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Jeff Herold
United States
Tacoma
Washington
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One of the things I really liked about Deathwatch, as presented, was the Requisition/Renown system. For those who don't have a background with Deathwatch, I'll try and give a quick summary:
Every character has a "Renown Rank" - which more or less represents how trusted and well-known they are in the Deathwatch. They accumulate Renown points (20 points = a new rank) by completing Mission Objectives and generally doing Heroic things. Saving a fellow Battle-Brother from certain death while taking a grievous wound yourself might be worth Renown points. Facing an opponent using only your bare-hands or just your Chainsword might be worth Renown points. Conversely failing a mission, or allying with the hated Xenos or surrendering can all *cost* a character Renown points.
Now, what does this have to do with equipment? To acquire specific pieces of equipment a character has to have met its Renown requirements; say, Respected (20+ Renown) for a Combi-Bolter or Power Sword, or Hero (80+ Renown) for Artificer Armor or a Relic Blade.
Now, just because you are Respected doesn't mean you can go around and get 7 Power Swords to bring on the mission with you - that's where Requisition comes in. Before a mission each Squad-Member is given a certain number of "Requisition points" to purchase equipment with. Where a Bolt Pistol might be 5 requisition points, a Power Sword could be 4 times that amount, and a Relic Blade ten times as much. Also, equipment doesn't carry over between missions - with the exception of "standard issue" wargear (Power Armor, Bolt Pistol, some frag & krak grenades, repair cement for said power armor, a combat blade) - allowing a character to specialize their kit based off the foes and challenges they expect to encounter.
As I said above, I really like this system - and the dichotomy between Renown and Requisition. Given that, I'm probably just going to use it as written - the requisition costs, the renown requirements. The one thing that might change, in terms of that, is the requisition costs of special ammunition. Mainly because of the fact that a Savage Worlds character with a weapon capable of automatic fire will go through their ammo faster (a Deathwatch Space Marine firing his Boltgun will go through 3 shots a round, given its RoF 3, a Savage Worlds Space Marine - using a Boltgun with RoF 3 uses *nine* shots a round (Savage Worlds uses a rule where each "shot" on full-auto uses a number of bullets equal to the RoF).
Aside from ammunition, though, I'm basically going to leave the system(s?) intact - so the major task is changing the equipment mechanically. An "Astartes Harness" (+30 to Climb tests in Deathwatch, which uses a D100 system) might now add +4 to Climb tests in Savage Worlds (the same as "Advanced Climbing Equipment"). Okay, that's an easy one. Actually, I've got ideas for most of the miscellaneous equipment, it's just a matter of seeing how balanced these ideas are.
The one that continues to make me ponder is the Jump Pack. I'm leaning toward allowing the user 2x Pace, and making a Piloting roll to kick it in to overdrive for 4x Pace for a minute, and then a minute cool-down. This more or less mirrors what it does in Deathwatch but ... I'm not happy with it and I can't quite put my finger on why. Are there any Savage settings that have Jump/Jet packs that anyone really likes?
As a kind of last note, for now, on Equipment/Requisition/Renown - in Deathwatch a character can *permanently* acquire a piece of kit by taking the "Signature Wargear" talent. It has a few levels, and here's how I'm currently leaning toward implementing it:
Signature Wargear (Edge): Pick a piece of Wargear of 35 Requisition or less for which you meet the Renown requirement, you add the piece of Wargear to your standard issue gear. May be taken once per rank.
Heroic Signature Wargear (Legendary Edge): Pick a piece of Wargear of 70 Requisition or less, add it to your standard issue gear.
In terms of Psykers - I don't like Power Points *and* I don't find them genre appropriate for 40K. There, I said it. Savage Worlds Deluxe has a "no power points" option, which is ... I mean, it's workable enough. My current problem is that the Backlash isn't strong enough for the 40K setting. This is a setting where tapping in to the Warp can cause Daemonic possession or your soul to be swallowed or ... all sorts of things. Not just "2D6 damage" - but *seriously bad things*. I'm current leaning toward using a slightly modified version of the "Backfire Table" from Deadlands: Reloaded. Probably replacing the "Mindwipe" result with "Something Is Coming ..." from Deathwatch (the appearance of a Daemon Prince). And probably replacing the 13-15 "Madness" result with ... something. I'm still thinking about this.
