The Galifar Code of Justice

Being the Common Law of the United Kingdom of Galifar, Proclaimed by Galifar ir'Wynarn in Consultation with the Arcane Congress, Recorded Under the Eye of Aureon, and Reaffirmed by the Treaty of Thronehold, 996 YK, as the Common Legal Framework Binding All Signatory Nations

Certified true copy. Notarized under the arcane sigil of Tassi Santor d'Sivis, Third Notary of Korranberg, Keeper of Treaties, licensed under the Notaries Guild of House Sivis. Original instrument held in the Vault of Compacts, Korunda Gate, under perpetual seal of House Kundarak. This copy prepared for general circulation in the second year after the Treaty, being 998 YK.

This document constitutes the third of the three foundational instruments of the post-Thronehold legal order, the first and second being the Korth Edicts and the Treaty of Thronehold respectively. It is a faithful rendering of the original Code as proclaimed by Galifar I, inclusive of all amendments, annotations, and addenda ratified under the Treaty of Thronehold. Interpretive annotations by the certifying notary are included in the margins, as is customary for instruments of this significance.

Preamble and Invocation

IN THE NAME OF AUREON, Sovereign of Law and Lore, by whose wisdom the letter of the law is given meaning and by whose gaze the rendering of judgment is sanctified;

AND BY THE AUTHORITY of the Crown of Galifar, vested in Galifar ir'Wynarn, King of the United Kingdom, and transmitted through his successors and assigns to the sovereign authorities of the signatory nations;

LET THE FOLLOWING CODE be established, proclaimed, and maintained as the common law of the Kingdom and its successor states, binding upon all subjects of the Crown, all territories of the Kingdom, and all persons dwelling therein who hold the protections of this instrument.

WHEREAS before the unification of the Five Nations under the Crown of Galifar, the peoples of Khorvaire lived under laws that varied by province, by lordship, and by the temperament of whatever authority held sway in a given territory, such that justice was dispensed by custom, by caprice, and by the relative power of the parties involved, and punishment bore no reliable relation to the offense;

AND WHEREAS Galifar I determined that a united Kingdom required a unified law — a law known to farmer and duke alike, a law that could bear the light of Aureon's gaze, and a law whose protections were extended to all who submitted to the obligations of the Crown;

NOW THEREFORE, let the Eye of Aureon be engraved upon the floor of every court in the Kingdom. Let the accused stand upon it when they give testimony. Let the magistrate sit before it when they render judgment. Let both remember whose law they serve.

Notary's Annotation: The invocation of Aureon is traditional and reflects the deep connection between the faith of the Sovereign Host and the legal foundations of Galifar. Galifar I believed himself guided by Aureon, and the belief that the Wynarn bloodline is blessed by that Sovereign has been a bedrock principle of the monarchy for a thousand years. The modern reader should understand that this invocation does not establish a theocracy. The Galifar Code is a civil instrument, not a religious one. Aureon is invoked as the patron of just law, not as the source of sovereign authority. The Crown governs; Aureon blesses the law by which it governs. The distinction is one that the Church of the Silver Flame has occasionally found inconvenient, and one that the secular scholars of Korranberg have occasionally found amusing, but it has stood for a millennium. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE FIRST — Of Persons Under the Code

Section I — Subjects of the Crown. The protection of this Code extends to all subjects of the Crown of Galifar and, following the amendments ratified under the Treaty of Thronehold, to all citizens of the twelve nations recognized by that Treaty and to all members of the recognized dragonmarked houses.

Section II — The Oath of Fealty. A subject of the Crown, under the original provisions of this Code, is any person who has sworn an oath of fealty to a lord of the Kingdom. The oath is a covenant: the person pledges to obey the laws of the land, to pay the taxes lawfully levied upon them, and to answer any lawful call to service, including conscription. In return, the lord formally accepts them as a subject, recording the oath, and bears responsibility for their governance and protection.

