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Rogue Traders.

Who, what, where, when, how?

Discuss everything we know about them. Ready. Steady. Go.

I have the Rogue Trader RPG Book...how about a quote?

The bearer of a sacred Warrant that empowers him to journey beyond the boundaries of the Imperium to trade, explore,
and make war in the God-Emperor’s name, a Rogue Trader is a unique figure in the grim darkness of the Imperium. He
may be a newly entitled power on the rise or hail from a long lineage of nobles and voidfarers, but all bear their titles
with pride, striking out into the unknown in search of fortune and glory. A Rogue Trader is a power unto himself in the dark
voids, master of all he surveys―at least as far as his force of arms and sharpness of wits can press the claim. A Rogue Trader
can be many things but whether standing as diplomat before a planetary ruler, cutting a shadowed deal in a station undercity,
bellowing orders amidst an armed host set upon plunder, or striding the bridge of a mighty starship, they remain one thing
above all—free.
Often, Rogue Traders come from a dynasty of great leaders and visionary commanders, with a renowned (or darkly infamous)
lineage stretching back millennia. Other times, they are from younger, more dynamic families, often coming from the ranks of
the Adeptus Terra, the Imperial Navy, or the Imperial Guard. Whatever their origins, all Rogue Traders are first and foremost
masters of their own fates, and upon their shoulders can rest the success or failure not only of their endeavours and their
bloodlines, but of countless future generations and, often, the fortunes of entire worlds.
Despite the fact that the weight of such responsibility is his to bear alone, a Rogue Trader invariably surrounds himself with
a coterie of allies and retainers. No Rogue Trader can undertake his mission alone, for no man or woman can be master of every
single aspect of trade, exploration, exploitation, and war. As a result, all of the most successful Rogue Traders have the ingrained
ability to recognise the value of others and their motivations and, as a leader, are able to utilise every weapon and ability in their
human arsenal to their full potential.
Though he must rely on others for the most specialised of skills (not to mention certain needful resources), it falls to
the Rogue Trader to know how and when to exercise his own judgement
and how to delegate where needed. He may not steer the helm of his
void-cruiser, nor fire and aim every macrocannon in person, but the
Rogue Trader selects and commands those who do and it is his
orders that are obeyed. Likewise he may know little of the
arcane rites of the augury and auspex, but it is ultimately
his decision whether or not to trust the word of the
Explorator who claims it safe to breathe the air of a newly
discovered world.
Rogue Traders must always look to their own abilities
and protection, regardless of the power of their allies, for
there will always be those envious of their power and
station, and countless rivals to their goals. As a result, most
have a penchant for the very finest personal weapons and
equipment their fortunes can acquire―for even friends can
soon become enemies when a world’s ransom is at stake.
Some never leave their bridge without donning an ancient and
revered suit of artificer-wrought power armour, while others
secrete fiendishly cunning personal force field generators of alien
manufacture beneath a gaudy uniform. None are ever unarmed,
bearing, even aboard their own vessels, minute digital weapons
and other implements of destruction. However they outwardly
comport themselves, Rogue Traders must be supremely confident
in their own abilities, and able to walk away from even the most
desperate situation somehow having profited from their perilous
adventure, even if that profit must be counted purely by survival.

Despite being the original concept of the entire 40k universe, they sure don't appear very often anymore.

Got the Bulma DBZ treatment.

Thank you Tadashi, that is exactly how I pictured them, now I can hopefully get some leverage to bring a bit of them back into 40k.

A RT, him or herself, doesn't really have a place on the table-top. They might, through their connections or their vast wealth or by other means, arrange to have IG Regiments or Naval Battlegroups or even the Astartes show up somewhere to make war, but the individual RT himself is not going to be in the trenches. He's sitting somewhere in space, on a ship, waiting for a report on the outcome of the battle to go and do whatever it was he intended to do that made the military action a necessity.

