Doing Your Thing in 40K

While making terrain for our first club night I was talking with my good friend and long time 40K'er Toby. He mentioned that one of the frustrations he had with the evolution of the rules was that special abilities that were introduced for a particular unit to give them a unique and flavoursome ability where often watered down, given to others widely and, in the example of Chaos Raptors and Hit & Run, removed for that unit but left for others.

With my current Dark Heresy GUMSHOE hack in mind, I started thinking about how often in 40K you don't get to do your 'thing'. By 'thing' I mean that which makes your army unique, that which your character is feared for. It's your shtick. There are so many special abilities across units that there has been a steady increase in the countermeasures to them. Taking pinning for example. I can't remember the last time I ever saw it work, let alone considered a usable tactic, because so many units ignore it, or have enough leadership for it to be a cold day on Nocturne when it kicks in.

GUMSHOE's philosophy of being good at your thing can, and should, translated to war games. You should, unless you plan poorly, be able to do the glorious deeds you're forces are infamous for at least once during the game.

A very simple, and probably ill conceived idea to improve the situation in 40K would be to give each player a Joker card. When played, the Joker means an HQ, and any unit it is attached to can automatically make, or force the failure of a single dice roll. It also removes an immunity to a particularly ability that would resolve normally on that single dice roll. So, for example a Tau HQ leading a unit that has pinning weapons plays it after it's shot at a unit of Space Marines, who are normally immune to the pinning effect. The Joker means that they lose that immunity for that single test and automatically fail. Further examples would be a unit of Warp Talons deep striking with an attached winged Daemon Prince. The player uses the Joker to make the blind test a nearby unit of Devastators makes automatically fail.  A Tiberius, down to his last wound, uses the Joker to avoid making a psychic test, and activates his powers without fear of the warp consuming him. Of course it might mean that an HQ with a squad with a powerfist could remove the Instant Death rule from an opponent and force it to fail an invulnerbilty save. I'm not sure how I feel about that. Possibly it couldn't be used for attacks that have more than one to-hit roll.          

GUMSHOE Dark Heresy Drives

Clearly on bit of a roll today, powered partially by a strangely meetingless day at work.

Drives in Trail Of Cthulhu are the things that keep you sane, or accelerate your descent in madness. Similarly in GDH, Drives represent the reasons you serve the Inquisition and drive you to follow it’s orders. Stability has renamed Faith, and as it goes down the further from the God-Emperor’s ways you fall. Here are some sample drives for the characters to select.

Adventure : Excitement, Danger and Travel

The wild thrill of hunting your prey, discovering ancient secrets and putting a bolt round in the mutant, the witch and the heretic cannot be matched by any other experience. You’ll gladly follow into the Eye Of Terror itself, if commanded to do so. Hell, one day you’ll give those orders yourself. It’s clear the Emperor has great plans ahead for you.

Antiquarianism : The Past Hides Many Secrets
There are many ages to mankind’s journey through history and in these ancient aeons many great secrets are lost. To uncover them, and bend their powers to your will is all that matters, and only with the blessing of the Inquisition can this work be done without fear of execution. There is a price to pay, but a price worth paying thrice if needs be.

Conscription : There Is No Choice But To Answer The Call
Sharp moments of fear and pain have replaced a life of drudgery and service. Twenty years is the tally, and then freedom of a kind others can only dream of, if the rumours are to be believed. In the mean time, keep your head down, volunteer for nothing, but do everything well enough to survive.

Cruelty : Punishment Keeps The Weak In Line
The universe is cruel, and only those prepared to inflict cruelty prosper. The Inquisition knows this truth, and it’s methods are many and frightful. Learn, hold your temper, grow within its structure and butcher those who get in your way. Hurt those who do not, so they will know what it means to cross you.

Curiosity : The Universe Has More Things In It Than Are Known To Mankind
How old are the detestable Eldar? What is the bubbling language of Trinary? Do all planets have cores of minable iron? Why do Plasma Guns explode so often? How can mere words summon fell beings, and what are those words? A curious mind is dangerous mind, but a little less so in the Inquisition, so play the game and hide in plain sight.

