The nobility in Skyrim are a highly respected and acclaimed class. Some come from renowned clans but most have established themselves through deed and must often struggle to maintain their power and influence. Jarls are often the head of powerful Nord clans and maintain power through Hersir, noble lords with large holdings which are elevated to the title and given legal rights to the Jarldom. Thanes are free men who have officially been accepted by and into the service of a Jarl and also reserve legal rights. A Thane's oath is for life, and therefore it is not fashionable for a Jarl to have more than a small group of active Thanes. Thanedom is a chivalric title respected and feared across Skyrim and these men are the beacons of justice and duty.
Housecarls are the warrior class of Nord culture and Hersir and Thanes are expected to employ them as sworn swords. To dedicate yourself to warfare means making war your profession and therefore patronage is extremely important. Housecarls sacrifice their other potential skill sets to be a honed weapon and leader in battle, so they will struggle to make it their own way. A truly skilled soldier and captain will be recognized and will always have the opportunity to serve as an honored Housecarl.
How it works
Each of the nine holds is a Jarldom with a seated Jarl, a public property registry and a bounty ledger. Rank inside a hold works the way rank works everywhere in Aurbis: one ladder of leader, co-leader, captain and member, set from the seat above you. Thane, Hersir and Housecarl are the names those ranks carry in a hold, and the seat decides who wears them.
Property is the concrete part of a title. A Jarl or a Hersir claims doors in their own hold, names them, hands them over, seizes them back, or releases them to Skyrim, and every key to all of it is forged and revoked on the one property surface (see Keys, Locks, and Locksmithing). The hold's registry is public, so anyone can read which properties a hold has claimed, who owns them, and by what number.
Bounties are the other concrete part. A hold's bounty is owed to that hold, set from the seat or through its guard agency, and it follows the offender across the province (see Crime, Bounty, and the Guard).
Staff seed the nine hold factions and appoint the first seat. Everything after that is the seat's to run.
Commands (/help jarldom)
/jarldom list [hold-id] lists a hold's registered properties, their owners, and their property numbers./jarldom bounty set <name or #id> <hold-id> <amount> sets a hold bounty where your seat authorizes it.
Rank inside your hold (/help faction ranks)
/faction ranks lists the rank order and authority of the faction you are in./faction rank <name or #id> <rank-level|rank-key> sets or adds a member rank. Rank levels are 1 leader, 2 co-leader, 3 captain, 4 member./faction remove <name or #id> [reason] removes a member from the faction you lead.
The old /jarldom property and /jarldom key trees are gone. A hold's property and its keys are on /help property, and the authority comes from your seat rather than from a separate command tree.
