I’ve written about Nobles on several occasions in the past (four times, in fact, according to the label list over there to the right) and, while an evolving thought-experiment on my part, the basics of my take on Nobles in Traveller has remained fairly consistent. My post of Sunday 19 December 2010 formed the basis for a longer article I wrote for Brett’s Into the Deep Fanzine and included a draft of the Benefits Table I never quite got to posting on this blog.Given recent events in the RimWorlds (where Player Characters have been active), it seems like an opportune time to dust off these ideas and bring them up to date.
Frank Herbert’s ‘Dune’ led me to envisage a two-tier system of nobility – the Siridar, or Great Nobility, the Houses Major, who rule entire planets, systems and groups of planets; and the Houses Minor, the Petty Nobility, who hold fiefs on planets and make up the planetary banking, industrial, military, political and scientific elites.
Player Characters who roll a high Social Status characteristic, or end up with high Social Status due to the Character creation process, are from a House Minor. Roll for the Character's position within the House.
| Roll | |
The Social Status of the Character is an indication of the Status of the House Minor and what Rank they hold, and this determines the number of rolls the Character may take on the Benefits Table. A Noble Character rolls both the benefit dice for their current rank, as well as the benefit dice for all ranks below their current rank.
An Heir, or an Heir of an Heir, will have a Courtesy Title - one rank lower than the title possessed by the Incumbent in the case of an Heir, and two ranks lower in the case of an Heir of an Heir. These Courtesy Titles are usually for lesser holdings that the House has acquired over time. For example, the Heir of a Marquis might hold the Courtesy Title of Baron, while the Baron's Heir might hold the title of enfeoffed Knight. "The Honorable" is the Courtesy Title bestowed upon Heirs and Heirs of Heirs who rank below enfeoffed Knight. It is also the Courtesy Title for non-heir siblings. Heirs, and Heirs of Heirs, will roll Benefits for their Courtesy Title. When they attain their intended rank, they are permitted to roll the appropriate benefit dice for that rank as well.
Houses Minor that advance beyond the rank and title of Count have been elevated to House Major Status.
Social Status titles for Houses Major:
House Major titles extend beyond those of Houses Minor as follows:
House Major ranks have the same titles as House Minor ranks, but with the prefix ‘Siridar’ – ‘Great’. The House Major Social Status characteristic is suffixed with an ‘S’ to indicate that the character is of Siridar status. The one exception is that of Social Status B Knight. The corresponding House Major title is Siridar-Lord and is the lowest rank of the Great Nobility to be assigned governorship responsibilities for an entire planet. Very few Siridar-Lords actually hold such positions and for many Houses Minor, merely obtaining the status of Siridar-Lord is the culmination of decades or centuries of effort. It should be noted that the titles of Duke (usually the short form of either Subsector or Sector Duke) and Archduke are not available to Houses Minor in the Imperial Rank system. Consequently, there is no need to prefix the title with ‘Siridar’ because if one is fortunate enough to encounter an individual of this rank, then one should be assured that one is in the presence of the ruler of a Subsector, a Sector or a Domain and behave accordingly.
The elevation of a House Minor to House Major status can occur in one of several ways: Meritorious Service - a member of the House Minor has performed some service of such value that a House Major will stand sponsor for the House Minor’s elevation before the Conclave of Houses Major; Marriage Alliance – a House Minor successfully marries into a House Major and then inherits the House Major’s title and estates upon the failure of the direct line. Such successions usually set off lengthy court battles as any House Major heirs, of any remove, would seek to block the elevation of parvenu blood in such a fashion; Wealth and Power - a House Minor has accumulated sufficient wealth, prestige and political power to literally buy the patronage of a House Major to stand sponsor for the House Minor’s elevation. Meritorious Service, and Wealth and Power, are the two most common means by which Houses Minor elevate themselves to House Major status.
