And yes I think if its a PC who has gone through the CDQ process and has a rank in the faith that enambles them to make such decisions 'in the field' then good on them.
The first thing I have here is “What gives [Jennara] the right to be judge and jury?”, because if she captures somebody that somebody still hasn’t been tried, carrying out a sentence then would really not be appropriate behaviour.
That's not correct. The church appoints judges, and the branch which holds the Judges is a different one from the Knights. The Knights do ultimately answer to the head of the church, just like the Jusiciars, Judges and other branches do. They've not been granted the right to be judge and jury, nobody should have the right to be judge and jury.
They've not been granted the right to be judge and jury, nobody should have the right to be judge and jury.
They've not been granted the right 'by the church'. A smart move by the church, a lawyer's move really, to protect themselves from judgement by a kingdom should a Rofireinite choose to execute justice. By having the church only approve 'sanctioned' (within a given district) verdicts and execution of that verdict, they stay within the good graces of the kingdom in which they abide.
Does that mean a Rofireinite protector who discovers an indigenous people on an unclaimed island somewhere should rely on the judgement from a high protector to determine the verdict for a murderer caught in the act? You'd either have to wait for a high protector to get there, or take the criminal to the high protector, away from the society which he/she wronged. No, the protector must decide for himself or herself whether he/she should confer with the indigenous peoples and advise them in the ways of the Gold with regard to judgement and execution of that judgement, or whether he/she must make the judgement (via whatever is deemed a 'fair' trial) and protect the divine law himself/herself.
Third, I'm really tired of it. Never mind. I've been wanting Jennara to go for Wyrm Commander for a while, but the mess just depresses me and makes me want to quit.
I've been wanting Jennara to go for Wyrm Commander for a while
In this context, I can completely understand why Ed might say that (PC) Knights of the Wyrm should not have the right to be "judge and jury". Focusing on the PC side of things, we all know that PCs having that sort of power over other PCs will cause issues, and my guess is that his answer was focused in that regard, even if the question may have been asked more broadly.
Is that bad?
I don't think this is a blank spot. I think, for the best RP experience, that NPCs and PCs not be treated differently, because they aren't different from an IC perspective. If a crime is committed and Jennara is going to do something about it, it shouldn't matter that the criminal is a PC or NPC. From her perspective there is no such thing; there are only people.Thus, if she can't declare guilt and execute a sentence if Steel commits the crime, then she shouldn't be able to if Larry in Wayfare commits it, either. She should always have to go through the system. That keeps everything consistent and orderly. I also think that is too much power for any one character (PC or NPC) in the first place, both from an IC and OOC perspective.I don't think there's any reason to try to dissect what Ed said. Just take it at face value as a statement that, at least for Rofireinites, no one person has the power of judge, jury, and executioner. Is that bad?
Which ranks are the minimum for legally assuming the mantle of judge, jury, and executioner, please.
This then leads up to "Can PCs be judges?"It was already touched upon, in principle, ICly, there should be no difference between PC and NPC so they should be able to.But OOCly they are different, and we cannot ignore this. So therefore, the answer is no. PCs can not be judges. Players should not have that kind of power over other players.Sure, some might be able to handle this responsibly, but then the decision which player does get to be a judge and which doesn't becomes subjective. So therefore, no PC judges.
What is the minimum rank to be executioner?Executioner immediately brings us to capital punishment.Because if you are sentenced to imprisonment, a convicted criminal just gets thrown into jail.Executioners are not necessarily part of the Rofirein Church, so rank does not apply. Executioners are given their "authority" by the realm they work in, which is needed because if they chop off somebody's head, they could be charged with murder if they weren't allowed to do so.Of course, there can very well be executioners that are members of the church, but the key is being given the authority by the realm.
But if you are in the boondocks or a place where no such laws exist, then it is your job, as one who must protect and support the peace of society, to both judge (via a 'fair' trial) and punish the criminal yourself, and in doing so, teach the man that he must act in accordance with the divine laws that promote societal betterment.
All those with one guy as judge, jury, and executioner are right out, though.