A few characters to help fill out your plots

[Surak 402]

As a long time GM i know that sometimes you get stuck for a character to fill a role in a campaign.

To this end i've decided to post up some of my GM notes from my current Dark Heresy campaign for those in need of inspiration

As always there are a few spoilers for my PC's in this - so behave

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Key Persons - all taken from a period when our campaign was on a second planet in the Landunder system (the official version of landunder didn't quite fit but the system was the only sensible choice)

 

Enabran Tain – Handling officer for Astred Skane, senior inquisitorial operative on planet. Considers The Shark to be the worst form of heretic and will stop and nothing to ensure he is brought to justice, preferably in front of the grand conclave but on the end of Tain’s eviscerator will do.

“The Shark” – Real name Malcus Voke, feels betrayed by the inquisition for the treatment of his former master. He has used his formidable skills to gather his “...very own Calixis Conclave” in the forests of Landunder. Having taken over the Cleasean Estate on planet Voke has begun gathering powerful heretics under his banner including the Nightlords space marine Diablous Vexx, one of the leaders of the Tranch Mutants Corpus Tia, and the Renegade Preacher Grover Shale. His goal on Landunder is simple; gather his strengths enough to begin a sector wide rebellion. The reason for picking Landunder, he knows that the Mechanicus left more than the Infurion Forge behind when they abandoned the world – in the shape of two Halo devices.

Diablous Vexx – A Nightlords space marine notorious for his terror campaigns during 3 Black Crusades Vexx hasn’t returned to the Eye for over six centuries. His official role on Landunder is as the chief advisor for Voke, a person who has managed to earn Vexx’s grudging respect over the months they have worked together. Vexx and his two battle brothers maintain a very low profile on Landunder spending most of there time on the move within the World Forest however one of them is always within a days march of the Cleasean Estate. Vexx’s personal goal on Landunder is to seed anti-imperial cults into the lawless out-city to enable the Nightlords to use Landunder as a base of operations within the Calixis Sector.

Corpus Tia – On Tranch Corpus Tai and his group of Mutant renegades were the single most dangerous group in the Mutant alliance. After various purges by the Imperial guard and Inquisition Tai found himself and his surviving followers awaiting execution in a guard prison camp; At about this time Voke discovered the fate of his master on Scintillia. Realising that he needed allies Voke freed Tai and his followers on the condition that Tai would work for Voke and no other, the Mutant lord accepted. While outwardly sticking to his arrangement with Voke it was Tai that recruited the Preacher Shale into the ‘Conclave’ in a move that he hopes will grant him enough power to take over from Voke, at the moment the only real opposition to this is the imposing form of Diablous Vexx and his brothers.

Grover Shale – Following the defeat of his Acolytes on Iocathos and Soloman The Crow Priest has set forth one of his most dangerous followers in the shape of Grover Shale to enact some vengeance on those who have foiled his master’s plans twice now. Grover used to be a deeply pious arbiter on one of the fringe worlds; however a visit from the Tyrant Star left him the only survivor and a man broken in spirit and body. After being found by The Crow Priest, Grover Shale entered into his own dark pact with the daemonic entity know as the Crow Father and was restored in body but at the cost of his soul. On Landunder he has been told to learn what he can from Voke about the inquisition whilst seeding Shale Cults within the outlaw population. He is aware of the hopes of Corpus Tai and is willing to exploit the mutants hunger for power, especially if it means revenge on those who have defeated his master.

Ursius Cleasean – The younger twin Sister to Venus Cleasean (recently deceased) Ursius Cleasean has been even more distant from her family than her wayward sister was. As the 5th in line to the Cleasean Charter Ursius was under no illusion to her small chances at inheriting the family fortune, so she decided to make her own. As soon as she could she took her share of the family fortune (as she saw it) and disappeared into the sectors underworld. Beginning as an exotic dancer at age 16 Ursius soon learnt that her wealth was not enough to protect her in the underhives of Malfi, and after several close calls in her early years (for which she has a bionic hand as a reminder) she soon became more than able to protect herself. By 19 she had attracted the attention of the Bloodsworn, and although never officially joining its ranks several members trained her further, taking advantage of her innocent appearance to delete difficult targets. She was already on Landunder before the acolyte’s arrived, at the request of a blind contract through the Pressure Point mercenary group. In reality Voke knew that the inquisition would eventually come after him, and that he cannot really trust his newest ‘allies’ and so has arranged for some unknown firepower to be close at hand, what he doesn’t realise is who has taken the contract, and the fact he has recently occupied one of her family homes. News of Venus’s death has not yet reached Ursius and she will not take the news well by any stretch of the imagination. Due to years of hard living Ursius is a damaged individual, probably bordering on truly unstable, and whatever morals she once had have long since been lost on Malfi. When push comes to pistol shot Ursius will fight for the highest bidder regardless of who they are working for.