A Noble House will accumulate benefits. These will tend to accrue to the House over generations, with each incumbent of the title in effect acting as steward for the generations to come. These accumulated benefits are represented as a series of benefit dice rolls. Each title rank rolls the number of dice for its rank, plus the dice for all the ranks below the current rank. For example, a House Minor Marquis rolls three d6 for Marquis, two d6 for a Baron and one d6 for a Knight. It is quite possible to accumulate more than one example of a benefit.
All nobles have the right of patronage. This may be exercised in one of two ways: Firstly, a benefit that has been acquired more than once may be bestowed upon someone else – a player character for example – the recipient can be non-noble, but must be of good character (SOC 8+), and the bequest must be ratified at the Sector Level, at least, on a roll of 7+ on 2d6 (DMs: Admin, Bribery, Carousing, Court Influence). Secondly, a noble may use his or her patronage to sponsor a non-noble into the aristocracy, or a noble from a House Major may sponsor a House Minor to House Major status. A roll of 9+ on 2d6 is required with the following DMs: + Sponsor’s Bribery, Admin, Carousing, Court Influence; + half the recipient’s Bribery, Carousing, Court Influence; - (10 – Recipient’s current Social Status if a non-noble seeking elevation to the nobility) or – (14 – Recipient’s current Social Status if seeking elevation from House Minor to House Major status). If the Patronage roll is failed, then the Sponsor must forfeit one Benefit.
| As a standard service pension: roll 1d6 x Cr10,000 and receive this sum per year | ||
| System-wide stock/bond portfolios yielding 1d6+3 x Cr10,000 in dividends per annum. May be sold at market value. | ||
| Megacorp voting stock yielding 2d6 x Cr100,000 in dividends per annum. May be sold at market value. | ||
| Positive DM on Patronage rolls and reaction rolls when dealing with other Nobles, and system and Imperial Bureaucracy. Can be a positive or negative DM when dealing with the media. This benefit immediately bestows one extra 2d6 roll for Benefits. | ||
| Planetary Holdings titled to the Noble House in perpetuity, and includes a suitably appointed dwelling. Roll 3d6 x Cr100,000 for value. Yields 1d6 x 10% in revenue per annum. Requires 1d6 x 10% in maintenance every four years. | ||
| As Ancestral Lands, but also roll 3d6 x Cr100,000 for an additional one-off cash payment. | ||
| Free High Passage transportation on any common carrier within Imperial Space, even to the exclusion of other passengers. This right only extends to the awardee, not to members of his or her entourage. The carrier is compensated from Imperial funds. | ||
| Right to bear personal side arms, excluding energy weapons, in contravention of local Law Levels. | ||
| Imperial largess for services rendered. Roll 2d6 x Cr 100,000 (one-off payment). | ||
| The awardee receives an Honorary Commission in one of Imperial Services (usually one in which he or she has served) with the right to raise and equip a military/exploration unit “… for the Commonweal of the Imperium …” The awardee meets the expenses of the unit so raised, and is responsible for its actions. In the event of an emergency, the unit is subject to Imperial control and the Imperium underwrites all operational expenses. | ||
| Accumulated properties that the awardee owns outright. These can be land, a small corporation, or a vertically integrated series of businesses. Has a value of 5d6 x Cr100,000 and yields 1d6 x 10% revenue per annum. Maintenance is 1d6 + 15% per annum. | ||
| The awardee may raise and maintain an escort of 2d6 bodyguards, armed in contravention of local Law Levels, excluding high-energy weapons. This benefit only covers the awardee’s escort, not the awardee. | ||
| Administrator of a planetary system, with duties and responsibilities to be determined by the Referee. Annual stipend is determined by the system starport type: MCr 1 if Class A, KCr 750 if Class B, KCr 500 if Class C, KCr 250 if Class D. Position must be renewed every four years on a roll of 8+ on 2d6, DMs for skills the Referee deems appropriate. | ||
| Right to bear personal side arms, excluding energy weapons, in contravention of local Law Levels. | ||
