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This Thread is for the roleplaying of Dark Heresy.
Only the players involved may post. No-one else.

Only people who may post are:

Dasterdly Dave (Arbitor)

Comissar NIkev (Assassin)

Randomonium (Guardsman)

VikingScott (GM!)

Okay everyone post once so i know you are aware of this thread.
After everyone is ready i'll put up te 1st story post aand we'll begin.

Let me know over skype or PM when ready. And all OOC stuff should be over skype.

Just a few tips that I would imagine are useful (posting strictly as a complete newb from reading a few things online. Salt liberally after reading)

For the players:

1. This is your game, and your story. It isn't as cut and paste as Warhammer 40millions, and you can do pretty much whatever you want as long as it is in keeping with your character's personality. This means that if you are hidden behind some barrels of oil you can attempt to roll them at the enemies and blow them up. The GM would work out a sequence of rolls to see if you succeed. (Ordinary (+10) Strength test to get the barrel rolling, enemy takes an Intelligence test to work out whats going to happen and then if passed, takes an agility test to avoid it and/or, not fall over. then the character would shoot at the barrel and attempt to make it explode, which would then do damage to the enemy)

2. Don't be afraid to leave the beaten track of the story. As with 1, it's your story and isn't cut and paste. If theres a moment when you can make a descision that fits your fluff but deviates from how the story is supposed to go, do it if you want. This goes for the GM as well.

For our esteemed Game Master:

1. Be prepared to accept that your players will not always do what you want, and be ready to make up an entirely different storyline if you need to if something odd happens. Obviously if they only deviate slightly, feel free to put it back on track with some creative BSing.

2. Feel free to reward or punish players as you see fit. Even though it is their story, you are effectively the Referee and control what goes on, to an extent. If someone is being stupid, write in a couple of creatures who randomly come in and attack him or something. Similarly, if someone is playing IC, and generally being awesome, consider giving them some extra exp or a trait, skill, talent or item.

Thats everything I can think of for now, but in future games we can add to this list as we see fit.

Posting to let you know I am aware of the thread.

From the vibrating depths of Razengoar's Sword, sister ship of Nucia's Sheild. I hunt my target with the fury of the Emperor as they plan their heretical plans, only to be ruined by my sword through their throat.


