First, a warning: this might be considered a Character Optimization article by many. I don’t think that’s really fitting in this situation, because there’s a massive chance for this to backfire horribly with hilarious/depressing/hilariously-depressing results. With that out of the way, feel free to read on.
Characters in Rogue Trader are made by generating characteristic scores and selecting (or randomizing if you are so inclined) an origin path. One of those origin path segments is simply called “Tainted.” When you are tainted, you have the option of receiving a random mutation from a table of impressive size, or of selecting a mutation from that same table (but no higher than what is possible with a d100 roll of 75) for 200 xp. Oh, there are a few other options available for tainted characters, but they compare so horribly to the mutation possibilities that they are only really options if your character is going more for a “crazy” or anti-Ecclesiarchy feel.
One of the mutations that is within the allowable range for player selection is “Ravaged Body,” which bestows upon the mutant 1d5 random mutations. See where this is going? You can randomly receive one mutation (and this may very well be that one) or you can select this mutation for 200 xp and receive one to five random mutations. How can this be a good thing? Well, let me tell you! Here are the top 6 beneficial random mutations (in my opinion), in no particular order:
- Hellspawn (Fear(2), double toughness bonus against normal weapons and attacks; Immune to fear, poison, disease, insanity points, pinning, mind-affecting powers)
- Hulking (increase size by one category (which makes you easier to shoot but also allows you to move faster), +10 Strength, +5 wounds)
- Feels No Pain (+5 wounds and the Iron Jaw talent)
- Wyrdling (gain a Psy Rating of 2 (or increase current psy rating by 1) and two powers of your choice from a psychic discipline of your choice)
- Necrophage (+10 Toughness, gain the Regeneration trait, you have to eat lots of raw meat to survive)
- Ravaged Body (you could potentially get all five of the above mutations, or any of the several other decent ones)
Just as Ravaged Body can make a player character into an unnatural force to be reckoned with, it can also make a PC into a handicapped hindrance. Here are (what I think are) the top 5 harmful random mutations:
- Mental Regressive (Go full-retard.)
- Malformed Hands (-10 WS and -10 BS, -20 on tests of fine manipulation)
- Grotesque
- Misshapen (you can’t run, -2d10 Agility)
- Ravaged Body (you could potentially get all four of the above mutations, or any of the several other detrimental ones)
So there you have it. With good luck you could make your character into a hulking hellspawn with psychic powers, or a hideous, bumbling retard, or some other warped, monstrous, Emperor-forsaken, genetic crap-shoot. This here is exactly why GMs should be very discerning in what they allow players to do during character creation.
5 Comments
My group’s Astropath used that very talent to get access to an extra Psypower level and a few more abilities. Very nice use of it, because it makes him much more useful in combat.
We did discuss the possibility of taking 6 mutations, but given that it’s potentially game-breaking we reckoned it would be a bit too over the top. I suspect that there may be something about this mentioned in the Errata.
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I’m thinking the same thing. After posting this, I started rolling up a new character (for the hell of it), and Tainted came up. I chose Ravaged Body, and… well, it’s nuts. Now I’ve got a Void Master with 57 Strength and 50 Agility (that’s before any advances are taken, too), two psychic techniques, Fear (1), Unnatural Strength, Frenzy, and more. It takes an unbelievable amount of good luck, but when it works out it’s insane.
So yeah, I can really see this getting errata’d.
I can never see this getting erratád since Ravaged Body makes all of the mutations seen as the corruption it is, wyrdling would likely be shown as crackles of pscychic powers from ya head or something XP….purge the mutant ^o^
Yeah, I made a mutant Navigator and bought Ravaged Body (200xp). When I happened to roll Ravaged Body on my first roll, my GM let me get 1d5 more for that 1. End result: 7 mutations there, 2 from Renegade house Navigator. I am a beast (including 12 AGI bonus and STR bonus)! I don’t remember all of them atm, but here’s the list of what I can recall:
- Shadowkin (GM wouldn’t let me be ethereal, but I get everything else except the ability to phase through things and the immunity to damage, just can’t attack while in it. Good way to avoid being purged!)
- Fear(3) (this makes RP difficult, this might be getting replaced, but it’s hilarious currently)
- Brute, Abberation (think that’s what it’s called) and the mutations that give unnatural AGI and STR.
- Nav. Mutation that gives darksight
- Wyrdling (got TK weapon, use with a metal staff to make a TK scythe, yes I’ve basically become a Dark Templar from Starcraft)
Most of the mutations I can’t recall right now just augmented my stats. The most notable are up there (and ridiculous!).
Now that… that is extra-heretical.