This section contains tidbits of background and setting for Fading Suns; the previous game and the one I'm going to start fairly soon. I've had very little cause to clarify or modify the rules, so it's mainly the important stuff: comparitive ranks, forms of address, and so on.
The players of the upcoming game can acquaint themselves with the exploits of the last group. It may be relevant...
This is the distilled wisdom of official reports by Knights and Cohorts of the Company of the Phoenix. The contents of this document are not to be discussed outside the Company; passages marked Secret are not to be discussed with those not specifically cleared for the details in question.
To discover the whereabouts of His Grace the Duke of Cadavus, Commander of the Company of the Phoenix. He had taken upon himself an unknown quest, and was last heard from on the backwater world Nowhere. Likelihood of finding him alive is considered slim.
The group were briefed as usual, by His Grace the Duke of Salamandra, Acting Commander. It was decided that in order to raise awareness of the work of the Company a press conference would be held. [Note: This was a bad decision. The Company will not hold press conferences in future.] At the conference a journalist named Emil Lassiter asked Brother Millard directly whether he was a member of the Kalinthi, the Church’s secret order of demon-hunters. This was denied.
[Secret: It was true: Brother Millard was a member of the Kalinthi.]
The group were issued with a small ship and a crew. At Criticorum they had an unfortunate turn of events when the jump gate there was to take a week to recharge, but after a few days they were joined by an Imperial Navy fleet. The dreadnaught Indefatigable and its escorts, under Commodore the Most Honourable Lady Mia Justinian, Marchioness of St. Omer, were on the way to relieve part of the Stigmata blockade. They used one of the Navy’s ‘reset’ keys to force an early end to the cycle, allowing the party to continue.
[Personnel note: There was an unknown animosity between Lady St. Omer and Lord Little Deane; this may have been something to do with a past encounter, since Houses Justinian and Hawkwood are typically on very good terms.]
At a subsequent jump it was found that the ship’s sathra damper had been disabled, allowing dangerous psychic radiation to permeate the ship. Members of the Church immediately set to discovering what vandal might have caused the failure, as well as checking that nobody aboard had become addicted to the euphoric experience, known to be a cause of cult activity.
The Third Engineer was proved to be responsible, was confined and eventually delivered into Church custody at Nowhere. However, the incident also brought to light the psychic abilities of Sir Arthur Hawkwood, who was not publicly declared penitent (as Church law requires). He was in discussion with his superiors as to how the situation could be resolved, but unfortunately died in a gun-cleaning accident shortly after the discovery.
[Secret: Arthur had not been declared penitent at all. A Bishop friendly to the Company’s cause was prepared to announce that he had already been accepted as penitent but that his nature had been kept secret for security reasons, but the accident claimed him before arrangements were made.]
The group made planetfall on Nowhere, and traced the last known steps of Lord Cadavus. First the expedition travelled into the desert to the Gargoyle. [Secret: The personal experiences of encountering the allegedly-psychic statue are not a matter of record.]
Next they tracked him to the abandoned campus of a Second Republic university, where they discovered a previously lost jump key. [Secret: They were attacked by Symbiots. This is the only recorded Symbiot encounter outside of Stigmata and the quarantined worlds and is not to be discussed with anyone, for any reason. Do not worry: Although not normally considered dangerous, Nowhere is on the other side of the Stigmata blockade.]
[Secret: It was around this time it was discovered that Sister Alba was not Sanctuary Aeon originally, but was rather on secondment to them from the Brother Battle Order. She was also Kalinthi.]
[Note: The events of the Nexus and Paradise are Top Secret. None of this section is to be discussed outside the distribution list of this document.]
When used to activate the Nowhere gate, the new jump key opened the way to a previously undiscovered space station. There they discovered Lord Cadavus. He appeared to have become an antinomist and potentially a Symbiot, and was guarded by a collection of demon-tainted Symbiot guards. The Imperial Navy dreadnaught Indefatigable, under the command of the Commodore, destroyed the station and all hands, including Cadavus.
The jump gate there was different: capable of being opened to a large directory of destinations without a key. Among those was Paradise, lost homeworld of House Justinian, which appeared to be the most recently-used destination. The group travelled there, leaving explosive charges to destroy the gate.
