The structure of the Mardanian government is based on the monarchical system, where laws and policy are decided by a single competent individual.
King/Queen.
Prince/Princess.

Currently Mardania and it's capital, Mardus, are presided and ruled over by King Kyxo, fiftieth of his line and sovereign over all of the country of Mardania.
First in line and heir to the throne is his daughter and only surviving child, the princess Helia Glacies Kyxo.


In the land of Mardania there's various citizen classes of nobility whose influence is derived de-facto from the status itself.

Nobles from greatest to least:
Duke/Duchess.
Marquess/Marchioness.
Count/Countess.
Viscount/Viscountess.
Baron/Baroness.
Baronet/Baronetess.
Knight/Dame.

This comprises the Peerage.
Someone with a noble title of legal importance is known as a peer. Peerages can be hereditary, meaning they're passed down, or they can last only for the peer's lifetime. Life peerages, as they're called, are usually honorary.
A peerage can hold several titles of varying importance, and the children of said peer would adopt those lesser titles as a courtesy title to avoid confusion (e.g the eldest son and heir of a Duke is often a marquess, though he can also be a count, viscount, or baron. The title given to the heir is a lesser title of the peer, usually the next highest peerage he holds.)

Then there's the wealthy:
Merchants.
Bankers.
Plantation owners.
Mercenary groups.
Guilds and lesser nobles whose material wealth far exceeds their political power or position.

They don't wield much political power, but still have some influence, despite not being nobles the kingdom cannot possibly function without them. As such they get to throw their weight around and oppose the classical nobility in certain ways.

Last, but not least in the upper social hierarchy:
Mages.
Sorcerers.
Wizards.
Warlocks.
They are the intelligentsia, highly educated individuals who use their knowledge of magic or alchemy to strike bargains with the magic-less masses and lodge themselves into the upper power structure, usually as advisors or magical teachers or consultants but it's not unheard of for such individuals to also hold a legal title within the peerage.

The representative counsel consisting of guild leaders, heads of local trade and merchant organizations, mayors, governors, and other civilian elected representatives.

The military largely belongs to the royal faction. The nobles loyal to the crown will support the royal military with their own households military and monetary support.

The individual houses of the noble faction often possess their own private military forces, either for furthering their own interests or to contribute to the royal army in times of need.

The civilian representative body are also often given funding from the kingdom to form and keep their own militia and police force in the areas where neither the influence of the royal faction or of the noble faction can reach.

Knighthood is an extraordinary and rare honor. Upon being knighted, they are entitled to use the title "Sir" before their name and also qualify for a heraldic coat of arms.
All Knights share certain duties and traits. However, all knights are not equal, and there exists several grades of knighthood. The difference between these is primarily the source of income for the knight.

Knight Mercenary:
Knights without a lord are the lowest class of knights. They are called mercenary because they must seek to sustain themselves through work for money. Since knights are fighting men, they generally make their living by seeking mercenary soldier employment and differ from ordinary mercenary cavalry only in that they have taken the oath of knighthood to a lord at one point.

Knight Bachelor:
Knights whose income is derived directly from their lord, either through direct maintenance or by cash payments, are called "Knights Bachelor". The word "Bachelor" has come to be associated with unmarried men because bachelor knights were generally not rich enough to support a wife.
Knights Bachelor are also called household knights because they live in their lord's household, not on their own land. They are his bodyguard and standing army, and travel wherever their lord takes them. Their loyalty is crucial to the lord's success, perhaps even to his survival, so they are treated well and receive great honor.
A knight bachelor may bear a pennant upon his lance to distinguish his rank from the commoners, who wear no decoration.

Knight Vassal:
Knights who own their own land are knight vassals. They are substantial landlords and capable of equipping themselves for war. Knight vassals generally live at their own home but are obliged to serve for 40 days per year at war, plus a customary extension of 20 more if the lord demands it. They must also serve three months of castle garrison duty, and at court to offer advice when the lord demands it.
A knight vassal may bear a pennant on his lance.

