COMMUNITY - FORUMS - GENERAL DISCUSSION
Mayor Packages Explained

Hi everyone!

I've seen quite a few threads from folks with mayor packages recently expressing some confusion about what the mayor package means and what sort of settlement you are supposed to pick, so I wanted to try to clarify that for you, if I can.

Here's how the mayor title works: When a mayor title holder selects a settlement, regardless of its size, they will become the chief executive of that settlement. This means that they will control the majority vote in settlements with voting arrangements, or they will hold the right to administrate the settlement if it uses a different system.

Many seem to think that a mayor must choose a town or they will lose something from their package. The confusion here comes from the fact that the name of the title is "Mayor" and there is also an honorific in the game that uses the same word. The difference is that the honorific "Mayor" is only applied to the chief executive of a town, while the mayor title applies to any player that purchased the right to govern a settlement.

So in that sense it's true that the elders of a hamlet or village aren't called "mayors," but that also means the "mayor" honorific doesn't apply to city or capital level settlement chief executives either, since settlements of those sizes use different honorifics as well. If we were to say that Mayor title holders could only be "Mayors" it would mean that mayor titles could only pick towns, which we certainly never wanted.

In other words, it was never our intention that the mayor title in your inventory would explicitly apply only to towns. You can see this in the description of the title in your inventory:

As that screenshot shows you, what you gain with the mayor title is explicitly stated:

  • You will name and govern a settlement
  • You will receive a cloak showing your status as a mayor title holder and your family crest
  • you will gain access to the crest making tool when it is available.

None of that changes no matter which size settlement you settle in. If you settle in a hamlet or village, you will become a elder with the majority vote in the settlement's council, giving you control over the settlement's political decisions. If you settle in a town you will become its "mayor" also giving you control over the settlement's political decisions. If you settle in a city you will become its magistrate, but again you will find yourself in control of the settlement's political decisions. And, finally, if you settle in a capital you will become its governor with, as you can probably guess at this point, control over its political decisions.

Each of these honorifics specify the same thing: You are governing the settlement.

However, while your personal benefits don't change based on the size of the settlement, the different settlement sizes do have different features associated with them. For example, the land management table is a feature of a town or larger sized settlement, so a mayor title holder that settles in a village or a hamlet will need to grow their settlement into a town to enable that feature.

What all of this boils down to in Domain and Settlement Selection is that a mayor can pick any sized settlement without losing anything from their package. There is, however, one rule that will restrict your choices: If the county you are picking your settlement from doesn't yet have a count you cannot pick the last Town+ sized settlement in the county. This does mean that in a county with two settlements, one town and one hamlet, a mayor could only pick the hamlet. But, on the other hand, it also means that in a county with a capital, a town, and 3 hamlets, nothing is stopping a mayor from picking the capital, and leaving the town for a potential count.

Hope that helps! :)


  • Snipehunter
...
8/24/2019 6:44:11 AM #31

Posted By Zelcovian at 11:37 PM - Fri Aug 23 2019

Hey Snipe,

Two quick questions -

as mentioned before an elder has majority share of any X number of parcels of the total nearby area of land. In order for the Town/Village/Capital to function the council will hold a meeting in the Town hall for what needs to change.

Question 1 : Who sets when the council makes these call's and in the event that the majority (land holder) is absent do they simple move forward with the votes for who is present ?

"random thoughts section" This seems as though it would be a good way to take land for personal use in the short term causing economic instability while the OPC is either sleeping or tasked with various other uses. Another use would be to simply "delay" the arrival of a member to adjust the vote.

Never the Less, Off to Question 2:

Do mayor packages have to used in areas with the documented tribe they wish to play? or can we place with friends in one area and have a family size tribe (not listed on DSS maps) at that location at launch ?

Why would a mayor be absent and far away for long periods? Mayors should be leaders of and in the community. They shouldn’t be adventuring. Use an alt for that.


