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Warhammer 40000: Rogue Trader has an incredible secret ending you need to check out.
There’s never been a better time to be an old-school computer RPG fan – after the massive success of Baldur’s Gate 3, we were in the mood for even more turn-based action and adventure. And that’s why we’ve been bolting through Warhammer 40000: Rogue Trader. After more than a hundred hours of goring Chaos minions with a chainsword, we can definitively say that this game is amazing – and it has some amazing secrets. If you’ve got the patience and the resolve to follow a series of steps, you can unlock a secret ending. Not an easy take when a normal playthrough takes 100 hours or more to complete.
What’s this ending about? We’ll save spoilers for the end, but this is something we definitely were not expecting. This ending throws out canon and can lead to some massive changes to the Imperium of Man – reshaping the entire landscape of the Warhammer 40000: Rogue Trader setting. Is this wild ending ever going to be addressed anywhere else? No way. Is it great and should you play again to get it? Absolutely.
These are all the steps you’ll need to take to unlock the secret ending. Based on Steam Achievements, about 1% of players have earned this ending so far. Even if you don’t plan on replaying for dozens of hours, we’ll explain one of the endings we got. Like all the endings, there’s so much variation, we couldn’t test every single angle. Keep that in mind, and let’s dive into the many steps you’ll need to completely change the Imperium.
The Basics
To earn the secret ending, you must follow one of the three ending paths. There are three convictions you can choose – dogmatic, iconoclast, or heretic. You’ll need to generally stick with one of these three paths. We went with Iconoclast, so if you’re worried that one path doesn’t work, just follow Iconoclast to the end. You’ll need to choose it enough to reach at least Level 3 Conviction. You can earn higher conviction levels, but Level 3 were the highest checks we absolutely had to get to earn this ending.
Note: Here’s a quick series of steps that’ll put you on the right track for the ending. If you want to figure it out yourself, here’s what you need to do.
- Follow one conviction path and reach Level 3. Iconoclast is confirmed to work for this ending.
- Use the Personal Cogitator on your ship’s bridge and collect all the data it requires while progressing through the game.
- Follow the data and talk to the mysterious being that eventually appears. Don’t kill it or scare it away. Talk to it and answer every question it asks throughout the entire game.
If you follow those basic steps, you’ll be able to earn the secret ending. If you want more concrete details, let’s dig in deep. Before we continue, we have to issue a huge SPOILER WARNING for the rest of the game. We’ll be going through the entire game – all five acts – in order and what steps you’ll need to take. Let’s start with Act 1.
Act 1 Steps
In Act 1, you’ll really lock-in your conviction path depending on how you choose to respond to the events on the planet Raikad Minoris. This is the first major morality choice, and how you respond here should be how you respond to all future situations. The more conviction choices you make, the more you’ll level up that conviction and can pass higher speech checks.
- While in Act 1, you’ll also want to solve the Defective Servitors problem in the High Factotum. This is one of the earliest optional quests in the game and is very likely required before you reach Act 2.
- Late in Act 1, you’ll also find a Cogitator on your ship’s bridge. This is a disgusting human-powered computer. It’s also incredibly important for the secret ending. Keep the Cogitator in mind.
Act 2 & 3 Steps
Once you’re in Act 2, you’ll be able to start an optional quest to find data for the Cogitator on your ship’s bridge. Use the computer to get a quest that shows the locations of two data packets. In Act 2, you’ll be free to visit three different planets. On two of the planets, you’ll get side-quests to collect data for the Cogitator. This step must be completed for the secret ending and can be done in Act 3.
Data Location #1
- One piece of data is located on the planet Kiava Gamma. Reach the area right before the end boss of the main quest on this planet. There’s a broken transport on the main path with a gear you can collect by disabling the break. Take the gear into a nearby room and use the Cogitator terminal. Insert the gear to unlock a hidden path that leads to the data. Watch out for traps on the way in and you’ll get one of the two important quest items.
Data Location #2
- The second piece of data is on the planet Dargonus. Access your private quarters bedroom and interact with a book on the shelves to unlock a secret room with a hidden safe. In the secret room, go through all the optional tasks – read books, listen to music, etc. By combining the right options, you’ll be able to unlock the safe. With both pieces, return to the Cogitator. If you don’t finish both of these quests before Act 2 is done, don’t worry – they can still be done in Act 3. We can confirm it worked for us.
After finishing both quests, progress in either Act 2 or Act 3 and eventually you’ll get directed to return to the Cogitator. At this point, you’ll meet a strange entity called Nomos. Whatever you do, DO NOT kill Nomos. Also, you want to be relatively polite – don’t antagonize it. Nomos is the key to the secret ending, so we’ll want to keep this thing around. Do it before the end of Act 3.
Later, Nomos will appear at your palace before the coronation – it is very curious and will ask you a lot of questions. You’ll get a warning before talking to your coordinator. He’ll say there’s a Cogitator with Pascal you need to talk to first. You MUST go visit the Cogitator here. Answer Nomos’s questions according to your conviction. Don’t skip speaking to him. And that’s it for both Act 2 and Act 3. These are the most important steps for unlocking the ending.
Act 4 Steps
Now Nomos will reappear multiple times, allowing you to talk to it. Go through all of Nomos’s dialogue options whenever you get the chance. We don’t know how many times you need to talk to Nomos – or if you do at all – but you’re better off talking as many times as possible.
After that, a rogue Techpriest will stowaway on your ship. Don’t kill him or eject him. Instead, you’ll want to work with him. Allow the Techpriest to eventually interact with Nomos. This is also very, very important for unlocking the secret ending.
Talk to Nomos and acquire enough data. This will unlock a quest about the place of Nomos’s birth. Complete this quest and you’ll unlock ‘The Possessed Ship’ achievement. If you get the achievement, you’ll know you’re on the right track.
Act 5 Steps
We’re almost there. While exploring uncharted space in Act 5, you’ll eventually find the location of a Necron Tomb World called Epitaph. Progress the story and Nomos will confront the player. He’ll ask to join you for the final battle and possess the body of the stowaway Techpriest from Act 4. Agree to this and make sure Nomos is protected when he enters battle. The C’thon does not normally target Nomos, and Nomos gives you extra turns, making this fight a little easier.
Keep Nomos alive for the final boss against the unchained C’thon. This fight is tricky, so check the status effects of the boss to learn more about all his weird gimmicks. After defeating the Star God with Nomos still alive by your side, you’ll be able to get the secret ending. Agree to let Nomos merge with the C’thon, becoming a fully-powered Star God himself.
Ending
And that leads to a wild ending. The C’thon are so powerful, their very existence alters the fabric of reality, and now Nomos can warp the universe based on your shared view of morality. Because I followed the Iconoclast Path, Nomos decided to help my character create a new society away from the Imperium – and this even lead to war with the Imperium itself.
Depending on your choices, once loyal officers may switch sides and join your new society. And with Nomos’s help, your society can survive and thrive away from the hellish existence of the Imperium. This is one of the strangest endings to a Warhammer 40,000 game I’ve ever experienced. A game where you can actually try to make things better for the people? Who would think that was even possible.
I’m sure convincing Nomos to follow a dogmatic or heretical path would lead to far less hopeful futures in Warhammer 40000: Rogue Trader. But in the grim darkness of the far future, a little hope might be the most unexpected thing of all. Whatever conclusion you pick, this is an awesome ending that can change wildly by how you interacted with your characters, what factions you helped and what quests you completed.