Thank Nucia's Lady I am here

Mission Statement Thing!
Ref: Inq/045678499/BI
Author: Inquisitor Tyburn Graves
Subject: Mission Briefing
Name: Iocanthos
Location: Segmentum Obscurus
Sector: Calixis (Scintillan Sub)
Tithe Grade: Exactus Median
Notes: are ef—Ghostfire Pollen
Mission Details: The Inquisition offices on Scintilla have been formally issued with a request for assistance from the settlement of Stern
Hope on Iocanthos. The report, while vague, suggests suspicious disturbances, possibly psychic or warp-based, occurring in the area of
a new cathedral raised to honour Saint Drusus. The cathedral lies at the heart of the remote outpost and its successful completion will do
much to further the Imperial faith on this troubled world, a laudable goal and one that the Holy Ordos shar es.
You are are equested and required to proceed to the planet Iocanthos where you will assist a Senior Inquisitorial Agent, Aristarchus the Seer,
in investigating the incidents and ensuring that the consecration of the cathedral goes as planned. Your princpal tasks are to gather data
about any phenomena encountered and, where needed, eliminate any threats that you find. For the duration of the mission, Aristar chus
has the honour of command over you in my name. Assist him and af ford him the same loyalty as you would give me, in the God-
Emperor’s name.
Passage for you has been arranged on the trade-hauler Brazen Sky for immediate departure to Iocanthos. Make yourself known and
familiarise yourself with your fellow Acolytes on board using the codes you have learned during your training.
Landing close to the site of the incident is impractical due to its geographical location in a mountain range and the potential hostility of the
natives. Instead you will make planetfall at Port Suffering (Iocanthos’ primary Imperial outpost) and meet Aristarchus there. From Port
Suffering arrangements have been made for your jour ney to Stern Hope.
Addendum 1: The Cathedral Mission
Missionary-Abbot Orland Skae successfully petitioned for the first Iocanthan cathedral to be built in the settlement Stern Hope two years
ago, and since then reports indicate that he has gathered a sizeable congregation of native converts and worthy off-world pilgrims to
his cause. Skae himself, a very distant scion of Scintillan nobility, has managed to garner both of f-world donations and considerable local
support to his mission, so far succeeding where others have failed.
Addendum 2: Reported Phenomena
As the cathedral structure has neared completion, unusual phenomena have been evidenced both at the site and in the surrounding
area. These include strange lights in the hills, animal attacks, missing persons, an upsurge in accidents and unexplained deaths. These
incidents have culminated recently in more serious and obviously unnatural events such as manifestations of phantom sounds, walls
weeping blood, telekinetic disturbances and other such phantasmagoria.
Addendum 3: Planetary Briefing
Society: Iocanthos is an anarchic pseudo-feudal society, where all power-relationships are based on violence or its threat. A war-tor n
and brutal world, the control of the planet are ests with various warlord and clan factions that compete to harvest or steal the planet’s
only tithed material, Ghostfire pollen, in order to tur n it over to the Imperium in exchange for supplies. The most powerful warlord is
currently King Vervai Skull who is currently acknowledged as Iocanthos’s de facto planetary governor. Iocanthos boasts a single fortified
Administratum-contr olled spaceport settlement, Port Suf fering, where the tithe is collected and trans-shipped.
Founding: Iocanthos was taken by General (Saint) Drusus’s 2nd Army Group during the first great crusades through the sector. As the
planet lacked any significant technology, Drusus’s forces defeated the indigenous people, known as the Ashleen, in a single week of
bloody fighting. Drusus later remarked in his memoirs that the only memorable aspect of the planet was the vast fields of wild flowers
which resembled “Shimmering fields of rippling explosions, caught at that fleeting moment between beauty and destruction” [Ref. pg.
526—Breaching the Darkness]. As ever, the general was perceptive as the Ghostfire would become central to the world’s future.
Additional Notes: In times past, Iocanthos served as a penal dumping ground for undesirables that the Scintillan authorities for various
are easons didn’t wish to execute or expatriate further afield. Such exiles were given minimal supplies and allowed to thrive or falter
without further interference. The current population is largely a mixture of their descendants and the native Ashleen.
Imperial xeno-botanist Mogren Thunt was the person who discovered that the pollen of the native Ghostfire flowers contained powerful
psychoactive properties and refined their use.
After being graced with a power ful vision telling her to build a temple, “Where the flowers burn”, Sister Semberle of the Adeptus Sororitas
came to the world and ordered the building of the Abbey of the Dawn in one of Iocanthos’s flint mountain ranges. The Sororitas facility
is forbidden to outsiders.
Ref—Ghostfire Pollen: Iocanthos’s sole tithe. It is a power ful psychoactive substance used as the base for a considerable number of
combat drugs used by the Imperial Guard’s penal legions thr oughout the Segmentum Obscurus.
Past Inquisitorial Involvement: To the average Iocanthan, the Inquisition is merely another half-legendary power from beyond their world,
and while there are records of several Inquisitorial missions to Iocanthos in the past, they are all classified beyond your clearance rating.
I have reviewed them and judge none to be curr ently relevant to your mission.
The planet historically are egisters a slightly higher per capita level of psyker birth, but not significantly so.
The Sisters of the Abbey of the Dawn regularly report any unusual heretical activity to the Conclave. Other than this, the Holy Ordos are etain
no standing presence on Iocanthos.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Act 1:
The Brazen Sky.


The adventure begins with the uncomfortable
trip to Iocanthos aboard the Brazen Sky,
a large and rather down-at-heel cargo
vessel. The Acolytes are hustled aboard past
scenes of frenetic activity as the ship’s crew load
and offload goods. They are left in a large and
dishevelled-looking open-plan crew bay largely
on their own for the duration of the trip, which
will last for three days under warp.

Your only connection to the ship is through a man called Sebek.
You should use this time to get used to each other and to learn more about the group.

Zek finishes pacing the bay for the umpteenth time, kicking out at the wall. "Why they gotta stuff us in a fethin' box! I can't stand these fings!" He flops to the ground, clearly uncomfortable with his surroundings.

