Yeofolk of Dawn

Overview

Anyone in Dawn who has not passed a Test of Mettle is a yeoman, whether they are a farmer, a merchant or the daughter of an earl. In practice the children raised as part of the noble houses - the noble-born - have advantages and luxurious that most yeomen can only dream of, but in technical terms they are all considered to be yeomen.

Any yeoman can demand that a noble house set them a Test of Mettle. Such a request cannot be refused, but the test can be impossibly difficult if the request is not welcome. Some yeomen spend their entire lives looking for a chance to be ennobled. The more glorious the deeds they perform before they attempt their Test of Mettle, the reasoning goes, the better the chance that the noble house will set them an achievable task.

Although most Dawnish yeomen accept that they could become a noble if they passed the Test of Mettle, many are put off by the the danger inherent in the tests, or lack confidence that they are glorious enough to join a noble house, but some simply prefer their simpler life. Many yeomen, especially those who work closely with the nobles as part of a house's entourage often enjoy many of the privileges of the noble class.

There are many opportunities to play a Dawnish yeoman in Empire. Although most Dawnish characters will be noble, there are roles specially designed for yeoman characters and the social class represents an opportunity to play a lower status character, something which is not part of the designed setting of the other Imperial nations, which assume that all the PCs are of equivalent social class.

Creating a yeoman character

If you are planning to create a yeoman character it is very important to think about the social role that your character will fill, much more important than if you are creating a noble character. Noble characters can move easily from one role to another, taking up Imperial positions, or positions of leadership within the house or the nation as their character finds their feet. This is much harder to do as a yeoman, so you need to have a much clearer idea in advance of what you want to play. Anyone can be a noble, but if you decide to create a yeoman character - think about what kind of yeoman you are.

If you are attending the event with friends who are playing a Dawnish noble house, then you can be part of the entourage of the house even though you are not a noble member of it. Noble houses have hundreds of yeomen, most of them are soldiers or farmers but the number includes servants and trusted retainers. It is well worth speaking to other members of the group about the role your character might fill and making sure that other players are comfortable with the role you are going to fill - you may well be reliant on their roleplaying to make your character concept work.

If you are attending the event by yourself or with a group of characters playing yeomen then it is worth looking at the various yeoman roles that are not part connected with the noble houses. The obvious choice is a knight-errant or a group of knights-errant but there are other roles in Dawnish society that you can fill. If you want to play a ritual team then it is worth considering playing a weaver and reading about the weaver cabals.

One important choice to think about is why your character isn't noble. The default choice for Dawnish players is assumed to be a noble character, there are thousands of yeomen in Dawn but most of these are assumed to be NPCs. This is because the characters with ambition, drive, enthusiasm, passion, intelligence and courage become nobles - the characters without these traits remain as yeomen. You should think about why your character isn't noble - perhaps they are seeking to become noble and have not yet passed their test, perhaps there is some terrible act of shame in their past that prevents it or maybe they prefer the simpler and safer life of a yeoman.

Please don't create a yeoman character who disdains the idea of becoming a noble, yeomen with these attitudes are not welcome in the nation and the few that exist usually leave to live in the Marches.

Roles for yeomen=

Yeomen have some social mobility, and may prosper in the Bourse and the Synod, but they will almost certainly never become Generals or Senators. Those yeomen who do well in the arenas of power that are accessible to them will probably find themselves being approached by noble houses and offered a Test of Mettle - after all, if nobles are glorious then it makes sense that they want to make glorious people into nobles.

The most common roles for Dawnish Yeomen might include:

• A knight-errant - usually noble-born but technically any character who has not passed their Test of Mettle, but is either actively engaged on it, or is seeking glory prior to making an approach to a noble house.
• A seneschal - a skilled professional who oversees elements of the day-to-day running of a noble house.
• An advocate - an aide to the Dawnish senators who makes a study of history and bureacuracy.
• A retainer - a character who serves as the personal aide to a specific noble.
• A member of a weaver cabal - a ritual magician who is part of a structure that exists outside normal social rules in Dawn.

Ennobling Retainers

It is a common practice in Dawn to ennoble Seneschals and trusted retainers on their deathbeds, as a reward for their service.

Less commonly, but more effectively, an Earl might offer to adopt the child of a yeoman couple in return for some service. A well known tale that exists in numerous versions through the Nation tells of an Earl who is protected from their enemies by a virtuous old couple and returns some time later to offer to bring the elder yeomen into their house. The wise yeomen instead ask the Earl to adopt their eldest child, claiming that the Test of Mettle and all it entails would be wasted on those whose lives are already half-over, wheras their child will be able to make the most of the opportunity to seek glory. More than one noble has gained a fresh start in life due to incidents like these.

Leaving Dawn

The Imperial Constitution extends certain basic rights and responsibilities to all citizens, whether they are nobles or yeomen. While most of the political power lies in the hands of the nobles, yeomen are not property. They are free to move around as their inclination and resources allow them.

Some yeomen leave Dawn permanently. Sometimes these are people who have failed their Test of Mettle for one reason or another. Sometimes they have political reasons to wish to leave the Nation, and an occasional few simply want to start a new life far away from everything they know. Many of these self-exiled yeomen end up in The Marches, while others are drawn to the prosperity of one of the cities of The League, especially Holberg.