| Imperial largess for services rendered. Roll 4d6 x Cr 100,000 (one-off payment). | ||
| The awardee is granted a star system to be administered with local autonomy, effectively, through the awardee’s House, creating a Class 3 Government (Self-perpetuating Oligarchy). | ||
| Positive DM on Patronage rolls and reaction rolls when dealing with other Nobles, and system and Imperial Bureaucracy. Can be a positive or negative DM when dealing with the media. This benefit immediately bestows one extra 4d6 roll for Benefits. | ||
| The awardee enjoys a special status and a high level of trust within the Imperial Moot. With the Right to directly ‘advise’ both higher ranking nobles and the Emperor, the awardee may review the actions of system governors within his or her home sector | ||
| Administrator of several (2d6) planetary systems. Rules through Planetary Governors with a stipend set at double that of Planetary Governors and set in the same way. Need not be renewed. | ||
| Under special circumstances, the awardee may personally circumvent local authority ‘in the best interests of the Imperium’. This Right also includes the Right of Automatic Audience with higher ranked nobles to advise them on matters of importance. | ||
| Administrator of several (2d6) planetary systems (usually within one or adjoining subsectors), or of one subsector. Rules through Planetary Governors with a stipend set at double that of Planetary Governors and set in the same way. Need not be renewed. | ||
| The awardee receives an Honorary Commission in one of Imperial Services (usually one in which he or she has served) with the right to raise and equip a military/exploration unit “… for the Commonweal of the Imperium …” The awardee meets the expenses of the unit so raised, and is responsible for its actions. In the event of an emergency, the unit is subject to Imperial control and the Imperium underwrites all operational expenses. | ||
| Accumulated properties that the awardee owns outright. These can be land, a medium sized corporation, or a vertically integrated series of businesses. Has a value of 5d6 x Cr1,000,000 and yields 1d6 x 10% revenue per annum. Maintenance is 1d6 + 15% per annum. | ||
| Administrator of 2d6 Viceroyships or adjacent subsectors, or the dominant noble in a Sector. Rules through Viceroys with a stipend set at triple that of Planetary Governors and set in the same way. Need not be renewed. Has oversight of the military forces of the Sector. | ||
| Certain industrial practises or operations, or transactions of a certain type, can only be legally carried out within a designated area with the appropriate licence. Licences will be granted by the appropriate office upon payment of the appropriate fee. The Right of Licence generates a stipend for the holder of 1d6 x Cr1,000 x the population number of each planet within the licence area per annum | ||
| The awardee may personally confer Noble status upon any individual, without ratification by the Moot. No benefits are conferred as these are only dispensed via Patronage, the Emperor or the Moot. | ||
| Administrator of 2d6 Viceroyships or adjacent subsectors, or the dominant noble in a Sector. Rules through Sector Dukes with a stipend set at quadruple that of Planetary Governors and set in the same way. Need not be renewed. | ||
| The Right to personally pass or amend Imperial decrees ‘on behalf of the Emperor’. Only a higher ranking noble may overturn such decrees. | ||
| Right to grant full and complete Pardon for any and all crimes committed. High Justice crimes, such as treason, mass murder, illegal possession and/or use of nuclear or biological weapons, requires a pardon confirmed by both the Emperor and the Moot. | ||
| May personally control Imperial revenue sources via Tax Rates and exemptions. | ||
Examples:
Saidhutes hault-Kirzhon, Baron of Sahartes, is the incumbent Baron of one of the 19 separate nations on the balkanised planet of Feor/Gamelea. For benefits, Saidhutes hault-Kirzhon rolls two d6 for his rank as Baron, and a further d6 for the rank of Knight (the only noble rank lower than Baron). Saidhutes rolls "(4) Business Holdings - producing Cr60,000 in dividends per annum" and "(8) Megacorp Portfolio - voting stock yielding Cr700,000 per annum".
