The State of the Chronicles, April 2009

And so another month comes to a close--another follower has joined, and we covered quite a lot about my world!

We discussed more of the arts, architecture, the calendar, crime and punishment, and began to explore what the day-to-day life of a Sekiyan is like

As always, thank you for your support, and if you like what you see, spread the word!

Life in Sekiya, Day 1

How do people feel about foreigners? Non-humans? How ready are they to accept different ideas? How cosmopolitan are they?

Generally, the Sekiyan people are fairly open with one another, but there are pockets where people are wary around other races (Telrain, although being in a middle class area, is one such location) They are also willing to at least hear new ideas out, leaving the audience the choice to accept or reject the idea

Law and Order in Sekiya: Day 14

Last question on this topic...

How are alleged criminals treated before/after their convictions? Do the police/military/city guard make a practice of roughing up suspects, or is this frowned upon?

Prisoners are treated with some degree of dignity, even those sentenced to death. While an onlooker might rough up the suspect, the guard frowns on them doing this. Likewise, the guard themselves are prohibited from roughing up suspects.

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 13

Who can make or repeal laws--a group (such as an elected Senate, an appointed Council, or an hereditary House of Lords) or only the king/emperor/head-of-state?

Each race has its own lawmaking bodies, and they are very open to requests/protests from the people--but the ruler gives the final say on a law. If the ruler accepts a law while the lawmaking body rejects it, both sides sit down to hammer out a compromise

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 12

Are highwaymen, muggers, bandits, or pirates common or rare? What sorts of crimes would the average citizen be likely to run across during his/her lifetime?

Thieves, other bandits, and pirates are common enough for every merchant and captain to take precautions against them. They do not have that organized of leadership (there are some thieves guilds in the larger cities, which are basically the Sekiyan answer to the mob), but some thieves are actually helpful to our heroes.

The average Sekiyan would most likely see theft and magia related crimes

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 11

Are there sumptuary laws requiring certain clothes to be worn or not worn by certain occupations or classes? Do judges wear robes or wigs?

There are no laws concerning clothing, but bosses in some fields will encourage their employees to wear certain clothing. Likewise, Sekiyan judges will wear robes (what color this robe is depends on where you are) but not wigs (they were considered old-fashioned after the Fourth Gemsinger appeared)

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 10

Are there judges other than the lord/king or landowner? If so, how are they paid, and by whom? How often are outlying areas likely to see a judge? Is "mob justice" common? Approved of or disapproved of?

Judges do exist--they are appointed by the rulers and paid by the bar about 50,000 gold a year (a pretty nice sum of cash in Sekiyan terms) Rural areas have their disputes heard by the ruling council, which collectively acts as a judge. "Mob justice" is frowned upon, and the guard is sent out if a crowd gets too unruly

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 9

Are people guilty until proven innocent, innocent until proven guilty, or does it depend on the mood the lord is in when the case comes in front of him?

People are innocent until proven guilty, and are always given a chance do defend themselves, even if there's a lot of evidence against them. (A lot of times, people accused by a lord's kneejerk reaction turned out to have been innocent)

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 8

Who is responsible for catching criminals? Who pays the crook-catchers--the king, the city government, a consortium of merchants, somebody else? How are they organized--into independent police precincts, or into overlapping districts, or just according to whoever wants to hire them?

Each villiage and town has its own guard, paid by the town leaders. In large cities, the guard is its own job, but in more rural areas, the guard may just be everyday people that happen to know how to wield a weapon, and are usually paid in food

Law and Order in Sekiya, day 7

Are there lawyers or advocates? Who can afford them? Who trains and/or certifies them?

Yes, lawyers exist in Sekiya, but unlike layers on Earth, they do not cost an arm and a leg to hire--Sekiyan lawyers will accept a case no matter how much someone can pay (and in the case of defending the poor, they will offer their services for free or in return for food)

The bar is overseen by the regional magistrates, who in turn report to the rulers and train the heads of the bar.

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 6

What are the punishments for serious vs. minor crimes? Are there prisons, or are people punished and released? Are there degrees of punishment--branding vs. cutting off ears vs. cutting off a hand vs. decapitation--or do they just hang everybody?

Death is only saved for the most serious crimes (eg. a grisly murder, trying to overthrow a kingdom, etc.) Long prison sentences usually await those that commit a serious crime. Having your powers locked via Magical Bane is another, but this punishment by itself is rare.

For minor crimes, you typically have to pay restitution or a fine, with short prison terms for repeat offenders or more serious minor crimes

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 5

What things are considered truly serious crimes and why? (Example: a trade-oriented culture might consider counterfeiting a death-penalty crime; in a place where life is cheap, murder might be something that only results in a small fine.)

