The following is a codification of the customs and ways of many citizens of the land of RhyDin, as well as the multiple territories and realities that have intersecting portals within RhyDin. They are not rules or laws in the classic sense, but rather a compilation of expectations, rituals, and modes of conduct used.

I. COURTESY
a. Treat others as you yourself would desire to be treated.

b. Entrance into another person's home, lands, or sovereign state is done only after permission for such is given.

c. Privileged information of any kind, including aliases, true parentage, hidden powers, or anything that is not in the public domain should be confidential unless prior permission is given for divulgence.

d. Mail received by one party may be forwarded to another if permission is first sought from the author.

e. If one party knows that another travels in these lands under an assumed name or another identity, such knowledge must be held in confidence.

II. COMBAT
a. Protection
1. One may declare him/herself protector of another if the other agrees to this arrangement. This protector is responsible for the protected individual's safety from attack from others.

2. One under protection should not initiate combat. This act will void protection. If attacked, they may defend themselves.

3. If one initiates combat with one under protection, said combat will be held with the protector first and resolved before the protected may be targeted.

b. Champions
1. If challenged or provoked, one may have another conduct combat for the challenged or provoked party. This person will be designated the champion of the party involved.

2. A champion is not a protector; s/he is a surrogate combatant only with no other responsibility than to fight for his/her party.

3. Before combat, all parties directly involved must agree to the use of a champion. At the end of the combat, if the champion loses, the party that designated that champion is responsible for fulfilling the terms of the duel except death.

c. Seconds
1. A challenged or challenging party has the right to have one other person stand with them during the duel. This person shall be designated the second.

2. Seconds shall be designated and announced prior to combat.

3. The second shall act as witness to the combat to ensure fairness for their combatant. They will not interfere with the battle unless treachery is detected.

a. Treachery shall be trickery in combat or multiple combatants attacking against the primary combatant.

d. Duels for Cause
1. Defined: A duel designated for a specific gain for one party or the other.

2. Duels for cause should have at least one witness present throughout the entire duration of the combat.

3. Duels for cause should have a Proctor present. The Proctor shall be agreed upon by both combatants prior to the duel. If acceptance is not verbalized, initiatives or actual engagement in combat shall be considered proper consent.

4. The Proctor shall record the combat and keep score by whatever rules both combatants agree upon. The Proctor will announce the score as each round ends and designate the victor at the conclusion of combat. The Proctor's decision is absolute and binding on all participants.

5. A combatant has the right to challenge the outcome of their combat and request a review for outside influences and technical errors. In the event that such aberrations are discovered, the Proctor's decision may be invalidated or reversed.

6. The combatants will agree to the terms and conditions of the duel before combat begins. The Proctor should announce these stipulations, once decided upon, to everyone present. The Proctor may ask for verbal agreement from both combatants. If verbal agreement is not given at that time, engagement in the initiative phase, or beginning the combat if no initiative is taken, shall be considered to be proper consent.

e. Death Match
1. A duel resulting in the death of one of the combatants shall be designated a Death Match. They shall adhere to the guidelines mentioned for duels of cause, with the following stipulations.

a. A Death Match requires that at least one witness be present for the entire duration of the combat; this witness cannot also serve as Proctor.

b. A Death Match requires the presence of a third party as a Proctor.

f. Death
1. Death ends the life of a being unless it is found possible to perform a resurrection upon the departed.

g. Assassination
1. There are no accepted guidelines for assassination. Independent organizations may develop protocols for this scenario; however, they shall be recognized only within those mediums.

h. Combat Conventions
1. Combatants may use any set of conventions they agree on to resolve combat. If no prior special conventions are agreed on, the following general conventions may be observed.

a. The combatants may deliver a blow, toss a coin, or roll a die to determine the order of strikes. Generally, the person who delivers a heavier blow, calls the coin or rolls highest on the die will take first strike. The second strike in each round is called the honor strike. This selection process is known as the 'initiative,' and the completion of this procedure indicates consent to the duel and the authority of the proctor.

1. If standard initiatives are not employed, the combatants and proctor may negotiate and agree upon the order of strikes.

2. The 'honor strike' is not an additional blow taken after the victory conditions have been met and an equal number of strikes have been taken.

b. A round is complete only when both combatants have taken their strike.

c. The standard weapon of choice is a twenty-weight blade. This is the suggested scoring method, which may be extrapolated to use weapons of heavier weight.

