The Children of Thorns

Do not offer them gold, they do not come for riches. Do not offer them surrender, they do not come for
victory. Offer them nothing, they come only for your souls.

Mirror of Spite

When suspicious accidents, unfortunate setbacks, and suddenly well-informed

rivals began to plague Rogue Trade Jugashvili he grew increasingly desperate
and afraid. For a steep price of a thousand slaves and a pack of trained Cruorian
War Beasts he bought a strange mirror of polished black metal from a smiling
alien who never left the shadows and moved with inhuman grace. The alien
promised him that the mirror will reveal to Jugashvili those who plot against
him, as long as the price of blood was periodically paid anew. For a time the
Rogue Trader's fortunes were restored: the saboteurs and spies were rooted out,
and with new-found cunning Jugashvili dealt with his rivals, but his suspicions were not abated
instead they grew and consumed him. He began to suspect anyone and everyone around him, even his
most loyal followers, and the mirror was only too happy to oblige his paranoia showing him the faces
of everyone he suspected. Jugashvili carried out purge after purge, demanded increasingly bloody and
bizarre tests of loyalty, and busied him more with fighting imaginary threats than nurturing his
dynasty's wealth. Things came to a head in 611.M41 when his crew and retainers desperate to rid
themselves of the tyrannical and insane lord rose up against Jugashvili with help from his Rogue
Trader rivals. It is said that the mummified scraps of his body are still displayed on a gibbet on the
prow of his ship Restraint of Reason. As for the strange xeno-crafted mirror it disappeared during the
bloody coup, but has resurfaced again and again in a palm of a strangely-helpful and well-informed
alien. It has changed many owners, even falling into the clutches of the Inquisition once, but it never
fails to bring misery and ruin and disappear soon afterwards.
The mirror is the size of a regular hand mirror, it is fashioned out of a single piece of black
metal polished enough to produce a reflection (on both sides), its 'frame' is fashioned in the shape of
thorny interweaving vines. Some of its owners swore that they could see strange symbols and shapes
hidden within the thorns and occasionally moving, but these claims are unverified. The thorns are quite
sharp, and intentionally so for the mirror's owner has to prick his hand on the frame and smear his
blood on one of the reflective parts of the mirror. Examinations of mirror end in baffling results.
Auspex fails to identify the type of metal and gives conflicting energy signature readings. Psychic
readings either don't show any influence of the Warp under the best circumstances, or on the contrary
cause the psyker to experience intense pain and overwhelming sensation of corruption emanating from
the mirror. One of the most famous examinations was conducted by a junior Nostromo Navigator who
worked for one of the Haarlocks upon looking at the mirror with his Third Eye, the Navigator
spontaneously burst out in thousands of puncture wounds all over his body and died of massive blood
loss, all the while thrashing in pain and screaming about benighted landscapes of impossible angles
constructed of torment.

