TEXT: Everything You’ve Been Told 
  (about women) is a Lie
  By Keiran Mathers
  Inquisitor tends to be quite a male dominated game. Games Workshop’s own Inquisitor range has a majority of male 
  figures, and their most iconic creations are described as always being male. So it would be fair to say that you don’t see a  
  huge number of female models on the Inquisitor table. 
  There seem to be a variety of reasons for this. Inquisitor is that unique mix of role-playing and skirmish, and like all role-
  playing games there is a bit of a stigma attached to ‘cross-playing’. There may be an unfair perception that women are  
  less likely to be in combat than men, or less able when the bullets are flying. It may also be that a slight young woman is  
  less ‘cool’ than a hulking, armour clad inquisitor with a big sword. Even in the Black Library, unless they are a Battle  
  Sister, women are often reduced to weak supporting roles (Eisenhorn, I’m looking at you) or by dying to give the  
  protagonist a reason to take bloody revenge.
  All of this is a bit of a shame. The dark future of the 41st millennium is, bizarrely enough, a remarkable environment for  
  female characters because their backgrounds can be so varied. The varied ranks of the Battle Sisters, disciplined brain-
  washed religious nutters are one end of this scale, while the other might be female Sector Lords or High Lords of Terra.  
  Cultural conditioning, the main force in shaping personality and outlook, can be whatever you want in the creation of  
  Inquisitor characters. 
  So let’s talk about women in Inquisitor. But not just female 
  models, but actual female characters with an air of reality 
  about them. Too many of the few women on the board will 
  be a classic male fantasy – either strange fetish clad desire 
  objects or top-heavy super-hot action babes with no real 
  difference to men.  Now, there is nothing wrong with that 
  per se, but since the enjoyment of the 
  game is improved by really thinking 
  about character, it pays to work out 
  what makes your character tick. 
  The  first  thing  to  work  out  is  the 
  societal pressures which were exerted 
  upon the character in their early life. 
  Intrinsic gender differences are much 
  less  important  than  societal  and 
  environmental pressure – people will 
  mostly become what they are made to 
  be, regardless of sex. The difference 
  here is how does it differently affect 
  women?  What  were  the  social 
  pressures upon them specifically?
   In the case of a hive worker, this may 
  be a conservative outlook and a close 
  relationship  with  her  peers.  If  you’ll 
  never see the outside of your world, 
  why bother even thinking about it? An 
  unthinking  subservience  to  authority 
  might be the result of a Ministorum 
  world  upbringing,  or  a  superiority 
  complex from those who are born and 
  raised on Ultramar and the Imperium’s 
  finest worlds. 
  A woman from the finest worlds of the Imperium may find 
  everything  else  deeply  parochial  and  have  an  air  of 
  snobbery  about  her.  A hive  woman  may  be  extremely 
  closed minded and defensive, used to a close family and 
  Hive  House  to  support  her.  She  may  also  have  been 
  discriminated against, forbidden to do certain works and 
  trapped in a society she does not agree with.   
  Environmental pressure can also exert a physical effect – 
  our hiver would be pallid and washed out, probably quite 
  hunched from the life of crawling through tunnels without 
  natural light. The Rogue Trader book rather wonderfully 
  describes  the  ‘void-born’  as  being 
  taller,  quite  gangly  and  having  a 
  strange air about them, the result of 
  living  in  mostly artificial  gravity.  So, 
  our hive woman would probably be 
  quite  small  but  muscular  and  wiry, 
  strong  from  the  manual  labour  she 
  works in but small so she fits better in 
  the Hive’s close confines. A void born 
  woman would look much more like a 
  super-model, tall and thin with almost 
  elfin  features,  but  physically  be 
  weaker due to the lower gravity she is 
  used to.  
  So,  already  we  have  our  woman 
  physically  taking  shape.  So  decide 
  what  was  that  early  environment? 
  The  Imperium  generally  regards 
  conformity  of  its  citizens,  but  what 
  was  the  conformity  expected  upon 
  their  particular  world?  Was  it  an 
  Ecclesiarchical world, and what does 
  their  interpretation  of  the  Imperial 
  creed mean? Did she come from the 
  heaving  environments of  Terra,  and 
  somewhere like it?
  From that decision, we can start building a personality. 
  Background  is  only  important  because  it  informs 
  personality, which informs behaviour and how  they act on 
  the  table.  Inquisitors  are,  by  their  very  nature, 
  independently    minded    people,      strong    willed     and 
  Dark Magenta is an unofficial fanzine and is not endorsed by Games Workshop Group Plc in anyway. Text and layouts are © Dark Magenta and its proprietor. Artwork and characters are the property of 
  their respective owners. No part of this magazine should be reproduced in any form without the express permission of the Editor-in-Chief. Dark Magenta is a non-profit-making organization and with the 
  aim of promoting the Inquisitor game, products and hobby.
