Deathwatch Lore-checking

[Omeniv]

Hey B&C, I'm going to be GMing a few lengthy campaigns of Deathwatch with my gaming group and I would love for some help in making sure that all of my lore is sound and some balancing questions are answered.

 

-What would be a good way to have a Kill-team battle a Tyranid Biotitan Hierophant? (They could be aided by any force or equipment, but I'd like to put an emphasis on these marines as the heroes in the battle)

 

-Is it still possible to create a new chaos marine through use of geneseed? I was thinking of making a Night Lord in this manner, would this be possible in the fluff?

 

-How long would it be possible for a marine to exist and fight in a realm of chaos (Maze of Tzeentch, Nurgle's Garden etc)

-and how would a marine go about entering said realm?

 

I'm not asking for rules, simply fluff or lore to either rebuke or aid my ideas. Thanks for anyone who can help!

[Olis]

-What would be a good way to have a Kill-team battle a Tyranid Biotitan Hierophant? (They could be aided by any force or equipment, but I'd like to put an emphasis on these marines as the heroes in the battle)

 

Well, they could enter a similar scenario as in one of the Imperial Armour books (I believe it's number four) where there is an illegal research facility where Tyranids are being kept and an allied Inquisitor has found it. Of course, he wants to purge it (for good reason). So In goes a strike force to eliminate the facility and the "test subjects" (who are usually kept in pens). However, things go wrong and Tyranids begin to escape, causing havoc and death for the strike force while an extraction is arranged. Just as the extraction starts, bam! Heirophant. Brown alert. 

 

-Is it still possible to create a new chaos marine through use of geneseed? I was thinking of making a Night Lord in this manner, would this be possible in the fluff?

 

Well, judging by the most explicit evidence (Storm of Iron and the Night Lords Trilogy) the answer is, in short, yes. Although really what you'd be making is a regular astartes, biologically, regardless of (usable) gene-seed, and then they become chaos marines. What were you planning to create?

 

-How long would it be possible for a marine to exist and fight in a realm of chaos (Maze of Tzeentch, Nurgle's Garden etc)

 

Depends on the marine in question and the challenges they face. Suffice to say if a regular marine was in such a place and I was a GM, I'd throw the book at him (well, at least be cruel and unusual). In the realms of Chaos little is predictable and sound. It's entirely likely that the marines facing such a situation would fall, one by one, to corruption or death, with few loyal survivors at all. Such a situation occurs in Bloodquest, iirc.

 

-and how would a marine go about entering said realm?

 

Er... hmm... Get trapped in the warp? Enter an already open warp portal? Go to the EoT itself?

[Omeniv]

 

 

Well, they could enter a similar scenario as in one of the Imperial Armour books (I believe it's number four) where there is an illegal research facility where Tyranids are being kept and an allied Inquisitor has found it. Of course, he wants to purge it (for good reason). So In goes a strike force to eliminate the facility and the "test subjects" (who are usually kept in pens). However, things go wrong and Tyranids begin to escape, causing havoc and death for the strike force while an extraction is arranged. Just as the extraction starts, bam! Heirophant. Brown alert. 

 

Thank you for everything but I meant a leveling sort of thing. Like a way to equate the two sides stregth wise. I want these guys to slay a tyranid bio titan. This is no easy task, and my goal is to figure out a balanced way to fight it.

[Olis]

Ah. Well then. They're going to need anti-tank weaponry or plasma weapons, if you want them to hurt it, for a start. Or, if they are feeling creative, get an orbital asset to attempt a shot on the thing. :P

 

But, if you want equivalent force on force, you'll need an armoured column at the very least. Infantry alone just isn't going to cut it, I reckon. Maybe melta charges and a Valkyrie might do...

[deathspectersgt7]

Olisredan,  I have the same question on the bio titan, would the Deathwatch have access to vortex weapons?

Edited February 15, 2013 by deathspectersgt7

[Olis]

Olisredan,  I have the same question on the bio titan, would the Deathwatch have access to vortex weapons?

 

Vortex weapons are so rare in the 41st millennium they might as well be considered unique artifacts. Would a deathwatch team be able to get their hands on one? It's extremely unlikely but it's not outside the realms of possibility. However, it would require an entire quest-line to get a hold of one solitary grenade, if I was GMing, as they're so rare. It would be easier to use more conventional forms of weaponry, I think, like massed Lascannon fire or bringing your own Titan to the fray.

 

So... the TL;DR version: Probably not.

[deathspectersgt7]

Or how about a half crazed lamenaters dreadnaught with a powerfist and twinlinked lascannons?

[Olis]

If you can wedge it in somewhere without making it too obvious, then yeah, sure, a slightly potty Lamenters dread might do some damage (until the Hierophant stamps on him, at least). I doubt he'd be able to kill it though (unless whoever is controlling him gets very, very lucky).

[deathspectersgt7]

just tried it with my veneralble dread and well splat!!! worth atry.and three 8 man squads of deathwatch ta boot.

