The Foundry

Faction Profile

Founded: 651 AS 

Governance: Council (Member count in the hundreds, hold ranks of Lord Steward) 

Spokesman/Public Information Officer/Figurehead: Lord Steward Albertus Velus III (Spokesman)

Primary Function/Purpose: Republic Bureaucracy & Governance, State Manufacturing, Research and Development

Estimated Numbers: Between eight to eleven million (Republic-wide)

Republic Influence: Extremely High

Republic Disposition: Loyalists

Citizenry Reputation: Respected. Begrudged in some labor circles for overzealous control of the market.

Military Strength: Unknown

Seat of Operations: Redholme, Eastern Baronies

Common Ranks/Titles:

• Steward (also distinction – Lord Steward) 
• Chancellor (also distinction – Lord Chancellor) 
• Chamberlain (also distinction – Lord Chamberlain) 
• Constable (also distinction – Lord Constable) 
• Marshal (also distinction – Lord Marshal) 
• Overseer/Foreman/Engineer (also distinction ranks of Lord) 

Post-Torment State: Thriving

Presence in First Province: Moderate

Overview

The Republic Foundry, most often referred to as simply The Foundry, is a colossal industrial and mercantile bureaucracy that spans the entirety of Vitaveus. The two-fold role the Foundry provides in service to the Republic is mind-boggling to comprehend, as its’ scope within the Republic is second only to the Church itself. The Foundry’s first responsibility to the Republic is that of organizing, overseeing and executing all research, development and manufacturing of state goods and services, ranging from city infrastructures and civil logistics to nearly all military industry. This in of itself is a monumental task, as with this responsibility comes the role of providing nearly all manufactured weapons and armaments for the Church Templar as well as the Venerated Legion. To fulfill this role, massive smitheries, bloomeries, factories, textile plants and lumber mills litter the Midlands of Vitaveus, manned by hundreds of thousands of laborers (and sometimes sentenced criminals) nearly twenty-four hours a day, all working in dizzying unison to fuel the Republic’s needs and demands. 

The research and development roles of Foundry cannot be understated; there exists no other entity (aside from obscure and esoteric rumors) within the Republic that possesses the technical prowess and know-how that the Foundry does. From its’ inception in 651 AS to the modern-day, the Foundry is continually upon the forefront of technological advancement and, to perhaps even a greater extent, incorporating the use of said technology into the day-to-day life of the Republic. The Foundry has been responsible for the development and implementation of every major technological breakthrough in the past seven centuries, from the cannon to the rifle to the modern-day steam engine. Due to holding nearly all of the intellectual property and patents to virtually every important and life-changing invention over countless generations, the Foundry is thought to possess more wealth than even the Church itself – though such allegations are met with stern dismissals from those of the faction. It is even rumored that the Foundry is so incredibly wealthy due to their monopoly upon the Republic’s technology and intellectual advents, it is in fact able to bankroll numerous shadow armies and para-military corporations above and beyond that of which it provides in law enforcement duties to the territories it governs, all of which operate within the shadows of the Republic, well outside the oversight of the great and powerful Church. Whether such rumors are mere conjecture or truly accurate are anyone’s guess, though one thing is indisputable; no other faction within the Republic is afforded more autonomy, freedom or power by the reigning Church than is the Foundry. 

When it comes to industry, the Foundry can yet again be found everywhere and anywhere. Apart from the smallest entrepreneurial outfits within the Republic, the Foundry assures that it has its’ influence within any business venture that may exist upon the face of Vitaveus. Consequently, nearly all major manufacturing and industrial outfits within the Republic are owned and operated exclusively by the Foundry itself – of which include sprawling lumber mills, towering bloomeries, and even territories with populations in the thousands whom work strip-mines that spiderweb into the earth for miles. On the micro-scale, the Foundry assures that its’ interests are never impeded or threatened by rival market competitors through the use of Overseers, Foremen, and Engineers – sworn Foundry professionals of whom are attached to private industry, wherever it exists, through the executive power of the Foundry governmental agency. Only the most exclusive private industries and businesses– those that supply their wares and services solely to that of the Church, Legion or Inquisition – are exempt from the purview and influence of the Foundry’s mercantile control. 

Another critical role of the Foundry as it relates to the organization of state goods is that of controlling the overall economy and civil well-being of the Republic. Due to the Foundry’s incredible influence at both the micro and macro level of the Republic, it does not take much effort for the faction to regulate both supply and demand of critical goods and services whenever and however it is needed. In fact, many historians attribute the fact that famine is a rarity in both ancient and modern Vitavean history to the Foundry, as their origins as the masters of logistics and infrastructure have allotted to them a mastery of helping keep the Republic thriving in even the worst of times. Having originally been founded to construct, erect and implement the infrastructure of the fledgling Republic during the era of Reclamation, the Foundry are experts in anything and everything concerning kingdom-building. This expertise is seen in every aspect of the Republic, from the Cathedrals the Church hold their communions within, to the paved roads that stretch the hundreds of thousands of miles from the Eastern Baronies to the Western Territories. 

The secondary and more influential role the Foundry plays within the Republic is that of defining, litigating, managing and presiding over the bureaucracy of the Republic’s civilian infrastructure and government. Territories, city-states and all other holdings that are not directly governed by the Clergy nor formally held under permanent martial law by the Venerated Legion are left to the governance of the Foundry, whom represent, in the Church’s and Republic’s eyes, supreme civilian authority. This function bestowed upon the Foundry had historically been a rarely enacted role, and had originally only been born out of necessity; during the Decusian Reclamation of Vitaveus, non-critical territories claimed by the advancing armies of the Church and Legion were sometimes abandoned by the governing Church Clergy in favor of more valuable pursuits. When this had occurred, it was often the Foundry whom was bid with the task of establishing infrastructure and seed populations (most often comprised of re-educated native peoples) within these abandoned places, as to not create swaths of uncontested territory between the eastern coast of Vitaveus and the advancing armies of the Decusian Reclamation. 

