Hi all, new diary is up now covering NPCs in the core book:

http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_news.asp?eidn=4955

-Tim

Looks pretty ok to me and I can imagine a scenario with a Nurgle cult or general Nurgle-ish heretic spawning some plot. I also think its good that they are going for flavor before to many generic stats, although generic stats are useful as well.

My biggest hope and concern is that we will not only get combat opponents but also NPCs with whom we can interact in, like monks, mansion maids, noblewomen, administratum clerks etc.

From the article:

"Rather than offering generic NPCs painted in broad strokes, the NPC and Adversary chapter of Dark Heresy primarily focuses on the inhabitants of a single city – Hive Desoleum."

"Rather than a random grab-bag of unrelated aliens and Daemons, we focused on distinct groups."

-I'm not sure I'm going to like this approach. I think I would have preferred a 'broad strokes/grab bag' variety of NPCs, with detailed focus on specific locations and groups reserved for later supplements.

From the article:

"Rather than offering generic NPCs painted in broad strokes, the NPC and Adversary chapter of Dark Heresy primarily focuses on the inhabitants of a single city – Hive Desoleum."

"Rather than a random grab-bag of unrelated aliens and Daemons, we focused on distinct groups."

-I'm not sure I'm going to like this approach. I think I would have preferred a 'broad strokes/grab bag' variety of NPCs, with detailed focus on specific locations and groups reserved for later supplements.

Yea I agree with that sentiment.

It's going to make it harder to place adventures in completely different environments.

I don't know if they kept the Threat Ratings in late Beta but those would make creating custom NPCs slightly more complicated though GM should always send what he thinks is appropriate at his Players.

I liked 1st Ed Core Book because it has a pile of generic NPCs that you can plop anywhere. If you want a flavor you can add it as you have baseline.

For me, this meant creating complete game profiles to help GMs run encounters and writing in-depth background descriptions to provide GMs with ideas for fitting these NPCs into other adventures.

That line sounds to me like something that I would find in Creatures Anathema or similar supplement. The 2nd edition seems to speak "You should run hive games.". I don't know how other GMs feel on this but I find players and run games on roll20 and in two separate player groups I heard sentiment "Thank the Emprah. We are not in another hive."

I'm not saying that hives are bad or boring areas to set campaigns as they are the opposite but I fear that there is too much focus on a single type of setting in new edition and we'll have to wait for supplements year or two down the line before we get to see the rest of the sector.

I liked 1st Ed Core Book because it has a pile of generic NPCs that you can plop anywhere. If you want a flavor you can add it as you have baseline.

Yep, I agree. I think the wide-ranging variety of NPC-types in the Adversaries section was one of the best things about DH1 . The only problem was no xenos in the first book- obviously nudging GMs to use either Ordo Heriticus or Malleus as the basis for their campaigns (a bias that continued throughout first edition...).

Yep, I agree. I think the wide-ranging variety of NPC-types in the Adversaries section was one of the best things about DH1 . The only problem was no xenos in the first book- obviously nudging GMs to use either Ordo Heriticus or Malleus as the basis for their campaigns (a bias that continued throughout first edition...).

Oh yes. I'm currently running Ordo Xenos campaign and I'm pulling stuff from every other 40k system. Because Dark Heresy books are severely lacking in Xenos.

I'm afraid that in DH2 it's going to be even worse. Considering that focus location is a Hive. Which does not bode well with Ordo Xenos unless Genestealers.

Considering that focus location is a Hive. Which does not bode well with Ordo Xenos unless Genestealers.

Though Tau subversion is also a very possible theme that should allow for some interesting clandestine investigation.

But generally, I have to agree with Adeptus-B. Even if it is of course a matter of the individual group; a lot of GMs like and appreciate a prefabricated environment to work with rather than having less detailed tools to craft new ones from scratch. I'm not a fan of that approach either, but I do know it is popular, and I have a feeling that FFG simply chose to pander to that part of the playerbase for a change.

On a sidenote, what is it with those silly heels all the time?

Heels?

It's one of the cool things of the fantasy: be what you want, and with style!

Come on! It's an RPG! Something that gives you the possibility to go over the reality!

However, maybe in the future they'll put some books in order to describe other environments and enemies.

I'm interested in this, particularly the various social structures found within the Hive. While I am a bit disappointed that this will be the only hive and world in any detail, having such a great level of detail will certainly be helpful further.

Yeah, a hyper-detailed sample hive city will be a good thing to have, but it seems to me that the better way to handle it would be to keep the main rulebook 'generic', and follow the rulebook with a full Hive Desoleum supplement.

I'd love to have a pdf-only series of mini-supplements, each handling a single planet with 10-15 pages.