Point Buy For Dark Heresy

It seems to me that Rogue Trader’s point buy characteristics generation could easily be applied to Dark Heresy characters as well. All you have to do is find the starting characteristic based on your home world (page 23) and then spend 100 points between them. The maximum characteristic is set by your home world – 45 if your minimum characteristic is 25, 40 if your minimum characteristic is 20, or 35 if the minimum characteristic is 15. So basically, you can only spend 20 points max on any one stat.

In bog-standard random-generation Dark Heresy you’ll be lucky to get a 30-35 when you begin, with perhaps +5 more from a starting advance if you’re willing to swing for one. I’m not altogether very fond of that, as I’m not altogether very fond of random attributes.

I don’t even think it would directly compromise the lethality and challenge of the game either, since starting Dark Heresy characters have much smaller amounts of random free traits and things, since they don’t have Origin Path character generation and don’t have the well-stocked starting packages of the career paths of Rogue Trader characters. Even if it is now definitely possible for you to get a WS and BS where you can actually hit more than half the time if you want to (rather a quarter or less than half the time) you still have to take advantage of aiming and ranges to do it, or charging or having proper weapons.

I have a Rogue Trader character that I still have to carefully think about in combat, even if she does have a BS of 45 and an archeotech laspistol. Higher possible starting characteristics do make the game easier, but marginally so in my experience. It changes nothing about your wounds for example and you’re still limited by your career path and starting rank. I think for anyone who found Dark Heresy too difficult it could be good to try it again this way and see what you think. I agree that it’s not an easy game on the players, and looking at the character generation, it adds a factor you’re helpless to control. Dark Heresy has enough challenge to it that the players can actively mitigate and this planning and strategy is important to the game, without needing handicapped characteristics to add to that cocktail of obstacles. Being able to hit with your lasgun doesn’t change that you have just a lasgun. Having 45 Fel doesn’t change that you probably have pretty bad stats elsewhere and that for talking to anyone hostile (practically everyone) it probably will be a close roll anyway. Having 45 Int or Per doesn’t suddenly make the +10 or +20 from tools you’re going to use if you want to succeed less attractive.