Death Watch by Nikki Kolls

While I have been playing 40K for a little over a year now, I only recently got to experience another side of the 40K universe – Deathwatch. While I am not normally into RPGs, my friends really seemed to have fun with it and always had fun stories of all of their heroic, and not so heroic moments. I decided not to join at first thinking I wouldn't be able to get into it, but slowly found myself being drawn into it as they fought on other worlds against various enemies. Mix in the stories of guns jamming at the worst possible moment and of heroes carrying their fallen comrades and I knew I had to give it a shot.

So I decided to buy the core rulebook and some dice and create a character. I rolled a Space Wolf of course – Bran Thunderbrew the Rune Priest. I rolled my back-story, stats, and filled in my character sheet the best I could without really knowing the core mechanics. Back-story complete, I built and painted my model in the Deathwatch black and magnetized all of his weapons. I read more of my core rule book and talked to a few friends about it. I was ready to go! Or so I thought.

My first mission had finally come. I had my character and brought my ‘Nids for the group to battle against. I was feeling pretty confident as my friend set up the battlefield.  We rolled for Initiative and took our turns. And then that confidence was gone as they asked “What would you like to do?”

I realized I had no clue.  I had no idea and 10 of my friends are staring at me to come to a decision. At that moment I didn't remember anything I had read and had no idea what the options were. I was told 3 different pages to turn to for reference. Between moving, actions, shooting, psychic powers, and skill checks it was so very different than anything I was used to. Add in all the math involved with these different actions and my brain was mush. I was a little overwhelmed and in all honesty, getting pretty frustrated.

Thankfully my friends were able to nudge me in the right direction and we were on course for our mission. After destroying some gargoyles and termagants, we were able to explore a wrecked aircraft and find the pilot. Brother Algrim Fangson carried the pilot back to his aircraft and supplied him with his grenades, and we were off to fight the horde of Hive Fleet Omnomnom.

As we begin to pick off the horde I started to remember more of my spells and weapon damage. This was just in time as we had to bust into a building surrounded by genestealers. After nearly killing another battle brother, I was able to actually kill one of them and help in the final parts of the mission as we raced back past the wrecked aircraft. The mission ended with a bang as the wrecked aircraft exploded, taking the Hive Fleet with it.

While it started off a little frustrating, I really did have fun with my first mission. I realized that I have a lot more research to do and cheat sheets to make, but once I’m more comfortable with the rules for my character, I think I’ll really enjoy it.  I feel that while the mission-based RPG limits a lot of character development, it does help someone like me who does not have the RPG background.  It gives me a goal to reach with my team, but also allows for me to build a unique character and have his decisions influence the end result.

In the end, I recommend Deathwatch for those who enjoy the 40K fluff even if you don’t think you would enjoy an RPG. While it does take a long time to set up and learn the rules, it makes for some great    stories with your friends and offers a new way to enjoy the hobby. I’m glad I decided to give a shot and hope to have more stories of my own in the near future!

-          Nikki Kolls