Post by Nobody on Dec 29, 2014 23:23:49 GMT -6
House Daragh
The members of this house are perfectionists known for their technical acumen. Lord Daragh, the founder of the house, was a great Arcadian smith who devised a way to weave Glamour into steel, making it safe for Arcadian to use. Some say that Lord Daragh himself stayed hidden in the Mortal world because of his fascination with metalwork and machines. Members of this house are very precise, both in word and deed. When a plan is made, they insist that it be carried out to the letter. Efficiency is considered the highest of virtues. Very few of them rule, preferring instead to make sure everything runs like clockwork. Because of their orderly disposition, they often work as clerks and barristers, although they perform their tasks with an intellectual flair. The rare member of House Daragh who does rule usually governs his fief in a very matter-of-fact, practical manner, but tends to deal with problems better in theory rather than in practice. This ideal of perfection puts them at odds with many other Arcadian. Few can live up to their expectations, which tends to make these sidhe even more elitist. They take their amusements far too seriously. Higher mathematics, mechanics, architecture and smithwork are common vocations for them. They're no strangers to hard work, and they firmly believe that 'if you want something done right, you've got to get House Daragh to do it'. Their penchant for precision also presents a curious weakness. When witnessing a well-maintained machine or masterpiece in engineering, they can become enraptured. Some attain a state of reverie and can contemplate such things for hours. The blazon of House Daragh is or, an arm embowed maintaining a hammer sable on a chief gules three cogwheels ( Three gold gears on a red field above a black arm and a hammer on a gold field )Members of this house are strongwilled and known for their ability to invest Glamour into everything they do.
House Eiluned
This house has always been tainted by the scandals of its founder, Lady Eiluned. As the creator of the so-called 'House of Secrets', she conspired with many dark and mysterious beings and powers to gather magical knowledge. Although many now work as counselors or advisors for the Seelie Court, some whisper that Eiluned will eventually become an Unseelie house. Regardless, sidhe of this house seem to enjoy the best of both Courts. Eiluned sidhe are valued for their extensive occult knowledge, their uncanny ability to gather secrets and their preternatural talent for intrigue. Fiefs ruled by this house are filled with mystery. There are accusations that House Eiluned voluntarily accepted exile on Earth as punishment for their horrible and forgotten crime. Members of the house counter that their Seelie affiliations prove they are innocent. This doesn't prevent Eiluned sidhe from falling into their Unseelie Legacies, however. Eiluned sidhe know darkness as well as they know light. When a sidhe from this house needs to work with treacherous or unscrupulous characters to gather secrets, they are capable deliberately becoming Unseelie until they get what they want. This state must last either from moonrise to moonrise or sunset to sunset. If the changeling doesn't get the secret they lust after, they cannot become Seelie again until the truth is learned. Their blazon is per chevron, sable and argent, two decresents and a pentacle counterchanged. (Two silver crescent moons on black above a black pentacle on silver). All members of this house have an impressive talent for magic along with an overwhelming curiosity and attraction to mysteries and conspiracy.
House Kildram
Sidhe are creatures of extremes, and the nobles of House Kildram are no exception. Lady Kildram and the sidhe of her house stayed visible during the Interregnum so that they could continue to explore the worlds pleasures. Some even staet that the house's founder rejected the call of Arcadia because of the love of a mortal man. This would not be surprising in the least; Kildram thoroughly immerse themselves in Earthly pleasures. Kildram sidhe are overly fond of food, drink, drugs and sex, and are often called away from higher pursuits by appeals to their baser needs. Anything that gives them a rush is fine with them. When the chance to indulge presents itself, they do so unceasingly until their lusts are slaked. These reckless nobles continually flirt with disaster. They love to taunt the status quo, even going so far as to aid their enemies to bring about a little discord. Still, when called upon to fight, this passion takes a different focus; Kildram Arcadian are fierce warriors who live for the fury of battle. The thought of dying in battle and tempting fate by fighting recklessly fuels this passion even more. More often than not, each member lives by his own rules and his own code of honor. Theirs is also the most accommodating of all houses. Kildram rarely pull rank on commoner Arcadian. For this reason, its members are beloved by the commoners and fiefs ruled by House Kildram are happy ones, if a bit on the wild side. The blazon of House Kildram is gules, a lion passant reguardant argent. ( A silver lion walking on a red field, looking back over its shoulder )
Defiant to the last, Kildram sidhe are renowned for their great courage. Though they understand fear, it does not control them, even in the face of death. Any attempt, natural or magical, to generate fear in them automatically fails. Only threats to a lover's life can frighten a Kildram, and those often succeed very well. Sidhe of this house have an overpowering attraction to danger. Even if the object of their pleasure is somewhat safe, they can find a way to make it dangerous. This is especially true of their romantic trysts, which are usually epic and almost always tragic. Creatures of pure ethereal beauty, they tend to fall in love with outlaws, strangers, wanderers, mortals and other 'unacceptable' types. Often such loves become true and complete passions that cannot be denied. Some of them overcome this natural inclination, but only by becoming hateful towards all romance. The most tortured become obsessed with preventing it from occurring to anyone they know.
House Quigg
This house is perhaps the most 'noble' of all the houses. While others retreated to Arcadia long ago, the Quigg sidhe chose to face the Sundering head-on. Quigg sidhe believe that their lord and founder had been reborn again and again as a noble sidhe. He is said to have been resurrected as a paladin serving Charlemagne and a major-general serving Napoleon. Rivals swear that he must have aided Machiavelli as well. Members of this house are conservative, duty-bound Arcadian who place the well-being of their kingdoms above their own. Unfortunately, they let everyone know this. Their rule is often marked by extreme arrogance and they categorically state that only members of their house are fit to rule. From there, each member of House Quigg proceeds to state that she is more fit to rule than her brethren. The internecine feuds that result can only be halted by one thing: a threat from outside the house. The members then band together to prove the superiority of House Quigg. When the threat ends, its back to business as usual. Their anger, like their rivalry, is legendary. When confronted with something that offends their honor, they have been known to go berserk. Furthermore, when a Arcadian of House Quigg is presented with a rival that he cannot overcome, he becomes Unseelie until he can find some way ( any way, no matter how base ) in which he can triumph. Once triumphant, he returns to his typical Seelie arrogance. The blazon of House Quigg is vert, a falcon maintaining an oak leave or ( A gold falcon, facing left, with a gold leaf in its beak, wings raised, legs splayed, against a green field. )
Although they are great warriors, sidhe of this house are prone to great rages. Whenever they seriously wounded, or when their honor is insulted, will fly off into a berserk rage and attack anyone near them, ally or enemy.
House Caulfield
The quietest ( and some say the wisest ) of all the house founders, Lord Caulfield was exiled for his eloquent defense of mortal folk. Centuries ago, the earliest Arcadian held a great contempt for humans. Many saw them as the cause of rapidly spreading evil of death, and some argued that revenge against them would remove this curse from the world. For many years, Caulfield stood alone against those who argued for retribution against humans. The outrage against Lord Caulfield was so great that all who supported him were condemned by the High Lords of Arcadia, and his followers were exiled. Members of this house don't see humans as perfect - far from it. They do, however, believe that humanity has earned the right to exist undisturbed. They fiercely despise Vampires and lycanthropes; their peaceful demeanors can turn wrathful when they encounter such. Arcadians of House Caulfield do not advertise their allegiance. Other houses revile them, although Al Zum sidhe will not allow Caulfield sidhe to be mistreated. Exiles or not, they're still sidhe. Despite their secrecy, House Caulfield is the most widespread house, and its members travel all over the world. Caulfield sidhe serve as sages, loremasters and storytellers who remember earliest Arcadian societies. House Caulfield can rarely rule openly, but they do accept just about any changeling under their banner. Despite this, even the most common changeling would never accept a title in the house. They do quietly hold claim to some territories, but many of these are barren and despoiled by urban fiefs. Caulfield's blazon was struck and discredited when the house was exiled. The symbol has since been erased from all Arcadian records, although certain members of Caulfield still possess shields displaying the heraldry of the house: an oak tree blasted and eradicated, argent ( A silver oak tree with bare branches and exposed roots on a bare field )
Caulfield sidhe find it easy to affect mortals with Glamour. Because of their mortal affiliations, Caulfield sidhe tend to be more resistant to the effects of iron. Because of their past, these sidhe are known as oathbreakers. No other changeling will honor their oathbonds, hospitality or justice. Caulfield Arcadian are frequently the target of discrimination.
House Aesin
Originating in the icy regons of Scandinavia, the Sidhe of this house refer to themselves as "Guardians of the North." House Aesin are lords over nature and able to speak to animals, but like the icy domain they rule, they feel little when it comes to commoners that don't know their place. Despite being highly dutiful and honorable warriors, the majority of House Aesin find themselves on the unseelie side of things. More than most other arcadians, members of House Aesin have a strong connection to nature. As lords of man and animal alike, Aesin arcadians have the ability to speak with animals.
While still caring for their subjects, arcadians belonging to House Aesin have a tendency to have a master-slave relationship with them. Nevertheless, they feel obligated to protect their loyal servants, and occasionally they might feel something else for them. In the end, however, Aesin have a serious difficulty when interacting with anyone other than nobles.
House Sesheta
The sidhe of House Sesheta are seers and prophets and sworn enemies of the Unseelie Court and all minions of the Dark. This oath against the Unseelie, Thallain, and any awakening minion of darknes is so strong however, that the agents of these shadowy affairs can feel when one of this house is near. Originating in France, and the name, roughly meaning "good hand" comes from the house's founder, Jalendrel the Good-Handed. House Sesheta spent many years imprisoned in Arcadia for the actions of one of its fringe groups, watching in frustration as the world changed around them. However, it was the first of the "Lost Houses" to return to the World, charged with the task of battling the agents of the Dark and unifying the Seelie houses.
All members of House Sesheta are natural prophets -- glimpses of possible futures regularly come to them during dreams and meditation. These visions are often quite cryptic, although the changeling may decipher them with time and effort. However, that no matter how well understood they might be, they are still only possible futures and may not necessarily come to pass. Obviously, these prophecies are the province of the Goddess, who decides both when and how they appear. When in dire need, however, the Sesheta may attempt to "bring on" a vision by meditating for several minutes.
In addition, due to their affliction of precognition, all Sesheta sidhe can become lost in the possible futures they see blinding them to the world around them. Additionally, because of the infamy surrounding their imprisonment, when their true lineage is known Sesheta sidhe suffer a difficulty dealing socially with sidhe of houses other than Caulfield and Kildram.
House Fangdanglia
This Unseelie house specializes in warfare, poisons, and oddly enough hospitality. Indeed, members of this house are courageous fighters and renowned hosts, giving their hospitality to friend or foe if asked. House Fangdanglia is a Celtic house named after a daughter of Dagda. And whiles being great warriors, they have something of a bragging problem. So much so that they tend to tell the wrong sorts of secrets to the wrong sorts of people. Letting out intimate secrets about any Geas they are under, flaws in their carefully crafted plots, or the single way to kill them. All in a terribly drawn out and boastful story. House Fangdanglia members are among the fiercest and most stalwart of all Arcadian warriors. They will not flee in combat unless ordered to do so by the ranking war leader (and even then, they'll be the last people off the field).
Sadly for all of their bravery House Fangdanglia Arcadian can't keep a secret to save their lives, literally, and stories of these lapsus lingua abound through Arcadian legends. They're the ones who, in a series of wild brags, explain the one way they can be killed, usually to the wrong person, or share the intimate details of any Geas they're under. Anytime a Arcadian of House Fangdanglia boasts of her deeds (not an uncommon occurrence), she must take extraordinary aims to avoid blabbing some secret. Note that House Fangdanglia Arcadian don't go spilling the beans to complete strangers, alhtough with a little work, a clever stranger can become a friend.
