dragonmarked houses

you can’t buy or choose to develop a standard dragonmark; each mark is tied to bloodlines within specific species, a dragonmark appears on a person around adolescence, though not every heir manifests the mark but if both parents are of the same house it is almost assured

long ago, the families that carry the marks joined together to form the dragonmarked houses, over the course of centuries, these houses have used their gifts to establish powerful monopolies, the dragonmarked are the scions of civilization and so are generally anathema to those from the wilderness

all about the houses

every dragonmarked house has its own traditions and secrets, here’s a few facts that apply to most of the houses:

enclaves

all dragonmarked houses maintain enclaves in the great cities and in the wilderness, these serve as strongholds and hubs for house businesses, enclaves have diplomatic immunity in the great cities and often try to claim it in the wilderness but most often have to enforce it with actual force

names and ranks

any heir of the house who develops a dragonmark and is an agent of the house, is allowed to add the d’ prefix to the house name: for example, merrix d’cannith, despite the korth edicts’ proscription against house members holding noble titles, regional leaders within the houses are called barons, most houses are led by a matriarch or patriarch, though some are led by a council

emblems

each dragonmarked house has an emblem, a distinctive symbol that features on their heraldry, official seals, crafted goods, and anything else that warrants the house’s stamp of authenticity, an emblem surrounded by heraldic crenellations marks an enclave

the twelve

the twelve is an organization that facilitates cooperation among the dragonmarked houses, house thuranni is not technically part of the twelve but is still extended all of the rights and privileges of a house except an actual place on the council of twelve

excoriates

excoriates are dragonmarked heirs who have been cut off from their houses, excoriates generally have short and violent lives as household enemies abound and some of the houses don't like lose ends not that they would ever publicly admit such

foundlings

foundlings are people who have a dragonmark yet have no official tie to a dragonmarked house, foundlings are often drawn into household politics despite their desire to stay clear of it, the line between foundling and excoriate is often brutally short

test of siberys

dragonmarks manifest around adolescence, each house puts its potential heirs through a trial called the test of siberys, the specific trials vary by house, but they place the potential heir in circumstances where they are likely to manifest the mark, if they have it, almost all of the members of a bloodline manifest the mark

korth edicts

the korth edicts prevent the houses from getting involved in local politics while establishing their rights to their enclaves and the other laws of the dragonmarked, the edicts were established when the cities and the wilderness were united, today, many in the houses feel the edicts have become obsolete in the wake of the savage’s wars

dragonmarks and backgrounds

dragonmarks are bound to certain bloodlines, and by choosing a mark, you are establishing your character’s blood connection to one of the families in the dragonmarked houses, it’s up to you to define your relationship to the house, were you brought up in the house? or are you independent from it? this is best represented by your background, consider the following options:

agent

the house agent background means you are actively working for the house, as a house agent you are expected to use the house name

independent scion

you were raised in civilization, but you’ve kept your independence, you can have any civilized background but house agent and cannot use the house name

excoriate

in the past as an excoriate your mark would be flayed from your body although this mutilation is no longer practiced dosen't mean things are easier

if you’re an excoriate explain what you did to deserve this exile from your house and family

you can have any civilized background including house agent

this is not a background as much as it is an often fatal choice

foundling

you are a savage raised in the wilderness by savage parents that were probably also native savages

you have no ties to any house

you have a savage background

if found the pressures put on you to become one with the house are often extreme

for instance there is always a ransom paid for your safe transport to a enclave of the proper house

even if your rescuers have to kill your village and kidnap you to collect it

the powers of the mark

each dragonmark grants a set of abilities that reflect the inherent powers of the mark

your dragonmarked race gives you a set of traits derived from the magic of your mark

if you are a spellcaster your dragonmark also fuels or channels some of your spells

your dragonmark spells are added to the spell list for each of your spellcasting classes thereby expanding the spell options available to you