(a) Without this oath, accepted and recorded by a lawful authority, a person holds none of the privileges of this Code, though they remain subject to its prohibitions while within the territories where it obtains.

(b) Lords and their designated agents are not required to accept an offer of fealty. They may refuse any applicant they deem unlikely to uphold the laws of the land, unlikely to reside within the relevant domain, or otherwise unsuitable to the obligations of citizenship. The refusal of fealty is not subject to appeal.

(c) Children born to subjects of the Crown are subjects from birth and are entitled to the protections of this Code. Upon reaching the age of majority, they shall affirm their oath in their own name, by such ceremony, filing, or registration as the custom and bureaucracy of their nation requires.

Section III — Exclusions. The following categories of persons and beings are excluded from the affirmative protections of this Code:

(a) Persons who have not sworn fealty and been accepted as subjects, or who do not hold citizenship in a signatory nation, or who are not members of a recognized dragonmarked house. Such persons are nonetheless expected to abide by the laws of whatever territory they inhabit and shall be held accountable for any crimes committed therein. They may not invoke the protections of this Code in their defense.

(b) The undead. Once a creature has died, it holds no legal standing under this Code, regardless of whether it retains the capacity for thought, speech, or independent action. The destruction of an undead creature is not murder. The property of an undead creature reverts to its next of kin, its estate, or the Crown. Undead are considered property of the person or institution that raised or otherwise created them, unless they have been formally transferred.

(c) Persons declared outlaws under Article the Sixth of this Code are stripped of its protections as set forth therein.

Section IV — Addendum of 996 YK. The Treaty of Thronehold extends the protections of this Code, by specific amendment, to the following additional categories of persons:

(a) All citizens of the twelve nations recognized by the Treaty of Thronehold, regardless of whether they hold formal feudal oaths of fealty under the traditional model.

(b) All members of the recognized dragonmarked houses, whether or not they bear a dragonmark, by virtue of the provisions of the Korth Edicts as reaffirmed under the Treaty.

(c) The warforged, recognized as sentient and autonomous beings under the Treaty, are entitled to the protections of this Code as persons under the law.

(d) Citizens of Droaam and the Shadow Marches, neither of which was recognized as a sovereign nation under the Treaty, are not protected by this Code unless separately qualified by employment with a recognized dragonmarked house or by the individual grant of citizenship by a signatory nation.

Notary's Annotation: Section III(b) — the exclusion of the undead — is among the most consequential provisions in the Code, and its implications are felt most keenly in Karrnath. The Code of Kaius, which governs Karrnath, adopts the same principle: a vampire has no more legal standing than a piece of furniture. This is the provision that Warlord Drago Thul invoked when he accused King Kaius III of being undead — for if the accusation were true, the King could hold neither title nor throne. The accusation was publicly refuted, and Thul fled to Xen'drik, but the underlying legal question remains: in a nation that employs undead soldiers, maintains sapient undead as assets, and whose faith tradition venerates the power of undeath, the categorical exclusion of the undead from legal personhood creates tensions that the Code does not resolve. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE SECOND — Of the Presumption of Innocence

Section I. No person under this Code shall be punished for any offense without lawful proceeding. Arrest does not constitute guilt. Detention is not a verdict. Accusation is not conviction.

Section II. Acts of vigilantism, private reprisal, and punishment administered outside the authority of a magistrate, tribunal, or duly appointed officer of the Crown or its successor sovereign authority are themselves crimes under this Code, regardless of the guilt or innocence of the person so punished.

Section III. Officers of the Watch and comparable law enforcement authorities designated by the relevant sovereign power may levy fines on the spot for minor offenses directly observed. For any offense of serious character, the accused shall be taken to a garrison, court, or other place of lawful detention and held until the case may be heard by a magistrate.

