Duchy of Bremen

The Duchy of Bremen lies in the center of the realm, encompassing the woods of the Bremen Grove and the plains between the two great rivers.   The largest city in the duchy is Berunaford, which sits on the Sinderra River north of Bremen Grove. This is also the commercial center of the duchy and location of the ducal seat.   The Ducal family of House Bremen is led by Duchess Isalda Estoris. Isalda is a formidable matriarch with an iron will, who holds others to the highest standards. She is not known to be forgiving of repeated mistakes or foolishness. She is a powerful wizard, with a focus on arcane research and academics, and often serves as a guest lecturer and teacher at the magical universities in the capital, much to the dismay of the students there.   Isalda has two children, neither of which have shown magical talent. Ser Barris Estoris has managed his mother’s disappointment by throwing himself into the martial arts from a young age, and has already distinguished himself as a warrior and one of the foremost knights of the realm. Though he is heir apparent to the Duchy, he spends little time at home, and can often be found either out on campaign or in the capitol. Ser Barris is generally well liked and known to be fair, even tempered, and honorable.   Lady Gemma Estoris is a young woman in her early 20s, and considered to be one of the beauties of Eisen. Although she is highly sought after for marriage proposals she is also one of the most well guarded debutantes in society, as her mother does not often let her out from under her wing. She is said to be soft-spoken and of a gentle temperament but not much else is widely known of her personality. Duchess Isalda has already rejected half a dozen marriage proposals on her daughter's behalf.   The ducal lands and holdings are in the east of the duchy, and there are also two counties. In the south of the duchy, encompassing Bremen Grove and the northern shores of brightcrown lake are the holdings of Count Ezekiel Durant. Count Durant considers himself a patron and tends to collect the brilliant and skilled from all walks of life about him, be they an artist, a tradesperson, or possessing intellect or arcane talent. The brilliant of noble birth he admits to his personal circle, while skilled commoners are invited to settle within his land. As such Count Durant is almost single handedly responsible for a great deal of movement to join House Bremen in the last 5 or 10 years, much to the chagrin of the other noble houses. His patronage has also been known to extend into intimate territory with a string of lovers of all different genders and races, but usually skilled or brilliant in some way.   Count Durant’s mother, the Dowager Countess Blanche Durant is a striking woman in her 60s, and showing no signs of slowing down. She is active in society and entertains a string of lovers and interests, occasionally visiting with her youngest daughter (the count’s sister) to pass along her arcane knowledge. Lady Sophie Durant has thus far resisted her mother’s urgings to travel the social circuit with her and prefers to stay at home and focus on her studies. Lady Sophie is great friends with Lady Gemma, and Duchess Estoris dotes on the young woman as well for her magical talents.   In the west of the duchy, are the lands held by Count Samael Brock. Count Brock is a down to earth man who believes in the importance of hard work, endurance, and discipline. He is a single father who dotes on his only daughter. Lady Abdiel Brock is close to her father but sometimes puts him at his wits end with her teenage antics. Count Brock also has a younger brother, Lord Malik Brock, who is an alchemist and scholar of some renown.  

Notable Members of House Bremen

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House Bremen are known to be dedicated, loyal, and hard working. Their members are exacting and always try to do whatever they are doing to the highest standard, whether that be farming or magic. They can be viewed as a little stodgy, their focus on excellence seen as exhausting by more flippant members of society.   The House's Ideology is:
Excellence in all things
Dedication and Loyalty

Duchess Estoris is an exacting woman who doesn’t really get along with anyone, but who respects dedication. For the most part this means she has a good working relationship with Count Brock, as he is a reliable steward of his lands. However she is often at odds with Count Durant, whom she views as a dilatant surrounding himself with useless sycophants. It's clear that the Duchess is cultivating his younger half sister, Lady Sophie, as a potential successor to the county should he continue without heirs. This does not endear the Duchess to the Dowager Countess Durant who would rather she not steal her baby girl away from her family.   Duchess Estoris and Duke Wren of House Arden do not get along at all. They are both rigid and unyielding and have polar opposite opinions on the place of magic and eletech in society. This amity is exacerbated by the fact that Ser Barris Estoris is friendly with many Knights and warriors of House Arden.   When it comes down to it, Duty will always bind the house together. Although internal tensions may abound, everyone will pull together to support the house because duty and loyalty are two of the hallmarks of the house.   Despite the Duchess’ generally acerbic nature, the House maintains cordial relations with House Rosebrier.   Duchess Estoris is a steadfast supporter of magic and eletech within the kingdom of Eisen, and so is most of the house. There are a few in the rural communities of the western parts of the duchy that would rather focus on excellence of traditional techniques (Amish orcs!), but most of the House views eletech as yet another facet of life to be perfected. House Bremen tends to focus on the practical applications of eletech, especially where it can be used to enhance industry and agriculture   Traditionally, House Bremen has been seen as a mediator between various political factions in the kingdom. However the current duchess’s acerbic personality has made maintaining this role difficult.

Traditionally House Bremen earned power through acting as a mediator and power broker between other houses. They were known for a calm deliberation and dedication to duty which let them broker many deals in the halls of power. This has eroded somewhat under the stewardship of the current duchess, whose acerbic personality makes such deal-making more difficult. Therefore a great deal of the houses current political power comes from the iron will of the duchess herself. She is more likely to force concessions on a point than negotiate them gracefully, but power is power.   House Bremen has traditionally earned power through acting as a mediator and power broker between other houses. Their status as a food supply hub for other duchies also supports their power. Armies march on their stomachs, after all.   The Duchy of Bremen is the breadbasket of Eisen and their main production and exports are agricultural and related products. They export food items to many other areas of the country, including grain, vegetables, meat, wool, and other raw animal and plant products. They also have a healthy industry of prepared second level agricultural goods such as leather, cloth, ect. The Bremen dedication to excellence generally ensures any item produced is of high quality and many masters of various trades can be found in the region.

House Elysia was founded in 1525 with the founding of Eisen by Franz Bremen, a human fighter. He became the founding Duke.   The Estoris family rose to prominence and the ducal seat in the late 1600s, due to various political maneuverings. The Bremen family still exists in offshoots and cadet lines but it is rare these days to find anyone actually bearing the last name.   General Brigitte Durant, Human Fighter, is the current Secretary of the Army