Nobility culture

Legend

“Since the dawn of time, the races have chosen individuals to lead or have been forced to do so by the strong.”

Skjald Sigurd

Description

Nobility cultures are characterised by refinement, elegance, and a strong sense of hierarchy. They value education, art, and diplomacy, often living in opulent palaces and castles. Nobility are typically well educated and possess high intuition for political manoeuvring and social graces. They value empathy for maintaining relationships and public image. Their lifestyle doesn’t require high constitution or strength, but they benefit from access to quality healthcare, reflected in a higher recovery rate. Their upbringing exposes them to different cultures, granting them insight into foreign languages. Finally, their privileged lifestyle contributes to a higher health maximum.

Heraldry is central to nobility, emphasising family symbols, coats of arms, and sigils as means of displaying lineage, achievements, and affiliations. There is a vast and complex educational system for nobles, including training in diplomacy, governance, etiquette, and other skills required for leadership, often resulting in apprenticeships with experienced nobles:

• Classical Studies: intensive training in history, literature, and philosophy, with a focus on past rulers and great thinkers.
• Diplomacy and Etiquette: Extensive lessons in courtly manners, negotiation tactics, and the intricate dance of political discourse.
• Languages: Instruction in multiple languages, both of neighbouring realms and ancient tongues, to facilitate diplomacy and study of historical texts.
• Martial Arts: Basic combat training, often including swordsmanship and horseback riding, regardless of gender.
• Governance and Law: In-depth study of legal systems, economic principles, and statecraft.
• Heraldry and Lineage: Thorough education in family histories, alliances, and the complex web of noble relationships.
• Arts and Culture: Exposure to and practice of various arts, including music, poetry, and painting, to cultivate refinement and patronage skills.
• Magical Theory: While not all nobles practice magic, most receive basic education in magical principles and their applications in governance.
• Apprenticeships: Young nobles often serve as pages or ladies-in-waiting in other courts, gaining practical experience and forming alliances.
• Religious Studies: Education in the “True Gods” and the nobility’s divine right to rule, including rituals and ceremonies that reinforce their status.

This comprehensive education system ensures that nobles are well-prepared for their roles as leaders, diplomats, and patrons of culture, setting them apart from the common folk and reinforcing their elevated status in society. It also teaches them how to act in public and be in privacy.

Lifestyle: Nobles live within a formal political structure, residing in their palaces, castles, and fortresses, secluded from the common folk. They interact primarily with urban citizens and have exclusive access to education and knowledge, as well as a refined taste for luxury goods. Their role as administrators and rulers immerses them in a complex world of court politics, intrigue, alliances, rivalries, and power struggles within the noble class.

Diet: Nobility enjoys the most diverse and luxurious diets, with access to the finest meats, breads, fruits, and imported delicacies, it features meats from various animals, fresh fruits and vegetables from extensive gardens. Their food is often rich, heavy, and prepared with exotic spices, herbs, and delicacies imported from afar. Feasts are common, showcasing a variety of dishes flavoured with exotic spices, and food is a symbol of wealth and power, leading to a diet that is varied but sometimes indulgent to excess.

Traditions and Stories: Nobility is steeped in a system of honour and dueling. Disputes are settled through formal duels or codes of honour, emphasising personal integrity. Formal ceremonies and rituals, such as coronations, weddings, and grand feasts, showcase their status and traditions. They often have intricate stories and legends about their lineage, heroic ancestors, and the founding of their houses.

Marriage Pattern: Nobles form alliances through arranged marriages to consolidate power, secure territories, or strengthen their family’s influence. These alliances can lead to long-standing rivalries or close partnerships among noble houses.

Religion: Religion is often a personal matter, kept within the family or household. Nobles may follow subdued rituals or belong to organised cults and shrines, with a focus on the “True Gods.”

• Religious system: Syncretism: Blending of different religious beliefs and practices.
• God-Mortal Interaction: They believe that the ruling class derives their authority directly from the divine and have a carefully constructed belief system designed to reinforce the nobility’s power.
• Rituals: elaborate ceremonies to reinforce the divine status of the nobility, often involving lavish displays of wealth.
• Impact on Society: A rigid hierarchical structure with the nobility as intermediaries between the people and the divine. Religion is often used to justify social inequalities.

Skjald Vinotis

Craftsmanship: Noble cultures have a deep appreciation for the arts, including music, poetry, and painting. They are patrons of the arts, supporting painters, musicians, and scholars, using art and culture to enhance their reputation and preserve their family’s legacy. Nobles contribute to the development of law, literature, architecture, and other cultural aspects, often focussing on their own well-being and prestige.

Clothing and Decoration: Nobles wear fine woollen tunics, silk garments, and other luxurious materials. Their clothing is often adorned with intricate embroidery, gemstones, and heraldic symbols, reflecting their status. Jewellery and accessories made from precious metals and stones further signify their wealth and position.

Armour: Nobles have access to all types of armour, from finely crafted plate armour to decorative ceremonial pieces.

Weapons: Their weapons include swords, daggers, and other finely made arms, often with ornate designs.

Special Items: Nobility create and possess items made from wood, bark, fur, leather, and feathers, often with symbolic or decorative purposes. These items can also include rare artefacts and heirlooms passed down through generations, believed to possess magical or spiritual power.

Skjald Yell'a'Beard

Time: They are strictly scheduled and frequently chronicled, with seasons, courtly obligations, feasts, and diplomatic occasions as focal points.

Accomplishment and achievement: Personal glory, prestige, titles, achievements, expanding authority, political alliances, legacy, lineage preservation, and cultural patronage are all highly valued.

Authority Interacting: Interactions with kings, queens, and court advisers exercising authority are defined by complex hierarchies that include inherited authority, formal etiquette, rigid rules, and hierarchies, with an emphasis on lineage and decorum.

Fears and Inabilities: Nobles have no special fears or inabilities but hold certain superstitions and concerns about maintaining their status and power.

Mien: Culture has a low impact on demeanour, allowing for a wide range of individual expression. Nobles can be quiet, independent, reclusive, or gregarious and sociable.

Mannerism: Nobility does allow for individual development and expression while being influenced by societal expectations; thus, nobles can vary greatly in personality and ruling style, from benevolent to tyrannical.

Prejudices: Nobles generally look down on other subcultures, especially disliking Nomads.

Skjald Sejrik

General Resistance: Nobles have better overall health due to superior nutrition and living conditions.

Disease Resistance: Low, due to limited exposure to various disease sources, but they could be susceptible to diseases brought by travellers.

Poison Resistance: Low to Moderate. Their administrative roles might not grant them inherent poison resistance.

Remedies: Nobles have access to skilled physicians and advanced treatments, including rare herbs and potions.

Skjald Valgrif