Laura Hansbarack – One of the Inquisitions most successful operatives in the sector Laura Hansbarack has been in the Ordos service her entire life. The daughter of two inquisitors Laura was taught in the Cadian model, and soon it became evident that she had a future within the Ordos. A gifted pilot and expert shot Laura has saved no less than sixteen inquisitors during her 40 year career including the current head of the conclave and Astred Skane. Now a widow, her husband was also brought up within the Ordos and just lived long enough to see his two children born before he was killed whilst investigating the Shale Cult. Laura was summoned to Landunder by Tain when he was assembling his own team to begin the investigation into the shark, hoping that her previous dealings would give her insight that he himself lacked. What he doesn’t realise is that Laura and Voke were briefly romantically engaged during there time on Tranch and she considers his renegade status a personal insult.

Amber Hansbarack – Older than her twin brother by les than a minuet Amber Hansbarack is very much her mothers daughter, quick witted, smart, fiercely loyal to the inquisition, and a highly skilled pilot despite only being 19. Despite her young age she has not escaped unscathed from her service to the throne, as attested to by the horrific scars her back she received during a Dark Eldar ambush, scars which she considers a reminder to keep vigilant. She is on Landunder because her mother is and the pair work well together.

Dalin Hansbarack – Young, impulsive, and normally up to his neck in trouble, Dalin Hansbarack is an even more gifted pilot than his sister and mother. Unfortunately for everyone else he is well aware of this fact and makes no effort to hide his abilities or be polite to those who don’t measure up to his standards. Dalin has had several bionic enhancements but unlike his mother and sister all of his are voluntary enhancements to improve his abilities even further. His most defining feature is his bionic left eye, which is a result of his only injury, taken in an engagement on Tranch.

Equipment for characters

Enabran Tain – Eviscerator, 2 chain swords, 2 chain knives, 2 plasma pistols, amulet of warding, combat knife, concealed armour equivalent to full storm trooper carapace

“The Shark” – two bolt pistols, 2 needle pistols, concealed armour equivalent to guard flack armour, refractor field, displacer field, data slate with the possible locations of the halo devices (encoded and rigged with a plasma charge)

Diablous Vexx – Astarties bolter, Astarties Bolt Pistol, Sword (astarties combat Knife), Astarties power armour, Daemon blade,

Vexx’s followers – 1 – Terminator armour, twin astarties bolter, astarties thunder hammer – 2 – Plasma pistol, daemonic force weapon, astarties power armour, psy rating 4

Corpus Tia – Steam hammer, hand cannon, guard flack armour, Followers – 35 mutants

Grover Shale – Daemon Axe, stub revolver, cursed charm (refractor field), daemonic feudal plate armour (non-primitive, fear 1, -10 to stealth), Shale Knife (ritual knife that can be used to create a daemon vessel), 2 Daemon bombs (as astral spectre in a jar from DoTDG), a pet crow

Ursius Cleasean – Masterwork Voss (As normal but +1 damage and pen), 2 Lathe Blades, bolter, has access to full mesh armour and light power armour. Auspex, displacer field, perform (dancer), acrobat +20 and talented acrobat,

Laura Hansbarack – Bolt pistol, storm trooper carapace chest plate, navy officer’s sword, the Guncutter Vigilant

Amber Hansbarack – Hand Flamer, Shock maul, mesh armour, The Guncutter Redemption

Dalin Hansbarack – melta pistol, scorpion chain blade, enforcer carapace, The Guncutter Double Eagle.

The Vigilant – 6 auto cannons, 2 Las cannons

The Redemption – 4 Heavy Bolters, 2 assault cannons

Double Eagle – 3 Multilasers, 2 missile launchers

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And these ones from our recent trip to Port Wander

On the Promenade

 

Lower level

The Union of Drinkers Bar, Grill, Casino, and Embassy – Owned and run by a Mr V. I. krencov, a former smuggler and beast trader who made a fortune bringing goods to the port from the Calixis sector, but lost his ship in a high stakes card game so decided to setup shop on the station instead. A lively establishment with a roaring grey market trade in just about any illegal chem in the sector, and a few from beyond it, because his ‘owners tax’ is fully paid up station security don’t bother Krencov or his customers.

