If one Anacreon acts too harshly toward a Citadel favorite or enough of the other Anacreons, there is a significant risk that the other Anacreons will band together against him. Regardless of how much power and pull one Anacreon thinks he may have, it is doubtless that the combined influence of the other 7 legions will most certainly be bigger than his!
A smart and powerful Anacreon has learned to balance fortitude and bluff with the ability to compromise and gain the trust of the others. Sometimes it is necessary to take a small loss and be deferential to another Anacreon, in order to accomplish a greater long-term goal. Thus while Anacreons may seem to agree and find “working” relationships, most experienced Anacreons will always be wary of their counterparts and their motivations. After all, each Anacreon ultimately views his Legion and his own interests with utmost priority, and it would be wise for the others not forget it… no matter how nice and friendly he seems.
he Anacreon of a Legion is simply one voice out of eight (assuming all legions are represented in the local Citadel) that governs and makes the laws for a Necropoli. Just because one Anacreon has firm ideas of what the Anacreon Council should do, which of course is usually in the best interest of his/her own legion, doesn’t mean she’s going to get the support of the other Anacreons when it comes time to vote. Herein lies the intrigue of Anacreon vs. Anacreon politics. It is inordinately difficult for one Anacreon to bully another Anacreon in or out of the council chamber based on the size of their local legion, even not withstanding the instruction of the Deathlords that all Anacreons are equal. The size of an Anacreon’s Legion has little relevance to power over other Anacreons, because an Anacreon must remember that he is only a small boat on a very big lake and so is his local Necropoli. Thus, even if your legion is the biggest in your Necropolis, it is dangerous for one to forget that the others are also represented in Citadels throughout the Shadowlands and Stygia… and the size of another legion may actually be massive.