I've been playing DH for a while now and have most of the books for that. I see a lot of things I can use in my upcoming DW game.

I was wondering if there are any RT books that I should purchase.

Thanks

Yes but as PDFs. RT Lure of the Expanse has many Eldar you could use to challenge Space Marines (may have to beef up their WS/BS and give some additonal combat talents and maybe a bonus wound or two) and if you give the Warlocks some bonus psyker powers they would fit well as well.

Not so much the adventure though.

But Rogue Trader/Into the Storm would be helpful for creating starship based adventures (kinda handy for a crusade I would think).

Battle Fleet Koronus (when its published)
Into the Storm (Lots of Eldar, Kroot and Ork stuff, realy worth it)
Lure of the Expanse (Eldar)
RT: Core Rule Book (Ships)

Wait, did I just sum up all books, just buy RT, its the best of the three games thus far....

Well the RT is my favourite game of the 40k lineup so far, so I could just say "buy all of them", but realistically it depends on what you want out of them. If you want some extra xenos to throw at your party, then "Lure of the Expanse" gives you a lot more Eldar options, while the RT core book can provide you with a couple of xeno foes. However, if you need more xenos, then you should really get the excellent Creatures Anathema book from DH lineup, which gives you a wonderfully written and diverse set of foes to choose from (not just Eldar, Orks, and a couple of Tyranids, but also Enslavers, and other more mysterious xenos, as well as mutants, heretics, forbidden technological foes, dangerous xeno flora and fauna). If instead you're looking for more gear to give to your players, then sadly you're out of luck, as the gear in Deathwatch pretty much blows the rest of the gear in DH and RT out of the water stats-wise. If you want to include more ship-to-ship combat, then you definitely need the RT rulebook, and possibly Into the Storm for more ship options.

Thanks for the replies.

Looks like I'll be having to spend more money on RPG books.

Rats.

Santiago said:

<ponders>

Kage

Santiago said:

Close but not quite. Dark Heresy is by far superior.

Peacekeeper_b said:

Other than the supplement's worth of errata Dark Heresy is fun, because I love investigation-based gritty Call of Cthulhu style games, but Rogue Trader is the better written book, and Lure of Expanse is better than Purge the Unclean, and Into the Storm is easily the equal of the Inquisitor's Handbook.

Heh, on my behalf as a reader of the games (not a player), Rogue Trader gets the vote because it is more glitch-free in terms of setting, themes and additional mechanics. Not quite so sure about the other claims, but YMMV.

Kage

MILLANDSON said:

Ill give you Lure of the Expanse of Purge the Unclean, but Imsorry, Into the Storm is nowhere in the same calibre of Inquisitor's Handbook. And errors or not, one mans errata is just another man's interpretation of the rules they prefer (usually, except in the crappy spelling, grammar and mis-matched entries of somegear).

And while RT may be overall better written/structured, it doesnt inspire me the same as DH. In fact, I think the Career system of RT is a regression from the mediocre Career System in DH.

MILLANDSON said:

MILLANDSON said:

The reason why I consider RT to be the better game (IMO, YMMV, etc.) is that: 1) it has far less glitches than either DH or DW (or god do we ever need errata and FAQ for DW!) and is better written overall, 2) most importantly Rogue Trader lets me do stuff that no other system I've ever played or ran before let me do on a grand scale. While DH is a tight sci-fi/horror/investigation game (that I enjoyed running immensely) there are plenty of other systems and games that let me run the same style and scale of a game. There is nothing else out there for my money that approaches the scale and sheer freedom and epicness of Rogue Trader (Traveller and Diaspora have that sandboxy style, but lack the HUEG factor and the feeling like the PCs are the movers and shakers of the world). By the way, both of these reasons are also why I think Dark Heresy Ascension is the finest DH supplement IMO. Again, IMO and YMMV and all that.

Peacekeeper_b said:

I've found that - having run all three games now - Rogue Trader is the toughest to get to grips with and the toughest to run, due to sheer scale, but by far the most rewarding when it pays off. I've had plenty of players express scepticism about it initially, because the core theme of the game doesn't click as easily as the investigative horror themes of Dark Heresy or the military/warzone themes of Deathwatch... but once they've seen Rogue Trader in action, they're sold by the idea. It's the hardest sell of the three, but the biggest payoff, IMO.