House Al Zum
Typically barred from the halls of power by the condescension of the other noble houses, members of House Al Zum live on the periphery of Arcadian society, taking it as their duty to defend Arcadianrie-kind. Little is publically known of this house, save that its members straddle both Seelie as well as Unseelie, and that few can match them in a fight. House Al Zum founded in the long forgotten past by a warrior-woman born of the union of a Sidhe with a Troll. Although snubbed for her low origins, Unathi Thulisile Al Zum won the right to establish her house by besting the champions of all the High Lords of Arcadia. Nonetheless, her house finds itself regarded as pretenders to nobility from more conservative Arcadian in both Courts. Whatever their heritage, there is no denying that members of this house are the most accomplished warriors, nor is their reputation founded solely on skill at arms. The Phobean Oracles, seers of this house, are regarded by those in the know as the most accomplished practitioners of precognition. In the long years of its earthly existence, House Al Zum has learned to mingle amongst humanity much like the wolves amongst sheep. Surviving the millennia as agents of warfare incarnate, has made them silent and efficient warriors. They tend to concentrate on defending Arcadians from the perils of the World both mortal as well as preternatural.
Those of House Al Zum are silent and efficient warriors. They rarely make any sound when fighting, causing great consternation in their foes. Once entering a fight, they lose sight of almost everything else, reaching a hypnotic "fugue state" in which the world seems to move more slowly.
Most nobles fear and look down upon House Al Zum, though none would give voice to such feelings when faced with a member of the household. All interactions with other sidhe (except Houses Sesheta, Kildram, Caulfield, and Leanhaun) and commoners with strong royalist sympathies are at an extreme loss of standing. Sidhe of House Al Zum also suffers a somewhat diluted ideal of beauty due to their Troll progenitors. They do, however, exhibit a strange madness in battle. Although a member of this house will not attack friends or bystanders, they have great difficulty leaving combat until either they, or all their enemies, are defeated, though not necessarily dead or even unconscious. They may accept an honorable surrender.
House Svevtovid
A Russian house named after the progeny of the Sun and the Moon. Members of this Unseelie house are able to discern patterns in anything, whether it be fancy sword fighting, a complex dance, or sport. They also deem themselves to be lords over the Inanimae, as well as Arcadian. But despite their claims to these things, they can neither swear an oath of love, nor reject a challenge brought before them.
Members of House Svevtovid understand patterns. Given time to watch a series of actions performed by another, such as sword fighting, dancing or sport, their difficulty in opposition or as a partner is lowered extremely. They may observe an opponent's patterns even while engaged in combat, they cannot however fight one foe while observing a different one.
House Svevtovid sidhe can never give a vow of love to another. One of the more painful curses afflicting this house being they must accept all challenges. If a member of House Svevtovid fails to acknowledge a challenge, she loses a portion of her will, resistance, and health per day until she returns the challenge. As one might expect, house members take care to be courteous to each other and to stay in fighting trim.
House Ailil
House Ailil is perhaps the best known of the Unseelie Houses. They take an active role in changeling politics, openly opposing the stranglehold on power that the Seelie Court possesses. In Concordia, they are often found as a small, underrepresented, yet highly vocal, minority in the ParCaulfieldent of Dreams. Ailil fiefdoms are rare, and are almost invariably Unseelie. They are watched with care by Seelie rulers, as they are hotbeds of Unseelie insurrection and Shadow Court manipulation. Distrusted by Houses such as Quigg and Daragh, they are nonetheless treated as distant cousins by House Eiluned, which is their sister House. Relations have always been fairly peaceable between these two lines of Sidhe; many even consider it ironic that the more "noble" of these two Houses is so unrepentantly Unseelie, while the shady and secretive Eiluned claim allegiance to the Seelie Court. Some old legends persist that Ailil and Eiluned themselves were brother and sister, and that Ailil was a Seelie-disposed king, while his sister was an Unseelie-aligned sorceress. How the two gathered courts around them that were so obviously opposed to their attitudes, thereby forming Houses of Sidhe around them, is anyone's guess.
House Ailil wants to restore the ancient traditions of half-year rule, wherein the Unseelie Court would control land and political moves for the fall and winter of the year, and then restore the crown to the Seelie for spring and summer. House Ailil claims that the Seelie have betrayed the trust of the Unseelie Courts, and grossly destabilized the Dreaming itself by reneging on their promises. Some among their number suggest that it is not too late to return to this practice, and are ready to make the exchange in any year the Seelie will finally agree to it. Others believe that the Seelie control of the past six hundred years has upset the balance, and that only an Unseelie control for the next six hundred will clear the slate.
House Ailil provides much of the leadership for the Unseelie Court, defending Unseelie commoners and the other Sidhe, and invariably acting as the open adversaries for House Quigg. Despite the noble face of this House, its members see themselves as unjustly wronged by the Seelie Court, and are fully prepared for all manner of treachery to revenge themselves. Assassination, kidnapping, framing, conspiracy, blackmail, seduction, deception, and more are all common weapons in the Ailil arsenal. They are strong believers in doing the job themselves, but also see the need for monkeys paw and thugs, to keep their own hands clean. Internal competition is common and expected in the House.
Sidhe of House Ailil are experts at political manipulation. Despite their insistence at the great differences between their House and their enemies of House Quigg, members of House Ailil are cursed by the same arrogance of the Seelie adversaries. Ailil are almost totally incapable of admitting their own mistakes. They tend to take on tasks that others would shy away from, convinced that their own cunning or skill will see them through. In non-combat situations, they will nearly never admit that they are wrong, even when it is obvious to everyone else, and even themselves. If they back down from a situation, such as a battle they know they cannot win, they become stammering mentally lost messes until they gain some sort of victory that restores their confidence and their face. House Ailil nobles are likely to abuse their underlings in these situations, taking some pleasure in showing up those who are beneath them.
House Balor
Most Sidhe who hear the name House Balor regard it as little more than a jest, a cruel joke designed to aggravate Traditionalist Sidhe. House Balor derrives its name from a powerful Vampiric king named Balor of the Evil Eye, whose gaze could destroy his enemies. Most Sidhe who recall Balor's name believe that the Sidhe of House Balor intend nothing more than to aggravate the Seelie with a reference to one of their ancient enemies. House Balor have no intention of dissuading them from this erroenous notion. In truth, House Balor believe their founder was Lugh of the Long Arm, the half-Sidhe, half-Vampiric grandson of Balor himself, and a hero of the Sidhe in the wars against the Vampiric Courts. Thus, the Sidhe of House Balor believe that they are the true kings of the Dreaming; their blood is that of Vampiric and Sidhe intermingled, and they laugh at the claims of House Quigg, or even their own allies among Houses Ailil and Leanhaun. Just as Lugh slew his own grandfather, House Balor believes it is their destiny to triumph over the Sidhe of the Seelie Court and take their rightful place as rulers of the Arcadian.
More than any other House, the Sidhe of House Balor believe that Winter is almost upon the world. Without a strong hand to lead them, the Arcadian will surely perish. House Balor fully intends to set itself up as overlords of humans and Arcadian alike, demanding tribute and guiding the waking lands and the Dreaming through Winter with an iron fist. Until this goal can be reached, the Arcadian of House Balor cultivate allies among the Unseelie Court, both commoner and Sidhe. Additionally, these Sidhe are always on the look-out for Prodigal races who can be converted to their cause; already they have found allies among several shapeshifter species, especially a twisted race of werewolves who call themselves Black Spiral Dancers. House Balor forms alliances with a number of murderous, dark, and twisted spiritual organizations and supernatural races; many whisper that chimera of Nightmare are found commonly in the council-chambers, and even the beds, of this House.
At their worst, House Balor are insane tyrants, desperate to seize control of mortal and Arcadian worlds alike and grind them beneath their boot. Others, however, point to a proud history of betrayal in the past of House Balor; some optimists claim that just as Lugh drew upon his Vampiric and Sidhe magicks to destroy Balor, so is it likely that the Sidhe of House Balor form alliances with dark creatures only to betray them one day. Many insist that their convuluted geneaology cannot help but force them to knife their current allies in the back, and that, should Winter ever come, they will be staunch allies of the Seelie Court, secret infiltrators of the Nightmare camp.
For now the Sidhe of House Balor are content to plot with the Unseelie Court, forming alliances wherever they can among Arcadian, Gallain, and Prodigals. While whispers link the Shadow Court to the Sidhe of House Balor, it seems as if the two organizations each have their own agenda. Many Sidhe of House Balor masquerade as members of House Eiluned or Daragh, worming their way into the Seelie Court. Most of them regard the Seelie Court as weak, and constantly probe and test it for opportunities to strike at it. Many members of House Balor enjoy politics, and are masters of treachery, though their flair for the dramatic tends to unmask them before too long, another example of their unhidable flaws, perhaps. Many of them are quite decadent and debauched, and demand total obessiance from their vassals.
The vampiric blood of these sidhe shields them from the worst effects of cold iron. Cold iron still causes them discomfort, but Balor sidhe take no penalty when performing tasks that involve contact with it. They do not lose temporary Glamour when struck with it. If slain by an iron weapon, however, their Arcadian souls are still destroyed. Though they can masquerade as Seelie sidhe, they will never actually become Seelie.
House Leanhaun
Members of House Leanhaun are often seen as the most moderate of the "Winter" Houses, for they throw their lot in whole-heartedly with the Unseelie Court. A few Seelie Leanhaun exist, but they are by far the exception to the rule. They are traditionally viewed as hedonists and rakes, fond of mortal company, and extremely vain. A tradition of musical and poetic skill runs through this House, and many of them find employ as the bards, harpers, talesingers, and historians for other Sidhe. There are few commonly known Leanhaun Freeholds or fiefdoms, and most of them are in Ireland. Those Leanhaun Freeholds in Concordia opened themselves as places of peace during the many Arcadian Wars, offering succor to both sides, and acting as neutral ground for the wounded and the desperate. This earned House Leanhaun a good reputation among other Arcadian, causing many of the Seelie Court to believe that their reputation as Unseelie monsters is unjustly earned. This is certainly a popular sentiment among the commoners who have never met House Leanhaun.
In truth, House Leanhaun carries a terrible burden, which forces them to engage in activities that the extremists among the Seelie Court cannot permit. The Sidhe of House Leanhaun are cursed with unnatural aging, as their bodies continue to crave Glamour. Without a constant and plentiful supply, members of this House, physically aging in their appearance.
Members of House Leanhaun are known for their beauty and style, and many of them are vain sensualists. They live in dread of the House's curse, and often resort to brutal methods of gathering Glamour to abate their curse. Though they control few Freeholds, they have mastered the art of stealing Glamour through nearly every mean.
In many cases, however, this Glamour is not enough to abate the hunger that a Leanhaun has, and so she chooses instead to Rhapsodize mortals. This method of Epiphany infuses a human Dreamer with Glamour, causing his creativity to burn like wildfire, producing some of the greatest art of their lives. However, this process inevitably burns out the artist, causing many of them to waste away or even take their own lives. Since the Ressurgence in 1969, a number of great musicians, poets, painters, and the like have perished as a result of the Leanhaun's tender mercies. Their creativity reached heights it might never have soared to, but they paid the ultimate price, all as the Leanhaun watched on.
Though House Leanhaun enjoys good relationships with some, they are always slow to reveal their secrets, and never offer full membership in their House to any non-Sidhe. The commoners are far more useful as retainers and allies, free of the curse which afflicts the members of this House, and perhaps even unaware of it. Many consider House Leanhaun to be doing little more than upholding the Unseelie Code, which preaches that "Glamour is free." Rhapsody, Ravaging, and the suffusion of all aspects of life with constant sources of Glamour allows a Leanhaun to pass as any other Sidhe, and thus they sometimes wear the colors of House Kildram or Eiluned, and are virtually undetectable in these guises, with their smooth ways and silver-tongues. There is a definite emnity between Houses Leanhaun and Caulfield, most likely over the Leanhaun abuse of mortals. These two Houses have crossed blades more than once, and neither will trade with the other. Many members of House Leanhaun, when they have the ear of Seelie lords, warn against too many dealings with the Oathbroken House of Caulfield, claiming that they have never proven their alliegance to the Arcadian over their love of humans.
