The Rogue Trader RPG is a tabletop role-playing game set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe. You play a warrant-holding captain and their crew, free to trade, explore and cause trouble beyond the Imperium’s borders, which makes it one of the loosest and most player-driven corners of the setting.
What it is
Fantasy Flight Games published the core book in 2009, using the same Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay engine that powered Dark Heresy. Cubicle 7 took over the line later, and the game has stayed in print under their stewardship.
The premise is simple. A Rogue Trader holds a warrant of trade, an ancient document that lets them go places and do things ordinary Imperial citizens can’t. That means interstellar commerce, exploration, diplomacy with aliens, and a lot of trouble.
How a session plays
One player takes the Rogue Trader career, the captain with the warrant. Everyone else builds a member of the crew, and together you fly a voidship through the Koronus Expanse and beyond.
The rulebook covers ship operation, space travel, combat and trading, so campaigns can swing from tense negotiations to void battles without much gear-shifting. It’s a sandbox first and a story-on-rails second.
- Arch-Militant: the crew’s combat specialist.
- Astropath Transcendent: a psyker who sends messages across the stars.
- Explorator: a Tech-Priest hunting lost technology for the Adeptus Mechanicus.
- Missionary: a cleric spreading the Imperial creed.
- Navigator: guides the ship through the warp using the Astronomican.
- Seneschal: runs the trading side of the operation.
- Void-master: keeps the ship running and fighting.
- Later sourcebooks add xenos careers like Kroot, Ork and Tau.
The video game adaptation
Owlcat Games released Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader on 7 December 2023 for PC and consoles. It’s a story-heavy isometric CRPG in the vein of their Pathfinder work, built in close partnership with Games Workshop.
It’s set in the Koronus Expanse, same as the tabletop game, and puts you in charge of a voidship and a growing retinue. Reviews have stayed very positive, with tens of thousands of Steam user reviews and a score in the high eighties.
| Release | Platform | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tabletop core book | 2009 | Fantasy Flight Games, later Cubicle 7 |
| Video game | 7 Dec 2023 | Owlcat Games, PC and consoles |
Why it matters to 40k fans
Most 40k games put you in a rigid military role. Rogue Trader does the opposite. It hands you a ship, a warrant and a map full of blanks, then asks what you want to do with them.
That freedom is why the setting has stayed popular. It’s also why the video game could work as a CRPG: choices, companions and consequences all fit the premise naturally.
Key facts
- The Rogue Trader RPG is a tabletop RPG published in 2009 by Fantasy Flight Games, now managed by Cubicle 7.
- It uses the Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay system shared with Dark Heresy.
- Players take the role of a warrant-holding captain and their crew, operating outside the Imperium’s normal rules.
- Careers include Arch-Militant, Astropath, Explorator, Missionary, Navigator, Seneschal and Void-master.
- Owlcat Games released a CRPG adaptation, Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, on 7 December 2023.
FAQ
Is the Rogue Trader RPG the same as the video game?
No, but they’re closely related. The tabletop RPG came first in 2009, and Owlcat’s 2023 CRPG adapts the same premise and region of space.
Who publishes the tabletop Rogue Trader RPG?
Fantasy Flight Games launched it in 2009. Cubicle 7 has handled the line since 2017.
Do you need to know Warhammer 40k lore to play?
It helps, but the core book explains what you need. The premise, a captain with a licence to roam, is easy to pick up even if you’re new.