Hi everyone! So I've dusted off my Rogue Trader books and decided to run a game for my friends again. Currently working on background with them and one asked about Naval service. My first thought was once your in the Navy thats you for life. Then I remembered that a bunch of Rogue Traders are actually ex Navy Captains. Anyone read anything about Navy service? I'd thought you only got out by getting killed or on rare ocassions honourable retirement as a reward.

navy is usually a lifer, but there's always exceptions.

- bad injury, long hospital stay. ship moved on without you.

- new section chief didnt like you, tossed you out the airlock.

(clever you had that oxy-mask and escaped)

- got lost on an away team, not your fault, but ship left without you.

There are several fluff examples of people retiring from the Navy as well. While it might be a 'lifetime' if you didn't have access to rejuve, for a Peer of the Imperium it can just the the first state. Particularly if it didn't look like you were going to make it into the command ranks. (Captain+) Also, there is at least one case I can think of off the top of my head (Bastille) where a Navy Officer retired after inheriting the warrant of trade.

A Rogue Trader might also provide a favor to the Navy to let a skilled helmsmen go (particularly if she's also a thorn in their side) or an inquisitor might requisition them as part of a crew, only to abandon them later when they're not longer needed.

I am sure you could retire at officer levels and WO levels I am sure you could as well for the basic enlisted guys think you are more likely to find things like the days of sail navies were your in until your ship has a refit and then you get let off were ever that is re-joining if you wanted

and I am sure in a Dark heresy adventure one of the major NPC's was a retired officer of the battle fleet

My RT character - a gunnery-specced Void Master - was actually ex-Navy, too. In the background, I've explained his absence as a sort of extended leave as the noble family he belonged to was engaged in a rather bloody feud (assassins and everything) with another house, so his relatives arranged for him to be transferred. A Rogue Trader who was a friend of the family and whose ship was bound to leave Imperial space seemed to be the best option to have him "disappear" for a while until things calmed down.

This is also mechanically represented as the character's Trials and Travails perk: "High Vendetta".

The Imperial Navy is, to a good part, also politics and relationships as an extended court of the nobility, given how the officers are recruited from noble stock. This is similar to the Imperial Guard, but fleet officers have (1) more prestige, (2) a longer life expectancy and (3) are more likely to meet one another during social gatherings, which means there's a lot more networking .. and as such options to gain, owe or use favours.

Use this potential for the backgrounds of your characters!

There are as many reasons one can be ex-Navy as there are ex-Imperial Guard. As such, Into the Storm has the Homeworld option 'Battlefleet' to denote this, meaning you can be ex-Navy as part of your Origin Path.

Bastille is a good example of "God-Emperor, I'm sick of that guy. I wish he'd go away, and stop bothering me." Either because other people don't like, or even fear your influence, or because you realize that you might be making enemies you can't trump, you might go/be given a Warrant, and Rogue Trader you be.

In my fluff, one of my Rogue Traders (Korvallus) rose to a high point in the Navy. There was little else for him to aspire too, unless a high-ranking Admiral happened to die, and he was a stellar example of what the Navy liked, for the most part, so they acquired for him a Warrant of Trade (it's more complicated and silly, but this works for here ), that he could take his skill and ability to the darkest parts of the galaxy, where they desperately needed it, but the Navy, in force, might not be able to go.

In another, the RT's (Qel-Drake) father was a complete "in bed with the Navy" character, forgoing a great deal of the industry and growth of his Dynasty, in order to throw a lot of his weight behind the Navy. They didn't always like this "outsider" meddling, but he always came to help them , and at his own expense. If a high-ranking officer happened to slip him some intel on where they might be, if he wanted to aide, or where something cool might be found, all the better, and it explains how the Dynasty got their Tyrant cruiser. When the current RT of that Dynasty (Aedan Qel-Drake) came to power, he's not as good with the Navy, and they don't really like him. He did, however, "buy" one of their deserters off of them, and she is now the Exalted Wyrm's primary Void Mistress. In this way, much the same way Rogue Traders can purchase Guard divisions, I could see them pay the Navy for manpower, or even rise to greatness, themselves, from among the Navy.

nobody mentioned going AWOL yet? seems excessively easy to avoid being brought back to the ship when you have an entire planet to hide on, usually with other ships to jump on

A run of the mill Imperial Navy officer is unlikely to ever receive a Warrant of Trade. The exception to that being that you are the son/daughter of the current RT, who then dies - making you the new head of the Dynasty. That would probably be the easiest way to get you from naval officer to Rogue Trader.

Yeah, either you were too great in rank, or too powerful, and they bought one for you, to make you leave (good for troublesome Generals and Inquisitors, too), or your RT family bought you a commission because you weren't likely to inherit from them, and then either circumstances, or your own hands, got you to get there, anyway.

