Webway campaign discussion

[FarseerMatt]

A (currently) 4-player Inquisitor campaign, set around 600.M41 that I have moved from another thread for a more focussed discussion:
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High Farseer Velora of Reia-Hal has had a vision foretelling the birth of an Eldar who will become one of Reia-Hal's greatest warriors (their Autarch incidentally - I worked her background into the campaign). But there's one huge drawback: this warrior will not be born on Reia-Hal itself but in a far distant place...and according to his vision the key to finding them lies in the dark city of Commorragh, the Webway home of the twisted Dark Eldar. The Seer Council is wracked by indecision, as for a Craftworlder to attempt to enter the fallen city would be tantamount to suicide. Their talk is interrupted by a young Ranger called Fenix (if you were at Medusa V, yes this is the same Fenix who will rise to the rank of Ranger Captain of Reia-Hal, but that's 400 years down the line), who announces he will take up the challenge for the good of the Craftworld. The Council can not sway him and so he sets out from Reia-Hal with his fellow Ranger and childhood friend Laara.

Now, the Reia-Hal do have a reasonably good idea of where in the Webway Commorragh lies, but exact information is scarce and finding safe wraithgates and tunnels that lead there even harder. So, first order of business is to go talk to some fellow Rangers of another Craftworld, who point them to a nearby Imperial planet that has been suffering heavily from Dark Eldar raids, suggesting that the Druchii have a Webway portal nearby which will, hopefully, lead them to the Dark City. On this planet is an Ordo Xenos Inquisitor who also seeks to locate this portal, but in his case to see if he can find a way of sealing it and so stopping the Dark Eldar attacks. He is, as Inquisitors tend to be, wrapped up in shadow games with rival Inquisitors with other agendas, such as locating the portal to try and explore the Webway, or even to use it to mount an attack on the Eldar within.

Fenix and Laara could care less about mon-keigh infighting, but if one of the Inquisitors proves of a sufficiently Radical bent they might make for a useful if temporary ally. Meanwhile, unknown to any of them the Dark Eldar have learned something of the Inquisitors' plans and have dispatched their own Mandrake assassins to prevent them from locating the portal.

CHARACTER TEAMS

Fenix and Laara - Eldar rangers of Reia-Hal Craftworld on a secret mission, played by me

Inquisitor Lotar Rodriguez - An Ordo Xenos inquisitor who seeks to seal this planet off from the webway with powerful psychic wards and so end the predations of the Dark Eldar. He is accompanied by his acolyte Damien Brax, as well as sanctioned psyker Sarah Harker to help him locate the portal. Played by Adam Pilgrim

Inquisitor Devoran Skaarn - A more radical member of the Ordo Xenos who believes the portal will be of more use to the Imperium if it can be studied or even explored first. He is accompanied by a techpriest advisor named Jonathon Stead to aid him in data gathering, as well as veteran guardsman Neji Leingod who acts as his bodyguard. Played by Sean Grant

Inquisitor Valentino Linklatorvitch - A fiery Monodominant who has got wind of his fellow inquisitor’s plans and does not want to see the planet tormented further by filthy xenos but nor does he believe any true servant of the Emperor should associate with their arcane technologies - nothing good could possibly come of dabbling in their blasphemous xeno-tech. He is resolved to purge the Eldar pirates and any heretics who consort with them, and he is accompanied by Brother Silas of the Deathwatch to aid him in this goal. Played by Ian Linklater

Skechara, Araqir and Arkhathia - Three mandrake assassins (two male, one female - you should see my mate’s conversions ) dispatched by the Kabal to monitor the inquisitors’ movements. Played by Colin Morrison

More detailed character profiles to follow.

Well, anyone, but most specifically IncubiLord and Sabbad, what are your thoughts?

[IncubiLord]

Well, you asked for it, so here's some DE perspective on the plot...

First off, we've already covered it, but they're not called Druchii. I'm just saying it again...

this warrior will not be born on Reia-Hal itself but in a far distant place...and according to his vision the key to finding them lies in the dark city of Commorragh, the Webway home of the twisted Dark Eldar.

I'm not sure what the key you're alluding to here is, but it could be that the individual being searched for is either a member of DE society who wants out or a prisoner of the DE.

The question I have is:
How will they know the key when they find it?

You need for the seer to have given them something/someone to look for, no matter how cryptic the information, otherwise you've just sent to average Eldar into Commorragh on a "You'll know it when you see it" comment.

(if you were at Medusa V, yes this is the same Fenix who will rise to the rank of Ranger Captain of Reia-Hal, but that's 400 years down the line)

That's a little Deus ex Machina for my liking.

There's no excitement to nearly dying when we all know that the "endangered" character is still alive 400 years later.

I think you're cheating yourself out of a more involving story to have already decided that both of your characters will survive their every coming trial.

suggesting that the Druchii have a Webway portal nearby which will, hopefully, lead them to the Dark City.

We've already covered that this would likely be a legacy portal, not a creation of the DE post-Fall, if it were a stationary structure.

Meanwhile, unknown to any of them the Dark Eldar have learned something of the Inquisitors' plans and have dispatched their own Mandrake assassins to prevent them from locating the portal.

Killing Inquisitors inside the Webway or opening another portal isn't as that hard...

I think the Kabal is pursuing this the wrong way, but it does get them involved in the =][= campaign and some DE Lords could well be vain enough to "send the beasts to hunt the vermin."

seeks to seal this planet off from the webway with powerful psychic wards

This is, I think, beyond the Imperium's reach. Sealing off the Webway is a major feat of power.

Shutting the immobile portal would only be a momentary set-back for the DE.

believes the portal will be of more use to the Imperium if it can be studied or even explored first.

That doesn't tend to work too well for the Imperium, either.



Now, I'm going to take a step away from the game you'll be playing to comment more on the story...


First off, if you're finding a world raided by the DE, you need a reason for the DE to be there.
I know it seems an odd statement, with our "take slaves" background, but the thing is, we don't stay in one place.

All the DE fluff is about an opportunistic strike-and-fade strategy, where we hit a world when it's weak and move on before anybody can come to its defense. The best you've got for consistant raiding is something along the lines of Devilsnacht, where the DE intentionally revisit an isolated human population on a certain calendar night every so many years to ensure that the people will work themselves up into a terror for us.