I guess you could use the rules for an inquisitor and retinue with out phycic powers and just do conversions and walah you have a rouge trader on the bored

granted that was easier in codex demon hunters as realy youd want to have them in an imperial guard army and wouldnt want grey knights around

 Psienesis wrote:
A RT, him or herself, doesn't really have a place on the table-top. They might, through their connections or their vast wealth or by other means, arrange to have IG Regiments or Naval Battlegroups or even the Astartes show up somewhere to make war, but the individual RT himself is not going to be in the trenches. He's sitting somewhere in space, on a ship, waiting for a report on the outcome of the battle to go and do whatever it was he intended to do that made the military action a necessity.

Then explain to me why a Lord Inquisitor who is vastly more important and powerful than a measly RT would be on the battlefield? As space faring merchant marines I would have no calms facing a RT themed army on TT. I would welcome the havoc war profiteering brings

I guess you could use the rules for an inquisitor and retinue with out phycic powers and just do conversions and walah you have a rouge trader on the bored

granted that was easier in codex demon hunters as realy youd want to have them in an imperial guard army and wouldnt want grey knights around

I'm just building a small army based on a rogue trader (well, they should have been miniatures to be used in a mixed RT-DW-DH rpg, but alas, my group seem to be unable to keep hold of something for very long, losing ship and warrant of trade before I could complete the miniatures...) vessel crew, the Amor Vacui commanded by the honorable Scipio Quaeror, Rogue Trader and self-proclaimed admiral.
Scipio is modelled kitbashing the Witch Hunter model from WH fantasy and the commander of the imperial lanship from FW. I intend to use him as an IG Company commander, with his command squad with full advisors (Astropath, master of the fleet and bodyguards are self-explanatory, while the master of ordnance is calling macrocannon strikes from the ship in low orbit) modelled with a mix of various GW and non-GW kits (from Pig Iron, Maxmini, Puppetswar, Kromlech, Wargames Factory and tons of other stuff I got from various sources). The troops (still largely in the modelling stage), mainly on foot or in valkyries, will mainly be converted Pig Iron colonial militia with FW techpriests and titan crews, as well as PI system troopers added in as naval personnel.
Although, inq+Coteaz GK with IG allies could be an excellent and even more fluffy idea, too...

 DemetriDominov wrote:

 Psienesis wrote:
A RT, him or herself, doesn't really have a place on the table-top. They might, through their connections or their vast wealth or by other means, arrange to have IG Regiments or Naval Battlegroups or even the Astartes show up somewhere to make war, but the individual RT himself is not going to be in the trenches. He's sitting somewhere in space, on a ship, waiting for a report on the outcome of the battle to go and do whatever it was he intended to do that made the military action a necessity.

Then explain to me why a Lord Inquisitor who is vastly more important and powerful than a measly RT would be on the battlefield? As space faring merchant marines I would have no calms facing a RT themed army on TT. I would welcome the havoc war profiteering brings

The Inquisition is the height of Imperial authority. No one is free from their suspicion, or their censure. High Lord, Chapter Master, Planetary Governor, doesn't matter... you are under the authority of the Inquisition. A Lord Inquisitor, especially one of a monodominant bent, will revel in the chance to take a personal hand in the purging of the witch, the mutant, the xeno, the heretic and the traitor. Quite often, it is at the word and behest of that very Inquisitor that the might of the Imperium, represented on the tabletop, has been assembled and brought to bear against the foe, and he is present as "overall commander" of the forces here arrayed.

War profiteering is definitely something that an RT does... however, this is a practice best done while appearing to be a neutral third-party, selling goods (at massively inflated prices) to *both* sides of a conflict. The RT would be a fool to be seen siding with one group or another.

 DemetriDominov wrote:

 Psienesis wrote:
A RT, him or herself, doesn't really have a place on the table-top. They might, through their connections or their vast wealth or by other means, arrange to have IG Regiments or Naval Battlegroups or even the Astartes show up somewhere to make war, but the individual RT himself is not going to be in the trenches. He's sitting somewhere in space, on a ship, waiting for a report on the outcome of the battle to go and do whatever it was he intended to do that made the military action a necessity.

