Civilians and Grd

[Command]

Where does a civilian fit within Grd?

Supporting both a Militia and a flourishing citizen system is never going to be an easy task but it is one that Grd will always attempt.
Civilians have always needed to be imaginative roleplayers who are able to create their own place within a guild and dedicate time to it.
Successfully playing a citizen can be a challenge even for the most experienced of roleplayers because there is no rank or structure to it. A citizen allows for the most freedom and you are limited only by your imagination; of course there are in character laws, but who says you must abide by them?

So what sort of role could you take on?

The simple answer is: Any!
As long as you are prepared to accept any consequences for your character’s actions, there is no reason you can’t take on any role at all. (Just don’t expect a guardsman to sit having a tea-party with you if you’re an orc!)

A few examples could be:

Playing an elf in the hostile environment of Yew, always trying to stay one step ahead of the Church.

A foul pirate having retired from life on the high seas.

A brigand roaming the highways of Yew, seeking wealthy victims.

An orc lying in wait amongst the trees of the infamous Valley.

An undead creature desperate to prove itself in the eyes of the Guardian.

An opportunistic thief always ready to grab a purse and run.

A witch secretly plotting to boil children down.

A mafia boss cleverly building an empire of organised crime through loopholes and bribes.

Shade is always in high demand, why not smuggle it?

There are always things for a born rebel to oppose, sometimes you do not even need a cause.

You were sure you would escape but now you’re caught and overcrowding at the Britannian Prison means you’re a prisoner in the Stonekeep Cells, permanently.

Or if living life on the edge isn’t quite for you:

Perhaps you are an expert on the King’s Law and seek employment with the Church as a lawyer or a layman?

There are wytches living in Yew? Not for long! Wytchunters are always in demand.

The King’s Deer tavern always requires new staff, why not serve a few pints?

Do you prefer to trade your wares from the safety of your own store? Perhaps you would enjoy the life of a Yewish shopkeeper.

Good with money? Perhaps a position in the Yewish treasury is for you.
Organised? The various important people around Yew could use you as an assistant!

Or does the prospect of sitting behind a desk and organising appointments for your employer seem more like your type of thing? Perhaps you should become a secretary.

Someone needs to deliver all the mail that gets sent everyday! Can you hack the early starts? Become a postman!

Messages need to be sent and received with minimal delay. Quick on your feet? You could be an errand boy or girl.

Does championing the rights of your industry inspire you? Perhaps you should become a union leader.

Curing illnesses and bandaging wounds is your calling in life? Pick up a robe and work as a healer.

Skilled with your hands? Craftsmen are always required.

Busy working away in one of Yew’s many factories? As a factory worker you are helping Yew grow into a bustling industrial state.

Does the inside story get your heart pounding? Do your stories sell papers by the thousand? You must be a reporter.

You own land good sir! Of course that makes you superior to the humble peasant folk in every conceivable way.

Just a regular Yewish citizen? It can’t be easy being part of the townsfolk.

Cooking up a storm? A dab hand in the kitchen? Perhaps you should become a chef.

Tending crops is all you’re good at. It’s fortunate then that farmers will always be a necessity.

Watching your flock by night? Life as a shepherd is simple but apparently very rewarding.

With such an enormous fleet it’s only right that there are sailors to man the Yewish Navy.

Still not all grown up? Life as a Yewish child is one adventure after the next.

Caring for poor Yewish orphans can be hard but satisfying work. You deserve a medal or something, orphanage matron.

Death and taxes. You’ll always find work as a gravedigger or a tax collector.

As a cleaner you like to see things sparkling, with so many people too busy to clean their own houses or places of business you’ll very rarely be out of work.

Is keeping a job just too much effort? I suppose sitting around on your arse all day or hassling those hard at work is much easier, you filthy beggar.

There is no limit to what you can or cannot play!

Feel free to speak to a member of Command if you have any questions or if you would like to discuss any ideas and the possibilities for the type of character you wish to play.

Playing a citizen is both fun and rewarding and really adds to the dynamic of any guild.
Think you have what it takes?
Apply or just come by today!

[Bladius Dart]

Feel free to use this as a reference for your citizen character:

Yewish Fact file

Official Name: The People's State of Yew

Yewish Banner:
http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/9428/hangingbanner3.png

Yewish Motto: Iugum est vires - Union is strength

Nominal Capital: Yew Proper
Administrative Capital: Stonekeep

Official languages: Britannian
Recognised regional languages: Celtic
Unrecognised regional languages: Nihonese

Ethnic groups: 85% Yewish, 5% Celtic, 4% Minocan, 2% Nihonese, 1.8% British, 0.7% Skara Braen, 0.6% Covian, 0.9% Other.

