Note on Heraldry and Court

[Rosalind]

Heraldry: Rosalind is taking applications for Heraldry. In light of the whole intrinsic thing, Pursuivants should be Honoured Guests at some point. I do urge Courtiers and Honoured Guests to apply if they are interested. These are definately an Inner Bailey positions with rank, influence, and close contact with Knights, Nobles, and Royalty.

Just an OOC notice, because it seems only new people are interested and that's going to cause a dilemna since even my current Pursuivants are not Honoured Guests (that's being worked on though). I'm trying to conform a bit more to changing preferences in the Court.

Court: An OOC reminder (I'll have it posted IC on the Heralds Slateboard soon) that NO CONTAINERS will be allowed at Court. I believe envelopes, muffs, baskets, pouches, purses... tall boots? are all included unfortunately.

Those are the rules and they are enforced. I suggest if you don't want to cause extra spam and work for yourself you don't come bearing these items.

[jdyer]

Originally posted by Rosalind
Just an OOC notice, because it seems only new people are interested and that's going to cause a dilemna since even my current Pursuivants are not Honoured Guests (that's being worked on though). I'm trying to conform a bit more to changing preferences in the Court.

It is not just you -- it is very difficult if you want to recruit someone who is specifically an Honored Guest or higher for something because they tend to be otherwise occupied already (often the reason for them becoming Honored Guest in the first place). This is why the Junior Student was started in the Collegium; there simply weren't enough people just picking out of the Inner Bailey, and there needed to be some official status to put people on to keep them interested (in addition to just plain not having enough manpower otherwise).

This problem applied even when though Collegium does not have an 'on the Chain' position and a good number of people do it in addition to something else.

I should add Dittersdorf spent an entire month soliciting recommendations for an assistant and I don't recall any Honored Guests coming up. (He would have preferred it given it would have made things more convienent.) He ended up having to pick based on general competence.

[Geist]

I understand the difficulty, but one would hope that the expression of a character's general competancy would involve areas that would make them worthy to be an Honored Guest.

What the Court is going to be looking for in new Honored Guests is their contribution to the Castle while in the Outer Bailey, primarily in their work involving OB Guilds and Groups. Yes, of course, courtesy and kindness and such will continued to be valued, but it will become more difficult (though not impossilbe) to achieve Honored Guest just by being a nice person.

The problem is, and we take the blame for this, that the "ladder" to the IB was somewhat broken. Now, this was partially neccessary to bring increased energy to the IB itself (which has been successful) but it now needs to be restabalized.

Honored Guest is the gateway to the IB. One achieves the recognition of "Honored" Guest by excelling and contributing to the betterment of the Castle and the Outer Bailey.

There's an original Marrach phrase that we're reinvigorating -

"By thy deeds, thy shall be known."

[Rosalind]

Hmm... well, then it's better that I'm finding awesome applicants that aren't already HG's and Courtiers. That way, it's easier to recognize worthy people.

Makes more sense that way, didn't think it through I guess. Anyway, the Court thing still stands.

I'll poke you with something pointy if Umi gets mad at me because you wore tall boots.

[jdyer]

Originally posted by Geist
I understand the difficulty, but one would hope that the expression of a character's general competancy would involve areas that would make them worthy to be an Honored Guest.

If plans are afoot to increase the notice of this, that is good. Encouraging the members of the Court to be separated from the Outer also has the effect we really have no idea who is competent. I am presuming the Master Plan (tm) is working on some remedy to this.

As things are right now the people drawn most to the Court's notice are the ones working for them, so they of course they have been the most likely to become Honored Guests.

[Geist]

I would think there would be a great many ways to learn who is currently excelling and who is not... that's one of the purposes an HG list itself would serve.

The other is through indirect association. Friends of my friends, associates of my associates, recomendations from peers, observations by less-ranked associates or assistants.

The current Households are doing a pretty good job of this, though in some cases even they too could be accused of "slumming". Current Household members recomend future Household members.

There's strategy in all of this as well... Have your eye on someone? Manuever the support neccessary to get them made HG (which they will then owe you for) and then gift them with position (formal or informal) and they will owe you even more.

Though members of the Court are not expected to spend their lives in the OB, an academic visiting for a lecture, a martially-inclined courtier observing open (or private) practices, a Household member standing on the sidelines, observing, at some event, are all ways to learn something of who's who and how competant they are.

[Uwaine]

Sorcery's got a nice system set up; hopefuls can get noticed, the Bound get regular face time with a Lady, etc.

Of course, the problem here is that (with the possible exception to Elea), I do not know of a single Sorcerer who has been recommended for HG or Courtier by any other Sorcerer, ever, and Serista herself doesn't seem to be into giving intrinsic promotions - so Sorcerers need another way to get their intrinsic rank.

[John]

Originally posted by Rosalind
[Court: An OOC reminder (I'll have it posted IC on the Heralds Slateboard soon) that NO CONTAINERS will be allowed at Court. I believe envelopes, muffs, baskets, pouches, purses... tall boots? are all included unfortunately.

Those are the rules and they are enforced. I suggest if you don't want to cause extra spam and work for yourself you don't come bearing these items.

Tall boots? I really hope tall boots arnt really on the list of disallowed things.

[Gabs]

No, tall boots are not prohibited. We get enough bitching IC and OOC already every court from people who get caught trying to slip in the throne room with a weapon or a purse. We'd get even more if tall boots were banned because of Karde. We're not masochist, you know. :P

[Rosalind]

Oh... that was a joke... by the way...

You can wear tall boots. I'm unsure about envelopes though.

[Geist]

I would guess that envelopes would be ok... and if you do yank a dagger out of an envelope people will be all over your butt for lameness. Packages, however...

[Lucus]

I was told no envelopes allowed at formal affairs. A small dagger (or perhaps even just the blade of a dagger, removed from the hilt) could be concealed inside. Any number of poisonous powders or the like could be concealed inside as well.

[Geist]

Yea, fair enough. I'll shut up now and leave it as an IC matter.

But I will point out that if we went all out and restricted all the places something might be concealed, or limited all the things that could be weapons, Court would consist of a bunch of limbless naked torsos with all of the orifices stitched closed.

[Namida]

Wonders how much can be hidden in the toe of a slipper...

*sneaks of with new ideas on how to use story-points*

[Age]

Originally posted by Lucus
I was told no envelopes allowed at formal affairs. A small dagger (or perhaps even just the blade of a dagger, removed from the hilt) could be concealed inside. Any number of poisonous powders or the like could be concealed inside as well.

The argument I have with that is that through roleplaying, the same could be said for as much as folds of clothing.

I think banning 'containers' verges on the line of IC/OOC crossover, since for all intents and purposes, someone would be far more likely to hide a dagger tucked into a boot or doublet, than in an envelope.

Ban long cases, ban packages, but the simple fact that "if you can put something in it, you can't bring it with you" remains completely and utterly STRANGE to try and explain ICly. As Geist said, if someone pulls a dagger out of an envelope, I think we can all disregard it as an OOC abuse of the system... the same for pulling a massive longsword out of a pouch.