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Message: <blockquote data-quote="pemerton" data-source="post: 9358774" data-attributes="member: 42582">The facts might exist. Information about them probably won't - the typical mediaeval person does not have access to information about how they are governed, of the sort that might be found in a contemporary politics or sociology textbook.My view is that most FRPG worldbuilding is so unrealistic that it would make no difference to just make this stuff up on the spot.Like, what does "the city is ruled by a Court of Lords" even mean? Who pays for paving the plaza - the "city" (whatever that means) from a public fund? Or one of the Lords, from their private wealth? Are contracts binding if unexecuted on both sides? And what happen is someone doesn't, or can't, keep a promise to pay - does one of the Lords decide? All of them?And what is a lobbyist, in the context of systems of government that lack lobbies? I mean, what would it even mean to talk about a "lobbyist" in 11th century England? There is no system of public regulation of private wealth-generating activities, and hence nothing to "lobby" about.These issues are nothing to do with what the PCs are or are not going to do. REH didn't know what Conan was going to do until he sat down at his typewriter, and Conan did lots of violent, theft-oriented stuff, but REH had no need to give us a theory of the government of any of the lands he wrote about.The issue is about the scope of knowledge and imagination and what is worth the GM's time. Some general remarks about the permissibility of interpersonal violence - the worlds of D&D are very tolerant in this respect compared to, eg, contemporary Australia - and about whether wealth is predominantly rural or increasingly urban, seem like enough to give a general picture. Perhaps also something about status, which is likely to come up in play. And maybe a couple of other salient and/or colourful local customs.</blockquote>

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