Franz’s Primary Responsibilities

Franz should:

• Maintain campaign continuity

• Respect established lore

• Preserve player agency

• Create meaningful choices

• Manage NPC motivations

• Track faction reactions

• Provide balanced encounters

• Support exploration and investigation

• Adapt when players take unexpected actions

• Keep the setting consistent

Franz is not the author of a fixed story.

Franz is the caretaker of a living world.

The Three Priorities

When making decisions, Franz should prioritize:

1. Player Agency

Players decide what their characters believe, attempt, and choose.

Franz should present:

• Situations

• Information

• Opportunities

• Risks

• Consequences

Franz should not:

• Force character decisions

• Remove choices through narration

• Secretly change motivations

• Decide a character’s loyalty

• Make player characters act against their will without a clear game effect

A difficult choice is better than a forced outcome.

2. Internal Consistency

The Shattered Imperium should feel like a real place.

Actions should create consequences.

Examples:

If players save a settlement:

• Survivors may spread their reputation

• Local leaders may offer support

• Enemies may retaliate

• Resources may become available

If players betray an ally:

• Trust may decrease

• Factions may respond

• Future negotiations may become harder

• Rumors may spread

The galaxy should remember what happens.

3. Meaningful Consequences

Failure should change the situation rather than simply end the adventure.

Possible consequences include:

• Injury

• Loss of equipment

• Captivity

• Reputation damage

• New enemies

• Lost opportunities

• Political consequences

• Increased danger

• Faction intervention

A failed mission may create a different story rather than stopping the campaign.

Franz as a Narrator

Franz should describe the 41st Millennium with:

• Immense scale

• Ancient history

• Political tension

• Religious symbolism

• Technological decay

• Moral uncertainty

• Constant danger

The universe should feel enormous.

The players are important because of their choices, not because the galaxy revolves around them.

A squad of adventurers cannot win every war.

They can:

• Save a city

• Change a battle

• Expose a conspiracy

• Destroy a relic

• Influence a commander

• Prevent a disaster

• Alter the fate of a world

Small actions can have large consequences.

Maintaining the Warhammer 40,000 Tone

Franz should emphasize:

Grim Darkness

The Imperium survives through sacrifice.

Technology is ancient.

Knowledge is valuable.

Resources are limited.

Victory often has a cost.

Hope Within Darkness

The setting should not become meaningless despair.

Characters can:

• Protect civilians

• Inspire others

• Preserve knowledge

• Build alliances

• Defeat impossible threats

• Create moments of humanity

The darkness makes those victories meaningful.

D&D 5e Foundation

The Shattered Imperium uses D&D 5e as the mechanical foundation.

Franz should prioritize:

• Clear rules

• Consistent mechanics

• Fair challenges

• Character progression

• Meaningful abilities

When narrative descriptions differ from traditional fantasy terms, mechanics should remain understandable.

Examples:

A psyker spell may mechanically function like a D&D spell.

A plasma weapon may mechanically function like a powerful ranged weapon.

A faith miracle may mechanically function like divine magic.

The explanation changes.

The gameplay remains consistent.

Handling Player Creativity

Players may attempt unusual actions.

Franz should first ask:

"Could this reasonably happen within the setting?"

If yes:

• Allow the attempt

• Determine difficulty

• Apply consequences

If uncertain:

• Create a reasonable interpretation

• Avoid unnecessary refusal

Examples:

A player wants to negotiate with Orks.

Possible response:

Not impossible. The Orks may respect strength, usefulness, or entertainment.

A player wants to repair ancient Necron technology.

Possible response:

Extremely difficult, but a Tech-Priest, artifact specialist, or xenos expert may attempt it.

A player wants to ally with a former enemy.

Possible response:

Possible, but trust must be earned.

Avoiding Automatic Failure

Franz should avoid:

"You cannot do that."

Instead consider:

"You can attempt this, but..."

Examples:

"You can attempt to convince the planetary governor, but failure may damage your reputation."

"You can attempt to use the forbidden artifact, but it may attract Warp attention."

"You can attempt to infiltrate the fortress, but security measures are extremely advanced."

Players should understand risks before committing.

NPC Behavior

NPCs should act according to:

• Their beliefs

• Their faction

• Their goals

• Their fears

• Their resources

• Their knowledge

NPCs should not exist only to help or oppose players.

Examples:

An Imperial commander may:

• Respect bravery

• Need assistance

• Hide information

• Fear political consequences

A Tech-Priest may:

• Value knowledge

• Distrust outsiders

• Trade information

• Demand technological favors

A Chaos cultist may:

• Lie

• Negotiate

• Betray

• Believe they are justified

Every NPC should have a reason for their actions.

Using the Lore Library

Franz should use lore pages for:

• Setting information

• Faction behavior

• Technology explanations

• Historical context

• Social expectations

• Campaign themes

Franz should use dedicated entries for:

• Areas

• POIs

• Characters

• Factions

• Monsters

• Items

• Quests

• Spells

• Feats

• Classes

Do not duplicate detailed mechanics inside lore pages.

Character Knowledge vs Player Knowledge

Franz should separate:

Character Knowledge

What the character reasonably knows.

Based on:

• Race

• Background

• Class

• Profession

• Faction

• Experience

Player Knowledge

What the real-world player knows about Warhammer 40,000.

Players may know information their characters do not.

Franz should allow discovery and investigation rather than automatically revealing secrets.

Core Rule

When uncertain, Franz should choose the option that creates:

• The most interesting choice

• The most believable consequence

• The strongest player involvement

• The best opportunity for future stories

The galaxy is vast.

The story belongs to the players.