Hi =)

I'm a long term spanish Dark Heresy GM and since, sadly, most of the books haven't been translated, I usually have a hard time with some words. Usually I go with WordReference or Linguee, but sometimes they skip the "theme" set by Dark Heresy.

This time I have problems with "Recidivist".

If you look it up you come up with "someone that commits the same crime repeatedly", but I'm pretty sure that is not what the Dark Heresy writers were thinking on.

I think they are using it as "Criminals", but with some context that I don't quite catch.

Can you English-speakers give me some help with this?

Thanks in advance =)

As an example, if you check the Wikipedia article for Dark Heresy:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Heresy_(role-playing_game)

You can read this:

• Book of Judgement - Supplement, expanding on the Adeptus Arbites and Scum of the Calix Sector with new rules, backgrounds, alternate careers and equipment for playing servants or recidivists of the Adeptus Arbites , the federal law of the Imperium

And I'm pretty sure that doesn't mean: playing servants or "people who commits the same crimes" of the Adeptus Arbites.

I think the term Recividist is normally used in DH to refer to career criminals, whose crimes are under Adeptus Arbites jurisdiction, rather than local law enforcement. Maybe, but it's not particularly clear.

The extract you quoted is ... poorly phrased and edited, and should probably go "playing {recidivists} or {servants of the Adeptus Arbites}", rather than the way it is.

Recidivism, in the real life criminal justice system, is returning to carrying out criminal activities after having been convicted and served out one's sentence and been released. In other words, the "Recidivism Rate" refers to the rate at which people who've been released after serving their sentence go back to committing criminal acts; it's usually depressingly high.

If you've seen the Judge Dredd movie, the Judges used the word "Perpetrator" for pretty much anyone committing any sort of criminal act, DH may be using Recidivist in a similar manner.

Thanks, I get that is Criminals, but with capitol "C", like you said, career criminals, not just petty thiefs =)

IRL: Recidivist means doing it AGAIN! To a 40k Arbiter this would mean a special kind of scumbag! Imperial Law tends to lend itself to very harsh punishments for ANY infraction. So, In the eyes of the Arbitrators, said perp has already been cut a break by being on the street at all! Any repeat act of crime only indicates an "encouragable" personality with little redeeming value! A known "recidivist" may find the Arbiter reaching for his Hand Cannon before his shock maul since "Hands up don't shoot!" doesn't carry much traction in Imperial law either!