Using the Mirror of Spite

The Mirror of Spite has multiple uses (though its current owner might not be privy to all of them). The
first use is easy enough to activate. Simply having it on one's person constantly for one week confers
the benefits of Paranoia Talent as long as the mirror continues to be in one's possession. However, if the
mirror's owner already has Paranoia Talent, he must make a Mental Trauma test (see Rogue Trader
Core Rulebook, page 296) with a Trauma Modifier of +10. On a successful test the character is fine,
but must make another Mental Trauma test each week the Mirror of Spite remains in his possession,
and each week the modifier becomes more difficult by one step (Challenging for the second week,
Difficult for the third week, and so on). On a failure the character instantly gains either a minor Phobia,
Obsession/Compulsion, or Delusion, that have something to do with seeing, hearing, or even simply
believing that someone or something out there is out to get the character. If the mirror's owner already
has one of these mental disorders the severity of the disorder is instead increased by one step. For every
week the Mirror of Spite remains in one's possession, the character gains 1 Insanity Point (with no
required tests or reductions from Talents or Traits).
The second use of the Mirror of Spite involves pricking oneself on the frame and using the
blood to coat the reflective surface (causing 1 point of Damage). By doing so and passing a
Challenging (+0) Willpower Test the Mirror of Spite comes to life and shows its owner the most
likely cause of a recent misfortune, accident, vendetta, assassination attempt, and so on. The following
conditions apply (Forbidden Lore (Xenos) -20 check is required to determine these conditions prior to
using the Mirror of Spite): the cause must be a person (living or dead), the misfortune is the most recent
misfortune regardless of how large it is (the loss of a ship) or how small it is (getting an undercooked
meal), and the mirror's owner need not necessarily be aware of the misfortune the mirror is showing the
cause of (which can predictably lead to tragic and messy consequences). If the character using the
mirror fails the Willpower Test the Mirror of Spite instead shows him a person that the character
suspects of something, has a dislike or enmity to, or has or had a vendetta against. A frequent use of the
Mirror of Spite thus tends to produce a long, confusing and conflicting list of suspects.
The third use of the Mirror of Spite allows the mirror's owner to see past glamours generated by
psychic powers, daemonic powers, or Warp sorcery. A Difficult (-10) Forbidden Lore (Xenos) is
required to discover this use (from legends, notes of previous owners, etc.). By spending a Full Action
and looking 'through' the mirror, the character can make a Routine (+20) Willpower Test and ignore
the effects of distortions, compulsions and illusions designed to hide oneself, conceal one's identity, or
impersonate someone else (such as Distortion, Mutable Features, and other similar powers and Arcana).
The Mirror of Spite however has no effect on powers that actually physically change one's shape it
only works on illusions and mind-influencing effects. However, each use of the Mirror of Spite in this
way bestows upon the owner 1d5 Insanity Points (with no required test or reductions from Talents or
Traits allowed) as the owner glimpses other horrifying things through the mirror (which may or may
not be actually there).

Oblivion Thorns
These strange constructs are rarely traded by the Children of Thorns and the Imperium should be
thankful for that. What uses the twisted minds of the Dark Eldar put these horrific creations are best not
contemplated, but unscrupulous humans have used Oblivion Thorns as an efficient and terrifying tool
of assassination. Oblivion Thorns appear as a fist-sized tightly-wound ball of thorny black vines
composed of a strange material that at times appears to be metal, stone, or even plant matter. When
inert, the vines are fairly brittle and small pieces can be snapped off, if one does not mind sustaining
nasty puncture wounds or has proper hand protection; however, when activated an Oblivion Thorn
takes on the density and hardness of adamantium. An inert piece of Oblivion Thorn snapped off can be
hurled producing a dangerous effect as it explodes into millions of mono-molecular strands, but its
more dangerous use by far is when it is activated by an application of a strange toxin (usually sold with
the Oblivion Thorn).
Once activated the ball of vines not only hardens, but also begins to levitate as well as doubling
in size and pulling in a shroud of shadows over it. If, at the moment of activation, even a merest drop of
blood, strand of hair, tissue sample, or piece of fingernail is placed on the Oblivion Thorn it will fly off
relentlessly seeking the unwitting donor of the sample. Once the Oblivion Thorn finds its target it
attempts to envelop the victim in a shroud of thorns and crush it utterly. It does not rest or stop unless
destroyed first or the target is utterly out of its reach (such as being in a different star system), and it is
not clear how it is able to track its target across vast distances. Bizarrely, despite the extremely painful
and visually terrifying way it dispatches its target the Oblivion Thorn does not leave behind a single
biological trace of the victim, although its gear remains relatively intact. What some of its owners do
not realize is that if any of their biological sample gets on the Oblivion Thorn (such as when snapping
off a piece of it), that sample will likely stay on it, and so when the alien construct is activated it will
assume its erstwhile owner is the new target. This is one aspect of the artifact that a Dark Eldar Pact
Maker will gleefully forget to mention during the negotiations.

