Founded: 127 H.E. by His Royal Majesty King Baird III of Tortall
First Lord Provost: Padraig of haMinch (127-143)
Use of the terms Dog, Puppy, Growl, seek, kennel, and related terms in the Guard became popular about fifty years after the founding of the Guard.
FOUR WATCHES
Day Watch: nine in the morning until five in the afternoon
Evening Watch: five in the afternoon until one in the morning
Night Watch: one in the morning until nine in the morning
Fourth Watch: covers each of the other three watches on their Court Days and off days
In most districts, the best of the guards are put on Day and Evening Watch, when there is the most activity on the streets. The slackers are given Night Watch, when the least amount of activity is going on. The only area that is different is the Lower City, where the Day Watch is less active as well. Evening Watch is busy there. So is Night Watch, but while no one will say so, the truth is that the criminals own the streets during Night Watch. The very worst guards have duty then. They are the ones who just don't care about the work, the ones who are regarded as expendable. Everyone knows it.
DISTRICTS
Corus's watch districts, interestingly, often (but not always) correspond to the way the Rogues divide the city for their own organization:
Highfields District
Prettybone District
Unicorn District
Palace District
Flash District
Upmarket District
Patten District
Temple District
The Lower City: Conditions are very different in the Lower City overall. Since it is the poorest area, the bribes are the lowest and so is the prestige. The casualty rate is the highest because it is the most violent part of the city. Most of the guards assigned there are regarded as not being bright or promising enough to make a good impression elsewhere. Even so, the elite guards of the Lower City are the most respected. They are also the toughest and the smartest.
CHAIN OF COMMAND
Lord Provost: governs the realm's districts
Deputy Provost: assists Lord Provost (one per region in Tortall)
Captain (District Commander)
Per District
Watch Commander
Watch Sergeant
Corporals (varies by district)
Senior Guards (varies by district)
Guards
Trainees
TRAINING
Formal training in 246: One year in school. There is no screening or testing to enter the training program. Trainees are simply required to pass the classes.
All guards are required to attend combat practice for their first four years of service.
WEAPONS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT
Primary weapon: Two-foot-long hardwood baton with lead core
Guards don't use swords: A sword is a killing weapon. The majority of reasons a guard uses a baton don't demand an intent to kill. Wielded properly, the baton can stop most swords. Also, swords require years of training for proper use, they are expensive and require extensive maintenance, and they can break just when they're most needed.
The law and bribery: Law enforcement is a loose affair, something that is still being created. A law-keeping force under the control of the national government is highly unusual. Most law-enforcement groups are formed and run by neighborhood associations, guilds, or individual cities, or they are part of the military. The members of the Provost's Guard, like such groups, have a great deal of discretion in whom they arrest, whether they take bribes, and whether they do the thing they have been bribed to do. Bribery is the standard way to ensure that the underpaid people who protect merchants remember individuals and, at times, overlook their behavior. (Too much of a history of taking bribes and not following through on them does get a guard killed. It is wise for a guard to do what he's bribed to do most of the time.)
Guards memorize the laws and rules they are taught in training. They learn the rest of their skills on the streets and from each other. Some guards are smarter than others. Some guards are more motivated than others. And they all make up police work as they go.