1. a glancing blow earns one point. (15-19 = 1 Point)

2. a well landed blow earns 2 points. (20 = 2 Points)

d. The Proctor shall announce the score at the completion of each round. A suggested format is: Round 3:Fighter1: 5 ~*~ Fighter2: 3.

e. The standard combat typically ends when a combatant reaches twenty points or more at the end of a round. In the event of a tie, the duel continues until one combatant has more points than the other at the end of a round.

f. There are several optional, nonstandard rules that may be used. When these are introduced, they must be explained prior to the duel.

i. Resurrection
1. Resurrection is the return from death of a deceased being. Death may be due to combat loss or some other tragic circumstance.

2. Resurrection after combat death is never automatic unless agreed on by the combatants prior to combat.

j. Resurrection Process
1. To be resurrected from a combat loss, the victor must agree to the terms of resurrection in addition to the resurrected individual's essence.

2. Generally, an independent third party negotiates resurrection terms. Terms may be anything agreeable to all concerned but generally involve an exchange of services or status.

3. When successful resurrection negotiations have been concluded, a letter shall be sent to everyone concerned to reflect the resurrection and its terms.

4. Resurrection rituals may be performed by any qualified cleric or mage chosen by the owner of resurrection rights.

III. ARBITRATION and MEDIATION
a. When there is a conflict with this Code or working agreements are desired between different parties, arbitration may be used.

1. An Arbitrator is any third party agreed upon by all parties involved prior to dispute resolution.

2. Parties will present to the designated Arbitrator their dispute or desired agreement in writing. The Arbitrator shall render a decision in writing back to the parties involved within three days.

3. Since submitting to arbitration is voluntary, the Arbitrator's decision is final and binding on all parties.

b. When a negotiated outcome of a dispute is desired, a mediator can be chosen.

1. A mediator is any third party agreed upon by all parties involved prior to dispute resolution.

2. Parties will present to the mediator their dispute or desired agreement in writing. The mediator will undertake negotiations in order to forge a compromise or resolution that is agreeable to all parties.

IV. ALLEGIANCE
a. Citizens may, at their option, swear allegiance to another or to an institution, realm, etc.

1. If sworn to a Liege, the Liege may call on that person's services at need for defense of the Liege or the Liege's interests. Such would include but is not necessarily limited to combat, spying, acting as protector, second, or champion for designated parties.

2. A Liege may not order death of a sworn citizen. That option always belongs to the individual.



3. A sworn citizen is under the Liege's protection for him/her -self and others under the sworn citizen's protection as well as designated family members. This should be sent to the Liege in writing before the citizen is sworn.



4. If a Liege with sworn people does him/her -self swear to another Liege or an institution, those sworn to the original Liege do not automatically transfer allegiance to the new Liege or institution unless they wish to.



5. Either party may terminate sworn allegiance at any time. It must be so designated in writing to both parties.

V. CIVIL CEREMONIES
a. Marriage, Divorce, Annulment, Adoption.

1. Marriage may involve any set of terms, genders, species or numbers desired by the parties involved.

a. Marriages are generally performed by clerics or a Liege. Marriages shall be witnessed and a wedding log prepared at its conclusion. Terms of the marriage are for whatever the involved citizens wish.

b. The wedding log is the legal record of the wedding and shall be considered the equivalent of a marriage certificate.


1. The ceremony officiator's written announcement of the marriage may also stand as the Certificate of Marriage.
c. If sworn, the married party must inform their Liege.

2. Divorce is the termination of a marriage by one or more of the parties involved. If a multiple marriage, the divorced party leaves the marriage and the other parties continue in it.

a. A letter of divorce should be prepared by the original cleric or Liege that performed the ceremony, stating that the marriage is terminated or that one or more parties is leaving the marriage.

b. If the cleric or Liege who performed the ceremony cannot be located, or is unreasonably opposed to dissolution of the marriage, divorce might be obtained if sufficient grounds exist and can be established by the petitioning party.

c. A request for divorce on grounds of abandonment should be accompanied by documentation or witness accounts that one spouse has been absent for at least 30 days.

d. If sworn, the divorced party must inform his/her Liege.

e. If the divorce is complicated, then Arbitration or Mediation maybe used to assist in effecting a settlement.

3. Annulment is the act of making a marriage legally void based upon certain conditions. In addition to the request from at least one party in the marriage, there should be:

a. Sworn testimony the marriage has not been consummated, or

b. Sworn testimony or documentation of consanguinity.

4. Adoption is the act of legally taking the child of another as one's own.

a. An adult citizen may petition to adopt a minor child if the child is shown to be orphaned or abandoned, or if the custodial parent provides written or witnessed verbal agreement to the adoption. In the latter, such agreement severs biological parental rights and responsibilities.

b. An adult person may be adopted if s/he confirms this is her/his wish. If a biological or custodial parent is living, they must give their written or witnessed verbal consent since the adoption severs their parental rights and responsibilities.