Dark heresy, the Adepts pursuit of knowledge.

[profitofrage]

Hi playgrounders, Im here ounce again with a Dark Heresy based thread.
Recently me and my friends decided to pick up a new campaign and whats more ....Randomly generate all our characters.
Thats right...everything random from our homeworld to our eye colour.
We as a party of three were left with a rather interesting outcome.

A Forge world Scum, Now this is funny as in every game thus far he has either been guardsmen...feral world guardsmen...feral world cleric...or likewise...some form of feral ignorant murderer who is prone to shouting "blood for the blood god!" out of character.....then tearing off jaws and wearing them IN character. Hes also had a rather fun time insulting and hating on the Ommnisiah :P so the fact hes from a greater forge world..and his heart sings to the sound of binary made me laugh.

A void born Psyker, This funnily enough was optimised seemingly by random.
This play has a habit for optimization which was shocking as the random dice rollers we had him use seemed to pump him full of various willpower advances.

I myself...got a Schola Prognegium Adept...and im a tad bit worried.
I have never played an Adept seriously before and Im unsure what to expect of them. So tell me playground...what has been your experiences with Adepts? Tips? cautionary tales? Trap xp purchases to look out for?

Alternativly you can give your own stories about randomly generated characters and the hilarity that ensues.

[Dead_Jester]

If your Dm is ok with it, I'd grab Thy Name I Keep background package and the Malefic Scholar advanced career for the sorcery abilities (both from the Radical's Handbook). It's always fun to make a character from the Schola fall from grace. As for skills and talents, focus on those that can't be directly replicated with psionic powers, things like Medicae and Tech Use (you guys don't have a tech-priest). Later, you'll have a choice between the Comptroller (more utility and skills) or Lexographer (more psi fun) paths, depending on what you need.

Also, there should be one member in your team dedicated to using suppressing fire during firefights, and Adepts are quite suited for this job, as their ballistic skill isn't usually that great.

[MickJay]

A 185cm tall (6'2''), red-haired female assassin with a bluish skin, who was also Unremarkable.

As for playing an Adept: grab a good gun, stay in the back, and invest first and foremost in all the knowledges and useful skills you can get. You're the brain of the group (especially if there's no tech-priest), make everyone appreciate that.

As for trap xp - depends what sort of game it's going to be. Some of the knowledges might be completely useless, depending on the game, and as always, some of the talents are not really worth taking, but that's the same with Adept as with any other class. Just about the only thing I'd advise against is increasing your melee - as good as it is, it's too costly for an Adept.

[Leon]

At least 2 Good pistols.

A autopistol for everyday use in every situation and a laspistol for when the autopistol runs out/jams ammo.

[MickJay]

If you have access to Inquisitor's Handbook, grabbing a red-dot l.s. Carnodon and a Hecuter autopistol (ideally with extra ammo attachments) will get you a long way.

edit: just remember that the errata made Hecuter a bit weaker.

[king.com]

If your Dm is ok with it, I'd grab Thy Name I Keep background package and the Malefic Scholar advanced career for the sorcery abilities (both from the Radical's Handbook).

If your GM smiles at you and says you may..DO NOT DO IT!!! Picking up anything radical handbook is justifyably labelling you as a heretic, and anyone who finds out that you made a pact with a demon, is completely in their rights to kill you (even your own party members). Not to mention the promises you actually make to the demon itself being ludicrously dangerous.

Everyone seems to be really advising you to go a combat character, as an adept, your kinda missing the point, your the knowledge character. If you see a skill that requires int, or has the world "Lore" in it. Buy it. Your ultimate goal should be to get a best quality cortex implant, help the team by investigating. Then again your GM may treat this game like dnd, in which case, it doesnt really matter what you do.

[Leon]

Everyone seems to be really advising you to go a combat character, as an adept, your kinda missing the point, your the knowledge character. If you see a skill that requires int, or has the world "Lore" in it. Buy it. Your ultimate goal should be to get a best quality cortex implant, help the team by investigating. Then again your GM may treat this game like dnd, in which case, it doesnt really matter what you do.

Combat will happen and the Adept will be involved so some readiness is advisable.

[king.com]

Combat will happen and the Adept will be involved so some readiness is advisable.

