Campaign

Pages in the Campaign area are:

+++campaign main+++

+++glivaria +++

+++creda+++

+++scenarios+++

<<<the knowledge>>>

ng hostiles since 1892.

THIS IDEA is meant to help bridge the gap between Inquisitor and a true RPG, but without resorting to actual rules, or indeed any extra effort or complication whatsoever.

What we suggest is this: that you scribble the basics of a character's knowledge and areas of expertise on the back of their character sheet.

This apparently simple exercise, that will take all of 30 seconds per character, has two effects that the GM can help the campaign to benefit from. Firstly, it can make adding depth to campaigns and characters a lot easier, since the GM can see at glance what sort of non-combat skills the characters have - he can then use this to inspire scenarios. For example, if someone's mercenary character happens to be an expert safecracker, that's a whole new scenario that might otherwise have never happened simply because the GM wasn't aware of that aspect of the character's background.

Secondly, situations where a character's background and knowledge gives him an option that the GM doesn't want him to have can be neatly avoided, without recourse the usual "you can't do it because you just can't!" (GM: "The Land Speeder's engine is broken, you can't use it." Player: "My Tech-Priest used to build Land Speeders." GM: "Er… erm… actually it's not broken, the engine is missing.") Just scrawling something like "knows about computers, tanks and cracking electronic locks" on the back of your character sheets can save you no end of trouble later on.

This is especially useful if the GM keeps a brief record himself of all the characters in the campaign - jotting down their stats, skills, equipment and knowledge means that he can use all this information without necessarily having access to the player's own character sheets. Our NPC Roster sheets, in the downloads section of the home page, are ideal for this… you know you want to!

As a further twist, you can try this idea suggested by Alexander Nelson: establish a level of expertise. For instance, you can record whether someone is an expert or novice pilot, or whether their knowledge of daemon lore is exceptional or merely moderate. This will allow a GM to see in seconds what a character can do, and to what extent they can do it.

As an example, Falamandrius Glunt's description reads: "Novice Shuttle piloting; Novice Surgeon; Moderate Daemonology; Moderate Armourer; Average Imperial history; Advanced Eclesiarchical history; Advanced Theology."

Here are a few ideas for various areas of knowledge - how writing just one or two words can help the GM use the finer points of a character's background:

Data Systems, Arcane Data Systems (Character knows about computers, Arcane being ancient stuff Tech-priests might work with)

Piloting: Boat, Aeroplane, Shuttle, Grav-vehicle etc. (self explanatory!)

Daemonology (character is familiar with the ways and forms of Chaos and its servants. Will be able to identify a type of daemon, work out which god a cult worships and therefore predict its mindset and actions etc)

Armourer (knowledge of maintenance procedures, incantations to the machine god and so on that apply to weapons and armour)

Manufacture Ammunition (the ability to create solid core ammunition for weapons such as stub guns and shotguns)

Mobile Armour (knowledge of how to drive, operate and maintain military vehicles such as tanks, APCs and mobile artillery)

History: Imperial, Pre-Imperial, Eldar, Necrontyr, Ork, Tau, Tyranid etc. (character knows about the history of particular race or period. Will know a given fact if Sg test is passed. Will also have some insight into the methods and philosophy of that race or period)

Mechanics: Basic, Military, Starship etc. (character can maintain the given type of equipment, able to effect repairs and keep components running through all but the most extreme technical hitches. Also includes knowledge of all appropriate prayers, anointments, chants and so on. Characters should be given a chance to 'wing it' with technology they are unfamiliar with)

Electronics (as above but with electrical systems)

Chemistry (as above but with chemicals. May be able to manufacture drugs if they have the right facilities and ingredients, or ammunition such as Hotshot and Hellfire shells if they have Manufacture Ammunition)

Genetics (this skill has no real practical application unless you want to build yourself some Stormtroopers, but shows that the character knows about things like DNA, genetic modification etc.)

Biology (again this has little practical value, but the character may be able to tell whether a type of plant is poisonous, how long you can survive in a given wilderness area, that sort of thing)

Technology: Eldar, Tau, Tyranid, Imperial, Arcane Imperial, Psychic etc. (character knows about the given race or type of technology. Will be able to tell what an item does, how risky it is etc. by passing an Sg test, modified as appropriate. If the character also has the appropriate Electronics, Mechanics, Chemistry or Armourer skills he may be able to work with the technology. Arcane Imperial includes devices like grav-engines, graviton guns, warp drives etc. that would be beyond the knowledge even of characters with Electronics or Mechanics. Psychic means the character knows a bit about Force Weapons, psychic hoods and the like)

Surgery (the character counts as a healer that other characters can 'visit' to heal long-term injuries, as per the rules in White Dwarf. Obviously they must have the right equipment to hand)