A novice of the Adepta Sororitas, incorruptible and unyielding in her faith. An aberrant mutant determined to make up for his curse through service to the God-Emperor. A pistoleer from the frontier with sly words as fast as her bullets. A knight from a world frozen in time, on a holy quest across the stars. Every Meet the Party article gives you an entire group of ready-to-play adventurers (maybe even some heroes) for your gaming needs for a variety of systems and settings. It’s time to head back to the grim, dark, far future of Fantasy Flight Games’ Dark Heresy Second Edition, there to join the Ordo Hereticus and fight the Enemy Within!

Enemies Within is the first true ‘player’ supplement of Dark Heresy’s Second Edition that provides players with new homeworlds, backgrounds, roles, abilities, and gear. The book focuses on the Ordo Hereticus, one of the Ordos of the Inquisiton that is tasked with fighting those enemies of the Imperium who originate from humanity itself. Last time we visited DH2E we met a warband of the Ordo Xenos, but that party was made so mostly through their backstories and a few carefully chosen abilities. This party draws quite a few things from a book dedicated to their chosen Ordo; when the Ordos Xenos and Malleus are eventually given the same treatment, you can rest assured that Meet the Party will be giving those books a look as well. Anyway, on to the party!

Genevieve Heras, Fanatic

Only in death does duty end . . .

Homeworld: Shrine World

Background: Adepta Sororitas

Weapon Skill: 39   Ballistic Skill: 33

Strength: 38   Toughness: 31   Agility: 30

Intelligence: 27   Perception:  27  Willpower: 35

Fellowship: 37    Influence: 37

Aptitudes: Willpower, Offence, Leadership, Ballistic Skill, Toughness, Weapon Skill, Strength

Skills: Athletics, Intimidate, Common Lore (Adepta Sororitas), Linguistics (High Gothic), Parry +10

Talents, Traits, and Advances: Weapon Training (Flame, Chain), Deny the Witch, Willpower Simple, Weapon Skill Simple, Weapon Skill Intermediate, Parry Trained, Sound Constitution

Bonuses: Faith in the Creed, Incorruptible Devotion, Death to All Who Oppose Me!

Fate Threshold: 4

Wounds: 13

Equipment: Hand Flamer, Chainblade, Armoured Bodyglove, Chrono, Dataslate, Stablight, Microbead, Chainsword with Sacred Inscriptions, Brazier of Saint Roberto

Genevieve likes little in the galaxy more than giving heretics what’s coming to them, and she’s trained appropriately. She skilled with her Chain weapons and even better at parrying attacks, while Death to All Who Oppose Me! lets her spend a Fate point to gain the Hatred talent against her foe of the moment. She also strikes the most imposing figure in the warband, her fearsome countenance lit by the Brazier of Saint Roberto and her enemies left alight by her hand flamer. She also has the most Influence in the warband. She is actually immune to Corruption thanks to Incorruptible Devotion. Finally, she is uniquely capable of taking the Sister of Battle Elite Advance, although she has a while to go yet.

Echo Festus, Penitent

Suffering is an unrelenting instructor . . .

Homeworld: Hive World

Background: Mutant

Weapon Skill: 38   Ballistic Skill: 37

Strength: 27   Toughness: 30   Agility: 35

Intelligence: 30   Perception:  41  Willpower: 27

Fellowship: 25    Influence: 26

Aptitudes: Perception, Fieldcraft, Agility, Ballistic Skill, Intelligence, Offence, Toughness

Skills: Acrobatics, Awareness +10, Intimidate, Forbidden Lore (Mutants), Survival, Stealth, Scrutiny

Talents, Traits, and Advances: Weapon Training (Low-Tech, Solid Projectile), Sonar Sense, Die Hard, Stealth Known, Perception Simple, Scrutiny Known, Awareness Trained, Ballistic Skill Simple, Agility Simple

Bonuses: Teeming Masses in Metal Mountains, Start with 10 Corruption Points, Mutation: Deathsight, Twisted Flesh, Cleansing Pain

Fate Threshold: 2

Wounds: 11

Equipment: Stub Revolver with two Clips of Ammo, Great Weapon, Grapnel and Line, Heavy Leathers, Combat Vest, 2 Doses of Stimm, Explosive Collar, Combat Shotgun with two Clips of Ammo, Backpack

Echo would best be described as ‘observant’. He has the best Perception in the warband, complete with an array of skills that make him the ideal member for keeping watch and looking for clues. He is also equally skilled at melee and ranged combat. It is his talents and bonuses, however, that truly make him stand out (and apart). Sonar Sense makes him terribly hard to hide from, while Deathsight shows him his enemies’ weaknesses. Twisted Flesh grants him some control over what Corruption can do to him. Cleansing Pain grants him a significant bonus when hurt.

