Servitor Accompaniment
Regiments with close ties to the Adeptus Mechanicus are sometimes
known to make extensive use of servitors, bolstering squads with these
hardy and fearless soldiers. Such regiments might also rely on their
Tech-Priest Enginseers to ensure that mortally wounded Guardsmen
continue to fight on in the Emperor’s name, although fighting alongside a
lobotomised cyborg with the face of a former friend can inevitably cause
morale problems.
Cost: 1 Points
Standard Kit: Characters in this regiment may select a Standard Ma-
chine Follower (which replaces their Standard Human Follower and must
have the Machine Trait) for their Comrades.
Vox Network
Each squad in this regiment is equipped with a vox-caster, allowing them
to report back their finding and be sent remote orders in the chaos of
battle.
Cost: 1 Point
Starting Skill: Trade (Technomat)
Standard Kit: 1 Micro-Bead per Squad Member, 1 Vox-Caster per
Squad
Warrior Weapons
Warriors from primitive worlds are often ill-suited to serve on firing
lines, their savage demeanour making them a poor choice to wield a
lasgun. Such warriors often serve the Imperial Guard in other ways,
armed with swords, axes, and mauls, to cut the enemy apart in close
quarters.
Cost: 1 Points
Starting Skill: Parry
Standard Kit: The regiment exchanges their Main Weapon for an Aver-
age (or more available) Melee weapon and a Laspistol with two charge
packs.
Well-Provisioned
The regiment has been marked as a supply priority by the Munitorum,
keeping them well-supplied with ammunition, food, medical equipment,
and other consumables. Well-Provisioned regiments tend to be those
expected to face the worst of the fighting, with regular resupply to allow
them to remain at fighting strength for far longer.
Cost: 3 Points
Standard Kit: The regiment increases the number of clips for their
Main Weapon and the number of weeks’ rations they carry as standard
by +2, and gains an additional grenade of each type in their standard kit
(if applicable). If the regiment contains vehicles, this also grants a +10
bonus on all Acquisition Tests to obtain fuel and parts for repairing and
maintaining those vehicles.
2.3 Regiment Creation
Regimental Drawbacks
“By the Throne, what a disaster. Who is leading that rabble?”
–Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm Loughran, observing the manoeuvres of
the 19th Secundian Mechanised Infantry
When designing a regiment, Players and Game Masters may choose one
of the following Regimental Drawbacks. Each Drawback has a point
value associated with it (listed in each Drawback’s description). The
number listed with each Drawback is a number of Regiment Creation
Points a regiment gains for choosing that particular Drawback. This
grants the players or Game Masters extra points with which to buy extra
regimental options such as Equipment and Training Doctrines or to alter
their Standard Regimental Kit.
Cloud of Suspicion
Whether justified or not, this regiment as come under close scrutiny. The
members of this regiment know that their movements are being watched
by someone, and that the someone does not like them. A siege mentality
has spread throughout the regiment, along with paranoia and anxiety.
Officers see spies and informants everywhere and newly conscripted
guardsmen are viewed with deep suspicion and hostility as their new
squad mates assume they are undercover agents with sinister purposes.
Regiment Points: +3 Points
Talents: Enemy (Adeptus Arbites) or Enemy (Inquisition) or Enemy
(Other), Paranoia.
Untimely Inquiries: Whenever this regiment fails in an operation or
the Squad fails to complete a mission or achieve a critical objective, the
power with a worrisome interest in the regiment rears its ugly head, at
the Game Master’s discretion. When such an investigation takes place,
even on a regimental level, every member of the regiment suffers a –5
penalty to Willpower Tests until the interference concludes due to the
stress that it causes.
Condemned
Either due to pernicious acts unbefitting a chosen soldier of the Imperial
Guard, incompetence and failure, cowardice in the face of the enemy,
unfair accusations, or simple, terrible luck, this regiment has been
condemned to die on the battlefield as penance for its sins. Though many
regiments seek death on the battlefield, these soldiers are not merely sent
into incredibly dangerous situations but are placed against outright sui-
cidal odds, even if there is little to be gained from their deaths besides the
semi-honourable and convenient disposal of troops who cannot be trusted
or forgiven. Departmento Munitorum support for such regiments is token
at best, and they receive the most dangerous missions that command can
concoct for them.
Regiment Points: +6 Points
Talents: Choose one of the following: Berserk Charge, Cold Hearted,
Frenzy, or Paranoia.
Beyond Redemption: Members of this regiment suffer a –20 penalty to
all Fellowship-based Tests made when interacting with members of other
Imperial Guard regiments, their own commanding officers, the Depart-
mento Munitorum, and other officials both local and Imperial who would
have likely heard of the regiment’s reputation. Additionally, its members
suffer –20 penalty to all Logistics Tests. Further, this group is always
assigned to the most dangerous missions on a given battlefront, and is
rarely given respites between its missions to recuperate and reorganise at
the Game Master’s discretion. Finally, at the Game Master’s discretion,
any given Squad from a regiment with this Drawback might be assigned
an Imperial Guard Commissar to oversee its actions.
At the GM’s discretion, this Drawback can be applied to a
regiment or even a single Squad within a regiment after creation, as a
punishment for crimes or incompetence. If a regiment or Squad receives
this Drawback after creation, it does not receive the additional Regiment
71
Creation Points that it would normally provides.
Conscripts
While most Imperial Guardsmen are proud to serve their Emperor on the
field of battle and gladly go to war, this is not always the case. On some
worlds that lack proud martial traditions, their tithe of manpower must be
forcibly conscripted. Commissars attached to such regiments have an un-
enviable task, ensuring that these unwilling soldiers fulfil their duties and
obey the orders of their officers, who typically are much more inclined
to serve. Although few regiments can truly be considered volunteers, this
Drawback represents a regiment that truly opposed being drafted into
service.
Regiment Points: +3 Points
Unwilling: This regiment was forcibly conscripted, perhaps at gun point,
and its members serve the Imperial Guard only grudgingly. Characters
from this regiment suffer a –10 penalty to all Willpower Tests, and all
Command Tests to influence members of this regiment (including Com-
rades) suffer a –10 penalty
Cult of Chivalry
This regiment holds itself to an aggressive standard, believing firmly
that work done in the name of the God-Emperor must be undertaken in
a certain way or it is not work in His name at all. To members of such
regiments, certain lines must never be crossed, even in war, and certain
tactics are never acceptable. Such warriors see deception as synony-
mous with dishonour, and try to avoid it at all costs, even to their own
detriment.
Regiment Points: +3 Points
Code of Honour: A member of this regiment must pass a Difficult (–10)
Willpower Test before attempting to use the Deceive Skill (even on an
enemy); if he fails, he must either tell the truth or remain silent. Members
of such regiments can still lie by omission, though such tactics are almost
invariably frowned upon. Further, due to their tendency to deal honest-
ly with others, members of regiments with this Drawback suffer a –10
penalty to Scrutiny Tests Opposing the Deceive Skill
Dishonoured
This regiment suffered a humiliating defeat or otherwise had its repu-
tation tarnished by a failure of some kind. Although it has suffered no
direct sanctions or punishments as a result, each member of the regiment
still feels the sting of stumbling when put to the test. As such, they are
driven to succeed at all costs, that they might rid themselves of the shame
of failing the God-Emperor.
Regiment Points: +3 Points
Seeking Redemption: While engaged in battle, a member of this reg-
iment must pass a Difficult (–10) Willpower Test when ordered to give
ground, withdraw, or otherwise relinquish something of importance to
the mission. If the character fails this Test, he can still choose to follow
the order to act against his desires, but he gains 1d5 Insanity Points from
the mental stress of enduring this further disgrace.
Doomed
Luck is a fickle mistress, and for some unknown reason she seems to
have turned her back on this regiment. Nothing ever seems to go right
for these hard-luck troopers, and they are the very definition of the old
military aphorism, “Every plan is a good plan until first contact with the
GodEmperor’s foes.” Much needed materiel and reinforcements arrive
late, incorrect, or not at all, orders are incomplete, intelligence is nearly
always wrong and battlefield conditions are worse than expected, and
there are a higher number of accidents and foul-ups while in the field.
Regiment Points: +7 Points
Dead Soldiers Walking: Members of this regiment cannot Burn Fate
Points to survive fatal injuries (see Section 11.5 “The Role of Fate”). In
72 2.3 Regiment Creation
addition, members of the regiment suffer a –10 penalty on Acquisition
Tests, and whenever the Squad rolls on the Misfortune Severity Table
(see Section 5.0 “Armoury & Acquisition”), they apply a +20 penalty to
the roll. The Game Master should also take this Regimental Drawback
into account when designing missions, and he should plan the number
of complications that spring up during the execution of the mission
accordingly
Honour Bound
A man’s honour is every bit as important to the members of this regiment
as food, water, and oxygen— perhaps even more so. Various regiments
across the galaxy believe that no slight to one’s honour can go unan-
swered. Often, as is the case with unintentional slights or insults, a
simple apology or retraction is enough to satisfy the individual whose
honour was impugned, but occasionally the insult is so grave or an ac-
cusation so unanswerable that the parties involved can only satisfy their
honour through a duel. Duelling among the officers and enlisted men
of such regiments is common, and their members often earn a deserved
reputation as hot-headed and quick to anger.
Regiment Points: +4 Points
Pride Over Life: Members of this regiment must pass a Difficult (–10)
Willpower Test to refuse any formal challenge or ignore any other major
slight to their honour. If a character from this regiment succeeds on the
Test, he sees the bigger picture and ignores the challenge or attempt to
goad him into action. If he fails on the Test, however, he must engage the
individual in question (either in a duel to settle matters in a formal and
stylised fashion or simply in a brawl to express himself with his fists) or
suffer a –10 penalty to Willpower Tests for the remainder of the session.
This penalty is cumulative should he refuse multiple challenges to his
dignity over the course of a single session. The Game Master can modify
the difficulty of the Test—and the scale of the effects of failing it—as he
deems appropriate to the situation.
Iconoclasts
The Adeptus Ministorum, commonly known as the Ecclesiarchy, brings
the word of the Emperor to the millions of worlds of the Imperium. In a
religion that spans the galaxy, it is unavoidable that there are differences
in worship and belief. This, the Ecclesiarchy accommodates; in fact, on
many worlds the form that veneration of the Emperor takes is adapted
from the traditions of the planet’s indigenous culture. Many drastically
different beliefs are sanctioned by the Ecclesiarchy in order to ensure
compliance and professed faith in the Imperial Creed; what the citizens
of one world might consider blasphemy is a matter of inviolable doctrine
on another. Yet in spite of this, there are those communities, cultures, and
worlds that do not meet the Ecclesiarchy’s criteria for faithfulness. This
could be due to minor divergences of theology that put the local faith at
odds with the sector synod, or could be a cultural aversion to or rejection
of the Imperial Creed.
Such is most often the case on those worlds with limited
Imperial contact, and few societies openly reject the Imperial faith, for
to do so is to invite retribution from the Adeptus Ministorum or worse
still, the Inquisition. However, a world’s native population might pay
lip service to the Imperial Creed while secretly worshiping the gods of
their ancestors, or might slowly subvert the teachings of the Ecclesiarchy,
bringing their ceremonies further and further from the Imperial Truth.
For whatever reasons, the Adeptus Ministorum views this regiment as
dangerously far from the proper faith, either due to a lack of spirituality
or a mode of worship too far from the accepted norm.
Depending on the current state of affairs, the Ecclesiarchy
might take extra measures to ensure obedience and piety with numerous
priests, confessors, and other forces attached to the regiment (possibly
against the wishes of its own commanding officers), or it might distance
itself, weighing options or working behind the scenes to ensure the regi-
ment is properly martyred to the Imperial Cult before it can spread its
dangerous beliefs to others.
Regiment Points: +3 Points
In the Shadows of the Ecclesiarchy’s Light: Rightfully or no, the
Ecclesiarchy views this regiment with suspicion, seeing their religious
practices (or lack thereof ) as dangerously iconoclastic. Characters from
this regiment suffer a –10 penalty to all interaction tests with the repre-
sentatives of the Ecclesiarchy. For such regiments, it is common for the
Adeptus Ministorum to attach additional Priests, Confessors, and other
representatives, particularly if they feel the regiment is not yet beyond
