OOC Info OOC: Pride's Place

Chatter, natter, converse- in an out of character way.

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A half-collapsed city of alabaster and gold fiercely governed by Eypharians. Even partially ruined, it is the crown of the desert and a worthy testament to old glories and rising powers.

OOC: Pride's Place

Postby Kaleidoscope on May 9th, 2017, 7:25 pm

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Thoughts On Slavery
A Brief Overview


[OOC:]
    As it is apparent that slavery is an important feature of Kaiphen's history, present, and future I thought it was a good idea to listen to Sayana & Rhodri and see if I could work out how any issues might be addressed. Therefore, here is a rough (read: very rough) draft of the history of slavery in the city and it's current state. Any feedback would be welcomed. :)
    ---
    -Note-
    I did consider whether visitors to the city would all have to become slaves, but decided that it was a) too unfair in an IC way, and b) would likely deter players from visiting/roleplaying in the city. Obviously there is a delicate balance between making a believable IC history and making a city that is accessible for players. Thanks for all your suggestions!

Slavery In Kaiphen
A Turbulent Past

It is unknown exactly whether Eypharians of the past kept slaves. After the Valterrian much information was lost, and in the 100 years spent in the tunnels and cellars any slaves (if indeed there were any in pre-Valterrian Eypharian society) would surely have taken the opportunity to cast off their chains and live a life of relative freedom. However, when the Eypharian race began to emerge again from under the desert, it became more and more desirable to have slave workers. Life in the beginning was tough for everyone involved- there was no chance for luxury or wealth, as the city needed to be rebuilt. Eypharian hands laid the first stones of the city, but as it developed and grew and society as a whole became better off, the need for slaves increased to work the jobs that the more wealthy eschewed.

In the beginning, slaves were simply the poorest in society, those who were starving, destitute, ill and dying. They were taken into the homes of the better off and allowed a place to stay, on the condition that they work for a living. Without payment, these citizens were destined for a life of slavery without many means of escape. It was an unfortunate life, but a necessary one. However, the cultural climate began to favour the Eypharian race, so much so that those Eypharians who were poor and destitute were usually given more chances to succeed, and as a result they started to avoid slavery altogether.

The attention turned to foreigners such as humans, who were now a more common sight in the city due to increased curiosity and wealth across Mizahar. They were often treated with contempt due to not being Eypharian, and it was easy to turn this contempt to outright capture into forced slavery. Any traveller that was not a trader was forced into slavery in this manner. But although this practice worked for a time, these slaves were restless, aggressive and rightly thought the practice was unfair. After a handful of expensive and disruptive uprisings, forced slavery of travellers was hastily smothered as uprisings threatened the economical stability of the city and trade began to falter. This allowed foreigners peace of mind again as they returned to the city (albeit with some wariness).

Yet now there was a problem. Eypharian slaves were few and far between, and the practice of ensnaring foreign travellers was stopped, meaning that foreign slaves were becoming rarer and rarer also. So a debate raged in the council until a solution was proposed that tried to offer the best of both worlds.
1) Criminals (excluding murderers, who were executed) were to be put through three steps of conditioning, and then sold into slavery as both punishment for their crimes and a way to better themselves through honest work. For Eypharians, there was always a chance to become a free citizen again as well, provided they proved themselves worthy through certain actions.
2) Visitors to the city were required to work as servants for half a year before they were allowed to seek their own employment. Although this is not as cheap as slavery, these well-travelled and thus usually more wealthy/skilled visitors were usually housed with more well-off families, where although they work a menial job, their intriguing tales and unique view of life were absorbed readily and they were often (not always) treated with kindness. However, if a visitor was proven to have not fitted in well, or had broken the law, mistreated their employers or otherwise got into the 'bad books', then they were to be made into a slave permanently, as a punishment for their crimes.
3) If you find yourself in financial difficulty, you were allowed to sell yourself into slavery, where you would have a secure and guaranteed life. This practice was usually done to alleviate family financial difficulties.
The numbers of slaves began to increase, but there were still teething problems. These swept the city into a slave uprising in the year of 437 AV, with many casualties. Prior to this, slaves were still treated with a great degree of injustice, where many of the rules were twisted or outright ignored and beatings were frequent. Those that were working as servants were often treated as slaves, and some owners would refuse to let them leave once that half year was over, and would instead make up a crime so that their servant would be forced to become a slave. But since that year, it became imperative to treat slaves well. Slaves have been important to Kaiphen since before many can remember, and to avoid further heartache, misery and blood-loss many Eypharians know that it is important to look after the ones that are keeping the city afloat.