House Mahuran have been Siridar-Counts of Bromus/Miazan for two hundred years. Siridar-Count Sakkan III also holds the title of President for Life and is actively involved in the day to day running of the government of Bromus. Siridar-Count Sakkan rolls 8d6 for his benefit roll as a Siridar-Count, and then for each of the seven ranks of House Major and House Minor below him for a total of eight rolls. Sakkan rolls "(1d6=1) Pension - Cr50,000 per annum", "(2d6=5) Business Holdings - Cr50,000 per annum in dividends", "(3d6=10) Court Influence, "(4d6=16) Right of Free Passage", "(5d6=20) Right to Bear Arms", "(6d6=23) Right of Commission", "(7d6=31) Governorship of a Planetary System (Bromus) with a C Class Starport - stipend of Cr500,000 per annum", and "(8d6=25) Estates - valued at MCr1.2, yielding Cr480,000 per annum and costing Cr192,000 per year in maintenance.
Sources:
The Imperial Nobility by Ian MacKinder
based on the articles ‘Sceptre and Starship’ and ‘Robe and Blaster’ by Ahnre and Stuart
The article ‘Robe and Blaster’ by Rick D. Stuart - White Dwarf 22.
GURPs: Traveller – Nobles by Loren Wiseman and Joe F. Zeigler – Steve Jackson Games
Traveller Supplement 4: Citizens of the Imperium by Games Designer’s Workshop
This article was originally posted 15 May 2013
Sometimes you just need a couple of ideas to define an NPC, and sometimes you need a complete character sketch. For “crowd scenes”, there is often little point in minutely detailing a host of NPCs as odds are on that the Player Characters will breeze through the encounter and be on the next ship outbound before you can reveal all the clever quirks you’ve written up. But on the other hand, to avoid all the NPCs becoming cookie-cutter caricatures, they do need some defining points.Given my current interest in Noble Houses Major and Minor, I was intrigued to discover a post on The Welsh Piper Blog about randomly generating character quirks for Noble Houses in a Fantasy setting. “How hard would it be to convert this to Traveller?” I asked myself. And so here are some thoughts ...
This Character Sketching system is aimed more at Houses Minor than Houses Major as basically, there are many more Houses Minor than Houses Major. Depending upon your take on Traveller Noble Houses, these character sketches should also work for system- ruling Houses Major as well. Be aware, though, that Houses Major come under more intense scrutiny from various Imperial Authorities than what Houses Minor are subject to, so some of these results may require a little massaging.
House Rank
If a hierarchy of Houses Minor within a given area (usually a planet or planetary system) has not been fully mapped out, then the Social Status (and Rank) of the House is generated:
| Roll 1d6 | SOC Status | |
The intention is to create a Social Pyramid by restricting the number of “high-end” Houses Minor on a given planet or in a given system.
Head of the Household
If not already known, dice to see if the local society practises Male Primogeniture (1 – 3 on a d6) or Absolute Primogeniture (4 – 6 on a d6). Other forms of succession are also possible, such as Lateral Succession, Dynastic Rota or Dynastic Election, but Male Primogeniture and Absolute Primogeniture tend to be the succession practises we are most familiar with.
Roll for the sex of the current title holder – Male (1 – 3 on a d6) or Female (4 – 6 on a d6).
The Patriarch (1 – 4 on a D6) or Matriarch (5 – 6 on a D6) is the person who dominates the decision-making for the House. A Matriarch result in a Male Primogeniture society indicates that the Nobleman’s mother, aunt or sister is the dominant personality within the House. A Patriarch in a Male Primogeniture society result where the title holder is female indicates that a grandfather, or an heirless Uncle, is dominating the House’s decision making until he can marry off the title holder.
Dice for the Age Band and personality of both the Title Holder and the House Patriarch or Matriarch.
| Roll 1d6 | ||
| (1d6: 1 Trusting; 2 Bold; 3 Confident; 4 Arrogant; 5 Rash; 6 Immature) | ||
| (1d6: 1 Assertive; 2 Aggressive; 3 Savvy; 4 Cautious; 5 Swaggering; 6 Calculating) | ||
| (1d6: 1 Cunning; 2 Strident; 3 Cautious; 4 Meticulous; 5 Bullying; 6 Detached) |
Compare the Age Band results of the House Title Holder with those of the House Patriarch or Matriarch and decide whether the two characters can be rolled into one, or whether it is better to retain the two separate characters.
