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Warhammer 40K: Rogue Trader

Rogue Trader: Best Weapons in Chapter 1

By
Nathan Garvin

There are many righteous tools you can use to eradicate the enemies of mankind from the galaxy, be they xeno, witch or heretic, and while you shouldn’t expect too much out of Chapter, even generic variants of iconic Warhammer 40,000 staples can prove rare and valuable. This page will list the best weapons you can find in Chapter 1 of Rogue Trader, including how to find them and what makes these weapons a notch above the rest of the gear you can find at the same time.

(1 of 3) Input the Galvanic Hymn at the Data-Altar of Sacred Analysis,

Arc Rifle - Location

After you reach the Bunker on Rykad Minoris you’ll be able to travel onto the Electrodynamic Cenobium. Enter the reactor-cathedral and when you reach a fork turn northeast and defeat half a dozen Electro-Priests when they ambush you, then continue north until your progress to the northwest is barred by a “motive force barrier”. Enter a room to the northeast instead and interact with a “Data-Altar of Sacred Analysis” where you’ll have to input a Galvanic Hymn. Just enter the following options when you interact with the device:

  1. The Omnissiah, from whom the holy discharge springeth forth.
  2. The Arcane Key that closeth the circuit.
  3. The Immortal Reason that hath created the spark.

This will open a secret door, revealing a chest containing the "Arc Rifle" iconArc Rifle, alongside other treasures. The Arc Rifle is an interesting weapon, shooting bolts of electricity at enemies. It has fairly decent range and damage, along with a passable armor rating score of 10% - solid, but unremarkable stats. On the downside every shot takes 2 AP and there is no burst fire option, which honestly makes it perform worse than a Stubcarbine. Where the Arc Rifle redeems itself is when several enemies are near each other, as the Arc Rifle’s shots will arc to “all enemies within 2 cells of the target”, giving this weapon situational AoE. It’s a decent weapon for "Pasqal" iconPasqal, who otherwise would likely prefer to stick with his "Omnissian Axe" iconOmnissian Axe, but when there are no enemies within melee range or there’s a tempting cluster of foes, the Arc Rifle is a good option to have handy. You’ll probably want to drop it for a Plasma Gun or Meltagun at the first opportunity you get in Chapter 2, but it’ll serve well until then.

(1 of 4) Visit an unidentified ship and refrain from destroying it,

Flamer - Location

“Best” weapons are fairly subjective, but it’s hard to argue that getting your hands on a weapon that’ll carry a character through an entire chapter in a CRPG doesn’t deserve that accolade. As soon as you get through the chatter that separates the Prologue and Chapter 1 and find yourself sailing around the Rykad system in your newly inherited voidship, make your way to an “Unidentified Voidship”. Once there you’ll get the opportunity to ask a line of leading questions to find out more about the ship, or you can just open fire on the wounded vessel for its crew’s duplicity. Restrain yourself and just pick the first dialog option and you’ll eventually end up trading with the ship - Thunderfang - whose crew are members of the “"Fellowship" iconFellowship of the Void” faction. One of the weapons you can requisition from them is a "Flamer" iconFlamer. It costs you nothing to do this and it’s a great anti-horde weapon for characters with the correct proficiency - "Argenta" iconArgenta using it alongside Unfading Valor is a force to be reckoned with.

(1 of 3) Head to the prison planet of Rykadi Philia,

Foehammer - Location

On Rykadi Philia you’ll follow a linear path into a barracks, where you’ll be ambushed by some prisoners. Put them down and work your way through a gated-off area, picking locks, using Melta-"Charge" iconCharges and dealing with turncoat pirates until you reach the warden’s office along the northwestern corner of the building. Search a dresser in the corner near a bed to find "Foehammer" iconFoehammer. This “shotgun pistol” deals roughly the same damage as a "Stub Revolver" iconStub Revolver, but being a shotgun, it always fires in a cone, giving you some AoE and the ability to knock enemies back, all for a measly 1 AP. Another decent close-range option for a character using a melee weapon in their main hand, especially with the Dual-Weapon Combat talent.

