>- Does he actually serve the role of judge during a formal trial day?
In our games, the chief is the judge. A lawspeaker might advise both sides to a dispute and effect a settlement before a suit, however.
>Furthermore, I'm not sure I can quite get my mind around the concept of
>kinstrife. Wergild applies when one clan injures another, but the
>implication is that criminal acts WITHIN a clan are so horrific that
>they're the exception, not the rule. Is this realistic? I would imagine
>that any time people are relating very closely together that there will
>be much more opportunities for personal strife leading to violent acts.
I think you're probably right, that low-level violence could be more common. However it's also very easy for calming influences to be close at hand, and intensely interested in the conflict.
And remember that low-level violence is not subject to legal action.
>If clansman-on-clansman violence is potentially more common, then it
>seems strange that the penalties would be so very harsh. Either the
>offender is put to death or, in the simplest cases, banished for a
>minimum of one year. Given that the winters are so deadly, this in
>itself seems like a death sentence. (Certainly, other clans won't grant
>refuge to someone labelled an outlaw?!)
Oh, I'll bet in the right circumstances, a Varmandi might harbor someone the Orlevings have outlawed.
-- David Dunham Glorantha/HQ/RQ page: http://www.pensee.com/dunham/glorantha.html Imagination is more important than knowledge. -- Albert Einstein ------------------------------ End of Glorantha Digest, Vol 11, Issue 42 *****************************************
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