Michael Morris
First Post
"I will never understand why one minority sect of your society treats all the rest as dogs." -- Trishdare, Elven Sorcerer.
Telzoans have an interesting sense of what separates the gentle classes from the rabble, tied mostly to idleness - the ability to pursue earthly pleasures whilst avoiding earthly work. This is not to say that Telzoans are lazy, but the noble Lord who does no direct work is held in higher esteem than the actor who's trade does not require manual labor, but is meager in its own right. The actor in turn holds more prestige than an artisan such as a cobbler, who does work with his hands but does not work out of doors. Those who's lot it is to till the land are held in lowest regard, especially if their work is indentured for crimes or past debt.
The actual distribution of wealth is indeed stark - 90% of the wealth of the country is in the hands of 6% of the population. This upper tier of nobles also control 85% of all the land in Telzoa that is under human control. The power enjoyed by these families is enormous - and their shifting allegiances are the principle agency by which the Succession Wars have been continued, on and off, for the last 200 years. There are only 15 families in Telzoa with heraldry dating back to the arrival of the Malchani. Beyond this core are only around 42 more families that have lands and titles granted by the self-styled kings that control the twelve baronies of the island.
The middle classes are still considered, along with the nobles, to be "gentlemen." This hodgepodge group also contains the landless nobles - who are, as a rule, the second and third born sons of the landed families, denied lands and titles by the predominate inheritance system of primogeniture. Knights, priests, scholars, entertainers, lesser government officials and persons of similar station round out the group. Craftsmen may or may not be included in this group - blacksmiths certainly aren't, but whitesmiths (those who work in soft metals, particularly silver and gold) are. This class holds considerable power in the cities and their wealth has earned them some begrudging respect from the upper nobles who often find themselves in need of their services. It can be assumed that most "adventuring" characters, such as the role the PC's most likely fit, fall into this social strata and as such are charged with the modes of behavior appropriate to their station (the details of this are to be detailed further in the book).
The commonfolk who work the land are not considered gentile in any way, and are often the butt of jokes and derision of the upper classes. Despite their lowly stasis though, their role is important enough that they do enjoy some basic rights under common law.
Telzoa society's classes are fairly locked down, and while movement does occur through the ranks, it is rarely more than one or two steps in a single generation. Those who attempt to fight their way up the social ladder are usually admired by those beneath them; begrudged respect of those who are their equals, and disrespected by their superiors. The two main exceptions to this are priests and wizards. Priests have their own hierarchy based primarily on merit (depending on the temple). Wizards are feared universally by non-wizards, and they are so lacking in number that they rarely attempt to striate themselves within their own number (so far as is known by the commonfolk).
There have been some half-hearted attempts to keep the rabble in their place, most famous of which are the sumptuary laws. These laws prohibit the wearing of expensive cloths and jewels by those of low station. As a rule, these are almost never enforced, and even when they are such enforcement is by moderate fine. There are also innumerable loopholes in the law that have found themselves placed there over time. One of the principle obstacles to their enforcement is the ready proof of station. Only high nobles carry badges of heraldry to prove their lineage, and the sumptuary laws are not so specific as to limit cloths to them. Thus, in the end, the only effective obstacle in what a character can cloth himself in is what he can afford - although players should be warned that bureaucrats are infamous for using little known laws to advance their cause.
Telzoans have an interesting sense of what separates the gentle classes from the rabble, tied mostly to idleness - the ability to pursue earthly pleasures whilst avoiding earthly work. This is not to say that Telzoans are lazy, but the noble Lord who does no direct work is held in higher esteem than the actor who's trade does not require manual labor, but is meager in its own right. The actor in turn holds more prestige than an artisan such as a cobbler, who does work with his hands but does not work out of doors. Those who's lot it is to till the land are held in lowest regard, especially if their work is indentured for crimes or past debt.
The actual distribution of wealth is indeed stark - 90% of the wealth of the country is in the hands of 6% of the population. This upper tier of nobles also control 85% of all the land in Telzoa that is under human control. The power enjoyed by these families is enormous - and their shifting allegiances are the principle agency by which the Succession Wars have been continued, on and off, for the last 200 years. There are only 15 families in Telzoa with heraldry dating back to the arrival of the Malchani. Beyond this core are only around 42 more families that have lands and titles granted by the self-styled kings that control the twelve baronies of the island.
The middle classes are still considered, along with the nobles, to be "gentlemen." This hodgepodge group also contains the landless nobles - who are, as a rule, the second and third born sons of the landed families, denied lands and titles by the predominate inheritance system of primogeniture. Knights, priests, scholars, entertainers, lesser government officials and persons of similar station round out the group. Craftsmen may or may not be included in this group - blacksmiths certainly aren't, but whitesmiths (those who work in soft metals, particularly silver and gold) are. This class holds considerable power in the cities and their wealth has earned them some begrudging respect from the upper nobles who often find themselves in need of their services. It can be assumed that most "adventuring" characters, such as the role the PC's most likely fit, fall into this social strata and as such are charged with the modes of behavior appropriate to their station (the details of this are to be detailed further in the book).
The commonfolk who work the land are not considered gentile in any way, and are often the butt of jokes and derision of the upper classes. Despite their lowly stasis though, their role is important enough that they do enjoy some basic rights under common law.
Telzoa society's classes are fairly locked down, and while movement does occur through the ranks, it is rarely more than one or two steps in a single generation. Those who attempt to fight their way up the social ladder are usually admired by those beneath them; begrudged respect of those who are their equals, and disrespected by their superiors. The two main exceptions to this are priests and wizards. Priests have their own hierarchy based primarily on merit (depending on the temple). Wizards are feared universally by non-wizards, and they are so lacking in number that they rarely attempt to striate themselves within their own number (so far as is known by the commonfolk).
There have been some half-hearted attempts to keep the rabble in their place, most famous of which are the sumptuary laws. These laws prohibit the wearing of expensive cloths and jewels by those of low station. As a rule, these are almost never enforced, and even when they are such enforcement is by moderate fine. There are also innumerable loopholes in the law that have found themselves placed there over time. One of the principle obstacles to their enforcement is the ready proof of station. Only high nobles carry badges of heraldry to prove their lineage, and the sumptuary laws are not so specific as to limit cloths to them. Thus, in the end, the only effective obstacle in what a character can cloth himself in is what he can afford - although players should be warned that bureaucrats are infamous for using little known laws to advance their cause.
