What do the arbites consider

There's always time to proclaim that they are The Laaaauuuuhw.

So if gangs are causing enough disruption that a planet is falling short on its tithes would they go after the gangs or the governor?

Either, depending on what they perceive the problem to be. Most likely the gangs, but they could decide he's a pretty shit governor and remove him for example.

They'll supress the gangs but the governor is dead, beyond a doubt. They'd go straight for the gangs and nothing but if maybe there were some hints of xenos or heretical influences, but generally the planetary governor is responsible for keeping order on their planet. Makes it easier to know who to shoot when things go sideways.

I would say, if you have the rare case of a sane arbitator judge and the governor didn't had the capability to stop the gangs with the power of his office alone, he may survive it. Otherwise both are dead.

I imagine there's a little grey area of things that are just serious enough to adress if the Arbiter is already present but not enough to call them in for it.

Though as others have said, they aren't here for local law.

>Letting petty gang warfare disrupt his/her sacred duty to the Imperium.
>Being so incompetent as to be incapable of handling it using the assets of a whole world at one's disposal.
>Being allowed to continue breathing and ruling despite it all.
That last one is not the actions of a 'sane' arbites, but of a soft-hearted radical in flagrant dereliction of duty. They should both be shot.

Genestealer cults or a rogue alpha-class psyker. may excuse the governor

Yeah, if there's evidence or hints at xeno/heretical/deamonic/warp influence, they might maybe not be shot. But this is a dangerous assumption still, seeing as a judge can just as well conclude that letting one's domain be infected by these forces and letting the rot get so bad as to affect the proper functioning of the world as well as the Tith is a clear sign of gross incompetence.

so they're more like space-fbi?

Space-feds is pretty apt. If they have to step in, it's generally because someone at the local level fucked up to the point that it threatens to reduce the planet's value to the Imperium, but things haven't yet degenerated into open military conflict.

I could imagine newly integrated worlds being a problem.
There's planets like Iocanthos which are effectively populated by roaming biker gangs. The Planetary Governor takes advantage of the local culture to maximise yields of Ghostfire pollen, but this probably isn't an option for most planets.
There's some places where a colonial governor can't do the job without outside resources, which might mean the Arbites.

Semi-related, I recommend the Shira Calpurnia trilogy to everyone. Great books, and it's nice reading about something that isn't marines for once.

Sort of, but they will intervene if their intelligence on the local populace indicates it, even if no breach has occurred. For example, if you look like a cult - Genestealers, Chaos, heretical Ecclesiarchy sect - that's going to cause trouble, they'll kill you dead, and nobody on the world - not even a General of the Militarum - can tell them to stop, other than (theoretically, though why would they) a Space Marine (and a ranking one at that), or an Inquisitor (or lately I suppose a Custode).

If it later turns out that you're just a bowling club with some natty fashion sense, tough shit. You looked like trouble.

Likewise the Arbites fleets - they move their strike teams around to lend support to worlds that look like they're going to be needing more LAW, so they do to an extent care about keeping the peace (though if a world were constantly undergoing civil war from two openly loyalist factions, as long as tithes were met they wouldn't give a shit), but they're not peace/police officers in the sense you would understand them, nor are they Judges in the 2000AD tradition (despite sharing some common development work and creatives), nor are they peacekeeping troops (the Guard is for that).

Why is she fighting Bayformers Megatron?

To answer the other point - I never heard about double agents, but they definitely have "Cult Handlers" type, there was even a special path for them in DH1. And with some other stuff double agent does not seem that impossible. "Proper" arbiters would scoff at them, but I can see them existing.

Though, that honestly sounds more "Inquisition" than "Arbites".

People spend so much time trying to limit the scope of Arbites but I just don't buy it. Arbites are probably one of the most visible representations of Imperial Authority to all humans. Their numbers probably rival that of the Guard and Marines combined but they are far more widely distributed across the galaxy.

One of the main mistakes that people make with law enforcement is thinking that Law is their only directive. Even though the Arbites and even all contemporary law enforcement have enough laws to punish you for anything, they are still more concerned with ORDER.

In this pursuit of ORDER I can see any Arbite persewing prosecution of ANY organized crime. In this way I feel like they have the resources and precedent to merge their agenda with any local law enforcement. By raising the bar of law enforcement on any given planet they assert authority and court power. In this way I believe the Arbites are the true keepers of the Imperium. Any mention of military conflict on an Imperial world without significant note of Arbite structure and command is a weak and ill informed strategic perspective.