Government: People's State Committee

Currency: Yewish Copper and Britannian Crown

State religion: Avatarianism

Map of The State of Yew

http://www.grd-europa.co.uk/yew.png


1. Yew Proper

Yew Proper exists more now as a figurehead capital than ever before, as each day its administrative departments are slowly stripped away and transferred to Stonekeep. Yew Proper is steeped in history and culture with notable landmarks including Empath Abbey and The Courth of Truth. Despite its gradual decline in importance, Yew Proper is still bursting with life as people visit its stores and establishments, or the numerous tourist attractions.
Yew Proper also houses the state's primary docks and subsequently the vast majority of the Yewish Navy as well as an enormous amount of seaborne trade.

The people of Yew Proper generally look down upon those of the lesser and recently expanded provinces, believing themselves to be true Yewish. The accents of Yew Proper residents vary dramatically from the calm and lucid speech of the educated to the stumbling colloquialisms of the common folk.
However, the common folk values of work ethic and solidarity have fallen by the wayside in recent years as the province enjoys a period of financial prosperity forged not by their own efforts but by their neighbours. A source of pride for the people of Yew Proper is their successful vineyard. So great in fact is their sense of accomplishment and appreciation that drunk and disorderly behaviour stands a huge 34% higher in Yew Proper than in any other province.

2. Stonekeep

Once a simple military garrison, Stonekeep has expanded to become the administrative centre of the State of Yew. Stonekeep's borders extend far outside of the original meadow and officially include an area containing shops such as the famed 'Crafter's Cottage', factories, casinos and the State Offices.
Whilst there remains a heavy military presence within Stonekeep, its residential population has grown dramatically in the past few years and was recently estimated to be the most populous province within Yew.
Now home to the People's State Committee, important decisions affecting not just Yew but the world are made within Stonekeep every single day.

The people of Stonekeep consider themselves to be at the heart of Yewish life, bearing witness to remarkable events on a regular basis. Stonekeep is home to such a vast array of nationalities and origins as to make the province a veritable melting pot of Britannian culture and language. With so many differing values, influences and backgrounds the province's population enjoys an extremely volatile relationship yet at the same time is visibly productive, co-ordinated and ambitious.

3. Templeshire

Templeshire is the smallest official province of Yew, sandwiched between the enormous territories of Yew Proper and Stonekeep it could be easy to overlook Templeshire if not for the towering buildings littering its landscape.
Owners of numerous stone structures interspersed with small farms, the predominant residents of Templeshire are the Knights Templar.

The people of Templeshire regard their knightly neighbours with a combination of awe and distrust, being unaccustomed to their chivalry and sophistication.
However, despite their reluctance to trust outsiders the humble people of Templeshire are slowly growing to accept the Knights Templar.

4. The Glade

The Glade is home to the vast majority of Yew's agriculture. A quiet but friendly area, The Glade remains relatively untouched by Yew's industrial expansion and could be considered 'behind the times' in relation to its neighbouring provinces.
Dominated by farm and orchard hands, the rules of grammar and correct pronunciation do not apply and so speaking to a resident of The Glade is enough to make a Britannian school teacher seriously consider suicide.

5. Abbeywood

Abbeywood's controversial and tragic past has been mostly forgotten over the last few years. As the residential province has expanded to include the moongate new businesses have opened and trade has flourished, especially with a new road constructed linking the area with its neighbours. The people of Abbeywood are generally acknowledged as loud and obnoxious folk with little consideration for others. Prone to vice and villainy, Abbeywood residents often lack the morals or principles of their hardworking neighbours and are quite content to get rich either on the back of someone else's labour or through the pain and suffering of others.
Speech around these parts is fast and laced with colloquialisms and criminal cants making it virtually impossible to discern without the aid of a local or a phrasebook, unfortunately the vast majority of Abbeywood shuns Yew's education system and subsequently have yet to embrace the written word as anything other than a method through which you can describe your arch-enemy's mother on the wall of his house.

6. Cryptwood

Cryptwood houses a dark and mysterious history. Its residents are hardy and fearless having grown up next door to the dangers of the Crypts but are regarded for the most part as loners by their neighbours.
The people of Cryptwood are unfazed by public perception of their community and are indeed quite satisfied to isolate themselves entirely from the rest of civilisation.
Cryptwood residents often shun the use of modern technology and pride themselves on their self-sufficiency. Visitors are treated as unwelcome guests and are quite frequently ignored entirely.

