Legal Edicts of Verbobonc
The Codified Justice System in the Viscounty
"Legal Edicts of Verbobonc: The Codified Justice System in the Viscounty" serves as a comprehensive guide to the legal framework and judicial principles governing the Verbobonc, Viscounty. It encompasses a broad range of legal statutes and ordinances that dictate the administration of justice within the region.
A DM’s Primer on High and Low Justice
In Verbobonc, “law” is really about who has the right to judge. The same brawl looks very different if it involves commoners in a village tavern, a priest of St. Cuthbert, or a noble lord.
This article explains, in plain terms:
- High vs. Low Justice
- Who holds which rights (Viscount, Lords, Church, local officers)
- How nobles, clergy, and commoners are treated differently
- A practical example: Hommlet in 579 CY
- How to actually run this at the table
Use this with the Legal Edicts of Verbobonc for specific crimes and punishments (fines, jail times, etc.). This article is the “who has authority” layer.
High Crimes and Low Crimes
In the legal system of the Viscounty of Verbobonc, crimes are classified into two categories: high crimes and low crimes. This categorization impacts how different societal classes are treated under the law.
Classification of Crimes
- High Crimes and Low Crimes: The legal system distinguishes between more severe (high) and less severe (low) crimes.
Accusation and Jurisdiction
- Commoners: Can be accused of any crime by law enforcement agents or nobles, within their jurisdiction.
- Nobles: Immune to accusations of low crimes; can be accused of high crimes only by those with the Right of High Justice.
Legal Authority
- Right of Low Justice: Pertains to everyday law enforcement. Those with this right can charge and arrest non-nobles for any crime, based on witnessing the crime or confession.
- Right of High Justice: Exclusive to the Viscount, noble house heads, and top representatives. This right allows charging and prosecuting any individual, including nobles, for high crimes.
Player Characters and Legal Rights
- Player characters typically do not possess the Right of High Justice, barring special regional documentation.
1. High Justice vs. Low Justice
In the Viscounty of Verbobonc, “justice” really means who is allowed to judge whom.
Low Justice
Low Justice is the everyday power to deal with most crimes committed by non-nobles:
- Brawling, petty theft, minor assaults
- Burglary, simple robbery, property damage
- Most murders and serious crimes when the offender is a commoner or adventurer
Low Justice applies to everyone except titled nobles.
Anyone with Low Justice may:
- Arrest commoners, adventurers, soldiers, and clergy
- Hold a hearing or simple trial
- Pass sentence within the normal bands of punishment (fines, stocks, jail, hard labor, local banishment)
Holders of Low Justice include:
- Noble lords on their own lands
- Village elders, mayors, militia captains, and appointed custodians
- Vigil Wardens of Verbobonc officers (inside Verbobonc City)
- Certain clergy (especially of St. Cuthbert) on church lands
- The Gnarley Rangers Knights (in the Gnarley)
- Mounted Borderers (in open countryside)
Low Justice never lets you condemn a titled lord. It is “everyone-but-nobles justice.”
See the Table below for more details on authority and jurisdiction of various Viscounty organizations.
High Justice
High Justice is the power to judge:
- Nobles and serious crimes involving nobles
- Clear high crimes: treason, rebellion, major heresy, large-scale banditry, mass murder, and crimes that endanger the realm
Only someone with High Justice can:
- Legally condemn a noble
- Strip lands or titles
- Pass the heaviest sentences (execution, lifelong exile, full confiscation of property)
Holders of full High Justice:
- Viscount of Verbobonc (ultimate authority in the viscounty)
- Noble lords sitting in judgment on commoners in their own fiefs
- Bishops/abbots of St. Cuthbert (and peers) in grave religious cases, usually coordinating with secular authority
Nobles are immune to Low Justice.
Another lord (usually via the Viscount or Council of Lords) must judge them.
