Common problem...lets see if i can help you out.

LockLock said:

PMs only to friends. Friends can be added (=requested) on the left side of your profile page.

Alex

Steve-O said:

How do you kill defenseless civilians and kids? Easy, you just don't lead em as much.

I think the mechanics of Deathwatch potentially allow for more roleplaying than alot of games out there. The PC's already have the best equipment (pretty much) and are already super uber munchkin killers (and I mean that in a good way) so really they can stop worrying about those (non role playing) aspects of the game and more focus on building their characters.

If despite all of this the PCs are still only interested in killing things then why are they even playing Death Watch? Just get a game of WH40K going. This is not disparaging WH40K (Its a great game) merely to point out that if the players aren't interested in roleplaying space marines then they are playing the wrong game.

By way of an analogy there is a RP game called Nobilis where the PC's effectively play gods. This basically refocuses the game around roleplaying rather than massive fights.

The way I GM Deathwatch is to make the combat operations part of the backdrop to the roleplaying aspects. That is to say when the PC's are in combat there is little challenge for them, they will probably win. Where the challenege comes is in having to navigate their way through the politics of the Imperium, overcome xenos plots and decide how best to balance the honour of their Chapter with the mission of the Deathwatch.

I am a bit new to DeathWatch and I have never played as a player. The idea that there isn't a lot of role playing is a little misguided. Sure the players are all Space Marines from different chapters most NPC's are going to be either Space Marines or some other character of the Imperium. But I rely a lot on the players to bring the role playing to the table. I have a table with four players one playing a Blood Angel, UltraMarine, SpaceWolf, and Black Templar. The players have so much inter player role playing we can spend a night making no progress on the adventure but still have a blast doing so. From having the SpaceWolf player get drunk in an Imperium town, molesting the local women with the UltraMarine trying to keep him out of trouble, to the Blood Angel and Black Templar explaining to their Inquisitor handler why their team isn't ready.

I reward these with more Fate Points, at my table Fate Points are poker chips, and the more role playing they do the more Fate Points I hand out. Sure I will let their antics get them slammed with wave after wave of hordes but they make the night interesting. Sure I have to work hard at keeping it interesting but that is half the fun of it. I currently have a campaign that my players are fighting to keep the Blood Angel from going insane, and they are currently making him wear a dress to battle and has a crown made of flowers to do so. So the role playing is more of what you put in rather than the guidelines of the book.

Are you suggesting to play Deathwatch like Vampire?