Warhammer 40k (Deathwatch/Rogue Trader/Dark Heresy) IC

Started by Jaded, March 23, 2015, 04:09:22 AM

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Jaded

This is very much a work in progress and partially formed thought.  It is also me being far too ambitious, so probably not a great idea in general.  The basic idea is to bring characters from three different 40k systems into one game. 

An Inquisitor (probably an NPC) would be leading an expedition comprised of a Rogue Trader and their ship (potentially with a couple of non-alien crew), a Deathwatch kill-team, and a group of Adepta Sororitas.  The mission would be to recover holy relics lost with a ship, the wreckage of which has been found on a world that has only recently rejoined the Imperium after centuries or millennia of isolation. 

Rudimentary Story
The Emperor’s Eternal Glory, a Mars-class Battlecruiser, vanished one thousand years ago.  It was carrying a number of holy relics from fallen worlds, and its loss was a blow to the Ecclesiarchy.  Roughly fifty years ago a Rogue Trader discovered the wreckage of a massive Imperial warship on a world that had been out of contact with the Imperium for centuries.  Five years ago, Inquisitor Jokodus took a ship to the planet.  He returned with word that the wreckage was that of the Emperor’s Eternal Glory.  He spoke of little else, but began to prepare an expedition back to recover the relics.


The Rogue Trader could be the one that discovered the planet, or just an acquaintance of the Inquisitor (or just someone being forced/paid to go along).  They would start with 10k additional experience.

The Deathwatch kill-team would have been assigned to accompany the Inquisitor, a member of the Ordo Xenos, for reasons that have not been entirely made clear.  Though likely having to do with the current status of the ship, or how it was originally lost.  They would be made as per the rules in their core rulebook.

The Adepta Sororitas would be there to recover the relics, as well as to potentially investigate the planet due to rumours of a lost shrine.  They would be made as per the rules in the Ascension book for Dark Heresy, the Inquisitor's Handbook or Blood of Martyrs book would also be required for the Adepta Sororitas creation rules. 



I see the game being relatively combat heavy (always an issue in forum games), but if I get enough players will separate them into different groups for different missions.  I don't see it as being specifically smutty, but there would definitely be the potential. 

Thoughts?  Comments?  Insults about what a stupid idea this is?

HairyHeretic

My first thought would be how well do the systems mesh? If one systems has characters sugnificantly stronger than the others (the Marines most likely), is that going to leave other PCs playing second fiddle to a Marine in every scene?
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Morganatic

I think this sounds like a really cool idea, and am certainly interested - you can get a lot of interesting gameplay ideas out of looking at the interactions between different types of character across the 41st Millennium, and seeing how a devout member of the Order Famulus, a warped Navigator, and a Space Shark interact, work out their theological and cultural clashes, and address problems together would be really fun! Count me in, though I’m not sure as what …

My two thoughts, since you’ve requested them:

- As an old game, Dark Heresy, in my experience, has always played a bit hinky when run alongside the other three gamelines, especially when run as a low-level Ascension character - they’ve been picking up 100 and 200xp advances for years, and end up as monstrously effective, but fairly fragile Swiss army knives next to the other characters. Space Marines have their horrifying armour values and destructive potential to make things up, but Rogue Trader characters tend to pale a bit compared to their Darkly Heretical cousins, especially when they’re not given free reign to swan about throwing profit factor and macro cannon fusillades at things. It might require a bit of hacking in order to make work (Faith mechanics, etc), but I guess you could make some Rogue Trader-equivalent Sisters as a Regimental background in Only War.

- As you say, combat-heavy is an issue in forum games. My advice would be to take advantage of the fact that all three types of people are going to be masters in their own fields - Astartes are incredibly hard and unlikely to get chumped by a handful of Orks, Rogue Traders have limitless staff and arms men, and Ascension-level characters have significant political power in the Imperium. If I were running this, my temptation would be to have a central mission control for planning/negotiation, and, from there, have characters run missions and activities that were rules-light, and largely based on skill checks/broader stats. So, rather than playing each move of a Kill-Team’s assault on a hive of minor cultists, the player and GM resolve it in general terms, telling a story whose highlights are determined by dice rolls (they seem to be overwhelming you, command check! You’ve got a clear shot on the psyker who’s enslaving these people, roll an aimed shot from your bolster!). Then, when shit’s really about to go down - the Genestealer Patriarch with a Halo Device is opening a warp rift to free a trapped C’tan - you switch to full combat-heavy rules-heavy play. It might take a bit of getting used to, but especially with the higher power (personal and organisational) of the players, it might be easier to run.

