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Yeah, to be honest, I think you're *much* safer, game stability-wise, with one larger crew. There will be player attrition. It's really just inevitable on these boards. That's workable if you expect it and plan for it. It really only becomes a problem when it's unexpected. But if we have small 3 person crews, 1-2 of the wrong people dropping out means that ship is done. And then you spend a bunch of time trying to fit the third person left out into the other ship...meh. I'd suggest we go with just one ship. I like the image and idea of two RTs, but I think the logistics of it is problematic, at best.
It actually might be more interesting if historically the RT House has hunted Pirates but recent hard times has forced them to make deals with some Pirate crews to fight some others. Hopefully some of the more "honorable" Pirate organizations, but hey, they're called hard times for a reason. And heck, they aren't reavers! :)
House Durrani is the RT House that my RT is associated with. I posted it mistakenly under my GM tag (Game Master Listener) above. The House is closely associated with the Battlefleet and was originally awarded the Warrant due to it's efforts to settle the Calyx Expanse during the Age of Plunder. Due to the House having ties mostly to Forge worlds and the Battlefleet in Segmentum Tempestus, they have a rather rocky association with the Ecclesiarchy. They have a history of Privateering and Pirate Hunting, so they get along rather poorly with actual Pirates and have a rocky relationship with some Merchant Houses, being associated with one that is old, but which has fallen on hard times at the moment.
Some notes about the Exorcist: 1. It doesn't have any Prow or Dorsal mounts for weapons. It's a good boat for carrying smaller craft, but that's a bad solo role for a ship. That actually fits your fluff really well, so that might be okay with you. Also, small craft are, fluff wise, really good at pirate hunting. Mechanics-wise they're pretty good against anything. 2. You can get another 5 SP from downgrading your crew to Incompetent. This isn't as bad as it looks since crew rolls tend to be terrible even if they're decent. But, it does mean being okay with having a less well-trained crew. Maybe the best of them stayed with the Navy? 3. It's also *really* slow, coming in at 4 speed. Almost anything can outrun it. Though, if you check out the Heart of the Tempest above, you can see how to make a big slow ship fast...at least for short bursts. 4. I'd consider other classes of ship and just put Jovian bays on them. You're basically getting a 2 space discount when you choose the carrier-specific ships, but space is not exactly tough to come by in anything Cruiser sized or higher. Especially if you start picking up Best-quality components. It would cost 4 SP to put two Landing bays on another ship, but that might be worth it. For example, if you did that to the Avenger you'd spend 3 SP to get -2 space, +1 speed, +1 detection, +1 armor, +5 hull integrity. Though you'd still have the same weapon capacity. Overall, because they mount only Port/Starboard weapons and aren't the most maneuverable, Grand Cruisers aren't all that great when alone. However, this fits what you're going for, so that's probably a good thing rather than a bad. :)
I like it. I think you could probably work out the same Warrant History path I used above as well. If you'd prefer Missionaria Galaxia in the Contacts part, that shakes things up a bit. But you end up with a lot more PF. You could do something like this:
Total SP: 62
This is, of course, if you're pushing for as much SP as you can get while also having Inquisition connections as part of the Warrant. That gets you a decent Light Cruiser or a stripped down Cruiser. You can go lower on SP, but then we're getting into decent Frigate or stripped Light Cruiser territory. Not necessarily bad, but Radavel has expressed a preference for Cruisers, so I wouldn't go too light. Alternatively, the Warrant itself doesn't have to be connected to the Inquisition. There are a couple of ways to get the Peer (Ecclesiarchy) Talent and you could also take the "Far Reaching Contacts" Lineage to get three Peer Talents and pick up Inquisition, specifically, as one of them. It's an expensive background, but it's also really good.
Working on some more RT concept, I was thinking of having Qalandar go the Crusade (Call to War) route having him be a former Imperial Navy officer and pushing the concept a bit more in the martial direction to be in line with the "lot of space battles" expectation. So, prior to marrying into the Durrani House, he served in the Navy. I'll also do some work on writing up the House itself (motivations, goals, etc.) in a bit.
