A Star Wars High Republic RPG Would Have Huge Opportunity KOTOR Didn’t
The Star Wars franchise is experiencing a substantial period of growth. Following the achievement of Disney+’s The Mandalorian, several new TV projects are declared that occur in precisely the exact same time period between the conclusion of Episode 6 and also the beginning of Episode 7. But, another new region of the franchise, the brand new set of comics and books set during the High Republic, takes fans back into the galaxy’s remote past.
The last was a successful setting for Star Wars RPGs because the earliest Knights of the Old Republic Published in 2003, providing the storytellers enough liberty to tell their own story in a world with widely recognized factions and characteristics. The Knights of the Old Republic games were, unsurprisingly, place during the age of the Old Republic. But a new RPG place at the time of this Republic could have one enormous storytelling chance that Knights of the Old Republic didn’t.
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Jedi Rule
The High Republic existed approximately 200 years prior to the events of A Brand New Hope. Knights of the Old Republic, On the other hand, was place 4000 years before the first trilogy. This may imply a game set during The Republic could have less storytelling versatility due to its closer proximity to the principal series. But, there is one huge difference that could make it possible for a High Republic RPG to actually shine.
The High Republic is a Period of Jedi dominance throughout the galaxy, together with the orderable to create temples at the Outer Rim that are long abandoned by the time Luke Skywalker leaves Tatooine. It hasn’t yet been made clear just how many Sith you will find throughout this period (from the older continuity, this could fall in the age of the Rule of 2 ) or whether the Sith will nevertheless have a substantial part to play in some of these tales of this High Republic. For the time being, but the High Republic reveals what the galaxy could be like below Jedi’s controller, which will be finally perfect for the majority of characters from the most important Star Wars sagas.
This has the potential to explore more moral grays than Star Wars’ classic Light Side versus Dark Side dynamic. What does it mean for an ostensibly “good” religious order to spread out over the known universe, intervening in local politics and building their own temples to spread their religion on other species’ homeworlds? How do some of the Jedi ideas about morality negatively affect people when they have the chance to apply them on a galaxy-wide scale? Why is it that time and time again, people have turned back to the Sith and the Dark Side in the Star Wars universe, especially after experiencing the High Republic era?
With the premise that the High Republic could explore more complicated moral quandaries than Sith vs. Jedi, there are reasons this could be particularly exciting for an RPG. Part of the success of The Mandalorian has been its focus on the main character who operates slightly outside of the class Light/Dark binary. This was especially true at the start of the series, though it has taken a more traditional route since then. Players in a High Republic RPG would have the opportunity to create far more morally complicated and developing characters than the settings of previous Star Wars RPGs have encouraged.
Star Wars has always had its overarching battle between Light and Dark, but the opportunity to play an individual character who exists far below the stakes of that multi-millennia-long conflict could make a High Republic RPG one of the most interesting Star Wars stories to date. What remains to be seen is if Disney will allow further Star Wars RPGs, and if so, which developer will be brought on to bring them to life.
