Im a bit green when it comes to Warhammer 40k but id like to run a Dark Heresy campaing. Where can i find information about 40k? Ive played the Table top version, Played all the Dawn of War games and of course read the DH main book. Are theyre any other sources of materials I can utilize to better understand the world in which the game takes place?
New to Warhammer 40k RPGs
Draco001 said:
Im a bit green when it comes to Warhammer 40k but id like to run a Dark Heresy campaing. Where can i find information about 40k? Ive played the Table top version, Played all the Dawn of War games and of course read the DH main book. Are theyre any other sources of materials I can utilize to better understand the world in which the game takes place?
Welcome!
In my opinion the starting point to better understand the setting is the Lexicanum (www.lexicanum.com), which has helpful informations about almost everything related to the game.
Of course there are the accessory books to the game too: I am particularly fond of "Disciples of the Dark Gods" but there are more of them, such as "Blood of Martyrs", "The Inquisitor's Handbook" and "The Radical's Handbook".
Furthermore, keep posting your questions on this forum as well: being quite green as a Dark Heresy GM myself, here I've found very kind and caring persons who've really helped me and gave me all the informations I asked, with full details.
Then, a fourth source are the gamers' sites, such as Dark Reign (darkreign40k.com/drjoomla), which collect unofficial stuff such as adventures, characters and settings.
Finally, there are the Black Library books, which I think you already know, being a table top gamer.
Probably there are even more sources but sadly I don't know them.
Have fun with the game!
Honestly i have not heard of the Black Library Books. They sound familiar but i cant remember where to find that material.
By Black Library books he is referring to the novels and short story's you can find at your local bookstore or library.
The Eisenhorn omnibus is kind of a universal primer for 40K and the Inquisition. While the author, Dan Abnett, is liked he tends to do his own thing when it comes to certain aspects of the universe.
I think that The Inquisitors Handbook should be your next stop. Not only does it greatly expand character/equipment options, but it provides a lot of solid material about the Inquisition & life as an Acolyte.
I definitively agree about the Inquisitor's Handbook - it's pretty much a must-have.
Black Library books are often a hit or miss, for many authors "do their own thing", as ItsUncertainWho put it, so you may end up with an interpretation of the setting that does not suit your own or even contradicts the core material. Many of these books contain lots of good inspiration (in addition to a good story), though, so they should not be badmouthed too much.
I would recommend at first defining an area on what kind of stuff you want to learn more about, then look for material accordingly (including the different RPG books). If you just want a general peek into the setting, there are also short story anthologies such as "
Dark Imperium
" that allow you to read about several aspects of the game's world all in one book. Then there's also some in-universe books such as the
Uplifting Prime
r, the
Munitorum Manual
or
Xenology
(though, again, these things may contradict other stuff).
If you honestly want the best primer to the 40k universe I've ever seen, here's a document made on Dark Reign a few years back. For me, it's easily the most understandable and comprehensive guide to 40k I've ever seen.
Not so good as an overview, but Lexicanum is pretty good for details, in case you ever want to know more details about stuff.
I wholeheartedly agree with the endorsement of the Eisnhorn trilogy. And, out of the DH supplenemtal books, Desciples of the Dark Gods is my favorite- tons of good inspiration there.