Something I always missed in the WH40k roleplaying games, was a rule for sneak attacks.

The closest rule for this was the accurate-damage bonus up to 2d10 (1d10 per 2 DoS), which now also disappeared.

As SNiper Weapons have been upgraded to portray their function without a bonus of this high number, I still feel a certain lack for the assassins in the groups.

For melee sneak attacks currently the target would just be "surprised", which effectively gives it a lower initiative (if lucky) and maybe no possibility to evade.

No benefit for damage. No benefit to hit (even if attacking into the back).

There are 2 instances that I would cover with additional rules:

1.) Sniper ranged attacks:

> should be tied to the accurate trait and to the Called Shot Actions and give a damage bonus of some sorts, preferably connected to DoS

2.) Stealth-move into an enemies back & try to make a sneak attack / slit his throat / push a dagger in his heart from behind / whatever

> give a bonus for attacking in the back of +20

> give a bonus on damage for called shots

--> both instances could be solved by:

> giving a general bonus on called shots if done in melee on a surprised target or with a ranged accurate weapon

> give a bonus on the attack if the target is surprised and attacked in the back

What is your oppinion here ?

Any other wannabe-assassins ? ;D

My cell's Assassin was very disappointed by the lack of sneak attack rules in DH1, so I (the DM) worked out the following house rules:

• For minor NPCs (such as the guards patrolling a warehouse or sentries outside a cult fortress), an opposed stealth vs. perception check followed by a WS/BS check (with the normal +30 bonus for surprise) is sufficient to eliminate the enemy. We can assume that the character sneaks up behind the enemy and knifes them silently in the neck -- rolling out the damage for such minor foes just takes up extra time.
• For major, named NPCs (such as a cult leader marked for death by the Inquisition), a successful check is not enough to kill the target outright. Instead, the sneak attack gains the same benefit as the Accurate rule on a basic weapon (+1d10 damage per 2 degrees of success, to a maximum of +2d10).

Such assassinations can only be performed with melee weapons or pistols in melee range (you sneak up behind the enemy and put a bullet in the back of their head). Attacks with any other ranged weapons will still get +30 to hit from surprise, and in the case of an Accurate basic weapon that is quite sufficient to kill most enemies in one hit. We like this rule a lot, since it reinforces the idea that some weapons are naturally better suited for assassinations (knives, silenced pistols, sniper rifles). Sure, you can use a mono-greatsword to backstab someone, but with the extra damage dice granted by a good attack roll it's still perfectly possible to kill an important target with a single knife blow.

I don't know how such a system could be adapted to DH 2.0 since the Accurate quality was changed quite significantly, but IMO it's a good starting point.

I think it is a pity that there is no rule at all at the moment.

I feel like there should be a rule that covers both ranged and melee.

I've given even more to the narrative. The sniper rifles in DH1 didn't do enough damage for me, so if a player got degrees of success while using the scope in standard conditions on grunt type enemies, I gave them the headshot. For more special enemies, I'd add in more difficulty and prevent an instant kill, but my thoughts for mooks anyway is that they are there to get wiped out and that's what the sniper should do.

Another way to add this is if someone attacks an unaware victim, whatever hits are scored become Crits. That insta kills the minion class characters, and gives a significant boon for later rounds against that target and works within this rule framework since a sneak attack is about going after vulnerable portions of the body to cause intense damage.