You thought it was over? I did too!
In the last installment of Rejoice and Repent (and I mean it this time), I thought I might cover how to integrate Rites of Battle into your campaign. It’s rare to see this much new material in a supplement, and it may be too much to handle all in one gulp. I’m going to see if I can help you chew it up a bit first.
After spending the past few weeks getting to know the book pretty well, I really do like it (As if you couldn’t tell), I think it’s a pretty solid supplement. But as with any supplement, I’d start with an advisory to new players of Deathwatch and especially of players new to the 40k setting. Starting a new game or a new setting can be fraught with it’s own challenges, and adding a supplement as large as this one can cause more complexity in it already. I would recommend in a new group at least two people who are familiar with the system and or knowledgeable with 40k in general. This will help keep the rules straight, but also answer questions like “Why is my armor so old”, “If this weapon is so great why don’t they make more of them”, and a personal favorite “What does Nutrient recycling mean?”
Now then, if you’re already in an existing campaign and you want to integrate Rites in, there are some simple things you can do, and some complex things you can do. I’ll start with simple.
Successor Chapters: Provided someone hasn’t been trying to gain glories and favors for their chapters, opening up the successor chapters may be a way to make a greater variety amongst your group in terms of where they come from, and open up new adventure seeds and roleplay possibilities. Beyond that, each has their own demeanor and enhancements, so it can still be appealing beyond roleplay reasons.
Armor: Allowing players to have new armors can allow them to feel a bit more diverse as space marines. If one’s armor hasn’t played a vital and major role, I’d offer to them the ability to roll new armors. But because Mark VII is the most on the chart, I’d suggest taking that out completely. If removed from the table, it will be a neat d6 roll, though you might want to also move another number to the heresy armor and/or Errant armor so you don’t end up then with a group full of beakies. 
Then, roll new histories on the armor tables, but instead, take out the +1/-1 on the table so the player has to take what they roll, balancing out their decision. Those who wish to keep their VII but still take their chances on the histories can do so as well, but at the same price, taking out the +1/-1. For those that want to forgo rolling, a word of caution. The right line of armors and histories put together might make your marine a bit more uber than a GM would prefer. If you’d still like to forgo, I’d recommend skipping the new tables and going with the old, unless a good reason or backstory can be produced. Remember though to have your players detract the benefits of their old armor before putting in the new, so they don’t gain the benefits of two. I’d suggest writing down the minuses first on a sheet, then adding pluses in so they know the delta of the changes.
Deeds: If your group’s space marines aren’t that advanced (Rank 1 or 2), I would say adding in a Deed couldn’t hurt much, but I’d advise caution. Deeds aren’t just for rank one characters, but can also be for characters being built at a higher level (Your last marine died and now you’re making a new one). GMs should strongly look over the deed and consider if it fits the character for the level they’re at.
Distinctions and Honors: As a GM, you can feel free to think over the past experiences of the group and give them Honors for their actions, and offer them distinctions if they wish. Carefully consider each distinction as some of them can be quite powerful, and don’t let them talk you into allowing them to have one. Distinctions are for you to give out!
Now, with the easy stuff done, we can move up to intermediate:
Imperial Fists: The Fists are the new chapter to the group, and they have a lot of things to add in to Defense and Siege. Some say this is a minus, but I think it adds a new level. GMs should add in the possibilities of sieges and building defenses into their games for the Fist player to feel important, just like one adds in specific challenges for Apothecaries, assault marines, and tech marines. This can also be an exciting new edition with vehicles now added to the mix, or add in new and interesting challenges, like a warp infested building that is now an enemy.
Advanced Specialties: Now, you’re bound to hear a bit of belly aching that some specialties aren’t as uber as people would like it to be. Well, the fact is that they’re not generally supposed to make a character godly. They’re supposed to flavor them, so that everyone doesn’t have to take one. So with that in mind, when you want to look into a advanced specialty, or one of your players does, make sure that both of you read over the selections carefully. For instance, a Chaplain does not make you a Chaplain of your own chapter, but one for the deathwatch, and might nominate you to stay there permanently. After all considerations are made, the GM can slowly work the character into their specialties with rites or personal connections or anything else to make it feel more than the character walked up to the armory and said “Give me a Crozius, a Rosarius and a skull helm in my size. I’m a Chaplain now”. Also make note that the book suggests just taking one advance specialty per character, so make that decision wisely, or talk with your GM.
