A Grand Assembly

One of the tenets of the Golden Peace is that all nobles are equal, and all have opinions equally worthy of being weighed to influence the good of all Togarmah. To this end, it is a key part of the Togarman political process that the nobility gather in a system of Grand Assemblies, so that they may share their thoughts, allow their opinions to be heard, and present the reigning monarch with a statement of purpose that will guide their actions.

These Grand Assemblies, drawing voices from all corners of Togarmah, are held every two years, in the late fall when the harvest season is over and the nobility is not too busy with overseeing crop yields. Of course, these meetings are only the culmination of a number of local and regional assemblies held in the interim periods, in which nobles from a given area meet with one another to discuss matters that concern them all, and to nominate representatives who will go on to partake in the next largest assembly. For instance, these might start with all the knights of one lord's manor meeting to determine what their most pressing concerns are and what they wish to let the lord know, but at that meeting, one knight will be designated to represent the concerns of his fellows at the assembly for the barony that fief is a part of, which will elect a representative for the assembly for the county that barony is a part of, and so on. By the end of this process, each region will have a representative to send to the Grand Assembly, who will voice their region's concerns to the King.

The Grand Assemblies are always held at Castle Korogard in Venec, which holds both the residence of the royal family and a large assembly room built specifically to hold all the many representatives from throughout the kingdom. Bringing as it does nobles from all over Togarmah, these assemblies involve no shortage of pagentry as the different Togarman cities and duchies wish to put forth the best image for their people. Though a parade through the streets of Venec is not officially part of the assembly procedure, it has become customary, and has grown into a grand spectacle in its own right. For many Venecis, this is the only time they will see people from the far-flung corners of the Kingdom, and the streets are awash in a multitude of colors and textures to display the different fashions and cultures of the land. Myrov counts in doublets and hose may walk astride armored and winged Zelsky chieftains, Polavians in their diaphonous sleeves, Gundalian boyars in fur-lined brocade, and Leshic wise women in embroidered cloaks - and all of them enjoy equal status.

To account for the vast numbers of nobles and their entourages attending, the Grand Assembly lasts six weeks from when the delegates arrive to when they return home. In that time, they are free to mingle with one another, debate important matters, and explore Venec. Naturally, the capital's population swells during this period, so Venec (and the roads leading to and from it) has many large and prestigious inns that cater to visiting nobles. It is considered a mark of honor for one of these inns to have housed an important dignitary, and competition between inns to attract the most celebrated guests possible can be fierce during the assembly season.

By the end of each Grand Assembly, the delegates are expected to produce a document outlining the most pressing concerns that impact the entire Kingdom and what they desire be done about them. This is presented to the King and his Royal Council. Strictly speaking, nothing in this proposal is binding, and the King has the final say in what to do - though to overrule the concerns of the nobility is considered incredibly gauche, and given that the Golden Peace promises nobles the right to rebel, many kings defer to these guidelines as a practical matter to ensure stability as much as for the sake of politeness.

Though the Grand Assembly is held every two years, extraordinary matters - such as a crisis that threatens all of Togarmah - may lead to an additional assembly being called at any time. The most common reason for this is the death of a reigning monarch. In this instance, the high priest of the Cult of Solenna assumes the throne in the interim while a series of assemblies is called to first determine the dates for the election of the next monarch, who the candidates will be, and what laws the new monarch will have to abide by; then to conduct the election and the coronation.

In these assemblies, every noble in Togarmah is welcome to attend and vote; it is believed that everyone has a voice worthy of being heard. Because of this, the Castle often does not have enough room for all the visiting delegates, and a camp is made on the plains outside the city limits instead. Votes are cast publically, verbally, and openly. Because of this, and because of the many armed retainers present, it has not been unheard of for skirmishes to break out if the tide of the election seems to start going in a direction certain delegates dislike, but usually they get resolved fairly quickly.

The process of electing a new king dates back to the Kingdom of Polavia, which adopted the practice at times when a reigning monarch died without an heir. However, with the rising powers of the nobility over the monarchy, this has evolved into the standard practice every time a monarch dies - although often times the king's heir is named as a candidate at the election, and usually they end up getting voted in anyway, by virtue of being the heir. However, many times there has been a dark horse victor, often because ambitious nobles saw one of the candidates as an easy target for manipulation or as a weak ruler who would allow them to expand their reach untested.

