The Kax slave market is a dark and sad place. Common slaves, which are generally the dregs of the poor gathered off the streets, are sold each day, seldom costing more than a couple of gold pieces. Coffles of more useful slaves, typically numbering between ten and twenty, are sold each week at auction, with the vast majority being male humans sentenced to slavery for various crimes - and generally only those unfit for conscripted military service come to the blocks. These unfortunates are known as the Dregs, and bidding on them usually starts at ten gold, and seldom rises higher than twenty, as there is an almost constant supply of such. They are seldom of any use except as fields hands, miners, or the like.
The next group of slaves are those who were sold into slavery as debtors, and these are usually adults of either gender with some sort of marketable skill, such as various crafters, builders, and the like. They are not much educated, but usually good enough with their hands to fetch a higher price, starting at 50 gold and sometimes going twice that high. These slaves are called the Commoners.
The third group of slaves are those who may or may not have some sort of common skill, but they are of uncommon beauty, male or female, and can be as young as ten. (Younger children are almost always sold with their mothers, as they are very difficult to tame and train if taken away from them.) These are sold as foot slaves, concubines, pleasure slaves, or personal servants. Their lives are usually quite soft until they lose their looks as they grow older; after that, their fates can be very uncertain. They are called the Beauties, and bidding on them starts at 200 gold, and can go into the thousands for a particularly spectacular specimen.
The last group of slaves are those who are highly educated and intelligent, typically at least in their thirties, sometimes as older as fifties, but seldom older. They are highly trained in some mental skill, such as languages, mathematics, religion, or the like. They are referred to as Adepts, and bidding on them generally starts at 100 gold, but can be higher for a rare skill, and sometimes the final price can be very high.
All slaves sold in the market are branded, on the cheek for the Dregs, on the shoulder for Commoners, a small brand on the hip for the Beauties, and on the hand for the Adepts. In countries outside of Kax, these brands are usually recognized by officers of the law, and will result in confiscation of the slave, and their being freed.
Any slave in Kax which escapes or commits a crime of any significance is punished harshly. Except for the Beauties, punishment can include a session of lashing, or having a finger cut off. Second offenses bring more serious punishment - typically having a hand cut off - and third offenses generally result in death. Beauties are punished with a spell that causes severe pain and mental torment; few who suffer under this spell commit another crime.
It is very unusual to see a non-human slave on the blocks; most Kaxans find non-humans too difficult to tame, and the demi-human nations respond very badly to finding one of their own enslaved, even if as punishment for a crime. Perhaps once or twice a year will any be sold, and their prices generally start at a thousand or more gold, and can be much higher if the slave is special in any way - a fighter or the like, or possessing any special racial skills or knowledge. Final prices have gone into the tens of thousands.