Fantasy Noble Houses, Bloodshed, and Treachery.

[Rusty of Shackleford]

SAIGO-NO-HEATS

Ah cheers! And got it spot on, definitely going for a Scottish kind of vibe there, rough terrain, rough people (No offence intended, lovely bunch the Scots). Think they could carve themselves out as an entity that very much try and keep their own separate identity and customs historically, and given the lack of any large urban centres outside of Korhaven I reckon Crown control would probably diminish in the area. But obviously depends if you think the Crown would have tried to enforce their authority locally. Happy to brainstorm and come up with ideas, but either way I see something of a belligerent relationship.

Rusty of Shackleford

I could possibly see some kind of natural alliance here between the Estley and The Ambercrowns, given the fact the they're neighbours but also quite insular and independent, I could definitely see the pair of them making a break for independence, sort of along the lines of the Riverlands and The North, ASOIAF but with more of an alliance kind of relationship than one of the pair being an overlord.

QuirkyAngel

So how loyal are House Lidall to the Crown? I could definitely see some tension here if the Lidalls are loyal bannermen, the Korkari aren't exactly what you would call loyal in comparison.

LadyOfStars

I'll see about coming up with some juicy secrets your spies could have come up with. Admittedly the two lords sounds quite similar, so they're either going to be best friends or can't stand the sight of each other...

Also given the richness of your house I could maybe see some Kokari jealousy coming into play about the sheer wealth they have. We're the noisy barbarian neighbours to the West!

KameChan

I could definitely see the The ktlacqswa as having raided the Bay of Estley, and could definitely tie that into Estley history, like the building of the original fortifications around the bay to protect from these raiders. Are House Erio a historically raiding based house? If so could definitely see a theme of conflict here.


But yeah happy to brainstorm/spitball any ideas e.t.c if anyone wants to build in some historical or more current interactions

Great! And I see that the daughter of Lord Estley is around the same age as the young Lord Bryce. Perhaps an alliance could seal this alliance? But totally, dude. I'm currently working on the overall lore of the northern regions. I'm definitely taking a lot inspiration from the Celts and Vikings.

 

[RayPurchase]

Great! And I see that the daughter of Lord Estley is around the same age as the young Lord Bryce. Perhaps an alliance could seal this alliance? But totally, dude. I'm currently working on the overall lore of the northern regions. I'm definitely taking a lot inspiration from the Celts and Vikings.

I hear wedding bells!

I reckon that would be a definite seal between the two houses. Ah that sounds great! Going for that sort of Celtic/Medieval Scotland inspiration for the Korkari, could definitely end up being some social similarities.

 

[Rusty of Shackleford]

I hear wedding bells!

I reckon that would be a definite seal between the two houses. Ah that sounds great! Going for that sort of Celtic/Medieval Scotland inspiration for the Korkari, could definitely end up being some social similarities.

Yay! I'm really excited for this!

 

[Lenny2000]

QWQ derp :3

 

[SAIGO-NO-HEATS]

Great! And I see that the daughter of Lord Estley is around the same age as the young Lord Bryce. Perhaps an alliance could seal this alliance? But totally, dude. I'm currently working on the overall lore of the northern regions. I'm definitely taking a lot inspiration from the Celts and Vikings.

I hear wedding bells!

I reckon that would be a definite seal between the two houses. Ah that sounds great! Going for that sort of Celtic/Medieval Scotland inspiration for the Korkari, could definitely end up being some social similarities.

This all reminds me that I really need to get around to coming up with some kids for house Degrance...
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Given Lionel's age, we'll say he probably has 3 kids.

We'll say a daughter of 17, Leona

A Son and Heir, Ryan, at 15 years. Derisively nicknamed "Little Lionheart" For his small stature and short temper.

And a spoiled brat of a youngest, Jillian, at 10.

 

[SAIGO-NO-HEATS]

THank you for the compliments but if I could add a few information to help understanding.

I was wanting to provide for the main part the Everlasting landmark history that these semi nomads have desecrated onto the world and from the start of the rp is the time of the dying race of hardbloods. The heir when taking command tries a desperate effort to reclaim land that was lost ( they claim all the land cuz of their historical ancestors but I'm definitely sure they won't get any nowadays.) which will lead to either some land to actually move out of the ruins to make an effort to form a civilization and legitimacy OR ... the genocide of the hardblood people...