House Daragh
The members of this house are perfectionists known for their technical acumen. Lord Daragh, the founder of the house, was a great Arcadian smith who devised a way to weave Glamour into steel, making it safe for Arcadian to use. Some say that Lord Daragh himself stayed hidden in the Mortal world because of his fascination with metalwork and machines. Members of this house are very precise, both in word and deed. When a plan is made, they insist that it be carried out to the letter. Efficiency is considered the highest of virtues. Very few of them rule, preferring instead to make sure everything runs like clockwork. Because of their orderly disposition, they often work as clerks and barristers, although they perform their tasks with an intellectual flair. The rare member of House Daragh who does rule usually governs his fief in a very matter-of-fact, practical manner, but tends to deal with problems better in theory rather than in practice. This ideal of perfection puts them at odds with many other Arcadian. Few can live up to their expectations, which tends to make these sidhe even more elitist. They take their amusements far too seriously. Higher mathematics, mechanics, architecture and smithwork are common vocations for them. They're no strangers to hard work, and they firmly believe that 'if you want something done right, you've got to get House Daragh to do it'. Their penchant for precision also presents a curious weakness. When witnessing a well-maintained machine or masterpiece in engineering, they can become enraptured. Some attain a state of reverie and can contemplate such things for hours. The blazon of House Daragh is or, an arm embowed maintaining a hammer sable on a chief gules three cogwheels ( Three gold gears on a red field above a black arm and a hammer on a gold field )Members of this house are strongwilled and known for their ability to invest Glamour into everything they do.
House Eiluned
This house has always been tainted by the scandals of its founder, Lady Eiluned. As the creator of the so-called 'House of Secrets', she conspired with many dark and mysterious beings and powers to gather magical knowledge. Although many now work as counselors or advisors for the Seelie Court, some whisper that Eiluned will eventually become an Unseelie house. Regardless, sidhe of this house seem to enjoy the best of both Courts. Eiluned sidhe are valued for their extensive occult knowledge, their uncanny ability to gather secrets and their preternatural talent for intrigue. Fiefs ruled by this house are filled with mystery. There are accusations that House Eiluned voluntarily accepted exile on Earth as punishment for their horrible and forgotten crime. Members of the house counter that their Seelie affiliations prove they are innocent. This doesn't prevent Eiluned sidhe from falling into their Unseelie Legacies, however. Eiluned sidhe know darkness as well as they know light. When a sidhe from this house needs to work with treacherous or unscrupulous characters to gather secrets, they are capable deliberately becoming Unseelie until they get what they want. This state must last either from moonrise to moonrise or sunset to sunset. If the changeling doesn't get the secret they lust after, they cannot become Seelie again until the truth is learned. Their blazon is per chevron, sable and argent, two decresents and a pentacle counterchanged. (Two silver crescent moons on black above a black pentacle on silver). All members of this house have an impressive talent for magic along with an overwhelming curiosity and attraction to mysteries and conspiracy.
House Kildram
Sidhe are creatures of extremes, and the nobles of House Kildram are no exception. Lady Kildram and the sidhe of her house stayed visible during the Interregnum so that they could continue to explore the worlds pleasures. Some even staet that the house's founder rejected the call of Arcadia because of the love of a mortal man. This would not be surprising in the least; Kildram thoroughly immerse themselves in Earthly pleasures. Kildram sidhe are overly fond of food, drink, drugs and sex, and are often called away from higher pursuits by appeals to their baser needs. Anything that gives them a rush is fine with them. When the chance to indulge presents itself, they do so unceasingly until their lusts are slaked. These reckless nobles continually flirt with disaster. They love to taunt the status quo, even going so far as to aid their enemies to bring about a little discord. Still, when called upon to fight, this passion takes a different focus; Kildram Arcadian are fierce warriors who live for the fury of battle. The thought of dying in battle and tempting fate by fighting recklessly fuels this passion even more. More often than not, each member lives by his own rules and his own code of honor. Theirs is also the most accommodating of all houses. Kildram rarely pull rank on commoner Arcadian. For this reason, its members are beloved by the commoners and fiefs ruled by House Kildram are happy ones, if a bit on the wild side. The blazon of House Kildram is gules, a lion passant reguardant argent. ( A silver lion walking on a red field, looking back over its shoulder )
Defiant to the last, Kildram sidhe are renowned for their great courage. Though they understand fear, it does not control them, even in the face of death. Any attempt, natural or magical, to generate fear in them automatically fails. Only threats to a lover's life can frighten a Kildram, and those often succeed very well. Sidhe of this house have an overpowering attraction to danger. Even if the object of their pleasure is somewhat safe, they can find a way to make it dangerous. This is especially true of their romantic trysts, which are usually epic and almost always tragic. Creatures of pure ethereal beauty, they tend to fall in love with outlaws, strangers, wanderers, mortals and other 'unacceptable' types. Often such loves become true and complete passions that cannot be denied. Some of them overcome this natural inclination, but only by becoming hateful towards all romance. The most tortured become obsessed with preventing it from occurring to anyone they know.
House Quigg
This house is perhaps the most 'noble' of all the houses. While others retreated to Arcadia long ago, the Quigg sidhe chose to face the Sundering head-on. Quigg sidhe believe that their lord and founder had been reborn again and again as a noble sidhe. He is said to have been resurrected as a paladin serving Charlemagne and a major-general serving Napoleon. Rivals swear that he must have aided Machiavelli as well. Members of this house are conservative, duty-bound Arcadian who place the well-being of their kingdoms above their own. Unfortunately, they let everyone know this. Their rule is often marked by extreme arrogance and they categorically state that only members of their house are fit to rule. From there, each member of House Quigg proceeds to state that she is more fit to rule than her brethren. The internecine feuds that result can only be halted by one thing: a threat from outside the house. The members then band together to prove the superiority of House Quigg. When the threat ends, its back to business as usual. Their anger, like their rivalry, is legendary. When confronted with something that offends their honor, they have been known to go berserk. Furthermore, when a Arcadian of House Quigg is presented with a rival that he cannot overcome, he becomes Unseelie until he can find some way ( any way, no matter how base ) in which he can triumph. Once triumphant, he returns to his typical Seelie arrogance. The blazon of House Quigg is vert, a falcon maintaining an oak leave or ( A gold falcon, facing left, with a gold leaf in its beak, wings raised, legs splayed, against a green field. )
Although they are great warriors, sidhe of this house are prone to great rages. Whenever they seriously wounded, or when their honor is insulted, will fly off into a berserk rage and attack anyone near them, ally or enemy.
House Caulfield
The quietest ( and some say the wisest ) of all the house founders, Lord Caulfield was exiled for his eloquent defense of mortal folk. Centuries ago, the earliest Arcadian held a great contempt for humans. Many saw them as the cause of rapidly spreading evil of death, and some argued that revenge against them would remove this curse from the world. For many years, Caulfield stood alone against those who argued for retribution against humans. The outrage against Lord Caulfield was so great that all who supported him were condemned by the High Lords of Arcadia, and his followers were exiled. Members of this house don't see humans as perfect - far from it. They do, however, believe that humanity has earned the right to exist undisturbed. They fiercely despise Vampires and lycanthropes; their peaceful demeanors can turn wrathful when they encounter such. Arcadians of House Caulfield do not advertise their allegiance. Other houses revile them, although Al Zum sidhe will not allow Caulfield sidhe to be mistreated. Exiles or not, they're still sidhe. Despite their secrecy, House Caulfield is the most widespread house, and its members travel all over the world. Caulfield sidhe serve as sages, loremasters and storytellers who remember earliest Arcadian societies. House Caulfield can rarely rule openly, but they do accept just about any changeling under their banner. Despite this, even the most common changeling would never accept a title in the house. They do quietly hold claim to some territories, but many of these are barren and despoiled by urban fiefs. Caulfield's blazon was struck and discredited when the house was exiled. The symbol has since been erased from all Arcadian records, although certain members of Caulfield still possess shields displaying the heraldry of the house: an oak tree blasted and eradicated, argent ( A silver oak tree with bare branches and exposed roots on a bare field )
Caulfield sidhe find it easy to affect mortals with Glamour. Because of their mortal affiliations, Caulfield sidhe tend to be more resistant to the effects of iron. Because of their past, these sidhe are known as oathbreakers. No other changeling will honor their oathbonds, hospitality or justice. Caulfield Arcadian are frequently the target of discrimination.
House Aesin
Originating in the icy regons of Scandinavia, the Sidhe of this house refer to themselves as "Guardians of the North." House Aesin are lords over nature and able to speak to animals, but like the icy domain they rule, they feel little when it comes to commoners that don't know their place. Despite being highly dutiful and honorable warriors, the majority of House Aesin find themselves on the unseelie side of things. More than most other arcadians, members of House Aesin have a strong connection to nature. As lords of man and animal alike, Aesin arcadians have the ability to speak with animals.
While still caring for their subjects, arcadians belonging to House Aesin have a tendency to have a master-slave relationship with them. Nevertheless, they feel obligated to protect their loyal servants, and occasionally they might feel something else for them. In the end, however, Aesin have a serious difficulty when interacting with anyone other than nobles.
House Sesheta
The sidhe of House Sesheta are seers and prophets and sworn enemies of the Unseelie Court and all minions of the Dark. This oath against the Unseelie, Thallain, and any awakening minion of darknes is so strong however, that the agents of these shadowy affairs can feel when one of this house is near. Originating in France, and the name, roughly meaning "good hand" comes from the house's founder, Jalendrel the Good-Handed. House Sesheta spent many years imprisoned in Arcadia for the actions of one of its fringe groups, watching in frustration as the world changed around them. However, it was the first of the "Lost Houses" to return to the World, charged with the task of battling the agents of the Dark and unifying the Seelie houses.
All members of House Sesheta are natural prophets -- glimpses of possible futures regularly come to them during dreams and meditation. These visions are often quite cryptic, although the changeling may decipher them with time and effort. However, that no matter how well understood they might be, they are still only possible futures and may not necessarily come to pass. Obviously, these prophecies are the province of the Goddess, who decides both when and how they appear. When in dire need, however, the Sesheta may attempt to "bring on" a vision by meditating for several minutes.
In addition, due to their affliction of precognition, all Sesheta sidhe can become lost in the possible futures they see blinding them to the world around them. Additionally, because of the infamy surrounding their imprisonment, when their true lineage is known Sesheta sidhe suffer a difficulty dealing socially with sidhe of houses other than Caulfield and Kildram.
House Fangdanglia
This Unseelie house specializes in warfare, poisons, and oddly enough hospitality. Indeed, members of this house are courageous fighters and renowned hosts, giving their hospitality to friend or foe if asked. House Fangdanglia is a Celtic house named after a daughter of Dagda. And whiles being great warriors, they have something of a bragging problem. So much so that they tend to tell the wrong sorts of secrets to the wrong sorts of people. Letting out intimate secrets about any Geas they are under, flaws in their carefully crafted plots, or the single way to kill them. All in a terribly drawn out and boastful story. House Fangdanglia members are among the fiercest and most stalwart of all Arcadian warriors. They will not flee in combat unless ordered to do so by the ranking war leader (and even then, they'll be the last people off the field).
Sadly for all of their bravery House Fangdanglia Arcadian can't keep a secret to save their lives, literally, and stories of these lapsus lingua abound through Arcadian legends. They're the ones who, in a series of wild brags, explain the one way they can be killed, usually to the wrong person, or share the intimate details of any Geas they're under. Anytime a Arcadian of House Fangdanglia boasts of her deeds (not an uncommon occurrence), she must take extraordinary aims to avoid blabbing some secret. Note that House Fangdanglia Arcadian don't go spilling the beans to complete strangers, alhtough with a little work, a clever stranger can become a friend.