That actually leads to a total of 3 things I'm porting over from Deadlands: Reloaded (Fate Chips, the Backlash Table [although modified] and Grit. I like Grit. It feels appropriate for Marines. I'm going to run with it, for now)
In terms of Arcane Skill, I'm probably going to call it "Psy-Rating" and link it to Spirit in terms of advancement. I'm also planning on limiting the power list just a touch. Things like "Zombie" aren't particularly Space Marine Librarian in feel.
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Jeff Herold
United States
Tacoma
Washington
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It seems like, in terms of weaponry, a very good place to start. It really does also seem like it'll be a good jumping off point for the whole system, in terms of damage expressions, and in terms of Space Marine defenses, and in terms of ... well, everything else's defenses and offenses, really. In Warhammer 40K, tabletop, a boltgun has a 50% chance of wounding a Marine, but will generally bounce off his armor. In Deathwatch (using the updated Damage Expressions in the errata) a boltgun will have a roughly 40% chance of just bouncing off a Space Marine, because of his high toughness and armor, and otherwise will do some minor damage. When we look at an average human, in both systems, the innate deadliness of the boltgun is then revealed. A Guardsman will be hit with a boltgun and ... well, normally die. As it goes through his armor entirely and then stands a pretty decent chance of removing him from battle, at the very least.
When we look at the fluff this more or less reflects what we see - the Space Marine is protected from the bolter shells by his armor, but a human (especially an unarmored human) will generally explode in very messy chunks.
Given that, in Savage Worlds, the average human (read: Vigor D6) would have a toughness of 5, and maybe +3 from Flak Armor if they're a guardsman, and then a Space Marine would, in power armor, probably have a toughness around 20 or 21 (given that I'm leaning toward a D6 vigor die before discretionary points, and the +12 to power armor, + brawny and +1 Size - I touched on this in comments on the last post) that gives us a starting point to work with.
Given the above, I'm leaning toward something along the lines of 3D6, AP 5. This gives an average damage result north of 10, and ignoring a guardsman's flak armor entirely, which gives a net result of him being off the table from the average boltgun hit. (Even more so if he's hit with a raise) A Space Marine, on the other hand, would still have a toughness, after the AP, of around 15, and shrug off the bolter. With the option of something like Kraken shells to up AP, it means the players still have to *respect* opposing bolters, but don't have to necessarily fear them. Which seems along the lines of what I've always gathered from the 40K setting, as a whole.
And that's how you write 400+ words about bolters in Savage Worlds.
Sun Feb 12, 2012 12:42 am
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Jeff Herold
United States
Tacoma
Washington
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A NOTE: This post was actually the first thing I wrote for this project,
but I figured there was some introductions that needed taken care of first. That's why the output is so close together. Is it weird that I feel the need to apologize for putting up two posts so quickly?
In looking at Savage Worlds and Deathwatch, mechanically, and in looking at the fluff of Deathwatch it leads me to a handful of goals and thoughts. At this time I'm going to kind of assume a basic familiarity of the Warhammer 40K fluff in my readership, but not necessarily a basic familiarity with both Savage Worlds and Deathwatch as RPGs. Although I do suspect most will have passing familiarity with at least one.
I've taken a bit of a different view toward Marine Chapters than the writers of Deathwatch do – at least, in terms of Marines serving in the Deathwatch and how their home Chapter affects their abilities. Certainly a Black Templar and an Ultramarine will come from different backgrounds – but once they're in the Deathwatch, and they're serving in the Deathwatch, and all their training is built (for a time at least) around serving in the Deathwatch, why should they have different training options? It's why the Chapter Advance tables never really say right with me (except at Character Creation).
Of course, Savage Worlds is more of a free-form, skills-based advance system – so the whole idea of a Chapter advance table is … well, pretty non-applicable. The Chapter still has to matter somehow though, right? That's where I turned to my copy of Savage Worlds: Fantasy Companion and the rules it has for race creation. It seemed fairly natural, to me, to view the various Space Marine chapters as just as distinct, both mechanically and in terms of character background, as a PCs race in the standard fantasy games. Instead of having the stubborn, hardy Dwarf or the strong, uncivilized Orc you have the pious, fierce Black Templar or the stubborn, hardy Imperial Fist. Of course, in my standard selection of fantasy RPGs race matters less and less as a character advances – which again lends credence to my idea that a Space Marine's chapter should have an initial, but lasting, impact on the character mechanically. A small bonus and a flaw or two seemed like it'd be enough – especially considering I plan on (at various points) porting over the Solo/squad mode rules and the Chapter-unique relics and Chapter trappings to continue to hold on to each Chapter's unique flavor.