Then explain to me why a Lord Inquisitor who is vastly more important and powerful than a measly RT would be on the battlefield? As space faring merchant marines I would have no calms facing a RT themed army on TT. I would welcome the havoc war profiteering brings

I think that Inquisitor Lords have a tendency to be hands on. They're in it for the glory of the Imperium and to hold the line against the xenos/heretic/daemon and whatnot. Not all, but I don't think you get to be an Inquisitor Lord without getting down and dirty at least once in a while.

Rogue Traders are in it for profit and glory, both of which are hard to enjoy if you're dead. And leading from the front is a great way to be dead.

Dunno, I think of RT's as glorified pirates, syndicates, or corporations. In any case, all of them have thugs and mercenaries ranging from a handful to entire legions. Realistically some can control entire nations (as they do now IRL) and can justifiably be as ruthless and ambitious as any Inquisitor. It's merely a spectrum of loyality we're debating. One is to the Emperor, another is to Coin or another ideal (like freedom) and both justify violence in the 41st millennium. With the confirmation of what Tadashi has informed us, if a RT is able (and has the mindset for a plethora of reasons) there is little doubt a RT will be on the battlefield or at the helm of a space ship ensuring his interests are achieved.

 Psienesis wrote:

The Inquisition is the height of Imperial authority. No one is free from their suspicion, or their censure.

Custodian...or His Imperial Majesty himself.

A lone Lord/Lady Inquisitor who manages to piss off certain Space Marines might find themselves getting canonized...from a Bombardment Cannon.

 DemetriDominov wrote:
With the confirmation of what Tadashi has informed us, if a RT is able (and has the mindset for a plethora of reasons) there is little doubt a RT will be on the battlefield or at the helm of a space ship ensuring his interests are achieved.

Rogue Traders with Warrants of Trade are on the same footing as the High Lords of Terra/Primarchs, seeing as those are signed by His Imperial Majesty or one of the Primarchs themselves...by Imperial Law and religious dogma *spits* unless you have unequivocal proof of treason or heresy, one cannot simply go against a Rogue Trader and his/her ambitions, or for that matter, tell them what to do.

As for the 'lesser' Rogue Traders with the Letters of Marque signed by a High Lord/s...they're not really as 'high' as the others, so...

Custodian...or His Imperial Majesty himself.

A lone Lord/Lady Inquisitor who manages to piss off certain Space Marines might find themselves getting canonized...from a Bombardment Cannon.

Correct, but we're unlikely to see either of these presented on the table-top in a normal game, so didn't feel it necessary to point out the two exceptions.

And yes, while an Inquisitor's authority is, technically, absolute, the reality of the situation is different. Still, if a given Chapter oversteps the line and actually becomes heretical, then their bombardment cannons and such really won't save them. Once they've been deemed Excommunicatus Traitorus, then it's pretty much all over but the shouting for them.

 Psienesis wrote:


And yes, while an Inquisitor's authority is, technically, absolute, the reality of the situation is different. Still, if a given Chapter oversteps the line and actually becomes heretical, then their bombardment cannons and such really won't save them. Once they've been deemed Excommunicatus Traitorus, then it's pretty much all over but the shouting for them.

Fair enough...but a stupid Inquisitor who pisses off an obviously loyal Chapter will still find himself/herself left hanging in the breeze (or worse) when the time comes and his/her colleagues won't bat an eyelid.

That depends entirely on the author.

GW writs Inquisitors with about the same consistently as Mitt Romney's political views. Or to put it in another way, GW never writes the Inquisition the same way twice.

A Rogue Trader could theoretically be involved and have a place in a 40k game because contrary to popular belief, the actual game does not represent the massive campaigns and battles from the story.

An entire Inquisitorial army would be a pitifully small element in an actual planetary campaign. SoB contigents are typically between 200-1000 in strength when involved in campaigns, they rarely appear as an unsupported army.

Having a Rogue Trader piece together an army of mercenaries and hangers on using the Inquisitorial Henchmen rules would be quite interesting.

