Star Wars: Edge of the Empire Rule Book

FATAL ENCOUNTERS

O

f all the well documented hazards of trav-

eling through hyperspace, none is more

feared or more potentially devastating than a

collision with a mass shadow. Although every

hyperspace-capable ship is equipped with a

number of sensors and failsafes designed to

drop the ship immediately into realspace if it

passes dangerously close to a gravity well or

mass shadow, accidents do happen and there

are many documented cases of a ship in hy-

perspace colliding with a planet or flying into

the heart of a star. This, obviously, spells cer-

tain death for the entire starship and anyone

aboard. In certain, very rare cases, the starship

can even come out of hyperspace far too close

to a planet's surface and crash at dangerous

speeds. This could even do considerable dam-

age if it has the misfortune of impacting a city

or other population center. It is the fear of both

such occurrences that keeps a dedicated corps

of explorers, astrogators, and cartographers

busy keeping hyperspace charts up to date.

and the Came Master should use the modifiers in Ta-
ble 7-13: Astrogation Modifiers to increase the
difficulty of the Astrogation roll to reflect the circum-
stances under which it is being made.

TABLE 7-13: ASTROGATION MODIFIERS

•0 Description

•••

Damaged or missing astromech droid or

navicomputer.

Quick calculations or entry into hyperspace under

duress, typically while escaping from pursuit.

• Ship is lightly damaged.
  Ship is heavily damaged.
  Outdated, corrupt, or counterfeit navigation charts
  or navicomputer data.

Once a ship is actually in hyperspace, there is little

for the crew and passengers to do but sit back and en-

joy the ride. All hyperspace routes have an average du-

ration, in hours or days, based on the time required for

a ship equipped with a Class 1 hyperdrive to make the

trip under ideal conditions. Again, conditions are rarely

ideal when dealing with hyperspace travel, and transit

times can be shortened or lengthened due to any num-

ber of complications. As with sublight travel, the time

it takes to travel between star systems is left to the

Came Master's discretion. When deciding the length of

time needed for any given trip through hyperspace, the

GM should consult Table 7-14: Hyperspace Travel

Times for general guidelines in determining the trip's

duration. These average times are modified by a ship's

hyperdrive class, and can be further modified by the

Game Master at his discretion due to complications

with the Astrogation check, fluctuations in the route,

outdated charts, or any other reason he sees fit.

Of course, most starships (especially civilian vessels)

do not have a Class 1 hyperdrive. To determine the ac-

tual travel time of a starship, first determine the hyper-

drive travel time. The GM should consult Table 7-14,

then using that information as a basis, he can give an

exact travel time between the two points. Then, he mul-

tiplies this travel time by the hyperdrive's Class. So, the

time for a Class 1 hyperdrive remains the same. How-

ever, a ship with a Class 2 hyperdrive would take twice

as long to get somewhere, a Class 3 hyperdrive would

take three times as long, and so on.

TABLE 7-14: HYPERSPACE TRAVEL TIMES

Distance Traveled Average Duration

Within a sector Ten to twenty-four hours

Within a region Ten to seventy-two hours

Between regions Three days to one week.

Across the galaxy One to three weeks.

Vehicle Profiles

In this mechanized age, where whole worlds are ur-

Ibanized and massive starships ply the darkness

between the galaxy's countless stars, ground-based

vehicles are ubiquitous and as essential to daily life

as food, water, and a reliable sidearm. From the

simplest, most utilitarian landspeeders to lumber-

ing groundcars to high-performance airspeeders like

the Talon-I Cloud Car, planetary vehicles are found on

most, if not all, inhabited worlds. Planetary vehicles in

the Star Wars galaxy fall in to four broad categories

which encompass a dizzying array of walkers, ground-

cars, and speeders of every stripe.

AIRSPEEDERS

As ubiquitous as their land-based cousins, airspeeders

are found on nearly every civilized world in the galaxy.

They are, in general, small-to-medium-sized atmospher-

ic craft with aerodynamic hulls propelled by repulsorlift

technology. The repulsorlift engines are commonly cou-

pled with powerful ion drives that allow them to reach in-

credible altitudes and even enter low orbit if necessary.

In their multitude, they fill a number of civilian and mili-

tary roles not suited to either the common landspeeder

or the high-tech and high-maintenance starfighter.

STARSHIPS AND VEHICLES

•EDCE OF THE EMPIRE