Using the Oblivion Thorn

Oblivion Thorn can be used in one of two ways. The first way is when the Oblivion Thorn is inert. By
snapping off a piece (a Half Action) of the vines and hurtling it, the character can make an attack using
all stats of a Xeno Filament grenade (Rogue Trader Core Rulebook, page 126-127). Unless the
character exercises caution by wearing protective gear (non-primitive armour on the Arm location with
an Armour Point value of at least 6) the character risks inflicting damage and transferring some of his
or her blood on the Oblivion Thorn; this can be avoided with a Challenging (+0) Agility Test. The
Oblivion Thorn can be used in this fashion up to three times per day in this fashion, if it is used in this
way a fourth time the Oblivion Thorn simply disintegrates into fine black powder that swiftly
disappears. Furthermore, it may not be used in this way in direct sunlight or a brightly-lit area.
If an Oblivion Thorn is activated with a unique toxin usually sold by the Dark Eldar Pact Maker
or a Thorn-Broker (a Full Action), it is treated as a creature with the following stats that will pursue and
attempt to slay the creature whose blood, tissue sample, hair, skin flake, etc. was last daubed on the
xeno artifact. Once its victim is dead or if its victim becomes impossible to reach (typically if it is
further than 10.000 kms away), the Oblivion Thorn disintegrates into fine black powder which then
fades away.

Oblivion Thorn (activated)

WS BS S T Ag Int Per WP Fel

45 - 30 20 43 - 38 - -
Movement: 3/6/9/18
Wounds: 12
Skills: Awareness (Per) +10, Concealment (Ag) +10, Dodge (Ag) +10, Silent Move (Ag) +10
Talents: Combat Master, Furious Assault,
Traits: Scrawny Size, Regeneration, Brutal Charge, Hoverer (5), Machine (5), Strange Physiology,
Unnatural Senses, Crushing Vines, Shroud of Shadows, Endless Pursuit
Armour: All locations 5
Weapons: Thorn Slam (melee, 1d10+4 R, pen 5, Snare, Tearing)

Crushing Vines: When an Oblivion Thorn successfully immobilizes its opponent using Snare weapon
ability it can immediately make a free Grapple attack. In addition, all Opposed Strength Tests to resist
Oblivion Thorn's grapple attacks suffer -10 penalty, as do the Break Free, Slip Free, and Take
Control actions (Rogue Trader Core Rulebook, page 240). An Oblivion Thorn only uses Damage
Opponent action (Rogue Trader Core Rulebook, page 240) in a grapple and deals its Thorn Slam
damage on a successful Opposed Strength Test. A victim which suffers 10 Critical Damage or more
from Oblivion Thorn's grapple attack is destroyed utterly, no biological trace of it remains behind.
Shroud of Shadows: Oblivion Thorn gains a +10 bonus to Concealment and Silent Move in areas with
Shadow and Darkness lighting.
Endless Pursuit: Oblivion Thorn is always aware of the exact position of its designated target,
regardless of lighting, cover, Concealment, or other special conditions (such as certain Psychic and
Sorcery powers).

