Warden Official Ranks

In polite conversation, it is respectful to call someone of any rank a Warden unless they are rank 4 or above.

## Wardens

7. Marshall: The Captain of a Penitentiary. He who decides everything. May come from either a Warden or a Barrister background.

6: Sergeant: Military judge. Rules for tribunals of wardens. Generals in wartime.

5: Commissioner: Finds missions and puts them together, often through a Barrister. Secures jurisdiction through Persian dignitaries and others. Often, these will stay in Jurisdictional headquarters, rather than penitentiaries themselves.

4: Investigators: Warden detectives who have proved themselves capable of handling Accused. They are sent into the field, accompanied by Headsmen and/or Accused.

3: Ushers: Most of your time is spent transporting prisoners and bodyguarding Barristers. Many Wardens stay here, but if you want to advance you have to go through intensive Barrister training until you have memorized the law to a degree necessary to enforce it. Then, you may be selected to accompany an Investigator.

2**:** Stewards**:** Now, you have been assigned a Warden Investigator, who you will shadow and learn the tricks of your future trade. Essentially, you are an apprentice or squire, and rarely participate with the Warden themselves on missions in the field. Instead, your studies continue, and most often, they relay the details of their exploits to you in missing debriefings.

1: Bairn-Steward: Most of you life is tutelage in an academy, endless classes on law, physical training unlike anything you've endured, logic training on investigation, anatomy, and prison psychology, among countless other Bairn-Stewards just like you. Additionally, you work alongside magistrates performing menial tasks about the commissary.

0: Bairns: Orphans left behind or uncovered on missions who cannot find homes. Raised on ship in the Orphanage on the Ingenue Deck. A good portion of stewards begin as Bairns.

## Penitent Wardens

7: Corsair Marshall: While nigh unheard of, becoming a Corsair Marshall is possible. You got your own ship.

6: Sergeant-Corsair: You have seen everything. The inside of a prison cell, the backs of men under your command. Now, you lead the Wardens in their relentless pursuit of justice, as a well-regarded general.

5: Redemptor: You control the actions and deployment of Accused in the field, especially in times of war.

4. Corsair:You've done it. Your Shackles have been deactivated, and you have earned full autonomy within Empyrean Space. Do you go back home and return to whatever semblance of your life which remains? Or do you step into the role of a Warden Investigator? Either way, you have earned the respect of Wardens everywhere.

3: Penitent-Usher: You have earned the trust of your Warden, and are now on your way to becoming an actual Warden, or earning your freedom. For the most part, you keep other Accused in line, or serve as enforcers during investigations, transport of prison, or the occasional riot. You are no longer constantly monitored, but this is mostly because no one really expects you to rise any further than this station. The only way to do so is to be recommended by another Warden as a privilege to have assisting Protectorate investigations.

2: Penitent-Steward: You are now a direct apprentice to an assigned Warden. You will participate in investigations with your assigned Warden on occasion, but your opinion must always be tempered by theirs. Some degree of trust has been afforded to you, but you still remain equipped with the Shackles.

1: The Accused: You are being given a chance to rise out of your conviction, either to join the Wardens or prove your innocence. You must undergo a process to surgically implant The Shackles, whose exact nature vary from prison to prison, but which ensure your obedience to the assigned Warden. Defiance or aggression warrants your death. Good luck.

0: Convict: You live in a cell. While still allowed all your Persian dignities, you are incarcerated until you have balance your Accounts of your sentence. There are many ways to do this. Live peacefully throughout your incarceration and be released at a projected time. Sign up for a term in the Playground, where you will be pitted against others for the entertainment of a Syndicate-subsidized livestream in a gladiatorial arena, for the amusement of Empyreans. Or you can labor in the Workhouse factories. Each penitentiary offers a varied selection of ways to mitigate your sentence. Some allow their Accused to don the Shackles and obey the commands of a Warden Investigator out in the Field.