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FAYRII and HEIR

SYSTEMS: ECONOMIC PART III
Jonathan Hickman Sep 30, 2021 39 14

Okay, here’s part two of me breaking down RAM’s document. If you missed
this earlier, RAM’s initial document can be found here. And my first
part of this is here.

As with last time RAM’s stuff is standard weight, mine notes are
bolded.

Let’s get back to it...

PLANET TWO: FAYRII

Mirroring the feudal nature of the Monarchy on FAYRII - industry
largely consists of consolidated giant corporations operating in
various sectors on the planet. Some of the most powerful players in the
syndicate come from FAYRII. Mirroring the monarchy and the greater
narrative of duality - the corporations on the planet are largely
preoccupied with weathering and exploiting this cyclical stance.

I think this is correct and the progression of the idea follows into
Ram’s next paragraph, but I think there’s a really good thread to pick
up here before we move on.

‘Weathering and exploiting’ the comings and goings of monarchs feels

like a blue chip stock play. Like these older companies have the wealth
to simply endure a bad (or good) king or queen. I sincerely doubt it
would be as passive as that (as power is real wealth), but a company’s
longevity for ‘the good of the throne’ would be an easy sell here for
corporate interests that have cornered an essential service and have
the good sense to shear and not skin.
I also want to point out that -- for me -- one of the most interesting
aspects of FAYRII and HEIR is that everything about the two worlds is
intertwined. Politically, economically, and strategically.

I almost feel like the most baller move that the royals on FAYRII have
made is that they’ve exported all their bullshit drama.

‘Want to play Game of Thrones?’ Take that shit to Heir. ‘Want to make
disruption your corporate policy?’  To the moon with your childish,
break everything ethos.

So...

Effectively gambling through every monarchic cycle - the corporations

on FAYRII bet on who the incoming heir will be. Backing their attempts
at fratricide and Patricide. Whoever bets on the winning horse - tends
to go through a waxing cycle- with massive expansion, takeovers and
consolidation until the heirs come of age and the gamble begins all
over again. 

There might be winners and losers - but the monarchs all realize they
NEED the corporations to survive. They need the money backing them.
They need captains of industry swaying the public and putting their
resources behind them. So, the complete failure of companies is rare.
And thus, sitting on top of the cyclical duality of the monarchy and
the corporation on FAYRII is the uneasy balance between monarchy and
industry itself. They are all of them, Kingmakers.

It would not be wrong to think of the Industrialists on FAYRII as

Feudal lords - checking and swinging the balance of power by deciding
who they will ally their banner to.

While the constant evolution of business is baked into most economies -

- and the part above feels like it’s absolutely essential (and correct)
-- the way that Ram describes it makes me doubly sure I’m correct. I
think these are moon sports.

To put it strictly into economic system language. I’m certain that

FAYRII has the most closed economy in the universe of Three Worlds
Three Moons, and that HEIR has the most open.

(And to be honest, yes, if these were the only factors regarding our
world building, it would innately make FAYRII our most boring setting.
Fortunately, these aren’t the only factors).
And it is that balance which is now being threatened with the coming
change. The re-emergence of a magic cycle will throw a variable into
this delicate equation because magic can overturn the old lines of
dominance. The unfavored heir can be king, the upstart corporation can
rise to dominance by bringing magic to their unlikely chosen horse.

This doesn’t have anything to do with economic systems, but the throne
of FAYRII is the most anti-Institute world in the solar system and
KAOSO mythology is baked into the ‘power’ of the monarchy.

MOON ONE: HEIR

THE BANK is on the moon “HEIR”. Operating independently of other
syndicates THE BANK is not an industrial organization. It makes
nothing, it sells nothing. It peddles influence, lends money, and
collects loans. Its purpose is to perpetuate its own value. It cares
not for the duality of things. It cares not for cycles. THE BANK simply
wants to be on the ascendency regardless of which way the cycle swings.

