Faction Regulation

Each Faction has the right to punish and reward its own members as they see fit. This tends to be administered by Ambassadors (who are NPCs) or their appointed representatives (who may be PCs). Punishments tend to include fining the offender their pay for several weeks, putting them under the parole of a senior faction member, banning them from Rituals with other Agents, etc. Rewards might be money, equipment or the authority to call in NPC backup, skills or resources.

In serious cases, matters are taken to trials made from various Faction members.

Although the many unofficial support staff, traders and shipwrecked locals are not officially part of the Factions, they are not without help if they can find an advocate. In particular, Builder, Explorer and Aspirant Priests often find their doctrines encourage them to see certain laws enforced. They are known to sometimes raise cases on behalf of petitioners.

Trials

An Accusation of Crime must be made by a named Individual or Faction (the Accuser). They must name a Suspect and their desired Punishment. The Suspect Faction or Individual is tried by Judges from 3 Factions that are neither the Accuser’s or Suspect’s Faction. Judges are picked quickly by the Suspect, who must pick from those nearby and should pick those who show willing. The Accuser can Veto one choice, disallowing it.

The Accuser and the Suspect each have 2 minutes to make their case. The Judges have 2 minutes to confer before voting. There is usually a sand timer provided for this. It is fixed to the bar by a metal chain and weight of authority, providing both a physical and magical defence against theft. (OC: It is not possible to steal the timer)

Note that conspiring, or attempting to conspire, with your Judges to avoid rightful punishment is a High Crime (Either interfering with the Trial if spontaneous or Undermining the Treaty if pre-meditated)

Results

All Judges must vote either Guilty or Not Guilty. A verdict requires 3 votes. If all 3 Judges vote Guilty, the Suspect is punished. If all 3 Judges vote Not Guilty then the Accuser is punished instead for Wrongful Accusation.

Trial by Standing

If the Judges cannot agree, the final Vote may be gained from the result of a Trial by Standing. This vote is seen as a way to test the will of the various Factions to support the verdict. Only the person with the majority support of the Judges may call for a Trial by Standing, otherwise there is no punishment to either side and the case is closed.

The accuser and the Suspect each stand on one side of the room. The Judges call for any who would support either the Accuser or Suspect to stand by them and must warn that should the Suspect be convicted, any who stood with them will suffer the same punishment. Agents have 10 seconds to pick a side. At the end, anyone standing near either the Accuser or Suspect is considered to have chosen that side.. The Judges must find in favour of the side whom the most Agents stood with. If this is a tie, there is no punishment to either side and the case is closed.

Influencing Factors

Judges have 2 minutes to set the sentence. The sentence chosen is the first one that 2 Judges agree on. If they do not agree in 2 minutes, the default punishment applies:

• Petty Crime - 32D fine
• Capital Crime - Wounding (breaking of a hand is typical)
• High Crime - Execution of the culprit.

If they feel a Wrongful Accusation was justified but ultimately incorrect, they may make the punishment much less severe. If they feel a Wrongful Accusation was particularly malicious, they may make the punishment more severe. If a Faction is found Guilty of a crime, the punishment is increased in proportion to the number of Faction members who took part in the crime.

If a Faction is accused, but can show to the judges that they have already punished the offenders satisfactorily, they may be declared Not Guilty. If a person is Accused but has already been appropriately punished by their Faction this is a valid defence (Punishment removes the Guilt)

Self Defense or prevention of a greater crime is a legal defence unless otherwise noted.

Ambassadorial Investigation

The Ambassadors have a peace to uphold here, and look unfavourably on those who would meddle in it to their own ends, or favour their own side in an inept manner. Obviously corrupt or vexatious trials will tend to come to the notice of an Ambassador. Ambassadors wield absolute power over their Agents and are notorious for dropping them in it to save face.

Crimes

Petty

Petty Crimes are things which do one of the following and are punishable by fines, curses, penal servitude, Wounding etc:

• Assault
• Petty theft (under 256 Ducatto)
• Subversion of Guild Law (i.e. Selling newly acquired loot without one of the parties being an Antiquarian)
• Malfeasance: Malicious interference with magical activities. DISRUPTing a ritual, physically distracting ritualist, attacking a stranger that someone is interacting with.
• Reckless Endangerment (Any act that is unreasonably risky and could have caused multiple injuries. Usually Exploding Rituals)
• Defacement: destruction of belongings worth under 256 Ducatto
• Breach of Impartially Witnessed Verbal Contract
• Unlawful Imprisonment (Including Slavery).

Capital

Capital Crimes are things which include one of the following and are punishable by up to Mutilation, Deportation or Death. Capital Criminals may be freely reanimated as penal servitude. Only the Ambassador of the criminal’s faction or their representative may perform the punishment.

• Raising a Revenant despite the objection of the deceased or their Faction.
• Murder
• Malsanguino (Preventing a Dying person from receiving medical aid)- Self Defence is often very difficult to justify
• Theft (over 256, under 5000 Ducatto)
• Vandalism: Destruction of belongings worth over 256 and under 10,000 Ducatto
• Forgery or Coinage defacement (destruction of Ducatto)- Self Defence will seldom be viable.
• Mutilation.
• Breach of Impartially Witnessed Written Contract- It is possible to consent to a duel to the death via contract.
• Repeated and Apparent Criminal Behaviour (Being found guilty of a Petty Crime more than 5 times). For example a fight where you attack 5 people could be counted as this.

High

High Crimes are things which do one of the following- self-defense is never a viable claim. The punishment is as per Capital Crimes, but the perpetrator’s Faction will further be expected to provide reparations unless they can prove they were working to prevent the Crime:

• Interfere with the functioning of a Trial
• Undermine the Treaty of Ozgur Sehir
• Seek to start a war between Factions protected by the Treaty of Ozgur Sehir
• Grand Theft: Involve the theft of over 5000 Ducatto from a Faction recognised by the Treaty of Ozgur Sehir
• Arson: Involve the Destruction of property worth over 10,000 Ducatto