High Judge

"Upon the stand a figure appeared before the crowd, hidden by a metal mask and cloaked in blue. Silence immediately fell over the crowd as the figure began to speak, in a cool tone that seemed to carry perfectly without seemingly raising their voice. I could not tell you a single thing about the person hidden away in front of so many, and I get the impression that's how it's meant to be."

— Anonymous traveller to Dreunium.

The High Judge of Dreunium occupies a particularly important place within the city-states hierarchy, as they are the city's leader in multiple respects. Dreunium is a unique city among those found in the Shattered Kingdoms as it is not, in fact, a monarchy. The High Judge is head of state, religion, law and military within Dreunium, trusted only with so much power due to the religious beliefs around the position. The role of High Judge is a permanent one, traditionally replacement only occurs in the event of death and carriers of this title leave everything else behind to accept the prestigious rank. The High Judges authority is absolute, their ruling is always lawful and to those outside Dreunium, they are a terrifying un-empathetic mystery.

When the High Judge dies, the Heads of each branch of the Equilibrium gather within the Courthouse, eventually emerging knowing the identity of the next High Judge. It is said that it is Erathis herself, goddess of law and patron deity of the city, that elects the High Judge, though how this is communicated to the Equilibrium is unclear. The High Judge is always selected from members of the Equilibrium, though they can be serving in any branch. Upon their selection, the new High Judge cuts all ties with their previous identity - name, family, history and memory are all erased through both physical and magical means. Upon their ascension to the rank, no person or book recalls any details of the High Judges identity.

It is notable that all High Judges are recorded as acting in very similar ways upon taking the position, always speaking in a cool and emotionless tone, never appearing to display happiness, anger, despair or any feeling, and only engaging with people as per their duties. High Judges seem to simply live to work and make no foray into entertainment or pleasure, becoming a paragon of unbiased law and judgement. It is commonly assumed that this is the result of becoming High Judge, and not that it is only people who act like this typically, that become High Judge. The High Judge serves as the perfect example of unbiased, calculating law and order

Responsibilities and Duties

The position of High Judge covers quite a large scope as it plays the part of many roles merged into one. A High Judge is the chief public head of Dreunium, and is responsible for maintaining diplomatic relations with other nations, presiding over courtly proceedings, dealing with treaties, trade agreements, matters of national security, religious occasions, attending hearings and above all acting as a mouthpiece of the Lawbringer herself. In theory, if things should ever cause the goddess' displeasure, the High Judge would hear and thus act in accordance with Erathis' judgement, correcting whatever error had occurred. The High Judge has some ceremonial appearances to make, their presence required for each execution that takes place within the city walls, and for the annual Midwinter speech, where the High Judge leads the city in prayer for the upcoming year.

Controversies

The vast majority of controversy surrounding the position of High Judge comes from outside Dreunium, with some outsiders convinced the position is entirely unethical - not only for one individual to be responsible for military, religion and state but also the presumed effects of the role upon the High Judge with the erasure of their identity and seeming destruction of personality. While many local to Dreunium have simply accepted the strange state of the High Judge as a quirk of the city-state, the idea that the process is immoral and perverse does exist and many theories as to what exactly the High Judge is or what happens to them exist within Eleron.

The northern parts of the Shattered Kingdoms play host to a particularly notable urban legend, that suggests the Equilibrium acts more like a malevolent cult than they let on, citing that the destruction of the memory of the High Judge's former identity makes it impossible to know if they were even willing to undergo the process that transforms them into an unfeeling shell of a person, enforcing the word of the law above all else. The secretive nature of the selection and induction process just adds to the conspiratorial buzz around the position, with one recorded instance of a Siennian reporter being fined and imprisoned for 8 months for trying to uncover the previous identity of the current High Judge, in violation of Dreunium law.

Accoutrements & Equipment

The uniform of the High Judge remains largely unchanged over the years, aside from stylisation differences in the headpiece. The uniform of the High Judge consists of vestments coloured in deep blues, pale blues and yellow highlights. Brown leather gloves are worn in winter, and a full-face helmet of mithril is worn, with a blue cloth

Typical High Judge Headpiece by Moonbro

Type

Religious, Political

Form of Address

Your honour

Source of Authority

Deity (The Lawbringer)

Length of Term

Life

Related Organizations

• Dreunium

Lawfully Morally Grey

While the law in Dreunium can be altered through public vote, and any legal resident of the city-state can bring proposals to the High Judge given the approval of the Heads of the Equilibrium and enough public support that does not mean that law and morality don't come into conflict. While in other court systems a Judge could sway rulings and reduce or harshen sentences based on circumstance, the High Judge of Dreunium is physically incapable of it. Always abiding by the written protocol, sentences and judgements passed were always legally fair but never took into account anything beyond that. While originally there was no jurors present in any trial in Dreunium, by early 4E the local populace began to see a need for public say to matter more in the courtroom than just at the execution block.
By 265 4E, the final reforms had gone through and the presence of a jury was required for all cases except those classified Minor Crimes. While the jury has the power to ask witnesses and the convicted questions, their main power is in being able to suggest leniency on a case-by-case basis. When this occurs it can become a long, drawn-out process where the jury must then present their own case to the High Judge, explicitly stating what the moral implications of the original ruling would be, and propose their own alternatives. Provided the jury's case does not violate any written legislation and receives a majority vote, the High Judge accepts the jury's reccomendation.