Ein Interview mit Jeff Grubb

Earlier this week, Jeff Grubb's first Star Wars novel, Scourge, was at last released in Germany entitled Die Geißel. We have gladly jumped on the occassion to pester the award-winning game designer and writer with some questions regarding his take on RPGs, Hutts, and, of course, Jar Jar Binks:

Your body of work - ranging from Warcraft to Dungeons and Dragons - would suggest that you are an avid fan and player of RPGs. How did you get into RPGs and how does that your RPG experience influence your approach to writing?

I am an old-school gaming grognard – I played Avalon Hill wargames in high school in the early 70’s, so when I went to college (Purdue University), I looked up the college wargaming club. The first time I showed up, there were a bunch of gamers in the corner yelling at each other, but without a board or miniatures. I walked over to them, and one of them handed me three six-sided dice and said “Quick, we need a Cleric!” After that I was hooked and have played (and designed) a lot of games since then.

RPGs give a lot of good groundwork for novels – creating interesting characters, building worlds, maintaining a sense of continuity and story flow. On the down side, since a traditional RPG puts a lot of weight on setting and background as opposed to character development, I’m always wary of doing TOO MUCH description.

Scourge was your first Star Wars novel, but it's based on Tempest Feud, an RPG supplement you wrote 10 years ago. Can you tell our readers a little about it and about how you got involved in the Star Wars RPG?

The Star Wars license came to Wizards of the Coast from West End Games. Our design director at WotC, Bill Slavicsek, had previously worked on the West End version and written a Guide to the Star Wars Universe. I was part of the original playtest team running in Bill’s Thursday night campaign, and created both the first Wookiee under the d20 system (his name was Whappamanga) and the “Voxbox”, a push-button device that allowed the Wookiee to speak with non-Wookieespeakers (It had buttons for “Yes”, “No”, “I’m sorry, but I don’t speak Basic,” and my favorite, “I don’t want to hurt you.”)

I did a number of projects for the “d20 Star Wars” incarnation, including our one long adventure, Tempest Feud, which had its origins in that OTHER great movie of the 70s – the Godfather. We wanted to do a “super-adventure” for the Star Wars line, and in many ways, it was an attempt to do a movie as an RPG – a number of settings, an evolving plot, and characters that change over time. It was well-received at the time, but by the time I started Scourge it was a little forgotten.

Most writers who create their first Star Wars novel tend to bring in a lot of the big guns: Luke or Leia, maybe even Vader or Yoda. You did the exact opposite by creating a completely new set of characters and not even reference the Big Three. Why did you choose to take this riskier approach?

I think part of it is that RPG background – I am very comfortable fitting stories into a larger universe. With RPGs, the Big Guns are not the stars, but their presence in the universe cast long shadows (Whappamanga “met” Darth Vader in Bill’s game over a comlink once – Darth demanded to know what was going on, and I pressed my “I’m sorry, I don’t speak Basic” button. And I learned that force choke can work over interplanetary distances).

It IS a riskier approach, in that people want a “Han story” or a “Luke Story”, but for me an expanded universe is just that – a universe that creates a lot of spaces for people to write stories about. And that’s what the Star Wars universe is to me – a big tent for a lot of stories.

Another thing that genuinely surprised me was how "colorful" Scourge is: You brought in an incredible number of rarely used species and seem to feel very much at home in the Expanded Universe. Was all that "just" a lot of research or do you happen to read Star Wars novels and other stories on a regular basis?

The original three movies were challenged by the limitations of movie-making – most of the aliens got mushed into the cantina or Jabba’s Palace. I want to get them out of the cantina and confirm a diverse multi-species universe. It isn’t all sunshine, though - when the plague hits a planet in the book, the inhabitants turn quickly on the outworlders and aliens – but I find playing with those questions to be particular interesting.

In doing the research, I did a lot of wandering through the RPG books, comic books, Wookieepedia, and other sources, and I find the aliens particularly intriguing. I invented precious few things because there were so many already in place, just waiting to be picked up.

Mander Zuma entering the chambers of Popara Anjiliac Diresto

Mander Zuma is the star of Scourge, and he is quite an unusual Jedi: He's pretty lousy with a lightsaber, he doesn't feel at home in the world outside the academy, and he's an archivist, which isn't the sexiest job description either. Why go with someone like Mander as your main character?

