by Ross Watson

Greetings, Deathwatch fans!

This week, I have a guest designer diary from Owen Barnes, one of the members of the “Project Iceberg” team who helped bring the Deathwatch RPG to life.

<header>Missions in Deathwatch

As part of a Deathwatch Kill-team it often falls to the players to tackle specialised battlefield tasks or complete key objectives for the Imperial forces. Unlike other kinds of soldiers a kill-team is often deployed as an autonomous unit, given broad tactical guidelines and lots of free license to wreak havoc and smite the Emperor’s foes. The kind of stuff Player-Characters excel at... Battle-Brothers are, however, much more than mere adventurers, and are usually only deployed for a good reason. This where the rules for Missions come into play.

Missions are guidelines that help the GM create the kinds of adventures and scenarios that a kill-team is likely to encounter, as well as give his games a sense of the duty and honour that comes of being a member of the Adeptus Astartes. Players who are familiar with the Endeavour system from Rogue Trader will recognise some of the ways that a Mission works. However, given the more militaristic nature of Deathwatch, there are a number of key differences.

Missions are divided up into Objectives, which are either rated as Primary Objectives, Secondary Objectives, or Tertiary Objectives (also known as Targets of Opportunity). The players can then complete Objectives how and in what order they see fit, and it is possible to complete a Mission without completing all its Objectives (though typically a Mission is considered ‘successful’ if its Primary Objective has been completed). Of course completing more Objectives usually means more experience and more renown as your Chapter sings songs of your deeds long after the bodies of your foes have turned to dust. In some circumstances, the Kill-team can even set its own Objectives during the mission!

One of the other key aspects of Missions is preparation. This is a selection of things that occur before a Mission, such as briefing, assigning a squad leader or choosing weapons and equipment. This period also includes Oath Taking, where Battle-Brothers can take on an Oath for their Mission, making a vow to the Emperor, their Chapter or their Battle-Brothers. Such vows are potent things for a Space Marine, and while they may motivate them to greater feats of bravery they may also force them to put their oath before tactical commonsense.

Missions can also have Complications, and as they say no plan survives contact with the enemy. These are special events that the GM can throw into a Mission to make things more challenging for the players, such as a mis-drop that puts them kilometres from their primary target, hidden foes like Lictors or daemon-hosts lurking among lesser enemies, or logistical problems that can mean a lack of support or limited ammo. Sometimes even Objectives may turn out to be false or changeable—such as turning up to destroy a bridge only to find it doesn’t exist, or protecting an Inquisitor who is more dangerous that the things trying to kill him.

However they are used, Missions are designed to be tools for the GM, helping him to bring Deathwatch to life and give his players a taste of the blood-soaked battlefields of the 41st millennium.

Forward, Battle-Brothers!

Next week, keep an eye out for more about the Missions framework, including some special attention to the deeper mechanics, like selecting a Kill-team Leader and the Oaths the Kill-team swears before the mission begins!