over the centuries, the houses have developed tools that enhance and channel the powers of a mark and these items give the houses much of their economic power

dragonmark appearance

a dragonmark appears somewhere on the skin of the dragonmarked

there are twelve known common dragonmarks and an unlimited number of aberant dragonmarks each unique in design and power

a dragonmark can appear on any part of the body, one half-elf could have the mark of detection across an eye, while another has it in the palm of the hand

dragonmarks appear with vivid shades of blue and purple and shimmer or even move slightly when used

they grow warm to the touch and glow (though this doesn’t produce useful illumination it is still obvious unless covered)

a dragonmark that is removed no longer works but can be recovered with the regeneration spell

all dragonmarks share a similar initial appearance, but a dragonmark can grow in size and complexity as a character gains levels and uses it to cast more powerful magic

while dragonmarks share the same general appearance, your dragonmark comes in one of three levels of conceal ability

your dragonmark is easily hidden by normal clothing

your dragonmark is easily hidden by normal accessories like gloves, a scarf, long sleeves or leggings, +1 renown over your level if a house agent

your dragonmark is not hide able without unusual measures like a mask, +2 renown over your level if a house agent

the mark of detection

is an inquisitive’s dream sharpening the powers of observation and intuition allowing the bearer to draw connections and interpret clues others might miss

by actively drawing on its powers the bearer can detect poisons and study the energies of magic

house medani

leadership

a single baron in each city

headquarters

the tower of inquisition in each city

represented by the basilisk’s eye

house medani brokers the services of bodyguards and inquisitives, medani advisors specialize in risk assessment and management, protecting clients from both physical and social threats, while medani overlaps with the inquisitives of house tharashk and the bodyguards of house deneith, the house medani specializes in subtle threats and complex mysteries, leaders manage the guild’s affairs in each city from the tower of inquisition, where the house also interrogates and holds prisoners for their clients, the members of house medani are all half-elves having little interest in the power struggles that sometimes break out between the other factions, many medani heirs are more interested in helping their communities than in raw profit, many medani heirs often work with local law enforcement or help those who can’t afford their services

the mark of finding

the mark of finding sharpens the senses, guiding the hunter to prey, alone among the dragonmarks, the mark of finding is carried by two races: humans and half-orcs, it first appeared in the shadow marches, where clan hunters used it to find their prey

house tharashk

leader

a triumvirate formed with the leader of each clan in the city

headquarters

zarash’ak house

house tharashk traditionally licenses inquisitives and bounty hunters, recently the house has expanded into dragonshard prospecting, as dragon­shards are the lifeblood of the magical economy, the house’s talent has given them new wealth and influence, tharashk is the youngest and the largest of the dragonmarked houses and hasn’t embraced all the customs of the others, the distinct clans that united to form the house remain important, and heirs of the family usually retain their family names rather than adopting “d’tharashk” as tradition dictates, each of the three major clans—the aashta, the torrn, and the velderan—has a representative on the triumvirate that governs the house in each city, together, they stand as one under the emblem of the dragonne (a lion-dragon hybrid), the d’aashta are half-orc, the d’velderan are human and the d’torrn can be of any race but must carry an aberrant dragonmark, while this is abhorrent to the others in the twelve it has not caused open war between the houses, yet

the mark of handling

the mark of handling gives its bearer a primal connection to beasts and the natural world, granting the power to calm and coax, this extends beyond purely natural animals; the mark allows its bearer to guide a hippogriff as easily as a horse

house vadalis

leader:

