Military Regulations

♛ Last update: March, 2026 ♛

♛ Foreword

• Being a member of the Helheim military demands that duty to The Crown comes before all other responsibilities, with no exceptions.

• All faiths and races are a welcome part of the Helheim Military, so long as they hold Helheim citizenship.

• Upon entry in to military service, all citizens shall sign a waiver, vowing to keep all Royal business private and military activities secret

• Promotions shall be based upon good conduct, regular reporting and general activity.

• Demotions shall be enforced for disciplinary issues, bypassing the chain of command and acting in Helheim’s name without the authority to do so, as well as inactivity.

• The Helheim military is a professional force, requiring discipline and good judgement.  Respect for the Royal, Noble and Officer classes is paramount.

• Members of the Royal Guard may join a guild as well as conduct themselves as House Guards for noble houses.  They will simply need to manage their time to fulfil their duties.

• All services and Battalions of the Helheim Military are expected to work together for the betterment and defence of the realm.  Rifts between the services, outside of healthy rivalry, shall draw Senior Officer’s attention and is severely advised against.

♛ Uniforms

• The Royal Guard does not have a strict uniform code, but where possible, it is requested that guards adorn themselves in the colours of Helheim: 

Guards:                 Red, black and gold for officers

Red, black and white for rank & file

Marines:                 Blue, black and gold for officers

Blue, black and white for rank & file

• The Helheim Royal Navy is a uniformed service and thus requires crew members of a vessel to follow the dress code.  

Naval personnel:         Navy blue top and navy blue or white bottoms for officers

Navy blue tops and brown bottoms for crew

• Modesty shall be strictly enforced as the military is the face of Helheim. Any question of what defines modesty or appropriateness can be filed directly to an officer.

♛ Royal Guard Rules

•  The Royal Guard acts to protect the Royal Family and Crown Staff as its highest mission.

• The Royal Guard are responsible for the enforcement of Helheim’s laws within its borders and investigation of criminal acts.   The borders are all land within the Great Wall, the farms and surrounding region.

• Discipline and respecting the chain of command are of the utmost importance.  Orders from senior Guards are not optional, those violating orders shall expect to explain their actions.

• All matters should go up the chain of command to be dealt with, bypassing several ranks to seek out a favourable answer will result in discipline.  No military matters should be taken directly to the Royal Court, unless it is an emergency or if ordered to do so.

• In the absence of senior Guards, common sense should be applied in resolving any situation.  Guards of all ranks are empowered to act in the best interest of the realm.

• The Guards armoury provides muskets & ammunition, swords, polearms and shields to its members.  Other weapons must be provided by the individual, along with their own personal armour.  Armour can be repaired at the military's expense for combat damage caused when serving the realm.

• When in uniform or armour, a senior guard should be saluted and given the appropriate amount of respect.  During parade ground drills, eyes should remain forwards, no talking unless spoken to and orders carried out quickly.  One salute to an Officer per day is acceptable.  A salute is any respectful gesture that could be interpreted as such, such as a hand on the heart, a presented fist, or a flat hand pressed to the temple.

• At all times, Guards and Sailors are allowed to commit to escort and guard duty for Royals and high ranking members of the Nobility without seeking senior guards approval.

• Weapon permits are rare, but may be given to foreign dignitaries or those deemed needing extra protection and are usually issued on a time-limited basis by magistrates or court officials.  Regular visitors to the realm are not given this privilege as they are protected by the Guard.  Citizens are always allowed to carry their weapons unless instructed otherwise.

•  Using force: when is an acceptable time to use force?

    • When yourself or a citizen is under attack

    • When a member of the Royal Household is under threat

    • After refusal of a person to follow lawful orders

    • When the Tedious Act of Repetition has been invoked on an individual

    • When you can legally and morally justify it

    When is not a good time to use force?

    • When somebody calls you a mean name

    • When you just don't like someone

    • When it will reflect badly upon the military

• Nobles may be only arrested by a Leftenant or above, unless they are actively committing a crime. Though nobles may not be arrested, it may be prudent, under certain circumstances, to escort them to a place of refuge, for their own safety or the safety of others.

• Pay is issued by the paymaster, available from the rank of Guard and above.  Seek out an officer for enrollment.  ((This is a system allowing players to get their own pay))

• Official diplomacy on behalf of Helheim is only to be conducted by the Crown or those empowered in speaking on the Crown’s behalf.  Defying this rule can result in charges of treason.  Officers may exercise common sense when promoting stability of the realm.

• Drinking in the barracks or while on duty is not permitted, find a tavern. 

• Smoking in the barracks, around cannon or powder magazines will result in severe disciplinary action.