"Relax Trooper. We'll be standing on hard rock soon enough." said Jansen as he went through his ammo pouches, checking everything was where it should be. "Personally, I'd rather be back on Naruke than on some primitive backwater, though Emperor knows that's pretty much all it is now... Its a shame my equipment was stolen on the trip to this sector. That emblem might have been useful, and Orianus wo..." His speech trails off into nothingness.

"Besides, at least you've got a book.

I wonder if that 'Sebek' chap knows anything about that planet. He's probably been around here before after all."

Instructions:
Inquire about the planet Iocanthos and any information pertaining to our mission with Sebek when he next comes in.

He is with you.
Constantly.
Folowing.

"Nice thought, boss, but I know this thing back to front. And its all stuff a newborn should know, anyway! Litanies of battle, how to sneak up on summin... What kind of feth-'ead don't know how to sneak up on summin? Hows you gonna eat if you can't catch your food?"

"alright, got anything else we could do, like a card game or something? This trip's going to get boring quickly otherwise."

Jansen wheels round to glare down at the man who has been at his heels for the last 5 minutes. "Are you going to answer my questions, little man, or do you want something of mine? That's right, don't think I haven't noticed you pawing at my gelt purse. You should know there's nothing in there by now anyway."

"So you want to know about Iocanthos?

A terrible bleak place so I’ve heard, the Ashleen would gut you a soon as look at you,
they paint their faces like blue fire to ward off evil sprits they say, and value bullets higher
than gold….To be honest I think even the Administratum sees the place as a punishment
posting, if you know what I mean.

But to make the time...seem less I can offer you....certain goods?"

"I wasn't lying when I told you about my purse being empty you know, so I suggest you go bother that Guardsman over there if you want thrones..." Jansen slumps down on his cramped berth, digesting the meagre amount of information he'd been given by the serf.

Slipping smoothly out of the shadows, Chazzick came upon the Guardsman from behind. "You know, if your so bored, you could always take delight and polish and give your weapon a looking over."

"Bloody Warp, man, where did you spring from? Besides, I suggest you leave him alone, he's probably trying to rest. Who are you anyway? I didn't see you at the briefing. You are part of this Cell right?" Jansen silently put his hand on his laspistol.

"I am called Chazzick. Yes, I was at the briefing, but you'll find that nobody saw me there. I am seen when I want to be, and as for you question, I spring when my target is unaware of my presence and feels at ease." Chazzick looked around the room the were all in, then turned his head to look toward Sebek who was standing by the Guardsmen.

Zek grunts, and pulls his lasrifle from his shoulder. He begins to check it over for damage, reciting the litanies of cleanliness:
"Let my hand wipe the grime from your perfect form, may you purify with your bolts of light."

After weeks of continuous shuddering motion, you
feel a sudden lurch and a sickening wrenching
sensation that can only mean that the Brazen Sky
has dropped out of warp. After a few minutes, the
pale-faced purser appears in the hatchway with a
flourish and advises you that you must “pack your
gear and present yourselves in Forward Hold 2/
DZ015 for debarkation to Iocanthos”. He waits
smiling to lead the way.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Forward Hold 2/DZ015 is a long, narrow and
high-vaulted room that holds a modest-sized
lighter—a multi-purpose transport designed to
move goods and people from orbit down to the
planet’s surface. The access hatch is already open
and waiting for the Acolytes while workers finish
loading supplies and other cargo into the vessel. A
deck officer takes a data-slate from the purser who
wishes you a last fawning bow of farewell, saying:
“Honoured guests you must depart.”
Once the purser has gone, the grimy hardfaced
deck officer asks:
“Any of you ever been on a drop before?”


Automatically Appended Next Post:



The deck officer looks with sympathy
at those who haven’t and says:
“Would you like a sedative?”

"Thanks, but no thanks. At least not for me. At least one of us needs to be awake when we hit the ground - we won't be able to find out what's going on if we're all passed out in our straps. You all have a sedative if you wan't, but I'm going to pass." Jansen stepped over into the lighter, and prepared to strap himself in.

"Uh, I can't deal with another flight. Give it to me."

The Deck Officer hands any
character who accepts a blue lozenge saying,
“This should help.”