Count of Frostale, in the Duchy of Fioralba, in the Kingdom of Ashland, by the Grace of Haven. The above opinions are mine alone and do not reflect those of my Kingdom or Duchy.

https://chroniclesofelyria.com/forum/topic/17117/naw-the-duchy-of-fioralba https://chroniclesofelyria.com/forum/topic/14124/naw-kingdom-of-ashland https://chroniclesofelyria.com/forum/topic/30605/of-contracts-and-commerce-a-tldnr-post https://chroniclesofelyria.com/forum/topic/31835/on-taxes-rents-and-ancestral-lands

8/24/2019 7:00:08 AM #32

Time delay between in game to out of game hours over the duration of a regular 8 hours of sleep, or 16 hours with a work day.

roughly speaking if one in game day is 86 minutes (taken from wiki ) then 8 hour rest would be 480 minutes or 5 and a half days... therefor a work day would be no less then 11 in game days...

So if the council wants to change something every two weeks there is a higher chance of missing it, if the council calls votes in that time frame. Making a charter wait for when the OPC becomes live..would delay the growth and to my understanding cause loss to NPC moral if they have to wait a week to hold a vote on every little thing.


8/24/2019 12:37:47 PM #33

So it sounds like counts should also be restricted to only chooseing Town+ for there settlements?

I mean if we are assumeing that mayors can't take the last Town+ since it is a county seat, a hamlet by the water can't be chosen by a count and upgrade it since artaficially inflateing the town is bad.

Is this correct?


8/24/2019 5:12:57 PM #34

Just my 2¢, but as I read it in the KS it did say Mayor's/Barons would be choosing towns and Caspian did say several times both in DM21 Gaming Q&As and in a Dev Journal the there would be more than enough towns to choose from. Caspian even went as far as breaking it down from the Kingdom level all the way to the County level how many towns there would be to prove his point.

Now I think the problem here is that Caspian used the term "town" interchangeably in the Q&As/Journals/KS to mean a town could be an actual town as well as "town" meaning a Hamlet all the way up to a Capital. This is why we are all confused.

I feel bad for poor SnipeHunter who has to be stuck in the middle of all this when most of the discussions took place before he started working for SBS.


Mayor of Funny Farms Inc.

8/24/2019 5:27:34 PM #35

Posted By Bodular at 08:37 AM - Sat Aug 24 2019

So it sounds like counts should also be restricted to only chooseing Town+ for there settlements?

I mean if we are assumeing that mayors can't take the last Town+ since it is a county seat, a hamlet by the water can't be chosen by a count and upgrade it since artaficially inflateing the town is bad.

Is this correct?

Isn't this already the case?

Posted By Joreel at 1:12 PM - Sat Aug 24 2019

Just my 2¢, but as I read it in the KS it did say Mayor's/Barons would be choosing towns and Caspian did say several times both in DM21 Gaming Q&As and in a Dev Journal the there would be more than enough towns to choose from. Caspian even went as far as breaking it down from the Kingdom level all the way to the County level how many towns there would be to prove his point.

Now I think the problem here is that Caspian used the term "town" interchangeably in the Q&As/Journals/KS to mean a town could be an actual town as well as "town" meaning a Hamlet all the way up to a Capital. This is why we are all confused.

I feel bad for poor SnipeHunter who has to be stuck in the middle of all this when most of the discussions took place before he started working for SBS.

Pretty much. When Caspian talked about there being enough towns he was talking about settlements of the various sizes.


8/25/2019 10:57:19 AM #36

When I bought the mayor package roughly two years ago, it was with the understanding that I would be getting a town sized settlement. If I do not, I am going to be royally pissed. After looking at the maps, there is no way that everyone who bought a mayor package will be getting a town. There just isn't enough on the map.

If you think I'm going to give you another $375 to get something that I have already paid for, you can screw off. I instantly regret giving you a single dime.


8/25/2019 11:48:44 AM #37

Posted By DoubleBlade at 06:57 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

When I bought the mayor package roughly two years ago, it was with the understanding that I would be getting a town sized settlement. If I do not, I am going to be royally pissed. After looking at the maps, there is no way that everyone who bought a mayor package will be getting a town. There just isn't enough on the map.

