Star Wars Edge of the Empire Core Rulebook

I didn't want to like this game but yet I paid for the core book, have it in my hands now, and writing a 5 star review. How could this happen? Because it's one of the best RPG systems ever to come from a major game studio. First and foremost the system is about roleplaying and creative gaming. It being Star Wars is almost besides the point. The system does have an agenda but it's not about selling funny dice or how easily it will convert into a video game. Edge of the Empire's agenda is to let the player's tell "their" story in a Star Wars setting. This book is a massive tome, but lean and mean at the same time. It's loaded with stats, equipment, art, game advice, and rules. All stuff you would expect, however all these areas have a purpose, they are fleshed out, and beautiful. More importantly all these areas encourage and empower roleplaying and the player's freedom of choice. You can tell that the book's creators care about and love Star Wars as much as they care about telling stories and throwing dice. Nothing about this book feels phoned in or a cash grab. The setting is focused on 'A New Hope' but it's a laser beam focus that's fully realized. Force powers are in here and there are some good force talents to be had. The superpower-jedi players will have to wait for future books or go home-brew. The combat system has teeth, it hits hard. The combat is as tactical as I could hope for or as tactical as you want to make it, it's the player's choice. It does this without a lot of clunky specialized rules too. You can play this with out maps if you want, but having maps and minis works just as well. It's all really about what you decided to do with your dice results or how creative you can be with your results. Like I said I didn't want to like EotE, I really didn't. I'm a hardcore saga edition fan who has sunk a lot of money into that system. I'm also the tactics based, power-gamer type of player. Further I'm also a dice snob, I only use gamescience dice (mostly for nostalgia reasons and super pointy reasons) I thought that this new dice system was going to be some gimmicky way to increase sales through micro transaction. I thought the combat system sounded wishy-washy. I though that the only thing this game had going for it was that it was Star Wars. Then I played the beginner game with some friends. We learned the die mechanics quickly enough but I wanted to break the system, so I pulled the story completely off the rails. The system didn't skip a beat, in fact the system helped me pull it, encouraged me almost. Doing so didn't cause our GM any grief at all and he went with it. It was such a brilliant session. It wasn't until I started recounting our adventure the next few days that I realized that the system had its hooks in me. I can't recommend this book or the game system enough. Price is more then fair based on the size, quality of the content and hours of game play. About those funky dice: As far as the custom dice, which aren't included with this book. Well I don't use them instead I use the look-up table in the book and it's been working for me. It does run a bit slower using the table but not by much especially once you do it a lot. I am the only one in our group doing it that way however. Even if lots of players use the table method the speed of the system shouldn't bog down. I plan on building my own custom set using gamescience dice. It'll cost more then if I where to just buy the dice sets, so the pricing on FFG's dice seems fair. The other members share two FFG sets and that seems to be enough for them. The dice app is the cheapest option at only 5 bucks and delivers the fastest results, it sums the results at the bottom, and you theoretically have unlimited dice. A rolling app at a physical table goes against everything I stand for, but that's just me.

Star Wars Edge of The Empire is, in short superb. I started playing RPGs in the mid 1970s with the original edition brown book D&D system, have played D&D all the way up to version 3.5, played Traveler, Paladin, etc... always wanted to play a Star Wars themed game but never got into the older versions of Star Wars role playing. As a fan of Fantasy Flight games I was excited when they released the beta version of this game at Gen Con last year, this was done to solicit public input in order to polish the game for general release. I picked up the beginner boxed set back in December. It played very easily and smoothly and was a very enjoyable game, it is structured so that you are introduced to the mechanics of game play as you experience your first adventure. I was a little miffed that they omitted character creation rules, but got over it pretty quickly. If you buy the beginning game you are more or less limited to the pre-made characters that come with the game and the first adventure, you can however download a second adventure from FF Games web site. To address the folks whining about there not being enough use of the force or Jedis in this game, you don't have a leg to stand on. FF Games is CLEARLY developing this gaming system to mirror to the original films. The first film being largely set in the gritty outer rim worlds with rouge type characters where there was limited emphasis on the use of the force. When the force was used in the film it was used to to create or turn a specific plot point to great effect, just as it is used in this game (remember we didn't even see the force used to levitate an item until the Empire Strikes Back!). Also, FF Games is very upfront about exactly what this game is about, the gritty, smuggler, bounty hunter, assassin type characters that occupy the underbelly of the Star Wars universe, not the force and Jedi character development, for that you need to wait until the next two installments are released. The next two editions of this game promise to bring the force more and more into play, with the final installation revolving around the creation of very force sensitive characters and leading up to Jedi hero type characters, exactly as the films did. As for the writing and production values of the game / book, you would be very hard pressed to find a better illustrated, or more thoroughly thought out book (and game system), the information contained within the book really helps flesh out characters and campaigns while it remains very true to the Star War universe and gritty theme of this installment of the game. The art direction is flawless, it is beautifully illustrated without being overly decorated and visually cluttered. The lay-out it done with thoughtful consideration given to the overall color scheme as well as readability. At 440 pages it is a whopper but without being overly daunting or too heady. It is a joy to both look at and read. The dice system is simple yet flexible enough to resolve any situation that may arise in the adventure. The emphasis is on good narrative game play and keeping the action moving without getting bogged down in numbers, modifiers, look-up tables and other such minutia that can stall an RPG and cause the players to loose interest. For those of you whining about the cost of the dice, it's part of the game, suck it up and buy a set... they cost around $12.00 bucks, buy two, after a brief time the symbols become second nature and add to the flavor of the game. If you study the brief history of role playing games from the 70's to the present, this game represents a clear leap forward in the evolution of the genre. Yes, I know the dice system was copied largely from the Warhammer RPG, but FF Games created that, they can recycle any part of it they feel appropriate. The system works and works well, it's quick and easy and most importantly of all it advances the narrative quickly and without a lot of hassle. In summation, if you enjoy RPGs and are not so obsessed by all the minutia, rules and dice tables (you know who you are) then you will enjoy this game immensely, if you are uneasy, start with the beginner boxed set.

