I was reading "A bit disappointed..." and I had a thought. No, really. I did.

Would you favor a small, magazine-style softback book detailing iconic locales such as Port Maw, Port Wander and the like? Some maps, some interesting NPC's, some plot hooks for both DH and RT? Inexpensive and produced often enough to slake our bloodthirst for new material?

Sure, sure, there's lots of fan-material on sites like Dark Reign, but quite often I find myself willing to pay for a printed, good-looking sourcebook with higher production values that even if it were full of fan-based material I can wager won't be full of boring crap, as lots of the fan-based material inevitably is. If it's worth doing well, it's worth getting paid for.

One locale I'd like to nominate for detailing is Logan's World from the original Warhammer 40,000:Rogue Trader.

Logan's World is the first port of call in the Lost Worlds Sub-Sector, nestled inside a stable Warp Storm just inside the Eye of Terror not far from the Cadian Gate. Every 8-16 years the Eye "blinks" and travel to and from the Lost Worlds is possible for anywhere between a couple months to two years.

Logan's World is a desert planet with a single large continent, and several islands adrift in a vast methane sea. The primary resource of Logan's World is rare ores, which it trades for just about everything else.

There's one main city, Helsreach, which is essentially a huge Black Market run by various gangs. The gangs are mostly divided by race and function. For instance, the Ork Slaver gang and the HoverBus Gang. The HoverBus Gang runs the armored HoverBuses which ferry miners to the mines and back. Passengers are expected to be armed and participate in the defense of the bus... heh heh! Water is a valuable commodity on Logan's World to the point where they have a Water-Seller's gang which includes fat merchants and hired mercenary bodyguards toting big weapons.

Why would a Rogue Trader go out of his way to risk a trip to Logan's World? Well, for one, it is said that whatever you want, you can find it on Logan's World, up to and including spare parts for a Titan. Anything. Of course, everything has it's price and expect to pay more on Logan's World. Conversely, if a Rogue Trader has a near unique item and wants to offload it with no-questions asked and little chance of Imperial entanglements, Logan's World is the place to find a buyer.

Lord of the Ravenwing riding the last Imperial Jetbike? Nonsense. On Logan's World, you can even buy several different models...

Logan's World is also a haven for a galaxy's worth of riff-raff. Outlaws and fugitives from Tau or Imperial law are abundant. Mercenaries, identified with a white stripe painted over their eyes, crowd street corners and bars. Down the streets of Helsreach, you will find humans, Orks, Eldar, Tau, Kroot, Slaan, Jokero, Ratlings, Ogryn, Zoats...and many other species unheard of...even fabled and mythical Squats can be seen haggling with Gretchen merchants on Logan's World. Chaos is not tolerated as likewise more aggressive species such as Tyrannids, but otherwise they function under a sort of Wild West multiculturalism and what little law there is is rigidly enforced by the Gangs.

As such, many Inquisitors find themselves on Logan's World. Some for decades stalking their quarry. Occasionally, as the Lost Worlds are ostensibly Imperial Planets, a well-connected Inquisitor will bring troops and re-impose Imperial Law upon Helsreach only to leave a month or two later. To stay any longer invites being trapped for at least a decade, which results in a death sentence, as no Imperial Commander is going to trap the number of troops and assets necessary to maintain order when they are so desperately needed on Cadia. The same Warp Storm which keeps the Imperium out protects the Lost Worlds Sector from Chaos...and traps the inhabitants.

Helsreach is located in the middle of the vast central plain of the wasteland that is Logan's World. It's an inverted Hive, meaning that the spire is deep within the cooler depths and well-protected crust of the planet. The farther down one lives the more vast their personal and gang assets are. The real movers and shakers of Logan's World rarely risk leaving the safety and luxury of the Core. Not to mention, it's boiling hot on the surface. The continent is ringed with low-rolling hills and mountains wherein lie the vast Mining complexes. Raiders and Ork Slavers plague the mountain passes and gang encampments are everywhere in the many caves dotting the hills.