Because he can change and grow. Mander suffers from a bit of insecurity – he’s a Jedi, but doesn’t know if he lives up to image. It’s called Imposter Syndrome, and reflects a lack of faith in oneself.This is one of the things that drives him out of the archive and into the greater universe, particularly since it involves his apprentice, who he trained. Was he responsible for his apprentice’s failings?

Scourge is, in many ways, a detective novel, which is a refreshing change of pace for Star Wars. What compelled you to write a mystery story?

I had not thought of it as a mystery story, though mystery drives the plot. There is a sudden death, a conspiracy, a list of suspects, and hidden agendas all over the place. I wanted to talk about Hutts, I think, and given their criminal and conspiratory background, a mystery evolved naturally.

I once noted that there are three big groups of Star Wars novels – Jedi books (which usually involve the Order, Luke, or great jedis of the past), War books (the Stormtrooper and Rebel Squadron books, for example), and the Scum and Villainy books (Han shows up in a lot of those). And yeah, Scourge is definitely in the later though it features a Jedi as its protagonist.

Your novel turned into a trip down memory lane for me, when you sent Mander Zuma deep into the Corporate Sector, a region that hasn't seen much action since Brian Daley went there with Han Solo. For quite a while, the Expanded Universe seemed rather confused as to the overall role of the Corporate Sector or its place within the Star Wars galaxy, let alone its political landscape. What is your view on this region and what made you anchor your story there?

I was a big fan of the original Brian Daley Han Solo stories, and one of the reasons that the sector appeals to me is that it is neither Empire nor New Republic nor Independent Fringe. I didn’t want to make the Corporates bad guys, though I did get a chance to compare them strongly to the Hutts.

I see the Corporate sector as a meritocracy that works, a deeply organized civilization that has as its biggest challenge how to deal with those who work around their systems. Mander studies the Corporate Military protocols as this allows him an edge as to how they will behave.They are wonderful antagonists without being full-fledged villains.

Apart from the late A.C. Crispin who worked a lot of Hutts into her Han Solo novels, most Star Wars writers seem to prefer to stay clear of them. You, however, feature quite a lot of Hutts, and - to spoil this aspect only a little - not all of them are Jabba type gangsters with no conscience. Are the Hutts just misunderstood beings or how do you perceive them?

There was a quote I encountered (and I cannot source it at the moment) that the Hutts are the dragons of the Star Wars universe, and I agree strongly with that. Not all Hutts are gangsters, but they are all driven by the same desires for power, prestige, and security. They want to deal from a superior position, they are used to it, they spoil themselves, and they are relentless when crossed. Yep, dragons.

Even those that “play against type” will sublimate these desires, such that they come out in other matters. Popara, the clan Patriarch, is portrayed as a good Hutt, but even that beneficence and tolerance comes out of his power. He acts in a good manner as a display that he can afford to do so.

I read that you actually pitched to write the autobiography of Jar Jar Binks. As a German who may, by nature, not be blessed with a funny bone: Was that an actual pitch? Because as someone who appreciates Jar Jar, I'd love to read that!

Yes, I pitched the Autobiography of Jar Jar Binks, along with about eight other ideas, including a Dexter Jettster noire novel and an adventure novel featuring Jaxxon, the giant green rabbit from the early Marvel comic books.

Were I to do a Jar Jar book, I would have framed it like Citizen Kane – someone trying to get to the root of who Jar Jar was. It would have treated him with respect while recognizing his impulsive nature, kept the patois to a minimum, and dealt with class and species issues in the universe. And in the end, Jar Jar would die of old age, surrounded by his loving family and hailed as a hero to his people.

What's next for you? Do you have more Star Wars coming in the near (or not so near) future?

Nothing for Star Wars at the moment, though I would love to come back to the universe. For the past year I’ve been very busy in my day job, helping keep Guild Wars 2 up and running (the MMO rolled out a year ago and is going great guns). I’ve been doing some writing for myself which may or may not ever see the light of day, and preparing for the next big thing in my life, whatever that may prove to be.

For more on Guild Wars 2, please check out GuildWars2.com, and if you want to learn more about the Jeff's work, take a look at his blog over at Grubb Street!