Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Hi everyone, I did try a google search, but could only find D20 rules for the roleplaying game - does anyone here know if the large-scale (post rogue trader) game has fan-made D20 based rules. Not to dump on 40k or its players, but as a life-long AD&D (D&D 2.0) player I think a system that relies on 5 probabilities ranging from 1/6 - 5/6 is far too facile to convincingly describe combat in a universe populated by grots on the lower end and titans and bio-titans on the higher end.

I know it may seem unbecoming for someone with serious ADD to dump on people for having poor attention spans, but every time I try to get back into 40k (or fantasy) I find myself frustrated and ultimately turned away from the game by the multitude of rules and game dynamics that seem designed for people who get cranky if they have to invest more than 30 minutes in one activity.

Also, if there is anyone who wanted to make some unofficial D20 rules (as well as more detailed combat dynamics) but felt overwhelmed at the prospect of doing it alone, I'd love to be a part of a collective effort to try and make some, maybe not as painstaking as AD&D, but also for people who aren't in a rush to finish a game.

Yes there is its the heresy series pretty old i can get pictures of the book for you when the shop opens Tuesday. Still have a set there.

The FFG 40K RPGs use the d100 to sort out success and failure. Super nice systems too!

jamesk1973 wrote:
The FFG 40K RPGs use the d100 to sort out success and failure. Super nice systems too!

D100? Oh wow the strong attention-spanned snob in me just came a little. I know it would be a commercial failure, but I could play 40k games like that if I had friends who were as into it as me.

actually the FFG 40K RPGs are doing reasonably well from what I can tell

I like the Dark Heresy game quite a lot. I wouldn't hesitate to get into it. You can find the books very cheap online.

Is dark heresy an RPG or more 40k like?

Its dark herressy.

RPG, definitely.

Oddnerd wrote:
Is dark heresy an RPG or more 40k like?

It is an RPG, like Dungeons & Dragons, based in the setting of Warhammer 40,000. It is not at all a tabletop wargame.

Dark Heresy has you playing the roles of an Inquisitor's minions, with more of an investigative feel to it's source material.

Rogue Trader has you playing the role of a Rogue Trader and his/her trusted advisors as they explore the edges of known space. It includes rules for Capital Ship to Ship combat.

Deathwatch has you playing the roles of Space Marines who are part of the elite Deathwatch Chapter who's mission is to purge Xenos. It has probably the most over-the-top gameplay (in terms of like 4 Marines just slaughtering everything they come across).

Black Crusade brought a number of refinements to their D100 system, and has you playing the role of either Chaos Cultists or Chaos Space Marines as they vie for ascendency to become a Demon Prince.

Only War has you taking on the roles of the men and women in the Imperial Guard, as you defend the Imperium from all manner of Heretical, Chaotic and Xeno enemies.

Dark Heresy 2 is the latest book released, bringing the focus back to the original book but with refined rules.


All of the core books have a number of supplements and expansions which vary in terms of how good they are. I wouldn't say any of the supplements are really necessary (except for the Into the Storm supplement for Rogue Trader because it lets you PLAY AS AN ORK). Since all the books share a common base rule system, content is able to be used from one source book to another (with some adjustments for the refinements to the rules, particularly from the original Dark Heresy rules). I've played campaigns from Rogue Trader, Black Crusade and we're about to start an Only War game. Like all rule systems, it has it's issues (and I mean it's not like DnD doesn't have it's own fair share of problems) but overall I think they're very solid rule systems. As long as your GM is on the ball you should have heaps of fun.

Here the ones I found. 4 of them.

Last one.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
It is 100D

^They are all supplements to Dark Heresy. They don't actually contain the rules to play the game, rather additional content that the GM can use to expand a Dark Heresy campaign.

They're also from the previous edition of Dark Heresy (I assume). Does anyone know how usable they are with the updated Dark Heresy v2? I've already seen v1 supplements for 50% off which is very tempting ; p

Are there any D20 or greater rules for full scale battles? For those of you who play DnD, I filled in for someone who was playing "The Rod of Seven Parts" and we played a pitched battle in which a town is attacked by a huge army. It was balls-to-the-wall action, it was what 40K should be, were it not for the fact that 99% of humans have the attention span of a goldfish.

Star Wars Saga Edition has rules for large-scale battles in a sci fi setting.

You might want to look into them. Certainly wouldn't be hard to remap it for 40k toys and tools.

Dark Heresy second edition was released last month. I've played years of D20, but the Dark Heresy system is better.

I strongly recommend the WH40k RPG from FFG! They are really great.
You could also use the Deathwatch rules for a WH40k game - if you enjoy 10 space marines fighting a whole 2000 point army.

My weekly gaming group has been playing Rogue Trader and Dark Heresy for a while now. I definitely recommend them.

Between the two though, I'd have to say I enjoyed Rogue Trader more. But that may just have been I was playing a Seneschal and had loads of fun doing the whole talky thing and fleecing planets for all they were worth.

I only run DH, though we're still running v1 (modified by house-rules to fix certain derpy things)... I might pick up v2 this week and read through it to see how it plays.

I had already been considering converting all of DH to the way powers and classes work in Black Crusade or Only War, as those seemed a lot more balanced... I especially liked the way that Black Crusade tied purchases to the Gods, which I can re-tool for more class roles along the lines of the "Holy Trinity" (Tank, DPS, Support), by different names....

... but that's a project I don't have time for right now.

 ChazSexington wrote:
Dark Heresy second edition was released last month. I've played years of D20, but the Dark Heresy system is better.

Yeah, I agree. I was a firm believer in D20 until I played Dark Heresy. It's a great system.

As for D20 in a non-RPG setting, the problem that you're going to get is one of scale. If you have 200 guardsmen on the table rolling 200D20 is going to get more than a little cumbersome. The only way it really works is at the skirmish level, but if you're playing at that level then those things being complained about aren't problems in the first place.

Unless you want some sort of really elaborate skirmish game like old battletech, in which case there's a version of 40k that does this called necromunda. Still uses D6, but doesn't have any of the problems as what you can bring to the table is rather limited by the system (no rules for fliers or bio-titans, for example).