  
  Page 2 of 3
  disciplined. But even taking that into account, what they 
  have learnt would still affect them. 
  Let’s say Inquisitor Hannah comes from the agri-world of 
  Lerion  VI.  It’s  a  sparsely populated  rural  world,  with  a 
  conservative  attitude  towards  society.  Therefore,  being 
  strong minded, Hannah would have to have fought her way 
  through her conservative society, harder than the men folk, 
  to  get  off-world. That  could have  affected her in  many 
  ways, but first I’ll choose to say it has made her spiky and 
  independent  to  the  point  of  unruly.  Anyone  who  has 
  battered their way through a society like that would mean 
  that they valued their independence more than most. She’d 
  struggle in the political machinations and hierarchy of the 
  Inquisition, but would make an excellent, self motivated 
  field agent. 
  Equally valid would be deciding that Hannah didn’t batter 
  her  way  through  society,  but  negotiated  through 
  cleverness. This Inquisitor Hannah would be a manipulator 
  and  political  schemer,  loving  the  machination  of  the 
  Inquisitional  politics  but  still  maintaining  a  certain 
  independence  in  her  goals.  She  would  be  more 
  collaborative and frankly, rather calculating. 
  Compare either of these to the respective experience of 
  Inquisitor Henri in the same situation on the same world. 
  He would need the same force of personality to over-come 
  the conformity of his world, the same strength of will to 
  make the decision to leave. But his path, in this situation, 
  would have been entirely different. He may have found 
  support somewhere in society to leave, held to be a great 
  trail-blazer  setting  out.  Equally,  he  might  have  had  to 
  physically fight his way out, as he’d have been challenged 
  by small minded men unwilling to let him ‘rebel’. He might 
  have also been beaten ‘for his own good’ and to change 
  his mind. 
  The starting point is the same but due to the genders, the 
  result is radically different. Inquisitor Henri might be a little 
  more trusting and willing to work in a larger group because 
  he has been supported before. He might be more prone to 
  violence as he’s had to physically compete on his way out. 
  Henri might tend towards the mono-dominant philosophy 
  as well, having seen how small-minded people need to be 
  instructed in the correct way of behaving through strength 
  and conflict. But equally, he might purposely take acolytes 
  from rural environments, knowing how hard it is to get out. 
  The aim of  this example is not  to say ‘all women are 
  oppressed and victims’. It is to show how the gender often 
  defines the early experiences and therefore the behaviour. 
  A female character requires a consideration of what it is to 
  be a woman in any situation and the understanding there-
  in. After all, these personalities types may very well be 
  reversed in the case of a matriarchal society, and woman 
  can be perfectly good mono-dominants when they learn to 
  be that way!  
  Early experiences do not even have to go back as far as 
  childhood. If a female acolyte is taught by her Inquisitorial 
  master that she is more useful because she is a woman, 
  the  natural  confidence  will  build.  Equally,  if  she  is 
  condemned because of her gender, then this could either 
  destroy her or temper her to work even harder.  
  So, that’s the way to approach the creation of a female 
  character. First decide where women stand in the society 
  they inhabit, and then consider the effect that will have on 
  the  person.   That  will  give  you  99% of  the characters 
  personality, rather than any nebulous ‘gender’ differences. 
  In terms of how they act on the battlefield, that is totally up 
  the character. To say ‘female characters’ will act one way is 
  to  be  far  too  prescriptive,  it  will  totally  depend  on  the 
  characters background and personality. After all, all men do 
  not respond in the same way, either. 
  Now, put those bullet-proof bikinis down...
  Gloria Excellus 
  Gloria was born upon the Ecclesiarchy world of Ophelia VII. Her mother was a devout and distant authority figure, 
  always praying or commending her soul to the Emperor. So Gloria found the statues of the saints were her parents, the  
  endless words of the preachers her teacher. Taught to be dutiful and devout to honour the Emperor in body and soul, 
  she began to desire a life spent in prayer and devotion.
  She knew she was not strong enough to become one of the Adeptus Soritias, and so could not defend the Emperor with 
  her martial skills. Other roles in the Ecclesiarchy were closed to her, as these were chosen to be the sole preserve of 
  the men she grew up with. Marriage was always an option, honouring the Emperor with a child, but Gloria felt drawn to  
  do more than that which she saw the other women. While watching the great parade of the Soritias, she felt the 
  Emperors lightly tap her on the shoulder. An idea, watching the devout pray, began to form in her mind, a divine idea. 
