Starfinder Mech Design Worksheet

Okay, it's rough, but functional: a worksheet to help you design a mech 

Instructions: Start on the "PCs" tab and fill in the level of each party member, as that determines how many points you can spend. Then go over to the other tab and start making choices.

Choices are green fields.
Light Grey fields do calculations for you.

This worksheet will NOT replace knowing how the rules work, and it lacks the capacity to make you follow the rules when designing your mech. But if you know how the design rules function, this should help you keep track of it all till it's done. If you find any serious errors, please let me know and I'll correct them. Otherwise I will probably leave it as is till the non-playtest rules come out.

The Last Starfighter Conversion

The Last Starfighter Conversion

In 1984 the movie industry gave us a groundbreaking scifi story about someone who won an arcade game, and as a result was launched into an interstellar war between a technologically advanced, but pacifistic society, and a much lower tech, but warlike society.

To defend itself the Star League recruited talented people to pilot their Gunstar fighters. Fighters so powerful and dangerous, that the Kodan Armada wouldn’t even consider an invasion unless they were able to destroy every last one of them before the fighting even started. When they found out one of them had survived the sneak attack on the gunstar base, they almost retreated.

So what kind of fighter would it have to be if just one was a serious threat to an armada?

If you examine the fighter craft Paizo have published, they range from tier ¼ to tier 2. So presumably, a fighter that would make an armada afraid would simply have to be much, much higher tier. It also might not really be a fighter. Operated by a pilot and gunner, yes, but using the fighter frame, no. If you watch this movie, at the end you see it land near a multistory motel. This fighter towers over the human structure when landed. It is positively massive… compared to something like a more contemporary x-wing or colonial viper anyway. In addition to that, it carried at least one weapon that could cause major damage to a capital ship, the Carrier of the Kodan Armada. For these reasons, I chose to use an explorer frame when converting this craft, the smallest frame that could mount a heavy weapon.

The next design consideration was the fact that the fighter has spherical coverage from 5 laser weapons. To replicate this, I made use of gyrolasers. However, since we see these weapons one-shotting enemy fighters, I made them the heavier Pulsed Gyrolasers. With one on the front, one on each side, and 2 in the aft, it can point 3-4 of them at any one target, making it extremely dangerous for any fighter craft to get too close. And while they are short range, the gunner can use them at increasingly larger range increments thanks to the state-of-the-art mk 10 duonode computer. As long as this is operating as it did in the movie, against a large number of much lower tier enemies, it should be dangerously lethal.

To combat the capital ship, the gunstar boasted a particle weapon it saved specifically to fire on the carrier. This is represented on my gunstar by a twin-linked Persistent Particle Beam, which can unleash a devastating 20d6 point attack on an enemy ship, enough to make anyone sit up and notice.

But that’s not all…

In the climactic scene of the movie, with overwhelming numbers of fighters closing in, the gunstar activated a hidden prototype system called death blossom, which unleashed so much firepower into the oncoming fighters it simply erased them all from the map. To represent this, I installed 8 heavy laser arrays. Theoretically they would remain behind their panels until needed, and most combat would be with the gyrolasers or particle beam.

Various other features were added based on my observation of certain behaviors in the movie, like the quick ease with which the ship was repaired, the difficulty anything had making passes at the gunstar, or the durability it showed when the opposing capital ship rammed the protagonist in the movie.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this beast of a “fighter.”

Gunstar

T18 Medium Explorer

Speed 12; Maneuverability good (turn 1); Drift 2
AC 36; TL 35
HP 95; DT 0; CT 11
Shields heavy 480 (forward 120, port 120, starboard 120, aft 120)

Attack (Forward) Twinned Persistent Particle Beam (Long 20d6), Pulsed Gyrolaser (Short 3d8 Broadarc)

Attack (Port) Pulsed Gyrolaser (Short 3d8 Broadarc), Heavy Laser Array (Short 6d4 Array), Heavy Laser Array (Short 6d4 Array)

Attack (Starboard) Pulsed Gyrolaser (Short 3d8 Broadarc), Heavy Laser Array (Short 6d4 Array), Heavy Laser Array (Short 6d4 Array)

Attack (Aft) Pulsed Gyrolaser (Short 3d8 Broadarc), Pulsed Gyrolaser (Short 3d8 Broadarc), Heavy Laser Array (Short 6d4 Array)

Attack (Turret) Heavy Laser Array (Short 6d4 Array), Heavy Laser Array (Short 6d4 Array), Heavy Laser Array (Short 6d4 Array)

Power Core 2 Nova Ultra (600 PCU); Drift Engine Signal Booster; Systems Ultra long-range sensors, mk 8 armor, mk 8 defenses, mk 10 Duonode Computer;

Security Systems Biometric Locks, Emergency Accelerator

Expansion Bays Power Core Housing, Ghost Drive

Other Systems Slime Patch System

Driving Off into the Sunset

Driving Off into the Sunset

Any time I talk about driving in an RPG, my min always comes back to Mad Max. Starfinder is no different in that respect. Today’s offering in my line-up of vehicle-based class features covers the mystic. It is partly inspired by Mad Max himself, and partly inspired by the pseudo-religious beliefs of the antagonists of Fury Road.  

