Kanluwen wrote:That's misinformation, Alpharius.

Alpharius wrote:
Social situations and bolters don't really mix well and...

ph34r wrote:Could anyone tell me at what rank players need to be to use the Daemonhunter subclasses? Are they ascension level only, or also suitable for lower level acolytes?

Kid_Kyoto wrote:

ph34r wrote:Could anyone tell me at what rank players need to be to use the Daemonhunter subclasses? Are they ascension level only, or also suitable for lower level acolytes?

2 pages back...

There are a few background packages but I don't see any transition packages. There are alternate career paths but none of them require anything higher than level 6, most are level 1.

FFG wrote:A Diseased Soul
A preview of The Achilus Assault, the upcoming Deathwatch supplement



"I was content to spread my Father’s Blessings across these stars with rust and decay, but you now grow into many and try my patience. You did not spawn here and I insist on learning from where your trails led. There must be even more of you there, and they too need to embrace my art.”
–Intercepted Vox Transmission during the Third Battle for the Amaros

Back in May, we announced the upcoming release of The Achilus Assault, a supplement for Deathwatch. This guide to the fires of war raging in the Jericho Reach, from the numberless tides of the Tyranids in Hive Fleet Dagon to the hellish legions of Chaos pouring forth from the Hadex Anomaly, provides Game Masters with a surfeit of antagonists and mysteries to confront a Deathwatch Kill-team. Today, we’re pleased to present a preview by contributing writer Tim Huckelbery.

For The Achilus Assault, one goal was to create some adversarial characters, organizations, and locations to challenge our fearless Space Marines across all fronts in the massive crusade taking place in the Jericho Reach. Among other things, I worked on a character that I’ll be talking a little about today. His name is Mephidast the Plaguereaver, Daemon Prince of Nurgle, leader of the Blessed Tides, and Artisan of the Thousand Thousand Plagues. I’ve always loved Nurgle-themed Chaos, so it was a lot of fun to work on him.


Eternal Hate

It would be easy to simply make Mephidast very powerful and thus a worthy opponent, and as a daemon prince he certainly won’t suffer there; he can draw on untold legions of devoted cultists, renegade militias, and even Plague Marines to back his not inconsiderable personal might. He is also a puissant sorcerer as well as a skilled artisan of new deadly diseases. It is his background and motivations, however, that make Mephidast a bit different.

Born in a voidship during a Gellar Field malfunction, it is certainly possible that something infected him on that fateful date. Or worse yet, his already diseased soul perhaps attracted similarly foul beings that sensed kinship. He is constantly striving to express this pestilent spirit, first to the unfortunate world of his early years and now the entirety of Jericho. This driving need is above any simple desire to kill or destroy those who encounter him or his creations, though those who fall victim to his many plagues or abominations certainly care little in any difference.

Having long ago been granted immortality by his appreciative patron Father Nurgle, Mephidast launches visions that may take decades or even centuries to unfold across the Acheros Salient, which he has come to view as his personal property. He often has dozens of such designs festering at any given time, ranging from rapid plagues that will collapse a hive spire overnight to smaller, more subtle and slower moving rots that could devastate entire systems. With literally all the time in the world he can enact his virulent conceptions at whim, orchestrating them towards his glorious vision of an entire galaxy similarly devoted to his Father.



A minor setback

Up until recently that is, for now the Crusade is interfering with his plans. The Deathwatch and Ordo Malleus are more active than ever, ruining his plagues before they can reach fruition. What was mere frustration has become bitter hatred at these disruptions in his grand purpose and he is becoming more active himself to squash these nuisances. The Deathwatch will perhaps be assigned to investigate signs of his foul tampering, sometimes even through actual Omega Vault direction. Often, though, they may stumble upon the subtle traces of his plots unknowingly, uncovering layer upon layer in a plan that could cripple the Crusade if not stopped.

Examples might include overhearing word of a sudden rise in the mortality rate in a world they are already investigating on another matter, or a series of unfathomable crop failures that seem to leap from one agri-world to the next, or mass suicides that perhaps were perhaps not suicides after all. Mephidast will take unkindly to disruptions that the players might bring to his plague-filled aspirations though and will unleash multitudes of his followers, both daemonic and mortal, against them. Or perhaps he will visit them himself, for he is never above hands on work when his art is involved.

