Sectors Intersection Map

i.imgur.com/fBP28.png

Armor, Macrocannons, and Lances Fix

www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_foros_discusion.asp?efid=160&efcid=3&efidt=500039

I've been unsatisfied with how macrocannons outperform lances.  So I've done an awful lot of calculations to try and find house rules that change the game in a favorable manner and make the choice of lance vs. macro interesting.

Here's what I've worked out:

Armour should count against each macrocannon hit, but armour should be reduced to account for the change.  Specifically armour should be reduced by 12.  That makes an armour 15 Raider have an armour of 3, an armour 17 Frigate gets an armour of 5, and an armour 20 Cruiser has an armour of 8.

The value 12 was chosen because the breakeven point between lances and macros with this rule is between 6 and 7.  With an armour of 6, Dual Sunsears deal more damage than a Titanforge Lance and a Mars Macrocannon.  Once armor reaches 7, the lance is more effective.  By reducing armor by 12 that makes lances only worthwhile against the heaviest frigates, light cruisers, and cruisers.

It takes a little longer to figure damage, but it also makes armour work more like it does in personal combat.

Making this change to the rules does a few different things:

Armour is in general more effective when it gets up to high numbers.  Raiders take a little bit more damage than the RAW, but cruisers, particularly with armoured prows, are nigh invulnerable to macrocannon fire.

The influence of Ballistic Skill on damage is reduced.  This hardly means that BS doesn't matter; you still do more damage as your BS goes up, but the rate at which it increases is slower.  This means that NPC ships can still do respectable damage and your Voidmaster won't blow up everything in a single volley.  Say your ship is equipped with dual Mezoas and is firing on a frigate.  If your BS is 50 the expected damage is virtually unchanged between these rules and the RAW (7.38 vs 7.52), but with a BS of 30 you deal twice as much damage as you deal with the RAW (2.48 vs 1.12).  However, at BS 70 you deal less damage than you would with the RAW (12.56 vs 15.79)

High plus weapons like Ryzas and Pyros effectively become armour piercing, i.e. their relative effectiveness increases as armour increases.

Lances deal more damage against cruisers.  This was the effect these house rules were intended to make and they achieve that without any other changes to how lances or macrocannons work.

Under this system a single cannon has a better chance to deal damage.

Mars Cannons aren't quite so bad.

Other things to consider:

If you change broadsides so that they inflict double the amount of hits (essentially giving them Storm), but reduce their strength to 3 (or 4 in the case of 1d10+1 Sunsears), they work better with this system.  They are also much more capable in the hands on NPC ships without becoming too overwhelming in PC hands.  They are downright frightening to lightly armoured ships though, but that seems acceptable.

Reducing the damage torpedoes deal by 12 makes them function identically under this system as they function in the RAW.

The effectiveness of bombers is subtly changed, and probably requires further examination.  Their damage per hit may need to be reduced.

Reducing Sunsears to 1d10+1 makes them an interesting choice, rather than straight up better than Mars or Heculators. They deal more damage against lightly armoured opponents, but less against heavily armoured ones.

Since armour is more effective, bonuses to armour probably shouldn't stack.  Adding Excess Void Armour, Armour Plating, and a Reinforced Prow together can make even lightly armoured craft extremely resistant to macro fire.  Excess Void Armour may be too powerful all by itself.

Some alien races use variant rules that change effectiveness under this system.  Rak'Gol macros probably need adjusting to deal enough damage.  Eldar are even more fragile than they were and may need a small armour increase or some other change to compensate.

Power Field Fix

Fields work as normal, but can only absorb a number of hits in any given combat equal to the tens digit of the field score. These hits must have done enough damage to bypass Armour + Toughness Bonus. After that is reached, the field must be reconfigured (no roll) which takes approx. 5 minutes (aka after combat is over).

Navigator Stuff

Navigator Program

Skilled Navigators PDF

New Navigation

http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?580587-Rogue-Trader-Warp-Navigation-house-rules

Determining Duration of Passage: GM Calculates
Warp Space: Roll 1d10 per square traveled, including the origin square. Keep them on the table or recorded.
Real Space: Use 12 as an average. (duration in the warp x 12 average = days of real space that have passed in the warp)

Locate Astronomican: +10 Navigation (Warp) Test
Modifiers: ±10 x Degrees to all future tests*
Success: The Navigator removes one rolled die result per degree of success +1 (minimum of the lowest die result)
Failure: The Navigator rolls one die per degree of failure +1, and adds it to the duration total for warp travel.

Charting the Course: +10 Navigation (Warp) Test*, GM Rolls
Success: +20 to Encounters of the Warp!

Steering the Vessel: Navigation (Warp) Test*
Modifiers: Turbulent -10, Open Warp +20, Established Route +30
Failure: You are throw off course if you rolled a 9 on either die.
Encounters of the Warp: Roll once for each die used toward the duration.

Leaving the Warp: -20 Navigation (Warp) Test*
Failure: Complication arises.

Six Great Dynasties

House Dexen: The Negotiators

A once greatly respected line known for their diplomatic skills.

