War for the Crown Gameplay Part 1

"It's not so much your vote I'm curious about as much as it is I'm curious about the field as a whole. Though I can only talk to so many people in a night, the sample size is enough for me to form a conclusion about the outcome of the night. And I have to say, I'm hopeful," Momo responds with a polite smile.

"I agree with your assessment. In fact, I believe any who oppose Princess Eutropia may find their political fortunes taking a nosedive after the vote tonight," Countess Pace points out thoughtfully.

Momo nods. "Those who benefit from the change and those who oppose the change would be directly at odds, indeed," Momo says, and adds, "And I'm sorry to pry more, but... do you mind my asking why you're voting the way you are? Now that we've gotten to talking, I do admit, I'm curious about your reasons."

"I actually already told you," Countess Pace chuckles. "Anyone who opposes Princess Eutropia in public now will find themselves cast to the side politically. I would prefer to avoid that fate and find myself on the winning side of this equation. That is both the blessing and curse of senate votes being public."

Momo nods, and replies, "That's an excellent point, Countess Pace," almost automatically, while musing on her position internally.

Meanwhile, Adelaide does some more probing into Lord Kastner, finding that he is happy to engage with anyone who approaches him politely, seems to be a similarly bold, challenging person, or can speak intelligently about faith. Josie does an excellent job of impressing children and their tired parents with her acrobatic skills, and finds herself the recipient of many gifts from grateful parents, and one more passive-aggressive one who gifts her with a wand that enhances her appeal. Corey continues to admire the artifacts at the Arcade, being perceptive, but not exceptionally so.

"If there is one thing my time in this deliberative body has made me realize, it is that my vote is meaningless. Nothing is ever decided by one vote," Countess Pace elaborates. "And thus my vote is best used not to pursue policy, but to influence politics."

Having all the information she needed, Adelaide goes to seek out Lord Kastner. She finds him in the courtyard with a glass of wine in hand and occupied only by occasional chatter. "Good evening, Lord Kastner," she greets him on approaching, giving a small curtsey. "I am Dame Adelaide Morilla. Might I borrow a moment of your time?"

Lord Kastner returns the curtsy with a deep, gentlemanly bow and a warm smile. "But of course, it's always a pleasure to speak with someone who has not yet tired of my preaching," he jokes.

Adelaide laughs at this. "I rarely tire of long discussions, particularly if the topic proves engaging," she answers with a smile. "And what is the subject of tonight's sermon?"

"My latest pet project," Kastner replies, brightening up more. "I believe that the last month of prisoners' sentences should be spent on community service projects, whether that be labour, military service, or assisting churches in good standing. Once they have received their just punishment and vengeance has been dealt, I believe creating an opportunity for them to reform and see a better path is not only moral, but also pragmatic."

"Oh, that is full of possibilities," Adelaide answers, eyes widening as she takes it in. "Embraced fully, this could be a key step to creating a system of justice that focuses on a reformative approach rather than focusing solely on punitive aspects, and reform is a much more effective way to prevent recidivism. Really, doing something for the community seems like a more useful way of paying for one's crimes as well, as you've highlighted."

"Exactly. I'm not proposing we remove the punitive aspects entirely, the victims of crimes do deserve justice after all, but creating a transitionary period could provide people who simply stole out of economic necessity the opportunity to build relations and even a useful skill. In fact, I suspect we would find that many former criminals stay in the same professions they work in afterwards," Kastner nods along, elaborating on his idea.

"What obstacles are you encountering as you push for this idea?" Adelaide asks. "It seems so clearly beneficial to all involved, and yet, there must be some reason it's something you must promote rather than something to just be done."

"There are a few. First, it would require the public to be willing to trust these former criminals as they do their jobs, which would require a messaging strategy to sell the idea. Second, it would require us to get votes past the more traditionalist nobles who are reluctant to move away from any of the old systems," the paladin explains. "Third, Grand Prince Stavian is opposed and seems unlikely to be convinced."

