Quote from: Ghost Whistler;373592Is there any advice on customising your own monsters/daemons etc?

What other DH books are useful for RT, if any?

Creatures Anathema, as well as the monsters, has some pointers on boosting them a bit to create above average enemies. The GM screen has a random alien generator for creating bizarre creatures.

As far as other DH books go, Disciples of the Dark Gods includes several conspiratorial factions which, with a little work, could be great adversaries in a Rogue Trader game (in particular, some of the Xenos-flavoured conspiracies would be fascinating enemies - or valuable trading partners - and might even work better in a RT game than in DH). As mentioned earlier, Ascension deals with challenges for characters of around the same power level as Rank 5-8 Rogue Trader characters, so it might be useful for finding challenges for them (or for generating powerful Imperial NPCs).

I'd buy it all if i had the money, but I don't.

Ok, what's in the RT GM kit? And what else makes Lure of the Expanse worthwhile (I know it's new); I don't really want to just buy a book of adventures. I thought initially it was a guidebook, which might have been more useful.

Are there any plans for a sourcebook for ships because that does seem (as others elsehere have said) pretty thin on the ground.

Quote from: Ghost Whistler;373695I'd buy it all if i had the money, but I don't.

Ok, what's in the RT GM kit?

There's a GM screen, which is pretty badass (deploy it with your DH screen for double the space! And look out for the Deathwatch GM kit for TRIPLE SCREENING!), an adventure, a more or less workable star system generator, and a random ship generator.

QuoteAnd what else makes Lure of the Expanse worthwhile (I know it's new); I don't really want to just buy a book of adventures. I thought initially it was a guidebook, which might have been more useful.

I intend to get Lure a) to mine for ship specs and b) for the mini-gazetteer of Footfall (the first major port of call for most Rogue Traders).

QuoteAre there any plans for a sourcebook for ships because that does seem (as others elsehere have said) pretty thin on the ground.

FFG seem to be fairly tight-lipped about future sourcebook plans - I don't think they like announcing them unless they're literally about to go to the printer. Someone on here (One Horse Town) does freelance for them, maybe there's some hints they can slip out from under whatever NDA they're under...

Is there any correlation between tabletop stats and rpg stats? Is the system at all designed to consciously facilitate translation between the two (including Battlefield Gothic), thus meaning if one has the Codex Whatever then one can translate between.

I can't help getting the feeling that FFG's design doesn't intend for explorers to encounter the mainstays of the setting: the iconic Xenos (mainly) for instance.

I'm also not impressed by the fact that Lure, something i would normally have ignored (CA is the same price), has potentially a lot of really god stuff for the Eldar.

I'm not down on the game at all. FFG have superb production values (visually at least) and RT is a big book as it is. But 40k being the enormo-setting it is I think they could have thought out how they intend to portion out the info a little better. I can't be the only one who wants stats for the aliens/ships. I dont' want every single unit described in loving detail, but a basic approach would have been excellent. Rather than just a random Ork ship have a couple of typical ships for each race and rather than just Random Kroot Merc have a couple of peeps for each race: Tau Captain, Kroot Merc, Eldar Farseer, Eldar Crewman, Necron Badass, Ork Nob, Ork Shipboyz, Chaos Leader...you get the idea. Would that have taken up too much space?

Quote from: Spike;373584Or just have those fooken worm aliens have entire star empires out in the Expanse.  

Just one of those buggers is bad ass enough to take on an entire party (sans Laz cannon)... now you can throw armies of them.

I love the worm dudes and created worm dogs to go along with them to really keep the party on their toes.  It's a fantastic alien race and so truly alien that it's easy to keep your players guessing.  They are the carrion crawlers of 40k.  Only more organized tougher and with vastly superior technology.

Quote from: Ghost Whistler;373700Is there any correlation between tabletop stats and rpg stats? Is the system at all designed to consciously facilitate translation between the two (including Battlefield Gothic), thus meaning if one has the Codex Whatever then one can translate between.

DH has no real correlation to the core 40k tabletop game there are some symmetries, but no direct conversion (but I wouldn't be surprised if some clever person on the web has come up with some table).  But Battlefleet Gothic in particular is an entirely separate system from 40k anyway so it's even further removed.  

But I suggest if space fleet battles, is something you are wanting to do with RH you can download the Battlefleet Gothic rules for free and see for yourself.

Thanks for teh replies. I just bought Creatures Anathema. Looks pretty good.

I think I'd like to buy into the FFG 40k world, but I do have some issues as to how they are doing things. The game isn't (aren't) 40k per se - they are 40k: THe Koronus Expanse, Calixis Sector, or Jericho Reach. Now that's fine and they seem qutie well developed and credible, but the design and the information released is based around what fits into these settings. On top of that each book handles a braod cross section of stuff which means if you want to include stuff you might need different books. For example, there's info on Xenos and Xeno tech and Forbidden Tech in Radicals Handbook - the sort of stuff that might make for interesting treasure. The DH gm kit also seems to include rules for generating Xenos while Rogue Trader core book contains very little.

I would have preferred a more precise categorisation of material - a Xeno book, a Starship book, etc. I wouldn't mind but money is by no means no object.

Still no bloody Necrons.

To be honest, I kind of hope that once Deathwatch comes out FFG starts doing multi-game supplements which can be used equally well in DH, RT, or DW. So, for example, they could do an "Eldar" book which consists mainly of expanded details on Eldar (and perhaps pointers on running an Eldar-based campaign), and then has a chapter on interesting things to do with Eldar in a Dark Heresy game (perhaps with some examples of Eldar-related conspiracies, spy cells, and sympathisers within the Imperium), one on using them in Rogue Trader (complete with trade goods and starship stats), and one on using them in Deathwatch (complete with tactical pointers and cool ways to make things go boom).

