"Thieves don't get sent to Mundsen Keep, just assigned to the Dock Watch."
- —Common Altdorf joke[3a]
The Dock Watch patrols the famed Street of a Hundred Taverns in Altdorf.
The Dock Watch is a division of the Altdorf Watch based in the Docklands neighborhood. They are headquartered at the Luitpoldstrasse Watch Station,[2a] and thus are also called the Luitpoldstrasse District,[3b] and their district extends up the Street of a Hundred Taverns.[2b] Although the watchmen see themselves as hard-nosed enforcers of law and order, they are notorious for supplementing their income with regular bribes.[4a]
Harald Kleindeinst was captain of the Dock Watch until 2503 IC.[5a] Dickon was the captain during the Fog Riots. His predecessor was Gebhardt.[3c]
The watch code number of the Luitpoldstrasse District, displayed on the badges of all its watchmen, is 317.[3b] Common folk joke that 317 is the number of bribes these watchmen receive in a week.[4a]
Activities[]
The Dock Watch follow a strategy of making their presence felt, believing that the Docklands will be more lawful the more prominent and visible they are. Watchmen harass ruffians, frisk dockers, and search warehouses in order to throw their weight around.[4a]
But the Dock Watch are notoriously corrupt,[1b] and many of their activities are aimed at maximising the bribes they receive. Individual watchmen put their bribes into a pool at the Luitpoldstrasse station, which is divided up at the end of the week into shares based on seniority.[4a]
The members of the Dock Watch, however, do not view their venality as a sin. Instead, they think of bribery as a supplement to their meagre wages, and fair compensation for their difficult jobs.[4a] If anybody should ask a watchmen about the state of law and order in the Docklands, they would be give the typical excuse: "We're undermanned!"[2a]
Luitpoldstrasse Watch Station[]
The Luitpoldstrasse Watch Station is the largest watch house in the Docklands,[4a] the closest station to the famed Street of a Hundred Taverns,[2a] and the headquarters of the Dock Watch.[2a] There are jail cells under the watch station.[2b]
Rumours speak of a storeroom in the back of the station where the watchmen pool their confiscated goods.[2a] The rumours are in fact true: a strongroom deep within the watch station holds a variety of items, including confiscated valuables which will be sold to pawn shops to further enrich the watchmen. Dangerous objects are also stored safely there.[4a]
A bronze statue of Verena, the goddess of law and knowledge kept here includes a secret compartment which contains the silver bribes that the Dock Watch receives each week.[4a]
Atrocities Komission[]
Harald Kleindeinst leads his own division of the Dock Watch, called the Atrocities Komission, which is responsible for investigating pattern murders and other unusual and violent crimes. The komission consists of Harald and a few clerks, and also regularly employs Rosanna Ophuls. Although poorly-funded and overworked, it has succeeded in bringing several murderers and crime bosses to justice.[4a]
Allies[]
The Dock Watch have an under-the-table alliance with the Hooks, the criminal gang that controls the Docklands' waterfront, and will allow the gang to perform criminal actions unmolested. The Hooks, meanwhile, must restrict their activities to the Docklands in order to receive this protection. The Dock Watch also enlists the Hooks to rough up any enemies of the Watch that it would be politically inconvenient for them to deal with overtly.[1b]
Some aspects of this alliance are publicly known. For instance, it's a poorly kept secret that the Citizens' Vigilance Committees set up by the watch are simply a front for extrajudicial actions by the Hooks.[1a]
There's also a clandestine agreement between the Dock Watch and the Magisters of the Amethyst Order by which the wizards help the watchmen identify cadavers, and the watchmen hand over to the wizards any arcane artefacts they confiscate.[4a]
Canon Conflict[]
Earlier sources indicate that the Dock Watch is notoriously corrupt. Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition's Altdorf: Crown of the Empire, although it emphasizes the venality of the Docklands' watchmen, states that they are neither more nor less corrupt than the typical Altdorf watch district.