Th ae 789000) ROLEPLAY TCT ah: CORE RULEBOOK@NLYWAR ROLEPLAYING IN THE GRIM DARKNESS OFTHE 41ST MILLENNIUMIGN @) Fantasy Flight Games ONLY WAR DESIGNED By ‘Andrew Fischer with additional concepts by Mack Martin and Sam Stewart LEAD DEVELOPER, Andrew Fischer WAITING AND DEVELOPMENT ‘Owen Bames, Max Brooke, Nathan Dowdell, John Dunn, Matthews "HBMC” Eustace, Tim Flanders, lan Hlardin, Andy Hoare, Jason Marker, Mack Martin, Charles May, Brandon Rospond, and Sam Stewart BASED ON DARK HERESY, DESIGNED BY ‘Owen Bames, Kate Flack, and Mike Mason EDITING AND PROOFREADING. Graham Davey, Alex Davy, Matt Harkrader, and David Johnson GRAPHIC DESIGN Edge Studios, David Ardila with WiL Springer ‘CovER ART Sam Wood INTERIOR ART ALL. Ashbaugh, Alberto Bontempi, Matt Bradbury, Sam Burley, Jon Cave, Mauro Dal Bo, Javier G, Urea, Diego Gisbert Llorens, Zach Graves, llich Henriquez, Nikolaus Ingeneri, Michal Ivan, Jason Juta, Anton Kokarey, Mathias Kollros, Sam Lamont, Simon Lissaman, Jorge Maese, Marco, Morte, Sean Andrew Murray, Ameen Nakweviee, David ‘Auden Nash, and Mark W. Seaith CREDITS TIANAGING ART DIRECTOR, Andrew Navaro ART DIRECTION Andy Christensen PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT Eric Knight LICENSING AND DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR Deb Beck EXECUTIVE GAME DESIGNER. Corey Koniecaka EXECUTIVE PRODUCER ‘Michael Hurley PUBLISHER, CheisanT Petre Games Workshop LicensING ITIANAGER, John French, Andy Hall, and Owen Rees HEAD OF LICENSING Jon Gillard HEAD OF LICENSING, LEGAL AND STRATEGIC PROIECTS Andy Jones HEAD OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ‘Alan Meret SPECIAL THANKS TO THE PLAYTESTERS FANTASY FLIGHT GAMES See page 397 fora full list Copyright © Games Workthop Limited 2012, ames Wotkshon, Warhammes 40,00, Wachimer 40,000 Role Pay, Only We the foegning make especie logos ad all asocsed asks, logos places, aumes ceases ane ce ola devits/ loge sys ees Jcaons, Weapons isan lg, haar, products and sans em the Wat hawner 40,00) unis and the Only War gee seg ate hr ‘and/or © Gane Worlsop Lit 2000-2012, variably egitered inthe UK ander cou iene fo Farry Fight Piste Inc Fanny Flight Games and the Famasy Fight Genes logo are eademars or repre rade of Fantasy High Publahog nc Al sighs eared to thi cepctve owoura No put oft puinon maybe ceproduced, aoe aa eevee, 6 Bea ey fe by ory wale tcc poco ey recite cri tes i pe ee ISBN; 978-1-61661-469-0 Product Code: IGO1 Printed in China For more information about the Ovty Waa line, fee downlouds, answers to rule queties, o ust to pas on greetings visit us online at www FantasyFlightGames.com Fantasy Flight Games 1975 West County Road B2 Roseville, MN 55113 Usa (orate the wet Tem on pete Print ID: 1405NOVi2CONTENTS Foreword 6 Introduction ‘Wor Without End... a 8 Blood-soaked Stars nd Broken Worlds... 10 Worlds at Wat se B “The Calixis Sector and Spinward Front... B Hammer of the Emper0? E 14 Born in Bathe orn att Chain of Command pes ‘The God-Emperor's Armoury... 18 Mobilisation for War i 19 Auxiliaries and Support Forces... 24 Anatomy oF a Regiment. 4 eee eyine the Game Game Dice Lckeas Characters nn 28 Characteristics and Characteristic Bones. 29 Test on 29 “The Core Mechanic 29 Skill Tess 30 Characteristic Tests 30 Degrees of Success and Failure 30 Extended Tests 3 Opposed Tests 31 “Test Difficulty. 32 ‘The Role of Fate. 33 Using Fate Points. 33 Burning Fate 33 Gaining Additional Fate Poins 33 Chapter IMI: Character Creation Movement 33. Creating a Guardsman. Structured and Narative Time. 33. Stage 1: Generate Characteristics Climbing . 34 Stage 2: Choose Speciality 35 Heavy Gunner... 36 Medic. a Jumping and Leeping.. ‘Swimming, os Carrying, Lifing, and Pushing Object. 36 Operator 2 Lighting. z ‘ 37 Sergeant. Fying... E : 38 Weapon Specialist. “he Effects of Gravity i 38 COMME enn Chapter Il: Regiment Creation Ministrum Priest ‘Anatomy of a Regiment cond OBFYR. 