Field High Justice
(Frontier Summary Justice)
In the wild lands outside baronies—forest roads, deep Gnarley, border trails—there often is no nearby lord or court. Here, the Viscount grants a special, limited form of High Justice:
Field High Justice – summary high justice in the wilderness
This is held by:
- The Gnarley Rangers Knights (and Rangers under them) within the Gnarley Forest
- Mounted Borderers in the open countryside and border roads outside baronial demesnes
When they:
- Catch bandits in the act, or
- Have overwhelming evidence of Band IV crimes (murder, armed banditry, monstrous raids),
they may, in the name of the Viscount:
- Judge and condemn the bandits on the spot (usually hanging them from a tree), or
- Take key prisoners alive to the nearest lord, city, or castle for formal High Justice.
This is what lets a Ranger Knight or Borderer hang roadside bandits without dragging them all the way back to Verbobonc City.
Clergy & Nobles in This Framework
- Clergy
- For minor things, they’re mostly handled inside church law.
- For serious crimes (murder, treason, obvious cult activity), church authorities cooperate with High Justice; priests are harder to punish, not untouchable.
- Nobles
- Only other lords / the Viscount can condemn them.
- A ranger, mayor, or captain can detain a noble briefly or report them, but not pass final judgment.
2. The Ladder of Authority
Think of Verbobonc’s justice system as a ladder. From top to bottom:
- The Viscount
- The Council of Lords of Verbobonc (other nobles)
- The Church of St Cuthbert (and other major churches)
- Local Lords & Their Officers (sheriffs, militia captains, magistrates)
- Village Elders / Mayors with Low Justice
- Common People
The Viscount
- Holds the Highest Justice in the viscounty.
- Can judge anyone, including nobles, bishops, and foreign envoys (though politics may restrain him).
- Presides over or delegates major trials, especially between one lord and another.
The Council of Lords
- A lord can only truly be condemned by another lord, either:
- Directly by the Viscount, or
- By judgment of the Council of Lords as a body.
- Disputes between nobles normally rise to this level. That’s why political alliances matter: if you oppose one lord, you had better have another lord behind you.
Lords & Local Lords
- Each titled noble (baron, count, etc.) holds Low Justice over everyone on their lands—except other lords.
- They also often hold High Justice within their own fief for commoners, but cannot condemn another lord on their own. They must appeal upward to the Viscount/Council.
Practical rule:
On their lands, a lord is the law for common folk. Only another lord (usually the Viscount) can overrule or condemn them.
3. The Church & Justice
(Especially St. Cuthbert)
The Church of St. Cuthbert is deeply woven into Verbobonc’s legal system.
Church Rights
- Bishops, abbots, and senior clergy of St. Cuthbert hold Low Justice within their guardianships and often High Justice in strictly religious matters (heresy, blasphemy, crimes by clergy).
- In practice, church authority is equal in rank but secondary on a lord’s lands:
- They can try and sentence commoners and clergy.
- If they clash with a secular lord, the dispute is escalated to the Viscount or Council of Lords.
Clergy Protection
- Ordinary watchmen and low-justice holders are very cautious with clergy.
- Complaints against a priest usually go up the church chain—to an abbot or bishop—rather than through secular courts.
- A priest might be pulled from the field, punished, reassigned, or quietly protected, depending on how much the church values them.
Rule of thumb for DMs:
- A village priest of St. Cuthbert (like Terjon) can judge and punish commoners under church law.
- If someone wants a priest judged, they must appeal to a higher church authority, not just drag them before a local magistrate.
4. Who Has Low Justice
(and Over Whom)?
The power of Low Justice is widely delegated. In 579 CY, examples include:
- Village elders / headsmen (like Elder Kenter Sr. in Hommlet)
- Militia captains / sheriffs (like Captain Zed)
- Custodians appointed by the Viscount (such as Lord Burne and Lord Rufus at the new Hommlet keep)
- Church officials (like Terjon of St. Cuthbert)
All of these people:
- Have authority over anyone who is not a lord.
