My friends and I have recently picked up Dark Heresy as a fun little thing to do when we hang out. Our GM cooked up a fun little "trial" mission for our characters and are moving them on to bigger and better things.

Now, we all seem to have some "ultimate" aim for what we want our characters to ultimately be. Our Guardsman is looking to basically be a socially disabled, but masterful brooding sniper. Our Assassin is a vengeful lunatic with pointy knives, and an autogun.

Me? I'm the party Psyker, and want to be a Sith Lord.

From the look of a lot of boards I've looked at, the angle I'm aiming at seems to be a little bit of a rarer one among Psykers. In essence, I'm looking at a relatively close-combat oriented Psyker, with the "trademark" Force abilities (or their equivalents). Things like telekinesis (duh), Push, Force Bolt, and a few easy stand-ins (Bio Lightning=Sith Lightning in my mind).

Then comes the bit where my face falls, as I glanced through the career branches.

Between the Scholar and Savant paths, it's looking like if I want a Psyker that's tooled for close quarter combat, the Savant is obviously the superior branch. However, at a brief scan, the amount of actual Psychic abilities you get down that path are incredibly minimal.

Obviously this is to balance the Savant-- I get that. You don't want a Psyker who is a powerful combatant without his powers, and then throwing powers on top of that. But it seems it went a little too far imho, as it doesn't look like a Savant-branch Psyker can master a single discipline. In fact, it's looking like it may be a task just to get half the requirements for a discipline's psychic powers.

While I obviously get that to be a more "physical" Psyker, I obviously will have to sacrifice the broad repertoire of Scholar abilities, it seems pretty crippling to the whole purpose of the Psyker, that I might end up with only 5 or 6 "major" Psychic powers.

TL:DR-- Is it even possible to completely master a Psychic Discipline as a Savant-branch Psyker (perhaps with one or two powers in another discipline)? And if so, how can it be done?

As a side note, my Psyker started off with 35 WP, for what that's worth, so unless there are alternative ways to boost his WP, it's looking like he won't be able to break 55 WP?

Pick up "The Inquisitors Hanbook", and take a look at the Templar Calix of the Scholastia Psykana.

They're warrior-mystics who fight with force swords. Basically the Jedi of the 40K Setting.

The book is good for others as well, and is well worth getting

http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Templar_Calix#.UpMN1dJwp8E

Thanks for that! I'll look into it, though I don't know if my GM would be comfortable with using alternate materials. He saw some of the stuff in Ascension and I think it's put him off using anything besides the Core rulebook.

I actually did a tally of all the possible powers I could get as a Savant, assuming I went for at least 50 WP prior to Psy Rating 4. It's ironically, and aggravatingly enough, JUST enough that I can get the bare minimum of the powers I need to pull off the "Sith" look, but nothing beyond that, and it means I miss out on a few of the cooler powers of the Biomancy and Telekinesis disciplines (like Catch Projectiles and Regenerate-- the latter of which might be handy, given my character lost an ear fairly recently). And definitely can't master any disciplines

With that said, my GM's pretty understanding and "relaxed" and although he's iffy about using books outside the Core rulebook, he has houseruled that after completing one branch of levelling, he may permit us to purchase Advances from the "parallel" class of the one we just advanced from, at double the normal XP price, if we want our characters to branch out a little.

Either way, thank you. I'll definitely look into the Inquisitors Handbook and see if I can't convince my GM to let me use it (seeing as he plays our Guardsman to fill out the Party, perhaps I can bribe him with some cool Guardsman stuff in it, if it's there).

Thanks for that! I'll look into it, though I don't know if my GM would be comfortable with using alternate materials. He saw some of the stuff in Ascension and I think it's put him off using anything besides the Core rulebook.

Tell him the Inquisitor's Handbook is basically the stuff that should have been in the rules book, but got cut due to page count or wasn't included because it wasn't ready by deadline.

Oh, and because that way they could sell more books.

Aye, the Inquisitor's Handbook and the Core Rulebook almost go hand in hand, and I always recommend both as the "minimum" for anyone interested in Dark Heresy.

If it helps convincing your GM, it may also be worth noting that the IH was written by the same people as the Core Rulebook, whereas later supplements (including Ascension) are from a different studio.