salvation.
However, such forces are sure to experience problems dealing
with the regiment. Squad Members with the Ministorum Priest Spe-
ciality suffer a –10 penalty when interacting with NPC members of this
regiment, including Comrades, but excluding the Ministorum Priest’s
own Comrade (it is assumed that his Comrade is either one of the few in
the regiment loyal to the Ecclesiarchy’s teachings, or is also an outsider).
At his discretion, the GM might additionally apply this penalty to other
PCs with ties to the Ecclesiarchy. The GM is encouraged to introduce
additional narrative complications based on the specific nature of the
regiment’s relationship with the Adeptus Ministorum.
Incompetent Leadership
This regiment is a disaster from the top down, affecting the regiment’s
morale and causing an excess of grief and frustration among the enlisted
men. Incompetent leadership could take the form of ignorant and inex-
perienced field officers, general officers more interested in their own per-
sonal political goals, indolent, permissive, or particularly savage squad
leaders, thieving logistics officers, or any combination thereof. No matter
its root cause, or causes as is often the case, the end result is always the
same—loss of efficiency and combat effectiveness, muddled orders,
poor communications, higher than usual casualties, and even mutiny and
desertion.
Regiment Points: +5 Points
Orders of Fools: Members of this regiment suffer a –10 penalty to Com-
mand Tests made during combat, either due to they themselves being
incompetent or, in the case of most Squad Members, because they are
saddled with unruly and sullen subordinates who have grown embittered
by the poor decisions raining down from the ranks above.
Further, members of this regiment must make a Routine (+20)
Command or Intimidate Test as part of any Comrade Order that does
not already require a Command Test; if the character fails the Test, the
Comrade refuses the order due to a learned distrust for authority or fouls
it up. Finally, the foolishness of this regiment’s leaders should have a
noticeable effect upon the lives of the Squad Members (hurling them
needlessly into danger, deploying unwise tactics against the enemy, fall-
ing for obvious traps, mistaking enemies for allies or allies for enemies,
and other such blunders) at the Game Master’s discretion.
Lost Home World
It is a common aphorism among Guardsmen that the Imperial Guard
is the only home they have. For those men and women from lost home
worlds, this is a sad and literal truth. In an age when swarms of sla-
vering life forms from beyond the galaxy consume whole star systems
unopposed, and when a middling fleet of voidships commands enough
destructive power to reduce a planet to cinders in the blink of an eye, the
loss of a single planet in a sector is unremarkable. Unremarkable, that is,
except to the men and women who called the world home. Some are con-
sumed by Tyranids or Chaos forces, some are burned in the holy fires of
Exterminatus or laid waste with virus bombs, and others simply succumb
to the death of their star or some other freak celestial accident. Whatever
the case, this regiment is among the last survivors of a dead world, a fact
that marks the survivors indelibly. Regiments from lost home worlds be-
come of the Imperial Guard, keeping a handful of traditions but accepting
the battlefields of the galaxy as their home instead of the world upon
2.3 Regiment Creation
which they were born. There is little commonality among these regi-
ments, save for a haunted look and a tendency to suffer from crushing
survivor’s guilt.
Regiment Points: +5 Points
Talents: Hatred (Choose One)
When selecting this Regimental Drawback, the regiment chooses the
group responsible for the destruction of its home world. This Talent
applies to that group.
Survivor’s Guilt: Being one of a handful of survivors of a disaster that
snuffed out the lives of teeming millions or billions has a deleterious
effect on the human psyche. Survivors of such a cataclysmic loss tend to
suffer numerous grief, loss, and stress-related maladies that complicate
the already stressful life of an Imperial Guardsman. Members of this
regiment begin play with 2d10 Insanity Points.
Last Survivors: Whenever a member of this regiment falls, it represents
an irreplaceable loss to the group, which can no longer pull reinforce-
ments from its annihilated place of origin. The Departmento Munitorum
often assigns members of other devastated regiments to join the survivors
to bring the regiment back to strength, which can create considerable
friction between two groups embittered by loss—of course, this assumes
that there are reinforcements to be had at all in the battlefront, and some-
times there are simply no more soldiers to join regiments devastated by
such loss.
Each time a Squad from this regiment requests replacement
members (to replace lost Comrades), the Game Master rolls 1d10 instead
of having the recruits come from the original core of the regiment. On
a result of 3–4, the recruits come from the original survivors of the
regiment, members of other Squads within the regiment who also lost
members. On a result of 5–10, they come from another regiment that has
recently suffered terrible losses and happens to be near enough for the
Departmento Munitorum to group the two regiments together. On a result
of 1–2, however, the Squad receives no reinforcements at all, and must
soldier on until its members can put in another request for troop support.
Depending on how many members of the original regiment remain, the
Game Master can decide whether or not replacement Squad Members
should be members of the original regiment or generate their characters
from the other recruits (using the rules for Mixed Regiments).
Mistrusted
This regiment has a bad reputation throughout the Imperial Guard.
Similar to the Cloud of Suspicion, the reasons for the mistrust might be
legitimate—incompetence among officers or laziness among the enlisted
are two sure-fire ways to ruin a regiment’s reputation—or could be the
product of over-active imaginations or the mendaciousness of rivals.
Mistrusted regiments are viewed with a deep suspicion and disapproba-
tion when they appear on a battlefield. Many commanders flatly refuse
orders to work with regiments possessed of a particularly scabrous
reputation. As such, mistrusted regiments are commonly given the worst
missions, those that involve extremely distasteful or dangerous work, or
are shuffled off to garrison duty on some unpleasant or out of the way
world where they can cause little trouble.
Regiment Points: +3 Points
Bad Reputation: Members of this regiment suffer a -10 penalty to all
Fellowship-based Skill Tests made when interacting with members of
other Imperial Guard regiments, the Departmento Munitorum, and other
officials both local and Imperial who would have likely heard of the reg-
iment’s reputation. Additionally, its members add 1d5 additional Degrees
of Failure to all failed Acquisition and Commerce Tests.
Poorly Provisioned
While the officials in the Departmento Munitorum are known far and
wide for their fecklessness and capriciousness, and while every unit that
has ever born arms in the Emperor’s service has suffered supply shortag-
es and incorrect shipments at their hands, the poorly provisioned
73
regiment is worse off than most. Perhaps the regiment is stationed on a
planet far off the normal resupply lines, or they have been embroiled in
their campaign for so long and at so great a cost that they are reduced to
throwing chunks of rockcrete at their enemies and messing on grass and
boiled boot leather. Whatever the case, this regiment has precious little of
what it needs to operate in theatre and what equipment they do possess
is in a sad state of disrepair. Poorly provisioned regiments can rarely, if
ever, get resupplied in any meaningful way, suffer a loss of morale and
combat effectiveness due to hunger and lack of working equipment, and
many turn to thieving and raiding to fill their bellies and their empty
weapon magazines.
Regiment Points: +4 Points
Overworked and Underfed: Poorly provisioned units receive half the
usual number of clips or charge packs for their main weapons and half
the number of rations that their regiment rules would normally provide.
If the regiment includes vehicles, its members suffer a –10 Penalty on
all Logistics Tests made to acquire fuel, ammunition, and spare parts for
their vehicles. If it is a Rough Rider regiment, its members suffer the
same penalty to acquire materiel related to the care and feeding of their
mounts.
In addition, whenever a member of a Poorly Provisioned regi-
ment successfully acquires equipment, the Game Master rolls 1d10; on a
result of 4 or lower, the equipment that they receive is of Poor Crafts-
manship, regardless of what its Craftsmanship would otherwise have
been.
Special: This Drawback cannot be taken by regiments with the Well-Pro-
visioned Doctrine.
Primitive
Some regiments drawn from primitive worlds, for all the Departmento
Munitorum’s efforts, resist the imperative to adapt to the technology
handed them. Eventually, the TechPriests’ objections to the Guardsmen
using lasguns as clubs can result in a loss of further supplies, leaving the
regiment to fend for itself, relying on the primitive weapons and tools its
members have experience constructing on their home worlds. These regi-
ments generally come from Feral or Feudal Worlds, although some Death
Worlds distinctly lack any meaningful technological presence.
Regiment Points: +5 Points
Hopelessly Primitive: No matter how long they fight in the Imperial
Guard, the warriors of this regiment just cannot overcome their primitive
ways and adapt to the advanced weaponry of the Imperial Guard. Charac-
ters from this regiment suffer a –5 penalty to Ballistic Skill and Weapon
Skill Tests when using any weapon that is not from the Low-Tech weap-
ons group, even if they possess the proper Talent to wield the weapon.
Waste of Resources: Due to flagrant misuse or neglect of whatever
equipment it issues them, the Departmento Munitorum is loathe to assign
any but the bare minimum of gear to this regiment. All Acquisition Tests
other than those made to obtain Low-Tech weapons suffer a –20 penalty.
Special: This Drawback cannot be taken by Mechanised Infantry, Ar-
moured Regiments, or any other Regiment that includes a vehicle in its
Standard Regimental Kit.
Regimental Rivalry
Rivalries exist between nearly all units in the Imperial Guard. On the
whole, these are mainly friendly rivalries between brothers-in-arms that
express themselves in drinking contests, braggadocio, contests of esca-
lation, and even the occasional good-natured brawl. Unfortunately, some
regimental rivalries are carried too far and become less a friendly rivalry
and more a seething hatred accompanied by an increasingly bitter series
of confrontations and betrayals. Regimental rivalries can exist between
discreet units within larger regiments such as squads or platoons, or can
encompass entire regiments from the Regimental Commander all the way
down to the greenest conscript. Regimental rivals take any opportunity to
undermine or sabotage one another, stealing supplies, tampering with
74 2.3 Regiment Creation
orders, duelling, spreading lies, and framing opponents for crimes. These
rivalries can even, as was the case with the deadly rivalry between the
Tanith 1st Light Infantry regiment and the Jantine Patricians during parts
of the Sabbat Worlds Crusade, go so far as outright betrayal and murder.
Regiment Points: +2 Points
Talents: Hatred (Choose One) and Enemy (Choose One)
When selecting this Regimental Drawback, a single Imperial
Guard regiment must be chosen. The Hatred and Enemy choices must be
the same regiment, and cannot be another unit from the Squad Member’s
own regiment.
Scarred by Loss
This regiment has suffered extreme casualty rates in recent memory,
and a large portion of its active troopers are survivors of terrible battles
that caused its numbers to dwindle dangerously low. Even if it has been
reinforced by a new founding or by being combined with another under-
strength regiment, the physical and mental scars of the losses remain in
its troopers. Soldiers from such regiments often find themselves irritable,
distracted from sleep and war alike by memories unbidden.
Regiment Points: +2 Points
Mental Trauma: Members of this regiment begin play with 10+1d10
Insanity Points. Any time that a member of this regiment fails a Willpow-
er-based Test by three or more Degrees of Failure, he becomes lost in
traumatic recollection, and is Stunned until the end of his next Turn.
Tainted
The men and women of the Imperial Guard must all too often face
incomprehensible horrors from beyond the veil of reality. After facing
the denizens of the Warp or their mortal followers, regiments are often
subject to extreme measures to ensure they are free of corruption, which
may mean every soldier receiving the Emperor’s Mercy. Whether due
to seeming purity, ignorance of just what they actually faced, or an
oversight by the Departmento Munitorum, some regiments are reassigned
despite bearing spiritual scars from their brush with the ruinous pow-
ers.
In other cases, a regiment might begin to manifest signs of
taint with no apparent explanation, while still others enlist bringing with
them some taint from their home world, unknown to the Departmento
Munitorum. Regardless of the nature and origin of its corruption, such
a regiment must hide its dark secret lest it be purged by other Imperial
forces.
Regiment Points: +3 Points
The Touch of the Warp: For whatever reason, the soldiers of this regi-
ment carry a spiritual and physical corruption, which manifests in horrific
ways. Characters from this regiment begin play with 1d10 Corruption
Points. In addition, characters from this regiment suffer an additional –10
penalty to Malignancy Tests and Tests to avoid gaining Mutations (see
Sections 11.3 and 11.4 for more on Malignancies and Mutations).