Paradise appeared initially to be intact, and the Prince of House Justinian formally invited the Knights, Cohorts and representatives of the Church to an audience. On reaching the planet is was discovered that the planet’s leadership had succumbed to the antinomist-Symbiot taint, and it was assumed that in the years since the world was lost it had been completely compromised. The Indefatigable used nuclear weapons to make the planet uninhabitable, hopefully even to Symbiots.
[The secret and sensitive nature of the above cannot be overstated. Do not forget that nuclear weapons are banned by treaty and it is a secret of Imperial security that Navy dreadnoughts even carry them. Not to mention the difficulties Lady St. Omer would have if it were to become known that she was involved in the destruction of her House’s lost homeworld, or the embarrassment it would cause House Decados if the corruption of Lord Cadavus were made public.]
Brother Millard of the Kalinthi was lost on Paradise: his theurgy bought the time the Zephyr needed to take off. The group were able to open the Paradise gate to return to Imperial space, leaving charges to destroy that gate as they left.
[Out of Character note: There was a big epilogue sequence when we realised that the nobles were quite old not to be married, but I’ll mention only the most important bits in the report.]
Here is part of a sample party for the next Fading Suns game. Players are welcome to grab one of these to play; we'll change what we need to fit them in with the rest of the group. They're all intended as breaks from their respective stereotypes, although that's easier (and more fun) with nobles: when you're not born into a role there are far fewer excuses to be stuck there when it doesn't suit you.
Some of them have their secrets, of course: I know what they are but I can only tell a player who is pretty well committed to playing them (obviously).
Mockingly called the White Knight by others of his house, Ormond was the younger son of an ultra-traditional Decados baron. On being knighted he was sent away to join the Company of the Phoenix, but the conservative establishment liked the youth's ideas of 'justice' and 'honour' and he was well liked. This only make him less popular with his father, and he might have been cast out altogether had the Baron and his eldest son not died hunting while he was away on a quest. As it is, the Count of Nailsea would gladly destroy the entire Barony to be able to get rid of the troublesome paladin, but their lord the Duke of Cadavus insists that he no nothing that might weaken the House.
The rest of the House still considers Ormond to have an 'attitude problem': his dedication has impressed the Questing Knights, even the Emperor, but it makes the rest of the Decados nervous. None of them can tell which of their depraved secrets he might have, and which he might be about to uncover for the sake of some 'greater good'.
Lady Antonia is a niece of the Duke of Vera Cruz, youngest daughter of his brother the Count of [later]. Not even a knight, strictly, a stint as assistant to the Hazat Ambassador to the Emperor has shown how capable a negotiator she is. For the next quest, she has been attached to the Company of the Phoenix to offer her help to Ormond.
As would befit a young lady of any other house, she is skilled in various delicate pursuits that contrast her quite starkly with the militancy of the rest of her family. Quite how she will get on among reckless adventurers is the question on everyone's lips.
Antonia is not a knight or a dame by name, but certainly warrants the same level of respect and will be generated with the same rank benefice. She should be considered a dame in everything but address.
The Hawkwood of Delphi are glad to see the back of Nathan, although that he leaves to go into the limelight of Imperial service is a concern. He is a master of duelling, seduction and merrymaking, but even the most respectable of these is not enough to support a son of House Hawkwood so prone to subtle but drastic infractions against his own honour and that of others (and their wives).
In general, the Church puts the health of the spirit before all else, and warns that over-reliance on technology causes unavoidable harm to that. The Sanctuary Aeon care a little more for the health of the body, but still tend to err on the side of protecting the spirit. Theodore agrees, mostly, but has the controversial view that a little harm to the spirit is worth it for the benefits that the latest technology can bring to physical well-being, especially if the bodies of his patients benefit with only his spirit harmed. To that end, he is a specialist in medical technology; probably one of the finest outside the Merchant League.
This is the rank listing for Imperial legions. It's based mainly on previous non-noble forces, although some noble houses (most notably the Hazat) have been using a similar structure.
To the extent that they're useful, I will be adding charts of other forces to compare later. I won't be detailing enlisted ranks, since I don't see them having an impact on the game.
