[FFG] Can a melee character be viable?

[Kiero]

Scenario is this: my group has just started an Edge of the Empire game (they had the chargen session tonight), and I've been out for a while on "paternity leave". I'm musing on asking to jump back in, but I'm unsure of the system having never played it before. Some of my reading suggests it's all about blasters, which isn't really my idea of fun. No big deal if I don't play, it'll just mean waiting it out for a couple of months or so until the next game in rotation appears.

So before I do so, I'd like to pick your colletive brains about melee characters who don't suck. Both because it's no fun being useless in a fight, and you put the rest of the group at risk if you're a liability. This doesn't need to be hardcore min-maxed, I doubt anyone else is and a character who can only do combat and nothing else won't be very interesting.

The other PCs look to be all shooty; a bird-man big game hunter (and doctor), Wookiee "Indiana Jones", Trandoshan Bounty Hunter, female Han Solo, spider-thing with lots of arms and heavy weapons. So there's a potential niche for a close-in specialist.

Some parameters/questions:
-My character will be human; that's non-negotiable. I only play humans, doesn't matter what the mechanical benefits might be of other species.
-Is the Marauder the obvious choice here?
-Is Brawn 4 a must?
-I'm thinking twin vibroswords or vibroblades - are they viable?
-Is armour any good? Does it sync with melee?
-Do grenades work as a means to close or have something to do at range?
-How difficult is it in the system to close on a shooter opponent?
-Is stealth viable in the system to close?
-What about jetpacks as a means to close?
-I note there's basically no grappling rules, or any means to keep an opponent engaged - does that matter for a melee-ist?

[Bladehate]

From a purely combat perspective, a melee character can be one of the tankiest, deadliest characters on the field in EotE. Granted, its hard to compete with a properly built bounty hunter or assassin with a properly modded auto blaster for pure damage, but a Marauder can be quite a bit tankier. And with throwing weapons and/or grenades of all kinds (stun, smoke, frag, etc), you can have a surprising amount of tactical options that a "normal" character might not consider.

Also, while the Gunnery skill is Agility based...a Brawn based character actually has the strength to carry around a repeating blaster and use it effectively. Most EotE campaigns don't go quite that heavy on the hardware, but its nice to know you have that option. And having a decent skill in Gunnery can help for space combat as well, I believe. As well, I think there are some interesting weapons such as net launchers and harpoon guns that use Gunnery but aren't precisely military hardware.

I haven't really kept track on how the game has developed, so my information is based primarily from the core book and a few half-remembered bits from a splat book here and there.

To address your points:

Human, Brawn 4, Marauder

Human is a perfectly viable choice, although not the optimal choice from a min maxers point of view. But humans are perfectly capable of getting to Brawn 4, and even Brawn 5, which should really be your goal, due to both melee damage AND your damage soak being tied to this single stat. When combined with the soak increasing talents in the Marauder tree it allows you to reach soak amounts that can be quite silly, even naked. Like...soaking blaster pistols with your chest hair silly.

Dual Wield

There's a perfectly viable system in place for dualwielding. You won't always reliably get a second attack at low lvls, but its nice to know it could happen. Vibroaxes are some of the deadliest weapons in the game, and carrying two starts to get pretty heavy. Blades I think are lighter but also deal significantly less damage.

Armor

Armor is of course important, but fairly minor compared to the importance of Brawn and your talents for the purposes of soaking damage. In the early/mid game you're unlikely to find armor that increases your soak by more then 2, whereas Brawn 4 will provide you with 4 points of soak.

Grenades

Grenades are very functional and there are a large variety available. Certain varieties can even be argued to be defensive in nature (stun or smoke), and thus could potentially be brought into places heavier weapons can't go. Also, due to the high soak you carry, dropping a grenade at your feet can actually be a potential tactic.

Closing the distance

This really depends a lot on your campaign and your GM. But most action in EotE is by design intended to be cinematic and personal, and usually as a consequence of some kind of social interaction first...which usually translates into close range. In my estimation, it will be pretty rare for you to be more then a turn or two away from some kind of an opponent.

