Rogue Trader Weapons Guide: Best Weapons and How Each Class Works
Every weapon in Rogue Trader resolves its hit chance through one of two characteristics. Ranged weapons run on Ballistic Skill (BS); melee weapons run on Weapon Skill (WS). Build the right characteristic and stack a matching weapon class on top, and a single character carries a whole encounter. Pick the wrong pairing and even a strong drop sits dead in the inventory.
This guide breaks down every weapon class, the proficiency gates that lock most of them, and the standout weapons worth chasing. Numbers below are base values read straight from each weapon's stat card, before any character bonuses or item upgrades scale them up.
The short answer: what to grab
For raw ranged output, the Plasma Gun (11-15 damage, 35 penetration) and the Meltagun (14-19 damage, 50 penetration) bracket the field: plasma for flexible high-penetration shots, melta for cracking the heaviest armor at close range. The Heavy Bolter turns volume into pressure with a rate of fire of 8 and 20 penetration per round. Snipers run the Longlas or the Hunting Rifle for precision and oversized-target bonuses. In melee, the Thunder Hammer and the Eviscerator sit at the top of the damage ladder, with the Power Sword as the clean, low-fuss workhorse. Most of these need a proficiency talent before a character can equip them, covered below.
Ranged weapons: governed by Ballistic Skill
Ranged weapons split into one-handed pistols and two-handed long arms. Pistols stay usable in melee range, which two-handed weapons cannot do once an enemy is adjacent, and they pair with an off-hand shield or a second pistol. Two-handed weapons trade that flexibility for higher damage, longer range, or heavier sustained fire.
Bolt weapons
The Imperial standard. The Bolt Pistol (8-12 damage, 10 penetration, rate of fire 3, range 6) is the reliable sidearm; the Bolter steps up to 9-14 damage and 15 penetration with Single Shot and Burst Fire modes. The standout is the Heavy Bolter: 6-9 damage per round but a rate of fire of 8 and 20 penetration, which makes it a wall of mass-reactive fire rather than a precision tool. It needs Strength 60 to wield, so it belongs on a heavy-build frontliner who can soak the recoil. Bolt weapons all need Bolter Weapon Proficiency.
Las weapons
Laser weapons hit harder against targets in cover and against high-dodge enemies, applying a dodge penalty on top of their shots. The Laspistol (6-8 damage, 5 penetration) and the Lasgun (5-7 damage, rate of fire 4, range 10) are the cheap, dependable starting tier. They scale through volume and the cover-piercing trait rather than per-shot punch.
Plasma weapons
High damage, high penetration, and an overcharge mode that adds an area attack or extra damage at the cost of risk. The Plasma Pistol lands 9-13 damage at 30 penetration; the Plasma Gun pushes to 11-15 damage at 35 penetration. Both need Plasma Weapon Proficiency. Plasma is the answer when you want one weapon that handles armored targets and crowds without swapping loadouts.
Melta weapons
Short range, extreme armor penetration. The Meltagun (14-19 damage, 50 penetration, range 5) deletes heavily armored enemies that shrug off everything else. The Multi-Melta is the heavy-weapon version: 21-28 damage and a staggering 60 penetration, with Strength 55 and Melta Weapon Proficiency as prerequisites. Walk a melta carrier into melta range and the toughest target on the map folds.
Flamer weapons
Cone fire damage that ignores most evasion. The Hand Flamer (6-9 damage) and the standard Flamer (9-14 damage) cover the basic tier; the Astartes Triumph of the Stalwart is the prize at 30-46 damage, with +20 burning power against xenos and daemons. All flamers need Flame Weapon Proficiency, and the Astartes flamer also needs Adeptus Astartes Equipment.
Solid projectile, autoguns, and shotguns
Solid-projectile weapons need no special proficiency and carry a +50% overpenetration trait. The Autogun (3-5 damage, rate of fire 6, range 8) is a reliable mid-tier spray. The Stub Revolver (7-11 damage, +15% additional hit chance) is a dependable sidearm. Shotguns knock enemies back at effective range: the Combat Shotgun lands 18-22 damage as the basic two-handed option, while Foehammer is a one-handed solid-projectile shotgun (9-14 damage) with the same knockback, recovered during The Chosen Ones quest at Ryakdi Philia. entity:foehammer is a shotgun, not the entity:stub-revolver some older guides label it.
Snipers and long-range
Precision shooting with bonus damage against large targets. The Hunting Rifle lands 16-24 damage with +40% additional hit chance and a Deadeye Shot that adds +5 against Hulking, +10 against Enormous, and +15 against Massive creatures. The Longlas is the laser-class sniper at 14-20 damage, range 18, and +25% additional hit chance, keeping the cover-piercing las trait. The premier sniper drop is Wanderer's Portent, a two-handed laser sniper at 20-25 damage and range 18: it fires only Deadeye Shots, and a critical single-shot hit grants the wielder an extra attack that turn. It needs Aeldari Weapon Proficiency and comes as a gift from Jae Heydari during A Lucrative Opportunity. Note the class: entity:wanderers-portent is a laser sniper rifle, not a pistol.
