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Right, deep breath, this one might go off the rails!

So, I'm working (sort of) on a few inquisitor warbands ATM, and my question to the fluff gods is this:
Would a Sister of Battle ever be seconded (or volunteer) to be a member of an Inquisitor's retinue, for either a fixed term, or indefinitely?

This question stems from the fact that I firstly like the SOB models, fluff - all of it. But, given my monetary situations (Uni Student) I can't afford a "proper" army - so I scatter them around my several warbands.
(NOTE: this is not an "army" that will ever see the tabletop in a game of regular 40k, so I don't care if I'm "not allowed" in a codex!)


These are the 2 character outlines, if anything sticks out I'd be obliged if you'd mention it - As the "inventor" I'm a little biased.

The first sister appears in my main Warband: Sister Ramona, who works alongside Inquisitor Bartimus Mort and his misfit crew - Now, the way I justify it, is that she came into inquisitorial service after she was separated from her squad during a disastrous operation, and came to find herself aiding Mort, and once the operation was over, she stayed on secondment.


The second 'Sis began life in my (short-lived) P&M blog, I've only got a little fluff for her:
"Seconded permanently to Inquisitor Lucarde, Veronique is a silent figure behind her ceramite faceplate, though she has a strange habit of collecting children's toys from the warzones she visits - a symptom of battle fatigue, or something more sinister? Only Veronique herself could say, and she delights in not talking."
Basically, she's a member of a puritan warband, who'se taken an oath of silence, and serves the inquisitor because of some dark secret he found out about her/some crime she committed (or that she perceives herself as having commited) etc.

So, does that sound reasonable?
Does it make sense for these 2 sisters to have left their convents to serve with the Inquisition?
Would they even be allowed to?

I'm interested to hear some opinions, but let's try not to burn anyone at the stake, aye?

From GW's Inquisitor RPG:

"Utterly dedicated to the protection of the Imperium,Battle Sisters are trained and equipped to the highest standards. Inquisitors, especally those of the Puritan faction, are often keen to include Battle Sisters in their retinues for this very reason."
- website link

So, certainly it is possible. In fact, this was already done by Games Workshop in their Inquisitor game, for as long as it lasted anyways. It is also an option in FFG's 40k RPGs, and though this is not GW studio material, the explanations provided in those books are just as sound.

The thing about your background is that a Sister would never opt to stay with an Inquisitor based solely on her own volition. If, however, said Inquisitor would contact her convent, it is entirely possible that he might be able to arrange a transfer of this particular survivor and/or the other Sister into his warband. She would, however, continue to feel a sense of loyalty to the Sisterhood, perhaps regularly requesting leave to go pray in a temple whenever the group visits a new world, or contact a local convent if there is one (also as a means to restock on spent ammunition and have her equipment repaired, provided her new master does not requisition replacements from elsewhere), and send reports on her travels to the Sororitas' extensive network.

In a way, a Sororitas is also a liability, depending on the nature and the activities of the other members of the Inquisitor's cell. Given that it is a Puritan warband, however, I think they should get along nicely, and the Sisters might even be able to provide a bit of spiritual guidance, if the cell does not already include a sanctioned Ministorum cleric.

For the 2nd Sister, I think we'd really need to know more about her background to pass judgement. It's certainly a quirk that appears a bit odd for someone who didn't enjoy a normal childhood but was raised from infancy in the state's Schola Progenium. With that vow of silence she does sound like a member of the Argent Shroud, though.

You could also make the two Sisters be squadmates and connect their stories. Perhaps it was survivor's guilt that prompted the 2nd Sister to develop that quirk in remembrance of her lost Sisters?
By connecting their stories and origin, you make it look a bit less odd that you've got two Sisters in the retinue there. I think normally it'd be one (as she is kind of a "specialist" in her role for the group), but the Inquisitor could have easily picked them up as a package?
You also do not need to connect their background "all the way", but could say that one of them has lost her entire squad, then developed this quirk, and was then grouped with the 2nd. Both of them were posted as guards at a shrine (in what was meant as a sort of "vacation" for the survivor to meditate and recover) when the Inquisitor came along and requisitioned their service against some cult that had infiltrated the local law enforcement and/or PDF, cutting him off from most of the military resources he would've otherwise called in. At his side, they performed well, so he thought "hey, I should keep those two around, let's ask their boss". Just an idea tho.