- Can arrest, try, and sentence commoners according to the Legal Edicts.
- Must hand off noble troubles upward to the appropriate lord or to the Viscount.
- In the wilderness outside baronies, the Gnarley Ranger Knights and Mounted Borderers may exercise Field High Justice against clear-cut bandits and raiders.
“Another thing, the power of Low Justice is over all people except Lords. That’s the difference. Kenter, Zed, Burne, Rufus have the authority of Justice over anybody except a Lord.”
— Your Discord summary, codified
5. Nobles & Immunity
(Why It Matters)
Nobles are immune to Low Justice in the sense that:
- A village elder, captain, or priest cannot condemn or sentence a lord.
- They can complain, document, and pass the case upward, but they cannot pass final judgment.
A lord can:
- Be judged only by another lord (usually via the Viscount and Council of Lords).
- Be shielded by the faction of other nobles they belong to.
This is why, politically:
- If the PCs oppose Lord Simon Milinous, they should align with Lady Elinor Asbury or another lord.
- If they throw in with Lady Elinor, they gain her protection—but risk the anger of Milinous.
- Helping one noble often closes doors with their rivals.
Campaign implication:
“Join a lord” = “join a political party.” It’s how you survive legal conflict with other nobles.
6. Concrete Example: Hommlet in 579 CY
Here’s how this hierarchy shakes out in Hommlet, around 579 CY:
- Viscount of Verbobonc
- Holds ultimate High Justice. Can judge anyone if a case is escalated.
- Burne & Rufus
- Agents of the Viscount, custodians of the new keep and surrounding area.
- Hold Low Justice over all non-nobles in the region.
- Represent the Viscount’s interests directly (proto-barons before 591 CY).
- Elder Senior Kenter
- Village headman; holds Low Justice within Hommlet.
- Handles minor disputes, petty crime, and day-to-day discipline.
- Captain Zed
- Militia leader; holds Low Justice for military and security matters.
- Can arrest, detain, and enforce local order for any non-lord.
- Terjon (St. Cuthbert)
- Local priest; holds church Low Justice over commoners and clergy in moral or religious matters.
- Serious complaints against Terjon go to his bishop, not to Kenter or Zed.
Who can they judge?
- Any commoner or adventurer:
- Kenter, Zed, Burne, Rufus, or Terjon (depending on the nature of the offense).
- Any clergy:
- Primarily the church (Terjon’s superiors), though secular authorities can detain them if things get bad.
- Any noble lord:
- None of these locals. They can only report a lord’s misdeeds to the Viscount or Council of Lords.
7. How to Run Justice at the Table
When something happens in play, walk through this simple process:
Step 1 – Who Did the Thing?
- Commoner / Adventurer / Soldier?
→ Local Low Justice applies (elder, captain, priest, etc.). - Cleric?
→ Detained carefully, complaints go to church superiors. - Noble or titled lord?
→ Locals cannot condemn them. The matter must escalate to another lord / the Viscount.
Step 2 – Who Has Jurisdiction Here?
Ask:
- Whose lands are we on? (That lord’s Low Justice.)
- Is there a church of St. Cuthbert or another major temple involved?
- Is the Viscount’s direct agent present (Burne, Rufus, etc.)?
Use whichever authority makes the most sense and creates the best story:
- Small tavern brawl → Elder or captain.
- Heresy or attacking a priest → Church + captain.
- Murder of a noble’s agent → escalate to that noble, then maybe to the Viscount.
Step 3 – Consequences, Not Courtroom Dramas
(Unless You Want Them)
Most of the time, you don’t need a full trial scene. Instead:
- First offense minor stuff: Fine, brief jail, stern warning.
- Serious crime: Confiscation, longer jail, hard labor, or “handed in chains to the Viscount’s men.”
- Against nobles / big politics: This becomes a story arc, not a quick ruling. Who shelters the PCs? Which lord or church will stand up for them?