House Al Zum
Typically barred from the halls of power by the condescension of the other noble houses, members of House Al Zum live on the periphery of Arcadian society, taking it as their duty to defend Arcadianrie-kind. Little is publically known of this house, save that its members straddle both Seelie as well as Unseelie, and that few can match them in a fight. House Al Zum founded in the long forgotten past by a warrior-woman born of the union of a Sidhe with a Troll. Although snubbed for her low origins, Unathi Thulisile Al Zum won the right to establish her house by besting the champions of all the High Lords of Arcadia. Nonetheless, her house finds itself regarded as pretenders to nobility from more conservative Arcadian in both Courts. Whatever their heritage, there is no denying that members of this house are the most accomplished warriors, nor is their reputation founded solely on skill at arms. The Phobean Oracles, seers of this house, are regarded by those in the know as the most accomplished practitioners of precognition. In the long years of its earthly existence, House Al Zum has learned to mingle amongst humanity much like the wolves amongst sheep. Surviving the millennia as agents of warfare incarnate, has made them silent and efficient warriors. They tend to concentrate on defending Arcadians from the perils of the World both mortal as well as preternatural.
Those of House Al Zum are silent and efficient warriors. They rarely make any sound when fighting, causing great consternation in their foes. Once entering a fight, they lose sight of almost everything else, reaching a hypnotic "fugue state" in which the world seems to move more slowly.
Most nobles fear and look down upon House Al Zum, though none would give voice to such feelings when faced with a member of the household. All interactions with other sidhe (except Houses Sesheta, Kildram, Caulfield, and Leanhaun) and commoners with strong royalist sympathies are at an extreme loss of standing. Sidhe of House Al Zum also suffers a somewhat diluted ideal of beauty due to their Troll progenitors. They do, however, exhibit a strange madness in battle. Although a member of this house will not attack friends or bystanders, they have great difficulty leaving combat until either they, or all their enemies, are defeated, though not necessarily dead or even unconscious. They may accept an honorable surrender.
House Svevtovid
A Russian house named after the progeny of the Sun and the Moon. Members of this Unseelie house are able to discern patterns in anything, whether it be fancy sword fighting, a complex dance, or sport. They also deem themselves to be lords over the Inanimae, as well as Arcadian. But despite their claims to these things, they can neither swear an oath of love, nor reject a challenge brought before them.
Members of House Svevtovid understand patterns. Given time to watch a series of actions performed by another, such as sword fighting, dancing or sport, their difficulty in opposition or as a partner is lowered extremely. They may observe an opponent's patterns even while engaged in combat, they cannot however fight one foe while observing a different one.
House Svevtovid sidhe can never give a vow of love to another. One of the more painful curses afflicting this house being they must accept all challenges. If a member of House Svevtovid fails to acknowledge a challenge, she loses a portion of her will, resistance, and health per day until she returns the challenge. As one might expect, house members take care to be courteous to each other and to stay in fighting trim.
House Ailil
House Ailil is perhaps the best known of the Unseelie Houses. They take an active role in changeling politics, openly opposing the stranglehold on power that the Seelie Court possesses. In Concordia, they are often found as a small, underrepresented, yet highly vocal, minority in the ParCaulfieldent of Dreams. Ailil fiefdoms are rare, and are almost invariably Unseelie. They are watched with care by Seelie rulers, as they are hotbeds of Unseelie insurrection and Shadow Court manipulation. Distrusted by Houses such as Quigg and Daragh, they are nonetheless treated as distant cousins by House Eiluned, which is their sister House. Relations have always been fairly peaceable between these two lines of Sidhe; many even consider it ironic that the more "noble" of these two Houses is so unrepentantly Unseelie, while the shady and secretive Eiluned claim allegiance to the Seelie Court. Some old legends persist that Ailil and Eiluned themselves were brother and sister, and that Ailil was a Seelie-disposed king, while his sister was an Unseelie-aligned sorceress. How the two gathered courts around them that were so obviously opposed to their attitudes, thereby forming Houses of Sidhe around them, is anyone's guess.
House Ailil wants to restore the ancient traditions of half-year rule, wherein the Unseelie Court would control land and political moves for the fall and winter of the year, and then restore the crown to the Seelie for spring and summer. House Ailil claims that the Seelie have betrayed the trust of the Unseelie Courts, and grossly destabilized the Dreaming itself by reneging on their promises. Some among their number suggest that it is not too late to return to this practice, and are ready to make the exchange in any year the Seelie will finally agree to it. Others believe that the Seelie control of the past six hundred years has upset the balance, and that only an Unseelie control for the next six hundred will clear the slate.
House Ailil provides much of the leadership for the Unseelie Court, defending Unseelie commoners and the other Sidhe, and invariably acting as the open adversaries for House Quigg. Despite the noble face of this House, its members see themselves as unjustly wronged by the Seelie Court, and are fully prepared for all manner of treachery to revenge themselves. Assassination, kidnapping, framing, conspiracy, blackmail, seduction, deception, and more are all common weapons in the Ailil arsenal. They are strong believers in doing the job themselves, but also see the need for monkeys paw and thugs, to keep their own hands clean. Internal competition is common and expected in the House.
Sidhe of House Ailil are experts at political manipulation. Despite their insistence at the great differences between their House and their enemies of House Quigg, members of House Ailil are cursed by the same arrogance of the Seelie adversaries. Ailil are almost totally incapable of admitting their own mistakes. They tend to take on tasks that others would shy away from, convinced that their own cunning or skill will see them through. In non-combat situations, they will nearly never admit that they are wrong, even when it is obvious to everyone else, and even themselves. If they back down from a situation, such as a battle they know they cannot win, they become stammering mentally lost messes until they gain some sort of victory that restores their confidence and their face. House Ailil nobles are likely to abuse their underlings in these situations, taking some pleasure in showing up those who are beneath them.
House Balor
Most Sidhe who hear the name House Balor regard it as little more than a jest, a cruel joke designed to aggravate Traditionalist Sidhe. House Balor derrives its name from a powerful Vampiric king named Balor of the Evil Eye, whose gaze could destroy his enemies. Most Sidhe who recall Balor's name believe that the Sidhe of House Balor intend nothing more than to aggravate the Seelie with a reference to one of their ancient enemies. House Balor have no intention of dissuading them from this erroenous notion. In truth, House Balor believe their founder was Lugh of the Long Arm, the half-Sidhe, half-Vampiric grandson of Balor himself, and a hero of the Sidhe in the wars against the Vampiric Courts. Thus, the Sidhe of House Balor believe that they are the true kings of the Dreaming; their blood is that of Vampiric and Sidhe intermingled, and they laugh at the claims of House Quigg, or even their own allies among Houses Ailil and Leanhaun. Just as Lugh slew his own grandfather, House Balor believes it is their destiny to triumph over the Sidhe of the Seelie Court and take their rightful place as rulers of the Arcadian.
More than any other House, the Sidhe of House Balor believe that Winter is almost upon the world. Without a strong hand to lead them, the Arcadian will surely perish. House Balor fully intends to set itself up as overlords of humans and Arcadian alike, demanding tribute and guiding the waking lands and the Dreaming through Winter with an iron fist. Until this goal can be reached, the Arcadian of House Balor cultivate allies among the Unseelie Court, both commoner and Sidhe. Additionally, these Sidhe are always on the look-out for Prodigal races who can be converted to their cause; already they have found allies among several shapeshifter species, especially a twisted race of werewolves who call themselves Black Spiral Dancers. House Balor forms alliances with a number of murderous, dark, and twisted spiritual organizations and supernatural races; many whisper that chimera of Nightmare are found commonly in the council-chambers, and even the beds, of this House.
At their worst, House Balor are insane tyrants, desperate to seize control of mortal and Arcadian worlds alike and grind them beneath their boot. Others, however, point to a proud history of betrayal in the past of House Balor; some optimists claim that just as Lugh drew upon his Vampiric and Sidhe magicks to destroy Balor, so is it likely that the Sidhe of House Balor form alliances with dark creatures only to betray them one day. Many insist that their convuluted geneaology cannot help but force them to knife their current allies in the back, and that, should Winter ever come, they will be staunch allies of the Seelie Court, secret infiltrators of the Nightmare camp.
For now the Sidhe of House Balor are content to plot with the Unseelie Court, forming alliances wherever they can among Arcadian, Gallain, and Prodigals. While whispers link the Shadow Court to the Sidhe of House Balor, it seems as if the two organizations each have their own agenda. Many Sidhe of House Balor masquerade as members of House Eiluned or Daragh, worming their way into the Seelie Court. Most of them regard the Seelie Court as weak, and constantly probe and test it for opportunities to strike at it. Many members of House Balor enjoy politics, and are masters of treachery, though their flair for the dramatic tends to unmask them before too long, another example of their unhidable flaws, perhaps. Many of them are quite decadent and debauched, and demand total obessiance from their vassals.
The vampiric blood of these sidhe shields them from the worst effects of cold iron. Cold iron still causes them discomfort, but Balor sidhe take no penalty when performing tasks that involve contact with it. They do not lose temporary Glamour when struck with it. If slain by an iron weapon, however, their Arcadian souls are still destroyed. Though they can masquerade as Seelie sidhe, they will never actually become Seelie.
House Leanhaun
Members of House Leanhaun are often seen as the most moderate of the "Winter" Houses, for they throw their lot in whole-heartedly with the Unseelie Court. A few Seelie Leanhaun exist, but they are by far the exception to the rule. They are traditionally viewed as hedonists and rakes, fond of mortal company, and extremely vain. A tradition of musical and poetic skill runs through this House, and many of them find employ as the bards, harpers, talesingers, and historians for other Sidhe. There are few commonly known Leanhaun Freeholds or fiefdoms, and most of them are in Ireland. Those Leanhaun Freeholds in Concordia opened themselves as places of peace during the many Arcadian Wars, offering succor to both sides, and acting as neutral ground for the wounded and the desperate. This earned House Leanhaun a good reputation among other Arcadian, causing many of the Seelie Court to believe that their reputation as Unseelie monsters is unjustly earned. This is certainly a popular sentiment among the commoners who have never met House Leanhaun.
In truth, House Leanhaun carries a terrible burden, which forces them to engage in activities that the extremists among the Seelie Court cannot permit. The Sidhe of House Leanhaun are cursed with unnatural aging, as their bodies continue to crave Glamour. Without a constant and plentiful supply, members of this House, physically aging in their appearance.
Members of House Leanhaun are known for their beauty and style, and many of them are vain sensualists. They live in dread of the House's curse, and often resort to brutal methods of gathering Glamour to abate their curse. Though they control few Freeholds, they have mastered the art of stealing Glamour through nearly every mean.
In many cases, however, this Glamour is not enough to abate the hunger that a Leanhaun has, and so she chooses instead to Rhapsodize mortals. This method of Epiphany infuses a human Dreamer with Glamour, causing his creativity to burn like wildfire, producing some of the greatest art of their lives. However, this process inevitably burns out the artist, causing many of them to waste away or even take their own lives. Since the Ressurgence in 1969, a number of great musicians, poets, painters, and the like have perished as a result of the Leanhaun's tender mercies. Their creativity reached heights it might never have soared to, but they paid the ultimate price, all as the Leanhaun watched on.
Though House Leanhaun enjoys good relationships with some, they are always slow to reveal their secrets, and never offer full membership in their House to any non-Sidhe. The commoners are far more useful as retainers and allies, free of the curse which afflicts the members of this House, and perhaps even unaware of it. Many consider House Leanhaun to be doing little more than upholding the Unseelie Code, which preaches that "Glamour is free." Rhapsody, Ravaging, and the suffusion of all aspects of life with constant sources of Glamour allows a Leanhaun to pass as any other Sidhe, and thus they sometimes wear the colors of House Kildram or Eiluned, and are virtually undetectable in these guises, with their smooth ways and silver-tongues. There is a definite emnity between Houses Leanhaun and Caulfield, most likely over the Leanhaun abuse of mortals. These two Houses have crossed blades more than once, and neither will trade with the other. Many members of House Leanhaun, when they have the ear of Seelie lords, warn against too many dealings with the Oathbroken House of Caulfield, claiming that they have never proven their alliegance to the Arcadian over their love of humans.
