Ive just recently started playing dark heresy and wanted to make a scum from a hive world. I wanted her to have connections all around the sector. the go to scum if you need weapons or items, gelt or info. you name it, and ill have it. her fel is at 49 already and ive just hit rank 2. What do you suggest i do to get her good at what i want. and also can you help me flesh out her backstory. i dont know much about the setting besides over the top crazy battles in 40k. Whats the big difference between the gang lord and charlatin? i dont own the book we use and also is there a better type of scum to play?

thank you for your input in advance.

Shadowless

Shadowless said:

This seems like a strange question ... the best kind of scum to play is the one you'll enjoy playing the most. Some people want to play Gunslinger sorts who excel at ranged combat, some want to be sneak thieves who can break and enter anywhere, some want to be talkers; none of these is particularly better than the other.

Starting a character who already had trade connections throughout the system might be a bit much - since few people really ever get off their own planets. However, if they are in a trading hub of a city then it is conceivable they may have made friends in the region - this is probably best reflected through the "Peer" talents.

As to the Charlatan vs the Gang Lord: The Charlatan is much more of a face man - he has skills that allow him to charm people, persuade/deceive them, and mingle in high society easier. The Gang Lord focuses on combat and breaking and entering type crimes where most of his interaction with his victims happens violently or in the night while they are sleeping. The Gang Lord will probably have more hard currency, while the Charlatan will have more social influence.

Pond scum... That's the best kind! Followed closely by soap scum.

Noble Scum....errr...I mean Noble Peers of course....nothing like a fast talking flirtatious noble to throw a wrench in things

reclimator scum cuz tickin of the AM isnt fun enough with tech hereteks

The kind that sells his fellow acolytes into slavery in the first session.

Good campaign, that one.

I'm fond of the mouthy trouble magnet not-taking-****-from-nobody-and-this-includes-you-mister-planetary-governor scum myself.

or the gunnslinger killing a bloodletter with two bullets kinda scum...they were fate bringers with no holy ammunition...just righteous fury

Since it sounds like you are aiming for a smooth-talking charm magnet with contacts here, there and "everywhere" I would definately look at the "fixer" path once your career path hits it's branch point. If your game group has the inquisitor's Handbook then perhaps have the Scum character be a member of the Cold Guild or perhaps ask if your GM will allow you to take the "Bonded Emissary" alternate career package (normally for Adepts or Techpriests).

You will want to pile on with as many interaction skills as you can get your well-manucured hands on and grab any Peer talents that make sense to your character's story. Keep advancing Fellowship (obviously) and you will probably want some Intelligence, Willpower and Perception as well.

Chances are you will end up picking up some fighting skills or some impressive stealth and evasion abilities for when your interpersonal abilities are not going to be enough to deal with a situation. As long as you are enjoying it, there really is no "wrong" way to go with your character.

The Assassin kind.

The born on board the Misericoid kind, who will lie cheat and steal from anybody, except his family, or the telepathic interrogator who cuts on people for recreation.

When i think of noble scum i always think of House Harkonnen from dune.

from france

because history is written by the winner we have been made the bad guy; but the harkonnen my house was the most noble housse of all. the scumfilled house of atreides and their servant freemen allies were the worst criminal of dune. sorry so that history remnber us like the victor which to portrayed us.

the 8 spider said:

Well put spider..lol.Ive also been looking at other books for inpiration such as the noble houses of fading suns(House Decados).On another note han solo makes the perfect smuggler scum.Im hoping that maybe FFG would consider in pdf or dead tree form to publish books that focus more on the character aspect of each proffesion;something i would defintely be intertesed in buying.

In a local game I play a hive world scum. I rolled bad on my "combat" stats (Toughness 22!) so I went full steam ahead for talkative. Currently I'm on 4890 xp with the Tyrantine Shadow Agent alternate rank instead of Rogue (I can still spend in Rogue with a +50xp penalty) and Fel60 (maxed out till Ascension). I intend to take this character down the Fixer-Shark-Charletan path. What you should do depends largely on what your stats are, if yours are anything like mine (WS2, BS3, S2, T2, Ag2, Int3, Per3, WP3, Fel4) you'll want to largely ignore combat stuff, just get yourself a decent auto-firing gun, some manstoppers and a hardened body glove. Socialwise you'll want to take skills like Barter, Charm, Inquiry, Deceive, I also found Literacy really useful (though expensive). Peer is also great and knowledge skills are very useful if you & your GM remember to take them into account.

I did have a question about the Charletan tree actually, Command is an advanced skill a Charletan doesn't have access to, yet a Charletan can get "Air of Authority" which requires a Command roll.

That is a strange question! You gotta play your character how you want to, but I think you're fishing for examples, so here's mine.

My Scum is a Noble Born rake, the fouth son of a wealthy Noble house with ties to Imperial Industy and the Adeptus Mechanicus who goes by the name Praetus. He has never given his real surname, even to his fellow Acolytes, as he has many old rivalries from his carefree days of duelling, gambling, con games and dalliances with the daughters of other noble houses. Praetus was forced into his current role as the party's face and doorway to Imperial high society by his new master, Lord Inquisitor Vertis. The game has been running for a while and he's basically the "overt" kind of Scum, a gunslinging scoundrel with a silver tounge and the trigger-skill to back up his words. He dosen't do so much sneaking or theiving, preferring to let the Assassin in his team handle that sort of work, and in a firefight he will typically fast-draw on his attackers and let fly with his Plasma Pistols rather than slink around in the shadows with a knife and silenced pistol.

But that's just how my Scum turned out...