So I was working on an upcoming joint game meta campaign that would follow a crusade taking over a fallen sector using only war then exploring it in rogue trader, afterwards protecting it using Dark Heresy/Deathwatch and finally damning it in Black Crusade and I was needing some help with fleshing out the sector with planet names, guard regiments, crusade forces, etc. I was thinking of calling it Sector Cadmus.
Edited by WatchCaptainCassiusIdeas for creating a new sector
I think that the first thing you should do is make two documents; one for general brainstorming as ideas hit you, and one where you start to write down and develop general themes, moods and larger plot hooks for the sector.
And since you seem to have some general idea here's an idea. Maybe for you Black Crusade game you'll want to have a Greater Daemon that can be a treacherous ally to the characters? Then you'll need to write it in perhaps from the start of the campaigns and develop it and its effects on the sector through every campaign about it. Hell, this daemon could be a recurring character who causes all kinds of hell before it is finally released and perhaps later defeated by the Black Crusade characters?
Battlefleet Gothic had rules for rolling up sector stats and Warp travel routes - but of course you don't actually need a ruleset just to create a setting. My advice would be to look to the existing material for inspiration about the basics, and then fill in the details with your own stuff. Start with defining how many planets/locations you want to have, then write down their type (ensuring to offer a somewhat balanced number of different environments and tech-levels), and finish by finding names and a short description. At this early stage, a map isn't important, but it would not be wrong either and might trigger more ideas. If you care for a certain degree of realism, you could attempt to flesh out the sector by "back-tracking" its history (specifically in terms of trade centers etc).
Stuff like individual characters or the presence of specific Imperial organisations and their relationships (surely also involving/offering a couple plot hooks) would come last, though you should of course take notes whenever a neat idea hits you, so you can pick it up later on. Also keep in mind that offering one or two unique species of animals or native intelligent xenos might be interesting. A couple relics (both human and alien) might be neat, too, but don't overdo it - sometimes, less is more. If you manage to find people sharing your vision, you can also make it a group effort to fill more content in less time, though of course this can be as much a boon as it can be a risk, for whilst more people means more ideas, not all of them might line up with your own vision.
Above all, have fun. Creative development can be a lot of fun.
For the native xenos and wildlife, there's a neat generator in RT's Koronus Bestiary. Otherwise, post a few pointers and I might chip in - I'm currently developing an abandoned hive world for a mission, if it proves to be any good, I'll post the details.
Isn't there a system/colony generator in RT supplements?
Alex
so in response to the idea of a greater demon i actually made one already using the Dark Heresy generator( he cant abide hearing its the end of the world as we know it by R.E.M. XD) that i had planned to use for a major recurring enemy during the Dark Heresy and possibly Deathwatch sections of the game as I think that in Only War it would be kind of overpowered. Also for the Rogue Trader section don't the traders sometimes bring Deathwatch Marines or is it any kind of marine as long as their chapter owes the Trader house a favor?
Isn't there a system/colony generator in RT supplements?
Stars of Iniquity . I've never used it, so I can't say how it works.
so in response to the idea of a greater demon i actually made one already using the Dark Heresy generator( he cant abide hearing its the end of the world as we know it by R.E.M. XD) that i had planned to use for a major recurring enemy during the Dark Heresy and possibly Deathwatch sections of the game as I think that in Only War it would be kind of overpowered. Also for the Rogue Trader section don't the traders sometimes bring Deathwatch Marines or is it any kind of marine as long as their chapter owes the Trader house a favor?
True that a Great Daemon itself will tear those poor guardsmen appart. However what I was thinking that was you could still use him in Only War to let the players fight on planets influenced by him and against his various cults, pawns and minions.
Yeah that's what I was thinking also in fact I was bouncing some ideas around about a cult led by an apostate confessor from the Word Bearers
so i've decided to start the game out with Dark Heresy and move on to Only War
Mind if I ask on behalf of us interested what the game is looking to be and what the Acolytes first taste with the horror of 40k is?
well, for the past week i've been writing up source material about a khorne worshipping cult that functions much like the blood pact from the Gaunt's Ghosts novels and they are going to be descending on the sector capital before the onset of the warp storms that will engulf the sector in turmoil and blood for the better part of the next 4 centuries at which point the only war portion will start. So for the next couple of sessions the players are going to be learning and in a way living through the background of the sector's fall into chaos. The Greater Daemon will be making its first appearance by the end of this section and many of the enemy factions will also be introduced.
Sounds cool.
If you feel inclined for it, do keep us updated on how this proceeds.
sure, in fact today is the first session so when thats done ill post the results