  The next day, Gloria stood upon a road corner and began to preach. She started speaking with the words that meant 
  the most to her: ‘The Emperor Protects’. Her voice sang through the crowded streets, and she discovered her gift – her 
  voice, while not hugely loud, could carry far and wide. The words flowed through her in an unbroken stream, a building  
  sermon she created without thought, the words just appearing in her mind as she spoke. Gloria preached the Emperors 
  creed and drew a crowd to her words. She repeated this the following day. Within a week, a fellow preacher gave her a 
  vox-caster to make her voice that much stronger. 
  Here, stood outside of the temples, she could not be challenged, though most other preachers believed her to be a 
  novelty rather than a committed believer. But as her words became further known through Ophelia VII, the crowds grew 
  larger and more rowdy. The slight figure of Gloria knew she could whip up a mob with a few well chosen phrases, but  
  the devotion was becoming intense. She took to carrying an old las-pistol beneath her robes, ready to use if the crowd  
  become too much to handle. Gloria didn’t truly trust herself to hold back the mobs worst instincts if she should get the 
  wrong words. 
  
  Page 3 of 3
  About the Author
  Kieran Mathers is trying to be a freelance writer and is  
  currently based in France. He writes novels, short stories 
  and articles, some of which he might one day sell. His 
  Inquisitor characters are famous for having reams of fluff 
  and generally only surviving a single game.
  Illustration  by  Kenneth  Gardner,  Miniatures  by  Dave 
  Knowles.
  But despite this she found both confident and devotion. The 
  question of her life’s aim fell away, and in the Emperors service 
  she found great happiness. Gloria remained apart, feeling the 
  Emperors presence in every moment as she felt her walked by 
  her side. He was her father guiding her, and her lover renewing 
  her soul every day. 
  Her ambitions began to grow. Here, on Ophelia VII, the masses 
  were already indoctrinated, willing to listen and believe. She 
  wondered if her gift could be used elsewhere, across other 
  worlds and places where the Emperors light was weaker. She 
  had heard stories where entire systems had fallen away from 
  the  Emperors  faith.  She  pitied  these  poor  lost  souls,  and 
  become enamoured with the idea of converting them. 
  It  took a chance  encounter with  Rogue Trader Francois to 
  change this. Having heard of the preacher and her voice, her 
  tracked her down – not hard when the mob listening was over a 
  mile wide. He needed the cover of a preacher to allow his 
  warrant of trade to remain current. Gloria struck him as the 
  perfect type as she was young, devout and hopefully naïve. He 
  made her the offer she wanted, to take her across the stars 
  with the Emperors creed. 
  She carefully agreed. Gloria’s voice was her gift, and she did 
  not trust this rogue trader enough to know he wouldn’t exploit it. 
  But the Emperor would protect her, of that she was sure…
  +++
  Gloria is right-handed
  Equipment: Ecclesiarchical  Robes,  Las-pistol,  vox-caster  (range, 
  36”). Robes are thick and count as armour 1 on all location except 
  head.  
  Abilities: 
  The Emperor Protects: Gloria believes that the will of the Emperor is with her, and she should carry on regardless of pain or injury. 
  She classes as having an extra level of light damage on all location.
  Bow before his Majesty, Sinners: Using her vox-caster, Gloria summons up the power of her oratory. All those, including friendly 
  characters, within hearing range of Gloria must take a nerve check immediately. If they succeed, they successfully ignore the 
  sermon, unmoved by its power. If they fail, however, make a roll on the d10 chart beneath:
  1-3: I am not worthy: A wave of guilt sweeps over the character, rendering them motionless as they consider their hundreds of flaws in 
  the eyes of the Immortal Emperor. They can make no actions in their next turn. 
  4-6: Forgive me for what I have done! : The character is suddenly struck by a great wave of grief and remorse for all their sins, small or  
  large, of the past. Their actions in their next turn are halved due to this distracting introspective. 
  7-9: The Emperor Sees all and knows all: The character believes that the Emperor himself is watching them from the sky. They must 
  spend as many actions as needed to move toward the nearest piece of cover at a run, to hide from this all-seeing eye. Once in cover, 
  the character will return to acting normally. 
  10: She is a true prophet! She shall not be harmed!: For their next turn, the character will defend Gloria as best they can. This will be at 
  the GM’s discretion, but could include standing in the line of fire, opening fire on someone who fired upon Gloria, and generally acting 
  like a bodyguard to the best of their ability. 
  WS
  BS
  S
  T
  I
  Wp
  Sg
  Nv
  Ld
  Gloria
  40
  45
  40
  50
  55
  75
  38
  60
  50
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Warhammer/40k/Inquisitor Skirmish/Articles/Everything Youve Been Told About Women.pdf