Great Houses

"The Great Houses are often considered a relic, an inefficiency in the otherwise noble pursuit of merit in the Technocrat Registry. I prefer to think of it as a showcase of what could be accomplished if we all had drive, leisure time, resources, and the crippling weight of expectations from birth. They do the jobs too unprofitable for corporations, too delicate for the military, and too important to be trusted to appear on the annual budget for politicians. By throwing in a little pomp and circumstance, we've made the grunt work of society glamorous and duty-oriented enough that they don't mind the thankless labor."

— Speaker for Mankind Gabriel Tremblay

The Great Thirteen

The Original Houses were the families established by the Unbroken Ten, the surviving commandos under the command of Aurelius Frost in the ashes of the Cozine Disaster. Over the years, their power waxed and waned, other houses rose and fell, and in the hundred years before the Age of Convergence had stabilized into thirteen Great Houses. Hundreds of minor houses operate in their shadow; allying themselves with their great patrons, scheming against those with more in the hopes of usurpation, or most often both.

List of the Thirteen

House of Bommen
Holdings: Bureaucratic hubs and historic districts on Luna
Known for: Deep integration with government bureaucracy, legacy rights, lobbying strength.
Motto: "We Are the Stewards of Civilization."

Colors: Silver and White Fractals

Stats: ST 8 / DX 10 / HT 12 / IQ 18 / Wealth 14

House of Greeling
Holdings: Oort Cloud mining colonies and mineral rights.
Known for: Control of rare minerals and long-range shipping contracts.
Motto: "The Bedrock of Tomorrow."
Colors: Brown and Gray Checkers

Stats: ST 10 / DX 9 / HT 15 / IQ 16 / Wealth 20

Haus des Drachen
Holdings: Full ownership of Anthe, a moon of Saturn.
Known for: Elite military training academies and Commando legacies.
Motto: "Blood for Honor, Honor for All."
Colors: Red and Blue Party Per Bend

containerStats: ST 18 / DX 14 / HT 13 / IQ 14 / Wealth 12

House of Kosse
Holdings: Restored Antarctic holdings on Terra.
Known for: Media manipulation, social engineering, and sudden political influence.
Motto: "Return, Resurge, Reign."

Colors: Black Spots on a Pink Field

Stats: ST 6 / DX 13 / HT 10 / IQ 16 / Wealth 15

Freemen of Boston
Holdings: Deep-space megahab between Pluto and Neptune.
Known for: High-end shipyards, academic institutions, and a renaissance court culture.
Motto: "From Sea to Stars."
Colors: Continental Blue and Yellow, Fringed

Stats: ST 9 / DX 12 / HT 14 / IQ 17 / Wealth 17

Unionhouse Veylan
Holdings: Financial districts on Ceres and various orbital banks.
Known for: Interplanetary banking and credit issuance; "old money."
Motto: "Trust in Our Ledgers."
Colors: Green above a Gold Field

Stats: ST 5 / DX 11 / HT 16 / IQ 17 / Wealth 20

Clan Tzuriel
Holdings: Agricultural domes on Deimos and Terraforming oversight rights.
Known for: Food security, environmental reclamation, biotechnological patents.
Motto: "We Sow the Future."
Colors: Red above a Gray Field

Stats: ST 11 / DX 12 / HT 14 / IQ 15 / Wealth 15

House of Lamora
Holdings: Orbital habitats around Venus and Venusian floating cities.
Known for: Art, philosophy, luxury goods, avant-garde culture.
Motto: "Beauty Is Sovereignty."
Colors: Violet in a Gold Frame

Stats: ST 5 / DX 15 / HT 11 / IQ 16 / Wealth 13

House of Helicon
Holdings: Asteroid Belt military fortresses and private security contracts.
Known for: Mercenary fleets and fortress worlds.
Motto: "Through Strength, Dominion."
Colors: Red marred with Brown Spirals

Stats: ST 17 / DX 13 / HT 15 / IQ 13 / Wealth 14

House of Sheshuq’um
Holdings: Enclaves in the Europan subsurface oceans.
Known for: Secretive research, cybernetic innovations, and surveillance technologies.
Motto: "In Silence, We Endure."
Colors: Blue and Black Checkers

Stats: ST 7 / DX 12 / HT 13 / IQ 18 / Wealth 15

House Castaigne
Holdings: "Lonely Islands," a chain of deepspace stations that monitor interstellar space for threats, both alien and natural.
Known for: Communications infrastructure, information brokers, and repairers of reputation.
Motto: "The Stars Speak to Us."
Colors: A Silver Bend Sinister over a Yellow Field

Stats: ST 6 / DX 14 / HT 12 / IQ 17 / Wealth 14

House Moravec
Holdings: Mercury sunshield stations and solar energy monopolies.
Known for: Energy generation, technological patents, and experimental AI research.
Motto: "The Light Is Ours."
Colors: Red Circle on an Or Field

Stats: ST 8 / DX 13 / HT 14 / IQ 18 / Wealth 16

House Volkert
Holdings: Eris
Known for: Nanometallurgy, Nanorobotics, medical breakthroughs
Motto: "Lapsus Inter."
Colors: A black triangle on a dark gray field.

Stats: ST 4 / DX 12 / HT 15 / IQ 15 / Wealth 17

Summary Notes:

• Original Survivors: House of Bommen, House of Greeling, Haus des Drachen.
• New Power Players: House of Kosse, Freemen of Boston .
• Financial Aristocracy: Unionhouse Veylan, House Moravec, House Volkert.
• Military Titans: Haus des Drachen, House of Helicon.
• Information Lords: House of Sheshuq’um, House Castaigne.
• Cultural Magnates: House of Lamora, House Castaigne.
• Resource Powerhouses: House of Greeling, Clan Tzuriel.