Stealth

Outside of an unusual species or some kind of cloak tech, I do not think stealth is the best option for closing the distance, for the same reason I pointed out above. Its a bit hard to sneak down a corridor full of blaster bolts, as happens constantly in the movies in my opinion.

This is doubly true if you go the tank route, as avoiding being seen is a bit counter to that role. If you really want to go Stealth, I would probably take a look at the Assassin career path in the Bounty Hunter career.

Your mileage may vary, of course, and is very dependent on your GM and how they design their encounters.

Jetpacks

Jetpacks are expensive, and by design intended to be something a starting character has to make some sort of sacrifice for (in the form of Obligation) in order to obtain at character creation. I don't recall the rules except that it turns you into a small, super agile vehicle with the requisite piloting skill requirement. So they are absolutely awesome...but also require significant investment to mkae use of.

Grappling/control

Its a fairly cinematic game, so they dispense with a lot of crunch that you might see in other RPGs. That doesn't mean you can't do them however...it just means you talk with your GM, explain what you want to do, and settle on a fair solution. This will usually take the form of additional difficulty dice, or requiring you to roll a certain number of Advantages, depending on circumstance and GM benevolence.

Weapon mods are also a thing, and I think the option to put a hooks, shock packs or similar device on melee weapons exists...which allows you to convert rolled advantages into knockdowns or stuns.

I hope this has been helpful!

[caden_varn]

I certainly hope so, as I am about to play a melee based bounty hunter/assassin. From my experience GMing the system I think it should be fine - while none of my players have gone much for melee, melee opponents have been reasonably effective.

Re. Brawn - it is important to remember that you have few opportunities to raise stats after character generation. It depends a bit whether the game is going to be a one-shot or the start of a campaign, but I would agree Bladehate that getting to 4 at character generation is a good plan. I wouldn't say it is vital, but a good plan for all the reasons they listed.

[Kiero]

From a purely combat perspective, a melee character can be one of the tankiest, deadliest characters on the field in EotE. Granted, its hard to compete with a properly built bounty hunter or assassin with a properly modded auto blaster for pure damage, but a Marauder can be quite a bit tankier. And with throwing weapons and/or grenades of all kinds (stun, smoke, frag, etc), you can have a surprising amount of tactical options that a "normal" character might not consider.

Also, while the Gunnery skill is Agility based...a Brawn based character actually has the strength to carry around a repeating blaster and use it effectively. Most EotE campaigns don't go quite that heavy on the hardware, but its nice to know you have that option. And having a decent skill in Gunnery can help for space combat as well, I believe. As well, I think there are some interesting weapons such as net launchers and harpoon guns that use Gunnery but aren't precisely military hardware.

I haven't really kept track on how the game has developed, so my information is based primarily from the core book and a few half-remembered bits from a splat book here and there.

OK, that's good to know. I've seen a lot of the usual online hyperbole about how rubbish melee is compared to ranged, and there are obvious reasons for that, especially in a sci-fi setting. But it's also one in which melee weapons still exist, even for non-Jedi.

To address your points:

Human, Brawn 4, Marauder

Human is a perfectly viable choice, although not the optimal choice from a min maxers point of view. But humans are perfectly capable of getting to Brawn 4, and even Brawn 5, which should really be your goal, due to both melee damage AND your damage soak being tied to this single stat. When combined with the soak increasing talents in the Marauder tree it allows you to reach soak amounts that can be quite silly, even naked. Like...soaking blaster pistols with your chest hair silly.

Got it, so Brawn 4 is a must. Which is the more important starting Talent(s) for a Marauder on a limited point budget - durability or damage-dealing? Lethal Blows goes next to Knockdown, whereas Toughened goes to Feral Strength. I doubt I'd have more than 15 (or even that much) to spend at the start.

I'm thinking Agility 3 is the other thing I need, but that would mean leaving everything else at 2. Or is it Willpower I need, for initiative and Strain?