What is even more threatening is that he is also actively working to discover the source of this new surge of combatants. Covering Acheros and the Reach with his necrotic designs was always what drove his immortal life in the past, but now he knows there must be an even larger and more untouched part of the galaxy to be touched by his pestilent hand. Should he be able to unravel the secret of how to travel to these unspoiled worlds, his immortal life would be truly complete. Ah, what plagues he could make on them... should the Deathwatch falter in their duties.

Keep checking back for more, and look for The Achilus Assault on store shelves in the third quarter of 2011!

FFG wrote:Things Man Should Not Know
A preview of Black Crusade, the upcoming Warhammer 40,000 Roleplaying Game



“The fool, the coward and the ignorant proclaim that the Warp is a realm of unknowable peril and indescribable terror, that it is the hell of countless ancient myths and legends. This is a lie, told by those whose authority is based on lies long forgotten, to keep the masses terrified of the unknown. The Warp is limitless in power and infinite in the secrets it contains; it is knowledge and strength, life and death, and the untapped potential to make and remake worlds. It takes only the discipline and the will to shape it; those who lack that clarity of purpose are liable to be shaped by it instead."
–Ahzek Ahriman, Sorcerer of the Thousand Sons

Black Crusade, an upcoming roleplaying game that offers players a new perspective on the conflict between the Imperium of Man and the forces of Chaos, will be on store shelves in the third quarter of 2011. Today, we’re pleased to present a preview from Nathan Dowdell, one of the writers for Black Crusade. Among other contributions, Nathan wrote about the mechanics for Psychic Powers. Thanks, Nathan!

One of the defining factors of the Warhammer 40,000 universe is the Warp. Its presence shapes and informs much of the way the setting works, from the simple necessities of travel and communication across interstellar distances, to the abyssal horrors that dwell within the Immaterium, and the ravening power that a few can draw from it.

Such thoughts were foremost in our minds as we worked on one of Black Crusade thematic and interesting chapters, developing the latest iteration of the psychic power rules and other matters arcane and sorcerous.

The Power of the Warp

Psychic powers are an additional layer in any Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay game, requiring extra rules and abilities above and beyond those that non-psykers use. The system remains essentially the same as the versions in Rogue Trader and Deathwatch, however we took the chance to add some additional material and versatility.

One of the largest changes was the introduction of varying difficulties for powers. Some psychic powers are more or less difficult to wield than others—an element of Dark Heresy’s original psychic rules—so we chose to apply the range of standard difficulties to the Focus Power Tests needed to use different abilities. Added to that is another interesting concept: a variety of characteristics used for Focus Power Tests. Willpower is still king for most Psykers, but diviners may have a strong inclination towards Psyniscience, and some of the nastiest powers in the book are extensions of a tainted soul, powered by the Psyker’s accumulated Corruption.

Of course, the powers themselves are nothing without the means to employ them, and the Black Crusade team set out from the start to ensure that a variety of different techniques and styles were available to psykers in Black Crusade. The core rules don’t change for any of them, but through a variety of effects collectively known as Paths to Power (ranging from burning your own life away for power, to human sacrifice, to rites and ritualistic incantations), and the selection of background and alternative names given for each power, there should be sufficient tools and encouragement for a Psyker character to be unique and distinct.



The powers themselves are numerous, and Black Crusade contains an extensive and diverse collection of psychic powers, spread across three disciplines of generic powers (Telepathy, Telekinesis and Divination) and five alignments of Chaos-specific powers (Unaligned, Tzeentch, Nurgle, Slaanesh and Exalted – the latter being a small collection of dangerous, expensive powers for the mightiest of Unaligned Sorcerers). Some of these powers, such as the infamous Doombolt and deadly Bolt of Change, have long been staples of the Warhammer 40,000 Universe. Others, such as the terrifying Primordial Annihilation, are newer fare. However, in either case, we strove to provide a psyker character with diverse, thematic, and even balanced psychic powers, whether those powers are re-imagined classics or something completely new.

To end the chapter, Black Crusade expands on concepts first developed in the other Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay lines—rituals. Rituals are a staple of chaos cultists across the Warhammer 40,000 universe, and Black Crusade allows players to create their own with some simple but customizable rules.

H.B.M.C. wrote:They do have dataslates, but remember that a lot of games are victims of the year they were created in. BattleTech lacked wireless computers for a very long time because at the time of the game's creation such things didn't exist!

candy.man wrote:I suspect the reason is partly because a DP holding a giant e-reader is not as grim dark as reading an ancient tome.

warboss wrote:I just thought it was a funny pose that he looked like he was at the smelliest poetry reading ever!

