How are disputes handled between two parties? Is there someone who makes decisions on behalf of the involved parties (a sort of court system or conflict resolution specialist)? What happens if someone is upset with how a dispute is resolved? - What is a faux pas in your world that should not be committed under any circumstance? What would the reaction be to someone who made such a misstep in a very public way?
Thank you for the ask!
Well, considering how many countries there are, I’ll have to narrow it down to the one the characters are currently in so let’s go with Oterra!
- Sen
Disputes:
Noble v Noble
- This is probably gonna be under the table or just between the houses since they’d rather not bring this to the public. Usually, they have deals that work for both but the higher prestige Noble will usually win.
Noble v Merchant/Craftsman
- Usually through an official process. If you’re in the East, the latter is gonna win thanks to guilds. Anywhere else, nobles will probably win.
Anyone else vs a non-noble/non-merchant/non-craftsman
- Oh the lower class one is gonna lose hard. There isn’t even gonna be a dispute because the lower class one is always gonna lose. That’s just how it is in Oterra.
Who makes decisions on disputes
If someone was able to get the dispute to be an official matter, a court will look over it and an appointed judge will make the decision. If the judge doesn’t think they will make a proper decision, they can have a jury of educated people come in and listen to the trial to decide for themselves.
What happens if someone is upset with it
If you’re not a craftsman, merchant, or noble, deal with it. It’s not like you can do much unless you want to do something illegal or pay someone to do something illegal.
A noble could make that person’s life a living hell by spreading rumors, paying people to harass them, or even have them killed. The political game is cutthroat and if you don’t play it, don’t be surprised if your fate ends badly.
Merchants and Craftsman will go to their guilds and the guilds will deal with it. This could be done with simple diplomacy or sending thugs to “persuade” the person to make another decision on the matter. There’s a reason why guilds are so powerful in the east.
Faux Pas and reactions
I’m mainly gonna focus on nobility with this one since they’d be hit the hardest by a misstep.
Wintervale - Show any sign of sympathy/empathy or support to the Nedant, people north of Oterra. Since they’ve raided their lands many times, nobles of Northern Oterra are usually spiteful toward them. If anyone finds out you publicly did that, they’d probably look down on your entire house for being “filthy north sympathizers.” In an extreme scenario, the house could be stripped of their nobility by the Lord of Wintervale and cast out of his lands or executed if he believes you are a credible threat to Oterra’s defense.
Tabershire - Speak in favor of the rebellion that devastated Western Oterra a decade ago. Tabershire has yet to recover fully from that since so many of their farms were damaged and they’re dependent on trade with other areas. Yeah, probably not a good idea to feel bad for the rebels who caused all that destruction. A noble can expect to be ridiculed, cast out or even visited by some Kadembre assassins who take offense to the supporters of people who tried to kill their kind.
Abavale - Go against the guilds and your social standing is as good as dead. The nobles may like to tout they have all the power and influence when it comes to the Lord of Abavale but it’s really the merchants. Anyone who forgets that may end up losing a lot of prestige or even their life if the slight against the guild is big enough.