So That is why I made my post as such

That's fair, but that still wouldn't really weren't them being a serious player at the start.

The Great Houses are the setting's major powers (and sort of the entire point of the rp.) as well as direct vassals to the crown, so the technologically backwards tribal people probably wouldn't be on their radar at the start, save for as a possible resource to be expended. This isn't to say that they'd be inherently less important to the story over all, just that they'd be starting from a very difficult position (and one that could admittedly be difficult to roleplay, depending), where not even the lands they inhabit are seen as their own by the people who matter.
But how they deal with that early on will set the tone for their entire saga going forward, as their forced to evolve from "The Hardblood tribes" to a proper "House Hardblood." If you kind of get my jist.

 

[Rusty of Shackleford]

Speaking of them, maybe the Ambercrown's have a sort of grudge with them? Maybe the now defunct horde was one of their chief foes in the times before they knelt to the current dynasty?

 

[LadyOfStars]

So much progress!

I love how political things are already lol.

 

[Rusty of Shackleford]

SMe! So!

 

[SAIGO-NO-HEATS]

So much progress!

I love how political things are already lol.

Things are definitely moving along much faster now that the major players are in place. May be time to start working on that map.

 

[SAIGO-NO-HEATS]

Alright, I'm official closing down the interest check as I think it's about time we move on to Phase 2.

However before we start with the new threads, I do have some closing questions.

1. What do we want to call the land/Kingdom/Empire/ball of dirt thing we're fighting over.

2. What do we want to call the ruling dynasty that's about to go extinct?

 

[Lenny2000]

I'd say it's more like a treaty of Versailles Germany; demilitarized mostly, leaderless ( for now) and pieces of land torn up into bits.

Wolf will be the one that wants to reclaim and demand via diplomacy of their land

 

[RayPurchase]

So I take it you're going to make an OOC for us to work on the more intricate details and hash out alliances/enmities/familial connections between the Houses.

What House does the king belong to? Or is that something we're gonna come up with together? If possible, I'd like to to forward that the king be of House Fulgorim, whose Heraldry is a Yellow sun in splendor(a sun with a human face on it that has alternating straight and wavy rays) on a purple field.
View attachment 570062
In case you guys were interested in where I made the two sigils above, I used this site: Heraldry, Device, Coat of Arms editor and creator

For the name I quite liked Dalamus Ulom idea, quoted above.

Throwing my idea in the ring, I'd say a Kingdom. originally crushed all of the petty kings and rulers 200 odd years ago or however long ago it was when it arose, unifying the Land. And now the ruling family is extinct I reckon the capital would be in termoil and fair game for whoever tries to seize it first. Could name it after the royal house, so the Fulgorite Kingdom, in this case.

 

[LadyOfStars]

Dalamus Ulom can House Corvus be partially responsible for the restoration of your house after one of its many collapses? Secretly of course.

QuirkyAngel since our Houses are neighbors do you want to discuss their relationship and such?

SAIGO-NO-HEATS I don’t have a preference for the names. When it comes to the map, will we be using the GOT map or an original one?

 

[Lenny2000]

Dalamus Ulom is it possible that the house of chaos and Corvus can open up diplomacy for technological purchases and other foreign relations

 

[SAIGO-NO-HEATS]

Dalamus Ulom is it possible that the house of chaos and Corvus can open up diplomacy for technological purchases and other foreign relations

Dalamus Ulom Is actually House Veritun

Speaking of which, I need an Idea of where Veritun sits geograpically

 

[SAIGO-NO-HEATS]

For the name I quite liked Dalamus Ulom idea, quoted above.

Throwing my idea in the ring, I'd say a Kingdom. originally crushed all of the petty kings and rulers 200 odd years ago or however long ago it was when it arose, unifying the Land. And now the ruling family is extinct I reckon the capital would be in termoil and fair game for whoever tries to seize it first. Could name it after the royal house, so the Fulgorite Kingdom, in this case.

Works for me If no one else has any ideas.

Dalamus Ulom can House Corvus be partially responsible for the restoration of your house after one of its many collapses? Secretly of course.

QuirkyAngel since our Houses are neighbors do you want to discuss their relationship and such?