But the real reason Arbites are always overlooked in 40K is because GW currently does not produce a miniature for them.

Why aren't you?

I think one of the more interesting topics is who pays for the Arbites? If it is strait from the Adeptas then I can see the the Arbites being a much more spread thin institution. But if the Arbites requisition resources directly from a municipality (Hive) then they would be a powerful local institution.

Much like a Governor tithes 10% of his PDF to the Imperial Guard. I imagine a percentage of his/her Imperial tithes goes directly to the Arbites for their local operations. Indeed a major part of the Arbites duties may be the ORDERLY collection of taxes/tithes. So every governor may have a vested interest in assuring the strength of their local Arbiter installation.

This direct local support of the Arbites would allow for a much broader and robust organization that other Imperial institutions.

If it has devolved to open scale military conflict, it is beyond the Arbites purview.

Excellent points.

What's the arbites going to do about a rebellion or a governor withholding the tithe? These problems sound like something that would take an army to solve.

>but the governor is dead, beyond a doubt
Not necessarily. The governor could have requested their help, have powerful connections, or answer to a very high ranking individual or group that can tell them to fuck off (Inquisitor, local Tech Priests, Space Marines)

Hell, why not make these guys all over the place. They are sure fun to fight in Necromunda.

If they are assuring the ORDERLY collection of taxes then they will sure be getting a decent cut. Not saying they would be corrupt and take it right off the top but I'm certain that the Orders Famulous would keep them well provisioned.

>rebellion
Set out in force to stop it.
Arbites have stormtrooper quality training, and military assets at their disposal.
> a governor withholding the tithe
Kick his shit in. Arbites are required to have security clearance and codes to nobles' domains.

The Arbites maintain a fortresses on each world and if the world turns anti-imperial the Arbites will defend in those fortresses all imperial agents of this world until imperial military forces retake the planet.

There is no reason to believe that the Arbites wouldn't be all over the place. It might be the the biggest thing that makes an Imperial world "Imperial".

Just because they aren't driving around in squad cars like the constabulary doesn't mean they won't be there to go WACO on a bunch Redemptionist zealots.

Arbites are obviously the gold standard of Heavy SWAT Teams. Its a level of armament that you don't want in common regular policing without some serious expertise and training. The arbites bring that kind of authority to a law enforcement situation.

A local authority with this level of heavy infantry would be too powerful. That's why you put the Imperial seal on these guys so every is clear about who is in charge.

>If it has devolved to open scale military conflict, it is beyond the Arbites purview.
What do Arbites generally do during an invasion, before and after standard Guard forces arrive?

But the foundation of all your intelligence will be built on Arbiter records. Would you ever fight in any Imperial city without having the local Judge in the briefing room with you? Even Space Marines wouldn't be that daft.

That's kind of what I feel is missing from this Helsreach series. For a series about the city under siege the Arbiters are noticeably missing.

They likely focus on keeping civil order. They wouldn't do this for the benefit of the populace but so the war effort isn't hindered.

Fall back to their fortresses with any and all Imperial personnel they can bring with them, turtle up and wait for back up from any Imperial authorities responding to their distress signal.
They may also try to deny as many easy targets to the enemy as possible on their way there.

Obviously, but they'd be there in an advisory role. The Arbites's 'jurisdiction' ended the minute guard/marine boots hit the ground.

I can't find any actual numbers for it, but it's implied that the arbites exist only in limited numbers just like all other Schola Progenium graduates.

They keep supply lines open, maintain communications, move refugees, maintain martial law, and suppress riots. They organize militias with the PDF and fight right next to the PDF at critical defensive points inside a city.

There is literally no part of a cities internal defence that the Arbites aren't involved. The Arbiters might not be on the walls fighting but they will be at every checkpoint inside the city and even be keeping supply lines open far outside the city.

Do I even need to mentioned their fortified precinct houses? These may be the hardest defences in the whole city. They are built with full military specifications and are designed for prolonged siges and to withstand full military assault. They also serve as arms depots and can supply a network of positions linked by tunnel throughout a city.

Arbites not only fight like hell during an invasion they also work like hell maintaining ORDER. Any infiltrator or drop troop can expect to face them and they are more heavily armored than most light troops that fill infiltration and drop troop rolls (yes this is 40K and there are all kinds of Marine bullshit exceptions to this statement).

