So... for my next character I think I'll be making an Istvanian radical adept -> sage.

Our party pretty much subscribes to the istvanian mindset, and the characters are all varying degrees of radical.

The idea I am going for is very much a matter of theater. He has been judged as an enemy of the Imperium and incarcerated (due to stringpulling by radical inquisitorial elements) for life in the core of maximum security on a prison-world. He is quite outwardgoing, with a (un)healthy sense of humour, a carefree attitude and is quite, raving mad.

The idea of going Adept, then sage is that I kinda want him to be a 40K mad scientist, but I don't feel like making a techpriest. So I thought that I would make him as a type of chirurgeon gone bad, obsessed with improving the human form, and pushing humanity beyond it's current limitations. Experiments with diseases, induced mutation, creation of false-men and eternal life will be very much on his to-do-list.

How would you guys go about building him? I mean in terms of stats and talents and so on?

I am also very interested in any twists, ideas, suggestions etc you might have for this character. Ideas for experiments, projects, philosophies and so on. I kinda wanna see how vile a character I can make with you guys' input.

Also ideas for Contacts and Equipment for making him more efficient at what he does would be great.

Thanks alot in advance.

-Nearyn

EDIT: Available EXP: 22500

And if you could, don't skip on the social-skills as I kinda want his outgoing personality to be contagious, making him even more dangerous as he can be very persuasive

Somebody who was stark raving mad would never be taken into the I, no matter how radical. Do you just mean 70 IPs or so?

If you are a radical adept, I would be tempted to take 'Thy Name I Keep" background from the radical handbook. Start out with the effects of a daemon pact. Two come to mind. Survival grants immortality. Desire grants the perfection of a craft or goal. You could very easily be a mad scientist with the desire pact. Also the Malfi Noble home world grants some deception skills and +10 intellegence for your mad scientists motif. Also found in the radical hand book.

If you do end up going the tech priest route, the Malgrision background in the Inquistor book is literally insane tech priest that are all about proscribed science.

bogi_khaosa said:

Yes, I mean crazy but still playable and still focussed enough on his goals to not sit in a corner, in fetal position, laughing at unspoken jokes. I am thinking a person whose creative genius, complete (unspoken) impiety and unscrupulous dedication to his work, is the stuff of nightmares for the dusty old Imperium,

The idea was to make... sort of a unification of Shiro Ishii, Josef Megele and Vladimir Demikhov, sprinkled with the attitude of the Doctor from TF2, and then influenced by the 41st millenium

bphill561 said:

These background ideas are wonderful I can easily create something really, really good with this. Like making him appear to talk to himself, when in fact, he is answering someone from beyond, who is trying to guide/corrupt/influence his work and actions.

I think the hardest part of this is that I have no idea of.... well... what exactly 40K science can do. I know that the major science-guys (i.e AdMech) are fanatically conservative and marred in ritual rather than understanding. I also know that there are rogue elements who see technology and medicine in a very different light, but what these people actually achieve, I have no clue.

Somthing that may add to him is making him sickly or gets ill easy or maybe have something wrong so he is doing these things to help him self more then others as that could really push him and if there is something that may help his research and will stop at nothing to get maybe he wants to get hold of something like a space marines Progenoids or maybe Xenos parts eldar live a long time

So i would see about getting forbidden lores Archeotch, Adeptus Mechanicus, Adeptus Astartes, Xeons and every medical skill going.

This makes me think of the Extra Careers in Rogue Trader book Into the Storm the Genetor one if you have that book look there at his skills. if not can say a few that stand out.

I would probably give him either the reclimator advanced scheme in the radical's handbook so that he can get techpriesty upgrades if he wants them, then i would say that adept is a great choice if you want him to be a learned man, that or a scum to give him that friendly air, unfortunalty he wouldn't get any good lores...except from the reclimator (not even sure if i have the name right, is preety much where you salvage tech parts from people to sell on the black marker, just apply it slightly differntly). Tainted blood of malif is perfect gives just the right amount of monstrosity and insanity, then just rack them up from there.

Mattman375 said:

This is both a good idea and a less-than-good idea. On one hand, humanizing him, giving him this weakness and thereby adding to his motivation, is an extremely powerful roleplaying tool, and on the other hand it kind of changes the whole... "air of mad genius" thing, as it will seem that his only motivation for breaking the rules is to save his own skin.