Rogue Traders are the most powerful humans in the setting, way more than Inquisitors. They used to take Inquisitors as parts of their warbands.

Inquisitors have some authority over everyone in the Imperium, in order to perform their jobs. Ultimately, they are cops, and their jobs are primarily to look really hard for genestealer poop, and secondarily to be attacked by hordes of genestealers. They can rent some nice houses, but they get very little out of their authority unless they are really into having their bodies wrecked by daemonhosts and never having real friends.

All the important people in the Imperium are cops or administrators. The only people with good positions are the ones with no responsibilities and permission to do whatever they want to get rich. Rogue Traders have the powers of planetary Imperial Commanders, except planetary Imperial Commanders do not get interstellar ships and have to pay ridiculous taxes while keeping their populations alive and under control. The primary military activity of rogue traders is conquering new planets and then selling them to proper Imperials. They do not have to defend things or govern them or decide whether this poop smells more like it came from a snotling or a nurgling. They are the closest things to interstellar nobility the Imperium have.

I don't think you quite understand the degree of power that is represented by the wave of a hand and "See that planet? Blow it up." While the majority of Inquisitors don't use Exterminatus willy-nilly, or even as their first choice of action when it could be argued that it is the best course of action, Rogue Traders can't hope to match that level of authority, to order the deaths of potentially billions of people with a word. The Inquisition, as an organization, answers to no one but itself.

Yes, Rogue Traders get to fly around the galaxy and do deals with Xenos. If said RT tries to bring his xeno-wrought goods into a sector of Imperial Space and is caught with said goods, unless his carta is signed by the Emperor, Himself (99.9% of them aren't), and explicitly says that he can deal in Xeno goods, his life is forfeit, as are the lives of all of his crews, and his ships are taken by the Inquisition. Thou shalt shun the Xeno, and all his works. The only hope the RT has in this situation is that he's met by an Inquisitor in space that doesn't match his ship in speed or firepower, so the RT can either run away, or fight his way clear.... though the latter option is definitely the worst of the choices, because now he's on the gak-list of the Inquisition, who can mobilize entire Sector Battlefleets to hunt him down. RTs might have nice ships, but they don't match the Imperial Navy in firepower or numbers.

Usually, the RT would prefer to sell the xenos artifacts TO the Inquisition in that case. Which can work, unless they're the strictest fo puritans-- usually even moderate puritans are willing to study xenos technology so they better know how to counter it and destroy it.

No, I understand that Exterminatus is a very lame perk for a job to have. There is no way to do it for personal reasons. Someone would only order Exterminatus as a function of discharging his job. So when he wields the power of Exterminatus, an Inquisitor is a high level functionary; he's a technocrat. They have infinite power to do their jobs, and nothing else. They also have to devote their entire lives to arging about dry topics at conclaves on secret asteroid bases, and do not get to take time off to coach youth soccer or open novelty bakeries with their spouses.

High powered jobs are intensely rewarding and type A personalities enjoy being consumed by work. More than anything, I want more funding and staff so I can do my job better. That still does not make Inquisitors more personally important or powerfult than rogue traders. Rogue Traders are often ideologically motivated Imperial functionaries themselves for whom a charter is a weird reward/exile. They can and do wake up in the morning and decide to save the Imperium from witches. They also do not have to worry about whether it is impolitic to cajole ornery navy officers/space marines into going on wild goose chases that may just distract from important conventional operations.

Rogue Traders can do anything they want to; Inquisitors can do anything they have to. Having to do things is pretty crappy, especially when one of them is genocide.

Just because an Inquisitor doesn't act out of personal greed doesn't mean they're less powerful.

That's a silly premise.

 Tadashi wrote:


Custodian...or His Imperial Majesty himself.

A lone Lord/Lady Inquisitor who manages to piss off certain Space Marines might find themselves getting canonized...from a Bombardment Cannon.