The Three Steps

1) Discipline
    -First, a slave must know discipline. Life as a slave is very different to life as a freeman. Your time is not your own to spend how you wish, and other tasks that you might known about are now your daily life. The first step in any new slaves training then, is discipline. Violent slaves are punished where necessary, but always taught and convinced that this new life is better for them. Sometimes trainers utilise hypnotism to ease the more difficult slaves into their new life. It is vitally important that every slave knows that they are only in the situation they are in due to their own faults or problems, but that if they work well they will have a good life.
2) Knowledge
    -Discipline is embedded into everyday life for a new slave. This is brought into practice through lessons. A path is chosen for the slave, sometimes based on a pre-existing skill but otherwise chosen depending on what is in demand, and they are given training in these tasks. This happens until they can do it naturally, without complaints, escape, or errors. Slaves-in-training are never usually trained away from the slavers they are associated with.
3) Kindness
    -Throughout, it is important that slaves are treated with kindness. Of course, these individuals are seen as lesser by some of the population, but that does not mean you should treat them poorly. Although unsavoury behaviour towards slaves does still sometimes happen, slaves are required to be treated with kindness, and made to feel comfortable. This is to ensure that they do not have an uprising more than actually caring about their wellbeing, but there is an illusion of care that must be upheld if slaves are to be the productive workers the city needs.

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Slave Training & Acquisition
An Overview

There are two slave training encampments in Kaiphen. Both are old companies, formed many years ago in Kaiphen's past. One, the Soltza Company, is run and owned by the family of the Alazar, although the Alazar herself no longer has quite the same amount of power in the company. The second is run by a maverick named Muuna Fula, and is a place of sadness and a kind of twisted hope.

The Soltza Company
The Soltza Company is both a slaving business and a trading company, and is run by Powel Soltza, who took over the reigns when his sister became Alazar. They sell salt to other Mizaharian cities, and buy jewels from Riverfall [tbd]. Their company headquarters is located near the docks, and is where new slaves are housed and trained, before either being sold straight to the buyer or being sold on to the Aratazium Market. -OOC-The Aratazium Market is the general slave market for Kaiphen

The Chorad
Sometimes called the Kindly Captor, Muuna is the charismatic, down-to-earth woman with a soft voice and delightful smile who runs and manages the Chorad. She offers a service to the poorest in society. It is a service that is unpalatable for most, but the only option for some, which is why it is necessary. She pays mizas to take in young children that parents cannot support. She raises the children as if they are her own, teaching them, giving them a trade skill, giving them food and water and a life that they would otherwise have struggled to achieve. The only drawback is that they never lead a free life. Muuna raises the children until they are 16, and then sells them into the slave market.
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OOC: Pride's Place

Postby Kaleidoscope on May 9th, 2017, 9:06 pm

The Alazar & Family


I will re-edit this over and over as I fill in the blanks, but I finally found an image that my overly picky/perfectionist brain could cope with so I thought I'd upload it.

Her description is due an edit in light of recent discussions on slavery, but I'll be maintaining the ruthless, charismatic vibes. More of Mertana's family will be added soon, and I will begin writing up the palace location and posting it so that there is a solid foundation for developing the rest of the city.