Having had the opportunity to shape the setting and mechanics for Rogue Trader, I'm extremely excited about how it's going to develop. Into the Storm was great fun to work on and is a really useful supplement, but I don't think it surprised anyone in terms of its content - as a book of character options, there really is only so much you can do with it. Edge of the Abyss and Battlefleet Koronus (and books further down the line), I feel, will actually push the game onwards and provide much more content to be inspired by.

N0-1_H3r3 said:

I wholeheartedly agree with you, N0-1. GMing Rogue Trader is honestly one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever encountered during my years of roleplaying. I'll admit, it takes a hell of a lot of work, but the pay-off... no other RPG comes close.

As for the Edge of the Abyss and Battlefleet Koronus content... well, I think you're right there too. The sheer options they'll open up are staggering.

I like RT best for one key reason: in RT, the adventures are largely player-directed. Generally, there's no one telling the RT group what they have to do, when they have to do it, or how to go about it. In both DH (possibly excepting Ascension-level play if the optional Inquisitor career is allowed for PC use) and DW, there's almost always someone telling you what must be done, and they often give a hard push on the "when" and "how" aspects too. This isn't necessarily a flaw in DH and DW, but with proactive players, RT seems to be a much more rewarding game.

MILLANDSON said:

The issue I have were I live is simple. My Friends all hate roll under systems. We only once played DH and they hated the Roll under system. So they never wanted to play RT, and now that DW is out they are thinking about it, but I suspect that they will still hate it because it is Roll Under. So I have to play it Pbp, over the internet, and the thing with RT is that it is Sandbox, or the most likely out of the three to become Sandbox. So Alot of the effort is one the GM Yes. But it Requires that the players also push their characters to make a Story. Sadly when the Captain Stops posting and disappears its harder to recover then in the Real World where I can talk to other players and within 5 minutes have something they all agree on and keep pushing.

If you don't like the roll under mechanic, then just use the roll over mechanic? BS of 30 becomes 70, a negative modifier because a positive modifier, etc.?

Kage

Kage2020 said:

Or just add the relevant characteristic/modifiers to the roll and try and get 100 or more.

In short, multiple options that aren't really pushing out the mathematical or complexity boat.

Kage

N0-1_H3r3 said:

101 or more. Open-ended?

Alex

Oh the fixes that are needed.

Kage

Alright, every time I look at the name of this thread and see "Rouge Trader" I get an image of a wholly different game. Hence, I give you - The Intrepid Rouge Trader Avon! In this setting the PCs are the retinue of Rogue Rouge Trader Avon. In the grim darkness of the 41st millenium, the Imperium has prohibited frivolous displays of wealth and ostentation and (most importantly) skin care products! However, rich and powerful nobles still want their outlandish beauty products and miraculous rejuvenation treatments. Rouge Trader Avon travels from star system to star system, running Imperial blocades to bring the finest in fashion, beauty products, rejuvenation treatments and skin care to decadent nobles (as well as xenos and heretical followers of Slaanesh!) all over the galaxy. The party must also fight off the competition such as: Rouge Trader May'be Line, the dreaded Dark Eldar Tormentor and plastic surgeon Maac'Nam'ara'T'roy, and Ork cream freebootah Oy'Lay. Hilarity ensues as containers of foundation are confused for macrocannon shells by the inept crew! Will Rouge Trader Avon find out that her lover Donus Draperus is really an Inquisitor of Ordo Scabrosus before he steals her Manicure Set STC? Will she uncover treachery among her cadre of skilled hive-to-hive sales agents before it's too late? Find out on the next season of - Intrepid Rouge Trade Avon!

Alright, I'm tired and I might have started hitting the TGIF beer.

Well divide by 5, and use a d20

STR 55 becomes . . .
. . . STR 11 in roll equal to or under . . .
. . . STR 9+ in roll equal to or above . . .
. . . STR +11 in add a bonus.

For each attribute use 8+2d2 (roll two dice for hi/low).

It should be easy to extrapolate a few conversion charts. Especially how all the bonuses are divisible by 10.

Dividing by 5, and using a d20 seems like a good/quick way for a GM to make lots of attack rolls by tossing a handfull of color coded dice.