Advisory Council

The Advisory Council of Ravens Bluff was group of retired city officials, civic-minded nobles and appointees of the Lady mayor who would publicly debate matters pertaining to the city, and offer their advice to the city's leadership. While they possessed no policy-making authorities they would make recommendations to the Council of Lords, Merchants Council or the current Mayor, as they requested.

Members
See also: Members of the Advisory Council of Ravens Bluff The exact number of members on the Advisory Council varied, but generally numbered somewhere between 20 to 30. A seat on the board came with significant prestige, and those served tended to have a reputation as wise, Ravenian statesmen.

The council elected their own Lord Speaker, to oversee meetings and act as their representative on the Council of Lords. As of 1370 DR, the seat was vacant, though Lord Russell Roland served as Acting Speaker.

Previous Speakers of the Advisory Council included:
 * Lord Charles Blacktree IV
 * Mellisa Eldaren

History
The history of the Advisory Council is full of change and to an extent, misrepresentation. While councilors would act as if they operated under long-held traditions and draconian rules, in reality they pretty much did whatever the attending members wished.

In the time following the War of 1370, the relevance of the council put in jeopardy, overshadowed by the formation of the Merchants Council and the election for a new Mayor. However, after the former Lord Mayor Charles Oliver O'Kane accepted an long-standing invitation to join the council, it experienced renewed vitality and excitement.