Thursday, March 22, 2018

So you are now an Imperial Citizen!: A Player's 40K Reference Guide

(This is a cheeky intro to a reference guide for players to figure out how to be a character in the 41st millenium. Basically I will give different situations and stuff and then give bullet points to how one can achieve a goal or do a thing. These can be as simple as your character engaging in recreation to how one travels to how to infiltrate a cult. This is not really aimed at loremasters of 40k, but people that may not be overly familiar with the anachronistic buffet of themes and tropes found in 40k.)

Hail citizen! Your planet, ship, settlement, or otherwise now has the banner of the Aquila flying over it. Do not be frightened! You have been reunited with your brethren man through exploration, conquest, or other forms of reunification! Depending on your planet's culture, you may be confused to how other citizens like your live and work for the glory of the Emperor of Man. This is a primer to prepare you and your fellow citizens for introduction to Imperial culture. It may also prepare your planet for the designation changes given by the Adeptus Administratum. So strap in, make the sign, and follow this primer dutifully!

*This primer is sponsored by Aldermann Digestifs and Aperitifs; "light up and glow with Aldermann Lho!"*

Imperial Culture
Like a beautiful temple mosaic, the Imperium is made up of hundreds of different pieces with their own shapes and sizes. The patchwork of planets and systems that make up the Imperium can vary greatly. So can their local cultures. However, there are a few things an Imperial citizen from all reaches of the galaxy should value and cherish.
As an Imperial citizen, you should value:
  • Duty
  • Bravery
  • Labour
  • Tradition
  • Faith
  • Temperance
  • Selflessness and martyrdom
  • The Human Form
  • The God-Emperor of Mankind
  • Respect for the machine spirits
You should gird yourself with the armour of contempt for:
  • Dereliction of Duty
  • Cowardess
  • Slovenly Living
  • Change
  • Blasphemy
  • Selfishness
  • Major excesses of emotion, rage, passion, and indulgence
  • The Xenos Form
  • Heretical Cults
  • Chaos



Lifestyle Section



[Note, these are examples of different things, places, or jobs a person can do or go to. They are not limited to this. The only limit is imagination and maybe specific constraints from the lore.]
(Common Occupations)
A new citizen may wonder what his duty to the Emperor entails. There are a number a stations a citizen can occupy to best serve:

  • Manufactorums: These large factories contain metal machinery and tough workers building the war machines, weapons, vehicles, products, and other resources needed to oil the Imperium War Machine that keeps you safe! Remember, the Emperor protects!
  • Ratings: The hundreds of hardworking sailors aboard a voidship to the stars! These men and women keep these vast repositories of machine spirits healthy and happy. Ratings keep a voidship in tip-top shape, plug holes, man guns, and make sure these beautiful cathedrals to the Omnissiah sail the stars for millenia!
  • The Imperial Guard: Your lads are fighting, why aren't you? These men and women pick up the lasgun and ship out in the millions to defend planets near and far in the name of the Emperor!
  • Butcher Shops: Grox, it's what's for dinner! Workers use large machines to turn ornery cattle into delicious steak and other products. Every part of the animal is used from its meats to its fats and oils.
  • Agri-world Farms: Vast bread baskets that feed fellow citizens such as yourself! These are entire worlds designated to provide food and other resources for other planets and keep a citizen hardy and healthy for their labours.
  • Trade Schools: Schools for young citizens to learn their duty and place in the world. They teach a child the necessary skills for their work. Skills such as literacy to understand manufactorum machine instructions, how to field strip a rifle in the Imperial Guard, how to properly handle and weigh grox meat, how to take notes for scribework, and so on.
  • Performancy: The occupation for those outside of orthodox Imperial life, such as music, acrobatics, acting, poetry, and other arts.e
  • Universitariates: Schools exclusive mainly to noblemen, merchants, administratum clerks, and those wealthy enough to enroll themselves or their children. These teach the scholarly arts and sciences such as chymistry, heraldry, history, and other sciences. 
  • Enforcers: The wards of planetary law. These individuals maintain order and enforce the laws of the land. If you see suspicious actvity, report it to an enforcer directly or through vox. Always be vigilant against the alien, the mutant, and the heretic!
These are just a few jobs a citizen like you can do. Remember, labour leads to salvation!

