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[Akrasjel Lanate]

I was wondering how high position in Amarr society can a person achieve, taking in account few thing and that he is:
- True Amarr
- Ni-Kunni or Khanid
- Free Minmatar(from the day of his birth)
- Ex-slave Minmatar, Ni-kunni or other
- Foreigner from Federation or State(im specially interested at this one  )

Does the Amarr religion plays a big factor in it.

[Louella Dougans]

True Amarr would depend on their family background as nobility/commoners. Commoners can be granted a minor noble title by the relevant superiors (Heirs etc.) for righteous service. Minor nobles may also be elevated, or may plot and scheme with marriages into higher social ranks.

The head of the Amarr Navy is a Ni-Kunni.

Don't know about Khanid offhand.

Free minmatar would be commoners. Not sure what opportunities would be present. However, the Ammatar Fleet has minmatar officers.

Ex-slaves and foreigners probably would be commoners. It's then all about wealth and social manoeuvring as to their effective position. Wealth and Influence make up for non-noble titles, that sort of thing.

[Seriphyn]

Unlike the State, I expect foreigners in the Empire to be given an easier time, though they are monitored by the Ministry of Internal Order.

The current Federation Head Senator was educated at Hedion University, I always imagined rich Gallenteans going there.

[Lyn Farel]

The Amarr Navy wants you.

Despite this black mark to the Navy's record, it remains a powerful fleet inside the Empire. Citizens with military records are held in high regard in Amarr culture, and families with a long history of military service elevate themselves within Amarr society. The Navy offers one of the few ways that someone can raise themselves from poverty. The fleet is remarkably non-discriminatory for an Amarr institution, accepting personnel from all bloodlines. Many people of Udorian, Ni-Kunni, and even Minmatar birth have served with distinction within the Navy.

Everyone can ascend the social ladder by taking part in the navy just because it is central to the amarrian society (its a symbol). Even minmatars and so on can get high ranks in the navy, even if they will obviously face a lot of hardships and difficulties for it. Eventually, I am not sure if it can lead to a commoner (especially a foreigner) to get a minor Holder title at some point, but I am quite sure it can happen, because despite their origins, freed slaves or foreign commoners having lived with their families for decades in the Empire are imperial citizens.

[Sinjin Mokk]

A Person of Khanid blood would probably be slightly ahead of the pecking order than a Ni-Kunni. A Udorian would be at the bottom.

However, Khanid who are born, raised and support the Kingdom, would be a step or two lower and may face some degree of predjudice at the hands of "True" Amarr. Khanid Navy ranks would be equal to Imperial Navy ranks, but a Khanid officer would be marginalized in many situations. For example, a True Amarr lieutennant might be offered the command of a captured vessel instead of a Khanid captain.

Social status would also depend on which House or Heir is currently the most successful. Kor Azor vs Tash Murkon for example.

Religeous rank is a factor also.

Slaves would also have a social structure among themselves too, I'd imagine.

Capsuleers are the fly in the ointment. I'd think that they would all have some kind of "rock star" status among the commoners and lower nobility. Higher nobility might resent their quick rise to power and try to boss them around based on secular or temporal status. ("I don't care how long you've been an infomorph boy, you're still in the presence of the fifth Duke of Osris and you will act accordingly.")

[Saede Riordan]

I see the Amarr empire's rank system as basically mirroring that of the Victorian era british empire. At the top of the system are the nobles, whose position is granted by god and empire, they who have a 'proper breeding' it would be seen as highly scandalous for them to wed someone of lower status. This would continue down the social totem poll until it hit the commoners. the commoners would be lower on the pecking order, regardless or race, wealth, or upbringing. It doesn't matter who they are, or where they come from, or how much cash they have, they aren't a part of the societal elite, and their social mobility is almost never going to put them inside that noble class. This would lead to a sort of dichotomy, of 'old power' and 'new wealth' with those two groups competing for interests.