In some cases intermediate ranks or subranks may have been omitted: for example the different grades of army Lieutenant are mainly a payscale distinction and a measure of how many more exams or commendations are required to make Captain, rather than a structural feature.
The NATO Code is included, for easy comparison to modern-day forces.
Points is the number of benefice points that the rank costs. I'm still working on these and they're likely to change, and it's worth noting that some other benefices (especially noble rank) may have military rank ex officio (or at least by way of nepotism or plot device).
| NATO Code | Points | Imperial Armed Forces | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Army/Marines | Navy | ||
| OF-1 | 3 | Lieutenant (Lt.) | Sublieutenant (SLt.) |
| OF-2 | 5 | Captain (Cpt.) | Lieutenant |
| OF-3 | 7 | Major (Maj.) | Lieutenant Commander (Lt. Cdr) |
| OF-4 | 9 | Lieutenant Colonel (Lt. Col.) | Commander (Cdr.) |
| OF-5 | 11 | Colonel (Col.) | Captain (Cpt.) |
| OF-6 | 13 | Brigadier (Brig.) | Rear Admiral (RAdm.) |
| OF-7 | - | Major-General (Maj. Gen.) | Flank Admiral (FAdm.) |
| OF-8 | - | Lieutenant General (Lt. Gen.) | Vice Admiral (VAdm.) |
| OF-9 | - | General (Gen.) | Admiral (Adm.) |
| OF-10 | - | Field Marshal (FM) | Admiral of the Fleet |
Merchant League military ranks are generally tied in with actual guild commissions, especially in the Muster and Charioteers where the common commissions have the same names as the military ranks. Members of other guilds who find themselves serving in the League military (or seconded to someone else's military) will normally be referred to by the equivalent Muster/Charioteer rank.
Since the League forces follow the Imperial ones most of the way I haven't added them to the table. The differences are as follows:
Note that the Muster ranks in the book start much too low: I do not expect every person enlisted with the Muster to hold a guild commission (the very word suggests otherwise) so assume that Muster commission uses the ranks and points costs listed here. Some NCOs may be considered commissioned (in the guild sense), but in general commissioned PCs should start as officers.
The campaign so far hasn't worried too much about what grade of flag officer (OF-6+) a person is. For example, the governer of Nowhere is named General by the rulebook, but since the Imperial military now has British-style ranks he's more likely a Brigadier or a Major-General. Since all flag officers outrank any military party members by a long chalk, please excuse me if I continue to be slightly sloppy about their ranks.
The Imperial ranks (and those of most noble militaries) are superficially based on the British Army and the Royal Navy, while the Muster ones will get a more US feel. However, I have used Commodore as a posting rather than a rank as was implied when I introduced the her Ladyship the Marchioness Justinian (and as Steve assumed as soon as it was mentioned); hence the new Admiral rank.
The top flag officer rank in each force will be very rare, probably restricted to one holder at a time and possible only available during wartime, depending on the force. Some forces will never have anyone holding this rank.
Remember: There is only ever one person aboard a ship who can correctly be addressed as Captain. Anyone holding the rank of naval Captain or army Captain who is not the captain of the ship must be addressed by suitably respectful civilian address if you are their equal or better, or Sir if they outrank you.
Non-Commissioned Ranks
By popular demand, the non-commissioned ranks (NCOs and enlisted men & women) of the Imperial Amry, Navy and Marines. (Note that, as always happens when I put more detail into something, some of it contradicts what had previously been said or assumed).
| Grade1 | Points2 | Imperial Armed Forces | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Army/Marines | Navy | ||
| 1-4 | 0 | Private (Pvt.)3 | Rate (Rt.)3 |
| 5 | 0 | Lance-Corporal (LCpl.) | - |
| 6 | 0 | Corporal (Cpl.) | Leading Rate (LRt.) |
| 7 | 1 | Sergeant (Sgt.) | Petty Officer (PO) |
| 8 | -2 | Staff Sergeant (SSgt.)4 | Chief Petty Officer (CPO) |
| 9 | -2 | Warrant Officer, Second Class (WO2)5 | |
| 10 | -2 | Warrant Officer, First Class (WO1)5 | |
Notes to the table:
From a lesson given to the youngest children of Vice-Chancellor Peter Kraemer of the Academy of Reeves by Claudia Torensen, Daughter of The Count of Llian.