Brief History: The Dexen were founded by the honored Warmaster Matthais Dexen, who, after a lifetime of war, dedicated the rest of his life towards exploration rather than battle. His excellent negotiation skills forged accords with small factions within the Eldar and Tau, and his dynasty still enjoys access to rare xenos technology.

Notable Accomplishments: During the battle of Seven Suns in the Scarus Sector, Aria Dexen was able to halt the attack of both Tau and Eldar forces by uttering five words.

Edge: The Dexen line is rumored to cleave a little too close to xenos species. Many now look at this line of Rogue Traders as getting too distant from humanity.



House Holocene: The Defenders

A stalwart band of protectors of humanity and aggressive settlers.

Brief History: Founded by renowned Inquisitor Matthias Holocene, this line of Rogue Traders began their journeys into the wilderness seeking to purge Chaos and bring the word of the Emperor to settlers. As the centuries have passed, the Holocene Dynasty has moderated their tone, becoming protectors and settlers. However, their moderate tone has started to get them into trouble. Particularly with the Inquisition.

Notable Accomplishments: The Holocene are most renowned of their defense of Norn of the Calixis system. Against an entire Ork invasion fleet, they stood their ground, losing all of their ships in their fleet but one.

Edge: The Holocene are known to be defenders and champions without peer. However, their moderate view of the Emperor's Will allows open interpretation of His Law and any number of heresies and cults to the Emperor are on their ship. Some say that the Holocene teeter dangerously close to the path of the Radical.



House Naraghast: The Privateers

A militant group of pirates and freebooters.

Brief History: The Naraghast were once an ancient line of proud settlers and explorers. That was until their success caught up to them. Their entire fleet was raided by an alliance of lesser rogue traders, leaving a single smaller ship alive. With one last ship remaining, the Naraghast rebuilt its legacy over the next century and hunted down their attackers, burning them all. Today, they are a gritty and hard clan of survivors, just one step away from space pirates.

Notable Accomplishments: Besides hunting down the five other rogue trader lines that attacked them, the Naraghast are known for the daring raid of the death world of Woe, where they sent an entire fleet of Chaos ships to their doom, crashing down upon the surface of that world.

Edge: As a group of pirates who skirt the law, this is edge enough.


House Null: The Evil Ones

A Rogue Trader line corrupted by Chaos.

Brief Background: The Null fleet first began its journey amongst the stars when it acted as an agent of a number of noble houses from the ill-fated Hive Tenebra. However, when Tenebra fell, the entire privateer fleet became a series of vessels with no true home. They became Rogue Traders as Scintilla's consolation for losing everything. Matron Null piloted her large fleet out into the edges of space, making limited contact with xenos; trading with distant systems; and contacting outposts. Somewhere along the way, her and her entire fleet became corrupted by xenos forces. It is said that somewhere out in the Halo Stars, Null’s ill-fated fleet became entangled with an alien species of great power and knowledge.

Notable Accomplishments: The Null Fleet is one of the most feared threats in the Koronus Expanse and the Calixis Sector itself. Of all of their infamous deeds, the Null Fleet is perhaps most maligned for taking on patrols of the Imperial Navy and winning.

Edge: The Null Fleet knowingly and willingly associate with the forces of chaos and demons.



House Ontiveros: The Explorers

Once a dynasty of Tech Priests, over time this line has become ecclectic and diverse.

Brief History: This line of Rogue Traders was founded by Magos Silicant Ontiveros. His ship of tech-priests sailed into the void on a mission of discovery. However, as the millennia passed, the line began to die out, due to a lack of genetic diversity. Over time, the Ontiveros line has picked up crewmates from all over the galaxy, now sporting an extremely diverse and eclectic band of crewmates. Though different, all of the crewmates of the line share a common love of tech. Their ancient ship is always on the verge of collapse, but commands respect due to its antiquity.

Notable Accomplishments: House Ontiveros has discovered many things. But perhaps one of their most famous finds was the vault world of Bubo, which turned out to be an entirely artificial planet.

Edge: While out in space, this line has been known to unlock all manner of technology, some of it rumored to be not only heretical but blasphemous.



House Augurian: The Quest-Seekers

A dynasty founded by the daughter of Saint Tristesse who now seeks out the meaning behind a millenium-old prophecy.

Brief History: Long ago, an unknown explorer founded and forged the world of Norn in the Koronus Expanse. For millennia, the world was lost and forgotten. But just nine hundred years ago, the world was rediscovered by a single Rogue Trader, Tristesse, who was eventually sainted for her great deed. Now, two-thousand years later, her companion fleet, founded by her daughter, still exists. It continues its legacy into the void.

Notable Accomplishments: Aside from being guided by a saint, the Augurians are renowned for appearing in response to a massive prayer uttered by the pilgrims on Norn. In an hour of great need, the Augurians were able to save the shrine planet from destruction.

Edge: While many of their accomplishments have been indeed heroic, and their faith in the Emperor is unshakable, over time their search for an ancient artifact has become more and more fanatical. Some believe this line is slowly turning itself over to madness.