Star Wars: Edge of the Empire Rule Book

galaxy—often for the better, but sometimes for the
worse. Perhaps the character has made a vow to help
others, which works nicely into the Oath Obligation.
A character may receive some sort of sign that tells
him to leave behind his former life and make his way
to the fringes of the galaxy to serve this higher calling.

ENEMIES AND ANTAGONISTS

Simply put, the character rubbed someone the wrong

way and found himself fleeing his former life. Even if the

player decides that the enemy may not be the source

of an Obligation, or may not be around any more to

cause the character grief, this could be used as a hook

to reintroduce the enemy later on in a campaign.

A FAILURE OF CHARACTER

Some inherent flaw in the character causes him to

leave behind the life he knew for the unknown. This

background hook ties in well with some Obligations,

such as Addiction, Obsession, or Betrayal. Regardless

of the cause, the character finds himself shut out from

his former society, left to deal with his own problems.

However, the character may view this in a positive light,

seeing himself freed from the pressures of scrutiny or

keeping on the move to leave trouble behind.

WRONG PLACE, WRONG TIME

The character finds himself embroiled in a life of ad-

venture through no fault of his own. He could have

been captured by pirates, the sole survivor of a deadly

plague, or even something as mundane as being unem-

ployed and forced to find some new way to bring in the

credits. Regardless of the method for the character's

push from society, he finds it nearly impossible to re-

turn to the way that things used to be. The character

must quickly adapt to his new and dangerous situation.

Step 2: Obligation

O

bligation plays a vital role in defining a Player Char-

acter. Defined simply, Obligation represents the

debts a Player Character owes. These debts may be

physical (money owed, services that must be repaid,

or a binding contract) or they could be intangible (a

feeling of responsibility for a friend's well-being, the

duty he feels to help his family, or a favor owed to

someone else). A character's actions can often be

guided by his Obligation, and in EDCE OF THE EMPIRE,

Obligation is a vital aspect of a character that can

have very tangible effects on his development.

During character creation, players not only custom-
ize their characters by selecting skills or characteris-
tics, but also by choosing what sort of Obligation the
character has. An Obligation may be a large outstand-
ing debt, the PC being blackmailed for services, owing
a crime boss "favors," having a price on his head, or
being locked into a binding contract.

Over the course of a campaign, Obligations can
put pressure on characters—having unresolved Obli-
gations can affect them in very tangible ways. At the
same time, taking on additional Obligations allows
characters to obtain goods and services that would
normally be far out of reach. This provides players
with a choice: do they resolve their character's Obli-
gation as quickly as possible, do they maintain their
current level of Obligation, or do they take on even
more Obligation in the hopes that the risk will pay off
with larger rewards?

WHAT IS OBLIGATION?

Each Player Character starts with at least one Obli-

gation. As described previously, this Obligation may

be a tangible one such as a debt owed or a bounty

on one's head, or an intangible Obligation such as an

unpaid favor or familial duty.

A player may select his character's Obligation in

one of several ways. He may roll randomly from the

list found on Table 2 -1: Obligation. Alternatively, if a

particular Obligation fits his character's backstory, he

may choose one of the Obligations on Table 2 -1 in-

stead of rolling, as long as he has his CM's permission.

Finally, he may make up his own Obligation, if he has a

concept that better fits his backstory. GMs should be

aware, however, that some of the published adventures

in supplements are tied into the Obligations listed here.

Each Obligation consists of two parts:

• A title and narrative description: This does
  not have any rules effect, but is intended to offer
  an explanation that allows the player to work the
  Obligation into his character's story.


• A numeric value: This is the Obligation's size,
  and determines the mechanical effects of an Ob-
  ligation. The mechanical workings of Obligations
  are explained starting on page 41.

STARTING OBLIGATION

Each character begins play with a moderate Obligation

of some sort. The nature of this Obligation is determined

CHARACTER CREATION

'EDGE OF THE EMPIRE