Prison of Woes

Some time in 734.M41, Rogue Trader Velemir Faranov who had a

reputation for personal vanity engaged the Chaos raider Fresh
Meat in battle. During the furious boarding action a Saynay
sorcerer unleashed a terrible blast of warp-fire against Velemir
hideously scarring him and leaving him barely alive. While the
Chaos raider was ultimately destroyed and Velemir recovered from
his wounds, the scars were so terrible and so profound that the
Rogue Trader was not only in constant pain, but was unable to
communicate vocally, and his new visage was so hideous that he could not personally participate in
delicate negotiations and decadent pleasures. Even the most delicate and precise arts of the Adeptus
Mechanicus' Magos Biologis or prosphetic savants failed to ameliorate his condition, and in
desperation he sought darker solutions. On Footfall he met with an intermediary of a shadowy
organization that offered him a strange item called the Prison of Woes. It appeared as a small semi-
opaque box of black glass, masterfully crafted and decorated with leaves and thorny vines through
which peeked unwholesome impish faces; an intricate and macabre dial mechanism of dull black metal
was set into the lid with no other ways of opening it. The broker explained that if Faranov would pay
the required price and place a tiny part of him into the box his injury will be taken away from him for a
year and a day. The price named was seemingly ludicrous a set of geological survey charts of Lucin's
Breath - easily obtainable. Faranov readily agreed, procured the charts, and put a lock of his hair in the
box. As soon as he had done so the box locked and the dial mechanism had begun a countdown, but
strangest of all a tiny humanoid figure could now be vaguely seen inside the box, beating itself against
the thick glass. Faranov was overjoyed to find his face and voice restored and placed the box in the
most secure vault he could procure.
A day before the term was up a strange black-clad man never seen before by Faranov's crew
appeared on the ship and demanded to speak to the Lord-Captain. The stranger explained that unless
Faranov was willing to renew the lease on the box his old injury and scars would return, but this time
the price would be Faranov's left hand. He reluctantly agreed and the stranger immediately cut off the
hand in question with a serrated blade, causing great pain in the process. Faranov replaced his hand
with a bionic replacement and thought that he still had the better of the bargain. The next time the
stranger asked for Faranov to delay his voyage to Sarmatia colony in the Expanse by five days; again
the Rogue Trader obliged, and even after hearing of the doom that befell the colony he still thought he
had the better of the bargain. The final time the stranger came he demanded Faranov's youngest and
favoured daughter as payment. At that price the Rogue Trader finally balked and refused. The stranger
bowed and withdrew into the shadows leaving the box in Faranov's possession. The next morning
Faranov's horrified chatelaine found his lord carefully dismembered though not a sound was heard that
night. The box and Faranov's youngest daughter were never seen again. The chatelaine claimed to the
end of his days that when he found his lord's head it bore the terrible scars he sustained years ago.

Using the Prison of Woes

Prison of Woes is a powerful xeno artifact that utilizes a mix of xeno technology with subtle daemonic
binding to temporarily remove some sort of a personal physical or mental affliction or injury, or even
prevent one's demise in certain circumstance. The box is rarely simply found, but is usually traded (or
rather rented) away by a Pact Maker or a Thorn-Broker, for a price that is guaranteed to produce or
amplify pain, misery, misfortune or tragedy either to the box's would-be owner or someone else. The
box also has a number of specific and macabre conditions, of which its new owner might not
necessarily be aware. The first condition is that the person whose 'woe' is locked away cannot open nor
smash open the box for the term of the bargain (set to a year and a day by default owner-subjective
time). The second condition is that if there is already a 'woe' imprisoned within the box, another person
than the owner of the box can open the box, releasing the original 'woe' (immediately inflicted back on
the owner) and placing a new 'woe' inside. The third condition is that the box can be used by the same
person only once during the predetermined term even if the original 'woe' was released. The final
condition is that if the price of renewal is not paid, the imprisoned 'woe' is inflicted once more on the
box's owner and the Children of Thorns usually exact the price anyway, along with dispatching the
box's current owner in a messy fashion to make an example.
In game terms the Prison of Woes is used in one of two ways. The first way is to temporarily get
rid of a specific condition afflicting a character. The condition removed must be one of the following:
all permanent damage to a single Characteristic score (such as from certain Critical Effects), a lost limb
or organ, a mental disorder of Minor or Severe severity, a single Minor Mutation or Malignancy, up to
20 Insanity Points or 20 Corruption Points. While a condition is removed the character has 1 less Fate
Point (meaning he can neither spend it normally nor permanently burn it). The second way is to have
an unoccupied Prison of Woes on one's person when catastrophic damage or effect is received that
would result in death or some extremely undesirable fate. If a character is about to be affected by a
Critical effect or some other deadly or crippling circumstance, he or she can choose to negate this effect
as if the character just permanently burned a Fate Point. Ultimately it is up to a GM to decide if a
character could seal away one's death in this way. In either case the condition or deadly fate sealed
away will be inflicted on the character after a subjective year and a day unless the character is willing
to negotiate another term of ownership with a Pact Maker (who usually makes himself known to the
character before the term is up). If the condition in question is death, the character either renegotiates
the term, burns a Fate Point permanently, or is removed from play in a manner chosen by the GM
(which should be appropriately horrific and edifying as to the dangers of making deals with aliens).