Disclaimer: while I am currently playing this game, so far our adventures have been limited in scope and there are large sections of the game system with which I am not familiar. It is possible or even probably that there are large or small balance issues that I have not yet encountered, so understand that my review does not cover the integrity of every aspect of the game system. With that said, I'm very happy with this book. I've been a fan of FFG for a while, starting with their WH40K lines, because of their inventive systems, their deep and varied character creation options, and their high production values, including interesting and generally error-free fluff text, good and consistent art and a quality physical product. All of these remain true here; this is an attractive, entertaining package that's as enjoyable to read as to play. The dice system (using a set of proprietary dice that must be bought separately, although there are online apps and rules for converting normal dice if you so choose) strikes a nice balance between being clear and informative while also being open-ended enough to let the GM make encounters more interesting that shoot-miss-swing-hit. The existing content gives players and GMs multiple options for races, settings and scenarios, with more coming in expansion books, but can easily be applied to any aspect of the Star Wars canon (circa original trilogy) that you prefer. This was a great buy for me, especially given that Amazon is $20 dollars cheaper than I could have found it elsewhere. I'm enjoying the game, but I do have a few reservations. The proprietary dice are bothersome, since you need either to shell out extra or go with one of the other workarounds. There's a definite learning curve; each action can involve five or more steps just in determining what dice are to be rolled, let alone what the outcome is. This also presents a dangers for GMs and players to get bogged down in minutia; if you're interested in playing EotE, be watchful for this. And finally, it's not that surprising, given how unique and creative the rule system is, but there are definitely spots in the rules that could have used another editing pass to clarify exactly what the writers meant. Usually it's possible to figure out through a judicious application of common sense, and failing that, the GM can easily houserule whatever is unclear, but it's still an occasional issue. Fortunately, in the past FFG has been good about supplying errata to fix rule-changing typos, unclear passages and even sometimes fixing major imbalance issues. Final judgement? Good stuff. If you're a SW fan and are into roleplaying, I really can't think of a better way to do it.

I held off writing a review until my group had a chance to play the game for a while. Having waited, here are my impressions: 1. The book itself is beautiful. The artwork is really nice, the book is well organized, and the pages, covers, and binding feel like they are really well put together. 2. The game system is fun and fast. I don't know how well it would work for a non Star Wars game (or space opera style), but it really captures the Star Wars feel. I've played all of the versions of the Star Wars RPG's over the years, from the first edition of West End Games to the Star Wars SAGA rules, and I like this system the best. My players have been really surprised at how much the game captures the feel of the movies (original trilogy). Part of it is the setting, to be sure, but also, the dice system has a certain feel to it when playing. You can succeed, and still have something minor go wrong. Or you can fail, and still pick up on some advantage you can use later. We have 5 PC's in our group, and with the skill tree system, we don't really have much skill "overlap". For the first time in I don't know how many years, I haven't had players try to figure out what the group "needs", they are just playing what they want. This system puts story and character ahead of dice rolls and complicated rules. That's what really gives it the "Star Wars" feel. 3. The dice. I thought this would be the biggest hurdle with my group. We are almost all long time gamers, and really, who wants to buy yet MORE dice for their game? We each have about 5 pounds of d6 dice for Shadowrun, a full set of dice for D&D, Storyteller dice (regular system AND Exalted dice). But Fantasy Flight Games did something really cool here-they made their own app for iOS and Android, at a reasonable price, for the specialty dice the game uses. I recommend buying the app for $4 vs a dice set for $14, plus, since the company actually made the app, it works the way it should. The app has options to factor out opposing successes and failures, and gives the player the net total. It really speeds up the game. The book is worth the price. But let's face it, I've read some of the other reviews, and if you're in love with one of the previous versions of the Star Wars RPG, they I would suggest playing what you like, that's the point of a RPG in the first place-fun. If you haven't quite found a system you're happy with, or you are just curious, I would recommend you buy this book. I think you'll really like it.