Prior Service
Roll to see which career the Title Holder pursued prior to attaining the House Title
| Roll 2d6 | |
Moral Stance
This is the over-arching moral stance adopted by the House in the pursuit of its goals:
| Scrupulous: While the House will pursue its goals with the uttermost vigour, it will, at all times, operate within both the letter and the spirit of the Law. | |
| Law abiding: Whilst pursuing its goals vigorously, the House will stick within the letter of the Law – what is not forbidden is possible. | |
| Pragmatic: The Ends justify the Means. Laws are for lawyers to worry about. |
Influence
A measure of the power, prestige and wealth of the Noble House, and how it is viewed by its peers. In game terms, a House’s Influence determines how difficult it is for that House to archive its goals or ambitions, how likely it is to be courted as a power broker, and how much weight and respect its views and interests are given by other Houses.
| Roll 1d6 | |
To archive a favourable result when undertaking an action, or when pursuing the House’s goals, the House must roll its Influence or less on 1d6. Skills possessed by the Patriarch/Matriarch and/or the Head of the House that can assist the Influence roll include: Leader, Bribery, Carousing, and Liaison. Each of these skills will reduce the actual roll by one: eg House Smarfii has an Influence of 3. Lord Garron Smarfii has Liaison-2. To archive his current objective, Lord Garron must roll 3 or less (his House’s Influence). He has Liaison Skill so this can either be viewed as temporarily increasing his House’s Influence to 4 (so he has to roll 4 or less to succeed) or reducing the result on the die he rolls by 1, making it easier to roll 3 or less.
Holdings
Holdings can be physical land – in fact Noble Characters can receive estates as benefits – but it is more usual that a Noble House will measure its holdings in such things as wealth generating stock and bond portfolios, real estate, and corporate control.
As a fast and dirty determinate of a Noble House’s Holdings roll 1d6:
| Roll 1d6 | |
These sums are in addition to any other benefits individual members of the Noble House might be granted.
House Size
The House Size is the number of members of the extended Noble Family who can expect to draw upon its resources. Also, it is the core group that the Head of the House, or the Matriarch/Patriarch, would expect to count upon for support – unless of course he or she can’t.
| Roll 1d6 | |
Recent House Activity
These are significant unplanned events in the Noble House’s recent history. Such events can explain a Noble House’s attitude or reaction to events and circumstances, or indicate their probable reaction.
Activity | |
| Favoured by the Subsector or Sector Duke for (d6: 1 - 2 staunch loyalty; 3 - 4 the ability to generate funds; 5 - 6 political acumen and deal making). | |
| Achieved overwhelming military victory. | |
| Achieved Pyrrhic military victory. | |
| Sponsored a House of lower SOC to rise to House Minor Status or, if the House is of House Major status, sponsored a House Minor to House Major status. | |
| Returned from expedition (1d6: 1 - 3 in local system; 4 - 5 in wilderness world in Subsector; 6 beyond Imperial border). | |
| Captured (d6: 1 - 2 pirate band; 4 revolutionaries; 5 spies; 6 raiders). | |
| Brokered diplomatic agreement on the Subsector or Sector Duke’s behalf (d6: 1 - 3 trade agreement; 4 - 5 mutual defence pact; 6 truce). | |
| Discovered valuable commodity (d6: 1 - 2 precious metal; 3 anagathics; 4 - 5 Indistrial material; 6 gemstones or radioactives. | |
| Birth in the Family. | |
| Death in the Family (d6: 1 - 2 natural causes, 3 - 4 tragic accident; 5 battle; 6 suspicious circumstances. | |
| Participated in dual (d6: 1 - 2 won; 3 - 4 lost; 5 - 6 draw). | |
| Adventuring family member (s) presumed lost or dead. | |
| Losing money as a result of (d6: 1 stolen heirloom; 2 - 3 bad business; 4 corporate raiders; 5 rival House; 6 freak accident). | |
| Vassal settlement in jeopardy of (d6: 1 attack by raiders; 2 - 3 plague; 4 - 5 failing food supplies or life support; 6 revolutionaries). | |
| Suffered military defeat. | |
| Snubbed by Subsector or Sector Duke because (d6: 1 - 2 poor military performance; 3 use of anagathics/cloning or cyborg technology; 4 late paying taxes; 5 - 6 causing trouble at court. |
Current House Goal
This is the project that the head of the Noble House is currently focused upon. While there could be many motivations, such as pursuit of wealth, power, favour or prestige, the noble will set out to archive this goal with all possible resources at the disposal of the House. The Moral Stance of the Noble will temper what the Noble will do, though there is no guarantee that a Scrupulous Noble won’t fall victim to the machinations of a more Pragmatic Noble.
