Hi,

I'm about to run the House of Dusk and Ash and I wanted to add some xeno weaponry.
Since my players are slowly turning into heretics themselves I thought I might add a pulse rifle or carbine to the auction.

Has anybody stats for them?

I wouldn't for the simple reason of Geography. If you draw a straight line through the centre of the Galaxy then at its edge you will come to the Tau Empire, this means that the Tau Empire is about as far away from the Calixis sector as physically possible making knowledge of the Tau Empire almost non existant even to the Ordo Xenos Inquisitors in the Calixis sector as there is no nead for them to know about it. It also doesnt help that as far as the Imperium is concerned Tau are small fry, really small. In the 40k rulebook Tau are not even listed as a Galactic threat but are mentioned along with a bunch of other alien empires as one of the many upstart foes of the Imperium. As such Tau guns are one of the most unlikely things to find in the auction, they are rare on worlds near the Tau Empire and there will almost certainly not be one on the opposite side of the Galaxy if you are going to put anything in a different piece of Tau technology would probably be more appropriate.

At this point I was going to offer you my version anyway for a game I planned to set on the Eastern Fringe but I have lost the file so I wont be doing that. Of course its your game and you can do what you want but I feel bringing the Tau to the Calixis sector dimishes the sense of scale that I feel should be associated with 40K. Especially considering that at the time Dark Heresy is set the Tau have only been on the map for a very short period of time.

Kaihlik

I wouldn't for the simple reason of Geography. If you draw a straight line through the centre of the Galaxy then at its edge you will come to the Tau Empire, this means that the Tau Empire is about as far away from the Calixis sector as physically possible making knowledge of the Tau Empire almost non existant even to the Ordo Xenos

Scourge The Heretic notes that yes, Tau have been sighted in or near the Calixis sector.

And Ross Watson has gone on record saying that the Tau are too far away to really be included in games set in the Calixis Sector (as their FTL drive is slow, and they only made open contact with the Imperium around ~740.m41. Even a 'straight line' course would take a ridiculous amount of time, as warp entry is near impossible through the galactic core and other similarly crowded regions of space (according to the 'Privateer' article in Fanatic Mag2), and a dog-leg would add thousands of light-years to the journey). My personal read is that Sandy Mitchell made a mistake when writing Scourge the Heretic, and I mentally substitute the Fra'al or another minor xenos race.

That said, I can see examples of their weaponry finding their way across to the Calixis sector, in the hands of kroot mercenaries- kroot Warspheres essentially have the same warp drives ork vessels do (that is to say, unreliable, but effective), and it is scarcely unknown for kroot to hire on with human paymasters, nor is it unknown for kroot to carry looted or 'gifted' weapons from the Tau, or from ork or imperial weaponsmiths. Officially, of course, the kroot as a species have an exclusive contract with the Tau Empire for their services as scouts and shock troops, but that doesn't stop individual kroot (or indeed, whole kindreds) from hiring out elsewhere.

Examples of T'au technology have made it as far as the Obscurus Sector; IIRC in the Eisenhorn series there was a merc whose pride and joy was the T'au pulse rifle he'd managed to lay his hands on. And it is quite possible, though unlikely, to do things with the T'au in the Calixis sector; especially with the vagaries of Warp travel. Hell a T'au ship lost in transit in ~740M41 in the Damocles Gulf could conceiveably come out on the opposite side of the galaxy in ~620M41. Both time and space are fluid and ever changing in the warp after all.

I admit, my example is what would be considered an extreme case, but also a possibility.

-=Brother Praetus=-

Hey its his game he's free to do what he wants, was just saying why I wouldn't do it. As to the Scourge the Heretic thing, I did not know that, Sandy Mitchell Did Not Do The Reasearch on that on I think. Annoyingly I cant just dismiss that becuase it would totally invalidate another point I was trying to make on this forum about a Caiphas Cain book.

I admit Tau tech could reach the Calixis sector by using other races to get it there but its a big Galaxy and the chances it finds its way into this auction is tiny. The reason I suggested other items of Tau tech is because it is slightly more interesting and the Tau attempt to trade alot or random bits of tech too Imperial worlds in its first stages of trying to assimilate it into the Tau Empire and its more conveivable that these things would reach the Calixis sector. Alot of them are treated as playthings for the rich and wealthy so it makes sense. Also you can make them do really funky things and see how the team uses them.

There is a Tau device in Inquisitor that creates a Hologram of the user that he can control upto a certain range, that would be much more interesting in that scenario than what is essentially another gun.

Kaihlik

P.S. T'au spelt this way refers to thier home planet whereas the race is the Tau.

I'd probably give the carbine something along the lines of Hellgun stats, an 80m range, slightly higher ROF, maybe a +1 or 2 to things like PEN and DAM over the standard hellgun. To be honest its not really the kind of thing I ever expect to crop up in my games out in the Obscurus, but I guess its entirely possible for a bare handful to be floating around in the entire sector though passed down to rogue traders meeting other traders and so on.