In this case, I might make the DE a relatively young Kabal with limited territory. Attacking a Hive World, the DE could appear in a number of locations without worry of the enemy gathering a suitable defense - they'd just have to be careful how they did it.

The problem is, this all relies on the idea that the DE are attacking from mobile portals - normal for them, but bad for having your Inquisitors hunt the things. A stationary portal really doesn't fit the DE standards for raiding.

It might work better for the Inquisitors to realize a short while in that the portals are being moved by the Mandrakes, giving the players something to hunt for, but meaning that every time they get close they will be attacked by the Mandrakes further from the portals. This creates a twisted situation where both sides are hunting each other that the players may find entertaining.

That gives us portals on the planet and a reasonable way for the =][= to hunt for them, without compromising the DE with an unreasonable stationary portal. Now for the craftworlders' involvement...


It's probably not easy to determine where the DE are raiding, even for the CWE, but it's also likely that every batch of CWE would be vaguely aware of a few nearby raids, so we can have the collective CWE finding a random band of DE without too much trouble there. Who you find is probably a crap-shoot, but that's okay for what you want... maybe.

My own opinion is that your Eldar have gone about this all wrong. Trying to sneak in past hostile DE and make it on their own, oblivious to how things work in the Dark City, seems quite suicidal. Instead, I would have the craftworld try to contact one of the Houses that isn't so hostile towards them.

Something that seems to slip by the non-DE players is that each DE player gets to be the lord of his own House (Kabal, Cult, Coven, Sect, all of the above, whatever) - and this translates into the DE having a wide range of differing opinions of Craftworlders that vary by House.

If you look the the FoMV discussions amongst the DE over allying with the CWE, you can find these opinions surfacing - from annoyed tolerance of the 'lost' craftworlders to a hatred that can barely be restrained when the CWE are proving useful to us. It would obviously be in your interest to find a House of the former conviction, one that might grant a couple of Rangers safe passage amongst them for some sort of compensation (and maybe the chance to plant the seeds of indulgence that could bring some of the craftworlders over to the "True Kin"). How, and when, you'd like to work this into the plot is a good question, but your Eldar are much more likely to survive visiting - and leaving - Commorragh if they have some 'friends' to help them out.


If you are continuing as planned, I have a few points to consider:
1) Craftworlders (especially Ulthwe) have their own man-portable Webway gates. If a couple of Rangers can find the place where a DE raid came out of the Webway, you can get in that same place without their portal.

2) If you come through a gate controlled by the DE, you're literally walking into the front-line base that they're slaving from. This is probably one of the best ways to get put in shackles yourself.

3) The fluff indicates that the DE load up their loot on anti-grav skiffs/barges to transport them through the Webway back home (it's a long ways, and we don't want to move as slow as women, children, and the elderly - all in chains). Tracking a raiding party as they head home through the Webway is going to be a serious challenge task for anybody who tries it.


Anyways, those are my thoughts for the moment. I'm off to torture a mon-keigh or two...

[FarseerMatt]

Thanks very much. Okay, here we go...

First off, we've already covered it, but they're not called Druchii. I'm just saying it again...

Dod gammit you're right, I meant to change that when I cut-and-pasted...bah, screw it, in my Craftworld's dialect the word for the Dark Kin is "Druchii". :P

I'm not sure what the key you're alluding to here is, but it could be that the individual being searched for is either a member of DE society who wants out or a prisoner of the DE.

Almost. It turns out they're looking for a Dark Eldar infant due to be sacrificed after both her parents were killed in the arenas. If they escape with her they "adopt" her into Craftworld society and she grows up to be their Autarch. Of course, her origins are kept secret from all save the Farseers, Fenix and Laara, and Suriyana's (the DE's) adopted parents.

The question I have is:
How will they know the key when they find it?

You need for the seer to have given them something/someone to look for, no matter how cryptic the information, otherwise you've just sent to average Eldar into Commorragh on a "You'll know it when you see it" comment.

Yes, I agree. I'm still trying to think of a suitable clue, such as a particular building, or event, as a sign that they're getting close - something that's cryptic at first but obvious when they see it. Er...any ideas? :P

That's a little Deus ex Machina for my liking.

There's no excitement to nearly dying when we all know that the "endangered" character is still alive 400 years later.

Ah, sorry, that particular statement isn't supposed to feature in the campaign story. If they do end up dying or joining the DE then I'll edit my Craftworld background and not the other way around. It is kinda annoying that the setting has to be several centuries in the past but I have to give Suriyana time to grow up (thought it less plausible that someone who had been incorporated into DE society for some time would both want to leave AND be accepted by their CWE kin). If the worst comes to the worst all I have to do is change my "present" Ranger captain's name.

Killing Inquisitors inside the Webway or opening another portal isn't that hard...

I think the Kabal is pursuing this the wrong way, but it does get them involved in the =][= campaign and some DE Lords could well be vain enough to "send the beasts to hunt the vermin."

That's kinda what I was thinking. As much an excuse to play Predator as a matter of internal security.

This is, I think, beyond the Imperium's reach. Sealing off the Webway is a major feat of power.

Shutting the immobile portal would only be a momentary set-back for the DE.

Malleus inquisitors can close Warp gates so maybe Inquisitor Rodriguez reckons he can do the same with a Webway portal. And yes, probably only a temporary reprieve but the good inquisitor doesn't know that...I guess even in the Ordo Xenos there's a lot of gaps in their knowledge concerning the mysterious Eldar, and their phantom Dark cousins even more so.

That doesn't tend to work too well for the Imperium, either.

How so? But bear in mind I did not write this part of the story - Sean has always had the idea that if the Imperium launched a crusade into the Webway and purged it then it would make space travel a lot easier for them (plus neutralising the Eldar race, the Emperor's enemies) and obviously Inquisitor Skaarn follows his views :P

The best you've got for consistant raiding is something along the lines of Devilsnacht, where the DE intentionally revisit an isolated human population on a certain calendar night every so many years to ensure that the people will work themselves up into a terror for us.

In this case, I might make the DE a relatively young Kabal with limited territory. Attacking a Hive World, the DE could appear in a number of locations without worry of the enemy gathering a suitable defense - they'd just have to be careful how they did it.

The problem is, this all relies on the idea that the DE are attacking from mobile portals - normal for them, but bad for having your Inquisitors hunt the things. A stationary portal really doesn't fit the DE standards for raiding.

