Social Systems of the Taiyō

## The Ranks of the Castes

The culture of the Shogunate is highly based around a strict caste system, where the only true social mobility is granted by the Shogun, often as promotion for great deeds, or as punishment for great sins. The Shogun sits at the top of this hierarchy, seen as the living representative of Adzahnar, who is blessed by the Rising Sun to rule over the Shogunate with divine grace, which is supported and upheld by the Abhyasi, who stand as the second highest caste and the religious body of the Shogunate. This is followed by the Kizoku, who serve as the lords and ladies of the realm, making up roughly 2% of the total population, with the Senshi military class remaining the most honored, besides for the Shogun and Kizoku.

The Senshi caste of male, only noble warriors make up around 6% of the total population, while their wives make up the Sensei class.  The Sensei caste is pivotal in the social, moral and technological development of the nation, serving as scholars, teachers and tutors to both their children, as well as the children of friends and family. Below the Senshi is the Sōdokurafutā caste with 3% of the population, who serve as a caste of smiths and their apprentices. They work for their local Kizoku as metallurgy experts, largely for militant items such as swords, in which they are especially skilled in creating. However, the Sōdokurafutā also work on other tasks, such as: chandeliers, cups, silverware and gem encrusted jewelry.

Under the Sōdokurafutā are the Meiyo Nashi, Sensei warriors who have abandoned their code of honor and forsaken their masters, as well as women who have taken up the oath of the Senshi. Male members of this caste tend to be mercenaries and bandits, often in that order, while the females work to gain membership in the Senshi caste, which can only be granted by the Shogun himself and the clergy of the Adzanist church. The largest of the castes in the peasant caste, which is made of farmers, miners, workers and the common man of the Shogunate. These people account for nearly 76% of the total population, and serve as the largely submissive majority.

Below the peasants are the craftsmen, who are seen as one of the lowest castes in the Shogunate, as they do not make items of their own, instead they work off the labor of others in order to create their own goods, instead of laboring themselves. However, the Merchant class is officially the lowest tier in society, despite their importance and often respectable amount of wealth. The merchant class is theoretically shunned by general society for not contributing with their own work, instead they profit off of the work of others for personal gain, however since the widespread acceptance of Adzanism, many traders have been treated more akin to the Senshi, especially as many of the peasantry have begun to try and join the ranks of these traders and merchants.

An unofficial caste, known as the Eirians, exists for those who live inside the borders of the Shogunate but do not live by its customs. The caste exists only within the minds of the nobles and people of the innermost landlocked regions of the Shogunate, as port cities tend to be more open and welcoming of newcomers.

## Kizoku Classification

The Taiyō clan works to further ensure loyalty by maintaining a dogmatic insistence on loyalty to the Shōgun. As such, Kizoku are classified into three main categories:

* Shinpan ("relatives") were 3 clans established by sons of Yunifaia, as well as certain sons of his close allies, who were made Kizoku. They would provide an heir to the Shogunate if the shogun didn't have an heir.
* Fudai ("hereditary") were mostly vassals of Yunifaia and the Taiyō clan before the Battle of Kindushurga. They rule their han (estate) and serve as high officials in the Shogunate, although their han tend to be smaller compared to the tozama domains.
* Tozama ("outsiders") were around 14 Kizoku, most of whom became vassals of the Taiyō clan after the Battle of Kindushurga. Some fought against Taiyō forces, although some were neutral and even fought on the side of the Taiyō clan, as allies rather than vassals. The tozama Kizoku tend to have the largest han, with many of the largest Kizoku in this category.

The tozama Kizoku who fought against the Taiyō clan in the Battle of Kindushurga had their estate reduced substantially. They were often placed in smaller or far away areas, or placed between most trusted Kizoku. Early in the Taiyō period, the Shogunate viewed the tozama as the least likely to be loyal; over time, strategic marriages and the entrenchment of the system made the tozama less likely to rebel. In the end, however, it's still the great tozama of Nabar, Ziragz and Khammunz, and to a lesser extent Unbibun, that have the power to potentially bring down the Shogunate. These four states are called the Four Western Clans, or Satchotohi for short.

## The Bakuhan System

The bakuhan system is the primary political system in the Taiyō Shogunate. Baku is an abbreviation of bakufu, meaning "military government" while the han are the domains headed by Kizoku. Beginning from Taiyō Yunifaia the Great’s reign as shogun in 1 FA, but especially after the Taiyō victory in 15 FA against the Tanoshī-Konpeki alliance in the Azure Rebellion. Because of that conflict, the last major, island wide revolt until the Sengoku Rebellion in 536 FA, various policies were implemented to assert the Shogunate's control, which severely curtailed the Kizoku's independence. The number of Kizoku varies but stabilizes at 24.

The bakuhan system splits executive power between the Shogunate in Aram and the Kizoku with domains throughout Aramia and her territories. The Shōgun and lords were all Kizoku: lords with their own bureaucracies, policies, and territories. Provinces have a degree of sovereignty and are allowed an independent administration of the han in exchange for loyalty to the Shōgun, who is responsible for foreign relations, national security, coinage, weights and measures, and transportation.

The Shōgun also administered the most powerful han, the hereditary fief of the House of Taiyō, which also included many mines, dense forests and swathes of the most fertile land on the island. In the current state of the Shogunate, the Taiyō clan hold around 290,000 koku of land (tenryō), including 84,000 koku held by direct vassals, out of 505,500 in the country. The other 215,500 koku are held by other Kizoku.

The number of han fluctuated throughout the peaceful periods of unification, growing and changing as populations moved and grew, however would reach it’s peak of 24 with the conquest of coastal regions of Birukhar in . They were ranked by size, which was measured as the number of koku of food that the domain produced each year. One koku was the amount of food necessary to feed one adult male for one year. The minimum number for a Kizoku was a thousand koku; the largest, apart from the Shōgun, was more than a million koku.