Old, New, Borrowed and Bloody: character discussion, comments requested

[Koval]

I'm taking the IGT as an opportunity to clean house with an old cell, put together a new cell, borrow a character concept from a different character that died (long story), and go crazy. Hence the title. Apologies in advance for the "background links".

I also apologise for the massive pile of "see XYZ resource" but I just can't be bothered with endless copypasta at the moment -- if I'm feeling up to it tomorrow evening, I'll put all the information in one place. Similarly, if I have the time or inclination, I'll flesh out the equipment descriptions a bit more than just "X item", with the exception of Cals' Wrathchild which already has a description.
(EDIT: And then there was snow.)



NAME: Isabel Jemima Langley

RANK / AFFILIATION: Sergeant / Canderous 39th Mechanised

PHYSICAL STATS:
Date of Birth: (3)827981.M41
Place Of Birth: Canderous Prime, Carthax Sector
Gender: Female
Height: 170cm
Weight: 60kg

BACKGROUND: linky

WS BS S  T  I  Wp Sg Nv Ld
64 60 52 55 63 69 57 71 68

Handedness: Right

Equipment: S6-Delta stub pistol (two reloads), chainsword, light carapace (AV 4 on chest and arms, AV 3 on all other locations except head), average bionic right eye, two frag grenades.

Skills and Talents: Hardy, Sure Strike

S6-Delta stub pistol: This stub pistol is manufactured on Canderous Prime, and is widely issued as a backup weapon to Canderous Imperial Guard regiments such as Langley's own. They and the ammunition they use are in plentiful supply, and are favoured by soldiers and city gangers alike, though gun connoisseurs dismiss it as "inelegant".
This is a Heavy-Duty Stubber (see the Revised Inquisitor Armoury).

Hardy: Langley may re-roll her Recovery test at the end of each turn.

Sure Strike:

The character bides her time in combat, awaiting the perfect opening to drive a blade between armour plates or through eye-pieces.
The character can choose to use this ability in hand-to-hand combat as part of an attack action. Sure Strikes are at -20% to hit, but the attack ignores D6 points of armour on the location hit.

NAME: Willem Cals

RANK / AFFILIATION: Tech-Priest / Adeptus Mechanicus (Erstenheme Forge Guard)

PHYSICAL STATS:
Date of Birth: (3)027818.M41
Place Of Birth: Erstenheme, Carthax Sector
Gender: Male
Height: 190cm
Weight: 130kg

BACKGROUND: linky

WS BS S  T  I  Wp Sg Nv Ld
55 62 59 54 58 67 74 66 65

Handedness: Ambidextrous (right hand preference)

Equipment: Erstenhemer DN-0 "Wrathchild" stub pistol (two reloads), Erstenheme Forge Guard issue armour (AV 4 on chest, AV 2 on all other locations), average bionic right eye with inbuilt range-finder (RIA version), average bionic lungs, average bionic heart, bionic digestive tract, respirator.

Skills and Talents: Hipshooting*, Medic, Speak Lingua Technis
*Special: Cals may benefit from Hipshooting only when firing single shots, and only when moving at a walk or slower -- he may not use it for semi-auto fire or when moving faster than a walk.

DN-0 "Wrathchild" stub pistol: A military-grade hand cannon with a passing resemblance to a bolt pistol, this weapon is favoured by some Erstenhemer officers for its rugged durability, ease of use, and stopping power, yet derided by others because of its mass and loud report. Cals has made enough modifications and repairs to this weapon over a period of one hundred and fifty years that not a single component of the original gun remains.
This is a Hi-Power Stubber (see the Revised Inquisitor Armoury).

Bionic Digestive Tract: Cals increases his AV on his abdomen by 1, but must test for System Shock as soon as he takes Acute Damage to his abdomen, and immediately suffers System Shock if this then becomes Crippling Damage. Cals is also immune to the effects of toxic food and drink; however, this feature is unlikely to come up unless acting in-character.