Other than "get a full auto weapn and hope for the best" he really shouldnt be focusing on it. Also, considering the party mixup, theres a good chance there wouldn't be combat.

[Leon]

Other than "get a full auto weapn and hope for the best" he really shouldnt be focusing on it. Also, considering the party mixup, theres a good chance there wouldn't be combat.

hence my suggestion of get a Autopistol and a backup laspistol - thats all he needs to be combat capable.

I cant offer much more advice beyond that as i have not played as a Adept or with one

[Dead_Jester]

Indeed, as King.com said, taking anything from the Radical's Handbook is more or less a death sentence if anyone finds out, but hiding your powers is half the fun, and when some one finds out, you unleash the big guns. The worst that can happen is you'll either go out in a blaze of glory warp energy or you'll become a chaos spawn

Also, you might want to invest in social skills related to higher society, as you're the only who is mostly socially acceptable character in the group (unless your psyker decides to go around abusing mind control and jedi mind tricks or the scum is a dashing gentleman).

[king.com]

Indeed, as King.com said, taking anything from the Radical's Handbook is more or less a death sentence if anyone finds out, but hiding your powers is half the fun, and when some one finds out, you unleash the big guns. The worst that can happen is you'll either go out in a blaze of glory warp energy or you'll become a chaos spawn

Also, you might want to invest in social skills related to higher society, as you're the only who is mostly socially acceptable character in the group (unless your psyker decides to go around abusing mind control and jedi mind tricks or the scum is a dashing gentleman).

Considering the scum's biggest strength is his ability to be dashing, he can very easily get all han solo through the adventure.

[hamishspence]

Indeed, as King.com said, taking anything from the Radical's Handbook is more or less a death sentence if anyone finds out, but hiding your powers is half the fun, and when some one finds out, you unleash the big guns. The worst that can happen is you'll either go out in a blaze of glory warp energy or you'll become a chaos spawn

Given that the new Grey Knights codex allows you to take inquisitors with daemonblades, and Daemonhosts, in the army, alongside GKs, the DM might be justified in being more lenient with radicals.

[king.com]

Given that the new Grey Knights codex allows you to take inquisitors with daemonblades, and Daemonhosts, in the army, alongside GKs, the DM might be justified in being more lenient with radicals.

Yea...that would make him a radical. The only reason a radical is alive? People dont know hes actually a heretic. I mean without going into the big long ideological debate within the inquisition struture itself, its just safe to say the VAST majority of Inquisitors are going to be violently opposed to anything in that book. Also, with the kind of "Bonuses without any downside" mentality the radical's handbook has, the DM must treat a radical as something dangerous and corrupting or they may aswell give every playey free abilities to keep up.

[Ranos]

I kinda like a sister dialogus with some emperor's sign powers. And some forbidden lore (daemonology) to make anti-daemon pentagrammic wards.

Yea...that would make him a radical. The only reason a radical is alive? People dont know hes actually a heretic.

Not really. Getting Excommunicate traitoris is pretty damn hard.
You'd need a puritan inquisitor to take a real interest in taking you down, try to acquire immense amounts of evidence, and then bet his reputation, his career, and his life by openly denouncing you. Then, if he has overwhelming evidence, and you don't have enough friends in the Inquisition to make it go away, you're excommunicated.
If what you're doing is so public it just can't be covered up though, you're pretty much done as well. But few inquisitors are that stupid.

[hamishspence]

Sometimes it's the puritan inquisitors getting excommunicated by the radicals- in the aforementioned codex, a Radical Ordo Xenos inquisitor excommunicates a puritan one for exterminatus-ing a world on dubious grounds.

However- her declaration may not have been ratified by the rest of the Inquisition- it's implied that the two are feuding and the others aren't taking sides.

[king.com]

I kinda like a sister dialogus with some emperor's sign powers. And some forbidden lore (daemonology) to make anti-daemon pentagrammic wards.

Not really. Getting Excommunicate traitoris is pretty damn hard.
You'd need a puritan inquisitor to take a real interest in taking you down, try to acquire immense amounts of evidence, and then bet his reputation, his career, and his life by openly denouncing you. Then, if he has overwhelming evidence, and you don't have enough friends in the Inquisition to make it go away, you're excommunicated.
If what you're doing is so public it just can't be covered up though, you're pretty much done as well. But few inquisitors are that stupid.