The members of this house are perfectionists known for their technical acumen. Lord Daragh, the founder of the house, was a great Arcadian smith who devised a way to weave Glamour into steel, making it safe for Arcadian to use. Some say that Lord Daragh himself stayed hidden in the Mortal world because of his fascination with metalwork and machines. Members of this house are very precise, both in word and deed. When a plan is made, they insist that it be carried out to the letter. Efficiency is considered the highest of virtues. Very few of them rule, preferring instead to make sure everything runs like clockwork. Because of their orderly disposition, they often work as clerks and barristers, although they perform their tasks with an intellectual flair. The rare member of House Daragh who does rule usually governs his fief in a very matter-of-fact, practical manner, but tends to deal with problems better in theory rather than in practice. This ideal of perfection puts them at odds with many other Arcadian. Few can live up to their expectations, which tends to make these sidhe even more elitist. They take their amusements far too seriously. Higher mathematics, mechanics, architecture and smithwork are common vocations for them. They're no strangers to hard work, and they firmly believe that 'if you want something done right, you've got to get House Daragh to do it'. Their penchant for precision also presents a curious weakness. When witnessing a well-maintained machine or masterpiece in engineering, they can become enraptured. Some attain a state of reverie and can contemplate such things for hours. The blazon of House Daragh is or, an arm embowed maintaining a hammer sable on a chief gules three cogwheels ( Three gold gears on a red field above a black arm and a hammer on a gold field )Members of this house are strongwilled and known for their ability to invest Glamour into everything they do.
House Eiluned
This house has always been tainted by the scandals of its founder, Lady Eiluned. As the creator of the so-called 'House of Secrets', she conspired with many dark and mysterious beings and powers to gather magical knowledge. Although many now work as counselors or advisors for the Seelie Court, some whisper that Eiluned will eventually become an Unseelie house. Regardless, sidhe of this house seem to enjoy the best of both Courts. Eiluned sidhe are valued for their extensive occult knowledge, their uncanny ability to gather secrets and their preternatural talent for intrigue. Fiefs ruled by this house are filled with mystery. There are accusations that House Eiluned voluntarily accepted exile on Earth as punishment for their horrible and forgotten crime. Members of the house counter that their Seelie affiliations prove they are innocent. This doesn't prevent Eiluned sidhe from falling into their Unseelie Legacies, however. Eiluned sidhe know darkness as well as they know light. When a sidhe from this house needs to work with treacherous or unscrupulous characters to gather secrets, they are capable deliberately becoming Unseelie until they get what they want. This state must last either from moonrise to moonrise or sunset to sunset. If the changeling doesn't get the secret they lust after, they cannot become Seelie again until the truth is learned. Their blazon is per chevron, sable and argent, two decresents and a pentacle counterchanged. (Two silver crescent moons on black above a black pentacle on silver). All members of this house have an impressive talent for magic along with an overwhelming curiosity and attraction to mysteries and conspiracy.
House Kildram
Sidhe are creatures of extremes, and the nobles of House Kildram are no exception. Lady Kildram and the sidhe of her house stayed visible during the Interregnum so that they could continue to explore the worlds pleasures. Some even staet that the house's founder rejected the call of Arcadia because of the love of a mortal man. This would not be surprising in the least; Kildram thoroughly immerse themselves in Earthly pleasures. Kildram sidhe are overly fond of food, drink, drugs and sex, and are often called away from higher pursuits by appeals to their baser needs. Anything that gives them a rush is fine with them. When the chance to indulge presents itself, they do so unceasingly until their lusts are slaked. These reckless nobles continually flirt with disaster. They love to taunt the status quo, even going so far as to aid their enemies to bring about a little discord. Still, when called upon to fight, this passion takes a different focus; Kildram Arcadian are fierce warriors who live for the fury of battle. The thought of dying in battle and tempting fate by fighting recklessly fuels this passion even more. More often than not, each member lives by his own rules and his own code of honor. Theirs is also the most accommodating of all houses. Kildram rarely pull rank on commoner Arcadian. For this reason, its members are beloved by the commoners and fiefs ruled by House Kildram are happy ones, if a bit on the wild side. The blazon of House Kildram is gules, a lion passant reguardant argent. ( A silver lion walking on a red field, looking back over its shoulder )
Defiant to the last, Kildram sidhe are renowned for their great courage. Though they understand fear, it does not control them, even in the face of death. Any attempt, natural or magical, to generate fear in them automatically fails. Only threats to a lover's life can frighten a Kildram, and those often succeed very well. Sidhe of this house have an overpowering attraction to danger. Even if the object of their pleasure is somewhat safe, they can find a way to make it dangerous. This is especially true of their romantic trysts, which are usually epic and almost always tragic. Creatures of pure ethereal beauty, they tend to fall in love with outlaws, strangers, wanderers, mortals and other 'unacceptable' types. Often such loves become true and complete passions that cannot be denied. Some of them overcome this natural inclination, but only by becoming hateful towards all romance. The most tortured become obsessed with preventing it from occurring to anyone they know.
House Quigg
This house is perhaps the most 'noble' of all the houses. While others retreated to Arcadia long ago, the Quigg sidhe chose to face the Sundering head-on. Quigg sidhe believe that their lord and founder had been reborn again and again as a noble sidhe. He is said to have been resurrected as a paladin serving Charlemagne and a major-general serving Napoleon. Rivals swear that he must have aided Machiavelli as well. Members of this house are conservative, duty-bound Arcadian who place the well-being of their kingdoms above their own. Unfortunately, they let everyone know this. Their rule is often marked by extreme arrogance and they categorically state that only members of their house are fit to rule. From there, each member of House Quigg proceeds to state that she is more fit to rule than her brethren. The internecine feuds that result can only be halted by one thing: a threat from outside the house. The members then band together to prove the superiority of House Quigg. When the threat ends, its back to business as usual. Their anger, like their rivalry, is legendary. When confronted with something that offends their honor, they have been known to go berserk. Furthermore, when a Arcadian of House Quigg is presented with a rival that he cannot overcome, he becomes Unseelie until he can find some way ( any way, no matter how base ) in which he can triumph. Once triumphant, he returns to his typical Seelie arrogance. The blazon of House Quigg is vert, a falcon maintaining an oak leave or ( A gold falcon, facing left, with a gold leaf in its beak, wings raised, legs splayed, against a green field. )
Although they are great warriors, sidhe of this house are prone to great rages. Whenever they seriously wounded, or when their honor is insulted, will fly off into a berserk rage and attack anyone near them, ally or enemy.
House Caulfield
The quietest ( and some say the wisest ) of all the house founders, Lord Caulfield was exiled for his eloquent defense of mortal folk. Centuries ago, the earliest Arcadian held a great contempt for humans. Many saw them as the cause of rapidly spreading evil of death, and some argued that revenge against them would remove this curse from the world. For many years, Caulfield stood alone against those who argued for retribution against humans. The outrage against Lord Caulfield was so great that all who supported him were condemned by the High Lords of Arcadia, and his followers were exiled. Members of this house don't see humans as perfect - far from it. They do, however, believe that humanity has earned the right to exist undisturbed. They fiercely despise Vampires and lycanthropes; their peaceful demeanors can turn wrathful when they encounter such. Arcadians of House Caulfield do not advertise their allegiance. Other houses revile them, although Al Zum sidhe will not allow Caulfield sidhe to be mistreated. Exiles or not, they're still sidhe. Despite their secrecy, House Caulfield is the most widespread house, and its members travel all over the world. Caulfield sidhe serve as sages, loremasters and storytellers who remember earliest Arcadian societies. House Caulfield can rarely rule openly, but they do accept just about any changeling under their banner. Despite this, even the most common changeling would never accept a title in the house. They do quietly hold claim to some territories, but many of these are barren and despoiled by urban fiefs. Caulfield's blazon was struck and discredited when the house was exiled. The symbol has since been erased from all Arcadian records, although certain members of Caulfield still possess shields displaying the heraldry of the house: an oak tree blasted and eradicated, argent ( A silver oak tree with bare branches and exposed roots on a bare field )
Caulfield sidhe find it easy to affect mortals with Glamour. Because of their mortal affiliations, Caulfield sidhe tend to be more resistant to the effects of iron. Because of their past, these sidhe are known as oathbreakers. No other changeling will honor their oathbonds, hospitality or justice. Caulfield Arcadian are frequently the target of discrimination.
House Aesin
Originating in the icy regons of Scandinavia, the Sidhe of this house refer to themselves as "Guardians of the North." House Aesin are lords over nature and able to speak to animals, but like the icy domain they rule, they feel little when it comes to commoners that don't know their place. Despite being highly dutiful and honorable warriors, the majority of House Aesin find themselves on the unseelie side of things. More than most other arcadians, members of House Aesin have a strong connection to nature. As lords of man and animal alike, Aesin arcadians have the ability to speak with animals.
While still caring for their subjects, arcadians belonging to House Aesin have a tendency to have a master-slave relationship with them. Nevertheless, they feel obligated to protect their loyal servants, and occasionally they might feel something else for them. In the end, however, Aesin have a serious difficulty when interacting with anyone other than nobles.
House Sesheta
The sidhe of House Sesheta are seers and prophets and sworn enemies of the Unseelie Court and all minions of the Dark. This oath against the Unseelie, Thallain, and any awakening minion of darknes is so strong however, that the agents of these shadowy affairs can feel when one of this house is near. Originating in France, and the name, roughly meaning "good hand" comes from the house's founder, Jalendrel the Good-Handed. House Sesheta spent many years imprisoned in Arcadia for the actions of one of its fringe groups, watching in frustration as the world changed around them. However, it was the first of the "Lost Houses" to return to the World, charged with the task of battling the agents of the Dark and unifying the Seelie houses.
All members of House Sesheta are natural prophets -- glimpses of possible futures regularly come to them during dreams and meditation. These visions are often quite cryptic, although the changeling may decipher them with time and effort. However, that no matter how well understood they might be, they are still only possible futures and may not necessarily come to pass. Obviously, these prophecies are the province of the Goddess, who decides both when and how they appear. When in dire need, however, the Sesheta may attempt to "bring on" a vision by meditating for several minutes.
In addition, due to their affliction of precognition, all Sesheta sidhe can become lost in the possible futures they see blinding them to the world around them. Additionally, because of the infamy surrounding their imprisonment, when their true lineage is known Sesheta sidhe suffer a difficulty dealing socially with sidhe of houses other than Caulfield and Kildram.
House Fangdanglia
This Unseelie house specializes in warfare, poisons, and oddly enough hospitality. Indeed, members of this house are courageous fighters and renowned hosts, giving their hospitality to friend or foe if asked. House Fangdanglia is a Celtic house named after a daughter of Dagda. And whiles being great warriors, they have something of a bragging problem. So much so that they tend to tell the wrong sorts of secrets to the wrong sorts of people. Letting out intimate secrets about any Geas they are under, flaws in their carefully crafted plots, or the single way to kill them. All in a terribly drawn out and boastful story. House Fangdanglia members are among the fiercest and most stalwart of all Arcadian warriors. They will not flee in combat unless ordered to do so by the ranking war leader (and even then, they'll be the last people off the field).
Sadly for all of their bravery House Fangdanglia Arcadian can't keep a secret to save their lives, literally, and stories of these lapsus lingua abound through Arcadian legends. They're the ones who, in a series of wild brags, explain the one way they can be killed, usually to the wrong person, or share the intimate details of any Geas they're under. Anytime a Arcadian of House Fangdanglia boasts of her deeds (not an uncommon occurrence), she must take extraordinary aims to avoid blabbing some secret. Note that House Fangdanglia Arcadian don't go spilling the beans to complete strangers, alhtough with a little work, a clever stranger can become a friend.
