Game Book Review: The Radical's Handbook

Dark Heresy RPG: The Radical's Handbook by Fantasy Flight Games


My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This supplement to the Dark Heresy role playing game covers radicals. A radical, in this game-world, is someone in the Inquisition who uses the tools of the enemy to get things done. Deamon weapons, xenos tech, anything proscribed, as long as it gets the job done.

The book includes game mechanics for players who wish to stray down the radical path, and for game masters who wish to use radicals against their players. There are alternate career ranks like Sin Eater and Tainted Psyker, and elite advance packages including Deamon Vessel and The Exorcised. And plenty of radical toys for players or adversaries.

Also covered are many different radical cults: including those that believe they can enslave chaos to do the Emperor's work, those that believe have damned themselves by using chaos, and there is no salvation, and radicals who believe that the Imperium is stagnating to death and must be forced into radical change.

A topic that is not covered, but I wish is were, is what happens to an Adepta Soritas who goes radical?

There is some repetition of material between this and Disciples of the Dark Gods, such as deamon weapons. While the book is useful to players who wish to be radicals, it has many spoilers. A GM who is worried about this might want to change a few names, and not to protect the innocent.

This book would be useful for an Dark Heresy GM. Radicals make great opponents, even to other radicals. For those who want to run a radical campaign, this is indispensable. Plenty of great artwork, and a fun read for any Dark Heresy player or Games Master.

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