>What you have then is a very, very tenous system of rank and priveledge,
>power comes by appointment, not seniority and fixed rank. This is at odds
>with the DHan system but entirely in keeping with the Lunar method which
>encourages competition among its leaders and ultimate fear and loyalty to
>the one constant in all of this - the Red Emperor.
So we can quite safely work on the basis of Lunar generals being appointed as suits the story and not bother with the right number of generals of the right grade.
>The Three Stars reference is relating to the Tripolis. A General of Three
>Stars is one who can command, by agreement, any regiment from the Dara
>Happan Tripolis. So in the past, each city approved or was forced to
>approve by the Emperor, the appointment. Note that the Dara Happans
>_are_ much more rank aware and if a General was NOT appointed to command
>a Alkothi regiment - ie he was a General of Two Stars - then the Alkothi
>regimental commanders could ignore him at their leisure. A fully appointed
>General of Three Stars is given High Magic powers by his appointment that
>allow him to _compel_ obedience. Remember that in Dara Happa rank carries
>_real_ magical power upon appointment.
>
>And Stu is right, calling Tatius a Warlord would piss him off. He accepts
>the title but it is not his heritage. All New Pelorian correspondance sent
>to him would title him Warlord but that is why he has a Buseri translator
>to rewrite his messages into correct DHan terminology. Of course, there
>are _never_ any discrepancies between the original and the translation...
I think we've got to have a standard terminology which tells a reader roughly the status of any general. While the intricacies of protocol are of considerable interest to many of us, we aren't writing ILH 432 - a guide to military titles and protocols. If you want to include Tatius's Dara Happen title in his character write up, fine, but let's also have a Lunar title which can be applied to a general from any Lunar background.
P.S. sorry I missed the Tarsh War reference to generals of star numbers being a DH title.
-- Donald Oddy http://www.grove.demon.co.uk/
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