Well, that's all I can remember. For more info on Logan's World with pictures etc. check out the original Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader!

What info is there on the rest of the Sector (and its worlds)?

Logan's World is one of the most inspiring pieces of "throwaway text "in all of Warhammer 40,000 history. Many are the times I've wished that GW could have run with that setting and tacked it onto the main setting as a skirmish-level wargame supplement with special miniature releases to accompany it.

If I do any GM-ing in Rogue Trader I'll probably throw it in somehow.

~~~~ Would you favor a small, magazine-style softback book detailing iconic locales such as Port Maw, Port Wander and the like? Some maps, some interesting NPC's, some plot hooks for both DH and RT? Inexpensive and produced often enough to slake our bloodthirst for new material?~~~~

Hell yes.

I tell you another thing I'd much prefer to see from new books, as opposed to obscure stuff like the 'Radicals' Sourcebook ... a dedicated sourcebook that compiles and expands upon the scattered canon references to various Calixis Sector worlds. I find at the moment I have to root thru the DH sourcebooks' sidebars whenever I begin writing a new adventure to ensure I don't tread all over canon. Really annoying. It's not like there's even indexes in most of the DH sourcebooks.

Okay, that aside, yes in answer to your question, I would LOVE to see 'module' sized sourcebooks on individual locations/planets/space stations etc etc. They could be pumped out much faster than the lovely, but very jumbled, style hardback books we are seeing at the mo (for DH at least).

Re Logan's World ... meh, it was always just a little bit too 'Mad Max' for 40K imo. Personal taste I guess. I did like the wanted poster for that guy who was in hiding there though.

Adam France said:

Well, Mad Max had just come out right before the book was published. There's a lot of stupid pop-culture references in early GW material. It's on par with Fallout series. In fact, the game Dark Future was inspired specifically by Mad Max movies. Then the shameless depiction of Filthy Harold (Clint Eastwood...) and the first named Inquisitor, Obi-Wan Clousseau....original 40k minis sporting "Force Swords" had well...lightsabers...

MDMann said:

None actually. It's located inside the Eye of Terror though, and plenty has been written about that.

I bag your pan, Maxim, but I assume that as soon as you try to earn money (or more precise: make turnover) with background material (the 40K universe) the GW licended, they will sue the hell out of you unless you have an agreement with them.

I know a story about a fine little fan community for WH40K in germany who made this movie "Damnatus". It was "pro bono", they did not intended to make money with it. They even asked for permission first.

Afterwards, GW withdrew permission, so any available copies are illegal.

I do not think that GW will allow you your little Endeavour, and I think I am quiet sure about how this will end.

Unless, you refrain from taking money for it. (which I assume what is you inteded due to your post)

Gregorius21778 said:

That's more because of german IP law (which guarantees certain rights to, for example, people making a film that are incompatible with GW's requirements for complete ownership of their IP) than anything else - consider that the WFRP fanzine 'Warpstone' has been running for years, being sold in gaming shops and online, without GW intervening because the entire thing is non-profit.

Maxim C. Gatling said:

I would suggest changeing it from a hellishly hot world to an ice world. The reason for this is that Methane has a boiling point of -161.6 degrees Celsius or -259 degrees Farenheit. The population would still live in an inverted hive but that would be to stay closer to the planetary core and therefor warm. Otherwise to have liquid Methane standing on the surface you would have to have incredably high atmospheric presures. I know I am being that guy but I thought it should be pointed out.

Halcyon said:

Hey, no problem, man!

I didn't make up the planet though. Rick Priestley did! But you make a good point.

I did embellish on a couple of the details such as the inverted Hive, but I'm pretty sure the Methane sea was part of the original description.

I don't know if this would be less costly or even more desirable, but it's a thought... could the "book" be packaged as holed, loose pages and shrink wrapped? Players/GMs could buy their own 3-ring binders and them as installments arrived. It might be cheaper vs. glue/staple binding, and I know it would be easier to lay out.