Narcia “Trix” Rhia, Desperado

The wise learn from the deaths of others . . .

Homeworld: Frontier

Background: Outcast

Weapon Skill: 27   Ballistic Skill: 44

Strength: 24   Toughness: 33   Agility: 36

Intelligence: 34   Perception:  31  Willpower: 35

Fellowship: 33    Influence: 30

Aptitudes: Ballistic Skill, Social, Agility, Offence, Defense, Fellowship, Finesse

Skills: Sleight of Hand, Common Lore (Underworld), Deceive, Dodge, Stealth, Charm

Talents, Traits, and Advances: Weapon Training (Chain, Solid Projectile), Quick Draw, Fellowship Simple, Agility Simple, Ballistic Skill Simple, Two-Weapon Wielder (BS), Ambidextrous, Charm Known

Bonuses: Rely on None But Yourself, Never Quit, Move and Shoot

Fate Threshold: 4

Wounds: 11

Equipment: Autopistol and two Clips of Ammo, Chainsword, Flak Vest, Injector, 2 Doses of Slaught, Hand Cannon and two Clips of Ammo, Stub Automatic x2 and four Clips of Ammo.

Narcia is usually introduced by either a hail of bullets or honeyed words. She is an artist with a pistol, preferably two of them, running through the battlefield with guns blazing thanks to Move and Shoot. She’s in the habit of working on her own gear thanks to Rely on None But Yourself. She’s both the most deceitful and most charming member of the warband, but she’s also tough; Never Quit makes it much harder to Fatigue her. She is also quite hard to find and just as hard to hit once you’ve found her.

Draco Caradoc, Warrior

Humans must die so that Humanity can endure . . .

Homeworld: Feudal

Background: Imperial Guard

Weapon Skill: 42   Ballistic Skill: 27

Strength: 34   Toughness: 34   Agility: 30

Intelligence: 25   Perception:  32  Willpower: 36

Fellowship: 40    Influence: 30

Aptitudes: Weapon Skill, Leadership, Ballistic Skill, Defense, Offence, Strength, Fellowship

Skills: Athletics, Command +10, Common Lore (Imperial Guard), Medicae, Navigate (Surface), Parry

Talents, Traits, and Advances: Weapon Training (Las, Low-Tech), Iron Jaw, Jaded, Combat Master, Parry Known, Command Trained, Peer (Imperial Guard), Weapon Skill Simple

Bonuses: At Home in Armour, Hammer of the Emperor, Expert at Violence

Fate Threshold: 3

Wounds: 13

Equipment: Laspistol, Sword, Combat Vest, Imperial Guard Flak Armour, Grapnel and Line, 12 Lho Sticks, Magnoculars, Shield, Fuedal World Plate, Devotional Iconography

Draco is a knight, plain and simple. His skill with a blade and the sheer difficulty of dropping him make him a force to be reckoned with in a fight. At Home in Armour keeps his Agility from being penalized, while Hammer of the Emperor and Expert at Violence make him deadlier still under the right circumstances. He also has the most authoritative personality in the warband, with an amazing Command score made even better when those loyal to the Imperium view the Devotional Iconography on his armor.

Genevieve and Echo take both their Backgrounds and Roles from Enemies Within, while Narcia and Draco take their Homeworlds from that same book. Some items are also from Enemies Within; the rest of the content in this article come from the Core Rulebook.

As always, the characters here were left to the fickle whims of the thirsting dice gods. This included their Divinations, which granted a variety of effects. Genevieve became more resistant to Fatigue, Echo receives a bonus after being hurt for the first time in a session, Narcia got a little smarter in exchange for being poorer in melee, and Draco became Jaded.

Who They Are

Genevieve Heras is a novice in good standing with the Adepta Sororitas. The Sororitas have several different vocations, all of which serve the glory of the God-Emperor and His Imperium of Man, but Genevieve was always drawn to pronouncing righteous judgement on heretics. She has striven throughout her training to be worthy of the armor and weapons of a Sister of Battle. As the Sisters of Battle also act as the Chamber Militant of the Ordo Hereticus, it was judged appropriate that the final phase of Genevieve’s training be held under the auspices of the Ordo, and she was sent to serve her current Inquisitor.