Mystic Connection - Shiny and Chrome

Associated Deities - Angradd and Besmara

Associated Skills - Piloting and Acrobatics

Spells - 1st—Remote Operation, 2nd—Make Whole, 3rd—Burning Ash Cloud, 4th—Wall of Fire, 5th—Holographic Terrain, 6th—Shadow Walk

1st - Road Warrior - You gain a circumstance bonus to all skill checks during a vehicle chase equal to +1. This increases by an additional +1 at 3th level and every 3 levels after. As long as you are piloting that vehicle, and it is in a chase, it gains a bonus to its hardness equal to half your level. 

3rd - Realm of Chrome - You are immune to the Flatfooted, Off Balance, and Off Kilter conditions while on the outside of a vehicle. You gain a climb speed equal to your base speed, which is only usable to climb vehicles. When performing a boarding action during a vehicle chase, you count any failure of 5 or more as if it were a failure of 4 or less instead. 

6th - Chrome Rage - If you are driving a vehicle during a vehicle chase, you may spend a standard action to create a hazard for all vehicles in the next zone back to encounter. Make a piloting skill check and compare it to the KAC of each vehicle in the following zone. Each one suffers a hazard of a CR equal to the difference between the numbers. If the number would be negative the hazard is ignored. This hazard only occurs once (until this action is performed again) and you may choose whether it knocks vehicles off course or does damage, but it must do the same to each vehicle it affects. 

9th - Tarnishing Fire - When you deal fire damage to a vehicle with any spell or a weapon that uses petrol, you may ignore an amount of hardness on that vehicle equal to your level. It also does damage to the crew and passengers of the vehicle equal to the damage inflicted on the vehicle's hit points, ignoring even total cover.

12th - Purity of Chrome - When you spend a resolve point and rest to recover stamina points, you may spend an extra resolve point to have your vehicle recover the same number of hit points as the number of stamina points you recover.

15th - Summon Pothole - Any time you damage a vehicle with a weapon that has the explode special property or an instantaneous spell with a burst area that vehicle’s driver must make a piloting check DC 10+half your level+the damage you dealt, or lose control of the vehicle. 

18th - Wrath of the Road Warrior - You may spend 1 resolve point when you damage a vehicle with the broken condition. If you do, that vehicle explodes dealing 1d10 bludgeoning and fire damage per item level of the vehicle to everything within 5 feet of it per item level of the vehicle. If that vehicle is in a chase it affects all vehicles in the same zone as it. This also triggers Summon Pothole.

That's it for this week's entry into vehicle options. I hope you all enjoy it!

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Tyranid Hiveship

Tyranid Hiveship

Tier 16 Gargantuan Biomechanical Carrier

Speed 8; Maneuverability Poor (Piloting --1, Turn 3); Drift 1

AC 30; TL 21

HP 360; DT 10; CT 48

Shields none

Attack (Forward) Massive Ramming Prow (2d4 x 10), Ultra Plasma Cannon (Medium 9d6 x 10 Line), Linked Connecting Tendrils (Short 6d6 Burrowing, Connecting, Mystic)

Attack (Port) 2 x Light Spore Launchers (Medium 14 3d6 Limited Fire 5, Spore)

Attack (Starboard) 2 x Light Spore Launchers (Medium 14 3d6 Limited Fire 5, Spore)

Attack (Turret) 2 x Linked Connecting Tendrils (Short 6d6 Burrowing, Connecting, Mystic)

Power Core 2 x Gateway Light (600 PCU); Drift Engine Signal Basic; Systems Basic Medium-range sensors, Basic computer, mk 8 armor, no defenses

Expansion Bays 2 Hangar bays with 4 Drone Tubes (20 drones carried); 2 Drift Shadow Projectors

Other Systems Algal Shielding, Biocamouflage, Root System, Slime Patch System

Tyranid Hivedrones

Tier 1 Tiny Biomechanical Racer

Speed 8; Maneuverability Perfect (Piloting +2, Turn 0);