Mr Ragassa’s Emporium – A dingy hole in the wall of a shop to look at from the outside, inside is a very different matter. The shop is run by Mr Ragassa, a discrete gentleman who offers discrete services to customers who can pay for them. Ragassa is one of the biggest slave traffickers on the station, and is also the Serrated Query’s only permanent resident on the station. He covers is more illegal trade under the cover of his slightly less illegal trade in exotic weapons and manuscripts, two areas he has enough knowledge to convince people he knows what he’s doing, especially when he doesn’t.

The Port Wander Trade Post – Possibly the biggest and most disorganised establishment on the Lower level of the promenade the trade post is used as a secondary earner for the station governor. Trading in almost anything the Trade Post, often referred to by residents as the Odds and Sods, mainly deals in common items that have been left on the station over the years, although it has been known to occasionally sell on goods confiscated by the station for failure to pay your correct taxes. Run By Mr Tebbes ‘on behalf of the station’, Tebbes is a short balding man in his late 60’s, he was born on the station and has only ever travelled as far as Footfall – and as far as he’s concerned that’s plenty far enough.

Lucky Jakk’s Hardware Store – Don’t confuse this one with a normal hardware shop, the ‘hardware’ referred to at Jakk’s is firearms. Horton ‘Lucky’ Jakk is a complete mystery to the station residents; he literally turned up one day, bought the shop outright, and has spent the last 30 years happily selling guns and ammo to anyone with the thrones to pay for it. He is an adamant xenophobe and will not trade in or with anything that’s been produced by alien hands, and that includes not selling to the xeno themselves.

The Temple of His Saints – the biggest Temple of the Imperial Faith on the station, with over 80 ordained members of the clergy permanently on site plus a transient population of missionaries entering and leaving the expanse. The Temple covers both levels of the Promenade. Overseen by Abbot Hans Fredric, the most senior representative of the imperial faith on station, Alms Mass is held twice a day where free basic food and drink is handed out to the needy. Abbot Fredric is originally from Holy Terra itself and is actually 150 years old, despite appearing no older than 50, and has served the inquisition for over three quarters of his life. He is in semi-retirement aboard Port Wander, spreading the faith and keeping an eye on what the Rogue Traders are bringing into the emperors domain through the port. His is inherently distrustfully, but will respond to reasonable request for aid, however as Astrid Skane is un-aware of any inquisitorial operatives on the station the PC’s will not be informed of his due role. He used to work for a radical daemon hunter and is still very much a Malleus man. Abbot Fredric has concerns about a new imperial cult that has sprung up in the bilge decks called ‘The Cult of His Light’ (this is actually a Shale Cult).
The Upper Level

Harman’s Travel and Freight – A low-key company that acts as a broker for arranging transport for goods and personnel with very few questions, at a price. They have arrangements with almost every Rogue Trader, Smuggler, Bounty Hunter and Mercenary Company in the sector, and also have branches on most major worlds. This branch is run by Helen Harman, the daughter of the company’s current managing director, and she is next in line to inherit the family business. Helen is an exercise addict, as is obvious by her athletic build, she is also proficient in hand to hand and melee combat, although she is a distinctly average shot. She has a very short temper, and does not like anyone poking fun at her 5’4” height. She arranged the contact between Grover shale and the Tramp Freighter captain that gave him and his team a berth to Footfall.

Station Medical – An uninspiring place, this is the best source of medical care you can get on the station, but as always at a price. Surgeon Paul Mexx is in charge of this facility, and has been since a falling out with his previous employer left him stranded on Port Wander with little more than his personal effects.

The Security office – The control centre from station internal security, and also the location of the low security holding cells. Mainly concerned with collecting bribes and breaking up drunken brawls the station security force is not employed to uphold Imperial Law, its there to ensure that nothing gets in the way of the flow of money around the station. Lazarus Bramkin is currently in charge of station security, and as a native of Dusk there is very little on the station that can frighten or intimidate him. At 6’5” Bramkin is a formidable person in a fight, and as a former guardsman and a member of Pressure Point he is more than a match for his normal opponents in the Union of Drinkers.

The Gun Rack – A shop that’s about as subtle as its name, The Gun Rack is a sprawling place that takes up nearly half the upper level of the promenade. The owner, known to all as Trigger, is a scrawny bean-pole of a man who seems to be constantly on edge. The shop only has equipment of imperial manufacture on sale; however as Trigger’s manner would suggest there is something more to this shop below the surface. Trigger’s shop is being financed by a cartel who like to keep there involvement very much below the radar, which is understandable as they are all logicians or Pirates. Trigger’s current un-ease is due to two factors, the first of which is the massive supply of illegal weapons that the cartel have just dumped in his warehouses below decks, the second of which is someone spreading rumours that the inquisition have begun to investigate his sponsors, which could be a problem for Trigger as he is wanted by the inquisition from trafficking with xeno, a practice he has never quite been able to break with.