One NPC RT from my games was an ex-Rear Admiral that was granted a Warrant when he meddled with xenos but saved a large portion of the battlefleet in the process.

Given the lifespan of a wealthy noble or Rt, It seems entirely likely that a Rt's family might encourage one of their Scions to serve in the Imperial Navy just to get experience! After all, If the Dynasty's RT isn't very old already, they could afford to wait 20 or so years for their child to be considered "seasoned" enough to take command of the Dynasty's Flagship! In this case it would be an active Collaboration between the RT's family and the local sector Admiral (Who they probably know personally). The Idea would be that after a successful career in the IN, the Scion would retire back to their family business. Hell of a training program!

In the Above case, The Scion would also have met a number of other individuals during their career. It is easily possible to Imagine them recruiting said individuals to serve on their new ship!

First and foremost, one needs to remember that the 40k setting is a feudal setting. And in feudal times, it was customary to send the sons (e.g. budding knights) to serve at another court so the young noblemen would learn the necessary skills from a task master not weakened by fatherly instincts nor would they be able to indulge in 'young lord of the manor' shenanigans.

Translated to 40k, it would make sense for RT heirs to learn naval skills in the navy rather than in the own RT fleet where they would be pampered and protected. A sink or swim kind of scenario which lets the cream rise...

And ideally, the RT heirs would be on a ticket punching tour in which they serve in various posts so they learn a wide array of skills as is done in all armed forces for those destined to high command.

In RL in many countries, a stint in the armed forces was more or less required in order to rise to high political station. And then we have the many royals, serving a well supervised and safe stint in their respective armed forces so they can wear a uniform bedecked with medals without everyone laughing at them......

There is of course, the option of doing your own little twist on the 40k setting. It's a framework for your story, not a rigid set of rules to be followed to the letter. Less like the Cato Sicarus approach to the Codex Astartes and more like the one Uriel Venrtis has.

Although, officers are certainly allowed to retire, culture varies from ship to ship, and fleet to fleet. According to the core book, Naval Officers often receive warrants of trade as rewards for exceptional service.

Our rogue trader is ex-navy, he's the son of an Imperial Navy's Admiral- his father used his influence to get him a warrant.

I'd say that's typical. There are a lot of silly yahoos who have Warrants of Trade out there, and if the game assumes that mine is minted with me as origin dynast, I have no idea how the book usually assumes that the crew was handed their papers, and a ship, and sent on their merry way. If your ___________ is the Warrant holder, and you inherit it, that's fine, but if you are "just some schmoe", someone with authority had to issue the document, and for a reason; I like to think that the having high connections who can pull strings for you angle is a good one.

Whether Schmoe or hero of the Imperium, Someone with Significant authority had to sign off on your Warrant. Maybe you inherited it but in that case someone had to sign off on one of your Ancestors!

Yeah, that's where the rules as presented make me stare; you are a new-minted Rogue Trader. What did you do to earn your Warrant? Okay, you have rather good stats to start with, so these might reflect supporting the deeds you did, whatever those might be, but the book is vague. If you are inheriting, you don't have to have done anything, other than be born, or maybe chosen by your predecessor (depends on how your dynasty passes), but if you are new, and they are giving you a ship, starting resources (PF 30+ is no pocket change), and freedom to take those beyond the Imperium, and be an a-hole with them, why?

I always liked the idea of a contest where you earned the right to win one, or something, but with so much of the Imperium not being mobile, and some of their assets being so valuable, getting to be the Rogue Trader is probably the best part for them to skip, and just let you run awesome after that, enjoying the game. Oh well.

A character in Rt is the equivalent of a 5000xp DH character according to the RAW. How they got them is meant to be shown in the origin path but is really limited only by your imagination!

If you're interested, there's also a similar flow chart in the ITS supplement.

The only problem being, it's definitely not true. It would be if DH characters didn't pay half the price for pretty much everything except characteristics. I would say 3 000 xp is much closer to reality.

Elavion: have you accounted for the fact that RT characters have an across the board +5 advance in all characteristics?

Also, many of the skills in RT, particularly weapon skills, represent 4 or 5 skills in DH.

My point is that when I did the math, it was a lot closer than you suggest.

Yeah, problem is, you don't buy, say, 5 diffrent pistol weapon trainings in dark heresy simply because you don't need it. Gotta admit, it's closer to 3,5k than 3k actually, I thought it was 2250 for +5 in all stats, but it's actually 2550. DH characters get about 5 skills and talents at the beginning, RT start with around 10, DH gets divinations, RT gets free class-based extras (except for missionary, for no reason).