Dwarven Law Prepousual

[wrenik 130]

Grudge Law

“We do not Forget, or Forgive”

 

Grudges as a way of law

 

Grudges is the Dwarven Way of settling Disputes and Law, if anyone commit any crime a Grudge is Declared, this basically means that the begrudged will have to deal with the Grudges Concevences. the form of Grudge declared depends on the crime committed, but there are generally five types of Grudges:

 

Personal Grudges

Clan Grudges

Godly Grudges

Grand Grudges

Dwarven Grudges

 

These forms of Grudges are dependent on who the offended party is and determines how the Grudge is Settled.

 

Grudges are not unofficial affairs but the Law of Dwarves. this means that Dwarves do not use the traditional Law system of Human and Elven kingdoms instead all crimes are resulted into a Grudge and depending on the offended party and the crime committed the grudge will be carried out in several different ways. this works as Dwarves have a large sense of honor and respect for one another.

 

Dwarven Grudges can be settled almost immediately or be carried on for Generations, an unsettled Grudge can only be resolved by the original offender and offended or their descendants with one exception, the King and Clergy together can resolve a Grudge in extreme cases, however this is rare as a Grudge is a personal affair and shouldn’t be meddled in.

 

Personal Grudges

 

a Personal Grudge is the most Common form of Grudge, they are declared when any dwarf is offended and can be lituarly anything. the grudge is valid until settled. we will go into more detail in how the Grudge is Declared and Enforced further down but do know that it's up to the offended party of settle the grudge. this varies wildly depending on the crime committed, if a offender steals from a offended Dwarf and he declares a Grudge, the Grudge can be settled by the items being returned, a rite of combat or the intervention of the Clergy if the offended presents his case to them.

 

Clan Grudges

 

Clan Grudges are Declared by a Clan Elder or Clan Father, and concerns an entire Clan. these usually are enforced by the Clan itself however they can also be presented before the Clergy. a Clan Grudge differ from a personal Grudge in that they regard an entire clan. these are therefore considered more severe and usually can be unsettled for longer. only Pure Dwarves may declare Clan Grudges.

 

Godly Grudges

 

Godly Grudges are any Grudges Declared by the Dwarven Brathmodikan Clergy, and usually are enforced by themselves. these often but not always are related to heresy and other religious matters and are considered extremely severe.

 

Grand Grudges

 

Grand Grudges are declared by the king, these are any Grudge Declared by the king appart from Dwarven Grudges, the King’s grudges usually surround his laws. any Laws Declared by the Dwarven king that is broken results in a Grand Grudge. the Grand Grudges are usually carried out by the Clergy on the kings behalf or sometimes the Armies of the king.

 

Dwarven Grudges

 

Dwarven Grudges are Grudges declared by the entire Dwarven Race usually upon other kingdoms or races and is considered the largest kind of Grudge, they can only be properly declared by the King or the Clergy. these are settled by all Dwarves depending on the offence, threw war, raids or diplomacy. 

 

Grudges Against Noone

 

if a Crime is committed and the offended does not know who committed the offence a Grudge can still be declared against the guilty party. for example someone steals a dwarves Cows and the Dwarf don’t know who did it, a Grudge is Declared against the Cow thief and when its found out the identity of the Cow Thief  the grudge is applied to them. a Dwarf may get assistance from Local Guards with the investigation if the Clergy or king or Marshal see it fit to do so, however only Grudges confirmed by the Clergy or king may receive investigation help from the local guard. the begrudged then have to pay a Fine (75% to the king and 25% to the clergy) for the services of the Clergy or Guard in the investigation.

 

How to Issue Grudges

 

a Grudge can be issued by anyone but depending on who issues the Grudge it determines what type of Grudge it is. a verbal begrudging is enough for then Grudge to be official, but often more serious grudges are taken to the Clergy to be Written down and if its a Major Grudge it will be recorded in the book of Grudges. the Clergy decides what is a Major Grudge but their Judgement can be overruled by the king if he see it fit to do so.  Grudges can also be issued to multiple people or a rank or group rather than a individual. 

 

How a Grudge is Enforced

 

Grudges are enforced by the Offended Grudge giver and they decide what it will take to settle the grudge as long as its within the Dwarven society norms. however any Grudgehaver may go to the Clergy to seek Advice or to have their Grudge enforced. if they wish to have the Grudge enforced the Grudge must first be judged by the Clergy, the king may also judge Grudges if he wishes. if the Clergy using the Darus Krom as a baseline see fit to enforce the grudge they will prepare a settlement if the grudgehaver agrees the sentence is carried out. if the grudgehaver does not find the settlement acceptable they may suggest settlements and the Clergy will decide if they support it, enforce it, or decline it.

 

The Clergy will often issue a fine for their services, this may or may not be part of their settlement of the grudge. if the grudge is found to be unfounded the Clergy will charge the Grudge giver with a fine for wasting their time, the fine is then split between the king and the clergy (king gets 75% and Clergy 25%) if the Grudge is found to be enforced the Clergy Fines the Begrudged for their services with the split again being (75% to the king and 25% to the Clergy) if the Settlement includes a Fine the Fine of the services is baked into this. (a fine of 200 minas to be given to the Grudge Giver may be supplemented with 50 minas for the services of the Clergy, meaning the Begrudged has to pay 250 minas in fines)

 

no Grudge may kill any other dwarf and any Dwarf who commits the crime of Kinslaying will be begrudged and have the Clergy decide their fate. Grudges can therefor never require a dwarves death. 

 

Grudges Against Kings and high preceptor.

