Dread Mandate Campaign Log

The Abyssinia, Imperial Chartist Vessel within Deep Empyrean

Three months ago (Standard Time), the Abyssinia left the fleet at Lucruzu Primus to travel to the planet Kelphis in the Incendia Paeniteo subsector of Mardannon in response to a plea for aid.  Inquisitor Corvus Mandera and his Acolytes have embarked on this journey to a new world to help an old contact of the Inquisitor's.  However, what they have uncovered en route is dire indeed.

Earlier this year, an Inquisitor named Marius Vex arrived on Kelphis and began to research into the planet's ancient structures at the bottom of Kelphis' hives.  Soon after, he declared that warpcraft was a cancer eating at the pure heart of the Imperium - and that the psyker-heavy population of Kelphis threatened to tip the world over into heresy and debauchery.  The Inquisitor gained the complicity of the planetary government, and declared that ALL psykers on Kelphis or entering the space around it must submit to a "purity inspection" conducted by Inquisitorial agents, most of the time by Vex himself.

Since the implementation of this dread mandate, not one psyker "interviewed" by Vex has lived to tell of what happened in the interrogation room.  All have been burned at the stake, or are simply missing.  No agency has been spared this purge, not even the Astra Telepathica or the Scholastica Psykana - but now Vex has his eyes on the Navigators living in orbit around Kelphis.

The head of the Navis Nobilite has called upon Inquisitor Mandera to stop Vex's lunacy.  If too many more psykers are lost, Kelphis will be cut off from the Imperium and might never recover.  However, the task before them is monumental, for no agency in the Imperium has the legal right to countermand the order of an Inquisitor - not even another Inquisitor.

It is up to the Acolytes that Mandera has charged with investigating Vex's activities to bring forth the evidence that Mandera will need to interdict Vex's mandate on Kelphis.  They must now navigate a minefield of political intrigue, court room drama, detective work and maybe a few homicidal lunatics.

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Inquisitor Mandera's Investigative Cell

• Khan Novus, Scholar
• Pioter Malcalvich, Cleric
• Malcom, Arbitrator
• Beutis Caine, Guard
• Gallia, Inditor
• Murkul Ivanovich, Tech-Priest

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Campaign Log  
Total Time: 26 hrs  (3.23.14)

1. Action Plan (2.23.14 to 3.2.14) Total Time: 13 hrs - The Acolytes are briefed by the Inquisitor on the nature of the threat and given their mission.  They are instructed to investigate Vex's activities on the surface of Kelphis and produce proof his mandate is not a grievous error.
• The Acolytes meet the new members of their team and are briefed by the Inquisitor.  They begin to formulate an action plan for investigating Vex.  (8 hrs)
• The Acolytes are in a terrifying ordeal during warp travel where one of the Abyssinia's concentric Gellar fields is sabotaged, resulting in a warp bleed point that cost many lives.  After braving the field's containment area and repairing the device, the Acolytes efforts help the ship return to real space safely.  Thereafter, a Navis Nobilite ship arrives to help the stricken Abyssinia, which luckily had exited warp space not far from it's target.  The Acolytes follow the Inquisitor to the Navis Nobilite's orbital platform, where they remained until the base was geosynchronous with Hive Abakum on the surface.  Shortly thereafter, they are released on the surface of Kelphis to find Vex and observe his practices for two days.  (5 hrs)
2. Witch Pyres (3.9.14 to 3.16.14) Total Time: 9 hrs - The Acolytes begin their investigation of Inquisitor Vex and explore the strange hive of Abakum.
• After witnessing Inquisitor Vex execute a psyker firsthand, the Acolytes regroup and start canvasing Upper Abakum.  Their investigation leads a few of them into a face-to-face meeting with Vex, where they seem to throw off his suspicions they may be enemies of the Imperium themselves.  The Acolytes travel to the Administratum and to a nearby Arbites precinct where they run into some clerical errors involving rosettes and shotguns.  (5 hrs)
• The players do some research and find the unsteady zone where they believe Markos fled.  After nearly falling to their deaths in a huge, broken ventilation shaft, they get lost in the dark, cutoff zone and flounder about until they run into the mutant underground.  They speak their case to the mutant leader, and are led into the mutant hideout where they find Markos.  After hiding there until the next contact point, they attempt to extract the pskyer to Mandera's custody - but are thwarted when a sniper's bullet ends the astropath's rebellion against Vex.  (4 hrs)
3. Dark Beneath (3.23.14) Total Time: 4 hrs - The Acolytes discover more of Mandera's plan and take their search for the truth the dark underhive of Abakum.
• The Acolytes report their failure to secure the psyker to Mandera, who seems impassive on the subject.  The Inquisitor directs the acolytes to meet with a muto named Hellves, who has left the building by the time the Acolytes clear up some confusion with the local Arbitrators.  The Acolytes spend 3 days traveling downhive, and finally meet with Hellves.  The muto chieftain tells them about the ancient Priory, shunned and lonely within the depths of Abakum.  Soon after, Hellves reveals he is actually Captain Basterd, and shows them into the Priory's Gardens.  (4 hrs)

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That's all for Dark Heresy, at least for now.

Dread Mandate Decreed!

Our first RPG campaign of 2014 kicked off last weekend!  We had a blast putting it all together, and tomorrow's Game Day is going to be off the hook!  You can check up on the current State of Play for Dread Mandate to the right!

