So, I come from more Star Wars than 40k, as far as RP experience, and am wondering, is there any place in this game for fighter pilots? In Star Wars, many of the greatest legends of the verse are fighter pilots, or at least they did some of their more important stuff at the stick of a starfighter, while the huge ships serve more as set pieces. Is there any sort of that in Rogue Trader? So much of the game can or does take place in space, and that means ships, but so much seems to be characters who are the highest on their ship, not the kind who would risk their hide in a little fighter (we've got people for that). Fighters don't even appear in the first book, waiting till BFK to be revealed, and then, mostly as a mechanic, rather than actual ships. I saw the Flight Marshall in Into the Storm, but am not so sure what role they play in a game where the humble fighter is seemingly overlooked.

Is there much of a place for the one-man ship? Will they get much done against ships that can survive attacks from other ships their own size? Does any of it use them as a ship, rather than part of an equation of big ship vs. big ship, where you just lose a few, and make another Acquisition test to get new ones, if you felt they were efficient enough? Maybe attacking ground forces on a planet below? I found the bomber in BFK, but not the fighter. In the tabletop, you need lots of points to include one fighter in your force, and they are powerful, but I'm not sure how much of that will pop up in RT the RPG.

Void master is an ace pilot, but contrary to most games, fighters aren't individually useful, it abstracted as wings are use in space battles.

On the ground or smaller dog fight scale it's different, they have decent rules. check into the storm (the Fury interceptor is in there) and the Koronus Fleet supplement books.

p.s. This game tries to stay away from one man show (i.e Decker form SR, pilots from SW) and try to create group activity.

Oh, i should elaborate. I have Into the Storm and Battlefleet Koronus, and have seen some of the stuff in there, about fighters. When you actually USE them, rather than sit on the bridge ordering their deployment, they kind of add some more complication (IMO) to the weird math that the abstract combat uses. What i mean is more, does anyone hear elect to have any of their players go dogfight, and make it work? I can imagine a ship in orbit, sending their fighters down to strafe cities, and scare the piss out of defenders, but I don't know how often anyone DOES it, rather than just says "before you go down, your ship's fighter squadrons and bombers fly in, softening up the enemy. Now, they should be a bit more willing to talk, knowing that you are powerful." What are some scenarios from people's games where fighters, preferably manned by one or more of their actual players, did something that shifted the tide?

As I read this that popped in while I was typing, I am a bit saddened, since it would, IMHO, take a bit away from the singular accomplishment of a player, except maybe on the ground.

crisaron said:

Yeah, i can understand that stance, and overall, appreciate it. My reads in DH, for instance, can often show where a few classes might outshine their buddies, and if RT can get around that, all power to it.

Well i would suggest you try and get hold of a copy of Double Eagle - it is a Black Library novel focussing on the various fighter aces of a unique Imperial Guard regiment from a world of such pollution that flying is the normal mode of transport. As such they are all pilots and air-crew but are not under the auspice of the imperial navy.

It contains some great dogfighting and narrative set-pieces that could be included in your game, though i feel that void-dogfighting is less of a challenge than aerospace fighting, due to extreme ranges and high powered weapons. Planetary invasions are much cooler to fly high over than a big black backdrop anyway!

I have done several dogfights with my team. Usually when they try to fly away from some angry enemies they just made very very mad. I prefer to keep things a bit abstract describing what happens and then letting the players make some rolls like piloting and firing those big guns or when needed damage control. Using complicated Dogfight rules only slow things down a lot.