Café de Nuit

What exactly is the function of the Richemuloise aristocracy, and what sets them apart from the common folk? Since all that Richemuloise territory is up for grabs, the nobles aren't landowners like they are in Borca or other feudal domains. Their role isn't a traditional one like in Dementlieu or Mordent since Richemulot has no false history and the aristocrats are just as much immigrants as any other citizen. And they don't seem to do any actual governing or exert any power over the realm as in nations like Darkon.
I'd be tempted to call Richemulot's aristocracy a sham, with the concept of nobility being dangled like a carrot in front of the ambitious first by Claude, then Jacqueline. But there has to be more to it than that. If aristocratic titles are essentially meaningless then what motivates clever people (and cleverness is requisite among Richemuloise nobles) to pursue them? And if there truly isn't anything more to nobility than an empty title, what stops average citizens from simply calling themselves lords and ladies?

Its mostly a trade in secretes thats keeps the nobles at the top. If you know the dirty little secret of the owner of the local trading guild has and you play your cards correctly you can use this advantage to gain all sort of titles and favors purely out of fear. And with this power the average Joe Pessant can become lord Joe the first...that is untill be slips up and gains a dirty little secret of his own and is unceramoniously sent back to the gutters.

The highest up in Richemuloise sociaty are merely those with the most stored secrets to thier name. They have used this power to blackmail and bribe themselves into lucrative business ventures resulting in them having vast fortunes but must allways keep one step ahead lest some upstart find the skeletons in thier closet.

The Reniers are at the very top of this game. With her many rat spys nothing escapes her notice and as such she now knows at least one crippling secret for just about every person in her domain be it thief, murder or just touching youself at night

On top of the trade-in-secrets thing, I'm sure there's a whole lot of sheer clique-ishness involved, a la elite social snobbery (or your average high school) everywhere. Sure, an uppity commoner could start calling herself by some pretentious title, but unless she's got the reputation and political pull to back it up, all it'll do is make her a laughingstock.

I always assumed that most aristocrats were merchant families. Indeed, there may in fact be landed aristocrats. Just because land is up for grabs doesn't mean its ready to be lived in. Building up a farmstead or a village may require serious investments, even if the land is uninhabited. These aristocrats may have made their start by planting the seed money for new homes and farms, and since peasants will never collect enough to pay off the principle, the innitial investor lives off of the interest.

The sourcebook for GURPS Goblins, though more comical in tone than most Ravenloft games would be, might be a good source for the scratch-kick-bite-and-get-a-hold-on approach to social climbing Richemulot represents.

ScS of the Fraternity wrote:I always assumed that most aristocrats were merchant families. Indeed, there may in fact be landed aristocrats. Just because land is up for grabs doesn't mean its ready to be lived in. Building up a farmstead or a village may require serious investments, even if the land is uninhabited. These aristocrats may have made their start by planting the seed money for new homes and farms, and since peasants will never collect enough to pay off the principle, the innitial investor lives off of the interest.

Or, alternately, just because there's a lot of land, it doesn't mean that you can just move in! If a noble household holds the title to specific lands, then those are theirs whether inhabited or not: they just may not be claimed.

i would instead write off all of the "it's up for grabs" as: "It up for grabs until the guy who owns it wants it back." The added motivation, of course, would simply be to make yourself out to be a COUnt of Monte Cristo type imposter noble... and start trading in secrets. before you knowit, the little hovel you moved in belongs to you... as does all the land of the guy who tried to evict you 7 years back.

It's just a thought, but then agin, some things in Ravenloft, as in real life, are largely accepted as matter of fact, even though, logically, there is no reason for it anymore. (Prime reason to keep peasants ingnorant and nobles educated - create an opaque curtain.)

by the time in history where Richemulot is situated, the landed knight is something on its way out... as is this idea that society is protected by it's nobles, which was the main reason they held land - you own land and peasants which enrishes you in order to be able to gather to you othetr lords so that when the king needed warriros/defenders, you and your metal-clad lads would storm out to lay down the pain. So, you needed people to be professional warriors becsause the use of these weapons required special training.

By the mid-16th century, the idea is still there, but because muskets are so easy to use and armour is on its way out (though not gone yet, mind you), war is more about peasants and soldiers fighting in national armies. The league of 4 towers(?) describes militias, which suggest that type of get-up.

So, the aristocracy in all this?... They're becoming obsolete and only serve to fight each other for the king/queen's favour. So they keep busy by writting poetry and courting each other's favour (this gets more pronounced in CL 9 realsm like Dementlieu...) There was a point to this... Oh, yeah: so long as the peasants think the nobles are important and irreplaceable and rulling by divine right, then they stay.

(Sorry. I got carried away with my history...)

Sounds good to me.

I like that idea - up for grabs until someone wants it back.

This of course, certainly leads to more secrets - ex: who really owns the land you currently use, or better yet, who you murdered to assume their title and identity

ScS of the Fraternity wrote:Sounds good to me.

I like that idea - up for grabs until someone wants it back.

This of course, certainly leads to more secrets - ex: who really owns the land you currently use, or better yet, who you murdered to assume their title and identity

Which of course, is a good thing, right?...

We like secrets and intrigue.