Dual Wield

There's a perfectly viable system in place for dualwielding. You won't always reliably get a second attack at low lvls, but its nice to know it could happen. Vibroaxes are some of the deadliest weapons in the game, and carrying two starts to get pretty heavy. Blades I think are lighter but also deal significantly less damage.

I'm not wedded to dual wielding, does it have any meaningful advantages at low levels? If you're not doing it, is a vibroaxe basically the only choice for a melee-ist? Is a single vibrosword just suboptimal?

Armor

Armor is of course important, but fairly minor compared to the importance of Brawn and your talents for the purposes of soaking damage. In the early/mid game you're unlikely to find armor that increases your soak by more then 2, whereas Brawn 4 will provide you with 4 points of soak.

Still for someone who isn't going to be shooting at the opposition, armour is vital isn't it? What sorts are available for starting characters (in terms of cost, primarily)? Am I basically looking at Armoured Clothing or Padded Armour?

Does heavier armour impair mobility?

Grenades

Grenades are very functional and there are a large variety available. Certain varieties can even be argued to be defensive in nature (stun or smoke), and thus could potentially be brought into places heavier weapons can't go. Also, due to the high soak you carry, dropping a grenade at your feet can actually be a potential tactic.

These sound like a must to me; they use Ranged - Light; how good does that need to be to drop grenades reliably into enemies? Surely that's less difficult than throwing knives at them?

Closing the distance

This really depends a lot on your campaign and your GM. But most action in EotE is by design intended to be cinematic and personal, and usually as a consequence of some kind of social interaction first...which usually translates into close range. In my estimation, it will be pretty rare for you to be more then a turn or two away from some kind of an opponent.

Stealth

Outside of an unusual species or some kind of cloak tech, I do not think stealth is the best option for closing the distance, for the same reason I pointed out above. Its a bit hard to sneak down a corridor full of blaster bolts, as happens constantly in the movies in my opinion.

This is doubly true if you go the tank route, as avoiding being seen is a bit counter to that role. If you really want to go Stealth, I would probably take a look at the Assassin career path in the Bounty Hunter career.

Your mileage may vary, of course, and is very dependent on your GM and how they design their encounters.

Jetpacks

Jetpacks are expensive, and by design intended to be something a starting character has to make some sort of sacrifice for (in the form of Obligation) in order to obtain at character creation. I don't recall the rules except that it turns you into a small, super agile vehicle with the requisite piloting skill requirement. So they are absolutely awesome...but also require significant investment to mkae use of.

I think the tank route is the more appealing, so Stealth isn't really worthwhile as a combat option. I'm tempted to keep it for non-combat utility - though not if there are other skills which are more essential.

Significant investment rules out jetpacks; requiring both a lot of money and a sideline in skills is too much for this game.

Grappling/control

Its a fairly cinematic game, so they dispense with a lot of crunch that you might see in other RPGs. That doesn't mean you can't do them however...it just means you talk with your GM, explain what you want to do, and settle on a fair solution. This will usually take the form of additional difficulty dice, or requiring you to roll a certain number of Advantages, depending on circumstance and GM benevolence.

Weapon mods are also a thing, and I think the option to put a hooks, shock packs or similar device on melee weapons exists...which allows you to convert rolled advantages into knockdowns or stuns.

Got it.

I hope this has been helpful!

It has, thanks.

I certainly hope so, as I am about to play a melee based bounty hunter/assassin. From my experience GMing the system I think it should be fine - while none of my players have gone much for melee, melee opponents have been reasonably effective.

Re. Brawn - it is important to remember that you have few opportunities to raise stats after character generation. It depends a bit whether the game is going to be a one-shot or the start of a campaign, but I would agree Bladehate that getting to 4 at character generation is a good plan. I wouldn't say it is vital, but a good plan for all the reasons they listed.

It's not a one-shot, but this is a "break game", one we play in-between our main game to give the primary GM a rest. So I would expect 8-12 sessions, at most stretching to 20.

So I think the advice from both of you to get Brawn 4 at chargen is sound, since that probably isn't long enough to do anything about having a subpar primary stat.

[Kiero]

Oh well, no more room at the inn, so no need in the end. Game is full at 5 players...