ImageName: Mertana Soltza
Race: Eypharian
DoB: ...
PoB: Kaiphen
Title: Alazar, the Slaver Queen of Kaiphen
Skills: ...
Gnosis: None
Additional Info:
With straight black hair, caramel soft skin, and vicious blue eyes, Mertana exudes confidence and style. Believing she was destined to be the queen always helped, but a natural aptitude for commanding loyalty and respect did wonders for her reputation. With a successful slaving business and with booming trade with her company, Mertana became Alazar at 33. Generally respected by nobles, and hated or feared by those who are most vulnerable, she serves as a cold and constant reminder of Kaiphen's inequalities, and there have already been two attempts on her life.
Despite this, Alazar Mertana Soltza remains strong, and in her life has developed Kaiphen's trade, allowing the city to grow wealthy. The extra money hasn't been wasted, and she has re-invested it into the docks, the Architects, and the Academy, to whom she is indebted to for protecting her life.

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OOC: Pride's Place

Postby Sayana on May 10th, 2017, 12:32 am

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First I'm going to address Rhodri's input because whoo! another person interested in the development of Kaiphen.

I like the comments on slavery and I agree that there are different levels of slavery that took place in history (great examples there).

The note on corn surprised me. Although I'm not sure if cacti would be any better than corn. Maybe one might supplement the other. For any 'city' (rather than scattered tribes of nomads), agriculture of a crop(s) would be highly important. Hunter-gather types simply don't collect enough food for a dense population. Can cacti be produced in abundance? Does it produce enough food comparable to the amount of land it requires? These are important things to consider if people are to live in a city rather than spread out.

I also like the military concept. It mimics feudalism in many ways. The only thing I'm marginally concerned about is why no other desert races would see Kaiphen (and its river) as a highly desirable location and thus worth attacking. However, the general Mizahar population might still be too small for these kinds of conflicts and there may be other sources of water in Eyktol that are preferable to fighting the Eypharians.

The only reason why I asked the question about tactics, is that even though a culture might utilize any weapon they find, often there are cultural biases towards certain ones. For example, the Roman phalanx, the English archers, and the Mongol horsemen. The Roman phalanx would be impossible without the highly strict training that keeps formations together and working as a single unit. English archers I think came from the fact that archery was a 'peasant's weapon' and that at some point they needed the strength of all the peasants. Mongols obviously had many horses as part of their culture and way of life, so fighting on horseback stemmed from their culture.

Other things might be based on climate or availability of resources. If you don't have a good supply of workable iron, you won't have many full-plate knights. Also, if the days are scorching hot and the nights are freezing cold (like in a desert) it would be foolish to be wearing plate armor or you might get cooked alive (or feel like you were).

Post on slavery coming... :P


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OOC: Pride's Place

Postby Sayana on May 10th, 2017, 1:30 am

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Response to Slavery:
I'm going to quote sections to hopefully make things easier to follow.

-Note-
I did consider whether visitors to the city would all have to become slaves, but decided that it was a) too unfair in an IC way, and b) would likely deter players from visiting/roleplaying in the city. Obviously there is a delicate balance between making a believable IC history and making a city that is accessible for players. Thanks for all your suggestions!


Firstly, I think it's important both OOCly and ICly to allow visitors to enter the city. OOCly, for obvious roleplay purposes. ICly, for trade and prosperity. Also, for a secondary reason of sheer pride. What's the use of having a glorious city if others aren't allowed to look at it in awe? But the primary reason, trade brings about economic growth (loved your vlog on Alvadas's economic growth by the way). And if visitors, even who are not traders, are captured as slaves or treated badly then no one will come to visit or trade once word gets around. Do people visit the dark forest where no one returns alive to tell the tale? Nope. Unless you count the naïve adventurers. People also don't visit the barbaric city that people never return from and in which rumors of slavery spread like wildfire.