This campaign will be a mix of investigative work and action.  It's Warhammer 40,000, so it has to be over the top.  Our miniature collection will be put to good use for this one, as well as a bunch of other never before seen material!  Now don't go looking for clues in hidden cases or shadowy nooks on the shelf...you might see something you can't unsee.

We'll focus primarily on the following sourcebooks:  The Inquisitor's Handbook, The Radical's Handbook, Disciples of the Dark Gods and Ascension.  A lot of alternate systems might be introduced from these books, so be prepared for the unexpected!  There will be a lot of room for progression in this campaign, and it will last a fairly long time - it's scheduled to run until late this year!

We're behind on filming Straight Sixes, but we're doing a segment tomorrow.  Be here no later than 1pm if you want in on this one!  We'll be publishing one more this month to account for our backlog, then we're back on track!  Hopefully the weather won't cut us off this weekend!  See you on Game Day!

Hereticus: Inquisitors

This is the first part of a set of expanded follow-ups to an older article, intended to update the information for a new frame of reference.  More general information on the Emperor's Holy Inquisition can be found here.  Dark Heresy will begin March 2nd, 2014.

The Ordo Hereticus in the Mardannon sector is spread far and wide across the nine major subsectors thereof.  The most influential of these Inquisitors are described below, together with a short history, modus operandi and other pertinent information.  All of this is considered to be common knowledge amongst Acolytes of the Inquisition in Mardannon.

Remember - innocence proves nothing.

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Inquisitor Lord Shan Tsien Tiang

• Philosophy - Recongregator (Radical).  Though most members of this faction do not openly speak in defiance of the Imperium, Inquisitor Shan has shown these tendencies in his words and speech.  Even if he's never said as much, his works show this clearly.
• Background - Shan rose to prominence as a Witch-Finder in Vae Salubrious, though his world of origin is unclear and is likely from a barbarian world in another segmentum altogether.
• Modus Operandi - Inquisitor Shan plies the sector, travelling from world to world investigating corruption of Imperial Governors and the Adeptus Administratum.  When he visits a world, he makes it a point to execute as many "witches" as possible - though it is believed by some that in many cases these "witches" were simply corrupt bureaucrats or officials that Shan didn't want to waste time prosecuting openly.  He maintains an ancient Falchion-class escort ship and a full contingent of Imperial Stormtroopers.
• Recent Activity - For the last three decades, Inquisitor Shan has been a traveling "hanging judge" dispensing Imperial justice to witches and greedy, amorl or just plain uppity Governors.  He has garnered a reputation as a fierce and uncompromising figure of authority, while at the same time challenging the pre-concieved notion of how the Imperium should function.

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Inquisitor Corvus Mandera

• Philosophy - Amalathian (Puritan).  Operating largely behind the scenes, Mandera applies a soft touch to the institutions of the Imperium to root out threats to the stability of the sector.
• Background - Tutored by the late Witch-Hunter Gruber Von Shlauss, Mandera's penchant for secrecy shrouds most of his history in mists of deception.  What is certain is that he was once an Acolyte for a powerful Inquisitor, and led cells of such agents to infiltrate several diabolic cults during his service.  
• Modus Operandi - Mandera pursues cases of corruption in the ranks of the Guild houses of the Mardannon sector.  He has many contacts and is owed many favors by many powerful individuals across the sector.  Many cells of Acolytes are spread across the entire sector, and this web of intelligence brings him all sorts of terrible tales of treachery and heresy.  He remains in the shadows most of the time, working through his acolytes and directing them to infiltrate criminal plots and cults.
• Recent Activity - Mandera personally oversaw the dismantling of a corrupted Imperial cult on Lucruzu Primus after his agents exposed an attempt on the lawful Imperial Governor's life.  Three months ago, he departed Lucruzu for Kelphis with a great many of his followers.

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Inquisitor Abakum Lukyanov

• Philosophy - Xanthite (Radical).  Lukyanov has been declared Excommunicate Traitoris by the Conclave Mardannon.
• Background - Once a promising young Witch-Hunter, Lukyanov embraced the lore of psychic phenomena with gusto.  However, in recent years he has become increasingly unstable, conducting bizarre experiments with the psykers under his purview.
• Modus Operandi - Before he was excommunicated, Lukyanov investigated acts of warp heresy involving possession.  He had very few Acolytes, and most of those that were known are now deceased.
• Recent Activity - Lukyanov's dabbling in warp arts was exposed by an Ordo Malleus Inquisitor sometime in the last year.  Fleeing the denunciation and High Conclave on Ordavis, his current whereabouts are unknown.

Dark Heresy: Under A Vast Grey Sky - The Conclusion

The Wargate's Fall Dark Heresy campaign is over!  Yeah I know it's technically Winter, but it ran a few weeks longer than all that.  It was still mostly Fall.

Quite a lot has happened on the world of Lucruzu Prime since our players landed there, a little over two weeks (of game time!) ago.  There were casualties during the course of the mission, but all points were covered and Inquisitor Mandera was pleased!

Below is a breakdown of the game in each of it's ten sessions (adventures!) which gives a synopsis of the challenges given to the servants of the Emperor in their mission to Lucruzu, and how they got through one of the most insidious attempts at subverting the Imperial Creed that Inquisitor Mandera has ever investigated!