Devotion : My Lord Inquisitor Is My Saviour
Once you was lost, but now you are saved. The grace and goodness of your Lord Inquisitor knows no bounds, and you’d gladly throw yourself in front of a melta blast to save your master. Be alert to dangers that threaten your Lord, there are traitors everywhere and in every guise.

Duty : Stand Between Mankind And Extinction
It’s simple, the universe is inimical to human life, and the Inquisition represent the best chance to prevent mass extinction. Serve, be wary and root out the alien. Humanity must survive by any means necessary, and nothing and no-one is beyond sacrifice to secure our future.

Faith : Faith In The God-Emperor
The God-Emperor is the divine being, and the Inquisition are his watchful eyes and hoary breath. To serve Him is to reach the pinnacle of work, and to serve Him hard and thanklessly in the Inquisition is to impose the noblest sacrifice on oneself. Never falter, never question, never disobey shall be your mantra and you shield against the wicked, the xenos and the impure.

Fate : Fate Brought You Before The Gaze Of The Inquisition
You always knew you would receive the summons. You know not why you are needed, what machinations lie behind your selection but here you are and everything will unfold before you. Great powers are at work, weaving their webs about you. You must be wary, and spot those that seek to cut your thread before you can realise your fate.

Fear : Fear Of The Inquisition
Caught. Execution, or worse awaited, but unexpectedly an offer came. Serve or die. When you realised it was from the Inquisition you knew it might as well be serve and die. But for now you’ll follow orders, and maybe you’ll get through it if you can prove to be useful enough to someone, somewhere with that damned seal.

Greed : The Cups Of Those Who Follow Are Ever Full
There are no hungry Inquisitors. While some may tread the path of austerity, it is a false penance, and you know that the vaults of the Ordos are filled with Thrones uncountable. So provide your services well, and strike bargains that lead to gain for you and your Inquisitor. One day you’ll see that repaid and never know that gnawing fear again.

Power : The Inquisition Is A Power In The Universe
The Inquisition can command the greatest warriors in the universe. With a word they can bring an end to an entire planet. Mutants fall before them, witches are made impotent by them and even Daemons fear them. Nothing matches that, and nothing will stop you from wielding that power yourself. You know it’ll be a hard road, a vicious road but by building your power bases early, with guile and brutality in equal measure will be your route to immortality.

Vengeance : It Will Not Be Swift, But It Will Be Vengeance
You’ve been wronged, maybe by your very family, maybe by wicked, maybe by the alien. Right now you have no means of satisfaction but the Inquisition is powerful and abrupt. Though the path to vengeance will be long, you’ll bring that power to bare on your foes and teach them to regret their actions against you.

Initial skills matching in GUMSHOE Dark Heresy

I went through Dark Heresy RPG and Trail Of Cthulhu and compared the skill sets. Sticking, for now, to the basic skills from Dark Heresy and not looking beyond ToC I compiled this match, which is pretty impressive. There is a lot less work here to do than I fear, clearly Messier Hite and Laws knew someday it would come to this. I can see that I'll need to add some kind of specialisation option to Athletics, to allow people to be particularly good at Contortionist, or more likely Dodge. There are quite a few GUMSHOE skills I'll want to added to GDH. Finally I realise that the list of Lore skills will be quite large and I should consider if PC's should get more investigative points to adapt to this increase. Probably not.

Dark Heresy Basic Skills with existing Trail Of Cthulhu GUMSHOE counterpartsAwareness - Sense trouble
Barter - Bargain
Carouse - Athletics
Charm - Flattery or Flirt
Concealment - Conceal or Stealth
Contortionist - Athletics
Deceive - Reassurance
Disguise - Disguise
Dodge - Athletics
Evaluate - Art history (partial)
Gamble - Streetwise (partial)
Inquiry - Interrogation, Reassurance or Assess honesty
Intimidate - Intimidate
Logic - Cryptography or Physics
Climb - Athletics
Scrutiny - Assess honesty
Search - Conceal
Silent Move - Stealth
Survival - Outdoorsmanship
Swim - Athletics
Tech Use - Mechanical repair or Electrical repair
Tracking - Shadowing