The candidates for a royal election do not have to be Togarmans. In fact, often times, foreign candidates are sponsored by the nobility because their nature as outsiders means they will have little influence over the populace to keep the nobility in check with - or even by foreign powers who bribe the electorate to appoint them to the throne (or their rivals to the throne in order to destabilize their holdings if their attention is split between two realms). Because of the unique nature of Togarmah's government, such a personal union does not necessarily mean the monarch's powers will apply equally - such is the case of Ealdric of the Two Thrones, who was simultaneously King of Togarmah and Emperor of Vardessy. He hoped that he would be able to bring Togarmah into the Vardessian sphere of influence by doing so, only to find that the local nobles had enough sway to counteract many of his decisions, and when he died, the Togarmans held a new election rather than passing the throne to the next Emperor.

The current king is Marek III. He is a man of noble intentions who wants the best for Togarmah, but feels that his attempts to further his plans have been stifled at every turn by the machinations of the nobles. Though he finds this frustrating, he realizes that to overrule their decisions would be to risk upsetting powerful factions within the Kingdom, which could throw it into chaos, and he feels that doing so would cause more trouble than it would solve. However, should a crisis of sufficient magnitude to tie the nobles' hands arise, he would not be opposed to exerting his authority...

Grand Assembly Adventure Seeds (d20)

1. A noble patron of the party is attending a Grand Assembly, and has chosen the PCs as their entourage for protection during the journey to Venec.

2. The Grand Assembly has brought some of the most powerful and influential people in Togarmah together...which naturally presents security risks. Someone is looking to launch an attack - is it a display of power? An attempt to usurp a rival? Is it to obtain a ransom by holding the nobles hostage?

3. One of the nobles at the Castle has been found dead during a meeting of the Grand Assembly. Obviously, one of the other delegates must be responsible - but who?

4. With visiting nobles stopping in town on the way to the Grand Assembly, there's no room in any of the inns - what are some travelers passing through to do if they need a place to sleep?

5. While present at a meeting of the Grand Assembly, the PCs run into an old enemy of theirs who nonetheless holds a noble title. The Golden Peace prevents anything from being done about it, but surely they're up to no good. Or are they?

6. A procession en route to the Grand Assembly has been found dead on the side of the road - still carrying the noble's signet ring and important certificates. This could be the perfect opportunity to impersonate them, and perhaps gain great power by doing so - of course, at great risk.

7.  A disagreement during a Grand Assembly has gone south, and now rival factions are threatening to break out into civil war - with the PCs caught in the middle!

8. During a heated argument, one of the nobles has stormed out during a session of the Grand Assembly, which threatens to hold up the proceedings. Can the PCs talk some sense into them?

9. A great banquet is to be held for a delegation visiting on the way to a Grand Assembly, but the head of the party has expensive tastes, and the cooks don't have a rare ingredient necessary for the dish. Can the PCs find it? Obviously, disappointment is not an option.

10. When it's discovered that one delegate attending the Grand Assembly is carrying a map to great treasure, it's a race between several rival factions - potentially including the PCs - to get to it first!

11. With two rival innkeepers both trying to court the attention of an influential noble attending the Grand Assembly, one (or both!) of them decides to hire the PCs to sabotage the other so the noble will pick theirs instead.

12. Turns out one of the PCs looks a lot like someone who's supposed to be here for the Grand Assembly, and people got confused. How will they react to all the attention they're getting now?

13. Word has arrived to a noble patron of the PCs that the delegate they sent to the Grand Assembly has been assassinated and a forged decree is being sent instead that threatens to sabotage their efforts. It's up to the PCs to get to Venec before their patron can be compromised.

14. Obviously nobles can make great allies, and one passing through on the way to the Grand Assembly could prove a valuable asset to the party - but they need to earn their respect before they'll do anything to help the cause.

15. A magician has placed a spell over a delegate at the Grand Assembly that allows them to control their thoughts and actions. How can the PCs prove what's going on before it's too late? And what are the wizard's motives here?

16. Some way or another, the PCs have insulted the honor of an influential noble heading to the Grand Assembly. They'll need to clear their name if they want to go unharrassed in that noble's domain.

17. With the local lord away at the Grand Assembly, their fief seems ripe for the takeover. Can the PCs stop such a coup...or are they behind it?

18. There's no shortage of bandits on the road looking to threaten nobles on their way to the Grand Assembly to give up their wealth in exchange for protection. Something must be done about that!

19. Several nobles attending the Grand Assembly have parked their carriages here, and surely they have valuable belongings stowed within. Seems like the perfect setup for a heist.

20. A minstrel entertaining guests at the Grand Assembly is in need of new material - and thinks that the PCs could serve as inspiration for a heroic ballad if they perform a great quest in the area.