Advanced Requisition and Imperial Assets: I’d recommend working these in slowly into your group, after making sure they have a hang of the preliminary rules of Requisition. Then, as the group progresses through the Jericho Reach, the GM should make sure that they find allies they can call on assets from, to give them more options.
Making a Chapter: When making a chapter, you might find yourself tempted to keep adding things in to properly represent your favorite brand of space marine. After all, your vision of your chapter might seem pigeonholed when trying to make the rules for them. But note that the chapter making rules are there with thoughts of balance and reason. If you want to make a change, talk with your GM, and always remember you’re making a Chapter, not a player, so some advances should be left up to the classes, and recall that some advances you can always get from the regular tables.
Finally, the Hard Bits
Vehicles: Vehicles have been placed in the hard section, because they can be both a boon and a burden on a campaign. Though the rules for vehicles are easy, introducing them can effectively jade a group to non-vehicular combat. Why would you ever want to use a drop pod again if you can always take a land raider? When planning a mission, GMs should decide pretty early on if you want players to have vehicles, and always do it cautiously. If you decide that vehicles will play a part, decide what that part is. Should the players control it, or is it manned by a crew ferrying them around? If it’s going to be manned, figure out ways for them to call in support from it, or man the weapons systems. Try to plan for vehicle combat if you’ll allow one, and for every encounter, plan on how having a rhino will effect the combat and where players will be during said combats. Note that players will be dismayed if you give them something awesome and then they can’t use it because you didn’t intend for them to (Trust me, they’ll know). It might seem like a cool effect, but the sharper minded players will ask “Why couldn’t we use it in this combat?”
Players should know that every vehicle request isn’t going to be met, and that every mission can’t be a vehicle mission, and good reasons should be brought up to keep that fact intact. Terrain is too dense for vehicles, there’s too much anti-aircraft emplacements to safely drop with a Thunderhawk, or sometimes a simple “You’re a space marine, and we apply force were and when it is needed”.
I’d advise easing players in with planned vehicles, assigning them a rhino they have to control to ease into it. Then plan additional ones such as using a bike squadron. Eventually once the novelty has worn off, they should be able to ask seriously if a vehicle can be used on a mission, and then it can be considered. These tips can help you use vehicles without ruining the rest of the game for them.
Dreadnoughts: It’s right on the front of the book folks, and lets face it. Who doesn’t want to be a giant robot? But then it goes without saying, that then there is a giant robot in your group, it’s essentially the same as bringing a vehicle every time into combat. I suggest the following tips for dreads in a group:
First, a player should never make a character with the aim of becoming a dreadnought. The renown is too high, and they’ll constantly be jumping into danger trying to kill themselves, which doesn’t benefit the group much. If a player is specifically making one, they should build it like a real space marine, (eg. You should buy skills normally, not considering “I can’t use that when he’s a dread”. Doesn’t really make sense. So up that strength stat!)
If the chance ever does arise for a player to become one, I’d suggest letting them work off the exp required for the specialty kind of like a loan. They earn the exp as normal until they reach that point, then they can buy any other skills they desire. This better represents them not knowing if they’re going to die on any given day or not, I think.
Finally, if a player does get entombed, they should roll another character as well. Just like vehicles, every mission can’t have a dread on it, and every situation doesn’t demand one either. If the other characters have to go into a cave that doesn’t meet a dread’s clearance requirements, then you’re just going to be left waiting outside. So, be honored for the chance, but make another character and smile that you actually got to make one, but let another character pick up trying to attain the glories the last one did not reach.
That about sums it up. Rites is a powerful supplement. But with great power come great….wrong universe. But still applies. Anyway, that concludes our review of Rites of Battle. Now comes the really hard part. Finding something else to post about.
Thought of the day: Be vigilant and strong. The Emperor knows what evil lurks in the vacillation of a weak fool.
