#Dustpelt would have been part of the council after TPB. He would have submitted a new roof as his masterpiece

[bonefall]

hi!! i was wondering about your council system -- what did the historic council look like? what's the clerics relationship with it? its a super interesting concept i'd love to hear more about :D

Aaaaaah that old thing??

It's an idea I had eons ago, before I even was working on a rewrite project, let alone before I started calling it Better Bones! You can sort of see how it influenced how I thought of Clan Culture going forward

In the original draft, I mentioned how the historic council used to be more powerful before the "Leader's Word Is Law" commandment. BB Fans will probably find that familiar-- it's because that idea ended up becoming Larkstripe's Strike!

And the "trials" that could qualify a cat for entry to the council, you can sort of see that idea living on in Honor Titles.

But, anyway, the Council System isn't something I went with... but, okay, I'll bite and toss some of the old ideas I had about it out there. Feel free to take them and do as you please.

Before the Leader's Word Is Law commandment, the Historic Council would have been JUST as powerful as the leader. In case of a tyrant, they would gather and find a replacement for their Star.

So keeping the Council on the leader's side was a huge political consideration. Morningstar for example lost control of his council.

They had a lot more control over who got appointed as well, so the Historic Council could be very cliquey.

It wasn't all a good thing; the Council was a huge contributor to the development of Clan culture's xenophobia and in-group mentality. They would often move to exclude cats they didn't like, and it was very hard to "move up" in a Clan if you weren't 'adopted into' the good graces of a Council member's family

Xenophobia was NEVER logical and it was never the fault of the foreign groups it hurts. It was because of power consolidation and politics.

BUT, it did have strengths, too. It meant a lot more cats were involved in the decision-making processes of a Clan.

Casting Stones was an event that the Council would extend to all members. It wasn't JUST a vote; it was an open forum, a lot like the way a lot of canon "clan meetings" essentially become debate matches.

The Cleric was actually separate from the Council. I've always imagined that a Cleric has more political sway in a Clan than people think, and that counts with the council as well

See, they can get rid of a leader. A leader is just a cat a mortal chose. But Clerics are supposed to be a sacred, unbroken line from Moth Flight to the modern era

So, a Cleric has the divine right to rule. Leaders actually don't... not until Dalestar and the Leader's Rights.

And as a final funfact, the Council system was based on Medieval guild systems! In my head, a Clan is a sort of "soft manoralism." The 'Star' of a leader's name is sort of like the deed to the land they own, they were beholden to the Council of artisans that live there, and the Cleric is supposed to be a religious representative hypothetically above the both of them.

The "Council Trial" is just an adapted version of submitting a masterpiece to a guild if you look closely!

I still write the life stages of Clan cats with that guild-system in mind, even though I didn't go with the council system. An apprentice is just like a medieval apprentice. A young warrior is a journeyman. A senior warrior is a master.