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Cirrylius
2010-02-04, 08:41 PM
Are there any 3.5 core or OGL rulebooks that deal with the consequences of granting players a nobility? (3.0 or 4th are fine, or even another system, I'm just asking for 3.5 for the sake of convenience)

All the material I've found in the core books tend towards fluff, and I'm looking for something more concrete. For example, what are the duties of a lord? How do their duties change as their rank rises? How would a nobility be treated under different government systems; royal, or republican, or imperial, or plutocratic? What kind of lands would be granted, what kind of taxes drawn from the locals and paid to the crown? What are some good ways to introduce and run politicking and court intrigue?

I apologize if I'm asking a question that's been posted to death, but I'm not having any luck with the site search engine.

Sinfire Titan
2010-02-04, 08:46 PM
Closest thing I can think of is Affiliations in Complete Champion.

Cirrylius
2010-02-04, 09:11 PM
Really? I'm astonished. Considering the suggestions of nobility as a reward in the DMG, and the far-reaching consequences that high level adventurers can have on the world, I would've thought that there would be more material on the subject.

Ormur
2010-02-04, 09:28 PM
There is the landlord feat in Stronghold Builders guide which seems to assume you become a part of some kind of a feudal hierarchy. You are granted land to build a castle on and get a separate WBL table solely for building the castle. The money keeps streaming in and among the suggestions is that it's a reward for serving your liege lord.

Titles often come with land and that could represent that, the additional funds that come with leveling could then ether be explained as further grants for as the taxes of the peasants that work your land.

But this is still largely fluff. Different forms of government are described in DMG and Cityscape I think (but then only for cities). I believe the omission is deliberate since the DM has to be the one deciding on how such things work in the campaign. Those things have varied both in time and space and giving concrete rules as to what lords should do would limit the freedom of the DM. In one campaign a spell that turned our blood literally blue was cast on my character when he was awarded his title.

Lordships and knighthoods can be excellent ways to motivate characters that care about such things and of course ways for the DM to involve them in some power structure. You can then either let the lord give them free reign to complete some mission or let their duties clash, possibly causing conflict with the liege lord.

In a centralized monarchy the nobility might be closely controlled and supervised by the king, offering less freedom or titles could be nothing more than that, a symbolic reward with few duties and little power.
In a more feudal society a title might give you an independent power base and you'd merely be honor bound to help the liege lord in need. A title would then be more significant since most would be inherited and you'd be considered far above public, a nearly sovereign ruler of your own land.
In a republic or a plutocracy the nobility might form the closed upper class of the state. In a city they might share power with big merchants or even be merchants themselves. Gaining titles might be harder there since there might not be a king to confer them and such ruling classes tend to jealously guard their influence.

Lower titles such as knighthood might not come with any lands but could vary from granting you high positions in the army or bureaucracy to merely being the right to call yourselves "sir". There could also by sumptuary laws and others that would give the nobility right to wear certain clothes, carry armour and weapons, riding horses, taking squires and bossing the public around. Those are generally in effect when the nobility is both in power and in need of differentiating themselves from upstarts like merchants and peasants. Nobles are also often free from taxation although in less feudal societies that might not be the case. They're support in wars would come instead.

I have chosen to go with the British noble titles in my campaign.
Highest are great landowners called lords with titles that are inherited, duke, marquis, count (or earl), viscount and finally baron. Next comes the lower nobility that are called sirs, baronets that inherit the title and knights that don't. If titles are not granted very freely there might be a gentry of high birth but without titles, squires and sons of knight or younger sons of lords.

Scoot
2010-02-04, 10:08 PM
This book (http://www.trollandtoad.com/p143220.html) has some decent rules for nobility.

Charge! (http://www.trollandtoad.com/p143207.html) by the same company may also have the sort of stuff you're looking for.

bosssmiley
2010-02-05, 07:40 AM
WOTC: Power of Faerun - the 'end game' sourcebook for 3.5

OGL: Empire - by Goodman Games or Alderac Entertainment Group

2E: the Birthright setting. The whole premise was "It's good to be king."

Non D&D: KA Pendragon RPG. Everything from running your manor to hosting tourneys, hunts and feasts. Also had sections on knightly duties and dues, grants in aid (feudal dues), and on becoming a lord. The works.

@v: Bruce Heard(?) did a few Known World Grimoire articles back in Dragons #180-200 that made a lot more sense of the domain rules as written. A combination of errata, common sense modifications and Q&As.

Altair_the_Vexed
2010-02-05, 08:23 AM
The BECM D&D sets and Cyclopedic D&D had detailed rules for assumption and creation of titles, kingdom management, and so on.

They were good guide lines, but needed a fair bit of interpretation. Applying them literally without any RP on the part of the DM (on behalf of the population and other rulers) could lead to silliness.
That's the way old D&D tended to be written though.

Cirrylius
2010-02-05, 03:07 PM
:smallmad: I can't believe I forgot about birthright.

Wait. Yes I can. That was fifteen years ago.

Thank you all for these suggestions. You've helped me a lot.