Organisations - Settlements
Most settlements are extremely well defended and their citizens are able to use a wide range of techniques to protect their homes. Especially in the big cities, the general citizens may have backgrounds similar to those of the normal adventuring party but they have done their part for society and now live less dangerous lives and raise families. Adventurers themselves are not that uncommon, and are held in varying views by different people. Some see them as annoyances, whilst others see them as heroes, but most view them in a more balanced light. Due to the presence of Gods and magic in particular, the homes of the powerful and wealthy are not easily infiltrated. With the ability to become invisible and fly, etc deterrents like counter-spells, traps, and guards are common security. Therefore it is extremely dangerous to even attempt to go places where you are not invited. This extends to the market place - if Thieves were able to just rob powerful merchants, then these merchants just wouldn't bother trading anymore. So the Thieves of the world have learnt not to be too greedy and therefore avoid the attention of potentially powerful enemies.
The most important people in a settlement are referred to as Officials, be they Settlement Officials, Temple Officials, etc.
Settlements are ruled by Settlement Officials. The Officials may rule the settlement via a method similar to democracy, or just one person could rule a settlement due to being the head of the royal family or a conquering tyrant. The Settlement Officials can be from any walk of life such as military officers, members of a Guild or Temple, civil servants, members of the noble families, retired adventurers or even just someone that was once an ordinary citizen and has since risen to a position of power by some means.
SETTLEMENT SOCIETY
Another problem different from our real life history is in court life. Some people are able to detect when truth has not been spoken, or persuade someone to do something and rumours are that a few rare individuals can even read the surface thoughts of a target. But, as with all things, counter-measures have been developed to block, hide or reverse such effects. This has created a complex society, as anything of a magical nature is renowned for being unstable, and one can never guarantee if the various abilities will work correctly. Thus those trained in the ways of court interaction still hold the majority of power, as they do not need to rely on magic (although many use it to enhance themselves, just in case…). The best thing to remember is that if it can be done; there will be something to counter it, thereby keeping society reasonably stable.
Some settlements have every Organisation present in a major way, whilst others only have only a few Organisations present in a major way; it is important to keep in mind that the other Organisations are still present. Citizens are often surprised when they find out just who is really a member of a Guild. For example, an Innkeeper may have been a Thief previously, and could still be part of the Thieves Guild. In comparison to Settlement Officials the Temple and Guild Hierarchies can operate across the settlement borders, and are often well informed of the global goings-on. Although trying to get such valuable information out of them is unlikely to be successful unless you have the highest Rank.
No party or Alliance is totally settlement based, as, after all, they are adventurers. Alliances are generally respected, but even the most powerful are not considered totally suited to running a settlement. Each settlement has its own relationship with other settlements. Most of the settlements are under the control of a Settlement-State, and thus pay taxes and expect protection in return. In most, the Officials are made up of at least a few representatives from the various Organisations (see Gods and Guilds for more information) that hold the most sway in the settlement. However there are some that have very little to do with most, or possibly even any, of the Organisations. In an ideal world an Organisation in one settlement would talk to their members in another. Unfortunately paranoia is a major problem, based on the countless times that someone has betrayed their Organisation in favour of themselves or their local area. For example: If the minions of Garthrana heavily influence two nearby settlements, many would assume that they would communicate with each other on a regular basis. The problem is that the Priests in Settlement A might not trust the Priests in Settlement B. This could be for a number of reasons, such as Settlement B has a strong Thieves' Guild presence, or that Settlement B has been making hostile threats to Settlement A. The reasons often quickly mount up and result in a complex relationship requiring careful diplomacy to avoid violence.
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