Whatever, my take on it is sure a lot more interesting for the setting. Its would be great to have a distinct arcitype of authority to deal with on a gang level.

I get it but the Arbites wouldn't necessarily even be subordinate in military matters. They would be support your every move as your primary auxiliary. You may not pay attention to him yes, but he would sure be paying attention to you as a commander. Every move made by the military would be mirrored by a follow up reaction from the Arbites. And in this there may still be a tremendous volume of "Shadow War" level fighting going on.

Arbites are also going to be on the front lines of raids and probes. Having an arbiter position that can hold out long enough to tell you that your being flanked could decide a battle.

Having an Arbiter position that can hold out long enough for you to link up with them could win a battle.

More than any other troop, Arbiters should be accessible auxiliaris for any Imperial force. They are simply going to be where the action is going down every time.

Debatable. If you're hivegangers, arbites showing up should be a special kind of "shit just hit the fan" or "oh god where did we go wrong" kind of moment. Or even just a distant shadow that makes you want to steer clear from certain class of crimes because then They will come.

They have always been an acceptable punishment for outlaws in Necromunda. Anyone fighting them definitely gets the -3 on the outlaw table. You're always getting reported if you fight them but they still aren't intimately local forces so they might have a hard time point out exactly who you are. Which allow for the variability of outlaw table roll.

It's a great theme and fun force to add to the mix of Necromunda or any 40K skirmish game. That specter of authority has an effect of keeping everyone on their best behavior. Especially, secret Genestealer Cults posing as Delque gangs.

It's also worth remembering that there can be 'pseudo-Arbites' forces like Necromunda's Enforcers, who aren't "real Arbites" and answer to the local, planetary or sector authorities. That probably bulks their numbers out a lot on most civilised worlds, and even agri-worlds would have some sort of community police.

Arbites are to few to have any importance in large scale warfare, they are police forces not military forces even if they are highly armed. You wouldn't send a SWAT team to fulfill a military mission. Different area.
I remember that in Rogue Trader Arbites were used as city fighting force but they only made like 1% of the fighting force. A Arbites is vastly more valuable than a Guardsman, they represent the Imperial Law, you use them to instill fear on your popualtion and ensure order. In Deathwatch Arbites were used to ensure Imperial Rule on newly conquered worlds.

I still feel like Enforcers are under Arbiter jurisdiction. They may not be a fully indoctrinated Arbiter but they are definitely deputized under the same principles and authority. And the Arbites are responsible for their administration. The Enforcers sure have identical equipment to the Arbites and I'm pretty sure that the differences between the two has more to do with some kind of IP issue than any kind of cannon we need to concern ourselves with as independently minded Sci-Fi enthusiasts.

It would be cool to see a strictly local constable arcitype that was more lightly armored. I would dig something like Infinitie's Loup-Garous to fill this role.

I'm thinking about playing Infinity because if feels like you could use these miniatures in a variety of proxy rolls.

Regular gangs know not to rock the boat.

>they are definitely deputized under the same principles and authority.
They explicitly aren't, though? The enforcers work for planetary authorities. The arbites are an imperial authority.

The old City Fight codex talked about the importance of their roll extensively. Most urban battles are fought around positions and infrastructure.

Of course they talked extensively about a lot of stuff in Cityfight that didn't have GW support. Mainly CULTISTS!

I'm just saying, In any major battle on an Imperial world its completely reasonable to find a squad of Arbites tagging along or occupying a position somewhere on the battlefield.

The confusion usually comes from the perspective of interstellar travelers(the one we as audiences are most familiar with) simply using the word arbiter to lump together any and all planetary police force, cause fuck learning the intricate levels of law enforcement for each and every planet they land on. Calling them all arbiters gets the point across well enough.

But they always do and thats why its fun that Arbites are around.

Ok, silly me. I dare not contradict cannon lest the inquisition brand me heretic.

Why not break cannon? If the Arbiters do obtain funding locally like outlines then it would be very easy to support a galaxy wide institution with a uniform code.

It would make a lot more sense that whatever garbage Matt Ward or GW circa 2002 was producing.

Arbites is the last line of defence against any rebellion or invasion. They are very suspicious of PDF because they're more loyal to the governor than the imperium.

Their precinct is a fortress full of IG tanks and greater equipment so that they can hold off untill reinforcement arrives.

