The shipment of the Collector's Editions has started: 

Collector's Editions shipment has begun

Lord Captains!

We’re happy to report that Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader Collector’s Editions and other physical items are on their way to our founders - the address shipment has begun!

Part of the cargo has been sorted and shipped to our Lord Captains, who have already received the tracking codes in their emails. Some of our lucky Lord Captains even already got their orders! Other boxes are being sorted out and prepared right now and will be shipped shortly as well.

We kindly ask you to check your email from time to time so as not to miss the special letter from the FedEx or DHL shipper with all the important information and your personal tracking code.

Also, please, be sure to check your email Spam folder every now and then as the letter from FedEx or DHL may accidentally end up there.

We thank you all for your patience and support! We’re looking forward to the parcels meeting their Lord Captains!

The Emperor protects!

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Owlcat posted a character creation guide for Rogue Trader:

Character Creation Guide | Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

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Yemeth spotted an accolade trailer for Rogue Trader and a new patch:

Accolade Trailer | Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

The echo of your fame is heard in the farthest corners of the Koronus Expanse, Lord Captain! Look what the critics say about Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader.

Abelard, introduce us to the gargantuan Update 1.1.28!

Lord Captains!

This is our first major update for Warhammer 40000: Rogue Trader, containing a total of over 1800 changes, including brand new voiceover and narrative content, QoL improvements, balance updates, numerous bug fixes and hundreds of fixes for optimization, performance and co-op stability (we've done our best to squeeze some of these together to make the patch notes a bit less devastating for you to read). The patch notes are so huge that we were forced to split it into multiple parts. Console version of the patch will be available within ~24 hours depending on region, as usual.

We are deeply grateful for your feedback and reports that made this update possible, and hope that this update will vastly improve your experience with the game!

Important: due to the unprecedented scale of changes to abilities and balance, all existing saved games will receive an additional free respecialization for every character in the party. Enjoy!

Here’s a glimpse of what’s expecting you:

Highlights

• Brand new full voiceover for the Prologue and companion chatter across the game;
  New visual effects and icons;
• Narrative tweaks and new reactivity options;
• Fixes for broken quests and dialogues (including the long-anticipated Price of Humanity quest fix);
• Fixes for incorrect and inconsistent epilogues;
• A massive amount of fixes for incorrectly functioning abilities and items, including those that led to silly damage multiplication;
• Balance updates, including survivability and damage buffs to Space Marines, nerfs for Officers, weapon balance, encounter balance, and changes to calculations of many stats, bonuses and difficulty modifiers, resulting in an overall smoother game experience;
• A lot of performance improvements and optimization;
• Reputation thresholds for vendors being lowered by about 20%;
• Improvements for NPC AI, reducing the cases of friendly fire and unnecessary triggering of Attacks of Opportunity;
• Co-op desync fixes and possibility to hire mercenaries during multiplayer sessions;
• QoL UI improvements, including ability sorting, recommended skills and visibility of quests and extractums on the map;
• Marazhai and Yrliet gaining access to many previously human-restricted items;

Read the full patch notes HERE (beware of possible massive spoilers!)!

[...]

Owlcat started a user survey:

The Big Community Portrait Survey

The Owlcat community is growing bigger and bigger as more fantastic people join us, sharing our passion for complex and story-rich games. You help us make remarkable games, inspire us with your creativity, and are always there to share your ideas with us. We deeply value our connection with the community and want to know more about you! Please take part in this survey to help us get a deeper understanding of the community and create even more awesome stuff together with you in the future.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/communityportrait

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Eurogamer reviewed Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader review - gloriously faithful, if complex RPG

Adept mechanics.

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader is a game that I have been waiting a long time for. It's not quite the first 40k video game that I dreamed of - that'd be the Primarch fighting game my friends and I dreamed up at age 11 - but ever since getting over my youthful "wow, cool Space Marine" phase, I've wanted a 40k game that really gets into the finer details of the setting.

The Imperium, the form that human society takes in the grim darkness of the far future, is by far the best thing about 40k - but it's frequently obfuscated. 40k adaptations tend to either go all in on the action, or stick with the warfare and high level strategy of the tabletop game. On top of that, I suspect Games Workshop's need to market to children conflicts with how truly horrible the Imperium is. After all, it's much easier to get Little Timmy's Mum to splash out on toy soldiers when they're depicted as heroic defenders of humanity, instead of the brainwashed fascist enforcers they truly are. As a result, the darkly satirical elements of 40k tend to be buried in the novels and other ancillary media, making it all too easy to take the surface at face value.

[...]

Rogue Trader nails the 40k setting and provides an appropriately massive narrative filled with meaty tactical combat, though some bugs and poor performance hold it back.

Score: 4/5

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Matt checked out Rogue Trader:

MC516: Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader

This episode covers the new Warhammer 40K game by Owlcat: Rogue Trader. If you like Xenos-Com style combat and dark, lore-heavy sci-fi/fantasy worlds, don't plan on getting to bed early. I can't give it a full-throated recommendation due to myriad game-crashing bugs, but hopefully the bulk of those will be patched in short order. I hope so, anyway, because it'd be utter heresy to see so much potential go to waste! Just to be sure to save often!

Exputer talked with  Anatoly Shestov, Executive Producer at Owlcat Games, about future plans for Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader Dev Discusses Future Plans And Cut Content

"Warhammer is so voluminous and multifaceted that stories in it can be told endlessly."

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, the first cRPG in the franchise, was released on December 7, 2023.
The developer and publisher, Owlcat Games, has been praised for the title’s incredible combat and lore.
eXputer interviewed Owlcat’s Executive Producer Anatoly Shestov for an email Q&A session.

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader became a highly anticipated title soon after its reveal in June 2022, being the first cRPG in the Warhammer 40,000 franchise. The IP is renowned for having many notable titles, and thanks to Baldur’s Gate 3, which lured hundreds of thousands of fans into the genre, Rogue Trader found itself in a bustling community with some serious competition.

