Well... I liked the old Wireframe Productions/Chameleon Eclectic version better, but I also gather that I am in a small minority. (And what I liked seems to be the part that others didn't...)

The system is D20, but they twiddled the hit points way down, a few shots (or a good critical) can put a character down. While the main rulebook is expensive they are coming out with a 'Pocket' version at $20 or so.

Space combat is not vector based. (Again, I like vector based combat, but a lot of people don't.) There is also a miniatures space combat available. Plastics are planned for the ships, but are not available yet.

And they are very definitely giving the game support - they had more out in the first year than EC had in the entire run. So far I have seen Earthforce, Minbari, Centauri, Narn, Technomages, Psi Corp, League of Non Alligned Worlds, and the Season Guides. They also have regular support in Mongoose's magazine Signs and Portents.

And rule #1 still stands... Don't Piss Off The Minbari.

The Auld Grump

*EDIT* Oh yeah, I forgot to say... I think that the game is very good, but not great. It is certainly worth taking a serious look at.

If you want magic i would say go with Either Dragonstar (A game i have raided to get SW stuff, take the magic out and smugglers run source book is pretty handy for doing Fringe Campaigns). It really incorparates Magic and Space, and does a really good job i think of putting D&D in space. Which SW is not, there are a decent number of source books out there for it, and from what i read it is not a bad campaing universe, the biggest problem is FFG doesn't really support it anymore.

D20 future and Modern can also work pretty nicely, you will have to do more work making your own campaing world, but there are a few source books for campaingns out there i forget the names but i know i have seen them. And they are even putting out a post Apoc book i think in a few months, it may help or have ideas.

Old Alternity could actually work i have been raiding that too for SW stuff the systems are Close and it would take some conversion but it could be done.

Me using FL for SW

I'm actually wondering if WWG will no do Sci-Fi adventures, in a universe generic way....

One REALLY cheap fix to D20 (D&D) HP system is as follows:

Your HP = CON value

Thus, average char has 10 HP. A dagger stab won't kill you, but a critical dagger stab from a strong guy will.

This would yield a deadly game, where getting hit can easily mean getting killed.

You would want high AC's to simulate the stormtroopers can't hit effect, but when they do, it hurts.

In D&D, you'd want to nerf or remove any healing spells, to simplify the change in HP scale.

Granted, I don't play this way, but if you wanted to use d20, with a minimal of modifications, I'd try the above.

Janx

Unearthed Arcana (I think) has a variant system similar to that. HP = Con, and old HP = Vitality (or something like that). Basically, its like the old Hero system with STUN and BODY. Most damage does Stun, but some damage (critical hits always) does Body instead. Body < 0 means you're dead or dying.

Its not a bad system, but the D20 damage system (and AC system) goes hand in hand with its HP system, so changing one affects the other ... and then that affects class balances, and then it gets squirrelly.

That is some what similar to the SW system, and something open in Unearthed Arcana. your Con = WP Wound points. Your HP = Vitality Points. VP are done by class level, etc, but your WP unless you take the Toughness feat is your Con, if you take Toughness you get +3 to WP.

A Crit goes to WP, so a crit can kill you, normal hits whittle away VP untill you run out and then start to take WP damage. Only Heroic classes have VP, the bulk of things don't have VP. Armor provides DR damage reduction to WP, Stormtrooper armor is DR5. So a good blaster hit will kill you, but oddly a dagger will totaly bounce off in most cases, the way armor should protect against weak attacks stoping it, and only a powetfull hit will get through. in SW and this VP/WP system you tend to get hit more often becuase Armor does nothing to your Def/AC, it just prevents damage.

you must have posted as i started writting

Hit Points in B5: You start with a single D6 plus a modifier, based on class. You then gain one, two, or three hit points per level. Soldiers start with the highest, with 1D6+6, and gain 3 hitpoints per level. You roll the initial die rather than assuming the maximum points.

Constitution does not add hit points, but rather increases your chance to stabilise after going to negative HP. The standard EA PPG does 2D8 damage... As you can see it is very easy to drop to negative hit points. A con modifier of +5 allows a 50% chance to stabilise, while a -1 or less only allows a 5% chance.

Characters also add their Con modifiers to all Medical checks on them.

There are no Action Points, Hero Points, what have you.

The Auld Grump, yeah, you can get dead pretty fast from a PPG...

*EDIT* As an example Commander Sinclair has 22 Hp at 8th level, while Lieutenant Commander Ivanova has 18 at 6th.

Ha! I knew it was you!

Hmm.... as for minis, there are a few options, depending on exactly what kind of setting you want.

There are the collectible Star Wars dudes, of course, but I hate those damn collectible things; I much prefer to buy what I need/want. Looks like you can probably pick up commons en masse off of eBay, though, for cheap.

Games Workshop Warhammer 40,000 may be a source of some usable models, too. They're pricey, but some of them are really nice.

Urban Mammoth (formerly I-Kore) has a line that's similar to GW's, but there are some different and unique models. They're a bit cheaper, too. Check out www.urbanmammoth.com for more.

Of course, it would be nifty if Denny would throw out a line of standees, too. On that note, I really like Pinnacle's triangular format for those more than the simple, two-sided sandwich fold kind.