Yeah, the Devilnacht story was pretty much what I had in mind. When I said "suffering heavy raids" I should have specified very destructive rather than frequent. Let's say the planet has been suffering yearly raids for some time, but as it is a civilized but fairly backwater planet no-one's that bothered until the Inquisitors hear about it and set off to do something about the imminent annual raid. Likewise if Fenix and Laara have a chat with some other Rangers who've been hanging around they too will have learned that there's a raid due.

It might work better for the Inquisitors to realize a short while in that the portals are being moved by the Mandrakes, giving the players something to hunt for, but meaning that every time they get close they will be attacked by the Mandrakes further from the portals. This creates a twisted situation where both sides are hunting each other that the players may find entertaining.

That gives us portals on the planet and a reasonable way for the =][= to hunt for them, without compromising the DE with an unreasonable stationary portal.

That sounds like a good idea. I'll run it by the GM.

My own opinion is that your Eldar have gone about this all wrong. Trying to sneak in past hostile DE and make it on their own, oblivious to how things work in the Dark City, seems quite suicidal.

It would obviously be in your interest to find a House of the former conviction, one that might grant a couple of Rangers safe passage amongst them for some sort of compensation (and maybe the chance to plant the seeds of indulgence that could bring some of the craftworlders over to the "True Kin"). How, and when, you'd like to work this into the plot is a good question, but your Eldar are much more likely to survive visiting - and leaving - Commorragh if they have some 'friends' to help them out.

True enough - I had a vague idea that the two Rangers could meet up with either the Mandrakes or (more likely) some of the raiders. The actual game would involve the raiders attacking them and, if they survive the initial skirmish, they might be able to get them to hold their fire long enough to sit down and have a talk. They could spin a story about abandoning their Craftworld or whatever, and some kind of "test" set them by the DE (say, kill the meddling inquisitor) might form the basis of another game before they are granted (comparitively) safe passage to Commorragh.

Looks like we need some more DE players (Mandrakes, raiders, maybe some others among the raiders who do not agree with taking in the CWE and eventually come to blows over it)

And to address your final points:

1) Yes, but your earlier point still holds - it would be preferable to enter the webway with some form of "friends" protecting them.
2) Could follow the attack/talk/test arc as above.
3) A serious challenge? Even better...

[IncubiLord]

my Craftworld's dialect the word for the Dark Kin is "Druchii".

Oh, yeah? Well that word is a grave insult in my Dark Eldar's dialect. Use it around us, and we'll cut out your tongue.

It turns out they're looking for a Dark Eldar infant due to be sacrificed

That's a bit too old-school for the DE, I'd imagine.

Sacrifices, which may have been an unintended ritual that fed She Who Thirsts, are one of the few things I'd write off as no longer part of DE culture since the Fall. Even if one Kabal still wanted to do so, they'd probably not do it just to avoid looking like servants of the Great Enemy to the others - a sure way to get an alliance of enemies coming after you.

Also, killing babies, while quite easy, doesn't allow much torture (babies aren't psychologically developed enough to torment other than physically) - which we all know makes the soul taste better.

A young child, on the other hand, could still barely have tasted the joys of Commorragh and would be sufficiently developed to suffer psychological torture.

However, children are a resource. Make the child have done something 'inappropriate' (like trying to avenge her parents' death by poisoning) - that way there's an explicit reason to hand her over to the Haemonculi to be tormented before she becomes somebody's dinner.

I'm still trying to think of a suitable clue, such as a particular building, or event, as a sign that they're getting close - something that's cryptic at first but obvious when they see it. Er...any ideas?

If you're looking for random cryptic comments, describe a Haemonculus' experiment. Maybe something like "Where the spawn of vermin and serpent strikes at a shattered blade" would initially seem quite odd, but would actually reference a rat whose tail has been replaced with a cobra that attacks a member of the Cult of the Broken Scythe (who I just made up - I hope ).

If they do end up dying or joining the DE then I'll edit my Craftworld background and not the other way around.

That's all good then.

How so?

There's been fiction on humans entering the Webway. Generally speaking, the Webway itself seems to work against non-Eldar with the exception of those who are allies of the Harlequins (certain very-rare Chaos-hunters who might be allowed to enter the Black Library). Oh, and the Harlequins don't seem to have any trouble finding these sorts and bringing all sorts of firepower to bear against them.

My personal theory is that the Webway, being the domain of Cegorach, responds to the will of its resident deity. The Laughing God makes things hard on anybody he doesn't like. There is no real backing for this theory, it just seems reasonable to me in comparison to the power of the Chaos Gods in the Eye of Terror.

My own theories aside, it just doesn't work out incredibly well for non-Eldar to invade the Webway. Everything about the situation seems to be stacked against the invaders.

Yeah, the Devilnacht story was pretty much what I had in mind.

That's fine then.

I had a vague idea that the two Rangers could meet up with either the Mandrakes or (more likely) some of the raiders. The actual game would involve the raiders attacking them and, if they survive the initial skirmish, they might be able to get them to hold their fire long enough to sit down and have a talk.

Most DE players seem to tend towards the feral end of the Mandrake potential. You wouldn't convince the typical Mandrake to sit down and chat with you, simply because those aren't the type of Mandrake that most DE Lords seem to hire.

You'd have a lot better luck talking to normal Dark Eldar.

They could spin a story about abandoning their Craftworld or whatever, and some kind of "test" set them by the DE (say, kill the meddling inquisitor) might form the basis of another game before they are granted (comparitively) safe passage to Commorragh.

If you spin a tale about joining the DE, a canny Lord will bring you into a party where you'll be expected to join in the pleasures of the flesh, torture a prisoner, and consume the soul of a slave that you kill in front of everybody.

A sincere recruit would have no problem with this, while a poser would be ousted and eaten by night's end.

Even if your phonies devised a convincing lie, they'd likely be expected to do some of these things on the long trip back to Commorragh anyways. Thus, you're better off not lying.

If you just want to see Commorragh, to go there and have a look around, and to decide for yourself which lifestyle is right for you (only a stretching of the truth there - they do want to go and have a look around and there's always the chance that they'll give in to temptation), the DE probably won't push you too hard, because it's much easier to slowly give in to one temptation at a time without realizing it than to accept everything right off the bat.

[FarseerMatt]

A young child, on the other hand, could still barely have tasted the joys of Commorragh and would be sufficiently developed to suffer psychological torture.