The talented developers at Owlcat Games, in close partnership with Games Workshop, did not fail to deliver a compelling title, as it was praised for having great combat and fantastic Warhammer lore. Rogue Trader has given the studio even more opportunities and the motivation to explore similar IPs. And so we spoke with Anatoly Shestov, Executive Producer at Owlcat Games, to discuss the challenges of developing Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader and the studio’s future plans. 

Question: What was it like creating the first cRPG in the Warhammer 40k setting? Were there other titles that you took some inspiration from?

Shestov: At first, there is a joyful anticipation; working on such a project is a dream. Then, there is fear because there is a very high risk of getting it wrong. There are too many unique details and features, and each one must be conveyed with love. From this to the very end, there is only overcome by the grace of the Emperor.
Among the sources of inspiration were Last Spell, XCom, Jagged Alias, Wasteland, Battlefleet Gothic, Mechanicus, and – as with any project in our studio – the golden fund of classic RPGs. 

Question: Does the team have plans to keep adding content beyond the two DLCs already announced for 2024? 

Shestov: Certainly. We are already working on several interesting ideas beyond what has already been announced, and each of them focuses on one of the major elements of the Rogue Trader. 

[...]

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Mortismal Gaming has reviewed Rogue Trader:

WH40k: Rogue Trader - Review After 100%

IGN gives you some pointers for Rogue Trader:

6 Things To Know About Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader

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IGN reviewed Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader Review

Splattercatgaming checked out Rogue Trader:

Rogue Trader is the Deep Handcrafted Warhammer RPG That I've Been Waiting Years For

Fextralife checked out Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader Review - Is it Worth It? Should You Play it?

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Fextralife takes a look at character creation in Rogue Trader:

WH 40K: Rogue Trader Character Creation COMPLETE GUIDE - Classes, Origins, Homeworlds, & More!

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Mortismal Gaming reviewed Rogue Trader and made a guide for new players:

WH40k: Rogue Trader - Launch Review

So You Want To Play WH40k: Rogue Trader... (New Player's Guide)

The party-based RPG Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader will be released today:

 Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

Explore the Koronus Expanse.
Begin your adventure aboard your personal, giant voidship, traveling between the multitude of systems within the Koronus Expanse, a barely charted and incredibly perilous region of space. Despite being considered a backwater of the Imperium, this region encompasses an enormous stretch of the void, filled with dangerous creatures and prodigious opportunities for profit and exploration.

Your decisions matter, Lord-Captain.
During quests show your subjects mercy or disdain, stay faithful to the God-Emperor, or consort with enemies of Mankind - your every decision and every act, even in character creation, is changing the in-game open world and those who inhabit it.

Gather your crew.
Rogue Traders never travel alone. Gather your retinue of righteous heroes, twisted psykers, and perfidious xenos. All of them are ready to follow you into the darkness between the stars. They will offer you counsel, aid you in battle, and allow you to amass ever more power. In return, you can guide them through their own personal journeys, changing their destinies forever.

Plan your actions carefully.
Slaughter the enemies of Mankind in a fully-fledged isometric turn-based tactical combat. Take advantage of cover, the environment, and careful positioning to overpower your enemies. When that is not enough - use your companion`s powerful abilities to turn the tide of battle and achieve victory even in the direst of situations. Our video game adaption of the classic Rogue Trader ruleset allows an enormous number of possibilities for you to explore.

Mortismal Gaming explains the Warhammer 40K universe:

WH40k: Rogue Trader - Lore Primer

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Learn more about graond combat in Rogue Trader:

Ground Combat Guide

Mortismal Gaming explains the combat basics of Rogue Trader:

WH40k: Rogue Trader - Combat Basics

Timestamps
00:00 Intro
01:05 Characteristics
03:54 Armor & Weapon Stats
09:32 Starting Combat
11:40 Basic Info
14:05 Momentum
16:50 Veil Thickness
17:40 Healing
19:52 My Own Thoughts
20:56 Wrap Up

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Mortismal Gaming created a guide for the character creation in Rogue Trader:

WH40k: Rogue Trader - Character Creation Overview & Guide

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Mortismal Gaming checked out Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader:

WH40k: Rogue Trader - Release Version Preview

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Couchpotato spotted a new developer interview for Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40k: Rogue Trader Developers On Classes, Gameplay & The World of 40k

IGN presents the official consequences showcase trailer for Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader (Spoiler Warning):

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader - Official Consequences Showcase Trailer

 

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The Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader devs explain why they’re limiting player choice on The Gamer:

Between Owlcat Games’ CRPG heritage and Games Workshop’s deep, sci-fi lore, Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader is a match made in heaven

Owlcat Games always wanted to make a Warhammer video game. In fact, Owlcat approached Games Workshop with an idea specifically for a Rogue Trader video game right off the bat, and the two companies immediately hit it off. Owlcat devs are gamers, whether that be video, board, or tabletop, and many of them have played Warhammer for decades. As it turns out, many Games Workshop employees were big fans of Owlcat’s games like Pathfinder.

CRPGs are probably the closest genre of video game to tabletop battles, offering freedom to explore their worlds in almost any imaginable way. And after sharing their mutual appreciation for each other’s work, Owlcat and Games Workshop put their collective heads together and came up with the premise for Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader.

[...]

Everything in Rogue Trader is used to make it more immersive. Perspectives of regular people make its world feel far more grounded than, say, the superhuman feats of Captain Titus in Space Marine 2, and that immersion makes players care about the decisions they make. Executive producer Anatoly Shestov explains that to fully immerse players, and to keep the game accurate to Games Workshop’s extensive lore, Owlcat often needed to restrict players, even when it seems counterintuitive to the gameplay of a CRPG.

“People shouldn’t go naked in Warhammer,” Shestov explains. “It’s not how the setting works […] so we have outfits that can’t be changed. If you’re picking an Adeptus Ministorum character, you will always have the base of the outfit, and some parts of that outfit will always be visible, whichever equipment you wear.

