Tuesday, May 26, 2009

In My Campaign: Kusseth Edition, Part 1

The country of Kusseth is known for many things, but there is one thing that truly defines it, its system of marking the population. No other nation in the Known World possesses such an in-depth way of keeping track of its population. Every man, women, and child, regardless of race, living legally within the borders of Kusseth bears a ten digit sequence of numbers behind their ear or somewhere upon their head (should they be lacking an ear) that indicates who they are as defined by the authorities of Kusseth. This ten digit number breaks down whether or not they are native or an immigrant, details the identity of the doctor that birthed them or the warden that granted them citizenry, and a few other important details. This ingenious system of tracking their population makes officials and lawmen quite effective in keeping track of the individual citizens of the country. Any walled town or city will ask for the number of each person entering the walls, wardens ask anyone they speak to to display their serial number, and when passing into the different areas of Kusseth City itself one is asked to display one's number by guards. In any situation that warrants it a warden or official can input the ten digit number into a slide card and feed it to one of the mighty analytical engines of the government which will signal most governmental offices to produce files and papers dealing with the serial number in question, within ten to fifteen hours the warden or official will have a stack or box of files in hand detailing all the recorded information regarding the individual who bears the serial number in question. In instances where the lawman or official is seeking the whereabouts of such individuals they can find a list of where their travels have taken them in the past six months. On such occasions an additional signal is tapped out on the wires indicating that the inquiring warden or official is to be kept updated on the travels of the serial number in question and will often find fresh dispatches in hand by the end of the week updating him on the movements of his quarry. Various specialized organizations in Kusseth use their own serial numbers as well. Wardens are not given an additional tattoo but are issued a badge with a unique number upon completion of their schooling. Military recruits are tattooed with information regarding their term of service and its completion or lack thereof, as are members of the guild of bounty hunters and those graduates of the colleges of the physician. Any citizen seeking to may obviously obscure their tattoo, but that often leads to more trouble than it is worth because it effectively erases them from Kusseth society preventing the procuring of loans, aid from law enforcement, and can often lead to slavery or conscription into the armed forces when one is unable to prove one's citizenry.

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