A New Sub-Sector, and Beyond (Warhammer 40k RPGs)

[ArcturusV]

-- The short version:

I want to create a region of the Galaxy with as much (Or more) depth as the Calixis Sector + Koronus Expanse + Jericho Reach + Spinward Front + Screaming Vortex that comes in the standard 40k RPGs. I want as much help and input in this as possible. And I want it to provide a wholly different experience than the stock 40k Setting Region(s).



-- The longer version:

I have... issues... with the stock setting of the 40k RPGs. They're not BAD settings as a whole. But there are various things that I don't like about it. With the Calaxis Sector some of it is the Imbalance of various homeworlds/Origins (Gunmetal City is almost hands down, no contest, the best Origin out of the Dark Heresy rules), some of it is merely the status of planets, or the lack of interesting cultures and unique ideas as a whole (while most worlds do have their own cultural minor variations, they never really stray out of the "Safe" realm of what most would consider stock Imperial Culture).

With the Koronus Expanse it's the fact that they build this place up as being the Last Frontier, boldly going where no one has gone before, everything is taken by the strength of your Dynasty and the Cunning and Power that your Rogue Trader can bring to bear... except it's actually pretty tightly controlled with demarked territories, mapped out systems, and major power blocks that are basically written as "Yeah... don't screw with them...". The idea behind the Expanse and what it actually is are very much at odds.

With the Jericho Reach it's merely just an unrealized idea. There's so much potential in this Gate Relay that goes across the galaxy instantly. It could have created such awesome storylines and ideas that creates a unique point and resource in the Galaxy... instead they focus on Tyranids Om Nom Nomming everything and shooting things in the face in generic locations like "Random Fire World" or "Random Jungle World", etc.

The Screaming Vortex has a lot of nifty ideas and cool concepts, unique technologies, etc. However my key complaint is most every location in the Screaming Vortex is described as Entirely (Insert God Here) vision. Worlds entirely dedicated to Khorne. Worlds dedicated to Slaanesh, worlds dedicated to Grandpa Nurgle, etc.

The Spinward Front is... a fun place. Though again kind of suffers from the Calixis Sector issue of never really taking any chances beyond the quasi-Alliance between the Dark Eldar and the Severan Dominate. The Severans are thinly veiled Imperials. Outside of "Successionists" and the aforementioned treaties, they don't really have any unique traits. Heck, they even have Commissars still in the form of Ducal Legates. The Orks are Orky and that's always fun. But there isn't much else in there. Again, low risk. There's potential for good ideas just unrealized.

So as you can see I'm not fully sold on any of the settings... they're not BAD... just not as good as they could be.



One of the things I always loved about 40k is that it is very much a "Your Dudes" setting as it is called. Outside of some very basic ideas there's a ton of flex in the setting. As a recent Only War Recruitment showed where I created a Regiment that though the Emperor was a 40 story tall water buffalo and used Rocks to hit people... and still made sense in the setting and was pretty much "Bull****!" proof. I like to embrace the weirdness potential of the setting. That you can have Regiments of Guardsmen standing side by side, one in Flak Armor with Lasguns, Frag and Krak Grenades, holding the line, and their compatriots being nearly naked in body paint screaming out "EMPRAH!" as they run into battle with 5 foot long chainsaws shooting fire from bracers on their arms. And in setting no one would think that mix is weird.

While yes, there needs to be some stock baseline "Imperial Culture" worlds and groups (Or Chaos Undivided, Slaaneshi, Khornish, etc) in order to establish a baseline... you don't have to be locked into it.

I want a setting where it's not just bland "Imperial Hive World #2" or "Slaaneshi Forge World" as locations. But the wide variation that an entire Galaxy worth of variation on countless billions of worlds which have been inhabited and even isolated for tens of millennia at a time.



-- The Particulars:

NPC Mechanics: This is a project to create a setting where Mechanics matter. As much as possible I want to try to follow actual mechanics and rules for the various systems. While some leeway and homebrew is fine (For example, creating an Imperial Guard Commanding Officer who gives Common Lore (Tech) and Common Lore (Adeptus Mechanicus) for 1 Regimental Build Point is homebrew... but it's also fitting with the suggestions of the rulebook and balanced well while being unique), the goal is that if I need to pick something up that's created I can just pick it up as created. I need a Typical "War Knights" Tactical Space Marine? I know exactly what skills, talents, mutations, culture, unique gear, etc, that a "War Knight" typically has. I want to field a Horde in a BC game of Blue Wyverns Imperial Guard I know what weapons they use, their stat lines, skills and talents.

