03-27-2011, 04:23 PM
Havard Wrote:Aldarron Wrote:Havard Wrote:I'm with Ross on this one. Remember that within the FFC system of reference Blackmoor is part of the Great Kingdom, its ruler being the King.
I can't agree Havard, regardless of the title held by the leader of the Great Kingdom, the quotes show immediacy, a king who is within the borders of the Northern Marches, a person who is a great friend of Svenny and is trusted by the Blue rider. This is not some distant potentate in a faraway capital. The great Kingdom was always a far distant place in the FFC, where the players hardly ever went.
I agree that the individual referred to is a local one. I think the "King" mentioned is in fact Baron Fant. It's just that Arneson didn't apply a very systematic system of noble titles. Baron, Duke, King, Earl. They are all used without much thought to which fits where. We could perhaps blame this on Judges Guild who were supposed to clean things up.
In the FFC, King could even be a leftover title from the war gaming days, with the King being the leader of each side.
I'm sure that you're right. They played fast and loose with titles and the political structure was probably vague at best. Fant is an interesting theory for a couple of those references. I do think Dave meant himself when he said svenny was a great pal to the king.
Its just that I'm looking at the text as canon and trying to fit in reasonable explanations for what it could be. I'm thinking of "king" in as a kind of battle leader connotation, not as a strong political position.