The Noble Houses

Twelve families are rich and powerful enough to be counted as the 'Noble Houses' and be accorded a seat in The Council of Voices. Other noteable families exist, but their significance pales into comparison with these. Most of these houses are large enough to be split into cadet branches, with one main bloodline considered the 'head', although in-fighting could lead to this changing.
The houses are, in order of importance;

Bluefall (Human)

Considered the most powerful of all the Noble Houses, although this is often disputed by other Houses. What is not under question is that Bluefall is the oldest of all Noble Houses in Last Haven, having been present in the city since records began. The house has strong links to the Mercenary Guild, which provides security for most of the important locations in the city. Unlike a lot of Noble Houses, Bluefall has no cadet branches, disinheriting anyone more than one generation from the main line.

Marbledane (Human)

Despite being a noble house, the distinction between Marbledane and the Artificers Guild are often difficult to see, so closely are the two organisations intertwined. Most of the important Artificers are Marbledane members, and it is rare for a member of the house to not be involved in the Guild. There are two cadet branches in the house, but relations between the them all are good.

Stormlance (Drow)

One of the newest houses to claim significant levels of power, Stormlance is a family of Drow and faces significant levels of mistrust from all the other Noble houses, although its prestige and power cannot be denied. Rumoured to be closely linked to the secretive Thieves Guild, the two cadet branches are in constant conflict, and assassination and politics make it a dangerous house to belong to.

Farrowshaper (Human)

By far the richest of all the noble houses, and involved heavily in trade through-out the city through its influence at the Merchants Guild. Most of its business acumen comes from the competitive nature of its three branches, as the one that turns a higher profit during the year earns the right to be considered the head of the house.

Mirthstrike (High Elf)

Whilst the members of the House of Mirthstrike are High Elven, they are the main patrons of the Alchemist's Guild, which is by far a human and dwarven industry. This cross-species collaboration has allowed Mirthstrike to rise far in the echelons of the Noble Houses, despite being split between five competing cadet branches. Whilst they do retain a lot of the perceived arrogance of the high elves, Mirthstrike prides itself on being 'for the people' more than others.

Battlehelm (Dwarven)

Only one of the many dwarven noble houses managed to secure sanctuary in Last Haven, mainly due to the stubborness of the dwarves in refusing to accept that their mountain strongholds were just as vulnerable to the Corruption. Since then, Battlehelm has taken on the mantle of leadership of Last Haven's argumentative dwarven clans to some measure of success. They tend to avoid the same kind of politics and Guild patronage as other Houses, instead concentrating on internal dwarven matters.

Truthsurge (High Elven)

When the refugees now known as House Truthsurge arrived in Last Haven in the final days before the Corruption overran the rest of the world, they brought with them a treasure considered more precious than any other that came before; the assembled library of the High Elves. This monopoly on the vast trove of technical and magical works gave them a large amount of power, which they solidified and got them their place they have now. They patronise the Guild of Scribes, carefully vetting anyone who wishes to access their libraries.

Fallenbloom (Human)

Whilst considered a Noble House by all that matter, Fallenbloom is unique in that membership of the House is gained not through blood or marriage, but by merit (although familial connections are very common). As sponsors of the Adventurer's Guild, Fallenbloom has made a commitment to uncovering the secrets of Last Haven, and the wider world, with the intention of 'curing' the Corruption. Progress has been slow, but the contributions of Fallenbloom to the city are rarely understated.

Bladeshield (Human)

Strong links to the influencial Engineering Guild should place House Bladeshield in a more advantageous position amongst the other noble houses, but the House has consistently suffered from a lack of ambition in its rulers, being led by practical individuals more concerned with using their family's wealth and influence to fund civil construction and vanity projects.

Cloudblower (High Elf)

Second of the two high elf noble houses, Cloudblower eskews politcal power, instead focusing on its pursuit of magical knowledge. To this end, it established and largely funds the Wizarding Guild and its associated schools. Whilst publicly appearing not to get too involved in the politics of the city, privately it engages in machinations as much as any other House.

Redbow (Gnome)

The carefree gnomes are last race that anyone expected to gain a foothold into the power structure of Last Haven, but their patronage and funding of the highly popular Guild of Bards, and the frequent shows and festivals that the House sponsors give them a strong edge with the common folk of the city. Split into a dozen cadet branches, the internal politics of Redbow are as complicated as one might expect

Moonsword (Wood Elf)

The wood elves of Last Haven are an insular and deeply private people, but have a measure of respect due to their selfless management and maintenance of Cropfields, the magically powered fields and orchards that provide so much of Last Haven's food. Moonsword is nominally a Noble House because of this respect, but the House is less of a family of related individuals and more of a dozen old and venerated wood elves who ensure that their skills are passed on to future generations.

Other significant houses

The goblinoids, in particular the orcs, have a number of tribes that are considered powerful within their own race, but in-fighting and a lack of wealth has meant that none have gathered enough support to be considered for a place on the The Council of Voices. Similarly, the beastfolk and lizardfolk are considered too small in number to have factions that gather enough resources to be considered. The halflings find the concept of noble houses an unusual concept, but a number of them have joined House Fallenbloom over the years.

Type

Social, Group