The Few
This regiment is surprisingly small, whether because of its specialist
doctrines, its harsh training methods, a dearth of potential soldiers on its
founding world, or grievous battlefield losses. Whatever the reason, it
continues to operate despite having far fewer soldiers than many other
regiments, and thus cannot rely on the brute force tactics for which
many great regiments are so renowned. Instead of assaulting in massive,
overwhelming waves of soldiers, this regiment’s troopers must strike in
smaller units. Each soldier must rely on the competence of close squad
mates rather than the raw might of the regiment itself.
Regiment Points: +5 Points
Limited Numbers: When a Squad from this regiment requests reinforce-
ments (to replace fallen Comrades), it must make a Hard (–20) Logistics
Test if most of the regiment is actively deployed or an Ordinary (+10)
Logistics Test if a significant portion of the regiment is not currently in
the field (these Tests already include situational modifiers except those
added at the GM’s discretion). If it fails, the regiment simply has no
reinforcements it can spare for the Squad, and its members must soldier
on until its members can put in another request for troop support.
Traitors
It is a sad fact that the men and women trained and equipped by the De-
partmento Munitorum frequently turn their weapons and training against
the Imperium. Though knowledge of such treachery might be suppressed,
misrepresented, or used as a propaganda tool depending on circum-
stances, it is an unavoidable fact that squads, platoons, and even entire
regiments of the Imperial Guard can and do betray the Imperium. This
regiment has done just that—forsaking its vows to defend the Imperium
and turning against all it swore to protect. Whether due to some misguid-
ed sense of justice, devotion to the Ruinous Powers, or a tragic misun-
derstanding, this regiment has been declared traitorous by the Imperium,
found guilty of the unforgivable sin.
The regiment can never again turn to the Departmento Muni-
torum for aid or supplies, and is now hunted by the very army it once
served. This drawback can also represent a treacherous planetary defence
force, such as those which form the bulk of the Severan Dominate’s
forces on the Spinward Front. GMs and players should think carefully
when selecting this Regimental Drawback, as it fundamentally changes
the nature of a campaign. Rather than fighting alongside the Imperial
Guard, the regiment will fight against the Imperium. The exact form of
the regiment’s battles depends on what allegiance they do hold, if any. At
the GM’s discretion, he can apply this Regimental Drawback to a regi-
ment or even a single Squad within a regiment after creation, represent-
ing in-game events. In this case, the regiment does not receive additional
Regiment Creation points.
Regiment Points: +5 Points
Starting Talents: Enemy (Imperial Guard) plus one Peer Talent appro-
priate to the regiment’s situation.
Enemies of the Imperium: This regiment cannot turn to the Depart-
mento Munitorum for supplies. To represent the added difficulties of
scrounging, stealing, or obtaining supplies through whatever treacherous
organisation to which the regiment now belongs, the regiment begins
with an Influence of 0 and suffers a -10 penalty to Acquisition Tests.
The GM may, at his discretion, modify this value to represent
the resources of any group to which the regiment has sworn allegiance.
In addition, characters from this regiment cannot purchase the Munito-
rum Influence Talent, although the GM may, at his discretion, make a
functionally equivalent Talent available in its place.
Warp-Delayed
While Warp travel is the only method by which the forces of the Imperi-
um can traverse the distance between stars, it is dangerous and notorious-
ly unreliable. Though the Departmento Munitorum and Imperial Navy
make every attempt to compensate for the vagaries and unpredictable
nature of Warp travel, some voyages face such delays that no manner of
preparation can offset the damage done. It is not unknown for troop ships
to arrive decades, centuries, or even millennia later than anticipated. In
such cases, regiments might arrive to find the battle for which they were
dispatched either won or lost, resulting in confusion, the possibility of
mistakenly attacking friendly forces, or facing overwhelming odds. Such
a regiment might also find the Departmento Munitorum has declared
them dead, missing in action, or even deserters. Such a situation can
present all number of difficulties, and simply obtaining new orders can be
a challenge for a regiment that has not been on the roster for generations.
Regiment Points: +4 Points
Officially Nonexistent: Whenever a unit from this regiment rolls doubles
on a Logistics Test, the Test counts as failed, even if the score would
normally have been successful, as the Departmento Munitorum denies
2.3 Regiment Creation
the request from a nonexistent regiment or freezes it in bureaucratic tape.
In addition, the GM should include additional complications in most mis-
sions to represent the confusion caused by the regiment’s unusual status.
Lost Time: Arriving at one’s destination to learn that all of one’s rela-
tives and friends beyond the confines of the troop transport are long dead
is a traumatic experience, to say nothing of what horrors might confront
the soldiers should their destination warzone have fallen to the enemy
in the intervening time. Characters from a Warp-delayed regiment begin
play with 5+1d5 Insanity Points.
Standard Regimental
Guardsman Kit
“The lasgun is a great asset to the Imperial Guard. No other weapon
amongst all the creations of the Machine God could serve its purpose so
perfectly.”
–Extract from the Tactica Imperialis
The last major part of creating a regiment is determining its equipment.
An Imperial Guard regiment is nothing without the weapons and wargear
it wields. A significant portion of a regiment’s standard kit will have al-
ready been determined when its regiment type was selected, and this may
have been further influenced by other doctrines. It should thus be fairly
clear what the bulk of a unit’s equipment will be before reaching this
point. All that remains, then, is to add those specific items to a handful of
universal items that all Guardsmen are issued, and then choosing a few
additional items to further customise them.
Universal Standard Kit
There is a selection of common pieces of equipment that all characters
are equipped with in some form or another. While the specific details of
such items may vary from world to world, and sometimes even character
to character (the rations of an Ogryn are far different in mass to those
issued to a normal, human Guardsman, and officers of noble birth may
expect fare different from the artificial nutrition blocks fed to the under-
hive scum they command), their existence is seldom, if ever, in doubt.
These items form the core of a character’s initial equipment list, are easy
to replace, repair, or otherwise replenish, and are universally essential to
possess. The universal standard kit items are as follows:
• One uniform
• One set of poor weather gear
• One laspistol (Main Weapon), and two charge packs
• One knife
• One flak vest
• One rucksack or sling bag
• One set of basic tools
• One mess kit and one water canteen
• One blanket and one sleep bag
• One rechargeable lamp pack
• One grooming kit
• One set of cognomen tags or equivalent identification
• One primer or instructional handbook
• Combat sustenance rations, two weeks’ supply
Equipment from Doctrines
Every Regiment Type Doctrine, and several other Doctrines, provides
additional equipment to a regiment, items which are essential to the
function of that regiment in its role. These items are typically listed in a
fairly broad and generic way, without regard for the specific variations or
patterns that may exist.
Numerous Regiment Type Doctrines—primarily those for
infantry regiments—provide an item listed as a Main Weapon. This
75
replaces any other Main Weapon they may be issued (commonly the
standard-issue laspistol listed above), and is intended to be the prima-
Finishing Touches
“What is the strongest weapon of Mankind? The machines of the Adeptus
ry method by which Guardsmen from that regiment deal death to the
Mechanicus? No! The Astartes Legions? No! The tank? The lasgun? The
Emperor’s foes.
fist? Not at all! Courage, and courage alone, stands above them all!”
–Lord Commander Solar Macharius
Favoured Weapons
Each regiment has weapons that its members prefer to wield, or have At this point, Regiment Creation is almost complete, with only a few
a natural aptitude for. Each regiment may choose one Pistol/Basic/ details remaining before players can begin constructing characters from
Melee Weapon and one Heavy/Two-Handed Melee Weapon to be their their regiment. These are elements of background to help further flesh out
Favoured Weapons, these weapons must be Very Rare or more available. the who, how, and why of the regiment:
Members of this Regiment gain a +10 bonus on all Acquisition Tests to
obtain those weapons and ammunition for them.
Where is the Regiment From?
You should have already determined the type of home world or origin the
Additional Equipment regiment came from, but worlds are more than the simple classifications
Local resources and the particular needs of a given regiment lead to stan- that the Imperium gives them. Considering the nature of a regiment’s
dard kit allocations varying immensely. While numerous universal items world of origin can help define the way that regiment is dressed, the style
exist, they are far from the only pieces of equipment a regiment can (and of its wargear, and its traditions and idiosyncrasies, all of which are use-
might need to) acquire. Consequently, every regiment has an allocation ful for the GM and the players to know when playing the game. A simple
of points to spend on the customisation of its Standard Regimental Kit, option might be to select a world that already exists—many worlds
adding additional items or improving existing ones. This allocation is across the Imperium have already been described in countless rulebooks
30 points, with an additional 2 points added for each unused Regiment and novels over the years, and most worlds in the Imperium have raised
Creation point left over, and can be further increased by certain doctrines regiments of Imperial Guard at some point (and if they haven’t, maybe
and other options. These points may be spent in a number of different the regiment you’ve created is the first to come from there).
ways, as described below.
Items and upgrades may be selected from Additional Standard
Kit Items Table, using the listed costs. Some items have limitations
Why Was The Regiment Raised?
Particularly when dealing with regiments that have come from far distant
regarding how many times they can be taken or to which regiments they
sectors on the other side of the Imperium, explaining why the regiment
are available, which can be waived at GM’s discretion.
came to exist is useful to know—are they the simple product of their
home world’s tithes, contributed to a distant war, or were they mustered
Additional Standard Kit Items to combat a particular threat on a world near to their home? Perhaps
Item or Upgrade Cost Limitations they’re survivors from a campaign that tore across their home world,
now moved from warzone to warzone, or they’re returning crusaders, not
Improve a single item of standard kit 5 - yet asked to lay down their weapons. With regiments hailing from the
wargear from Common Craftsmanship to
Good Craftsmanship
Calixis Sector and other regions close to the Spinward Front, the war be-
yond the Periphery could well be the entire reason the regiment exists—a
Improve a single item of standard kit 10 - threat so close to home cannot easily be ignored.
wargear from Common Craftsmanship to
Best Craftsmanship
Add an additional item of Ubiquitous 1 -
What Does The Regiment Believe?
availability to standard kit Every world in the Imperium worships the Emperor—this much is both
inescapable truth and inviolable law. However, the differences between
Add an additional item of Abundant 2 -
availability to standard kit
the belief systems of individual worlds can be considerable. Each sector
and each world within will have different ways to practise those beliefs,
Add an additional item of Plentiful 3 - different local festivals and patron saints. Within the Calixis Sector, Saint
availability to standard kit
Drusus is the most revered of saints, having been one of the generals who
Add an additional item of Common 5 - founded the sector, and its first ruler in the aftermath of the Angevin Cru-
availability to standard kit sade. Few are the Calixian regiments who do not pay at least the slightest
Add an additional item of Average 8 GM’s Discretion respect to Drusus, but every world will have its own ancient heroes and
availability to standard kit figures of veneration, whose examples and legends inspire the faithful.
Add an additional item of Scarce 10 GM’s Discretion
availability to standard kit What is the Regiment’s Name?
Add an additional item of Rare 15 GM’s Discretion As already seen, earlier in this chapter, every regiment must be uniquely
availability to standard kit identified. For some, more formal forces, a simple number and a factual
Add an additional item of Very Rare 20 GM’s Discretion designation is entirely sufficient, and often even those plain identifiers
availability to standard kit can be heavy with ancient legacies and traditions, where numbers have
Add one Favoured Basic Weapon 10 May only be taken once. been used and reused over the millennia. At other times, a regiment may
be given a moniker all its own, distinct from its official designation.
Add one Favoured Heavy Weapon 15 May only be taken once.
Commonly a source of pride for the regiment’s men, their collective
name helps distinguish them from all others who have come from their