SAIGO-NO-HEATS I don’t have a preference for the names. When it comes to the map, will we be using the GOT map or an original one?

Original Map.

 

[Lenny2000]

Dalamus Ulom Is actually House Veritun

Speaking of which, I need an Idea of where Veritun sits geograpically

Well ...... shoot... sorry bout that

 

[SAIGO-NO-HEATS]

New OOC is here:

Fantasy - Noble Age - OOC

 

[KameChan]

RayPurchase , LadyOfStars Would you guys be interested in having a trading agreement and some cultural relationships be formed? Basically, the Erio homelands are rich in fine sulfurs, toxins, pewters, salts, and other types of goods that are used in the production of tar, sealant, ship waxes, poisons, droughts, venoms, potions(non-magical, though they could have definite effects. Like a sleeping potion, for example! ), and stuff like that. I... think the Estley's are more central to the continent, and probably have access to either the straight or the mainland river?

Either way, would the Estley's like to purchase my goods, and in exchange, the Erios have great need of the Iron deposits from Estley lands? Also, the Estley's could be responsible for producing the goods I mentioned above, and then selling them to the House Corvus? LadyOfStars, sorry, I guess I'm kind of setting you guys up, haha. But nobody said that the tools of espionage were easy to make! And you guys would be so busy espionaging and stuff that it'd make lots of sense to outsource your production costs, right? :3

Hehe! I'm a troublemaker.

Oh! Also, about the Estleys, Ray. So, the way I figure it, house Erio's navy played an instrumental role in the original conquest of Estley's lands, a fact that the Estleys would remember bitterly, and probably would have caused them to rush to catch up with their own navy in a sort of Rivalry to the Erios. I was thinking that our close trading ties would make the cultural relationship between us in the present day very complicated, and not just a simple one of "grr, I hate you!" type stuff.

Also, Rusty of Shackleford , so, I've been thinking about the Ambercrowns. I think both are houses were more connected to the royals than the others, but that that also means that we're both kind of separated from the other houses and so we both need alliances because neither of us can afford to be associated with the royals when the dynasty falls alone. Any other ambitious house is going to want to take us out first thing in he morning after the king is dead...

But I think that culturally, the people of Torquil would have seen the mainland North tribes as cowards because they probably submitted to royal rule first, while the island would have been the last to fall. And then, after the house of Erio had come to ally itself with the royals, the Erio navy would have caused the royals to rely on them more to flank and keep the other houses in line. This can't have sat well with the Ambercrowns. In fact, the Northern Ambercrowns I imagine see the house Erio as a little bratty sibling, wild and unruly, that managed to become daddy's favorite. My house, the Erios, on the other hand, probably sees the Ambercrowns as the boring older brother that somehow makes less money and doesn't know how to party. So basically we need each other, but there are some dificulties in getting to the point where we can like each other, you know?

I'm wondering if you think that's an ok development and current relationship status for us to have at the beginning of the roleplay? Also, I want your armies to be more disciplined than mine, and I want you to buy mai iron weaponsss!!! Pwetty pwease? I gotseded some iron from the house of Estley, and now I need to sell swords to make monies. Hmm? :3

SAIGO-NO-HEATS , so, your house Degrance is kind of in a weird spot for me. I'm putting together a diagram of all the houses and where they are in relation to each other, and your description of your house as an artery of trade is kind of hard to figure out. In my mind, where everything is, the other houses to the North and East of yours all have access and trading to each other without needing to go through your house! If I place your house to the south and east, or to the south and west, I can't really figure out how to make your house a powerful trading route unless we have some far off oriental empire that the whole kingdom and the houses need to do business with. Kind of like another China. If the only way to get to China 2.0 was to go through your lands, then your house would be rich. Super, duper, DUPER SUPER RICH. Like, Richer than all the houses except maybe the combined houses of Erio, the Royals, the Ambercrown, and the Estleys. Which would... kind of be ironic, actually. P_P

Do we want a far off of china 2.0, just for logistics and background purposes? No one actually needs to play as China, imho. :3

Edit: Working on my version of Map. Let me know what you guys think!

 

[StormWolf]

SAIGO-NO-HEATS
Intrigued. What's the level of fantasy we're looking at here? Relevance of magic vs science, mystical creatures, fantasy races, etc?

