A scenario for Star Wars D6 where players learn that their actions have real and immediate consequences, and that it’s not always the Empire who are the bad guys.1
Original Title: Un Probleme de Boulons From: Backstab Magazine Issue #07
Original Text: Philippe Tessier Illustrations: Greg Cervall Player Aids: Thibaud Béghin
Translator random notes: I've used footnotes to mark things where appropriate.
This scenario can be played at any point in the Star Wars timeline. The player characters can act on behalf of the New Republic, the Alliance, or they could also be tramp freighter pilots who arrive here out of dumb luck.
The Player Characters arrive on Paloma one fine morning. Paloma city is quite visually similar to Mos Eisley. Barely will they have disembarked when two local enforcement droids, known as Procurators, will come to meet them.
They’re accompanied by a third droid, an observer unit who will introduce themselves as Scylla.
Observer droids are responsible for accompanying offworlders throughout their stay, informing them about the planet's laws, and keeping track of the total amount of their fines. They will have to pay these before leaving the planet.
As soon as the introductions are made, the two Procurators will move away, and Scylla will be able to explain the penal code to them, which is completely incomprehensible. The heroes will have to try to limit the damage by committing as few offenses as possible. Small firearms are allowed in the city, but their use is prohibited. The droids love to test people!
After their arrival, it is advisable for the gamemaster to let the adventurers wander around to discover the city. They will notice that there are few security droids in the streets. People are relaxed and smiling. They are particularly welcoming to strangers. In fact, they greatly appreciate visitors since, thanks to the fines that they pay, the inhabitants of the city are not taxed at all.
🔳 Observer Droid A-2 Scylla
Cybot Galactica A-2 Contractual Droid
Dexterity 4D Dodge 8D
Knowledge 4D Bureaucracy: Paloma 8D, Law Enforcement 6D, Languages 8D
Mechanical 1D
Perception 3D Investigation 6D, Bargain 4D, Persuasion 4D, Search 1D
Strength 1D
Technical 1D
Move: 11
Equipment: Spherical body equipped with a repulsor system, visual and auditory sensors, audio/holographic recorder, vocabulator module containing over a million languages.
Quote: "Alert. You have violated Law 124 AB624, Paloma Code 45. Your fine is 200 credits. Your total fines amount to 45,000 credits due at the end of the month."
Paloma is a small planet located on the edge of known space, near the Kathol sector. It has no apparent strategic importance and possesses no valuable resources. The only major city on Paloma is called Paloma City, and 75% of the population is human while the rest are made up of various alien species. Approximately half of the people who come to Paloma are native to the planet, while others were forced to relocate there after losing everything due to the planet's laws. The area around the capitol is an hilly jungle region2 inhabited by dangerous creatures that prowl the region.
The planet is terrestrial and has a hot temperature. Its day lasts 22 standard hours, and its year is 359 local days. The planet is home to various intelligent races, including humans. Paloma has a standard astroport, and its estimated population is 40,000 people. The planet's main function is commerce, and it is governed by a council. Its level of technology is space, and its main exports are components for droids while its main imports are high-tech goods.
When touring the town, the characters will eventually meet Locos Mar. He was an agent of the Imperial Security Bureau (ISB). Unfortunately for him, he has accumulated so much debt that the Procurators have confiscated all his belongings. For several years, he has been living in the city like a vagabond, trying to find a way to contact the Empire or convince someone to take him away from this crazy world.
Note: If the scenario is played after the fall of the Empire, Locos is not aware of the fall of the Empire, and will be very surprised to learn about it!
Locos is not a bad person, he is a basic agent with only one obsession: to return home. He will stick to the adventurers like a little dog and help them as best he can. But be careful, if betraying the PCs can allow him to leave the planet, he will not hesitate for a second. Moreover, if he can serve the Empire by arresting a band of rebels while being sure to be able to leave Paloma, he will do it.
🔳 Locos Mar
Imperial ISB Agent
Dexterity 3D Blaster 4D, Dodge 5D, Melee Parry 4D
Knowledge 3D Value 3D+1, Law Enforcement 4D, Languages 4D, Alien Races 4D
Mechanical 2D Communications 3D
Perception 4D Sneak 7D, Hide 5D, Con 8D, Forgery 6D, Interrogation 6D, Gambling 5D, Persuasion 5D+2, Search 6D
Strength 2D Brawling 3D+2, Climbing/Jumping 4D
Technical 4D Demolitions 4D, First Aid 4D+2, Computer Programming/Repair 4D, Security 6D
Equipment: Ragged street clothes3
Quote: "They impounded my ship because I urinated on a wall. Pathetic. You won't find a cleaner place than that."
After the adventurers have visited the city and made acquaintances with Locos and the Procurators, they will inevitably come back to the cantina. That's where things will get tougher.