Noble men and women take etiquette and address very seriously, and knowing how to meet them and do business with them without offending them is a very important skill to any Guildsman who wants to do any work in Imperial or Noble space. Your father has asked me to give you something of a primer on the correct address for members of different Houses.
First things first: kinds of address. You need to understand two main parts, style and what I will refer to for convenience as salutation. A person's style is their full title, as might be called in order to announce them as they enter a function. Their salutation is the formal way they should be addressed directly, such as at the top of a letter.
There are three sorts of people you might need to bear in mind: men who hold title, the wives of men who hold title, and women who hold title in their own right.
What about husbands?
In all the major Houses, husbands don't gain a style from their titled wives. She might decide that he should be addressed as if he held her title, or she might be powerful to grant him something of his own, but he isn't accorded anything by default.
And don't be afraid to ask questions; I can't tell what you don't know unless you say.
So, let us look at unlanded ranks first. The major Houses knight most of their men on reaching adulthood. Baronetcies are sometimes created for knights who distinguish themselves, either simply as a higher rank of knight, or more likely as a hereditary title. Women are generally knighted only if they intend to do what is traditionally men's work; a female knight is called a Dame.
I'll use James Hawkwood and his wife Jane as an example for my names, unless I need other Houses: should he be a knight or a baronet, he is styled 'Sir James Hawkwood' and has salutation 'Sir James'. Jane is then 'Lady Jane Hawkwood', or 'Lady Jane'. Should it be Jane who holds the title, she'd be 'Dame Jane Hawkwood' or 'Dame Jane'.
The landed ranks, and I'll be concentrating on the five 'sub-royal' ones, since they are the ones you are likely to encounter, start to vary quite substantially by House, and in some cases by individual title. I'll give general cases as best I can, but I can't stress enough that you should get as much advance warning as you can so that you can look up the particular person you need to deal with.
Let us assume now that James Hawkwood is Lord of Winterbourne. Now we'll see how his address changes as we upgrade Winterbourne through different levels of fief.
With Winterbourne as a barony, James is probably styled 'The Lord James Hawkwood of Winterbourne', saluted as 'Lord Hawkwood'. This generic address is used by most of the major Houses in order to make sure they fit in (a) his House, (b) his fief and (c) his given name(s). The old 'The Lord Winterbourne' form is rarely used for a barony, although some families do use it (especially where the family is named for the fief).
As his wife, Jane is fully styled 'The Lady Jane Hawkwood of Winterbourne'. It is not unusual for the wife's style to be missing her surname and/or her husband's fief, though. Styles for wives are at the same time one of the system's largest points of contention and its biggest area of leeway; the typical nobleman isn't too bothered if you address his wife incorrectly, provided you have shown proper respect while doing so. Her salutation is still 'Lady Jane'.
Note well that she is not termed Baroness; should she hold the barony in her own right her style is 'The Baroness Jane Hawkwood of Winterbourne', saluted 'Lady Hawkwood', or 'Lady Winterbourne' if that's the form the Lord would have used.
A brief note about the names of fiefs: Some nobles simply don't use them. In cases where the family name is the name of the House, some nobles would rather be addressed by that. Outside the Hazat, a noble will rarely be offended if you use his family name rather than that of his fief, and many even prefer it (although he should also accept properly formed address using the name of his fief, should his preference be unknown).
Of course, in the Hazat, few if any nobles bear the name of the House. In this instance it is important to do the research; address and announce them properly using family name and name of fief, and adding 'of the Hazat' after, if you feel it proper.
If a nobleman leaves his fief out of his salutation, so will his wife. Whether Jane Hawkwood would be 'Lady Jane', 'Lady Hawkwood' or something else entirely depends on her, her husband, his title and his House. I'd use the former if unsure.
If we now make Winterbourne a vicountcy, there are subtle changes. Where before the Lord's title didn't appear in his style, from here on it plays a major part.
