Formal address
by Gahalla Defias Brotherhood.
Formal adress is how you refer to people when on duty or in formal occasions, such as international meetings and such. It often looks very fancy and can give roleplaying a slightly proffesional atmosphere... but how exactly do one use formal adress?
Everyone is no doubt familiar with sir/madam/mr/miss/mrs, but which ones are to be used for individuals in official positions?
I thought I'd compile a list for this purpose, a help in finding out how to adress each others and important npcs. Most of these will apply to the alliance and the forsaken and Blood elves. I'm not sure if the other horde races would use them.
This is no more than a suggestion for a tool. Not to force anything on anyone.
Monarchs
Monarchs are typically referred to as "Royal majesty" followed by their tile and first name and an indication to which monarch of this name it is. Family name is only ever included when reciting the full set of titles. When speaking to the monarch the adress is "your Royal Majesty"
His/her Royal Majesty <main title> <Name>, first/second/third/etc. of that name
Examples:
His Royal Majesty King Varian, first of that name
Your Royal Majesty
His Royal Majesty King Magni, first of that name
Your Royal Majesty
Her Royal Majesty Queen ****, first of that name
Your Royal Majesty
A special case would be Sylvanas, the banshee queen. The forsaken would probably put their own spin on it and I suggest:
Her Eternal Majesty Queen Sylvanas
Your Eternity
Another special case would be the Regent-lord of Quel'Thalas, Lor'Themar Teron. He isn't king (yet) and as such cannot be adressed as neither Royal nor Majesty. Instead he should be adressed as Regent lord and highness.
His Highness Lord-Regent Lor'Themar Teron
Your Highness
Royalty
When refering to non-ruling members of royalty, the adress is Royal Highness followed by title and name. Here the given name and the surname is to be used. No distinction is made between heirs and members who will not inherit
His/her Royal Highness <Main title> <First name> <Surname>
Examples:
His Royal Highness Prince Anduin Wrynn
Your Royal Highness
Her Royal Highness Princess Moira Bronzebeard
Your Royal Highness
His Royal Highness Prince Throran Trollbane
Your Royal Highness
Elected leaders and councillors
First up here we have the High tinkerer, which is the only elected soverreign in Azeroth. He is essentially a president, possibly elected king if he actually sits for life (but nothing indicates this at all). Typically elected leaders would be refered to as excellency or serenity, but I wonder if brilliance wouldn't fit better for gnomes. Seeing that they're elected based on their inventions.
So:
The Most Brilliant High Tinkerer Gelbin Mekkatorque
Your Brilliance
Continuing with gnomes, the members of the Tinker's court would be referred to as Honourable Gearholders followed by their surname. This is especially important among gnomes since many of them earn their surname, rather than being born with it. In Oral adress they can be refered to as both the moniker or the title So:
The Honourable Gearholder <Surname>
Example:
The Honourable Gearholder Aerovelociticator II
Her Honour Gearholder Aerovelociticator II
Your Honour "or" Gearholder (Joliwa, in case anyone wonders)
The dwarven senators are refered to as Senators, sometimes in referential adress their function is added as well. It is their clanname which one is supposed to use. The High chancellor is an exception in that the adress is Excellency
Senator <Surname/clanname>
or
Senator-Justice - High Judge
Senator-Constable - arms
Senator-Marshall - war
Senator-Ambassador - Foreign relations
Senator-Reverend - religion
Senator-Legislator - Law
Senator-Elder - Hearth
Examples:
Senator Irondawn "or" Senator-Marshall Irondawn
Senator
His Excellency High Chancellor Dragonback
Your Excellency (Drengi)
Stormwind ministers, like their gnomish and dwarven counterparts are refered to with their surnames and as Honourable ministers. The exception is possibly the minister of war who could possibly be refered to as High Constable.
The honourable minister <Surname>
High Constable <Surname>
Example:
The Honourable Minister Taylen
Her Honour Minister Taylen
Your Honour (Lilath)
High Constable Angelos
High Constable (Geldar)
Religious leaders and priests
The church of the Holy Light, unlike the christian church, does not preach of a all powerful creator but of inner divinity and following a path of betterment. As such father is not a very appropriate adress in my meaning. Instead I suggest using guidance for priests, grace for bishops and illuminated for the Archbishop. Again, surnames
Examples:
Her guidance Laurena
Your Guidance
His Grace Bishop Withertorpe (Fortesgue)
Your Grace
The Illuminated Archbishop Faol
Your Illumination
In the sisterhood of Elune, the title is probably priestess or high priestess followed by the surname. The oral address is Sister for all members of the priesthood and the sentinel. Except in Tyrande's case, where it is High Priestess. To every non-member of the orders the oral address is Priestess(or in the rare male cases: priest).
Priestess <Name>
Examples:
High Priestess Whisperwind
High Priestess
Military
Quite simple, most of us already know. Rank and Surname. In the case where the rank is unknown, it is customary to assume it is higher than yours and thus use sir/ma'am.
<Rank> <Surname>
Example:
High Marshall Thunderbelly
Sir (lower rank), High marshall (Higher or equal rank) (Dorik)
Knights are of course refered to according to their noble title. Either the surname or the fief may be used.
Ducal Highness (dukes)
Highness (counts, viscounts, margraves, earls)
Lordship (Lords, barons and other landowning lower nobility titles)
Sire (non-landowning noble)
The Sentinels also use Sister between one another, to a non-sentinel however the adress is Sentinel.
Nobility
The nobility has an entire repertoaire of addresses to use. Virtually impossible to summarize or generalise. In broad strokes however one can summarize the system with 5 levels of nobility. Royalty (which was covered above), Dukes and princes (non-royal princes that is), high nobility, low nobility and knights. Peerage, as the system is called, is essentially a pyramid or ladder in the same style as corporate ladders or military chain of command. The higher up you are, the more responsibility you have and thus a special address is required.