(The Adeptes, or Higher Imperial Government)
The Adeptes are organizations that ensure the will of the Emperor is done. They are the higher offices of the Imperium that govern, administrate, and serve the Imperium on a galactic scale. There are many, but there are important or common ones a citizen may see.
  • Adeptus Terra- The Priesthood of Earth, the central organization that all the other adeptes answer to or are built from. Their ruling body is the High Lords of Terra, an oligarchical council that interprets the Emperor's will and puts it into action.
  • Adeptus Administratum- The grand and far-reaching administrative and bureaucratic division of the Adeptus Terra. 
  • Adeptus Telepathica- The organization dedicated to the recruitment and training of psykers in the Imperium. They often work in tandem with the Ordo Hereticus' Black Ships to gather psykers.
  • Adeptus Arbites- The galactic police force of the Imperium of Man. They enforce The Imperial Law (The Lex Imperialis). Often unconcerned with common crimes like murder or theft, they are mainly concerned with crimes that threaten the Imperium directly, involve Imperial Officials, or fundamentally threaten a world's security or safety.
  • Astra Militarum (or the Imperial Guard)- The state military of the Imperium of Man.
  • Imperial Fleet- The state navy of the Imperium of Man
  • Adptus Astartes- The Angels of Death, or Space Marines. These super soldiers are figures of legend to most citizens. 
These Adeptes are not under the direct rule of the Adeptus Terra and are autonomous. They are, however, expected to provide services to the greater Imperium. They also have members on the High Lords of Terra.
  • Adeptus Ministorum- The official state church of the Imperium built on the foundation of the Imperial Cult. 
  • Adepta Sororitas- An arm of the Adeptus Ministorum filled with faithful women of the Imperium. The Sororitas range from the caring order Hospitaller to the zealous orders Militant.
  • Adeptus Mechanicus- The tech-priesthood of Mars, These techpriests worship the omnissiah in their chapels by communing with machine spirits to build or fix technology, weapons, vehicles, armor, and perform other services.
  • Rogue Traders- A combination of interstellar explorer, merchant, and conquistador. 
Trust in your betters, citizen. 
"To know one's place is the greatest comfort, to excel within it is the greatest solace, and a master's contentment is the greatest reward."

— Codex Administratum Edition XXIIVC
(Transportation)
The Omnissiah has gifted us with metal beasts of burden to ferry us to our dutiful labour! For those not as blessed by the Machine God, beasts of flesh and bone carry their masters as the Emperor to men's souls.
  • Voidships- Gargantuan and magnificent cathedrals to the Omnissiah, voidships carry man through the void to the farthest reaches of the Imperium.
  • Flyers- Like the Emperor to his saints, these lift men up to the sky. Flyers include common cargo haulers, personal transports for dignitaries and powerful men, and powerful war machines.
  • Autocarriage- Wheeled, tracked, or skimmer transportation. Often found on a habway to work or in a hive's underbelly, 
  • Mag-rail- Public transportation systems for the common man. These are built in set paths above or below streets and through hive walls to bring a citizen to their righteous station.
  • Trains- Roaring machine spirits set on tracks that travel on land from settlement to settlement.
  • Steamers- Vast bulky machine spirits used for mass transport or agri-world processing.
  • Equine Animals- These range from a noble Terran steed to cyber or vatgrown creations to odd xenos breeds such as the Desoleum Glassteed.
  • Exotic Animal Mounts- The universe is vast like the reach of the Inquisition. It contains many animals tamed for transport or for war that do not fit in a standard equine template. These include aethexes, wyverns, giant reptiles, the flying marru, mukaali, the fierce Ursis, and more. 
Here are some methods of terrestrial travel:

  • Roads- range from dirt paths, basic streets, and paved roads to habways.
  • Air- Can be quick lifts via VTOL aircraft to perpendicular flights via (aerospace) flyers.
  • Tracked- Includes mass magrail systems to trains.