It's a major adeptus, they got a high lord, the estate imperialis gives them money directly.
Plus, from a lawyer's perspective, having a federal state with taxes as direct counterparts is a big no-no. You take everything in one go and redistribute it as you see fit.

Every planet pays its own enforcers, though.

They got strike cruisers

The schola doesn't provide all the recruits for the adepti. It just got blown out of proportion in 3rd edition. Otherwise they have problems finding all those officiers, sisters and basic clercks.

The Imperium probably has access to redundant sources. The AdMech got plans, as do the Arbites, as do the Assassins, as do the Officio HIghwayium, as do the Munitorum and the Ecclesiarchy just in case.

I don't know about IG tanks bro? That sounds a little extreme for the Arbites. But they can definitely keep half a chapter of Space Marines supplied with Bolt shells as soon as they make planet fall in a perimeter around a precinct house.

The Arbites might have a few missile launchers if they they are really getting suspicious of military rebellion. And their precinct house might have have several fixed las cannons linked into their power grid. But it's still going to be a defensive garrison build around fixed defences. I don't see them having better vehicles than a Rhino or Goliath. But ya the whole Necromunda heavy weapons list is open to them and we all know what kind of damage can be done with some creative tactics and the basic Necromunda weapons list.

>You wouldn't send a SWAT team to fulfill a military mission
Some countries do. Often they have gendarmes, i.e. police forces answering to the department of defence and/or part of the military.

Pic related, that's technically a french police vehicle. With a 90mm gun.

One BL book had them with leman russes.

It depends on the planet.
Notmally the have rhino, repressor, chimera, sentinels and valkyries.

Some planets have leman russ.
You can guess precincts in ultramar are armed like this.

Gangs. The Arbites have a small place in the fluff, but they're usually the last redoubt when the rest of the planet has been overwhelmed by disorder or rebellion. If the gangs are causing that much of a disruption, the Arbites would move in and the PDF would probably get mobilized too.

>They got strike cruisers
Ya they got strike cruisers... buried in a sea of Guard transports and Naval vessels.

Arbiters don't act unilaterally in major military endeavors. They are Auxiliaries. But it just happens that they are the best Imperial auxiliaries in the galaxy.

On the more populous planets - the ones that don't just have a Arbites officer in orbit over a feudal world - the Arbites have Rhinos, Repressors, a small fleet that's basically a mini-Space Marine tier cruiser level of ships, bolters, basically all the good shit.

I remember reading a short story where some Space Marines, brought in by an Inquisitor to basically fuck up a planet for heresy, made sure to keep the Arbites from operating before even going after the PDF - they were the only ones that could provide a serious threat to a chapter-level operation.

One Leman Russ is called creative requisition. A Lemun Russ squad is an Administrative misallocation of resources.

Generally speaking, the only time they get involved with gangs is when they get bored and decide to burn off some ammo at the end of the fiscal year and launch what amounts to a full scale invasion of the lower levels of a hive, shooting anything that moves until they've taken sufficient casualties and then go back to the upper hives.

Because I love the fact that Arbiters could legit just ignore a planetary coup against the governor since everyone involved is a God-Emperor fearing loyalist. They just want the ruler and his/her entourage dragged onto the streets and shot/beheaded/hanged/whatever. So long as the Tith is not interfered with, and all Imperial holdings considered sacred ground, they'll let it play out as a planetary matter.

Something very appropriate and Sith-like about it, where the eventual victor is accepted(provided they swear and have been swearing fealty to the Imperium the whole time, of course) and the loser seen as deserving of their fate and unworthy of their position.

Ya, if you are at the point that your fighting the Arbites on a planet things might not be salvageable or you might want to examine the validity of your objectives.

If your talking about counter insurgency or municipal interior defences the arbites still have the best records.

We're not talking about adeptus e-peen, but about whether or not the arbites have a chance to stop a rogue governor.
>governor starts acting though
>arbites lance strike his ass/blockade the planet

Arbites can and have straight up walked into an Imperial palace and arrested the Imperial Governor
They are above them in terms of legal power, they're commisars to a General. They won't abuse these powers because that goes against their mantra, but Governors know what they can do and normally leave them alone/include them in their rulings

The guard probably have the same plans.
I know the army got all the natural disasters plans in their folders here.
Granted, each organization probably has its own procedure in case the other go rogue.

Civil War is common occurance in the Imperium. There are mercantile House or corporations who are rich enough to hold their own fleet via Rogue Traders and with them they can wage their own little trade wars against other Houses as long as the Tithe keeps flowing.

