The Concordian Constitution
In concord with the representatives of our great realms, we declare the founding of our Concord. Let us be joined together by common destiny; to build a great Concord; to serve and protect its people; to let them prosper and achieve greatness and spread across the face of the Mortal Sphere together in unity.
Let this document set out the strong principles upon which our Concord will be founded; to serve as the solid base upon which we will build our glorious undertaking; and to mandate the responsibilities and duties of our people, our Realms and our future.
By signing these accords of The Concord we agree to be joined in a single union to be governed in accordance with the principles of this document. No Realm shall hold any of its citizens higher than the Concordian Senate or Throne, who will lead The Concord and provide a voice wherein no Realm is above any other. We shall be united in law and policy, but free to maintain the traditions that have made each of us strong.
To these citizens we will guarantee dignity, freedom, and prosperity. Each citizen that owns land or property will tithe annual wealth equal to a single lock to be used in service of the Concord that protects them. Citizens shall not hold more than one high office at a time and must exercise their powers in person, save for Senators who may elect a Proxy for a time no more than their current mandate; those whose virtue causes them to be offered numerous Concordian titles must choose between them. In this way, no citizen shall accumulate so much responsibility that they consider themselves better than their fellows.
The Throne shall lead the Concord and represent it in all things. It shall be a beacon to its people and a terror to its enemies. Whenever the Throne sits in the great councils laid out in this constitution, then their voice shall carry the greatest weight.
The Concordian Civil Service shall serve The Throne and the people, and be bound in oaths of loyalty to the Concord. They will be civil in their dealings and treat each citizen by their virtues, without prejudice or favour regardless of wealth, nationality or title. They will choose amongst them those who will serve as magistrates, to ensure the law is a friend to no-one but instead the servant and the master of all.
The Senate shall ensure the good governance of The Concord. The Senate will assume responsibility for relations with other nations, for the creation of just laws and for the allocation of Concordian taxes as the Senate sees fit, by majority vote. The confirmation of the Thrones right to occupy their position requires the approval of the greater majority of senators. Matters of similar weight require similar consideration and the approval of the Throne and must be ratified by the Concordian Civil Service to ensure that this constitution is protected.
Each region of the Concord will elect a single senator to participate in the Senate, according to the traditions of the nation that claims it. Territorial nationality shall be decided by vote of the existing Senate, where it is legitimately disputed.
The War Chamber shall ensure the rigorous defence of the Concord. The Senate or the collective will of each realm may raise forces for this effort and see to their maintenance. The Senate shall decide upon leaders for forces they rally, whereas individual realms will elect their military leaders in their own traditional manner. The War Chamber will execute the strategy of war without interference from the Senate. If the Throne finds complaints with the worst of their generals or admirals then they may carry the burden of their office until an acceptable replacement may be found.
The Concordian Civil Service will ensure that those who soldier to defend our Concord will be equipped and provisioned to meet this challenge. Citizens who render five year's service to the Concord’s forces will receive ten acres of land or equivalent wealth or property if the land is not to be had.
The Church of the Divine Spheres of The Concord shall ensure the virtuous behaviour of the Concord. The Church will remove from Concordian office those whose behaviour is deemed unvirtuous whether they sit upon the Throne; serve the people in the Senate or on the War Chamber or in the Civil Service; or serve within the councils of the Church itself. The Church will ensure the behaviour of individual citizens does not debase the Concord and endanger the immortal spirits of the citizenry. Those who stand in the Church shall express the views of their congregation or views concordant with their mastery of the miracles of the Spheres.
The Shardcircle shall ensure the fit and proper use of magic in the service of The Concord. The Shardcircle will accord a voice to those citizens who demonstrate command of magic and demonstrate the necessary commitment to the authority of the Conclave. The Shardcircle may appoint leaders who will assist in the allocation of such resources as are needed to further its aims.
The Exchange shall control access to those resources that are essential to the prosperity of any great empire through the deeds to the industries of these resources. Control over a Deed shall be established by auction and shall be free of all interference of the Senate, or from the Church. Some Deeds shall be held in ownership by The Concord, with the auction of such deeds being open to any valid Concordian Citizen. Where Deeds are held in ownership by individual Realms, they shall be divided up in accordance with that Realms traditions. The funds raised by the Exchange through the distribution of its estates will remit what profit they can support to the Senate.
No coin may be accepted that has not been produced in the Concordian Mint and which does not bear the rightful stamp of The Concord.
By these principles, councils, and virtues we agree to be governed in perpetuity; not as chains of unchanging servitude, but as inspiration to exalt us and drive our great endeavour.
Game Design for The Concordian Constitution
The purpose of The Concord Consitution is to ensure that Concord remains a fun game to play. There are a number of systems in the game that make The Concord an unwieldy and complex political structure that requires different groups, councils and individuals to work together rather than localise power in any one location. It is also in place to ensure that players cannot use their power to punitively victimise any particular groups.
With this in mind, the Concordian Constitution is not a puzzle to be unpicked or a barrier to be overcome. Rather it is an IC document that protects the core game designs of Concord as a game, enabling an alibi when certain actions have to be declined by the Game Team to retain the fun within the game.
Notably, this is also a ‘fun’ that preserves power accessibility and plot involvement for a large number of people. It would be more effective and more fun for the War Chamber if it could take an amount of tax income and pay for its own emergency resupplies, however it would reduce connections between the Senate and the War Chamber, it would limit the number of people involved in these decisions and make them trivial. By tying them to multiple systems, we cause the cogs of the story to turn each other and we draw attention to Concord as a zero-sum game.
This is the same reason why the Senate is barred from interfering too much in the public auction, as the biggest purse holder, it would be trivial for the senate to dominate the space and render that element of the trading game defunct. By keeping senate funds out of the auction, we force them to interact with the larger player base and share out some amount of power, resulting in more interactions that matter for more players.
There will always be a desire to ‘legislate the fun out of the game’, your characters will be motivated to do it (since they want to survive and thrive) and you will want to do it (to achieve your goals and in order to fix something that is perceived as broken). But we ask that when the civil service tells you “Such an action would be against the Constitution” it is likely because we are attempting to preserve that game design, something we are happy to discuss at length after the game, but not likely during.