1. Distress At Lucruzu - The characters are brought together by various fortunes to serve the Inquisition under Corvus Mandera of the Ordo Hereticus.  Aboard an ancient chartist vessel, the Abyssinia, the player group (the acolytes) survive an attempt on their lives by escaping into a black hold.  There, they encountered hullghasts, but managed to escape back to the upper levels in a safe area.  The guilder who was responsible was executed by Comptroller Bosch, with little exchange of words.
2. The Mission - The acolytes meet a lot of important NPC's, including Admiral Akrezu of the Spanner of Twilights, Hobart Wolkmann of the Mission of the Emperor Ascendant, Liev and Andrei Semetov, as well as their father, Urien Balka Semetov and his niece, Castella Balka.  After thwarting an attempt on Castella's life, the acolytes know something serious is happening here.
3. Death At Tithesgiving - An attempt is made on the Governor's life, leaving him critically injured yet still alive.  Most people think that Andrei was responsible, leading to a gunfight at the tithing grounds and Andrei's escape into the steppe around Domagosch.
4. Band of Basterds - The Inquisitor makes contact and delineates the parameters of the acolyte's missions:  Determine if religious militants are the cause of the unrest is primary, but after the assassination attempt Mandera charges the acolytes with determining the faction responsible for the assassination attempt. The players investigate the tales of the offworlders.  When a meeting with the offworld mercenaries is finally secured, it goes south quickly and a Semetov pogrom seems to land right on top of their position!
5. Band of Basterds, Part 2 - The acolytes continue their investigation into the offworlders, eventually discovering a connection: they seem to be working for Andrei Semetov.  However, it seems that Bob (Band of Basterds) screwed over Alexei, a local pimp and extortionist.  A few of the acolytes accompany Bob into the steppe in their huge rovers, and the other half remain in the city to continue their investigations.
6. The Windswept Steppe - This session was really two different adventures, as the two groups of acolytes never come in so much as vox contact.  One group accompanies Bob to their safehouse in the steppe, where they promise Andrei is waiting.  The safehouse is destroyed, and a Semetov Lander emerges from behind a nearby hill.  The battle is swift, and Bob heads back into town to find their own leader, Captain Basterd.  The other group of acolytes conduct business throughout the city, and encounter some interesting folk at the mission, including a mysterious psyker who warns them that death is coming.  An assassin emerges from the dark and attempts to kill the acolytes at the mission, but he is slain.  Outside, the rioting begins.
7. The Pogrom - Domagosch is in the middle of the violent throes of religious rioting.  Locking onto short range vox waves, the acolytes attempt to reunite and finally find each other at one of Bob's safehouses, which is an underground bunker.  After dealing with Alexei, the players find Andrei Semetov in the safehouse, which was provided by Castella Balka.
8. The Outlaw Torn - Sabotage by the Watchers of Poul in both Bob and Andrei's Honor Guard turn the underground bunker into a madzone.  A few short range firefights and one or two tactical explosives in confined spaces and the acolytes see for the first time the Watchers of Poul's heretical literature, proclaiming a new Emperor coming whose face will Change.
9. The Murderous Truth - Andrei plans to get into the Semetov fortress, and has a plan for dealing with the internal security as well.  The acolytes aid him in his plan and enter the fortress, where they find more evidence of Liev aiding the Watchers of Poul that are proven heretics on his personal data slates. Rabalias Narcia, Cleric of Poul, is revealed to be a loathesome witch, and is slain after a terrible battle. Meanwhile, Murkul the Tech-Priest rests after having new eyes implanted after his original, weak eyes were melted by laser-fire.  An attempt was made on his life by an unknown assassin, but this was thwarted by a few of the other acolytes present at the Medicae Cybernetica.
10. The Steeple of Souls - The players have all they need to bring down Liev and his militant cult.  However, Andrei kills his brother after Liev fires upon the acolytes, though he was badly wounded by the plasma fire.  Inquisitorial stormtroopers flood the fortress, disarming the House Guard and taking everyone into custody, where they were brought before Inquisitor Mandera.

In the end, this is pretty much how it goes:

• The Watchers of Poul isn't heretical in and of itself, it's a certain set of teachings that sometimes inserts itself into the doctrine.  It's believed by the Ordo that this phenomenon is not inherent or limited to this particular sect.
• Urien knew that the Watchers were gaining in popularity, and that an attempt on his life might be made. To this end, he appealed to Castella to ask her lover, Inquisitor Mandera, to investigate the happenings.  Band of Basterds was sent first.
• The Basterds fought against the unjust Semetov Pogroms posing as Ascendant cultists to hide the fact they were from offworld.
• The Semetov Pogroms were used by Liev to target civilian populations that were loyal to the Temple Ascendant.
• As the Watchers gained popular momentum, the population of the Temple Ascendant was lowered.
• Andrei was framed, but ran because he's young and inexperienced.  He also knew about his brothers' doings and feared Rabalias.
• Band of Basterds was ordered to protect Andrei, who (when approached) offered to hire them.  Problem solved.
• Band of Basterds was really serving Mandera the whole time, through his proxy Castella Balka.
• Liev's ultimate goal was to gain control of the other Guild Houses of Lucruzu through his status and Rabalias' religious influence.  And lots of money.

There might be more.  Comments are open, so if you have questions you want answered please do drop a line.  There was tons and tons more of material, I just can't go into everything here.  We have to draw a line somewhere!  However, there should be plenty of healthy discussion for weeks!

That's all for now, but as we speak, the acolytes are now the personal retinue of Inquisitor Mandera, and are accompanying him to Kelphis, in the Incendia Paeniteo subsector.