Section IV. The magistrate shall review the facts of the case. The magistrate shall require the accused to confirm or deny the charge, and where the magic is available and the jurisdiction provides for it, this testimony shall be given under the influence of a zone of truth or comparable divination, subject to the evidentiary standards set forth in Article the Eighth. The magistrate shall then propose a sentence. If the accused refuses the proposed sentence, the case shall proceed to formal trial.

Notary's Annotation: The careful reader will note that Section III leaves the determination of what constitutes a "minor offense" to the discretion of the officers on the scene. In practice, this means that a sergeant of the Watch who catches a pickpocket in the act may fine the thief on the spot, while a sergeant who arrives after the fact must take the accused to a garrison for a proper hearing. It also means that what is considered "minor" varies enormously by jurisdiction, by ward, and — the present notary notes with regret — by the apparent wealth and station of the accused. A brawl between laborers in Lower Dura is a minor offense. The same brawl in Upper Tavick's Landing is a serious crime. The Code does not mandate this disparity. But neither does it prevent it. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE THIRD — Of the Right to Be Heard

Section I. Every accused person under this Code has the right to a formal hearing before a magistrate or tribunal. Every accused person has the right to speak in their own defense. Every accused person has the right to appoint, retain, or request an advocate to speak on their behalf. In most jurisdictions within the Five Nations, such advocates are known as barristers and are licensed through the Speakers Guild of House Sivis or through the courts of the relevant sovereign authority.

Section II. Silence on the part of the accused shall not be taken as an admission of guilt. No adverse inference shall be drawn from the exercise of silence.

Section III. No person shall be convicted on accusation alone. The charge must be supported by testimony, physical evidence, witness account, or such magical evidence as is admissible under the standards set forth in Article the Eighth.

Notary's Annotation: The right to an advocate is one of the most commercially significant provisions in the Code, and I say this without embarrassment, because the quality of one's barrister is often the single most decisive factor in the outcome of a case. The law provides the right. The market determines the quality. A Sivis barrister of the Speakers Guild commands fees that reflect both their skill with language and the trust that the House's reputation for neutrality confers. A court-appointed advocate, by contrast, may be a junior clerk with three months of training. The Code guarantees that every accused person has a voice in their defense. It does not guarantee that every voice is equally persuasive. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE FOURTH — Of Trial by Tribunal

Section I. Crimes of significant severity — those which may result in execution, exile, permanent forfeiture of goods, the stripping of legal protections, or the imposition of outlaw status — shall be judged by a tribunal of no fewer than three impartial officials.

Section II. The tribunal shall traditionally consist of: one representative of the sovereign authority of the relevant jurisdiction; one representative of the civil community; and one officer of the law. The precise composition may vary by nation and jurisdiction, but the principle of plurality is preserved: no single magistrate may render final judgment in matters of life, death, or permanent forfeiture.

Section III — Exception for Crimes of Treason. Crimes of treason against the Crown or its successor sovereign authority may, at the discretion of the sovereign, be tried by agents of the Crown's intelligence apparatus — including but not limited to the King's Citadel in Breland, the Royal Eyes of Aundair, and comparable bodies in other signatory nations — without recourse to a public tribunal or jury, where the security of the realm requires it. The accused retains the right to counsel, but the proceedings may be conducted in closed session, and the details of the case may be sealed.

Notary's Annotation: The treason exception is, in the frank assessment of this notary, the widest hole in the Code. What constitutes "treason" is defined by the sovereign authority, and the definition can be expanded to cover almost anything. In Breland, the agents of the King's Citadel can extend the umbrella of treason to cover any activity they deem threatening to the security of the realm. In Karrnath, where the Code of Kaius obtains, military commanders hold near-absolute judicial authority, and the line between criminal offense and treason is drawn at the commander's discretion. The right to counsel is preserved in the letter of the law. Whether it is preserved in practice, in a closed hearing conducted by intelligence agents, is a question that the Code leaves to the conscience of the nation. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE FIFTH — Of Equality Before the Law

Section I. All persons under this Code are equal before the law. No title, no wealth, no lineage, no magical gift, and no mark — whether borne in the blood or bestowed by patron, pact, or faith — shall exempt any person from prosecution or punishment for crimes committed under the jurisdiction of this Code.

