Space Pirate (Starfinder Second Edition Archetype)
(art by johnsonting on DeviantArt)
Another chapter of the blog has begun today, for it marks the very first time we’ve covered a Starfinder Second Edition archetype on the blog! And what a fun one it is!
Just as pirates hunted ships across the briney seas of old, so too do space pirates ply the spacelanes, targeting shipping freighters and poorly-defended vessels before slipping back into the cover of asteroid belts and other dangerous cosmic phenomena.
In the Starfinder setting, the most common pirates are the Free Captains, a conglomerate organization of crews and their vessels that are beholden to their own code, but certainly other unaffiliated crews also exist.
Regardless of allegiance, space pirates share both the danger of their occupation but also the romanticism with the pirates of yore. After all, when someone abandons civilization to become a pirate, the only law that they recognize are the ones that they impose of themselves, and there is a sort of honor in that. Of course, this also means that encounters with a pirate can vary between a sort of wild nobility that is as good as their word, and unscrupulous captains that will betray any deal or promise if it means a profit, and freighter crews and the like hope that particular gamble goes in their favor. That being said, such a backbiting scallywag can expect to find themselves targeted if their travels find themselves in more honorable pirate crew territory.
In any case, today’s archetype promises to grant some thematic abilities to those that play the starry sea. Be warned though, some of these abilities definitely reflect a moral compass that might unnerve some, but like all feats, they are optional.
The base dedication for this archetype includes pilot training and familiarity with some traditional weapons of piracy. Additionally, they equip their gear with a holographic projector programmed to project the image of their own ship’s Jolly Roger, aiding in their ability to intimidate others.
Adding insult to injury in a very literal way, many pirates send a verbal jab in the direction of a foe that one of their allies damaged, shaking up their confidence in the process.
Others that prefer heavier weapons instead strike fear with their menancing laughter that remains audible even over the roar of their guns, terrifying even as they suppress their foes.
Rushing into battle, many pirates wield a gun in one hand and a light melee weapon in the other, and often use the pistol to soften up a foe as they approach and follow up with their other weapon.
Indeed, this propensity for wielding two weapons means they typically practice to draw and aim with their weapons together in one fluid motion.
Their two-weapon fighting style also lets them block with their melee weapon and fire their pistol at close range into their foe.
Even when not blocking, they can fire and swing in quick unison at close range to keep the pressure up.
A fearsome ability only used by especially ruthless pirates, some that wield phase cutlasses learn an occult trick to trap the souls of their foes inside the blade, releasing them only when forcing them to serve as a wisp ally in combat as a magical form of press-ganging beyond the grave. Such an imprisonment is temporary, but certainly does not sit well with many folks.
Intimidation and two-weapon fighting are the name of the game with this archetype, so playing a space pirate can make a mixed range and melee character even better, or can lend a bit of that to casters and other non-frontline classes. No matter what class you choose, you’ll likely be relying on opening with intimidation debuffs and following up as a whirlwind of attacks on the battlefield.
As far as archetypes go, I’m pretty glad we started our coverage of Starfinder Second Edition with this one. You can’t have interstellar adventures without space pirates, after all! Now if only we could see some space combat rules…
After void oozes were discovered in the derelict ship that came to be called Shadowed Persistence, the craft was given a wide berth by any would-be salvagers. However, that avoidance also means the wreck is a perfect meeting place for space pirates seeking to touch base with other crews parked near the derelict.
There are a lot of rumors abound about Captain Boneforest. Some believe that the copaxi was a former ecologist that left her homeworld when it became clear that her people were driving their planet’s ecology to ruin, other that she left after being ousted from a political position. The only thing that is known for certain is that she is very old indeed.
War has come to Anglais VII, and where there is war, there are opportunities. Indeed, space pirates have flocked to the conflict, offering their services as privateers, preying on supply ships, and even smuggling refugees offworld. However, one thing they all refuse to do is get involved with the succession crisis that started the war in the first place.