Amassing the forbidden lores and medicae I agree with, as it seems like the core idea of such of character and the advances of the genetor are amazing, awesome and I will definately talk to my GM about allowing me to take a variation on that advance scheme.

Darkmittens said:

Making him a reclaimator is also a great idea, but the way I read it, it states that you must pick scum for your starting career if you're going reclaimator. Am I reading this wrong? It seems that you CAN be a reclaimator at level 1, but that you still get the starting skills and talents of the scum career.

Now making him scum and letting him draw his fellowship from there could also work, but it doesn't feel like the idea I am shooting for, despite it being a kinda fun idea.

At this moment I believe I -WILL- be going with "Tainted blood of Malfi" Because that background is just about made for this character.

Also, as I was looking for "Tainted blood of Malfi", I saw the entry on daemonhosts in the table of contents and I got an idea for one of his projects.

Is it possible/workable/likely/whatever in context of 40K lore, to work on a serum(or whatever) to induce a kind of psykosis that makes people either resistant to possesion, or (better yet) make it easier for those posseses to take control of the daemon and control his powers?

If this can be done (I honestly have no clue) then how would you go about making it mechanically?

well the way it works you can use the demon's power till you hit the 100 cp at that ponit the demon takes over your body and your lost forever. there could be something that slows down the Corruption so it takes longer for you to become lost. Thats the only way i see it at the mo.

Nearyn said:

bphill561 said:

These background ideas are wonderful I can easily create something really, really good with this. Like making him appear to talk to himself, when in fact, he is answering someone from beyond, who is trying to guide/corrupt/influence his work and actions.

Hi Nearyn, I I like your character concept, but have yo considered that in many campaigns, even radical ones, that this sort of activity will get you very dead very quickly? If you did that around my character (even though he openly wears xeno armour) you would have some tough explaining to do*.

Tainted Blood of Malfi is cool, and something like a heretek or reclaimator package is cool, but does the concept need your character to be already connected to demons? Danger Will Robinson! Burn the Heretic, Purge the Unclean! Kill Kill Kill for inner peace and mental health!

(*I play a feral world assassin who has a major chip on his shoulder about rogue psykers and those who would treat with demons so I may be a little bit biased .)

Mattman375 said:

That is a very good suggestion for how to construct it mechanically,. One of my friends suggested to me that I make the serum's effects give a +20 on WP checks against possession, but a -20 on FEL tests and 1d10+2 insanity points. Coupled with an effect that slows the accumulation of CP as a host, and we've got a very successful, very dangerous and crazy experiment, just the way I wanted

Zakalwe said:

Nearyn said:

bphill561 said:

These background ideas are wonderful I can easily create something really, really good with this. Like making him appear to talk to himself, when in fact, he is answering someone from beyond, who is trying to guide/corrupt/influence his work and actions.

Hi Nearyn, I I like your character concept, but have yo considered that in many campaigns, even radical ones, that this sort of activity will get you very dead very quickly? If you did that around my character (even though he openly wears xeno armour) you would have some tough explaining to do*.

Tainted Blood of Malfi is cool, and something like a heretek or reclaimator package is cool, but does the concept need your character to be already connected to demons? Danger Will Robinson! Burn the Heretic, Purge the Unclean! Kill Kill Kill for inner peace and mental health!

(*I play a feral world assassin who has a major chip on his shoulder about rogue psykers and those who would treat with demons so I may be a little bit biased .)

Hi Zakalwe glad to see you in here, also ^^

Yes, yes I have considered this and I honestly find that the possibility for sudden, grim and gruesome death is the prize you pay for being Throne agent. This is even truer for radicals who have to dodge bullets from within their own ranks.

You raise a good point though. Despite the fact that I would absolutely love to include "thy name I keep" or give him a daemonic contract, I -could- do just as well without it. It also leaves an avenue of corruption to explore, another step down the dark path to improve his work, and subsequently humanity, even further.

"Ne invoces expellere non possis"

The concept of the character actually hinges a bit on the rest of the group, silently pondering whether he should be off'ed or not. If they have to get him from the core of maximum security, and then don't feel like they might have been forced to conjure up that which they cannot put down, then I've failed to establish the proper mood of my character. His attitude should make them feel camaraderie and security, while his actions should keep them on their toes.

I don't yet know if I am going to leave the daemonic open or not, I have to admit.