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Aristocracy, when in context to the Regalian Empire, refers to the upper-class citizens of its society, including wealthy families known as "new money", titled nobility known as "old money", knights, and other associated government-titled individuals. This Page will set out a variety of both OOC conduct rules, as well as IC mechanics through which there is a class-divide in Roleplay in Regalia, which we believe helps reinforce the historical-like setting in a fantasy world. This page also contains other useful referrals for things to do with Aristocracy, so it should generally be sourced as first to-go place for information.
Classes of Aristocracy
Aristocracy is broken up into several groups defining their place in society and what is expected of them to pass in the upper echelons.
- Nobility covers land-owning aristocrats who hold feudal titles and directly control various territories throughout the empire. They are considered "old money" in that their wealth has accumulated over several generations of their family, and also because nobility is one of the oldest classes in the empire. Nobles derive most of their income from their lands in the form of taxation, investing most of the revenue back into the lands due to the costs of ruling these territories. As a result, nobles often have less funds to spend on personal projects compared to the magnates, relying instead on their political connections and influence in various courts to see their plans enacted.
- Magnates cover wealthy commoners who have accumulated their wealth in recent times through business success and investments, buying themselves into aristocracy. They are considered "new money" in that their wealth has only appeared in only one or two generations, as Regalia has only recently started to embrace the earliest stages of industrial capitalism. Magnates are mostly referred to as "aristocrats" in daily life, even though the term also refers to the nobility as well. Magnates derive all of their income off of business profits and investment returns, allowing them to invest into other business ventures or fund their own personal projects. They have more money to spend than the nobility as they do not have to pay for territorial upkeep, manors, servants, and guards outside of their immediate business costs, while are miniscule compared to the costs the nobility must cover. This allows Magnates to flex their financial power over the nobility, often buying influence at court via loans to desperate peers.
- Knights are a martial class which blends the class divisions between upper and lower classes. Both aristocrats and commoners can become knights, and knight are able to mingle with high society due to the prestige of their orders. Within the social standing, knights rank above magnates but below nobility. If a noble is also a knight, they are treated as a knight while representing their order (eg, wearing armor and doing their job), and as a noble when they are not.
Aristocrat Activities
As aristocrats already have more wealth
- Soiree
- Patronage
- Event Hosting (Gala, tournament, banquet, hunt)
- Assemblies