However, children are a resource. Make the child have done something 'inappropriate' (like trying to avenge her parents' death by poisoning) - that way there's an explicit reason to hand her over to the Haemonculi to be tormented before she becomes somebody's dinner.

Good idea.

If you're looking for random cryptic comments, describe a Haemonculus' experiment. Maybe something like "Where the spawn of vermin and serpent strikes at a shattered blade" would initially seem quite odd, but would actually reference a rat whose tail has been replaced with a cobra that attacks a member of the Cult of the Broken Scythe (who I just made up - I hope )

Ha ha snake-tailed rat wtf...I assume that will have been Suriyana's poisoning attempt? Think I might keep it as just a snake - sounds a bit too Skaven, else :P And there isn't a Cult of the Broken Scythe but there IS a Kabal of the Sundered Blade

My personal theory is that the Webway, being the domain of Cegorach, responds to the will of its resident deity. The Laughing God makes things hard on anybody he doesn't like. There is no real backing for this theory, it just seems reasonable to me in comparison to the power of the Chaos Gods in the Eye of Terror.

My own theories aside, it just doesn't work out incredibly well for non-Eldar to invade the Webway. Everything about the situation seems to be stacked against the invaders.

Makes sense to me, but since when did a mon-keigh know anything of Cegorach's power :P

You'd have a lot better luck talking to normal Dark Eldar.

Yeah, that's what I thought. Well, if any DE can be considered "normal"

If you just want to see Commorragh, to go there and have a look around, and to decide for yourself which lifestyle is right for you (only a stretching of the truth there - they do want to go and have a look around and there's always the chance that they'll give in to temptation), the DE probably won't push you too hard, because it's much easier to slowly give in to one temptation at a time without realizing it than to accept everything right off the bat.

Ah, okay. I was considering that idea but wasn't sure if it'd go down too well with the DE. Fair enough.

I think that's the narrative pretty much ironed out. Need to get everyone to sort their character profiles out now...that's a point, any suggestions on DE profiles would be greatly appreciated. Was leaning towards Pirate-Prince kind of stats, but also need to consider weapons. The Agoniser is already covered, and splinter weapons would probably have some sort of toxin as standard (eg a character hit by splinter shards needs to make a resistance test for Bloodfire toxin - or whatever - as well as any other effects) though their fire rate depends on whether they are designed to fire a "stream" or a "blast" of shards (what is your opinion on this?).

[Sabbad]

With reference to splinter weaponry, have a look at the rules for Fletchette ammo (can't remember them off the top of my head).

You've talked a lot about storyline, but as an Inquisitor player myself I'm quite curious about the campaign itself. Am I right in thinking you are NOT the campaign's GM? Is the GM OK with you having this much of a role over the story's eventual progression? Also, what role is each player intended to have in the campaign - is this campaign going to be essentially the tale of YOUR characters with other warbands tagged along?

I'm curious as to what you/your GM have in mind for the Inquisitors once the campaign progresses from the Imperial planet (which needs a name, btw!) to The Dark City. I think it would be really cool if (for example) one Inquisitor is captured by the Dark Eldar, but later freed by the Rangers who need him to help rescue Suriyana.

In reference to the "how do you know its her" problem, it's a little cliche, but you could always say she has a special birthmark or something. Perhaps that's where the riddle comes into play: whatever crazy thing they are told they have to look for is actually the girl's birthmark.

[IncubiLord]

Ha ha snake-tailed rat wtf...I assume that will have been Suriyana's poisoning attempt?

Could be.

I just think rats are the perfect fast-breeding, small creature for Haemonculi to experiment on when they can't get enough full-size creatures or are short on space.

Think I might keep it as just a snake - sounds a bit too Skaven, else :P

I'd have it be a mix of things.

A regular old snake would be out of place, too mundane for the DE to keep around Commorragh. A viper with a scorpion's stinging tail, however, is something interesting to play with.

Makes sense to me, but since when did a mon-keigh know anything of Cegorach's power

Too true.

Remind me to kill you, so you don't somehow escape to spread knowledge of an Eldar god amongst the lesser races.

I was considering that idea but wasn't sure if it'd go down too well with the DE. Fair enough.

Remember that the DE still suffer from the typical Eldar vanity.

If given the chance to see our glorious way of life, you'll obviously join us.

any suggestions on DE profiles would be greatly appreciated. Was leaning towards Pirate-Prince kind of stats

For DE profiles, I would indeed be looking at the Eldar Pirates for a guideline. Pirate or Pirate Prince is a differentiation that would depend on the general power-level of characters being made.

also need to consider weapons.

For weapons, I'd be looking at the Las-weapons for a basic Splinter weapon statlines (reliable, sturdy rifles and pistols that aren't incredibly strong) but declare that Splinter weapons use a solid core crystal as ammunition like the Eldar (based on the info in the DE codex). This would mean that a DE could have Hellfire or Bloodfire on his ammunition crystals, to represent a range of toxins. I would not use the Flechette rules, since Shuricats don't get them and DE weapons work on a very similar base principle.

their fire rate depends on whether they are designed to fire a "stream" or a "blast" of shards (what is your opinion on this?).

Well, the codex says a splinter weapon "fires a hail of splinter-like shards at the enemy" - but that leaves a wide opening for personal interpretation.

In my opinion, the Splinter weapon fires a concentrated burst of needle-like crystal fragments. This doesn't mean it fires on full-auto, with a dozen shots a round, but rather that each shot it puts out is actually a collection of relatively small shots that rip up the same small area.

As such, I'd say that the shattered-crystal aspect of the weapon is covered by the damage roll - each hit does a range of 2-12 points of damage that, in part, reflects how many of the miniature projectiles find their way to the target's flesh. This concept is already applied when you're hit by a grenade - you don't take as much damage as being shot by a lasgun from a single sliver or a Super-Frag grenade.

Splinter Rifles should probably also count as a Halberd (since they function the same in melee as a Kroot Rifle when handled properly), and the combat blades common to splinter pistols might simply count as a knife. These extra blades on weapons might increase their weight, or you could declare that they counterbalance the lighter-weight materials used by the Eldar so that a bladed Splinter weapon weighs the same as an equivalent Las-weapon.

Agonisers are given, the DE have the same wide range of blades as everybody else, a Neural Whip seems an appropriate addition to be a lesser Agoniser variation, and a Punisher is just a Power Halberd.

