The Star Wars role-playing game tends to be one of my favorite gaming systems for numerous reasons. First and foremost is the fact that it is easier to visualize people, places and things due to its basis on the Holy Trilogy. There is a lot of background material to base adventures on, whether it be directly from the movies or the numerous publications that have come afterwards.

Second, it is an easy and flexible game system to use. It relies primarily on skills for character development, allowing players to custom-tailor their characters to their personal desires. If you want to play a smuggler, X-Wing pilot, Wookie, Jedi, it's your call. All you have to do is pick the necessary skills.

Our current adventuring party is a Rebel Special Ops team called "The Naughty Banthas". They are wanted in too many star systems to count and any one of them would bring in a hefty reward to the bountyhunter brave (or stupid) enough to try and bring them in. Their tactics in battle usually involve a great deal of collateral destruction and name-calling. They are as follows....

Bageefromm: our Wookie smuggler. Bagee tends to be rather mellow for a Wookie, kinda like a hippie. His fur is a shaggy brown, with a few too many scorch marks. He wears a few dreadlocks around his head and a bandana. His ship is a Z-10 Seeker dubbed "The Flurry Eagle". Bagee has recently been freed from an overwhelming debt, thanks to the Bloated One's unexpected demise. Bagee was present as an auxiliary member of Grey Squadron, serving as a small gunship during the Battle of Endor.

Calandro Bladesemmer: the resident fop and rogue. Calandro has been christened "Our Fearless Leader" for his cowardly tactics in battle. He wears his brown hair in a ponytail and dresses in the finest clothes (with a preference for silk). He usually carries a customized blaster pistol and a vibro-rapier with him at all times. The foppish rogue is now a slave of the criminal organization Black Sun, as part of a deal to free his friends. Calandro flew with his fellow A-Wing pilots in Blue Squadron for the Battle of Endor.

Cordelia Ashkevron: a snooty, female Jedi-in-training, she detests Calandro and idolizes Nek (for now). She talks in a British accent, which often confuses people into thinking she's an Imperial. She fights with a brass-handled lightsaber that she hasn't quite got the hang of yet. Cordellia has recently fallen to the Dark Side, and must now struggle to return to the Light or be forever lost. Cordelia was captured and brought aboard the Death Star, but managed to escape before the Rebel's final assault. She is currently taking the news of her former master and colleagues death quite hard.

D1K-3PO: Nek's protocol droid, D1K (as he is known by his friends) has been disassembled, blown apart and literally torn limb from limb too many times to count. Because of this, his bronze metal body is a patchwork of mismatched limbs and components. His head module for instance, is a clam-shaped unit with two tiny pinpricks for eyes staring out (reminiscent of a Jawa). D1K's programming is equally erratic. He could easily be considered the personal nemesis of Calandro Bladesemmer, whom he has been ordered to always address as "Mistress Catherine", and attempts to set his pants on fire whenever possible. He also possesses an odd fascination with flushing the toilet on the Flurry when in space. D1K is currently in the possession of Cordelia since the demise of his former master Nek Skandit.

Nek Skandit: the brooding fallen Jedi. Nek is a tall, older fellow who dresses primarily in blacks and greys. He borders on the Dark Side, and could be best described by calling him a Grey Jedi. His weapons of choice is his lightsaber with it's wooden-hilt cover, and a type of explosive plant bulb affectionately dubbed "coconuts". The elder member recently returned to the Light, after having fallen to the Dark Side as well, greatly weakened by the ordeal. Nek Skandit was mortally wounded in his escape attempt during the Battle of Endor, and died while piloting himself and Cordelia to safety. He will be sorely missed.

Roon Maori: the newest member of the Naughty Banthas, Roon joined the group shortly after the Battle of Endor. A shadier individual, it remains to be seen what sort of contribution he will make to the team, though according to rumours he sucks at driving, so he obviously won't be serving as chauffeur.

Torgoth: our Wookie fighter pilot. Torgoth is a grey shaggy brute who borders on being a psychopath. He dresses in a red flight suit with an assortment of stormtrooper armor bits attached. He flies a Y-Wing, as that is the only starfighter big enough to comfortably hold a Wookie. Torgoth is currently recovering from a near-death experience in the belly of a Krayt Dragon. Torgoth served as the Squadron Commander for Grey Squadron during the Battle of Endor, and was instrumental in leading several counterattacks.

As of May of '99, we have started up a second Star Wars campaign based on the timeline presented in Episode 1 "The Phantom Menace". These characters are fairly new, and as such are relatively weak (compared to their counterparts, the "Naughty Banthas") However, I include their stats as a means to measure the characters' progress.

Erik Farseer, a snippy Shadow Jedi Padawan. Makes a pass at anything with a pulse. Reknowned for cutting his own rope.

Keriath Bladesemmer, an elder Jedi Padawan Healer, who is really too old to be hanging around so many young 'uns.

Kitu Bharati, a Horansi xeno-archealogist, with a bit of a catty temperment and a knack for being the most graceful faller of the group.

Kyoto Zeriam, pilot of the courier ship "The Gentle Breeze" and a secretive lady bountyhunter, who prefers to watch battles while eating popcorn rather than participate.

Veruka Verken, a female Twi'lek Jedi Padawan learning to become a Battle-Master. Tends to overestimate her abilites and get into loads of trouble. Has something against droid tanks and charges them at every opportunity.