Adrastapol - Adrastapolian Society and Noble Titles: The Adrastapolians value honour and decorum to the extent that addressing a Scion with the wrong form of address can quickly lead to an honour duel being called. To complicate matters further, the name of a Scion as well as his formal title may change over time.In its most basic form, an Adrastapolian Knight will have a prefix before the name of his house that will denote his relationship to the house's ruler. Though unusual or localised prefixes proliferate, three key terms should be quickly learned and understood by outsiders wishing to comprehend the station of Adrastapolian Knights at war.The most valued prefix is that of "Tan," which denotes direct blood relation to a Noble House's ruler without considering the Knight's position in his own house's hierarchy. In general terms, this prefix would indicate that everybody bearing the prefix of "Tan" is a member of the house's ruling family and should be treated with the greatest respect. For example, the current high king of Adrastapol and leader of House Draconis bears the name of Danial Tan Draconis, son of the former High King Tolwyn Tan Draconis and brother to Jennika Tan Draconis.The most common prefix is "Dar" -- which could loosely be translated into Low Gothic as "of House" or "belonging to House." The prefix "Dar" indicates to which House a Knight's allegiance is given. This prefix is of great symbolic value and only upon completing his Ritual of Becoming and being formally ordained as a Knight may a squire claim this prefix. For example, during his training, a squire may be referred to simply by his first name and rank, such as Squire Willem, and may be called Willem Dar Minotos only after having survived his Becoming rituals.Should a Knight choose or be forced by circumstance to become a Freeblade or have his house destroyed, he would automatically bear the prefix of "Kar" which would replace any prefix that came before it. Seldom has this been seen as anything other than a mark of shame.Each Knight house is governed by a ruling council of the house's most trusted and most notorious Knights which is usually designated as the "Exalted Court." Each member of the Exalted Court has been hand-picked by the ruler of the house and been rewarded with one of the many honorific positions that form the council. On the Exalted Court, the most coveted position is that of "First Knight," which is awarded only to battle-hardened veterans of impeccable reputation and conduct, closely followed by the positions of Herald and Gatekeeper of the house's ancestral fortress.Other titles such as "Kingsward," the heir-designate to the high king's throne, exist but carry no formal power. As a matter of tradition, the Exalted Court is completed by the High Sacristan of the house in recognition of the Sacristan's technical expertise and his or her tireless efforts to keep the Knights battleworthy.In marked contrast to other, more conservative houses, the knightly households of Adrastapol do not distinguish between men or women, with the notable exception that a woman may not be proclaimed high king. Yet female Knights are a common sight within Adrastapolian society, including in ruling positions. For instance, House Pegasson has been ruled by women with the title of marioness for many standard centuries.