There, they have put to death many sanctioned Imperial psykers, citing heresy and warpcraft.

And that is the purview of the Ordo Hereticus.

Dark Heresy: Under A Vast Grey Sky Characters

Greetings!

For the last few weeks we've been playing in a Dark Heresy game called Under A Vast Grey Sky.  In this game, the players have been charged by the Ordo Hereticus to root out the taint of heresy on the planet Lucruzu Prime, deep in the Vae Salubrious subsector of Mardannon.  Here they have run across several issues, and the investigation hasn't gone according to plan at all - mostly because there hasn't been one.

I've been trying to compile some data on the characters, but they are quite - elusive.  I present here a short primer on a few of the agents of the Inquisition present on Lucruzu, from the point of the view of the Ordo Hereticus, going clockwise in the photo-log above. This represents Inquisitor Mandera's main operative cell.

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• Able - One of the 'Sons of Vittium' hive gang, this youthful acolyte was given to Mandera as part of a tithe from the gang itself.  Assigned to Lucruzu mission with the rest of the hive gangers.
• Kull - Not much is known about where this feral warrior originated, but he has been one of Comptroller Bosch's bodyguards for several years.  Assigned to Lucruzu Prime to provide added muscle to the unit.
• Khan - An acolyte drawn from the holds of the Abyssinia, an ancient Chartist vessel, this adept bears Inquisitor Mandera's rosette.  He has been involved in the Inquisitor's machinations for some time, without knowledge of such.  Activated to act as liaison to Imperial institutions planetside.
• Lizzie -  Originally from Attono Vittium, this plucky hive scum somehow managed to stow away aboard the Abyssinia after the Inquisitor gathered his agents from there.  She was sentenced to death by the ship's security ratings, but Comptroller Bosch noted that she had enough wit to get aboard the ship in the first place.  Lizzie was made to swear allegiance to the ordo, and sent planetside with the others to test her value.
• Shi-319 - A death cult assassin long sworn to the service of the Emperor, this mysterious figure is absolutely unfathomable.  Even the gender is unknown.
• Murkul - The tech priest of the group has also only been recently activated to direct Inquisitorial service, and was aboard the Abyssinia for the last part of it's long trade route.  Since arriving planetside, he has spent a great deal of time securing weapons from the manufactorums in Domagoshch.
• Caine - Another hive ganger from Attono Vittium, this older warrior served in the Xenos Wars on that world against the vile Eldar.  Activated along with other elements from Attono Vittium, this acolyte was added to the unit for his extensive military training.
• Metalus - A hardened Arbitrator, Metalus is a highly devoted servant of the Emperor.  Inquisitor Mandera noticed the Metalus' faith during a policing action, and seconded him to his retinue as he returned to the Abyssinia. Activated on Lucruzu Prime to add knowledge and influence with various Imperial institutions planetside.  

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Feel free to comment on your characters to add details I may have left out that you want recorded for posterity!

Tomorrow is Krampus Day!  Make sure to tell your little ones the old tales, just in case they get the idea there's no downside to being bad!

Dark Heresy Career Differentiation

Hey folks!

We're still preparing the article on our actual Dark Heresy personas, waiting for minis to be painted yadda yadda yadda. So I'm going to take this moment to talk about something that folks have been asking me lately, and that's what the hell the Dark Heresy Careers are all about. There might have been a bit of confusion around these character types because they aren't really analogous to most fantasy 'classes'. Instead they are distinctly couched in the lore of Warhammer 40,000 and their game role may not be recognizable to someone who hasn't read a ton of books on the subject.

There are splits in each of the Career Paths, and I'm going to go over each of those and hit one or two major points for those splits. I will talk about Alternate Ranks and Elite Advances in a later post, as we're just trotting out the basics here. After reading this article you'll have a pretty good idea of where you want to go with your character, and can begin to worry about other permutations. Lets get started with the first Career Path from the main rulebook, Adept.

The Adept

This character relies a lot on his intelligence to get him by. With access to tons of knowledge skills through the first three ranks, this character has the potential to be a top notch investigator right out of the gate. At Rank 4, you'll have a choice between the Inditor rank and the Chirurgeon rank. This is simply a choice between minor specialties, with the Inditor gaining access to tech skills and knowledge, and the Chirurgeon gaining medical skills.

At Rank 6, you may choose your Career Path from the Lexographer or Comptroller trees. Lexographers are steeped in Forbidden Lores, and eventually develop psychic powers. Comptrollers are more down to earth, learning as much Scholastic Lore as he can stomach and gains more bonuses to social situations due to his station.

The Adept will be a very intelligent and knowledgeable character, but won't gain many combat skills. That's alright, as the need for characters who can make sense of the mysteries of the 41st millennium vastly outstrips the availability of such folk.

The Arbitrator

This character has a good all around Career Path. The Arbitrator is tough, canny and has access to knowledge and investigation skills. The Rank tables (where Skills and Talents are selected) are larger than most other Careers at lower rank, and the player can simply select from several options to advance their Acolyte.

At Rank 6, you'll be able to choose from the Proctor or Intelligencer Career Ranks. This is a simple choice: the Proctor tree is the combat tree, focusing on Heavy Weapons at first and then as the character progresses they will gain access to command skills and have a high resistance to fear and insanity. The Intelligencer is the Arbites Detective, and this character can gain a large amount of both Scholastic and Forbidden Lore during his Career.

