Kingdom of Lior

### History

Established after The Void, Lior became a fledgling city that grew in name as a beacon of hope to all surrounding hidden settlements. The Void is known as the time before Astarah, when darkness ruled the lands. In truth, demons and devils ruled the various lands roundabout. Their kingdoms were small and sprawling as demons are too chaotic to form large organizations outside of the Abyss, and devils are too lawful and particular to create a sprawling metropolis. Each Devil Lord had their own methods and views of how the law was to be fulfilled and what WAS law. The mortal races were either subjugated or hidden in whatever crag or crevice they could find. There is little that was written within The Void. Anything that is documented is from suspect sources, mainly Devils, as Demons did not care for such things.

Lior became popular only after Adelene established her base of operations within the city. Lantern became a satellite city by that point in time. From a strategic standpoint, Lantern was never secure. It had too many points of hidden entry into the growing metropolis. Adelene decided to rebase after several failed attempts at assassination cause the deaths of many of Astarah’s acolytes. This also caused her to understand that a religious center would need to be established to provide for the structure of Their church to really take root. Thus, Lior was born.

Built on the ashes of a razed city, Lior settled into a mountain side, with a port into an inlet on the opposite side that ran up to the mountain. Daemon’s Reach, the harbor city, prior to the change, was built by demons who found it profitable to deal with the duergar who mined the mountain for its riches. Oddly, the duergar were not long lived as owners of the mines of Khazadrim. Khazadrim is, by all accounts, one of the realms of the ancient dwarves that lived underneath the mountains. They had separated and disbanded ages before the duergar took over. The duergar, usually a lazy and opportunistic race, simply built atop the remains of the ancient civilization. Their tenuous alliance with the demons of Daemon’s Reach was predicated on the goods that was provided to them. The port allowed the demons to easily profit off of the metals and weapons created by the duergar.

When the Khazadrim, or Khazad dwarves, returned, they quickly expelled the duergar from their homes. This provided a base from which Adelene was able to work. Using a pincer attack, working and allied with the dwarves, she attacked from the front to siege the city of Daemon’s Reach and take their attention, while the Khazadrim attacked from behind. As a result, Daemon’s Reach was destroyed. Built upon the ashes of Daemon’s Reach, Lior holds many untold secrets within its foundations.

The creation of a kingdom came as a means of protecting what Astarah had started. Once They gained a foothold in Daedria, They were loath to potentially lose what had been gained. As such, They understood the need for tradition which would deeply ingrained itself in the people. Mortals are frail creatures that are possessive of their own progeny and leaving a mark on the world in which they live. As such, the shorter lived races are more prone to holding onto traditions such as lineage.

Adelene provided a structure for which Astarah could take advantage. She hand picked and anointed the future King of Lior. It was by her hand that the Kingdom of Lior gained its leader. As such, Krindel Lior became first ruler of the city, divinely appointed by Adelene herself. The claim to the throne is unquestioned in this manner. The mantle of rulership has passed from Krindel to Son from this time forward. It has never, to common knowledge, been in debate as to whether or not the King was valid.

Krindel Lior, a simple farmer, came to power by virtue of their faithfulness to Astarah. They proved instrumental in the pincer attack upon Daemon’s Reach when taking over the city. They were on the forefront of the attack that drove the demons back. Adelene provided her support as well, but Krindel was singled out, with purpose. He held the divine in his hands and was able to take control of Daemon’s Reach. In fact, it was Krindel’s influence that brought the Khazadrim into The Undercity.

### Government

The Kingdom of Lior was established with a King during The Surge. A time period indicating the recreance of demonic and devilish beliefs. These were not the only religious or temporal systems replaced by belief in Astarah, but they were the most prominent. All known religions either faded or were absorbed into the Lantern God’s will. Prior to this happening, Astarah knew there would be a need for stability. They called forth, by the hand of Adelene, a king to rule their might. The city of Daemon’s Reach was then a smaller metropolis. One populated by the demons that roamed the western half of Daedria. To call it a kingdom would be over-exaggerating the amount of organization that the Demons had. However, there was a ruling power. Adelene’s first order of business from Astarah was to cleanse the city of the infestation. The number of slaves versus the number of demons was overwhelmingly high and made it a likely target for the champion of Astarah. As such, a hand selected ruler was bound to have a strong effect on the population left behind.

The King, Fastidious Eagerly, was the first choice and was among the most dedicated of Astarah’s growing entourage of faithful. As such, his authority could not be questioned. This provided a solid basis of rule for the newly unified Mortal races of Daedria. With him in charge, the population as a whole managed to spread from the base of Lior to the world as a whole. Lior grew quickly and easily, the issues that came about were due to the rapid expansion of the city. Being a beacon of light and hope to all races on the demon infested land was not a difficult thing to understand. As such, baronies were set up.

