Riem, City of Prosperity

[lonesoldier]

Riem
Republic
Large City
Population: 15,000
GP Limit: 35,000

Power centers:
Conventional Nobility (10, non-monstrous) (8xLN & 2xLE)
Conventional Guild Coalition (10, assorted) (LN & N)
Conventional Administrative Roles (5, non-monstrous) (LN & NG)
Magical Religious Coalition (5, non-monstrous) (LG, NG, LN, LE, N[Actually CE])

Community Authorities:
Captain of the Guard: Rildin Flintbeard (War 4)
Standing army: 200
Militia: 1000

Highest level locals:
Adept: 4, 4, 5
Aristocrat: 4, 6, 6
Barbarian: 4, 5, 6
Bard: 5, 5, 6
Cleric: 6, 7, 7
Commoner: 5, 6, 6
Druid: 4, 5, 5
Expert: 5, 5, 6
Fighter: 4, 4, 5
Monk: 3, 4, 4
Paladin: 4, 4, 4
Ranger: 3, 3, 4
Rouge: 4, 4, 5
Sorcerer: 3, 4, 4
Warrior: 4, 4, 5
Wizard: 3, 3, 4

Racial Demographics:
79% Human
9% Halfling
5% Elf
3% Dwarf
2% Gnome
2% Other races

Important Notes:
There is 10% fee on all ‘adventuresome’ gains. The government does not mind if a local group of bandits is ‘removed’ as long as it some of the ill-begotten wealth is returned to the system again.

----

The city of Riem lies on the south bank of the Rieus river. The city’s stern grey walls are at fifty feet tall and very thick. Riem has been called the “Jewel of the South” and its official motto is “The city of prosperity”. Riem is a republic that swears fealty to no power. Their balanced, democratic governing system stymies corruption and encourages growth. By maintaining excellent diplomatic relations with all countries Riem always has a steady stream of imports and exports.

Riem is a relativly new city. It was founded by the hero Terrav the Shining (Terrav was a paladin of Sela) almost 400 years ago. Terrav's urn can be found in the Hero's mausolem.

A council of thirty members governs the city. One is drawn from each of the ten noble houses. Ten are drawn from the guilds, including special interest representatives. Five are drawn from the clergy and the remaining five are the important administrative heads (Ministries of Agriculture, Peace, Manufacturing, People and the citizen voted head of the state).

Riem abolished slavery roughly 100 years ago and instituted laws that provide standardized wages, improved working conditions and created an effective bureaucracy and policing system. With such modern laws in place the new working caste became much more productive and Riem’s economy boomed.

The merchant and landowner caste is one step above the workers. They are somewhat wealthy and live relatively comfortable lives. Above them is the military caste. These trained fighters live hard lives, but those who survive end up with a good amount of gold in their name, enough to last until the end of their lives. The nobility forms the highest tier. They live pampered lives, where money is no object and with their every whim fulfilled. The nobility make up a very small percentage of the population, and the only way to elevate oneself to this status is into marry into one the ten noble houses.

Here ends my small proposal. Comments and critisisms are welcomed.

Edit Notes:
Changed dates to a more freeform method (Orsal, Rae)
Lowered NPC levels drastically (Orsal)
Tweaked NPCs again
Grammer is the win!

 

[orsal]

I don't believe we've ever set a calendar for LEW, so I have no idea when 1352 was. Within living human memory? 600 years ago? Unless we establish a "current" date (correct me if I'm wrong about this never having been done), 1352 means nothing. Better to say about how long before the present.

(Also, IIRC, a while ago (before I joined LEW) it was decided to keep NPC levels relatively low. The idea is that our PCs, after some time adventuring, will become among the most powerful people around. So the levels on those NPCs will need to be toned down. But I don't recall how much they'll need to be lowered, so I'll let someone else fill in the details on that one.)

 

[Rae ArdGaoth]

800 years ago is relatively recent? Not in my book!

 

[lonesoldier]

Okies

Ya, I noticed there wasn't any real timeline so I put numbers in. I'm good at that.

I'll divide all NPC levels by 4, we'll see if that's any good.

@Rae:
800 years is what? 9 Human generations? Might be too much. I'll tone it down to about 400 years. That means elves who were children when it was built could be old geezers now.

 

[orsal]

800 years is what? 9 Human generations?

More like 30-40 generations. (considering most people to be in their 20s when they have children)

 

[Jdvn1]

More like 30-40 generations. (considering most people to be in their 20s when they have children)

Where did you get that number? People get married at age 27, on average, at least in the US.