Section II. A lord who commits murder is a murderer. A pauper who commits murder is a murderer. A dragonmarked heir who commits murder is a murderer. They shall face the same law and the same tribunal.

Notary's Annotation: This is the most elegant provision in the Code and the one most frequently violated. The law states that all persons are equal before it. In practice, a wealthy nobleman in Sharn who assaults a laborer will find the Watch surprisingly sympathetic to his account of events, particularly if he is well-dressed, well-connected, and generous with his coin. The Code does not authorize corruption. But neither does it prevent it. The guards of Tavick's Landing are famously incorruptible. The guards of most other wards are famously not. I record this not to disparage the Watch — they are underfunded, overworked, and frequently outmatched — but to ensure that the reader does not mistake the law as written for the law as practiced. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE SIXTH — Of Lawful Punishments and Their Limits

Section I — General Principle. Punishment shall be proportional to the offense. It shall be enacted only after lawful proceedings have concluded. It shall be free of torture, mutilation performed for its own sake, or confession obtained by coercion — whether physical, magical, or otherwise.

Section II — Schedule of Lawful Punishments. The following punishments are recognized as lawful under this Code, to be imposed at the discretion of the sentencing magistrate or tribunal in accordance with the nature of the offense and the circumstances of the convicted:

(a) Fines. The standard punishment for most offenses. The magistrate shall have discretion to adjust the amount of a fine to ensure it serves as meaningful penalty, taking into account the means of the convicted. A fine of ten galifars may ruin a laborer; it is trivial to a prosperous adventurer. The magistrate adjusts accordingly. In addition to or in lieu of monetary fines, the court may order the confiscation of possessions — weapons, armor, wands, implements, tools, or other goods — particularly where such goods were employed in the commission of the crime.

(b) Hard Labor. Where a convicted person cannot pay the fine imposed, they may be assigned to labor in service of the Crown or the relevant local authority until the debt is discharged. The rate of discharge shall be set by the sentencing magistrate. The labor shall not be indefinite; it shall correspond to the debt owed and shall end when the debt is paid. The convicted shall not be subjected to conditions of labor that constitute cruelty or that endanger life beyond the ordinary risks of the work assigned.

(c) Branding. A repeat offender may be marked with a symbol visible to the public, identifying them as having been convicted under this Code. The design, placement, and method of branding are at the discretion of the sentencing magistrate, subject to the prohibition on mutilation set forth in Section I. The removal, concealment, or alteration of a criminal's mark is itself a crime under this Code.

(d) Magical Punishment. At the direction of a magistrate, the clerics of Aureon or other duly authorized arcanists may be called upon to administer arcane penalties. Bestow curse may be applied to habitual offenders; the specific nature of the curse is set by the magistrate. Blindness may be imposed upon prisoners deemed dangerous, particularly those being held in secure facilities. Where guilt remains uncertain, a mark of justice may be placed upon the accused: so long as the accused walks the righteous path, the mark shall not be triggered. This serves as an alternative to imprisonment and places the burden of future proof upon the conduct of the accused.

(e) Exile. A criminal may be expelled from a jurisdiction. Exile imposed within a single province is the concern of that province. Exile imposed across the territory of an entire signatory nation shall be recorded in the rolls of the relevant sovereign authority.

(f) Outlaw Status. A criminal deemed unfit to live among the people of the Kingdom, yet whose offenses do not warrant execution, may be declared an outlaw. An outlaw is stripped of all protections of this Code. Any person may act against an outlaw — beat them, rob them, or kill them — without consequence under the law. The mark of the outlaw is recognized throughout all nations that observe the Galifar Code of Justice. Outlaws congregate in those territories that either do not observe the Code or that hold to the principle that a person may overcome a criminal past, including but not limited to Darguun, Droaam, the Shadow Marches, the Lhazaar Principalities, Q'barra, and Xen'drik.

