The Governments of Bastion
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| Major House Meeting |
For too long, the people of the world believed their lives were small and contained. A massive plateau that jutted into the clouds with over a hundred strata. A lake surrounded the plateau, acting as a natural barrier, but beyond the lake was an actual magic barrier that disallowed entry or exit. Just beyond the barrier, a black miasma blotted everything out. Only vague shapes of the land were able to be seen like shadows of another world.
They grew to understand their world as “Bastion” and believed everything outside of it was a myth. After ten-thousand years, the history of the outside world was lost. Only a select few were even aware Bastion wasn’t all there was to the world, and they were often ridiculed for their beliefs.
Among scholars and historians alike, the popular belief was that Bastion was made in a last ditch effort to stop the world from complete extinction. It served as an ark to rebuild the world when -- if -- the miasma ever cleared. - From the Master Document.Just as much intrigue and mystery lies within Bastion as danger without... This article focuses upon the rise of The Federacy, the reigning government which ushered in the Fourth Age.
The Federacy
The rise of the Bastion Federacy is the beginning of the Fourth Age. Existing for the past 900 years, outwardly their goal is Keep things going smoothly: Everything has a process and sometimes the process has a process. Engaging that process means that we can foresee problems and eliminate confusion. They’ve become so good at it that Innovation and Exploration brings way too much excitement (trouble aspect). Despite such incredibly challenging mindsets, There’s always a way for those who know how (aspect).People had spread over much of Bastion and the first job of the Bastion Federacy was to put them in contact with one another along with a healthy dose of polity. The Federacy had developed excellent guidelines of insuring that the various member states and cities were allowed to guide themselves except when it came to interaction beyond one’s boundaries; for that, complex rules of interaction eventually rose. Thus a (relatively) benevolent representative bureaucracy was born of an organization which, initially, was an arbitration body but as the centuries rolled past they became the de facto uniting body of Bastion.
It’s quipped that it’s legal to go to war with another city in Bastion - if you want to file the paperwork. Arbiters became a respected profession because skilled ones could cut through red-tape but higher leveled ones who were Federacy sanctioned could actually make rulings and file the decisions. They are held in relatively high esteem and are considered agents of the Federal courts, holding the status of diplomats.
Nine hundred years later, the Bastion Federacy continues to thrive within it’s impressively huge dome (Bastion is over 20 miles high by itself, the Dome was 25 miles high with a diameter at sea level of roughly 200 miles.
Federacy Interaction with The Houses
The Federacy does not meddle in other government’s day to day affairs, but they are very effective at sharing human resource services in order to insure the highest opportunity for compliance. Essentially, they exported their bureaucratic methods to all other governments which gives enormous indirect influence:
B-crat: That can’t be issued to a unsanctioned non-military organization.
Govnor: Says who?
B-crat: Says the Federacy.
Govnor: [Shrugs] Makes sense to me. [Stamps DISAPPROVED on the request form sent by the merchant house.]
That being said, the various Houses have a tremendous degree of freedom as long as it’s within their boundaries. When their practices infringe upon the care and wellbeing of others, well, the Federacy steps in and gives counsel. Which inevitably means forms, and filings. It’s all pretty intentional, and has worked well for nearly a millenia.
Very few people grab land just to grab land. It’s just not a thing one does in Bastion. It’s discouraged, in fact - and takes way too much paperwork. So, if a city or some other large-land operation exists, it’s typically because they actually need the land. It’s odd, but it’s Bastion.
Houses
Houses are the various major seats of government which, directly or indirectly, function under the over-arching auspices of the Federacy.Major Houses (let’s rename?) - are resource rich (vegetable, mineral, animal, and/or people) interests who essentially control an entire strata and/or an extraordinarily influential city or city group. Less influential/powerful but still significant, are the Minor Houses, usually an important city or very important town. Minor Houses owe allegiance directly to a Major House. Free Houses, which are the influential and resource equivalent of Minor Houses are independent.
Influence is more important than relative power levels in the Federacy. Only within the past century has their been a waning of natural resources, but Lunarian efficiency has prevailed even then, multiplying the efficacy of existing resources and spearheading the exploration of alternate resources.
There are over a dozen Major Houses and all predate the Federacy. They have their own cultures and governments though many are heavily influenced by the Federacy's bureaucratic processes. Most of the races have their own Major House (humans have several), though a couple of Major Houses are incredibly cosmopolitan in nature with multiple races having significant influence and representation within them. The Drexel actually formed two Major Houses though to all but Drexel they act as one on almost every issue.
Given their incredible penchant for knowledge (and their ability to rapidly multiply), it's a mystery that the Lunarians don't have a Major House (some say it's because of their "social and historical vulnerabilities, though only culture scholars would be able to make sense of that theory). They eschew actual Major House status though have championed a cause called the Free House of Brotherhood and Knowledge - a government not so much based upon geography but by choice of personal cultural proximity - a principle which it seems only Lunarians truly understand, though the Drexel back them upon the matter. For the time being, their Minor House is overseen by Sae Frimagia (loosely translated as The Big Cheese), the more prominent Drexel Major House (and steward of the Great Library). - Curious Facts and Nibbles, A. Lexerd
Guild Houses and the Mercantile Operation Monitors
Over the past century, guilds have become a popular notion and some have acquired some wealth and influence. Though regulated by the Federacy, they represent an interesting ongoing economical experiment which relaxes some of the restrictions concerning inter-government commerce. They’re required to have Mercantile Operation Monitors who are officially agents of the Federacy.Yes, this means that shady kids are always trying to hide things from MOM.
Response to The Clearing
A mad scramble to launch explorations began quickly followed by bureaucratic quandaries. The very nature of the realm beyond the lake made it difficult to conceive of in normal expansion mindset - it's hard to build upon a colony that won't be there the next day. A lot more knowledge was necessary to acquire but Bastion's bureaucratic nature made it difficult to settle upon a solution.
Wiser heads suggested using the existing framework of Guild Houses to grant exploration charters to places "outside of regularly governed areas." With that numerous Mercenary Venture Guilds were formed. Many quickly perished sending back dire warnings of the perils beyond the Lake. Some were successful at bringing back information and artifacts rare and wondrous. The most successful of these was AXE - the Alliance for eXploration and Expansion.
Find out what led to all of this in the Bastion Historical Overview.
Find out what led to all of this in the Bastion Historical Overview.
What to do with this Info
This is general backdrop information that should be useful in running sessions. Bastion is Huge and there’s so much that can go on in any given city, let alone an entire strata.Inevitably a player will ask, “how much of this can I act on in character?” The answer is “all of it.” However, it’s suggested that the character take a character element and devote it to such knowledge if it’s that meaningful to the player. A high level of Lore might grant some knowledge (but of course it would require a roll); an aspect of any sort would also provide some usable knowledge.
It’s not that the info is readily available, it’s that PCs are incredibly rare and awesome individuals. They either have or will recover incredibly rare and ancient tomes; perhaps they sat under the feet of a bard from a tribe of very gifted and extraordinarily deliberate Truth Speakers, who passed on information for over 5 millennia; maybe they plugged into (and were changed by) BastionAncientNet, the computer of Lore (if such a thing exists...). And, of course, GMs, you owe it to yourself to incorporate such wonderful information into your adventures. It’s practically free food!
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