(I'll wait for NIkev to choose before moving on.
@Rando you play a guardsman, he has been on a drop before.)

Chazzick Chuckled aloud as he walked past Zek. He stopped in front of the Deck officer "If a man can stay conscious during a drop for his Holy Emperor then he is Fit for Service, If he cannot, then he has work to do." Chazzick turned and took his place and prepared to strap in.

Zek's face contorts in anger at the slight, and tosses his pill away. He steps aboard the lander, and begins to secure his belongings and himself in a well drilled pattern. "I didn't wanna be conscious when ya' hurled on my lap, but I guess its worth it jussa' see the look on your pale face!" He chuckles to himself, his confidence restored.

The lighter’s interior is cramped and
uncomfortable, with hard metal seats and heavy
padded straps to keep a passenger from flying
around inside during the bumpy descent. Once
the characters are seated, a cold mechanical voice
comes over the vox-comm and counts down until
descent. The bay doors seal shut with a hissing
noise and finally, with a gut-wrenching lurch,
the lighter falls into the void of space. Zero-G
asserts itself and any loose objects float through
the air. After a few moments, an ear-splitting roar
sounds from the lighter’s engines as it makes its
descent into the atmosphere.
Conversation is impossible thanks to the roaring
from outside of the craft and the vibrations within.
The shuttle shakes horribly for the next thirty minutes.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
After what seems like an interminable amount
of time, the shuddering slows and conversation
becomes possible as the roaring noise recedes.
Bright day can be seen out of the lighter’s
viewport.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Act 2: Planet Fall

It takes thirty minutes for the lighter to punch
through the atmosphere and settle on one of the
landing pads inside Port Suffering. As the engines
wind down, the pilot announces over the vox that they
have arrived. The hatch-doors open and a wash of hot
air and glaring light surges in, revealing the smoky
landing field.


Through the hatch, you see a scorched landing
field, broken ground blackened from innumerable
shuttle and lighter engines. Encircling the landing
area is a high wire fence and looming above that,
the brooding metal-clad walls of the settlement
of Port Suffering.
The air smells foul, of chemicals, propellants
and cleaning agents, but beneath the odours one
would expect of such a place, there’s a faint and
sweet smell of iron.

(Insert Pic of overview of Port Suffering)

Upon leaving the lighter, the Group see
dozens of grubby-faced men scrubbing
the hull, attaching hoses to refuel it, and
workers approaching with a hover-sled to
carry the supplies that the ship brought in
and to transport the group. Within moments,
a blotchy-faced official approaches, wearing
dusty and once-fine navy-blue robes trimmed
in gaudy gold chains. To either side of him
are large men wearing re-breathers and
casually cradling shotguns in their arms.

"Greetings" said the official bowing stiffly.
"Welcome to Port Suffering"


Automatically Appended Next Post:
"What is your purpose here and
where did you come from?"

"How long do you intend to stay?"

While the official asks these questions
the two guards lean over the
characters threatingly.

"Thank you" growled Jansen as he unstuck himself from the straps securing him to the lighter, more than a little annoyed at being shaken about so much during the drop. He checked to see all his possessions were in place and continued: "We were told to meet someone here, a man named 'Aristarchus'. Do you know of him?"

"What is your business here"

"Perhaps this man came here earlier
this month?"

As Chazzick unbuckled from the craft he look at the official. He then stepped alongside Jansen.

Saying nothing, Zek unstraps and steps out of the ship. He then moves to meet the guards challenge, loosening his rifle on its shoulder strap, and stretching to his full height, letting them know he isn't threatened.

" Stand down Zek, we don't want to cause trouble, and these men are only doing the Emperors work in their own way. Since you asked, we are pilgrims, travelling to see the new cathedral to Saint Drusus being built here. Emperor bless his name." Jansen made the sign of the Aquilla across his chest. "Aristachus is our guide, and will take us to see the glorius new work of the blessed Imperium. We must find him and continue our blessed journey. If you know of him, we request to be shown where he is."

"I need to know" The Berucrat insisted
"I have forms to fill"

"Whatever ya' say, boss." Zek slouches a little bit, but doesn't stop his vicious staring at the guards.