Factions of Darkmere
The City of Darkmere is the oldest elven settlement in the world, and has an accordingly long-established hierarchy of power that literally descends down the city's gradual slope. From the royal family above to the commoners and refugees who live below the Shelf, everyone has a place.
Known for their vivacious involvement in the city's social scene, members of House Brightfeather are considered the gems of the city's nobility. They've built their estate to be the ideal setting for hosting lavish parties in celebration of the sacred holidays or for no reason at all, and involve themselves heavily with sponsoring the arts in the Market of Flowers. Despite their gaudy reputation, Brightfeathers are far from haughty nobles and generously involve themselves in enriching the city's common districts as much as anything else. They're known for having a surprisingly shrewd head for business, giving them the disposable income for their lifestyle HOUSE FALLENSNOW
Members of House Fallensnow are fairly reserved for a major noble House, and keep largely to themselves. They attend court as their duties demand but are relatively uninvolved in the social intrigue of the city; many members of the house use their long-established wealth to involve themselves in backing business ventures among the less nobility and merchant classes of the city, firmly establishing a base for the House's ongoing fortunes. HOUSE FIRSTBLOOM
House Firstbloom is ancient, dating back to the city's origins, and takes great pride in the fact that many of its scions have married into House Darkmere over time. Though they conduct themselves with typical elven grace and manners, many other nobles consider them to have a slightly inflated view of their own importance.
HOUSE LEAFWIND
The youngest of the major nobility, House Leafwind's lineage is heavily mixed with one of the noble houses of Silverleaf from several millennia back. Since their sister city's fall, members of the House have been heavily involved in providing aid, shelter, and resources to the refugees who currently make their home in the Ark'e. HOUSE MIRRORUN
House Mirrorun's estate bridges the River Mirrorun as it forks into its Greater and Lesser halves, resulting in beautiful arching architecture constantly regaled with the sound of running water. The House boasts a large number of mages, which they claim is due to the magic-saturated waters of the Darkmere itself seeping into the precious river below them.
One of the newer noble houses of the city, House Brookhollow is an offshoot house formed by the marriage of second children of Houses Mirrorun and Stonedge. It still maintains strong ties to each, and encourages the ambitions of all its children regardless of their position in the inheritance. HOUSE GRACEFALL
By a convoluted mix of inheritance and political manuevering, House Gracefall actually owns a modest estate on the upper shelf that otherwise belongs exclusively to the major houses. They're in an odd position where they're both side-eyed by the major houses and envied by the other lesser houses. HOUSE MEADOWBRIGHT
Viewed as either idealistic dreamers or shrewd entrepreneurs depending on who you ask, House Meadowbright deals extensively in trading with the other shards. They have more wanderlust than their conservative peers, and many young members of the house like to travel and experience the world before returning to focus on life at home. The family has ties to many powers throughout the shards. HOUSE PINEGREEN
Despite being considered lesser nobility, House Pinegreen's vast wealth places it more on par with the greater houses. They control a large amount of the agriculture in Arridan and Crosswater, making them essential in keeping Darkmere fed and supplied. HOUSE RILLSONG
Known for its gifted mages, House Rillsong is a lesser house that hasn't forgotten its commoner roots. Its members spend most of their time working along the lower classes of the city, helping improve the infrastructure that keeps Darkmere running. HOUSE STONEDGE
House Stonedge are craftsman, continuing a long tradition from their Shaper-mage founder some centuries back. While they're one of the newest houses and still have more ties with the merchant class than their noble peers, they're not lacking in ambition and make a point of involving themselves in the social workings of the royal court. HOUSE WHISPERWING
An old, old house, it's widely accepted fact that House Whisperwing stays as part of the minor nobility intentionally rather than out of any sort of stall in their upward movement. They serve as the royal family's finger on the pulse of the common people; despite their not-so-secret status as informants, they're still well-regarded by the common and merchant classes.
