“Steady hands at the storehouse, steady voices at the table.”
Local councils that kept people fed and rules clear through the hard years. They mediate disputes, manage stores, set work rotations, and keep the peace. Trusted, sometimes stubborn.
Some were planned; others formed ad hoc during the Scourge when other authorities failed. Many assemblies began as food and water committees and grew into full civic councils.
Elected or acclaimed stewards, quartermasters, and judges. Seats often represent guilds, or in combined settlements, vaults of origin. Decisions are recorded in public ledgers.
Stewardship. Fair share. Clear rules. Slow to change, slow to break.