Mandrakes should probably get the Camouflage ability from the Eldar addition in all situations and even against people with specialized detection equipment to represent their Shadow-skin (Mandrakes are literally not quite there). This ability would obviously not apply while in melee (they have to stop hiding to attack you).

[FarseerMatt]

With reference to splinter weaponry, have a look at the rules for Fletchette ammo (can't remember them off the top of my head).

Yeah, talked that over with Pete (our GM) and Colin. The result we came up with was basically an autogun with flachette ammo (represents a buckshot-like blast of splinters in tight formation):

Weapon: Splinter Rifle
Class: Legendary
Type: Basic
Range: C
Shots: Single (1), Semi (4) - semi in this case representing rapid-fire blasts a bit like an automatic shotgun
Accuracy Modifier: None
Damage: Hits D3 locations and does D6 damage to each
Ammo: 40
Reload time: 2 actions
Weight: 25
Special: Can be used in melee, counting as a Reach 4, D10+2 damage weapon with a Parry Penalty of -15%

It was also decided that to simulate the effects of agoniser poison, anyone hit by it would count as being attacked with choke gas (stunned until can pass Toughness test, loses consciousness if down for more than 5 turns). Alternatively, it can be loaded with Bloodfire or Hallucinogen toxin but the player must specify which and how many ammo cores of each type are being carried before the game starts.

You've talked a lot about storyline, but as an Inquisitor player myself I'm quite curious about the campaign itself. Am I right in thinking you are NOT the campaign's GM? Is the GM OK with you having this much of a role over the story's eventual progression? Also, what role is each player intended to have in the campaign - is this campaign going to be essentially the tale of YOUR characters with other warbands tagged along?

Oh, sorry. Looks like I've given the wrong impression by only discussing my characters :P No, the other Inquisitors have their own agendas (Inquisitor Linklatorvitch is going to try and marshal the defences against the Dark Eldar and come to blows with the corrupt governor who believes it's better to sacrifice a few rural communities to keep the main cities safe, while Inquisitor Rodriguez is going to have to get hold of some xeno-tech to close the portal and if he does he's gonna make it a lot harder for Skaarn and the rangers to get back out). If anything, for the first part of the campaign it's gonna be MY characters doing the tagging along. Pete says he doesn't mind GMing two different story arcs (planetside and webway) as some of us are working different days anyway. Or of course, I could post the campaigns progress and one of you could be our "storyline" GM for one of the arcs

Is the GM OK with you having this much of a role over the story's eventual progression?

Yeah, we all tend to get together at the start and pitch in possible storylines (including at least two different "branches" of events). I know for a fact that Adam and Colin have been busy cooking up ideas on their own forums and messengers with input from other enthusiasts :P I was basically just looking for ideas from you guys of ways the plot might go, and in fact the level of detail I've gone into in my plan is deeper than normal as it's inspired from an idea from my Craftworld's history (the official story of which may of course change if the quest fails...). Final decision is, of course, Pete's. In our experience so far having a general idea of where we're headed hasn't detracted from the fun, as Pete is still very good at throwing in "wild card" minor events that we never discussed that twist the plot slightly. Remember that thing I said about adding in an extra bunch of DE who disagree with the raiders taking in the Rangers? That was Pete's idea after I ran your thoughts by him.

I'm curious as to what you/your GM have in mind for the Inquisitors once the campaign progresses from the Imperial planet (which needs a name, btw!)

Oh, did I not say? Guess not. It's Corriolis IV, otherwise known as Mar Sara.

EDIT - Just cleared IncubiLord's clever halberd idea with Pete over MSN and added to splinter rifle profile. Also, will post some character cards soon once I get info from the rest of the team.

[FarseerMatt]

Could be.

I just think rats are the perfect fast-breeding, small creature for Haemonculi to experiment on when they can't get enough full-size creatures or are short on space.

I'd have it be a mix of things.

A regular old snake would be out of place, too mundane for the DE to keep around Commorragh. A viper with a scorpion's stinging tail, however, is something interesting to play with.

Hehe, I now have a rather funny image of this snake slithering across the hall and leaping at one of the DE raiders who are escorting Fenix and Laara - he whirls round and with his superior reflexes catches it in mid-strike...and then it stings his hand with its scorpion tail

Remember that the DE still suffer from the typical Eldar vanity.

If given the chance to see our glorious way of life, you'll obviously join us.

Aha, excellent. You know, if the story does end up going in two distinct directions, I think I WILL ask the guys to let you be our "storyline" GM for the Commorragh arc

[IncubiLord]

Just remember going in that the odds are stacked against anybody escaping a "visit" to the Dark City, that non-Eldar are even less likely to move about without drawing attention, and that psychic powers are weaker within the confines of the Webway (meaning that the big thing which makes most inquisitors more than human is far less effective).

I honestly don't think it's a good idea to let non-Eldar players head into Commorragh. At least some of them will be disappointed.

Making the right friends can get an Eldar a fair chance of survival, but non-Eldar are probably nothing more than prey in the eyes of every resident of the Dark City.

[FarseerMatt]

FIRST GAME

Okay guys, we played our first game yesterday, detailing the various warbands' arrival on Mar Sara. Colin was working so his Dark Eldar have not featured yet, but the other groups had their first encounters with each other in two separate missions (played on two tables in Adam's garage) that Pete did a very good job of GMing simultaneously. After paying a mysterious visit to the planetary governor's palace that both Sean and Pete both refused to elaborate on, radical Inquisitor Skaarn headed downtown to stock up on ammo before beginning his search, where he had an uneasy meeting with Inquisitor Rodriguez. Little did he know he was being tailed by Fenix and Laara who had followed him since his landing. Though unable to follow him into the heavily-guarded governor's palace, they had found it an easy task to hide out in the city back alleys until he reappeared.

After sneaking up on and knifing the guard at the back door, Fenix managed to figure out how to open the complicated lock on the second attempt and the two Rangers entered the building, hiding the guard's body before proceeding. They spent most of the rest of the game dodging GM-controlled guards that were on patrol, until Laara reached an upper gantry and was able to eavesdrop on the two Inquisitors below, learning that they were planning to join forces in looking for the webway portal, with their next stop being the inquisition library in the hope of finding some way of closing it before the Dark Eldar launched their raid in two days time (the devious Skaarn not telling Rodriguez that he did not intend to seal the portal!).