So, how does this work? If KHOR is the real valuable asset, and that
asset is the basis for all standard credits (a rate which fluctuates)
then how does the bank actually have influence?

Normally this is done by the BANK holding the real asset and
manipulating the debt and value associated with the translated
currency. But earlier I stated...

“While there is some amount of hoarding or planetary reserves of

KHOR, it is the stuff that powers everything, so it is in
constant use and the market does turn over. Does KHOR spoil or
have an aggressive half-life or something? That’s a good
question. I think the answer is, yes. Which makes control or
reserves even trickier.”

So how does that work if, if the KHOR decays? What asset is there to
hold?

The BANK therefore must have developed a way to preserve the KHOR. A
proprietary method by which they -- and only they -- can maintain
reserves. Which, goes a really long way to explaining why the BANK is
the BANK and exists outside of politics and religion and, and, and.

So that really works, and explains it well, BUT what if it’s bullshit?
What if the only real asset of the BANK is the lie that they can
preserve the KHOR.

That’s worth killing for. That’s worth dying for.

So that might be fun.

THE BANK has seen cycles come and go. THE BANK has backed kings and
toppled them. THE BANK has funded wars. THE BANK has a direct line to
the men of god, on AKVA. 

Look over there at that war. Look over there at all those sinners.

THE BANK knows that on the far reaches of some distant moon, magic is
making a return. And THE BANK wants to seriously consider this
investment opportunity.

I think this is interesting because it feels like a misstep. Or maybe

just a misunderstanding.

I would think that the rise of a magic age would imply a ‘new truth’
and the power of that comes in exposing the ‘old lies’ that work
against, uh, enlightenment of individuals and work for systems of
control.

I do think that if FAYRII is secretly anti-Institute, then the BANK

would be secretly (or not-so secretly) pro-Institute. But maybe this
all about the nature of greed. And it never being enough.

Or...

THE BANK does not come under the purview of any of the established
nations or governments. It has more money than any one organization and
so wields that power over the leaders of whole planets. But THE BANK is
aware that its operation is contingent upon its discretion. Although it
is more powerful than most other entities it must never be seen as
being so. Although it is bigger than other entities it must never be
seen as being so. Its power is in its ubiquitous nature, in its ambient
influence. Its ultimate aim is to grow and perpetuate endlessly. 
There are organizations capable of standing up to THE BANK. Within the
purview of this document, those are the syndicates. The largest
syndicates together can potentially measure up to THE BANK’s power. So
far, despite some friction the stance has been— why stand opposed when
you can stand with.

But the advent of magic once again is a game-changer. Although THE BANK
has been around forever, if the Syndicates were to play their cards
right at the moment of inflection in a cycle, you could (however
unlikely it may be) potentially take THE BANK.

All right, this seems really interesting to me because it both rings as

REALLY TRUE, and calls into question why there would be pre-existing
friction.

I mean, sure, the yoke is always unacceptable for the powerful, and
being the only winner is the best version of the game Annihilation, BUT
more often than not (as RAM stated) it easier to be aligned if it costs
you nothing?

So what would there be any historical beef?

I think it’s because of forbidden (or denied) knowledge. Like ‘don’t

build machines that think’ or ‘don’t land on Europa.’  If we’re going
with the conceit that it’s unavoidable that every cycle almost
completely annihilates the previous cycle (science > magic > science >
magic) and history begins again each time, then it does make sense that
there would be a kind of baked-in ignorance of the history of
‘everything.’

And it would seem -- now that societies exists on three worlds and
three moons -- that the KHOR has always been there and been at the
center of everything...

But curious minds would ask more interesting questions. And I think
that the Syndicates -- from time-to-time -- either by purpose or
accident, stumble into innovations that harken back to an earlier date
age (this nuclear energy, or fusion, or any non-KHOR-based power
source), and at that point the BANK steps in and quashes it. Because
they remember. As they are the only entity with a true institutional
memory*.
(Which would also be a logical argument for their interest in KAOSO
despite being an Institute backer.)