(1 of 2) Several Firestarting Cultists on Rykad Minoris come armed with Hand Flamers,

Several Firestarting Cultists on Rykad Minoris come armed with Hand Flamers, (left), and for good reason - they deal decent damage and have great AoE, making them a useful sidearm. (right)

Hand Flamer - Location

One of the more common weapons on this list, you’ll find several of them on Rykad Minoris, including on The Upperway and in the Warehouse, in the possession of Firestarting Cultists. You need the "Flame Weapon Proficiency" iconFlame Weapon Proficiency to use and this variant isn’t quite as good as the standard Flamer, but it is one handed and can fine in a line (stream) or cone (spray), making it very good AoE damage against groups of lightly armored enemies. There’s a superior version of the "Hand Flamer" iconHand Flamer you can upgrade to in Chapter 2, so you’ll be able to make use of flame weapons for quite a while without interruption if you wish. It’s a decent offhand option, especially if you have the Dual-Weapon Combat talent.

(1 of 4) You’ll find Longlas on Eurac V.

Longlas - Location

One of the better long-range weapons in the chapter, you’ll find this rifle on Eurac V. Board the station and navigate some dialog with Felek Orsellio, who wants to enlist your aid in gaining access to an elevator. Agree and head to the northwestern corner of the room, pass an Athletics check to jump over some debris, then continue east and north to encounter some mutants. After a sprawling (but not difficult) fight, head down a hallway to the east to find two doors to the north. Go through either one and work your way into a larger room to the north where you’ll find a guard whose craziness gets himself shot. In this larger room you’ll find two doors to the east - go through the southernmost of these two doors (it’s locked, so you’ll need to pass a [Tech-Use] check) and search some lockers along the wall to the east. "Longlas" iconLonglas is inside, and as its name implies it’s a long-barrel "Lasgun" iconLasgun… a sniper Lasgun, in other words. Not only does it deal decent damage for this point in the game, but it gives the shooter 30% dodge reduction, as is the norm for Lasguns. In addition, it grants 15% armor penetration and gives the shooter a 25% chance to be able to take a second shot. All in all, it’s the best sniper weapon you’re going to find for quite a while, and unless you’re willing to dabble in xeno weaponry, you won’t find much better until you’re deep into Chapter 2.

(1 of 4) On Rykad Minoris, head to the southwestern edge of the eastern Upperway area,

Officer’s Chainsword - Location

You’ll find this weapon on Rykad Minoris, on The Upperway (East) area. Head to the southwestern edge of the area to find a destroyed section of road. There’s an area transition here that’ll take you down to a subterranean warehouse area, but this is just a landmark, not a destination, as far as acquiring this weapon goes. North of this shattered road interact with a point of interest to “Clear a Path”, revealing a chest in the process. Pick a lock to get at the contents within, which includes the "Officer's Chainsword" iconOfficer’s Chainsword. Despite the name, this weapon has nothing to do with the Officer archetype, but it does deal increased damage and armor penetration compared to a normal "Chainsword" iconChainsword, and should see "Abelard" iconAbelard through the rest of Chapter 1.

(1 of 2) Search a… something. There’s something there to search. Trust us,

Plasma Gun - Location

Like the Plasma Pistol(s) (see below) but better! More range, damage and armor penetration, but otherwise the same core concept. The Plasma Gun can be overcharged to deal more damage or hit targets in a 3x3 AoE, and while this costs 2 AP as opposed to the 1 AP from the single shot firing mode, the real downside is it puts the weapon on cooldown. Bit of a balancing act, and while Plasma Pistols are fine for melee builds (especially with the Dual-Weapon Combat talent) since you can always whack something in melee while the weapon is on cooldown, you’ll need to switch weapon sets for a Plasma Gun, as it’s a two-handed weapon. Or you could just equip it as one of Pasqal’s two weapons, which is probably the ideal use for this weapon. While it’s categorically superior to the Plasma Pistols and Arc Rifle, one thing holds the Plasma Gun back in Chapter 1 - you get it at the very end of the Chapter. Once you’ve completed all the other main quests, you’ll have to return to Rykad Minoris for a celebratory parade, after which you’ll need to make your way back to the starport. This weapon is hidden in a loot pickup just before you reach said starport, on a bridge east of an encounter where you’ll find numerous cultists (the fight features numerous traps surrounding a destroyed shuttle).