[I might continue the infomercial act later, here's some more plain stuff]

(Recreation)
Your character wants to have a good time. Here are some options:
  • Tavern- An establishment that holds food and drink that the common man is often found in after a shift. Here men and women talk, laugh, and decompress.
  • Radio- A common device found in homes or establishments. Used for propaganda and public announcements, but also used for entertainment including radio dramas, music, news broadcasts, and other shows.
  • Pict Show- The movies. These show serials, feature films, commercials, and propaganda on a big screen. Some use projectors like a modern cinema does, others use more advanced holovid technology to provide a 3D image.
  • Scrumball Game- 40k rugby. A pastime mentioned in the Caiaphas Cain novels. Can be seen in person, heard on a radio, or played with the girls and boys (but not with the boyz).
  • Theatre- The old arts are not dead. One can see musicals, plays, music performances, passion plays, and other performing arts. They are somewhat expensive and usually the purview of merchants and the nobility.
  • Fight pit- Places where human combatants fight each other or xeno beasts. Often found in carnivales. Lethality of the pits depends on location. Fight pits can range from deadly gladiatorial arenas to rough pugilism rings and martial arts schools.
  • Shooting Range- Different establishments catering to lawful or unlawful types have been built for those to train or show off their shooting prowess.
  • Fight school/club- A place for unarmed specialists to test their skills against each other. Also serve as schools for initiates to learn martial arts.
(Food, Drink, and Consumables)
Your character is hungry, thirsty, or wants something take off the edge:

They can go to:
  • Dining Halls- Basic cafeterias that serve commoners. May be located in or near manufactorums. Usually serve common staples, ration bars, and water. Filled with many rows of tables and benches.
  • Recaf House- Houses that performancer, scholarly types, and administratum workers gather at to drink different strains of recaf, eat pastries, smoke, and pass the time.
  • Restaurants- Higher class businesses that merchants, nobles (without world-class personal chefs), and those with scrip or the right influence can go to eat high class, expensive food and drink vintage amasec.
Where they may partake in:
  • Amasec- The common alcohol designation in the 41st millenium. Covers a variety of different alcoholic beverages from distilled wine to hard corn liquor. Amasec drinks include (but are not limited to) Valhallan Runaway (spiked tanna tea), Dammasine, Vostroyan Rotgun, Aldermann Bourbon, Harakoni Whiskey, Squat Cornmeal, Old-Foiz, Rahzvod, and Wobble (alcoholic ploin juice)
  • Non-Alcoholic Drinks- For the younger or teetotaling citizen there is ploin juice, recaf (coffee), grox milk, tea (including regional Solian and Tanna [Valhallan] types), carbo (soda pops), and others.
  • Meats- Grox meat, Hetelfish, Horn-head, Snow-ox.
  • Carbs- Wheat, grain, rice, corn, and any Terran origin starch or sugar you can think of
  • Lho- Tobacco products. Come in cigarette, cigar, and pipe forms
  • Obscura- 40k Heroin. Illegal.
  • Spook- 40k LSD with a twist. Makes psykers slightly more powerful or makes non-psykers into psykers for a short time with a price
  • Lux- 40k Cocaine. Illegal.
For Members of the Holy Ordos of the Inquisition only

Investigation Section
You will be investigating many heresies as an acolyte of the inquisition. You may run into dead-ends or not be sure quite what to do. This guide will give you general guidelines on how to conduct investigations. This starts from the opening of an inquest to the purge at its conclusion.

Here general actions one can try in their investigations. They are not the only actions one can take, but they can be a starting place to figure out what to do

-Read
-Watch
-Call
-Question (Inquire about your subject)
-Investigate (Scrutinize, use Awareness or psyniscience)
-Eavesdrop
-Shadow
-Sneak
-Persuade
-Deceive
-Coerce (Intimidate, Command, etc.)
-Bribe
-Other



Places with information:
  • Adeptus Administratum
  • Universitariate
  • Librarium
  • Temple
  • Tavern
  • Guildhouse
  • Underworld Hangout- Seedy bars, clubs, etc.
  • Sanctionary (enforcer) Precinct- the equivalent of a police Station
  • Arbitrator Precinct- the equivalent of an FBI office mixed with a fortress. Also Judge Dredd judges.