House Al Zum
Typically barred from the halls of power by the condescension of the other noble houses, members of House Al Zum live on the periphery of Arcadian society, taking it as their duty to defend Arcadianrie-kind. Little is publically known of this house, save that its members straddle both Seelie as well as Unseelie, and that few can match them in a fight. House Al Zum founded in the long forgotten past by a warrior-woman born of the union of a Sidhe with a Troll. Although snubbed for her low origins, Unathi Thulisile Al Zum won the right to establish her house by besting the champions of all the High Lords of Arcadia. Nonetheless, her house finds itself regarded as pretenders to nobility from more conservative Arcadian in both Courts. Whatever their heritage, there is no denying that members of this house are the most accomplished warriors, nor is their reputation founded solely on skill at arms. The Phobean Oracles, seers of this house, are regarded by those in the know as the most accomplished practitioners of precognition. In the long years of its earthly existence, House Al Zum has learned to mingle amongst humanity much like the wolves amongst sheep. Surviving the millennia as agents of warfare incarnate, has made them silent and efficient warriors. They tend to concentrate on defending Arcadians from the perils of the World both mortal as well as preternatural.
Those of House Al Zum are silent and efficient warriors. They rarely make any sound when fighting, causing great consternation in their foes. Once entering a fight, they lose sight of almost everything else, reaching a hypnotic "fugue state" in which the world seems to move more slowly.
Most nobles fear and look down upon House Al Zum, though none would give voice to such feelings when faced with a member of the household. All interactions with other sidhe (except Houses Sesheta, Kildram, Caulfield, and Leanhaun) and commoners with strong royalist sympathies are at an extreme loss of standing. Sidhe of House Al Zum also suffers a somewhat diluted ideal of beauty due to their Troll progenitors. They do, however, exhibit a strange madness in battle. Although a member of this house will not attack friends or bystanders, they have great difficulty leaving combat until either they, or all their enemies, are defeated, though not necessarily dead or even unconscious. They may accept an honorable surrender.
House Svevtovid
A Russian house named after the progeny of the Sun and the Moon. Members of this Unseelie house are able to discern patterns in anything, whether it be fancy sword fighting, a complex dance, or sport. They also deem themselves to be lords over the Inanimae, as well as Arcadian. But despite their claims to these things, they can neither swear an oath of love, nor reject a challenge brought before them.
Members of House Svevtovid understand patterns. Given time to watch a series of actions performed by another, such as sword fighting, dancing or sport, their difficulty in opposition or as a partner is lowered extremely. They may observe an opponent's patterns even while engaged in combat, they cannot however fight one foe while observing a different one.
House Svevtovid sidhe can never give a vow of love to another. One of the more painful curses afflicting this house being they must accept all challenges. If a member of House Svevtovid fails to acknowledge a challenge, she loses a portion of her will, resistance, and health per day until she returns the challenge. As one might expect, house members take care to be courteous to each other and to stay in fighting trim.
House Ailil
House Ailil is perhaps the best known of the Unseelie Houses. They take an active role in changeling politics, openly opposing the stranglehold on power that the Seelie Court possesses. In Concordia, they are often found as a small, underrepresented, yet highly vocal, minority in the ParCaulfieldent of Dreams. Ailil fiefdoms are rare, and are almost invariably Unseelie. They are watched with care by Seelie rulers, as they are hotbeds of Unseelie insurrection and Shadow Court manipulation. Distrusted by Houses such as Quigg and Daragh, they are nonetheless treated as distant cousins by House Eiluned, which is their sister House. Relations have always been fairly peaceable between these two lines of Sidhe; many even consider it ironic that the more "noble" of these two Houses is so unrepentantly Unseelie, while the shady and secretive Eiluned claim allegiance to the Seelie Court. Some old legends persist that Ailil and Eiluned themselves were brother and sister, and that Ailil was a Seelie-disposed king, while his sister was an Unseelie-aligned sorceress. How the two gathered courts around them that were so obviously opposed to their attitudes, thereby forming Houses of Sidhe around them, is anyone's guess.
House Ailil wants to restore the ancient traditions of half-year rule, wherein the Unseelie Court would control land and political moves for the fall and winter of the year, and then restore the crown to the Seelie for spring and summer. House Ailil claims that the Seelie have betrayed the trust of the Unseelie Courts, and grossly destabilized the Dreaming itself by reneging on their promises. Some among their number suggest that it is not too late to return to this practice, and are ready to make the exchange in any year the Seelie will finally agree to it. Others believe that the Seelie control of the past six hundred years has upset the balance, and that only an Unseelie control for the next six hundred will clear the slate.
House Ailil provides much of the leadership for the Unseelie Court, defending Unseelie commoners and the other Sidhe, and invariably acting as the open adversaries for House Quigg. Despite the noble face of this House, its members see themselves as unjustly wronged by the Seelie Court, and are fully prepared for all manner of treachery to revenge themselves. Assassination, kidnapping, framing, conspiracy, blackmail, seduction, deception, and more are all common weapons in the Ailil arsenal. They are strong believers in doing the job themselves, but also see the need for monkeys paw and thugs, to keep their own hands clean. Internal competition is common and expected in the House.
Sidhe of House Ailil are experts at political manipulation. Despite their insistence at the great differences between their House and their enemies of House Quigg, members of House Ailil are cursed by the same arrogance of the Seelie adversaries. Ailil are almost totally incapable of admitting their own mistakes. They tend to take on tasks that others would shy away from, convinced that their own cunning or skill will see them through. In non-combat situations, they will nearly never admit that they are wrong, even when it is obvious to everyone else, and even themselves. If they back down from a situation, such as a battle they know they cannot win, they become stammering mentally lost messes until they gain some sort of victory that restores their confidence and their face. House Ailil nobles are likely to abuse their underlings in these situations, taking some pleasure in showing up those who are beneath them.
House Balor
Most Sidhe who hear the name House Balor regard it as little more than a jest, a cruel joke designed to aggravate Traditionalist Sidhe. House Balor derrives its name from a powerful Vampiric king named Balor of the Evil Eye, whose gaze could destroy his enemies. Most Sidhe who recall Balor's name believe that the Sidhe of House Balor intend nothing more than to aggravate the Seelie with a reference to one of their ancient enemies. House Balor have no intention of dissuading them from this erroenous notion. In truth, House Balor believe their founder was Lugh of the Long Arm, the half-Sidhe, half-Vampiric grandson of Balor himself, and a hero of the Sidhe in the wars against the Vampiric Courts. Thus, the Sidhe of House Balor believe that they are the true kings of the Dreaming; their blood is that of Vampiric and Sidhe intermingled, and they laugh at the claims of House Quigg, or even their own allies among Houses Ailil and Leanhaun. Just as Lugh slew his own grandfather, House Balor believes it is their destiny to triumph over the Sidhe of the Seelie Court and take their rightful place as rulers of the Arcadian.
More than any other House, the Sidhe of House Balor believe that Winter is almost upon the world. Without a strong hand to lead them, the Arcadian will surely perish. House Balor fully intends to set itself up as overlords of humans and Arcadian alike, demanding tribute and guiding the waking lands and the Dreaming through Winter with an iron fist. Until this goal can be reached, the Arcadian of House Balor cultivate allies among the Unseelie Court, both commoner and Sidhe. Additionally, these Sidhe are always on the look-out for Prodigal races who can be converted to their cause; already they have found allies among several shapeshifter species, especially a twisted race of werewolves who call themselves Black Spiral Dancers. House Balor forms alliances with a number of murderous, dark, and twisted spiritual organizations and supernatural races; many whisper that chimera of Nightmare are found commonly in the council-chambers, and even the beds, of this House.
At their worst, House Balor are insane tyrants, desperate to seize control of mortal and Arcadian worlds alike and grind them beneath their boot. Others, however, point to a proud history of betrayal in the past of House Balor; some optimists claim that just as Lugh drew upon his Vampiric and Sidhe magicks to destroy Balor, so is it likely that the Sidhe of House Balor form alliances with dark creatures only to betray them one day. Many insist that their convuluted geneaology cannot help but force them to knife their current allies in the back, and that, should Winter ever come, they will be staunch allies of the Seelie Court, secret infiltrators of the Nightmare camp.
For now the Sidhe of House Balor are content to plot with the Unseelie Court, forming alliances wherever they can among Arcadian, Gallain, and Prodigals. While whispers link the Shadow Court to the Sidhe of House Balor, it seems as if the two organizations each have their own agenda. Many Sidhe of House Balor masquerade as members of House Eiluned or Daragh, worming their way into the Seelie Court. Most of them regard the Seelie Court as weak, and constantly probe and test it for opportunities to strike at it. Many members of House Balor enjoy politics, and are masters of treachery, though their flair for the dramatic tends to unmask them before too long, another example of their unhidable flaws, perhaps. Many of them are quite decadent and debauched, and demand total obessiance from their vassals.
The vampiric blood of these sidhe shields them from the worst effects of cold iron. Cold iron still causes them discomfort, but Balor sidhe take no penalty when performing tasks that involve contact with it. They do not lose temporary Glamour when struck with it. If slain by an iron weapon, however, their Arcadian souls are still destroyed. Though they can masquerade as Seelie sidhe, they will never actually become Seelie.
House Leanhaun
Members of House Leanhaun are often seen as the most moderate of the "Winter" Houses, for they throw their lot in whole-heartedly with the Unseelie Court. A few Seelie Leanhaun exist, but they are by far the exception to the rule. They are traditionally viewed as hedonists and rakes, fond of mortal company, and extremely vain. A tradition of musical and poetic skill runs through this House, and many of them find employ as the bards, harpers, talesingers, and historians for other Sidhe. There are few commonly known Leanhaun Freeholds or fiefdoms, and most of them are in Ireland. Those Leanhaun Freeholds in Concordia opened themselves as places of peace during the many Arcadian Wars, offering succor to both sides, and acting as neutral ground for the wounded and the desperate. This earned House Leanhaun a good reputation among other Arcadian, causing many of the Seelie Court to believe that their reputation as Unseelie monsters is unjustly earned. This is certainly a popular sentiment among the commoners who have never met House Leanhaun.
In truth, House Leanhaun carries a terrible burden, which forces them to engage in activities that the extremists among the Seelie Court cannot permit. The Sidhe of House Leanhaun are cursed with unnatural aging, as their bodies continue to crave Glamour. Without a constant and plentiful supply, members of this House, physically aging in their appearance.
Members of House Leanhaun are known for their beauty and style, and many of them are vain sensualists. They live in dread of the House's curse, and often resort to brutal methods of gathering Glamour to abate their curse. Though they control few Freeholds, they have mastered the art of stealing Glamour through nearly every mean.
In many cases, however, this Glamour is not enough to abate the hunger that a Leanhaun has, and so she chooses instead to Rhapsodize mortals. This method of Epiphany infuses a human Dreamer with Glamour, causing his creativity to burn like wildfire, producing some of the greatest art of their lives. However, this process inevitably burns out the artist, causing many of them to waste away or even take their own lives. Since the Ressurgence in 1969, a number of great musicians, poets, painters, and the like have perished as a result of the Leanhaun's tender mercies. Their creativity reached heights it might never have soared to, but they paid the ultimate price, all as the Leanhaun watched on.
Though House Leanhaun enjoys good relationships with some, they are always slow to reveal their secrets, and never offer full membership in their House to any non-Sidhe. The commoners are far more useful as retainers and allies, free of the curse which afflicts the members of this House, and perhaps even unaware of it. Many consider House Leanhaun to be doing little more than upholding the Unseelie Code, which preaches that "Glamour is free." Rhapsody, Ravaging, and the suffusion of all aspects of life with constant sources of Glamour allows a Leanhaun to pass as any other Sidhe, and thus they sometimes wear the colors of House Kildram or Eiluned, and are virtually undetectable in these guises, with their smooth ways and silver-tongues. There is a definite emnity between Houses Leanhaun and Caulfield, most likely over the Leanhaun abuse of mortals. These two Houses have crossed blades more than once, and neither will trade with the other. Many members of House Leanhaun, when they have the ear of Seelie lords, warn against too many dealings with the Oathbroken House of Caulfield, claiming that they have never proven their alliegance to the Arcadian over their love of humans.
