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Harmonium

Once the Guvners got the other factions to accept their guidance in the creation of the Sigilian Calendar, they essentially had a blank check to set up the year how they saw fit. Thus, in Accordant, they continued the theme of Law that had been established in Regula. The Fraternity of Order honored both one of their allies and the legal system of the Cage by assigning the Harmonium to be this month's sponsor. And the Harmonium takes great pains to ensure that the attitudes of law, order, and harmony are promoted and enforced throughout the middle of the Cage's Spring.

With the Harmonium in symbolic control, Accordant is very much the month of Order. As with Regula, this month's sponsor faction makes extra effort and rededicates itself to its cause. The faction is out in full force during this month, recalling many of its planar members to help double both the strength and frequency of its patrols in Sigil. It is almost impossible to avoid the Hardheads as they seem to be everywhere a body looks - even the Hive. Of course, this presence is still a mere token display. The Hive squads (known as "Dirt Patrols" to the more junior factioneers; known as "A Damn Nuisance" or simply "Fresh Meat" to the residents) are only active during the day and even then only on the edges of the ward. The Harmonium stresses conformance to the laws of the Cage, and is very aggressive about enforcing all of Sigil's laws. As a result, the sheer number of relatively minor infractions and the scragging of relatively innocent people tends to replace the backlog of cases in the City Courts which had been eliminated during Regula. The Hardheads put just as much effort into recruiting as they do enforcing. Touts are paid to mention the good works of the faction to visitors. Posters and leaflets for the literate are plastered across Sigil, while criers are hired to advertise informational meetings and induction opportunities for the less learned. Many people suspect that the Harmonium is rather over zealous with its efforts to obtain new members for the faction. Rumors abound about special "recruiting squads" that patrol the City of Doors looking for Primes that can be "drafted" into the cause. 

Sigil appears very quiet and peaceful during Accordant. Events are no longer as regulated as they were in the previous month, but surprises and other disruptions are rare. People are more tolerant of other viewpoints, while bigotry and racial hatreds are muted. This is not to say that every one gets along like one big happy family, but beings are more likely to cooperate with one another and talk things out, rather than resort to violence. However, all of this peaceful harmony is only an illusion. Those few chaotic residents of Sigil that stood their ground in Regula have packed up and left. Even the lawfully inclined baatezu retire from the Cage as the Hardheads are much more likely to notice their legal manipulations and improprieties during this month. For the more lawful, tolerant, and self-possessed residents that remain, the Cage takes on a more polite, almost friendly, atmosphere. It is without a doubt forced - but a canny cutter takes what he can get. Although 'polite' is the word most often spoken, 'peery' is far more accurate. The main reason why everyone in Sigil is so friendly is that no one knows for certain if the person on the other end of the conversation is a Hardhead sympathizer looking to turn them in for breaking some little-known law. 

Events[]

Factol's Day of Accordant is a time for great celebration - at least, it is for the Hardheads. The day follows a similar schedule to that of the Guvners and begins with a muster of all faction members in the Cage. Assembling at the Barracks, they gather to hear a rousing speech by the factol, who reminds them of their "great duty to bring Harmony to the multiverse" as well as the faction's past successes. After this self-inflating ritual, promotions and special awards are granted to those most deserving of them. The Day's festivities conclude at Peak with the start of a parade of the bulk of the faction's members throughout the whole of Sigil. (Note that this is one of the few times that the Harmonium willingly and openly enters the Hive Ward.) Once the march is complete, the members of this faction spend the rest of the day in contemplation; mentally preparing themselves for the hard work ahead of them during the rest of the month. 

Accordant has close to the least number of public events of the entire year. Part of this is due to the reduced population of the City of Doors; the citizens that are left are more content to work and wait for the month the end than to celebrate anything. The Harmonium encourages people to schedule speeches and rallies and the like; provided they meet with certain standards, of course. Naturally, only faction members or those who are sympathetic their point of view take them up on the offer. The vast majority of the approved events thus belong to either the Harmonium, or to certain religions groups. The powers which prefer to hold holy days in Accordant oversee the spheres of Harmony, Order, or Control. 

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