(g) Execution. The sentence of death is reserved for murder, treason of the highest degree, and such other offenses as the relevant sovereign authority may designate capital crimes under its own domestic statutes. Execution shall not be imposed lightly, and in cases subject to tribunal, no single magistrate may order it. Hanging is the standard method of execution within the Five Nations. Other methods may be employed where the nature of the convicted requires it.

Section III — What the Code Does Not Punish. The following are not crimes under this Code:

(a) Slander. Words spoken against another person, however injurious to reputation, are not criminal. The law concerns itself with actions, not with opinions. A person who is slandered may seek satisfaction through civil means or personal resolve, but not through the criminal courts.

(b) Long-term imprisonment is not a standard punishment under this Code. Gaols, garrisons, and the facilities of the King's Citadel and comparable institutions exist to hold the accused until trial and sentencing. They are not intended as permanent habitation. If a convicted criminal is too dangerous to release, execution is preferred to indefinite confinement. Extended imprisonment is warranted only where execution would cause material harm to the realm — as in the case of a foreign noble or diplomat whose death might provoke war, or in the case of an accused person whose guilt remains unresolved and who requires further investigation.

Notary's Annotation: The outlaw provision — Section II(f) — is one of the Code's bluntest instruments. A person declared outlaw has no protection anywhere the Code is observed. They can be killed with impunity. In the lower wards of Sharn, a criminal brand is a badge of honor among certain circles, and outlaws are treated with a kind of rough respect. In more civilized precincts, an outlaw is simply a person who no longer exists in the eyes of the law. The fact that outlaws naturally gravitate to the territories beyond the Code's reach — Droaam, the Marches, the Lhazaar — is not a coincidence. It is the Code working as designed: those who will not live within its protections are expelled to the places that operate without them. Whether this is justice or merely convenience is a question I leave to the priests of Aureon. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE SEVENTH — Of Contracts, Oaths, and the Integrity of Agreements

Section I. Contracts and oaths entered into under the jurisdiction of this Code — whether civil, martial, mercantile, marital, or magical in nature — are enforceable at law when they satisfy the following conditions:

(a) The agreement is lawfully registered, witnessed, or notarized;

(b) The agreement was entered into by all parties without coercion, fraud, or deception;

(c) The terms of the agreement are consistent with the laws of the relevant jurisdiction.

Section II. A contract obtained through duress is void. A contract obtained through fraud is void. A contract obtained through magical compulsion — including but not limited to enchantment, charm, domination, suggestion, or any other manipulation of will by arcane, divine, or psionic means — is void, and the party responsible for such compulsion shall be prosecuted under the provisions of Article the Eighth.

Section III — Addendum of 996 YK. Notarization by a licensed heir of House Sivis, whose arcane marks provide verification of a document's authenticity and identity of its signatories, is accepted as proof of legitimacy in courts throughout the signatory nations. A document bearing a verified Sivis arcane mark is presumed authentic unless evidence of forgery is presented. The Notaries Guild of House Sivis maintains a registry of all known arcane marks for the purpose of verification, and offers authentication services at any House Sivis enclave.

Notary's Annotation: Section II is the provision most frequently litigated in the commercial courts of Sharn. The question of magical compulsion is, in practice, extraordinarily difficult to prove after the fact. A merchant who claims he was charmed into signing an unfavorable contract must demonstrate the enchantment — and by the time the case reaches a magistrate, the spell has long since ended. The Speakers Guild of House Sivis offers expert testimony in such cases, and our barristers are trained to identify the forensic signatures of magical manipulation in the language, structure, and circumstances of an agreement. This is not, I hasten to add, a gratuitous advertisement; it is a statement of professional fact. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE EIGHTH — Of the Regulation of Magic

The following provisions are established in consultation with the Arcane Congress, whose authority over the regulation of arcane practice within the Kingdom and its successor states is hereby affirmed.

