Dutch, Flemish, Medieval English, Traditional English
Examples: Diederick, Gijsbert, Hendrika, Bartholomäus, Ulrich, Wilhelmina, Ludo, Agnes, William, George
Reasoning: This aligns with some of the Amsterdam/Hanseatic League elements of the Hammerstadt Charter, mixed with some salt-of-the-earth English tropes.
Surname Options: Most surnames are occupational and indicate what a character apprenticed in, using the languages that inspired this nation’s forenames as a guide. Archetypes can also be used here, as a way of advertising a character’s services.
For example – “Wilhelmina Akkerman”, “George Milliner”, “Ludo Scarsmith”
Taking the name of which of the five Districts a character is from is also common – Hammerplatz; the seat of government and forge magic, Zweiburg; the district of entertainment and the arts in the ruins of Zweiburg castle, Klarasburg; the agricultural centre of the nation, Corvolis; the seedier underbelly of the city where many freelancer coteries are based, or The Westwyk; the offshore collection of islands full of dredging boats and the quarantined college of magic, Vellichor.
Though once in use during the days of the monarchy, using the preposition “Von” is considered dreadfully old-fashioned, and something only Morvalians do these days.
For example – “Hendrika Corvolis”, “Agnes Westwyk”, “Ulrich Zweiburg”
Group structure
The people of Hammerstadt are fiercely meritocratic. Rule by agreement of the people is an essential part of the culture, and the idea that someone should be in charge because of the right of birth goes against the patriotic spirit that has built Hammerstadt into the nation it is today.
Most people in Hammerstadt belong to a Coterie – a co-operative similar to a Business, Union or Gang that operates as a family unit. Loyalty to your Cotery is absolute. Coteries are led by a Speaker who voices the concerns and interests of their people to the Syndicate, the five Guild-like organisations that rule the city. Coteries are effectively co-operatives made up of individual workers, some with very varied skills, some with a specific business that they all rally behind.
Not everyone in Hammerstadt is a member of a Coterie, some prefer to keep their options open, working with others when needed or offering services to coteries on short-term contracts. The Corvolis district in particular is a hub of these freelancers who negotiate their services as anything from doctors to bodyguards, but they are situated in every part of the city, paying their Dues to the Magpie Syndicate and making coin where they can find a niche in the bustling city.
Every Cotery is a member of one of the five ruling Syndicates. These are:
The Quencher Syndicate of Manufacture and Craft
The Ringelnatter Syndicate of Art and War
The Wheatsheaf Syndicate of Agriculture and Gastronomy
The Magpie Syndicate of Freelance Workers
The Crossed Keys Syndicate of Magic and Scholarship
These Syndicates have a base office in the District from which they started out, but there are usually as many member Coteries of each syndicate in the other district as where their Guildhall is based.
For example, every bakery, butchers shop, tearoom, late-night kebab shop and high-end restaurant is made up of Coteries and many individual members of the Wheatsheaf Syndicate, regardless of whether they operate in Hammerplatz or the Westwyk, along with all the farmers, veterinarians, and other workers who produce the food in the fields of Klarasburg proper.
Each Syndicate has a Burgher who represents the collective will of their Coteries in political and international matters, and are usually a final court of appeal in matters of serious disagreement that lead to the Syndicate being brought into disrepute. The five Burghers do not travel outside of Hammerstadt, instead working on the day to day leadership of the city and ensuring the citizens who attend Haven have a city to return to.
Hammerstadters first join a Coterie as an apprentice, where they gain a trade and basic education in Syndicate-sponsored school. They might change professions in this time – if the daughter of an apothecary shows more aptitude for Forge Sphere magic than potion-crafting, her Coterie may arrange a place in a suitable Coterie with the skills to teach her that profession, and take in a promising apothecary student in return. Alternatively they may send her to one of the Syndicate-sponsored academies and open a sideline in Forge Weavings when she has graduated.
It can become a matter of contention to which Syndicate a Coterie belongs, and a great deal of bureaucracy goes on in the City to make sure Dues are paid to the correct Syndicate, and Benefits paid out to those members in times of need. As a general rule, a Coterie pays its Dues to the Syndicate that the majority of its members’ occupations belong to; a Coterie that is mostly professional warriors-for-hire with an attached Scarsmith and small group of Weavers would probably pay their Syndicate dues to the Ringelnatter Syndicate of Art and War. If their Weaving business became more important than Martial skill and Weavers outnumbered mundane warriors, eventually this Coterie would likely switch their allegiance to the Crossed Keys Syndicate of Magic and Scholarship.
There is a level of rivalry between the districts, and in times of agitation Coteries tend to take the side of the District in which they live and operate their business from – while allegiance to Syndicate may change, the premises they operate in rarely does, and in times of strife, if you can’t rely on your neighbours, who can you rely on?
Example Groups
Coterie names are usually descriptive of the business that brings them together, often using the street the premises are on or surname of the founder. The streets of Hammerstadt are winding and meandering, with many alleys and side streets
A group of attendees wish to play a Coterie with a variety of interests and also sell flapjacks and other snacks for coin. They decide to make the group a Westwyk-based Coterie who makes their money selling late-night snacks to students at the Vellichor College of Magic, are members of the Wheatsheaf Syndicate and who are down on their luck and looking for new opportunities for advancement. They have a Scarsmith and a couple of Scrags who are on short-term contracts from the Magpie Syndicate with the plan of joining the group formally in-game. They call themselves the Hexenplatz Runners, after the street they have decided their main headquarters are on.
A pair of attendees wish to play a newly formed Coterie that specialises in magic, with the idea of adding more people to their Coterie in-game later. They decide on the name the Crack’d Mirror Coterie, and specialise in Forge Sphere rites.
A group of military-inclined attendees wish to play a group of mercenaries. Several of them are keen on the Battle Singer archetype, so they decide to be a Breaker Ball team, keeping their options open to sell their services as a military unit for skirmishes as well. They form the Kicklebury Street Kickers, with the idea of being a team that lost many of its original lineup in the ongoing war and recently reformed.
A solo attendee is intrigued by the idea of playing a healer and also a priest. They don’t fancy playing a Scarsmith so decide on a Priest of the Hearth, one of the Clemencer archetype, who also dabbles in healing as part of their faith to the Hearth, providing pastoral advice to all as a Freelancer of the Magpie Syndicate, and linking up with a Coterie later on if they wish to.