This Is Madness: Vote for Ahsoka Tano!

Ashley Eckstein | March 27, 2013

AHSOKA NEEDS YOUR HELP! PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD AND PLEASE VOTE TODAY! #VOTEAHSOKA

CLICK HERE TO VOTE FOR AHSOKA!

Star Wars RPGs: Taking a First Step Into a Larger World

Jennifer Heddle | March 27, 2013

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I love board games and video games, but I’ve never tried my hand at traditional roleplaying games before. The closest I’ve ever gotten to it was when I was a teenager, seeing my younger brother and his friends sit around our dining room table with books and notebooks and dice and thinking the entire enterprise looked complicated and boring. (And nerdy. I was at an age where I actually cared about that sort of thing.) I never really gave it much thought beyond that.

So when I found out that I would be serving as editor here at Lucasfilm for a comprehensive new Star Wars roleplaying game system from Fantasy Flight Games (beginning with Edge of the Empire), I was nervous. Even as a Star Wars fan, this didn’t seem like something I could relate to. But I’m always up for a challenge (plus, you know, it’s my job), so I dove in, not sure what to expect. Hundreds of pages of submitted material later, I realized that I was experiencing a real respect for those who play (and design!) RPGs.

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From Origami Yoda to ART2-D2

Tom Angleberger | March 26, 2013

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Sometimes people ask how I choose the Origami characters for my books. The odd thing is that they sort of choose me. Yoda was the start of the whole thing. I wasn’t sitting in front of blank computer screen wondering what to write about…I was actually folding an Origami Yoda. The book was inspired by the origami, not the other way around. And if the origami hadn’t fit on my finger like a puppet, none of it would have happened.

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StarWars.com Weekly Roundup: March 22, 2013

StarWars.com Team | March 22, 2013

Wondering what’s been happening at StarWars.com? Here’s a quick roundup of what you might have missed this week!

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The Empire Strikes Back Uncut: Video Game Re-creations

Casey Pugh | March 22, 2013

Star Wars Uncut video games

I love Star Wars video games.

Growing up, I played all the Super Nintendo games and a laundry list of others. I think my favorites are Super Star Wars,  Star Wars: Dark Forces, and Star Wars Galaxies…which I played for three months straight, earning galaxy currency as an interior decorator (best job I’ve ever had). I loved playing the games because you were immediately able to enter the Star Wars universe. Plus, the John Williams soundtrack accompanied almost every game, so everything felt extra-epic.

It feels very appropriate that many fans are similarly inspired by video game styles for The Empire Strikes Back Uncut. Check out some of our favorite gamer mashups of Empire scenes submitted by Uncut contributors from around the world.

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Fully Operational Fandom: All In The Family

Amy Ratcliffe | March 22, 2013

Liam Karpiuk Falcon_logo

One of the best parts about being a Star Wars fan is sharing it with the people you love. The films, comics, toys, books, and television series help the saga reach across generations. You’ll find fans in all age groups. To paraphrase another movie with Liam Neeson, Star Wars actually is all around.

This is evident at conventions and on Halloween when you see so many children dressed up as Darth Vader or Princess Leia. It has to be a blast to pick out costumes for your kids and even more fun when you get to join in the fun and dress up next to them.

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I’m the Action Figure in Star Wars Video Games!

Brett Rector | March 22, 2013

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Ever since I saw Star Wars in theaters for the first time in 1977, I’ve wanted to “play” in that universe. My first obsessions were Stormtroopers and those cool suits of armor. As a seven-year-old I schemed daily on how to get my mitts on one. I imagined being part of the Empire, roaming the “galaxy” and enforcing Darth Vader’s will onto those who would oppose us, all the while looking cool in my shiny white duds. Needless to say I was not able to procure Stormtrooper armor, not even the Ben Cooper version. In lieu of not possessing the coveted costume, I decided my only hope to play an active part in George Lucas’ universe was to dream up scenarios and situations and act them out using my stable of Kenner action figures and vehicles. Ah, the hours and hours of fun I had! But as good a time as I was having manipulating my plastic alter-egos during countless adventures, I still didn’t feel as immersed as I wanted to be. That all changed in 1982 when a friend of mine bought The Empire Strikes Back by Parker Bros. for the Atari 2600. I finally got to be the action figure as I flew a snowspeeder against literally endless waves of AT-ATs.

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Star Wars Celebrityhood: Be Careful What You Wish For

John "Dak" Morton | March 20, 2013

Here at Tierfon Rebel Base we had a family wedding a few weeks ago. Family members came in from across the galaxy. Most of ‘em Navy-types. I’m at the cantina ordering bantha milk, and cousin Tom Mustin comes up to join me, asking, “What’s shakin’, Dak?” I tell him I’m gonna write posts for the Star Wars blog. So, he tells me his sea story. I should say Tom is another family member who put his thumb out on the road instead of going down to the sea in ships. [Note the link to the ship named after his family.]

Bantha milk in hand, Tom draws one from his time as an actor. One of his gigs was in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Says Tom, “I’m in the elevator with another doctor when Shatner and Deforest Kelley enter, wheeling in Catherine Hicks on a gurney.” According to Tom, the scene goes like this. Tom (an intern, talking to other intern): “So Weintraub says radical chemotherapy or she’s going to croak, just like that.” Second Intern: “What about Gottleib?” Tom: “What do you expect? All he talked about was image therapy. I thought they were going to punch each other out. Hahah.” Bones: “UGH!” Tom: “You have a different view, doctor?” Bones: “Sounds like the g-ddamn Spanish Inquisition!” Kirk (Shatner): “Bad Day.”

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Star Wars Celebration IV: The Entertainment Capital of the Star Wars World

Mary Franklin | March 19, 2013

Photo by Joe McDonald

One million square feet saturated in Star Wars. Six days of events, including a six-movie marathon of the entire Star Wars big-screen saga. Seven live stages. Celebrity guests from the movies, television, and animation. Live Star Wars laser tag featuring Stormtroopers to target. Three hundred members of the media. More than 35,000 individual revelers. If Celebration III was billed as the party of a lifetime, Celebration IV might have been the party to make fans forget all other parties.

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DIY Gilded Action Figure Headband

Tessa Braun | March 15, 2013

5 - Tessa Braun - Rebecca Forth Models Headband

Looking for something to do with your action figures and in the mood to wear a funky, Star Wars-themed headpiece? Don’t be a silent sufferer. Take action. Follow these simple steps to make your very own gilded, stylish and ever-so-practical Star Wars headband.

All you need is:

  • Star Wars action figure (or any other Star Wars toy)
  • Gold spray paint
  • Plastic headband
  • Hot glue gun and sticks
  • Additional embellishments, such as craft balls.

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