Echo Festus was never really sure why he was so good at killing people. Granted, practice makes perfect and he got plenty of practice in the underhive, but his ability to find targets and pinpoint their weakspots was uncanny even to him. For a while he feared the thought of being a psyker; that fear changed when an Inquisitor purged the hive. Echo was found and his mutant nature was revealed to him; however, either because of his deep horror at the revelation or his usefulness, he was spared. With an explosive collar around his neck he was told that only in service could he be forgiven for the aberration of his genes.

Narcia “Trix” Rhia found life out on the frontier of the Imperium a dangerous but profitable one. With law enforcement, even the Arbites, thin on the ground she made a good living out of bounty hunting. One particular target turned out to be involved in some dark works, however; Trix shot her way out but lost her then-partner to the blades of the heretics. Her vengeful return happened to coincide with the arrival of an Inquistor and an accompanying warband. With much of her homeworld destined to be purged, she accepted the offer of a new job hunting heretic scum to the ends of the Imperium.

Draco Caradoc practically grew up making cavalry charges in full plate against the rival armies of his feudal homeworld; when the planet was rediscovered by the Imperium he was drafted to lead the same charges, this time against tribal Archenemy forces as part of his world’s first Imperial Guard regiment. Eventually his skill, leadership, and devotion to the God-Emperor drew the eye of an Inquisitor; when the regiment was devastated by a more advanced breed of Archenemy, Drake was plucked from the chaos before it was too late. He views his survival as a holy gift, and his service in the Ordo as a holy quest.

How They Interact

Genevieve cares little for Festus. He is clearly the lowliest scum of an underhive, and she does not truly understand why the Inquisitor even recruited him. Then again, he is skilled, and his zeal is certainly not lacking. Perhaps even he can serve. Narcia is something of a physical coward in Genevieve’s eyes, skulking around the edge of a fight with her pistols, but her skills are admirable and her company at least pleasant. Draco is someone whom Genevieve looks up to; his devotion is obvious, his very presence commanding, and his skill with a blade superior even to her own. Were Draco a woman, Genevieve is certain that he would have made an excellent Sister. As it stands, she often asks the older man to train with her in the art of the blade.

Echo is both greatly respectful and terribly afraid of Genevieve. Her purity and love of the Emperor make her an object of near-idolization for the mutant, but her zeal might mean death for him if she ever knew of his curse. Or perhaps she does, and she holds the control to his explosive collar? The Inquisitor never told him who had it, after all. Narcia is a friendly face, a fellow outsider in this new life of holy warriors and purifying flame. Although quiet since discovering his mutant nature, Trix is the one he talks with the most. Draco is nearly as scary as Genevieve, but also somewhat of a calming influence. Echo trusts the knight to give him orders when needed.

Trix thinks that Genevieve is a bit too wound up for her own good, but sure as Chaos won’t be telling the novice that to her face. As things stand the firebrand is at least pleasant to be around, while making for a great distraction. Echo is a useful little bit of blight, that’s for certain. If she’d had him along for the ride on her homeworld she might not have lost her partner. However, she knows what he really is; the Inquisitor told her, and gave her the controls to the mutant’s explosive collar, trusting her to do what was necessary if Echo’s curse became worse. Draco is even stuffier than the Sororita; while not exactly blue blood the knight is obviously of a higher social class, which grates Trix a bit. At least he can keep the mob out of her way.

Draco views Genevieve as being akin to a squire in his service, with all the baggage that entails. He expects obedience, while believing it his duty to mentor her. He believes quite strongly that she will surpass him some day. Festus is reminiscent of the peasant militia of Draco’s homeworld; while of the same low breeding his skills as a scout and lookout are just as good as the militia, and the knight values him as an asset. Rhia, however, is nothing like Draco has ever had to deal with before, and she often has him at something of a loss. There’s no whipping post to send her to for her sly words and swift hands like there would be back home or in the Guard, despite Draco’s inquiries to the Inquisitor about such a thing. He supposes he’ll just have to bear it, like the armor he wears.

The Far Future

Of all the enemies of Man, the Enemy Within is perhaps the most insidious, for they are potentially everywhere Man is. The mutant, the heretic, and the witch could spring from any human population on any planet at any time. Can these acolytes of the Ordo Hereticus send this filth to the pyres, or will they themselves be the ones to burn? That’s for you (and your dice) to determine!

Originally posted 8/13/15 on the Mad Adventurers Society!