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Methods of detection by creatures and species
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Forceally
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 1:02 am    Post subject: Methods of detection by creatures and species Reply with quote

I know that in the Star Wars universe and RPG, we have creatures and species who have greater vision than humans or have means of detecting others that humans don't have. For example, the Gands can see in the ultraviolet spectrum. And some creatures and species have darkvision - allowing them to see normally in low-light conditions. Do we have any creatures or alien species who have any of the following means of detection:

Echolocation - I think this is akin to the bats' sonar and how they use it to navigate and locate prey.

Thermal vision - being able to see body heat by wearing heat-vision goggles or how the Predator primarily tracks his prey in the first two Predator movies. This is definitely not low-light vision. While I think some creatures have special organs to sense heat, I don't think being able to see in the infrared spectrum naturally has ever been mentioned.

I was going to ask about tremor sense - like how Toph Beifong is able to use earthbending to see in Avatar: The Last Airbender and how the graboids in the Tremor movie series can track their prey - but I just remember those worm creatures on Blenjeel from the Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy computer game try to track Jaden Korr the same way the graboids do.
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Whill
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 2:23 am    Post subject: Re: Methods of detection by creatures and species Reply with quote

Google and Wookieepedia are your friends.

Forceally wrote:
I know that in the Star Wars universe and RPG, we have creatures and species who have greater vision than humans or have means of detecting others that humans don't have. For example, the Gands can see in the ultraviolet spectrum. And some creatures and species have darkvision - allowing them to see normally in low-light conditions. Do we have any creatures or alien species who have any of the following means of detection:

Echolocation - I think this is akin to the bats' sonar and how they use it to navigate and locate prey.

This Google search has results that include several Wookieepedia pages of different species where echolocation is mentioned in the entry: https://www.google.com/search?q=wookieepedia+echolocation

Quote:
Thermal vision - being able to see body heat by wearing heat-vision goggles or how the Predator primarily tracks his prey in the first two Predator movies. This is definitely not low-light vision. While I think some creatures have special organs to sense heat, I don't think being able to see in the infrared spectrum naturally has ever been mentioned.

Several lifeforms are listed here: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Infrared/Legends

Quote:
I was going to ask about tremor sense - like how Toph Beifong is able to use earthbending to see in Avatar: The Last Airbender and how the graboids in the Tremor movie series can track their prey - but I just remember those worm creatures on Blenjeel from the Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy computer game try to track Jaden Korr the same way the graboids do.

The worm creature's entry: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Sand_burrower
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garhkal
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 2:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Back in the late 90s, i did (after seeing tremors), make up a beast, that did both echo location AND tremor sense, but the game i made them for, never happened.. Unfortunatley the notes for that game got lost on the move from bahrain..
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CRMcNeill
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 1:55 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Electrolocation: detecting something by the electrical field its body generates.
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Inquisitor1138
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 2:52 pm    Post subject: Re: Methods of detection by creatures and species Reply with quote

Whill wrote:
Google and Wookieepedia are your friends.

Forceally wrote:
I know that in the Star Wars universe and RPG, we have creatures and species who have greater vision than humans or have means of detecting others that humans don't have. For example, the Gands can see in the ultraviolet spectrum. And some creatures and species have darkvision - allowing them to see normally in low-light conditions. Do we have any creatures or alien species who have any of the following means of detection:

Echolocation - I think this is akin to the bats' sonar and how they use it to navigate and locate prey.

This Google search has results that include several Wookieepedia pages of different species where echolocation is mentioned in the entry: https://www.google.com/search?q=wookieepedia+echolocation

Quote:
Thermal vision - being able to see body heat by wearing heat-vision goggles or how the Predator primarily tracks his prey in the first two Predator movies. This is definitely not low-light vision. While I think some creatures have special organs to sense heat, I don't think being able to see in the infrared spectrum naturally has ever been mentioned.

Several lifeforms are listed here: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Infrared/Legends

Quote:
I was going to ask about tremor sense - like how Toph Beifong is able to use earthbending to see in Avatar: The Last Airbender and how the graboids in the Tremor movie series can track their prey - but I just remember those worm creatures on Blenjeel from the Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy computer game try to track Jaden Korr the same way the graboids do.

The worm creature's entry: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Sand_burrower

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Mamatried
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 3:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Googleocation

is the way shards and other sythetic lifeorms learn and locate the worls round them
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garhkal
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 5:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

CRMcNeill wrote:
Electrolocation: detecting something by the electrical field its body generates.

OOHh.. That gives me an idea for a snake/lizard like monster..
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pakman
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 10:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

And of course the force as well for sensing -

from the Miraluka to other non-jedi force users, and other creatures that I am too lazy to to look up.

(in my game I call them latent force users - who have the sense skill, and with it a limited force based perception).
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Whill
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 10:18 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

CRMcNeill wrote:
Electrolocation: detecting something by the electrical field its body generates.

I adapted a D6 Space species, and my version has electroreception: Mareens. They are basically sentient catfish with barbel-tentacles.
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CRMcNeill
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 10, 2023 10:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Whill wrote:
CRMcNeill wrote:
Electrolocation: detecting something by the electrical field its body generates.

I adapted a D6 Space species, and my version has electroreception: Mareens. They are basically sentient catfish with barbel-tentacles.

There is also a creature in the Movie Trilogy Sourcebook that is basically a bag of gas several kilometers in diameter (native to the atmosphere of a gas giant) that uses electrolocation to sense its surroundings. Iirc, the Gotal operate on a similar method, sensing EM fields.
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garhkal
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 11, 2023 6:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

CRMcNeill wrote:
Whill wrote:
CRMcNeill wrote:
Electrolocation: detecting something by the electrical field its body generates.

