A Preview of the New Droids, Vehicles, and Gear in Far Horizons

“You got a lot of carbon scoring here. It looks like you boys have seen a lot of action.”
    –Luke Skywalker

Once upon a time, a young farm boy from Tatooine cleaned a droid, caused it to play a recorded message, and triggered a series of events that would reshape the galaxy…

When your destiny calls, there’s no place you can go to escape it – not even a desert planet at the far edge of the known universe. Even when the Colonists of Star Wars®: Edge of the Empire™ travel to the far ends of the galaxy in order to establish new homes and new lives, their pasts have a nasty habit of catching up with them. Outstanding obligations lead to adventure. And since your adventures can take you anywhere, it pays to be prepared.

At the edge of the Empire, even routine shipments may run afoul of pirates.

In the Colonist sourcebook, Far Horizons, you’ll find a wealth of new droids, vehicles, starships, weapons, and gear that any character can use. However, since most of these items are designed to help tame even the wildest and most dangerous environments, the game’s Colonists should find them especially appealing.

Droids

It was Luke Skywalker’s interaction with a pair of droids that first led him down a path that would eventually take him off of Tatooine, past the destruction of the Death Star, and to the ultimate triumph of the Rebel Alliance over the evil Galactic Empire. To say, then, that there’s a tremendous potential for adventure within the handful of new droids presented in Far Horizons is a bit of an understatement.

Perhaps even more so than in other areas of the galaxy, droids in the Outer Rim are essential to the day-to-day functions of civilized society. In a region where so many systems remain uncharted and unknown dangers can reside in even the most welcoming paradise, droids help make life easier and safer for their organic masters, colleagues, and friends. Accordingly, Far Horizons features a sampling of speciality droids common to the Outer Rim, including the AC Law Enforcement Droid, which is a relatively new entry to the field of police automata.

Nearly two meters tall, the broad-shouldered AC Series LE droid possesses an average intelligence and a stern, imposing disposition. It is programmed for both standard police duties as well as fast-response riot control, and it is covered in imposing plate armor with only a single red, horizontal photoreceptor band serving as any hint of facial features. These droids aren’t for everyone, though. Even as they’re becoming the standard for police droids at the edge of the galaxy, civilians tend to despise them.

Vehicles and Starships

It is a commonly held belief that the various worlds of the Outer Rim is where old vehicles go to die. Indeed, the region’s inhabitants work hard to keep a great number of speeders and groundcars alive and functional long after they would have been scrapped in the more civilized, affluent areas of the galaxy.

After all, no amount of preparation, innate skill, or specialty equipment can make a difference in an endeavor if an individual and his equipment can’t get where they need to go, and the work performed by colonists’ starships, speeders, and walkers are nearly as important as the work performed by the colonists, themselves.

In Far Horizons, you’ll find a large selection of airspeeders, landspeeders, walkers, wheeled and tracked vehicles, and freighters, any of which may serve more than one purpose in times of need.

For example, the Hunchback construction strider is a lightweight utility walker designed for construction and civil engineering work. Similar to the Republic’s AT-PT, the Hunchback is a bipedal walker with a slab-sided rectangular command pod perched atop a pair of powerful reverse-articulated legs. The Hunchback arm’s carry a wide array of tools such as plasma cutters, saws, welders, drills, compressed air guns, and small, dextrous manipulators for fine work.

While it typically carries no offensive weapons, the Hunchback is sturdy and armored, and desperate colonists may find a way to modify it in order to help defend their homesteads from enemy forces.

Weapons, Armor, and Tools

Typically, Colonists are the characters in Edge of the Empire that are least likely to embrace violence when other means may suffice. However, it would be a mistake to assume Colonists have no need of arms or armor. The truth is that on the fringe of the galaxy, violence (and the need to protect against it) is all too commonplace. Accordingly, Far Horizons presents a wide array of weapons and armor, as well as a range of speciality tools appropriate for Colonists of all specializations.

The Outer Rim can be a dangerous and unforgiving place, but that doesn’t you’ll want to shoot to kill each time a situation devolves to violence. Far Horizons introduces a number of non-lethal weapons, like the Telex-Delcor SWE/2 Sonic Rifle, which may not be as useful in a shoot-out against heavily armed Imperial forces as traditional blasters, but are incredibly useful for a Marshal who wants to ensure that he earns a reputation for his resolve as well as his justice and mercy.

Such a Marshal may also do well to invest in some of the new armor from Far Horizons, or even some reinforced environment gear. Such suits are valuable to Colonists not only because they must often brave strange and hazardous planetary conditions, but because they are more likely to be exposed to airborne toxins and to suffer injuries from falls or unstable environmental formations.

Finally, though they’re the often the last characters you’d expect to load up on weaponry, Colonists often have the greatest need for specialized tools. Performers must have all manner of amplifiers, props, or instruments. Doctors require a great deal of surgical equipment and medical supplies. Even Politicos need remote access to communications, and Traders and Entrepreneurs need business aids.

Far Horizons introduces a diverse array of these materials, which offer benefits for nearly all characters, and since they introduce so many specialized abilities, their inclusion in (or exclusion from) your setting may provide the impetus for a wide range of thrilling adventures.

Can You Tame the Wildest Edges of the Galaxy?

As the Colonist sourcebook for Edge of the Empire, Far Horizons introduces a wide range of new character options and equipment for any character eager to explore and settle the wildest edges of the galaxy.

Meanwhile, it also explores the concept of the Colonist’s homestead and how the Game Master can use a homestead to shape a campaign. Whether or not your campaign features a character with the Colonist career, the homestead is an idea that transcends a single class and can lend an immediate focus and urgency to your campaign. We’ll take a closer look at how Game Masters can make use of the homestead in our next preview of Far Horizons!

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