NPC Fluff: Beyond just mechanics, I want stories and ideas out of things. If you create a legendary Heretic of Chaos I want the stories behind his ascension to power gaining Infamy and Corruption. If a Regiment of "Sneaky Sniper" Droptroopers is created why are they drop troopers with sniper rifles and what culture and homeworld did they come from? Things like that. More fiddly bits, more story, the better.

NPC Hooks: One of the things that did kind of bother me about some of the setting is that.... 40k is very much a setting which has heavy feelings of Siege Mentality and that everything is 10 minutes to Midnight at any given moment. Things can go terribly wrong very fast, bad things happen, and they don't just wait for an outsider to tip things on end. When an NPC is made up there should be a story packaged around them. Is that Apostate you just made looking to create the greatest monument to the Plaguefather ever and constantly looking for some way to duplicate the Plague Gardens of Nurgle in the Materium? Is your Imperial Guard Regiment a Penal Legion looking for Redemption and the Rite of Settlement? Is your Inquisitor bearing constantly painful psychic scars from an Eldar Witch and on an tireless crusade to wipe them all out?

Location Mechanics: There are less rules for locations in 40k RPGs than any other place. Outside of Stars of Inequity there just isn't a lot of hardwired "This is how you make locations" rules in the 40k RPGs anywhere. So in general if you make up a location the idea is either to fit it into general rules that already exist (e.g.: I make the world of Saint Ivans, it follows the rules for Shrine Worlds in Dark Heresy and Only War for origin purposes and... just presume it's a normal enough place in general) or try to come up with simplistic rules and hooks when you can ("This is a Low Gravity World", "This is a High Gravity World", "The entire world is covered in at least a few hundred feet of water and everyone gets around by swinging along ropes between trees that break the surface of the water"). Be unique when you can, just make sure it fits in context with everything else.

Location Fluff: This is where I really want you to go hog wild. Come up with what you will, create detailed, millennia long history if you wish. Cover unique locations, come up with unique cultures, variations of the Imperial Creed or the Imperial Fealty System. Make something that makes sense in context of 40k... which is almost anything short of total weirdness like making a Dark Eldar Psyker dedicated to Slaanesh. You don't have to go wild, but I'm not going to hold it against you unless it is one of the few things, like the Dark Eldar Psyker of Slaaneshi that just flat out would never work.

Location Hooks: This is a big one. This is something where I feel a lot of the 40k Settings so far have fallen down on. I want the sense that locations we come up with, and as we build this Sub-sector (And beyond), that things are actually happening. That yes, I know the Imperium and the Galaxy in general is not a place of Advancement, new Inventions don't happen regularly, innovations and so on. But things do still happen. I want a player to look at the setting and feel like its alive. That instead of just being static, monolithic organizations that are always there that things are moving, changing, and plots are going on whether they look or not. This does mean as you come up with locations that you should think of conflicts in the location, different groups, concerns, and all the gristle that makes human life so much more interesting than SSDD.




Now, the work of just one man will never be able to give the full depth and randomness of the Galaxy in 40k and its infinite possibilities. So this is an Open Project, if you want to submit something for it, go for it. I encourage it. I'll be working on things too.

[ArcturusV]

Table of Contents


-= Of the Alien =-

Xenos Communi-Animo Legionatus

[LCP]

Sounds like a fun idea, but seems a little unstructured. You seem to be building from the bottom up, which I think will probably give you a sort of jumble-sale setting. One thing the FFG settings do quite well is convey an overarching theme suitable for the games they're designed for.

I'd suggest building some structure to hang things on before inviting people to start fleshing things out. The WFRP sourcebook Renegade Crowns does this quite well, building a setting through a hierarchy of steps. There was a thread on this board that built a setting using it and I'm actually running a game set there right now - link in sig.