After the Valterrian much information was lost, and in the 100 years spent in the tunnels and cellars any slaves (if indeed there were any in pre-Valterrian Eypharian society) would surely have taken the opportunity to cast off their chains and live a life of relative freedom.


Yes :D

In the beginning, slaves were simply the poorest in society, those who were starving, destitute, ill and dying. They were taken into the homes of the better off and allowed a place to stay, on the condition that they work for a living.


Yes :D

After a handful of expensive and disruptive uprisings, forced slavery of travellers was hastily smothered as uprisings threatened the economical stability of the city and trade began to falter. This allowed foreigners peace of mind again as they returned to the city (albeit with some wariness).


Yes :D

1) Criminals (excluding murderers, who were executed) were to be put through three steps of conditioning, and then sold into slavery as both punishment for their crimes and a way to better themselves through honest work. For Eypharians, there was always a chance to become a free citizen again as well, provided they proved themselves worthy through certain actions.


Yes :D Additionally, this might be a good way for the state/government to earn money by selling the slave to the highest bidder. The Eypharians might have a 'fixed term' based on the severity of the crime, and therefore their price might differ somewhat. Although, it might be worth noting that slaves in history with a 'fixed term' (like the Irish indentured servants) were sometimes treated much worse because a master might work them nearly to death knowing that they only had a year or two left in their contract (so not worth it to keep their health up). It might be a similar dynamic in this situation since they were criminals, or might be different since they are Eypharian and part of the 'better race'.

2) Visitors to the city were required to work as servants for half a year before they were allowed to seek their own employment.


It might be worth noting that "Visitors who intended to stay in Kaiphen for an extended period of time were required..." Otherwise one might misinterpret the intention and think that a well-off Riverfall Akalak warrior who was visiting the city for personal interest or as a 'tourist' would then have to be required to 'slave away' instead of dishing out lots of money to the city by spending it on taverns/inns/material goods/places of interest.

3) If you find yourself in financial difficulty, you were allowed to sell yourself into slavery, where you would have a secure and guaranteed life. This practice was usually done to alleviate family financial difficulties.


Yes :D Although it might be worth mentioning or highlighting that it's not just to alleviate financial difficulties. It would prevent citizens from starving. Kaiphen does not strike me as a 'welfare state' and I think this is as close as you would get to 'welfare' for the very poor and homeless.

These swept the city into a slave uprising in the year of 437 AV, with many casualties.


Yes

Those that were working as servants were often treated as slaves, and some owners would refuse to let them leave once that half year was over, and would instead make up a crime so that their servant would be forced to become a slave.


Yes :D Although note the above caution of treating visitors like slaves.

1) Discipline


Yes

2) Knowledge


I feel like this is overrated in the description. Slaves should do the menial and labor intensive work. This is work that no one wants to do. If they have an existing skilled trade, a smart owner might make use of this. Also, there might be certain demands for more skilled work, but this would generally be "on the job training". There can be issues with slaves that are too knowledgeable or too intelligent, because they may find ways to beat the system or organize something like a revolt. (See Ravok for effective brainwashing of slaves).

3) Kindness


I feel like we flip flopped from one side all the way to the other, instead of finding a nice middle ground. People shouldn't be obligated to be 'nice' to slaves. People aren't always nice to their workers or servants. But workers have the option to leave, so people are 'nice enough' so they stay. I was toying with a detailed list of things you can or can't do to a slave. Here are a couple points I was considering (note: this is an incomplete list):
Slave Regulations Sample :
- Slaves may only be worked from sunrise to sunset and are to be given half a bell's break for each meal. Slaves who perform nightly duties are to work no more than the equivalent number of bells of the day.
- Slaves are to be provided three meals a day and one ration of meat per week.
- All beatings for minor offences (lack of work ethic, poor manners, etc) will use an implement no more than one foot in length, and without a sharp edge. Major offences (treason, breaking of city laws, etc) will be punished as decided by the owner and/or state (if city laws are broken).
- Slave families must be bought and sold as a group until the child is 14 years of age or older. Once the child is 14, the child can be separated from the family. If no other children remain, then the two parents may be separated.


