Nobles Houses of Raen'dor - Overview

Regardless of one’s upbringing and social status, it behooves all adventurers to become familiar with the Noble Houses and other factions of Raen’dor. It is common for adventurers to be employed by these groups– both directly and indirectly– and quests not sponsored by such patrons can risk making enemies if adventurers aren’t careful. This document will provide an overview of the Noble Houses of Raen’dor that adventurers should be aware of, and of other factions that they may encounter as they embark across the realms.
The High Houses include the Royal Family of Eiderloch and the six Noble Houses that preside over the major regions of Raen’dor. While the names of these Houses (and the number of Houses that are considered High Houses at all) have remained static over the last century, they have historically changed depending on who controls the major cities of the realms; if tragedy befell one High House, for example, another House would undoubtedly rise up to fill the vacuum left behind. The heads of these Houses– currently seven in total– hold seats on a council (called the High Council of Raen’dor) that deals in everything from trade agreements to disputes between Noble Houses (although notably, this council is more to denote status than it is designed to actually meet, unless something truly dire is afoot). The seven current High Houses of Raen’dor are:

• House Eladel of Eiderloch; The Royal House
• House Lothaire of Nelenor
• House Cadwal of Duhem's Stand
• House Vangrim of Vanshire
• House Wildemere of Kesgrave
• House Nephele of Veruda
• House Amberheart of Embereth

The Middle Houses define the various Noble Houses that do not sit on the High Council of Raen’dor, but instead populate the courts of those High Houses; they do not govern major cities, but often govern larger towns or other patches of territory within the realms. Middle Houses, like the High Houses, tend to be quite wealthy and command a fair bit of respect, although they vary greatly in terms of status and position. There are many more Middle Houses than High ones, so it would be difficult to list them all, but a few notable examples are:

• House Lovell - Lady Patience Lovell was appointed governor of Chatwell to oversee expansion of that town (and ultimately expansion of House Eladel’s domain). Rose to power due to this appointment, and is poised to continue to rise if Chatwell becomes economically or politically important.
• House Barrich - Lord Brewyn Barrich governs the Frostfens; despite governing a large region, it is not a largely populated or particularly profitable one. If the Frostfens suddenly gained access to some invaluable resource, or if the House became particularly ambitious, it could rise; for now, it is respected but not considered by other Noble Houses very often.
• House Pykos - Lady Karma Pykos oversees the trade and distribution of magical items acquired through the Adventurer’s Guild; works closely with other Noble Houses as well as the Guild, and have become incredibly wealthy as a result. Does not govern any direct territory, but represents another kind of Middle House that earns that status through pure wealth and/or a specific enterprise.

The Lower Houses are another step down in terms of importance and wealth, but are still very much noble families. These Houses tend to wield a good deal of power in the specific towns or villages where they are based, and are welcomed into the “higher society” that Noble Houses take part in, but outside of those contexts a Lower Noble House is essentially any family that holds some kind of power or claim to a decent amount of land. If the names of the Middle Houses would be tedious to list in full, then a list naming off Lower Houses would be pointless– not because they are not worth the recognition, but because they are numerous by comparison to the Houses above them. Regardless of House status, it is always possible for positions to shift– for those who have less to make their family name known, and for those who find themselves at the top to fall.

Related Historical Events

• Year 1028
  Death of the Queen