A Rogue Trader is a rare individual granted a Warrant of Trade, an ancient document that licenses its bearer to venture beyond the Imperium's borders and act in the Emperor's name where no other authority reaches. These privateer-explorers occupy a unique station, wielding powers that would be treasonous in any ordinary citizen.
A Warrant may permit its holder to command fleets, raise armies, claim newly discovered worlds, negotiate with aliens, and amass fortunes beyond imagining, all in the course of expanding humanity's dominion. The oldest warrants have been handed down through dynasties for thousands of years, and the most powerful Rogue Trader houses rival minor kingdoms in wealth and reach. Some explore uncharted space out of duty; many more do so out of naked ambition and greed.
With such freedom comes danger and suspicion. A Rogue Trader operating at the fringes may deal with xenos, plunder ancient ruins, or bend Imperial law in ways that draw the scrutiny of the Inquisition. Yet their service is invaluable, opening new frontiers and returning riches that even the High Lords of Terra covet. Counted among the most colourful of all Imperial Agents, Rogue Traders are the bold, avaricious pioneers of a realm that has otherwise forgotten how to explore.