Haxx’s Hardheads
(Tax Enforcement)
Where the Vigil Wardens keep the peace, Haxx’s Hardheads keep the coin flowing. Led by Lord Marakios Willem Haxx, Lord Mayor of Verbobonc and official tax collector for the viscounty, this organization serves as a roving corps of armored tax enforcers operating across city and countryside alike.
In rules terms, the Hardheads act as tax police, not full judges:
- They can stop, disarm, search, and seize property from non-nobles anywhere in the viscounty under Lord Haxx’s writ.
- They may impose spot fines and confiscations for tax evasion or “suspicious wealth,” but serious assaults, murders, and other Band III+ crimes are handed off to local Low Justice (elders, captains, Wardens) or to a noble court.
- They cannot condemn nobles and will back down (grudgingly) when confronted with clear noble authority or a direct order from a High Justice holder.
"In the heart of Verbobonc, justice prevails not by the sword's edge alone, but through the scales of fairness and the unwavering resolve to uphold the law."
Quick One-Page Summary for Your DM Notes
- Low Justice = everyday law over everyone except nobles.
- High Justice = serious crimes & anything involving nobles.
- Lords are immune to Low Justice; only another lord (Viscount / Council of Lords) can condemn them.
- Church of St. Cuthbert (or other churchs) has its own Low Justice, equal in theory to a lord, but subordinate on a lord’s lands in practice.
- Clergy are shielded by the church; complaints go up the ecclesiastical chain.
- Gnarley Ranger Knights (and their Rangers) hold Low Justice in the Gnarley Forest and Viscount-granted Field High Justice there for clear cases of murder, banditry, and monstrous raids in the wilds.
- Mounted Borderers hold Low Justice in the open countryside and roads outside baronies, plus Field High Justice to summarily hang obvious bandits and raiders in the Viscount’s name.
- In Hommlet (579 CY), Kenter, Zed, Burne, Rufus, and Terjon all have Low Justice over common folk; none can condemn a lord.
1. Where are we on the map?
First, split the viscounty into two broad zones:
- Baronial / Lordly Lands
- Inside a barony or noble freehold.
- The local lord (or their appointed magistrates) is the main High/Low Justice authority.
- Viscount’s Open Lands (Frontier)
- Gnarley Forest, Kron Hills marches, wild roads between fiefs, uncultivated borderlands.
- Here, there is no baronial court. Justice flows directly from the Viscount through his orders and officers:
- Gnarley Ranger Knights (and Gnarley Rangers under their authority)
- Mounted Borderers
- Knights of the Faithful Defender (if present)
Everything you’re asking about lives in Zone 2.
2. Ranger Knights & Mounted Borderers – What Can They Do?
Baseline
Both Gnarley Ranger Knights and Mounted Borderers:
- Always hold Low Justice over all non-nobles in their patrol area.
- Are explicitly empowered to arrest, judge, and punish commoners, adventurers, and bandits for Band I–III crimes anywhere in the wilds.
That means they can already:
- Break up fights, seize stolen goods, levy spot fines.
- Lash, brand, or put someone in irons to haul back to civilization.
Frontier High Justice (“Field Justice”)
To handle exactly the scenario you describe, tack on this rule:
In the open lands of the viscounty, the Gnarley Ranger Knights and Mounted Borderers have delegated Field High Justice for clear cases of banditry, murder, and monstrous depredation.
In practice:
- If they catch bandits in the act, or
- Find overwhelming evidence (fresh corpses, plunder on them, witnesses, etc.),
they are empowered by writ of the Viscount to:
- Condemn and execute those bandits on the spot, usually by hanging from a tree or makeshift gallows, without hauling them to a lord’s court.
- Or, if politically useful, take prisoners back to Castle Greyfist, a baronial seat, or Verbobonc City for formal High Justice.