76 2.3 Regiment Creation

home world, and gives them a stronger sense of identity. In particular,
this seems to be commonplace with regiments from worlds that are nat-
urally deadly, with regiments named after particularly deadly predators,
bearing stylised images of those creatures upon banners and medals, or
emblazoned on the armour of tanks.
Who is the Regiment’s Commander?
Having already defined the personality of the commanding officer, it is
worth considering him in a little more depth. Particularly as a campaign
continues, the regimental commander is likely to become an increas-
ingly relevant figure within the Squad Members’ lives. Determining his
name, at least, is something worth putting a little thought into. Beyond
the regiment’s commander, there are other figures within the regiment to
consider, ranging from Commissars, whose judgement is all that stands
between a man and execution, to attached preachers, who guard the souls
of troopers and lead them in their prayers to the Emperor. The regiment’s
command structure contains many whose personalities and responsibili-
ties will bring them into contact with even the most junior of Guardsmen,
and it’s worth putting a little time and effort into deciding who those
people are.
When To Use Mixed Regiments
There are four particularly common scenarios for which Mixed Regi-
ments are extremely useful, though enterprising players and Game Mas-
ters can certainly find many more applications for the system. The first is
for regiments that were created from multiple different regiments at some
point in the past, and now function as a single combat group. Though
such regiments have likely become cohesive fighting units, honed to
work together effectively by the rigours of the battlefield, the original el-
ements often maintain a sense of identity, even within the whole, thanks
to their different training doctrines, leaders, and histories. In this case,
using the Mixed Regiment rules allows Squad Members to accentuate the
diverse past of the regiment.
The second case covers regiments that are merged over the
course of a campaign. The Squad Members’ regiment might suffer terri-
ble losses and, when reduced below fighting capacity, be pushed together
with another under-strength regiment by the quill of a Departmento
Munitorum bureaucrat—whether or not the two (or more) regiments have
complementary cultures and practices or even fill similar roles on the
battlefield. In this case, the Mixed Regiment rules can be used to add a
regiment to another of a very different character, bringing in new soldiers
who have different and potentially conflicting views on warfare, social
values, and the nature of one’s duty to the God-Emperor.
A third use for Mixed Regiments is in adding small numbers of
outsiders to a regiment instead of folding in vast numbers of soldiers (as
above). A small band of survivors from an annihilated regiment might be
assigned to a new regiment in this way, or an auxiliary squad or indi-
vidual who has recently joined a regiment and has not yet acclimated to
its culture and tactics could be handled with the Mixed Regiment rules.
This gives players and Game Masters new tools for emphasising both
the valuable diversity of abilities and the potential isolation of outsiders
within an Imperial Guard regiment. A fourth case that Mixed Regi-
ments can be used to tackle is that of a single, unified fighting force that
nonetheless fields radically different elements, such as Rough Riders and
Mechanised Infantry. In such a case, it is only natural that the different
elements would promote different skills in the troopers of the line, even if
they are part of the same regiment and have served alongside one another
for years, and the Mixed Regiment rules can cover this case by allowing
for different elements of the regiment to use different Doctrines despite
sharing all other factors.
The use of Mixed Regiments is ultimately at the discretion of
the Game Master. Mixed Regiments are a valuable narrative tool that can
open up many new options for both regiments and the individual soldiers
who comprise them. Some troopers might have little reaction to having
2.3 Regiment Creation
their regiment merged with another, while others could react angrily
or even violently when forced to deal with the strange constituents of
another Imperial Guard force. The players and the Game Master can use
the creation of a Mixed Regiment to fuel character conflicts, relationship,
and growth as they see fit.
Creating a Mixed Regiment
The creation of a Mixed Regiment is only slightly more complicated
than the creation of a normal regiment. A Mixed Regiment always
consists of two or more Component Regiments, each of which is created
independently of the others. One of these Component Regiments is also
the Core Regiment. The Core Regiment is the regiment into which the
others have been folded—at least according to the Departmento Munito-
rum— and, as such, it frequently bears that regiment’s name and receives
resupplies based on its standard kit.
Home Worlds and Origins
Though the Departmento Munitorum sometimes seeks to merge regi-
ments with similar origins, other times regiments from radically different
places find themselves grouped together and expected to act as a cohe-
sive whole.
Every Component Regiment selects its own Home World or
Origin as normal in Regiment Creation. All bonuses and penalties from
a Home World or Origin apply only to Squad Members who select that
Component Regiment.
Interaction and other applicable penalties imposed by a Home
World or Origin apply fully, even when dealing with other members of
the same Mixed Regiment—many social divides cannot be overcome
with a few words on a page from the Departmento Munitorum. At the
Game Master’s discretion, these penalties can be waived for other mem-
bers of the regiment once it has served as a single unit and its members
have grown to trust one another.
Regimental Commanders
Although a Mixed Regiment is a singular force, and thus has only a
single commanding officer (usually chosen by the Departmento Muni-
torum), the internal leadership of different groups within the regiment
can have strikingly different tenors. A lower-ranking officer from a
characteristically dour regiment might have more impact on the lives of
his subordinates than a hot-blooded and inspiring regimental commander
who the Squad Members rarely see.
Doctrines
In some cases, circumstances conspire to merge regiments with extreme-
ly different training and combat styles, creating all manner of logistical
and organisational oddities that must be overcome before the newly-com-
bined force can function effectively. Overcoming these problems can
create potent and specialised forces, but failing to solve these issues
can result in mismatched and ineffectual forces that seldom survive
for long on the front lines. However, this diversity of training can also
be extremely advantageous, if the regiment’s officers can change their
paradigms of thought enough to make use of it and individual squads can
learn to leverage it to serve the God-Emperor’s cause.
Each Component Regiment selects its own Doctrines, and the
effects of that Doctrine apply only to the Squad Members who selected
that Component Regiment.
Drawbacks
Each regiment carries its own scars, and outsiders can rarely understand
the emotional and mental burdens shared by soldiers who have fought
side by side, revelled in glorious victory, and endured in bitterest defeat
together.
77
 Each Component Regiment selects its own Drawbacks, and the
mechanical effects of that Drawback apply only to the Squad Members
who selected that Component Regiment. At the Game Master’s discre-
tion, however, some narrative effects of a Drawback of one Component
Regiment might end up affecting the entire Squad or regiment.

Standard Regimental Guardsman Kit for Mixed

Regiments
The Departmento Munitorum has a tendency to paint in the broadest of
strokes when dealing with organising groups of Guardsmen, regardless of
the specialities and needs of individuals within the whole. Regiments that
have been merged together are sometimes assigned gear that is unfamil-
iar to some members of the regiment—or worse, equipment that they are
not trained to use at all.
Each Component Regiment selects its own Standard Regimen-
tal Guardsman Kit, but all members of a Mixed Regiment are assigned
the Standard Regimental Guardsman Kit of the Core Regiment instead of
their regiment’s normal Standard Regimental Guardsman Kit and have
the same Favoured Weapons as the Core Regiment instead of their own.
Component Regiments besides the Core Regiment do not contribute to
the Standard Regimental Guardsman Kit of the Mixed Regiment with
their choice of Doctrines, selection of additional equipment, or by any
other means.
Optionally, especially for Mixed Regiments that recently been
merged in the field, the Game Master might at his discretion choose to
have members of the Component Regiments retain some or all items of
their Standard Issue Equipment.

78 2.3 Regiment Creation

 2.4 Dynasty Creation
“The Warrant of Trade and a starship to enforce it—these are the critical tools for a Rogue Trader. Without the former, he
is merely a renegade. Without the latter, he is a forsaken drifter doomed to an anonymous death.”
–Lord-captain Laomyr of Battlefleet Calixis
The Dynasty Creation system generates a group’s starting Ship Points and Profit Factor through a series of choices. These choices can either be made
by the player group or by the Game Master. Simply make a single choice from each of the Warrant Age, Fortune & Fate, Acquisition, Deeds of Re-
nown, Contacts, and Warrant Renown sections, and tally up the total Ship Points and Profit Factor.
This system is also very useful for creating other Rogue Trader dynasties, or even noble houses without a Warrant of Trade, such as Navi-
gator Houses or other mercantile entities. Obviously the sections concerning the Warrant of Trade should be altered for the sake of such parties, but
the general system and outline is still usable.

Archeotech and Xenotech

Certain choices on the Ship and Warrant Path offer the unique opportunity to add special technology to the Rogue Trader starship. Archeotech is
ancient, barely understood technology from ages long past, often highly coveted by the Adeptus Mechanicus and usually far more efficient than most
tech in use in the 41st Millennium. Xenostech is various systems, weapons, or other upgrades taken from alien civilisations, whether accepted in
trade for some other valuable goods or claimed in battle from a vanquished foe.

Warrant Age Archeotech parts.

The first step in this part of the process is to determine just how long
your character’s Warrant of Trade has been established. Is his dynasty The Horus Heresy - M31
a stalwart of millennia of service to the Imperium, or is it an upstart Even during the bloody conflict that tore apart the galaxy Warrants of
seeking to prove itself against the long established Houses already plying Trade were being created, for both the forces of the Warmaster and the
their trade beyond the Imperium’s borders? Emperor had great need for pathfinders, petty warlords, and explorers.
No few worlds were stripped bare of their populace, their resources, or
both as a result of Rogue Traders on either side of the conflict, and yet
The Great Crusade - M30 more were plundered by Rogue Traders Militant who sought to carve out
For a Dynasty to have survived the relentless millennia and carnage that
their own petty kingdoms among the stars to await the end of the conflict.
span the 10,000 years of the Imperium’s history is no small feat, and
Bearing a Warrant of Trade from these times is to be viewed darkly by
untold masses of other lines have petered out or met with extinction in
no few members of the Imperium, for even if not signed by the hand of
one form or another before the current age. So distinct is a line with this
the Arch-Traitor it is inevitable that the bearer’s ancestry engaged in their
venerable of a history that it is inevitable that many have heard of them,
own share of slaughter, privateering, and downright piracy against other
for fair or for foul. A reputation for venturing forth into the galaxy’s
Imperials.
depths and emerging with the plunder of worlds beyond the Imperium’s
If one were to bear the dark misfortune of a Warrant of Trade
borders is the byword for many of these lines, their scions being quite
signed by the Warmaster then it would surely be a quiet one, and perhaps
capable of calling back to the heady days of the Great Crusade, when
even unbeknownst to later generations. A bloodline with such a distinct
their ancient forefathers would lead the way for the Legiones Astartes or
mark upon them would have most likely have been ended with the com-
one of the Emperor’s other vast warhosts.
ing of The Scouring if they bore it openly, so it is quite possible that the
Such conquest is truly in the blood of these families, and while
family keeps the actual document under lock and key, in their depths of
the ages may not have treated them or their progeny any kinder than
their most secure holdings, away from the prying eyes of other nobles or
others their vast wealth and power let them take blows that would have
the Inquisition.
ruined lesser families. While some families of this stature will have inev-
itably taken up a more aristocratic mantle there are no small number that
Ship Points: 14
yet serve the Imperium in the capacity their ancestors did, plunging into
Profit Factor: 12
the howling dark to wrest fortune, wealth, and power from the gripping
Effects: Choose one of the following options:
jaws of the alien and scrabbling hands of the noncompliant.
To be a scion of such a household is to have a great weight
For The Emperor: Members of this dynasty gain a Rank of the
placed onto one’s shoulders at their age of majority, and to constantly
Forbidden Lore (Heresy) and Scrutiny Skills, as well as the Armour of
be beholden to ancient agreements that date back millennia or else risk
Contempt , Enemy (Heretics), and Hatred (Heretics) Talents. Their ship
toppling all that has been accomplished over the course of such time.
may include 1 Archeotech Component.
Indeed such a family and it’s ventures may be the cornerstone of whole
sub-sectors and their faltering could well spell an age of decline for many
For The Warmaster: Members of this dynasty gain a Rank of the For-
others that depend on their power and strength.
bidden Lore (Heresy) and Deceive Skills, the Enemy (Inquisition) Talent
and 10+1d5 Corruption Points along with one Malignancy. Their ship
Ship Points: 16
may include 1 Archeotech Component.
Profit Factor: 14
Effects: The members of this dynasty gain 10+2d5 Insanity Points from
the heavy burden given unto them, but they also gain Good Reputa-
tion (Local Sub-Sector) Talent. As there is no doubt that their house’s
longevity has been at the cost of others, all members of the dynasty gain
2 Enemy Talents and a Rival Talent (with the chosen Enemies and Rival
being the same for all dynasty members). Additionally they gain a Rank
of the Scholastic Lore (History) Skill. Their ship may include up to 2