The House – This is not so much a shop as an institution, The House is a massive sprawl of rooms and corridors that spreads away from its frontage on the Promenade. From the initial appearance The House is a rather discrete nightclub that mainly exists to provide the residents with a slightly more refined entertainment outlet than the Union of Drinkers. Of course The House is so much more than it appears, as its numerous back rooms are used for everything from a brothel to hiding fugitives. Overseeing proceedings are the owners Larry and Fey Grent, a brother and sister who apparently come from Malfi. While Fey normally works the crowds in the nightclub Larry is the back of house manager, and between the two of them they manage to turn a very successful, if slightly immoral and illegal profit. They will sell anything to anyone if you have the thrones to pay the fees.

Scintillia Cuisine – An establishment purporting to re-create the fine dining of Scintilla’s famed Marker District, unfortunately it has more in common with a mid hive workers mess than a high-class restaurant. The owner, a Mr Peel, constantly blames the long travel times from his suppliers to his establishment on the mediocre quality of his food; however he still has the most palatable food business on the station.

The Mid-Deck Market
Where the Promenade is the focus for the majority of the stations trade with guests that are passing through the Mid-Deck Market is the hub of the on-station economy. This is where the station residence buy the goods and services that are needed for their survival on the station. The Market is separated into 3 districts, the Metallican District, The Hold, and The Hustle.

The Metallican District

The Vernus Tavern – A homely little Tavern between the Markets Metallican District and The Hustle. The Vernus Tavern is run by a local woman called Alexis Vernus who at 26 is one of the youngest proprietors in the Market.

Fane Wander – A local gunsmith and armourer Fane Wander is the only source of weapons produced on station. Its owner, Loke Mach, is a 45 year old former Munitorium mechanic who was assigned to a rogue trader and then left on Port Wander.

The Forge – Despite the high hopes you would get from its name, the forge is little more than a Blacksmith. The owner, Harold ‘Crash’ Yates, is a barrel of a man in his late 60’s who has worked the trade of a blacksmith all of his life, which started on the feudal world of Aryus One, and intends to teach his trade to his son Jason.

The Hold

The Supply Dump – The Supply Dump is run by an ex-guard quartermaster who goes by the name of Grimes, and if anyone bothers to ask he used to serve with one of the Fenksworld regiments. The shop tends to act as something of a general store for the Mid-Decks, stocking anything from ration pacts to furniture.

Hill’s Fine Meats – Don’t ask where the Hill family get there supply of meat from, you really don’t want to know. Fortunately for most this family of butchers understands that most people don’t want to know what they are eating and do there best to assist.

The Hustle

The Mid-Deck Hostel – This imposing building is the main source of temporary accommodation in the Mid-Deck areas. Owned and run by the Port family, the Hostel also sports a small restaurant and bar as we as its 250 rooms.

The Scramble – Not one defined shop but a complete chaos of small stalls and carts clustered in what used to be a cargo vault, The Scramble is the beating heart of the Mid-Deck areas and joins all three of the Mid-Deck Market Districts together. At the Heart of the Scramble is an imposing 6 story tower, called the spike. The spike is home to the only permanent establishments in The Scramble, Hodgkin’s and Madame Lilo’s.
Madame Lilo’s – The main source of entertainment in the market, Madame Lilo’s takes up the top 5 floors of the Spike, and will provided almost any form of ‘entertainment’ you can pay for.

Hodgkin’s – The oldest establishment in the Market, Hodgkin’s store provides a one-stop shop for everything from cutlery to personal transport. The Hodgkin family has maintained it presence in the ground floor of the Spike for at least the last 150yrs, and thanks to its discrete rogue trader connections will probably keep on going.

Vendors, Visitors, and Locals

Vendors

Krystal’s Krafts – Krystal is a barely literate stall vendor who used to work behind the bar at The House. She somehow managed to scrape and/or steal enough money to pay for a vendors stall in the middle of the lower promenade where she sells an eclectic collection of hand made jewellery, charms, trinkets, and basically anything shiny she has found un-attended on her travels round the station. Just because she isn’t good with her numbers does not mean that she is an idiot however, and Krystal is a veritable mine of minor information she picks up as she pushes her cart around the promenade.

Tasty Treats – A group of several food vendors that travel the more civilised areas of the station. The food can neither be described as tasty of a treat, as it mainly consists of protean bars and nutrient paste, but it is safe to eat and cheap. The various Tasty Treat carts are also a very covert distribution system for several of the stations drug dealers.