James is now 'The Lord James Hawkwood, Viscount Winterbourne' and Jane is 'The Lady Jane Hawkwood, Viscountess Winterbourne'. Their salutations are 'Lord Winterbourne' and Lady Winterbourne' respectively. Only in a few cases is it 'Viscount of Winterbourne'; finding some examples is left as an exercise.
A Viscountess in her own right is styled 'The Lady Jane Hawkwood, Viscountess Winterbourne'. Despite what I've said about wives, please don't lose any of the address of a noblewoman in her own right.
Next is Count, or if your title is granted by House Hawkwood, Earl. James is 'The Lord James Hawkwood, Earl of Winterbourne' and Jane is 'The Lady Jane Hawkwood, Countess of Winterbourne.' Yes, the wife of an Earl is a Countess. For the other Houses, substitute 'Count' for 'Earl'. The salutation is the same as before: Lord and Lady Winterbourne. Jane as Countess in her own right is 'The Lady Jane Hawkwood, Countess of Winterbourne.'
You've got the opposite situation with 'of' here: most Countships and Earldoms have it, and you should check carefully that you're not dealing with one of the few who don't.
If you ever hear a noble announced with language variations, use them if you can pronounce them and ignore them otherwise. The Hazat Count may be quietly pleased if you address his wife as Condesa, but he'll likely be displeased - and perhaps not quietly - if you call her Contessa; certain minor Houses are the other way around. By convention only the most unreasonable of nobles will complain if you use the accepted generic terms rather than their preferred variations.
Of course some of the variations have made their way into the accepted form, and you should really learn them, at least for the major Houses.
With Winterbourne upgraded again, it's a marquessate. Here you have to be very careful distinguishing nobles by House on two counts. Firstly, there's the title itself. Hawkwoods call the man a Marquess and the woman a Marchioness, and several of the more traditional minor Houses are with them. House Decados and the Hazat call them Marquess and Marquessa, while the al-Malik and the Li Halan call them Marquis and Marquise.
Next, some Houses still refer to their Marquesses as 'Most Honourable', but this is going out of fashion. Try and find out in advance which it is (Hawkwood and Decados yes, Hazat and Li Halan no, al-Malik varies; there are always exceptions), although I daresay that you might get by assuming that it is required; too much respect is less offensive than too little.
In any case, the correct style is 'The Most Honourable Lord' or Lady (or simply 'The Lord' or Lady), the full name, then the correct title and the name of the fief. Marquessates that don't have 'of' in their style are at least as rare as the countships. The address for the wife is, as before, the same as a female title-holder but with a little more leeway. James, then, is 'The Most Honourable Lord James Hawkwood, Marquess of Winterbourne'.
As with the previous two, salutation is as 'Lord and Lady Winterbourne'.
Finally, Winterbourne as a duchy. James is now 'His Grace James Hawkwood, Duke of Winterbourne, with his wife 'Her Grace Jane Hawkwood, Duchess of Winterbourne'. When saluting in writing, use 'Duke' or 'Duchess'; when speaking to them address them as 'Your Grace'.
Can I call people 'My Lord'?
I wouldn't. In conversation with a Lord (ignoring Dukes for the moment, who are more or less above that title) you can use the full salutation: Lord Winterbourne, for example. It is respectful enough to refer to a Lord as 'My Lord', but since this could be taken to imply allegiance many nobles avoid using it except for their direct superiors, and as freepersons you would do well to avoid it completely.
'My Lady' or 'MiLady' is slightly different. You can always use it as a term of respect for a nobleman's wife, and since women with titles in their own right are still quite rare you should get away with it even when she is landed.
What about nobles without titles?
A male noble without a title will normally be a guildsman or a priest. You should address him as such, for while he may have important friends, most Houses consider such a person to have given up their claim to nobility.
Noble ladies without title are very common, although they won't often deal with outsiders. If Jane Hawkwood is an unmarried noblewoman, style her as 'Lady Jane Hawkwood' and salute her as 'Lady Jane'. She isn't 'The Lady Jane', especially in earshot of anyone who may actually be entitled to that.