I was kind of looking forward to seeing other RT concepts thrown out there. I'm going to post the one I sent the GM here in the hopes that it inspires a few more! The Rogue Trader
Qalandar accompanied Khaista on many an adventure before they found the Lost World of Ur. Unfortunately, the planet was lost with good reason. They thought they had found a dead world. How wrong they were. Khaista died saving her husband. She was not the last of the crew to be lost, but through wits, guile, and a large helping of luck, Qalandar kept what he could alive and led what remained of the crew away from the planet. Without his bravery, the fortunes of House Durrani would have been completely lost. In the wake of this near-disaster the Matriarch of House Durrani declared that Qalandar Khan would carry on as Rogue Trader and regain the fortunes that the House had lost. The Lord-Captain is a tall, well-built man. Despite the darkness in his eyes, he remains quick to smile. His once black hair has started to turn silver, and he keeps a neatly trimmed beard upon his face. He wears a power sword at his waist in a manner that might give the impression he's never even drawn the weapon. The laspistol, almost an antique, seems to see much more use. His attire is that of a noble of Tolkhan, a culture similar to Tallarn's. Loose fitting and lightly colored, Qalandar always looks comfortable in whatever setting he's in. Qalandar is not as familiar with the Imperial Creed as some members of the Ecclesiarchy would like. Despite not being a religious man, he is quite spiritual. But, like many people from Tolkhan, cultural values are sometimes held in higher regard than religion. There are many mysteries surrounding Qalandar Khan, adding to his charm and fame, and not some small amount of infamy. But what is clear to everyone is that his crew will follow him to hell, or back to hell, as it were. That he will be the first to lead the way. And that he'll be laughing the entire trip.
Here's a stab at a ship built for fighting. It's bare bones now, but it's got room both power and space for a bunch of expansion. The crew is downgraded for the backstory; that being a recent tragedy that almost spelt doom for the the Rogue Trader house and almost losing the ship. That could also be used to explain why the ship isn't outfitted with much. Perhaps it *was* but quite a bit was damaged an beyond repair and this is what they got it back to. The weapons listed are really mostly fillers. I like the idea of it having a torpedo loadout, especially so low on PF. It means that the crew can pack a huge punch, but it'll cost them as they can't easily replace those shots. The macrobattery and lances are just thrown on and are easily switched around to something more fitting. I've found lances to be *really* subpar with the RT ship combat rules out of the book. With the Mathhammer rules they're a bit better. But I think the build works either way. The ship's biggest "thing" is the amazing amount of speed you can get out of it for a Battlecruiser. Not much can escape this thing. I was torn on the Barracks. It gives a massive boost to military endeavors, which is good, but the ship is currently *very* focused. It might be more interesting to have something like Extended Supply Vaults or Arboretum and design it to stay out of port for extended amounts of time hunting pirates and such. Or maybe those were parts of the ship that were damaged beyond repair and need replacement? With that said, it's way undergunned at the moment. Which is fine since it's fast and armored up. But that's something the crew would want to work towards.
Hull Fluff:
Overlord-class Battlecruiser Dimensions: 5.3km long,0.85 km abeam at fins approx. Mass: 31 megatonnes approx. Crew: 100,000 crew, approx. Accel: 2.4 gravities max sustainable acceleration. A successful early illustration of how workable the battlecruiser concept can be, the Overlord is as fine an example of a pure warship as can be found. Most Rogue Traders find the ship is poorly suited to anything other than combat, as its enormous weapons systems place a colossal strain upon the plasma drive. Some Rogue Traders strip out the extensive macrobatteries, freeing up space for other Components, but others regard this as a foolish and blinkered waste of some of the most elegantly designed and lethally effective weapons systems in the galaxy. Manufactured in the vast orbital shipyards of Cypra Mundi (as well as at other shipyards in lesser numbers), the Overlord is a difficult vessel to construct, but faithful and fierce in its service to mankind. It does not waste space on massive attack craft hangers or the temperamental nova cannon. Instead, most designs use powerful long-range macrobatteries and lance turrets, backed by prow torpedo tubes. This simple, proven, and effective weaponry plays to the strengths of Imperial Navy tactics and Imperial technology. The design is an ancient but successful one, and new examples of the class are still commissioned every decade or so. Hull Crunch (base):
Speed: 5 Maneuverability: +10 Detection: +10 Hull Integrity: 70 Armour: 20 Turret Rating: 2 Space: 78 Base SP: 64 Weapon Capacity: Prow 1, Port 2, Starboard 2, Dorsal 1 Battlecruiser: This ship can use “cruisers only” Components
Complication and Machine Spirit Oddity:
Machine Spirit Oddities - Wrothful: The ship’s spirit constantly smoulders with anger. In battle, it explodes into a berserker fury, straining and exhausting its systems. During combat, the ship gains +1 Speed and + 7 Maneuverability. Out of combat, the ship suffers –1 Speed and –5 to Maneuverability and Detection. Past Histories - Wrested from a Space Hulk; The ship has been recovered from a space hulk - a mass of wrecked ships that drifts intermittently through the warp and realspace. The ship is very old (and thus of high quality), but those who know of its origins whisper that it is cursed. The ship gains +1 Armour, +1 Speed, and +3 Maneuverability. However, every time the crew suffers a Misfortune, the GM rolls twice and chooses the worse of the two. The curse can have many other effects as well, many ill, but a truly skilled Rogue Trader can turn any situation to profit... Essential Components:
Plasma Drive: Saturnine-pattern class 4a “ultra” drive Power Generated: 90, Space: 14, SP:0 Warp Engine: Miloslav h-616.b Warp engine
Geller Field: Geller Field
Void Shields: Dual Void Shield Array
Ship's Bridge: Ship's Master Bridge
Life Sustainers: Vitae Pattern Life Sustainer
Crew Quarters: Voidsmen Quarters
Augur Arrays: Mark–201.b Auger Array
Supplemental Components:
Barracks Soldiers: When working toward a Military objective, the players earn an additional 100 Achievement Points towards completing that objective. Reinforcements: If the ship is transporting troops, it gains +20 to all Command Tests involving boarding actions and Hit and Run Actions. Power: 2, Space: 4, SP: 2 Trophy Room
Energistic Conversion Matrix
Supplemental Components, Weapons: -
Dorsal
Port
Starboard
------------
Speed: 6 (7 combat, 5 non-combat) Maneuverability: +13 (20 combat, 15 non-combat) Detection: +15 (10 non-combat) Hull Integrity: 70/70 Crew Population: 100/100 Crew Rating: Incompetent (Skill 20) Morale: 100/100 Armour: 21 Turret Rating: 2 Space Remaining: 10 (68 Used) Power Remaining: 18 (72 Used) Weapon Capacity: Port 1 (1 used), Port 2 (1 used), Starboard 2 (1 used), Dorsal 1 (1 used)
I realized I didn't post the character sheet with the background. Here it is. Just the breakdown. I can link to a pretty sheet sometime this weekend. Character Sheet: Name: Finn McCaskill Chronicle: Rage Across Ireland Breed: Homid
Willpower: 7
Renown:
Attributes Physical:
Social:
Mental:
Abilities Talents:
Skills:
Knowledges:
Backgrounds:
Gifts:
Rites:
Flaws
Merits
Freebies
I'm happy to leave the details of it to you. In my head I'm thinking that he consulted with spirits that advised that he allow Finn to go through the Rite. So, perhaps even he's not sure why, but given his auspice, he has faith it is for a reason. And in the end, it's more important that he act enigmatic about it than the reason ever come out.
I think I've settled on an idea: Finn McCaskill, a Homid Theurge of the Fianna and bastard child of Tadgh Ó Dónaill. Background:
When the McCaskill girl said she was pregnant, at first it was a rather huge scandal. A Kin of the Get to have one of Ó Dónaill's bastards? Outrageous. But then, there was some talk about how this could be a boon. The blood of a Fianna hero mixed with a McCaskill will lead to quite the pure lineage. The birth was complicated; the girl died, but the child survived. Among the Get this was taken as a sign. They, of course, mourned the loss of their Kin, but the boy's survival showed he was strong. Finn was raised in Roscrea by his aunt and uncle though he was watched by the Sept in the Slieve Bloom Mountains. He was introduced to the world of Garou even before his Change, being groomed for his future. A clever and quick boy, Finn learned everything he could. No one saw it coming. His failure during the Rite of Passage was spectacular. He had been told, and trained, his whole life to know that the test would be one of strength. But, he was clever...and quick. Surely, he'd be able to think his way out of whatever it was. The Get of Fenris have had centuries to perfect their rites. Cleverness wasn't enough. He couldn't run, or think, or outsmart the rite. When his body was returned they thought him dead. His throat was torn, and half his face removed, his left eye reduced to pulp in the socket. However, he did survive and eventually healed. Mostly. His Kin dumped him in Munster. Some few hoped that the Fianna would give him another chance. Most just wanted him to go away. It was hard to deny one of Tadgh's children the rite, even if he was a bastard and had failed another tribe's. Since the rite Finn has been remarkably unremarkable. He has worked for the Sept's Master of Rites and done a fine job. He's neither made a serious mistake nor stood out. 10 Minute Character Background: Background and Concept: 1. Finn is a bridge between the Get of Fenris and Fianna in Ireland. 2. It's important that despite the early promise, he hasn't (as of yet) lived up to that potential. And the expectation is that he most likely never will. 3. The Get of Fenris see Finn as a failure. However, much of the enmity they have for him is because they think he hates them for failing their rite. Whereas Finn actually believes that the Get are right. Sometimes you can't outrun or out-think the enemy. 4. He remains heavily scarred and missing an eye. He also has a hard time howling and usually whispers in homid form. (Though not to the extent that it's an actual speech impediment.) 5. Finn doesn't feel any particular affinity to Tadgh, but he is curious as to what happened to him. He's not sure how to feel about him as a "father" because he thinks of his Get Kin as more family than the Fianna. He's not sure how to feel about being a member of the Fianna. Goals:
Secrets:
People:
Memories and Mannerisms:
I think my strider idea just keeps coming back because its the tribe I've played the longest. :) I'll stick to the Fianna concept.