Visitors

The Imperial Navy Battle fleet Calixis – Currently in dock are no less than 30 ships of the imperial navy, ranging from a cobra squadron about to head into the expanse to a pair of battleships conducting a sector patrol.

The Calixian Carnival – Something of an oddity the Calixian Carnival is a large group of jugglers, acrobats, comedians, singers, and various other obscure entertainers that travels the sector providing entertainment in exchange for board, food, and pretty much anything else they need.

Locals

The Guild of Porters – One of the biggest employers on the station The Guild of Porters (not to be confused with The Porters gang) prides itself with being able to move people’s goods to and from the required destinations without any undue delay of taxes.

Alexis Vernus – Originally one of the thousands of dregs that inhabit the stations lower levels, Alexis Vernus proved more enterprising than most when she stole her first arms shipment from the primary dock at the age of 16, she is now the biggest shifter of illegal weapons on the station, and has become a ‘legitimate’ trader in the mid-deck market, .

The Porters – The local dominant gang on the station, mainly a large group of bored adolescents, The Porters are well known to the station locals as being on the fringes of most of the ‘grey market’ business on the station.

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Some Radical Ordo Malleus that tried to distract the PC's, with little luck mainly.

Background

 

The team of Ordo Malleus Acolytes has served there Lord Inquisitor for the past 15 years as member of different cells for the most part, however they have now been brought together to form a superior cell similar to Tain’s hunting party.

The Team

Ravion Faust – Team Leader – Rank: Interrogator

Ravion Faust is a stocky man in his early 40’s who has served the inquisition for most of his life. As a Sanctioned psyker Faust has spent most of his career working within the Malleus. A gifted psyker, Faust was pulled from his home on Lo by the Inquisition and taken to the Tricorn Palace for evaluation. Having been judged as having the strength of character to serve the Emperor Faust was spared a trip on the Black Ships and Sanctioned within the sector. He has recently gained enough trust from his inquisitor and the rest of the conclave to be granted the rank of Interrogator and start down the path to becoming a full inquisitor.

Inez Flair – Team Infiltrator – Rank: 2-I-C

Inez is probably the most charismatic and eccentric member of Faust’s team of Acolytes, as can be evidenced by her ever more radical hair styles and outfits. A self confessed adrenalin junky she hasn’t looked back since being employed by the inquisition after being caught free-climbing the outside of Hive Sibellus because she was bored. Despite her humble lower hive birth she has developed a taste for the exotic and expensive, her weapon of choice being a whisper blade. Inez also has a long history with the mercenary known as Missy, as Missy is responsible for the 6 plasteel ribs that Inez has.

Spectre – Assassin – Rank: Proscribed

Spectre is one of the signs of his inquisitors radical tendencies, an assassin who has had barely sanctioned procedures performed on him to improve his lethality. If most of the mainstream Inquisition or Mechanicus Biologicus discovered the truth about Spectre his inquisitor would have some very difficult questions to answer.

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And finally some info on Footfall were my PC's are about to head (we start our next session in about an hour)

Footfall

 

The Station Structure

Footfall Station is a chaotic mix of structures tethered together around a 15km high statue to the god-Emperor. The actual population of Footfall is in consent flux, and as there is no over-riding authority on Footfall no-one really cares what the population is. The actual station itself is made of hundreds of linked structures, from ships that simply docked and never left, to ornate palaces of stone that wouldn’t be out of place on a planets surface. This mix of structures, combined with the lawlessness of the station makes footfall a perilous maze to those unaware of its dangers.

Locations of note

The Temple of The Holy Emperor – This is probably the only stable location on the whole of Footfall. A fully ordained temple to the God-Emperor, this is often the first part of the Expanse that people who survive the journey through The Maw visit. As a result of its unique location the temple is often used as a base for imperial agents seeking to monitor the activities of the various parties in the expanse.

The Bazaar – The Bazaar used to be a pilgrim ship, though you would be hard pressed to tell that from its blackened and scared outside. The massive holds of the ship have long since been converted into a booming market-place and the passenger decks have been ‘bought by a trade cartel and are currently being run as a hotel.

The Hangman’s Noose – This massive bar is within one of the few habitat-domes that are part of the station, and on a quiet night can have in-excess of 300 people on the premises. This bustling crowd serves as a perfect cover for the real business that gets conducted at the Hangman; it’s the main office for all Pressure Point contracts within the expanse, as well as operating as a safe house for the Malfian Blood-sworn.

