Below are descriptions of the different classifications of hazards. This list is not meant to be exhaustive and some hazards may be of more than one type, though that is not common. Some hazards belong to more than one group given their nature.
Aquatic Hazards
Adventures in environments such as the homeworlds of species like the Mon Calamari or underwater cities like those of the Gungans provide opportunities for exciting aquatic scenes. You can use the following hazards to add a new dimension of danger to those watery environs.
Arctic Hazards
The first scenes of The Empire Strikes Back show the Rebellion’s remote base on the ice planet of Hoth. The heroes have to deal with plummeting temperatures, avoid wandering wampas, and keep their tauntauns alive in the untamed arctic wilderness. Along the way, the Rebels encounter a number of other hazards in their efforts to keep their presence hidden. This section presents some of the dangers that might be encountered by heroes in an arctic environment. The extreme cold hazard presented earlier is also suitable for this environment.
Arid/Desert Hazards
The sites of desert worlds such as Tatooine are familiar to us; the Star Wars movies depict Mos Eisley, Mos Espa, the Lars homestead, and other locales. Of course, those landmarks do not represent everything that can be found on arid planets. A variety of desert hazards pose a danger to heroes who must travel through regions of dry wilderness, including the extreme heat hazard presented earlier in this chapter.
Atmospheric Hazards
Atmospheric hazards cannot be avoided, although gear can sometimes protect a character from them. Atmospheric hazards are not considered area effects.
Disease
Diseases are viruses and other organisms that attack the immune systems of living creatures. disease hazards always attack the Fortitude Defense of a target, ignoring equipment bonuses to a target’s Fortitude Defense, damage reduction, and shield rating. They cause persistent conditions if they move a target down the condition track. The persistent condition cannot be removed until the disease is cured, or until the disease fails its attack roll against a target twice. Unlike other hazards, some diseases may require special equipment or medicine to treat. Diseases affect only living creatures; droids and vehicles are immune. Airborne diseases are considered atmospheric hazards.
Elemental Hazards
Elemental hazards can be almost anything that doesn’t fit into another hazard group. Many hazards listed in other groups could easily be considered elemental hazards as well.
Falling Objects & Crushing Hazards
Falling object hazards include both the target object or creature falling (such as off a building or cliff) and objects falling onto the target.
Some hazards, such as hydraulic walls or doors, can deal continual crushing damage to anyone or anything trapped inside. Crushing hazards require no attack roll as long as the target is completely encompassed by the hazard.
Forest/Jungle Hazards
Regardless of the world, forests and jungles teem with many different kinds of life, from the smallest furry rodents to beasts as large as rancors. Hazardous elements force the residents of these ecosystems to struggle for survival. The hazards presented below represent only a sample of what might be found in the forests and jungles the heroes visit.
Indoor/Urban Hazards
Even in areas where sentient beings have conquered nature and built cities, heroes are not entirely safe from harm. These bastions of civilization, with all the facilities and services they offer, bring a whole new set of hazards that make urban settings as dangerous as any wild region. The sample hazards below can be used with any number of artificial structures. Some are meant to be encountered outdoors, whereas others are more appropriate inside buildings.
Poison
In Attack of the Clones, Zam Wesell attmpts to assassinate Senator Padmé Amidala using poisonous centipedelike creatures called kouhuns. Later, Zam herself is slain by a poisoned Kamino saberdart. In The Phantom Menace, the Neimoidian (species)s pump poisonous gas into the conference room of their Trade Federation battleship in a vain attempt to dispatch Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Poison hazards are toxins that can be ingested, inhaled, or contracted though contact. They always attack the Fortitude Defense of a target, ignoring equipment bonuses to Fortitude Defense, damage reduction, and shield rating. They cause persistent conditions if they move you down the condition track. The persistent condition cannot be removed until the poison is cured or until the poison fails its attack roll against you once. Contact poisons can be applied to weapons; when a poisoned weapon damages the target, the poison then makes its attack against the target’s Fortitude Defense.
A creature that dies from poison damage can be revived. However, reviving a reature doesn’t remove the poison from its system; the poison must be treated separately.
A character wearing a functional breath mask is immune to inhaled poisons, including toxic gases and atmospheres. Poisons affect only living creatures; droids and vehicles are immune.
Space Hazards
Star Wars would not be the same without the events that take place in space, such as the Battle of Yavin or the chase through the asteroid field in The Empire Strikes Back. Even though most of space is void of substance, areas exist that can be hazardous to vessels and their occupants. For most of the space hazards described below, the damage dealt has a ×2 multiplier for starfighters and space transports. For capital ships, change the damage multiplier to ×5.
Subterranean Hazards
Of all the different environments one can visit in the Star Wars setting, perhaps none hold as much mystery and wonder as subterranean locations. The closest we come to seeing a society that lives underground is the one found on Utapau in Revenge of the Sith. Although we catch only a glimpse of their civilization, we know that much more exists beneath the surface of that world, including many dangers that come with a massive network of caves and tunnels. The hazards described below can also be used on other planets, such as Ryloth or Sullust.
Swamp Hazards
All types of creatures reside in swamps, from the smallest insects to the largest predators stalking the murky wetlands. On marsh worlds such as Dagobah, the ecosystem is so diverse that it is impossible to catalog every species of flora and fauna. Each day, plants and creatures struggle against the many dangers that the marshes hold. The hazards presented below are only a small sampling of what might be found in a swamp.
Traps & Security Systems
Military bases, criminal hideouts, and other facilities often have security systems in place to deter intruders. The Detention Black of the Death Star is an example of a location laden with traps designed to halt unauthorized incursions.