Questions I'd say should maybe be answered first of all:

• Which game systems do you want to design this setting for? If it were me, I'd limit myself to no more than two. The various 40KRPG games are quite different genres, if you try to do them all at once you'll do none of them well.
• What are the overarching themes you want to bring across? Again, I think fewer is better.
• What, in broad strokes, is the shape of the sector? No details about system names or such, just things like, where are worlds densest, where are worlds sparsest, where are there more civilised worlds, where are there more worlds with big "KEEP OUT THE CENTIPEDES WILL EAT YOUR FACE" signs hanging in orbit, etc. etc. Maybe make an empty map and divide it into subsectors, with one-paragraph descriptions of each subsector for people to get ideas from.
• What are the major warp routes linking the subsectors together? Again, this will be a good hook for people to develop their ideas from - serious mercantile players will probably sit on/near warp routes, while isolated frontier worlds will probably sit far away.

With those procedural suggestions out of the way, here is a sample idea that I would suggest:

Spoiler

Show

• Which Systems: Dark Heresy and Only War.
• Overarching Themes: The Imperium as being too lumbering and unwieldy for its own good; the enemy within. Chaos as the prime enemy.
• Shape of the Sector: No pictures for now (as this is just a quick pitch), but seeing as the FFG sectors have a lot of ancient civilisations and forgotten lore and so forth, how about a sector that's taken shape fairly recently? So:
  
  • Core of civilised worlds around sector capital, with the factory worlds and agri-worlds that supplied the recent crusade forming the backbone of the sector economy. Prime DH territory with local dignitaries vying to assert authority now that the Imperial war effort has moved on - and heretics and traitors lurking among them, seeking to quietly carve out a significant foothold in the power structure of the sector.
  • Perimeter zone of fortress worlds established by the crusade, now largely redundant and understaffed. Good base of operations for OW and interesting holiday destination for DH.
  • "Pacified" outer subsectors of wilder, frontier worlds, conquered 1-200 years ago in the final stages of the crusade. The Imperium considered the matter settled and withdrew most of its manpower to fight in other wars; the rearguard left behind are now having to deal with a creeping resurgence of old threats. Active warzones for OW, wild frontiers for more Indiana Jones-esque DH adventures.

[ArcturusV]

Is a bit unstructured as I was having problems with life shortly after I posted it and never really continued on.

On Lines:

Anyway, yeah, I actually do want all five. I think one of the weaknesses they had was in trying to create individual regions of space for each and every line... then try to back peddle and shoehorn all the others in. This leads to weird things like having Black Crusade characters raiding the Calixis Sector from the Screaming Vortex, and because the Calixis Sector is designed solely around Dark Heresy with no consideration for lines that... frankly didn't exist at the time... it does a disservice to the Calixis Sector in general and makes the Black Crusade characters look insanely better by it.

It kind of breaks the standard rule of Crossovers, in that a Crossover should never make one side look a lot better by making the other side look worse. It should showcase both sides and make a whole that is much greater than the sum of its parts.

There's little reason that it can't work together. I'm actually quite serious with that. I've DM'd living campaigns involving all 5 lines running side by side before both online and in real life. The primary issues tended not to be setting issues so much as... players being ***** to be frank. The Deathwatch Players in particular having a huge kill boner and chump killing the Dark Heresy Acolytes several times before the DH players fought back.

I mean I know the lines do different stories... kinda (As other than Black Crusade they do still resort to similar themes of doing what must be done to save the whole at the cost of the few). It doesn't mean it can't be done well though. Similarly how you can have something like the Justice League in comics where you have guys like Wildcat who's ability is "He fights really, really good... as a normal human" and Green Lantern which can make energy constructs out of about anything he can imagine as long as he has the Will to do so... and unless the writers in question involved in an individual story just suck terribly they can still make it work telling very different stories that still feel like a part of a cohesive, living setting.

And you can have a single setting where the Guardsmen of Only War are fighting Orks, while the Deathwatch SPESS MEHREENS are dealing with the Eldar manipulating the Guard and the Orks into War, while the Acolytes hunt down the humans corrupted by the taint of Xenos, and the Rogue Trader brings the fight on relatively equal terms to the Xenos while looking to make a profit running guns and butter down to the troopers at the frontline and purgitating in the Name of Emperor and Profit Factor, while the Heretics of Black Crusade are using the distraction to enact a plan that will further weaken the Imperials or gather resources uncovered on that battlefront.