Slave Training & Acquisition


I like the fact that there are two different slave companies. It adds to the competitiveness that seems to play a large role in the Kaiphen culture. I also like how they contrast in the way they treat slaves.



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OOC: Pride's Place

Postby Yisanareysin on May 17th, 2017, 12:58 am

How much competition is there between the two slaving companies? Offhand, it seems kind of like an issue of quantity verses quality, so they seem to be filling different niches in the market.
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OOC: Pride's Place

Postby Kaleidoscope on May 23rd, 2017, 9:57 pm

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OOC


Okay, so I'm not replying to the feedback. Yet. Instead, I'm going to list a few things that players could develop if they so wish to. Submissions would be entirely subject to my approval and scrutiny, but I would make sure to credit you. Promise! :) All I require is that you post here that you are intending to work on something, so that we don't have crossovers.

NPCs
- Date farmer [Use: teaching for PC farmers]
- Teacher [Use: (Pick one) Language/Cosmetology/Dance/Music/History/Study of Hereditary Features]
- Government advisor
- Litter carrier
- Slave x3 [I'll see where they'll fit in!]

NPC & Location Combinations
- Food stall & owner [Ingredients, such a raw goods, not prepared food]
- Society wo/man of a wealthy household [Use: party venue]
- Low class brothel & owner

It's possible I'll add more at a later date, but we'll see. Look to Alvadas' Development box to see templates. Discussions can be held here. Many of these are quite vague in terms of descriptions, but I encourage you to use your imagination. If something really doesn't fit, we can always change it after the fact. But it's always easier to work with something rather than nothing.

@Reysin: There might be competition where the two different branches try to take the other's niche.
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Postby Kaleidoscope on July 12th, 2017, 9:16 pm

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The Government & The Alazar of the Royal Family
Of formation, continuation, and location


The city has gone through subtle but important changes throughout the ages. In it's formation, the city was but a town of humans perched on a plentiful river delta. Governance was by council. Each important family had one representative who would go on this council of elders and the town would decide matters through discussion and votes. The youthful city got by very well using this method, as most of the early humans were in agreement with each other about how things should be run. Then their authority started to get threatened by invaders who lived further upstream. Their river was harmed, and suddenly the relaxed way of leadership showed it's flaws- endless discussions on how to defend their town and livelihoods delayed responses and the town suffered because of it.

The most enterprising representative then took control, and soon enough the city rebuffed attack and seized control of its destiny again. It was during this time however that the Eypharian race started to grow in prominence. Many in the city were amazed by the six-armed children and the river spirit Royet, and the public demanded that Eypha be given gifts, to begin with. Then she and her river spirit companion were given more and more, and as they grew older they were given the titles of Pressor and Pressorah- a name for leader in the old language of the Eypharians.

As the lady grew into her old age, and she lived until her 100's, she saw the startling rise of her children. On her death-bed, overseen by her husband only, it was said that she regretted ever been made leader. On her death, Royet the river spirit stepped down from leadership of the city and left, although no-one knew where. After this point, the rapidly expanding Eypharian population elected a new leader from their midst, one to take over the reigns of Pressor.

Over time, the human population dwindled and the Eypharian one took over, all the while Pressors and Pressorahs ruled as Kings and Queens. It was a golden age of growth and expansion. Single leadership was beneficial, apart from the few ineffectual leaders that sometimes graced the throne. As time progressed however, and Kaiphen was annexed by the Alahean Empire, many people started to lose faith in the Pressor/ahs. If the Valterrian hadn't happened, it would have been entirely possible that an uprising would happen. However, the forced retreat underground led to a blending of the people that had never truly happened before.