Anyways, I doubt you're being "burned at the stake" - your concept is largely covered by existing studio material.

(feel free to browse the above-linked website, by the way .. it might offer some more inspiration for you)

Cheers for that link Lynata - looks like that research journal I'm supposed to be reading will have to wait a while
Also, I like the interconnected story idea... I'll have a think on that...

As regards the sisters:

Ramona (number 1) will very much be a liability - especially seeing as Mort had a leaning to the radical side, he has to be very careful to insulate his most zealous acolyte from his more shady dealings... Add in an ambitious but puritanical interrogator, things get fun

The 2nd sister, I'm thinking, may have perhaps seen something so horrific that it broke her mentally - thus the odd behaviour, and a possible reason why Inquisitor Lucarde took her with him - to keep an eye on her.

Any other details that deserve attention?

An interesting question, and not straightforward to answer. It doesn't sound too controversial to me, though I can't think of any fluff that outright contradicts or proves the idea, so I'll have to off the "feel" of the idea, mostly.

 Dark Apostle 666 wrote:
So, does that sound reasonable?
Does it make sense for these 2 sisters to have left their convents to serve with the Inquisition?
Would they even be allowed to?

There are lone Sisters who guard shrines in the fluff, so I suppose that it could work. Though their Order would likely have to approve it. As for reasons why, maybe there could be a long-term heretical threat to deal with? The Sisters are never adverse to fighting heresy, after all. But on the other hand, Sisters are noted for living very isolated lives when not at war, but I suppose that the holy Inquisition could be an acceptable exception to this.

What Ordos are these Inquisitors from, by the way? You could probably make any of them work with the right situation, but it'd fit even better if they were with a Hereticus Inquisitor. The SoB have close ties to the Hereticus and, depending on your viewpoint, are their Order Militant.

As for your characters that you wanted feedback on:

 Dark Apostle 666 wrote:
The first sister appears in my main Warband: Sister Ramona, who works alongside Inquisitor Bartimus Mort and his misfit crew - Now, the way I justify it, is that she came into inquisitorial service after she was separated from her squad during a disastrous operation, and came to find herself aiding Mort, and once the operation was over, she stayed on secondment.

How about her squad was one of those really small SoB presences guarding a very specific location? Then, once that location was destroyed and her squad killed, she linked up with the Inquisitor to fight some heretical threat (possibly the one that killed her squad?) Her Order approved of her attatchment until the threat was dealt with, and she now serves alongside the Inquisitor.

 Dark Apostle 666 wrote:
The second 'Sis began life in my (short-lived) P&M blog, I've only got a little fluff for her:
"Seconded permanently to Inquisitor Lucarde, Veronique is a silent figure behind her ceramite faceplate, though she has a strange habit of collecting children's toys from the warzones she visits - a symptom of battle fatigue, or something more sinister? Only Veronique herself could say, and she delights in not talking."
Basically, she's a member of a puritan warband, who'se taken an oath of silence, and serves the inquisitor because of some dark secret he found out about her/some crime she committed (or that she perceives herself as having commited) etc.

Similar deal, really. Though a Sister like that would most likely go to the Repentia or even a Penitent Engine if she felt that she had failed in some way, probably not an Inquisitor. Perhaps she could be assigned to him in some sort of pennance from her Order?

Edit: Oh, well, never mind lol. Lynata beat me to it and did it better.

But yeah, getting a strong Argent Shroud vibe from Sister number 2.

I edited my post above with the idea that both Sisters could've been guarding a shrine and picked up at the same time, by the way. It might be more convenient that way rather than recruiting them individually.

And yes, Hereticus would definitively fit the best.