[Ken]

I don't think race has much to do with it unless the person you're asking is a member of an elite noble house very conscious of its True Amarrian ancestry.  The Tash-Murkons are Udorians and are technically in a position to take the throne at any time should Jamyl expire.  Keep in mind that even the purest True Amarrian can fall into slavery for sin and many races have over time risen to great heights of power in the Empire.

This is how I see the society being structured in terms of status:

God
Emperor
Imperial Heirs
Holders\Theology Council
Minor Nobles\High Administrators\Senior Clergy
Officers\Civil Servants\Priesthood (semi-noble Imperial servants)
Soldiers\Merchants\Technical Experts (the wealthy tier of commoners)
Artisans\Skilled Labor (doing well, but still generations away from greatness)
Free Commoners (risen from the ranks, but not going very far) Free Commoners
Corvee Servants (not slaves, just working on "indefinite indenture") Corvee Servants
Slave Gentry Slave Gentry Slave Gentry (more servant than slave) Slave Gentry Slave Gentry Slave Gentry
Slave Labor Slave Labor Slave (slaves worth keeping alive, healthy, and breeding) Labor Slave Labor Slave Labor
Chattel Slaves Chattel Slaves Chattel Slaves Chattel Slaves (whips, chains, vitoc, and dangerous mining duty) Chattel Slaves Chattel Slaves Chattel Slaves Chattel Slaves

Foreigners, in the sense of modern people coming to the empire for travel or business, would probably be treated with due suspicion but also a good deal of respect and hospitality.  Those who chose to make a living in the Empire would probably fall into the Artisans\Skilled Labor or perhaps even the Solders\Merchants\Technical Experts tiers on the above diagram.

Capsuleers are a strange creature.  Where they fall into this scheme would depend on their status from pre-capsuleer days.  Were they of military origin?  Noble?  Wealthy commoners?  In some sense I imagine that a pilot's social status would not change even though they occupy a drastically different place in life once those implants go in and ships start flying.  A pilot from a minor house would perhaps still be expected to show due respect to his or her family's liege or else risk causing trouble for kin and risking the family's good name.  I imagine that outside the pyramid-shaped thing described above there might be satellite social groups that stand apart from the strata for one reason or another.  Perhaps a certain class of priests like the Speakers of Truth or modern capsuleer pilots would be ranked in such non-rankable space and perpetually treated with "kid gloves" by all levels of mainstream Imperial society.

[Sinjin Mokk]

I think the last two pretty much hit it dead-on. British Victorian/Edwardian era with a dash of pre-revolution French aristocracy.

Capsuleers might also be something of a fad too. The greater families might pull strings to get a family member or two into a capsuleer program while all the best parties would have a capsuleer there as a conversation piece.

One note though. From what I've read I think the Speakers of Truth would fit in somewhere in the same tier as the heirs. They seem to be pretty much above everyone.

[Tiberious Thessalonia]

I've pretty much handled Tib's past that way.  His family were wealthy commoners, and they could play politics within that class, while they worked towards earning their way to something more.  Tib was enrolled in a capsuleer academy, with the knowledge that it was a double edged sword.  On one hand, its quite prestigious and it was expected to make the family quite wealthy and famous, but along with that would come quite a bit of infamy.

[Matariki Rain]

From what I've read I think the Speakers of Truth would fit in somewhere in the same tier as the heirs. They seem to be pretty much above everyone.

I think of them as more like auditors than part of the usual structure.

[lallara zhuul]

You don't enroll to a capsuleer training program.

The genetic flaw is detected, you get shanghaied into the program.
Each and every society has their way of dealing with it through cultural means.
In more nationality minded societies its the ultimate duty to the God/State/Tribe/Federation.
In the more individual minded societies its the epitome of personal development that makes you super duper extra special.

In each of the empires you think you have a choice, but your upbringing and the people around pretty much force you into the capsuleer program.

You're literally one in a million that can tip the scales of power in your empires favor when it comes to the power games between the factions.