EDIT: I think I found my own answer

 

[SAIGO-NO-HEATS]

SAIGO-NO-HEATS
Intrigued. What's the level of fantasy we're looking at here? Relevance of magic vs science, mystical creatures, fantasy races, etc?

EDIT: I think I found my own answer

Yeah, no magic or fantasy races anything. Really it’s only fantasy in so far as it doesn’t take place on earth.

Tech is roughly 13th - 14th century medieval Europe.

 

[StormWolf]

House Chalhain

We Do Not Rest
​

First Founding
Shaded by yon boughs of of Elder Tree,
Plotted Chalhain Brothers Three.
With home behind and the world ahead,
Their thirsting blades e'er stained red.
Broken were the crowns of Faerie Kings
Like rotten fruit, on branches swing.

In the moody hills an misted glens of the Alrhion Isles, scholars have found the origins of House Chalhain shrouded in myth, their rise told through the oral traditions of their bards. While the existence of "Faerie Kings and Courts" are questionable, the Chalhain are clever in their encouragement of such tall tales among the peasantry. It has elevated their status to one of folkloric proportion, revered as the descendants of giant-slayers and fae-queens.
As best as the Order of the Tome can surmise, they were, at one point, ruled by some long-forgotten outside power. In that period, Alrhionnach were little more than farmers without a written language. Their population was easily subjugated, and had been for generations. Sometime in this murky history, after a several scattered, failed uprisings, the three sons of a blacksmith arose to such heights as to unite the scattered clans of the Alrhionnach. According to legend, they gathered in the black forests and mustered for war. The numbers of the forces commanded by the Chalhain's varies from no more than a hundred to a staggering force of 50,000, the Chalhain brothers themselves riding wolves the size of bears bearing weapons forged from the shards of stars. The latter is, in the words of High Scribe Albrecht, "Fantastical pissant drivel".
However, this "Elder Tree" mentioned in the Brothers Three Ballad does exist, as it is considered a holy site to the Alrhionnach. All accounts suggest that the Chalhain forces did, in fact, round up all nobility of their oppressors - men, women, children - and hung them from the boughs. A grisly, barbaric display, and a practice of execution reserved for the highest crimes.

Presently
Today, House Chalhain still holds great influence, though they have not sustained uncontested control of the Alrhion region for so long. They have fallen and risen time and again, and each time they resurge, they do so with a brand of ferocity unique solely to them. They sit at the head of the Council of Chiefs, in which every old Clan, Family, and House as a representative. For the last hundred years or so, this has prevented wholesale rebellion and civil strife in the region. There are three famous strongholds, each laid by one of the Brother's Three. These form the keystones of the region.

Caernlavroch, the First. The Guardian of Alrhion's Heart. The Seat of the House

Said to be built with the assistance of Fae and the Druids, and while this is written off as more peasant folklore, Caernlavroch has never fallen to enemy forces. Caernlavroch Keep was the first to rise, and the city steadily built up around it in following generations. The Ban-Drui Woods run adjacent to Caernlavroch, in the heart of which the ancient Druids attend the sacred Elder Tree. Here, the sons and daughters of the Great Clans and Houses petition for the chance to join the Fenhrionach, the fabled order of warrior-poets that drove the vile powers into the sea.

Scirbroch, the Second. The StormBreaker.
Built against the Bay of Beowa, Scirbroc is a bustling sea-port placed along one of the few hospitable coastlines in the Isles. Here, the Alrhionnach build their ships, engage in trade, and command the surly grey seas surrounding their homeland. In days of yore, the breaking of winter meant the hauling of red sails, for when the Alrhionnach would be as a scourge in the seas along the mainland coast. As with everything else in Alrhion, it is mired in myth. When the Second of the Brothers Three build the sea-fort Scirbroch and the Leodh Beacon, it was supposedly to act as the first defense against the return of the Faeondri.

Cromroch, the Third. The Blue Mountain.
It is said that the Brothers Three sought the Sage-Smith of the Fae, Leodh, in the heart of the Blue Mountain. Each was given three trials, at the completion of which the Sage-Smith forged a sword, a spear, and an axe from shards of a star that had fallen from the heavens. Myth aside, Cromroch is a city of artistry and industry. Furnaces bellow, hammers ring, and songs soar. Those with the gift of craft will find themselves at Cromroch, apprenticing under one of the masters or joining a guild for their craft.