Section I — Unlawful Uses of Magic. The following acts are criminal when performed without the consent of the subject, a proper writ of authority issued by a magistrate or sovereign official, or a lawful mandate arising from the duties of an authorized office:

(a) The reading, extraction, or magical discernment of another person's thoughts;

(b) The enchantment, charm, domination, suggestion, or magical compulsion of another person's will;

(c) The magical divination of another person's private affairs, location, or communications.

Section II. The use of enchantment or similar magic to compel action or suppress resistance shall be prosecuted as assault. Where such compulsion is used to detain a person, it shall be prosecuted as unlawful detention. Where it results in the death of the subject, it shall be prosecuted as murder.

Section III — Restricted Items. The following categories of items are restricted to agents of the Crown or its successor sovereign authority, the military forces of the relevant nation, and such law enforcement officers as the sovereign designates:

(a) Any weapon magically enhanced to inflict particular harm upon a humanoid creature type;

(b) Any poison that is not specifically prohibited as contraband;

(c) Any magic item — including scrolls, wands, rods, staves, and similar implements — that reproduces the effects of destructive battle magic of significant power, including but not limited to cloudkill, fireball, chain lightning, disintegrate, finger of death, feeblemind, imprisonment, incendiary cloud, meteor swarm, and comparable effects of mass destruction. The full schedule of restricted effects is maintained and periodically revised by the Arcane Congress.

Section IV. Possession of a restricted item is not itself a crime. However, an officer of the law who encounters such an item in the possession of an unauthorized person shall demand explanation, and if one is not forthcoming or is deemed insufficient, the item shall be confiscated and held until the matter is resolved.

Section V — Military Ordnance. Blast disks and comparable magical explosives are unlawful for civilians to own, carry, or deploy. Their manufacture is restricted to authorized agents of the sovereign authority, to House Cannith under its chartered production agreements, and to such other entities as hold royal charter for the purpose. Civilian possession of a blast disk is a crime regardless of intent.

Section VI — Contraband and the Plundering of Relics. It is unlawful to plunder, recover, and sell the relics and treasures of past civilizations for personal gain. Objects recovered from Xen'drik, from the Depths beneath settled lands, from the ruins of the Dhakaani Empire, or from comparable sites of historical or arcane significance are considered contraband unless the holder possesses:

(a) A valid letter of marque, issued by the appropriate sovereign authority, costing five hundred galifars per year and covering a single designated region; and

(b) A record of legal acquisition, being a notarized resilient document describing the objects recovered and identifying their holder. A single record may describe up to six objects. Such records must be notarized and sealed by a licensed heir of House Sivis or by the issuing authority.

Forged letters of marque carry a fine of one thousand galifars and permanent disqualification from future acquisition under this provision.

Section VII — Magical Evidence. Evidence obtained or verified through magical means — including but not limited to zone of truth, detect magic, divination, scrying, and comparable effects — is admissible in court only when verified by a licensed arcanist recognized by the relevant jurisdiction. The magistrate retains discretion over the weight afforded to such evidence and may decline to admit it where the chain of magical custody is uncertain or where the arcanist's credentials are in question.

Notary's Annotation: Section VI — the contraband provisions governing recovered relics — is the provision most relevant to adventuring parties, and the one most frequently circumvented. The law requires a letter of marque. Morgrave University holds standing letters of marque for most regions of interest. Adventurers sponsored by the University are therefore legally covered. Those who are not sponsored may purchase letters at five hundred galifars per year per region — a substantial expense for an independent party. The alternative is the thriving market in forged letters of marque, available throughout Cliffside and the lower wards of Sharn at a fraction of the legitimate cost. House Sivis does not endorse this market. House Sivis is, however, aware that it exists. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE NINTH — Of Dueling

Section I. This Code provides no exception for dueling. The practice of dueling, howsoever long its tradition in the martial cultures of Khorvaire, is not recognized as lawful under this instrument.