Unfortunately this is where things went a bit wrong for me, as psyker Sarah Harker sensed the presence of Laara above them, and she was only able to escape thanks to Fenix causing a loud diversion on the other side of the shop floor. Things got scrappy when all the arms-dealer's guards came running while Rodriguez hared up the gantry after Laara, with the Rangers being forced to open fire on one of the guards and taking him out of action before only just escaping by diving out of a first floor window. A suspicious Inquisitor Rodriguez gives chase, while the apparently less concerned Skaarn sticks to the original plan and heads for the library without him. Skaarn and his player, Sean, are rapidly becoming the most mysterious and distrusted people in the group!

Meanwhile on the next table Ian's Inquisitor Linklatorvitch and Deathwatch Brother Silas also paid a visit to the governor and learned that the Dark Eldar raids almost always came from somewhere in the heavily-forested region north of the city. Linklatorvitch proceeded to requisition a shuttle and a quartet of the governor’s soldiers (played by GM Pete) to go investigate. They set down, but almost immediately after landing the four stormtroopers draw guns on the Inquisitor, forcing him into cover among the trees with a serious chest wound (inflicted by a shotcannon in the initial volley before he could duck out the way). From his pinned-down position he snapped off a couple of shots from his hellpistol, but Brother Silas took a less subtle approach and charged straight at the traitors, blowing three of them away with his bolter. Adam decided he wanted the final heretic alive to find out why the hell he'd attacked them and so Brother Silas spat acid at him before seeking to subdue him in close combat. Unfortunately, with a very lucky (or unlucky...) damage roll Silas accidentally killed him dead with a crushing blow to the skull.

Linklatorvitch weighed his options and decided that before carrying on in his search for the portal he'd bloody well find out why he'd just been the victim of a botched assassination. He and Silas hopped back in the shuttle and headed straight back to the city to have a little chat with the governor. He did however have a sneaking suspicion that Sean/Inquisitor Skaarn's secret chat with the GM had something to do with it! Of course, knowing Pete, this could just as easily be a red herring designed to pit Sean and Ian against each other...

To be continued Thoughts please.

Oh yeah, by the way here's my two Rangers:

....... WS BS S T I Wp Sg Nv Ld Speed
Fenix 59 92 53 53 93 81 85 83 87 6
Laara 60 86 52 46 95 87 81 85 84 6

Weapons - Both are equipped with Eldar Long Rifles (each with 10 bullets) and a single knife, which also doubles as an ad hoc throwing weapon. Fenix is a bit of a swordsman so as well as a shuriken pistol with 3 ammo cores he carries a finely crafted Eldar sword called Kiamdeng (“Fire Talon”), with a crystalline grip and iridium blade. Laara is more of a gunfighter and so carries two shuriken pistols with 4 ammo cores to distribute between them.

Equipment - Fenix carries a plasma grenade and a haywire grenade and wears a rebreather (as much because it's on the model as anything else). Laara carries one plasma and one tanglefoot grenade, and having previously trodden the Path of the Healer she counts as being equipped with a medipack. Both also wear spirit stones - Fenix bears his on a silver chain round his neck while Laara, as is traditional for female Eldar on their home Craftworld, has her's set into the flesh of her forehead.

Special Rules - Fenix and Laara both have the standard Eldar abilities of Catfall, Nightsight and Lightning Reflexes (we use the version of the rule where you don’t have to take an Initiative test to change actions). Their Chameleoline cloaks grant them the Camouflage skill which is effective in all environments against all sight-based detection, while their stealth means they cannot be detected by hearing while sneaking or crawling. Also, Fenix and Laara often use sign language to communicate, having learned that even mind-speech is not always proof against enemy detection - they both count as having Wyrd Telepathy although obviously they may not broadcast.

Will also post up one of Colin's Dark Eldar characters when he sends Pete his character card, as out of interest he wanted a third party opinion on their balance.

[IncubiLord]

Thoughts please.

On... the story?

Skaarn does his homework. He knows the governor sacrifices the rural people to keep the Hives relatively safe, and he has earned said ruler's trust by going along with it.

Whether he is callous enough that he really doesn't care about those people or just lying to the governor, I can't tell from what's provided - but he had the good sense not to go antagonizing the Eldar that showed up to bother the other Inquisitors. He knows how to manipulate a corrupt official discreetly.

I'd bet that he goes on to examine the library and hide any books that might actually be useful in sealing the gate before his "allies" show up.

So far, Rodriguez is just a guy. Nothing spectacular to remark on, other than to scold you for being such careless Eldar around his pet psyker.

Linklatorvitch had the poor form of not noticing a corrupt official and then threatening to enrage the monsters that said official has been keeping appeased. The assassination attempt was because the governor doesn't want anybody angering his very-real boogeymen. Let them eat the commoners on the fringe of society.

Fenix and Laara seem to be inept at playing spy.
Sure, they can hide and tail people, but they have trouble with mon-keigh locks and apparently don't do too well looking out for security systems that might detect them.
A human city really isn't their element, though. They may yet redeem themselves.

Any Mandrake assassins in the area just missed a huge opportunity. They could have jumped Rodriguez while he was chasing your Rangers for a lot of indirect benefits even if they didn't kill the Inquisitor. The non-participating DE get an "F" on sewing the seeds of paranoia. Maybe next time...

[FarseerMatt]

So far, Rodriguez is just a guy. Nothing spectacular to remark on, other than to scold you for being such careless Eldar around his pet psyker.

Hehe yep, it was the damn GM that sprung that rule at the last minute - git :P Won't be making that mistake again in the next mission, which is trying to lose Rodriguez in the sewers.

Fenix and Laara seem to be inept at playing spy.
Sure, they can hide and tail people, but they have trouble with mon-keigh locks and apparently don't do too well looking out for security systems that might detect them.
A human city really isn't their element, though. They may yet redeem themselves.

Damn complicated keypad lock with it's -70% Sg modifier...how they all laughed when I fumbled that dice roll.

Any Mandrake assassins in the area just missed a huge opportunity. They could have jumped Rodriguez while he was chasing your Rangers for a lot of indirect benefits even if they didn't kill the Inquisitor. The non-participating DE get an "F" on sewing the seeds of paranoia. Maybe next time...

Yeah, Colin was working but he's free today so I'll let you know where it goes next. I'll tell him the Kabal master ain't pleased

[Sabbad]

Sounds like you're having a good campaign!