If the threat is too much for them, and the grand provost marshall is aware, he can send in assassins to help the arbites.

There is also the local church with SoBs in it for some cooperation or indirect help.

Then the Arbiters are just to removed from the setting and there isn't even a reason for them to be martial. What your talking about removes them to far from Law and Order to be anything other temple security guards. They aren't just there as bodyguards and ceremonial watchmen.

If they are expanded out to be a much more widespread institution we begin to have a better view of common life in the Imperium. I for one feel like that is something severely lacking in 40K.

If we give the Arbites a direct hand in the ORDER of the Imperium then we can commonly represent them in tabletop combat. If they are some aloof institution that no one ever sees then they really have no way to assert the authority that they depend on. For most Imperial citizens an Arbiter is the most heavily armed and intimidating person they will ever see in their life. And this is a reminder that they still not as elite as the Space Marines of the Emperor.

That reminds me, I have to check if the third book got translation. Not that I would care if it's in english, but I bought the first two in my language, so it would look weird at the shelf.

Probably - remember, these guys are armed to the teeth. Even with the PDF loyal to the governor instead of being split like it might be, they could always do a strike on the palace directly - they have Rhinos, Chimeras, Repressors, that could carry several strike teams of men in carapace armor and with boltguns.

Even if they can't manage that, they'll hold for long enough to send a message out. Arbites Precinct-Fortresses are usually well defended, with plenty of Arbites and Tarantula turrets and riot gear that can easily be turned lethal. They may even survive to provide a safe landing for the relief forces.

No, it keeps the setting appropriately focused on war, violence and power. The Arbites are NOT here to make sure you live some kind of peaceful, 1st-world-like life. They are there to ensure that any and all threats to Imperial rule and the proper functioning of the planet's Tith are dealt with. Gang warfare, uprisings, civil wars, coups, shadow wars and all are NOT their concern unless these are influenced by xenos, heretics or deamons. They'll of course investigate them for such, but if found legit will simply jot it down as 'not my problem'.

This keeps nobles on their toes, keeps the fighting and the eternal war on the minds of every citizen and doesn't bog down the Arbites.

The God-Emperor is NOT widely seen as some cuddly, caring god but one of war and conquest. He demands you work, kill and die in His Glorious Name. The weak and inept should not be tolerated and if you can seize and keep power while remaining ever faithful to Him, do so.

I have no problems with your view of it, but I feel like it would lead to a less pointlessly violent setting(planet-side) while trivializing Imperial rule and order.

Unfortunately, the books are out of print and the used copies are VERY expensive.

If the local lord or planetary governor wants to look good for others they'll often send Arbites down into the underhive and essentially beat/shoot the shit out of anyone who looks shady. The Arbites could happen upon gang resources and ignite a small war between the two factions.

Hey I'm not saying Arbites even break 5% of the law enforcement of any planet. But if trends of crime are affecting economic or industrial efficiency. The Arbites are going to lay out new policy and will strike out against centers of criminal activity. They will use these raids as examples and to set standards of order with other local institutions of power.

Are they going after pickpockets and serial killers, no. But they are going after space pirates, smugglers, and crime lords. They are there to attack ORGANIZED crime (just like the FBI). I think that is legitimate target of Imperial authority because it is a incubator for larger rebelion.

If the Arbites aren't actively fighting for Law and Order what is the basis of their authority? Whats the point of the shotgun if you aren't actively engaging in urban combat?

I say, just let the archetype fulfill its role. We don't need to let every syllable GW utters dictate cannon. The whole Arcitype isn't even GW's IP anyway. Why not let Arbites fulfill the role they need to in tabletop skirmish?

If a planetary governor isn't paying tithes, I don't see the Arbites being able to do anything about it. That is a matter you call in the Guard to deal with.

If a regional warlord/group on a planet is not managing tithes, using PDF units as goons, and ejecting Imperial officials, then this sounds like a job for the Arbites. Any situation where you can't rely on local authority to deal with ORGANIZED criminal activity of measurable economic or ideological value you send in the Arbites.

They simply have the tools to deal with the job and are not locally influenced.

Well whats the Governor going to say about this? Nothing I suspect.

