Warhammer 40,000 Chapter Approved: Book of the Astronomican (1988, and boy what a mouthful) is the first Rogue Trader supplement. It’s split between a four part Space Marines vs. Orcs campaign. I didn’t know 40k put out this sort of strategy scenario. I’m a little surprised at how much roleplaying there is baked into the game, especially by way of the GM-led optional subplots (like how the orc cook has been poisoning the orc governor’s food and he can drop dead from the strain on his system if he gets too close to a marine). If I were a betting man, I’d bet that this sort of thing fell out of fashion pretty quickly, though.

There are also army lists and painting guides. I like looking at this stuff, particularly big full-page Russ Nicholson illustrations, but it really doesn’t mean anything to me. I particularly don’t understand the role of rogue traders — they’re powerful, freelance agents of the Imperium and the game seems to want you to be one (one of the lists is for a trader and his retinue), but I have difficulty squaring the name with the role. They don’t seem to be rogues or merchants. Like, that crappy Ewan McGregor movie Rogue Trader is crappy, but at least it is about a crooked financial markets guy. It makes sense, you know?