Dukes and Princes (and highlord), the princely titles as they are called, are refered to by others as Highnesses. The head of the house is always refered to by first name and/or the name of their fief. If only the latter is used, ducal or princely is added before highness (both genders). The other members of his family (and not the entire house) are refered to by by title, name and house name (surname).
Note: Only the head of the house, his/her consort and his/her heir may be titles duke/duchess/prince/princess. The other familymembers will still be styled highness but without the title, as long as they still serve that house (more on that below).
Noone ever loses the title though, so the duke's mother is still duchess even if her husband (the duke's father) is dead.
His/her Ducal/Princely Highness or His/her highness <name>, the duke/duchess/prince/princess of <fief>
His/her Highness, <title> <name> of house <housename>
Example:
His Highness Thorain, duke of Redridge "or" His Ducal Highness Redridge
Your highness
Her Highness, the duchesss Sarah of house Redridge
Your highness (the couple is made up by me as an example)
The higher nobility can neatly be summed up as any noble who has more land than can be crossed in a single day. They are direct vassals to princes or dukes (or to the king, who practically is a duke or prince who have the fealty of other dukes and princes). The most commonly known of these titles is the count. They are referred to as Highnesses, but with no style (such as royal, ducal, princely) in front. For the head of the house it is first name followed by title, for the other members of the family it is title and name followed by house name.
Note: Only the head of the house, his/her spouse and heir (and previous holders of the title) is referred to with the title itself. The others remain highnesses as long as they remain in that house.
His/her Highness, <first name> count/margrave/viscount of <fief>
His/her Highness, the <title> <name> of house <house name>
Example:
Her Highness Anora, countess of Eastvale
Your Highness
His Highness count James of House Eastvale
Your Highness
His Highness, Hafver of House Eastvale
Your Highness
The lower nobility are entrusted with the running of important keeps, fortresses and settlements. They are always appointed, but most lower noble titles are de facto heriditary (and their liege just confirms it when it is inherited). The style is Lordship or ladyship followed by title, name and housename. Again, same rule applies that it is only the head of the house, his/her spouse and the heir which hold the actual title.
His/her lordship/ladyship, <title> <name> of house <housename>
Example:
His Lordship, baron Garon of House Stormcrow
Your Lordship
Landless nobles, are all those nobles who will not inherit or who have been promoted to nobility but not given any land. They are the lowest of in rank regardless of birth, but many heirless sons/daughters of dukes tend to have consierable influence and are often given a county or such within their fathers/mothers realm. The style is the same as their parents as long as they remain in that house, but most seek service within other houses as retainers. Serving another house as knights.
Their style then becomes Sir/Dame followed by name and then knight followed by which house or realm they serve. The latter depends on how they serve, a knight can serve as a personal guard of a noble at which point it is house name that is refered to. Or they can serve by helping to administer and protect the fief, at which point the style is of the fiefs name (collectively known as knights of the realm).
Knights can also serve in the kings army at which point the style ends with "knight in the King's service" or in a knightly order, such as the Silver Hand, at which point they are refered to as knight of "the order"
Sir/Dame <name>, knight of house <housename>
Sir/Dame <name>, knight of <fief>
Sir/Dame <name>, knight in the King's service/ of <order>
Example:
Sir Rakhor, Knight of House Stormcrow
Sir
There's also a special number of addresses within a house. The retainers, which include the knights, the artisans employed by the house, the stewards, the tax collectors, the justicars, the head of the household, the chamberlain, the huntsmaster, the master of arms (chief weapons instructor), the master of horse (chief riding instructor), the head-servants and anyone else with a voice of authority in the employ of the house may all adress each others as sir/madam and are to be addressed with "milord and milady" by the house's subjects (the ones living on your land) and servants (the ones in the employ of the retainers).
The noble family itself may also be adressed as "milord and milady" by their subjects, servants and retainers and the head of the house is "my liege"... when responding. Formal address is used in greetings.
"Good morning" "Good morning your highness" "Nice weather today" "Yes, milord"
Vassals address their lieges as "my liege" but noone else. A count may not address the kings as "my liege" unless he is his direct liege.
Another note is that a noble house is first and formost an insitution and a family second. Calling your parents father and mother once you are of age (age seven and up) is considered very inappropriate and very informal. It is accepted if you respond to a direct order ("yes, father") but addressing them as "father" or "mother" in a greeting publicly is very frowned upon.
On a day to day basis, at home, with noone else there noone will care. In court, in the field or when you have guests however....
Magi
There's three main "ranks" of magi, the apprentice, the mage and the archmage. The apprentice has no particular adress, but magi and archmagi do. A magi, which by definition is a fully trained mage, is refered to as magus. An Archmage however is refered to as arcane Magnificence. As usual, it's surnames that is to be used
Magus <surname>
His/her Arcane Magnificence
Example:
His Arcane Magnificence Vargoth
Your Magnificence
The Sin'Dorei have their own style, as is only befitting for elves, based around magister/magistrix. Fully trained mages and warlocks, that belong to the magisters (which would be most of them, would be as magisters for males and magistrix (magistrices in plural) for women. Followed by surname.
Example:
Magister Selamne
Magister
Credit goes to Kristeas for the Sin'Dorei titles.
Justice
Naturally, the juridiciary branch of society has its own form. All judges are Honourable Judges. I don't think anyone is surprised if I say that one is supposed to use surnames here.
Honourable judge <Surname>
Example:
The Honourable judge Tomebinder
Your Honour (Terenor)
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Subject: Formal Address 
Fri Jul 27, 2012 12:29 am