[...]

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Learn more about the sound and music of Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader:

Religion and Synthesizers

Every component of a game matters. An engaging story, believable and memorable characters, balanced gameplay, unique features, and an impressive visual aesthetic are all prominent aspects that grab players’ attention. However, there’s one more element that binds everything together and brings immersion to the next level. Music and sound design are one of our studio’s signature touches. Today we’re going to tell you a little about this process and all the creative and inventive ways our composers used sound and music to bring Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader to life. We now go over to Paweł Perepelica, one of the project’s composers and the writers of the game’s main theme.

The Main Theme
Every track of the game’s musical score was the result of long and meticulous work. Each theme went through a strict vetting process both at our studio and Games Workshop. It took us about five months to find the right sound for the main theme. The other composers and I tried many different versions, scrapping the ones we disliked, trying again and again. That search left me with some extra time on my hands, which I put to use getting started on the game’s space battle themes. One of those themes became a sudden hit and caught everyone’s attention, so much so that a decision was made to transform this track into the main theme.
As a long-time Warhammer fan, I’ve always wanted to work on something set in this universe. Imagine my excitement when I got the offer one day to work on Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, finally having a chance to turn my ideas into reality! I always knew that if I were to write music for the Warhammer universe, I’d make sure to try and bring together two things: religion and synthesizers! Those two words are what come to mind when I imagine music from Warhammer 40,000.

The choir is the main theme’s centerpiece. For the orchestral version, we recorded a live professional choir. But here’s a fun fact: for the earlier version, I used my own voice layered on top of itself several times over. We needed the choir to sound natural and human, which you don’t always achieve with digital samples. That’s why in the beta, as well as in the version of this track shared earlier on YouTube, the vocals you hear are mine. A choir of Paweł Perepelica clones, if you will.

[...]

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Wccftech chatted with Alexander Mishulin, Creative Director at Owlcat Games about Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader Q&A – Owlcat on Addressing Beta Feedback, Improving Romances and Thanking Larian

It's been a great year for roleplaying game fans thanks to the release of several great games, chiefly the long-awaited cRPG Baldur's Gate 3 (now in pole position for Game of the Year awards after a near-flawless critical reception), and Owlcat Games made it even better when it announced that Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader would launch in early December on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S|X.

Given that inXile and Obsidian have abandoned the cRPG genre, at least for the time being, their next projects focused on first-person action combat, Owlcat is definitely the most experienced studio after Larian. Their Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous games have been received very well on PC and consoles alike.

With Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader, the studio is set to deliver the first cRPG set in the grimdark universe created by Games Workshop. Ahead of the upcoming launch, I briefly chatted with Alexander Mishulin, Creative Director at Owlcat Games. Topics ranged from addressing the community's feedback obtained through beta tests, providing more varied romances, and thanking Larian for Baldur's Gate 3's role in expanding the cRPG genre.

Let's begin with the preparation phase before battles. Is it always available or only in certain situations?

It's mostly available. Only when you are stepping into an ambush will you be unable to take the preparation phase, and you will be forced to fight in the positions you were in. But there aren't many of these scenarios in Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader, maybe one in ten or even one in twenty.

I have a question regarding the rule set. You've previously made the Pathfinder games and adapted that rule set. Now, you are adapting the Rogue Trader ruleset right for this game. Can you speak to the differences in adapting these two different rulesets from tabletop to the videogame format? Also, what kind of changes did you make for Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader?

Sure. It's actually the approach to the adaptation is different. With those two Pathfinder games, we were striving to be as close to the tabletop experience as we possibly could, while in Rogue Trader, we mostly took inspiration from tabletop rules.

The skills are kind of the same. Some abilities have similar names, but all the mechanics inside are our own, and one of the reasons for that is we have to have a very long progression for the characters. The Rogue Trader system is not very rich in terms of abilities, spells, and everything, so we had to add more elements to provide more builds for the characters and more synergies between different characters. So, the approach is different for these games.

[...]

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Yesterday the Beta survey results for Rogue Trader came in and were discussed by Owlcat in length:

Feedback from the Koronus Expanse 2: Beta survey results

Greetings, Lord Captains!

Months ago, during alpha testing, we posted an article about changes brought to the game based on your feedback in the big alpha survey.

Time flies by quickly, and today we are back with the second article of the series, this time to show you how your feedback shaped the game after the beta!

Disclaimer: Same as in the last article, we will not be going over every question in the survey, but will highlight only the most interesting facts. Enjoy the read and watch out for spoilers below!

Overall Score

What could be better than to begin the article with the overall rating you guys gave us?

A total of 5000+ players have taken the survey, and they rated Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader 4.3 out of 5!

This is almost the same result as the last time (alpha was rated 4.35). But considering this time the amount of people taking the survey has increased tenfold, a large number of them way less familiar with the universe, it looks like we’re still going in the right direction. Thank you for the recognition! Of course, this result is not a reason to sit idle, and we’ll discuss why below.

Reactivity and Convictions

One of the most frequent complaints in the survey was the insufficient reactivity of NPCs and companions to the Rogue Trader’s biography, doctrines, and convictions. There were also concerns about the conviction tags often feeling off or missing altogether. Well, that makes sense - a significant chunk of these reactions were not in the game yet! We’re already busy adding these reactions as this article is being written. Same goes for convictions - the tag placement was a draft done shortly before the beta launch, and we’re carefully working on all dialogues to tag them correctly.

We’ve also paid additional attention to scenes where a lot of you wished to see specific reactions. For example, quite a few people really wanted to be able to interrupt some of Idira’s heretical speeches in front of outsiders, and we’ll let you do this now!

Tutorials and Lore Glossary

Over 50% of you found our newly introduced tutorials useful, and the only negative criticism about them was, well, that there’s not enough of them! We are happy that they seem to be working well and will add more tutorials for various aspects of the game as we continue development. Some of them will even receive short explanatory videos.