If a job’s worth doing it’s worth dying for! 79

 The Scouring - M31
After the Horus Heresy came an age of witch hunts, inquisitions, and the
routing of untold billions of traitors, mutants, and heretics. The holders
of a Warrant from such an age were charged with the duty of running
down the forces of the Great Enemy beyond the bounds of the Imperium
and rendering them to ashes on the wind. Many of these Dynasties were
founded as Rogue Traders Militant charged with such duty as a way to
assure the obliteration of the traitor’s forces once they had been driven
from a sector and run off into its border worlds.
In later ages many of these houses maintain their vigilant and
dogmatic manners, and have become fast partners with the Ecclesiarchy,
aiding in modern witch hunts and bringing forth the light of the Emperor
to systems beyond a sector’s reach or unto newfound worlds. Others took
the then-scoured worlds that traitorous forces had held and made them
their own, claiming them and forming frontier worlds beyond the cusp of
sector propers or else small fiefdoms that they maintain until this day.
Ship Points: 12
Profit Factor: 10
Effect: Members of this dynasty gain a Rank of the Scrutiny Skill, and
the Enemy (Heretics), Hatred (Heretics), Paranoia, Peer (Ecclesiarchy),
and Witchfinder Talents.
Age of the Beast - M32
In times after the Horus Heresy and the Scouring there was much
reclaimed in the name of the Emperor, and many worlds brought back
into the Imperial fold, and the Imperium had begun rebuilding itself quite
handily. This changed when the shadow of the alien at once fell upon the
Imperium, and a great, unified, green menace took to Mankind’s hold-
ings, defiling and tearing it asunder as it had not been in centuries. The
Orkoid menace returned to the galaxy in a maelstrom of savage violence
that struck against nearly every sector of the young Imperium.
The High Lords of Terra gave out great quantities of Warrants
during and immediately following this time, for the destruction was so
wide scale that if a noble wished to go forth to hunt the alien, or bring
resources into the shattered domain in its wake then few arguments could
be made against such a noble purpose. Not every dynasty that gained
such a Warrant did so from a place of altruism, indeed many did so
simply to increase the purview of their powers in the wake of a tragedy.
Many houses with such intentions were met with ruin on their maiden
ventures from a lack of experience with the vast and hideously dangerous
depths of space, and the wreckage of their foolhardiness is often used as
waymarkers by the more hardened scions that followed them.
If a Dynasty came from such a time then their fortune and em-
pire is built off of the corpses of countless humans and orks, the grinding
wheels of the Imperiums rendering their multitudes into bonemeal with
which the foundling house grew their profits.
Ship Points: 10
Profit Factor: 8
Effects: Members of this dynasty gain the Preferred Enemy (Orks) -or-
Hunter of Aliens Talent. Additionally they may start with a Trophy Rack
(bearing 1d5-1 impressive skulls of slain orks and squigs) or an Ork
Bones Talisman (in addition to any other Memento they choose).
80 2.4 Dynasty Creation
Age of Apostasy - M36
During the Age of Apostasy, the Imperium was plunged into anarchy
when the insane High Lord of the Administratum Goge Vandire took ab-
solute control of the Senatorum Imperialis and the Ecclesiarchy. For de-
cades, the galaxy was split as Vandire’s armies sought to enforce his mad
rule across the Imperium. Many worlds were razed, while others resisted.
Still more sought to bide their time, unwilling or unable to commit to one
faction or another. The Age of Apostasy culminated in an assault upon
Vandire’s stronghold on Terra by a combined force of Adeptus Astartes
and Adeptus Mechanicus, but it was only when Vandire’s own guardians
turned upon him, executing him at the height of the siege, that the civil
war was finally ended.
A Rogue Trader House established in the midst of this tur-
bulent period will have been forged in the fire of adversity, for many
charters granted at that time were, often literally, reduced to ashes within
scant decades. Vandire was an unstable and paranoid man, prone to fits of
anger and contradiction. A recipient of a charter he himself granted days
before might be declared a heretic before even undertaking his mission,
or a favourite promised the highest of rewards executed upon the day of
investiture. As such, very few of the Houses that came into being during
the Age of Apostasy are extant in the 41st Millennium, and those that
are keep the details of their founding far from prying eyes. Some have
disappeared entirely, though even millennia since, rumours of far-flung
empires established by Vandire’s favourites continue to surface.
In the immediate aftermath of the Age of Apostasy, it is said
that the Houses established by the hand of Vandire were required to
renew their oaths, in person, to Sebastian Thor, the figurehead of the
movement that overthrew him. Some of those charters were revoked, it
is suggested, for they were judged to have been granted for deeds later
found contrary to the good of the Imperium. Others were ratified, the
recipients bending knee before Thor and pledging the fealty of their
Houses for all eternity.
Ship Points: 8
Profit Factor: 6
Effects: The members of this dynasty gain a Rank of the Scholastic Lore
(Imperial Creed) Skill and the Flagellant, Peer (Ecclesiarchy), and Pure
Faith Talents. Their ship must include a Temple-Shrine to the God-Em-
peror.
Age of Redemption - M36
The Age of Redemption was a second great time of re-conquest and
expansion beginning in the immediate aftermath of the Age of Apos-
tasy, which some believe increased the Imperium’s size to its greatest
extent, however temporarily. The Warrants of Trade issued in this period,
particularly at its dawning, reflect the spirit of the times. Following the
example set by the great Saint Sebastian Thor, the Imperium experienced
a renaissance in faith and fervour, and many of the Rogue Traders com-
missioned were men of great outward zeal, while others were warriors
and captains rewarded for their deeds both great and terrible in the
Apostasy’s wars. Confessors preached the renewed Imperial Creed across
the length and breadth of the Imperium, mustering many thousands of
crusades to take the True Faith to those who had turned from its ways.
Many of these crusades were led by celebrated generals and admirals of
the Imperium and some by the lords of the Ecclesiarchy or mighty Space
Marines themselves, but a great many smaller and further flung enter-
prises in crusade and conquest on this era were spearheaded by a new
generation of Rogue Traders.
At the beginning of the Age of Redemption, the crusades were
preached in order to bring back into the fold those systems and sectors
that had strayed from the light of the Imperial Creed during the Age of
Apostasy. Initially at least only those who would not denounce the errors
of their ways would be punished, while those willing to hear the truth
and make contrition would be spared the terrible wrath of the crusades.
In time, the crusades pushed beyond areas lost during the Apostasy, and
onwards, into regions of space that had never known the word of the Im-
perial Creed. Such fragments of mankind found among these distant stars
had been isolated for many millennia, long back into the near-mythical
Age of Strife and most could not be reasoned with, save perhaps beneath
the guns of the crusades’ warships. More often than not the crusaders
resorted to the fires of purgation, either through intransigence by those
they found, or in horror of what these far-flung children of humanity had
become, wiping out any sign of what they deemed heresy, and con-
signing the souls of the slain to make their own representations before
the Emperor. An age that had dawned amidst hope soon became one of
relentless bloodshed and terror, often waged for little gain.
As the crusades of the Age of Redemption ground on into
centuries and the centuries into millennia, more resources were ploughed
into their maintenance. Many became simple wars of attrition, meat
grinders on a galactic scale, spurred on by fear, xenocidal hatred, and
worst of all, simple habit. Inexorably, the worlds of the Imperium began
to be stripped of their warriors, and the Imperium’s resources and fleets
spread ever-thinner as the demands of eternal war at the fringes of the
galaxy required. These wars were fought against those for whom the
Emperor represented not the salvation of Man’s soul, but its monstrous
corpse-puppeteer. The scion of a Rogue Trader House established during
this age will be steeped in duty and zeal, ever determined to take back the
benighted worlds of Mankind.
Ship Points: 6
Profit Factor: 4
Effects: Members of this dynasty gain a Rank of the Command, Navigate
(Stellar), and Tactics (Any One) Skills, as well as the Ambassador Impe-
rialis, Munitorum Influence, and Peer (Munitorum) Talents.
The Waning - M40
As the glories of the Age of Redemption recede into a bloody present,
the Imperium is slowly descending into another dark age of anarchy and
war. So depleted were the defences of many worlds by endless crusade
that internal strife soon erupted into outright rebellion, and small-scale
alien raids escalated into full-scale invasions. Most dreadful of all, as
the grip of the Adeptus Terra weakens across countless thousands of
worlds, psykers have been left to come into their powers before they can
be culled, and soon their errant powers are creating gateways into warp
from which a legion of daemonic horrors erupt. Within a comparably
few generations, the Imperium has lost untold numbers of worlds to the
traitor, the alien, and the daemon and humanity’s future seems bleak.
Yet even in such a turbulent age, the High Lords have continued to grant
new Warrants of Trade. As war and strife has claimed more and more
worlds, so the need to redress the balance has grown all the more ap-
parent, and nor is the weakening of the Imperium’s fabric by any means
universal or irreparable. Many Rogue Traders have been granted their
charters in recent centuries with the express condition that they undertake
missions to re-conquer worlds lost to anarchy and invasion.
Many of these charters are little more than political tools,
granted in the hope that the Rogue Traders will have the drive to succeed
or at least wear down an enemy where depleted local forces either had
failed, or been redeployed away to more vital duties, leading some Rogue
Traders of more ancient pedigree to mockingly name them “suicide
notes.” Countless Rogue Traders lost all they owned, including their lives
and souls, in the attempt to satisfy the nigh impossible demands placed
on them in the granting of these Warrants. Yet, some do succeed and claw
back both territory and millions of lost souls from the darkness. The most
exceptional of these individuals have gone on to found the mightiest of
the Rogue Trader Houses active at the present time. Though young in
comparison to the ten thousand year old Imperium of Man, these upstart
houses now rank above many older lines, for they were forged in the fires
2.4 Dynasty Creation
of adversity and driven by a will to endure rarely seen before or since.
Ship Points: 4
Profit Factor: 2
Effects: Members of this dynasty gain a rank of the Commerce, Com-
mand, and Tactics (Any One) Skills, as well as the Hard Bargain and
Iron Discipline Talents and either the Scourge of Heretics -or- Hunter of
Aliens Talent.
Fortune & Fate
The future of your Rogue Trader House rests in your hands, but you may
first have to rescue it from the state in which a predecessor left it. Or
perhaps yours is the unenviable task of living up to the successes of your
forebears. Whatever the case, you can be sure that the eyes of genera-
tions yet to come will be upon you, and history will be the judge of your
actions.
Rising Star
Often only applicable to a newly created Rogue Trader House, the term
‘rising star’ is used to describe a dynasty most definitely on the up. The
bearer of the Warrant may be cresting a wave of success and influence
having recently been granted the Warrant or bequeathed the trappings,
such as a fleet and military assets that may have accompanied it. Many
eyes will be watching the dynasty, some with hopeful expectation, others
with jealousy. A great weight of responsibility rests on the shoulders
of the bearer, and they may have a great deal to prove to earn the title
‘Rogue Trader’ in the eyes of the Imperium and their peers.
Alternately, it is possible that the House is more established,
but perhaps thanks to a succession in leadership is enjoying something
of a resurgence in its fortunes. Perhaps an old, ineffectual or outright
incompetent patriarch has been replaced with a younger, more dynamic
progeny. Many decades, even centuries of stagnation may have been cast
off as the dynasty looks forward to a new era of success and prosperity.
Ship Points: 12
Profit Factor: 10
Restrictions: Cannot be taken by a dynasty Warrant from the Age of
Apostasy or earlier.
Effect: Members of this dynasty gain +10 Influence, but lose -5 from
their highest Characteristic
Ascending
Most Rogue Trader Houses undergo significant fluctuations in their
fortunes, and a firm hand on the tiller is required to safely navigate
the peaks and troughs. A dynasty said to be in the ascendant enjoys an
upturn in its fortunes and an increase in its influence and prestige. Such
a house proves itself a worthy investment to any who would join it in its
endeavours, and its head will have little difficulty in attracting allies and
backers.
The only real problem a Rogue Trader in such a position may find is that
of jealous rivals. Few dynasties survive long without attracting the ire of
their peers, whether they become engaged in bitter trade wars or actually
exchange broadsides out in the void. A successful House may find its
position coveted, with hidden hands at work against it. The most success-
ful Rogue Traders are those who learn to anticipate, and deal with such
enemies before the fortunes of their House can be affected.
Ship Points: 10
Profit Factor: 8
Restrictions: Cannot be taken by a dynasty Warrant from the Age of
Apostasy or earlier.
Effect: Members of this dynasty gain +5 Influence, but lose -3 from their
highest Characteristic
81
 Stable
Stability is a luxury rarely afforded to most Rogue Trader Houses, and
one that most are poorly disposed to suffer long. For many Rogue Trad-
ers, stability is a byword for stagnation or resting on one’s laurels. As
most Rogue Traders are naturally inclined to risk taking, few find their
fortunes stable for long.
There are some Houses however that come to attain such a
state. These wealthy and powerful Houses appear capable of absorbing
almost any loss while still generating astronomical profits. These are in
the main the very oldest of the dynasties, those whose risks are spread
out across a vast web of investment and patronage and for whom a
disastrous expedition that might bankrupt a smaller, less well established
House is offset by a dozen other, more successful and less risk-laden
undertakings.
Ship Points: 8
Profit Factor: 6
Effect: Members of this dynasty gain +0 Influence.
Struggling
A Rogue Trader dynasty might fall upon hard times for a wide range of
reasons, from disaster to incompetence, and the transition from stable
to struggling might be sudden and unanticipated if it is due to external
factors. Perhaps the most common reason for a dynasty to find itself in
such straits is through the activities of its rivals, particularly if these have
found common cause and are determined to ruin the fortunes of their
enemy.
Another reason a House might find itself struggling is when it
comes to rely too heavily on a particular field of exploitation or revenue,
