Setting up Star Wars Saga Edition, few questions...

I'm trying to set up a game of Star Wars Saga edition in D20Pro, but I'd like to clear up a few things before I go setting everything up. I'm a bit of a newbie when it comes to roleplaying games, so bear with me...

How "automated" can I make everything? Can I essentially plot out a campaign beforehand, and have skills and feats defined so I don't have to go looking them up every time?

I made a copy of the sample campaign, and I'm modifying the text files to include the Star Wars skills, feats, and classes instead. Before I bother finishing this, has anyone already done it? I'm wondering about how to do things like the Force and prerequisite skills.

Can someone who's played or GMed a SWSE campaign give some advice on this? I'm trying to decide whether or not to buy a license, and it hinges on how well it can be adapted to SWSE.

 

The people I'm going to be playing with won't have much of any roleplaying experience beyond a few silly attempts to play D&D, so I'm probably going to put a lot of the rules in notes that I can share with them. Right now, I'm trying to get a solid idea of what D20Pro handles itself and what still has to be put in handout notes.

For skills, the formula is 1d20 plus 1/2 character level + ability mod + misc mod + 5 (if trained). In the SWSE system, you can use any skill untrained, you just don't get that +5 bonus. My concern here is whether D20Pro can use the full formula and properly reference it to the character's level and ability mod.

For feats, Force powers, etc, they all have different effects, so can I add notes or descriptions to them so I know what they do? I'd like to have a note pop up where I can have the feat description typed out so I don't have to go flipping for the page in the book. Worst case, I can make a list of what everyone has and keep it in the handouts, but I'd like to have some kind of description system. I'd check this myself, but the trial license server seems to be down...

There's also Class Talents (and Force talents, which are treated the same way but require the Force Sensitivity feat), which could be anything from a bonus on certain rolls to once-per-day actions and a lot of things in-between. Is there a good implementation for this, or do I just need to keep these in character notes?

It seems obvious to use the Force as magic, but I'm not sure about how to implement it. Each character has force points, which can be used for various things. You can spend one to roll 1d6 and add the result to an attack roll, skill check, or ability check. They're also used by "some talents, Force techniques, Force secrets, and Force powers." You can also use a Force point if you are at 0HP and are going to die, which would instead cause you to fall unconscious. There's also a "Dark Side Score," which can be reduced by spending a force point. Based on this, what's the best way to track Force points?

A Force power relies on a Use the Force skill check, and they're all essentially once-per-encounter spells. Since the D&D spell system is all about different levels of spells and how many you can cast per day, should I just list every Force power as a level 1 spell and use the Sorcerer class as a base?


I'm sorry if I'm asking too many questions, but I'm really interested in making sure of how well this all would work before my 30 day trial is over. Assuming I do buy the license, I'd absolutely be interested in contributing the text files as I go along, along with the Dawn of Defiance campaign content, but I'd REALLY like to have someone with SWSE experience check them for me so I know I'm doing it right.