The Arbitrator character is skilled at many areas, and this means this character will be in the thick of the action at nearly all times. Able to investigate wrongdoing as well as do combat against those responsible, this character will always be a welcome addition to any troupe of Acolytes.

The Assassin

The Assassin Career is for those who want to fight. This Career Path focuses more than many of the others on Weapon Training and combat Talents. Like a few other Careers, this Path is rather straightforward. The Rank Tables are large, and you'll find a large number of subterfuge skills as well.

At Rank 6, the Assassin Career Path diverges into the Freeblade and Death Adept branches. The Death Adept is the classic Death Cultist - a very hard combatant to face and live. Death Adepts become more and more steeped in battle lore until they are a whirlwind of hatred in battle frenzy. Freeblades are more suave, the classic assassin taking contracts from the upper echelons of society. As Freeblades progress, they gain more and more influence and leadership skills until they are quite talented socialites.

The Assassin character is going to excel at combat, both ranged and hand to hand. They are silent and quick, great for tailing marks or staging ambushes and diversions. These characters may not be the best at interrogating captured prisoners, but will be invaluable during the fighting that's bound to happen whilst the Acolytes are in the service of the Inquisition.

The Cleric

This Career Path represents a character that has a broad base of learning, another good pick for all-rounder. The Career Path isn't as varied as some others, but the Cleric gains a fair amount of combat and social skills. There is also a variety of resistance Talents that make the character a little harder for enemies or horrific situations to influence.

At Rank 6, the Cleric has to choose between the Exorcist or Confessor Careers. The Exorcist gains the terrible Forbidden Lores of Chaos, and the specialized Weapon Training to combat those threats he is cursed with the knowledge of. Eventually, the Exorcist will pile on the Talents that let him resist enemy coercion and will be steeped in the lore of the Ordos and the Inquisition. Confessors also learn impressive combat skills, but focus more on social Skills and Talents that allow them to police his fellow man for signs of heresy. Eventually the Confessor will gain huge amounts of standing that will allow them a great amount of influence in the highest circles of the Imperium.

The Cleric Career is tough and resilient, and can specialize later on in combat or social oriented Career Ranks. This Character can provide guidance against daemonic foes, or influence planetary rulers with their piety. With this set of skills, the enemies of the Emperor should beware his Clerics!

The Guardsman

This Career Path represents a 'Fighting Man', a soldier with a military set of skills. Unlike the Assassin, which specializes in close-quarter fighting, a Guardsman relies on guns and tactics to win the day (though their melee skills can be quite respectable). The Career Path is narrow, and the Rank Tables aren't as large as some other Careers. The Guardsman, however, will learn a great many useful combat and coordination skills prior to the choice of Career Paths.

At Rank 6, the Guardsman gets three choices for his next rank. He can choose from Assault Veteran, and specialize in close quarters combat with blades and assault weapons such as meltaguns. He can also choose the Lieutenant Path, and gain command and social skills on the way to the top of the chain of command. The Scout Path provides stealth, trained senses and focus while harassing the enemy with guerrilla and sniper tactics.

The Guardsmen is going to be a staple in Acolyte groups. This character is able to help coordinate firefights and can fight up close and personal with the best of them, but won't have many non-military knowledge skills. With plenty of options for specialization, this is going to be a character who can lend weight to any combat and come out in one piece on the other end.

The Imperial Psyker

This character is a special case, and starts out the gate with access to Scholastic and Forbidden Knowledge it takes the other Careers several ranks to catch up with. This Career Path makes heavy use of Psychic Disciplines, and starts the game with Psy Rating 1, so they can use thier powers from the beginning. As they progress, Imperial Psykers increase the breadth of their Lores and the power of their disciplines.

At Rank 4, the Imperial Psyker must choose a path. The two choices these characters have is between the path of the Savant, the militant psyker-soldier; and the Scholar, which appropriately enough focus on their learning and skills rather than the training of a soldier. While the Savant will learn military skills, destructive powers and special weapon training talents, the Scholar will learn much about Lores, Trades and even be highly trained in Medicae.

Imperial Psykers are a very interesting character to play. Able to use strange abilities and learn valued skills, the Pskyers are a welcome addition to any Acolyte cell. Just be warned - the powers of the Warp are not a trifle, and meddling with such things in a careless fashion will only damn your soul to a screaming eternity as the plaything of the entities that live there.

The Scum

This character is a rogue, a sly fox that lives on the edge of society. These characters have a certain kind of moral ambiguity that is looked for in potential candidates for service to the Emperor's Inquisition. For the first several Career Ranks, these characters get a broad selection of "subterfuge" skills and talents such as Blather, Barter and Unremarkable. After a few Ranks, the Scum will be quite skilled at getting into and out of the seedier situations his Career will inevitably thrust upon him.

At Rank 6, the player must choose between the Cutter Career Path, or the Fixer. The Cutter is a dirty fighter who specializes in assault (including mugging and burglary). The Cutter eventually establishes himself as a heavy hitter in the criminal underworld and gains a ton of social skills once he makes it to the top. The Fixer, on the other hand are masters of the con-game. They gain a huge amount of social skills and can weave elaborate plots as the flit among the powerful, social elite.

The Scum is a character who will live by his wits, always needing to be one step ahead of his pursuers. They are readily equipped to deal with threats by a variety of means, whether interaction, investigation or combat. Just be sure to brush up on your Common Lore (Adeptus Arbites) when you get the chance - you might soon need the help with the legal system in the Imperium!