One last thing: Military rank. The correct style for a military nobleman is to put his military address before the full style of his noble rank. Consider announcing the organisation that awarded the rank: when introducing Lieutenants and Captains it can be really quite important to make it clear whether they are army or navy.
For example, should James Hawkwood - let's make him a Baron again - be a Lieutenant in the Imperial Navy, he would be styled 'Lieutenant The Lord James Hawkwood of Winterbourne, Imperial Navy'.
You don't always have to use military rank; since you're not military yourself you could use the civilian address for someone whose noble rank is at least as prestigious. Just don't omit a high military rank in order to use low noble rank; the Hazat armed forces in particular award rank on military experience and merit and it's not hard to find a Knight made General, who definitely should not be addressed as just a Knight.
That's enough for the time being. I will speak with your father; I may have time for another lesson while I'm staying, but I really must spend some time with my sister, having come so far to visit her.
A substantial guide to addressing nobles appears elsewhere, and includes much of the information you might need for dealing with them. Here are a few slightly more game-oriented comments.
Types of Title
The Unlanded ranks are the lowest kind.
Typically every adult male who is not commissioned into a guild or ordained into the Church will be knighted, along with some of the women (depending on the House). Knighthood is not hereditary, nor is it tied to a particular place or court.
A baronetcy is normally a hereditary knighthood. Particularly successful and valuable knights are made Baronet, although obviously most modern Baronets have inherited the title. A woman inherits a baronetcy (or is created the rank) is termed Baronetess.
Landed noble titles imply dominion over - and responsibility for - a noble fief. The landed noble titles are those from Baron upward, or arguably from Baron to Duke inclusive.
A landed noble in Fading Suns is usually ruling land owned by a superior (ultimately the head of the House in most cases), although in some cases a noble may own his own land. Generally the difference is small; both swear allegiance to their immediate superior and are liable for taxes and/or troops, and both could have their land taken easily enough if the might of their House turns on them.
If your father is a landed noble and you are his eldest son, then becoming one in your own right is just a matter of time. Otherwise, gaining a fief is extremely difficult, since the land has to come from somewhere. When a nobleman dies without heirs his title becomes extinct, and could be created again by the owner of the land. Acts of treason or gross negligence sometimes give the House enough reason to take titles from their current owners, but generally punishing existing nobles in this way only damages the House. The only other way for a House to make new fiefs is to gain land, but with the internal borders of the Known Worlds more or less fixed, the only real avenues for expansion are with House Hawkwood into Vuldrok space or the Hazat into the Kurga Caliphate.
Courtesy titles are granted to the heirs of high-ranking noble. For example, if a Duke also holds a Countship and a Viscountcy, then he might hold the Dukedom in his own right and allow his eldest son to be styled Count as a courtesy. Often these arrangements are written into the Letters Patent when the titles are created.
Note that it is possible to hold more than one title for the same fief; perhaps be Marquess and Earl. In most Houses there cannot be more than one nobleman per fief, so these titles must remain held by the same person and neither can be a courtesy title.
There is one notable exception to that rule: if a House has lost the land for a fief but has not dissolved the title, it may be that another now has their own title created on the same fief...
Victory titles are sometimes granted to leaders of successful military campaigns. They are styled as landed titles but differ from true titles in that the creating authority doesn't have the power to grant the fief descibed, so the title is entirely honorary. For this reason, the Houses in Fading Suns tend to steer clear of such titles.
More or less opposite are those titles pertaining to fiefs no longer controlled by the granting House. Originally a title would be dissolved if the corresponding land was lost, but recently - especially during the Emperor Wars - it has been common to leave the title in place, assuming the land will eventually be recovered...
Table of Titles
Here is the expanded table of noble ranks.
| Points | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| Original | Adjusted | |
| 3 | 3 | Knight |
| 5 | 5 | Baronet[ess] |
| 7 | 7 | Baron[ess] |
| - | 9 | Viscount[ess] |
| 9 | 11 | Count[ess] |
| 11 | 13 | Marquis[e] |
| 13 | - | Duke/Duchess |
| - | - | Prince[ss] |
Notes and Variations
Since the table in the rulebook does not contain Viscount, everything above that has increased in points value. Prince obviously is off the top of the table in the rules; some Houses don't even use it.