Think of it as medieval “march law” or “summary justice” in bandit-country.
3. Your Example, Step by Step
Gnarley Ranger Knights tracking down bandits who murdered merchants on a forest road between Verbobonc and a barony.
What happens?
- Jurisdiction check
- They’re on a forest merchant road in the Gnarley, outside any baron’s demesne → this is Viscount’s open land.
- Gnarley Ranger Knights have Low Justice + Field High Justice here.
- Crime band
- Ambush, murder, and theft of caravan → Band IV – High Crime (murder + banditry).
- Authority
- In baronial lands: this would belong to the local lord / Viscount / bishops.
- In the frontier: the Ranger Knights may judge and sentence under Field High Justice.
- Likely outcome
- If the bandits are obvious scum with no interesting ties:
- Rangers try them briefly (witnesses, loot, “any last words?”),
- Then hang them from a roadside tree as warning.
- If one bandit looks important (noble bastard, known agent, cultist):
- Rangers bind and mark him for transport,
- Send word ahead to Castle Greyfist or a nearby lord,
- Execution / interrogation becomes a plot hook.
Crimes and Punishment Chart
The Crimes and Punishment Chart is a comprehensive summary of the legal system in the Viscounty of Verbobonc, as outlined in the document "Legal Edicts of Verbobonc: The Codified Justice System in the Viscounty".
| Crime | Class | Punishment |
|---|---|---|
| Aiding & Abettin | low | 100 gp. to 500 gp |
| Arson | high | 500 gp. fine/2 years jail |
| Assault | low | 10-150 gp. fine/7 days-4 years jail |
| Bandit | high | forfeiture of all possessions, 100 gp x goods |
| Brawl | low | 5 cp. fine/1 day jail |
| Bribery | low | 10x value, public whipping |
| Burglar | low | 10 gp. fine/14 days jail |
| Blade Draw | low | 5 gp. fine/5 days jail |
| Blasphe | high | public whipping |
| Destruction Noble Propert | high | 1-25 gp. fine/2-20 days jail |
| Disturbing the Peace | low | 1 sp.-1 gp. fine/1-5 days jail |
| Disrespect Authorities | low | 1-20 gp. fine/1-6 days jail |
| Blade Draw | low | 5 gp. fine or 5 days jail/hard labor |
| Election Fraud | high | 50 gp. fine/1 month jail |
| Forgery | low | confiscation, loss of finger |
| Grave Rob | low | confiscation, 1000 gp |
| Impersonation of Noble | High | forfeiture items, death |
| Intrusion of Privacy | low | 5 sp. fine/2 days jail |
| Kidnapping | high | 20 days-5 years jail |
| Magical Item Use | low | 10 gp. fine/5 days jail |
| Murder | high | 2-8 years jail (1st offense), death (2nd offense) |
| Obstructing Justice | low | 1 gp.-100 gp. fine/1 day-2 months jail |
| Petty Theft | low | 5 gp. or 14 days of jail |
| Permit Fraud | low | 25 gp. + permit value/1 month jail |
| Perjury | high | 600 gp |
| Rape | low | 2-36 months jail |
| Resisting Law Officer | low | 5 sp.-50 sp. fine/1-5 day jail |
| Sedit- | high | 10 yrs jail or banishment |
| Selling Improper Goods | low | 5 sp. fine/2 days jail |
| Smuggl | high | 50 gp. fine or 2 months in jail/hard labor, confiscation |
| Spell Casting in Public | low | 10 gp. fine/5 days jail |
| Taking Bribes | low | 1-50 gp. fine/1-16 weeks detention |
| Tax Fraud | high | Tax amount fine/1 day jail per sp. |
| Theft | low | 1500 gp. fine/2 years jail |
| Treason | high | Death/20 years jail /banishment |
| Trespassing | low | 25 gp. fine/5-100 days jail |
| Unlawful Entry | low | 25 gp. and 5-100 days of jail |
Comments