Law

The Mar do not, on the whole, have an enforceable, national legal system. Rural communities largely create and enforce their own laws, though these are almost always based on Vangard's Rules of Governance. This ranges from formal judicial systems overseen by a professional judge to virtual mob rule led by a sheriff and a few enforcers. In areas ruled by a magocrat, the magocrat may always choose to sit in judgement, though a magocrat need not judge every case. In urban areas, including all formal duxies, wizards always sit in judgement over both criminal and civil cases.

Mar justice for mundanes is swift, if somewhat quirky. Before a suspect's movements can be hindered in any way, a Mar must make an accusation in the presence of both the defendant and the judge who will oversee the trial, so that the suspect may hear the charges at the same time as the judge does.

For this reason, no small number of accused criminals flee before they can be officially accused. While this is almost always held as evidence of guilt, if the fleeing suspect fails to escape, a fugitive in good condition can generally escape justice in this way, provided the judge is not a wizard. Throughout history, a large portion of mapmakers became adventurers only after becoming fugitives from their home communities. In fact, many of Marrishland's most famed heroes were criminals at some time in their lives, for it is often regarded as a sign of divine favor to survive such exile from one's home community.

Another sticky point of this provision is that it is reasonably possible for a criminal to go un-accused because no one can or wishes to make an accusation against him. While fugitives, mapmakers, and other Mar wanderers need only know when mob violence against them is imminent, foreign visitors must learn to recognize when they are not welcome, since their fates are entirely in the hands of the Mar. Only a Mar may accuse another Mar, and a foreigner's word is not recognized by Mar law.

Once an accusation has been formally made, Vangard's Rules of Governance allow a suspect to be imprisoned or otherwise prevented from escaping until the trial is complete. The trial must commence without delay, though most judges allow the plaintiff and defendant some time to assemble witnesses. The defendant, however, may at any time demand that the trial commence, even if all the plaintiff's witnesses have not yet been assembled. Very few Mar, after all, can afford to take any long period of time out of their normal lives in order to defend themselves from accusations of wrongdoing. This gives a defendant on her home turf a significant advantage, however, unless the plaintiff is certain to assemble witnesses and evidence before even making the formal accusation.

Neither plaintiff nor defendant may call upon more than three witnesses. Witnesses may present any circumstantial or physical evidence they have at their disposal, explaining the significance of such evidence to the presiding judge. It falls upon the plaintiff, defendant, and witnesses to present their stories and evidence in a convincing matter, and all parties must swear to speak only the truth. The judge may then ask questions of each participant in order to clarify details or ferret out omissions. Regardless of the apparent relevance of the questions, their incriminating nature, or any other factor, all questions must be answered to the judge's satisfaction. Since plaintiff, defendant, and witnesses have sworn an oath to speak the truth, anyone found to be lying is guilty of breaking an oath — a very serious crime among the Mar.

A trial is generally quite an informal affair. In most cases, the judge speaks to the plaintiff, defendant, and witnesses one-on-one, sometimes even over a meal at the judge's home. The judge must be as fair as humanly possible, but he is under no obligation to patiently listen to testimony that is irrelevant or extremely time-consuming. In theory, a mundane witness's word and evidence have as much weight as an eighth-degree wizard's, but in practice, wizards usually hold far more sway over a judge's decision.

Based on the evidence presented by both sides, the judge determines the defendant's guilt or innocence. The judge is not limited to handing down a guilty verdict solely on the crime of which the defendant was initially accused, especially if witness accounts and other evidence show him to be guilty of more or greater crimes. If the accused is found guilty, the judge then hands down a sentence. While it is acceptable for plaintiffs and witnesses to suggest sentences, in the end, it is the judge's decision.

In almost all cases, the criminal becomes a slave to the community in which the crime took place for a period of days, months, or years — depending on the severity of the crime. While this is supposedly service to the community, the judge usually decides who will be the slave's master during the term of his sentence, and the master may give, lease, or sell the slave's service to another free citizen. The severity of this slavery varies by the master, and most judges declare themselves the master simply to grant themselves more control over the severity of the slave's experience.

