The Code of Nobility

First recorded in Caligus, then adopted in Heen, soon hopefully applied in many realms.

The Caligan version

Caligus is a noble realm, so Caligans should behave noble as well. It is perfectly normal that you sometimes disagree with one of the counsellors (or more) or with another member of your realm, then announce your disagreement in a polite way. Reasonable complaints will always be listened to.

Infractions are such as stated below:

• Swearing, cursing and insulting: This will indirectly as well as directly intimidate any other noble from fully expressing his right of speech.
• Threats, intimidations and terrorization: Whether specified to a specific person or disguised in an allegory, this directly infracts the right of speech of any other noble.
• Unwarranted hangings, obscene behavior and razzias: These dishonourable acts define the offender as a cruel, unnoble man. (OOC: This includes public behavior in roleplays, which is considered 'real' by the game (public defined as 'withnessed by another noble that is included in the roleplay itself'; of course this noble can decide not to make it further public to the Arch Priest))

You can and most likely will be fined for breaking the Code of Nobility. Bans are common practice when behavior repeats itself within the same two weeks.

Signed by
Cartor, Arch Priest of Caligus; Veteran Senator of Caligus

The Heenite version

Nobles of Heen, you are all honourable nobles, no doubt about that. Therefore, we must act as nobles, and not as commoners. This means respect to each other, no dishonourable actions and backstabbing and no swearing. We will keep order and nobility in this realm, Heen is and will remain an honourable realm. There is nothing wrong with expressing your opinion, but there is something wrong with not doing so on an honourable way. Anyone who breaks this Code of Nobility will be punished.

First infraction: 25 gold fine

Second infraction: 50 gold fine

Third infraction: Banishment

Signed by
Attila Osha, Arch Priest of Heen

The Game's version

Proper manners for a noble follow an unwritten consensus of respect and dignity. It is not easy to write strict guidelines for this, so we offer some soft ones, to get you thinking in the right direction.

First of all is respect. You may hate the enemy, but if he is a noble, then he is your peer and you should respect him as that. You can still hate him, but vulgarity is for peasants and nobles have, well more noble ways to express their feelings. Second is manners. It doesn't matter what you say, it's all in how you say it. Again, vulgarity is for the peasants, nobles are expected to be able to speak in a manner that sets them apart, even if what they say is fairly basic or even offensive. A peasant swears - a noble employs a witty repartee. Third is behaviour, this is mostly for roleplays. A noble is first and foremost a noble. No matter if he bloodies his sword in the bodies of his enemies or poisons the wine of the ruler, his actions and his way of acting set him apart from the commoner in a hard-to-describe but easy-to-spot way.

As a final hint: Almost all modern swearwords should be considered vulgar for a noble. Commoners in the middle ages used them extensively, which is precisely why a noble would avoid them.

Application of these versions

The Caligan version and Heenite version are free to be used in other realms. I even encourage it to raise awareness about the issue of verbal abuse. The Game's version, quoted from the 'vulgarity'-page of BM, cannot really be used as a law, but should resemble the guidelines everywhere. Simply put: The Caligan and Heenite versions are added to outlaw specific cases of vulgarity and only apply in the few realms that use this version, while the Game's version is applied in any realm already, no matter what the law on vulgarity is.

Free speech

I'd like to add something about the idyll some people seem to call 'freedom of speech'. This exists very much, and it is a good thing. The very problem however is that people take it too literally. Free speech means freedom to speak (in other words: you may not be silenced and have the right to express an opinion). It does not, never, ever, mean freedom to express your opinion in whatever way you like.

The thing one must realize about free speech is that you are allowed to have an opinion and proclaim it, but you are not allowed to do it in any way you like. To give a modern example: It's allowed to be mad at a police officer for giving you a fine, but you can't express your dislike by swearing at him. That's just another, justified fine. You may however (if you're really pissed and want to go through all that trouble) go to court and appeal to the fine. The opinion remains the same, the act of speech is significantly different.

Keep this in mind, and remind others of it if their words call for it.