Regency: Family is Key

Bridgerton highlights how Family is a help in so many ways, but also a hinderance in many others. They can lift you up, but just as easily tear you down. Your Family is your most powerful ally but sometimes your worst betrayer. In Regency, it is the same way.

One of my favorite aspects of Regency is the Family System. Instead of a traditional party or coterie, the players will be a Family. Who their Family is will have an impact on the way the Characters move throughout the world the Author creates.

The Family has Rank, Wealth, and Status that gives them benefits and perks in Society. With Rank, the Family’s gain land and titles, with Status they gain importance and good-will in the ton, and with Wealth the Family gains extravagance, a bigger mansion, and a more lavish lifestyle. All members of the Family gain these benefits, however, the Family also loses as a group.

If a Character finds themselves in a Scandal, or if they lose wealth in a bad business deal, and it causes enough ripples, they can affect their Family’s Status, Wealth, or Rank, which means, the whole Family gets affected. As it was during the Regency Era, who your Family is matters. Its all intertwined. As such, this encourages Players to work together for each other’s benefit. You will want your Family members to succeed and flourish, it also opens stories up toNow, intense Family conflict and truly having to risk it all for love.

The Family doesn’t necessarily have to be blood related. The distant cousin, the best friend who was practically adopted, or the widowed sister-in-law could all be in the Family. Do not feel constrained by the more “traditional” views of family. However, the Family you choose, still impacts your Family’s Rank, Status, and Wealth.

I’m incredibly excited about this part of Regency. I believe that interesting stories could blossom from being tied to the other people at the table.

The united Wealth of the Players also will give them a perk in choosing how they use that money in their Families day to day lives. Will there be mansion expansions? Perhaps they have a second home in France? Maybe they Patron one of the Artists of the city? Or have a classically trained French chef? All of these could give the Family’s benefits and rewards for having the best of the best.

The Family System will both help and hinder the players around the table which will create fun stories to build together. The Tropes can work in harmony for one another or work to hinder each other if need be. Perhaps your sister is about to run off with a soldier who is a secret gambler and you have to stop her or your Family’s Status would definitely drop. But perhaps you’re running off with the love of your life, regardless of what will happen to your Family’s Status because love is more important.

The last two Tropes in Regency are The Newcomer and The Gossip. The surprise Newcomer, who shows up with more questions than answers, the unknown is a trope that crops up in Regency Era fiction. The Gossip is a famous trope of these stories and rounds out the cast as a fun character to play as.