Marshal Authority
The Marshal Codex defines what the Marshal Authority is meant to be.
It does not define what every individual Marshal is.
Marshals are people—drawn from many worlds, cultures, and pasts—and not all of them adhere perfectly, or at all, to the Codex they are sworn to uphold.
While the Codex is absolute in law, its enforcement is not perfectly uniform.
Some Marshals:
Interpret the Codex too broadly
Enforce it selectively
Ignore its limitations
Use it as justification rather than guidance
Others abandon it entirely.
Such behavior is classified internally as Deviation.
Soft Deviation
“Creative” interpretation of Articles
Ignoring procedural safeguards
Turning a blind eye for convenience
Pragmatic Corruption
Taking bribes
Allowing criminals to operate in exchange for information
Trading enforcement for favors
Hard Corruption
Acting as cartel enforcers
Selling warrants
Fabricating charges
Using the badge to settle personal scores
Total Break
Operating as criminals while wearing Marshal authority
Enforcing personal law
Engaging in atrocities under the badge
At this point, the individual is no longer a Marshal in function, only in appearance.
The Marshal Authority is not ignorant of corruption within its ranks.
However:
Oversight is slow
Investigations are dangerous
Jurisdictional politics interfere
Some Marshals protect their own
As a result, dirty Marshals can operate for long periods, especially in frontier or unstable regions.
Exposing a corrupt Marshal is:
Legally complex
Personally dangerous
Politically volatile
Witnesses disappear.
Evidence vanishes.
Accidents happen.
This is why many choose silence—or flight.
“The Codex is clean.
The hands holding it aren’t always.”
“Never fear the badge alone.
Fear the one who stops quoting the book.”
A Marshal enforcing non-Codex laws is a red flag
Excessive force without Article citation implies deviation
Conflicting Marshal actions suggest internal fracture
Players may encounter:
Honest Marshals bound by law
Dirty Marshals abusing authority
Marshals hunting other Marshals
Corruption does not invalidate the Codex—it highlights its importance.
Default Marshals to Codex-adherent
Make dirty Marshals noticeable, tense, and story-relevant
Deviation should feel wrong, unsettling, and dangerous
If a Marshal cannot cite the Codex, they are likely lying—or hiding something
“The law doesn’t fail.
People do.”
This document ensures the Fractured Reach can support:
Moral ambiguity
Corrupt authority figures
Lawful allies
Internal conflicts
…without ever losing its legal backbone.