Creating a Universe

So, recently, I've been trying to make a 40k-D&D adaptation. Essentially, the plan was to take Dungeons and Dragons, then modify it in such a way that I could use it in the Warhammer 40k setting.

It's not as easy as you might think.

For one, there's guns instead of bows and arros. Guns are a lot stronger, even the pesky flashlight is at least as comparable to a Longbow in sheer strength. So, to make it, I had to re-invent the weapon system.

Close Combat weapons I liked, and they can stay the same. As it says in the rulebook "The greatest gun in the galaxy is of no help if you're opponent's bashing your brains out with a rock". I wanted that reflected in the game. Also, however, there are no Chainswords or other Power Weapons. These are mighty weapons, wielded only by heros. They're not normally for sale, and as such, are getting some back-light treatment.

However, guns are much more readily available. Although much more expensive, guns have a real penetrating power. In order for the guns to not become totally overpowering, I had to make them be able to work better without killing their opponents. To solve this, I changed how armour works.

Normally armour only adds to your Armour Class (the protection the character has). However, in the 40k universe, there are many times that something may hit you, but the impact or energy is reflected or deflected off the armour. I decided that armour would have Damage Reduction - which is usually reserved for much deadlier or more powerful items in regular Dungeons and Dragons. However, this would be offset by the fact that the guns would now not be totally overpowering.

A gun may be able to do 1d12 damage, but if the armour stops 4 points of it, the best you can achieve is an 8, essentially making the damage 0,0,0,0 - 8 (which is worse than 1d8 damage). I could now make much more powerful guns in the player's mind, but still have them be manageable and, on the whole, not altogether trustworthy.

Finally, I've included hit locations. This, more or less, came out of frustration for not having characters gradually become incapacitated during a fight. Attacks now can cripple a body-part, or slightly stun a character in their next round of combat. In addition, some characters may choose that certain body parts aren't worth protecting, and so armour has been changed to a system where you buy armour for each body part you want to protect. This can also let you purchase weak armour for some body parts to save money for some really expensive but powerful armour on another body part.


With all these rules written up, I now have a character running around the universe I created. It's called the Bentar Sector. If you wish to join, leave me a comment here, or e-mail me at Mindscaper50@gmail.com with your 40kTerra screen-name. I'll get in contact with you, and we can try to put a character together.

However, remember that you'll be running around in an evolving universe - you won't be the only one out there, and you won't be the center of the story.

Have fun!
-Yarium