Ascension is a total clusterf. IH is pretty in terms of power creep (Sororitas are OP though), but there's some noticeable power creep in each later book. Radical's Handbook is mostly safe and most of the crazier options explicitly require GM approval. After that the books give players progressively better options and gear.

In my game I actually don't really care what people choose, but my players have a severe allergy to PDFs so only use the physical books we have (core + IH + RH), and even then sometimes core-only.

Forget about Discipline Mastery, at least if you're only going with the Core book. Several other books add new psyker powers, and at that point it might become viable, but to take all the powers in one discipline will just limit you too much.

And cost a butload of XP you're better off spending on something else.

What they said- Inquisitor's Handbook is basically the 'overflow' from the Core Rulebook . It's not absolutely essential to play the game, but if you plan on getting any supplemental material, you should definitely start there.

I sent my GM the entry on Templar Calix, and it seems he's ok with it. He is planning on confiscating the complementary Force Weapon ASAP, as he feels it's far too powerful a weapon to attain so early on, but he seems comfortable letting me take the rank.

Just as a confirmation of what I've read: I can become a Templar Calix at ANY point after branching into the Savant branch of the Psyker career (even if I'm say.... levelling to Rank 6)? And after completing that rank, I return back to the original Psyker career path?

Thanks for the advice it's really been helpful!

While the weapon IS pretty powerful, you'll not get it THAT early. By the time you take the alternate rank, your teammates should have access to some pretty decent weaponry themselves.

And remember, to unlock the full, obscene, killing power of the force sword you must channel your will into it. Something that has a 1 in 10 chance of unleashing Psychic Phenomena. In practice, you will NOT do this unless you absolutely have to, unless you like turning into Deamonhosts.

So if I were your GM I wouldn't be so eager to take away your signature weapon. It's like taking away a Jedi's lightsaber or Dirty Harry's Smith & Wesson.

At present I just hit the Aspirant rank of Psyker, but thus far my GM is a little wary about giving us anything better than standard Flak armor, and basic lasguns, autoguns, and, as far as melee weapons are concerned, Swords, axes and hammers.

He was considering giving the last boss we fought dual chainswords and a bolt pistol but decided he didn't want to give us that kind of equipment yet.

I doubt it's the special ability of the Force Weapon that he's concerned about, it's the fact that it massively outclasses all other weapons he's willing to give us around this point. Keep in mind, this is his first time as a GM for a Dark Heresy game, and he's trying to avoid giving us the really good equipment until we hit later ranks. So the idea that I could have something as powerful as a Force Weapon, even barring its special ability, as early as Rank 4 or 5 worries him a lot. So I was actually the one that suggested that, if I got it too early for his liking, he could have the Inquisition confiscate it, stating that my character wasn't ready for a tool that powerful or valuable, and have it returned to my character at a later time, when he was deemed "worthy."

I personally don't mind, as the weapon would just be a bonus. It's the character I'm aiming for not the weapon. Yes, I plan to wield a Force Weapon or something similar in the future, but I like to think my character is more than just his equipment. Especially as a Psyker.

You should tell him not to worry and give your enemies whatever gear he fancies will make the fights the most entertaining.

Your GM doesn't need to use weird & awkward meta'y excuses for denying you guys NPC gear. You have to go through the NPCs to take it from them, and that process can destroy the gear just as surely and permanently as it can destroy the NPCs.

The Power Sword, for example, could be hit just wrong, explode, and in the process take its owner's head off: you win the fight, but not the gear.

You should also tell your GM that it is generally a bad idea to give PCs stuff, only to take it away. In the long run it's pretty much unavoidable that the players will start feeling frustrated/cheated. Even if they understand and approve of why the GM is doing it. It's far better to never actually give the PCs anything, so the players never feel they're losing hard-earned stuff. I'd explain it's a psychology thingy, but I don't know the first thing about psychology.

If you go for Sith Lord psyker, be sure to take some of these powers:

- Catch Projectiles

- Fearfull Aura (Frightul Presence, I dont remember)

- Psychic Crush

- Compel - Jedi mind trick

- Constrict - be sure to use errated version or else its OP

- Fling - throw stuff at enemies

And some truly OP powers that each psyker should know about.