Knight Lord:
Knights are sometimes lords over other knights and are thus called knight lords. Knight lords are the upper rank noblemen, the lords of the land (A "lord" referring to any knight who has taken on other knights as followers. The lowest grade of lord is a Banneret Knight. The highest is the High King).

The Knight Paladins of Mardus is an elite military force that takes orders directly from the ruler of Mardania.
As a knightly order they consider it their highest duty and honor to serve the crown.
They are a private military force recruited from either the Nobility of the country, the most decorated soldiers, or those of highest performance and grades who attend The School of Oaths.

Ranks within the Knightly order include:
Knight/Dame Paladin Commander.
Knight/Dame Commander.
Commander.
Lieutenant.
Member.
Ranker.

The kingdom of Mardania is a large and prosperous country, allowing a great deal of freedoms and liberties to its citizens from the wealthy all the way down to the poor. Businesses and trade are only lightly regulated in recognition of the power inherent in individuals and privately owned enterprises.
The country is ruled by the monarch, but due to its sheer size it was necessary to position others to help manage different states, this duty was placed on the noble faction, civilian and peasant representatives, and those aligned with the royal faction to help oversee the vast territory.

The population is generally happy with how things are run, but it's the fear of uncertainty that causes their unrest. When the king passes away what will his daughter do as queen? Many influential voices spread many different messages among the vast population, some to spread fear of the future, and some to reassure the masses. As a people with individual freedoms they believe what they want and divisions spring up on the daily, loyalists against reformationists, the noble faction against the royal faction and so on and so forth.

House Agnosis and its lands are presided solely over by Count Theodore Agnosis.

A Knight Paladin of Mardus and a Knight Paladin Commander within the ranks of the knightly order, having taken the Oaths of a Knight Paladin to serve King, future queen, and country with life and limb.

A wealthy noble family of the Royal Faction, representing themselves and their people in their own land of Cosrakanna, and their holding at the Madovishta Plaza within the city of Mardus.

The family and holdings are ruled by Duke Kennedy Deraus Calcutte.
His family includes:
The Duchess Huanna Evissa Calcutte
The Dame Dianna Calcutte
And Lady Melina Calcutte

Families in service to House Calcutte
The Kirtania Family:
Jinpachi Kirtania

A wealthy family of the Knight Lord, Sir Fulton. A lesser noble representing himself and his family as a Knight Paladin of Mardus.

His son and two daughters attend the School of Script.
Lord Ezra Fulton
Lady Eris Fulton
Lady Elexnia Fulton

WIP
A wealthy family of the Noble Faction. Due to the number of children the late Lord Kraith produced with his wife, many of his children have left nobility behind to seek their fortunes elsewhere, since only the eldest would inherit the family fortune and succeed their father.

The siblings of House Kraith include:
Lord Argo Kraith (the succeeding lord)
Sir Reemus Kraith
Sir Ferrous Kraith
Sir Hanson Kraith
Sir Orion Kraith
Sir Matthew Kraith
Sir Samson Kraith

House Mendrev is a minor noble house presided over by Lord Halwyn Mendrev.
Due to the passing of his late wife, Lord Mendrev has the task of raising their many children with help by the house and staff, as well as aid from other relatives.

His house and Family includes:
His daughters:
Lady Alysandra Mendrev
Desiminla Mendrev
Unity Mendrev

His Siblings:
Noah Mendrev
Asuego Mendrev

His staff and servants:
Sherry Kenem (Maid)

A small border keep ruled by the impoverished vassal knight, Sir Llewen Merrick.
A Knight Paladin of Mardus and the only surviving member of House Merrick.
Castle Merrick and its lands are allied with the Royal faction, but currently has a tax exempt status while it recovers from poverty and destitution. By mercy of Princess Kyxo.

It’s servants and people include:
Derugonia
Kuu
Tabitha Pamona

A wealthy merchant family allied closely with House Vasseret.