Trade - Craft or Art
Animal Wrangling - Riding (partial)

ToC GUMSHOE Skills missing from Dark HeresyCredit Rating
Evidence Collection
Language
Locksmith

Medicine

Oral History (gossip, traditions, folklore)

Streetwise

ToC Abilities To ConsiderAthletics
Conceal (items)
Disguise
Driving
Electrical Repair
Explosives
Filch (pilfer)
Firearms
First aid
Fleeing
Health

Mechanical Repair
Pilot
Preparedness (kit, stuff)
Psychoanalysis
Riding
Sanity
Scuffling
Sense Trouble
Shadowing
Stability
Stealth
Weapons

Dark Heresy Lore SkillsCommon Lore:
Adeptus Arbites
Machine Cult
Administratum
Ecclesiarchy
Imperial Creed
Imperial Guard
Imperium
Tech
Underworld
War

Forbidden Lore:The Black Library
Cults

Daemonology

Heresy
Inquisition - Ordos (Malleus, Hereticus or Xenos)
Archeotech
Mutants
Adeptus Mechanicus

Adeptus Astartes
Psykers
Warp
Xenos

Scholastic Lore:Archaic
Astromancy
Beasts
Biologis
Bureaucracy
Chymistry

Cryptology
Heraldry
Imperial Creed
Judgement
Legend
Numerology

Occult
Philosophy
Tactica Imperialis

GUMSHOE Dark Heresy

In The Grim Darkness Of The Far Future There Is Only Heresy.

While not a straight conversion GUMSHOE Dark Heresy is based on the original game, particularly around background and occupation suggestions. As GUMSHOE is a points based character system there are no enforced classes though, and players are free to imagine their own backgrounds if they wish. Characters spend points to gain access to class abilities. For example to gain augmentation, the character must buy points in Tech Priest. The starting power level is akin to Trail Of Cthulhu, in that the characters are talented but still starting out. The game will also feature troupe style play, like Ars Magica, where each player also has one or more secondary support characters, mostly likely more combat based. This is not to say that investigators, the primary characters, shouldn’t take combat skills, there is danger in every corner of the 40K universe, but when needed the investigators can call in combat retinue. 

There Is Only The Emperor, And He Is Our Shield And Protector.

The sanity and stability rules will be used from Trail Of Cthulhu, however Sanity is called Faith, and is a measure of how far from the emperors light the character has fallen. There are of course many ways that a character may descend, towards Chaos, towards rebellion, towards The Greater Good, towards selfish corruption, or towards inhumanity. Pillars Of Stability, that which helps you keep your faith, will come from the reasons behind your dedication to the inquisition, and can range from pious belief to utter self-interest. It might be that you’re a naive believer in His Divine Light, you may rationalise that only the Inquisition stands between mankind and the darkness of the void, it might be utter devotion to your lord inquisitor that keeps you sane or it might be you see power and righteousness trickles down to you through service.  

Big Guns Never Tire.

The gun-crunch and combat rules will mainly come for Ashen Stars. Further action elements can be discovered in Essoterrorists 2.0 and and Night’s Black Agents. Ship to ship combat, and design, as and when we need them will also come from Ashen Stars. Characters spend points to access more powerful weapons and armour than basic equipment. However while they can loose these items situationally, you get them back between acts. Likewise found items are yours only until the end of the current adventure unless you buy them with points.

The Flesh Is Weak.

Biomechanical augmentation can provide special abilities from Mutant City Blues. These tend to be things that enhance senses and provide beyond human-normal capabilities. However these enhancements reduce Faith as the character becomes less and less human. 

And When You Gaze Long Into The Warp The Warp Also Gazes Into You.

Psychic powers also come from Mutant City Blues and from a greater range. Psykers use the Quaid diagram in much the same way as intend in the MCB rules and gain the drawbacks of psychosis when they cross power boundaries. Some MCB powers are not available as psychic powers however. There is also always the danger of the perils of the warp.

Many Are The Faces Of The Enemy, And Many Are The Hands Which Do Its Work.

Investigative abilities are the main stay of the characters and much of the game will be driven by their application. This means that characters will get a separate pool of points to spend on investigative skills.