7. Cedarwood

Cedarwood's residential population incorporates a blend of regular Yewish people and those of Celtic origin. With much of the area heavily industrialised it enjoys a financially prosperous relationship with Stonekeep. However a bloody rebellion only a few short years ago has turned public opinion against Cedarwood's non-Yewish population.
The people of Cedarwood regard themselves as Yewish, even if their neighbours now regard them as a race apart.
Home to the largest factory in the North, Cedarwood is at the heart of Yewish growth as an economic power.

8. Tel'mar

Built upon the ruins of Deepwater the province of Tel'mar has a rich history stretching back hundreds of years. However, for the most part Tel'mar has remained quiet for the last decade.
With a low crime rate and small population Yewish interest in the province has dwindled, most visitors are pilgrims visiting the Shrine of Justice or lovers visiting the famous waterfall. Recent discussions for industrial development to once again renew interest in the area have taken place, however time will tell what becomes of Tel'mar.

The people of Tel'mar are generally employed in a number of various positions, often working up to three separate jobs. Many are unskilled yet make up for their lack of talent through sheer elbow grease.

9. Old Nihon

The population of Old Nihon consists mainly of Yewish, however there remain a few settlers from the days when Nihon was occupied by various Tokunese tribes.
The province of Old Nihon is not without its dangers despite the fact that a direct route to Minoc ensures it is rarely quiet.
The people milling around can be found either chattering away in their native tongue or in the typical Yewish drawl.
Old Nihon is home to the Eastern Yewish docks and accordingly exports a great deal of rice to the outside world.
Even though the Nihonese and regular Yewish have lived side by side for decades now and for the latter periods in peace there still exists a great deal of tension between both parties.

10. Greater Yew

Greater Yew has only recently been reclaimed as a loyalist province, spending many years as a rebel held territory.
For many years it remained sparsely populated but lately hardy Yewish pioneers have spotted the glimmer of potential within Greater Yew and have begun to settle the land. Strong, tough and always prepared most Greater Yew residents carry with them a full survival kit 'just incase'.
Minocan and Covian immigrants have also arrived in Greater Yew, adding to the cultural diversity afforded to to the province by the great variety of Yewish people.

11. The Emerald Coast

The Emerald Coast has for a long while existed as little more than a smuggler's depot. In fact despite occasional patrols by the Yewish Navy it is little more than that even now.
However, plans are in existence for another Yewish port to be built upon The Emerald Coast, dramatically increasing the Navy's coverage and deployment range.
The handful of individuals who dwell upon The Emerald Coast have about as much regard for the law as they do for the Navy who confiscate their smuggled cargo. Many are not Yewish or even Britannian by birth but instead immigrants from the isle of Buccaneer's Den.

12. Serpent's Pass

Serpent's Pass is dominated by the sweltering heat of the Compassion Desert. What few people do reside in the Serpent's Pass are generally found dwelling within closely knit communities, however much like Greater Yew the general population consists primarily of Yewish settlers and Minocan immigrants with the odd smattering of the darker skinned desert tribes.
The Serpent's Pass shares a border with the Baronship of Cove and subsequently enjoys a heavy military presence and numerous fortified structures cover the terrain.
The people of Serpent's Pass are friendly folk who have banded together to endure and prosper in treacherous conditions and whilst being understandably cautious around newcomers are also very welcoming to any and all visitors.

13. Darkwood

Many years ago the province of Darkwood remained almost entirely lawless as bandits laid siege to the road leading to Britain. Now with the route decidedly less hazardous people have once again begun to settle the region.
Trade with Britain has allowed the relatively under populated province to flourish despite the ever-present dangers of the aptly named Lich Forest.
The people of Darkwood are opportunistic by their very nature, many are keen business men with little time for the restraints of morals.

14. West Yew

The folk of West Yew have a rich mining history. Their work ethic, strength of will and jovial nature has made them the subject of many a popular folk song. Whilst their gruff nature may prove intimidating to the uninitiated it soon becomes apparent that these people whilst incredibly proud of their heritage are also great and welcoming hosts willing to find any excuse to hold a feast or festival.
When not hard at work within the mines these bawdy people can generally be seen in the taverns of Yew or heard grunting and groaning between the legs of their women.