Culture & Anthropology
The Alrhionnach are a highly superstitious people, and have always loved a good song, a strong drink, and an honest fight. They are abrasive and distrusting of outsiders, but once their favor is earned, they will be loyal to a fault, even to their own detriment. Likewise, they take betrayal and treachery as a personal assault on the grounds of honor alone, and will go so far as to ensure that generations unborn will quiver at the utterance of their name.

They are a culture that provides equal representation to both sexes, while women bear a unique reverence. Only women may tend the Elder Tree as a Ban-Drui, entrusted by the Triumverate Goddess, Daenu, at birth. Females may wear the crown as readily as males, and it is something that has occurred several times in their history, generally leading to periods of spiritual resurgence in the isles. Additional honors are paid to women who are mothers.

In their faith, the number 3 is sacrosanct, echoed throughout their culture in many ways. The most noteworthy is the practice of minor polyamory. Matters of dowry still apply, and as such this is a practice typically practiced by land-holders and nobles, but the number of partners may never exceed three to a Bond. As expected, they are fiercely loyal and passionate partners who hold matters of family sacred. Triplet births are the cause of a celebration in a community, the mother crowned in flowers as an aspect of the Goddess with feasting and drinking. In the instance of a royal birth in such a manner, the the Druid Hymn will echo throughout the city, the birth-day treated as holiday.

They hold sacred festivals at the culmination of seasonal equinoxes, often meaning feasting, dancing, and debauchery. The exception is the Autumn Equinox, a time of sobriety, restraint, and solemnity; a time to honor the dead and prepare for the harshness of winter to come.

Heads of House Chalhain
The Triat Throne
Peryn Chalhain Mac Morn, the Bloody-Handed, The Red Wolf, High King of Alrhion

A man of singular focus, commitment, and sheer will. Peryn's reputation for severity earned him a lengthy list of alternative nomenclature, the most popular of which are "The Bloody-Handed" and "The Red Wolf". Fifty-Four winters old, he killed his first man at the age of seven as an Aspirant in the Fenhrionach. His crown is a single band of brass inlaid with silver forming an intricate antler-knot pattern. A single fire opal the size of a quail egg sits in the center of his brow, socketted by a silver crescent moon.

Skytha Macfjerd Morn Chalhain, Hand of Daenu, the Iron Druid, Queen of Alhiron

Even in modernity, there are those who whisper in hushed tones about Queen Skytha. The Ban-Drui are an arcane, secretive sisterhood who sit at the right hand of the Goddess. Even stranger was that Skytha was already married when Peryn made himself known to her, and married to another woman, no less. Skytha and her wife, Aielfa, each tasked the handsome and stern hero-king with three trials, as was tradition. Each trial is intended to test the mettle of mind, body, and spirit. When Peryn returned triumphant, albeit missing a finger, Skytha became one of the two queens of Alhiron.
Aged forty-nine years, she is no less a warrior than her husband, known for defending sacred standing-stones from apostates and watering the roots of the Elder Tree with blood come Salhein. She is witty as a fox with the hair to match, with the mothering attributes of a surly cave bear.

Aielfa Mornac Mac Chalhain, The Scarlet Lady, She Before Whom Evil Breaks, Witch-Queen of Alhiron

Among the Ban-Drui, there are those rare few entrusted with the secret truths of their faith. Aielfa was one such woman. She had all but grown up among the Ban-Drui, taken in when consumption laid her family and village in the ground. There, she met Skytha, a fearsome and generous woman, and was for the first time in her life, smitten to speechlessness. Consider her surprise when a scarred prince came to them under the shadows of the Elder Tree, seeking their blessing to put down rebellion, and was equally smitten a second time.
While Skytha and Peryn are the fighters, neither can hold a candle to the ferocity of Aielfa. She knows the secrets of the body, the mind, and the spirit. She can break a person without a single draw of the knife, yet she could not break Peryn. Aielfa is a secretive and observant woman, an owl among the hawk and eagle that are her partners.