The daughter attends the School of Script on a scholarship supported by the Vasseret family.
Miss Steallaris Salamanca

A wealthy family of politicians in the Noble Faction, representing themselves and their estate in Mardus.
The head of the family is the powerful Duke Vasseret.

House Vassaret includes:
His Wife, Duchess Vasseret
His magical daughter who attends the School of Script,
Lady Priscilla Vasseret

Hundreds of years ago the City of Mardus was discovered near the foothills of the Spine by the warlord, Hector Ardus Kyxo who set out from his home in The Reach with his band of warriors to settle a new land.
He brought with him a thousand warriors and a thousand workers and craftsmen.

When they came across the city in the side of the mountain, they had almost missed it and would have passed the mountain by several leagues if his squire hadn't spotted a single glittering tower in the distance.

The city was a ruin, dust covered everything so thickly that the magnificent and immense glass walls didn't sparkle in the sunlight. It was only by pure providence that a single window that faced the right angle reflected the sunlight so that one man could notice it's twinkle.
Several sections of the wall and many buildings were cracked and shattered, but it was the greatest discovery this warband could ever have hoped for!

It took an entire year to explore the entire city and even then, many of its secrets were still lost to them. They discovered the furnace and forge which created the glass and revived its enchantments.
It took many more years, but eventually Hector Ardus Kyxo had settled the city and established himself as king, thus establishing the Kyxo line that persisted as the rulers of Mardus to the present day.

It was a hundred years after Hector's reign that Mardus became the center of a nation, called Mardania.

It's said that the capital city, Mardus, used to be a city in the sky built by cloud giants but was rebuilt on the ground after its cataclysmic fall thousands of years ago. It's unknown whether this story is true, but the sheer size and capacity could certainly accommodate a population of giants if it didn't currently house thousands of humans and humanoid races.
This city is what's known as the capital of the nation of Mardania that was founded a long time ago and brought under the monarchical rule by the ancient Kyxo family ancestors.

Now as a nation it spans several kingdoms and many towns and villages that grew up alongside their country, as each new king of the Kyxo line seemed to take what the previous king left and made it better.

The nation of Mardania was built around the city of Mardus as its bastion of protection and center of commerce.

A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity.
A knight is a title of lesser nobility in Mardania, but often they are also a vassal who serves as an elite fighter or a bodyguard for a lord, with payment sometimes in the form of land holdings.

Impoverished Knights:
Knights with an income of less than three gold per year are described as impoverished. Theirs is a miserable lot. They appear ragged, armor dented and rusty and lean and sickly. He has no squire and usually lacks a horse of any kind. As a result, an impoverished knight counts only as a sergeant in battle, even though he may be far more skilled or valorous.

Legally, impoverishment means trouble. An impoverished bachelor knight, who normally lives at the hall of his lord, is not required to remain loyal to his lord since the feudal oath promises him sustenance. He may leave or may be sent away on a quest by the helpless lord.
On the reverse, if a vassal knight neglects his land to the point of impoverishment, the lord has a right to cancel their agreement and take the land back. The knight has clearly failed to maintain the land and uphold his end of the feudal bargain.

Poor Knights:
Poor knights receive too little economic support to maintain themselves in the manner in which they ought. A knight who receives between 3-5 gold per year is considered poor. In general, a poor knight has no squire; rides a mangy, sway-backed horse; is hungry, lean and ragged; and wears dented armor.

Ordinary Knights:
Regular, or ordinary knights are the knights most often seen in service. Whenever the word "Knight" is used unmodified by an adjective, it refers to this type of person. Ordinary knights comprise the majority of chivalry.
An ordinary knight makes about 6 gold per year in money and food which keeps himself, his family, a single squire, and his horses in a healthy and robust manner of living and keeps his equipment in good repair.

Rich Knights:
Rich knights receive between 9 and 12 gold per year to spend on their maintenance, significantly above normal standards.
Rich knights wear clothing of rich fabrics and furs in the latest style, use silver-decorated tack for their glossy coated horses, and enjoy rich feasts. They generally have two squires in attendance, both well-mounted and attentive to their lord's needs. Their families live well, off the fat of the land.