only to find that resource has suddenly dried up. It is not uncommon for
Rogue Traders to open up exclusive trade routes into distant regions,
but if those regions should fall to alien invasion or a host of other perils,
the source of so many riches might disappear overnight. If the dynasty
has invested too heavily in the operation, as might be the case with a
smaller or newly established House, then all will be lost. Nevertheless,
Rogue Traders are uniquely optimistic individuals, even in the face of
the myriad horrors and misfortunes of the galaxy. Many are at their best
when faced with a nigh insurmountable challenge—some would have it
no other way.
Ship Points: 6
Profit Factor: 4
Effect: Members of this dynasty lose -5 Influence, but gains +3 to any
Characteristic but their highest one.
Fallen From Grace
The galaxy is a harsh place, and none are owed the success they seek.
Countless numbers of Rogue Traders lose their livelihoods each year.
Indeed, the entire institution of the Warrant of Trade could be said to rely
upon a constant ‘pruning’ of the dynasties as a form of natural selection,
ensuring that only the most driven and skilled of individuals continue to
prosper.
A House that has fallen from grace might retain scant resourc-
es—perhaps just a vessel and a skeleton crew of bonded retainers. Such a
Rogue Trader would be fully aware of his situation and might be driven
to extreme measures just to get by. Although the Warrant of Trade grants
even the lowliest Rogue Trader unimaginable rights, there are activities
even the most powerful would be wise to avoid. A Rogue Trader with
nothing to lose might be tempted to seek dealings with xenos or to ex-
plore regions long forbidden, even to his kind.
Having fallen from grace does not imply permanent misfortune, however.
Perhaps a very powerful Dynasty has suffered a reversal in political
82 2.4 Dynasty Creation
status, finding formally staunch allies turning their backs and fractious
competitors aligning themselves against it. And so the Rogue Trader’s
fortunes might turn full circle, the rising star falling from grace in the
blink of an eye.
Ship Points: 4
Profit Factor: 2
Effect: Members of this dynasty lose -10 Influence, but gains +5 to any
Characteristic but their highest one.
Acquisition
There are many ways in which your Rogue Trader Dynasty might have
come to be granted its Warrant of Trade, and in many cases the circum-
stances of that granting will affect the character of your dynasty and how
you and all your servants are viewed by other institutions of the Imperi-
um.
Exile
Those who strive to reach the very pinnacles of the Imperium’s towering
power structures quite frequently stumble before gaining the ultimate
power they crave. Planetary governors might seek to rule an entire
sub-sector for example, only to find their rivals aligning against them
even as they reach for the prize. A general might seek to rule over the re-
gions he has conquered in the name of the Imperium, unwilling to accept
that any other has the right to do so.
Such men and women as these are too dangerous to be allowed to gain
the power they seek, but also too visible and well connected to quietly
remove. Though an assassin’s blade could end the problem, the killing
might spark an uprising far more damaging than leaving the target in
power.
The solution is often to grant the troublesome Imperial servant a Warrant
of Trade, giving him license to seek all the power he desires, but to do so
far away from the Imperium.
Ship Points: 2
Profit Factor: 16
Effects: Members of this dynasty gain the Enemy (Nobility) Talent and
ships of this dynasty may take a Ship’s Stores or Extended Supply Vaults
part on this ship for no SP cost (but must still meet the ship’s Power and
Space constraints).
Blackmail
There are some Warrants of Trade which have been obtained not by ser-
vice or any other such means, but by the recipient demanding its granting
as a form of blackmail. Although rare, such a situation might come about
in which a Lord Militant has come to power over such vast armies that
he can in effect hold entire regions of the Imperium ransom, and in some
cases the granting of a Warrant of Trade is the price such an individual
will demand for turning his conquests over to the Adeptus Terra.
There have also been instances of far subtler manipulation, in
which the would-be recipient has come to hold power over an individual
of great influence within the upper echelons of the Adeptus Terra, such
that the victim is willing to sponsor the granting of the Warrant of Trade
in order to avoid his secret becoming known to his peers. Such might be
the case when a lord of the Administratum hides some form of mutation
for example, or when the offspring of a sector governor has secretly
come into psychic powers. It is said that every lord harbours a secret
shame, and every man has his price. None can say for sure how many
Warrants of Trade have been sponsored in order to keep such secrets cov-
ered, or what horrors lurk at the very apex of the Imperium’s government
as a result.
Ship Points: 4
Profit Factor: 10
Effects: Members of this dynasty gain 1d5 Corruption, and ships of
this dynasty may take a Luxury Passenger Quarters, Brig, or Sensorium
Component for no SP cost (but must still meet the ship’s Power and
Space constraints) and also gain the Disciplinarium Upgrade.
Prize-of-War
Many Warrants of Trade have been granted over the millennia as prizes
of war. In such cases, a powerful and successful lord militant might be
promised the charter as inducement to undertake a crusade otherwise
considered impossible. Such a crusade might take decades to conclude
and cost the lives of millions of the Imperium’s servants, but by its con-
clusion the lord militant will have earned his Warrant and will be free to
pursue his ambitions out amongst the stars.
Occasionally, the prize is not won, but taken. A powerful
servant of the Imperium might have manoeuvred himself into such a
position as to demand the Warrant of Trade as reward for service, and
he may be too powerful to refuse. Or perhaps an existing Warrant has
been prized from an established Dynasty, a new line taking control of an
ancient Rogue Trader House as the culmination of years of plotting and
scheming.
Ship Points: 6
Profit Factor: 8
Effects: Ships of this dynasty may take a Munitorium Component for no
SP cost (but must still meet the ship’s Power and Space constraints).
Ecclesiarchal Bequest
The Ecclesiarchy does not hold the power to grant a Warrant of Trade, for
that privilege ultimately lies with the Adeptus Terra and the High Lords,
but, in common with many of the Imperium’s highest institutions, it does
have great influence in the matter. Many of the crusades launched by the
Imperium against recidivist systems or vile aliens are thanks to the fiery
oratory of the Ecclesiarchy’s Confessors and Redemptory Priests. Such
individuals preach war and redemption across dozens of worlds, igniting
the zealous passions of the Imperium’s subjects until vast rallies are held
where millions of would-be martyrs call for the preacher’s demands to be
granted and war to be taken to the enemy.
Though the preachers utilise simplistic, even crude methods
to gain the support of the masses, they are highly adept at the far subtler
ways of ensuring their voice is heard. Even while the confessor preaches
hate and bloodshed to the masses, his agents move amongst the Imperi-
um’s institutions, making promises of great favour and wealth to those
who aid them, and making veiled threats to those who seek to obstruct
them. One such promise the adepts might issue is the granting of a
Warrant of Trade, the confessor’s allies ensuring that certain individuals
with the power to grant such a reward are spoken to, in return for certain
favours being performed.
Ship Points: 8
Profit Factor: 6
Effects: Ships of this dynasty may take a Temple-Shrine to the God-Em-
peror Component for no SP cost (but must still meet the ship’s Power and
Space constraints).
Administratum Trade Mandate
A Trade Mandate is an example of one of countless numbers of admin-
istrative instruments employed by the Adeptus Terra. It is an instrument
of strategy, by which the division’s policies for the managing of the
unmanageable are drawn up. By way of a myriad of utterly incomprehen-
sible cogitations, vast armies of scribes and factors plot the needs and the
means of the Imperium’s worlds, and attempt to allocate resources in
2.4 Dynasty Creation
such a way as to allow future generations to continue their work. Such a
process has no meaning or function, and has long since become an end it
self, the worlds of the Imperium merely carrying on as before regardless.
The Trade Mandate is a product of this system. In such a case,
the cogitations have determined that at such and such a date, in such and
such a region, the efforts and services of a Rogue Trader House will be
required in order to steer the region’s fortunes or to expand it borders in
response to a particular threat. The date at which the Mandate is to be
granted might be many centuries in the future, and so entire armies of
scribes will spend their whole lives selecting the eventual recipient of the
Mandate, even to the extent of determining that an Imperial Servant not
yet even born is to receive it.
Ship Points: 10
Profit Factor: 4
Effect: Ships of this dynasty may take a Cargo Hold & Lighter Bay,
Main Cargo Hold, or Compartmentalized Cargo Hold Component as well
as a Commerce Bridge in addition to the ship’s main bridge (even though
this would normally not be allowed) for no SP cost (but must still meet
the ship’s Power and Space constraints).
Intrigue
While it is possible for a Warrant of Trade to change hands through overt
aggression, a change in title is actually more likely to occur through
underhanded methods. Assassination of varying sorts is not uncommon,
and neither is fraud, but the most common of such methods is outright
bribery.
This might occur when a Rogue Trader has overstepped the
limits of his authority, and a rival garners sufficient evidence of the trans-
gression that the Imperium would be forced to censure him were such ev-
idence to be presented to a high enough authority. Such crimes are most
likely to include trafficking with alien empires forbidden even to Rogue
Traders, or dealing in goods tainted by the Ruinous Powers. The issue
might not even be something considered a crime, but rather evidence of
political machinations against more powerful individuals and institutions.
Perhaps worst of all, a powerful Rogue Trader might be accused of seek-
ing to establish his own private empire beyond the Imperium’s borders,
secede from the Rule of the Emperor. Many Rogue Traders have tried to
do so, most eventually being brought to justice by the Imperium’s forces.
In such a case, a rival might take power of an existing Warrant of Trade
and all of the assets and rights associated with it. A new line is estab-
lished and the old one slower dissolved until little or nothing of the
former dynasty remains. No one knows how many Rogue Trader Houses
have been established in this manner, but no doubt a significant number
of Warrants have changed hands many times throughout the millennia.
Ship Points: 12
Profit Factor: 2
Effect: Ships of this dynasty may take a Shadowblind Bays, Xenos Hab-
itats, or Evacuation Bay as well as a Smuggler’s Bridge in addition to the
ship’s main bridge (even though this would normally not be allowed) for
no SP cost (but must still meet the ship’s Power and Space constraints).
Reward
The most coveted of Rogue Trader Warrants are those that have been
granted in genuine recognition of great deeds performed in service to the
Imperium. Often, such a reward is not consciously sought and as such
may come as a surprise to the recipient. A Warrant of Trade granted in
this manner will be gifted to the recipient in a lavish ceremony, attended
by the great and the good of the Imperium’s highest offices. Many great
men and women will attend, often in the hope that some of the glory and
prestige will rub off on themselves. The recipient is likely to have gath-
ered about them many powerful allies who others wish to be associated
with—some might even have forged connections with Space Marine
83
Chapters, sector lords, Admirals or Inquisitors. The deeds for which a
Warrant of Trade will be rewarded are many and varied, and there are no
set definitions or conditions set. Military service is a common route
by which such Warrants are gifted, but so too is mercantile or political
success.
There is a darker side to a Warrant of Trade rewarded for such
deeds however. The sponsor of the granting—the individual who lobbied
the powers that be for the recipient to be rewarded in such a manner—
will often expect some form of recompense, some favour that might
not be called in for many decades. But called in it will be, and almost
certainly at the most inconvenient time for the Rogue Trader.
Ship Points: 16
Profit Factor: 2
Effect: Ships of this Dynasty may upgrade the Craftsmanship of Com-
ponents on their ships 3 times, to the maximum for Ship Components of
Best Craftsmanship. These upgrades may be given to any Component,
and multiple times, but only a total of 3 upgrades may be given.
Deeds of Renown
Every Rogue Trader House is known by its deeds, many of which are
intertwined with the rich history of their sector and far beyond. By de-
termining what your House is known for, you will be setting the tone for
many great adventures yet to come.
Trade Wars Veteran
Trade Wars often begin with one Navigator House overstepping the
bounds of some code or contract it no longer wishes to adhere to. When
this occurs, two or more Houses go to war with one another, but the
process is actually highly ritualised and subject to a sprawling canon of
ancient law, beginning with a declaration defining the belligerents and
the scope of their conflict. In most cases, a Trade War is carried out be-
hind the scenes, with those Houses involved dispatching the most deadly
of assassins to slay key rivals, or employing infil-traitors and saboteurs to
destroy their holdings and disrupt their business.
Occasionally, mercenary forces or allied militants are engaged
to launch raids or even full scale attacks on the estates of rival Houses, in
which case matters can soon escalate as planetary law enforcement and
defence bodies are forced to step in. This dynasty was dragged into one
such unsavoury conflict, drawn in by their allegiances and kept there by
the necessity of their Navigator allies. Fighting in this conflict ultimately
has brought the dynasty closer to their allied Navis Nobilite family, but
inevitably created enmity among the other side that persists until the
present day.
Ship Points: 4
Profit Factor: 10
Effects: Members of this dynasty gain the Peer (Navigator House), Rival
(Navigator House) (these must be separate Navigator Houses), If a void-
ship of this dynasty’s Navigator is not a player character then upgrade
their Craftsmanship by 1, but if they are a player character he counts
Navigational Charts from his House as being one step of Craftsmanship
higher than they are.
A Light in a Sea of Darkness
The galaxy’s primordial state of darkness is ever encroaching, and the
even deeper darkness of the Warp is perhaps even more pervasive, for it
can dwell in the hearts of men who stand in broad daylight. This foul evil
must be fought at all turns, and the Ecclesiarchy stands as Humanity’s
bastion against it. The Imperial Creed is the law, and those who contra-
vene it’s word are heretics and traitors to Humanity.
Serving this holy purpose is a great deed for any noble house,
84 2.4 Dynasty Creation
much much less those with a Warrant of Trade. Those who go beyond
the bounds of the Imperium to bring this light to the stygian corners of
the galaxy carry this flame, and by bearing it create no small enmity with
