RP and Advancement for Padawans
As has been mentioned elsewhere, there's an overwhelming sense that there's really nothing for Padawans and trainees aboard the Wheel to do outside of threads with a Master. That's obviously a problem, since we have only a handful of active Master-Padawan relationships, even though a few more Knight-class characters have said they're open to receiving a Padawan. Regardless, Padawan characters need to have more options to progress on their own, both as Jedi and as characters.
A big part of the problem is thinking of the Wheel as an isolated tin can in space. Yes, the whole point of it is to go undetected, but there are still opportunities to branch out. Here are a few ideas Jace, Droo, and I have come up with:
- Duel Club - All Padawans can stand to improve their saber skills. With a duel club, we could have one-on-one bouts, group training exercises, tournaments, silly bets, rivalries... Obviously, those who don't have lightsabers would have to make do with the wooden practice swords we've mentioned in the past.
- Ground missions - Even the Wheel has to make landfall from time to time to stock up on supplies. Naturally, we're pretty much limited to neutral and friendly planets, most likely those without the technical means to identify and track us, and we'll have to keep our Jedi status under wraps, but there are all kinds of stories you can tell about Padawans going into town for provisions, searching for information, or just getting out to stretch their legs under a real sky. It's a huuuuge galaxy. There's some room for Star Trek-type planet-of-the-week adventures.
- Rebel training - The Whaladon isn't the only place for training. Padawans could jet over to the Valiant or the Challenger for training with the resident Rebels - as engineers, navigators, soldiers, pilots, what have you. That way, we can get other Rebel characters involved. There was even talk at one point of a Jedi fighter squadron - even if we don't do that, we could have some Jedi characters rotating into a trainee squadron aboard the Challenger.
- Warrior/Investigator training - What if a handful of the knights - say, Solomon, Drin, Tionne, Daria - agreed to take on groups of advanced Padawans who show an interest in one of the specialized Jedi classes? That way we could do some heavy-duty training outside the Master-Padawan relationship, and Padawans could gain the credentials to do more focused missions outside the Wheel.
If the Wheel is stunting storytelling and character development, then it's doing exactly the opposite of what it should be. And the fact is, Master-Padawan relationships are hard to sustain - that doesn't mean we shouldn't try, as they make for some of the best storytelling, but there should be options for Padawans to expand their characters outside that relationship. I feel that, given a strong body of RP commensurate with advancement in any of our other factions, Padawans should have the option of facing the trials for Knighthood based on their training within the Wheel as a whole. That way, nobody's held hostage by a Master who doesn't post as often as they should, or by a dearth of available knights.
Originally Posted by Daria Nytherciria
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