My players first adventure will be as a favor to the High Lords of Terra before they go out into the unknown. In the Calixis Sector is the Duronia system. The government of Duronia IV has not paid their full tithe in years and none at all in recent years. They are to go discuss things with the Imperial Governor, find out the reason for the issue, and get a written promise that the next tithe will be paid in full. Just send a psychic impression of the document to the Calixis capital to be sent on to Terra.

On the way in, they'll meet pirates. Later learning this is the reason for the tithe issues as pirates have all but blockaded the system while moving out of the way when officials come to collect.

They are asked to bring the pirates down and that they base themselves out of an old station above Duranis V. This turns out to be a trap.

Once they survive this and meet with the Governor again, it is revealed by a source that the Governor dislikes this world and wants to conquer another more prosperous world "in the name of the Emperor". He plans to frame another world for treason and kill them for it. To this end, he is controlling the pirates and has a real base on Duranis III, a former Forge World. If the Governor escapes the pcs, he flees here where the pirates have taken valuables, materials, and manpower so the Governor can build himself a crusade force. If they kill the Governor, this secret base offers no conflict. The players are rewarded and they go about their business. If the Governor escapes, there's a vicious battle that only lasts until the Governor is killed. Once he is dead, the others surrender and reward the players. The Governor doesn't play with Chaos or anything. He's just greedy and ambitious (and murderous as he had the previous Governor killed so he could take control and declare himself in charge with martial law in place since before being Governor he was the Commander of the local PDF)

At some point, this Governor does offer the players a role in his growing military and places of power on his new world that he intends to conquer. Mostly at that point, he just wants to not be killed, but also would like the players who could defeat him to help him instead of hurt his ambitions.

It sounds like an interesting adventure, thanks for sharing!

After this, the players intend on being a hired ship. They want to see about getting paid for taking out targets so long as their Warrant isn't placed in danger.

Being that they are kicking up some noise about being a mercenary ship and have no real reputation for doing so, I have a plan in mind. Calligos Winterscale hires the team to take down a target that has been plaguing his mining operations around Lucien's Breath of late. A pirate cruiser that is called Cruelty of Fate. Lord Winterscale then makes a bet with Lady Aspyce Chorda that the team he hired to take the cruiser down will fail and be destroyed. The stakes of this bet? Claim to Lucien's Breath.

Lord Winterscale will then be working to ensure that he wins the bet and that the players die. Lady Chorda will be working to help the players win and survive. Trillions of thrones are at stake behind the scenes.

Also...if the players do some actual digging with the ship name (after they are bound by contract of course)? They will discover that the Cruelty of Fate is a Black Legion strike cruiser in the region. They seem to be searching for something in particular.

So Black Legion as enemies to be destroyed, their employer is out to murder them for a bet, and a secret ally.

Well...more than one for the Blood Ravens also seek what the Black Legion does...

For our first session. The players cam into the Duranis system at the outer edge. Their ship is a Metritech Raider. They encounter two Havor raiders. They hit one with the Disruption macrocannons and during maneuvering, failed miserably. The result was that they rammed the other Havor and split it in half. They shot the other Havoc again and instead of facing capture, the other ship self-destructed...

They get to Duranis IV and do some investigating before meeting with the Governor with strong suspicions about him and the lack of tithes starting exactly when the old Governor was killed by pirates and the PDF commander took control and enacted martial law...for ten years. He tells them where the pirate base is. On an old abandoned starbase orbiting Duranis V which is a gas giant.

They go to this starbase and run silent. The starbase has an active power source, but doesn't seem like it's been in actual use in forever. A Dictator-class cruiser and two more Havocs converge on the area, not detecting their ship, but knowing for certain that they were there someplace. After they call the players out, the plaers decide to slip away to Duranis VI which is an Agri-World.

On this world, they discover that not only is the PDF not a vital force, but their Governor works the fields as well. Also, they have encountered zero pirates attacks, but as this agri-world is vital to more than just Duranis IV it's understood that the pirates don't want the wrath of a Battlefleet Calixis. Finding little in the way of technological assistance they purchase corn in metal drums to fill their holds. Once on board, they grind the corn into powder and go back to Duranis V. They find that the Havocs have left, but the cruiser remains. They slip onto the station and line the barrels up by the fusion generator. They pull back and call out the cruiser. Did I mention that the players' ship does not have any Void shields at all? They take a pot shot at the cruiser, but fail to get past it's Void shields. The cruiser spills out four squadrons of bombers so things start looking grim. They fire at the station and set off their explosives which destroys the entire station in a flash. The cruiser is struck by a large chunk of the station and is destroyed. They board the wreckage, sending in murder-servitors first as clean up before searching. They find one survivor and find out he was taken from Duranis IV and while he doesn't know much he does know that every pirate he has seen was also a Duranis IV native. They return to Duranis IV and demand they bring up what they can of the tithe.

The Governor offers to have an aide show the Rogue Trader an oil painting of his ancestor. The Rogue Trader who had founded this system. On the way, the aide spilled the beans that the Governor had arranged for pirates to kill the old Governor so he could take charge. He's been stealing the tithe for Duranis IV which was Imperial Guard regiments. At the painting, they meet the Governor and four bodyguards who kill the aide. He tells them that he's been building a force to leave Duranis IV behind and conquer a planet of his own in the name of cleansing this new world of heresy and offers the players a chance for fortune and life to serve him. In response, the arch-militant of the group shoots him in the head with a bolter. The bodyguards surrender and they find the son of the old Governor to take charge who delivers the promise to pay their tithe in full as the now leaderless pirates will return home.

Once repaired, the players will move on and begin to lay down tracks to see if anyone wants to hire their ship to take down targets. A Mercenary vessel if you will. Which leads us to my above post

"Hi, I am Calligos Winterscale, THE Man of the Koronus Expanse, and I have just thrown away one of my prized worlds on a silly bet! Oh, wait, how did I get to be a dominant power of the Expanse again?"

By hedging his bets! Of course he wants the Black Legion gone, but he also wants the players to die trying in order to win the bet. Lady Chorda wants the Black Legion gone, and for the players to get the credit. If someone else should make the final stroke? The bet is off...

This does lead me to a wonderance. Void Shields stop a Teleportarium. But since this is transport through the Immaterium...what about a Warpsbane Hull? Or wiring the Gellar Field to turn on in the Void? It won't stop weapons, but what about rampaging CSMs who want to teleport aboard?