(also, it's Chamber Militant *ducks*)

Also, your description for the second Sister made me think of this of this cool artwork I came across.

 Lynata wrote:
(also, it's Chamber Militant *ducks*)

Bloody hell. I got that same term wrong in a different way before.

Aww. That's a sad picture.

Kind of fitting, though. She even has the Inquisitorial insignia on her shoulder.

Troike wrote:Bloody hell. I got that same term wrong in a different way before.

I thought I remembered something like that from another thread!

No worries, though - they're easy to confuse, and it's one of those things that are quick to happen twice. If you want, I'll keep slapping your wrists with the power ruler every time it happens.

These are all good ideas. But don't feel limited. Inquisitors are very powerful, and Adepta Sororitas is supportive of the Inquisition. If an Inquisitor was in a desperate situation and claimed two SoBs for any legitimate reason, the Adepta Sororitas would probably go along with it. It also doesn't have to be a nominally permanent attachment; they could just be serving with him for X years. It's certainly plausible enough that no one should have a problem with it.

All right, thanks for that - Troike, I like the idea of Ramona being a "garrison" style thing - maybe guarding a relic that one of my more nefarious warbands made off with.

As far as Ordos, Both sisters are in Hereticus-Inquisitor led warbands, mostly because that's the faction I always imagine them alongside, having been a convert to the WH 'dex.

As for my silent sister, I think that maybe Inquisitor Lucarde interceded with the convent, and maybe vouched for her integrity despite these "crimes" - Maybe her superiors told him to take her with him lest she sully the honour of the convent?

They could've both been "shrine maidens" guarding the same site, but still have different backgrounds if they were only teamed up for the duration of this assignment.

Personally, I would drop the "sully the convent's honour" thing - that just sounds a bit atypical to me, as if she were exiled, kicked out even. Her superiors would regard it as their sacred duty to save her soul, sending her to the Repentia if need be.

But how about her quirk just making her a lesser teamplayer? Perhaps the other Sisters find her conduct (which remains unchanged even after a dozen sessions of atonement under the careful ministration of the Mistress of Repentance) somewhat creepy. Sister Iona from the Faith & Fire novel springs to mind.

The Canoness might contemplate sending her to the Repentia as she just doesn't function anymore in a normal squad, when the Inquisitor contacts her and asks for support. Seeing as her performance as a warrior remains unchanged (she just fights as if in a trance or shell shock - blank facial expression, no words), the convent's leader resorts to send her, thinking that she could still be useful in an Inquisitor's team, and how that could maybe even turn her around, given time?

Now that... that I like!
It really ties it together nicely - Now I'm itching to write up her fluff, so thanks!

Well, there is a possibility to play a Sister in the RPG Dark Heresy... In the scourcebook "The Inquisitors Handbook" there's some stuff about sisters joining a squad of inquisitorial acolytes... maybe you could take a look what it says if you get your hands on a copy.
I really like Lynata's suggestion though.

Eh... the DH version of Sisters is... wonky. Also, the version presented in the Inquisitor's Handbook requires the errata to play, but I digress...

The set-up for that is that, basically, the Inquisition goes to the Convent and says, "hey, here's my rosette, I need some Sisters" and the Sororitas gives them to the Inquisitor. Remember, IH was written when Codex: Witchhunters was the last update the Sisters had and they were still considered the Chamber Militant of the Ordo Hereticus.

It explains that a Sister might be seconded to the Inquistion to carry on a Puritan Inquisitor's work and bear the flame of the Emperor against the various heretics and mutants such an Inq is likely to encounter.

A Sister might also be attached to handle any blasphemous relics or texts the party acquires, or to keep an eye on certain at-risk Acolytes.

It's not like anyone in my group actually read the section, since the Sisters were off limits, quoth my gm.^^
But still, it's nice to have the option to have them in a party. I really like the version of keeping an eye on the at-risk acolytes, especially if a psyker is present.

The player in my DH group who has built a Sister-like character, without actually being a Sister, falls into the latter group. She reminds those who stray near to heresy that she owns an Eviscerator, and isn't afraid to use it.

