Caste Laws

The Caste Laws have their basis in religious practice, as the elements of Sand, Blood, and Sea are considered sacred to Maeve. It is said that only the Holy Mother is able to carry all three elements, so breaking these laws is therefore seen as profane arrogance. Disobedience of the Caste Laws is said to "blemish" the offender, a blemish that may only be removed through elaborate ritual, contrition, and community service. In effect, the enforcement of these laws amounts to imprisonment until the community judges the blemish has been removed.

The Sand Caste
All castes but the Sand caste are prohibited from touching gold. Other castes tend to conduct their business in silver, copper, or in barter exchange. However, very wealthy Blood or Sea houses may employ a "purse-holder" of the Sand-caste, who acts as an accountant of sorts, handling the vast amounts of wealth that these families accumulate.

Members of the Sand caste typically wear some form of golden jewelry as a signifier of their station. Even the poorest Sander will have a thin golden ring, or perhaps a small golden nose-stud. When a member of the Sand-caste becomes so poor as to lose even the smallest bit of golden jewelry, they are said to have "lost their sand."

The Blood Caste
No caste but the Blood caste may touch a sword or a bow. A sword for this purpose is considered to be any blade that extends past the length of the bearer's fore-arm, as any member of the Free Cities may at times have need of a knife. However, particularly dutiful or religious Sailors or Sanders may go so far as to not even touch the smallest of blades.

Members of the Blood caste typically wear either a quiver on their hip or a scimitar or saber done up in a sash as a mark of their caste. It should be noted that this law does not free the other two castes of any responsibility for fighting in war, as they are expected to use other weapons (spears, crossbows, slings, etc) in lieu of the blade and bow.

The Sea Caste
Only members of the Sea caste may touch sail, net, or albahr. Albahr  is a particular kind of ink, harvested from a squid said to be sacred to Maeve. The ink has a deep blue color, and is often used by members of the Sea caste to tattoo fanciful designs into their flesh. These tattoos often bear special significance to a Sailor, and may detail their family history and/or personal accomplishments. Young sailors sometimes wear a silken sash around their mid-section, dyed in albahr  if their family or crew feels they are too young or un-accomplished to receive albahr  tattoos.

Other castes tend to eschew any form of tattoos, even though only the albahr ink is the only kind strictly prohibited.

Strangers
Strangers to the Free Cities are not beholden to the Caste Laws per-se, though they may ruffle some feathers or provoke a brawl by flagrantly disregarding the customs of the Free Cities. Wearing both golden jewelry and a sword, for example, is considered to be in very poor form.