Interest Check- Warhammer 40k (narrative/FFG)

Hey folks, I have been bouncing around some ideas for some grim dark stories. I have three concepts I am interested in exploring so I wanted to put out an IC to get a feel of where I should focus my effort.

Gaunt's ghosts/dirty dozen inspired: (Rules light using Only War as a base) a narrative war drama about the harsh life of the Astra Militarum. My thoughts are to explore the toll eternal war takes on those who serve at the front lines in a GM led, semi sandbox style game.

Shadowy war of darkness while wearing black and sometimes really dark grey: All characters are part of an Alpha Legion (yes I know Alpha legion are traditionally teal) warband (deathwatch/Black crusade as a base) I would want to delve into stories of subterfuge and deception. Build (or destroy) cults, infiltrate enemies of the legion, play politics to pull strings to bring about ruin in the name of chaos undivided. Or ride to the rescue of the imperium, save some space marines from death at the hands of the nids, work with Eldar against some Necron, team up with the imperial guard to rid a planet of and ork plague. In a sandbox the alpha legion does what it wants and You are all Alpharius Omegon.

The inquisition: (Dark Heresy Inquisitor handbook) full inquisitor level, mystery/investigation motif. The imperium's enemies are many and must be snuffed out both near and afar. I envision a small group of inquisitors who have agreed to pool their resources for the good of mankind. Part system hoping space drama, part mystery thriller with possible horror elements.

Let me know how y'all feel and thanks for any feedback

Ooooh, I love me some 40k! I played a lot of Rogue Trader in my real-life group and dabbled in a few of the others. I love the FFG systems despite all their flaws and had an amazing time with it so far.

My personal preference would be for the Inquisition angle. Inquisitor cells and cabals are part of the lore and all the characters would need is a shared specific goal and/or general doctrine. Also, it's nice to play the bastards but it takes a rather firm grasp of the 40k lore on the part of the players to pull off I think. Having read Eisenhorn and Ravenor definitely helps. But it would be cool and this is played on a similar power level to a successful Rogue Trader so I'm all for that. :)

Playing Alpharius is a very cool idea, but significantly harder to pull of I think because no one actually ever described how the Alpha Legion pulls of their shadowy craft so there's little inspiration to draw from. In the literature they more tend to pop up like a Jack in the box in a 'gotcha, it was me all along!' moment. But how does an Astartes infiltrate a planet unnoticed? Their bulk alone is an instant identifier and subject to massive scrutiny if discovered. The systems also don't support their ultra-stealth abilities. Stealth +10 isn't going to cut it. (Although the Deceive +30 definitely is nice). Still, I think the idea is very cool and different from the Dakka Dakka Dakka gameplay that most Spess Mehreen games devolve into.

I played a few Only War games, and I've read all of Gaunt's Ghosts so I know Imperial Guard can have actual faces and personality. That said, I'm not much for a rules light game and Only War also suffers from Dakka Dakka Dakka syndrome, made even worse because a guardsman can't say 'no' or have much of a say in where he's going. So this would be the least favorite of the three for me.

all three concepts are great, but forced to rank them I’d go inquisition or Alpha Legion as first choice.

I’m a big fan of WH40K and have GMed some Wrath and Glory. Would love to join you

Thank you for the feed back I appreciate it.
Definitely doable. I want the players to feel like they matter the idea of acolytes always made me feel like PC were nerfed. Of course not all players HAVE to be inquisitors we can talk about particular interests if we get going. I more just want a level of play that is substantial for story telling.

Also general caveat I am not a super lore grog nard, I know an immense amount but I don't expect the players to know what I know. I would try not to let lore get in the way of fun, if at all possible.
I actually have an answer to that ;) it involves surgery and an Omophagea organ. But for the sake of fun we would wouldn't sweat the small details.
Absolutely fair points :)

Color me interested.... I know a lot about the settings older stuff not much about the new stuff (primaris on) i have played a little only war but am willing to learn.

Any of those sound fun... my least choice would be the Space Marine one because they are sooo powerful in the setting and can be hard to get right.... part of the interesting part about deathwatch if done right is the undercurreent of internal strife within the squad due to the ideas of the different chapters.

Oh man, I just can't say no to Warhammer 40k goodness.

I would be most interested in either the Inquisition or the Imperial Guard. Both are great, have amazing story potential, and are games I haven't played with before.

Thanks all for the feed back. Looks like I should be putting effort into Inquisition. I appreciate the help.

Late to the game but new to the party- Been a long time since I've played WH but I've spent a lot of time in the Black Library; love the mythos and the books. Eisenhorn/Ravenor Inquisitor books are my second favorites (Ciaphas Cain is my #1 :P) I would be interested in this!