d100-based WH40K: Imperium Maledictum Announced

Cubicle 7 has announced a new Warhammer 40K game called Imperium Maledictum. The game will use a d100 system, and players will take on the roles of Imperium citizens in a game focused on intrigue and investigation.

Cubicle 7 is excited to announce a new Warhammer 40,000 roleplaying game! Imperium Maledictum is the spiritual successor to the beloved series of roleplaying games started by Black Industries over ten years ago. Imperium Maledictum is a d100 based system for roleplaying in the grim darkness of the 41st millennium, and builds on previous Warhammer 40,000 d100 roleplaying games, as well as Cubicle 7’s own award-winning Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition.

Players take on the roles of citizens of the Imperium in service to a powerful patron, with games focused on investigation and intrigue. The Imperium is a deadly place, and the players must tread carefully if they hope to survive. Your service to your patron allows you to move through Imperial society where others can’t. The Influence you and your patron have with the many factions of the Imperium will determine how your investigations proceed, where you can go, and what resources you have access to.

Imperium Maledictum takes place in the Macharian Sector, named for Lord Solar Macharius, and will allow players and GMs to explore the sector as never before. The Imperium Maledictum core rulebook gives players and GMs everything they need to begin playing, including a guide to the Macharian Sector, patrons to serve, and enemies to face. Future books will focus on specific factions, allowing players to take on the roles of agents in service to a powerful Inquisitor, or perhaps as dedicated servants of the Ecclesiarchy.

We are hard at work on Imperium Maledictum and will be sharing more news and details in the coming months, so be sure to keep an eye on our website, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram so you don’t miss out! You can also check out our currently available action-focused Warhammer 40,000 roleplaying game Wrath & Glory and it’s recently announced packed release schedule.

 

[MGibster]

I believe Dan Abnett and his WH40K novels Xenos, Malleus, and Hereticus (a.k.a. the Eisenhorn trilogy) are to blame for this obsession. Although they aren't entirely street-level.

One of the reasons my group wasn't interested in Warhammer Fantasy RP 2nd edition, was because their idea of a good time wasn't playing a Ratcatcher with a small but vicious dog. They wanted to play the griffin rider not a toll collector or rabble rouser.

 

[schneeland]

One of the reasons my group wasn't interested in Warhammer Fantasy RP 2nd edition, was because their idea of a good time wasn't playing a Ratcatcher with a small but vicious dog. They wanted to play the griffin rider not a toll collector or rabble rouser.

I assume that's something that C7 tries to address by having Wrath&Glory as well as Age of Sigmar. Not so sure how heroic the former is - I only took a brief look at the system and it wasn't for me.

 

[MGibster]

I assume that's something that C7 tries to address by having Wrath&Glory as well as Age of Sigmar. Not so sure how heroic the former is - I only took a brief look at the system and it wasn't for me.

Rogue Trader soured me and my group on 40k games. We loved the setting but hated the rules so much we walked away from a campaign in progress.

 

[schneeland]

Ok, in that case, I guess Imperium Maledictum is unlikely to offer enough improvement (I didn't really have much exposure to Rogue Trader, only Dark Heresy and found the rules not great, but bearable).
Just to mention it again: Age of Sigmar has its own d6 dice pool system and I have heard good things about it from people who like the universe.

 

[aramis erak]

This seems odd to me. Is there really an audience clamoring for street level 40k roleplaying? I would think an RPG focused upon Space Marines and Inquisitors and high tier Psykers would be the draw for 40k.

One would think...

My theories/experiences:

• It's harder to write interesting non-repetitive campaigns for Marines than investigators
• the serious bucket-head players are getting their fix in either the videogames or the minis games.
• Marine campaigns lack the width of available characters per group without stretching verisimilitude to the snapping point.

 

[humble minion]

One would think...

My theories/experiences:

• It's harder to write interesting non-repetitive campaigns for Marines than investigators
• the serious bucket-head players are getting their fix in either the videogames or the minis games.
• Marine campaigns lack the width of available characters per group without stretching verisimilitude to the snapping point.

I think that Deathwatch was probably as good as you'd get for variety of characters within an all-Marine group, because it gave you the choice to choose your PC from across the spectrum of Chapters as well as the spectrum of tactical specialisations. And the Kill Team construct was a useful justification for removing Marines from obedience to the military hierarchy which can limit a group's freedom of action. You could probably do something similar in the Horus Heresy era with a random group of, say, assorted Istvaan survivors, or loyalist renegades from traitor chapters.

There is less scope for, say, intrigue or social plots with a Marine group though. That's not what Astartes are FOR.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

I love the cover art.

 

[alex2020]

I love the cover art.

Somewhat borrowing from Bladerunner, * very * slightly..

 

[HaroldTheHobbit]

Do I love WFRP and the Old World? Oh yeah. Do I like 40k as a roleplaying milieu? Not really. Will I get this anyway? Yep.

 

[macd21]

This seems odd to me. Is there really an audience clamoring for street level 40k roleplaying? I would think an RPG focused upon Space Marines and Inquisitors and high tier Psykers would be the draw for 40k.

I think so, yes. Necromunda is a fan favourite, and recently had a (poorly received) computer game. The forthcoming Darktide game has you play pretty low level thugs. The highly popular Dark Heresy RPG was about playing lowly Inquisitorial acolytes (though in standard zero to hero style you could grow to astounding power levels). And in Only War you played normal Imperial Guardsmen.

There’s also the Wrath and Glory RPG. While it has rules for Space Marines and other powerful characters, it also has rules for “Tier 1” characters, like Hive gangers. I’ve seen plenty of calls for more supporting material for Tier 1 and 2 play.

People like playing Space Marines and Psykers, certainly. But a lot of people like playing the Imperium’s dregs too. And I suspect that (if the game does well) we’ll see future books to support higher-powered play. It’s just easier to start at the bottom and work your way up that the other way around.