| Support the Subsector or Sector Duke’s plan for (1d6: 1 - 2 expansion; 3 warfare; 4 - 5 diplomacy; 6 rooting out dissidents/revolutionaries. | |
| Acquire larger holdings (d6: 1 - 2 strategic location; 3 - 5 valuable resource; 6 special feature). | |
| Dispose of (d6: 1 - 2 another noble; 3 courtier; 4 military officer; 5 high-level bureaucrat; 6 powerful adventurer or celebrity). | |
| Marry into a particular family for (d6: 1 wealth; 2 love; 3 - 4 political advantage; 5 lust; 6 nefarious purposes). | |
| Bring about political reform. | |
| Bring local pirates or raiders to justice. | |
| Boost local defences by (d6: 1 - 3 acquiring System Defence Boats; 4 - 5 upgrading the Tech Level of the defence forces’ equipment; 6 hiring experienced offworld mercenaries). | |
| Establish a new colony. | |
| Upgrade infrastructure or Tech Level within the House’s estates. | |
| Remove stain from family name. | |
| Increase the Family’s prestige and influence by (d6: 1 - 2 funding and leading an exploration mission or scientific research project; 3 - 4 amassing wealth; 5 military prowess; 6 political influence). |
House Scandal
Most families have secrets, some dirtier than others. Some secrets may be rumoured or known about by many members of the House, while others are known to only a few. In any case, these secrets are kept carefully hidden away from outsiders for fear of financial loss, political fallout or the loss of prestige such knowledge will bring.
| None – outwardly the behaviour of the House is perfect, perhaps a little too perfect. | |
| Party to treasonous activity with (d6: 1 revolutionary cell; 2 - 3 official body; 4 - 5 foreign power; 6 dissident noble faction. | |
| Committed and covered up a capital or High Justice Crime. | |
| Addicted to (d6: 1 - 2 drugs; 3 - 4 alcohol; 5 - 6 unseemly, illegal, or immoral practises). | |
| Manipulates the system to avoid Imperial service. | |
| Supports a band of (d6: 1 - 2 pirates, 3 revolutionaries, 4 unregistered mercenaries, 5 psionics, 6 musicians and entertainers). | |
| Embezzling tax revenue to (d6: 1 - 2 amass a personal fortune; 3 - 4 divert to fund a revolutionary movement; 5 cover gambling debts; 6 pay an extortionist). | |
| Moonlights as (d6: 1 - 2 resource poacher; 3 - 4 corporate raider; 5 gunrunner; 6 smuggler). | |
| Secretly a psionic. | |
| Family History of mental illness. | |
| Under the control of (d6: 1 - 2 a Psionic manipulator; 3 - 4 a glamorous fortune hunter of the opposite sex; 5 - 6 a charismatic faith healer. |
Lastly
Houses Minor and Major can feature in a Traveller campaign in a variety of ways. They can be the patrons and employers of bands of adventurers, as well as the targets and foes of such bands. Conflicts between Houses can set up situations that require a “few good sophonts to act in an unofficial capacity”. Such conflicts can also impact upon events in the wider campaign area as scandals are uncovered or military or intelligence units have to be redeployed to foil acts of treason or dishonesty on a system-scale, or markets can be thrown into turmoil by actions, or the rumours of actions, taken by Houses pursuing their own agendas. By looking at the motives of the Houses, such events become less the result of random rolls on a table and more like the shifting and flexing of a power structure responding to its natural rhythms.
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