True Warhammer 40,000

[Moiner]

"The Inquisitor wants you to quietly enter the under-hive bar and waite for our target. Don't attract any attention. Got that Space Marine?"

"Sure, my seven foot, four hundred pound self will just sidle casually over to a booth... "

[pineappleleader]

Right, after much scribbling and rewriting and thinkings I have pencilled down the following backgrounds based on the stuff in the main rulebook and the Companion.

(SNIP)

Regarding Savants, isn't that just the Eidetic Memory feat? Its been a while since I read the Eisenhorn trilogy and it is currently somewhere in the attic. I'm sure there are feats from the Cybernetics pdf which can replicate "savant" abilities.

IIRC Aemos the Savant in the Eisenhorn Trillogy had several abilities.:
1. He never forgot anything.
2. Speed reader
3. Expert researcher with both printed and electronic media.
4. Expert at both deductive and intuitive reasoning.
5. He was infected with a "memetic virus" that caused him to have to record all data all the time, about everything. This was not treatable without destroying his mind. If he was not recording data, his mind was like an engine run at full speed in neutral and would tear itself apart.

Normal Savants would probably have numbers 1 thru 4 above. Number 5 is a disease (a drawback) that became very useful at times. But was very annoying to others.

[Sablemage]

Here's a draft of Space Marines as a racial background under the Companion rules from the Space Adventures chapter. Have at it!

Space Marines are recruited from among hardy Warriors born on the Imperium's harsher worlds, and gradually transformed into superhumans by extensive gene therapy and elective surgery. Space Marines are not recommended as player characters; as the ultimate human killing machines, they are likely to unbalance scenarios, and in the setting they are depicted as fighting, or training to fight, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, which leaves little time for adventuring. However, Space Marine PCs are likely inevitable, so...

Ability Adjustments: Str +1, Dex +1, Con +1.

Bonus Feats: Diehard, Talented (Notice and Search).

Bonus Powers: Body Control.

Favoured Powers: Body Control.

Level Lag: 1. Space Marines count as one level higher than their actual level.

Most Space Marines have the Warrior role. However, if the True20 Companion is in use in your campaign replace the Warrior's normal core ability (Determination) with Fearless. (“And They Shall Know No Fear...”)

[forvalaka]

This is a most remarkable conversion. I have seen (and done) a few WH40K conversions over the years to different systems, but this is pretty seamless and looks astounding. I think I will get started with your version and see what the Black Library offering will look like. I understand that many people will need the background, but for those of us familiar with the setting there is everything you need in a handy .pdf. Absolutely brilliant.

I wouldn't T20 the Warhammer fantasy rpg just because the magic system is the way it is for a reason (Schools of Magic, links to Chaos, etc.) and the setting itself is so deep that the WFRP should be experienced as is, but what you have presented is an excellent and playable conversion of the 40K game. I hope that the official game can hold a candle to it.

[Sablemage]

Why thank you, kind sir. I shall keep tinkering with it, adding extra bits as I can persuade people to lend me their codices.

Next up - probably witchhunters and demonhunters, 'cos most comments seem to be about Inquisitors and their teams. Entirely understandable!

[forvalaka]

Hey, credit where credit is due. I hope someone loans you the tyranid codex as I would really like to see these creatures converted.

[Sablemage]

Hello each - I've just posted version 3 of this at:

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andyslack/

Major changes: Reworked races and (some) equipment in line with True20 Companion; lots more background info, as requested; first stab at psykers and vehicles; fewer weapons ('cos they were taking over!)

No more codices absorbed this time, but watch this space... I'm particularly interested to hear if the file is easier to use in the current format (game info and background in separate sections, as GURPS does it) or with relevant game info in the same section as the relevant background (like W40K codices).

Enjoy!
Andy

[Darth Phil]

By the Power of Grayskull!

That is so awesome I bow down before you.

There is some really good work there. I like the addition of the different campaign guidelines, the vehicles and the psychic powers.

I think my own campaign might start sooner than anticipated...

[Sablemage]

Thanks! Glad you like it.

Next up, another codex.

