Judges in Haven
High Judge Lucius Cardallo
Cardallo is without a doubt the most corrupt person in Haven. He keeps himself in office by being good at not revealing his true self (as in the trial of Sir Luron Railly), and by ruining anyone who appears to threaten him (there are exceptions, a few men in the city that Cardallo fears and respects).
The judge is a rotund man, with a full beard, thinning dark hair, bushy eyebrows over an aquiline nose, and dark, smoldering eyes. He is of middle years, but his hair and beard are already streaked with gray.
Cardallo is a true lecher, and takes advantage of his position to ensure himself of a steady supply of bedmates. He believes himself irresistible to women, and does possess a sort of perverse magnetism that draws many women to him, some of them unbelievably fine.
He is totally unscrupulous, and appears to have no conscience at all. Cardallo and Dagnir Saurul have formed a mutual hate society, and what one appreciates, the other tends to despise.
The judge maintains a large house across the street from the Courts, next door to The Hanged Man, although he is seldom there during daylight hours.
High Judge Ellian
The only woman among the High Judges, Ellian was chosen because she was a living example of what is good in the study of the Philosophical Way.
She is in her middle thirties, with mid-length brown hair, green eyes, and a reasonable figure (Tut! Tut! She’s a judge.). Ellian has never married, but has a relationship with Herven (no secret about it, their affair is common knowledge in Haven) which they have maintained for over a decade.
She strives to be as fair in the courtroom as possible, but has her occasional slips into mild bigotry (as with Meron, the half-orc - but then, who wouldn’t?).
Ellian despises Cardallo, and feels ashamed that early in her career she almost succumbed to his wiles.
High Judge Herven Ault
Herven Ault is tall, and spare, with longish sandy hair and blue eyes. He is also a member of the Philosophical Way, and has been conducting an affair with Ellian for over ten years. Herven is relatively staid in all other ways, and exhibits less bigotry than any other judge.
He, too, despises Cardallo, and would like nothing better than to see the lecherous scoundrel removed from office. So far, no evidence sufficient for impeachment (even in the aggregate) has been discovered.
High Judge Dagnir Saurul
Dagnir Saurul is the only non-human judge in the Haven Courts. He is a handsome Sindoran elf, of middle years (only 193 last birthday), with flowing brown hair and brown eyes, average in height and weight.
As can be seen from his decision tables, he favors elves in any court action, and is fairly strict with non-elves.
He hates Cardallo, and would eliminate him from the Courts with little provocation, and from the city, and from the world.
High Judge Mindal Thievesbane
Ever since Mindal Thievesbane’s wife of three years was slain accidentally in the course of a robbery, Mindal (#219) has hated thieves. He is extremely vindictive to them, and known Thieves Guild membership is an additional penalty of -10%.
He is very lean, of average height, with short, curly blond hair, and gray eyes.
He considers Cardallo an excrescence on the body politic, and would be happy to see him disbarred, disrobed, unseated, drawn and quartered (whatever).
In general, Mindal is strict but relatively fair in his judgments. He does believe that anyone appearing before him is most likely guilty or the person wouldn’t be there in the first place. With thieves, particularly second offenders, he is even more strict. In Mindal’s courtroom, a thief is definitely guilty until proven innocent (a rare occurrence).
Summary
In the table below you will find for each high judge:
- Level of honesty (i.e. likelihood of accepting a bribe)
- Level of greed in accepting a bribe
- Modifiers for type of defendant (yes, some are very biased)
- Base decision roll for minor and major crimes
| Lucius Cardallo | Ellian | Herven Ault | Dagnir Saurul | Mindal Thievesbane | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bribability | Expects a bribe -25% if not offered | Cannot be bribed | Cannot be bribed -10% if one is offered | 35% chance to accept bribe | 15% chance to accept bribe |
| Greed Level | 43 | 0 | 0 | 84 | 47 |
| Elven Defendant | — | - | — | +25 | — |
| Thief Defendant | — | — | — | — | -10 |
| Minor Crimes - Death - Mutilation1 - Prison2 - Fine3 - Acquittal | 01-10 11-20 21-35 36-70 71-00 | 01-05 06-15 16-35 36-60 61-00 | 01 02-05 06-35 36-60 61-00 | 01-10 11-25 26-50 51-70 71-00 | 01 02-15 16-45 46-70 71-00 |
| Major Crimes - Death - Mutilation1 - Prison2 - Fine3 - Acquittal | 01-35 36-55 56-60 61-75 76-00 | 01-20 21-40 41-50 51-65 66-00 | 01-30 31-45 46-60 61-65 66-00 | 01-20 21-45 46-60 61-75 76-00 | 01-20 21-40 41-60 61-75 76-00 |
1 e.g. removal of a thief’s right hand, branding
2 Prison time is 2d6 months for minor crimes and 1d10 years for major crimes
3 Fines are 2d10x5gp for minor crimes and 1d10 x 1d10 x 1d10 x 10 gp for major crimes
Creating a Judge
Judges may be created, if the GM desires, using the method described below. A decision table for the judge should be selected (or created). The table should cover both minor and major crimes, and cover all the general results possible in a trial. GMs are encouraged to create their own magistrates, for this provides great variety and flexibility for the player-characters engaged in courtroom antics. Samples of decision tables for various types of judge are given below.
| STRICT JUDGE | Death | Mutilation1 | Prison2 | Fine3 | Acquittal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minor | - | 01-25 | 26-50 | 51-75 | 76-00 |
| Major | 01-20 | 21-40 | 41-60 | 61-80 | 81-00 |
| FAIR JUDGE | Death | Mutilation1 | Prison2 | Fine3 | Acquittal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minor | 01-05 | 06-15 | 16-35 | 36-60 | 61-00 |
| Major | 01-15 | 16-30 | 31-45 | 46-60 | 61-00 |
| BLEEDING_HEART JUDGE | Death | Mutilation1 | Prison2 | Fine3 | Acquittal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minor | — | — | 01-05 | 06-30 | 31-00 |
| Major | 01 | 02-05 | 06-20 | 21-35 [td]36-00[/td ] |
| HANGING JUDGE | Death | Mutilation1 | Prison2 | Fine3 | Acquittal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minor | 01-05 | 06-25 | 26-35 | 36-60 | 61-00 |
| Major | 01-50 | — | 51-55 | 56-65 | 66-00 |
| SADISTIC JUDGE | Death | Mutilation1 | Prison2 | Fine3 | Acquittal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minor | 01-05 | 06-40 | — | 41-60 | 61-00 |
| Major | 01-25 | 26-65 | — | — | 66-00 |
| GREEDY JUDGE | Death | Mutilation1 | Prison2 | Fine3 | Acquittal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minor | — | 01 | 02-10 | 11-65 | 66-00 |
| Major | 01-05 | 06-10 | 11-20 | 21-70 | 71-00 |
1 e.g. removal of a thief’s right hand, branding
2 2d6 months for minor crimes; 1d10 years for major crimes
3 2d10 x 5gp for minor crimes, 1d100 x 1d100 x 1d100 for major crimes
Bribability is an important facet of a judge. Generally, the higher the number of the rating, the more honest (and less bribable) the judge is. The GM should select this specification for his judge based on the table in the High Judges section.
To derive the Greed rating for a judge (how much he expects to be bought for), roll d100. Feel free to adjust if you want a judge that is particularly greed (or not). The Bribery section, can be used to determine the desire for and impact of actual bribes attempts.