First of all, let me say I am a casual RPG (Roll Playing Gamer) and not overly serious about what D&D rule set is best, etc etc.... however; I have played 4 other systems in the RPG world. I have even played lots of computer generated RPGs online as well. When I heard about this game I was curious. I attended a board gaming convention and got to try this. I was pleasantly surprised and enjoyed the experience more than I thought I would. I find myself preferring more games that are simplified and cutting out too much "fluff". Star Wars Edge of the Empire by Fantasy Flight is much like this. It cuts to the core mechanics and focuses on story telling and imagination. Many people will not like this game due to it's simplified game play or pure imagination (like when we were kids). One thing that this game benefits from is having so much entertainment in the Star Wars universe with movies, TV shows, computer games, etc etc... helps the players see these scenes in their heads. QUALITY: The book is a hard covered book with thick pages. There are lots and lots of pages of information with thick glossy images of the Star Wars universe inside almost every page. The pages have a strong smell of thick ink that they used to produce the images in this book. ART/GRAPHIC DESIGN: Out of all the books I have seen in the RPG gaming world, this has got to be one of the most stunningly beautiful books on the market. Fantasy Flight is known for it's quality art, and the company always seems to get amazingly talented artist to produce work for their games. This book simply is a triumph (in terms of art and graphic design). LITERATURE: I do also enjoy reading it. Although I do have to say, the authors do get a little "wordy" at times, and I wish they would get to the point quicker and with less words. Telling me I can alter the rules so they won't hinder the campaign's story isn't a new concept and these parts of the book could of been withheld. But these are really minor "quibbles". AIDS: I do wish the book had more aids, especially for the beginner players. For example, the Star Wars Galaxy Map is very good. Fantasy Flight has produced a box set for beginners... a simpler version of the rules and game elements you can purchase before this, but in my opinion that is a money grab and not really needed. Having more charts and examples inside the book really would help the newer people. OVERALL: What a book! As I said before, on the whole, it is a masterpiece of art... and just beautifully constructed. Aside from my minor problems with this, it was well worth the asking price from Fantasy Flight. If you have not tried this "Edge of the Empire" RPG, please try it.... it's especially good with beginner RPG-ers. (Maybe try it on Roll20.net.)

A stellar game that goes a long way toward mechanically facilitating roleplay at the tables. Combines the mechanical crunchiness and lavish production of a big-name company with the sensibilities of all those weird little indie tabletop games you've been hearing about lately. The custom dice are a WONDER for adding intricate narrative to even the most mundane of rolls — though I strongly recommend downloading the $5 dice app to save the sometimes slow process of interpreting roll results. If you plan on GMing, I strongly recommending hunting down Oggdude's GMing suite of software, which makes the process a breeze. One of the best software solutions for a tabletop RPG I've ever used, and I can't imagine running EotE without it now. About the only complaint I have regarding the game itself is the arbitrary number of rule-exceptions throughout the book...every rule has some weapon, ability, or perk that mitigates or alters it, and just about every weapon, ability, or perk functions in a mechanically-unique way, which can create a lot of rulebook-flipping if you don't have all the information right in front of you. If ever there was a game improved by copious cheat-sheets and homebrew rule hacks, this is it. I'm also not too crazy about the way FFG has splintered various content across multiple modules and rulebooks (what is this, a Steve Jackson game?) but that's not in any way to argue that EotE is not a feature-complete game. It absolutely is, and it's a joy to play, and the familiar license is both honored by, and improves, the game tremendously.