Speak Lingua Technis: Cals can speak Lingua Technis. In game terms, this gives him a +10 bonus to his Sagacity when operating complex tech, and allows him to speak with other servants of the Adeptus Mechanicus (including servitors) without being understood by those outside the Omnissiah's service.



NAME: Gavril Nowatschenko

RANK / AFFILIATION: None / Answers only to the Inquisitor

PHYSICAL STATS:
Date of Birth: (3)575983.M41
Place Of Birth: Port Alcis, Carthax Sector
Gender: Male
Height: 175cm
Weight: 75kg

BACKGROUND: linky

WS BS S  T  I  Wp Sg Nv Ld
52 66 54 51 70 55 58 63 57

Handedness: Right

Equipment: Vanthis No.3 autogun (one reload), Pattern-5E stub revolver (one reload), AV 2 on all locations except head

Skills and Talents: Quick Draw, Survivor

Vanthis No.3 autogun: Designed by the Vanthis forge-temple on New Gemini, this weapon was intended to arm hive security forces, but it nonetheless found its way into the armouries of criminal elements. Nowatschenko considers himself fortunate to actually own a Vanthis No.3, despite similar weapons being readily available on the arms market.
This is a Light Assault Rifle (see the Revised Inquisitor Armoury), fitted with a reflex sight.

Pattern-5E stub revolver: An Isanan copy of a common revolver design, these guns are produced en masse and are used by civilians, recidivists and soldiers alike. The "E" version used by law enforcement is somewhat rarer, and while a great many precincts on Issana keep a stock of Pattern-5s in their armouries, they are falling out of favour as more precincts revert to the older Pattern-4 stub automatics. Exactly why or how this particularly well-used weapon ended up in Nowatschenko's possession is unknown, though he suspects that it was brought to Port Alcis by a refugee from Nova Sagittar.
This is a Low-Magnum Revolver (see the Revised Inquisitor Armoury) with the Heavy Trigger drawback. Nowatschenko loads his revolver with man-stopper rounds (RIA version).

Survivor:

The character has a finely-honed sense for danger – and how to avoid it.
When the character fails a pinning test, he dives D6+2 yards towards cover rather than the usual D6. In addition, whenever a pinning test is failed voluntarily, the character need not use his next successful action to recover.

[Gideon]

Two things strike me about these characters. The first is that they are well thought out, interesting, and rounded. The second is that you have convinced me to use the RIA for my own characters...!

I am somewhat confused as to why Gavril considers himself lucky to have that particular autogun though? Is it more reliable than others or just better made, or cooler looking?

[Koval]

Actually, with Gavril and his autogun, it basically boils down to "I've got something rare and valuable". The Vanthis No.3 wasn't initially intended for off-world distribution -- it was made for security personnel on New Gemini, whether private forces or hive guard, and wasn't ever issued to the PDF or Imperial Guard. It does, nonetheless, appear on Port Alcis, which is a space station* in the New Gemini system, and even there it's a rare sight (although it's showing up with greater frequency on the black market).

The only real advantage it enjoys over other weapons in its class is ergonomics. However, Gavril knows enough about it to know that it's pretty rare.

*Port Alcis didn't get a population estimate until I took over the GM'ing duties for our Dark Heresy group. However, that population ended up being around seventy million if I remember correctly, so it's a pretty huge space station. Not Death Star sized, but certainly a lot bigger than (say) the Citadel, and easily dwarfs the likes of Babylon 5 or Deep Space Nine.

[Gideon]

Ah, that's cool. Makes sense. I like that you, too, are using Dark Heresy to help create your own sector/sub-sectors etc. I am doing the same and it's heartening to meet fellow lunatics.

70 millions in a space station - sounds like a combination of habitat and fortress. I like it.

[Koval]

Port Alcis' population isn't something I really set in stone, so I can easily lop off a zero for the sake of keeping things sensible.

(EDIT: 14 million.)