2 Choosing a Regiment ft Rating a Cadian Shock Troops dz Sanctioned Payker CCatachan jungle Fighters fa Storm Trooper nn Death Korps of Kreg de Tech-Pries Enginsce. Elysian Drop Troops : 4g Stage 3; Wounds, Fate, and Spending Experience. Maccabian Janissaries So Wounds , Moria Tron Gua co : 32 Fite Point. $4 Starting Experience. 56 APLIRES nm 58 Characteristic Advances 38 Skill Advances nnn 39 Talent Advances... 63 Stage 4: Giving Character Life... Ga Stage 5: Generate Comrades nnn 63 Creating a Comrade, Jo Losing and Replacing Comrades. Tallarn Desert Raiders Yostroyan Fistborn..n Regiment Creation Rules. ‘Creating a Regiment... ‘Choosing a Home World or Or ; ‘Commanding Officer. : ‘Training and Doctrines Standard Regimental Guardsman Kit. Finishing, Touches... fChapter IV: Skills Using Skil. . 112 Skill Te : 112 Untrained Skil Use. S 113, Specialist Skill... 2 arey Skill Descriptor... : 114 Gaining Skills .0 " 114 Skill Description... ed ole 80 16) Chapter V: Talents and Traits Using Talents 136 Gaining Talents... Talents... Tats. Trt Descriptions. Chapter VI: Armoury Regimental Logistics. 161 Logistics . 161 Standard Regimental Guardsman Kit. 163 Mission Assignment Geat vonnnnm 165 Equipment Crafsmanship, 166 Weapons nrnsnn 168 ‘Weapon Special Qualities. 169 Las Weapons 175 Solid Projectile Weapons... Bolt Weapons. ‘Malta Weapons... Plasma Weapons Flame Weapons Low-Tech Weapons Launchers. Grenades, Mises, and Rounds Exotic Wepons. Melee Weapons. Chain Weapons Power Weapons Force Weapons, Low-tech Weapons. Weapon Upgrades smn Weapon Customisation Aman ition on Unusual Ammunition. Asillery Shell... Armour. Force Fields. Wargeat a Clothing and Worn Gear. Drugs and Consumables TOO ven Cybernetics Bionic Replacement Limbs and Body Parts Implant Systems .cnson zs Imperial Guard Vehicles... i Vehicle Type5.ernnnsnn ¥ Vehicle Speeds. oosenncn if Vehicle Tit sevens Imperial Guard Vehidles....Chapter VII: Psychic Powers Paykers i the Imperial Guar... Psychic Powers in Only War... ay RINGS eee Using Payehie Powers oc Paychie Strengthen Focus Power Test. : Psychic BOL nnn Psychic Phenomena... Paychic Power. Power Format Biomancy, Divination Pyromancy Telekiness “Telepathy. Chapter VITT: Combat _ Narrative Time vs Structured Time. Narrative Time. Structured Time Combat OvervieW..nn Using Actions. ‘The Attack. : Unarmed Combst.. “Two-Weapon Fighting. ‘Combat Circumstances. Injury. Characteriste Damage... ee Healing ‘Comrades in Combat... Cohesion, OS Performing Owdes... ‘Comrades Being Attacked... Vehicles. 4 i Driving @ Vehicle cnn Vehicle Combat een Damage & Repaie... zs Repairing Vehicles. Chapter IX: The Game Master “The Role of he GM. 222 223 223 223 223 225 226 sn 226 229 sn 229 30 mo nn 233 mit 237 240 240 240 240 242 249 251 252 253 256 236 237 237 266 269 269 270 an 272 272 278 281 281 288, 280 290 290 291 292 292 292 294 294 296 296 296 297 297 298 Dispositions. Interaction and Groups. Fear and Damnation SE ee Feat ens £ Insanity. Conruption. Using Only War with Other Games, Conversion Rules Chapter X: A Galaxy of War “The Imperium of Man. “The Masters of Mankind "The Emperor's Wats. ‘The Calixis Sector. ‘The Koronus Expanse ‘The Jericho Reach.. ‘The Sereaming Vortex “The Spinward Front... Sins ofthe Fathers... "The Green Tide Rises. Total Wet. ‘Worlds ofthe Spinward Front ‘The Periphery Sub-Sector. Kath Ganf Magna. Sisk Sinophis Cyclopea By eee. Wasagh! Grimioof. Avitohol. ‘The Severan Dominate Chapter XI: Adversaries & NPCs Chaos... 