Just something that popped into my head, it's not fully formed, nor balanced, nor sane, nor fair, but some people may not mind that so I figured I'd put it up and see what people thought.

When spending a fate point the character in question rolls against their corruption. As fate points are the Emperor deciding to intervene in a minor way then it would be safe to assume he feels like helping uncorrupted souls. If they roll under their corruption the fate point is spent but the effect doesn't trigger.

When spending fate points to activate a faith power the character being affected must make a roll against their corruption as well, Rolling under gives no effect as the corruption of their soul refuses to accept this minor divine act.

This was to make Corruption more damaging to characters instead of just occasionally giving maladies and mutations showing that their soul is turning from the Emperor.

Thoughts, opinions?

I always understood fate as 'Luck' or 'Plot Armor' rather than literal divine guidance. After all, if the Emperor is actually, seriously guiding my Acolyte team, well... He's got a weird taste in holy vessels.

Acolytes are essentially movie action heroes in one regard or another. And in the same way that movie characters will, once in a while, pull of some ridiculous stunt or get ridiculously lucky through no virtue besides being the hero. They shrug off serious wounds, win impossible fights, and kick improbable amounts of ass.

I always think of Fate Points as the in-game rules equivalent of that.

I always understood fate as 'Luck' or 'Plot Armor' rather than literal divine guidance.

It is, but also generally viewed as the Emperor intervening in the acolyte's life to make sure they continue to serve the inquisition. They're special and chosen for a reason. Whether character's view it as luck or miracle is up to them. They are essentially forgoing fate, which sounds divine to me.

I always understood fate as 'Luck' or 'Plot Armor' rather than literal divine guidance.

It is, but also generally viewed as the Emperor intervening in the acolyte's life to make sure they continue to serve the inquisition. They're special and chosen for a reason. Whether character's view it as luck or miracle is up to them. They are essentially forgoing fate, which sounds divine to me.

You can also use Fate Points to activate various Daemonic pacts, using them to turn on very chaotic and heretical abilities. That's not divine if I have any understanding of the word.

Notice I said not fully formed.

I don't know, the gods generally don't like corruption without infamy either, the whole point of Black Crusade is to get infamy before you corrupt into a chaos spawn.

Personally I don't really see Fate Points in this way I don't think fate should be linked to corruption. After all untouchables who don't have souls including xenos creatures like Slaugth can have fate points.

However if in your interpretation Fate is linked to divine intervention then the mechanic you have described is fair enough and certainly makes corruption quite dangerous.

I agree with Visitor Q. Even though I myself prefer the more worldly interpretation of Fate (as well as Acts of Faith), it is undeniable that divine magic is now a thing in Dark Heresy, and I feel your suggestion ties into that representation. Additionally, it also makes for an interesting game mechanic, so even though I do not favour that interpretation myself I do have to give you a thumbs up for the idea.

In Black Crusade your Corruption score determines your "Fate Points", so in one way it makes sense.

The more corrupt you are, the less likely you are to gain the favour of the Emperor. However, as your corruption increases, so do your chances of getting the favour of the Dark Gods.

So mechanically I would recommend AGAINST your idea. But you could very well say that as your corruption increases, it may not be the Emperor that helps you...

I like your idea of making corruption more dangerous. I also feel that it is an often overlooked element of the game. I'm also not opposed to removing the Untouchable's ability to use fate points, or at least reducing it. Likewise you would probably have to have some form of Increased Fate Point abilities for acolytes that are more pious, perhaps adding an extra degree of success, or being able to re-roll the number of wounds you gain from Fate point healing?

I like your idea of making corruption more dangerous. I also feel that it is an often overlooked element of the game.

Do you not have mobs with pitchforks forming if they notice the mutations an Acolyte has undergone as a result of corruption?

I like your idea of making corruption more dangerous. I also feel that it is an often overlooked element of the game. I'm also not opposed to removing the Untouchable's ability to use fate points, or at least reducing it. Likewise you would probably have to have some form of Increased Fate Point abilities for acolytes that are more pious, perhaps adding an extra degree of success, or being able to re-roll the number of wounds you gain from Fate point healing?

Whoa now.

Removing any player character's ability to use Fate Points is an incredibly bad idea for balance. Pretty sure the Untouchable package eats a Fate Point or two anyways.

Fate Points are a vital part of game balance, and are poorly described, but in essence, they're really more like action points in d20 3.x edition, or force points (which are basically the same thing with a new name) in d20 star wars/star wars saga. They're how a player bends the game world to give them a chance if they needed one or to improve a chance they already had. They should not have been described as the Favor of the Emperor or the Warp.

I like the d20 Conan description and example on how they work better than the DH explanation - say you've gotten locked into a cell, in d20 Conan, you can expend a point for a chance at escape, say someone with hidden sympathies unlocks the cell and slips you a dagger, and tells you where you are, but then you're on your own.

Also ... Corruption is bad news for anyone who gets enough for a mutation that cannot easily be hidden/explained away as it's not really a mutation. Obvious mutations get you lynched - if you're lucky . If you're unlucky, you get turned into a public example by the Ecclesiarchy - and they're real big on punishing the flesh in an attempt to redeem the soul of the sinner/mutant/witch/psyker/heretic/etc.

Corruption is only 'overlooked' if gained only rarely and in miniscule amounts.

If you want to make being pious give you better abilities with Fate Points ... that's really what the Pure Faith and associated talents are for .