Indeed, a group of passing pirates has just landed on Paloma. The ruffians have a hard time accepting the presence of their Observer droid that accompanies them everywhere. Once they arrive at the cantina, one of the pirates will start provoking customers (including the heroes).
The pirates’ Observer Droid will signal several infractions to the pirates, and the thugs will lose patience and destroy the small droid. The pirates will then start a real brawl that will end with blaster shots. The pirates, when they see additional Procurator droids arrive, will try to flee to reach the hangar and their shuttle, shooting at everything that moves.
There are fourteen in the cantina. The clients will try above all to hide. Locos will try to help the player characters even if he's a very cowardly character. The cantina owner (Zrothar, a well-spoken Gammorrean) will also defend his establishment .
🔳 Typical Pirate
All stats 2D+1, except: Knowledge 1D+2, Blaster 3D+1, Dodge 3D+1, Brawling 2D+2, Gambling 3D. Blaster pistol (4D), comlink, and blast vest (+1D physical/+1 energy).4
Once the battle in the cantina is over, whether the pirates managed to escape or not, the adventurers will be surprised to hear their Observer droid listing all the things they destroyed during the fight, and they will be fined heavily for using weapons in the city. The total amount of the fine is quite significant, and any negotiation with the droid is futile.
It is at this point that some pirates, who stayed aboard their ship in orbit, will organize a retaliatory raid against the city. Two Z-95 Headhunter fighters will strafe Paloma with ion cannon blasts.
If the players somehow convince the Procurators to allow them to intervene, they might be able to use their ship to fight against the pirate vessels. One player will be required to stay on the planet as a safeguard. The players might reduce their fines by 20% if they do this, assuming no other damage is done to the city. If the player characters do not intervene, the pirates will make a few passes over the city before leaving.
The governing body of the planet is composed of shareholders of the Fibra-Bot corporation, which produces components for droids. The government has long entrusted the responsibility of maintaining law to the Procurators, which is composed entirely of droids. The planet has built an extremely complex legal code that only the droids can fully understand.
The law applies more particularly to the offworlders passing through Paloma; the droids are much more lenient with the local inhabitants.
Upon visiting, one will soon realize that any minor infraction, no matter how insignificant, can result in a significant penalty, and in cases where payment is not possible, may even require unpaid labor in the factory. It also often happens that the droids decide to confiscate an individual's ship who is unable to pay his fines.
Paloma is therefore a calm city. Strangers are easily identifiable, whether because they are accompanied by an Observer droid, or they hang out in bars looking for a kind soul who will take them away from this planet, their belongings having been confiscated. A small consolation comes when Procurators have seized all the possessions of an individual or have sentenced him to work at the Fibra Bot factory – they become local citizens and no longer are followed by an Observer droid.
Many have decided to leave the world after spending years trying to pay off their debts.
The gamemaster is encouraged to invent all the laws they can, especially if they are obscure and contradict each other. In any case, only the Procurators understand their logic. At the beginning of the adventure, the instructions for the laws are only sanctioned by fines; things will get worse later on.
- Runways and Hangar Bays - These are the locations where the players ship might land. There are also ten other locations around the city for starships to land. Each hangar is guarded by two Procurator droids. More droid guards can show up if things go wrong.
- Fibra-Bot Factory - This is where most of the components for droids are made. The workers are mostly formerly offworlders who have accumulated debt and have been sentenced to work to pay it off. The factory is guarded by eight Procurators.
- Droid Governor’s Office - It is from this building that the droid governor manages the Contractual Legal Force and the city. It is described in Act 6.
- Cantina - This is the meeting place for all the inhabitants of the city and the largest cantina in Paloma. Droids rarely set foot there. The owner, Zrothar, is a slightly more intelligent Gamorrean who fled his fellow beings to avoid being despised and ridiculed by them. He hates droids but enjoys life on the planet. The heroes can count on his help when things get rough.
- Sle’s Hotel - The Fungus is a small hotel completely run by a woman named Sle. She is a particularly sly merchant who will use any tricks to extract a few extra credits from the players.
- Ban’s Hardware - This hardware store is run by Ban Loso, a fifty-year-old human who knows the city like the back of his hand. He can get almost any merchandise, but for weapons, he can only obtain blaster gas, melee weapons, and blaster pistols. He keeps some grenades, protective vests, and four thermal detonators in stock. If the players can convince him, he can provide them with this equipment when things go wrong.
