Deathwatch - some help

[Sigvard]

Hello,

 

So I am embarking on a grand adventure in the near future.

 

I am going to be running a Deathwatch campaign with some friends, not m first RPG but definitely my first 40k Campaign. I have a couple of questions for anyone who has done RPG's from this series and any answers would be greatly appreciated.

 

1. GMPC's - Game Master Player Characters always seem like a bone of contention for a lot of Role Players (mainly stemming from D&D's numerous attempts at DM's being Drizzt for those who know.) What is the take on them. My player have made the basic outlines of their characters and no has gone for the Apothecary and our Librarian is tentative. So we currently have a Tactical Marine, a Devastator, an Assault Marine and Librarian (poss 2nd Assault Marine) my reason for wanting to add a GMPC was to give the party some support with an Apothecary, my intention was to not make him super hard or like some wise guardian (a la Gandalf) he was going to be a sole survivor of a Xenos incident from the Storm Wardens who has taken a vow of silence. Who only wishes to die in the service of brothers.

 

Any thoughts on this would be great.

 

2. Pre-made missions. Are the basic Deathwatch ones good? I have always found with GM made ones that I struggle with the internal balance of the RP. Either too much story or not enough. With Deathwatch are the pre-made ones good, or at the very least a good enough template to perhaps make my own from them?

 

3. Finally. Female Space Marines. My other half is really wanting to play one. Simply because she thinks like a woman so would like to role play as one. She does not want some uber feminine sexy warrior goddess, but a Space Marine who is a woman. What potential pitfalls will this cause?

 

The basic idea for this is that through a Warp Rift did she come, from a parrallel reality with the gene-seed taken from female rather than males. She is going to be a bit of an oddity in the RP that might cause a bit of a stir here and there but in general she has been assigned to Deathwatch as there is simply no other place in the imperium for her. She has undergone rigorous tests and psychic examinations and the results have been determined that she is definitely an Astartes using female Genes. Her story also plays out as Astropaths detected a mighty warp storm at the time she claimed to have arrived.

 

Again any thoughts are most appreciated.

[Kabbala]

Here are my general thoughts:

 

1. If the players haven't created a "balanced" team, I would let them play it for a bit and see how it goes.  If you feel the need to add an Apothecary later, it's a simple matter to introduce the character.

 

2. no really thoughts, the pre-made are OK but I've always enjoyed creating my own.

 

3. The easiest solution would be to have her be a Sister of Battle.  Even if she's using the SM rules, it should be fine.  It would even open up more possibilities storywise.  It would make more sense I think than coming up with some weird background involving alternate realities, warp rifts, etc.

 

Good luck and have fun!

[Growler67]

There are threads on these very topics on the FFG board.

 

As for the "necessity" of an Apothecary....there really isn't.  The Inquisitor can send along a Servo Skull or two with basic Medicae is nobody has chosen that skill or there is no Apothecary.  I'm new to the DW RPG myself and the mission is still early on (Final Sanction) but so far there hasn't been need for "healing services".

 

Rather than muddy the waters, I'll just link you to the threads over on FFG:

 

Apothecary:  http://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?/topic/84456-need-healing/

Other healing related threads:  http://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?/topic/86943-healing-critical-injuries/

http://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?/topic/84922-medicae-horde-outnumbering-and-thematic-questions/

 

Female Player:  http://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?/topic/75287-female-player-and-what-to-do/

 

The overall DW Forum page here:  http://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?showforum=161

You can read through the general questions there or enter the various other sections for more information.  The Rule Writers used to pop in more often to actually respond to questions and clarify things...not so much anymore though.

[Sigvard]

The Sister's of Battle is suggestion that was brought up in my gaming group at the last time we met.

 

My partner is so heavily against being pigeon holed in that manner that they were a no go almost immediately after they were suggested.

 

What I am actually after is advice on a how I could make a female Astartes work within the 40k Galaxy.

Edited August 11, 2013 by Sigvard

[Growler67]

Aside from the link I provided, it IS a game, why can't she just role play an Astartes?  There are guys that represent themselves as "female" archetypes on MMORPG's.....I would wager that there are at least a few females that represent themselves as "male" characters too.  Why CAN'T she just pick a Chapter and play a Marine?  As long as it's done in the proper context as a Character....what does it matter that the voice behind the actions is engendered as a female?  The Character is merely and Avatar and NOT an ACTUAL female in Power Armor.....right?

 

Just MY opinion....FWIW.

[Sigvard]

Also completely forgot to thank you both for replying.

 

The forums on FFG are great. Thanks for pointing them out.

 

One of the threads mentioning running an Apothecary as a heal bot, which is effectively what I am going to be doing. Having read some of the rules for the creatures you can find in this game and knowing some of my party, I am thinking having a silent Apothecary might not cause many problems.

That is an incredibly good point and well made. This is something I shall take to her as this is by far the most sensible suggestion so far from anyone I have asked

[Growler67]

My group (and I imagine others) when a player has to leave the session or is abscent, the GM plays them as an NPC.  A tag-along servo skull with Medicae wouldn't be a bad asset either though.  As a GM, making "adjustments" during the game would be crucial if things become problematic.  Having the group end mission haggered and beaten up is one thing....killing them off (though it IS in the underlying fluff of the Deathwatch that most do not complete their Oath and retuirn to their Home Chapters alive) is a sure way to turn off gamers....especially new ones.  Time and effort are spent on creating and developing a Character and to just have them wiped out and have to start over just takes it out of a person sometimes.

[Growler67]

Also completely forgot to thank you both for replying.

 

The forums on FFG are great. Thanks for pointing them out.

 

That is an incredibly good point and well made. This is something I shall take to her as this is by far the most sensible suggestion so far from anyone I have asked

 

Not at all.  The point to these online forums and such is to help others with clarifications, interpretations, personal experiences and advice.  Being helpful is just part of the deal.

[Gentlemanloser]

There is a difference between PC's played by the GM, and NPCs.

 

If your GM is running a character in thier own geams that they expect to play in someone elses, that's generally a no-no.

 

NPCs are however, fine.  As long as they are Roleplayed.

[Mahoo]

I've been playing in a campaign recently without an Apothecary (mainly because the player never shows up) and it's been fine. We've had a few situations where it's been damn close to some dire situations, but SM's can take a hella lot of punishment before they even start taking negative effects from damage, if you find the players are really struggling, just help them out a little. A timely arrival of some IG storm troopers, drop down the difficulty of some up-coming encounters or even force them to bunker down for  a while and let some wounds regenerate over some narrative time.

 

As for campaigns, I've played the template ones before and they're pretty good, enough combat to keep it exciting and enough interactions to keep it interesting, in the end just do what you want. Our GM just threw us 1000 years into the future where the Imperium is in another dark age, just to let us do our own thing and explore the new twisted Imperium.

 

For female space marines, I wouldn't go for it, but that's just a personal preference. Could do a bit of messing about and make her an inquisitor or interrogator attached to the squad (with some awesome equipment), go for a sister with an astartes stat line. Or just make her a female space marine. It's your game, your universe, do what you want lol.