I like to think that the inquisition is like the medieval church - technically it has infinite authority, and in many cases it does. But there are plenty of people who simply tell them to piss off and to hell with the concequences

 Testify wrote:

 Tadashi wrote:


Custodian...or His Imperial Majesty himself.

A lone Lord/Lady Inquisitor who manages to piss off certain Space Marines might find themselves getting canonized...from a Bombardment Cannon.

I like to think that the inquisition is like the medieval church - technically it has infinite authority, and in many cases it does. But there are plenty of people who simply tell them to piss off and to hell with the concequences

No, not even a powerful Rogue Trader can do such a thing openly as long as he remains within Imperial Space. Openly defying the imperial Inquisition ( as opposed to defying individual Inquisitors and even that is very dangerous ) is a death sentence.

 DemetriDominov wrote:

 Psienesis wrote:
A RT, him or herself, doesn't really have a place on the table-top. They might, through their connections or their vast wealth or by other means, arrange to have IG Regiments or Naval Battlegroups or even the Astartes show up somewhere to make war, but the individual RT himself is not going to be in the trenches. He's sitting somewhere in space, on a ship, waiting for a report on the outcome of the battle to go and do whatever it was he intended to do that made the military action a necessity.

Then explain to me why a Lord Inquisitor who is vastly more important and powerful than a measly RT would be on the battlefield? As space faring merchant marines I would have no calms facing a RT themed army on TT. I would welcome the havoc war profiteering brings

Because the Lord Inquisitor is the head investigator/leading the charge against the cult/daemon/witches/mutants/whatever that he is persecuting.

That said, Rogue Traders have always been a favorite of mine, and indeed I've often used an Inquisitor and his retinue as stand-ins.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 KingDeath wrote:

No, not even a powerful Rogue Trader can do such a thing openly as long as he remains within Imperial Space. Openly defying the imperial Inquisition ( as opposed to defying individual Inquisitors and even that is very dangerous ) is a death sentence.

Unless you're the Space Wolves, in which case you can do whatever you want.

 Melissia wrote:
Just because an Inquisitor doesn't act out of personal greed doesn't mean they're less powerful.

That's a silly premise.

You know that the president of a country does not actually own that county.

It does not count as personal power if you can be fired. Inquisitors work for a institution that has ultimate power, and they wield that. They only wield it while they do their jobs, and their rosettes stop working if a couple other inquisitors get together and send out a disapproving memo to the local judges and lords militant.

There is nothing wrong with being a technocrat. I wish everyone were highly educated government employees who never made more than 120k. That is the thing though, they have salaries paid by other people and when the prosecutor gets fired he can't subpoena people anymore. Even if she wanted to, the parks department boss can't use her budget to start a hospital.

Rogue traders do not have to interview for entry level interrogator postions at the schola progenium job fair the way Inquisitors do. No greater entity has a title over rogue traders' private armies that they can use to transfer command to a trader from another department. Rogue traders own planets or gem mines that they use the income from to just buy things like ships or weapons, or they rent space marine companies for a few decades. If they want, they can build cathedrals or hospitals or waterparks. Inquisitors might be able to get a new couch if they want one, but if they start building hospitals someone is going to tell them to get back to work.

The same holds true for an RT. Their Cartas can be revoked by the issuing organization, or a higher power. If the Ecclesiarchy grants a carta to a well-heeled faithful, the Inquisition can later revoke that, or the Ecclesiarchy can revoke it as well. Likewise, an order from the High Lords can revoke it.

Revoking the rosette of an Inquisitor is no easy feat. There's a process involved, and not one that a handful of random Inquisitors can enact. Within the byzantine organization of the Inquisition, there are ranks and offices of influence and authority, which convene courts to hear complaints about individual Inquisitors and who may revoke an Inquisitor's authority. However, for one Inquisitor to bring a charge against another is a risky undertaking, because if the accused is not convicted, then the life of his accuser is forfeit.

A license is not a job. The post got cut off in mid sentence, you should read the edit above.