Heirs of House Chalhain
Aldhelm Morn MacChalhain, The Anvil, Thegn of Cromroch

Firstborn of Aielfa and Peryn, thirty-four year old Aldhelm is a large man with temperament akin to his parents. His dour sobriety made the grim region of Cromroch a fine fit. He takes his joy in equestrian sports and hunts when he isn't overseeing the ironclad city of Cromroch as its acting Thegn, reputed as a peerless warrior in the saddle and a champion jouster. Aldhelm's stables are host to the sturdy Alrhion Destrier, a fine horse for heavy cavalry.

Athelglyth Morn MacChalhain, the Lioness

There will ever be the bard-songs of Athelglyth, too young even for her Maiden-Braid at the time, besting all the lords and their hounds in the Wild Hunt, felling the champion stag with a single toss of her spear. From an early age, she had the eyes and hearts of the people. While she may not bear the elfin beauty of some of her sisters, she possesses a skill for what would be considered solely masculine arts in the mainland. While her brother, blood-brother Aldhelm bears the title of Thegn in Cromroch, she makes sure the cogs of the proverbial machine run. She's not afraid to get her hands and royal kefta dirty. Hardly thirty, she's as an imposing suitor as any from Chalhain stock.

Craedric Mac Morn Chalhain, The Wild

Skytha thought herself blessed when she first learned she was bearing twins. Craedric and his twin brother, Cnebba, strained such notions. Craedric is the largest of Peryn's children, a head and a half over even Aldhelm, with all the restraint of a rabid wolverine. He's a man of the moment, guzzling ale by the keg and keeping copious company of both sexes each night. Those who called him out quickly found themselves on the wrong end of his viscous spear, their head mounted along a road. Thirty-three years old, Craedric shows no aspiration for the finer crafts of the Triat Throne, happy among the ranks of the Fenhironach.

Cnebba Mac Morn Chalhain, The Wise, Thegn of Scirbroch

Cnebba, unlike his brother - or perhaps due in part to his brother - is a master of restraint. With a mind as sharp and swift as an adder, he was often the one to hatch the mad schemes, and Craedric was always the right one to carry them out. Of all the Chalhain Clan, Cnebba is the most worldly, dressing himself in fashions seen in the mainland. He is a moderate swordsman in his own right, but his mind is one for strategy and treaty.

Mardrith Mac Morn Chalhain, The Scholar

Firstborn daughter of Skytha, she takes after her blood-brother Cnebba in her studies. Twenty-three years of age, though her ageless quality would make her seem far younger, she is fluent in seven languages; she's studied in arithmetic, astrology, philosophy, and phisiology. She is a striving scholar in her own right, putting her at odds with her myth-mired culture.

Amicia and Elyssia Morn MacChalhain, the Kithain

The birth of the Golden Triplets was a cause of great celebration throughout Alrhion. To this day, they are famed figures as their sagas only continued to grow. Amicia and Elyssia are hauntingly identical. When matched with their elf-like complexion, they have frequently been called fae-tricksters by tutors, cooks, siblings, and dignitaries. For their twenty-five years, they haven't separated from each other, and even now take their preparation as aspiring Ban-Drui together. Both are wicked with a bow and possess a unique kindred quality with beasts.

Theodric Morn MacChalhain, the Huntsman

One could not expect the third of the Golden Triplets to be so different from his sisters. Theodric, of all of Peryn's sons, is most like his father. His ferocity is tempered with willpower, guided by an unbiased valor and predatory focus. Like his blood-brother Craedric, Theodric trained with the Fenhrionach while also subject to the lessons of tutors and siblings alike. Unlike Craedric, however, Theodric is saddled with a thirsting ambition and drive. For this, peasant-gossip says he carries the star-sword of his forebears. It is said that in a duel of mettle, Theodric slew his foe by throwing his spear with his foot.

Meloda Mac Morn Chalhain

Only a girl of seventeen, Meloda is still discovering her place and how that fits in with the world at large. She is closest to her her bond-brother, Theodric, and her blood sister, Athelglyth, and has taken to the hero-tales of the bards.

Ieofwyn Morn MacChalhain

Presently the youngest of the Chalhain Clan, at eight years old.

​

 

[SAIGO-NO-HEATS]

House Chalhain

We Do Not Rest
​

First Founding
Shaded by yon boughs of of Elder Tree,
Plotted Chalhain Brothers Three.
With home behind and the world ahead,
Their thirsting blades e'er stained red.
Broken were the crowns of Faerie Kings
Like rotten fruit, on branches swing.