I adapted a D6 Space species, and my version has electroreception: Mareens. They are basically sentient catfish with barbel-tentacles.

There is also a creature in the Movie Trilogy Sourcebook that is basically a bag of gas several kilometers in diameter (native to the atmosphere of a gas giant) that uses electrolocation to sense its surroundings. Iirc, the Gotal operate on a similar method, sensing EM fields.


I remember reading on the Gotal, they can have their horns overwhelmed with too much EM/RF...
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Forceally
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 11, 2023 11:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I was curious because I was thinking about creating Force powers for my work The Force Compendium that would grant a Jedi the ability to detect other individuals or creatures via echolocation or tremor sense. Being able to see in the infrared or ultraviolet - that's using shift sense.

Obviously, this would be redundant for those species who have these methods of detection naturally.

I was watching an anime where a protagonist was using the abilities I mentioned to sense what's ahead of him and his friend, and I thought, "Wouldn't it be cool if a human Jedi could use a Force power that would grant him echolocation or tremor sense?" So that's why I created this thread.
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garhkal
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 12, 2023 2:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

How's about make an upgrade to 'shift senses', that gives them either echo location, tremor sense, Or electro-sense, Pre-req IS shift senses...

Say Sense power
Moderate base diff.
If you get +8 over, you gain 2 of those above senses
+16 over is all 3?
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pakman
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 12, 2023 2:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Forceally wrote:
I was curious because I was thinking about creating Force powers for my work The Force Compendium that would grant a Jedi the ability to detect other individuals or creatures via echolocation or tremor sense. Being able to see in the infrared or ultraviolet - that's using shift sense.

Obviously, this would be redundant for those species who have these methods of detection naturally.

I was watching an anime where a protagonist was using the abilities I mentioned to sense what's ahead of him and his friend, and I thought, "Wouldn't it be cool if a human Jedi could use a Force power that would grant him echolocation or tremor sense?" So that's why I created this thread.


Instead of quantifying the physical mechanism (sounds waves, etc.) I just created force ability called "Force Perception".

The idea is that some species like Miraluka have it innately, and situations like when Kanan Jarrus in rebels was able to overcome his blindness.
(or I am sure other situations in comics or books I have not read where force users can perceive things using the force while imparied).


Force Perception – Force Technique
Origin: Sense Skill
Difficulty: Control(1) DL2: Easy, modified by range.
Range: 6-10/12/14/16m- Sense for Search.
Duration: Concentration(1)

Description: This allows a character to use the Force to perceive their immediate environment when their physical senses may otherwise be impaired (blindfolded, hearing loss, etc.).

Mechanics: The Base Difficulty is DL2: Easy, modified by the range the Force user chooses to perceive. This ability also reduces or removes most concealment modifiers, based upon GM discretion for the specific situation.

Success: While active the character can make Sense Checks to simulate any Perception or Search Check where their senses are hindered (darkness, smoke, hearing loss, hidden objects, etc.). These checks gain a +1 per Measure of Success from the Force Perception Activation skill check.

Note: If subjects are 100% concealed, they can still be perceived, but may not be specifically identified.

(this is the format of my force powers in my house rules re-write - so some of the terms might not be familiar).

Some of my key terms in my game
Measure of success*: how much a character beat the difficult of a skill check. If they get one difficulty level over (like rolling well enough to hit a Moderate, when they only needed a Easy) that is +1 Measure of Success.
Difficulty: Skill Name (x) = means use this skill, and X is how many actions the check counts as.
Duration: Concentration(X) = means it counts as X actions to Keep up.


* The measure of success is similar to other house rules people have for measuring HOW successful someone was at a skill. For example, with will's Skill Damage Bonus, for each 5 over the to hit roll, you get +1 pip damage. I just give the concept of "how much over" a proper noun term, so I can reference it in many rules, so each time I don't have to define it.



Anyway, not suggesting you DON"T make an echo location or whatever power - just a thought on simplification.
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KageRyu
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 12, 2023 3:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Echo Location as used by whales, Dolphins, and certain other creatures could fall under the existing Shift Sense power as it involves altered hearing (though the noise emission might require control to alter the vocal chords). For other, more obscure methods of detection:
garhkal wrote:
How's about make an upgrade to 'shift senses', that gives them either echo location, tremor sense, Or electro-sense, Pre-req IS shift senses...

I would second this base Idea. I would probably call and define it slightly differently...like something:

Alternate Sense
Sense Difficulty: ? (suggest at least moderate)
Alter Difficulty: ? (suggest at least moderate)

This power allows the Force User to use alternate means of perception for the world and environment around them - not limited to normal senses. This might include things like sensing tremors or seismic vibrations, detecting changes in local radiation, feeling the changes in air density caused by movement, seeing through alternate subspacial variances, or detecting the minute ripples in the flow of time caused by conscious thought... Successful use of this power might allow a force user to make Search or Perception rolls to detect things that might otherwise be imperceptible or unnoticeable, or gather information that might not normally be obtainable through traditional senses or blocked by environmental factors. This will substantially reduce, or all together remove penalties or difficulty modifiers as appropriate by the sense chosen if the information sought can be detected in such a manner - such as using seismic sensing to detect guards and their patrol routes based on their movements, etc... Perhaps it might even allow a force user to see through another's eyes?
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