It's holding together fairly well after carrying it around in my backpack a bit this summer. It's a HUGE book, so it's not going to look brand new for long. (That kind of thing never bothers me, though. The mark of a real rpg book is drink stains, tears, and scribbled notes in the margins.) The artwork is absolutely GORGEOUS. It really enhances the "Star Wars" vibe and makes you eager to play. There's a nice variety in the artwork too (not just humans) so it's great for letting new players flip through to find character ideas. My biggest complaint is the price. I paid $60 for it. $60 for a full game system isn't too bad, but you have to buy special dice for the game. (Not included.) And then there's a lot of other cool classes and stuff that are locked away in other books that contain a lot of the same information available in this book, and there's no way to purchase just the information you're missing. Even ignoring all the expansions, getting the "full game" is going to be around $200 just for the main rulebooks and some dice. But with all the beautiful full-page art, I guess I can understand the price tag. And you certainly don't have to purchase the other books. All you really need is this one and some dice (or even a dice app) and you're good to go.

Let me get this out of the way: I LOVE this system. It really captures a sense of grittiness that we saw in A New Hope and does well to create a cinematic experience and with the narrative dice system it creates very dynamic interactions and battles. Another plus is that this book is all inclusive: Players guide, GM Guide, and the monster manual all in one. Presentation: The presentation here is pretty slick. Rules are explained in a straight forward manner, the art is evocative of the original trilogy, everything is in full color, and things are laid out logically. I really don't have any complaints here. Contents: The book is broken down in the following manner: -How to play the game -Character Creation -Gear and Equipment -Conflict and combat -Vehicles (space combat anyone?) -The Force (this is not a big component of this part of the game system, look for Force and Destiny to release in 2015 if you want to play a Jedi) -Game Master -Setting -Adversaries I'm not going to get into the minutiae of the game, there are several long form reviews and actual play videos/podcasts that can do that for you. But I do want to highlight a couple things. 1) The Narrative Dice System and the games focus on narrative. This game is designed for story creation. This isn't a binary d20 system where you either meet the required roll or fail. The non-traditional dice that you need to play this game add a ton to the experience. The dice break down into two sets of results: Success/Failure and Advantage/Disadvantage. This is a game were external factors in each roll contribute dice to an overall pool. Upon rolling Success/Failures and Advantage/Disadvantages cancel each other until you're left a net result from each set. You can fail and still gain the advantage, or succeed and still find yourself in dire straits. What does this look like in the game? Well, because you're narrating your actions, you can try some pretty wild things. One player wants to toss a bottle of alcohol for you to shoot and rain fire down on your enemies? Sure try it. Let's suppose your roll fails with a significant advantage. Maybe you fail to shoot the bottle but hit an extinguisher on the wall that explodes and creates a smoke screen like effect for a turn or two. Maybe you succeed with a disadvantage? You shoot the bottle and its flaming contents miss the intended target, but ignite the carpet and begins to spread towards you at an alarming rate. The point is that there's a lot of room for things to happen that you wouldn't have in a traditional roll for success/failure system. 2) My biggest complaint is the skill tree system. Characters essentially fill a career archetype and that can feel somewhat rail-roady or forced. I think that can be solved with house ruling, but it does feel pretty balanced in the end - you aren't going to become an all powerful god like you would in D&D. You are very much mortal and skills play into it just a bit. So, to conclude this, if you have an interest in Star Wars and in Roleplaying Games, give this a shot. Pick up the core rules if you want to really play, or grab the beginner box if you want to just dip your toes in the water. I think you'll find it a great experience.

This is an RPG game like Dungeons and Dragons but in the Star Wars universe. There are three core books, Edge of the Empire, Age of Rebellion, and Force and Destiny. but you really only need one book to play the game. The books are hardcover and have in-depth information and incredible artwork. Unfortunately at the time of this review, June 2020, the company has gone out of business. Hopefully, someone will pick up the mantle and continue, until then May the force be with you.

Relive the life of a smuggler, underdog and so forth in this huge role-playing tome.

Con este libro ya tengo, casi, los materiales completos para narrra aventuras en las fronteras imperiales de Star Wars. Primero el Beginner Game, luego conseguí la pantalla y ahora ya tengo el core.

