Hello all,

Why do you need to have the Rogue Trader Career path to be the owner of a Warrant of Trade?

Why can't an Explorer or an Arch-Militant be awarded such a position?

PS: I am quite new to RT and only own the core book, but I didn't notice any multi-classing. Is it in another book?

The Warrant of Trade is what makes the Rogue Trader a Rogue Trader.

Why do you need to have the Rogue Trader Career path to be the owner of a Warrant of Trade?

As long as you can sell your idea to the GM, there's no need at all. However, the Rogue Trader career is the one that can generally handle the requirements of being a Rogue Trader (charisma, social and leadership talents, a little swashbuckling and balls of steel) best.

Why can't an Explorer or an Arch-Militant be awarded such a position?

Assuming that you meant the Explorator with Explorer, that would be pretty much the only career that very likely can't hold the warrant. An Explorator is a member of the Adeptus Mechanicus, which is not quite part of the Imperium. If they wanted to send one of their Magoi on an expedition, they likely wouldn't bother with petitioning the High Lords of Terra, they'd just hand him a ship, a crew and a task and set him off.

PS: I am quite new to RT and only own the core book, but I didn't notice any multi-classing. Is it in another book?

There is no true multiclassing, as in leaving your career Arch-Militant and moving over to career Missionary. However, Into The Storm has a couple of Alternate Ranks, meaning ranks you can swap in for ranks of your normal career. For example, a high level Rogue Trader could get the Legend Of The Expanse Alternate Rank instead of his normal RT rank 6, making everything in the normal rank a little more expensive, but allowing access to the new rank table of Legend Of The Expanse.

Don't get me wrong, game-wise it makes perfect sense for the captain of the ship to be a Rogue Trader. The career offers all the skills and bonuses needed to control the ship.

Its story-wise that I am more confused.

If I understand correctly, the Warrant of Trade is passed through generations. So technically anyone could become a "Rogue Trader".

The question is of issue to me as one of my players, who is to play the Rogue Trader/Captain, is the next in line to receive the Warrant of Trade. Unfortunately he is also a disciple of the Machine God who initially wanted to reject the offer to pursue his studies, but when his superior found out, they told him to accept and use his new status to search for new technologies.

So the Character should be a simple explorer, but one who got "promoted" to Rogue Trader.

How should we deal with the character?

I think one of the new origins from Into the Storm starts with the Warrant of Reknown talent, though I am not sure if they can be other careers besides Rogue Traders.

You could always allow it as a Elite Advance at Character Generation, for 500XP or something.

Madmacabre said:

Handled neatly by the Origin Path. Born on a Forge World via whatever circumstances fit, is a Child of the (Mechanicus) Creed. Drawn out into the Void by being Duty Bound to follow his superiors orders. Shortly after receiving his warrant he is beset, suffering a Dark Voyage. Despite witnessing firsthand the horrors of space, he's now committed to acquiring the Prestige that is rightfully due to his family line.

Very nice!

Thanks for the hint!

Errant said:

Of course in this case the player should just consider the Rouge Trader class.

Story wise pretty much anyone who receives a warrent of trade is, by definition, a Rouge Trader.

Game mechanics wise, it just make sense to have the RT class because the skills and talents are geared toward being the Capitan.

And if your player still wants to be cybered out, well THAT can be handeled with a few judicious profit factor checks.

My opinions, YMMV.

Erich said:

I think this is the most elegant solution.

A final note, Elite Advances.

Almost anything can, and should, be available through elite advances. Any class can have psyker power, any class can use heavy weapons, any class can have profession (pastry chef).

If it is justified in game and the player "pays" for it (with xp, time, and effort) they can, and should, be able to take any number of skills that describe their character.

Your class mainly reflects which skills you are most likely to learn as you advance. Whomever plays the RT is most likely to learn command, trade, and fellowship.Whomever is a voidmaster is most likely to learn ship related things. Background-wise they can come from whatever background you want, and if theywant to "brek the mold", well, that is what elite advances is for.

There is the augmeticist alternative career rank in Into the Storm, to help a non-Explorator "cyber up".

As for classes, I have no great problem with players using a different class to play the RT class. They wouldn't have the typical skillset, but say a voidmaster RT is far from implausible.

In my current RT game, i've got 3 players. An Astropath, an Arch Militant and a Void-master.

Originally, it involved a Rogue Trader replacing temporary the arch militant because this character had an unique secret project story (false man) that made him only appear later after a few session. I decided for this game to start with an introductory mission involving the inquisition where they have to go trough an oldschool Space Hulk (where they will find the arch militant in cryo stasis inside). Its a king of Shades of Twilight reworked from DH Purge the Unclean.

So... my plan was to kill the rogue trader for drama purpose in the space hulk ( this player will be rolling his arch militant from there like intended) and he will gives his Warrant of Trade to his brother; the Astropath hehe

The astropath player even rolled Battlefleet home world and took In Duty to the Throne character path to help him getting some great starting command and pilot stats. The rest will be a few elite skills added.

So far it works perfectly.

A Rogue Trader career is just a generic specialised template for someone wanting to roll a captain but anyone can own a Warrant of Trade given the background.