Blood Pact said:

Okay, so the Eldar are heavily in to farseeing.

The most powerful minds in the galaxy are constantly teasing at the strands of fate in order to unravel, and maybe predict, maybe control, the future.

Eldar play the long game. Sometimes they play very long games indeed.

One of the longer games they are playing (although certainly not the longest) is the hope that when all the souls of the Eldar race are contained within the Infinity Circuit, a powerful new gestalt being will form and come to challenge the might of Slaanesh. In the dreams of the farseers, this being is already known as the God Ynnead.

But this is by no means a certain outcome. Most Eldar seers predict that many other elements must be put in place to ensure the creation, and eventual victory, of the God of the Dead. But there is… Disagreement as to what must be done.

Many competing schools of thought have formed around the visions of the more powerful or charismatic seers. And all attempt to remake the universe to the design of their founders.

So what happens in the game is that the party, consisting of Eldar from many paths who have sworn themselves to one of these schools, fly around the galaxy completing seemingly arbitrary tasks assigned to them by their leader, which, they are assured, will put in to motion chains of events which will eventually free the Eldar from their great curse. These tasks can be large or small.

Adventures might include:-

Ensuring a particular mon-keigh student wins the combat pentathlon event at the Schola Progenium sports day on Salsa Secondus.

Starting (or stopping) a major war between rival Tau factions.

Staging a particularly unsuccessful performance art installation at a prestigious facility on one of the more fashionable craftworlds (this is going to be enormously embarassing for all involved).

Surveying and constructing new webway passages in very precise configurations through very dangerous stretches of the warp.

Causing it to become very fashionable for Orks of Warrrggghhh Snashgal to wear a blue bandanna.

Figuring out how to move a medium sized star 2 AU spinward.

Complicating matters, agents of rival schools are also active, and either want to stop you or create a different outcome. They are equally as convinced that they are right, and will use all means at their disposal to ensure the correct configuration is achieved.

For anyone who cares to look, I posted my thoughts to this post on the Rogue Trader forum.

Thankyou both. But AlphaChaos, you didn't really answer the question, just said you don't like playing humans, and that you think Tau would be a good choice. Wolf, you came a lot closer tot he mark, but what you basically described is "Dark Heresy with Eldar".

If FFG is going to make an entirely new game, with Xenos, they're not going to be stupid about it if they want longterm viability as a product. They're not going to rely entirely on the fact that you're playing whatever to sell it. It's gotta be new, it's gotta be at least kinda original, in comparison to the other lines already out (and there are far fewer similarities between any two of the game-lines currently out, than there are similarities.. aside from 4/5 being Imperium focused). It's not enough that people want a Xenos game, because if it doesn't have more to it than just playing Xenos, the enthusiasm is going to try up really fast. And you've certainly both seen how the forums can quickly turn in to a pack of bitching, whining, little ingrates. SignoftheSerpent will be leading them all, screaming about how we've been cheated yet again, because the game is basically (like I've been saying) just "Deathwatch with Crisis Suits", or whatever.

So far the only idea that really comes close to hitting the nail is a Harlequin game.

AluminiumWolf said:

I'm imagining the Eldar game is nothing but extended tests 

I think AluminumWolf has an amusing, but intelligent take on how it could be setup.

The Farseer sends out a small, elite strike force to "tilt" the events of whatever in the direction that most helps the Eldar in the future.

Hand select a small strike force etc. Yeah, I think it could work.

The Harlequin idea is also fascinating. Both options, Rangers, Corsairs and what not are all also possible imo.

Blood Pact said:

I'm not sure what question I didn't answer. The original post was essentially "show support for a xenos game" and I showed my interest. But I will gladly eleborate. A Tau Empire game would allow for a variety of missions and adventures. PCs could really do anything from military missions to exploration/expansion/ first contact missions to stealth/investigative (trying to understand those crazy humans, perhaps). The inter-party dynamics would be interesting too, as the PCs would be from different species/castes. I imagine that it would sort of be like combining Rogue Trader & Deathwatch. The setting could be in the outer reaches of the Empire, trying to expands its borders & absorb new species into the Empire. All the while, there is a greater command structure in place & perhaps a requisition system. Due to the Tau not being inherently, rabidly xenophobic, such a game would allow for unprecedented freedom with dealing with aliens. Yes, you can do some of this in Rogue Trader, but its not really the same. The Traders truck with xenos for profit, nothing more. A Tau game would allow for stories involving differing cultures & moral points of view. Without, you know, immediately killing the other party because they are "wrong". Don't get me wrong, I love the 40K RPGs. I genuinely think that a Tau Empire game has a lot to offer, beyond just "It would be kewl to play them".

Ugh. I just read this & see mistakes. I really have to slow down when I'm typing! 

Actually, the 'Tilt the Balance' idea is extremely good.  And I could easily see the Mission System like in Deathwatch and Only War being modified to do something like that, with a touch of Black Crusade too.  An overarching Campaign goal of getting so many 'destiny' points to further your craftworld's goals, just as becoming a Daemon Prince or Leading a Crusade is the goal of BlackCrusade.

Someone should GM it.

I volunteer to be a Shadow Spectre.

I'd be more interested in the idea of a game set in a sector that the Imperium is starting to crusade into and you get to play as teh various minor Xenos species within. No Eldar, Tau or Orks. 

Kroot, Hrud, Tarrelian Dog-soldiers, Umbra (for those that want to play a floating magic 8-ball), Nekuli, Niccassar, Demiurg, and all the other creatures that just get a vague nod of the head occasionally. THAT'S what I want to see!

Exodites.

High Fantasy world with Space Elf Lizard Knights and their laser spears!!!

Or I could just go play 4E dnd its basically the same thing…