 

Grudges Against kings and High preceptor’s may seem impossible however they may be issued in all the forms above. as Kings and High preceptors can resolve any Grudge with their powers this seems hard. however this power has one exception and that's grudges against themselves. for Grudges against kings only the high preceptor with the support of the entire Clergy can Clear the Grudge or the original Grudge giver and their descendants. and for Grudges against the High preceptor only the king may Clear the grudge or the original Grudge giver and their descendants.

 

Grudges and none Dwarves and Half Dwarves

 

Grudges can only be made by pure Dwarves, if a person of a other race befalls a crime within the Dwarven realm they must go to the Clergy and request a Grudge is made on their behalf. the Grudge is then issued by the Clergy who carry out the grudge if they see it fit to do so. Half Dwarves also may not issue their own grudges but again must request a grudge be made by the Clergy, the difference is that once the grudge is issued by the Clergy the Grudge belongs to the half Dwarf who may settle it as he se fit, with or without the use of the clergy.

 

Grudge Law and the Darus Krom

 

Grudges Can never Go against the Darus Krom, this means they can’t kill a Dwarf, betray the king or harm a dwarves beard. when deciding whether or not to support a Grudge the Clergy often consults the Darus Krom. it is not required that the Darus Krom is consulted when it comes to the Clergy's Decision however a link between the Darus Krom and their Decision to support or not support a Grudge should be made in an attempted to justify the decision. a dwarf may also use their rights in the Darus Krom to Argue their innocence or why a Grudge should be enforced.

 

Grudge Law and the Kings Laws

 

as soon as a Law made by the King (or his council on his behalf) is broken a Grand Grudge is declared. this grudge generally draws its arguments and validity from the King's laws and not the Darus Krom. the Kings Law’s may not conflict the Darus Krom however they are not required to follow them. any offender of the kings law with a Grand Grudge will be placed in Jail before being taken to hearing by either the King or the Clergy where a punishment is settled upon. with the King’s permission other Dwarves may also uphold and judge his law.

 

Generally the King’s Law does not contain personal protection of property and safety, as this falls under the Grudge Law and Darus Krom. so crimes such as theft of private property or assault would be solved through the Grudge law with grudges being declared. the king's law are any laws outside of this that the King wishes enforced in his Realm, for example if the king Declares that outsiders wearing arms is considered a crime this would fall under the King’s Law and any outsider found with arms would have a Grand Grudge set upon them. the laws can however effect his citizens such as if a King’s law is declared making it illegal to possess drug substances in the king's Realm, any Dwarf found with such substances would be begrudged with a Grand grudge as well.

 

Grudges and Guests and visitors

 

the Dwarven Realm will get visitors who conduct trade and do other business in the Dwarven kingdom. these people can be begrudged by any Dwarf for the usual reasons and like any Dwarf be held before the Clergy for their crimes committed. as a general Rule however the Visitors are much more harshly judged then Dwarves and people living within the Dwarven Realm, a simple Insult can be judged by the Clergy as a Crime worthy of Fines and as such any none Dwarf visitor to the Dwarven realm has to behave their best while there.

 

an other form of visitor are Guests. these are people invited to the Dwarven Realm by a Dwarf, and are as such protected from prosecution by their host, if they where to commit a grudge worthy act while in the kingdom of the dwarves the grudge would be shared between the guest and the host. any acts made that breaks the King’s laws or those of the Darus Krom (such as kinslaying or harming beards) are regarded as only made by the guest, and as such won’t be shared with the host. this is inplace to ensure Dwarves take responsibility for their guests to the Dwarven realm. 

 

Any Visitor or Guest to the Dwarven Realm is protected from Assault, murder or robbery during their visit. any crimes committed against a visitor or guest of the Dwarves may be brought before the Clergy for justice, and the victim or his family is compensated for any injustice happening in the dwarven Realm. the king may also judge justice for his visitors and guests. breaking the hospitality of the Dwarves is considered a severe crime and is judged by the Clergy.

 

Grudges and none Dwarf Residence

 

Grudges made on None dwarf Residence or Half Dwarf Residence of the Dwarven realm are handled like any other grudge, however punishments against them may be more severe if they are found guilty of a Grudge that befallen them. none dwarves are also in extreme cases viebal to death penalty if the Clergy se it fit, and in these cases the possessions of the begrudged is confiscated by the King. this can not befall Half dwarves as they are protected by their dwarven blood. however the King may issue exceptions if their Dwarven blood is proven to be insufficient to call them Dwarves at all.

 

Grudges, Guards and prevention of crime

 

There are situations where a Grudge is yet declared but a crime about to be committed, if an action against the Darus Krom, Grudge law or Kings law is about to happen any dwarf is within their right to stop it. the offender may be restrained if it is necessary however restraining someone wrongfully is a grudgworthy offence.

 

the King, Clergy, Clan officials (Clan Father or Clan Elder) or High ranking Officials of the military may order a imprisonment of a suspect for a time of 1 stone hour, this may be extended if a different authority or the king or clergy deems it necessary. (if a clan elder imprison someone and after 1 stone hour the Grand Marshal confirms the need, they together can extend it). wrongfully imprisonment is a grudgeworthy offence.

 

the prevention of a crime may never go against the Darus Krom unless it is absolutely without any reasonable alternative to stop a kinslaying. if this results in the death of the Dwarf about to commit the kinslaying this will still be considered kinslaying, the dwarf may be cleared but a grudge must be declared by the clergy and the Case closely reviewed.

 

[Cordial__ 230]

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