That's an fairly accurate conclusion. Is this aim of your game concept to make a snazzy ship, then or fight with it? I fail to see how a larger hold would benefit space warfare.

It wouldn't be a usual RP game. It'd be an arena just like a lot of people do with D&D. Make your character, start out at a certain level, and gain gold/experience (PF/XP) through combat with other players or, on request, encounters.

So I decided to go through with it. For anyone who wants to blow off some steam and blow up some 40k starships, feel free to RTJ my arena game, King of the Void.

link to another game

Please excuse the Cardinal for interrupting game prop threading.  All this talk of Rouge Trader has lead the moral leader back toward actually committing to the RT line, I own the core, which I find is usually enough to run a gambit of campaigns. Although Emperor's Bowels, the supplements for RT seem more important (And make the devine drool to boot) for some reason than compared to Dark Heresy.  Any who I just wondered what the community found to be the essential to running RT or what supplement they would place as 2nd after the core.

Praise The Emperor
and FF bound crack,
YR.Obd.Srvnt.
S.C.I.

That is a tough one...

I would say that Into the Storm is practically required, especially for character creation since a lot of added backgrounds that are a lot more thematically varied than what's in the book. I honestly have never made a Rogue Trader character without spending some XP on at least one advance, not to mention the Warrant creation is a good way to vary the ship points and profit factor per group which can lead to a nice bit of pregame organization if everybody chooses one step. Then you have other things like ship roles, elite advances, some interesting new equipment, and more importantly regular vehicle rules that actually make the pilot skill useful.

After that, I'd have to say Battlefleet Kronus is vital if you're going to be doing any sort of ship building or combat out in space. It doubles the hulls available, adding the beefier Grand and Battlecruisers, lots of great equipment like safer or faster warp drives, factory facilities, sick bays, and of course the much awaited torpedo, fighter craft, and the BFG BFG Nova Cannon. There's also some good fluff bits explaining the Naval presence out there in the end of beyond, how the Chaos Reavers operate, what makes the orks of the 'Undred-undred Teeth unique in ork terms, and the mysterious new Rak'gol aliens.

The rest are a bit hit and miss, I personally would say that Hostile Acquisitions is worth it for the equipment, world building, and building your own arch nemesis. Though you can probably do without it.

I'll leave the more detailed explanation to Joe and just say this.

I'd say if your players are looking at a more space-combat-centric campaign, get Battlefleet Koronus, no argument.

If they like personal combat and talking as well as a little space combat, then get Into the Storm.

If you're really really bad at coming up with space baddies, that's what Edge of the Abyss is for. Tons of space ships to fight.

If your PCs are looking to be criminals in the Koronus Expanse instead of upright Rogue Traders, Hostile Acquisitions is a good buy.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:04, Sat 07 July 2012.

Is the Senior Cardinal correct in his query into rpol that there is not a single Rouge Trader game under way?  I can see the problems starting a game right from character construction to the most vast array of gaming styles in which FFG has worked the game, would anyone be up for a game in the future constructed into a sandbox style of a majority of emphasis on solo missions and illegal Xenos Trade and Hunting?

I would be interested in an RT game along those lines. I have most of the books, including Soul Reaver.

Every RT game I know of has died in the early stages. Somehow, RT is hard to do on RPol.

In reply to Gwenlynn (msg # 394):
Yeah, after reading just character creation I could see a ton of problems just getting one off the ground.  Was really just wondering what the interest level was for rt instead of building a game and getting one rtj. Is it just the cardinal losing touch or has the number of war hammer games dropped on rpol over the last year, and now with more FFG titles.  I suppose 2013 and only war will give a good number on how many active players online.

You're not wrong, there's been a big dearth of quality Warhammer 40K rpgs out there.

It doesn't help that most GMs just give up and disappear without a word, or have some terrible disaster occur to them when they dare to try.

I'd most definetely be interested in a RT game

And yes it seems that most RT games die in the early stages.

Rogue Trader tends to run into a number of issues.  Getting it off the ground and running alone is a good sign.  A consistent GM and PC Rogue Trader character help and the rest of the players willing to work a bit more ahead of time and interweave backgrounds so there is more comradeship and less who is this dren trying to nettle me helps a lot too.

I would also be game for one. :)

I too would be more then willing to join a RT game. Got the Navigator and Astropath book now, all those options......

On RPol, the sandbox model of RT seems one of the reasons why things fail. Sandboxing can work well, but it seems to me it works better in a game like Amber where people are supposed to be involved in their own little subplots.

Somehow, I think that a game with a GM driven RT would work better since the GM determines which way to go.

