So last night my group of Explorer's transport was boarded by a Ork freebooter vessel. After more than a few bad rolls by the transports pilot and bad command tests by the Rogue Trader Explorer, the vessel was over run by orkz (the population of the transport hit zero).

I paused the game just as the bridge was breached by a ork raiding party. A few of the remaining naval crew and armsmen were gunned down infront of the players eyes. All that remains is the PCs and as the game was ending they started to talk about what they would plan to do next game. Shooting the vista panels and opening the bridge was one. That was quickly shot down as the orkz vessel turrets would probably turn the players into shooting practice. Another idea was to rush the orkz and try to force their way to the orkz vessel and steal their transport shuttle. Using their shuttle they were launch to one of their sister vessels that was just entering space combat. Last idea and my personal favorite was to jump into large air vents in the bridge (that lead to large fans *wink wink*) and try to do gorrilla war vs the orkz till saviors came.

So what I'm looking for is any ideas on what you all would do as GMs. Example being fun combat ideas for vent fighting or interesting orkz they might run into. Though anything is useful.

So you know the transport is badly damaged. Large parts of the hull are open to the void as the ship looks like it has been skinned. The bridge vista panels are cracked and on the brink of breaking. At the time they have pulled the armor plating over them.

Ohh and before I forget the Explorator of the group is seperated from the group and walking on the top of the transport its self with a small group of enginseers.

Savagely fight the orks until the Freebooterz Kaptain inevitably comes to the bridge to finish off the rogue trader captain personally. Then convince him you have something he wants, perhaps the knowledge of a hidden treasure in a nearby system. Use his greed against him to delay long enough for the Explorator and enginseers to cook up a plan or distraction that will allow you to escape or kill the Freebooter Kaptain. Or perhaps lead him on a bogus treasure hunt and into a system where you know he'll be attacked by another Xeno race or a strong Imperial fleet. Maybe you can even buy yourself enough time to sow dissent within his subordinates (rumor of something immensely valuable can do that) and cause chaos in his command structure. Sounds like a pretty dire situation. Even if they escape, they have no crew and it sounds like the ship is done for. Seizing orky ships probably wouldnt work out well.

I would say that haggling with an ork which bloodthirs was aroused due to some battle is very hard a task, even considering he is a freeboota.

If your pc are into guerilla warfare, they thing they will find following them into the ducts are squigs and gretchins. Most of the tougher orks will not be able to follow them through the smaller vents. The "Creatures Anathema" has a good coverage of that".

Getting into the vents and then trying to get some shuttle/lighter/cutter/ork assault boat would be my tactic. Perhaps "faking" an reactor overload first. This will distract the orks and will exlain while some boats are leaving the ship ("Cowardly Gits!") and will keep some of the gunz busy ("shoot ém!") so the chances are highger that you will actually be able to make it out...if you have a good pilot, that is!

I'd take advantage of the fact that orky gunners are incredibly inaccurate, and that a man in a void suit is a very small target. Blow all internal atmosphere seals, shut down the life-sustainers, then shatter the windows on the bridge. Make your way across the hull to the flight decks, meeting up with the Explorator and his servitor obeisance on the way. Have all remaining small craft bail out (the orks are going to be doing that as well, as they now have no more air), and use them to conduct hit-and-run attacks on the ork ship.

I call this plan the "We're too lucky to die" plan...

Give your players time to plan a really good guerilla warfare strategy before starting play (or "escape in barges and set the vessel to self destruct" or whatever they prefer). It's at times like the players should be encouraged to be creative - it's up to them to save themselves!

Thanks guys for the ideas. Trying to pick out every plan a PC group will do when they are stuck against the wall can be hard. Having a few more brains on the subject can make GM alot easier to prepare for. So I'll make sure to post my results tonight after the game if the players think of anything good.

The Emperor Protects...or... Gork an' Mork sent me to rouse up da boyz ta crush an' kill 'cos da otha boyz forgot what dere 'ere for.

If the party's leader can beat the Ork leader in one-on-one combat, the other Orks may make him their new boss. It's how they do things, he just has to convince them that someone small and pink could actually stand a chance.

St. Jimmy said:

Not really. Afterall, Orks won't just follow the next warrior that comes along... they do, afterall, know the difference between their species, and their enemies. A powerful, skilled human is a really, really fun enemy to have... but he's still an enemy. Orks respect and revere non-Orks who put up a good fight, but they do so in the knowledge that Orks need good enemies... because without good enemies, there's nothing to challenge them and nothing interesting to battle against.

Part of it is psychic - Orks themselves generate and are sensitive to a psychic field that grows stronger for larger Orks, and during battle and times of excitement. It's theorised as to be part of how Ork technology works, and is how Orks know who is in charge and when something important is happening (like a WAAAGH! starting to gather). A human, no matter how big and strong, doesn't have that same quirk of nature...

A smart PC might challenge the Boss to one on one combat. Then after killing the Boss ask is that the best you got. With Orks what will happen next might just be a free for all as the various Ork start fighting each to be the Boss.

Make them do a guerrilla war. Then have their failed ship join in space hulk. Best idea is that a bunch of imperial ships come to destroy it and the PC's have to fight the orc for control of certain areas, like the guns, so the PCs can destroy the imperial fleet before it destroys them in order to survive. :3

The explorers manage to escape in a shuttle and land on a nearby planet (possibly crash land if the boyz take a few pot shots at them as they escape)

The planet is human habitable (sort of) it's a feral world or death world (or combination of the two) inhabited by technobarbarians (potentially dinosaur riding technobarbarians). At any rate there is an ancient battlecruiser that crashed on the surface millenia ago. Cue an 'endeavor in the same vein as a classic pulp 'sword and planet' story like Jack Vance's 'Planet of Adventure'.

Oh! Maybe the locals worship the spaceship as a fallen 'star god' and if the PC's manage to A convince them to let them near it, and B get it working again then the locals would likely end up worshiping the PC's themselves for having 'reborn' their god.

If they pull it off, they'll have a new ship (possibly cooler than they had previously) and a ready source of armsmen (or even crew if they train em up a bit) who worship them with fanatical loyalty.

This is especially possible since like you said the Explorator is off with a few engineseers. A dozen or so tech priests could likely get the old hulk working again given some time.