A Look at the Unseelie Code

Many people, well... everyone who commented on the Seelie post (in all three places it ended up...) wanted to see an Unseelie post, and seemed to think that I was going to turn the idea that the Unseelie Court is the evil one on its head. Sadly, the Unseelie Court is the evil one. This is not the fault of the Unseelie Code. The Unseelie code is no more evil than the Seelie code is good - BUT it is amoral in a way that those Fae born of darkness and nightmares are drawn to it.

In this post, I'll look at the code itself in "pure" terms, and then explain why such kith as Redcaps and Ogres thrill so much to the Winter Court.



Change is Good

Just as honor is important to the Seelie, change makes it to the number spot for the Unseelie. And not change for the better, or even change for the worse. Change for the sake of change. Imagine the most trendoid fashion-whore you can imagine. Now, imagine that guy who doesn't own any CDs because by the time he's made 20 bucks to buy something by his favorite band, he's bored with them and listening to the next new thing. Now, imagine the other guy who always is upgrading his computer and buying the newest high tech gadget because it's "cutting edge". And then imagine the person who closes their eyes in the voting booth and randomly selects who they vote for, because "they're all essentially the same anyway". Now, roll all these people into one. That is the purest embodiment of the Unseelie.

The Unseelie have a well-earned reputation for unreliability because changing your plans is good. Changing your mind is good. An Unseelie redcap may (as unlikely as this is because of their own kithain nature) get bored in the middle of torturing you and take you out for ice cream. He changed his mind. Unseelie courts barely resemble courts because every noble involved has changed the rules of courtly behavior to suit their own mood.

This love of change for the sake of change attracts those dark Fae souls who thrive on chaos. It doesn't take much of a push for whimsy to turn into a nightmare. Read an unabridged Alice in Wonderland some time...

Glamour is Free

This precept has done much to give the Unseelie their bad rap, because of the highly visible Ravagings some of the more impatient or cruel Unseelie perpetrate. One can easily see why a precept that essentially says, "Take what you want, it's free." can attract unsavory elements.

But what this also means is that an Unseelie is going to be giving glamour away like it's going out of style. Glamour is free - you shouldn't hoard it! That childling in the gutter needs some glamour to power his Moon Balloon? Hell, give him enough to make two! Glamour is free, man! No one can own glamour! A noble who holds strictly to the Unseelie Code will be one of the most staunch supporters of the Right of Safe Haven.

And since art is one of the surest well-springs of Glamour, look for many unseelie to be guerrilla artists. While a Seelie will be in a gallery, making traditionally "beautiful" paintings, the Unseelie is out on the streets creating grafitti art, decorating trees in the park, making sidewalk chalk mosaics. They will be getting the art out there. Charging someone for your art, and thus the glamour it makes, is as unthinkable to the Unseelie as not repaying a debt owed is for the Seelie - perhaps moreso...

Honor is a Lie

This is the other precept that attracts the most "evil". If you will not be held by Oaths, by traditional codes of behavior, by your word - you're free to do whatever you want. Claim undying friendship to your enemy to get close enough to stab him in the back. He was the idiot for believing your word of honor.

But, when not taken to this extreme, "Honor is a Lie" is not so terribly far off from modern 20th century situational ethics. Honor binds you to a course of action, honor removes the need for thought, honor can easily be used to justify injustice because of tradition. One should base their morality on a case by case basis. One should understand that mercy is oddly important to the mortals.

Bear in mind that in the ancient times when the Codes were, ah, codified, this was a horrifying thought. Situational ethics flew in the face of everything the Church taught, everything taught by the pagan philosophers, everything people knew of war. Why did the Faerie forgive this person but punish this person. It was the height of capriciousness and unpredictability - bringing us back to Change is Good. Just because we approve of it today, doesn't mean the Unseelie are better "people" for it.

Passion Before Duty

If you have an Unseelie noble over you, you'd best hope he gets his thrills from paperwork, or that he has a Seelie vizier - because otherwise, the day to day running of a fief isn't going to get done. A Seelie in love will do unthinkable things to please their lover, but at least he's honor bound to fulfill his responsibilities first. The Unseelie will do these unthinkable things, and then do them again rather than doing his duty. Because Passion is more important.

This aspect of the Unseelie can make them fun to be around, can make one's Unseelie nature a great release valve of emotion and desire. But, the Unseelie are the Winter Court. In the Winter, if one doesn't chop wood for the fire, one freezes. If one doesn't make sure you have all the sheep in the fold, starving wolves will eat them. Duty is important in the winter. Passion leads to people dying. Again, in these modern times, people are less likely to die from winter carelessness, but bearing in mind the times when fairy stories were made helps explain why the Unseelie got the reputation as the "evil" court.

And when your passion is scaring people or eating them - well, one might see why a darker soul wouldn't be put out by a court that places those desires above mowing the lawn or herding unicorns.