It also works if the player of the RT is willing to work with the GM for the direction.  Mixing their own goals and desires into the nudges that the GM tosses their way when they get an occasional 'make a reason to go this way' PM.  Course if the GM isn't good at on the fly shifts the myriad of directions that a player RT can toss into the mix could be a bit heady and problematic.

I know I'd kill for a good Rogue Trader game, if just for the freedom you get to really play with the world at large and feel like a real bad ass in the world, at least until Only War gets properly distributed.

I know that the best 40K game I had was mostly due to the GM, who to be honest, ran a bit Monty Haul, but the fact that he read over our backgrounds and worked with our backgrounds. The rewards were great, but he also played with us, making us work for it through actual writing and planing rather than strictly going with rolls. It was the best game of Rogue Trader I've ever been in, as well as the best Black Crusade game I was in due to the GM focused on bringing me over to the Chaos side, which was thoroughly interesting because I wasn't a died int he wool baby eater like starting characters are at the start. That battle between being puritanical Imperium, merely radical, and going fully to the Dark Side, is where the meat of a good story is, and every BC game I've been in didn't want to bother with that complexity. God I would kill to run that character again...

But getting back to the main point, it's the work that really intimidates people away from it. There is a lot of good stuff in there, and even with the players taking control of a good deal of the crunch, like the crew, army, and ship, you need to pay attention to all six players or what ever you have to be as important as the Rogue Trader.

In reply to Smokin_Joe (msg # 401):

Thanks for all the input,  hearing what worked for players and what didn't is really helpful.  Nobody sees the 41st millennia in the same way for one but it seems like rt would be really a great way to work on PbPif you have a set of really patient players that want to work their way through backgrounds.  I suppose if the gm made it clear enough (yeah sounds easy) but if everyone was willing to run a proper prologue with a goodly amount of open role-play rt could work.  After further consideration sandbox sounds like pulling the pin on a frag and sitting on it, it just is going to be bloody and fun for awhile but someone sooner or later picks up the pieces.  Good luck with all the cardinal's subjects games and let your bolters be blessed.

For those looking for a RT game, what would interest you more?

1) GM RT and the rest of the players take up support roles
2) PC RT and the same as above
3) Everyone plays someone with a writ(don't have to be a RT), all have your own ships and have decided to work together for a common goal.*

* An actual campaign I'm running with my RL group and going quite well for now.

As for dedication, I know that my past history on this site for being a GM is not the greatest as I have many games that I have started and dropped due to lack of interest or Personal issues but I have finally got my life back to where it should be and have the time and inclination to run it. If there is interest, I will run it. Let me know.

I'd be interested in the second option.

I'd be interested and would prefer option 1 or 2. But I'm fine with option 3 as well.

I think that option 1 has the best chance to succeed. That would be my choice.

 Option 3, is that nit essential having as many solo games as you have players?

I can see how it prob won't work on RPOL. Option 1 or 2 would be better for the site.

Option 3 tends to lead to more time doing 'fleet actions' and less time doing 'away missions' but as long as it's understood that everyone is working towards a similar goal/for a similar cause and it changes the dynamic from you versus the universe over to us versus the universe it'll work.  Like I said it will also allow you to do some magnificent space battles instead of tiny 1 on 2 or 3.

In reply to crownblade (msg # 404):
I would be up for what'll three, I really would enjoy an RT game and think it is a good idea that the gm (regardless of his or her past gaming history) gets all the pc's on the same page before jumping into the warp.  I was playing in a WW game where it took a good month for us to start as each character needed to sort out their history with each pc, it seems like a lot of work but it let the players really get a feel for the game and one another.  I just think not focusing on backgrounds steals the element of ship comroderie, I mean if anyone has spent any time aboard just a regular boat in a lake you quickly realize everyone and the ship work together or nothing works.  and this just may beme but if you join a game that dies on rpolnet and are completely surprised it must be your first game on rpolnet, PbP is never easy real life happens, I try to get the most fun out of any game, and some of my favorite games died fast, but hell at least they were there for awhile.  So I would not be disappointed in any rt game that got going.  Hope to see you all in the warp soon.


Yr.Obd.Srvnt
S.C.I.

Personally, #2 is likely the best way for the longevity in the game, since in the end, the Rogue Trader is the great Face for the group and really involves the entire group in the high faulting parties. Otherwise you can get into the Dark Heresy trap where the PC's get ordered to do all the crap jobs in the sump part of the Hive World rather than attending the action with the boss. Not to mention that there's less book keeping for the GM since you can fully create the noble house, and all of the customs with the armsmen and oddities with the ship, allowing group relativity to take a load off the GM.

Though yes, would still kill for a chance to get in another RT game.