If you think I'm going to give you another $375 to get something that I have already paid for, you can screw off. I instantly regret giving you a single dime.

If you backed post Kickstarter, then it was readily apparent that you weren't guaranteed a town sized settlement. Also If you pay the $375 you also become a Count, which gives you broader authority and responsibility. So you certainly are getting what you paid for (so long as you pick a settlement). I feel for those who backed KS since their information was scant and they got the most optimistic of estimates, but if you bought in after you definitely shouldn't be as shocked.


8/25/2019 12:53:41 PM #38

The Kickstarter package actually specifies that you'd be a baron and rule over a town/stronghold and name it. The later they added more levels of mayoral pledges that referenced larger cities to rule over in the form of a magistrate and governor pack. It would be even more annoying to have paid $750 to be a governor only to be told sorry, you're just an elder in a village. Hope you can turn that into a capital sized city some day and become a real governor. It would be a bit like saying a count package doesn't make you a count, it just gives you a lot of land and the opportunity to grow that into a county.


8/25/2019 12:59:22 PM #39

Posted By DoubleBlade at 03:57 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

When I bought the mayor package roughly two years ago, it was with the understanding that I would be getting a town sized settlement. If I do not, I am going to be royally pissed. After looking at the maps, there is no way that everyone who bought a mayor package will be getting a town. There just isn't enough on the map.

If you think I'm going to give you another $375 to get something that I have already paid for, you can screw off. I instantly regret giving you a single dime.

Dude, whats wrong with a hamlet or a village? you still have full control over it and can upgrade into a town+ later, with EP or not

I'm sorry you have an issue with not being called a "mayor" exactly and arbitrary numbers(parcels and population), you put way too much expectation and entitlement on a game that is subject to change and hasn't even released pre-alpha yet

-Signed, a Mayor package holder who's perfectly fine getting a Hamlet or Village

Posted By Kaynadin at 05:53 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

It would be a bit like saying a count package doesn't make you a count, it just gives you a lot of land and the opportunity to grow that into a county.

You still get to pick a settlement at the end of the day, there isnt different levels of counties so that would never be an issue to a count


Mayor of Gartalia, A short distance south of the Holy Capital of Victrovia, Melonia - Friend Code: 464345

8/25/2019 1:37:33 PM #40

Posted By Kaynadin at 08:53 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

The Kickstarter package actually specifies that you'd be a baron and rule over a town/stronghold and name it. The later they added more levels of mayoral pledges that referenced larger cities to rule over in the form of a magistrate and governor pack. It would be even more annoying to have paid $750 to be a governor only to be told sorry, you're just an elder in a village. Hope you can turn that into a capital sized city some day and become a real governor. It would be a bit like saying a count package doesn't make you a count, it just gives you a lot of land and the opportunity to grow that into a county.

Keep in mind that each of those Mayor+ packages actually came with more stuff. A Manor or Villa, more EP (I'm pretty sure. Was awhile ago when I bought it) and of course the boost in IP from the purchase. It's not like you were promised a more prestigious settlement by default. And while it's unfortunate that some people didn't realize this going in, that isn't inherently the fault of SBS.


8/25/2019 4:20:07 PM #41

Posted By NightTarot at 07:59 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

Posted By DoubleBlade at 03:57 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

When I bought the mayor package roughly two years ago, it was with the understanding that I would be getting a town sized settlement. If I do not, I am going to be royally pissed. After looking at the maps, there is no way that everyone who bought a mayor package will be getting a town. There just isn't enough on the map.

If you think I'm going to give you another $375 to get something that I have already paid for, you can screw off. I instantly regret giving you a single dime.