Amarrians would probably have the most capsuleers, but they do not even test those that are not high enough in the societal hierarchy to be socialized enough to not run off to join their enemies.
Unfortunately at the moment is seems like those that are in charge of selecting the capsuleer material from the masses have failed phenomenally, most of the capsuleers from the Empire are corrupted by the other factions and their ideologies. Too bad that the Empire reacts so slowly, something will be done about this trend, but it will probably take a few centuries for it to actually come into effect.

At the moment within the Empire you religious status is meaningless, your piety, following the Scriptures, dedication of your life to God... completely meaningless.

Only status you can gain through religious means is through tradition and the hierarchy set in the traditions of the Empire, at the moment CCP is happy to paint the Empire as a place where everyone knows that the whole religion is a hoax and even the religious authorities do not follow their own rules.

Only exceptions to this are the few religious orders that we're around before the Moral Reforms, the Apostles, the Tetrimon and the Speakers of Truth. The religious masses (the poor fools) still give these people authority because there are hundreds of billions of people that believe in them.

The race thing... It is a big thing.

Not because of racism, it is because your bloodline shows how long you and yours have been in the service of the God and the Empire. Partially it is the indicator of how much you can trust for the person that you are dealing with to work in the same framework of societal rules, partially it is about getting ahead in the Empire. A natural way to strengthen your family is to marry among your peers or to a higher standing within the Empire. Outsiders and those bloodlines that have been freed from slavery 'recently' compared to bloodlines that have been in the service of the Empire for 15000 years have that marriage thing taken off the table immediately.

Comparing the Khanid and Udorians is a bit hard.
Udorians have been integrated into the True Amarrian bloodline, while the Khanid are a separate bloodline of their own.
Khanid were Reclaimed while Udorians were integrated.
It's a bit of a muddle.

Enough of rambling my views, better go get some breakfast.

[Mithfindel]

Surely Khanid were integrated, and Udorians Reclaimed?

In any case, I'd assume that piety in itself doesn't matter (for a good enough actor, no one can know the "level of faith"). However, since church bureaucracy = Imperial bureaucracy, the person's position in the church is almost as important as his secular "caste". There's likely glass ceilings ("you have to be a noble to become a bishop") and so on, but I'd assume that serving the Faith well might be able to elevate a person into a higher caste. (Yes, even make one a Heir, if you happen to belong to high nobility and your house happens to be named "Ardishapur".)

Of course, this means that the Church is a battleground. A monastery is not a place where noble families send their black sheep to be out of eyes, out of mind. The smartest child might be prepared to take care of the family property, but the next-smartest is going to be either a soldier or a priest and an important piece in the Great Game the Holders play. There likely are a great number of religious orders, some of which may grant specific rights and privileges - for example, if your grand-grandson sits two rows ahead of the rival family's whelp in the service, holding that big candle, he might get to speak with higher-ranking people. Assuming he doesn't end up as their little plaything and dead, might secure your family a mighty patron (and some money). Or possibly both, where the family gets some favours from the Holder for whom the kid with the bad luck died for.

[Ulphus]

In each of the empires you think you have a choice, but your upbringing and the people around pretty much force you into the capsuleer program.

You're literally one in a million that can tip the scales of power in your empires favor when it comes to the power games between the factions.

So why do they let the pilots have a choice about their alliegances? Why don't they keep tabs on them more, exert more control?

From the Epic Arc "Call to Trial" mission
"I want you to go out there, meet Taphos, and kill him in combat. We've shut off access to his clones, so he won't be coming back."

Which suggests that for NPCs at least, people who are irritating enough can have access to clones revoked...

So why don't they do that to PCs?

[Casiella]

Because of Bellisario's Maxim, of course!

[Yoshito Sanders]

Surely Khanid were integrated, and Udorians Reclaimed?

Ethnic Udorians don't exist any more, while Khanid do. The Udorians are indistinguishable from True Amarrians. Separating the Udorians from the True Amarrians would be a little bit like trying to separate the pre-historical tribes of Italy from modern Italians. Essentially the only reason it ever gets brought up is because the Empire has great record keeping, especially for its more prominent families. So if 10000 years ago, your ancestor married an Udorian, well, it's written down in the Book of Names or whatever.