Section II. A duel is assault. A duel resulting in serious injury is armed assault. A duel resulting in death is murder. Both parties to a duel are guilty. The consent of the participants does not remove the act from the jurisdiction of this Code.

Section III. No claim of honor, tradition, religious observance, or mutual consent shall constitute a defense against a charge arising from a duel.

Notary's Annotation: This provision is observed in the breach more often than in the letter. There is a long tradition of dueling in Khorvaire — particularly in Karrnath and Thrane, where matters of martial honor run deep. The Watch knows this. The magistrates know this. In practice, a duel between willing parties that does not result in death is unlikely to be prosecuted unless it takes place in a public thoroughfare, causes collateral damage, or embarrasses someone with the influence to demand action. The law is clear. The enforcement is not. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE TENTH — Of Jurisdiction and Enforcement

Section I — Officers of the Crown. The Code is enforced by the officers of the Crown and by whatever local authorities the Crown or its successor sovereign designates within each province, ward, or district. In Breland, this includes the Sharn Watch, the King's Citadel and its branches, and such local constabularies as the relevant lord or council appoints. In Aundair, this includes the Royal Eyes and the local Watch. In Thrane, the templar orders operate alongside the civic authorities. In Karrnath, the military chain of command serves as the primary enforcement body under the Code of Kaius.

Section II — The Sentinel Marshals. By charter granted during the reign of Galifar III and reaffirmed under the Treaty of Thronehold, House Deneith is empowered to enforce the laws of the Kingdom — and now the laws of the signatory nations — across all borders. The agents entrusted with this authority are known as the Sentinel Marshals.

(a) Sentinel Marshals may pursue criminals, execute warrants, and enforce the judgments of the courts in any territory subject to this Code and in any nation recognized by the Treaty of Thronehold.

(b) Sentinel Marshals are not authorized to break the law in pursuit of justice. They are bound by this Code in the same manner as any other person under its protection.

(c) Only the most trusted members of House Deneith are granted this authority. It may be revoked at the discretion of the House or, in cases of abuse, by the sovereign authority of the relevant jurisdiction.

(d) In nations that do not observe the Galifar Code of Justice — including Darguun, the Lhazaar Principalities, and others — the Sentinel Marshals may operate only with the consent and cooperation of the local sovereign authority.

Section III — The Church of the Silver Flame. The knights and paladins of the Church of the Silver Flame are permitted, by privilege granted under the Crown of Galifar, to do battle with inhuman forces of darkness as necessary to protect the peoples of Khorvaire. This is a privilege, not a right. Local law enforcement authorities are not required to acknowledge this privilege, and may decline to cooperate. Within the grounds of the Silver Flame's own temples and cathedrals, the authority of the Church Ministry supersedes local law.

Section IV — The Priesthood of Aureon. Priests and paladins of Aureon hold no formal legal authority under this Code. Their counsel is valued by the courts, however, and they may be called upon to serve as mediators, consultants, or auxiliary officers of the law at the discretion of the local magistrate.

Notary's Annotation: The Sentinel Marshals are the only law enforcement body that can cross borders. This single fact makes them the most important enforcement mechanism in post-Thronehold Khorvaire. A criminal who flees from Breland into Aundair is beyond the reach of the Sharn Watch, the King's Citadel, and every other Brelish authority. The Sentinel Marshals can follow. This is an extraordinary power, and it is held by a dragonmarked house, not by any nation. The reader should sit with that observation for a moment. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE ELEVENTH — Of Martial Law and Its Limitations

Addendum, ratified under the Treaty of Thronehold, 996 YK.

Section I. Even under declared martial law, the following rights may not be suspended:

(a) The right to trial before a magistrate or tribunal;

(b) The right to counsel or an advocate;

(c) The right to appeal a sentence of death to a higher authority within the relevant chain of command or sovereign structure.