A quick note on characters: seen as your background suggests Fenix to be a talented swordsman, it seems strange that his WS is lower than Laara. In fact, 59 is a bit low full stop.

It makes a change to see "good guy" characters without the near mandatory Heroic and Leader skills, though I might actually consider giving Fenix Leader if he is set to become Ranger-Captain of Reia-Hal.

Similarly, it's nice to see someone with two pistols who doesn't have Ambidextrous and Gunfighter, but seen as you mentioned the word "Gunfighter" in Laara's description, it seems fair to give her the skill!

Finally, your characters have no armour! I'm presuming they have Mesh Armour to all locations except the head?

[FarseerMatt]

Sounds like you're having a good campaign!

Yep :P Last game was bizarre, but I'll explain that later this evening (gotta go pack to go back to uni! :S )

A quick note on characters: seen as your background suggests Fenix to be a talented swordsman, it seems strange that his WS is lower than Laara. In fact, 59 is a bit low full stop.

I generated them using the random Ranger profiles (WS 50+2D6). So yeah, it is a bit low but once Fenix starts gaining experience then some extra WS will be on the wishlist

It makes a change to see "good guy" characters without the near mandatory Heroic and Leader skills, though I might actually consider giving Fenix Leader if he is set to become Ranger-Captain of Reia-Hal.

Similarly, it's nice to see someone with two pistols who doesn't have Ambidextrous and Gunfighter, but seen as you mentioned the word "Gunfighter" in Laara's description, it seems fair to give her the skill!

I kept the skills to a minimum for several reasons:

1) At the time of the campaign they're both relatively young Rangers (only a pair of inexperienced hotheads would take on such a suicidal mission! :P)
2) They're adventurers, not soldiers. Also they're friends so I thought it'd be innappropriate to have one boss the other about with the Leader skill
3) Eldar get quite a few skills as standard anyway
4) It gives them some to gain through experience as the campaign progresses
5) It's more of a challenge Godlike characters are boring

Finally, your characters have no armour! I'm presuming they have Mesh Armour to all locations except the head?

Oops :S That's a typo - actually they've got robes and cloaks (2 pts of armour on all locations except the head). Travelling light.

Anyway, yeah, we played the second game last night so I'll elaborate after I'm done packing...

[Sabbad]

Oooh, bizarre games. They're always fun.

[FarseerMatt]

Yep, bizarre. Damn dice...not fair...

Allow me to explain:

SECOND GAME

Well, when we left the first episode Linklatorvitch was making his angry way back to the capital, Sean couldn't make the game so we assumed that Skaarn was busy pilfering books from the library, and Rodriguez' boys were in the process of chasing my Rangers through the under hive. Fenix and Laara's pre-arranged plan B had been to duck into a manhole and lose their opponents in the sewer network, which was shrouded in thick steam from the heating pipework overhead (very atmospheric). So this they did, sprinting off down the walkway with Fenix pausing just long enough to detonate a pre-set explosive trap as gung-ho Inquisitor Rodriguez dived first into the manhole. He got off with just minor injuries, but laughs were still had when he lost his grip and landed in a rather unheroic heap at the bottom of the ladder. Fenix and Laara easily outdistanced him and set up an ambush ahead as the humans followed (rather more cautiously now). Thus began the most infuriating turn of Inquisitor I've ever played.

While Fenix ducked into an alcove, loaded his weapon and got ready to draw a bead on acolyte Brax, Laara skidded on her knees into cover behind a curved pipe and brought up her own sniper rifle. After the debacle at the arms-dealer, I wasn't taking any chances and had her lock on to that damned psyker Sarah Harker. To compensate for the fog I elected to have Laara spend an extra action taking aim, but the action dice betrayed me and she couldn't open fire until next turn. It was at this point that GM Pete decided that psychic Sarah would have a 50% chance of sensing such intense concentration in her direction. Adam duly passed the roll and Sarah alerted that little twit of a sidekick Damien Brax (who was next to move) and pointed in Laara's general direction. So Damien spins round and blazes away with his plasma pistol. A snap shot. In fog. Against a Chameleoline-shrouded target. What does he roll to hit? A bloody "03"! Luckily the pipe took most of the hit but Laara was still blasted backwards and stunned for several turns. At this point I may have sworn while Adam might have done a victory dance.

Fenix managed to salvage the situation a bit by putting a bullet through Brax's head, taking him out of action and coming within a couple of damage points of killing him outright, but after that it was still 2 on 1 so he took off his rebreather and put it on his half-conscious friend before grabbing her and disappearing into the waste-water flow below. Forced to dive into sewage to escape thanks to an insanely impossible snap shot. Bloody marvellous. Fenix swam away dragging Laara with him while Rodriguez and Harker stopped to tend the wounded Brax, but when Fenix came up for air and climbed out of the river further downstream he could see a new firefight breaking out - Colin's Dark Eldar had arrived!

It was fun watching Adam's guys floundering around while a Mandrake took pot shots at them and even came in and had a go at Rodriguez, but the inquisitor knocked him back, causing him to fall into the effluent river and we decided to have him mysteriously vanish and end the game there, as it was getting late.

Meanwhile on the other table it seemed that Skechara was not the only Mandrake active in the city. Colin decided to do a Pete and play both tables at once, with one Mandrake dropping in on us as described while a second sneaked aboard Valentino Linklatorvitch's shuttle while he was out fighting the governor's stormtroopers (!). Arkhathia failed her Ld test to do what she was told and spent the game stalking the table and causing some pre-raid terror. She was actually in a side-alley dining on two luckless guards she had ambushed when Linklatorvitch walked by on his way to the governor's palace! Araqir, not fancying his chances with Brother Silas, instead stalked Linklatorvitch as he tried to pull a James Bond on the palace. Figuring that after one attack and after supposed to be being dead that he should keep his head down, Valentino sneaked alone (Silas being rather more noticeable and hence left to guard the shuttle…) into the palace, successfully nailing several guards but letting the side down by taking 4 tries to break one particular lock, while having to fight off another guard who interrupted him in the process. Four turns to open a lock that only took Fenix two…tee hee, stupid inquisitor…

Eventually he managed to silence the final two guards (with a bolt pistol…subtle…) and accost the governor while he was having lunch on the balcony. Here the game ended, but I imagine he proceeded to shove his bolt pistol in the governor’s face and have stern words. Unaware of the Dark Eldar sneaking up behind him...