Interesting. What did she play?

Psienesis wrote:Eh... the DH version of Sisters is... wonky. Also, the version presented in the Inquisitor's Handbook requires the errata to play, but I digress...

I think the Inquisitor's Handbook version was fairly accurate in terms of lining up with the studio fluff. Much better than the crazy spell-slingers in Blood of Martyrs, anyways.

Psienesis wrote:The set-up for that is that, basically, the Inquisition goes to the Convent and says, "hey, here's my rosette, I need some Sisters" and the Sororitas gives them to the Inquisitor.

That's the default solution from GW's material - in Dark Heresy, they actually came up with something slightly more interesting. This idea of "Detached Novices", where the Sororitas send some of their best recruits to the Inquisition as a sort of exchange program, to better learn how to hunt heretics and stuff. They also keep tabs on the cell's entire activity and transmit everything they learn back to the Sisterhood, so they are kind of a mixed blessing if the Inquisitor engages in Radical stuff, as that Novice could end up ratting him/her out.

Atropamin wrote:I really like the version of keeping an eye on the at-risk acolytes, especially if a psyker is present.

You have no idea how fast a little bit of fun can escalate. I had a game where everyone hid the fact that one of them is a psyker from a Sister. When it eventually slipped, she immediately drew her pistol and nearly executed him as a witch. Good times.

(not nearly as fun as the psyker's inaptitude with grenades - I swear, every single time he tried to throw one it came bouncing back ...)

Psienesis wrote:She reminds those who stray near to heresy that she owns an Eviscerator, and isn't afraid to use it.

Atropamin wrote:Interesting. What did she play?

Started out at Rank 1 as a Cleric, went the more-combative route, and got True Faith as part of the Blood of Martyrs expanded rules. Picked up the Chain-Weapons talent through Cleric, picked up Chain-Weapon Expert (reduces the effect of hitting yourself with your Eviscerator) as an Elite Advance from a Drill Abbot the party knows, and post-Ascension went Interrogator.

She's been buying Faith Talents out of Blood of Martyrs and IHB as Elite Advances, and as they were expanded on in BOM for Clerics. So, as is the way with DH, she is a Sister in everything but name, as her Skills and Talents go. The thing is... Sisters in DH are basically dispensers of magic party tricks. They are built entirely around the Faith Talents, which get... kinda nuts.

In fact, heh, I had an entire section of my campaign entirely derailed by her using one specific Faith Talent that I simply had overlooked her having... ah well. Things have stayed interesting anyway.


I liked a lot of the ideas behind the Sisters provided in IHB, and the idea of having a Novice with the party allowed for a lot of fun RP, since that character was *significantly* younger than the rest of the party, who had all decided, for whatever reason, to play fairly grizzled IG vets, Hive Scum and Guns-for-Hire... and the Tech-Priest was so grey-skinned and weird no one ever asked how old he was... For a time, the group was rolling with a small detachment of Sisters. Only the PC was actually attached to the group, the rest (all higher-level NPCs, at least for a time) were simply hanging around their patron (likewise NPC) Inquisitor, doing things with/for the Inquisition the PCs had not yet earned the right, or need, to know.

The player of our Novice Sister played her very much like a Catholic schoolgirl with a chainsword and a boltgun. Also had the quirk (one of the effects of a certain planetary origin, iirc) of having very poor vision (which explained her very low-rolled BS) and so wore glasses. The player took it upon herself to roll a d10 any time she made a Dodge or Acrobatics test, to see if she kept her glasses on or not, taking a further -10 or -20, I forget, to her BS if she lost her glasses. It was a cute character that developed into a pretty hard-core badass within the Dialoguous as the campaign went on.

Psienesis wrote:The thing is... Sisters in DH are basically dispensers of magic party tricks. They are built entirely around the Faith Talents, which get... kinda nuts.