On Themes:

One of them I want to play up is "The Galaxy is a Weird Place". As I mentioned FFG took things REALLY safe in terms of the setting. They didn't take a lot of chances and when they did it often was in a particular direction of "Badass" rather than anything else, like making the Lathe-Worlds as the Super Secret Bestest Forge Worlds EVAAAAA! Take for example the Calixis world of Dusk. Dusk is... a fairly generic attempt to make a Catachan style Deathworld. It's all forest and with thick darkness, most of the Xenos Beast Species there are basically "Super deadly terran critters" in terms of having something like ultra poisonous frogs or Drop Bears of Death, etc. That's kind of its strength is that it IS generic. It is just a simple "It's a deadly world of darkness" place like a lot of 40k Fiction has going for it. Which is fine. You do need baselines and things that are simple enough to grasp that people can wrap their heads around it so when you hit the "Weirder" stuff they know how it relates to the setting and how it should be perceived.

Just they never got to the weirder stuff. Nothing quite on the level of things like the "Miral Land Sharks" (And honestly can you just say that and not get a giddy childish boyhood sense of ultraviolence and over the top joy?) or other bizarre entries that honestly having countless billions of worlds available across the galaxy should entail.

You did hit on one that I wanted to play up. I wanted a New section of Space, at least relatively new in terms of the Imperium. Rather than worlds with millennia of Imperial Rule and Backstory having worlds that were outside the Light of the Emperor until fairly recently, were separated by Warp Storms, forgotten due to Administratum Goof Ups, whatever. It allows more variety and lets each planet, location, and culture feel more unique in a natural way. They haven't had 4,000 years of general contact with the Imperium for the various forces like the Adeptus Arbites, Ecclessiarchy, Administratum, etc, to try to Bland Out the worlds. They have little in common, each can be their own unique setting, they still fall under Imperial Structure, still the same general rules like Tithing and Fealty... but a lot more variation as native cultures are still a dominant factor compared to the monolith of Imperial Culture.

Again, something the FFG settings KIND of touched on. Kinda. They did create places like Gunmetal City and the Misercord that had their own sort of culture and feel to it. But it was rarely done and even then the cultural changes were very minor and slight, generally things like 'Everyone has pistols' or "They think their ship is cursed".

This isn't much of a "Theme" granted. But it does play to the general space opera feel to things. I want it so when players go to a new world they can't go "Oh, this is the generic Slaaneshi Tentacle Party World", and instantly define the entire culture and setting so simply. The sense of discovery and not being able to go "oh, it's a Deathworld, so another Jungle Planet with Megafauna versions of Terrans Animals who are poisonous". Just want to key into that Wonder and make it so players, as they explore the setting, feel like the Galaxy is a much larger, stranger, and more confusing place than they reckoned and can't be explained so simply.

As a mechanical side note, this actually rewards players for getting skills like Common Lore (Region of Space), as so often people do ignore it in games because they don't really need it to understand the places they are going to. Rewarding players for their skill purchases, always a good thing.

Beyond that I don't really want a "Theme" or a storyline to the setting. I personally feel that storyline/theme based settings are naturally inferior settings. Take for example, Dragonlance in DnD and the Krynn Setting. The Entire setting revolves around the struggle between Good and Evil Dragon Gods and their mortal proxies. That's what drives... well... the entire setting really (Until 5th Age, but no one likes 5th Age for different reasons). Eventually if you RP in that setting long enough you come to a realization that you can't actually resolve problems. If you resolve the the chief problem of the setting, the setting breaks and has very little interesting going on in it. Heck it's why I think they added the rule so that if you hit level 17 and are approaching that epic "I can fix the setting" sort of levels the gods chuck your ass out of Krynn for good. Just so you can't do it.

So by creating an overarching storyline... for example like the Spinward Front in Only War being defined by the Severan Dominate Succession and the issues that arose from it and the WAAAAGH! that triggered it, it does create a setting where conflicts are defined for you without a lot of flex. For some stories like the Imperial Guard this works well, don't get me wrong. Because that's kind of the life of a Guardsmen Regiment, endlessly fighting against enemies that might take Centuries to put down and go far beyond the lifetime of any individual person outside of SPESS MEHREENS and Noblemen.

