The Formalities of Commerce

[Terrifying Daedric Foe]

Although our cousins in Great House Hlaalu are the Dunmer who focus most on industry and trade, only a foolish outlander would assume that commerce is not a concern of the Indoril.

In fact, business is vital to the survival of our Great House. Without a reliable source of income we cannot continue to spend money on great acts of piety, charity and culture. It is therefore vital that all members of our House acquaint themselves with the laws determined and ordained that govern commerce.

Industry is the first part of business. It is a crude term that covers the entire process of designing and creating items of value. These range from practical items such as cooking utensils to works of art like the statues of the Tribunal one finds in all Indoril cities.

This process is vital because it serves a dual purpose. Firstly, it allows all of our House to continuing living in the style to which they are accustomed – lacking nothing that is their due by the laws determined. Secondly, it engages the lower orders of our people in gainful employment. This keeps their minds and bodies from becoming restless and leading them into sin.

Trade is the second part of business and covers the exchange of goods and services between two parties. True trade can only occur between equals. Other transactions are better described by the laws governing the relationship between masters and servants.

When trade happens between equals it is a law determined that a mutually beneficial arrangement can be found. A member of our House should never celebrate that he has 'won' in a trade deal, for if that were the case then the other party has lost and Indoril as a whole is less well off than if the optimum solution had been reached.

In these times the Indoril often find themselves obliged to do business with their lessers: outlanders, foreigners and beasts. Clearly true trade cannot be possible in these scenarios, so we should not waste time searching for the perfect arrangement.

Dealing with foreigners can be an unpleasant process, as they will not be familiar with the 108 arguments and their corresponding counter-arguments and will fight their case erratically and unpredictably. If you feel that you are unable to get a successful deal then ask an experienced elder to conduct the negotiation in your place.

However, the most unpleasant part of conducting a trade deal with a foreigner is that they may ask you to swear an oath in the name of their heaven god of merchants, whose name I will not sully these pages with. If you suspect that this may be necessary then consult Nisain Salvel's book Pacts with the Nine False-Gods and carry out the preemptive penances described there-in.

Although commerce can seem an unworthy pursuit for a noblemer of House Indoril, it is incredibly important. If the laws of business are not properly obeyed then noble families devoid of reliable income can find themselves slipping into the lower social ranks and lesser families will, through no fault of their own, rise to positions to which they are inherently unsuited.

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I thought I'd add my own contribution to immortal_pigs' series. I couldn't find a good quote from Vivec to finish, though.

[gro-Dhal]

Nice job. Will have a look through and tweak if necessary when I get the chance.

[Yeti]

Is there any interesting in revising/finalizing this? The subject matter is relevant to conceptualizing what Indoril commerce looks like in [url=http://tamriel-rebuilt.org/old_forum/viewtopic.php?t=24525]Roa Dyr[/url].

[Terrifying Daedric Foe]

I'd be happy to make changes if required, but first I need someone with more lore knowledge to check it over and flag up anything that needs changing.