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It is a monarch's court where the [[Pride|powerful, yet humble]] [[Blue Blood|nobles]] gather to make decisions [[Aristocrats Are Evil|for the common good.]] Unlike the [[Standard Royal Court]] where the [[Royals Who Actually Do Something|"royals" spend their time idly]], the Deadly Decadent Court is quite serious about its work; [[Evil Tastes Good|taking no pleasure]] in ensuring [[The Hedonist|decadence]] is outside of the judicial courts, hence the name.
 
They stem from [[Big Screwed -Up Family|esteemed houses]] with [[Royally Screwed Up|an ancient and deserving history]] who [[Feuding Families|work together]] in their effort [[Obstructive Bureaucrat|to best serve]] [[The Caligula|their beloved king]], [[God Save Us From the Queen|his gentle consort]], and [[The Dung Ages|beautiful country]] -- doing [[Cold -Blooded Torture|whatever is needed]] to quell [[La Résistance|threats to it]], [[Rich Boredom|however wearisome it is]]. They're all [[Brother -Sister Incest|like brothers and sisters]], though they must [[Chronic Backstabbing Disorder|resolve]] [[Divided We Fall|occasional conflicts]]. Their work is made all the easier since they [[Consummate Liar|never lie]], much less [[Betrayal Tropes|betray]] each other. (There is [[Defector From Decadence|an occasional odd-ball though.]] Plus some who [[Home Sweet Home|sulk]] in [[Arcadia|their ramshackle country homes]] -- but they're [[Good Is Old -Fashioned|old fogeys]].)
 
Of course, a certain [[Ermine Cape Effect|sense of decorum]], [[Make Up Is Evil|beauty]], [[The Dandy|elegance]], and [[Pimped -Out Dress|style]] is [[Dress Code|expected]] of all [[Fish Out of Water|newcomers]] who want to [[Propaganda Machine|uphold this proud tradition]], and if one isn't able to, they know it's their duty to [[Stealth Insult|discreetly but clearly explain customs to them.]] After all, even their [[Malicious Slander|casual conversation]] is often [[Feed the Mole|about matters of import]], and they must [[Arranged Marriage|consider their children's future]]. They do [[Compliment Backfire|expect manners]], though their [[The Beautiful Elite|artless dignity]] is often hard to imitate. And their [[Religion of Evil|piety]] is unquestionable.
 
But it's not all just work here. With their [[Wicked Cultured|exquisite taste]], the court is [[Evil Is Stylish|quite charming.]] An occasional [[Masquerade Ball]], [[A Fete Worse Than Death|feast]], or [[Gladiator Games|other festivity]] help them relax after a hard day of fulfilling their duty to their [[Gullible Lemmings|loyal citizens]] is done.
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[[Sub Trope|One type]] of [[Standard Royal Court]]. Sometimes only portions of a court are like this, such as when the decadence congregates about an evil [[Evil Chancellor|chancellor]] or [[Evil Prince|prince]].
 
{{examples|Examples}}
 
== Anime and Manga ==
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* ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'' has the deadliest court in modern American fantasy. In a [[Crapsack World]] where seven powers duke it out to gain control of the realm, [[Magnificent Bastard|Magnificent Bastards]], [[Smug Snake|Smug Snakes]] and [[Byronic Hero|Byronic Heroes]] trade [[Xanatos Gambit|gambits]] like they're in a pillow fight. And ''[[God Save Us From the Queen]]''...
* The nobles from the ''[[Bitterbynde]]'' books. The heroine, being a borderline [[Mary Sue]], makes a few faux pas and has to run away when her pretense gets discovered -- but of course till then she's been the most graceful and beautiful of women at court as well as a thousand times ''purer'' than these cruel, superficial twits.
* The royal court from the ''[[Chronicles of Amber]]'', basically a [[Big Screwed -Up Family]] and their lackeys. So much backstabbery your brain will give up and go [[Xanatos Gambit|Xanatose.]]
* The nobles from the first novel of ''[[The Final Empire]]'' when their society is still intact. They indulge their extravagances while the rest of the population is nearly starving and there's the extra fun of some of them secretly being ''Mistborn'' which means powerful sorcerers and born assassins.
* In one of the first three ''[[The Wheel of Time (Literature)|The Wheel of Time]]'' books, Rand al'Thor comes into a big city with such a court. At least the intrigue bit is definitely fitting - everyone tries to pull him to their side by sending him invitations. Rand tries to avoid this by burning all the invitations... which they, of course, take as a cunning political move. Ultimately, his actions indirectly lead to {{spoiler|the assassination of the king and the entire country falling into a civil war}}.
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* ''[[Cyrano De Bergerac]]'':
** [[Aristocrats Are Evil|Count]] De Guiche pays a court of [[False Friend]] s who speak of him behind his back, uses ([[Aristocrats Are Evil|Viscount]] De Valvert to abuse lesser nobles [[The Beard|bullying Roxane]] and [[Bullying the Dragon|Cyrano]], [[Disproportionate Retribution|sends one hundred men to punish a poet]] and this trope is constantly conversed by all the [[Proud Warrior Race Guy|Gascons]] as a proof that De Guiche is [[No True Scotsman|No True]] <s>Scotsman</s> [[No True Scotsman|Gascon]]. Oh, and remember, [[Serious Business|you will not go anywhere in this court unless you have wit!]]. Subverted In [[Real Life]]: De Guiche was one of [[Magnificent Bastard|Cardinal]] [[Man Behind the Man|Richieleu’s]] collaborators and they transformed France from a poor backward country into [[The Empire|a continental power]].
** Parodied with Ragueneau’s situation: At Act II, Raguenau is called ''"King of the Bakers"'' but is clear that his court of poets [[False Friend|friends are only flattening him to eat at his expense]], that his neglected queen, Lisa, [[Your Cheating Heart|is cheating him with the Musketeer]], that his own employees are abusing his [[Conspicuous Consumption]], [[Crack Isis Cheaper]] attitudes, that all those things will lead him to ruin, and when his only real friend, Cyrano, lampshades this, the ''"King"'' cannot accept the truth. At the beginning of Act III, the Kingdom (the bakery) is lost.
* Arguably, Judge Turpin's [[Masquerade Ball]] in ''[[Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Theatre)|Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street]]'' (though since it only features in one scene it might be more of a [[Fete Worse Than Death]]). All of them stand there and laugh while the judge rapes Lucy.
* ''[[As You Like It (Theatre)|As You Like It]]:'' The court is a treacherous place where everyone is miserable until they head to [[Arcadia]].
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== Web Original ==
* The City of [[Theatrica]] and its citizens. The society considers itself classless and entirely noble, relegating peasant status to all non-Theatricans (thereby keeping the elite/pleb contrast intact).
* As the page quote says, the Elven court in ''[[Eight 8-Bit Theater (Webcomic)|Eight Bit Theater]]'' is all assholes. The Elven [[Designated Hero]] Thief isn't much better, though.
 
 
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[[Category:Evil Tropes]]
[[Category:Deadly Decadent Court]]
[[Category:Trope]][[Category:Pages with comment tags]]
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