That would be the approach of an Amalathian. A Monodominant or a Thorian isnt going to be anywhere near as subtle.

[Weasel of Doom]

Radical doesn't mean heretical, at least not to the extent that it necessarily deserves purging. As with all things in 40k what deserves purging can vary dramatically between worlds and individuals so I don't think it is fair to say that everything in the radical's handbook is immediate purging material (Thy Name I Keep is probably one of the most purge-worthy though). For example on some worlds mutants are purged at birth, others they form a slave underclass and on a few they are simply despised second-class citizens.

As far as playing an adept goes your role in combat will most often be suppressing fire (which we've always found pretty essential in combat) and lobbing the occasional grenade (things like smoke or hallucinogen which have such a wide blast missing isn't that important). Patching people up with medicae will endear you to your teammates but you'll excel out of combat, aim to pick up any lore skill you can (esp forbidden lore).

[king.com]

Radical doesn't mean heretical, at least not to the extent that it necessarily deserves purging. As with all things in 40k what deserves purging can vary dramatically between worlds and individuals so I don't think it is fair to say that everything in the radical's handbook is immediate purging material (Thy Name I Keep is probably one of the most purge-worthy though). For example on some worlds mutants are purged at birth, others they form a slave underclass and on a few they are simply despised second-class citizens.

I think your missing something, in WH40k, everyone deserves purging. There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt. Any slight deviancy from hardened ecclesiarchy doctrine is heresy to a Monodominant. Hell, some would even find space marines all heretics since they dont believe in the Emperor as a god. The rule with the radicals handbook is treat everything as a step to heresy OR make every single player take something from it, the book is very silly and broken but demonstrates how choas is more powerful than the standard tools of the Inquisition and using chaos to fight chaos?

Its a natural choice....words of Inquisitor Carthimus, Excommunicate 3 321 535 M31. Current state unknown.

Thought for the day: "Being blind allows one to see"

[profitofrage]

Thank you all for the delicious knowledge sacks..all of which dripping with lovely info juices.

Or in a slightly less creepy way, thanks for the info guys ^_^ much appreciated and KEEP IT COMING! :) I dont think there could possibly be "to much good advice"

[Ranos]

That would be the approach of an Amalathian. A Monodominant or a Thorian isnt going to be anywhere near as subtle.

Well, yes, you could just skip all that and try to get the guy killed. This applies just as well to Puritans though. If they piss off a radical, they can expect some assassins.

It's not really a question of "radical gets killed because he's a radical" here, more like"radical gets killed because he's less powerful and influent than a puritan". The reverse could apply just as well.



Point is, radicals are basically just as safe as puritans. Except for all that chaos stuff that will sooner or later destroy their minds and souls.

[king.com]

Oh couple of warnings, if you find yourself in posession of a book, be very very careful before reading it. Also, the total recall talent, while absolutely awesome, is incredibly dangerous.

[Destro_Yersul]

Well, yes, you could just skip all that and try to get the guy killed. This applies just as well to Puritans though. If they piss off a radical, they can expect some assassins.

It's not really a question of "radical gets killed because he's a radical" here, more like"radical gets killed because he's less powerful and influent than a puritan". The reverse could apply just as well.



Point is, radicals are basically just as safe as puritans. Except for all that chaos stuff that will sooner or later destroy their minds and souls.

If you happen to be an Inquisitor. These are acolytes, they're a lot more expendable.

The Radical's Handbook, while full of powerful stuff, is likely to draw the wrong sort of attention if you aren't careful with it. Or even if you are. I had a Daemon Vessel once, used a fate point and failed his WP test... that was some fun RP, but it ended in the character's death at the hands of his own Inquisitor once the adventure was over.

Bottom line: Be careful with it. The path of radicalism has few mechanical drawbacks, but plenty of in-universe ones.

As for adepts, I think Schola Progenium is one of the best homeworlds for them because it saves you spending XP on weapon talents. You get a handful of them to start with, and can put more XP into tasty tasty Lore skills. You want lots of those, Tech-Use if you can get it, and any talents that make you better at finding things out. Grab a Full-Auto weapon and a laspistol and go to town.