Probably so obscure a weapon that if you painted an Imperial Eagle on the side of it, barely anyone would know what it is... course, its going to still be distinctive, which is something an Acolyte probably doesn't want as it brings trouble and someone will eventually figure out what it is. Slightly more legitimately, an acolyte could probably flog it off to the local Ad-Mech for backwards engineering, analysis, some decent dough and maybe a bit of kudos with them.

from france

in fact it is in the ravenor trilogy, not eisenhorn. i have no idea however of it should work for the simple reason that the weapons in dh doesn't functions as in the wargame, witch was correctly mentioned by somone in previous post.

anyway the most credibale theory for me is not a tau / kroot/ santa claus ... who brings the weapon but rather a human who goes to tau space or a zone of contact with the tau space and then goes to the calixis sector. more credible because human ships can make the trip.

second point because it is unlikely that a manual is given with the weapon your character wil have to use the try and error method.. godd luck to them. all right they can buy it but it s not gauranted tha the sellers know how to use it. he can lie after all evne facking a good show of the weapon. if they have the "take away from a cold body" attitude, it 's more unlikely that they know the manual; so the "try and errors" methods is worst.

last point the amunition problems...

So here I believe this is what you are asking for...not a reason that a ROUGE TRADER would have such a thing. Feel free to play around with the stats, but I think they are rather fair.

Pulse Carbine Basic 60m S/3/- 1d10+3E 2 25 Full --- 4kg 6000 Very Rare
Pulse Rifle Basic 90m S/2/5 1d10+5E 3 40 Full --- 5kg 7000 Very Rare

Tau Pulse weapons don't have quite the punch of human plasma weapons, but their rate of fire and reliability is excellent if the user is willing to endanger his life and soul by utilizing heretical xenos tech. They are somewhat easier to find closer to the Tau Empire.

Pulse Magazine 150/clip Very Rare

Oh and I forgot to add that of course they wouldn't really be able to use the weapons right out. So until they find a way to get and elite advance to learn how to use it the PC is taking a minus 20 each shot.

Why is the Pule carbine worse than a lasgun other than AP. I view Guard Plasma weapons are more like the sunfury which is D10+10 damage rather than the ones in the book which are more "civilian" models and these are weapons that are meant to be more powerful than a bolter. If you are going to do them I would at least make them powerful, I dont have much good to say about the Tau but even I admit they know how to make a powerful gun.

I would probably give them the following

Pulse Rifle Basic 150m S/3/5 d10+6E 3 40 Full Reliable 5kg

Pulse Carbine Basic 60m S/3/- d10+6E 3 40 Full Reliable, Carbine (the rule for the las carbine) 4kg

Underslung grenade Launcher Basic 60m S/-/- * * 1 Full The Underslung Grenade launcher is mounted on the underside of the Pulse Carbine

*Damage, Pen and Special Qualities detemined by the type of grenade being used, can only fire grenades manufactured by Tau sources.

If you are worried about being overpowered you havn't looked at the enemies in House of Dust and Ash, with these guns they might hurt Nonesuch.

Kaihlik said:

Well if they are to be on par of the bolter than give the pulse weapons tearing. Also maybe add the accurate onto the rifle?

Like i said play around with them till you find something that fits...but yes this looks much morelike a weapon for war. Also keep in mind that they would have to hid this item from hard liners.

Maybe it's only me, but considering the binzillion races within the galaxy, why would you use the boring old Tau when you can make up your own race? There's no reason there can't be a roughly similar civilization out there in the Halo Stars.

bogi_khaosa said:

Now that is a very good point.
Actually I wanted a Pulse Rifle and since the Tau came closest I asked for that, I do have another nice thing in there...

Haarlock’s Long Rifle:

Class: Exotic
Range: 250m
RoF: S/-/-
Dam: 1d10+4 E or 1d10+8 E*
Pen: 2**
Clip: 8
Rld: 3 Full
Special: Accurate, Recharge*
Weight: 4kg
Extra Feature: Scope

This amalgam of alien technology and ancient human technology was one of Erasmus Haarlock’s the prize possessions.
This plasma rifle is extremely accurate though what it gains in accuracy it somewhat looses in power and penetration unless the rifle is shot by an expert marksman.
The rifle has two settings, low and high, and the longer the shooter aims the more focussed the plasma pulse becomes and the more armour it penetrates.
Scholars have determined that this rifle is an adaptation of the Hrud Fusil, the Eldar Long Rifle and the Imperial Plasma gun, how it exactly works is unsure but it is said to be lethal up to at least 1.000 meters.
Two strange crystal lenses function as the rifles sights and range finder, when aiming the range of the target is indicated on the lens.

* A more powerful plasma like blast can be fired at the cost of 4 charges but this requires the weapon to (re)charge for at least 1 round and to cool down for at least one round after such a shot has been fired
** When used with an aim action the penetration increases to 4 for a half action and to 6 when aiming a full action

The rifle uses standard plasma pistol canisters.

I'd give the carbine full auto, not the rifle :/

I always imagined Pulse rifles as the single shot weapons of the tau, while the pulse carbine was for close range, "fill that room with shots" kinda weapon :/

Thoughh I do like your stats, one of my players has been begging me for something Tau related, I think a weapon might be right up his alley

cyclocius said:

I actually lowered the clip to 4.
1 Charge per shot, 2 charges for the big shot

Santiago said:

Now that is a very good point.
Actually I wanted a Pulse Rifle and since the Tau came closest I asked for that, I do have another nice thing in there...

Haarlock’s Long Rifle:

Is it just me or is that a flat out awesome picture?

Both Tau weapons and Tau personalities could be present in the Calaxis sector. It is highly unlikely that they would have got there under their own steam, and there wouldn't be more than a handful, but Rogue Traders, Radical Xenos Inquistors and others acting against or outside Imperial Law might have aquired Tau equipment or staff and brought them with them on Imperial transport. True, encountering them would be highly unlikely, but it is not an impossibility, though something like stumbling across a secret Tau observation post would be right out, at least according to canon, as they couldn't create or maintain such a presence so far away.