The War Chamber exists to operate and control the wars that The Concord might force or be forced into upon its foes. From within its walls, Generals and Admirals control the vast military might of the Armies and Fleets of the Concord, while Champions and Field Marshals look to the confluxes and how they might be used to their greatest advantage. Understandably, these decisions are of immense worth and security, as such those that are drawn to the private chamber should consider their ability to carry the entire future of The Concord upon their shoulders.
See Military Orders for a list of previous commands put forward by this council.
Function
The focus of The War Chamber is in three fields.
First is the operation of the armies and fleets of The Concord which wage war year round against the threats arrayed against it. From within The War Chamber the Generals and Admirals of The Concord will consider intelligence, distributions of power and long term strategy before making their moves. In this, each commander is a dictator, carrying the full burden of choice on their shoulders and answerable only to the senate and the people. No vote is required for the actions.
Secondly is the operation of the major confluxes. With only two chances to deploy the assembled might of the Concordian Heroes, the War Chamber must make careful decisions of when and where it sends these forces.
Beyond these immediate actions of War, the Chamber also maintains a number of ancillary powers, such as the selection of Field Marshals and divvying up the spoils of war.
Powers
Deployment
By the end of each Summit each Fleet and Army of The Concord must be deployed to a region and given orders by its commanding officer. These must be given in writing to the Commandant for deployment.
Dictatorship
Admirals and Generals have complete control over how their forces are deployed. These actions do not require votes.
Conflux
The War Chamber selects which Major Conflux will be attempted the following day and by which force of heroes. The heroic forces are assembled by the Commandant in line with Realmic requirements and arcane circumstances. The selection of a Conflux requires a vote of simple majority and is conducted as a joined vote with the force of heroes. That is to say you vote to send a force to a certain conflux, not each part individually.
Command
The War Chamber has the ability to endow a Concordian Citizen with the title of Field Marshall. This individual is entrusted with the power of the War Chamber and is selected to be the battle commander for the coming Major Conflux. At the following War Chamber, the Field Marshall is required to present a report on the outcome. The Field Marshall title is then removed and given again. The title of Field Marshall is unique in that it can be given to a citizen who already has a title, however each citizen can only be given the title of Field Marshall once a year.
Spoils
Any non-currency spoils of war taken by Concordian or Realmic forces are to be dispersed as seen fit by the War Chamber. Once all items have been dispersed, either by granting them to individuals, groups, realms or perhaps the Exchange to be placed up for public auction, the entire set of spoils must be voted on as a single vote.
Messenger
Unlike other Councils, if a member of the War Chamber cannot attend a meeting for whatever reason, they are not permitted to elect a proxy, such is the nature of the security around The Concord’s war efforts. They are permitted to provide their commands via trusted messenger, which will deliver the written commands to the War Chamber and thus onto the Commandant. If a member of the War Chamber cannot do this, or does not do this a number of events may occur.
If the individual is a General or Admiral, their command will be temporarily taken by the Champion of their Realm, even if they were not commanding a Realmic force. If the individual was a Champion, a message will be given to the Civil Service with the intention to pass on to the new Champion when they are determined. All temporary commands will be removed as soon as is able, for example, during the next Senate session.
Resources
The War Chamber maintains armies and fleets which are granted to it as commissions by the Senate, any additional funding is also provided to it by the Senate, much like many other councils.
The only resource that the War Chamber has exclusive control over is that of spoils of war. When Concordian forces successfully claim a region from hostile forces, the resources and items found are almost exclusively granted to the War Chamber for dispersal. The only exception is currency, which is transferred to The Concordian Treasury. The remaining items, investments and resources are given to The War Chamber. It is important to note that The War Chamber may not store resources, as such these spoils must be dispersed before the end of The Summit,
Members
The War Chamber maintains a variety of positions and methods for attaining those positions. They are as follows:
Admiral
An Admiral is the individual entrusted with control over a Fleet for a year, either by the Senate if it is a Concordian Fleet or by a Realm if it is a Realmic Fleet. Admirals have complete control over their fleets actions on the campaign. Admirals also have a single vote when it comes to deciding other War Chamber decisions. Admirals are allowed a single aide within the War Chamber.
General
A General is the individual entrusted with control over an Army for a year, either by the Senate if it is a Concordian Army or by a Realm if it is a Realmic Army. Generals have complete control over their Army’s actions on the campaign. Generals also have a single vote when it comes to deciding other War Chamber decisions. Generals are allowed a single aide within the War Chamber.
Champion
A Champion is the representative of the heroes of each Realm. It is their duty to make sure each Realm is represented within the War Chamber. They have a single vote when it comes to deciding other War Chamber decisions. They are not allowed any Aides.
Warmage or Warpriest
A rotating position, the Warmage or Warpriest is brought in to ensure that the Chamber has advice on divine or arcane matters. They are elected by their respective councils. They have a single vote when it comes to deciding other War Chamber decisions. They are not allowed any aides.
Commandant
The Concordian in charge of operating the War Chamber, the Commandant ensures the smooth operating of the council, informs the members and keeps records of the entire proceedings.
Chambers
The War Chamber’s Chamber is not a place of much interest, dominated by the map in the centre. This map contains the current force distributions of both The Concord and of the hostile forces that we are aware of.
Meetings
The War Chambers meetings are the only meetings that are closed, that is to say it is illegal to enter without a writ from the Senate or as an invited member or aide. The War Chamber meets twice during a Summit, with each meeting determining the Major Conflux for the next day, choosing its Field Marshall and any other important business. By the end of the second meeting, the War Chamber must have deployed its forces and handled any remaining business.