AC 20; TL 13

HP 20; DT -; CT 4

Shields None

Attack (Forward) Connecting Tendril (Short 3d6 Burrowing, Connecting, Mystic)

Attack (Turret) 2 x Flak Spore (Special, 2d4, Flak Area, Limited Fire 2)

Power Core Micron Light (50 PCU); Drift Engine -; Systems cut rate sensors, Basic computer, mk 7 armor, mk 1 defenses

Il'Fannor Dal'Yth Tau Merchant Fleet Light Cruiser

Il'Fannor Dal'Yth

Tau Merchant Fleet Light Cruiser

It was originally designed to become the new workhouse of the fledgling Tau Empire, its Gravitic Drive being able to reach a third of normal warp speed. As the Gal'leath proved ineffective as a military vessel against the Orks, the Merchant was heavily redesigned into a cheap and effective (if rather slow) warship that remained the Tau's mainline military ship until the advent of the Lar'shi class. As a cruiser, it lacks the hard-hitting firepower, speed and durability of those of the other major races, but makes up for it by being very cheap and easy to produce.

Tier 16 Huge Bulk Freighter

Speed 4; Maneuverability Poor (Piloting --1, Turn 3); Drift 1

AC 32; TL 31

HP 240; DT 5; CT 32

Shields Heavy 360 (forward 90, port 90, starboard 90, aft 90)

Attack (Forward) Linked particle beam (Long 16d6)

Attack (Port) Railgun (Long 8d4), Light particle Beam (Medium 3d6)

Attack (Starboard Railgun (Long 8d4), Light particle Beam (Medium 3d6)

Attack (Turret) 2 x Linked Coilguns (Long 8d4)

Power Core Nova Ultra, Nova Light (450 PCU total); Drift Engine Signal Basic; Systems Advanced Long-range sensors, crew quarters (luxurious), mk 8 armor, mk 8 defenses, mk 3 tetranode computer;

Security Systems 9 x tier 10 Heavy Antipersonnel Weapons

Expansion Bays 3 cargo holds, 2 vaults, synthesis bay, tech workshop, science lab, park, industry

Nightshade Aeldari Corsair

Nightshade

Aeldari Corsair

Eldar vessels are sleek and fragile-looking, gliding silently on their solar sails. They are blisteringly fast, and in the right circumstances are capable of speeds that far outstrip any other ships of their size. Eldar ships forego the armor that ships of other races use, and instead rely on their speed and Holofields to protect them, while using powerful weapons to tear enemy ships to shreds.

Tier 11 Medium biomechanical explorer

Speed 12; Maneuverability good (turn 1); Drift 1

AC 21; TL 21

HP 75; DT —; CT 11

Shields None

Attack (Forward) 3 x Heavy Solar Cannon (Medium range, 3d6 Sustained 2)

Attack (Turret) 2 x Heavy Aeon Torpedo Launcher (Long Range 12, 6d8 Limited Fire 5, Quantum)

Power Core Nova Ultra (300 PCU); Drift Engine Signal Basic; Sensors Basic long-range sensors; crew quarters (common); Basic computer; No armor, No defenses;

Security Systems:  Cloaking Device, Basic; Holographic Mantle, 6 x Tier 10 Heavy Antipersonnel Weapon Mount

Expansion Bays:  3 cargo holds, Ghost Drive

Other Systems:  Dendritic Interface, Paraforan Resonator mk 3

Index

Yggdrasil Star System

• The Star System
• Muspelheim-closest planet to the sun
• The People
• The Ships and Territory
• The Religion

Starfinder Vehicle Stuff

• Soldier Fighting Style
• Solarian Powers
• Mechanic Custom Vehicle
• Witchwarper, Vanguard, Biohacker, Envoy, and Technomancer Options
• Mystic Connection

Starfinder Megacorp Stuff

• Financial Landscape
• Investments as Rewards

Starfinder Summoning

• Modular Design of the Spell

Character Conversions

• Wall-e for Starfinder
• Venom/Carnage for 5e D&D
• Wild West characters for Starfinder
• Eldar Nightshade Corsair for Starfinder
• Il'Fannor Dal'Yth  Tau Merchant Fleet Light Cruiser
• Tyranid Hiveship with Hivedrones
• The Last Starfighter
• Galaxy Class Starship

Spreadsheet Tools

• Starfinder Starship Design
• Starfinder Mech Design (playtest)
• Starfinder Mechanics Drone
• Starfinder Benchmark Personal Weapon Damage
• Starfinder Polymorph Form Builder