Adelaide tries not to visibly roll her eyes at the last two points, and they continue discussing the project, the benefits, and the challenges.

Suddenly, a silence falls over the gala, and the crowd parts as servants unroll a red carpet through the Arcade of Triumphs and the senate floor. Grand Prince Stavian III and a host of his Ulfen Guard then arrive, ascending the 100 steps to the building. Various guests quickly flock to catch a glimpse of Taldor’s leader, who briskly moves toward the Emperor’s Hall, the door to which was closed. Maxillar Pythareus quickly follows and joins the Grand Prince, and Princess Eutropia and Gloriana Morilla recuse themselves to engage in private meetings before the vote to come.

Returning to the gallery, Corey stops to watch a halfling dressed in heavy makeup perform for those children who were dragged along. When she finishes her act, he claps just as excitedly as the children do.

At the end of her performance, Wyssilka the Fantabulous swings around next to Corey, giving him a curious look. "Aren't you a little old for stage tricks?" she teases with a playful glint to her eye.

After the Grand Prince departs, Kastner turns back to Adelaide. "Well," he begins with a small grimace before returning to his pleasant smile. "Enough about my plans, what sorts of causes are you passionate about, Dame Adelaide?"

"Mah daddy always said the most childish thing in the world was not likin' somethin' just cuz it's childish," Corey shrugs in respose. "'sides, now that Ah'm grown it's a lot more fun tryin' ta see how ya do those things instead a just marvelin' in the performance. Like, how ya mixed in some real magic with tha fake, that was real impressive."

"Ah, well..." Adelaide considers her answer carefully. "In a way, I've still much to learn about what the most pressing issues facing Taldor are. I understand that a great deal of our status could be restored by reconsidering our system of classes, and finding ways to adjust that to make it more enticing for tradespeople to stay here." She folds her hands together, not wanting to move her hands in thought. "What I'd really like to see done, however, if given the chance to work on anything, is address the systematic issues that lead to perpetual unhappiness and injustice among our people. Naturally that goal is so high level as to lead to a great deal of intersectionality of various factors, but one approach I thought might be valuable is reforming and empowering the courts."

"Your father's a wise man," Wyssilka beams in reply, and her eyebrows raise when Corey notes her use of magic. "So you noticed? Not bad. See, it's difficult to impress children with sleight of hand when their uncle can summon an angel, so I've gotta cheat a little."

Lord Kastner listens to Adelaide respectfully, nodding along and waiting until she finishes to give his own thoughts. "We could certainly do more to empower our merchants and tradespeople to rise to greater heights. In Andoran and the Kelesh Empire, a skilled person can rise higher than even some of our nobility. Why stay here when there is greater opportunity elsewhere? The specifics of that are difficult, one wants to avoid simply creating another caste without actually improving mobility, but there are ways it could be done." He rubs his chin thoughtfully. "As for the courts, I would certainly support such a proposal. Laws are far too inconsistent, and while they are certainly executed properly under someone like Baron Okerra, or, hopefully, myself, there are others who do not rule with justice in mind, and the only deciding factor for a peasant is where they happened to be born."

"If all rulers were such people that would properly execute the varying laws without someone else enforcing, there'd be less concern, certainly," Adelaide acknowledges with a nod. "We aren't in such a blessed society yet. What other steps would you suggest for the overall goals, Lord Kastner? I'm sure the courts are just one avenue to make the necessary changes, and there's more I've yet to consider."

"Another approach could be to further centralize government and empower the crown and senate," Kastner suggests. "That approach is a double-edged sword, because it would empower someone like our current leader to block progressive lords, but could also empower some purely hypothetical progressive ruler to create national standards."

"Purely hypothetical, of course," Adelaide answers with a wry grin, mentally taking notes. It would probably be rude to pull out a pocketbook during conversation. "I would like to think throughout our history, there have been enough good leaders to make such a measure worthwhile. Thank you for your input."