Dark Eldar weapons

Name Class Range RoF Dam Pen Clip Rld Special Wt
Splinter Pistol Exotic 50 S/3/- 1d10+2 R 3 120 2Full Toxic 1kg
Splinter Rifle Exotic 80 S/3/5 1d10+2 R 3 200 2Full Hail of 2.5kg
Splinters,
Toxic
Shardcarbine Exotic 30 S/3/- 1d10+2 R 3 120 2Full Tearing, 2.5kg
Toxic,
Scatter
Splinter Cannon Exotic 100 -/-/10 1d10+3 R 3 400 4Full Hail of 4kg
Splinters,
Toxic
Liquifier Exotic 10 S/-/- 1d10+4 E 1d10* 1 3Full Flame, 3kg
Phage-
Toxins

Special Rules:
Hail of Splinters: when fired on Fully Automatic, splinter weapons gain the Tearing quality owing to
their sheer volume of fire.
Combat Blades: Splinter Rifles and Shardcarbines usually come equipped with vicious mono-edged
blades meaning it can be used in close combat as a mono spear and can be used to parry.
*Variable Penetration: The Penetration value of Liquifier should be rolled for each hit individually.
Unless the victim has a sealed helmet or the equivalent, any Critical injury caused by a Liquifier
permanently blinds the target and inflict 2d10 points of Fellowship damage in addition to any other
Damage or Critical Effects the attack inflicts.
Phage-Toxins: A living creature wounded by the Liquifier must pass a Hard (-20) Toughness Test or
immediately suffer 2d10 wounds not reduced by Armour or Toughness.

Terrorfex Grenade
A Terrorfex grenade is created from twisted wraithbone charged with fear and pain of the Dark Eldars'
many victims. It is used just like a normal grenade and has a blast radius of 5 metres. Instead of
inflicting Damage, all non-Dark Eldar targets caught in the blast must pass a Hard (-20) Willpower Test
and suffer the effects of a failed Fear Test on a failure. Creatures with Machine, Daemon, From
Beyond, and Fearless Talents and Traits as well as any other immunities to Fear or psychic attacks are
immune to this effect. Creatures that gain resistance to Fear or psychic attacks gain these bonuses
against the Terrorfex grenade.
Power From Pain (New Trait)
Whenever a character with this Trait deals at least 1 point of damage (after damage being reduced by
Armour and Toughness) to a living opponent (not including characters with Machine or Daemonic
Traits) with a melee or unarmed attack, this character can immediately make an additional melee or
unarmed attack using the same bonuses or penalties as the original attack, or move up to his Full Move
without provoking an attack. This benefit can be gained only once per round. In addition, if a character
with this Trait kills a living opponent (as defined above) with a melee or unarmed attack, this character
immediately gains the benefits of Fearless and Furious Assault Talents for the duration of combat.
Whenever a character with this Trait suffers Critical Damage Effect that causes a Stun effect, the
duration of Stun is reduced by 1 to a minimum of 0.

Thorn-Broker
A Thorn-Broker is a human intermediary working for the Children of Thorns a deadly and shadowy
Eldar faction. Though he lives in abject fear of his alien masters, a Thorn-Broker feels innately superior
to other humans, entitled as he is by the attentions of his masters, the secrets and the lore he possesses.
Even though he is an intermediary himself, a Thorn-Broker prefers to be contacted through a network
of lesser agents and dupes. Before he deigns to meet with a potential client, he will gather as much
information on the client, his needs and desires, and means and pass this information on to his dark
masters. A Thorn-Broker is rarely encountered without bodyguards and will never allow himself or
herself to be captured, for he knows his alien masters will either find a way to punish him or those
close to him. A Challenging (+0) Forbidden Lore (Xenos) test or Difficult (-10) Inquiry or
Streetwise test is required to contact a Thorn-Broker's network or attract the attention of a Thorn-
Broker. A Thorn-Broker or one of his or her agents can usually be found on Footfall, Hermitage Station
of Passage or several settled worlds within the Expanse.