 

[El Jefe]

That's a recent phenomenon, probably caused by increasing urbanization and a high standard of living. The same thing has been going on in Europe for nearly two decades. Basically, when you survive by subsistance farming, another child means another pair of hands to help in the fields, and will generally produce more than he or she eats, especially after age 7 or so. But in the city, another child is literally just another mouth to feed, and doesn't really start becoming productive until about age 14 or so, when they can be accepted as a journeyman in some craft. Fast forward to the late 20th-early 21st century, and there is even less impetus to marry early and start a family...in the US and much of the western world, a higher percentage of the population than ever before is going to college and not starting a career (much less settling down and getting married, much less starting a family) until they are in their 20's.

This wasn't always so. In the US, the average age of marriage and the average age of first childbirth has bounced up and down several times since colonial days. For example, one of my ancestors was born in 1908 and was married and gave birth to her first child in 1926. That was pretty typical back then. Roll the clock back and 50 years ago, and the age of consent was 21 in many US states. But, with parental permission, a female could marry in some states as early as 14, males as early as 16. Not that it was common for such permission to be given, but it did happen and was quite legal.

Going back deeper into history, into medieval and renaissance times that more closely mirror the societies in FRP games, and early marriage and childbirth become even more common. Lady Jane Grey was married a few months before her 16th birthday, that was typical back then. In his play, Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare places Juliet's age at 13 ("she will be 14 on Lammasnight", or something like that), an adaptation from an Italian story in which the Juliet character was 16. That shocks modern audiences, but nobody batted an eye in Elizebethan society. Marriage at 14 or 15 wasn't that common (18 was about average), but it wasn't that rare either.

Moving back even further, in Viking society a boy was considered to be a man, with all priviledges and responsibilities pertaining thereto, at the tender age of 13. I doubt most Viking lads started families at that age, but they were considered to be old enough to carry a sword and row a longboat. Again, although probably not the rule, Viking men and women did marry and start families in their teens.

So, because the age of first childbirth is somewhat delayed in modern society compared to earlier times, considering 20 years to be a "generation" in a FRP game is probably right on the mark, at least in human society. Things of course would be different for elves, gnomes, dwarves, and other long-lived races.

 

[orsal]

Where did you get that number? People get married at age 27, on average, at least in the US.

The fact that most game worlds aren't set in the 21st century United States of America?

I'm thinking over all human history, in all cultures and all regions and all time periods. Against that backdrop, the contemporary Western world has a number of unusual features:

(1) the widespread availability of contraception, making it feasible to be sexually active for many years before you're ready to start a family

(2) relaxed views on chastity, making it socially acceptable to be sexually active for for many years before you're ready to form a marital relationship

(3) longer periods of education for the young, making the age of practical adulthood considerably later than in pre-industrial or developing societies, where it comes not that long after puberty

(4) the emphasis on the nuclear, rather than extended, family, making it unwise to begin raising children until you are financially independent

In much of the world today, as in Europe and the United States many centuries ago, if you're not married and procreating well before age 27, there's something wrong with you.

-- Orsal, 37 years old and single, to the chagrin or confusion of many an African

 

[Bront]

I like the city in general. I think it's generaly well done, and is developed enough to have some interesting potential to any GM who may want to use it.

You might want to re-examine the "Modern" laws. Abolising slavery is one thing, but minimum wage and enforced working conditions are a fairly modern occurance in general. And, barring it being a country wide thing, merchants are likely to take some of their business elsewhere where it's "Cheaper" to produce things. Not to say it's not possable, I would just rethink it, and perhaps find a different way to do what you are trying to do (which sounds like create an economic center where even the lower class are benifiting in some way).

On the family issue, generaly your "average" commoner had a child before the age of 25, and was likely maried before they were 20. So, 400 years is aproximately 16-20 generations, which for as big of a city as it is, is a young to moderately aged city (fast large city growth is a more modern occurance). Probably just about right.

 

[SlagMortar]

I think that standardized prices and wages were not rare in historical kingdoms. This is different than a concept of minimum wage. The standard wage for a wood cutter could be 5 shillings a day, but that doesn't mean its a livable wage. The proposal sounds like it calls for a standardized wage that is also a livable wage, but I do not think that is an unrealistic concept for a middle ages republic.

Looks good to me now that the levels of NPC's are reduced. Of course, I'm not a judge.