By the end of the Reclamation, the Foundry had been formally responsible for the direct governance of nearly twenty percent of the populated territory of Decusian-conquered Vitaveus. As the Church and Legion’s standing numbers dwindled due to attrition and a lack of need in the centuries following the conclusion of the Recalamtion, more and more territories were relegated to the control of Foundry. This power-creep has resulted in modern-day estimates placing the total governmental responsibility the Foundry holds over the Republic to be nearly half of all populated territories within the kingdom at large. In the present day, these Foundry-governed territories often go by a few different titles, to include: townships, villages and boroughs. Inversely, territories that are governed by more formal entities, to include the Church, Legion and at times, the Venerated Inquisition, exclusively hold the titles of Province, Municipality, Metropolis, Arcology, Citadel-City, and District. As an aside, it is often commonplace that, due to the sometimes overwhelmingly large and monolithic natures of Provinces, Municipalities and etc., portions of these areas remain un-incorporated and thusly left to the responsibility of the Foundry. 

The physical makeup of a territories’ governing body when ran by the Foundry is wholly dependent on the population size it serves, though a distinct pattern of having individuals directly responsible for given amounts of population can be seen throughout the bureaucracy at any level.  At the lowest of this bureaucratic spectrum is the Marshal, the lowest ranking representative of Foundry government. A Marshal is directly responsible for a population of no less than five hundred souls, but no more than a thousand. A Constable, in turn, is responsible for overseeing the offices of no less than five Marshals, but no more than ten. This patten continues until reaching the offices of the Steward, of whom is responsible for the combined overseeing of eight Chancellors (for a total estimated civilian population oversight of at least seven hundred and fifty thousand souls).  Due to this form of escalating oversight, Foundry representatives of higher rank often preside over the governance of multiple villages, townships and boroughs, often leading to a homogeneous and uniform application of law and provision of services over large swaths of Foundry-governed territories.    

At each level of oversight, support councils and cabinets exist to assist the Foundry representative in executing the duties of the office appropriately, to include safety services such as law enforcement and fire brigades. As with Municipalities, nearly all of organized manufacturing and industry that exists within a Foundry-governed territory (apart from individual outfits and entrepreneurs) are subsidized and influenced by Foundry governance both directly and indirectly. More often than not, the size and scope of the business dictates the level of involvement the Foundry will have with it – for smaller outfits, simple oversight is normally achieved through imposing fees and taxes. For larger businesses, influence is more direct, and achieved through the installation of Foundry Overseers, Foremen or Engineers of whom impose Foundry mercantile regulation, collect a portion of the business’ revenue, and most importantly, directly report to their presiding Foundry Marshal.  

Offices with the governing body of the Foundry are appointed positions. Appointments are handled top-down, and begin with the appointment of a Lord Steward (per two million souls) by that of the presiding Church Warbishop of the geographical region in question. In turn, each Lord Steward of a region then appoints their Stewards, whom then appoint Chancellors, and so on, until every position down to the very last Marshal is filled. Appointment in to a Foundry government position is lifetime, barring any malfeasance or untimely death. Appointments are normally reserved solely to that of the middle to upper class of the Republic’s citizen population, with appointments of civilians to less prestigious positions of Engineers, Foremen and Overseers when the need arises. Prospective appointments are nearly solely chosen from recommendations for service by Republic Citizens, and often solely by Church and Legion retirees whom have been bestowed the official titles of nobility ( Magnus Dux/Magna Ducissa, Archidux/Archiducissa, Dux/Ducissa or Prorex/Proregina) by their patron Faction upon the fulfillment of their own service to the Republic. 

Governance at the hands of the Foundry is nearly identical to that of proper Municipalities. Tasks such as taxation enforcement, civilian law adjudication and the provision of infrastructure and territorial services are all executed in earnest by the representative members of the Foundry whom preside over a given township. The adjudication of civil law and that of malum prohibitum offenses, or acts unlawful only by virtue of statute, is often carried out by a representative courthouse that presides jurisdiction over multiple townships and other unincorporated areas. However, per Republic law, the adjudication of malum in se offenses, or acts evil in of themselves, is relegated solely to that of the Church – thusly, in unincorporated areas that the Foundry have purview over, local bureaucrats can only perform arrests for the commission of these crimes, and require either a resident or traveling Church Adjudicator to pass judgement and sentence (or in more rare and dire circumstances, an Inquisitor of the Venerated Inquisition). 

As with the Church and Legion, official commissioned service within the Foundry does in turn grant Citizenship within the Republic; Foundry members are afforded the rights of land ownership, weapon possession, free range and movement, and the election of Senate representatives.

Standards, Colors and Guidons

The Foundry standard is a brown in color shield flanked by cog-wheels, with a crossed pair of smithing hammers situated above a blacksmith’s anvil. The standard was adopted early in the history of the faction when the Foundry’s primary function was the establishment of civil infrastructure, including roadways and settlements, as well as the provisions of weapons and armor to the marauding Church and Faction forces during the invasion of Vitaveus. The standard has changed only minutely over the past seven hundred years, only adopting the flanking cog-wheels post-Reclamation, sometime in the late 900s.

The Foundry color is a signature dark brown in color hue, of which such symbolism is conjectured to be due to the faction’s history of providing and maintaining agricultural needs for the early armies of the Republic during the Reclamation.

The Foundry’s most popular credence, “Per Vires Industria”, is translated into common as “Through Industry, Strength”.

The Foundry is often seen utilizing numerous different forms of guidons, which often prominently display the faction’s hallmark color in either combination with tradition Republic red or white.