♛ Battalions

When the Helheim military operates outside of Helheim’s walls, it is referred to as the Helheim Army and is organised in to various Battalions, based upon the requirements of the mission.  

Battalions are organised in to Divisions for typical deployments.  Where Battalions/Divisions are mixed, the most senior Battalion takes command.

♛ Army Rules

• Actions outside of Helheim in its name may only be authorised by The Crown

• Guards may pursue criminals outside of Helheim for the sake of bringing them to justice

♛ Vessels

♛ Royal Navy Rules

• The Helheim Royal Navy serves the Crown by maintaining control of the waters outside of Helheim and greater Sincadere, escorting trade vessels and harassing enemies of the realm

• Command of the fleet comes from the Crown, bestowed upon Naval or Guard Officers with nautical experience.  As the Navy’s role is to act outside of Helheim, as the Army is required, it shall seek approval from the Crown for all missions conducted

• As for shore based Guards, official diplomacy on behalf of Helheim is only to be conducted by the Crown or those empowered in speaking on the Crown’s behalf.  Defying this rule can result in charges of treason.  Officers may exercise common sense when promoting stability of the realm

♛ Further Reading

• The Helheim Naval Manual

♛ Making Arrests

• There are standard procedures when it comes to making arrests as a Guard.

IC:

• 1. 1. Identify the laws broken and ask them to come in quietly.  Laws may be used as a guidance until the minutiae of a crime committed can be addressed by the respective Crown officials

     2. If they resist, subdue them.

     3. Bind/cuff their hands and put on an anti-magic collar.

• Anti-magic collars: Provided by the Guard. Not strong enough to kill any magical being, but strong enough to subdue the open usage of magic while in the cells (if they escape, the collar breaks after a day or can be broken through RP).

• Binds/Cuffs: Also provided by the Guard. To be secured around the person's hands/feet/hooves/etc

• 1. 4. Remove all articles of clothing down to their undergarments (can leave on underwear).

• Take all weapons, accessories, belts, shoes, hair pins. Check the nails, hair, etc. BE THOROUGH.

• 1. 5. Make a report ((in the hh-guard-report channel in discord))

OOC:

• 1. 5. 1. Be sure to gain their OOC consent and know their limits.

        2. If you arrest someone, give them RP.

        3. People who really don't want to be captured can be allowed to escape, however, using OOC consent to constantly avoid IC punishment is a form of powergaming and reportable to sim staff.

♛ Prison Rules

• Prisoners shall be fed three times a day on water and bread (or the equivalent for races that can not survive on water and bread), unless this privilege is removed by an officer

• No visitors outside of the Guard or Crown

• The cage bars are hardened by the realm's artisans and the cells warded against the use of magic internally for those with malicious intent

((Anyone wanting to escape punishment should be allowed to do so with some amount of tact, as bending the bars, magic-ing away and lockpicking have been RPed out by actual players as unfeasible.  Bribing guards, escaping while being transported for medical care, a group of organised outside players storming the cells before reinforcements arrive, etc are much more realistic options))

♛ Punishments

• Helheim has a robust magisterial system with laws that are debated and updated by the Queen’s counsel regularly.  It is the Guard's job to enforce these laws, whether they might personally agree with them or not.

• Those who are able to punish certain crimes are listed in each section on the Laws page

• The Tedious Act of Repetition - This act exists in the law to protect the Guard from punishment which would otherwise result from their heavy-handed handling of a repeat offender who either regularly, or consistently breaks the laws

• By Royal decree, the nobles of Helheim are not above the law and shall be punished according to it

♛ OOC Notes

• The HH military are not intended to be the good guys, or the bad guys, but a neutral military enforcing the laws and have a mix of every alignment there is

• To advance to Sergeant and beyond, a character will have to be able to fit into the military in a relatively serious way, as they will  be the IC and OOC face of the group

• Lone-wolf and corrupt types are definitely allowed, but will have to maintain some amount of plausible deniability to remain realistically employed - Play smart and don’t get caught (much)!  Being a combative or disrespectful character is all good RP, in moderate amounts, but in-character actions will result in in character consequences to maintain everyone’s realism

• ICly, the military is transitioning from a medieval knights & man-at-arms type force to a musket-wielding, technology embracing force.  This transition will not be complete in-world in our near time line so every type of character is welcome to join up!

• Guards are encouraged to be proactive in dealing with situations, in meeting people and in exploring.  The rules are very loosely enforced, so long as a character is not drawing undue attention to themselves

• Get in contact with any of the Guards who have been in the group for a while, or the faction leadership if you have any concerns, questions, etc!