The Pit – This hell-hole is the main ‘accommodation’ area for station inhabitants, and is not somewhere that off-stationers go by choice. This area is one of Footfalls oldest sections, partly carved into the massive rock at the base of the statue of the Emperor and partly made from free-floating stone passages and chambers. Gravity in The Pit is a random thing, and not all the sections of this stone and rock maze have the same gravity alignment, sometimes by a complete 180 degrees, equally some areas have no gravity at all.

The Crystal Citadel – This is a relatively new addition to the sprawl of Footfall, and is possibly the most impressive sight after the statue of the emperor itself. The Citadel is a structure that would be impossible to construct inside a gravity field as it is entirely free floating with no structural supports, just simple tether chains. The Citadel is home to a rather eccentric imperial noble who is known to finance several rogue traders, as well as several beast houses on the grey market. Known to the residence of Footfall as The Lord Scorpios, the noble is treated with respect despite his eccentricities, which is probably fortunate as he is not actually a noble lord.

Persons of Note

Eli Jones – Jones is currently travelling with Ursius Cleasean, and both are fleeing to the expanse after the event on Landunder. However, Jones is also responsible for smuggling Grover Shale to Port Wander, and without Cleasean being aware.
The Lord Scorpios - Lord Scorpios is a highly dangerous heretic on the run from the Calixian Inquisition, who has decided to make a new home on Footfall to take advantage of its lawless nature and proximity to The Maw. If Scorpios learns of either the Shale Cult or Inquisition’s presence on the station he is likely to sit back at first, letting hired underlings take more direct action for him.

Abbot Yarin – The Senior Priest at the Temple on Footfall Abbot Yarin is in his late 80’s and has spent most of his life in the expanse. He entered The Maw aged 20 as a fiery missionary accompanying a Rogue Trader and hasn’t left the Expanse since. Tempered slightly from his earlier years Yarin still follows the Redemptionist path, and has no tolerance for mutants or xeno.

Lady Theastus – Lady Theastus is a remarkable woman, although she is only in her late 30’s she has risen to become a noted scholar within the Ordo Biologicus. Specialising in Xenobiology Lady Theastus has been in the expanse for 5 years trying to find specimens from all of the xeno in the expanse before she returns to Scintillia. Currently she is missing one major piece from her collection, an Eldar.

Marcus Loban – Marcus Loban is the current barman and owner of The Hangman, and is also one of the senior members of Pressure Point. He has been running a successful operation on Footfall for the last 8 years, to the point that he is making as much money legally as he is through Pressure Point’s grey-market contracts. He is responsible for approval and payment on all of Pressure Point’s contracts in the Expanse, and as a result there are always a number of skilled killers in and around the Hangman.

Adel Loban – Marcus Loban’s wife, and to most the friendly hostess of the Hangman; but as with everything else at the hangman all is not what it seems. Adel Loban is one of the Malfian Bloodsworn, and although not an ‘active’ any more she has found an ‘administrative’ role within the organisation.

Missy – Missy is a rather eccentric girl of 19 who trained with one of the death cult sects before they finally go fed up of her, eccentricities. Missy should probably be in some form of institution, she lives for nothing except the rush of the hunt, and the more dangerous the target the bigger the rush. Currently Missy is on Footfall ‘relaxing’ after her last bit of sport, meaning she is looking for thrills, and spends most of her time in the Hangman or The Pit.

Grudge and Trouble – Supposedly the owners of a gun shop in the Bazaar, Grudge and Trouble are two of Pressure Points most effective ice-men, if you want the target removed violently and un-subtly anyway.

Mech-Deacon Pontius – Mech-Deacon Pontius is an outwardly devoted follower of the machine god, and he runs the Mechanicus presence on Footfall operating out of a former Navy Auxiliary ship moored near the mid levels of the station. Pontius is actually a Logician infiltrator, tasked with covering Logician approved Heretech activities from the Mechanicus, whilst at the same time maintaining his cover by processing unstable heretechs.

Ursius Cleasean – After the events on Landunder even Ursius Cleasean decided that it might be a good idea to find somewhere to lay low for a while. Travelling with Eli Jones she has made her way to Footfall in the Expanse on the pretence of finding safety in the lawless port. However her real motive is to try and track down one of her family’s ships that she knows operates in the area in the hope of re-joining the family.
 

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You will note a few character appear several times, and as the PC's continue into the next 4 chapters of this adventure i'll add some more interesing people and fun locations.

As always if you want to know more from my campaing please let me know and i'll see if i can't make my GM prompt cards readable to someone other than me.

Surak
 

 

[Khairn 0]

Surak, as always ... great work!