It was difficult to maintain the Pressor/ahs underground. Status and symbolic practices were hard to keep alive in the unstructured and plain tunnels. The Pressor of the time found his work cut out to make his voice heard, as all of his power, mainly in the form of royal guard and lots of money, didn't mean anything to those who simply struggled to survive. The Pressor leadership was cut down in a Dhani uprising, and after a few generations of disruption, the times of the Pressor/ahs were but a ghost memory for most. The name, 'Pressor/ah', was lost in this time period too.

After emerging from under the ground though, a system of government was required. The final years in the tunnels had taken the Eypharians back to their most basic roots: a council of the most experienced. This practice of leadership stayed for a period, during which the city started to get rebuilt. However, when a fragment of a record from the royal family was rediscovered, the council was disbanded in favour of forming a royal family to maintain the historic methods of governance. They had one final task: to search for the one with the most royal blood in their family. They searched through the few records they had so far managed to glean, and even interviewed those who claimed they were of royal blood. But every hopeful candidate turned out to be a mistake. In despair, they came up with a new solution: they reasoned that each and every Eypharian was part of a royal bloodline, so a leader could come from any family. It fell to them to choose who should first become the royal family, and the new leader. Their first selection was a family that had grown in importance due to their willingness to fight a tough but fair fight. It was a family that were respected for their helpfulness and their entrepreneurial spirit. They elected a young woman named Peya to be the leader, for she showed the most potential, and she ruled with the remnants of the council as her advisers. There was one final, seemingly inconsequential task left- to give the leader a name. A stone carving located near to the Golden Watchtower gave them an answer. A man was mentioned as an Alazar, someone who was written as high status. Upon advice that a leader must have a name, Peya seized the title Alazar and firmly engraved it into the psyche of the city. From then on, every leader has been named Alazar.

Now, the leadership of the city is undertaken by a two groups of people that work together symbiotically. The first is the leading Alazar, a singular, most respected figurehead of the royal family. An Alazar holds his or her title for life, but can become an Alazar at any point in their life. Upon his/her death, the council immediately requests that those families that wish to become the Royal Family submit their family records (containing family profits, any past family digressions or disgraces, and any notable achievements) as well as their candidate for Alazar. These are then assessed by the council, and sometimes even the subjects of Kaiphen if the decision is a close one, and the best one is announced as the newest Alazar. The family then moves into the Palace, while the Alazar becomes the leader and is given any training that he/she might need before being handed the reins.

This does not necessarily mean that a family has to leave once the Alazar dies. If that particular family is still the most successful and most loved, then they can simply apply again.

The Alazar's most important job is considered to be of city motivation. Alazars, and the royal family to some extent, are expected to make it their duty to promote the continuation of expansion and discovery of the past, and make it their duty to encourage historical values, festivals, and traditions. This means that the families that are the most traditional usually have an edge over more 'progressive' families.

The next most important (or perhaps most important) are the Council, named the Chorad, as 'six voices that work as one'. These are elected every year within the different groups in the city. Elections are held publicly, and are open to all who can read and write. (This includes children, who if they don't have an opinion of their own, usually copy their mother or father's vote). There is usually someone from the mines, someone from the docks, someone from the fighters, the merchants, the artists, etc. However, there are only ever six places available on the Council of the Chorad, a rule passed down from the past. Their positions are not infallible, they have to be constantly improving and looking to be of importance. One rule is that the ruling Alazar can remove someone from the Council should they be considered unwanted or ineffectual. Therefore, positions are held tightly once received.

Once on the Council or in the Royal Family of the Alazar, there is still a requirement for those individuals to work. So for instance, a Council member who is the most-respected Architect in their field would still have to work for the Architects, and the brother of the Pressor, a master swordsman, would still have to work as a swordsmaster. Their role as a Chorad or Royal Family member is treated as a civic duty, and not a job.
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Postby Sayana on July 12th, 2017, 10:45 pm

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Loving the update :D I have a few comments. Some are from chat that I'm just going to reiterate (so they don't get forgotten - I know it was late at night for you).

