Status

Status
In the towns and cities that have Camaraderies (many don’t, even now) Camaraderie Status normally reflects reputation among the local Hopeful, not an official position; Camaraderie Status 5 implies a Noble spends a lot of time helping and guiding other Hopeful and can expect their gratitude when she’s in trouble herself. As a rule, then, that form of Status generally provides services (time donated by local Nobles) and not material or magical resources - Camaraderies haven’t been around long enough to build up private funds or collect magical objects. On the other hand, there’s nothing whatsoever keeping a Beacon or Sworn from having Camaraderie Status at any level. All that’s required is being well-known and generally respected by the local Hopeful.

With one exception, the Hopeful don't have organizations with a regional or global scope, so there’s no such thing as a Status for the Radiant or individual Queens - but that exception is a doozy. Alhambra, the seat of the Last Empress, has a status system of Byzantine complexity, small outposts scattered all over the world, and collections that have been maintained and expanded for millennia. A Noble of Tears, unless she’s broken with the City entirely, will have Alhambra Status almost forced on her, and access to the resources of a small city-state that’s existed for all recorded history.

A character with Alhambra Status can requisition services, or the temporary use of some Merits. This uses a system like the Resources Merit; the Storyteller sets an Availability rating for things the character can requisition, and she treats her Status as if it were Resources when she asks for them. Availability ratings assume the service or Merit will be assigned on a temporary basis, for a single story. The city assumes she’ll return it when done with it, or make amends if it’s destroyed or lost. The typical Merits available from Alhambra are Anonymity, Library, Mentor, Retainer, Safe Place and Staff from the CofD core; and Bequest and Mandate from this book.

Alhambra even has Bequests in its stockpile which were made before the Kingdom fell, and can’t be replicated now because they used Invocations that no longer exist. These Bequests are far harder to obtain than their power levels would suggest, precisely because they are irreplaceable; the Storyteller should set their Availability ratings at least 2 dots higher than Bequests of extant Charms.