The lore glossary appears to be quite helpful as well: almost 90% respondents told us they were actively using it! A curious note: these numbers appear the same even for the respondents who claimed to be deeply familiar with the universe. Checking our knowledge of the Lore, are you? :D

Difficulty Curve

There’s a lot of curious data here depending on the choice of difficulty. Overall, it seems that we’re on the right track, although some players on normal difficulty reported that there could be a bit more challenge. We will be carefully tuning the encounters with that in mind, especially in the later acts of the game, where player power may currently grow a bit too quickly.

Doctrines

Among the doctrines available, Marksman was an undisputed leader in all aspects. So much that we are considering lowering its potential a bit. Don’t panic though, we’re not removing the already iconic Shoot on the Run!

Adept, on the other hand, appears to be the least popular, with the most common complaints being lack of visible impact and difficulty in understanding its mechanics. In the beta this doctrine also suffered from a whole spectrum of bugs, which made the abilities even more confusing. We will be fixing these, tweaking some abilities, and reviewing the confusing and unclear descriptions.

[...]

Thanks Darkheart!

2023 is the "Year of the CRPGs" - Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader will be released on December 7:

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader – Official Release Date Trailer

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RPGamer checked out Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader PAX West Preview

Rogue Trader is going to be a very in-depth title; though combat did not appear too time-consuming, there’s enough dialogue options and story that even the current beta available has up to 60 hours of content.

Owlcat Games has been gaining prestige incorporating the role-playing aspect of popular tabletop franchises with fun tactical turn-based combat.  The studio is now trying its hand at the Warhammer universe through Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, a new party-based RPG set in the hostile Koronus Expanse.  RPGamer got the chance to take a look at how things are looking with a sit-down preview of the title at PAX West.

The eponymous Rogue Trader is a title for the player-created protagonist that will be fleshed out by their choices.  The studio promises robust role-playing and combat options that diversify them from the preset companions that join the party.  The protagonist is taken on an original journey inspired by the Warhammer 40,000 universe, meeting a cast of eight companions that can join the player and bring their own specialties.  For example, Abelard is a tank who helps mitigate damage for the active party of six, while others include Jae, a smuggler and all-around good leader and great support character, and Marazhai, a whirlwind of death and destruction.  Each of the companions will be there for more than just combat, as they also have storylines of their own that Rogue Trader dives into.  The presentation showcased the crew exploring a planet for a downed space shuttle and coming across the robotic and skeletal Necron along the way.

[...]

Rock Paper Shotgun compares Rogue trader with Mass Effect and XCOM:

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader is Warhammer Mass Effect, and you can own planets

Plus, visit Commorragh for the first time in a game

In the grim darkness of the far future, the galaxy is your oyster. Or at least it will be, once you've played 100 hours of Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, an RPG from Pathfinder developer Owlcat in which you can buy planets, configure your genocidal Dark Eldar friend to strike ten times a turn, and gaze on ruefully as a demon explodes out of your Psyker's head.

An immediate and shameful disclaimer: I can't match Nic Reuben's deep knowledge of the 40K tabletop universe, which saw him ruminating upon the mysteries of the Koronus Expanse back in 2022, while holding Owlcat's feet to the fire over the absence of space dwarves. The nearest I got to playing 40K as a lad was its Battlefleet Gothic spin-off (which none of my friends were interested in, so when I say "playing", I mean that I sat in a room staring glumly at some unpainted Lunar-class Cruisers while other kids went out and climbed trees). The framing I'm working with instead, based on an hour of hands-off Rogue Trader gameplay, is that it's sort of Warhammer Mass Effect, but with XCOM-style turn- and grid-based combat, and while there are opportunities to be a compassionate hero, you fundamentally only have the option of playing Renegade. Let's dig in!

[...]

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Rock Paper Shotgun reports that choices with consequences are important for the Rogue Trader devs:

CRPGs need to be vast for your choices to matter, says Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader dev

"That's the reason why our game is so long."

Earlier this week I attended a hands-off preview for Owlcat's forthcoming CRPG Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, which is shaping up nicely, inasmuch as there's anything "nice" about a Warhammer 40,000 game. Rogue Trader is a party-based affair in which you play a sort of Warhammer East India Company, tasked with flipping outlying worlds to the Imperium. In order to carry out this goal, you're granted a lot more individual license than most human residents of the 40K universe. You can, for instance, recruit ungodly xenos to your grimdark troupe, operate a private armada, and even colonise planets and turn them into your own personal piggybank. Just watch you don't push the whole "heresy" thing too far.

I'll have more for you on the subject soonish, but here's an interesting advance snippet from my interview with Owlcat's creative director Alexander Mishulin, in which we discussed what really distinguishes a CRPG from other kinds of role-playing game. According to Mishulin, it's all about designing for choices with consequences that genuinely run the entire length of the game, without (somehow) getting lost in the narrative undergrowth.

"In our opinion, the focus we put in our games is on crises, consequences and reactions," Mishulin told me. "So when you make a decision, you should be able to see what it leads to, and you should be able to see your companions react to your particular decision, whether they like it or not. Sometimes the consequences should be rather harsh, or hard to deal with." He gave the example of Space Marine and Inquisitor characters leaving your Rogue Trader party, and even becoming ferocious enemies, if you flirt a little too conspicuously with aliens and blasphemers.

[...]

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A new Rogue Trader companion has been revealed:

Marazhai Aezyrraesh: the Creed of a Tormenter

The Drukhari are considered among the most cruel and malicious of xenos that threaten the Imperium. They are a degenerate society of the ancient Aeldari xenos race, a dark culture of torturers and raiders, striking out at the galaxy's inhabitants from their labyrinthine shadow-realm of Commorragh. Selfish, prideful, arrogant and murderous, the Drukhari are a self-serving people. Their rulers reign over their kindred with the utmost cruelty and intimidation, for only the fear of death can keep the Drukhari in line. Their subjects are torn between their own ambitions that urge them to backstab their own and a hatred of their common enemies that pushes them into fragile alliances and shaky agreements. The laws of this fractured society are known only to the Drukhari themselves - and even they often become victims of their own intrigues and games, having faltered in their judgment or one of their plots.

