House Caedus (Kay-dus)
Royal House of Hemlock
House Caedus is the ruling House in Hemlock, and has been in power for hundreds of years. They are powerful and influential, with a reputation for being as cunning as they are strong. While they are powerful, they have a reputation for putting humans above other races at every opportunity, and they have a history of discrimination against non-human races. For hundreds of years, they kept Kobalds and goblins as slaves, and non-human races are still barred from holding any political office in Hemlock. Non-humans must also apply for home ownership, and they are usually segregated into special districts set aside for non-humans.House Caedus Family Tree
History
The Bulls of Blackfield
House Caedus was founded by Aurelius "Bull" Caedus, a famous Knight. Aurelius was born to lowly farmers in the region of Blackfield in 1243 but took no interest in farming. Aurelius yearned to be a knight, and he saved up what little gold he had to get sword fighting lessons. At the time, Hemlock was divided into six regions, each owned by a Great House. The Great House controlling Blackfield was House Finch of Braewood Castle. After practicing hard, he impressed the Head of House Finch with his natural skill in combat during a tournament when he was 15, despite not being an actual knight or even a squire. The Head of House Finch, Lucan Finch, was so impressed that he made Aurelius his squire. Aurelius was treated well by House Finch and was made a Knight at age 19. When he was 24, the War of Inauguration kicked off, and the Head Knight of House Finch was killed within the first four months of the conflict. Despite his young age, Aurelius was made Head Knight. Under his guidance, House Finch began to dominate on the battlefield. He quickly earned the moniker "The Bull of Blackfield" because of his muscular build and aggressive strategies. After Aurelius was sent to eliminate a traitorous vassal house of House Finch in 1268, he was given the property and assets that belonged to the House, and he created his own House in its stead, with a Bull as the House sigil. His House was to inhabit the Whiteridge Keep, a modest castle built next to the sea in Blackfield. This was the formation of House Caedus, and this is why the people of House Caedus are sometimes referred to as "The Bulls of Blackfield". In 1270, when Aurelius was 27, the War of Inauguration was ended when House Lambros became the ruling house of all Hemlock, and the other five Great Houses all declared their fealty to House Lambros. House Finch lost very little during the war, which many attributed to Aurelius.Rise to Power in Blackfield
Though the creation of House Caedus was impressive, it started modestly. Upon its creation, it had only 5,000 troops, but by the end of the war, the House had around 9,000. This was due to a lesser house, House Karas, dissolving into House Caedus in 1269. Aurelius had married the Head of House Karas, Adelpha Karas, and she decided to combine her House's resources with House Caedus. When Adelpha moved to Whiteridge and her House was officially dissolved, her House's ancestral seat, Pendragon Citadel, was given to Aurelius's best friend and current second in command, Percival Gideon. This was the formation of House Gideon, the most loyal vassal of House Caedus. After this, Aurelius further expanded his power through more aggressive means. He had continued to get stronger, and House Finch was having succession issues. The Head of House Finch was a feeble woman, as Lucan Finch had died in the last battle of the War of Inauguration. His mother, Agatha Finch, was not an ideal leader, and she made very few decisions, most of them being bad. Aurelius discreetly paid orcish raiders to attack House Finch and their assets, which Agatha Finch struggled to defend against. She continually made terrible decisions on the battlefield, and this led to her people becoming bitter with her. The orcs had razed many villages to the ground, and the people of Braewood Castle were starving. When this had gone on for almost a year, House Caedus stepped in and drove the remaining orcs back, and saved Braewood and its people. After all of this, many people defected to House Caedus, and eventually the people mutinied against Agatha. Despite her being an old lady incapable of defending herself, her own guardsmen dragged her to the highest tower of Braewood Castle, and threw her off. They then welcomed Aurelius Caedus into the castle, and declared it his, much to the peoples relief. Aurelius declared that when the only surviving Finch came of age, he would be allowed to govern the Braewood area, but only as a lesser House, under the rule of House Caedus. It is worth noting that the man responsible for killing Agatha, her Head Knight, was executed by Aurelius for treason. After these events, House Caedus was the leading power in Blackfield, and became a Great House. Aurelius had his first son, Cassius, in 1280, and Aurelius himself died of illness in 1320, at the age of 77. This was the end of Aurelius, but it was not the end of his ambition, which his descendants seemed to inherit.Lineage of the Bull
Aurelius had two sons and a daughter, with his eldest son, Cassius, being the Head of House Caedus from 1320 until he stepped down in 1348 due to worsening health. Aurelius's daughter Donna was exiled to Allysium for marrying an elf. Cassius was a calm, patient, and rather dull person, and was said to take after his mother, from personality to appearance. Cassius was not a bad ruler, but he lived in a time of peace and prosperity, with a rather uneventful rule over Blackfield. His brother Atticus on the other hand, was a tempestuous and hot-blooded man, with a passion for fighting and excitement. Though he was brash, Atticus was one of the best swordsmen of his time and inherited his father's great strength. When Cassius fell ill in 1348, he became unable to do his duty as Head of House, so Atticus took over until Cassius's son came of age. Atticus mainly let the advisors make the decisions in his short run as Head of House, as he cared little. Cassius had a single son, Tiberius, who began to rule in 1352, taking over from his uncle. Atticus himself lived in Leonhall Keep, and had one son and two daughters, and his children inherited Leonhall after he died from wounds incurred in a duel. Tiberius was a great ruler of Blackfield, and over his reign, the region gained much wealth, eventually being second only to House Lambros, the ruling house. When Tiberius died in 1390, his house was flourishing, but his heir to the throne would take the power of House Caedus even further. The Lingering Lord The heir of House Caedus was Lucian "the Lingering", born in 1352. The strange nickname comes from his longevity, and his continued survival after several dangerous injuries. Lucian was an extremely ambitious man, and he desired rulership over all of Hemlock. He had allied himself with House Sideris of Brudermare, one of the other Great Houses, and together they staged a rebellion against House Lambros in 1399. The war was called the Red Rebellion, and over the course of the war two more Great Houses, House Arlet of Cowle and House Petrakis of Laskaris joined Lucian. The war was going badly for House Lambros, and eventually, the last Great House allied with them, House Flavius, betrayed them. Septimus Flavius, the Head of House Flavius, mutinied and killed the King during the battle of Ridgecrest in 1403, ending the Red Rebellion. Lucian was named the Emperor of Hemlock, and the reign of House Caedus was established. Lucian himself survived 14 assassination attempts, and lived to be 101, finally dying in 1453.
Pride, Power, Progress
Founding Date
1268
Type
Geopolitical, Great house
Alternative Names
Bulls of Blackfield
Training Level
Professional
Veterancy Level
Veteran
Leader
Leader Title
Family Leader
Founders
Subsidiary Organizations
Location
Official Languages
Neighboring Nations
Notable Members
Related Species
Comments