(1 of 3) Defeat some cultists, dodge some electrical discharge and vault some crates to find a chest,

Plasma Pistol - Location

This weapon can also be found in the Electrodynamic Cenobium on Rykad Minoris, which you can only travel to after you reach the Bunker on the same planet. From the entrance of this reactor-cathedral, head north until you reach a fork, then turn west to reach a long hallway running north. This hallway is filled with hostile cultists and environmental hazards; dodge the lightning that periodically discharges and advance up the hallway, being especially wary of the nuisance snipers at the northern end of the hallway. About halfway up the hallway you’ll find a path to the east, where several crates block the way forward. Pass an [Athletics] check to vault over this barrier, beyond which you’ll find a chest - the Plasma Pistol can be found inside.

You can get a second Plasma Pistol by simply trading with Tech-Priest Quartz-Krame, who you will find in the Bunker on Rykad Minoris. You’ll need to get your Reputation up to tier 2 and accumulate a Profit Factor of 12+. You’ll get cargo by exploring and your Profit Factor will increase as you complete quests, so there’s no direct way to get this weapon, you should have the resources to requisition late in Chapter 1.

This weapon requires the "Plasma Weapon Proficiency" iconPlasma Weapon Proficiency talent, which Pasqal has natively, and frankly this weapon outcompetes the Arc Rifle, dealing slightly worse damage and having inferior range, but boasting a whopping 30% armor penetration as well as possessing more and better firing options. It has a passable single shot option for 1 AP, a 3x3 AoE shot for 2 AP and a heavy damage overcharge for 2 AP. These last two will put the gun on cooldown (as opposed to the most severe penalties imposed by temperamental plasma weapons in the tabletop version of Warhammer 40,000, but when the need or opportunity arises it’s a great option to have. All that said, you may want to give another character the Plasma Weapon Proficiency talent so they can also use this excellent class of weapon, in which case the Arc Rifle is still a fine alternative.

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Guide Information
  • Publisher
    Owlcat Games
  • Platforms,
    PS5, Steam, XB X|S
  • Genre
    RPG
  • Guide Release
    23 November 2023
  • Last Updated
    16 June 2024
    Version History
  • Guide Author

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In the grim dark future of the 41st millennium, there is only war. The Imperium of Man, ruled by God-Emperor of Mankind from atop his Golden Throne, is a vast interstellar empire with countless armies. Despite the Imperium’s apparent strength, however, its enemies are even more numerous and threats to mankind both surround the Imperium and gnaw at it from within. Where the constantly strained military might of the Imperium can’t reach, humanity must find other champions, and blessed with holy Warrants of Trade, Rogue Traders have almost unlimited authority to operate in the unconquered reaches of the galaxy beyond the Imperium’s direct influence. After unexpectedly inheriting the title of Rogue Trader von Valancius, you’ll have to secure your holdings in the Koronus Expanse, establish and develop new colonies, investigate the conspiracy that led to your ascension and fend off threats, internal and externals, humans, xenos and worse…

This guide will provide the following information:

  • Tips and info about various gameplay mechanics, including injuries and trauma, veil degradation, momentum, resolve, heroic acts, weapon types and space exploration.
  • Recruitment guides and builds for every companion in the game.
  • Walkthroughs for main quests, boss battle strategies and the effects your choices have.
  • Complete chapter overviews.
  • Best weapons lists for each chapter.
  • Guides for optional dungeons, side quests, errands and solutions to puzzles.
  • Colony guides, including colony projects and their rewards.
  • A vast database of weapons, armor, accessories, abilities, talents and more!

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