Music for the ArticleHeroes like the Ignored Expert have a hard enough time dealing with idiotic peasants, but their deepest problems invariably come from the antagonistic local authorities, who are dead set on ignoring their warnings and running them out of town because it's politically expedient.
Which makes the existence of The Arbiter all the rarer. Fully aware that Machiavelli Was Wrong, he'll listen to those "crazy kids" when they say there's a fugitive nearby, and actually logically consider their arguments and not discard them out of hand. However, their openness to the heroes' ideas doesn't mean they'll follow Agent Mulder's crazy ideas blindly. Often, they'll ask for proof and facts rather than follow baseless accusations, but even then, they'll usually humor the heroes and go check out their theories; whether it pans out or turns into a dead end depends on how far along the story is.
Usually Lawful Good. The Arbiter is generally the person characters must Bring News Back to. And the chain of command that goes past the basic Command Roster. The Rebellious Rebel is motivated by loyalty to him.
Noteworthy because, if the hero does manage to convince them, can help Fighting For Survival. But they may have to cause destruction as part of their position. Being in a position where you are responsible for millions and requires massive skill.
May present The Hero and his companions with valuable gifts before The Quest or as a reward afterward.
Of course, their position means that they can often end the story very quickly unless other obstacles intervene. Which means they usually do intervene.
1. The Arbiter is made inaccessible by Bureaucrat and an Evil Chancellor who has it in for the heroes, trying to stop them getting an audience or outright lying to destroy their arguments and reputation. Barring this, The Arbiter might just be plain busy, overworked, or under-funded and might not have the time or resources to adequately solve the hero's problem as quickly as he or she would like.
2. A young ruler (usually hereditary) may have difficulty either getting to the heroes to listen, or asserting his theoretical authority. Usually they are surrounded by manipulative "guardians" out to start pointless wars.
Thu Feb 21, 2013 1:34 pm