Deathwatch, to me, is built around the idea of PCs drawn from multiple chapters, taken away from their home unit, now needing to work together – and sometimes fighting their original training in order to do so. To this end the designers added to the system “Solo” and “Squad” modes. When the Blood Angel is in solo mode, he's using his instinctive Blood Angel training and fighting the way he'd fight in his home chapter, in his own unit. When he shifts to Squad mode he is acting in concert with his Deathwatch Battle-Brothers. At least that's the way I view it. I always thought this was a major theme of Deathwatch – that the PCs are adjusting to their new surroundings and the members of their Kill-Team. I'm not sure I like the exact approach Deathwatch took to this – I kind of feel that Squad Mode should vastly outpace Solo Mode the more the Squad ranks up together – perhaps even allow the team to start integrating/sharing their solo mode abilities as they rank up (to reflect integrating their home-fighting style and sharing it with their Kill-Team).
Finally, I felt that players had to feel their characters are just … almost obscenely powerful. Deathwatch has been described by others as “The 40K RPG's epic levels” and that seems pretty apt to me. I've always found Savage Worlds starting characters to be pretty competent, but not as much as I would like for a Space Marine. To this end, I feel it's necessary to give characters a handful of abilities, at character creation, that really separate them from mere mortals. This was made easier when I decided that I didn't need/want to balance the Marines with humans, mechanically. I'm not making a Black Crusade conversion, after all … yet.
That said there's a problem I've always had when reading through (and running) Deathwatch, as written - it really presents two different points of view in terms of the experience of starting characters: On the one hand Deathwatch Marines are generally stated to be experienced, war-hardened Battle-Brothers. That's, at least, what the fluff says ("Most Battle-Brothers are veterans of a hundred alien wars before being inducted (...)", Deathwatch Core Rulebook, Pg 309). The mechanics, on the other hand, lead me to believe that the Marines represented by beginning characters are promising, but not truly tested, Marines. As an RPG setting, this is actually what I prefer.
To summarize:
1) Home Chapter has to matter … somewhat – but shouldn't be too limiting
2) There needs to be some kind of mechanic to represent the Kill-Team working together/how well they do so. I like the idea of squad/solo mode, and I like the term Cohesion but it might be a bit of a pain to make Savage Worlds-y. Maybe a Cohesion Die that increases/decreases in size based off of various factors?
3) Marines are epic and need to feel like that. So they should get extra abilities simply for the fact they're Marines. 7 1/2 foot tall, Power Armor clad Angels of Death and all.
4) Marines that aren't veterans. So Novice rank Savage Worlds characters may be workable.
Wed Jan 25, 2012 11:25 pm
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Jeff Herold
United States
Tacoma
Washington
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I'm going to start with where I'm coming from and what my goals are for this, my own little corner of RPG Geek.
WARNING: Rambling, informal writing ahead.
I love Warhammer 40K - well, in theory, anyway. I enjoy the fluff and the idea of it, but assembling and painting hordes of minis isn't exactly up my alley. I'm also a big fan of RPGs, of any type. So when Dark Heresy came out, I was more than a little excited. I got the core book, more than a few supplements, never got a group together. (It should be noted that I have the worst luck with RPG groups at the best of times, anyway) Time passed, then Deathwatch came. There was no way I would have considered my RPG collection complete without it. I actually got a group together (yay!) and managed ... a session and a half before that group died. I blame myself, mostly, 'cause that's what I do.
In my session and a half of seeing Deathwatch in play there were some things I liked, and a lot of things I didn't. In my delving into the system more on my own, and reading the official Deathwatch forums, and getting all the supplements they've put out - there have been things I liked, and a lot of things I didn't.
As a point of divergence that will lead to a point of convergence - I love Savage Worlds. Well, love may be too strong a word - but I'm highly fond of it. I've never looked at a setting and thought "There's no way I could run this using Savage Worlds", it's always a possibility. And it's just so ... Fast! Furious! and Fun! I got in to it through Deadlands: Reloaded, which I've enjoyed from both sides of the screen.
Around 8 months ago I had a thought - Savage Worlds Space Marines. Could it be done? What kind of system hacks would I need to add? What would I port over from the actual Deathwatch system. This blog is going to contain my thoughts on this and follow my journey toward (hopefully) an actual campaign using the rules I come up with.
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