HEROES IN STARSHIPS

A hero in a starship fills one of several possible roles, which determines what the character can do.

Commander: A ship's commander makes decisions about tactics and issues orders to the crew. The commander can help another crewmember by taking an aid another action. The commander must be located on the starship's command deck to do so.

Aiding another crewmember is a move action. A starship can only have one commander, and ships under Colossal size tend not to have a commander at all.

Pilot: The pilot of a starship controls its movement. Most starships have only one position from which the starship can be piloted. Piloting a starship is always at least a move action, which means that the pilot may be able to do something else with her attack action each round. On smaller ships such as fighters, the pilot also serves as the gunner. A starship can have only one pilot at a time.

Copilot: The copilot can help the pilot on Pilot checks by taking an aid another action. The copilot must be located somewhere on the ship from where he can see the starship's surroundings and advise the pilot (usually the command deck or cockpit). Aiding the pilot is a move action, leaving the copilot with an attack action each round to do something else. A copilot may also serve as a gunner or sensor operator if he can access one of the starship's weapon systems or the ship's sensors from his station. A starship can have only one copilot at a time.

Gunner: A gunner controls one of the ship's weapon systems, applying her ranged attack bonus and Dexterity modifier to the attack rolls. A ship with multiple weapon systems can have multiple gunners.

Sensor Operator: Although the copilot usually operates the sensors, some ships (particularly heavy and superheavy ships) have a dedicated crew position for a sensor operator. A sensor operator can take an aid another action either to help the pilot with Pilot checks, or to help a gunner with attack rolls. Either is a move action, leaving the sensor operator with an attack action each round to do something else. A starship can have as many sensor operators as

it has different sensor systems (see Starship Sensors).

Engineer: A starship's engineer keeps the ship in working order. If a system has failed for any reason, it is usually up to the engineer to get that system working again. An engineer can attempt a Repair check to fix minor problems as a full round action. A starship can have one engineer, plus one additional engineer each for the ship's life support, sensors (and communications), and defensive systems.

Passenger: All other personnel aboard the starship are considered passengers for purposes of starship combat. Passengers have no specific role in the starship's operation, but they help repel boarders or take other actions.