So far as new Warrants of Trade go, what would you as a GM or player, consider a "swanky" or "great" or "pimped out" Warrant of Trade? I'm trying to an idea for an adventure, where the PCs encounter a brand new RT with a Warrant of Trade with much, much better terms than their own, and it's straight out the gates from the High Lords of Terra.

Dang, I forgot that I can't edit. Also to add: Something that would make the PCs quite jealous would be a good bonus. Obviously this is subjective, but I'm just figuring whatever would work for your group is useful to me! thanks!

There are a rare few Warrants of Trade issued by the Emperor Himself, highly priced heirlooms of the respective Trade Houses. Aside from any direct benefits included in the paperwork, such warrants hold much more weight than lesser ones when it comes to impressing Imperial authorities for the purpose of gaining a bit of leeway, or even requesting support.

Other than that, each warrant may on principle differ from another and be a unique contract between the Rogue Trader's bloodline and the Imperium of Man, regardless of who actually issued it - though naturally the station of the person issueing it affects what it would contain. It may outline a specific area of operations and define an agenda for the Rogue Trader as a condition, it may grant exemptions from various laws and tariffs even when operating in Imperial space, and it may grant benefits such as free servicing at several ports, an allowance to press-gang crew on some Imperial world, a chance for repairs and upgrades at facilities normally reserved for the Navy, and even the ability to call upon various Imperial military forces for the purpose of pursueing the agenda outlined in the aforementioned confitions.

There's a lot you can do here.

Though, frankly, I think the mere boasting that said Rogue Trader's family got this warrant from Him on Earth should be enough to make most player characters go ""

****, I was going to say "A warrant issued by the Emperor" too!

Failing that, you could have a warrant issued by some other ancient Imperial figure authorised to issue it: Malcador the Sigilite perhaps, or your favourite Primarch.

Or a warrant linked to a famous successful Imperial crusade. Or a supposedly "lost" warrant from a great and terrible cursed Rogue Trader dynasty.

Or the warrant of a dynasty responsible for some great acheivement of the past, such as that belonging to the house of Dausen, a member of whom (back in M34) discovered the Squa...

[sUBJECT TERMINATED BY ORDER OF THE INQUISITION FOR MENTIONING HERETICAL RUMOURS OF NONEXISTENT ABHUMANS]

How about a warrant that came with the deeds to a nice brand new battlecruiser?

Or for something that my PC's would kill for, a warrant issued by the High Lords that gives the RT authority over any other Imperial Citizen other than a High Lord, both within and without the Empire.

Actually, what they would really kill for would be a warrant that included the governorship of a pleassure planet back in the Calixis sector. nothing says "enjoy your shore-leave" like your own pleassure planet!

Well the emperor can and does still occasionally issue new edicts such as when he told the inquisition to stuff it and un-excomuncated the mantis warriors. So it could be a brand new warrant from the big E, complete with a company of space marines that he placed in the service of the RT.

Or the ship could be a nifty grand cruiser that contains the monastery of a sisters of battle order.

Yada yada you get the idea....

Or....

If you really want to have fun with it, have it invested with the power (backed up with available imperial military might) to investigate other RT for compliance with there own warrants.

As I understand it, the older, the better. This does not just go for technology, but most certainly for Warrants of Trade. The earliest Warrants seem to have been the most far reaching of them all, enabling the holder to do about anything he wished in the name of the God-Emperor. Later, when the situation got a bit more settled, those almost limitless freedoms became rarer and rarer.

So, for an impressive Warrant I would join the people who have allready remarked that the best and swankiest (looks over his shoulder and hopes the Inquisition has not seen the use of this word in connection with Him) would be an Ancient Charter from the Age of Crusades, signed by the God-Emperor personally. Just the Charter would be a relic worth crusades by itself! Add to that an old name, impressive ancestors and magnificent old ships, powered by technology long gone now and you have a Rogue Trader that has to bow for no one.

Friedrich van Riebeeck, Navigator Primus, Heart of the Void

The Haarlock warrant might be another place to start. Apparently, it placed a much larger-than-normal amount of authority in the hands of the bearer, and was the focus of the intra-family conflict that led to the death of Erasmus Haarlock's wife and daughter. Check the player handouts in the adventure The House of Dust and Ash from Disciples of the Dark Gods for specifics.

-Kirov

The Novel Legacy of the Shira Capurnia series talks about the macinations behind a Dynasty of Rogue Traders that has a warrant signed by the Emperor himself. Check out the book if you can for inspiration. Might also give you some ideas of the obstacles even such a dynasty faces....

Hey Guys,

Thanks so much for the suggestions. This thread is full of great material for me! If anyone has more suggestions, please keep going. I just bought the Shira Capurnia omnibus from ebay last week, so I'll sit down and read it. I'll see about finding out if anyone in my circle of friends is a DH collector.

A possiiblity is to have the Wraant to include some protcol preemincne to it's holder - meaning that wherever the PCs are and whoever they're interacting with in the Imperium, the holder of the warrant meets teh officals first, gets seated closer to the governor, get first dibs at that swanky just fresh out of the designer's formal dress and so on.