Marazhai Aezyrraesh, the Dracon of the Kabal of the Reaving Tempest, is a true scion of Commorragh, who is driven by an insatiable lust for violence and power over others - things which he achieves through subtle cunning, shady deals, and — to his great delight — carnage and the agonizing torture of his enemies. Everything changes when another raid in realspace goes awry, and Marazhai realizes that this time it was he who was being hunted. It's time to strike back, not wait for the enemy to get ahead. But the intricacies of Commorragh's intrigues and machinations are different from the rules of these rampant and bloody raids, and the most sophisticated plan can fail if one of your tools is an overly feisty and underestimated Rogue Trader... or if one of the apex predators of Commorragh, with whom you struck a dark alliance, decides not to hold his end of the bargain up.

Stripped of everything that once belonged to him, Marazhai receives one final favor - to perish to the delight of his kin, feeding their insatiable hunger with his exquisite pain. This fate is unlikely to suit the proud Kabalite of the Reaving Tempest, and he has one last chance to avoid it - to enter into an alliance with yesterday's enemy. If this uneasy union holds together, if the doomed find their way out of Commorragh, if this Drukhari, a child of the Webway, survives in realspace... then the fallen Dracon will have a shred of hope: one day reclaim the shards of what he once considered his own or follow the path of bloody revenge as someone with nothing to lose.

The rut of daily life on a Human voidship can be unbearably dull for a creature of such different customs - and there is none more inventive in devising twisted entertainment than a bored Drukhari. Since only the Rogue Trader is worthy of any attention amid the surrounding rabble, it will not be difficult for them to attract Marazhai's special consideration. A former preything can just as easily be turned into an amusing plaything... or, if the chosen rules dictate, roles can change completely. For a reckless – or unwary – Rogue Trader willing to indulge Marazhai’s debauched nature, he has much to share on the subject of depravity and cruelty – things might just leave a permanent mark on the soul of a willing and receptive “mon-keigh”.

Thanks Darheart!

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader creative director Alexander Mishulin explains the scope of the game on Gamedeveloper:

Large scope "necessary" for CRPGs, says Rogue Trader creative director

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader creative director Alexander Mishulin explains how Owlcat Games adapted the tabletop experience to a 100-hour CRPG.

The Warhammer 40K franchise from Games Workshop has seen several video games that capture the grim action, expansive lore, and tactical elements of the tabletop miniature wargame experience. The universe of Warhammer 40K is a rich and intriguingly dark sci-fi setting that's a compelling fit for gaming, yet surprisingly, it has been left unexplored for role-playing video games.

That changes with Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader from Owlcat Games, the CRPG developer behind Pathfinder: Kingmaker and its sequel Wrath of the Righteous. Adapting Fantasy Flight Games' tabletop RPG of the same name, Warhammer 40K's first CRPG adapts the vast scope of the dark universe into an adventure filled with choice-driven events, with plenty of weighty consequences to your actions that games of the genre shine in.

With the massive scope of so many CRPGs, and Larian Studios' Baldur's Gate 3 marking a significant milestone for the genre, we spoke with Rogue Trader creative director Alexander Mishulin about the current state of CRPGs as they go through change, why going big for its 100-hour adventure was vital.

The first Warhammer 40K CRPG is built off of tabletop game mechanics
The universe of Warhammer 40K is an incredibly dark and nihilistic setting – so much so that it inspired the catchall phrase "grimdark" for describing bleak fantasy settings. Setting a role-playing video game within this universe, where morality is a thing of the past and death is a regular occurrence, is a compelling hook for a CRPG.

While Space Marines, Orks, and the Necrons are among the franchise's most recognizable groups, the faction of the Rogue Traders is the focus of this new CRPG, representing a pathway to an open-ended approach to exploring this grim universe.
Inspired by the Rogue Trader tabletop role-playing game, Owlcat Games' entry focuses on the exploits of the titular Rogue Trader faction, made up of mercenaries and traders who can roam the galaxy with a level of freedom that other factions don't possess.

Players will chart a course to the Koronus Expanse, where their party will run afoul of different factions and noble houses as they cut deals to secure a foothold in this corner of the galaxy - leading to pivotal choices that will tip the balance of power within the galactic Imperium. During our interview with Mishulin, he spoke about the rapid growth that the CRPG genre has seen in recent years following the successes of their Pathfinder games, along with other noteworthy hits like Divinity Original Sin 2 and Baldur's Gate 3 - which Mishulin gave credit to for expanding the genre.

When coming up with the gameplay and goals for Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader, the developers at Owlcat Games took careful consideration when adapting the source material from the tabletop RPG, which uses miniature figures along with pen-and-paper character sheets to chart adventures. They also wanted to blend it with the choice-driven gameplay and sprawling scope of a CRPG like Pathfinder: Kingmaker or, most recently, Baldur's Gate 3.

"For this game, we were inspired by the Rogue Trader tabletop RPG by Fantasy Flight Games, and our core team has played it for many years while working on the Pathfinder games," said Mishulin. "We approached Games Workshop with our idea and started work after Pathfinder.

"So it's based on that 2009 tabletop game, carrying over similar skills and systems, but it's modified with our own rules that we have used for recent games. Strictly tabletop rules and progression in a 100-hour CRPG can be rather flat, so we created a modified Rogue Trader ruleset for this CRPG to show [character growth] and the different strategic abilities for your party."

According to Mushlin, Owlcat's intent was to take liberties as needed with the original ruleset to interpret them into familiar turn-based combat mechanics that players of CRPG games can immerse themselves in. The developer's end goal was to capture the tactical nature of the tabletop experience with the complex storytelling and character growth seen in CRPGs.