Ich bin langjähriger Star Wars Rollenspieler. Schon allein unsere letzte Kampagne beschäftigte uns rund fünf Jahre und führte meine Spielergruppe von einem Ende der Galaxis zum anderen. Wir haben die Saga Edition gespielt. Nach mehreren Abstechern in andere Welten und Spiele sind wir kürzlich zu Star Wars zurückgekehrt - diesmal mit Edge of the Empire. Und nach anfänglichen Umgewöhnungsschwierigkeiten haben wir mit dem System sehr viel Freude. Die Klassen und Talentbäume sind sehr abwechslungsreich und motivieren zum Spielen und das narrative Würfelsystem entpuppte sich als Volltreffer. Ich liebe es, das nun jeder Wurf, ob erfolgreich oder nicht, positive oder negative Nebeneffekte haben kann. Das macht das Spiel enorm spannend, es fügt dem Würfelwurf eine weitere Dimension hinzu. Selbst Routinewürfe kitzeln so die Nerven und es kommt zu unverhofften Situationen und Szenen, die das ganze Geschehen aufmischen und für viel Abwechslung sorgen. Allerdings braucht man zunächst eine gewisse Eingewöhnungszeit, da die Würfel keine Zahlen, sondern Symbole zeigen. Außerdem muss man lernen, die Symbole im Kontext der Spielszene zu deuten. Aber auch hier macht Übung den Meister. Wir haben den Dreh nach einer Handvoll Spielrunden raus gehabt. Zwar dauert es hier immer noch etwas länger als in anderen Systemen beispielsweise einen Kampf auszuspielen, aber es wird nie langweilig. Lohnt es sich? Ganz klar: Ja! Edge of the Empire ist großartig und wird uns sicherlich auch die 5 Jahre beschäftigen ;)

Chi cerca immediatezza, molta narrazione, la possibilità di essere creativi e improvvisare con un sistema a dadi tematici fertilissimo di opportunità, nell'universo di Star Wars, troverà in questo gioco un potente alleato! ;) Il manuale è chiaro e corredato da illustrazioni stupefacenti sia di personaggi e situazioni originali che di qualche ritratto dei personaggi della trilogia classica, si legge volentieri e si impara a giocare subito, non è un manuale eccessivamente tecnico o contorto, il sistema stesso è lineare e punta alla giocabilità e al divertimento di esperti o neofiti senza distinzione. Le opportunità di gioco si declinano nel tradizionale "impegno individuale" del personaggio (in questo caso di "canaglia": dal contrabbandiere al meccanico fuori legge, al medico di frontiera, all'hacker, al cacciatore di taglie per citare alcune carriere/specializzazioni) all'interno di un gruppo alle prese con negoziati, esplorazioni, combattimenti, e nel ruolo di personale d'equipaggio della Base delle Operazioni del gruppo, tipicamente una nave che il gruppo riceve fin da subito come parte di creazione dei pg. Va detto che la creazione di un pg richiede non più di una decina di minuti di orologio tra scelta di razza, carriera, specializzazione e personalizzazione nella spesa di punti esperienza ricevuti in partenza per acquisire gradi in abilità, talenti e soprattutto incrementare le caratteristiche di partenza. Le battaglie, sia spaziali che a terra, sono altamente cinematiche, ricche di imprevisti e possibilità di gestire le risorse che i dadi conferiscono a sorpresa, ma è nello spazio che il gruppo di personaggi può sperimentare secondo me qualcosa di nuovo rispetto ad altri giochi: ognuno assegnato a una funzione (pilota, artigliere, co-pilota, tecnico...) e impegnato a gestire la propria parte di "crisi" in caso di conflitto (dal guadagnare vantaggio rispetto agli avversari, all'occuparsi dei danni ai sistemi, al riassegnare gli scudi, alla scansione delle navi nemiche a scopo tattico, alla programmazione del navicomputer...) il tutto supportato da un sistema solido, ma semplice e intuitivo. I dadi tematici, che riportano simboli e non numeri, consegnano risultati "sfumati": successi e fallimenti non solo possono essere di varia "intensità", ma essere screziati di vantaggi o svantaggi che si possono configurare in modi sempre diversi e nuovi (oltre quelli presentati) secondo l'immaginazione dei giocatori e del GM. La parte ruolistica è stimolata da Obblighi e Motivazioni, concetti che riprendono un po' le tematiche personali dei personaggi dei film: debiti, giuramenti, promesse...i giocatori si trovano stimolati a dar vita a quella parte di perosnalità e background del personaggio che ho visto raramente espressa in termini di meccaniche in modo così efficace ma semplice. In conclusione, il gioco mira ad essere semplice e non tediare con tecnicismi e pretese simulazionistiche pur restando secondo me molto solido e divertente; perfetto per la cinematica di Star Wars, per l'improvvisazione e la narrazione. Avventuroso e giocoso a più non posso! Per i fan de L'Unico Anello, l'edizione Mentzer di D&D e un idea di gioco di ruolo "vecchia scuola" che premi lo slancio e la creatività. m.