Nothing drastic in game terms, but a very powerfull irritant for characters who are used to be the big fishes....

Here's another thought: a Warrant of Trade linked to command of an entire Space Marine Chapter.

Many Chapters enter into agreements to assist specific Rogue Traders, usually sending along a company or squad as a sort of "honour guard" for the RT himself. However, if you want a REALLY swanky warrant, you could create one that is linked to a specific founding, and which offers the RT command over the entire chapter for the completion of a specific task.

I can't see that ending any way but badly for the Rogue Trader.

Blood Pact said:

Probably. But there are certainly precendents for Rogue Traders commanding very large numbers of marines, and some dynasties have very long associations with certain chapters: I seem to recall the Novamarines had such a relationship, although that perhaps was more of a partnership than a master/servant relationship.

If the Original Poster is looking for a warrant so swanky that other rogue traders gaze jealously upon it, one that gifts command of an entire chapter is pretty high on the bling scale!

I would say that, yes, signed by the Emperor Himself is very, very high on the 'swamk' scale, since they seem to have some rather broad and far reaching powers (command of whole fleets, vast armies, etc). That and the ability to say things like "I'm sorry, Lord Sector, your power may come from the Adeptus Terra, but mine comes from the hand of the Emperor Himself!"

Lightbringer said:

Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but this does not quite sit well with me. I'm sure a Rogue Trader's line could be oath bonded to a certain Chapter, and call upon their support. Perhaps they are counted amongst the closed allies of a Chapter. Commanding an entire chapter, even for one task, seems a bit far if you ask me. Perhaps it's a joint mission, but even the High Lords of Terra aren't quite able to formally command a chapter.

The emperor doesnt sign warrants anymore tho, not since before he ascended to the golden throne.

The Mantis Warriors that where granted the Emperor's Forgiveness is more a figure of speach then literally.

Cyric313 said:

But He did, back at the dawn of the Imperium. Such a Warrant could still exist, though it doubtlessly is held in only the most secure of stasis-vaults.

Speaking of which, how would your PCs find out about the terms of this warrant? The document is of such paramount importance to a RT that they rarely brandish them physically.

numb3rc said:

yes he did make some Warrants back when he was alive and around, but after the showdown with Horus he was unable to interact with anyone anymore.

I quote from the Lexicanum

Enthroned within the life-sustaining Golden Throne, the Emperor's will has transcended his maimed body. The Emperor is now divorced from the day to day running of the Imperium; this is left to the Adeptus Terra who govern in his name.

I'm going to bump this again. There are some great ideas here.

numb3rc said:

Presumably the terms of the warrant would have copies elsewhere, but I can sort of imagine it being a point of honour and a sign of adulthood that a child of the dynasty can recite the entire warrant at will.

The Warrant could provide the right to claim other lesser RT worlds... or this secific RT could allow worlds to be elavated from colony to full fledge Imperial world (hence gaining thier independence from a RT).

This could mean the players get 1 nice reward for elevating a new world but a huge PF lost because the planet is now a client where is used to be a serf to the RT.

This warrant could allow the RT to gether other smaller RT under is direct orders for military action against a specific foe (Gauns, or the Slaught)...

The Warrant gives the right to revoke other RT's warrant. Like a police, this warrant as been issued byt he highiest Terran autority, it allows the beaere to revoke any imperial status, usually a fleet of the Minustrum or a close allie, this RT's specific warrant is to find unworthy warrant older and insure they are passed to descandant ASAP or assigned to en entirely different prominent personnage.

Usually either a Minustrum or Eclesirachical warrants they have sway over RT of the same branch allowing to insure the fidelity of RT's to the Warrant initiator.

crisaron said:

Woah, woah, revoking other warrants? As far as I'm aware, there isn't even a good process for the High Lords themselves to do this. I think there are a few times when revoking has been mentioned, but it seems like a very hard process. Simply killing those who hold the warrant and could inherit it is enough.

This power is rather preposterous. After all, Rogue Traders are a law unto themselves beyond the expanse. If you "revoke" a powerful RT's warrant, they'll probably keep on operating. However, they'll stop with tithes and any obligations to the Imperium that has abandoned them by giving a churlish rogue a power that not even Segmentum Command dares possess.

Immunity from Imperial prosecution for some actions, such as attacking Imperial interests that the RT has judged remiss in some way, might just be possible if they can justify themselves. Such a Warrant could have been issued to an individual who helped an Inquisitorial campaign purge a sector of laxity and heresy. However, a Warrant is a sacred thing, and being able to destroy other Warrants at a whim is truly absurd.

BaronIveagh said:

Yeah, but he generally didn't hand out unlimited power... well, except for that one time, with this guy named Horus...

Most Imperial potentates will be well aware of the limits of a Rogue Trader's power, whether the Warrant was handed down from the Emperor himself, or 'just' the High Lords of Terra.

crisaron said:

No... just no.

You might as well just try and say the Warrant names him as the Emperor's heir, and new ruler of the Imperium, while you're at it.