- Mechanic’s shop - Val Kimlrest is a brilliant mechanic and droid specialist who is constantly protected by a Procurator. However, he is a prisoner of this planet. Indeed, the droids refuse to let him leave because he is the only one who can repair the machines that break down. He can be very useful to the heroes at the end of this adventure, to repair the Governor. The droids are desperately looking for qualified individuals in machine repair. If a player shows particular talent in this area, there is a good chance that they will be noticed by the Procurators…
- Impound Lot - Vol Green is a 98-year-old man who was born on this world and knows it particularly well. He is not very sociable and finds it deplorable that it is the droids who police the planet. He constantly criticizes their actions and calls them all kinds of names. The players can find Vol in prison, and Vol can give them the location of the Impound lot, where all confiscated ships and equipment are stored.
- Speeder Rental - You can find almost any type of speeder in this hangar, and you can rent or buy them.
- The Elders - This group of six old men wander around the city and love to make fun of newcomers. They laugh in advance at what will happen to them. They are fervent defenders of the droid law and even when things turn bad, they will find any pretext to justify their actions. They will not hesitate to denounce people unnecessarily. You can find them absolutely anywhere, sitting on a bench and making fun of everyone who passes by.
- The Prisons - (See Act 6)
The attack of the pirates has hit the tower that houses the Governor droid, seriously disrupting its functions. As a result, the Governor becomes immediately paranoid and sensitive. The Procurator droids, being directly linked to the Governor, will have the same personality traits. The attack has caused damage to the elevator, machinery, control room, cameras, lasers, thermal detectors, and power cells in the Governor's tower.
The heroes will begin to discover the attitude of the Procurators changing. They become paranoid, suspicious, check everyone's identity, impose fines on anyone, for anything, etc. Access to hangars is prohibited, and the guard is reinforced with eight Procurator droids. Worse, technician droids begin to dismantle all offworlder ships for security.
Gradually, the city is transformed into a high-security prison. The Observer droids, more intelligent than the Procurators, are not affected by this change. They remain as petty as ever and even start imposing fines on the Procurators.
The gamemaster must give the players enough time to witness the progression of the problem until the moment when the droids really snap.
🔳 Typical Procurator Security Droid
All stats 1D, except: Dexterity 3D, Blaster 7D, Running 4D, Dodge 8D.
Move: 11
Height: 1.6m
Equipment: Humanoid form, armored chassis (+2D physical and energy), built-in blaster rifle (5D, 5-30/100/200).
Quote: "HALT!"
When the Procurator security droids try to arrest dewbacks because they do not have any ID or shoot at Womp rats because the tiny creatures cannot respond to their queries, things really start to take a strange turn. The Procurators become completely crazy. They arrest anyone who wanders the streets and actively search for any character who has fines to pay. Those who refuse to comply are dragged to prison after being stunned by the droids. Some Procurators begin to set their weapons to lethal settings.
The player characters will be among those actively sought by the Procurators, and the gamemaster is encouraged to send as many droids as they want after the players until it no longer becomes fun. They are also encouraged to organize a chase scene through Paloma city.
If the heroes are arrested, they will be thrown into prison. They can also try to flee by returning to their ship, but they will quickly discover that it is nothing more than a disassembled wreck. Finally, they can try to directly attack the heart of the problem: the Governor droid.
The heroes can also try to flee into the surrounding country, but without food and water, they will not last long. They will also be prey to the terrible creatures that live in the hills. The Observer droid assigned to them is still with the characters, but they will be strangely silent. Indeed, not understanding what is happening anymore, Scylla will simply report the heroes' offenses, but without any conviction. Eventually, the Procurators fire upon Scylla, and lock them up with the players, if they are captured.
If the adventurers are arrested, they will be thrown into prison. Paloma's cells are located in building 11. They are small rooms of 4 meters by 4 meters designed for two people, with a reinforced door equipped with an electronic lock. The twelve cells are located in the basement.
Two Procurators stand guard on the ground floor. When the heroes are arrested, the gamemaster can take the opportunity to have them meet gamemaster characters such as the hardware store owner or the old Vol Green.
Getting out of there won't be easy! All the prisoners' equipment is confiscated and thrown haphazardly into a container on the ground floor. However, the droids will only take visible equipment or weapons. If a PC hides a mini-blaster or small tools on their person, the Procurators won't bother to search them. If the adventurers have no idea how to escape, the GM can use the Imperial spy or old Vol to help them. These two characters may have equipment on them. The PCs can also try to play on the incredible sensitivity of the droids. By insulting or mocking them, they may provoke the machines enough for one of them to come down to correct the heroes. It will then be up to them to find a way to neutralize it.
All problems stem from the severely damaged Governor droid caused by the pirate attack. 0PA, (Oh-pee-ay) the planetary droid governor, has fallen into madness. Being only an electronic brain connected to the nervous center that manages the city's security services, he has decided to build himself a body and become the absolute master of Paloma. His objective is to force the entire population to work in the factory, increase exports, and attract more and more people to Paloma to make them his slaves in a perfect society run by machines. As soon as he finished his body, 0PA set his mind to creating extremely powerful combat droids5. The heroes would be well advised to stop him before these war machines become operational.