You really do make it easy to GM these games.  Kudo's!

[Sister Cat 0]

Thanks for sharing Surak.  This is some good stuff. 

[ZillaPrime 3]

From the looks of things you have your team working for Inquisitor Skane. If you are interested and willing, I would not mind trading info on your team and their activities.  My agents work for Skane as well, so it might lead to some interesting background material, follow-up investigations and so on.

[Surak 402]

My team do indeed work for Skane, i'll see if i can pt together some 'activity reports' that they would have sent back to the tricorn reporting there activities. At the moment the team is engaged in hunting heretics linked to a rogue inquisitor (that just so happened to be the teams inquisitor when they started, and i had them hunt him down and bring him to justice to prove there innocence), but they are also mixed up in investigating the Shale Cult introduced in Illumination, and re-encountered in House of Dust and Ash. They have also become mixed up in the affairs of the Cleasean Line, a Rogue Trader Family in possession of a minor trade warrent.

more to come.

 

Surak

[Surak 402]

A brief update for Zilla,

My team of agents are now well and truly on the trail of the Shale Cult (currently using the cover name Temple of His Light, at least on Port Wander and in the Expanse). They have finally managed to run the dangerous heretic Grover Shale to ground and kill him, but in the process two daemon hosts escaped, and now a team from the Ordo Malleus are involved as well (there motives are currently unknown). The team has also encountered a woman who claims to be from the Mechanicus Biologicus who appears very interested in the sanction xeno on the team (an Eldar outcast).

 

More 'progress reports' as I write them

 

surak

[Kylen2 0]

Ah, so I see the Crow Father has more enemies then just Kira, eh Zilla?

[Inquisitor Renfield 0]

Nice list!   Its great to find such resources from other storytellers.  

 

A list of this kinda stuff for general atmosphere npcs and info giving npcs if a good idea too. 

[Surak 402]

Hi all,

 

As my Shards of Heresy campaign draws to a close I thought I should share with you the last 3 planetary data files I wrote for the campaign's final chaptor.

 

Planetary Briefing – Gelmiro Primus

 

Population – 58 billion plus Imperial Guard, Munitorium, and other forces involved in the ongoing conflict

Geography/History:

Gelmiro Primus is one of a trio of War Worlds on the very edge of the sector, towards the Scarus Sector. The entire Gelmiro system has been involved in a succession war for several centuries, originally sparked by a Chaos incursion from out of the sector. The Incursion was defeated before it reached the sector proper, but only at the cost of turning the Gelmiro System into a war-wrecked hell-hole.

Gelmiro Primus itself was once a thriving Hive World that supplied the forges of both the Calixis and Scarus sectors. However after the incursion of the War of Brass Gelmiro Primus was a ruin, of the 36 hive-satellites and Spires at the start of the war only 12 remained habitable, and they had all suffered horrendous damage to both there structures and population. As a result the industrial might of Gelmiro Primus collapsed, and all its surviving industries were turned over to the Munitorium to help supply the massive Imperial Guard forces now stationed on planet to try and finally pacify it and the rest of the system.

Gelmiro Primus is a strange world, with almost no habitable surface areas. The planets Hive-Cities are split into two categories, the Old Spires and the Satellites. The Old Spires are the original 8 Hive Cities built when the planet was first colonised, the Satellites are the newer Hives, built since the Calixis sector was founded. The Old Spires have there foundations on the planets surface, and so provide the only habitable areas in contact with the planets surface. These Hives follow the traditional Hive-stack model and are connected by surface Mag-lev networks. The Satellite Hives would be one of the wonders of the sector, if there was any way of actually viewing them safely. Massive floating structures, the Satellite Hives float in the middle-atmosphere of Gelmiro Primus without complex technological systems, as they are held in place by massive gas-cells to give them neutral buoyancy in the thick toxic soup of Primus’s atmosphere. This system means that all of the Hive-Satellites and Spires on the planet are still present, but the vast majority are simply abandoned. The war on Primus is almost over compared to the rest of the system; however there is still one Spire and three satellites being contested.

Government

. The entire Gelmiro system is currently operating under the leadership of a military council, which is formed from senior Guard officials, Local Nobles, Administratum representatives, Mechanicus Representatives, Navy Officers, and other senior members of interested parties. This council acts as an advisory group to the Lord Militant, who has the final say on all matters affecting the system.

Adept Presence:

As an active War Zone there is a massive presence from all branches of the Imperium.

Discord and the Rule of Law:

Imperial Law is enforced, with martial law being used for the military.