I've got a couple of ideas rolling around in my head. I guess my first question is, does Tadgh have any Metis children? I'm a little torn between an Ahroun or Theurge on that idea (leaning towards Theurge). But, I also have an concept rolling around for a Silent Strider that was came to the area because a spirit told him it was where he needed to be.
It took a while to work out an idea that I wanted to play. I think I've finally landed on a former Teutonic knight embraced after fighting in Prussia. Served as a ghoul for a few years to a very old an prestigious Lasombra who, while not a Prince himself, is often sought out for advice. The basic idea is that the character was embraced for being a good knight with potential to be something more. Though he's had trouble managing to pick up the complications of politics. It's not that he's not clever, or a decent fighter, or anything of the sort. But, because of the pressure of his Sire (or perceived pressure) he often tries too hard. His Sire has decided that a change of scenery might do him good and has sent him off to the court of an old associate. He's young and eager, but he's not sure what he's eager *for*. And that tends to be his downfall. I'll have a character sheet up tomorrow along with a short background.
No worries, you had a lot of stuff to work through! I think Mysterious is close but I'm not sure it's enough since most Mountain Men are. Maybe The Curious Mountain Man, sort of playing on him being curious but also being odd. Though I think that overlaps somewhat with his Trouble in the way I expect them both to work out. Maybe, The Hard Man of the Mountain. That seems like it branches out the character in a direction that defines him better. Trouble: your second explanation really helped me get my head around this. There's a 'pride', as you say, that pushes him to make big things out what others would shrug off. There's also an almost alien apathy concerning things that others would really prioritize. I don't see any need to phrase anything differently, but that explanation was extremely helpful. I hope I have that right. That's exactly right!
I really like the idea of not being held by things. It works especially well because the character would consider a promise or obligation to be an almost sacred thing. And, without being able to be held by them, he'd also refuse to give his word, knowing that he can't promise things. I like how that works out as a bonus, but grates on one of the things he considers a moral imperative. As for his wife, I expect that she's still living with his two children and taking care of them. Mainly because I like the idea that he's still got a family and feels tied to them. He feels obliged to visit them and provide for them, but also wants to stay away for fear of growing to hate his wife.
The High Concept and Trouble have relatively easy applications. The Mountain Man is a straight steal of a western trope and comes with all the trappings. It comes into play as knowledge of the land and the people/things that live outside the town and how to deal with them (good or bad), but it also comes with a problem fitting in when in "civilized" settings. His trouble is his constant struggle. For a guy that seems so together and so self-aware, he never seems to get it right. At least from a normal person's perspective. He's proud, which gets him into trouble when other people would shrug and turn away. And there are things he doesn't care about, where other people would get offended. As for his Bargain, I have a vague idea in my head, but it's still bouncing around and I think I'll wait to see more characters to make it more solid. He's not much of a Ghostrider type as there's not a lot of "vengeance" going on. I'll leave that to other characters. ;) But there are certainly aspects there like the somewhat continuous service to the Devil rather than a one-time thing. As for a horse, I'm going back and forth about that too. I like the idea of being a rider. On the other hand, when I picture him, he's tracking on foot.
