
wound threshold (unless they are a nemesis and track
strain separately).
CRITICAL INJURIES
A particularly dangerous type of wound is a Critical
Injury. A Critical Injury is often the result of a critical
hit from an attack during combat, but characters can
also suffer them from exceeding their wound thresh-
old, or through other means. Each time a character
suffers a Critical Injury, the player rolls d 100 on Ta-
ble 6-10: Critical Injury Result to determine the
extent of the injury.
The short-term effects of some injuries are tempo-
rary, and may only disorient or afflict the character
for a brief amount of time. Other injuries are more
CONFLICT AND COMBAT
EDCE OF THE EMPIRE