Murder (as Sekiyans believe life is precious)
Trying to overthrow a kindgom (as they have deep respect for their rulers)
Abusing magia (as everyone is taught to understand that magia is not something to be toyed with

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 4

Are there laws forbidding certain types of people (peasants, wizards, priests, women) from carrying arms? Are there laws requiring certain people to be skilled with certain weapons, as England for some centuries required yeomen to be proficient with the longbow?

Anyone over 18 (although children can be exempted in certain circumstances) can wield any weapon so long as they declare what weapons they have and receive proper training in their use (whether from a proficient peer or a certified trainer) Likewise, it is encouraged, but not required, for all those that can to know how to use a sword, dagger, staff, bow, or any combination of these

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 3

If someone doesn't like the judgement he receives in court, is there anyone he can appeal to, like the Emperor or the Supreme Court?

If someone wishes to appeal, he first asks a local magistrate, and if the magistrate believes the accused has a good case for getting his conviction overturned, he intercedes for the accused in the Court of Mercy, a special court devoted to hearing appeals. When all else fails, the magistrate will try lobbying the ruler of the accused's race to convene their High Court (akin to the US Supreme Court)

Law and Order in Sekiya, day 2

What are considered normal and legal ways of gathering evidence and determining guilt? Is torture allowed? Truth spells? Are arbitrary judgements by the lord or landowner allowed, or is there a standard that they are supposed to follow?

Evidence found at the scene of the crime is fair game, as is witness testimony. However, if the evidence is tampered with in any way, is is rendered inadmissable.

Torture is not allowed, and neither are forced confessions via the truth spell, Eye of Knowledge (a Spirit spell that determines whether the target is speaking the truth. It can also be used to manipulate the target into telling the truth.) Eye of Knowledge can, however, be used as a lie detector test if the judge determines one is needed.

Arbitrary judgements are not allowed--the suspect is innocent until proven guilty

Law and Order in Sekiya, Day 1

How has the presence of magic and magicians affected law and government? Are wizards barred from certain kinds of jobs (judge, jury, police)? Do some jobs require that their holder be a wizard?

Magia has made for less unsolved mysteries and seen to it that those that do run afoul of the law get a punishment that fits the crime. While judges, juries, and the guard can (and usually do) wield magia, they sign a promise saying they will not use magia to force a confession or rough up a suspect (any case where it is found that someone used magia improperly is thrown out and the charges dropped against the suspect) That said, detectives are encouraged but not required to know Time magic (either innately, as an influence, or through a massive stash of enchanted garnets)

The Sekiyan Calendar, Day 6

Last question on this topic:

How do people tell what time it is? Are there clocks, watches, sundials, etc., or do people have to listen for the bells from the castle or church, or do they just eyeball the sun?

Most temples have bell towers that ring the hour (and once on the half hour), and watch-sized sundials are availiable for times when you're not close by a temple

The Sekiyan Calendar, Day 5

What event(s) do people use to date years? Is it a single occurrence (the creation of the world, the end of the Great War, the invention of atomic power, etc.), or are events dated based on recurring things (the 12th year of Tiberius' reign, the 300th year of the Han Dynasty)?

Events are dated from a Gemsinger's awakening (known as an Appearing), so the year 5020 means 20 years after the Fifth Gemsinger appeared

The Sekiyan Calendar, day 4

Which days are general holidays or festival times? What do they celebrate? Are there any that are only celebrated in particular countries, cities, or regions?

I've mentioned the Christmas-like holiday, Lafisavia, before, so we will use that as an example.

Since it is originally an elven holiday, it marks the day when an elven hero on his way to battle got lost in the cold, and was able to rejoin the army he was with when Meikon sent a star to guide him back. His fellow soldiers were so relieved to have him home, they threw a big party--so to the elves, Lafisavia is a time of homecoming. Other races, however, just interpret this as a general winter festival. On the Earth calender, it would fall on the night the full moon of December was in the sky.

The Sekiyan Calendar, day 3

What are the names of months, and how many days are there in each? How many days in a week/week-like-period? Months in a year? Are there leap years? If so, who keeps track?

The months are not explicitly named in the story, but there are twelve of them, each corresponding to a Stone, and there are twelve months in a year. However, Sekiyan time and Earth time diverge in that there are no leap years, and Sekiyan months are longer. (so February would be unheard of on Sekiya)

The Sekiyan calendar, Day 2

•How is the day divided into smaller time units? What are they (Hour of the Lark, Sunrise Bell, Nones, etc.)? Are the names relevant to anything? Is the length of an hour fixed, or does it vary depending on changes in the length of the day as the seasons change?