5 Chaos Vehicles. Dark Eldar. Dark Eldar Vehicles. Oi Sis cele (Ork Vehicles _ NPCs Chapter XII: Against the Savages Adventure Background... Adventure Summary Skeynne Gazette. Arrival Meetings and Assignment ‘Through the Jungle. At the Refinery... Holding the Facility Wap-Up. NPC Appendiz... Inde ‘Character Sheet,FOREWORD I: 1987 Games Workshop released a sci-fi miniatures rulebook called Rogue Trader and captured:heimagination lf gamers across the world with their depiction of a grim, dark futuce among the stars. For two decades, fins of| ‘Warhammer 40,000 clanoured for a roleplaying experience set in this deep and engaging serting, Then, five years ago, Games Workshop delivered Danx Henrsy, the ist of what would become a full line of roleplaying games set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe ‘Dank Henost allowed players to assume the roles of Acolytes inthe servic of powerful Inquisitor: With unhindered authority, Acolytes explored the deepest, darkest corners ofthe Imperium (of Man, rooting aut heresy from the bowels of monumental hive cites to the spires of glorious shrine worlds ‘After the release of Dank Heresy and its frst few supplements, the Warhammer 40K Roleplay line was licensed to Fantasy Flight Games We picked up right where it left ‘off, and took the next big step with the release of @ new core rulebook in the line: Rocus Teapen. This game gave the players complete freedom co explore the 40K universe as they wanted. Empowered by theit Warrant of Trade, the players set off into the dark void to explore, fight, and even steal their vay to great success and prof. The third game line to be released for Warhammer 40K Roleplay took on the challenge of encapsulating one of the most iconie aspects of Warhammer: the Adeptus Astartes In Dearnwarea, the players embark on dangerous missions as members of an elite group of xenos-hunting Space Marines Empowered by genetic implants, elite training, and the best equipment the Imperium has to offer, the players fought vicious enemies to decide the fate of not only entire worlds, but entire sectors of space. After Deariarext, we decided to take Warhammer 40K Roleplay in a bold new direction, allowing players to take ‘on the roles of the very heretics they have been working so hard to fight. In Back Crusane, players broke free of the bonds of the Imperium, and searched out a glorious destiny amongst the broken stars of the Screaming Vortex, For the first rime, Brack Cnusane allows players to take on the roles of characters of a variety of different power levels, Heretics and sorcerers fought alongside mighty Chaos Space Marines, allfor the same goal of launching a devastating Black Crusade against he Imperium of Man, Each of these games in turn raised the stakes for what the players were capable of in the Warhammer 40K universe, taking them from inquisitorial acolytes to power-armoured super-soldiers empowered by the Dark Gods. It was at this point that we decided to take a step back, Many of the game lines gave players power far beyond that of mortal men; whether it be influence, technology, or unimaginable psychic abilities, players had the power to bend the universe to their will. Instead, we wanted players to experience what it ‘would be like to be a normal human in the Wachammer 40K. universe, thrust up against che same horrors Space Marines face every day, but with nothing but their wits, their lasgun, and their compatrios to survive to see the next day. To this end we began development on Onty Waa, « book entirely devoted to the Imperial Guat, Onty Wan originally started as a Dank Honesy supplement. As the most grity, brutal, and low power level of ‘our game lines, i seemed like the perfect place to integrate the Imperial Guard, However, he mare we worked on the book, the more we realized there were simply too many awesome elements to explore in a single supplement. As Oxty Wan ‘grew into the core rulebook itis today, we worked to craft a system that captures the feel of being a mere mortal, forced (o contend with the greatest threats of the 41st millennium, yet maintaining hope and camaraderie, even in the face of seemingly ineurmountable odds So strap on your helmet and grab your laggun, soldier I's time to take the fight to the enemies of the Imperium! Happy Gaming, ‘The Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay Team