House Daragh
The members of this house are perfectionists known for their technical acumen. Lord Daragh, the founder of the house, was a great Arcadian smith who devised a way to weave Glamour into steel, making it safe for Arcadian to use. Some say that Lord Daragh himself stayed hidden in the Mortal world because of his fascination with metalwork and machines. Members of this house are very precise, both in word and deed. When a plan is made, they insist that it be carried out to the letter. Efficiency is considered the highest of virtues. Very few of them rule, preferring instead to make sure everything runs like clockwork. Because of their orderly disposition, they often work as clerks and barristers, although they perform their tasks with an intellectual flair. The rare member of House Daragh who does rule usually governs his fief in a very matter-of-fact, practical manner, but tends to deal with problems better in theory rather than in practice. This ideal of perfection puts them at odds with many other Arcadian. Few can live up to their expectations, which tends to make these sidhe even more elitist. They take their amusements far too seriously. Higher mathematics, mechanics, architecture and smithwork are common vocations for them. They're no strangers to hard work, and they firmly believe that 'if you want something done right, you've got to get House Daragh to do it'. Their penchant for precision also presents a curious weakness. When witnessing a well-maintained machine or masterpiece in engineering, they can become enraptured. Some attain a state of reverie and can contemplate such things for hours. The blazon of House Daragh is or, an arm embowed maintaining a hammer sable on a chief gules three cogwheels ( Three gold gears on a red field above a black arm and a hammer on a gold field )Members of this house are strongwilled and known for their ability to invest Glamour into everything they do.
House Eiluned
This house has always been tainted by the scandals of its founder, Lady Eiluned. As the creator of the so-called 'House of Secrets', she conspired with many dark and mysterious beings and powers to gather magical knowledge. Although many now work as counselors or advisors for the Seelie Court, some whisper that Eiluned will eventually become an Unseelie house. Regardless, sidhe of this house seem to enjoy the best of both Courts. Eiluned sidhe are valued for their extensive occult knowledge, their uncanny ability to gather secrets and their preternatural talent for intrigue. Fiefs ruled by this house are filled with mystery. There are accusations that House Eiluned voluntarily accepted exile on Earth as punishment for their horrible and forgotten crime. Members of the house counter that their Seelie affiliations prove they are innocent. This doesn't prevent Eiluned sidhe from falling into their Unseelie Legacies, however. Eiluned sidhe know darkness as well as they know light. When a sidhe from this house needs to work with treacherous or unscrupulous characters to gather secrets, they are capable deliberately becoming Unseelie until they get what they want. This state must last either from moonrise to moonrise or sunset to sunset. If the changeling doesn't get the secret they lust after, they cannot become Seelie again until the truth is learned. Their blazon is per chevron, sable and argent, two decresents and a pentacle counterchanged. (Two silver crescent moons on black above a black pentacle on silver). All members of this house have an impressive talent for magic along with an overwhelming curiosity and attraction to mysteries and conspiracy.
House Kildram
Sidhe are creatures of extremes, and the nobles of House Kildram are no exception. Lady Kildram and the sidhe of her house stayed visible during the Interregnum so that they could continue to explore the worlds pleasures. Some even staet that the house's founder rejected the call of Arcadia because of the love of a mortal man. This would not be surprising in the least; Kildram thoroughly immerse themselves in Earthly pleasures. Kildram sidhe are overly fond of food, drink, drugs and sex, and are often called away from higher pursuits by appeals to their baser needs. Anything that gives them a rush is fine with them. When the chance to indulge presents itself, they do so unceasingly until their lusts are slaked. These reckless nobles continually flirt with disaster. They love to taunt the status quo, even going so far as to aid their enemies to bring about a little discord. Still, when called upon to fight, this passion takes a different focus; Kildram Arcadian are fierce warriors who live for the fury of battle. The thought of dying in battle and tempting fate by fighting recklessly fuels this passion even more. More often than not, each member lives by his own rules and his own code of honor. Theirs is also the most accommodating of all houses. Kildram rarely pull rank on commoner Arcadian. For this reason, its members are beloved by the commoners and fiefs ruled by House Kildram are happy ones, if a bit on the wild side. The blazon of House Kildram is gules, a lion passant reguardant argent. ( A silver lion walking on a red field, looking back over its shoulder )
Defiant to the last, Kildram sidhe are renowned for their great courage. Though they understand fear, it does not control them, even in the face of death. Any attempt, natural or magical, to generate fear in them automatically fails. Only threats to a lover's life can frighten a Kildram, and those often succeed very well. Sidhe of this house have an overpowering attraction to danger. Even if the object of their pleasure is somewhat safe, they can find a way to make it dangerous. This is especially true of their romantic trysts, which are usually epic and almost always tragic. Creatures of pure ethereal beauty, they tend to fall in love with outlaws, strangers, wanderers, mortals and other 'unacceptable' types. Often such loves become true and complete passions that cannot be denied. Some of them overcome this natural inclination, but only by becoming hateful towards all romance. The most tortured become obsessed with preventing it from occurring to anyone they know.
House Quigg
This house is perhaps the most 'noble' of all the houses. While others retreated to Arcadia long ago, the Quigg sidhe chose to face the Sundering head-on. Quigg sidhe believe that their lord and founder had been reborn again and again as a noble sidhe. He is said to have been resurrected as a paladin serving Charlemagne and a major-general serving Napoleon. Rivals swear that he must have aided Machiavelli as well. Members of this house are conservative, duty-bound Arcadian who place the well-being of their kingdoms above their own. Unfortunately, they let everyone know this. Their rule is often marked by extreme arrogance and they categorically state that only members of their house are fit to rule. From there, each member of House Quigg proceeds to state that she is more fit to rule than her brethren. The internecine feuds that result can only be halted by one thing: a threat from outside the house. The members then band together to prove the superiority of House Quigg. When the threat ends, its back to business as usual. Their anger, like their rivalry, is legendary. When confronted with something that offends their honor, they have been known to go berserk. Furthermore, when a Arcadian of House Quigg is presented with a rival that he cannot overcome, he becomes Unseelie until he can find some way ( any way, no matter how base ) in which he can triumph. Once triumphant, he returns to his typical Seelie arrogance. The blazon of House Quigg is vert, a falcon maintaining an oak leave or ( A gold falcon, facing left, with a gold leaf in its beak, wings raised, legs splayed, against a green field. )
Although they are great warriors, sidhe of this house are prone to great rages. Whenever they seriously wounded, or when their honor is insulted, will fly off into a berserk rage and attack anyone near them, ally or enemy.
House Caulfield
The quietest ( and some say the wisest ) of all the house founders, Lord Caulfield was exiled for his eloquent defense of mortal folk. Centuries ago, the earliest Arcadian held a great contempt for humans. Many saw them as the cause of rapidly spreading evil of death, and some argued that revenge against them would remove this curse from the world. For many years, Caulfield stood alone against those who argued for retribution against humans. The outrage against Lord Caulfield was so great that all who supported him were condemned by the High Lords of Arcadia, and his followers were exiled. Members of this house don't see humans as perfect - far from it. They do, however, believe that humanity has earned the right to exist undisturbed. They fiercely despise Vampires and lycanthropes; their peaceful demeanors can turn wrathful when they encounter such. Arcadians of House Caulfield do not advertise their allegiance. Other houses revile them, although Al Zum sidhe will not allow Caulfield sidhe to be mistreated. Exiles or not, they're still sidhe. Despite their secrecy, House Caulfield is the most widespread house, and its members travel all over the world. Caulfield sidhe serve as sages, loremasters and storytellers who remember earliest Arcadian societies. House Caulfield can rarely rule openly, but they do accept just about any changeling under their banner. Despite this, even the most common changeling would never accept a title in the house. They do quietly hold claim to some territories, but many of these are barren and despoiled by urban fiefs. Caulfield's blazon was struck and discredited when the house was exiled. The symbol has since been erased from all Arcadian records, although certain members of Caulfield still possess shields displaying the heraldry of the house: an oak tree blasted and eradicated, argent ( A silver oak tree with bare branches and exposed roots on a bare field )
Caulfield sidhe find it easy to affect mortals with Glamour. Because of their mortal affiliations, Caulfield sidhe tend to be more resistant to the effects of iron. Because of their past, these sidhe are known as oathbreakers. No other changeling will honor their oathbonds, hospitality or justice. Caulfield Arcadian are frequently the target of discrimination.
House Aesin
Originating in the icy regons of Scandinavia, the Sidhe of this house refer to themselves as "Guardians of the North." House Aesin are lords over nature and able to speak to animals, but like the icy domain they rule, they feel little when it comes to commoners that don't know their place. Despite being highly dutiful and honorable warriors, the majority of House Aesin find themselves on the unseelie side of things. More than most other arcadians, members of House Aesin have a strong connection to nature. As lords of man and animal alike, Aesin arcadians have the ability to speak with animals.
While still caring for their subjects, arcadians belonging to House Aesin have a tendency to have a master-slave relationship with them. Nevertheless, they feel obligated to protect their loyal servants, and occasionally they might feel something else for them. In the end, however, Aesin have a serious difficulty when interacting with anyone other than nobles.
House Sesheta
The sidhe of House Sesheta are seers and prophets and sworn enemies of the Unseelie Court and all minions of the Dark. This oath against the Unseelie, Thallain, and any awakening minion of darknes is so strong however, that the agents of these shadowy affairs can feel when one of this house is near. Originating in France, and the name, roughly meaning "good hand" comes from the house's founder, Jalendrel the Good-Handed. House Sesheta spent many years imprisoned in Arcadia for the actions of one of its fringe groups, watching in frustration as the world changed around them. However, it was the first of the "Lost Houses" to return to the World, charged with the task of battling the agents of the Dark and unifying the Seelie houses.
All members of House Sesheta are natural prophets -- glimpses of possible futures regularly come to them during dreams and meditation. These visions are often quite cryptic, although the changeling may decipher them with time and effort. However, that no matter how well understood they might be, they are still only possible futures and may not necessarily come to pass. Obviously, these prophecies are the province of the Goddess, who decides both when and how they appear. When in dire need, however, the Sesheta may attempt to "bring on" a vision by meditating for several minutes.
In addition, due to their affliction of precognition, all Sesheta sidhe can become lost in the possible futures they see blinding them to the world around them. Additionally, because of the infamy surrounding their imprisonment, when their true lineage is known Sesheta sidhe suffer a difficulty dealing socially with sidhe of houses other than Caulfield and Kildram.
House Fangdanglia
This Unseelie house specializes in warfare, poisons, and oddly enough hospitality. Indeed, members of this house are courageous fighters and renowned hosts, giving their hospitality to friend or foe if asked. House Fangdanglia is a Celtic house named after a daughter of Dagda. And whiles being great warriors, they have something of a bragging problem. So much so that they tend to tell the wrong sorts of secrets to the wrong sorts of people. Letting out intimate secrets about any Geas they are under, flaws in their carefully crafted plots, or the single way to kill them. All in a terribly drawn out and boastful story. House Fangdanglia members are among the fiercest and most stalwart of all Arcadian warriors. They will not flee in combat unless ordered to do so by the ranking war leader (and even then, they'll be the last people off the field).
Sadly for all of their bravery House Fangdanglia Arcadian can't keep a secret to save their lives, literally, and stories of these lapsus lingua abound through Arcadian legends. They're the ones who, in a series of wild brags, explain the one way they can be killed, usually to the wrong person, or share the intimate details of any Geas they're under. Anytime a Arcadian of House Fangdanglia boasts of her deeds (not an uncommon occurrence), she must take extraordinary aims to avoid blabbing some secret. Note that House Fangdanglia Arcadian don't go spilling the beans to complete strangers, alhtough with a little work, a clever stranger can become a friend.