QuoteMy first thought would be how well do the systems mesh? If one systems has characters sugnificantly stronger than the others (the Marines most likely), is that going to leave other PCs playing second fiddle to a Marine in every scene?

Barring edge cases, my experience the overall power level (purely in terms of FIGHTAN, and overshadowing during combat) goes

DH Inquisitorial psyker -> DW Librarian -> Optimised Rapid Fire Ranged Weapon Astartes -> Optimised Rapid Fire Ranged Weapon Non-Astartes (Sister of Battle, Secutor, guardsman with tricked out auto cannon) -> Focused Human With Lightning Attack and a Horribly Good Weapon -> Focused Space Marine With Lightning Attack and a Horribly Good Weapon -> Techpriest or Guardsman Tank -> Sniper -> Combat Generalist -> Non-Combatant Academic -> Non-Combatant Diplomat.

The higher-up ones can trivialise encounters and overshadow people in combat by flinging high-psy-rating powers/dozens of full auto-shots downrange at the start of a fight. In practice it's not Astartes who necessarily overshadow everyone else - rather, as I suggested above, RT characters can have the toughest time of it in fact, hence the suggestion for a slightly more rules-lite skill-based approach for people who want it.

Jaded

Quote from: HairyHeretic on March 23, 2015, 08:06:43 AM
My first thought would be how well do the systems mesh? If one systems has characters sugnificantly stronger than the others (the Marines most likely), is that going to leave other PCs playing second fiddle to a Marine in every scene?

The modified experience for Rogue Traders (based on the sidebars in the Rogue Trader/Deathwatch book on the rough experience equivalency between the different systems), and the use of the Ascension rules, is intended to even things out at least somewhat.  Though it is unlikely everyone will be entirely equal.

Quote from: Morganatic on March 23, 2015, 09:52:20 AM
- As an old game, Dark Heresy, in my experience, has always played a bit hinky when run alongside the other three gamelines, especially when run as a low-level Ascension character - they’ve been picking up 100 and 200xp advances for years, and end up as monstrously effective, but fairly fragile Swiss army knives next to the other characters. Space Marines have their horrifying armour values and destructive potential to make things up, but Rogue Trader characters tend to pale a bit compared to their Darkly Heretical cousins, especially when they’re not given free reign to swan about throwing profit factor and macro cannon fusillades at things. It might require a bit of hacking in order to make work (Faith mechanics, etc), but I guess you could make some Rogue Trader-equivalent Sisters as a Regimental background in Only War.

- As you say, combat-heavy is an issue in forum games. My advice would be to take advantage of the fact that all three types of people are going to be masters in their own fields - Astartes are incredibly hard and unlikely to get chumped by a handful of Orks, Rogue Traders have limitless staff and arms men, and Ascension-level characters have significant political power in the Imperium. If I were running this, my temptation would be to have a central mission control for planning/negotiation, and, from there, have characters run missions and activities that were rules-light, and largely based on skill checks/broader stats. So, rather than playing each move of a Kill-Team’s assault on a hive of minor cultists, the player and GM resolve it in general terms, telling a story whose highlights are determined by dice rolls (they seem to be overwhelming you, command check! You’ve got a clear shot on the psyker who’s enslaving these people, roll an aimed shot from your bolster!). Then, when shit’s really about to go down - the Genestealer Patriarch with a Halo Device is opening a warp rift to free a trapped C’tan - you switch to full combat-heavy rules-heavy play. It might take a bit of getting used to, but especially with the higher power (personal and organisational) of the players, it might be easier to run.

That sounds like an interesting way to do it. :-)  I'll have to think on things and see if I can make it work.

ChaoticSky

Also of note, DH2e characters are much more aligned to the newer games than the wonky first edition ones. It might be more elegant to make a high level DH character (for the sororitas)/middle RT character/low DW character

Alternatively, OW characters are very combat focused, and i dont think it would be too hard to create a sororita-themed regiment to emulate the sisters of battle. If you ignore the normal rules anyway. Bolters and power armour standard issue!

pvi212

Provided the ship is properly equipped the Rouge Trader character can be very powerful calling in orbital bombardment, leading house troops, or flying close air support in fighters/bombers.  I wouldn't mind being part of the Rogue Trader contingent.