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Old 11-02-2011, 09:25 AM   #103
jason taylor
 
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Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Portland, Oregon
Default Re: 'Imperial Culture' (non-canonista)

IMTU Huscarls are private troops that a noble has an actual warrant to raise(similar to that which is given to Byzantine generals) and I think that's what canon says. Thus they are Imperial troops at one remove.

Other groups can have private troops. These can range from innocuous warehouse security to troops intended to be actual political muscle for megacorps to mere goons for intimidating recalcitrant natives or workers but who couldn't fight a robust group of Imperial Youth Rangers(or whatever). All of these whether respectable(like warehouse security) or not(like thugs) are different from huscarls because huscarls are specifically recognized by the Imperium and have the privileges and responsibilities of personal in Imperial service, sometimes including Legal Enforcement Powers.

Security would infact be a great devourer of manpower. Even in a mercantile culture other aspects can be automated far more easily.

Huscarls might also include personal counselors if they are intended to travel with a given noble. Other ideas include a personal private investigator, a personal bard or whatever. Naturally young nobles of lesser status would be fostered as huscarls. In fact Huscarls can be thought of as something like an Owsla. Naturally, toward coreward Huscarls will be more ceremonial or at least less militaristic. An roving investigative team might be more likely then actual soldiers though roving investigative teams are also found among border Huscarls.


In My Heroes Country there is a similar practice but it is modified because nobility as such is mostly honorary; the Patricianate is in intention primarily as a technocracy though it has nepotistic tendancies which would make it's evolution into a straightforward aristocracy a real possibility. A fair sized clan can usually field enough militia to provide it's own security force with every male and some females from coming of age to retirement being reasonably trained in arms. Chiefs aren't the same as Imperial Nobles being chosen by Tannistry and are first among the clan rather then overlords of a fief; nepotism is expected and tolerated within limits but chiefs are not intended to be feudal overlords. A given chief as well as some city or federal officials(like a flag or general officer for instance) will have guards and staff around him. These are sometimes called huscarls and sometimes called householders and bear comparison to Imperial noble's huscarls though whether or not they have official status depends. They accompany the chief or whatever when he goes on a mission. A Clan Consigliere isn't the among these; her job is usually as chief administrator as well as chief executive in the chiefs absence. Often a consigliere will be a chief's wife or other close relation. In my story Johnathan, when he became chief left his grandmother as consigliere and made his wife Rachel captain of householders, a matter of efficiency in this case as the grandmother was an experienced consigliere and Rachel was used to working directly with Johnathan.
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Last edited by jason taylor; 11-02-2011 at 10:03 AM.
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