In any event, I think it's a great idea, as long as the cost is kept down. Don't get me wrong, I really like what FF is doing with it's art and lush layouts, The books I've got I cherish, take care of, and display prominently on my shelf... There's just not that many of them... and there's a lot of things I'd like to see in them that isn't there... and there is a recession...

To read: Players/GMs could buy their own 3-ring binders and insert them as installments arrived. Sorry, it's late...early...

I know we're talking 40K here, so sense is out of the window... but 'single climate plantets' such as "desert world" are a ridiculous notion and I'm afraid that seas of Methane would require temperatures far below the triple point of water, in fact, no gaseous oxygen either, most likely at the kind of temperatures that must prevail.

The original Rogue Trader is very much 'of its time' (we'll probably think the same of the new one in a decade or two) and never more so than with stuff like "Logan's World".

Single climate planet is SF staple from Dune to Hoth and back to John Carter's Mars. It is not plausible but is part of the genre.

Science Fantasy yes, and 40K is firmly that but even it has moved away from the more silly aspects of the original background or cobbled elaborate in-universe explanations. I should point out that for some reason, no replies showed when I wrote mine, so I have ended up parrotting a couple of others, really, which wasn't intended.

Also Dune went to quite a lot of trouble with the background for Arrakis, even if it's superficially similar to Tatooine, et al.

Single climate type planets can and do happen.

Mars, that's a desert planet, no question about it. It has the distinguishing feature of having little water that isn't frozen at it's poles. This moister isn't really distributed to the rest of the arid plant. Bam, desert planet.

Neptune, why, that'd be a water planet (which is not a climate at all, but it is kind of the polar opposite of a desert world ;-) ).

A jungle/swamp planet is possible as well. Thick heavy atmosphere with high moisture and high temperatures (possibly too high near the equator) with incredible out of control plant life growing where ever it could.

Such planets wouldn't be quite as hospitable to human life due to the elements needed to make them (distinct lacking of moisture for a desert planet would make life a difficult prospect never mind the possibility of an unbreathable atmosphere due to a lack of oxygen, etc) but they can happen. Now, a temperate forest planet, that would be ridiculous as it requires one narrow temperature band. A desert world, however, can run any temperature, it just has to have minimal moisture, water planets just have, you know, lots of the wet stuff, and a swamp/jungle planet just need a heavy dose of carbon, a nice coating of too much moisture over everything (being more in some reigns and less in others natch.) and the right temperature bands, warm to too gosh darn warm and you should have a thriving petri dish of life and death on an insane overgrown scale over all the areas it can reach.

Not really, Graver, although it made me smile. Mars has temperature variation, indeed you mention the poles yourself and that's the point. Mars is an (near) airless rock (in reality, not 40K) but if you increased atmosphere to survivable or better, Earth Standard, levels, it would have significant temperature variations and even weather. Mars, Neptune, et al, don't have climate, they're uninhabitable and in many cases utterly barren and anatmospheric.

Gaidheal said:

True. But weather and temperature dose not make a desert. Deserts have quite a wide range of temperatures. The only thing that really sets them apart from other regions is a low amount of moisture. You could have a planet with a low amount of moisture that was still "habitable" in the 40k sense of the term easily. Just anouther planet that needs to import the stuff of survival, but that seems to be the rule as opposed to the exception with most planets of the Imperium.

You do, however, need atmosphere and indeed a biosphere (deserts are not actually anything to do with just being sand, even on this planet and they do have life) and you won't get an entire habitable planet with a desert climate, although a planet covered in sand is probably far more likely, as it happens (it just won't be living). It is weather and temperature that make a desert, or rather typify them, by the way. Extreme temperatures combine with a relative lack of rainfall and a very narrow biosphere.

[edited 'moisture' to 'rainfall', since we're getting technical]

Definetly would be interested. The 3 adventure book thats comming out next doesnt seem like a good way to invest my money seeing as how I typically make my own adventures.

You'd be missing out though. It's a really nice book, even if you never planned to run the stories from it.