the foul worshippers of the Dark Gods. These brazen torchbearers are
regarded highly by the Ecclesiarchy, and the acclaim of the ordained is a
greatly valuable currency if one knows just how to spend it.
Ship Points: 6
Profit Factor: 8
Effects: Members of this dynasty gain the Enemy (Chaos), Peer (Eccle-
siarchy), and Pure Faith Talents.
In The Name of the Machine-God
The Adeptus Mechanicus is an entity consumed by their Quest for
Knowledge that sends them forth to many unknown and forgotten places
of the galaxy. To aid the Machine Cult is to assist in this great task, and
become part of great deeds such as the Incaladion’s Great Retrieval,
Triplex Phall’s War of Neotech, or Voss’ War of Recovery. Such ma-
chine crusades and many others have been launched to recover the lost
techno-lores of Mankind, and to persecute these conquests requires no
few allies and obscene amounts of resources, assets, and materiel. While
much of the Mechanicus is considered a self-contained empire-with-
in-an-empire they, much like any other entity within the Imperium, have
need for allies.
The machine-minds of the techpriests of the Mechanicus have
long memories and they may well think fondly of a noble house who
once aided them, even if the original nobilite who did so has passed on
some centuries ago. Those in the favour of the Mechanicus can expect
some limited access to the arcane sciences available to the Techpriests of
Mars, and even their assistance in matters of tech-lore.
Ship Points: 8
Profit Factor: 6
Effect: Members of this dynasty gain the Peer (Mechanicus), and ships
from this dynasty may have 1 additional Archeotech Component.
Cold Trade Purgation
While no sensible man would have truck with the peddling of xenos
obscenities there exists a delusion of invulnerability amongst some of the
Imperium’s nobility that they are above the law of the Imperium, and that
no authority in the galaxy could possibly touch them and their interests.
The abject wrongness of this delusion rarely sinks in until the prosecutors
of such crimes are burned at the stake for their heresy, so tainted by the
wiles of the alien are they.
No few merchant families have been purged for such heresy
in the past, and sadly they did not serve as a strong enough lesson for
others, as the crimes of trading forbidden works made not by the hands
of man continue to this very day. While some would profit from these
means there are no few who are eager to throw in with the forces of the
Inquisition and aid them, if not out of a moral imperative, then one born
from the wish to eliminate mercantile adversaries serves the needs of the
Holy Ordos well enough.
Ship Points: 10
Profit Factor: 4
Effects: Choose one of the following:
Purgator: Members of this dynasty gain the Peer (Inquisition) and Ene-
my (Cold Trade) Talents
Conspirator: Members of this dynasty gain the Hunted (Inquisition)
and Peer (Cold Trade) Talents, and ships from this dynasty may have 1
additional Xenotech Component
 Crusader for Humanity
Man’s war against the alien and apostate is a seemingly endless one, into
which an unimaginable wealth of resources must be poured, all to hold
back the ravening hordes of these vile forces. In the 41st Millennium
there is truly only war, one which must be fought by Humanity’s warriors
until the last man.
This dynasty has stood shoulder to shoulder with the greatest
warriors of Mankind and it’s blessed martyrs, the rank and file of the Im-
perial Guard. Across numerous battlefields among the stars and between
them this dynasty has fought against the foes of Man in the name of the
God-Emperor, supplying arms, armour, and support for the great armies
of the Imperium. The respect earned for this rings through the ages, and
the long standing chapters of the Adeptus Astartes and the dutiful regi-
ments of the Astra Militarum show no small deference for it.
Ship Points: 12
Profit Factor: 2
Effect: Members of this dynasty gain the Peer (Munitorum) -or- Peer
(Space Marine Chapter), and the Enemy (Chaos) -or- Enemy (Xenos)
Talents.
Contacts
There are many colourful personalities operating beyond the Imperium’s
borders and at its apexs of power, any number of which a dynasty may
have had dealings with. But choose your allies carefully, for they often
demand as much as they offer!
The following options provide a Contact for a party’s Explorers
to use, and while they are provided without an associated xp cost they
may, at a player’s discretion, have them increased by spending xp on
options for increasing Attributes. While largely following all of the rules
for Contacts (see Section 12.2 “Contacts”) this specific Contact is a bit
different, as they are a contact of the dynasty, rather than any one charac-
ter. To represent this the amount of uses that this Contact may be used for
per a session is split between all of the player characters If the Contact
has the Reliable or Trusted Attributes use the highest Fellowship Bonus
in the group to determine how many times they can be used per a session,
and the same for applying the effect of Peer and Good Reputation.
Pirates
The space lanes of the Imperium are plagued with outlaws and pirates.
Some are human but others are alien such as the dread Eldar Corsairs
and brutal Ork Raiders. The closer to Wilderness Space and the Fringes
a Rogue Trader operates, the more likely he is to come into contact with
such scum, and worse, humans who have cast aside even a pirates’ limit-
ed sensibilities and given themselves over to the nightmarish veneration
of the Ruinous Powers.
Every Rogue Trader will have faced pirates in battle, and some
will have had cause to join together with them too from time to time. Out
beyond the borders one cannot afford to be too choosy who one’s allies
with when the enemy is a ravening alien horror or a gestalt swarm con-
sciousness intent upon feeding upon the Rogue Trader and his friends.
Such alliances are more often than not short-lived and matters, for Rogue
Traders and pirates exist at opposite ends of the scale in terms of the Im-
perium’s institutions, yet it could be said that both share a similar outlook
in life—both parties see the galaxy as there to be exploited in one way or
another.
Even those Rogue Traders who would never condescend to
fight alongside a pirate may often find themselves in contact with them at
one of the many border stations and outlaw trading posts both will have
occasion to visit in the course of their operations. The most successful of
pirates comport themselves as petty kings or foppish princes, a trait they
share with many Rogue Traders.
2.4 Dynasty Creation
Ship Points: 4
Profit Factor: 10
Effect: The dynasty gains a Contact (with the Group, Military Con-
nections, Reduce Availability (Drugs/Toxins, 1), Offers Favours, and
Dubious Attributes)
Merchant House
Those Rogue Trader Dynasties whose fortunes are built upon the
acquisition and generation of vast sums of wealth will have dealings
with commercial combines across entire sectors and beyond. They will
have bonded scribes and factors operating in the courts of the greatest of
commercial concerns and these will have the ear of the most influential
merchants in the region.
It is important to remember that the great merchant houses,
particularly those who span several worlds, let alone whole sectors are
powerful institutions, and not ones to be crossed lightly. Organisations
with vast wealth and a long arm are dangerous; more than one Rogue
Trader has been brought to ruin by a merchant house they thought dirt-
bound and limited.
Merchant contacts have a great many uses, for they allow the
Rogue Trader to tap into the vast web of influence and power of the
merchant houses in question. This network will extend to the major set-
tlements on almost every major world in the Calixis Sector and in many
cases beyond. For a price, the Rogue Trader will be able to any service,
from repair facilities for a damaged vessel to the services of the merchant
house’s indentured mercenaries.
Ship Points: 6
Profit Factor: 8
Effect: The dynasty gains a Contact (with the Group, Skill (Commerce,
Tier 3), Talent (Ears to the Ground), Reduce Availability (All, 1), and
Reliable Attributes)
Missionaria Galaxia
Contacts within the Missionaria Galaxia can prove extremely useful,
for this division of the Ecclesiarchy maintains holdings far beyond the
fringes. It may well be that a single preacher operating out of an isolated
mission proves a staunch ally in a crisis, for he will be well-schooled in
the ways of the native population and well able to defend himself should
the need arise.
The Missionaria does not lend its aid to just anyone however,
and any preacher to whom a Rogue Trader is forced to turn for aid will
only help him out after determining the individual’s morale purity. Even
when aid is forthcoming, the preacher may well make demands in return,
often including requests for support in his own mission or substantial do-
nations to the mission of taking the Word of the Emperor to the ignorant
souls beyond the fringes.
Ship Points: 8
Profit Factor: 6
Effect: The dynasty gains a Contact (with the Group, Skill (Scholastic
Lore (Imperial Creed), Tier 4), Talent (Confessor), and Trusted Attri-
butes)
Adeptus Mechanicus
It is not uncommon for the paths of Rogue Traders and Explorators
to cross, particularly out amongst the unexplored systems beyond the
Imperium’s borders. On occasion the two factions will have cause to
join forces, and as both generally have quite different objectives to their
exploration this is often a successful course of action. There are plenty
of times however when the interests of the two groups will clash, such as
when an Explorator Fleet wishes to strip mine a newly discovered world
while a Rogue Trader wishes to trade with its native population, or a
85
particular Explorator Archmagos decides they want something the Rogue
Trader has or that they know too much.
Nonetheless, many Rogue Traders maintain ties with Explor-
ators they have worked alongside in the past. By doing so, the Rogue
Trader can utilise information the Explorators have gathered, gaining ex-
clusive access to systems the Explorators have discovered. Frequently, an
Explorator Fleet will pass through a system, exploring and cataloguing it
but classifying it as having little or no interest to the Adeptus Mechani-
cus. A Rogue Trader with contacts with the Explorator Fleets will know
of such worlds long before his rivals, and have a unique opportunity to
investigate them for opportunities from which his House might profit.
Ship Points: 10
Profit Factor: 4
Effect: The dynasty gains a Contact (with the Group, Skill (Tech-Use,
Tier 4), Reduce Availability (Cybernetics, 1), and Reliable Attributes)
Battlefleet
Many Rogue Traders maintain contacts in the battlefleets of the Imperial
Navy, for many second sons and daughters will have served their time as
officers there before returning to serve their Houses. Friends and contacts
made during service are rarely forgotten, and many such Rogue Traders
take every opportunity to look up old compatriots when stopping over at
a naval base.
Out beyond the fringes such contacts transcend the cordialities
of the officers’ mess and take on a far more serious aspect. A Rogue Trad-
er vessel that comes to grief fighting alien raiders might hold little hope
of help ever arriving, but there are countless tales of such vessels being
rescued by the timely arrival of a long range navy patrol vessel, the mas-
ter of which happened to recognize the cipher attached to a distress call
and was willing to divert and offer aid. Of course, this works both ways,
and many are the times a Rogue Trader has been obliged to set aside his
own mission to bolster the forces of a naval squadron against one of the
many enemies that lurk in the cold void between worlds.
Ship Points: 12
Profit Factor: 2
Effect: The dynasty gains a Contact (with the Group, Military Connec-
tions, Reduce Availability (Essential Components, Supplemental Compo-
nents, 1), and Reliable Attributes)
86 2.4 Dynasty Creation
Warrant Renown
The last part of the process of creating your Rogue Trader Dynasty is to
establish how well known it is. Rogue Traders enjoy the rarest of oppor-
tunities—the chance to be remembered for something. Just be sure not to
squander the privilege!
Infamous
Some Rogue Trader Dynasties are known for all the wrong reasons. A
House purged in the aftermath of a Cold Trade Inquest, for example,
might be held as an object lesson in the follies of dabbling in things man
should have no truck with. Other Houses are known for the ruthlessness
of their actions and although respected are not regarded with any warmth.
A Rogue Trader from such a House would be wise to consider very
carefully how widely he broadcasts his name when operating beyond
Imperial Space, for there are many rivals who might take advantage of
even a temporary state of vulnerability.
Ship Points: 6
Profit Factor: 12
Effect: Members of this dynasty gain the Enemy (Any) -or- Rival (Any)
Unknown
For many Rogue Traders, the thought of their name going unremarked
upon would be a terrible insult, while others prefer to operate that way.
Most Rogue Traders belong to the former group, for they have not
become the all-powerful servants of the Imperium they are without pro-
moting themselves and their abilities to some degree.
For many Rogue Trader dynasties, the condition of being
unknown is likely to be only temporary. Most seek fame, even if, despite
their best efforts, they ultimately earn only infamy.
Ship Points: 10
Profit Factor: 8
Effect: Members of this dynasty may gain the Unremarkable Talent if
they wish.
Famous
Whether or not they choose to admit it openly, or even to themselves,
the great majority of Rogue Traders crave fame and the attendant powers
and privileges that accompany it. To have one’s name spoken with awe
and respect by High Lords and commoners the length and breadth of the
Imperium is for many the ultimate reward, perhaps even greater than
the vast personal wealth they amass along the way. In a galaxy in which
literally billions of lives are lost every single day in the service of the
Emperor, where a single man has little hope of gaining recognition for
even the greatest, most selfless of acts, to be remembered after one’s time
is perhaps the greatest reward one can aspire to.
Ship Points: 14
Profit Factor: 4
Effect: Members of this dynasty gain the Peer (Any) Talent
 2.5 Aptitudes & Advancements
Various propensities are represented as Aptitudes during character creation. These represent tasks or abilities for which a character has a natural
affinity, and can learn with greater ease than others. Characteristic, Skill, and Talent advances in the game have Aptitudes linked to them, usually
two (though especially rare abilities might have only one). Those advances sharing a character’s Aptitudes are easier for that character to learn, and
thus cost fewer experience points to purchase. If a character shares one Aptitude with an advance, he gains a small discount to purchasing it, and if
he shares two aptitudes with the advance he gains a large discount. Players can still purchase advances for which they have no shared Aptitudes, but
these are typically very expensive.
Note that if during creation a character gains the same Aptitude from different sources, he does not gain it twice. He instead chooses and
gains a different aptitude that he does not already have.
Choose 4 further Aptitudes (as they will already have 3 from their Home World, Career, and Role) from the following list for your charac-
ter. The “Psyker” and “Tech” Aptitudes may not be of the 4 chosen Aptitudes, as these are Aptitudes that imply special powers or jealously guarded
knowledge that few have a chance at gaining. Depending on the composition of their Regiment, Guardsmen may have more than 3 set Aptitudes.
Every character gains the “General” Aptitude automatically and it does not count towards their 4 choices.