House Al Zum
Typically barred from the halls of power by the condescension of the other noble houses, members of House Al Zum live on the periphery of Arcadian society, taking it as their duty to defend Arcadianrie-kind. Little is publically known of this house, save that its members straddle both Seelie as well as Unseelie, and that few can match them in a fight. House Al Zum founded in the long forgotten past by a warrior-woman born of the union of a Sidhe with a Troll. Although snubbed for her low origins, Unathi Thulisile Al Zum won the right to establish her house by besting the champions of all the High Lords of Arcadia. Nonetheless, her house finds itself regarded as pretenders to nobility from more conservative Arcadian in both Courts. Whatever their heritage, there is no denying that members of this house are the most accomplished warriors, nor is their reputation founded solely on skill at arms. The Phobean Oracles, seers of this house, are regarded by those in the know as the most accomplished practitioners of precognition. In the long years of its earthly existence, House Al Zum has learned to mingle amongst humanity much like the wolves amongst sheep. Surviving the millennia as agents of warfare incarnate, has made them silent and efficient warriors. They tend to concentrate on defending Arcadians from the perils of the World both mortal as well as preternatural.
Those of House Al Zum are silent and efficient warriors. They rarely make any sound when fighting, causing great consternation in their foes. Once entering a fight, they lose sight of almost everything else, reaching a hypnotic "fugue state" in which the world seems to move more slowly.
Most nobles fear and look down upon House Al Zum, though none would give voice to such feelings when faced with a member of the household. All interactions with other sidhe (except Houses Sesheta, Kildram, Caulfield, and Leanhaun) and commoners with strong royalist sympathies are at an extreme loss of standing. Sidhe of House Al Zum also suffers a somewhat diluted ideal of beauty due to their Troll progenitors. They do, however, exhibit a strange madness in battle. Although a member of this house will not attack friends or bystanders, they have great difficulty leaving combat until either they, or all their enemies, are defeated, though not necessarily dead or even unconscious. They may accept an honorable surrender.
House Svevtovid
A Russian house named after the progeny of the Sun and the Moon. Members of this Unseelie house are able to discern patterns in anything, whether it be fancy sword fighting, a complex dance, or sport. They also deem themselves to be lords over the Inanimae, as well as Arcadian. But despite their claims to these things, they can neither swear an oath of love, nor reject a challenge brought before them.
Members of House Svevtovid understand patterns. Given time to watch a series of actions performed by another, such as sword fighting, dancing or sport, their difficulty in opposition or as a partner is lowered extremely. They may observe an opponent's patterns even while engaged in combat, they cannot however fight one foe while observing a different one.
House Svevtovid sidhe can never give a vow of love to another. One of the more painful curses afflicting this house being they must accept all challenges. If a member of House Svevtovid fails to acknowledge a challenge, she loses a portion of her will, resistance, and health per day until she returns the challenge. As one might expect, house members take care to be courteous to each other and to stay in fighting trim.
House Ailil
House Ailil is perhaps the best known of the Unseelie Houses. They take an active role in changeling politics, openly opposing the stranglehold on power that the Seelie Court possesses. In Concordia, they are often found as a small, underrepresented, yet highly vocal, minority in the ParCaulfieldent of Dreams. Ailil fiefdoms are rare, and are almost invariably Unseelie. They are watched with care by Seelie rulers, as they are hotbeds of Unseelie insurrection and Shadow Court manipulation. Distrusted by Houses such as Quigg and Daragh, they are nonetheless treated as distant cousins by House Eiluned, which is their sister House. Relations have always been fairly peaceable between these two lines of Sidhe; many even consider it ironic that the more "noble" of these two Houses is so unrepentantly Unseelie, while the shady and secretive Eiluned claim allegiance to the Seelie Court. Some old legends persist that Ailil and Eiluned themselves were brother and sister, and that Ailil was a Seelie-disposed king, while his sister was an Unseelie-aligned sorceress. How the two gathered courts around them that were so obviously opposed to their attitudes, thereby forming Houses of Sidhe around them, is anyone's guess.
House Ailil wants to restore the ancient traditions of half-year rule, wherein the Unseelie Court would control land and political moves for the fall and winter of the year, and then restore the crown to the Seelie for spring and summer. House Ailil claims that the Seelie have betrayed the trust of the Unseelie Courts, and grossly destabilized the Dreaming itself by reneging on their promises. Some among their number suggest that it is not too late to return to this practice, and are ready to make the exchange in any year the Seelie will finally agree to it. Others believe that the Seelie control of the past six hundred years has upset the balance, and that only an Unseelie control for the next six hundred will clear the slate.
House Ailil provides much of the leadership for the Unseelie Court, defending Unseelie commoners and the other Sidhe, and invariably acting as the open adversaries for House Quigg. Despite the noble face of this House, its members see themselves as unjustly wronged by the Seelie Court, and are fully prepared for all manner of treachery to revenge themselves. Assassination, kidnapping, framing, conspiracy, blackmail, seduction, deception, and more are all common weapons in the Ailil arsenal. They are strong believers in doing the job themselves, but also see the need for monkeys paw and thugs, to keep their own hands clean. Internal competition is common and expected in the House.
Sidhe of House Ailil are experts at political manipulation. Despite their insistence at the great differences between their House and their enemies of House Quigg, members of House Ailil are cursed by the same arrogance of the Seelie adversaries. Ailil are almost totally incapable of admitting their own mistakes. They tend to take on tasks that others would shy away from, convinced that their own cunning or skill will see them through. In non-combat situations, they will nearly never admit that they are wrong, even when it is obvious to everyone else, and even themselves. If they back down from a situation, such as a battle they know they cannot win, they become stammering mentally lost messes until they gain some sort of victory that restores their confidence and their face. House Ailil nobles are likely to abuse their underlings in these situations, taking some pleasure in showing up those who are beneath them.
House Balor
Most Sidhe who hear the name House Balor regard it as little more than a jest, a cruel joke designed to aggravate Traditionalist Sidhe. House Balor derrives its name from a powerful Vampiric king named Balor of the Evil Eye, whose gaze could destroy his enemies. Most Sidhe who recall Balor's name believe that the Sidhe of House Balor intend nothing more than to aggravate the Seelie with a reference to one of their ancient enemies. House Balor have no intention of dissuading them from this erroenous notion. In truth, House Balor believe their founder was Lugh of the Long Arm, the half-Sidhe, half-Vampiric grandson of Balor himself, and a hero of the Sidhe in the wars against the Vampiric Courts. Thus, the Sidhe of House Balor believe that they are the true kings of the Dreaming; their blood is that of Vampiric and Sidhe intermingled, and they laugh at the claims of House Quigg, or even their own allies among Houses Ailil and Leanhaun. Just as Lugh slew his own grandfather, House Balor believes it is their destiny to triumph over the Sidhe of the Seelie Court and take their rightful place as rulers of the Arcadian.
More than any other House, the Sidhe of House Balor believe that Winter is almost upon the world. Without a strong hand to lead them, the Arcadian will surely perish. House Balor fully intends to set itself up as overlords of humans and Arcadian alike, demanding tribute and guiding the waking lands and the Dreaming through Winter with an iron fist. Until this goal can be reached, the Arcadian of House Balor cultivate allies among the Unseelie Court, both commoner and Sidhe. Additionally, these Sidhe are always on the look-out for Prodigal races who can be converted to their cause; already they have found allies among several shapeshifter species, especially a twisted race of werewolves who call themselves Black Spiral Dancers. House Balor forms alliances with a number of murderous, dark, and twisted spiritual organizations and supernatural races; many whisper that chimera of Nightmare are found commonly in the council-chambers, and even the beds, of this House.
At their worst, House Balor are insane tyrants, desperate to seize control of mortal and Arcadian worlds alike and grind them beneath their boot. Others, however, point to a proud history of betrayal in the past of House Balor; some optimists claim that just as Lugh drew upon his Vampiric and Sidhe magicks to destroy Balor, so is it likely that the Sidhe of House Balor form alliances with dark creatures only to betray them one day. Many insist that their convuluted geneaology cannot help but force them to knife their current allies in the back, and that, should Winter ever come, they will be staunch allies of the Seelie Court, secret infiltrators of the Nightmare camp.
For now the Sidhe of House Balor are content to plot with the Unseelie Court, forming alliances wherever they can among Arcadian, Gallain, and Prodigals. While whispers link the Shadow Court to the Sidhe of House Balor, it seems as if the two organizations each have their own agenda. Many Sidhe of House Balor masquerade as members of House Eiluned or Daragh, worming their way into the Seelie Court. Most of them regard the Seelie Court as weak, and constantly probe and test it for opportunities to strike at it. Many members of House Balor enjoy politics, and are masters of treachery, though their flair for the dramatic tends to unmask them before too long, another example of their unhidable flaws, perhaps. Many of them are quite decadent and debauched, and demand total obessiance from their vassals.
The vampiric blood of these sidhe shields them from the worst effects of cold iron. Cold iron still causes them discomfort, but Balor sidhe take no penalty when performing tasks that involve contact with it. They do not lose temporary Glamour when struck with it. If slain by an iron weapon, however, their Arcadian souls are still destroyed. Though they can masquerade as Seelie sidhe, they will never actually become Seelie.
House Leanhaun
Members of House Leanhaun are often seen as the most moderate of the "Winter" Houses, for they throw their lot in whole-heartedly with the Unseelie Court. A few Seelie Leanhaun exist, but they are by far the exception to the rule. They are traditionally viewed as hedonists and rakes, fond of mortal company, and extremely vain. A tradition of musical and poetic skill runs through this House, and many of them find employ as the bards, harpers, talesingers, and historians for other Sidhe. There are few commonly known Leanhaun Freeholds or fiefdoms, and most of them are in Ireland. Those Leanhaun Freeholds in Concordia opened themselves as places of peace during the many Arcadian Wars, offering succor to both sides, and acting as neutral ground for the wounded and the desperate. This earned House Leanhaun a good reputation among other Arcadian, causing many of the Seelie Court to believe that their reputation as Unseelie monsters is unjustly earned. This is certainly a popular sentiment among the commoners who have never met House Leanhaun.
In truth, House Leanhaun carries a terrible burden, which forces them to engage in activities that the extremists among the Seelie Court cannot permit. The Sidhe of House Leanhaun are cursed with unnatural aging, as their bodies continue to crave Glamour. Without a constant and plentiful supply, members of this House, physically aging in their appearance.
Members of House Leanhaun are known for their beauty and style, and many of them are vain sensualists. They live in dread of the House's curse, and often resort to brutal methods of gathering Glamour to abate their curse. Though they control few Freeholds, they have mastered the art of stealing Glamour through nearly every mean.
In many cases, however, this Glamour is not enough to abate the hunger that a Leanhaun has, and so she chooses instead to Rhapsodize mortals. This method of Epiphany infuses a human Dreamer with Glamour, causing his creativity to burn like wildfire, producing some of the greatest art of their lives. However, this process inevitably burns out the artist, causing many of them to waste away or even take their own lives. Since the Ressurgence in 1969, a number of great musicians, poets, painters, and the like have perished as a result of the Leanhaun's tender mercies. Their creativity reached heights it might never have soared to, but they paid the ultimate price, all as the Leanhaun watched on.
Though House Leanhaun enjoys good relationships with some, they are always slow to reveal their secrets, and never offer full membership in their House to any non-Sidhe. The commoners are far more useful as retainers and allies, free of the curse which afflicts the members of this House, and perhaps even unaware of it. Many consider House Leanhaun to be doing little more than upholding the Unseelie Code, which preaches that "Glamour is free." Rhapsody, Ravaging, and the suffusion of all aspects of life with constant sources of Glamour allows a Leanhaun to pass as any other Sidhe, and thus they sometimes wear the colors of House Kildram or Eiluned, and are virtually undetectable in these guises, with their smooth ways and silver-tongues. There is a definite emnity between Houses Leanhaun and Caulfield, most likely over the Leanhaun abuse of mortals. These two Houses have crossed blades more than once, and neither will trade with the other. Many members of House Leanhaun, when they have the ear of Seelie lords, warn against too many dealings with the Oathbroken House of Caulfield, claiming that they have never proven their alliegance to the Arcadian over their love of humans.