Rogue traders ran around burning heretics all the time. They can do that, within bounds of the law, because it's their money they are spending. They can if they want to do the Inquisition's job. If inquisitors start rogue trading, or doing the navy's job or any other institutions', they will make trouble for themselves.

Rogue traders do not have bosses that can transfer them to different duties or give their ships to other rogue traders. Inquisitors do.

A license is not a job. Inquisitors have jobs they are required by someone else to do. Rogue traders have licenses to own ships if they can and feel like getting hold of them. This is one of those things.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
actually, money is that important. Case studies:

# When a Rogue Trader decides to do the navy's job, he has to build his own fleet and risk his own crew fighting pilots. The navy do not like that he is unpredictable and they have to pay him prize money, but they can always use more ships and it is his skin on the line so it is a net upside for them. The trader does ok if he is good at fighting.

If an Inquisitor decides to do the navy's job, he commandeers the fleet. The navy is upset because the do not get any more ships and an underqualified self-appointee has ruined their long-term planning. The Inquisition are upset at him for not solving space mysteries.

# An Inquisitor passes his charisma test and convinces his warband to drop their current gig and start an orchestra that teaches polygamists about water safety. They say fine, but ask who is going to pay for it. The Inquisitor's budget comes from the Inquisition, and the orchestra is not really an inquisition gig, so they have to work evenings at the truck stop.

A rogue trader fails his charisma test and does not convince his henchmen to start an orchestra, but he just bought a chain of space-ship gas stations so he can afford to pay professional musicians instead.

# An Inquisitor exercises ultimate power by virus bombing seventeen billion people most of whom were essentially bystanders he failed to protect. He bears the pain and responsibility alone because the only people who understand are the colleagues he never sees.

A rogue trader does not virus bomb anyone, because he wasn't trained from childhood to be a genocidaire. He does not develop nightly rage-fits that cause his family to leave him.


At least in these cases, an Inquisitor does not get to do what he wants to. When he gets to do something important, it is a profoundly unpleasant task that he is compelled to do by an overweening organization that he cannot fail or refuse.

pelicaniforce wrote:
You know that the president of a country does not actually own that county.

The Inquisition is far more powerful than a mere president.

pelicaniforce wrote:
It does not count as personal power if you can be fired.

Then Rogue Traders do not have personal power.

An Inquisitor is not likely to be interested in starting a space-orchestra... or even a terrestrial orchestra. People given to weird flights of fancy or hobbies that are likely to detract from their jobs as Inquisitors are rarely, if ever, raised to the Rosette by their master.

Few Inquisitors will ever enact Exterminatus. Few of those who do will use it to wipe out 17 billion people who are "innocent bystanders". Sometimes, the Inquisition arrives on the scene too late to do anything, the Warp Gates are already opening, daemons are already running amok in the streets, and the Hive World, as it currently is, is already lost. The only hope is to wipe the place clean, and repopulate it with rubes from other worlds a century, or a millennia, hence.

Inquisitors of a certain bent do not need to pass a Charisma check. If they want something, they pull the Rosette out and shove it in someone's face and say "give me that". If the need behind the demand is legitimate, if it is within the purview of the Inquisitor's job, then no authority exists in the Imperium to countermand it. Someone might complain, sure, but better the kiss of the bullet than eternal damnation.

Rogue Traders enjoy no such authority. They have no remit to lay claim to a Naval battlegroup or a Chapter of the Astartes or a regiment of the Guard. They might be able to hire such, or pay them off, or make trade concessions or such... but they lack a badge that makes such things possible. They also lack the resources like the Death Watch or the Grey Knights who *exist* to serve the Inquisition.

They seem to have gone out of the spot light in recent years.

I would think, and from reading several novels with them being featured in them, such as many an Abnett book. They try to stick the edge of Imperial space.

Not to mention as well there are few groups out there friendly to any kind of human, really the only no human guns for hire open to Imperial leaning humans are Ork Mercs.

Also if your non Imperial and you are caught in the path of a massive feth off Xenos or chaos army, you can't get any Imperial support which is the normally the only Human faction to have the resources to stop such a thing.