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Laws
This section covers all laws in Amontaar, split into categories. Amontaar Guards exist both as NPCs, and as Player Characters hired as either full Mercenary Companies or Individuals by the Sol’s Captain, Sinelor. This page is about to undergo heavy change, due to Sinelor's successful coup of the Guard force, and ensuing reform to follow Artarel law code derived from Elven religious principles.
Light Crimes
Committing one of these crimes, your Character can Roleplay out avoiding the Guards over. No Wanted posters or bounties are put out (usually), so without a witness or victim directly asking the Guards for help, no intervention is likely. These result in fines, and no imprisonment. Fines can be paid via Wealth Tokens by any Family in the Aristocracy System. If a Wealth Token fine is not paid within a few (3) days, then a bounty will be put out.
Light Crimes include:
- Possession of illegal goods,
- (Minor) theft (pickpocketing),
- (Minor) assault (no blood, no weapons),
- Trespassing,
- Hosting non-Estelley Religious sermons.
Bounty Crimes
Committing one of these crimes will lead to a bounty being put out to capture your Character. Guards and hired Mercenaries will come after them. These result in imprisonment, until a Trial is arranged. A Wealth Token can be spent to remove a bounty from someone, or to free someone before a Trial.
Bounty Crimes include:
- Assault,
- theft,
- being Afflicted,
- possession of Spirits outside of Canopic Jars,
- conversion of Estellians from Estelley.
Infamous Crimes
Committing one of these crimes will lead to your Character becoming a prime capture target, and NPC Guards will also go after them. These result in imprisonment.
- Attempting the life of an Amontaar Noble,
- murder,
- Offending the Sol.
Imprisonment
The Guards in Amontaar can hold a Character indefinitely until their punishment can be processed by the Guard Commander. Most initial punishments are minor, but limbs start coming off if they see the same person in prison too many times.
Trial
Infamous Crimes (and egregious Bounty Crimes) can lead to a Character undergoing Trial under Allorn Law, which is an argument between the defender and accuser (sometimes the State Prosecutor). Whoever more successfully sways the listening Commander is considered the winner. If the defender is familiar with Fin’ullen Culture, they can demand a Trial by the Will of Vyrë, which is a battle underwater to first blood where whoever strikes the first hit is considered in the right. This trick should not be pulled more than once, and will probably not work if it is an Infamous Crime they are being tried for.
Artarel Law
Infamous Crimes (and egregious Bounty Crimes) can lead to a Character undergoing Trial under Artarel's Law, which is considered to be the fairest legal system in Aloria. Below is a bullet list of the rights and functions of Artarel Trials:
- All Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty, meaning it is up to the State to prove the wrongdoing of the Defense.
- Class distinctions do not apply under Artarel Law. A common dockworker is viewed the same as the Sol himself.
- All Defendants have the right to a Legal Counsellor to advise and advocate for them during a Trial.
- Artarel Trials require a Jury panel of at least six citizens, who are responsible for determining the guilt or innocence of the Defendant.
- A single Judge presides over the Trial, and is responsible for guiding the Trial proceedings and well as provide guidance to the Jury panel on what to do.
The typical Artarel Trial involves the Prosecution and Defense providing arguments to the Jury on why the Defendent should be found innocent or guilty, citing evidence and witness testimonies to add legitimacy to their claims. After both sides have completed their arguments, the Guard will escort the Jury to a private area for them to deliberate, after which they will return to the Trial and render their verdict. If the Defendant is found innocent, they are immediately released and all charges are dropped. If the Defendant is found guilty, the Judge renders an appropriate punishment.
Exist Spirit Exception
Exist Apparitions with directly verifiable ties to the Estelley Gods (being created by one of them and loyal to them) as assessed by the High Priestess of Sapphora (who provably has this power) can legally exist in Amontaar as holy entities unless they do something anti-Estelley.