Section II. No emergency, no invasion, no declared state of war, and no order of a military commander may permanently deprive a person under this Code of these protections. Temporary restrictions on movement, assembly, and commerce may be imposed under martial law, but the core rights of the accused — trial, counsel, and appeal — are inviolable.

Section III — Notation Regarding Karrnath. It is noted by the signatory delegations that the Kingdom of Karrnath is governed by the Code of Kaius, a substantially harsher and more authoritarian variation of this Code, under which local military commanders hold near-absolute judicial authority. Karrnathi citizens accused of crimes do not, as a matter of standing practice, have access to an independent judiciary or to the tribunal procedures described in Article the Fourth. The tension between this Article and Karrnathi practice is noted by the assembled delegations and remains unresolved as of the date of ratification.

Notary's Annotation: Section III is the most diplomatically careful sentence in the Code, and I chose every word with considerable deliberation. The delegations at Thronehold understood perfectly well that the Code of Kaius does not comply with the protections set forth in this Article. They also understood that the Karrnathi delegation would not sign any instrument that required Karrnath to abandon the Code of Kaius. The result is this notation: a formal acknowledgment that a contradiction exists, without any formal requirement that it be resolved. In legal terms, this is called a "constructive ambiguity." In plainer language, it is a polite agreement to pretend the problem does not exist. The problem exists. — T.S. d'Sivis

ARTICLE THE TWELFTH — Of the Supremacy of the Code

Addendum, ratified under the Treaty of Thronehold, 996 YK.

Section I. Any nation party to the Treaty of Thronehold is bound to uphold the protections established in this Code, regardless of local custom, martial tradition, or religious law. This Code establishes a floor of rights. Nations may extend greater protections to their people. They may not offer fewer.

Section II. Local statutes, provincial ordinances, ward regulations, and comparable instruments of local law remain in force and are not superseded by this Code except where they conflict with the fundamental rights established herein. Where a conflict exists, this Code prevails.

Section III. Nations not party to the Treaty of Thronehold are not bound by this Code. Their inhabitants are not entitled to its protections unless separately qualified by dragonmarked house membership, employment with a signatory entity, or the individual grant of citizenship by a signatory nation.

Notary's Annotation: Article XII is the capstone of the Thronehold amendments, and it is the provision that makes the Code a living instrument rather than a historical relic. Under the original Code, the protections extended only to subjects of one Crown. Under the amended Code, they extend to the citizens of twelve sovereign nations and to every member of every dragonmarked house. The Code has become the closest thing Khorvaire possesses to a declaration of universal rights — universal, that is, within the borders of the signatory nations, and subject to the enforcement capacity of those nations, which is uneven at best. The Code is a floor, not a ceiling. But as any gnome will tell you, the quality of a building depends a great deal on how well the floor is maintained. — T.S. d'Sivis

Concluding Attestation

This Code cannot prevent corruption. It cannot compel mercy. It cannot ensure that those who sit in judgment are worthy of it.

It can only ensure that the law exists, that it is written, and that it is known.

Let it be known.

Notarized and sealed under arcane mark at Korranberg, in the second year after the Treaty, being 998 YK.

Tassi Santor d'Sivis Third Notary of Korranberg Keeper of Treaties Gilded Quill of the Lorridan Lyrris Family Licensed Barrister, Speakers Guild Certified Notary, Notaries Guild House Sivis

This document constitutes the third of the three foundational instruments of the post-Thronehold legal order. Copies of all three instruments — the Korth Edicts, the Treaty of Thronehold, and the Galifar Code of Justice — are available at any House Sivis enclave, individually or as a compiled set. Individual documents are priced at five to eight sovereigns for standard copies, twenty to thirty sovereigns for authenticated copies bearing an original arcane mark. The compiled set of all three instruments, bound and indexed, is available for fifty sovereigns. Requests for certified extracts, legal opinions, or interpretive commentary should be directed to the Speakers Guild.