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader will be a massive game
With Warhammer 40: Rogue Trader, Owlcat is shooting for a massive game that can take up to 50 to 100 hours to complete — depending on the player's pace and choices. Along with the choice-driven gameplay and managing a large party of unique characters with their own ideals and needs, one of the hallmarks of a CRPG is the sprawling scope of its adventure and how much there is to see.

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

Couchpotato spotted a companion trailer Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader - Official Companion Trailer | gamescom 2023

Couchpotato spotted the recording of the main theme of Rogue Trader composed by Pawel Perepelica:

Main Theme | Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

Owlcat Games posted a combat survival guide for Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader:

Rogue Trader Combat Survival Guide

Surviving on the battlefields of the 41st millennium is a challenging task, even for an experienced Lord Captain and their trusted retinue. In this article we’ve gathered some hints that will help you master ground combat in Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader.

1. Planning Your Turn

How many times have you made a move in tactical combat only to find out that the enemy is no longer visible from a new position? In Rogue Trader, we’ve solved this problem - simply click on one of the tiles available for movement, and a ghostly figure of your character will appear in that tile, from where you will be able to check line of sight and ability ranges. You can then confirm the movement by clicking on the same spot again.

2. Moving and Attacking

Normally you are unable to move after making an attack, and only one attack is allowed per turn. Pay attention to the flashing red icons when you hover the cursor over an ability - it shows which of them will be blocked after this ability is used. Also note that abilities provided by a character’s Doctrine may allow for additional attacks or movement, so read their description carefully.

3. Momentum

When you damage and kill enemies, your party accumulates Momentum - a special resource that represents the flow of battle and opportunities arising in combat. When it’s above a certain threshold, you can spend it to launch devastating abilities called Heroic Acts. Similarly, if things aren't going well and your party has suffered a lot of damage, Momentum will also be very low, at which point you will gain access to Desperate Measures - another type of powerful abilities that come at the cost of significant negative effects. Both of these can turn the tide of battle, so use them wisely.

4. Cover

Cover is useful to shield yourself against incoming fire. It comes in partial (half-shield) and full (full shield) forms for different levels of protection. Make sure that your flanks are protected when using cover, and note that smaller cover elements are destructible, or else you may end up finding out what a bolter shell tastes like.

[...]

Thanks Redglyph!

COG checked out Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader Preview

There are, as we all know, videogames for every age, interest and skill. There are games that only require attention for a few minutes at a time. Then there are games like Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader. Owlcat’s upcoming homage to both the original Warhammer tabletop game and its own CRPGs — now in beta — is one of those titles that can crossover from being a casual dip into the Warhammer world to a happy time sink and weeks’ long commitment. Even the beta runs well over 60 hours.

In addition to being an incredibly deep CRPG similar to the developer’s Pathfinder, Rogue Trader is a lore lover’s dream game. Fans of Warhammer 40K will relish the remarkable attention to detail. Casual gamers largely unfamiliar with Warhammer will enjoy the game simply for its excellent tactical gameplay and story.

Trade Like a Rogue
The Rogue Trader experience begins with the kind of character creator that CRPG players love. It’s deep, allowing for customization of physical appearance, but also a huge number of critical traits, backstory elements and starting skills. Though everyone will obviously be a rogue trader, there are already a staggering number of ways to make your character your own, unique player in a grand narrative.

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

Mortismal Gaming checked out the current beta version of WH40k: Rogue Trader:

WH40k: Rogue Trader - Beta Overview

IGN presents the official trailer for Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader - Official Trailer

IGN presents the official locations trailer for Rogue Trader:

Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader - Official Locations Trailer

Owlcat Games posted the dev diary #4 for Rogue Trader:

Dev Diary #4: Factions of the Koronus Expanse | Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

Owlcat Games posted the dev diary #3 for Rogue Trader:

Dev Diary #3: Enemy Creation | Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

Thanks Redglyph!

PC Gamer thinks Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader could be one of 2023 best games:

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader is shaping up to be a stellar CRPG

Owlcat Games' latest has shot to the top of my most-wanted list.

Footfall Station is an Imperial outpost on the edge of the Koronus Expanse, a wild sector of frontier space that I plan to tame as a newly minted Rogue Trader. It's essentially Mos Eisley with more buttresses. The Liege of Footfall has requested an audience, a convenient development as my ship needs repairs anyway. Before we arrive at Footfall, however, one of my tech-priests asks a question. Do I want to be greeted with the pomp and formality my title deserves? Or do I want to enter the station incognito?

Frankly, I'm insulted by the question. I'm a bloody Rogue Trader! I'm a one-man East India Company, given special warrant by the Imperium to explore uncharted space, expand its borders, and milk the colonies I establish for everything they're worth. In the callous meat-grinder of the Imperium, I'm one of the few allowed to turn the handle. I want the red-carpet treatment. Trumpets, confetti, adoring crowds, and something sexy bursting out of a cake.

When I descend to the station via dropship, a throng of sycophants applaud my arrival, though frankly I expected it to be bigger. Suddenly, a man dressed in orange rags yells out, and armed gangsters pour from all corners of the dock. The applauding masses are subject to an appalling massacre, as bullets aimed at me rip through the crowd. But I know a thing or two about massacres, and leap into the fray with my entourage, butchering the thugs with blades and bullets. Heads roll, limbs fly, a good number of the attackers are simply mulched. From the carnage, I pick out a couple of weapons I like the look of, then store the rest as cargo to be sold in bulk at a later date.

This explosive scene isn't the opening to Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader—the closed alpha test provided by Owlcat games starts at Chapter 2. But it's quite an introduction regardless, capturing both the ceremony and cruelty at the heart of the 40k universe. I've been intrigued about Rogue Trader ever since it was announced, but after emerging from that bloody skirmish on the dock, I was excited. And the more I played, the more excited I became. Rogue Trader has serious potential to be one of 2023's best games.

