The Hierarchy of Torrhame

The way the political hierarchy works in Torrhame is like this:

King
Earlking
Earl
Warlord
Karl
(Townsperson)
Thrall

The king is the ultimate authority in Torrhame, and he rules the entire realm, but also serves as Earlking of Gamstrond. He governs through his council, the Tynvoll, which is composed of religious leaders, representatives of the Earlkings, personally chosen advisors, and local Earls of note.

Earlkings govern one of the six Earlkingdoms of the realm, and basically act as kings of these regions, with their own councils composed of local Earls, and their own warbands, palaces, and laws.

Earls are landowners, usually with their own halls, warriors, and villages. They rent out land to the families of karls, are local lawgivers, and sometimes serve as warriors themselves in the employ of the King or Earlking.

Warlords are essentially Earls, but haven't been recognised by the Earlking, most often because they have taken an old Earl's holdings by force. These men are fair game for local Earls, but sometimes groups of warlords band together for mutual protection, as has happened in northern Gamstrond, where the warlords of Guthrahame demand to be recognised as an independent Earlkingdom.

Karls work the land, and, while some own farms, most live on rented land, giving a portion of their harvests to their Earl. They vary widely in wealth, power, and status.

Townspeople, while technically karls, do not farm, own, or rent land, but live in town houses and produce or trade goods. many towns do not have official Earls, but tend to be under the direct governance of the Earlking or a local religious order, and so these men tend to be more powerful than karls.

Thralls are people who, for whatever reason, have found themselves the property of another. This is usually simply by birth, but some will be karls who have had to sell themselves into thralldom due to bankruptcy, or rootmen or the servants of warlords who have been captured in raids. They have very few rights, and the going exchange rate of a thrall is the same as that of a cow, but they can marry with their owner's permission, and have the right to defend their wives or children should anybody, even their owner, interferes with them.