Monarchy vs Republic/Democracy:
In history, usually less advanced societies have Monarchies (even less advanced have crude leaderships with no rules about heirs, or sometimes religious leaders), while on the flip side, more advanced societies tend to have republics / democracies (think of Rome or many modern day countries).

I love the idea of Kaiphen having some sort of voting system/council, but I think it would be better reserved for their golden age rather than their period of bare survival, or even the founding. I could see the monarchy happening at the founding, and then evolving into something more democratic at the peak of the golden age. Maybe the remains of the democracy are few after the Valterrian (for some reason), or even better, maybe the Eypharians with their history obsessed culture, value the monarchy that was prevalent even earlier.

I definitely agree that a monarchy cannot survive when the world has collapsed (the Valterrian). But I don't think it would devolve into a democracy. It might devolve into some form of tribalism, with a couple of leaders each organizing a small group. Both Despotism and Theocracy were early forms of government. With Monarchy, the Republic, and Democracy coming later. (Thank you Civilization III). But joking aside, yes I learn a bunch of history from games I play, they typically (but not necessarily) trend that way based on societal advances.


Edit: As Dove pointed out below, Kaiphen's system follows how Rome went from a republic to having emperors. I should have checked my research before commenting.

Pressor / Pressorah origins:
Okay, this is just something really small that I thought might sound really nice linguistically and functionally. Could the origins of Pressor/Pressorah come from the word "Protector" in the old language? It also fits well if the Pressor is protecting against people who are stealing the water supply. (Small detail, that I don't mind too much either way).

History/dates:
It would be nice to have a couple of ball-park dates (eg. "In the first century after the Valterrian...."). Don't feel you need a date for everything, but just to get a better feeling of the timeline. Especially since this race/culture covets history so much.

Initial leadership:
I like the fact that they looked for the most 'qualified'. Although, you would have thought that someone who was qualified would have already been doing a lot of leading (and would currently have a group/followers). It's a little odd that the first leader was female. Men tend to be more ambitious for various reasons and they also tend to be more competent in military (protecting others) which is an admirable trait for leaders. But I don't mind too much, if there are good reasons for Peya to be the first leader.

I also like that the Alazar can be a repeat of the family, but not always.


"The Alazar's most important job is considered to be of city motivation."
This statement feels weak, and also what follows it. I makes me wonder, are they leading? Or are they not? It feels hollow. If it really is a hollow role, then maybe emphasize that the Council, or Chorad are the ones actually running the place.


Chorad: 'six voices that work as one'
Love it.

Children voting:
This feels a bit odd. Historically, only landowners could vote, then all adults could vote. What if a family has a huge number of kids and they just make their kids vote the same way that they do? Feels weird. (I know you're trying to make things different from modern day systems to add flavor).

Council as a job:
I like how the council member still has to do their original job. Perhaps they could be afforded a small sum for their additional work, but I think it's important for people to still see them as a productive member of society. This also fits in with traditional (or older) democracies/republics.


Credit: Shimoje
Last edited by Sayana on July 13th, 2017, 11:03 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby Dove Brown on July 13th, 2017, 8:49 am

Sayana wrote:Monarchy vs Republic/Democracy:
In history, usually less advanced societies have Monarchies (even less advanced have crude leaderships with no rules about heirs, or sometimes religious leaders), while on the flip side, more advanced societies tend to have republics / democracies (think of Rome or many modern day countries).


Actually, Sayana, it's following the same pattern as Rome did. Rome started as a republic, and then switched to monarchy (emperors) after several centuries as it got bigger.
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Postby Sayana on July 13th, 2017, 11:00 am

Oops, sorry. Now I feel rather silly.

I think I was looking at overall trends rather than considering instances where a government might go back to Monarchy.

Thank you for pointing that out Dove. *sheepishly crosses out some stuff*
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