But it doesn't work so well for games like Dark Heresy or Rogue Trader which are in a different focus where they are supposed to be solving problems and changing things. I mean yes, no Dark Heresy Acolyte/Throne Agent/Inquisitor is going to defeat Heresy/Xenos/Daemons forever of course. But they do still solve things. They get rid of cults, they purge mutant uprisings, they stop doomsday plots going on in their shadow war. Having a defined theme/story for them in something particular like "They're fighting Chaos Agents" kind of undercuts their ability to succeed. Which... yes, 40k, kind of fitting in that Chaos isn't able to be defeated... but in terms of a story you have to have more flex than that and at least give them temporary and meaningful victories. Which can't be accomplished if the entire theme of a setting is hinged on this conflict that can't be resolved.

This is again, my entire bugaboo over how I think narratives, RPGs, and Campaigns work best. I'm more interested in creating a setting where things can and do happen, can change, evolve, and grow, than creating a setting defined by a gimmick or a story that cannot be tampered with.

Things Happen, The Galaxy Sucks, and all that. But it never always sucks in exactly the same way. And you can put down a threat... but that doesn't mean another won't rear its head and might be very, very different from what you just faced before.

Location and Mapping:

Honestly this is something I tend to do backwards myself, it's usually one of my last steps rather than a first step. Mostly because location dropping tends to evolve naturally out of key features that people want to bring up. If there are something like a bunch of ancient high gravity worlds with the remains of stocky short humanoids with insanely high tech on them being created... well... I know that means it has to be the Galactic Core area. Similarly if they want Blue Skinned Space Hippies in the setting, I know it has to be down in Ultramar's neck of the galaxy in order to accommodate that. Or if they want something completely random and weird that tells me I have to come up with a reason for something random and weird like the Maw to Jericho Reach Gate that could explain why in the last RT book there are Tau PCs in the Koronus Expanse. If somehow the Tau could run the blockade of Imperial Fleets and an Adeptus Astartes manned Watch Station sitting at either end of the Gate... but still...

[LCP]

That all sounds rather rambling and unfocused for my liking - I'll withdraw my interest.

[ArcturusV]

Sorry to see you go. And I do sincerely mean it.

To be fair, you had a good basic idea going (Though I don't have the WFRP book you referenced to entirely know the system you were thinking of using for generation), I just wanted to go a different way because... I don't want to reinvent the wheel, more or less. The stock settings ARE very good at highlighting one line at a time (And coincidentally usually plays well with one other line in question. BC's Screaming Vortex does play well with DW, OW's Spinward Front plays well with RT, DH's Calixis Sector plays well enough with RT, DW's Jericho Reach plays well with OW oddly enough) and their concerns and creating a very generic backdrop with very standard options. I don't seriously hate it, it makes it very solid design wise and very new player friendly in a way by establishing norms and sticking to them.

I just had a different idea I wanted to look into to tell different stories, while avoiding the overarching storyline idea for a setting because... that's not really a setting, it's a Campaign.

It is an unfocused idea though. At least at this point. I know that. Won't start to really gel up until some stuff is put down.

Well... going to try to work up some stuff tonight/tomorrow to get a good bit of groundwork started and some examples.

[TheFallenSon]

Interested to help as best I can. I will try and come up with some fun things. I like that this will be a big project, and that the enormity of it as a whole is slightly intimidating. Awesome. Awesome. Awesome.

So a 'newly' conquered section of the galaxy full of awesome.

[lunaticfringe]

Well let's start by answering some basic questions about the Subsector.
1. How many planets are there within it? The Armageddon subsector has 15 habitable planets. Since we want a setting where the Imperium controls most of the worlds; but Chaos has at least some small foothold; I think discovered worlds 10 is good number to start, with few more uncharted planets for Rogue Traders to play with.
2. How do we divide the 10 planets? Hmm off the top of my head: 5 in relatively stable Imperial control; 1 in Imperial control but teetering on rebellion; 2 planets in open warfare with/contested by Xenos; 1 planet in open war with Chaos; 1 planet solidly held by Chaos. This should easily give all the rulesets something to do.
These are some ideas, feel free to comment, critique, criticize. Just figured a starting point needed to get posted.

[Burden King]

I have a suggested that could add some much needed spice to the setting.

Adding a small Xenos faction that isn't large enough to threaten the imperium, but large enough to threaten the sub-sectors stability.

I worked on such a thing with friends, and I could run it by you guys if you want.

Also, in order to contribute to the whole thing itself. There should be some unclaimed habitable worlds. I know they're valuable, but maybe something is keeping them from trying to settle there, like chaos raiders, or Xenos forces flying around.