The Tech-Priest

The Tech-Priest, like the Imperial Psyker, is a special kind of character whose main talents lie somewhere just outside the other Career's ken. This character is trained in the mysteries of technology and has a deep rapport with the Adeptus Mechanicus, the strange and aloof Priesthood of Mars. As a servant of the Machine God, the Tech-Priest will learn how to harness his own cybernetic potential as well as learn many skills that deal with technology and learning. Through the basic Career Ranks, the Tech-Priest has access to a staggering number of Skills and Talents that should make specialization a snap.

At Rank 6, the Tech-Priest character must choose between the path of the Technomancer, or that of the Mech-Deacon. The Technomancer is a specialized loremaster, and during his career he will have access to plenty of Lore and Talents that add to his fortitude. The Mech-Deacon travels a much more varied path, travelling amongst those who are not adherents to the ways of the Omnissiah. They learn various Trades and how to handle heavy weapons, for unbelievers are often an unruly lot.

The Tech-Priest is a tough character with a range of exotic abilities. They are adept at using their special social circumstances to open doors where others cannot. A very important part of any Acolyte cell, the Tech-Priest character can make the difference between being able to operate critical devices, which are all too common in the service of the Inquisition.

The Adepta Sororitas

Exclusively females, the Sisters of Battle Career Path is available in The Inquisitor's Handbook. This is an interesting Career with many options, but initially all Sisters will learn basic military skills and have a strong indoctrination to the Imperial Creed. They will learn to be vigilant and proficient with the sacred bolter.

At Rank 4, the Sister must make a choice between three separate paths: The Dialogous, the Hospitaller, or the Militant. These are rather easily denoted by their names, and offers the Sister a broad choice in terms of character development. The Dialogous is the social character who is very learned, and possesses a large amount of Lore skills and bonuses to Interaction skills. The Hospitaller is the medical Sister, who tends the wounded with their vast knowledge of injury and medicine. The Militant is the power-armored Bolter Bitch, the Sister of Battle that is an iconic warrior-nun (with guns!)

Sisters of Battle characters are quite valuable to the Emperor's Inquisition, able to perform acts of piety on par with Clerics while administering death to the faithless. In any capacity the player chooses, the Adepta Sororitas will be quite handy to the player group, able to fill a gap in the groups composition by selecting the appropriate Career Path. Try not to lose your faith, however - corruption can gnaw even at the most pious of souls.

Conclusion

I think most folks have learned that Under a Vast Grey Sky isn't a combat game as I've run Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay in the past, or a dungeon run where the adventure locations are spelled out and put in front of the players like dominoes to knock down. Try to think in terms of the investigation, and what skills might be needed. While certainly some combat prowess will be needed (it is certain to happen every session), it won't win you day this time.

Thanks for reading folks. Leave me some comments!

Also, let Jerry know if you want your Wargate T-Shirts! They are $20, just let him know next time you see him!

Inquisition Time!

Tomorrow we begin Under A Vast Grey Sky, the first part of a new Dark Heresy cycle that will be running here at the Wargate! For those who aren't as familiar with the setting, and for those who are wanting a few more specifics as to how the Ordos stand within the Mardannon Sector, this short primer is designed to hit a few high points in as few words as possible, making it readable for your average net-serf.

Let's start with the major divisions within the Holy Inquisition itself, the Ordos.

1. The Ordo Hereticus is responsible for protecting mankind from itself. This includes but is not limited to apostate members of the Ecclesiarchy, rogue psykers and mutation.
2. The Ordo Malleus is responsible for combating and defending the Imperium from the physical manifestation of Chaos, the daemon. Some overlap with the Ordo Hereticus regarding psykers.
3. The Ordo Xenos is responsible for learning about and policing the Imperium for alien threats. Orks, Tau and all other foul xenos are within the Ordo's purview.

There are myriad smaller Ordos, but these three are found across the galaxy. Also, some Inquisitors do not belong to any Ordo, just sort of roaming around doing crap. However, there are more factions than just these. Many Inquisitors have a certain philosophy they ascribe to, and this colors how they operate. In an organization the likes of the Holy Inquisition, there is bound to be a staggering amount of conflicting viewpoints, and we'll touch on the major strains of belief in the Mardannon Sector. These philosophies are divided into two major camps, known as Puritan and Radical.

The Puritan factions try to stick to Imperial doctrine as much as possible, and pretty much persecute their Radical Brethren as much as possible. The Puritan factions are as thus:

1. The Thorians believe that the Emperor of Mankind will one day be reincarnated.
2. The Monodominants believe that Mankind is only safe if all other sentient alien races are completely obliterated.
3. The Amalathians want the status quo to be maintained, and strive for cooperation between Imperial agencies.

Radical factions have a different outlook - pretty much "if it works, do it". This turns to using the tools of the enemy against them, which is a valid tactic in some situations. However, the suspicions of their Puritan Brethren can be hindering and in many cases dangerous. The Radical factions include:

1. The Xanthites who believe that Chaos can be used against Chaos. This takes the form of daemonic pacts, Chaos artifacts and crazy rituals of nasty Chaos-ity.
2. The Recongregationists who believe that the Imperium is deeply corrupt to the core, and want to destroy it to rebuild it in a more suitable image.
3. The Istvaanians who believe that only strife and war can bring humanity to where it must go. They hold that humanity is the strongest after periods of terrible suffering.