The gentlest allow the slave almost complete freedom except at certain times of day or on certain days of each month when she must perform assigned duties. A judge who intends to exact this sort of service often passes a longer sentence to compensate from this far gentler treatment. This is often seen as a way to allow a parent with young children to provide for her family.

The most severe demand constant obedience and complete servitude. The slave is not even allowed to eat without permission from her master. Household slaves of this sort may even be deprived of their boots, if their master wishes it, and may be subjected to any treatment that does not carry a strong and immediate threat of death.

While judges usually take the role of master in criminal cases, in civil cases, she might grant the plaintiff this role, instead. The judge is free, however, to set limits on the treatment the slave may be expected to endure, and such slaves may level accusations against a master who demanded dangerous, criminal, or demeaning actions of them, allowing them to reduce the term of their service, if the judge finds this to be the case. In addition, citizens given the role of master over a slave are almost always ordered to swear an oath to treat the slave within these limits, so a master who violates a slave is also guilty of breaking an oath — a very serious crime in Marrishland.

In a perfect system, slavery is a fairly benign way to punish criminals while giving them a chance to redeem themselves as useful members of the community. No one may remain a slave for more than eight years, regardless of the crime they committed. A master may kill one of his slaves and not be guilty of a crime so long as the slave disobeyed direct order from him that did not carry the strong and immediate danger of death.

However, criminals who pose too much of a risk to mundane masters are often sold as slaves to neighboring communities with magocrats, combining slavery with banishment. While the eight year rule is still supposed to apply, it is not always enforced. In addition, Vangard's Rules do not make clear the fate of children born to slaves. While it is easy to assume that a newborn is innocent of the crime of its parents, it is certainly not unknown for the children of slaves to be considered slaves themselves. With some twisting of the law's provisions, it is possible to make a convincing argument for such slaves not needing to be freed after eight years of service, and this interpretation has resulted in a slave class, especially in Domus Palus.

Less commonly, judges banish a criminal from the community. If the defendant returns, he may be killed without further legal action or pressed into slavery permanently. Few judges banish another Mar, though it is a far more common way to punish a foreigner, mapmaker, or other wanderer guilty of crimes that are more of a nuisance than a real threat to society.

It is rare for a mundane Mar to receive a death sentence from a judge unless the defendant is found guilty of the premeditated and cold-blooded murder of another Mar. Even in cases of heinous crimes, however, the defendant is often merely made the slave of a close friend or family member of the victim, who is free to demand outrageous services of all kinds. This often results in execution — sometimes preceded by gruesome torture and intensely demeaning demands — and in this situation, virtually all Mar judges will consider such behavior perfectly acceptable. After all, there is no requirement in Vangard's Rules that a master prove or swear that a slave disobeyed a direct order. A wise judge is careful not to choose a dishonest master for a slave he creates, for a cruel master holds the power of life and death over her slaves.

Among the most serious of crimes among the Mar is the breaking of a sworn oath. Anyone found guilty of this crime is, almost without exception, condemned to the maximum sentence of eight years as a slave. It is not uncommon for corrupt judges to allow a few witnesses to observe a trial in hopes that they can catch plaintiffs, defendants, and witnesses in a lie and so produce several slaves out of a series of swift trials. The presence of such judges tends to make local citizens more interested in settling their differences outside of a formal court.

Wizards must adhere to additional laws, but they are less strictly bound than mundanes to the above laws. No mundane may sit in judgement over a wizard, nor may a wizard of lower rank judge one of higher rank. There are also limits on sentences for crimes of a wizard who committed those crimes outside the accuser's fief.

(Contributed by Weard Sigrath Brennan)

Copyright 2005-2007 Eric Zawadzki and Matthew Schick. All Rights Reserved.
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