WS BS S T Ag Int Per WP Fel

38 32 30 37 30 36 33 35 33
Movement: 3/6/9/18
Wounds: 11
Skills: Awareness (Per), Common Lore (Expanse, Imperium) (Int), Charm (Fel), Chem-use (Int), Speak
Language (Low Gothic, broken Eldar), Deceive (Fel), Forbidden Lore (Xenos) (Int), Scrutiny (Per)
Talents: Pistol Weapon Training (Las, SP), Melee Weapon Training (Primitive), Jaded, Paranoid, Peer
(Criminal)
Armour: Xeno Mesh Armour (Arms 3, Body 3, Legs 3)
Weapons: Mono-edged knife (1d5+3 R; Pen 2), either a hand cannon (30m; S/-/-; 1d10+4; Pen 2; Clip
5; Reload 2Full) or a Good-quality Laspistol with Overcharge Pack (30m; S/-/- 1d10+3 E; Pen 0; Clip
15; Rld Full; Reliable)
Gear: 2 clips for hand cannon or 2 Overcharged packs for laspistol, hand vox, micro-bead, rebreather,
non-descript voidsman or colonist clothing, local currency, data slate, retainers or bodyguards (use
Hired Gun profile from Rogue Trader Core Rulebook, page 370)

Pact Maker
His smile gleams in the darkness, he appears out of the shadows with barely a hint of movement, in the
upturned palm the alien offers one's heart's desire. He is an emissary of the Children of Thorns, his
deals more insidious than his poisons and deadlier than his blade. A Pact Maker is authorized by the
Mother of Shadows to offer humans exquisite drugs and poisons, strange artefacts and weapons,
information, services of alien assassins and mercenaries, but all too often his gifts carry in them the
seeds of one's destruction. A Pact Maker never makes the initial contact himself, instead working
through layers of intermediaries and Thorn-Brokers, and his price is always terrible and designed to
create and spread as much pain and misery as possible.

WS BS S T Ag Int Per WP Fel

45 43 33 32 (10) 52 42 45 38 37
Movement: 4/8/12/24
Wounds: 15
Skills: Acrobatics (Ag), Awareness (Per), Barter (Fel) +20, Concealment (Ag), Deceive (Fel) +10,
Dodge (Ag), Forbidden Lore (Xenos, The Warp) (Int) +10, Intimidate (Fel), Silent Moves (Ag),
Scrutiny (Per), Speak Language (Dark Eldar, Low Gothic, Void Cant) (Int)
Talents: Basic Weapon Training (Las, SP), Melee Weapon Training (Primitive, Eldar), Pistol Weapon
Training (Las, SP), Exotic Weapon Training (Eldar and Dark Eldar weapons), Sprint, Resistance (Fear),
Jaded, Talented (Barter, Deceive), Decadence, Paranoia.
Traits: Unnatural Agility, Dark Sight, Power From Pain
Armour: Xeno Mesh (Arms 4, Body 4, Legs 4)
Weapons: Splinter Pistol (50m; S/3/6; 1d10 R, Pen 3; Clip 120, Rld 2Full, Hail of Splinters, Toxic),
Best Quality Xeno Mono-Sword (1d10+3 Pen 2 R; Balanced)
Gear: 1 Terrorfex grenade, 2 blind grenades, 2 spare clips of splinter ammunition, portal key, xenos-
crafted armour incorporating a photo-visor, rebreather, auspex, long-ranged vox and injector; 2 doses of
Frenzon; exotic clothing of black silk leather (of dubious origins), various grisly trophies and trinkets,
human slaves, attendants, and brokers.

