You know, I think for RPing purposes, he did not go with a Hell Gun. He just used the storm trooper as a template to build off of. He had a character he loved playing, a throne agent, back in the day in a Dark Heresy game. he basically transferred that character over using DH Ascension rules and the Storm Trooper build as it suits the game better. I really like the idea of him having a lot of different gear options though. And he could benefit from special rewards that the Kill Team can't or has no need of (subskin armor, weapon upgrades, a retinue, etc).

Here is his re-worked gear. Let me know what you think and if anything needs tweaking.

Weapons:

1. Sexy Sadie Las Carbine (1d10+7, pen 3; 80m; 1/3/-; mag 18; Full; Reliable, Tearing). - I thought of maybe giving it a Full Auto option.
2. Lady Vengeance Hand Cannon (1d10+6, pen 2; 35m; 1/2/-; Mag 6; Full; Accurate, Two Handed).
3. Combat Knife (1d5+8; pen 1)
4. Sword (standard; 1d10+6, pen 1; Balanced).
5. Las pistol, no frills standard issue for RP purposes. Ew.
6. Frag Grenade (2d10, pen 0; 12m; Blast (4))
7. Krak Grenade (2d10+4, pen 6; 12m; Blast)

Armor (Head 0, Body 9, Legs 9, Arms 3):

1. Karskin Carapace (6 All; for RP purposes, he chooses to wear none on his head or arms).
2. Armored Bodyglove (3 All; for RP purposes, he chooses to wear none on his head).

Miscellaneous Gear:

1. Med Kit (+10 medicae, +1d5 wounds healed on successful checks; x3 uses).
2. Microbead
3. Hydration Bladder
4. Web Gear and pouches/holsters/etc.

Stats:

• WS 42
• BS 44
• Str 43
• T 51
• Ag 56
• Int 32
• Per 41
• Wp 44
• Fel 32

He just used the storm trooper as a template to build off of. He had a character he loved playing, a throne agent, back in the day in a Dark Heresy game. he basically transferred that character over using DH Ascension rules and the Storm Trooper build as it suits the game better.

Ah! At first I was worried, but this makes more sense to me. So he is not playing the Storm Trooper as a dedicated warrior, but rather as a "field agent" who uses class mechanics (and your houseruled weapon profiles) to not fall behind too much in combat, whilst simultaneously using system mechanics (from DH/Asc) to play out the role he actually has in mind? Quite clever. That could work out - in a way, this relationship between Space Marines and Storm Trooper in your DW game is basically replicating the combination of Guardsman and Scum in DH, in terms of their roles?

Given the game's stronger focus on combat over investigation or interaction (compared to DH) I'm still somewhat sceptical regarding such specialisations, but do let us know how it works out for your players!

The only feedback I'd have about the gear you mentioned would be to either lower the las carbine damage or (preferably) raise the hand cannon damage. Maybe it's meant to only be used in emergencies, but I feel it would raise the coolness factor of this pair of named(!) weapons if both are good on different fields of specialisation - with the carbine having a higher range, ammo capacity and rate of fire, but the hand cannon surpassing it in raw damage. Something he can whip out when something real nasty closes in on him, y'know?

Right now, the hand cannon is just flat out worse and a clearly inferior choice in almost any situation.

That is a really good point. I thought the accurate trait might help it.

OH! I know why I didn't do that earlier; he is going to utilize specialty ammo! Some of it gives the weapons insane properties.

I suppose, however, that general hand cannon damage raise is in order. Like you said, there is no reason to pull it other than RP purposes at this point. 1d10+9 might be a good raise.

And yeah, I am eager to see how his character plays out as well. He has such a rich back-story and history that he could really fit in well with the Kill Team. That is if the Templar doesn't kill him first for insubordination.

Oh, I actually forgot about special ammo - what sort of rules do you have in mind there? Something close to the DW bolter stuff, DH original special rounds, or even something like the various special rounds from various supplements?

A turbo penetrator would be killer.

Right now I am going to let him use whatever special rounds he can get his hands on as long as he meets the "renown" requirement.

What do you think about the a full auto option for his Las Carbine? I am thinking, 1/3/6

If it were up to me, I'd give the Marines full auto, too. Boltguns lacking this option just doesn't sound right to me.

But didn't a lot of people say that this would cause too much damage and break the game, back then? With the carbine's homebrewed profile being fairly close to bolters, the same issue might arise here.

Also, speaking purely from a style-based perspective, it sounds a bit weird for a lasgun to have such a high rate of fire - at this point I'd say make it a hellgun and adjust ammo capacity (either up or down, depending on backpack or charge pack), because judging from damage and RoF ... well, you know, if it walks like a duck, swims like a duck, quacks like a duck ...

Not sure if this would fit to the character's image/appearance your player has in mind, though. Either way, it's just something that came to mind!

That"s a good point. I will let it slide as is right now without the full auto option - play it by ear and see what happens.

Instead of giving them a full auto option, my homebrew rules have upped the RoF for standard Bolters to 1/4/-

I figure anyone in their right mind could squeeze a trigger four times in five seconds. It stands to wager an Astartes could do the same.

If it were up to me, I'd give the Marines full auto, too. Boltguns lacking this option just doesn't sound right to me.

I thought so too, but one of my players explained it rather well to my liking. Standard bolters are battle rifles, not machine guns or even assault rifles. Heavy bolters are more like MMGs.

I thought so too, but one of my players explained it rather well to my liking. Standard bolters are battle rifles, not machine guns or even assault rifles. Heavy bolters are more like MMGs.

Yup, matter of interpretation and preferred sources again. I'm going (as always) by GW's own material, in this case the fluff accompanying this cross-section from the 3rd edition TT rulebook.

Various studio and licensed sources have, since about forever, portrayed boltguns either as "battle rifles", as you mentioned (example: Chaos Gate) or as fully automatic "assault rifles" (example: Dawn of War). It depends on how much you like those images of fire blossoms and countless shells spewing forth from a bolter a la Codex artwork.

Instead of giving them a full auto option, my homebrew rules have upped the RoF for standard Bolters to 1/4/-

I figure anyone in their right mind could squeeze a trigger four times in five seconds. It stands to wager an Astartes could do the same.

I think RoF is reasoned by a variety of mechanical traits, such as physical resistance of the trigger, the gun's cycling rate (especially for energy weapons that may need to "recharge a capacitor"), and the kinetic energy of potential recoil (leading the firer to pause a moment until they bring the barrel towards their target again). Otherwise every gun would have the same RoF.

Personally, I'm leaning towards 1/2/4, and maybe some patterns with a 1/2/3, but that's really just because I'm biased towards full auto based on style/atmosphere. If the bonus from auto fire is too much, I'm sure the mechanic itself could be houseruled into something sane without sacrificing the firing mode - something I've considered for a while was to make the BS bonus depend on the amount of bullets actually fired and/or on the weapon itself, rather than assigning a flat modifier that makes no difference between an autopistol and a heavy bolter...

But that's really getting quite OT right now, I'm sorry.