The Congregation
Structure
The Congregation is the governing body of the Salynas Archipelago. It has representatives from all member islands, who are all granted equal rank regardless of their placement in the archipelago. In theory, at least. In reality, the alliances formed between those of the Great Centre place its representatives far above the others, and these are enough to inform decision making enough that the Great Centre becomes far more privileged than the rest of the archipelago.
The Grand Arbiter acts as the leader, though only in the sense that they lead the meetings, making sure that people are given time to speak, moving through the agenda, avoiding interruptions, etc. It is common for representatives to bribe the Grand Arbiter to give them more time, or to take it away from their opponents. This is rarely challenged due to the fact that almost all representatives have engaged in the practice, and so if an accusation were brought forwards most would refuse to investigate the claim due to fears of being exposed themselves.
The Congregation Building is referred to as The Chamber.
Public Agenda
The Congregation acts as the central government, and therefore is meant to resolve any and all problems that may befall the member islands. These include trade disputes, conflicts between islands, crisis aid, defense against monsters, and others. The Great Centre receives the most attention due to having the most resources to put in, skewing the balance.
Assets
The Congregation Navy, the force of thousands of ships and soldiers that perform tasks such as transporting supplies, resolving conflicts, destroying monsters, and generally keeping the peace on a small scale.
The Congregation may request the resources of any member island in the event of a conflict, crisis, or any other situation deemed necessary. This is one of the conditions for an island joining the Congregation.
Member islands are taxed at a fixed rate - one hundred gold pieces for every adult citizen of the island. This is easy for the islands with more trade, while the smaller ones often struggle and have to heavily tax its own citizens as a result.
The Congregation also has a group called the Mystic Compendium, which is made up of some of the most talented magic users, of both divine and arcane sources, to consult and advise on matters relating to anything magical.
History
The Congregation was established by the seven islands that later became known as the High Cluster. They agreed to aid each other in conflicts against surrounding islands, which was easy due to their close proximity to one another. The trade benefits and protection were attractive to islands, and the first five to join were later used to establish the border marking what would eventually by called the Great Centre.
In 173 CE (Congregation Era) the first rebellion against the Congregation was launched by several islands outside of the boundaries of the Great Centre. These were large islands, and were therefore able to make the smaller surrounding islands join them. The Congregation was able to assassinate the leaders, which ended the rebellion as most of the other forces were unwillingly conscripted. All of these islands were told they could join the Congregation or face the end of the island. All the islands and one of the instigators accepted. The other five who had begun the rebellion were burnt with lost forms of magic. To the current day, no-one has lived on these islands, and nothing has been able to grow on the scorched earth.
The only major changes after this were several islands in the Outer Lands choosing over time to join the Congregation, though the High Cluster paid it little mind due to how far away those islands were. And so, for five hundred years, the Congregation was the dominant power in the archipelago.
Type
Government, Leadership
Leader
Leader Title
Location
Related Ranks & Titles
Controlled Territories
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