Edited February 15, 2013 by deathspectersgt7

[Stupid Waldo]

How about terminator armor and thunder hammers? Teleport in and attack its joints or something to that effect.  You wouldn't necessarily even need to make it a standard battle, you could make an entire map out of the surface (and possibly even insides) of a bio titan, where your kill team is crawling over it, and maybe needs to break a hole through its carapace to get inside and tear its heart out or something.

[Olis]

Aside from the fact that the joints are absurdly high off of the ground, pulling a Rico (from Starship Troopers) sounds like a fun idea. I haven't the foggiest idea how you'd get up there without getting mobbed by smaller 'nids but I'm all for a touch of imagination when attempting to splat a large bug. :)

[Stupid Waldo]

i'd again go with teleporting. those suckers are big, and it shouldn't be that terribly difficult to teleport onto its back. Or you could say that the crazed dreadnought drew all the little bugs to itself and the kill team was able to quickly get on the bigger bug. Actually instead of doing terminator armor you could do a squad with jump packs. fly on to its back, drop out of a thunderhawk onto its back, etc. etc. I see a number of possibilities, all of which seem much more plausible and interesting, that trying to go head to head with a 50 some odd foot tall spider

[Olis]

I'd say teleporting is pretty dangerous to do even when doing it to an open area, let alone onto the back of a moving, living target. I'm not saying it can't be done, but don't be surprised if those termies teleport into open air (or materialise inside the Titan, which would also kill them). *shrug*

[Stupid Waldo]

Yeah I considered that shortly thereafter.  Hence why I offered the suggestions of jump packs instead. rather more reliable, plus they'd be more mobile, which would probably be a good thing while crawling around the interior of a hierophant. or any large living creature for that matter

[deathspectersgt7]

 had one squad in jump packs got swamped by gargoyles .

[Jareddm]

Land a drop pod on it from orbit.  Get some use out of those piloting skills.

[Eddie Orlock]

Mount up in a squadron of Storm Talons and make piloting checks with your lascannon for several rounds.

 

Squad leaps on to it's back from a Storm Raven with Jump pack, Storm Shields, and Melta-Bombs. Use Jump Pack to not take impact from falling, the Storm Shield to give a chance at not being stomped to death, and of course, enough melta bombs to burn out the husk.

 

Actually, if I recall their biology correctly, the Biotitans have command Symbiotes. If you could kill that you may be able to sever the link to the Hive Mind and without the sustaining warp energy, the marco-beast might collapse under it's own weight. 'Course, aceing such a Nid wouldn't be easy, it's probably deep inside the chest, coated in several layers of chitten and with multiple protective forcefields.

 

With regard to teleporting, it's farily reliable with a teleport homer. Get the Techmarine to build one (or more depending on how cinematic your game is) into a missile and harpoon the beast with it. So painted, teleport in your attacker squads with Melta-Guns at close range.

[Steel Company]

Hey B&C, I'm going to be GMing a few lengthy campaigns of Deathwatch with my gaming group and I would love for some help in making sure that all of my lore is sound and some balancing questions are answered.

 

-What would be a good way to have a Kill-team battle a Tyranid Biotitan Hierophant? (They could be aided by any force or equipment, but I'd like to put an emphasis on these marines as the heroes in the battle)

 

They are the ones that call down the rain from an orbiting war-ship to use a lance strike on it? Or they come in with a couple of war-hound titans? Maybe a few thunder-hawks?

 

I ran a Death-Watch campaign for a while, and I learned a few things, marines are tough, but a Carnifex will eat them alive, if they are in anything short of TDA, or have a devastator with a heavy-bolter before it was errat'ed....

 

Basically, once the word titan gets into the list of things, it's out of the player group's hands.... though Vortex grandes are around, they have to be able to get one with the RP's, and better have a darn good reason to need such a piece of equipment!

[RADU LYKAN]

20 or so sticky teleport homers + 20 teleporting meltabombs = nid bbq :)

[Captain Idaho]

If it's an RPG could you not create your own weapon? Perhaps insert a device into a vulnerable area that was sourced from Necron Pylon tech (reverse engineered) that causes it's connection to the Hive Mind to backfire, making the Bio-Titan convulse itself apart.

[The Emperor's Champion]

 

 

Olisredan,  I have the same question on the bio titan, would the Deathwatch have access to vortex weapons?

 

Vortex weapons are so rare in the 41st millennium they might as well be considered unique artifacts. Would a deathwatch team be able to get their hands on one? It's extremely unlikely but it's not outside the realms of possibility. However, it would require an entire quest-line to get a hold of one solitary grenade, if I was GMing, as they're so rare. It would be easier to use more conventional forms of weaponry, I think, like massed Lascannon fire or bringing your own Titan to the fray.

 

So... the TL;DR version: Probably not.

 

 

IIRC, Deathwatch has rules for Vortex weapons and the requirements to requisition them (which could be bypassed for scenarios specific reasons.)