In the moody hills an misted glens of the Alrhion Isles, scholars have found the origins of House Chalhain shrouded in myth, their rise told through the oral traditions of their bards. While the existence of "Faerie Kings and Courts" are questionable, the Chalhain are clever in their encouragement of such tall tales among the peasantry. It has elevated their status to one of folkloric proportion, revered as the descendants of giant-slayers and fae-queens.
As best as the Order of the Tome can surmise, they were, at one point, ruled by some long-forgotten outside power. In that period, Alrhionnach were little more than farmers without a written language. Their population was easily subjugated, and had been for generations. Sometime in this murky history, after a several scattered, failed uprisings, the three sons of a blacksmith arose to such heights as to unite the scattered clans of the Alrhionnach. According to legend, they gathered in the black forests and mustered for war. The numbers of the forces commanded by the Chalhain's varies from no more than a hundred to a staggering force of 50,000, the Chalhain brothers themselves riding wolves the size of bears bearing weapons forged from the shards of stars. The latter is, in the words of High Scribe Albrecht, "Fantastical pissant drivel".
However, this "Elder Tree" mentioned in the Brothers Three Ballad does exist, as it is considered a holy site to the Alrhionnach. All accounts suggest that the Chalhain forces did, in fact, round up all nobility of their oppressors - men, women, children - and hung them from the boughs. A grisly, barbaric display, and a practice of execution reserved for the highest crimes.

Presently
Today, House Chalhain still holds great influence, though they have not sustained uncontested control of the Alrhion region for so long. They have fallen and risen time and again, and each time they resurge, they do so with a brand of ferocity unique solely to them. They sit at the head of the Council of Chiefs, in which every old Clan, Family, and House as a representative. For the last hundred years or so, this has prevented wholesale rebellion and civil strife in the region. There are three famous strongholds, each laid by one of the Brother's Three. These form the keystones of the region.

Caernlavroch, the First. The Guardian of Alrhion's Heart. The Seat of the House

Said to be built with the assistance of Fae and the Druids, and while this is written off as more peasant folklore, Caernlavroch has never fallen to enemy forces. Caernlavroch Keep was the first to rise, and the city steadily built up around it in following generations. The Ban-Drui Woods run adjacent to Caernlavroch, in the heart of which the ancient Druids attend the sacred Elder Tree. Here, the sons and daughters of the Great Clans and Houses petition for the chance to join the Fenhrionach, the fabled order of warrior-poets that drove the vile powers into the sea.

Scirbroch, the Second. The StormBreaker.
Built against the Bay of Beowa, Scirbroc is a bustling sea-port placed along one of the few hospitable coastlines in the Isles. Here, the Alrhionnach build their ships, engage in trade, and command the surly grey seas surrounding their homeland. In days of yore, the breaking of winter meant the hauling of red sails, for when the Alrhionnach would be as a scourge in the seas along the mainland coast. As with everything else in Alrhion, it is mired in myth. When the Second of the Brothers Three build the sea-fort Scirbroch and the Leodh Beacon, it was supposedly to act as the first defense against the return of the Faeondri.

Cromroch, the Third. The Blue Mountain.
It is said that the Brothers Three sought the Sage-Smith of the Fae, Leodh, in the heart of the Blue Mountain. Each was given three trials, at the completion of which the Sage-Smith forged a sword, a spear, and an axe from shards of a star that had fallen from the heavens. Myth aside, Cromroch is a city of artistry and industry. Furnaces bellow, hammers ring, and songs soar. Those with the gift of craft will find themselves at Cromroch, apprenticing under one of the masters or joining a guild for their craft.

Culture & Anthropology
The Alrhionnach are a highly superstitious people, and have always loved a good song, a strong drink, and an honest fight. They are abrasive and distrusting of outsiders, but once their favor is earned, they will be loyal to a fault, even to their own detriment. Likewise, they take betrayal and treachery as a personal assault on the grounds of honor alone, and will go so far as to ensure that generations unborn will quiver at the utterance of their name.

They are a culture that provides equal representation to both sexes, while women bear a unique reverence. Only women may tend the Elder Tree as a Ban-Drui, entrusted by the Triumverate Goddess, Daenu, at birth. Females may wear the crown as readily as males, and it is something that has occurred several times in their history, generally leading to periods of spiritual resurgence in the isles. Additional honors are paid to women who are mothers.