As a side note, the city of EastHallow was created as a satellite city to Lior. It held true that the city was more of a fortress for defense that provided cover for the main sprawling metropolis of Lior.

As a rule of thumb, the laws were kept simple. There were few laws that governed the land, overt laws that is.

#### Laws

* On Crimes against King and Country
	+ Treason is punishable by death, delivered swiftly by guard, militia, or governing lord.
	+ Obstruction of the Kings' Justice is punishable on a case by case basis determined by the governing lord. Maximum punishment unless declared by King, is death by hanging.
* On Murder
	+ Murder is punishable by death. Civilians may enforce this punishment if guards are not present and it is necessary.
	+ Manslaughter, the unintentional killing of another, is punishable by death by hanging or execution as determined by the governing Lord. It is required for a hearing to be given by the governing Lord in the incident of manslaughter. Willing surrender is taken to account for lessening punishment to Assault (see assault laws).
* On Theft
	+ Grand Theft (single theft attempt exceeding 1,000 gold pieces in value) is punishable by death. Civilians may enforce this punishment in defense of their own goods, only during the act of theft.
	+ Major Theft (single theft attempt exceeding 100 gold pieces in value up to 1,000 gold pieces) is punishable by loss of hand. If there is no hand to lose, then death by hanging.
	+ Typical Theft (single theft attempt exceeding 1 gold piece in value, up to 100 gold pieces) is punishable by fine for the amount stolen. If the fine is unable to be paid, then loss of hand is levied. At the request of the aggrieved, the debt may be paid by the governing Lord and indentured servitude is enforced to work off fine.
	+ Petty Theft (single theft attempt up to 1 gold piece in value) is punishable by fine for the amount stolen. If the fine is unable to be paid, the debt is paid by the governing Lord and indentured servitude is enforced to work off the fine.
* On Assault, Physical and Non
	+ Grievous Assault (Attacking with a deadly weapon) is punishable by loss of sword hand and at the request of the aggrieved or governing Lord, a punitive fine levied against the assailant to cover any expenses plus extra as determined by the governing Lord.
	+ Assault (Attacking without a deadly weapon / provable no-intent to kill) is punishable by punitive fine levied against the assailant to cover any expenses plus extra as determined by the governing Lord.
	+ Harassment is determined by the guard, and punishable by a minor fine levied against the harasser as determined by the guard at that moment. Fine to be divided between the aggrieved and tax collector as determined by the guard present based upon the governing Lord's recommendations.
* On Illegal Substances / Activities
	+ Possession of Illegal Substances is punishable by a minor fine levied against the possessor as determined by the guard at that moment and confiscation of illegal goods. Possession of goods labeled treasonous by the King are punishable by treason.
	+ Solicitation of Illegal Substances is punishable by a minor fine levied against the solicitor as determined by the guard at that moment and confiscation of illegal goods. Then the solicitor is to be jailed as per the governing lord's jailing capabilities until the infraction is heard by the king.
* On Slavery
	+ No citizen of Lior shall ever own the rights to another citizen of Lior. The King defines this as Slavery, and as such is strictly outlawed.
	+ In the event that money is owed, a contract of indentured servitude may work in the place of direct pay, as per the discretion of the governing lord. During this period, the servant has their free will, but the agreed upon percentage of pay earned, with fee, is applied to the debt instead.

#### Dueling Laws

In the instance that the aggrieved wishes to take matters into their own, or the laws do not adequately apply in the situation in which honor is sullied, a legal duel may be levied against the other. The following rules must be followed to ensure the duel is legal and both parties must agree:

1. Terms of the Duel: The terms of the duel must be clearly set, determining who is the winning and losing party. What each party brings at stake in the duel. While there is no contract, this is treated as a gentleman's agreement, bound by the governing Lord.
2. At least one mediating party must be present for the duel to help determine the winning and losing party and that all rules were adhered to.
3. Either party may choose a champion to represent them / their interests in a duel. The Champion must accept prior to the date set for the duel.
4. Duels to the death are allowed at the acceptance of the governing Lord. Current decree under Lord Shaw states that duels to the death are allowed. In matters of duels to the death, an immediate will is to be created that states what is to be done with either party's owned items at death. Binding per the rules of the duel. In the instance that this is neglected, all items become property of the King under the care of the governing Lord.
5. Should any of the agreed upon rules of the duel be broken, it is considered Obstruction of the Kings' Justice and may result in the death of one or both parties participating in the duel.