Ya. Tbh, I'd just do away with BoM entirely. It messes around with the Sisters as a class, and with their background, and it makes what is supposed to be a special feat due to their upbringing available to every 2nd rate zealot just because they believe they've seen something weird. /rant

The one good thing in that book was that they did away with Sisters earning money as if their profession was a job, and that they had a table with stuff they could requisition from a convent or Imperial armoury.

Psienesis wrote:In fact, heh, I had an entire section of my campaign entirely derailed by her using one specific Faith Talent that I simply had overlooked her having... ah well.

Now I'm kinda curious.

Psienesis wrote:I liked a lot of the ideas behind the Sisters provided in IHB, and the idea of having a Novice with the party allowed for a lot of fun RP, since that character was *significantly* younger than the rest of the party, who had all decided, for whatever reason, to play fairly grizzled IG vets, Hive Scum and Guns-for-Hire... and the Tech-Priest was so grey-skinned and weird no one ever asked how old he was... [...] The player of our Novice Sister played her very much like a Catholic schoolgirl with a chainsword and a boltgun.

That sounds like an awesome idea for a movie.

Also, nice idea/detail about those glasses!
Fits that she became a Dialogous, too - it goes with the stereotype, and her lack of eye vision should've probably kept her out of the Orders Militant. Give her a few years and she'll become something like a nerdy librarian traveling with a sawed-off combat shotgun and bolt shells stuck between the pages of her books.

@ Lynata: Thank you. You made my night with that comic!^^

@ Psienesis: Whooh...clerics. They can get quite nasty (as i found out, when our GM made us roll characters at random, and I got a mind cleansed cleric...who got the redemtionist firebrand package). Since we did not have Blood of Martyrs available, we didn't have one player with faith talents. It really sounds interesting. How long did you play?

That campaign is still on-going actually, and is linked in my signature.

In brief, it's set on a single Hive World that, a thousand years ago, was invaded by Chaos, which incited a civil war (yes, kind of like Krieg) and, during the course of the war, a Liberation fleet arrives, coinciding with the manifestation/investiture of seven saints.

In a desperate gamble, the forces of Chaos and the surviving Imperials launch a full-scale nuclear attack against the Hives. World gets devastated. Rad-storms and mutations everywhere. The resultant loss of billions of lives triggers a Warp Storm in the region, leaving the world separated from the Imperium and any possible rescue/relief efforts.

It's now a thousand years later, Warp Storm is still there, with the survivors living in tribes and scratch-built cities and the ruins of towns as best they can. A nickname for this game has been Fallout: Dark Heresy. Within the setting, all of the various aspects of Imperial life (the Ecclesiarchy, the IG and PDF, the Mechanicus, etc) have broken apart into squabbling factions. So we have cults venerating each of the seven saints (and some cults hate other cults), the Mechanicus is now four different Machine Cults, the IG/PDF are separated into various regiments (called War Cults) and the Inquisition is a mostly-forgotten memory.

The Saints themselves, as the legends speak of them, are based on the seven Elder Gods from the Simon edition of the Necronomicon and may not actually be Saints at all, but nascent Warp-entities (possibly the actual Elder Gods, to throw a Lovecraftian twist into things) or might be, as some claim, the divine messengers of the God-Emperor. The PCs are involved with the Cult of the Morning Star, which is dedicated to the Saint Inanna As'Ishtar, and (like every other cult) is trying to recover her relics so that the prophecy of her return can be fulfilled and the world cleansed of Chaos once and for all.

So that's the setting... the theme to the campaign is faith, what one is willing to believe, what one is willing to do in the name of faith, what sorts of things will change a person's faith, and similar, larger questions like that.

Quite an interesting plot, and (I looked at the blog) quite an long-going campaign.
I am not sure, if we're still within the topic of this thread. We could open a new one to share DH expreiences, characters, plots and so on...^^

Hmm, is there a DH section on Dakka? I know there's an Other Games, but not sure that applies to DH or the other FFG 40K products.

how about 40k General discussion?

Probably best to use the "Board Games and RPGs" in the Other Games section. Seems the most appropriate place.