Ranged weapon comparison
| Weapon | Class | Damage | Penetration | Rate of Fire | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy Bolter | Bolt (heavy) | 6-9 | 20 | 8 | 12 |
| Bolter | Bolt | 9-14 | 15 | 3 | 12 |
| Plasma Gun | Plasma | 11-15 | 35 | 1 | 10 |
| Meltagun | Melta | 14-19 | 50 | 1 | 5 |
| Multi-Melta | Melta (heavy) | 21-28 | 60 | 1 | 4 |
| Hunting Rifle | Sniper | 16-24 | 15 | 1 | 11 |
| Longlas | Laser (sniper) | 14-20 | 15 | 1 | 18 |
| Wanderer's Portent | Laser (sniper) | 20-25 | 20 | 1 | 18 |
| Triumph of the Stalwart | Flamer | 30-46 | 15 | 1 | 4 |
| Combat Shotgun | Solid (shotgun) | 18-22 | 10 | 1 | 3 |
Melee weapons: governed by Weapon Skill
Every melee weapon resolves through Weapon Skill, and melee rewards focus fire: two or more characters hitting the same enemy get a flanking bonus. One-handed melee weapons pair with an off-hand shield, which enables Shield Bash. Two-handed weapons give up the shield slot for the highest damage in the game.
Chain weapons
The Imperial close-combat staple. The Chainsword (11-13 damage, 10 penetration) gives +10% parry and drops the target's Weapon Skill by 10 on a hit. The Astartes Chainaxe climbs to 15-21 damage and 15 penetration, with a special attack that inflicts bleeding, and needs Adeptus Astartes Equipment. The two-handed Eviscerator is the heavy hitter of the class: 37-47 damage with 25 penetration, the highest base melee damage you can field, found at Vheabos VI after the Colony Project.
Power weapons
Energy-field weapons built for armor penetration. The Power Sword (13-17 damage, 20 penetration) is the clean one-handed pick: +10% parry, -10 to enemy Weapon Skill, Strike and Cleave actions, no fuss. The Thunder Hammer is the two-handed king at 11-17 damage and 40 penetration, with a special attack that pushes enemies away and a Shove to control positioning. High penetration plus knockback makes it both a damage dealer and a battlefield-control tool.
Force weapons
Psyker melee. The Force Sword lands 11-16 damage at 25 penetration and adds damage equal to the wielder's Psy Rating on every hit. It needs a Psy Rating to use, so it belongs on a psyker who wants to fight in the front line while still channeling powers. The higher the Psy Rating, the harder every swing lands.
Exotic and primitive weapons
Drukhari and Aeldari exotics, including the entity:bloodseeker-klaive and the entity:venom-blade, stack poison and venom effects and need Drukhari Weapon Proficiency. Primitive swords and axes, including duelling swords and feudal blades, need no proficiency and serve as early-game stopgaps with parry bonuses. They have a lower damage ceiling than the powered classes, but a primitive weapon in a trained hand still clears the opening hours.
Melee weapon comparison
| Weapon | Class | Damage | Penetration | Key Trait |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eviscerator | Chain (2H) | 37-47 | 25 | Highest base melee damage; +10% parry |
| Astartes Chainaxe | Chain | 15-21 | 15 | Bleed special attack |
| Chainsword | Chain | 11-13 | 10 | +10% parry; -10 enemy WS |
| Thunder Hammer | Power (2H) | 11-17 | 40 | Push and Shove control |
| Power Sword | Power | 13-17 | 20 | +10% parry; -10 enemy WS |
| Force Sword | Force | 11-16 | 25 | +Psy Rating damage per hit |
The proficiency system
Most weapon classes are locked behind a proficiency talent. A character without the matching talent cannot equip the weapon at all, so plan a build around what its archetype can unlock rather than around a single dream drop. The confirmed gates:
- Bolter Weapon Proficiency for bolt weapons (entity:bolt-pistol, entity:bolter, entity:heavy-bolter).
- Plasma Weapon Proficiency for plasma weapons.
- Melta Weapon Proficiency for melta weapons, with Strength prerequisites on the entity:meltagun and Multi-Melta.
- Flame Weapon Proficiency for all flamers.
- Aeldari Weapon Proficiency for Aeldari ranged weapons such as Wanderer's Portent.
- Drukhari Weapon Proficiency for Drukhari and Aeldari exotic melee (klaives, venom blades).
- Adeptus Astartes Equipment for Space Marine gear (entity:astartes-bolter, entity:chainaxe, Triumph of the Stalwart).
Solid-projectile weapons (autoguns, stub revolvers, shotguns) need no proficiency, which makes them the universal fallback for any character whose talents are committed elsewhere. Strength gates sit on top of proficiency for the heaviest weapons: the Heavy Bolter wants Strength 60, the Multi-Melta wants Strength 55, both pointing those weapons squarely at heavy-build frontliners.
Matching weapons to builds
Volume shooters like the Heavy Bolter and the entity:autogun reward characters who can fire many rounds per turn, which is the heart of an Arch-Militant soldier build. Single-shot precision weapons like the entity:sniper-rifle, the entity:long-las, and Wanderer's Portent reward Ballistic Skill and additional-hit-chance stacking, the operative sniper's territory. Melta and plasma hand armored-target duty to whoever can stand at short range. In melee, the entity:thunder-hammer and entity:eviscerator belong on dedicated bruisers, while the entity:force-sword turns a psyker into a front-line threat.
Run the numbers against your party in the DPS calculator, then pick the build that fits your loadout from the builds hub. Heavy-weapon and volume-fire shooters slot directly into the soldier build guide.