The Arbitrator
Source: Necromunda Core Rulebook (2023)
Running a campaign can be like telling a good story – albeit one of desperate gang warfare, brutal underhive societies and violent criminals. It is the Arbitrator’s job to bring this tale to life, often playing the role of the antagonists and the uncaring universe that opposes the gangs in their rise to power. This can be a demanding role – but also a very rewarding one – and a well-arbitrated campaign will be one the players remember for a long time to come.
In any campaign, the Arbitrator’s role is to keep track of the action, make sure that the players are informed as to the rise and fall of their opponents, and to decide when the campaign has reached its conclusion. These are the basic responsibilities of an Arbitrator, but if they choose, there are many different ways for them to shape the course of their campaign. As masters of the campaign, they might choose to introduce random sub-plots, tasks thrust upon gangs by their superiors within the House structure that, should they complete them, may prove valuable. Arbitrators can also create their own battlefields for the players in their campaign to battle over, rather than leaving players to set up their own terrain. Battlefields can be built to reflect unique locations, such as partially submerged domes, bustling settlements or hive-fungi arboretums, pitting gangs as much against the environment as each other. How large a part the Arbitrator plays in their own campaign is up to them, and some Arbitrators might like to create complex story arcs with set events, while others may choose to just add a few random events to spice things up.
Campaigns Without Arbitrators
Sometimes, there might only be a few players in a campaign, or none of the players might want to take on the role of the Arbitrator. In these cases, it is still possible to play a Necromunda campaign, with each player taking care of their own pre- and post-battle bookkeeping and the players keeping track themselves of which territories they hold and so forth.
To add some variety to these campaigns, the players can use the House Sub-Plots and may decide to use a narrative scenario rather than rolling on the Scenario table as normal.