[...]

Thanks Henriquejr!

Couchpotato spotted gameplay impressions for Rogue Trader on Fextralife and Wccftech:

Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader Alpha Gameplay Impressions - The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader Alpha 4K Gameplay

A new gameplay trailer for Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader:

Gameplay Trailer | Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

Dev Diary #2 for Rogue Trader is about introducing the Rogue Traders.

Rogue Traders are a unique part of Warhammer 40,000. Independent and free from most Imperial scrutiny, they command enormous trade empires and mighty armies and fleets. And it's time to explore what it truly means to be a Rogue Trader.

All Rogue Trader newsbits from Owlcat Games:

Rogue Trader Newsbits

1. Abelard Werserian: A Man of His Duty
2. Idira Tlass: Warp Powers Unchained
3. Theodora von Valancius: Of Power and Glory
4. Privateers of the Imperium
5. Pasqal Haneumann: In a Cage of Digital Vows
6. How to: Warp Travel
7. Cassia Orsellio: Gazing into the Warp
8. Rogue Trader Content Digest – Summer 2022
9. How to: Imperial Creed
10. Sister Argenta: The Soul Ablaze
11. Nature of the Aeldari

Owlcat Games have posted a video of W40,000: Rogue Trader's main theme:

Main Theme | Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

Thanks Redglyph!

Owlcat Games have compiled a digest of all Rogue Trader updates:

Rogue Trader Content Digest – Summer 2022

Three months have flown by at the speed of warp travel! 
It feels like only yesterday that we released our first teaser trailer. We were biting our nails reading your first reactions, and, to our relief, you guys and gals loved it!

Let’s look back to where it all started.

[...]

Thanks Redglyph!

Wccftech give their impressions of Warhammer 40k: Rogue Trader's presentation at Gamescom 2022:

Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader Impressions – cRPG Warhammer Goodness

If you google Owlcat Games and read the little tag for their site, you will see that they have it as "We create cRPGs". I'd find it hard to disagree with such a statement with the developer having proven their mettle in their first two titles; Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous. Earlier this year, Games Workshop announced that Owlcat are working on a brand new IP, and not a small one at that - the next game by the developer would be Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader.

I recently saw even more details about the upcoming CRPG in a presentation that lasted close to one hour, covering the lore, characters and their development, combat, and more. Here are my impressions of Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader based on what Owlcat showed me.

[...]

Thanks Redglyph!

CohhCarnage shows Cassia Orsellio's statue, which comes with the Collector Edition of Warhammer 40k: Rogue Trader. Note that this pack is not yet available or even detailed on the website, but an upgrade option will be added for those who have already purchased another pack:

CohhCarnage Announces The Collector's Edition Statue For Rogue Trader (By Owlcat)

Thanks Redglyph!

Owlcat Games has posted new lore on the Rogue Traders:

Privateers of the Imperium

“The armchair-admirals at the Navy academies will have it that combat in space is a predictable, scientific affair, akin to a game of regicide.
They teach that you should only engage your enemy at this or that range, that it takes a particular number of escorts to engage one cruiser and a hundred other such nuggets of tedious, received wisdom.
What do they know? These academics and experts who have never felt the rush of blood as you close on your foe, his plasma containment failing as he bleeds out into the void? Who among them has closed to ranges that make the ‘experts’ splutter with indignation? Which of them know the visceral thrill that is the bloody murder of combat in space?
I have felt the frozen kiss of the void as my hull split, and lived. I have hurled my warship at my foe as if it were a torpedo, and defeated him utterly. And I will do so again, a thousand times, until the Emperor or the universe decides I’ve done it once too often.”

–Rogue Trader Lucien Gherrit of the Clan Arcadius, at the victory banquet aboard the Wotan following the defeat of the traitor 88th Flotilla.

 
Rogue Traders

The Imperium is a vast, scattered realm, extending over almost the entire galaxy, impinging itself upon the more compact areas of alien settled space. The million or more inhabited worlds the Imperium controls are but a tiny fraction of the galactic whole. Then there are the fringes and halo zones, remote areas where the Astronomican does not reach, and where the only human settlers are renegades or pioneering groups whose ancestors were forgotten millennia ago. Most of the galaxy remains unexplored, unknown, and extremely dangerous.

The potential of new worlds, alien civilisations, and unimaginable resources made necessary a class of free-ranging Imperial agents known as Rogue Traders. Licensed and often equipped by the Adeptus Terra, the Rogue Trader is free to explore the far regions of the galaxy, the areas where the Astronomican does not reach, and those areas within its reach as yet unvisited.
Rogue Traders have even attempted to cross the voids of interstellar space, but over such distances even the Astropaths’ powers of communication are useless, and whether such missions have succeeded is unknown. Operating in isolation from the central authority of the Imperium, the Rogue Trader must decide how to react to alien cultures, new discoveries, and threats. If he judges a race to be potentially dangerous, he may attempt to destroy it or to gather as much information as he can so that others may do so.
If he decides a race may be of use to humanity, he may attempt to make contact and establish relations. If merely rich in technology or minerals, a planet may be plundered, and the Rogue Trader will return to Terra laden with the treasure of space—alien artefacts, rare and precious minerals, and undreamed of technology. 

[...]

Thanks Redglyph!

Alexander Gusev, creative director Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader talks about the game:

Classic RPG Rogue Trader Will Explore More Than Just the War in Warhammer 40,000

Arguments, hard choices, and deals with aliens await.

Casting ‘magic’ in the Warhammer 40,000 universe is incredibly risky business. A psyker (see: space wizard) must draw their power from the Warp, a volatile dimension that’s home to daemons and chaotic gods. As such, every spell, no matter how trivial or powerful, comes with the chance of injury, insanity, demonic possession, or death. In Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, the upcoming RPG from Owlcat Games, you’ll have to weigh up that risk every time you consider eviscerating a foe with your mind.