To put an end to this madness, the heroes must succeed in entering the central building, neutralizing 0PA, and either reprogramming or destroying him. They will have to face many challenges and obstacles along the way, but if they succeed, they will have saved Paloma and its people from the grip of a power-hungry droid.
The players can come up with various strategies to save the day. If they can disable 0PA without destroying it, normalcy can eventually resume and the ships in the hangars can be rebuilt by droid labor. If 0PA is destroyed completely, all the other droids will shut down too.
0PA is not yet autonomous and his body needs energy. He is therefore connected to power cables. If the generator is shut down, 0PA and the other droids will remain active for another two hours, during which they will do everything to eliminate the players and restore power. In addition, the heroes will have to finish the adventure in the dark.
0PA's tower has become a real fortress, with the Governor convinced that the entire galaxy is conspiring against him. It is a 12-story structure with 7 underground levels. Only the plans for the ground floor, level 7, and 0PA's lair (at level 12) are included in this adventure. The gamemaster is free to detail the other levels if they wish. If the heroes have access to a terminal, they can try to get the plans with an Easy Programming/Computer Repair roll.
To disable the cameras or other defense systems, a Difficult Security roll must be made for each of the four systems on each floor. But beware, 0PA may notice this quickly and reactivate everything automatically. The gammaster can make Very Difficult Security rolls for 0PA every minute. As soon as he succeeds, the droid realizes the situation and restarts everything.
- Heat detectors: they detect heat sources if biologics pass near them. Requires a Moderate Sneak roll to pass without triggering them.
- Automatic laser projectors: Some detectors are equipped with lasers (usually heat detectors, as the building is supposed to house only droids). If a target is located, they open fire: Blaster 4D, Damage: 4D. (Fire-rate: 2)
- Photocells: as soon as someone cuts them, the building's computer checks that access to the room is authorized. They are easy to detect with an Easy Security roll.
- Cameras/holocams: they are only there to scare the PCs. The cameras have not been working since the pirate attack.
Enclosure:
The enclosure wall to the governor’s tower is 6 meters high. It is protected by cameras (out of service) and razor wire. The main gate to the inner courtyard is often open to allow droids to come and go. Two Procurators patrol the area.
The building can be accessed either through the main entrance or through a secret door, or through the hangar. Vehicles carrying spare parts frequently go to the hangar to unload their equipment. This is certainly one of the best ways to enter.
Ground Floor:
The entrance hall is guarded by two Procurators. A droid is on duty in front of the elevator, another is near the service door. The elevator is guarded by two Procurators. There are several service droids in the room.
Basement:
The basement consists of huge assembly lines to assemble all the advanced combat droids that 0PA is producing. The main generator is located on the lowest level and is guarded by two Procurators.
🔳 Droid Governor 0PA (when in body)
Rampant Management Droid
Dexterity 3D Blaster 6D, Running 4D, Dodge 6D, Brawling Parry 4D
Knowledge 4D Alien Species 4D, Bureaucracy 8D, Law Enforcement 12D, Tactics 8D
Mechanical 1D
Perception 1D Command 5D
Strength 1D Brawling 5D
TECHNICAL 4D Droid Programming 10D, Computer Programming/Repair 8D, Droid Repair 6D, Security 8D
Move: 11
Height: 2m
Equipment: Humanoid form, multiple retractable manipulator arms, motion sensors (+2D to search for moving objects within 100 meters), armored casing (+2D to Strength to resist damage), two built-in blaster rifles (5D, 5-30/100/200).
Quote: "POWER TO THE DROIDS!"
When the players have defeated the Droid Governor, they will be able to discover the vast cemetery of confiscated ships that the Procurators have collected over the years. The Alliance/New Republic will surely be pleased to get their hands on such a treasure. As for what the Imperial agent will do, it is up to the gamemaster to decide later. Are they a new ally? Or perhaps an undercover spy…
Footnotes
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I came up with the scenario blurb above to match the first translated scenario, “Heads I Win, Tails you Lose!” ↩
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I also changed Paloma City to be located in a hilly jungle region – Star Wars doesn’t need another desert planet. ↩
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In the French version, Locos has a Blaster Pistol (4D), a comlink, and 100 credits. However, to support his "living on the street", I removed all belongings so he couldn't just use the credits or comlink to call the Empire for rescue. ↩
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I made the typical pirate one pip better in all stats in order to save on several lines of skills which were all at 2D+1. ↩
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There are no stats provided for the “extremely powerful combat droids” mentioned in Act 7, but I’m sure a crafty gamemaster can come up with something if needed. ↩