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...e-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.

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!

In my righteous and Puritan view, it is merely another word for heretic. Let the heretics divide themselves into subtypes if they wish, they all scream just the same when on the pyre...

Edit: yes I run a Hereticus game

In my righteous and Puritan view, it is merely another word for heretic. Let the heretics divide themselves into subtypes if they wish, they all scream just the same when on the pyre...

Edit: yes I run a Hereticus game

Well said, brother. The pyres will choke the heavens and fill the air when the heretics meet their just demise.

'Recidivist' seems to be one of those words that 40k writers have latched on to for flavour, without any real concern about whether it's technically 100% accurate. I find that they mostly use the term to describe physically ordinary but resourceful criminals who might command forces of henchmen, but don't have planet-conquering designs of their own. It's used to describe Murdin Eyclone at the start of the first Eisenhorn book, if that helps. When I hear the term in a 40k context, I think 'recurring villain' but not 'campaign mastermind', an ordinary man or woman who operates independently, but at the behest of others. But still well beyond the level of your common street thugs or their bosses.

In 40k terms, I believe Gang leaders, Criminal masterminds and any "Master" level human NPC would gall into the category of "Residivist." Basically, All Heretics would be considered Recidivists but not all Recidivists would necessarily be Heretics! A Recidivist, like Drubbels mentioned, could be a common criminal. A Heretic operates against the larger Imperium in direct opposition to the will of the Emperor! (Hence the term!)

I've always looked at it as; a Heretic goes against the Emperor, a Recidivist goes 'against' the Imperium. Criminals, revolutionaries, all those who don't like the lines of the Adeptus for whatever reason that isn't turning against the God-Emperor.

In 40k terms, I believe Gang leaders, Criminal masterminds and any "Master" level human NPC would gall into the category of "Residivist." Basically, All Heretics would be considered Recidivists but not all Recidivists would necessarily be Heretics! A Recidivist, like Drubbels mentioned, could be a common criminal. A Heretic operates against the larger Imperium in direct opposition to the will of the Emperor! (Hence the term!)

Precisely. A 'Recidivist' is a posh term for a repeat offending criminal. Such an individual isn't necessarily a 'heretic' - it's quite possible to break local laws on a world without being guilty of any crime under Lex Imperialis - the body of 'federal' laws that the Adeptus Arbites are responsible for policing, because provided you include the basic tenets of 'worship the Emperor', 'meet the Tithe', 'suppress and contain mutants and psykers', and 'speak not unto the alien', a Lord-Governor can set the bar for 'civil' law (e.g. 'don't punch random passers-by in the face and steal their stuff') as high or low as he likes.

For example, stabbing someone is a local matter. If the Arbites see you do it, then they're probably going to intervene and arrest/execute you. But if they just get notified that it's happened, they're not going to spend any time thinking about it; that's the job of the local Enforcers/Sanctionaries/Magistratum/Whatever they happen to be called on the world, and the criminal is just a criminal, not a heretic. A repeat offender is a Recidivist.

If the corpse is an Administratum Scribe.....then it's the murder of a member of the Adeptus Terra, and as such an attack on the Imperium as an entity. That makes it an Arbites matter, and the murderer is a heretic in the eyes of the Adeptus Terra.

In 40k terms, I believe Gang leaders, Criminal masterminds and any "Master" level human NPC would gall into the category of "Residivist." Basically, All Heretics would be considered Recidivists but not all Recidivists would necessarily be Heretics! A Recidivist, like Drubbels mentioned, could be a common criminal. A Heretic operates against the larger Imperium in direct opposition to the will of the Emperor! (Hence the term!)

If the corpse is an Administratum Scribe.....then it's the murder of a member of the Adeptus Terra, and as such an attack on the Imperium as an entity. That makes it an Arbites matter, and the murderer is a heretic in the eyes of the Adeptus Terra.

I'd like to split hairs here just a little bit. In the above example, The crime IS an Arbites matter but might not result in the perp being labeled a Heretic. If the Perp is found to have killed the adept in the pursuit of a simple robbery that MIGHT not be considered Heresy. However, if said perp actually killed said adept at the behest of a local Cult leader; that would! Note that this doesn't really help the perp because your talking the difference between simple execution or Torture, interrogation and then execution!

It's important to note this difference because it's also really the dividing line from it being simply an Arbites matter and the Inquisition stepping in! Once actual Heresy is involved it becomes an Inquisition matter. Now that won't stop the Arbites from busting up the cult and simply sending a report (Since the Arbites and the Ordo Hereticus have a lot of overlap!) but still....

It's a term used in-setting for "career criminals" - those that actively engage in a lifestyle supported through illicit doings.

aka "Trashboat" LOL