Lancer vs Rogue Trader
Compare Lancer and Rogue Trader side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Lancer | Rogue Trader | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Scifi | Scifi |
| Tags | Tactical, Mecha, Character Building, Heroic, Crunchy | Space Opera, Grimdark, Licensed IP, Ship-Based, Career-Based, Crunchy, Exploration, Domain Management, Corruption, Fear & Stress Mechanics |
| Core Mechanic | Narrative scenes use d20 roll-over (10+ succeeds), with backgrounds granting advantage and triggers adding flat bonuses. Mech combat is grid-based and tactical: no initiative, players and NPCs alternate turns. Pilots progress through License Levels (LL0–LL12), unlocking new chassis, weapons, and systems across five manufacturers with 30+ mech frames. | Roll d100 equal to or under a characteristic or skill after a difficulty modifier between +60 and -60. Each full 10 points under the target adds a degree of success, and each full 10 points over adds a degree of failure. Fate Points let a character re-roll a failed test, add +10 before rolling, or gain a degree of success. Spent Fate Points return at the start of the next session. |
| Dice | d20 + d6 | d100 |
| Complexity | High | High |
| Accessibility | High | High |
| Runnability | Very High | Very High |
| License | Lancer Third Party License | Proprietary |
| Third-Party Publishing | Not yet researched | No verified route found |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Cost | $$ | $$ |
| Publisher | Massif Press | Fantasy Flight Games |
| Year | 2019 | 2009 |
| Languages | English | English, French, German, Italian |
| Best For | Groups who want deep tactical mech combat with meaningful customization layered on top of accessible narrative play: giant robot enthusiasts seeking a modern alternative to BattleTech. | Groups who want a long campaign as the senior crew of a starship, growing a merchant dynasty through trade, exploration, and void battles in the Warhammer 40,000 setting. It suits tables that enjoy detailed d100 rules and want business ventures to drive the adventures. |
| Highlights | Free core PDF, extensive mech customization with 30+ frames, clean split between rules-light narrative and crunchy tactical combat, alternating activations remove initiative so both sides stay engaged | Profit Factor folds the dynasty's wealth, credit, and standing into one shared number that the group tests against to acquire gear, ships, and favours. Endeavours frame profit-seeking ventures as sets of objectives whose Achievement Points raise Profit Factor on completion. Starship combat divides each ship turn among the crew, with one Explorer manoeuvring, another firing, and the rest able to take actions such as emergency repairs or augury scans. |
| Considerations | Mech combat dominates: narrative half feels thin by comparison, steep learning curve from sheer volume of mech options, genre-locked to sci-fi mech fiction, requires grid/VTT for combat | Damage beyond a character's Wounds inflicts critical effects from tables organised by hit location and damage type, including permanent maiming and death. Insanity and Corruption Points build toward disorders and mutations, and a character who reaches 100 in either is removed from play. Gear normally comes from Acquisition tests against Profit Factor rather than tracked money, so groups that enjoy counting coins lose that layer. |