Summergarde Dominion Hierarchy

Below is a document in work which will explain the interactions of the various hierarchies of the Summergard Dominion and its various settlements.

## Cloudcross

The overall city of Cloudcross operates on a hierarchy system designed to keep those of worth separated and safe from those deemed to be unworthy. As a guide to those in and around the area here is a brief explanation of the system and how it is used.

#### **Governor**

There is one single governor of Cloudcross which has near full autonomy in his actions within the city. With the blessing of Summergarde, this position is generally one held for life, however in rare circumstances one can gain this position from his predecessor with a blessing from the capital.

#### **Venerable Noble**

This class of citizens is generally Noble families who have had either a long history within the city and stayed within good standing of Summergarde. However individual nobles which may be of elvish decent may be given this upon reaching three or four hundred years of age. These nobles are generally those who will attain the seats within The Court of Rule.

#### **Noble**

Families with noble titles and bloodlines generally make up this class of citizens. A family may fall to this class from Venerable Nobles if they catch the ire of Summergarde or the governor. A family may raise their standings from lesser noble should for at least one human generation stay within good standing as lesser nobles.

#### **Lesser Noble**

Lesser Nobles are generally made up of people in a transient stage. This fluctuating class of people holds no real stability compared to most of the other classes in the system. Unlike the other Noble titles this class generally only applies to the individual rather than a family, however, in cases where The Court of Rule determines it applies to the family, it will be granted.

Nobles who might be disgraced are demoted to this class as either a punishment or a probationary period. If they do anything else which upsets those above them they are exiled from the nobility, thus as noble politics go being demoted generally leads to a quick subsequent exile.

Those who move upwards into this class generally fall in one of four general categories from most frequent to least frequent. Bards who graduate from either of the cities colleges immediately gain this class unless they are leaving the city. Noble house guard captains are also those who make up a lion share of the class serve their working life hoping that upon their retirement due to age or injury the noble family would push for their families ascension. The two rarer examples are Tradesmen and  Adventurers who make up less than one percent of the class.

#### **Guardsmen**

Made up primarily of soldiers and guards including their families this class is generally considered by outsiders as transient in nature. With the class being lost upon retirement in many circumstances guards generally train their children to take up the mantle to keep their family status.

#### **Tradesmen**

Similar to that of the guardsmen the transient family class of Tradesmen consists of Craftsmen, Merchants, Cooks, Servants, and Sailors all fall into this single class. This class of people, however, does not cover all of those people who fall into those classifications. This class of people live within the rise district and either apply their trade either in the Rise Districts or The Cloud Top.

#### **Apprentice Tradesmen**

Learning to be able to serve The Cloud Top District is a fate many people hope for their children. While Apprentice Tradesmen generally are under the age of twenty-one there is a handful of Apprentices which are much older and have been plying their trades in the docks for most of their lives. This rise in class gives them access to work in the Rise districts however they can not live here unless staying with the Tradesmen.

#### **Commoner**

The Commoner is the most populated class in the entire city of Cloudcross, which nearly ninety-nine percent of families will never raise themselves out of. With no access to anywhere but the docks and generally not even allowed to travel to the capital of Summergarde, most tend to ignore the other classes outside of Guardsmen if they happen to see one away from the walls around the Rise Districts.

#### **Pirate**

Pirates are generally considered sub-human to most classes outside of the commoners. While lumped in with thieves and criminals, pirates are allowed to walk the docks of Cloudcross only due to their lack of guard presence. While a commoner who somehow managed to get deeper into the city has a chance at liencey from the law, if a Pirate was to be found in a district outside of the docks they would be lynched.