The Royal House of Darkmere
An ancient house that claims to trace its lineage right back to Darkmere's founding during the Cold Years, the Royal House of Darkmere has ruled the city since time out of mind. The royal family is known to be stern and protective of their people; like most elven royal families they refuse to be pampered nobility, and involve themselves heavily in the day-to-day workings of their city. Royals train as tacticians and warriors. In a strange twist on the traditional primogeniture inheritance used by elven bloodlines, only children who express magical talent can hold the crown of the city due to the fact that the king or queen needs to be able to draw directly on the magical Lake of the Darkmere in defense of the city. The king or queen of Darkmere holds special prominence at the moment due to the city being the current seat of the High King, the official leader of the unified elven kingdoms. Since the destruction of Starfall and more recently Silverleaf served as painful reminders of why the allied kingdoms are so necessary, it's become a heavy burden to bear.The Major Nobility
Generally the oldest noble houses of the city, and by far the most well-established and powerful. The major noble houses hold land higher on the city's slopes, and many have built up elaborate and beautiful estates over the millennia that many consider more lavish than the relative austerity of the fortress-like royal palace. HOUSE BRIGHTFEATHERKnown for their vivacious involvement in the city's social scene, members of House Brightfeather are considered the gems of the city's nobility. They've built their estate to be the ideal setting for hosting lavish parties in celebration of the sacred holidays or for no reason at all, and involve themselves heavily with sponsoring the arts in the Market of Flowers. Despite their gaudy reputation, Brightfeathers are far from haughty nobles and generously involve themselves in enriching the city's common districts as much as anything else. They're known for having a surprisingly shrewd head for business, giving them the disposable income for their lifestyle HOUSE FALLENSNOW
Members of House Fallensnow are fairly reserved for a major noble House, and keep largely to themselves. They attend court as their duties demand but are relatively uninvolved in the social intrigue of the city; many members of the house use their long-established wealth to involve themselves in backing business ventures among the less nobility and merchant classes of the city, firmly establishing a base for the House's ongoing fortunes. HOUSE FIRSTBLOOM
House Firstbloom is ancient, dating back to the city's origins, and takes great pride in the fact that many of its scions have married into House Darkmere over time. Though they conduct themselves with typical elven grace and manners, many other nobles consider them to have a slightly inflated view of their own importance.
HOUSE LEAFWIND
The youngest of the major nobility, House Leafwind's lineage is heavily mixed with one of the noble houses of Silverleaf from several millennia back. Since their sister city's fall, members of the House have been heavily involved in providing aid, shelter, and resources to the refugees who currently make their home in the Ark'e. HOUSE MIRRORUN
House Mirrorun's estate bridges the River Mirrorun as it forks into its Greater and Lesser halves, resulting in beautiful arching architecture constantly regaled with the sound of running water. The House boasts a large number of mages, which they claim is due to the magic-saturated waters of the Darkmere itself seeping into the precious river below them.
The Lesser Nobility
Less established and more modest in size, the estates of the lesser noble houses fill the lower slope of the city alongside the houses of the wealthy merchant class aspiring to step up into their ranks. These houses serve as the link between the common classes and the major nobility, and are much tied into the everyday workings of the city; at the same time though, some are much more insecure about their rank and flaunt it in a way that the major houses have long since outgrown. HOUSE BROOKHOLLOWOne of the newer noble houses of the city, House Brookhollow is an offshoot house formed by the marriage of second children of Houses Mirrorun and Stonedge. It still maintains strong ties to each, and encourages the ambitions of all its children regardless of their position in the inheritance. HOUSE GRACEFALL
By a convoluted mix of inheritance and political manuevering, House Gracefall actually owns a modest estate on the upper shelf that otherwise belongs exclusively to the major houses. They're in an odd position where they're both side-eyed by the major houses and envied by the other lesser houses. HOUSE MEADOWBRIGHT
Viewed as either idealistic dreamers or shrewd entrepreneurs depending on who you ask, House Meadowbright deals extensively in trading with the other shards. They have more wanderlust than their conservative peers, and many young members of the house like to travel and experience the world before returning to focus on life at home. The family has ties to many powers throughout the shards. HOUSE PINEGREEN
Despite being considered lesser nobility, House Pinegreen's vast wealth places it more on par with the greater houses. They control a large amount of the agriculture in Arridan and Crosswater, making them essential in keeping Darkmere fed and supplied. HOUSE RILLSONG
Known for its gifted mages, House Rillsong is a lesser house that hasn't forgotten its commoner roots. Its members spend most of their time working along the lower classes of the city, helping improve the infrastructure that keeps Darkmere running. HOUSE STONEDGE
House Stonedge are craftsman, continuing a long tradition from their Shaper-mage founder some centuries back. While they're one of the newest houses and still have more ties with the merchant class than their noble peers, they're not lacking in ambition and make a point of involving themselves in the social workings of the royal court. HOUSE WHISPERWING
An old, old house, it's widely accepted fact that House Whisperwing stays as part of the minor nobility intentionally rather than out of any sort of stall in their upward movement. They serve as the royal family's finger on the pulse of the common people; despite their not-so-secret status as informants, they're still well-regarded by the common and merchant classes.
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