Thorn Mercenary

As shadows of twilight lengthen, a thin discordant keening can be heard, and a powerful wind begins to
blow. Like the splinters of their favoured weapons the Children of Thorns appear on the winds of night
as a cloud of midnight-black blades, striking impossibly fast. Their hosts are as graceful as they are
deadly, every swing of a blade or pull of a trigger is designed to inflict maximum damage and fear on
their hapless targets. Despite being clad in finely articulated barbed and hooked carapace armour no
speed and mobility is sacrificed as they leap from their anti-grav skiffs such is their training and
inhuman agility. The Kabal Warriors of Children of Thorns prefer to strike fast, put down withering
cover fire as they hurl Terrorfex grenades to sow terror and confusion, and then engage in melee so that
they can feed on the enemy's pain up close. They do not leave enemy survivors willingly, and prefer to
carry away as many prisoners as possible. Some of the survivors note that the Children of Thorns will
go to any length to recover the bodies and gear of their fallen. Disturbingly, some Rogue Traders and
pirate lords have made dreadful deals with the Children of Thorns, and the Eldar warriors can be found
fighting as mercenaries beside the unscrupulous humans.

WS BS S T Ag Int Per WP Fel

42 46 33 37 (10) 53 34 37 33 27
Movement: 4/8/12/24
Wounds: 15
Skills: Acrobatics (Ag), Awareness (Per), Concealment (Ag), Dodge (Ag), Silent Moves (Ag),
Forbidden Lore (Xenos, The Warp) (Int) +10, Speak Language (Dark Eldar) (Int)
Talents: Basic Weapon Training (Las, SP), Melee Weapon Training (Primitive, Eldar), Pistol Weapon
Training (Las, SP), Exotic Weapon Training (Eldar and Dark Eldar weapons), Sprint, Resistance (Fear),
Crack Shot, Deadeye Shot, Jaded, Decadence,
Traits: Unnatural Agility, Dark Sight, Power From Pain
Armour: Kabalite Armour (All 5)
Weapons: Splinter Rfle (80m; S/3/6; 1d10+1 R, Pen 3; Clip 200, Rld 2Full; Hail of Splinters, Toxic),
Combat Blade (melee; 1d10+3 R, Pen 2); one member of a squad usually carries an Eldar Darklight
Blaster instead of a Splinter Rifle to deal with armoured targets and a Best-Craftsmanship Xeno Mono-
Sword.
Gear: 1 plasma grenade, 3 Terrorfex grenades, 3 spare clips of splinter ammunition, xenos-crafted
armour incorporating a photo-visor, rebreather, auspex, long-ranged vox and injector; various grisly
trophies and trinkets.

Children of Thorns' Raider Ship

This is a typical (if such a term can be used) raider ship used by Children of Thorns in the Koronus
Expanse. In truth no two are completely alike, as each corsair captain delights in inventing uniquely
painful accommodations for slaves and prisoners, and making bizzare modifications for battle
purposes. All such ships, however, share a predilection for stealth, speed, fearsome firepower and
carrying plenty of raiding parties. Children of Thorns corsairs tend to operate in packs of 2 to 3 ships,
preying on weakly defended colonies, or well-established shipping lanes where they either lie in wait
using Shadowfields or masquerade as Imperial transports using the Mimic Engines.
Hull: Frigate
Class: Corsair-class raider
Dimensions: 1.6 km long, .3 at fins approxi.
Mass: 4.4 megatonnes approx.
Crew: unknown, estimated to be roughly 5000 crew and raiders, and another 5000-10000 slaves and
captives, and unknown number of various xeno beasts
Accel: No max acceleration determined in Imperial records.
Speed: 18
Manoeuvrability: +45
Detection: +25
Void Shields: -
Hull Integrity: 18
Armour: 14
Turret Rating: 1
Space:
Power:
Weapon Capacity: Prow 2
Morale: 100
Population: 100
Crew: Crack (40)
Total Power/Space/Ship Points Left:

Essential Components
Shadow Fins, Command Bridge, Xenos Life Sustainer, Xenos Crew Quarters, Xenos Sensor Array