[lunaticfringe]

Well I'm not the original poster, but go nuts. This is supposed to be open to all. Xenos threat on some planets is good for Deathwatch and Only War. Unclaimed planets are good for Rogue Trader games. My previous post was about laying down a skeleton to throw meat on. Feel free add and remove bones at your leisure.

[Burden King]

Well alrighty. I don't have a name for the faction as a whole, but some of the races have names of some form or another.

Xenos Communi-Animo Legionatus

Xenos generated with the Bestiary Primitive Xenos generator (Resilient, Humanoid, Armored, Intuitive Communicators, Hivemind)

Evolving on the Temperate Garden world of Catairn V, the Xenos Cummuni-Animo Legionatus species were discovered by imperial Settlers to be a highly primitive, steel age level technology society. This low tech level initially convinced the Imperial citizens that the conquest of the planet would be incredibly easy. And initially, it was. Most major settlements of the xenos population were destroyed within a week of the invasion, the imperial citizens bare minimum technology more then a match for the surprised Xenos population. Confidence was high with the Imperials, and they had begun to set up their settlements well before they were close to eliminating the native population. This proved to be the greatest mistake of the sector.

With a place where the Imperials technology would be stockpiled, the Xenos immediately realized their chance at salvation against the invaders. In an invasion that the surviving settlers swear "Was planned by Chaos god Tzeencth himself", the Xenos raided the settlement, took every bit of technology, and killed everyone.

The raid not only weaponized the force, but also provided technology to listen into imperial communications and a small ship able to exit the planets gravity well. However, without any training, the rest of the Imperium civilian fleet in orbit thought that they would simply have to worry about the lost weapons. Imperial guard assistance was called, and the Imperium military came to quickly handle the problem.

At first, with the arrival of the Imperium forces, the xenos forces were driven back, or so it seemed. For although they had the military superiority, their enemy knew the lay of the land better than they did. Unlike humans, their cause was not lost with the dead of presumed leaders. However, as they struck surgically and got rid of a few select officers and comissars, their guerrilla tactics started undermining the efficiency of the enemy, and the legion had a chance to strike back.

They made the fight for Catairn V a very slow grind to a halt for the Imperium, though considering the greater threats, the legion was never really seen as more than a problem limited to that single world, and therefore, nothing that required attention of any astartes chapter or the adeptas sororitas. And so, human reinforces dwindled slowly and offered no new tactics that the enemy hadn't studied and learned.

The legion forces then pulled one last trick and lured the enemy into believing that the forces that they fought now were but a rebelling remainder of their race, and pushed them to do a final attack into one of their cities. The true forces were awaiting their arrival underground and quickly overwhelmed the foe.

With communications dead planet-side, those in orbit began to fear what would come next. A few tried to leave, some to plead immediate aid to those that hadn't seen this enemy as a potential threat at first. But those who remained didn't have much time left either, for after so many years, their enemy had learned from them, and the legion struck them at full force, now with many salvaged vessels and weaponry taken from the imperium.

And so, the Legion claimed their first great victory, and in very few years jumped from a steel age civilization to a powerful spacefaring force, taking over their home system, and soon moving to liberate other lesser xenos forces from the Imperium's grasp, assimilating them into their own ranks, their strength only growing, and their focus forevermore set on destroying the children of Terra.

Vethrash Corpse Walkers

Swift
Crawler (climb skill)
warped (Ravaged body)
-Hulking
-Nightmarish (fear 3)
-Tox blood
Exotic
Tradition-bound

Apex predators on their deathworld, the Corpse Walkers are a horrid race of creatures that use their unnatural mastery of manipulating ones fears while they themselves are naturally horrific in appearance to the even the bravest of the Imperium. First contact was quickly met with a full retreat by the investigating forces, and an immediate request for space marine support was called, due to obvious signs of chaos taint on the planet. Reports of shrines built to various gods, all of them showing features of the chaos gods, were sent to the appropriate How these citizens knew of the criteria one would need to make such an observation was investigated by Ordo-Malleus Agents.

Upon landing, the sent Inquisitorial Imperial guard regiments were immediately met with the full force of the then on named Corpse Walkers. Hulking creatures that towered over the men of the Imperium, the survivors of the massacre reported the creatures having the lower body a large nightmarish centipede and a humanoid upper body, but other then this, the xenos looked different to each guardsmen. Some appeared to have hundreds of eyes, others made of the writhing bodies of the Guardsmen's family and friends, and another guardsmen saw it as his commissar who wanted to kill him. In the end, there was no unifying description for these Xenos, and the imperial guards were devastated.