(*I know we’re also making an argument for the Institute and the
Academy having remnant knowledge of previous ages, but I think they
suffer pretty big losses of that with each turning of a cycle because
of the internal conflicts within each body -- and the eventual wars
that are waged between the two at inflection points.)

Finally, even though Ram didn’t touch on this in his document, I do

think I want to add a bit about the most disruptive economic force on
HEIR, which is the exiled royalty who use the planet as a playground
for their games of succession.

Sure there’s going to be a certain amount of crime everywhere, and with

that kind of money rolling around a large amount of it is going to be
organized, but I think there have to be rules on HEIR about why these
guys get to run around trying to murder each other -- and everyone is
cool with it -- but the random murders of others (and/or bystanders)
would not be (because that’s bad for business).

So I think there has to be some type of codified system of duels for

the royals on HEIR, which would also imply that there would need to be
some type of specialized organization that’s over it or part of it.

And since these are royals I think it would have to ‘part of it,’
because I don’t see these guys subjugating themselves to murder bosses
or something.

Super high-end games of death sounds cool.

Okay, THERRA, ORDO and KAOSO are next. Then after that, the best stuff
— designs and comics.

Also, I’ll post tomorrow an update on all of us watching Children of

Men.
39 14 Share

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Jim G Oct 1, 2021

Okay, I've been doing some studying! I only subscribed yesterday and I've been doing some
catching up. Right now, I'm mostly thinking about KHOR right now. To reiterate something you
mentioned, Jonathan, it's important to differentiate KHOR from gold. Gold is kind of a symbolic
standard of wealth, where KHOR is a usable resource. Like an economy based on units of
petroleum or a Bronze Age culture that measures wealth in terms of cows (cattle). Petroleum has
value in OUR culture and cows can be eaten, milked, used for leather, etc. Stuff you can use, and
while gold has 'some' practical uses...eh...

It's going to seem like I'm going off topic but stick with me, I'm exploring the value of KHOR.
One assumption I have been making and kinda want to confirm is, when the magic/science cycle
changes- science starts to stop working and magic begins to work, right? I haven't seen that
stated outright but these historical / cultural / societal changes are somewhat enforced by a
tangible environmental change, right? I want to make sure that the assumption isn't that science
 becomes uncool and magic is the hot new trend for a 1,000 years. I can work with that idea, but
my gut says that this a tangible and external change which in turn society / culture mirrors.

That suggests to me that KHOR never changes. It's the same stuff when magic is ascendant and
when science reigns supreme. What changes is how the solar system interacts with KHOR.
[These are my thoughts, not me telling you how it should work.] So when Science is ascendant
there are some aspects of physics / chemistry / electromagnetics that are in place that allow
technology (as we think of it) to function. The interaction between energy and physical systems
(i.e technology) allows science to work (electricity makes robots go!). When magic is ascendant
there is energy that responds to the systems of magic (rituals, force of will, psychic stuff,
hermetic symbols, chanting and hand waving) affects and transforms the world around it. KHOR
is the energy source in either case, but it's still the same. The environment is changing and
interacting with it differently as the cycle progresses. NOT: idea is not exclusive to it having a
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Christian Josiah Oct 1, 2021

I see you Mr. Hickman! And I can’t wait to see what you all decide about FAYRII & HEIR! I have to
re-read this post in doses; there seems to be and underlying tug of war between dogma and
“human” nature, if you will. The idea of an invention to maintain the KHOR seemed inevitable to
me from the beginning of this process. It also lends itself to the sensitive balance and
connection between BANK & LAB (for me anyway). I think this post set you apart as a
creator/world builder because you are playing with destabilizing factors as part of a foundation.
I think the science should be true and sound. The conflict isn’t whether BANK lies about keeping
KHOR but how everyone and thing deals with that fact until magic changes things (for me
anyway). I actually have to pause and come back to this post to rationalize everything. It was too
much for me on first read. I did just catch up from the Morrison interview to here in a constant
read, so maybe I’m just overloaded and tired.
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