So there are plenty of diametrically opposed viewpoints, and this doesn't do much to actually breed trust amongst certain members of the Inquisition. However, this is the Mardannon Sector...what Inquisitors are active here? To answer that question, I have prepared a small report on the top members of each Ordo most active in the sector. It's assumed your character, as an acolyte, will be aware of at least this much.

The Ordo Malleus

• Inquisitor Lord Lucian Kylan - The most militant Inquisitor in the entire sector, Lord Kylan plies the stars on the powerful and ancient warship Hammer of Titan. He commands a vast amount of resources, and has taken war to the minions of Chaos many times. A staunch monodominant, Kylan's power is turned upon the daemon mutated armies of Chaos.
• Inquisitor Dominic Gustav - A powerful daemon-hunter in his own right, Gustav was once the acolyte of Lord Kylan. Now, he attempts to uphold the Amalathian agenda where the threat of the warp bleeds through.
• Inquisitor Marius Vex - A quiet but thorough witch-finder, rogue psykers and others bound for the Black Ships fear the shadowy form of this Inquisitor. Though he is a believer in the Thorian way, he's not so sure there will ever be such a vessel and focuses on his work rooting out daemon-sorcerers.

The Ordo Hereticus

• Inquisitor Shan Tsien Tiang - Openly ascribing to the philosophies of the Recongregators, this Inquisitor from a barbarian world travels a route between five systems, handing out judgements and burning at least one witch on each stop just to make a point. Many criminals who have violated the tenets of the Hereticus are held prisoner until he arrives to hand down judgement, which might be a period of many years.
• Inquisitor Corvus Mandera - A low key operative who is a staunch Amalathian, Mandera makes it a point to follow up accusations of witch-craft and heresy in the many guilds criss-crossing the sector. Oftentimes operating with very little resources, this rugged Inquistor has produced an amazing amount of results in the short time he has been operating.
• Inquisitor Abakum Lukyanov - This eccentric Xanthite has spent many long years seeking out and (presumably) destroying several legendary sorcerous tomes, such as The Infinite Secret and Ulorkotesh's fabled Snugdriggunumancy. Lukyanov has written several treaties on using mankind's latent psychic powers in conjunction with certain types of learning that suggest he may favor teaching nascent psykers sorcery by tome...

The Ordo Xenos

• Inquisitor Lord Marcus Baurus - A militant Istvaanian, this influential Inquisitor Lord has taken it upon himself to work to aggravate situations where destabilization is imminent. He has fanned the flames of war in many places, ushering in fighting with Ork tribes all along the reaches in warpshot of Magnum Sierra. Lately, he's been exploring the relations of the newly arrived Tau, and how to exploit them to draw them into a cataclysmic war.
• Inquisitor Ignacio Sulla - A professed Recongregationist, Inquisitor Sulla is ready and willing to help any Imperial Commander who requests his help. The catch is that whatever catches his attention is exposed to the most prolific Recongregationist in the sector, and profound change usually follows in his wake.
• Inquisitor Demekh Gulyayeva - An explorer from the edge of the system, this monodominant seeks out alien threats to the Imperium with the aid of the Imperial Navy and even Rogue Traders and other starfarers and organizations across the sector. Currently chasing Eldar pirates all around the sector, this Inquisitor has more resources and favors to call in than many other Inquisitors in the sector.

So, there's our outline for the Inquisition in the Mardannon Sector. You can find more information on the Inquisition at this awesome link to the Warhammer 40,000 wiki. As the game progresses, I'm sure you'll find out a lot more than you wanted to know! Just remember this one maxim, however, whenever you think of the Inquisition.

Even if you have nothing to hide, you still have something to fear.

Rulebook Ruminations: Dark Heresy Edition!

Howdy folks!

It's time for another game to start here at the Wargate, with our first World of Darkness game in the new edition having ended a few days ago. We'll talk more about that later, because today I'll be talking about some rulebooks we'll be using starting this Sunday!

Yes, it's time for Dark Heresy! We've used the basic rulebook before, but this time we'll be using the careers out of the main rulebook instead of stand-ins for space marine career paths. We've got a lot more players and plenty of miniatures, so we're going to be quite ready to throw down some game this weekend. But what books will we be using this go around?

The main Dark Heresy rulebook has a lot going for it, and despite what you might read on various boards around the net I think this is a fantastic volume. I've had mine since release, but I don't 'review' any books until the Wargate has a call to use them. I've already gone over a lot of the characters in other recent posts so I won't populate this post with a lot of that mumbo-jumbo. I'm going to speak for a moment about mechanics, instead.

Anyone familiar with the way Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, 2nd edition is run will be at home in the game. A few things are different to account for differences between the universes, but after a few rolls you'll be back into the swing of things in no time. Skills, Characteristics, etc. all use the same systems as that game, and advancement is also similar. A little time before the game spending experience and you'll have that down pat too - in many ways advancement is easier than Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay - a lot of the career paths are straight lines in many places, with one or two alternate ranks and the final ranks branching out into two forks, one of which your character will follow.

Combat has a few differences, but these are minutiae dealing with bonuses for autofire, cover and so forth. Mosty the differences are in nomenclature rather than function, so I'm fairly certain everyone will be comfortable with this and we'll be able to teach new players even quicker.