 

Planetary Briefing – Gelmiro Secondus

 

Population – 28 billion plus Imperial Guard, Munitorium, and other forces involved in the ongoing conflict

Geography/History:

Gelmiro Secondus is one of a trio of War Worlds on the very edge of the sector, towards the Scarus Sector. The entire Gelmiro system has been involved in a succession war for several centuries, originally sparked by a Chaos incursion from out of the sector. The Incursion was defeated before it reached the sector proper, but only at the cost of turning the Gelmiro System into a war-wrecked hell-hole.

Gelmiro Secondus itself was once a thriving Hive World that supplied the forges of both the Calixis and Scarus sectors. However after the incursion of the War of Brass Gelmiro Secondus was a ruin, of the 16 hive-spires at the start of the war only 8 remained habitable, and they had all suffered horrendous damage to both there structures and population. As a result the industrial might of Gelmiro Secondus collapsed, and all its surviving industries were turned over to the Munitorium to help supply the massive Imperial Guard forces now stationed on planet to try and finally pacify it and the rest of the system.

The majority of the planets surface is a debris strewn wasteland as a result of decades of conflict. The only major geographic features that remain above the surface are the hives themselves, including the skeletons of the hives that died during the war. Other than the hives the only notable feature of Gelmiro is the complete lack of surface water on the planet. All of the planet’s water is found below the surface in massive underground seas. All of the hives descend down to, and in some cases into, these subterranean habitats, and in several areas inter-hive trade is conducted only by ship across these seas rather than risking the journey by surface routes.

Government

. The entire Gelmiro system is currently operating under the leadership of a military council, which is formed from senior Guard officials, Local Nobles, Administratum representatives, Mechanicus Representatives, Navy Officers, and other senior members of interested parties. This council acts as an advisory group to the Lord Militant, who has the final say on all matters affecting the system.

Adept Presence:

As an active War Zone there is a massive presence from all branches of the Imperium.

Discord and the Rule of Law:

Gelmiro Secondus operates under a combination of Arbites Law and Martial Law, due to the mix of military and civilian populations.

 

Planetary Briefing – Gelmiro Tertius

 

Population – 8 billion plus Imperial Guard, Munitorium, and other forces involved in the ongoing conflict

Geography/History:

Gelmiro Tertius is one of a trio of War Worlds on the very edge of the sector, towards the Scarus Sector. The entire Gelmiro system has been involved in a succession war for several centuries, originally sparked by a Chaos incursion from out of the sector. The Incursion was defeated before it reached the sector proper, but only at the cost of turning the Gelmiro System into a war-wrecked hell-hole. Gelmiro Tertius itself was once a thriving Hive World that supplied the forges of both the Calixis and Scarus sectors. However after the incursion of the War of Brass Gelmiro Tertius was a ruin, for the 16 hive-spires at the start of the war only 2 remained habitable, and they had both suffered horrendous damage to there structure and population. As a result the industrial might of Gelmiro Tertius collapsed, and all its surviving industries were turned over to the Munitorium to help supply the massive Imperial Guard forces now stationed on planet to try and finally pacify it and the rest of the system.

.Tertius was the hardest hit of all of the planets in the Gelmiro system, with the majority of its Hives abandoned. The only habitable Hives left on planet are the two ocean-going Hives of Poseidon and Triton. These massive city-ships are slightly smaller than a normal Spire-type hive; however they still hold nearly 4 billion people each. The ships themselves are supported by vast fleets of smaller craft, ranging from kilometre long factory ships to small private craft. The original purpose of the Hive-ships was to enable the Imperium to make use of the 60% of Tertius’s surface that is covered by water, and used mainly for fishing. Today the fish stocks are so low that Tertius needs to import large quantities of food, but this is balanced by the massive natural gas and promethium deposits that have since been found on the ocean floor, and which the Hive fleets now ruthlessly extract.

Other than the Hive-Ships the only surviving population centre is the Tertius Primus Port, the main star port for the planet. This massive facility is the only part of the planet, indeed the whole system, which could be described as thriving, as it is the chosen base of operations for the systems command structure. The most impressive feature of the Port is not linked to orbital traffic, or even the systems current government, it is in fact the two massive docks for the Hive-ships used when they come in for there once a decade maintenance by the Mechanicus. These giant basins are visible from orbit and, when not being occupied by the Hive-ships, they are normally used as unloading/loading docks for the support tenders bringing materials to and from the Hive-ships.

Government
. The system government has decided to make its base in system on Tertius as it is the most stable of the three planets.

Adept Presence:
As an active War Zone there is a massive presence from all branches of the Imperium.

Discord and the Rule of Law:
Due to the presence of the System Command Structure military law applies to all.