[IncubiLord]

That's better...

Now the fool mon-keigh will waste time looking for an ambush every time they come across the Craftworlders - thinking that they might be being led into another Mandrake...

It would be great if the second Mandrake ambushes Linklatorvitch before he gets any answers - another chance to cause confusion and distrust amongst the others.

[FarseerMatt]

Sorry for the long wait guys, moved into the new house Thursday and don't have an internet connection there yet so have to sneak onto the university network for a while. Also now I'm down in Edinburgh only Colin and Sean are still nearby enough to game with We'll probably have to borrow a GM from the local Games Workshop on Royal Mile for the rest of the campaign :P

THIRD GAME

Last game with the whole group - looks like it'll be following two separate storylines from now seeing as half of us are in Edinburgh. Still, we managed to get all the players on one table for the final

Inquisitors Skaarn and Rodriguez met back up and, armed with some warp-sealing books Skaarn had nabbed from the library, set off to find the portal. Led by telepath Sarah Harker, they eventually ended up in the northern forests where, if you remember, Inquisitor Linklatorvitch had also started his search for the webway portal. Unfortunately Mandrake Skechara has been tailing them since the sewers and is more than happy to eat the interfering mon-keigh before they get to the gate...

Meanwhile Inquisitor Linklatorvitch had been jumped by the Mandrake, waking up to find the governor dead and the Mandrake disappearing out the window. So not too good for him, leaving him with no answers and a dead governor to explain to the bunch of angry stormtroopers pounding up the stairs towards him. He decided to make himself scarce and jump out the window too, calling up Brother Silas and hoping they might still get answers if they caught up with the Mandrake assassin. Mandrake Araqir for his part is again quite happy to lead the interfering mon-keigh into a trap and eat them. Mandrake Arkhathia meanwhile has finished terrorising the hive's civilian population and is quite willing to help.

Fenix and Laara, now recovered, have headed north also, waiting to see how the situation develops and which (if any) of the other characters might be of use to them.

The game started off as cat-and-mouse through the trees, with the various groups attempting to track the others and/or being followed in turn. Unsurprisingly the Mandrakes proved the best at this game, with Skechara getting the drop on the allied Inquisitors (again) and taking tech-priest Stead out of action before the others could even react. Fenix and Laara heard the sounds of fighting and moved to investigate, and Inquisitor Linklatorvitch attempted to do likewise only to get jumped by Araqir and Arkhathia. Laughs were had when Brother Silas was immobilised by a haywire grenade and took very little part in the fighting, while the hapless Linklatorvitch managed to wound one of his opponents before being acutely wounded himself and having to crawl to safety, getting into Silas' firing line just as Araqir latched onto his ankles. In a show of pure skill and despite some fairly hefty accuracy penalties, Silas managed to overcome the weight of his short-circuited power armour and blast the Mandrake back with a single bolter shot without hitting the Inquisitor in the process. With Araqir out of action, Colin tried to have Arkhathia drag him out the way and stop the Inquisitor getting his hands on him and his little webway TV remote, but she failed a Wp check and decided to sit down and eat his soul instead! Mandrakes...

Meanwhile Skechara continued to **** off the other two Inquisitors, running rings around them and sniping with his splinter pistol and Choke-coated throwing knives. Sarah Harker was busy trying to locate him with her nefarious telepathic antics so Fenix and Laara, not wanting to accidentally have their cover blown again, decided to even the score. For once, Sarah failed her detection check and Fenix was able to sneak through the canopy to the tree above her. Once again the result was a slightly amusing scene where Fenix dropped out of the trees and knifed Sarah out of action while her supposed bodyguard, Acolyte Brax, was looking the other way and blazing away at Skechara with his plasma pistol. Even more amusing was that the pistol then overheated, allowing Fenix to slink away while Damien was hopping around clutching his burned arm. Laara, hiding nearby in support, was enjoying Rodriguez' sidekick looking stupid so much that she didn't have the heart to blow him away with her Eldar long rifle.

It was at round about this point that the two Inquisitors managed to finally corner Skechara and, to a disappointed wail from Colin, take him out of action with a power sword through the abdomen. Rodriguez searched the body and pulled out his webway device, only for Skaarn to put on his best Hal voice, say "I'm sorry Lotar, I can't allow you to do that." and let his pet guardsman Neji Leingod blast his erstwhile ally at point-blank range with his overcharged lasgun! Night was falling, and with Rodriguez unconscious from system shock, Sean paused for an evil laugh and had Skaarn waltz away into the darkness with both the webway device and the only books from the library that might be any help in sealing a portal!

Fenix and Laara were about to follow him, when a crackling storm of light flared up through the trees not far away - the unmistakable activation of a webway gate. The Dark Eldar raid was beginning.

And there we left it for the time being Next game due later this week.

[Sabbad]

Nice job on another good gaming session (and battle report).

It's actually turned out quite convenient with which two players are left for you to play - if Fenix and Laara ever do make it into the Dark City, you'll definately want the Mandrakes there. Plus, now that Skaan has a clear route into the Webway, maybe his maverick Radical-ness might tempt him into the Webway itself...

Rodriguez really is a loser. Honestly, Skaan might have achieved more by not bothering to ally with him. By the time he (or Brax or Harker) wake up, he's going to find Skaan gone and a huge Dark Eldar raiding party bearing down on the Imperial citizenry. Plus he still has no idea what Skaan is really up to...

If Linklatorvitch has any sense, he'll try siding with Rodriguez now. As the only one who knows what Skaan he's doing, the sight of the crazed Radical cackling manically as he disappears into the distance is sure to be a bad sign. Fortunately, Skaan kind of burned his bridges with Rodriguez, so whilst the Alienhunter might still be completely in the dark about what's happening, revenge might be a strong enough motive to send him chasing after Skaan.

Although I appreciate that your current location might make this diificult (or impossible) a logical next step for the Rangers would be to take out Linklatorvitch and Rodriguez. Fenix and Laara need someone to open the Webway Portal, and presumably they need this specific one to get to Commouragh (otherwise they would settle for the many smaller portals now opened by the Dark Eldar Raiders). Skaan is the Eldar's best option - as soon as the gate is open he can be disposed of mercilessly, but for now he must be undisturbed. And that means dealing with the two Inquisitors still after him.

Oh, and Mandrakes feasting upon their own fallen? Priceless.