The Arbites get to look at everyone's taxes and can monitor everyone's communication feed. They take whatever action they feel is necessary to ensure the ORDERLY functioning of any Imperial world. They make sure the workers stay workers and the Aristocrats stay Aristocrats. And in this they achieve their primary goal of maintaining law and ORDER.

Yes ORDER is a code word for hierarchy.

If he stops paying it would be their job to apprehend him for judgement or simply kill him. If they fail the guard would be called in.

Lot's of a user's are giving you hard borders between Arbites being and not being involved, I have to question this answers. Yes in theory Arbites are only involved in enforcing Imperial Law and nothing else is their bag but it would be ignorant to say they are never otherwise involved. If they have the resources and the chief wants to be a good neighbour of course they're going to lend a hand with high-profile cases that they don't explicitly have to care about.

And doing that won't just be out of the goodness of their hearts crime is a web not an island, you need to keep your finger on the pulse or you'll be surprised by things your wern't even aware of thrill they dropped fully-formed into your jurisdiction. They also sharing a planet with everyone else, yes they could tell the governor to go fuck themselves but there's a thousand little way to make someone's life more difficult even when you in theory have no power over them.

As always the universe is a big place, in 40k every local situation will be unique.

arbites are 40K judge dredds.
local cops / planetary cops are confusing called arbites by retards who don't know the difference (most inhabitants of the imperium) and use the term interchangeably, even though only THE arbites are actual arbitors.

Why the fuck did Matt ward give necrons their own version of Arbites?

>If a planetary governor isn't paying tithes, I don't see the Arbites being able to do anything about it.
The governor will be killed(most likely by whoever was standing next to them when the Arbites enter the room) and replaced(by same person if found loyal to the Imperium and trying to actively undo the governor's incompetence the whole time). This is one of their explicit duties in maintaining proper Imperial rule.

I hear you bro. The Arbiters on my tabletop are there to kick ass and shoot anyone in their way. They will blow away Gangers, Scavvies, Spyers, Cultists or Redemptionists. They find the place of the highest crime on any planet and stick themselves in the middle of it. They have a list of name and if you're on it you are dead. They tell any constable, militia, or PDF in the area exactly what to do and disarm them if they don't do it. They escort Imperial Clerks, Engineers, or Eclisiary into an area and ensure they carry out their work without disruption or delay. They requisition whatever resources they need from local authorities and monitor local economies for signs of corruption or waste.

They kill criminals every day and their efforts have as much impact as a drop upon a raging river.

They are a symbol of violence and fear. Anywho witness them never forget the Imperiums Justice.

because matt ward is a fuckwit.

>this is the guy that decided spess muhreenz are so cool, OLDCRONS teamed up with them to fight stuff.

Well I'm mostly talking about the explicit duties of an Arbites in general. The same way the larger Imperium gives negative fucks about how a planet is run, so long as the Tithe is payed and xenos/heretics/mutants are treated as laid out by Imperial law.

This still doesn't mean that local Imperial agents won't have goals and agendas of their own. They'll make allies, foster local 'friendships' based on give-and-take, push for certain changes, expect certain privileges, and generaly swing their Imperial dicks around. These are all things a governor has to deal with, juggle, pit against each other and not be found wanting, cause there's a long list of nobles itching to replace them.

So the governor can't simply order the Arbites to put down a non-heretical, non-xenos civil war cause he fears he and all his allies will be purged. So, it's in his best interest to have already fostered a very close relationship with local Imperial authorities and given the higher-ups some ludicrously extravagant benefits under his rule. Benefits that go far above and beyond what they are rightly owed. Benefits that aren't garanteed to persist under new management.

Even if there are strict guidelines about where certain Imperial authorities begin and end, the whole thing is still made up of humans and any Governor that believes the Game of Thrones is only played with their local nobles is not long for this world.

This Chaos town looks so comfy

I think this is the biggest point that needs to be made on this thread.

>More than any other troop, Arbiters should be accessible auxiliaris for any Imperial force. They are simply going to be where the action is going down every time.

And that is it. They are the first ones to have to deal with the mess and the last ones cleaning it up. They are a reasonable presence on any tabletop finging alongside Imperial forces.

In any urban setting they are exactly where the shit is going down. In that way they are almost a terrain feature on any Imperial world. I would love to be able to deploy them with any Guard, Marine, or Mechanus army.

And I'm sure there are a hoard of people that would love to field a punitive battalion on its own.

So let me sign of this thread by saying... FUCK THE POLICE!

Is this SWAT or ATF?