Dude, whats wrong with a hamlet or a village? you still have full control over it and can upgrade into a town+ later, with EP or not

I'm sorry you have an issue with not being called a "mayor" exactly and arbitrary numbers(parcels and population), you put way too much expectation and entitlement on a game that is subject to change and hasn't even released pre-alpha yet

-Signed, a Mayor package holder who's perfectly fine getting a Hamlet or Village

Posted By Kaynadin at 05:53 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

It would be a bit like saying a count package doesn't make you a count, it just gives you a lot of land and the opportunity to grow that into a county.

You still get to pick a settlement at the end of the day, there isnt different levels of counties so that would never be an issue to a count

I think the root of the issue is that people thought that words had a set meaning when they backed. True, sbs didn't change what county meant between the Kickstarter and now but they could have said that county just meant control over X plots of land and you'll need to work to become an actual count. They didn't, but it's the closest parallel I could think of for the town/settlement argument.

Thought of another possible solution to free up towns. Once the count round is done all towns unlock to pick until there are only enough counties left to cover the late counts. At that point they lock again and the late counts pick from among the still available counties with towns in them.


8/25/2019 6:18:34 PM #42

Posted By Drunva at 07:48 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

Posted By DoubleBlade at 06:57 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

When I bought the mayor package roughly two years ago, it was with the understanding that I would be getting a town sized settlement. If I do not, I am going to be royally pissed. After looking at the maps, there is no way that everyone who bought a mayor package will be getting a town. There just isn't enough on the map.

If you think I'm going to give you another $375 to get something that I have already paid for, you can screw off. I instantly regret giving you a single dime.

If you backed post Kickstarter, then it was readily apparent that you weren't guaranteed a town sized settlement. Also If you pay the $375 you also become a Count, which gives you broader authority and responsibility. So you certainly are getting what you paid for (so long as you pick a settlement). I feel for those who backed KS since their information was scant and they got the most optimistic of estimates, but if you bought in after you definitely shouldn't be as shocked.

If it was readily apparent, I wouldn't have thought I was going to get a town after I dropped a few hundred bucks on a game that hasn't been released.Posted By NightTarot at 08:59 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

Posted By DoubleBlade at 03:57 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

When I bought the mayor package roughly two years ago, it was with the understanding that I would be getting a town sized settlement. If I do not, I am going to be royally pissed. After looking at the maps, there is no way that everyone who bought a mayor package will be getting a town. There just isn't enough on the map.

If you think I'm going to give you another $375 to get something that I have already paid for, you can screw off. I instantly regret giving you a single dime.

Dude, whats wrong with a hamlet or a village? you still have full control over it and can upgrade into a town+ later, with EP or not

I'm sorry you have an issue with not being called a "mayor" exactly and arbitrary numbers(parcels and population), you put way too much expectation and entitlement on a game that is subject to change and hasn't even released pre-alpha yet

-Signed, a Mayor package holder who's perfectly fine getting a Hamlet or Village

Posted By Kaynadin at 05:53 AM - Sun Aug 25 2019

It would be a bit like saying a count package doesn't make you a count, it just gives you a lot of land and the opportunity to grow that into a county.

You still get to pick a settlement at the end of the day, there isnt different levels of counties so that would never be an issue to a count

What's wrong with it is that I was told I was going to be a mayor of a town, not a village elder of a village or smaller. When I buy something, I expect to get the actual thing i paid money for.

The statement about it never being an issue to a count is completely irrelevant. I didn't buy a package for a count. I bought a package for a mayor saying I would have the title of "mayor" which would require that I have a town-sized settlement. That was the understanding, and that's what I bought.


8/25/2019 8:48:36 PM #43

Since counts will have already chosen before mayors start, I don't understand why a mayor cannot choose the only town+ in a county. The counts have had their chance already! So in a county with only a town and hamlet(s), the mayor has to take the hamlet and then if they want to buy the county in the reverse auction their little hamlet has to be promoted to a town (with a big impact on sustainability!). Why is this kind of gymnastics necessary?

And while I know it was not the intent, I don't like that there is a $375 work-around to this restriction.


8/25/2019 8:53:53 PM #44

Posted By Snipehunter at

Hi everyone!