The High Concept: The Mountain Man
It's hard to know what's true about a man like Eli J. Ashley. Most agree that he was born in what is now West Virginia (but what, at the time, of course, was just Virginia). Some say his first wife died when he was a young man, well before he served in the Union army. There are those that claim he's told a story about serving with the 7th at Petersburg, but yet others claim that he was one of Blazer's Scouts. For a man of few words, there are certainly a lot of stories about where he came from. After the war he headed west looking for adventure. He's made a name for himself as an excellent hunter, tracking anything...even other men. He tends to disappear for months at a time, coming to town to drop off fur or other things for trade and occasionally getting some work. Eli J. Ashley has done a lot of bad things and always knew when he died he'd be heading down. But, despite having nothing to lose, it wasn't he who actually made the initial bargain. Shortly after heading west, Eli married a native woman and had two children. Several years ago, during a harsh winter, both children fell deathly ill. It was his wife that sold her soul for their lives. Upon learning this Eli offered his own for hers, but the spirit was uninterested in a soul that would eventually be his anyway. Instead, Eli would have to serve, and serve well.
I'm working on a computer/tech specialist that infiltrates and improvises "stuff". He wouldn't be especially good in a fight, but he wouldn't be someone you'd want to give a chance to prepare. He'll probably end up with a level or two of Jedi with some concealment-style powers, some Scoundrel for slicing, and a healthy dose of Scout for stealth/infiltration and general up-to-no-goodness. And finally going down the Saboteur route as a Prestige class. It's getting late for me at the moment so I'll work on him a bit more tomorrow and see if I can't work up an actual sheet and background.
There's a bunch of information about them in the Knights of the Old Republic book (pg. 187 starts their chapter). Any race can be a Mandalorian. They do a lot of recruiting around this time.
Well, it is for knowledge skills. There's a reason why no one thinks bards are overpowered because they can make knowledge skills untrained and get bonuses to all of them. Having knowledge skills is nice, but it isn't exactly going to make people feel awful about themselves if they don't know some obscure fact and another character does. Keep in mind, the *only* time it's a big deal is if one of the other characters in the group doesn't have that particular knowledge skill. Otherwise, this character is the backup just in case. I mean, I *love* bards, and I *love* knowledge skills. But, not having them is even less likely to matter in Saga than it does in Pathfinder. I think it's certainly worth "discouraging", but as long as the player isn't planning to create a character that replaces nearly every skill with use the force, it'll probably be an okay character.
At the moment I'm torn between a pilot and a close-combat take-down specialist. I contemplated the con artist scoundrel/noble, but I play that in a lot of games and rarely get the chance to actually play a character whose specialization is actual fighting. (Though given how many talents we get, the character would be *far* more than just a fighter.) But the edges of the character are what are taking time coming together. I'm sure they'll form as I see more character ideas. ;)
I'm quite interested in this game, but I also have a slight concern. GM Loup, you run and play in a *lot* of games. Do you think starting more games will slow your production in other games? At the risk of adding more applicants, the other game of yours I'm playing is *very* good, but we also don't come close to one post per day. As for what I'll submit, I'm not really sure. Probably some combination of Noble/Jedi or Scoundrel/Jedi. An idea is forming in my brain, but it's not *quite* there yet.
I have to say, looking at it seems like it's better to start Weapon Specialist and pick up the heavy weapon skill than it is to actually go heavy gunner? Or am I missing something? The only problem with that is that Weapon Specialists don't get a heavy weapon as part of their kit. But in this regiment they could be carrying the RPG (the unit's "basic" weapon.)
I was just thinking for a skillset sort of example. Operators get Fellowship, Fieldcraft, Intelligence, and Tech. Which covers a lot of "military intelligence" skill areas. Really, they're just lacking Perception to be perfect on all the most useful skills. Commissars would make better human intelligence operatives though, with Social and Fellowship being primaries. But Operators are the clear winner when it comes to signals and intercept. That's actually a pretty good divide. Now I want to see that in action! :)
I'm also not opposed to running a Commissar but fluffing him as an Imperial Intelligence agent or some such. Generals & factions employ spies all the time, so you could have the combat abilities & skillset of Commissar while not technically outranking your fellow soldiers. That's an interesting take on a Commissar. I'll have to think about it, though I think an intel agent might be better portrayed as an operator. Actually, I guess a human intelligence agent (as opposed to signals intelligence) would be better served with the Commissar skillset.
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