Nobility in Barovia

[EO]

Hello,

This one has been nagging me for a while. Nobility in Barovia is defined in a few lines in the Gazetteer and some brief mentions are made here and there, but I'd like to know if there is more to know about it. Mainly about the old noble bloodlines of Barovia (beside the Romuliches and the Watchers, I couldn't find much information) and their current status in the land (of course Barovia is no Borca).

A few questions that came to mind about it:
-Although they hold little to no power, do they have any special standing above wealthy merchants and other upper class citizens?
-Buying one's way into nobility?
-Any resources about them whatsoever?
-Would Strahd bestow new nobility titles beside to a burgomaster family? I am unsure wether the current "upper class" of Barovia are nobles or mainly wealthy citizens.

Hoping to get some answers since politics is a side I am always interested in in campaigns and before messing with it, I'd like to know if there is any preestablished lore related to it.

[CorvusCornix]

According to wikipedia, boyars were part of the aristocracy in Russia, Romania and Bulgaria, "second only to the ruling princes" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boyar). If I remember correctly, every large town in Barovia seems to have at least one Boyar (who rules over it? Gaz 1?). Furthermore, have you read "I, Strahd: The War against Azalin"? I believe in the end some nobles are mentioned, but I don't have the novel with me right now. However, I agree, information on the Barovian upper class is very sparse.
If we assume that the Boyars rule the towns, they are mostly responsible for keeping everything running and hold most of the political power: Strahd is quite happy with lying back and let others do the work, as long as the taxes keep rolling in. However, he seems to keep a close eye on anybody who might try to betray him, so said rulers wouldn't want to anger him (see "I, Strahd" for examples of how he dealt with those who used too much of the taxes collected for themselves).

Buying one's way into nobility? Hm, I believe your first step would be to try to please Strahd , which seems to be nigh impossible. Simple money isn't important enough for him, your chances are better with invaluable magical tomes. Furthermore, in everything but Tatyana-related issues, he seems to be cold-headed enough not to make decisions on a whim alone, so you had also better make a very good impression on him, either as a ruler and as a warrior.

[Rotipher of the FoS]

Since Strahd's idea of what makes a proper "noble" date back to his life in Old Borjia, the best source for looking into that is probably "I, Strahd", with some related references in the Gazetteer histories of Barovia and Borca. (That's assuming we take pre-351 Borcan history for fact, ruling only "the Vacancy" to be the Dark Powers' revisionism.) The nobles seen in that novel seem extremely clannish and militant, yet they aren't above mercantile aspirations as well; actual titles seem rare, although this may be a result of so many families (not just the Von Zarovich royals) having been displaced from their feudal lands by the Tergs.

My guess is that "buying" one's way into the Barovian noble class isn't an option, but winning favor by other means -- rooting out Kargat spies or destroying nests of Gundarakite rebels, for instance -- would be possible. Following the invasion of Gundarak, a number of military officers probably received promotions from Strahd as an acknowledgement of their service and a way to administrate his new territories. In fact, there's likely been more shifting of social ranks among the Barovian upper-crust (such as it is) in the last 20 years than in the previous 200, although families have been disappearing (dying off or bailing out for new-formed domains) all along.

While the Barovian boyars are powerless to dispute Strahd's rulings -- and he makes damned sure they never forget that; he wouldn't want to wake up from a hibernation to discover he's been supplanted, after all! -- they do hold a great deal of power within their respective jurisdictions. Their darklord doesn't impose many laws on his domain, after all; so long as his taxes come in and he's not bothered, civil authority is left to their discretion. Boyars surely have a number of rights that commoners don't, in keeping with Strahd's elitism; of course, if they irritate him, he can revoke those privileges instantly.

Burgomasters, OTOH, Strahd doesn't seem to respect at all. They're not a military class (as boyars are), and he takes it for granted that they're all corrupt, and intimidates them shamelessly to keep them in line. My guess is that Strahd doesn't actually see them as nobles, just jumped-up commoners ... much as he sees the leaders of the Renaissance domains, or the Dilisnyas if that family's rumored origins as mob-bosses are valid.

[Joël of the FoS]

And I would suggest the Vallaki Gazetteer in the USS 2003 netbook. Large chunks of the who's who was written by Rucht Lilavivat, and if you need new NPCs/families in these ranks, this is a good reference.

Joël

[alhoon]

On the other hand, remember that Strahd has an interest in politics every once a while. From I Strahd, the War against Azalin, Strahd seems to know who is fool, who is smart, who could be useful etc. So if a citizen of Barovia seems far more capable and loyal than the local Burgomaster Strahd could well grant him a title and sack (or even suck) the other IMO.

For example if the Burgomaster's son is a foolish, pampered dandy and there is a far better canditate that Strahd wants to keep close he could well just inform the family that their son will inherit some or even most of the family's fortune but not the title.
I believe that Strahd mentions in IStWAAzalin that the Burgomasters are constantly vying for power and to prove their loyalty to him. So there are probably ups and downs there.

[Rotipher of the FoS]

Very true. Burgomasters are essentially political appointees, though they might be able to pass their status on to an heir if Strahd doesn't see any cause to replace them (or he just doesn't get around to checking up on a given village for a couple of centuries ). The burgomasters might think of themselves as 'upper crust', and scheme and brown-nose in order to maintain their stature, but Strahd -- and probably his boyars, also; again, they're surely the more militant of Barovia's living authority-figures, so would see the town leaders as wussy politician-types rather than commanders -- won't view "Burgomaster" as a genuine 'noble title', any more than "Mayor" is IRL.