Sekiyan time is identical to Earth time in that there are 60 minutes in an hour and 24 hours in a day--but each number of the clock is assigned a gem, with noon/midnight having the garnet. So 6 AM would be The Hour of Day's Pearl, twelve noon would be The Hour of Day's Garnet, while midnight would be called The Hour of Evening's Garnet, to name a few examples

The Sekiyan calendar, Day 1

Is there a single, generally accepted calendar (including time measurement) or do different countries or peoples or races have different ones?

The Sekiyan calendar is known under several names, depending on who is referring to it. Humans call it the Cycle of Gems, elves and dwarves know it as the Goddess' Circle, avris call it The Great Circle of the Clans, and fairies call it the Ring of Jewels.

It is similar to the Earth calendar in many respects--each of the Twelve Stones has its own month, but months are longer than the Earth calender (30 days is the absolute minimum length of a Sekiyan month)

Sekiyan architecture, day 7

Last question for this topic....

How are living quarters arranged? Are bedrooms on the top floors for privacy or on the ground floor for convenience? Are parlors or libraries common? How are houses heated/cooled?

Public rooms are located at the front of the house (so you would pass into the living room upon entry, or a foyer before coming into the living room) while private rooms (such as bedrooms) would be in the back. Bathrooms would be sandwiched in the middle.

Libraries and parlors would only be found in an upper class (or a wealthy middle class) house.

Heating and cooling is done by having someone that can cast Fire magia cast the spell Heat Aura around the house--for air conditioning, the aura is diminished, and in the winter, made stronger

Sekiyan architecture, day 6

What are the differences in materials and appearance between a lower-class, a middle-class, and an upper-class type house? How do city houses differ from those in rural areas?

A lower class house is made from "earth" brick and wood, a middle class house the standard issue kind of brick, and some upper class houses are built from marble or ivory.

City houses usually have the typical floor plan (to be discussed tomorrow) compacted into a smaller space (akin to an apartment), but a few are large and open like a country house

Question requests

If you have a question about an aspect of Sekiya I have yet to address, or have a suggestion for what kind of topic I should cover next, I want to know about it!

Questions from you will be marked "By Request"--so if you have a suggestion, simply leave a comment.

Sekiyan architecture, day 5

How many people usually live in a typical house? How large is a typical house?

A typical house is either one or two levels, with enough space to safely house 2-4 people.

Sekiyan architecture, day 4

What are typical floor plans like --can people afford to waste space on hallways or do they just have a series of rooms opening into other rooms? Are buildings normally built square, triangular, domed, what?

A house is designed in a squarish manner, with the living room (or in the case of a larger house or building, a foyer) being the entryway. Kitchens are usually nearby the entryway, with living quarters towards the the middle and back

Sekiyan architecture, day 3

How tall a building can be constructed at a reasonable cost and in a reasonable time?

Three stories is the limit human workers can build to before the dragoons are called in to help (dragons can act as cranes to lift workers and supplies to a high up location) That said, dragoons usually charge a helty fee to help with building, so builders don't usually go higher than three stories.

Sekiyan architecture, day 2

How are buildings normally ornamented? Carved gargoyles, painted murals, geometric patterns?

Lower class houses usually have simple geometric patterns, while middle and upper class homes have more complex designs with jewels set in them, creating the illusion of a mosaic or stained glass

The Architecture of Sekiya, Day 1

What is the most common building material? Why is it used (availability, cheapness)? Does it have any major drawbacks (wood=the Great Fire of London)?

Stone and brick are the most commonly used building material because of it's availiability. (Middle and upper class brick look similar to bricks in our world, while lower class bricks are made of mud and straw) If bricks are not availiable, stone can be used.

Sekiyan arts and entertainment, day 8

Last question on this topic!

Do non-human races have their own games and leisure pastimes? How do they differ from human games? How do they reflect the physiology and/or particular magical talents of the non-human races?

Fairies enjoy playing sproutball--a game akin to soccer using an enchanted seed as the ball. While the underlying rules appear simple, (get the sprout into the other team's goal, and whoever gets the most points wins) there's a huge difference. With the sprout being enchanted, it has a mind of its own, ballooning the rules to almost Calvinball-esque proportions depending on what the sprout decides to do--changing its element requires a different strategy to get it in the goal, erratic movement is almost a game in itself, and when it takes flight, what happens in the air is just as crazy.

Elves and avris have their own variants on human card and board games (including the "reverse Klondike" I mentioned before) and using magia and voice command, elves have made the fantasy equivalent of a video game. The appropriate playing field for the game they want to play is summoned, and the game is played by vocal command.

Sekiyan arts and entertainment, day 7

Are there non-human races who tend to be naturally talented painters, dancers, etc.? How does this affect human practitioners of these arts?

Elves and avris tend to be better dancers, but human dancers are not jealous--in fact human dancers often train under an elven or avri master to get better at their art