Andy

[Baduin]

One point as regards sample characters. Only player character should be built on 6 point basis. Less important NPC should be built with 0 ability points, or at most 1 or 2. This applies to - Red Shirt, Imperial Guard soldiers, Eldar Guardians. Eldar Aspect Warriors should have 6 points, Space Marines 6 points + background bonus. Imperial Officers should have from 3 to 6 ability points.

[Sablemage]

Really? I must've missed that. Thanks for the tip!

Along similar lines, something else I was thinking about today is that any figure with one Wound really ought to be a Minion.

Andy

[Sablemage]

One point as regards sample characters. Only player character should be built on 6 point basis. Less important NPC should be built with 0 ability points, or at most 1 or 2. This applies to - Red Shirt, Imperial Guard soldiers, Eldar Guardians. Eldar Aspect Warriors should have 6 points, Space Marines 6 points + background bonus. Imperial Officers should have from 3 to 6 ability points.

Baduin, where did you get that from please? Sorry to be anal, and no offence meant - but if you're right, I think I should go back and recalculate the conversion rules, then redo all the characters etc from scratch.

I'm working from True20 ARP pp 118-119, wherein it says "Narrator characters follow all the same rules as heroes..." and also "For truly 'ordinary' ordinaries, assume all of the character's ability scores are +0 (strictly average)."

I've assumed that W40K soldiers are not Ordinaries, since they have no Feats and consequently cannot take Weapons or Firearms Training, and I think professional soldiers would have one of those.

Andy

[ValhallaGH]

Important characters, ones that are central to the story, should be built similarly to heroes. All others are built according to how they fit into the world. For example, the troops of the Imperial Guard are brave but not especially capable. It makes sense that most of them would be built with fewer than six ability points.
Space Marines are some of the most gifted humans alive. They should all be built on six (or more) ability points.
Eldar have the same general range of ability as humans, thus each category can be built with any number of ability points from zero to as many as the narrator wants them to have (ten or thirty, though most shouldn't have more than six).
Necrons are very powerful, they should all be built with at least six ability points.
Orcs are generally on par with space marines, so they should follow a similar build design.
And so forth.

Not every character in the universe is built on the same six points as the heroes, just like not every character in the universe gets Conviction like the heroes. Consider how the group in question generally compares to the heroes and adjust the design to accommodate that relationship. To reference the Guard again, the heroes of a 40K story are usually more capable than the typical guardsman, which implies that the average imperial guardsman should have between 1 and 4 ability points.

[Baduin]

True20 Rulebook, Chapter 8, page 119

"For truly “ordinary” ordinaries, assume all of the character’s ability scores are +0 (strictly average)."

page 14
"Ability scores have a numerical value, expressed as a penalty or bonus,
from –5 (abysmal or disabled) to +5 or more (legendary, practically
superhuman), with an average of +0"

"Most True20 games should offer at least 3 points for abilities,
otherwise the heroes aren’t going to be all that heroic when compared
to the average person."

See also:

http://www.greenronin.com/phpBB2/viewto ... ity+levels

"Odds of a given character having an exact score in a given ability:

+0: 38% of the population
+1: 24% - call it 1 in 4.
+2: 6% - 1 in 16.5
+3: 1 in 167
+4: 1 in 4400
+5: 1 in 296 thousand
+6: 1 in 53 million
+7: 1 in 25 billion - best in the world
+8: 1 in 32 trillion - best who ever lived, by far
+9 and up: You ain't human no more. "

An average man has all abilities at 0. Soldiers can be expected to be a bit better conditioned than average, so about 2 ability point in all can be justified.

As for an earlier question: Minions are extremely weak compared to normal characters. If you want guardsmen atc to die easily, simply give them no Conviction. Minion rules should be reserved for civilians and for truly massive battles. If your character are attacked by 30 guardsmen, they certainly should be treated as minions. This way you can achieve adequately heroic victories.

In short - wounds in WH40k are best represented by Conviction in True20.

[Sablemage]

Thanks Baduin, ValhallaGH - your arguments are persuasive, I'm convinced.

(And, I absolutely agree that W40K Wounds are best represented by Conviction.)

I shall recrunch the stat blocks and conversion rules for the next version. This will also give characters enough free points for me to introduce morale checks, see next post.