I've seen quite a few threads from folks with mayor packages recently expressing some confusion about what the mayor package means and what sort of settlement you are supposed to pick, so I wanted to try to clarify that for you, if I can.

Here's how the mayor title works: When a mayor title holder selects a settlement, regardless of its size, they will become the chief executive of that settlement. This means that they will control the majority vote in settlements with voting arrangements, or they will hold the right to administrate the settlement if it uses a different system.

Many seem to think that a mayor must choose a town or they will lose something from their package. The confusion here comes from the fact that the name of the title is "Mayor" and there is also an honorific in the game that uses the same word. The difference is that the honorific "Mayor" is only applied to the chief executive of a town, while the mayor title applies to any player that purchased the right to govern a settlement.

So in that sense it's true that the elders of a hamlet or village aren't called "mayors," but that also means the "mayor" honorific doesn't apply to city or capital level settlement chief executives either, since settlements of those sizes use different honorifics as well. If we were to say that Mayor title holders could only be "Mayors" it would mean that mayor titles could only pick towns, which we certainly never wanted.

In other words, it was never our intention that the mayor title in your inventory would explicitly apply only to towns. You can see this in the description of the title in your inventory:

As that screenshot shows you, what you gain with the mayor title is explicitly stated:

  • You will name and govern a settlement
  • You will receive a cloak showing your status as a mayor title holder and your family crest
  • you will gain access to the crest making tool when it is available.

None of that changes no matter which size settlement you settle in. If you settle in a hamlet or village, you will become a elder with the majority vote in the settlement's council, giving you control over the settlement's political decisions. If you settle in a town you will become its "mayor" also giving you control over the settlement's political decisions. If you settle in a city you will become its magistrate, but again you will find yourself in control of the settlement's political decisions. And, finally, if you settle in a capital you will become its governor with, as you can probably guess at this point, control over its political decisions.

Each of these honorifics specify the same thing: You are governing the settlement.

However, while your personal benefits don't change based on the size of the settlement, the different settlement sizes do have different features associated with them. For example, the land management table is a feature of a town or larger sized settlement, so a mayor title holder that settles in a village or a hamlet will need to grow their settlement into a town to enable that feature.

What all of this boils down to in Domain and Settlement Selection is that a mayor can pick any sized settlement without losing anything from their package. There is, however, one rule that will restrict your choices: If the county you are picking your settlement from doesn't yet have a count you cannot pick the last Town+ sized settlement in the county. This does mean that in a county with two settlements, one town and one hamlet, a mayor could only pick the hamlet. But, on the other hand, it also means that in a county with a capital, a town, and 3 hamlets, nothing is stopping a mayor from picking the capital, and leaving the town for a potential count.

Hope that helps! :)

The first 6 words are: Begin the game as a Mayor. Not an Elder. Not some other variation. That's what was purchased, that's what needs to be delivered. People should not be required to invest time or resources into getting to the point they paid for.

You did not disclose that it could be a lesser title at the point of sale. It explicitly states that you start as a Mayor. If that means you have to drop a few buildings into someone's settlement, that's what you do. If you have to give EP equal to the value or those buildings so people can elect to drop them or not, that's what you do. If you put kits that can be redeemed at in-game vendors al la redeeming a pet or mount, that's what you do.

You sold it, now you're obligated to deliver it. What you meant doesn't matter, what you said at the point of sale matters.


Friend Code: 1C7762

8/25/2019 9:00:04 PM #45

I personally believe all Mayors are getting ripped off. I hope somehow they all can get what they were promised.

The fact that it says Mayor Titles that what it implies that they will be getting. Not an Elder. If I was them I would raise hell till the problem was fixed. Many people that respond saying its okay. You can get it turned into a town. Are the people who doesn't even effect.

Soul Bound Studios promised something. Then they are saying now that there a possibility that they wont be able to become Mayor because we worded things not in the best way for all of our backers.

That's just my opinion. Hopefully it does something if not it doesn't matter doesn't effect me anyways.


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