Perils of the Warp, the system that governs whether your head explodes or you live to cast another day, is one of Alexander Gusev’s favorite mechanics from 2009’s Rogue Trader, a tabletop RPG set in the grimdark future of the 41st millenium. He and other members of the Owlcat dev team played the game for years, and so the chance to turn this pen-and-paper hobby into a video game was something of a dream. But one golden pitch to Games Workshop later and that dream is a reality; Gusev is now creative director on the very first Warhammer 40k video game RPG.

“We were making more sandbox-style RPGs than most [other developers],” Gusev says, referring to the studio’s incredibly open Pathfinder games. “You had your kingdom. You were traveling, exploring the map, learning stuff about this unknown place, The Stolen Lands. And this constantly reminded me about what parties in Rogue Trader do.”

Most Warhammer 40k video games have you take part in mankind’s millenia-long quest to wipe out every other race in the galaxy (there are no good guys here, sorry). But the Rogue Traders, with their opulent spaceships and impeccable fashion tastes, are not your battle-hungry Space Marines. “Rogue Traders shine in a way that differs from many other factions in Warhammer’s Imperium in that you can also interact with xenos [aliens] in ways other than just killing them,” explains Gusev. 

[...]

Thanks Pladio:

Owlcat Games have posted a little update on Rogue Traders:

Abelard Werserian: A Man of His Duty

Rogue Traders are the bright stars of the Koronus Expanse. They traverse the void, conquering savage worlds, hunting ancient treasures, and bringing the Light of the Emperor to the wild frontier. Their great minds are focused on major tasks (or distracted by the pleasures that the lavish lifestyle of Imperial nobility brings… but that's another matter). In any case, each Rogue Trader needs a trusted person to handle the not-so-great tasks, like keeping the colonial governments on all those conquered worlds from falling apart, or turning all those ancient treasures into actual profit. Enter the Seneschal.

Decades ago, the diligent and imperious Abelard Werserian was first officer on a cruiser voidship, until fate intervened in the form of Theodora von Valancius, an eccentric, wayward Rogue Trader. Different as night and day, the pair learned to appreciate and respect each other during a joint operation between Navis Imperialis and Rogue Trader forces. Impressed, Theodora claimed Abelard as her new Seneschal – a position that confers the highest honors, as well as the greatest burdens.

Decades later, Abelard, as the Rogue Trader's right hand, remains vigilant against threats to the von Valancius trade empire. Time and its tribulations have turned his hair gray and his demeanor even more difficult than it was in his Navy days. And yet Abelard is still one of the most reliable of the Rogue Trader's crew, fiercely loyal to the trade empire he helped to build and operate. Anything that endangers this precious creation he views as a personal threat. And these dangers are many, for great and fearsome powers lurk in the depths of the Koronus Expanse. Is there still enough strength in the aging Seneschal’s hands to hold the trade empire together and protect it from ruin?

Thanks Redglyph!

Techradar thinks Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader could be a good RPG:

It’s about time we got a Warhammer 40K RPG – let’s hope Rogue Trader lives up to its potential

The auspex has picked up something wonderful

A Space Marine, Aeldari and Sister of Battle fighting waves of Drukhari in Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

A Warhammer 40K RPG is finally here, as Owlcat Games has revealed Rogue Trader.

Announced during the Warhammer Skulls showcase event, Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader is billed as a classic roleplaying game with turn-based combat. It’ll be the first fully-fledged Warhammer 40K CRPG, and will be making its way to PC and consoles. Specific platforms and an expected launch window haven’t yet been announced, but you can watch the reveal trailer below.

Developed by Owlcat Games – the studio behind the well-received Pathfinder CRPGs – Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader looks to draw heavily from the roleplaying video games of the ‘90s. Placed in the titular role, you’ll oversee your own interstellar merchant empire and scout the fringes of the uncharted Koronus Expanse under the auspices of the godlike Emperor of Man. 

[...]

Owlcat announced their new game - Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader:

Announcement Teaser Trailer | Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader

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World Premiere of the first cRPG based in the renowned universe announced at the Warhammer Skulls Showcase!

Founder’s packs are available from today.

We are thrilled to announce Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader - the first classic roleplaying game with turn-based combat set in the grim darkness of the 41st millennium. The World Premiere, including the first glimpse of gameplay, was announced at the Warhammer Skulls Showcase. Those of you who are eager to get your hands on the early version of the game and help us with the development can obtain our Founder’s Packs; they are already available on the game’s website. 

This time you will take on the role of a Rogue Trader, a scion of an ancient dynasty of daring privateers that reign over their own merchant empire and explore the fringes of Imperial space with the blessing of the Emperor Himself. Thanks to their Warrant of Trade - the Rogue Trader is endowed with privileges and power beyond imagination as well as the task of expanding the borders of the Imperium. At their disposal is a gargantuan voidship of immense strength and innumerable personnel ready to follow any undertakings of the leader. Show your subjects mercy or disdain, stay faithful to the Emperor, or consort with enemies of Mankind - every decision and every act of the Rogue Trader sends ripples throughout entire star systems, changing the in-game world and those who inhabit it.

The action will unfold in the Koronus Expanse, a dangerous and unexplored region on the far frontiers of the Imperium of Man. Many explorers have fallen victim to this dangerous place and never returned.

Remarkable and sophisticated companions are one of the pillars of cRPGs, and Rogue Trader is not an exception. A mighty Space Marine, a mercurial Aeldari Ranger, or even a courageous Sister of Battle armed with bolter and ardent prayers are just a few of the many characters that will join the Rogue Trader during your adventures.

Starting today, you can support the game by purchasing one of the Founder’s Packs. Become a part of the team behind Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader! Those who decide to support the developers early will gain access to the Alpha and Beta versions of the game, help the team to shape the experience with their feedback, and receive a set of unique rewards and items available only to early supporters.