101 Fantasy Government Secrets

[VirgilCaine]

14. The terrasque has been sleeping not far outside of the city for centuries. The king knows of this, but keeps it secret, fearing the loss of prestiege that would come with his inability to do anything about the monster.

Meanwhile, the creature begins to stir in its sleep.

That's like complaining that the President can't do anything about the Yellowstone earthquake.

31. A kingdom is under investigation by several mage's guilds and other countries, as sources of mimics, dopplegangers, phasms, araneas, etc. who are the most well-known and accomplished international spies in the world. They funnel the secrets and information they find back to their masters...

 

[Ed_Laprade]

32. The king is a Doppleganger. (And I can't believe that no one posted this before me!)

 

[Meloncov]

That's like complaining that the President can't do anything about the Yellowstone earthquake.

It's more closely comparable to the President not warning the populace about a potential natural disaster, preventing evacuations or other countermeasures.

 

[reason]

...

35. That certain nobility have common thieves' blood.

http://www.principiainfecta.com/archives/2005/01/queen_of_thieve_1.php

An old Ammander saying has it that a thief will only confide in a cat - and vice versa.

Some years ago, the young Lady Malel of Port began to maintain a retinue of cats that soon outnumbered her loyal Ammander retainers. The sleek creatures had the run of her manse and grounds overlooking the bay. The Malel estate walls were lined with eyes during the day, cats sunning themselves while carefully watching household retainers, traders and Temple Guard in the streets. By night, this feline retinue roamed far and wide in Port.

While the cats of Lady Malel prowled the streets, the self-styled King of Thieves held court in the dockside safehouses. There were fewer outright thugs in those days and thieves were more secretive - the Temple Guard rather than militia kept the peace. Still, Port has always has more than its share of motley, rough folk.

The night that the King and half the thieves of Port drunkenly chased a cat and the King's spiced spineel all the way to the Malel estate - a dozen of the Temple Guard at their heels, to hear the tale told by those who claim to have been there - has become a good story with the passage of time. The troubadors seized on it one summer and Lady Malel's cat was transformed into a horde of felines bent on eating the thieves of Port out of house and home. It is a popular performance, but few folk know the rest of the story.

It came to pass that the King spent more time in the manse of Lady Malel, and cats were seen more often in the safehouses. But this was all many seasons ago and there is no King of Thieves in Port anymore. The aged daughter of that Lady Malel lives alone and without retainers in the present time, although cats still sun themselves on the overgrown grounds and unkempt walls of her manse.

Reason
Principia Infecta

 

[Meloncov]

An old Ammander saying has it that a thief will only confide in a cat - and vice versa.

Some years ago, the young Lady Malel of Port began to maintain a retinue of cats that soon outnumbered her loyal Ammander retainers. The sleek creatures had the run of her manse and grounds overlooking the bay. The Malel estate walls were lined with eyes during the day, cats sunning themselves while carefully watching household retainers, traders and Temple Guard in the streets. By night, this feline retinue roamed far and wide in Port.

While the cats of Lady Malel prowled the streets, the self-styled King of Thieves held court in the dockside safehouses. There were fewer outright thugs in those days and thieves were more secretive - the Temple Guard rather than militia kept the peace. Still, Port has always has more than its share of motley, rough folk.

The night that the King and half the thieves of Port drunkenly chased a cat and the King's spiced spineel all the way to the Malel estate - a dozen of the Temple Guard at their heels, to hear the tale told by those who claim to have been there - has become a good story with the passage of time. The troubadors seized on it one summer and Lady Malel's cat was transformed into a horde of felines bent on eating the thieves of Port out of house and home. It is a popular performance, but few folk know the rest of the story.

It came to pass that the King spent more time in the manse of Lady Malel, and cats were seen more often in the safehouses. But this was all many seasons ago and there is no King of Thieves in Port anymore. The aged daughter of that Lady Malel lives alone and without retainers in the present time, although cats still sun themselves on the overgrown grounds and unkempt walls of her manse.

Reason
Principia Infecta

It really isn't necesary to include that much. The idea is to have simple, adaptable, hooks, not entire stories

 

[Gremory]

26. The clerics of the state church have spells that can heal even the gravest disease, regenerate limbs, and even bring the dead back to life!

If this news got out, chaos would undoubtedly erupt among the populace...

I doubt I'll ever run anything in which I can use that... but I absolutely love it.

And, TOTALLY ripped off from Final Fantasy Tactics...

36. The recent war over the succession to the throne has been manipulated by the Church in an effort to destroy the common people's trust in the nobility and strengthen their faith in the church. In truth, the church itself is being manipulated by powerful beings from the lower planes, who have used "holy" relics in order to posses various important nobles and churchmen.

And an attempt at originality...

37. The local lord, who has done so much good work in suppressing evil monsters and necromancy in his fiefdom, is actualy a vampire. Because of his obvious anti-undead policy, the people are more forgiving of the many mysterious dissapearances over the years. Truth is, the lord is just making sure that there are more victims for himself.

 

[CCamfield]

22. The Prince likes to sneak out every few nights and use a Hat of Disquise to visit the lowborn red-light district. He's been found out and a group of whores are blackmailing him to keep them quiet.

38 - the Prince had to kill several whores and discovered he... liked it. Now he sneaks out every few nights, but it's to leave another dead body in his wake.

39 - The election for Mayor was rigged by a shadowy group with unknown interests. (Not just 'bought', but someone interfered with the public ballot boxes)

40 - The half-orc underclass is demanding the right to vote. Protests are occurring... riots might not be far behind. What to do?

 

[Roger]

* His divine emperor is actually mortal.


Cheers,
Roger

 

[Deadguy]

42. The monarch's senior counsellors are secretly under the influence of the ambassador from another realm, and they constantly and subtly shift policy to favour relations with that realm.

43. As 42. except that they are gently pushing for actions that will give the enemy realm a casus belli, and precipitate a war.

44. The Crown's success and longevity is based on a pact sworn long ago by the monarch's ancestor, and sustained by regular blood sacrifice of the indigent. What are the consequences of breaking the pact?

45. The monarch's eldest son was born a simpleton. He has been successfully shielded from public life and to many seems like he passed away long ago. But he still nominally has precedence over his younger brothers. What happens if disaffected nobles kidnap the pliable and naïve young man and use him as a figurehead in a rebellion?

46. A mysterious illness, resistant to magical cures, has struck down the monarch. Desperate counsellors, seeking to prevent a crisis at a time of political tension, have hired an actor to play the monarch's public rôle while they try and sort out a solution. (The actor might be named Dave! )

 

[haakon1]

16. The benevolent king is a werewolf. He is aware of this, and takes strong percautions to avoid harming anyone (he locks himself in his own dungeon on nights of the full moon, among other actions) but is aware that, should the truth leak out, it would be the end of his reign.

Love it! I wrote a story like that once, for French class.