We'll also have the Inquisitor's Handbook on the table! This is a great reference when creating and advancing your character as it contains new Homeworlds, the Adepta Sororitas career, and a horde of alternate ranks. Alternate ranks are like prestige classes. A lot of the material is centered on the Calixis Sector, which is the default setting for the game. However, we'll be in the Mardannon Sector, the area of space the Wargate has been waging war in for the last six years. This means that there may be availability issues with some Alternate Ranks, but we can definitely find the Mardannon equivalent to whatever it is. There will also be special Mardannon Alternate Ranks that may become available to your acolytes during the game.

Most of the Inquisitor's Handbook is chock full of gear, but I have to take a moment to talk about this. It's not going to be open season with this book, like with the Old World Armoury. There are going to be all sorts of restrictions on what you can get. The gear in the Inquisitor's Handbook is divided by planet type, so here's the deal. If you are on that sort of planet, availability is as listed in the book. If you are not on that sort of planet, I'll just tell you right now that's a fat chance. Depending on the gear you are seeking, there might not be an availabilty roll made - that's just how it's gonna be. So suck it up - there's plenty of gear wherever you are, I assure you.

So, Dark Heresy is gonna roll into full swing and not be just a myth. Either of these books are invaluable player aids, and I highly advise anyone interested in such a thing to pick up at least the basic rulebook, which retails for like $50, but can be had for as low as $30 new if you shop around.

So until next weekend, remember this always: The Emperor Protects!

Space Marine to Dark Heresy

Howdy folks!

Today I want to talk about Dark Heresy. Yeah, we're going to be swapping game systems in a few weeks, and I thought it might be a good thing to go over some stuff that's been on my mind.

In 2009 we started our Mardannon Sector campaign's first RPG game, which I called Space Marine 2009: Shattered Destination. The game was built from Dark Heresy, after it had been out for a while and we all had time to digest the rules. However, my players felt that it would be hard to roleplay the Warhammer 40,000 universe, that it was too restrictive. So I built a ruleset that would allow us to play Adeptus Astartes (before Deathwatch arrived). We played a good length game, where all players were Space Marines. Everyone had a blast, and I think I did a good job proving that with the correct preparation and the right considerations, the setting is one of the best available. Never mind it seems to be the in-house favorite.

In Shattered Destination, the Space Marines taking part in the crusade to liberate Ordavis (mostly Imperial Navy and the Mardannon Crusade of the Black Templars) attacked the surface with a mighty planetfall, only to have their attack fall to ruin amidst defenses the Imperial forces were unaware were on the planet. The survivors of the ill-fated planetfall rallied in the wastes far beyond the hive cities and made their way to a hive yet to be afflicted with the orkoid menace.

What they found was far more disturbing.

The traitorous Alpha Legion had been lying in wait. With a great trove of stolen and appropriated siege tanks, the Legion rolled out of Rasheen and drove straight for the Imperial base at the Ordavis Prime Hive.

The rest is recorded in our last Warhammer 40,000 campaign, the Battle for Ordavis.

Soon, we'll be returning to the Warhammer 40,000 universe via Dark Heresy, only this time we're going to be playing it vanilla style! That is, right out of the book. We'll also be using the Inquisitor's Handbook. I'll probably go over both of those in my next Rulebook Rumination so until then I just want to hit on a few things you guys should be keeping in mind during character creation. Remember, we use miniatures, so any mini you have or want to use is definitely on the table! Just remember - no space marines, xenos or anything other than a human. Imperial, at that.

Dark Heresy has character delineation just like anything else. In this game, instead of Race and Class you get Homeworld and Career Path. Your character will select (or roll randomly) from a homeworld that basically functions as his race. Homeworlds are chosen according to type, and we'll select a world from the Index Mardannon to be your specific homeworld. Your homeworld will determine what Career Paths you can choose from and gives you extra traits as well. The homeworld types are:

1. Feral World - You come from a world with very little technology or civilization.
2. Hive World - You hail from a world of giant cities.
3. Imperial World - Your planet of origin is much like modern Earth.
4. Void Born - You were raised in space, aboard a huge ship.
5. Forge World - Your homeworld is one of the fabrication worlds of the Mechanicus.
6. Schola Progenium - An orphan, you were raised by the Imperium.
7. Noble Born - You were born to a family of Imperial nobles.
8. Mind Cleansed - Who are you? Who am I?

In addition to those 8 origin points, you'll need to choose a Career Path as well. Career Paths are very similar to Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay Careers, but are more linear. You simply rank up, take alternate ranks and elite advances to flesh out your character. There are also 8 choices for Career Path, and they are:

1. Adept - A thinking man, not nescessarily good at combat or social niceties.
2. Arbitrator - A member of the Adeptus Arbites, the long arm of Imperial Law.
3. Assassin - A killer for contract.
4. Cleric - A preacher of the Imperial Creed.
5. Guardsman - A fighting man, a soldier.
6. Imperial Psyker - A mystic with various psychic disciplines.
7. Scum - Criminals, outcasts, thieves and miscreants.
8. Tech Priest - Member of the Cult Mechanicus, very skilled with machines.
9. Adepta Sororitas - A Sister of Battle a.k.a. Nuns with Guns a.k.a. Bolter Bitches.

With these in mind, conceptualize your character. Lets find a miniature for you to use, and we'll either order it up or you can simply use one of the thousands of minis floating around the Wargate. We want to have painted character miniatures at least!

As a final note, the group's Inquisitor is one Corvus Mandera of the Ordo Hereticus. We had a vote some weeks back where the question was put the the group about which Ordo they would most like to serve, and Hereticus won the vote almost unanimously. He won't be around much in this campaign, but it's good to know who's got your back.