Criminal Punishment

Criminal Punishment

The severity of the punishment for a crime will depend on the crime, the victim, the accused, and the judge's reaction. Punishments are generally more severe in high-CR societies. Punishments might include:

• Fines or restitution.
• Public humiliation; e.g., the stocks (treat as a bad Reputation with those who witnessed the punishment).
• Prison sentences, sometimes at hard labor.
• Beating, stoning, flogging, etc.
• Branding (treat as a Social Stigma).
• Maiming – temporary or permanent.
• Deprivation of rights; e.g., loss of citizenship, loss of the right to carry weapons, or reduction in formal Status.
• Exile, temporary or permanent.
• Slavery, either to the government or to the victim of the crime.
• Imposition of a specific task or quest, possibly by a magical geas.
• Imposition of a psionic or magical bond or geas to make repeat offenses impossible.
• Combat in the arena (the worse the punishment, the worse the foe).
• Torture.
• Execution (not too useful in game terms, except as a threat to force the party to take immediate action to rescue the prisoner).