Aptitudes
General
Weapon Skill Offence
Ballistic Skill Finesse
Strength Defence
Toughness Psyker
Agility Tech
Intelligence Knowledge
Perception Fieldcraft
Willpower Leadership
Fellowship Social

Characteristic Advances Characteristic Aptitudes

A Characteristic advance represents a natural improvement to a char- Characteristic Aptitude 1 Aptitude 2
acter’s body or mind. When a player purchases an advance in a Char-
acteristic, he adds +5 to that Characteristic permanently. Characteristic Weapon Skill Weapon Skill Offence
advances are divided into five progression levels: Ballistic Skill Ballistic Skill Finesse
• Simple: A small fulfilment of the character’s potential.
Strength Strength Offence
• Intermediate: A significant and noticeable improvement of the charac-
ter’s capabilities. Toughness Toughness Defence
• Trained: A measure of the character’s improvement beyond most Agility Agility Finesse
around him.
• Proficient: Active, focused effort upon improving the character’s
Intelligence Intelligence Knowledge
prowess. Perception Perception Fieldcraft
• Expert: The limit of a character’s natural abilities Willpower Willpower Psyker
As players set about increasing their characters’ Characteris-
tics, they must progress through each of the progression levels in turn. Fellowship Fellowship Social
This begins with Simple and ends at Expert, using the prices in the Char- Fate General -
acteristic Advancement Costs table below.
As shown in the Characteristic Advancement Costs table, if the
character has one matching aptitude, then the first +5 to his Characteristic
costs 200 xp; the next +5 advancement (the Intermediate progression
level) costs 350 xp, and so on. The Characteristic Aptitudes table lists
the ten Characteristics that players can actively seek to improve through
spending experience, and the aptitudes associated with each. Advancing
Agility, for example, has the Agility and Finesse aptitudes linked with it.
The costs for Characteristic advances are cumulative. For
instance, a player could not simply pay 350 xp for a +10 increase for a
Characteristic he has one Aptitude matched with. Instead, the player is
required to buy the Simple advance for 200 xp first, and then pay the 350
xp for the Intermediate advance.

2.5 Aptitudes & Advancements 87

 Characteristic Advancement Costs
1st Advance 2nd Advance 3rd Advance 4th Advance 5th Advance
Matching
“Simple” “Intermediate” “Trained” “Proficient” “Expert”
Aptitudes
+5 +10 +15 +20 +25
Two 100xp 200xp 400xp 600xp 1000xp
One 200xp 350xp 500xp 750xp 1250xp
Zero 250xp 500xp 750xp 1000xp 1750xp

Skill Advances
Player Characters learn new Skills or improve existing Skills by selecting Skill advances. The xp cost of Skill advances depends on how many apti-
tudes the character has in common with that Skill. These advances are divided into four ranks of progression levels, which are as follows:
• Known (Rank 1): The character can use the Skill without the –20 penalty for untrained Skills.
• Trained (Rank 2): The character receives +10 on all Skill tests when using this Skill.
• Experienced (Rank 3): The character receives a +20 bonus on all Skill tests when using this Skill. This bonus replaces the bonus for being Trained.
• Veteran (Rank 4): The character receives a +30 bonus to all Skill tests when using this Skill. This bonus replaces the bonus for being Experienced
in this Skill.
When improving a Skill, a character must progress through each of the levels in turn, starting with Known and ending with Veteran. So, for
example, players cannot choose to pay for the Trained Skill advance for their character without first purchasing the Known Skill advance. Note that
characters might have received the Known or Trained Skill advance already through character creation. The Skill Advances table below indicates the
price of Skill advances, based on both the progression level and number of matching aptitudes.
The Skill Aptitudes table below lists the Skills in 40KRPG, along with the Aptitudes linked to each. Refer to Section 3.0 “Skills” for more
information on selecting Skills and Skill descriptions.

Skill Aptitudes
Skill Aptitude 1 Aptitude 2 Skill Aptitude 1 Aptitude 2
Acrobatics Agility General Linguistics Intelligence General
Athletics Strength General Logic Intelligence Knowledge
Awareness Perception Fieldcraft Medicae Intelligence Fieldcraft
Charm Fellowship Social Navigate Intelligence Fieldcraft
Command Fellowship Leadership Operate Agility Tech
Operate
Commerce Intelligence Knowledge Intelligence Tech
(Voidship)
Common Lore Intelligence Knowledge Parry Weapon Skill Defence
Deceive Fellowship Social Psyniscience Perception Psyker
Deny The Witch Willpower Defence Scholastic Lore Intelligence Knowledge
Dodge Agility Defence Scrutiny Perception General
Forbidden Lore Intelligence Knowledge Stealth Agility Fieldcraft
Inquiry Fellowship Social Survival Perception Fieldcraft
Interrogation Willpower Social Tactics Intelligence Fieldcraft
Intimidate Strength Social Tech-Use Intelligence Tech
Invocation Willpower Knowledge Trade Intelligence General

Skill Advancement Costs

1st Advance 2nd Advance 3rd Advance 4th Advance
Matching
“Known” “Trained” “Experienced” “Veteran”
Aptitudes
+0 +10 +20 +30
Two 100xp 200xp 400xp 600xp
One 200xp 350xp 500xp 750xp
Zero 250xp 500xp 750xp 1000xp

88 2.5 Aptitudes & Advancements

 Talent Purchases Taking Talents Multiple Times
Some Talents can be taken multiple times, which is noted in the Talent’s
Talents are enhancements that permit a character to use his natural
abilities in new fashions. These can provide a situational bonus to the description. There are only a few of these Talents; the most prominent is
use of a Skill or Characteristic, or provide specific and unusual ways for “Sound Constitution”, which increases a Player Character’s Wounds each
a character to take advantage of his equipment. See Section 4.1 “Talents time it is taken. When taking these Talents multiple times, the player sim-
Compendium” for detailed descriptions of the many Talents available. ply pays the experience cost each time. It should be noted, however, that
As with Characteristics and Skills, Talents have aptitudes some Talents that can be taken multiple times have a hard limit, indicat-
associated with them (usually two, but some might have only one), and ing the maximum number of times they can be purchased.
are discounted based on how many a character shares. Talents are also
divided into three tiers, representing their relative power levels and the
amount of xp needed to purchase them. Talent Costs
Talents also often have prerequisites that must be met before Matching
they can be purchased, no matter what tier they belong to. For this rea- Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3
son, players can find themselves needing to purchase lower tier Talents Aptitudes
before they can purchase the Talent that they want. See the Talent Costs Two 100xp 200xp 400xp
table for information on the experience cost of Talents.
One 200xp 400xp 750xp
Specialist Talents Zero 400xp 750xp 1000xp
Some Talents are designated Specialist Talents. These Talents can be se-
lected more than once, with a different speciality each time. Refer to Sec-
tion 4.0 “Talents & Traits” for more information on Specialist Talents.

2.5 Aptitudes & Advancements 89

 3.0 Skills
“Even the lowest trade is blessed, if it is done in the Emperor’s name.”
- Administratum Motto
Skills are the basis for a character’s capabilities and the ways in which he can interact with the Warhammer 40,000 universe. They form an integral
part of all characters in measuring their ability and competence at tasks, and allowing them unique options during game play. More often than not,
when the Game Master asks a player to complete a task or overcome a challenge, the player’s character will need to pass a skill test to determine the
outcome.
Skills indicate abilities that a character has learned either through his education or through the more practical applications that are part of
service to the Imperium. Characters automatically begin the game with a number of skills as part of their origin. Players can select additional skills
during the latter stages of character creation when they spend experience. Over the course of their careers, characters are certain to hone those skills
and improve upon them through selecting skill advances with earned experience. These elements represent the accumulation of knowledge and exper-
tise.
For some characters, the skills they possess at the beginning of their careers are a strong indication of those they may use throughout their
lives. In other instances, a character’s path might diverge from his origin as he explores new fields of expertise. Characters can be effective pursuing
either path, but both are dependent upon players identifying the most opportune ways and times to exploit the skills that their characters have devel-
oped.

Using Skills knowledge of places, people, and events; the ability to control, drive, or
pilot particular types of vehicles and equipment; the ability to read and
Throughout the course of a game session, the Game Master frequently
understand maps, as well as the ability to plot a course across a world or
calls upon players to make skill tests for their characters. These should
the stars themselves; and the ability to speak, read, or understand one of
be conducted in any circumstance where success or failure might have
the countless languages, codes, or glyphs used by the races of the 41st
a meaningful impact upon the scenario. Routine tasks attempted under
Millennium. A character can take a Specialist skill more than once, tak-
normal conditions should never require a test. However, if there is a
ing a new speciality each time he takes the skill. If he takes a Specialist
reasonable chance of failure due to environmental conditions or circum-
skill more than once (each with its own speciality), then these are treated
stance, even a routine test might be relevant.
as separate skills and must be advanced in rank individually. A list of the
When a character uses a skill to perform a task, he must succeed at a skill
individual specialities within each Specialist skill can be found within the
test. The procedure follows the test rules presented in Section 1.1 “The
individual skill descriptions.
Core Rules”: the player rolls, compares the result to the characteristic
best suited to the task and, if the result is equal to or less than the skill
rating, the check succeeds. Modifiers are applied to take into account any Time and Skill Tests
environmental factors, as well as the character’s rank with the applicable The amount of time required for a skill test may vary substantially based
skill. both upon the skill used and the particular instance of its use. A Tech-Use
test to clear a weapon jam might take only a few moments, though one to
perform a basic repair on a vehicle could take hours. Similarly, a Com-
Untrained Skill Use merce test to negotiate the price of supplies for a journey might be re-
It is unlikely that a character will be trained in the use of every skill,
solved quickly, but a complex negotiation to establish a trade agreement
instead focusing on the mastery of a few and a general knowledge of
between two powerful mercantile groups could take weeks or months of
a handful of others. A character can, however, still use skills in which
resolving minutia and commercial factors.
he has no training when needs must, such as attempting to hide from a
Each skill entry includes guidance on the average amount of time
slavering group of mutants or frantically deciphering the coded messages
that skill usually takes to perform. These values are either measured in
in an ancient tome. In these instances, the character makes a skill test as
actions (in the case of skills that can be performed during a round of
normal but suffers a –20 penalty in addition to any other modifiers. The
structured time), or minutes/hours. Some skills are most commonly used
only exceptions to this rule are Specialist skills (see below) which require
in reaction to, or in combination with, another skill. In these instances,
a level of ability that simply cannot be attempted by the untrained. These
the amount of time required is identical to the skill it is used to oppose
could include knowledge of ancient rites of the Adeptus Mechanicus,
or assist. Keep in mind that these values serve as guidelines but are not
commanding a Mars Class Cruiser, or speaking fluently with an Eldar
always fixed. Game Masters must alter the time required for a skill use
Corsair in its own xenos language. Specialist skills are indicated as such
based upon the overall complexity of the task involved.
both on the Skill List table and the individual skill descriptions.

Special Uses Extended Skill Tests

Several skill entries have subsections that detail a specific, focused use
outside their usual employment. These sections spotlight particularly
creative or interesting uses of the skill, allowing for greater variety of
applications. Special uses and their effects can be found at the end of
each relevant skill description.
Specialist Skills
Some skills are not just one skill but many, representing a specialisation
within the skill itself. These are known as Specialist skills, and whenever
a character learns a Specialist skill, he must choose a particular speciali-
sation within it. Specialisations represent such things as specific
Some specific Skill Tests take excessive amounts of time, for example
the crafting of an advanced plasma weapon, or researching the true name
of an obscure daemon. Most often these tests are some form of crafting,
repairs, or research, though applying these rules to other things that may
take an excessive amount of time (such as constructing trench defences
or moving a large amount of cargo from the hold of a void-barge) is
possible.
When determining how long an Extended Skill Test will take, combine
the modifiers for the base Difficulty and the environment before the
character’s Skill Ranks and consult the “Difficulty of Crafting, Repair, or
Research Test” column on the table below.

90 Educate men without faith and you make them nothing more than clever devils.