Supplemental Components
Prow Darklight Cannon Battery: (Macrobattery; Strength 5; Damage 1d10+2; Crit Rating 4; Range
6). The Darklight las batteries of Dark Eldar are capable of firing almost continuously, landing precise
hit after hit on the enemy.
Prow Phantom Lance: (Lance; Strength 1; Damage 1d10+5; Crit Rating 2; Range 6). The Dark Eldar
pulsar lances use dark energy to rip through the enemy hulls. When a Phantom Lance scores a hit, roll
to hit again, applying the same bonuses and penalties. A pulsar hit can score up to two total hits when
fired.
Shadowfield: Dark Eldar ships employ strange illusion-projecting shadow fields instead of energy
shields, that mask the ship's location and any details about the ship. It is exceedingly difficult to
pinpoint a Dark Eldar ship's location, speed, and heading, allowing the Dark Eldar to both set up
ambushes with supreme ease and to cut and run after a raid. All attacks made against a ship with a
functioning Shadowfield suffer -40 to any Test to hit in addition to any other potentially damaging
manoeuvres (such as a ramming, or the initial Pilot Test in Hit and Run attacks). Macrobatteries only
suffer a -20 penalty to hit. Ships also suffer -30 to any attempts to use any Extended Action against a
Dark Eldar ship with Shadowfields that involves Detection (such as Lock on Target or Focused
Augury).
Mimic Engine: Many Dark Eldar ships carry this strange device that uses the ship's Shadowfields to
change the ship's appearance to that of another ship. The illusion must be that of a ship of the same
class and/or general size (a frigate can appear as a frigate, raider, or some transports of another race, but
not a cruiser or a small assault craft, or a natural formation such as an asteroid). A Dark Eldar ship with
a Mimic Engine further than 15 VUs can automatically appear as a different ship; a Dark Eldar ship
with a Mimic Engine within 15 VUs still appears as a different ship, but the opponent can test
Perception+Detection (at -30 as per Shadowfield component description) to detect the ruse. Obviously
if another ship attempts to hail the disguised Eldar ship they may grow suspicious if met with silence or
inappropriate response.
Other Supplemental Components: Slave pens, torture chambers, combat arenas, strange shrines,
poison and toxin breweries

Ship Complications and Special Rules

Master Starfarers: The Eldar are some of the most skilled voidfarers in existence, and their ships are
designed to make the most of their talent. Any Eldar aboard an Eldar vessel may re-roll any Piloting
Tests for Manoeuvre Actions.
Supreme manoeuvrability: A ship with Shadow Fins may interrupt its Manoeuvre Action at any point
to perform a Shooting Action. Once the Shooting Action is resolved, it must complete the remainder of
its Manoeuvre Action. The limit of one Shooting Action per turn still applies.
Superior Accuracy: Dark Eldar vessels gain +10 to Ballistic Skill Tests made to fire a Darklight
Cannon Battery.
Raiders: The Dark Eldar are supreme raiders, but their crews dislike being on the receiving end of ship
combat, and the numerous slaves and captives on board of any Dark Eldar ships invariably cause
problems in the chaos of shipboard fighting. Any Opposed Command Tests made to oppose Hit and
Run, Boarding, and Prepare to Repel Boarders! Actions suffers -10. If the Dark Eldar ship sustains
Morale damage due to Hit and Run or Boarding Action initiated by the enemy, it suffers an additional
1d5 Morale damage.
Slavetakers: Dark Eldar are furious and brutal raiders delighting in the close-quarter shipboard
fighting, but they are far more interested in inflicting pain and death and taking captives rather than
prolonged fighting or capturing lumbering vessels of their victims. They gain +20 on all Hit and Run
actions and Precise quality. When conducting a Boarding Action, Dark Eldar gain +10 to the first
Opposed Command Test (see Rogue Trader Core Rulebook, page 215), but suffer -10 to all
subsequent Boarding Action Opposed Command Tests. Dark Eldar inflict bonus 1d5 Crew Population
and Morale with every successful Hit and Run and Boarding Actions.
Written by: Arseni Kritchever
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