Superlative Knights:
Superlative knights are the most extravagant and impressive of all, requiring more than 12 gold per year for upkeep. Their armor shines brightly, their clothing is sumptuous with intricate stitching, extensive use of gold thread, jewels, imported feathers and furs from fantastic beasts. Three squires, each proud in matching livery, attend their lord's needs. Superlative knights also benefit from their superior health and the aid given in battle by well-equipped, loyal squires.


The process to becoming a knight can be a long one for most, but simple for others. Most start their training young as outlined in the steps below.

Stage 1: Page
Once a child reached the age of seven, they would be sent to live with another lord and his family; this was known as fostering. They would then learn to ride a horse, use a sword, sing, manners and dance.
Pages are young boys and girls between the ages of seven and fifteen who are learning the ways of courtly life by observing their elders and doing those tasks assigned to them. After serving as pages most girls become maids/ladies-in-waiting and wives. Boys become squires.

Stage 2: Squire
Boys become squires at age 15. Squires are servants of their knights. They study the ways of knighthood while they serve, the child starts to learn to fight on horseback. They would accompany the lord into battle, look after his horse and weapons and help the lord dress for battle and tournaments. Those who are confident in themselves, who show promise and have the right connections may become knights. Most will remain squires.

Stage 3: Knight
At 21, the child was eligible to become a knight. They spent the night before the ceremony in prayer in the chapel. They then took part in the ceremony of dubbing. They swore the oath, and the lord touched them on the shoulders with a sword.


Name: Mardania
Description: A brief description of the group and why people should join
Mardania is a vast country in a relatively isolated region near the spine, but not so far away as to be totally isolated from other civilizations.
Mardania offers a wide variety of origins and a fleshed out centralized government. There is a place for noble and commoner alike in this vast country and it supports a wide variety of origins.
Active locations: Name the areas of the map your group is active in-character
The Spine, the areas North-northwest of the Spine. The City of Mardus.
Wiki pages: Link any wiki pages relevant to your group (highlight the master page for your organisation)
https://chroniclesrp.net/Folklore/Mardania
https://chroniclesrp.net/Folklore/Mardus
https://chroniclesrp.net/Folklore/Dracontine-Glass
Members: Tag the members who are forming your group
Helia Glacies Kyxo
Eris Fulton
Priscilla
Steallaris Salamanca
Kallach
Pundigirion
Llewen Merrick
Tabitha Pamona
Kuu
Derugonia
Threads: Link any roleplay threads where your group has featured
The mountain Queen and the Dragon Valley
The country of Mardania
Blood of Nobility
On lifes wayward trails
Girl Fight Tonight!
The place you call home
Raindrops on Roses
A Knight, a Princess, and Taxes
Goodness is the only investment that never fails
That which we sow
WANTED: Volunteers, Refugees, Hunters, Woodsmen, and Men-At-Arms
Winter Solstice at Castle Merrick
Llewen, the last of castle Merrick
A walk through the snowy city streets
Banner (Optional): You may have a banner for your group that will appear beneath member's avatars. Must meet style of other banners (PSD here). 200x40px, bold, size ~18 IM Fell FW Pica font
Icon: Your group must have an icon (86x86px) this will appear when people tag your group members. It will also be added as an Emoji on the discord server and is required as a reaction to let people join/leave the discord chat room.

The mountain Queen and the Dragon Valley
The country of Mardania
Blood of Nobility
On lifes wayward trails
Girl Fight Tonight!
The place you call home
Raindrops on Roses
A Knight, a Princess, and Taxes
Goodness is the only investment that never fails
That which we sow
WANTED: Volunteers, Refugees, Hunters, Woodsmen, and Men-At-Arms
Winter Solstice at Castle Merrick
Llewen, the last of castle Merrick
A walk through the snowy city streets
An Unfortunate Series of Events
Civilized Warfare