In their faith, the number 3 is sacrosanct, echoed throughout their culture in many ways. The most noteworthy is the practice of minor polyamory. Matters of dowry still apply, and as such this is a practice typically practiced by land-holders and nobles, but the number of partners may never exceed three to a Bond. As expected, they are fiercely loyal and passionate partners who hold matters of family sacred. Triplet births are the cause of a celebration in a community, the mother crowned in flowers as an aspect of the Goddess with feasting and drinking. In the instance of a royal birth in such a manner, the the Druid Hymn will echo throughout the city, the birth-day treated as holiday.

They hold sacred festivals at the culmination of seasonal equinoxes, often meaning feasting, dancing, and debauchery. The exception is the Autumn Equinox, a time of sobriety, restraint, and solemnity; a time to honor the dead and prepare for the harshness of winter to come.

Heads of House Chalhain
The Triat Throne
Peryn Chalhain Mac Morn, the Bloody-Handed, The Red Wolf, High King of Alrhion

A man of singular focus, commitment, and sheer will. Peryn's reputation for severity earned him a lengthy list of alternative nomenclature, the most popular of which are "The Bloody-Handed" and "The Red Wolf". Fifty-Four winters old, he killed his first man at the age of seven as an Aspirant in the Fenhrionach. His crown is a single band of brass inlaid with silver forming an intricate antler-knot pattern. A single fire opal the size of a quail egg sits in the center of his brow, socketted by a silver crescent moon.

Skytha Macfjerd Morn Chalhain, Hand of Daenu, the Iron Druid, Queen of Alhiron

Even in modernity, there are those who whisper in hushed tones about Queen Skytha. The Ban-Drui are an arcane, secretive sisterhood who sit at the right hand of the Goddess. Even stranger was that Skytha was already married when Peryn made himself known to her, and married to another woman, no less. Skytha and her wife, Aielfa, each tasked the handsome and stern hero-king with three trials, as was tradition. Each trial is intended to test the mettle of mind, body, and spirit. When Peryn returned triumphant, albeit missing a finger, Skytha became one of the two queens of Alhiron.
Aged forty-nine years, she is no less a warrior than her husband, known for defending sacred standing-stones from apostates and watering the roots of the Elder Tree with blood come Salhein. She is witty as a fox with the hair to match, with the mothering attributes of a surly cave bear.

Aielfa Mornac Mac Chalhain, The Scarlet Lady, She Before Whom Evil Breaks, Witch-Queen of Alhiron

Among the Ban-Drui, there are those rare few entrusted with the secret truths of their faith. Aielfa was one such woman. She had all but grown up among the Ban-Drui, taken in when consumption laid her family and village in the ground. There, she met Skytha, a fearsome and generous woman, and was for the first time in her life, smitten to speechlessness. Consider her surprise when a scarred prince came to them under the shadows of the Elder Tree, seeking their blessing to put down rebellion, and was equally smitten a second time.
While Skytha and Peryn are the fighters, neither can hold a candle to the ferocity of Aielfa. She knows the secrets of the body, the mind, and the spirit. She can break a person without a single draw of the knife, yet she could not break Peryn. Aielfa is a secretive and observant woman, an owl among the hawk and eagle that are her partners.

Heirs of House Chalhain
Aldhelm Morn MacChalhain, The Anvil, Thegn of Cromroch

Firstborn of Aielfa and Peryn, thirty-four year old Aldhelm is a large man with temperament akin to his parents. His dour sobriety made the grim region of Cromroch a fine fit. He takes his joy in equestrian sports and hunts when he isn't overseeing the ironclad city of Cromroch as its acting Thegn, reputed as a peerless warrior in the saddle and a champion jouster.

Still obviously a WIP​

So I had just said I wasn’t taking any more major houses.

But this is really good, so now I feel dumb.

So we can make room for one more if you’re still interested. The link to the OOC should be on the previous page.

 

[StormWolf]

​

So I had just said I wasn’t taking any more major houses.

But this is really good, so now I feel dumb.

So we can make room for one more if you’re still interested. The link to the OOC should be on the previous page.

I'm sorry, I went a little "ready, fire, aim". If the group will have it, sure.