- firestorm, regenerate, seal wounds, psychic blade, psychic shriek

If you go for Sith Lord psyker, be sure to take some of these powers:

- Catch Projectiles

- Fearfull Aura (Frightul Presence, I dont remember)

- Psychic Crush

- Compel - Jedi mind trick

- Constrict - be sure to use errated version or else its OP

- Fling - throw stuff at enemies

And some truly OP powers that each psyker should know about.

- firestorm, regenerate, seal wounds, psychic blade, psychic shriek

The MAJOR powers I was aiming for were:

Telekinesis

Precision Telekinesis

Push

Fling

Force Bolt

Force Barrage

Bio Lightning

Constrict.

Stuff like Catch Projectiles, Telekinetic Shield and Psychic Crush are all awesome, and I'd love to learn them, but only if I have any spare Powers lying around after I get those guys above. Which, with the Templar Calix, I should have room for a few others. Not very Sith-y but I was considering picking up Regenerate too, if only because as of that same boss battle that my GM saw fit to avoid the chainsword/bolt pistol, my character is presently out an ear (the GM gave him additional XP over it though, so it kind of balanced out. Dunno if an ear's worth 25 XP, but better 25 than 0!)

You should also tell your GM that it is generally a bad idea to give PCs stuff, only to take it away. In the long run it's pretty much unavoidable that the players will start feeling frustrated/cheated.

To be fair, I was the one who suggested he confiscate the Force Weapon, as I could tell he was clearly upset with the idea (again, mainly due to the fact my character would far outstrip the rest of the party. He was aggravating over the fact that a party packing mainly lasguns and autopistols as their best weapons would have no chance against the enemies he would have to use to fight someone with a Force Weapon). I figured I would still have the "fun" of making it, and possibly give my character some development, if he felt it was unjust that his hard labor was taken away from him. Alternatively, I get the chance to become a Templar Calix at Rank 6 or 7 and he decides it's at a point he can keep the weapon. Which also works out.

Though as a second note, I'm quite glad he decided against the Bolt pistol and Chainsword route! Even with using regular swords and a Stub Revolver, while we didn't lose anyone it was very close-- our Guardsman and Assassin walked out of that fight with Heavy wounds, the Guardsman sitting at only 3 wounds left and the Assassin at 1. I was sitting with a critically wounded head, and a missing ear. I imagine if he'd been using the bolt pistol and chainsword it might have been a TPK.

....Which while perfectly fitting for Dark Heresy isn't what you want when giving the characters a "trial" mission.

Well, I think looking at what sort of Talents are available is a good indication of what kind of gear should be available.

If you have the possibility of training "Pistol Weapon Training - Bolt" at your current rank, then it's about time you saw some bolt weapons in your campaign, on both sides of the firefights,

Rank 5 is not "early" in my not so humble opinion. A rank 5 acolyte is pretty powerful, and should have powerful toys

One of the "problems" of Dark Heresy is probably that it caters to both those players looking for a low power game as well as offering enough toys for a high power one. The transition suggested by the books can be tricky, and I can understand inexperienced GMs in particular preferring to rather go "too low" rather than "too high".

I'm under the impression that Rank 5+ is when powered armour shows up, but I've seen a lot of threads from people enjoying DH in particular because it was a "scrub game", and it's no wonder if those would prefer to drag this theme out.

As long as everyone in the group is having fun, no harm done, I guess.

One of the "problems" of Dark Heresy is probably that it caters to both those players looking for a low power game as well as offering enough toys for a high power one. The transition suggested by the books can be tricky, and I can understand inexperienced GMs in particular preferring to rather go "too low" rather than "too high".

I'm under the impression that Rank 5+ is when powered armour shows up, but I've seen a lot of threads from people enjoying DH in particular because it was a "scrub game", and it's no wonder if those would prefer to drag this theme out.

As long as everyone in the group is having fun, no harm done, I guess.

Agreed completely. And yes, DH feels better for me as a low power, high intellect game. Thinking your way through problems is doing it right, and shooting your way through should be a last resort, or when you're specifically told "kill X cult leader."

I tend to give my players access to all the basics (lascarbine, stubs, autoguns, etc...), but make higher end stuff a rarity. The players are rank 3, and in their upcoming fight - provided they can't think of a way to accomplish the mission without fighting - they will have access to a poor quality chainsword.

Oh, and Power Armor: Overrated.