People with Information:

  • Administratum Adept
  • Scholar
  • Savant
  • Priest
  • Ganger
  • Insurrati Oiler
  • Malefic Scholar
  • Renegade Psyker
  • Sanctionary
  • Arbitrator
Here are guidelines with a little more context added
I: Information Gathering
Your character wants to find known information on a subject. They can:
  • Go to the Adeptus Administratum- The administratum has vast repositories of knowledge, but are a bureaucracy that grinds slowly and not always finely.
  • Go to a Librarium- Librariums can be found in select scholarly or bureaucratic institutions. They contain authorized and sanitized information that is accessible to the public.
  • Read/Listen to the News- Planets may have local or state-owned news agencies that give reports about events and public messages. They may not give the whole story, but they can have useful info to follow.
  • Search through Inquisitorial Data: The Inquisition keeps extensive classified stores of information. They have info forbidden for public consumption based on past reports.
  • Ask around- Talk to the people on the street, information brokers, and experts/savants about different subjects. Ask cautiously, for there are prying eyes everywhere.
  • Call your Inquisitor- Your inquisitor is a veteran of many investigations and conflicts. They may have some know-how about different subjects; although they decide what you need to know.
  • Ask the enforcers/arbitrators- The organizations have records on subjects of criminal or lawful nature. Some may even have their own investigations with sophisticated techniques at information gathering.
  • Call a Peer- Ask an ally about it. People in low and high places listen and watch around themselves.

Your character needs to find an individual or group. They can:
  • Ask around- Use inquiry on the street. Be careful with what you ask.
  • Call around- Use inquiry on a vox phone. Vox comms can stretch hive wide on hiveworlds and further on civilized worlds without meters of metal to get in the way. 
  • Search around- Use scrutiny or survival at certain places to find clues and track targets. Even simple things such as matchbooks, letters, and notes can lead an acolyte to finding someone.
  • Shadow- Follow people around stealthily. People have things they do in the dark they don't want others to see. 
  • Spy- One can use comm leeches to listen in on vox calls, be hidden and capture audio, or take information from cogitators. An acolyte can intercept letters, missives, couriers, or even the more tech blessed may be able to spy into a suspected heretic's cogitator. 
  • Peer- Ask an ally about it. They may be able to give leads, set up meetings, or find your target themselves.
  • Hire a bounty hunter- They can find and bring targets for a price. 
  • Go to a sanctionary or arbites precinct- They may have files on the person. They may be interested in the person or group as well if they are a common criminal or a tithe breaker.
II: Interacting with Targets
Your character has found the individual or group and wants to investigate it. They can:
  • Shadow- Follow people around using stealth. See above.
  • Throw around Authority- The authority and fear inspired by the adeptes and the Inquisition can open many doors. It may also close some.
  • Charm- Win targets over with your persuasive and honey-dipped words. 
  • Infiltrate- Use deception to get close to the group. Disguises and stories can help with this. 
  • Intimidate- Scare some members of the group to gain information.
  • Interrogate- Set someone in a room and spend the time to gain any information out of them. They may save you time from busting heads down the street by giving you key information.
  • Sneak around- Sneak or deceive your way into the places the groups frequent or live in. 
  • Search for clues- Use scrutiny, awareness, and maybe even psyniscience to investigate to uncover heresy. 
  • Peer- See if an ally can help you in investigating the group or even infiltrating it. 

III: Purging Targets
Your character has deemed the individual or group dangerous and needs to be stopped. They can:
  • Take on the group as a warband. Storm the place by themselves
  • Use peers and your inquisitor to provide resources for a purge. Gather men, weapons, and maybe even vehicles to destroy cults and the threats they're hiding.
  • Use your infiltration to undermine the group from within. 
  • Call local enforcers/arbitrators. It is their job to uphold local laws to serve their masters. They may lend men to a raid or arrest suspects in an investigation.
  • Hire groups to attack targets.
  • Expose the group
You want to hire a group or individual to attack a group or individual
You can bring or send
  • Bounty Hunters
  • Gangers
  • Redemptionists
  • Death Cultists
  • Guardsmen
  • Mercenaries (Hired Lasguns)
  • Peer groups
You can call and attempt to get help from
  • Enforcers
  • Arbitrators
  • Peers



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