Noisy_Marine wrote:


Holy gak! Demon Princes can read! (This could be the best picture of a demon prince ever.)


And color me surprised they are throwing Undivided sorcerers a bone. Usually you have to dedicate yourself to a god for greater power.

ph34r wrote:Ah, thanks. I will admit I only skimmed the previous pages, this thread is kind of huge and intimidating.

Kid_Kyoto wrote:

Noisy_Marine wrote:

Someone needs to shop the book into the current chaos codex

WADDYA MEAN THERE'S ONLY ONE DAEMON WEAPON!

Noisy_Marine wrote:

vitki wrote:"Damn, Matt Ward wrote the new codex???"

Ozymandias wrote:
"Draigo can do what!?"

Ozymandias wrote:

Noisy_Marine wrote:

"Draigo can do what!?"

BrookM wrote:A bit sadface about a lack of Rogue Trader news.

FFG wrote:A Daemon Bound Within Razor-Sharp Steel
A preview of Black Crusade, the upcoming Warhammer 40,000 Roleplaying Game



“For seventeen long centuries have I remained in this blade, confined within these metal walls. During all of my time of imprisonment you are the first I have seen who is worthy to bear me into battle. Come, take my hilt, and I will serve you in the manner of my kind, drawing blood of your enemies, protecting you in the midst of the fight, bringing you safely home again. Now, draw me from the scabbard and test the fineness of my balance. See how easily I swing, how my keen edge cleaves the air. A good choice, am I not? Willingly you picked me up. Your first mistake. Willingly you drew me. Your second mistake. I do not allow my servants to make three mistakes, foolish mortal…”
– Antinichus, Daemon of the Bloody Blade

Black Crusade, an upcoming roleplaying game that offers players a new perspective on the conflict between the Imperium of Man and the forces of Chaos, will be on store shelves in the third quarter of 2011. Today, we’re pleased to present a preview from Nathan Dowdell, one of the writers for Black Crusade. Among other contributions, Nathan wrote about the mechanics for daemon weapons. Thanks, Nathan!

One of the most iconic tools of a Disciple of the Dark Gods is a daemon weapon. After all, where would Abaddon be without the Daemon Sword Drach'nyen, or Lucius the Eternal without his Lash of Torment? Daemon weapons are amongst the deadliest weapons a Heretic can wield, though their lethality can sometimes be costly to the unwary or weak-willed. With Black Crusade, it was clear the section on daemon weapons would have to be detailed and comprehensive enough to satisfy such an iconic topic.

The knife in your back


Daemon weapons are a fascinating concept. Though they are terrifyingly powerful weapons (and who doesn’t want a really cool sword?) they are so much more than that; they are sentient entities in their own right. Each is possessed by one or more warp spirits or Daemons, bound creatures of Chaos that empower the weapon they inhabit. Seldom do the Daemons bound within the weapons want to be there, and thus they constantly cajole and threaten their bearer—or just wait for his concentration to slip so they can be at his throat. It requires a powerful will and delicate balance to use a daemon weapon without being consumed by it, and thus they exemplify the overarching conflicts of Black Crusade—the perils of desire and the price of glory.

Expanding from the section in Chapter 6 on Chaos rituals, we proceeded to produce a system that allowed player characters to construct their own daemon weapons and bind a Daemon of their choice within it, allowing the ambitious or power-hungry to create a weapon as powerful as their greed desires, with the accompanying difficulties and costs—binding a Greater Daemon is exceptionally difficult, and the Daemon’s power is too much for most to master, but the resultant weapon will be incredibly deadly. The rules allow players to capture and bind their own Daemons into weapons, meaning that each weapon is crafted to a player’s desires—and the raw whims of Chaos, of course!

The way daemon weapons work has ties to their first appearance back in Dark Heresy. Nobody wanted to create a radically new system that would conflict with what had come before, so the fundamental abilities of a Daemonic Sword or Bolter remain much the same. However, the list of powers available is much expanded and divided along alignment lines, so that a Flesh Hound of Khorne inside an axe produces different effects to a Flamer of Tzeentch inside a flamer. The options are wide enough that even if an entire party has their own daemon weapons, each one will be completely different from the next.

BrookM wrote:A bit sadface about a lack of Rogue Trader news.