It was deemed that instead of wasting resources attempting to take the planet, the Local imperium Administratum decided to gas the planet and wipe out all of the Xenos from the safety of Orbit.

It was only thanks to the work of the Legion that the Corpse walkers were saved. By intercepting Imperium messages and more examples of their tactical prowess, they were able to ambush and slow the exterminatus fleet long enough to meet, convince, then save many of the corpse walkers. Most of the race was destroy, but a single tribe survived, and is now making it it's goal and divine duty to repopulate, in the name of their god.

They now serve as citizens of the Legion, providing the powers of the warp to them in exchange for protection and a chance at revenge against the imperium.

There would be other races, but These ar ethe two main ones that matter right now.

The Legion would be the main form of military might for them, while the Walkers acted as the navigators, psychers, elite melee, and act as beacons if they sacrifice themselves to aide the collective hivemind and enhance it so it worked in other systems and worlds far beyond the main body of the legion.

Their weaponry would be scavenged, with some of it being modified to better match their physiology and weapon preferences.

They would be a fleet based threat, and would prove very difficult to pin down, and act like pirates as they need more ships to increase their population and thrive.

[ArcturusV]

Been busy and this dropped off my radar for a few days. Anyway...

Indeed, open to all. And don't necessarily concern yourself with ideas about how many planets, how they relate to one another, etc. I am kind of hoping for a classic Star Trek sort of feel to the area. A region with interesting places to go. How they relate to one another can be loosely connected after the fact or with simple vague descriptions like "Along the Tarian Front" or "Near the Raxi Worlds" or something of the like. Kind of gets backfilled after the fact.

So rather than a Top Down build, where you define a theme, overarching maps, factions, and factors you want, we start on the smallest levels and build up towards eventually figuring out how things go together.



Anyway, love the Xenos Combine. Would like to see it expanded. Their Steel Age (Which, at least as I learned history was the 19th Century) combined with scavenged Imperial Tech and the Sorcery of Chaos could give them a very wild Steampunk Magick sort of feel to their general culture. Which since Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscurae was one of my favorite PC RPGs ever... instantly excites my mind. And kind of suggests the "standard Imperium Weirdness" where you can have a planet with cottage industries and steam engines linking major cities together, just discovering industry... yet they already have Leman Russ Tanks and Chimeras rumbling across the surface of their planet as everything from Public Transporation and Tractors to their intended use as warmachines.

I dunno. Sort of thing I love. Would like to see some standard Stat Blocks for them for reference/use. Expansion is always a good thing. Keep going with it.

[Burden King]

Been busy and this dropped off my radar for a few days. Anyway...

Indeed, open to all. And don't necessarily concern yourself with ideas about how many planets, how they relate to one another, etc. I am kind of hoping for a classic Star Trek sort of feel to the area. A region with interesting places to go. How they relate to one another can be loosely connected after the fact or with simple vague descriptions like "Along the Tarian Front" or "Near the Raxi Worlds" or something of the like. Kind of gets backfilled after the fact.

So rather than a Top Down build, where you define a theme, overarching maps, factions, and factors you want, we start on the smallest levels and build up towards eventually figuring out how things go together.



Anyway, love the Xenos Combine. Would like to see it expanded. Their Steel Age (Which, at least as I learned history was the 19th Century) combined with scavenged Imperial Tech and the Sorcery of Chaos could give them a very wild Steampunk Magick sort of feel to their general culture. Which since Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscurae was one of my favorite PC RPGs ever... instantly excites my mind. And kind of suggests the "standard Imperium Weirdness" where you can have a planet with cottage industries and steam engines linking major cities together, just discovering industry... yet they already have Leman Russ Tanks and Chimeras rumbling across the surface of their planet as everything from Public Transporation and Tractors to their intended use as warmachines.

I dunno. Sort of thing I love. Would like to see some standard Stat Blocks for them for reference/use. Expansion is always a good thing. Keep going with it.

Lol,. the thing is, by steel age, I meant medivol age. However, that could concievably work better maybe. I'll ask my partner.

Anything in particular you would like expanded on first?