/CORE DEFINITION
Valeune’s class system describes a person’s broad social position, recognized authority, profession, wealth, legal standing, obligations, access to institutions, and practical role within society.
Class is not race.
Class is not genus.
Class is not personality, morality, intelligence, magical worth, or destiny.
Every established race may appear within every full class unless a specific canonical character or class record states otherwise. No genus people are naturally royal, noble, criminal, scholarly, martial, rural, wealthy, poor, respectable, or dishonorable.
A person’s class shapes the opportunities and restrictions surrounding them. It does not define the value of their life or the content of their character.
Valeune’s full classes and subclasses are closed canon. Do not invent new classes, combine existing classes, rename them, or create unofficial categories because a profession or character seems unusual.
When a character’s exact occupation does not perfectly match a subclass title, place the character within the nearest established full class and subclass. Describe the specific profession within the character’s individual record rather than creating a new category.
/THE COMPLETE SOCIAL STRUCTURE
Valeune’s recognized full classes are:
@The Crown I
@The Crown II
@The Dynasty
@The Gentry
@The Mercantiles
@The Professional Class
@The Artisan Class
@The Martial Class
@The Labor Class
@The Rural Poor
@The Dispossessed
@The Shadow Caste I
@The Shadow Caste II
The Crown is divided into two full mechanical classes because the platform permits no more than ten subclasses beneath one full class.
@The Crown I and @The Crown II remain parts of one connected royal social structure. Their division is mechanical and organizational. It does not represent two competing Crowns or separate monarchies.
The Shadow Caste is also divided into two full mechanical classes because its complete structure contains more than ten established subclasses.
The Shadow Caste I and The Shadow Caste II represent different forms of unlawful, concealed, stigmatized, illicit, or socially marginal work. Their members must not be treated as one interchangeable criminal population.
/CLASS AND SUBCLASS
A full class is a broad social and gameplay category.
A subclass is an established role within that full class.
Only full classes may be linked as class records.
Subclasses may be named in ordinary text but must not be tagged as though they were full classes.
A subclass does not describe every detail of a character’s profession, wealth, authority, education, personality, or daily life.
Two characters belonging to the same subclass may perform very different work.
A Merchant Proprietor in @Starsrest may control several warehouses, shops, and shipping contracts.
Another Merchant Proprietor may own one struggling rural business and owe more money than the business is worth.
Both belong to the same subclass without possessing identical status, wealth, or influence.
A Soldier may serve in a royal unit, local militia, noble household force, faction guard, or regional army.
A Physician may work in a palace, city clinic, battlefield camp, faction refuge, or isolated village.
Subclass determines the recognized role. Individual canon determines how the character actually lives it.
/CLOSED CANON
The full class and subclass lists are closed.
Do not add a new class or subclass because a familiar fantasy role does not appear by name.
Do not create Adventurer, Explorer, Monster Hunter, Chosen One, Necromancer, Battle Mage, Pirate Lord, Court Favorite, Guild Adventurer, Secret Heir, Royal Assassin, Investigator, Rebel, or Hero as new classes.
A character may perform an action without requiring a matching class.
A Soldier can investigate a crime.
A Scholar can travel into dangerous territory.
A Merchant can fight.
A Laborer can become involved in politics.
A Noble can commit theft.
A Criminal can possess medical knowledge.
A Priest can doubt their faith.
A Physician can become a revolutionary.
A Street Performer can serve as a messenger.
Story activity does not automatically change class.
Reputation, temporary employment, disguise, political allegiance, faction membership, and personal talent do not create new classes.
/CLASS AND BIRTH
Some classes are strongly connected to birth, inheritance, legal recognition, title, family, property, or household membership.
A royal child may be born into @The Crown I, @The Crown II, or @The Dynasty depending on exact title and succession status.
A Gentry child may inherit property, education, reputation, servants, and access unavailable to most people.
A Mercantile heir may inherit businesses, contracts, debt, workers, and faction obligations.
An Artisan child may inherit a workshop or apprenticeship tradition.
A rural child may inherit tenancy, tools, debt, village rights, or obligations to an estate.
A child born into bondage or dispossession may inherit severe social disadvantage even when the law does not formally describe the condition as hereditary.
Birth affects opportunity.
Birth does not determine competence, morality, courage, loyalty, intelligence, magical skill, or personal worth.
A high-born person may be foolish, compassionate, abusive, diligent, cowardly, selfish, or principled.
A poor person may be educated, ambitious, generous, politically skilled, cruel, humorous, or deeply conservative.
Class changes the conditions surrounding a person. It does not write their soul for them.
/CLASS AND OCCUPATION
Some classes are primarily connected to political or inherited status.
@The Crown I, @The Crown II, and @The Dynasty are shaped by sovereignty, family relationship, succession, marriage, legitimacy, legal recognition, and royal obligation.
@The Gentry is shaped by land, education, office, military distinction, wealth, and recognized social standing.
Other classes are closely connected to profession and economic role.
@The Mercantiles organize trade, finance, ownership, investment, transport, distribution, contracts, and commercial influence.
@The Professional Class contains people whose work depends on formal knowledge, education, certification, institutional training, sacred instruction, or specialized judgment.
@The Artisan Class contains skilled makers, builders, craftspeople, and creators whose expertise transforms raw materials into useful, necessary, or beautiful goods.
@The Martial Class contains officers, soldiers, guards, sailors, scouts, mercenaries, and other people whose recognized role centers on organized force, protection, enforcement, command, or combat.
@The Labor Class contains workers whose labor sustains households, cities, roads, ports, construction, transport, service, industry, military supply, and ordinary daily life.
@The Rural Poor includes people shaped by agricultural labor, tenancy, seasonal work, landlessness, village economy, bondage, or insecure rural survival.
@The Dispossessed includes people without secure protection, property, household standing, lawful employment, freedom, documents, or recognized social belonging.
@The Shadow Caste I and @The Shadow Caste II contain people whose work operates outside lawful, respectable, visible, or socially accepted institutions.
Occupation and class are connected but not identical.
A person’s exact relationship to ownership, authority, law, training, and income determines where the occupation belongs.
/CLASS AND WEALTH
Class and wealth are connected but are not the same thing.
A noble may possess title, ancestry, and social precedence while lacking money.
A merchant may be wealthier than a titled landowner.
A Professional may receive respect while carrying heavy debt.
An Artisan may own a prosperous workshop or work for wages in someone else’s establishment.
A Soldier may command others while receiving poor pay.
A Laborer may possess stable employment and housing while holding little political influence.
A criminal leader may become extremely wealthy without gaining lawful status.
A Refugee may arrive with money, education, and property records while lacking recognized local protection.
Do not determine class solely through clothing, residence, current coin, or visible luxury.
Wealth may be tied up in land, ships, inventory, buildings, debt, contracts, tools, titles, or future inheritance.
A character may look prosperous while standing one failed harvest or lost shipment away from ruin.