I'm very excited about Deathwatch, the quality fo the products impresses me (typos and such aside). But that sort of project is a long way off, and to be honest, they don't erally need to wait. Such books only need an established ruleset and that exists. Eldar are Eldar, for example, regardless of whether they interact with Inquisitors or Rogue Traders.

Quote from: Warthur;373975To be honest, I kind of hope that once Deathwatch comes out FFG starts doing multi-game supplements which can be used equally well in DH, RT, or DW. So, for example, they could do an "Eldar" book which consists mainly of expanded details on Eldar (and perhaps pointers on running an Eldar-based campaign), and then has a chapter on interesting things to do with Eldar in a Dark Heresy game (perhaps with some examples of Eldar-related conspiracies, spy cells, and sympathisers within the Imperium), one on using them in Rogue Trader (complete with trade goods and starship stats), and one on using them in Deathwatch (complete with tactical pointers and cool ways to make things go boom).

This is pure genius. I hope you posted this on the FFG boards and/or dropped them an email. For one, you detail the type of product that's inherently extremely attractive from a customer's POV, and for another, this solves FFG's problem of having 3 distinct RPG lines at hand and not being able to cater for all of them at a steady pace (in terms of supplement stream). Ascension got touted as being very well suited for RT (as well as for DH), and that may indicate a good start in the direction you suggest.

That said, my impression is that in the long run DH will remain the core line - attracting most fans and publisher attention (in form of supplements) - and that DH and DW are comparatively short-lived experiments with very irregular product support.

Deathwatch doesn't really appeal to me for the most part, but I'm curious to see how the characters in it stack against ascended DH.  

I also agree they could be putting out xenos or whatever books at anytime.  Eldar are Eldar regardless if you are going after them with DH, RT or DW.  The only thing they have to keep in mind is how they present the scope of the enemies.  They are perfectly fine putting in a full range of opponents even if they are currently to tough for DH or RT traders to tackle on their own.  It just means a GM has to be aware of that and use them in different situations until DW comes out and a blaster will do the trick.

Despite the general complaints I much prefer the isolated approach they took with the 40RPG.  I like having focused games and not a huge hodgepodge of classes that wouldn't logically mix together or even be on the same scale.  It avoids the joke of a Chaplain an Imperial Guard and an Eldar walk into a bar level of bullshit that I could have scene happening if they just presented 40k: The RPG.

Quote from: Ghost Whistler;373984I'm very excited about Deathwatch, the quality fo the products impresses me (typos and such aside). But that sort of project is a long way off

Actually, Deathwatch is scheduled for August 2010...

Quote from: Windjammer;373993This is pure genius. I hope you posted this on the FFG boards and/or dropped them an email. For one, you detail the type of product that's inherently extremely attractive from a customer's POV, and for another, this solves FFG's problem of having 3 distinct RPG lines at hand and not being able to cater for all of them at a steady pace (in terms of supplement stream). Ascension got touted as being very well suited for RT (as well as for DH), and that may indicate a good start in the direction you suggest.

I think the idea has been raised there by other people. I suspect, in fact, it's something FFG have hit on themselves - it would explain a lot about Ascension, it would explain why Deathwatch is coming out so soon after Rogue Trader.

I suspect what may happen, if they don't take this route, is that they'll do supplements which are primarily aimed at one line but include bits and pieces that are useful in the others.

Quote from: Windjammer;373993This is pure genius. I hope you posted this on the FFG boards and/or dropped them an email. For one, you detail the type of product that's inherently extremely attractive from a customer's POV, and for another, this solves FFG's problem of having 3 distinct RPG lines at hand and not being able to cater for all of them at a steady pace (in terms of supplement stream). Ascension got touted as being very well suited for RT (as well as for DH), and that may indicate a good start in the direction you suggest.

That said, my impression is that in the long run DH will remain the core line - attracting most fans and publisher attention (in form of supplements) - and that DH and DW are comparatively short-lived experiments with very irregular product support.

how is ascension suited for RT? I had a brief look at it today but didn't bother as I don't have DH. Radicals book has some interesting stuff on xenos/tek/dark powers etc.

Quote from: Warthur;374011Actually, Deathwatch is scheduled for August 2010...

I know, but it will probably be delayed like RT and even then they will have to establish the line first before doing 'multi-supllements'.

It's entirely possible GW had prohibited FFG from such things as facilitating pc Eldar.

My problem is that information is portioned out across the two/potentially three lines; stuff that's useful for Explorers can be found in Inquisitor books, and doubtless vice versa. On top of that everything is filtered through the FFG-created setting lens. For example, the section on Death Worlds in CA is really just a bunch of death worlds from Calixis - as opposed to stuff that allows the GM to create their own Death Worlds (which, lets face it, can be as diverse as anything).

This is all fine as far as it goes, but it's definitely not how I would have done things. The Eldar info in Lure is really about 6 pages long. It's probably really good, but I can't justify paying for the whole book just for that, which is all I'm interested in. I'm sure the adventures are great. I shouldn't say this, and obviously I do not endorse it, but it would be much easier to download Lure and cut the Eldar stuff from it, print it out and delete the remainder.

But, in the immortal words of the Spacing Guild: I was not here, I did not say this.