no title used and often appears to change as the subject changes

headquarters

foalswood

represented by the hippogriff, house vadalis plays an important role in daily life, offering meat, mounts, and more, vadalis isn’t one of the most powerful houses, but its generally content; they’re more interested in discovering new monstrosities than engaging in politics, the current heads of the house disdain the use of titles and have no aspirations to nobility or greatness for themselves or their house, house vadalis breeds and trains beasts for a wide range of purposes, while the house maintains vast cattle ranches and trains horses and hounds, the mark of handling allows vadalis to work with more exotic creatures as well, griffons, hippogriffs, and even bulettes can be bred and trained, even for the humans with the mark of handling, this is dangerous work; there’s a lot of turnover at the bulette ranch, but these exotic creatures aren’t enough to satisfy the most innovative members of the house, leading to the practice of magebreeding, using dragonshard focus items, vadalis has found ways to create magical creatures. typically, this results in a superior version of a creature—an animal that is stronger, faster, and smarter, but rumors claim that vadalis has crafted monsters of its own, some rumors even insist that vadalis is trying to magebreed better humans

the mark of healing

a halfling with the mark of healing can save a life with a touch, restoring vitality and the will to live, when dealing with mundane medicine, the mark helps its bearer sense the nature of maladies, aiding them in finding a cure, when equipped with dragonshard focus items, the mark can even draw the dead back from the depths of the outer planes

house jorasco

leaders

a single baron in each great city

headquarters

the vedkyar enclave

house jorasco provides a vital service and the war ensures there is great need for healers, the leaders of the guild are much beloved for their instrumental role in combating epidemics in the cities, and jorasco medics have served in every army in the war, the guild runs schools that teach medicine, as well as houses of healing that provide both mundane and magical services, if it could save a life, it’s probably marked by the house jorasco griffon emblem and it will come with a cost, if you have the gold jorasco healers can remove a disease instantly with lesser restoration, if you can’t afford such a service they will treat you with mundane techniques, house jorasco is also the source for most potions of healing, while many criticize jorasco’s demands for payment, the house maintains that it’s not about greed; it’s about ensuring the prosperity of the house, so they can continue to help future generations, while the public face of jorasco is that of the healer, there are rumors that the house engages in disturbing experiments in war, working with house vadalis to develop biological weapons and new creatures

the mark of hospitality

they may not always have gold, but a halfling with the mark of hospitality is sure to be rich in friends, the magic of the mark allows the bearer to keep a place clean, and to heat, chill, and season food, but it also helps the bearer connect with others

house ghallanda

leader

a single baron in each great city

headquarters

gatherhold

the majority of inns, taverns, and restaurants in the great cities are either directly owned by house ghallanda or licensed by it, most people give little thought to house ghallanda; when compared to the soldiers of house deneith and the factories of house cannith, an alliance of innkeepers seems harmless and inconsequential, but ghallanda’s strength lies in charm and connections, a ghallanda innkeeper hears many things—if you want to know what’s really going on in a community, talk to the halfling bartender, the leaders of house ghallanda don’t sell information; they prefer to build friendship and deal in favors, but should a ghallanda baron ever truly need something, they likely have a favor they can call in, ghallanda has a number of “bound businesses”—franchises run directly by the house, the gold dragon inn is such a business, with gold dragon inns being found in every major city, each serving a familiar menu and providing similar services, but many ghallanda heirs take pride in creating their own unique businesses, there are also many independent restaurants, inns, and taverns licensed by house ghallanda, the blink dog emblem is an assurance that a locale meets ghallanda standards of health and quality—but not every inn is run by a halfling, house ghallanda’s mandate extends beyond providing creature comforts to travelers, every one of the house’s enclaves—which are more numerous than those of any other dragonmarked house—is a sanctuary beyond the legal reach of any government or dragonmarked house

the mark of making

the mark of making guides its human bearers through any act of creation, the bearer of the mark can mend broken things with a touch, and always has a minor magic item they’ve been working on, an artificer or a wizard will get the most out of the mark, but anyone can find a use for an enchanted blade

house cannith

leaders

a council of five barons, each the leader of its own tower in the city

headquarters

cannith tower east: alchemist, cannith tower west: armorer, cannith tower south: artillerist, cannith tower north: battle smith, cannith tower central: wizard

house cannith dominates all forms of manufacturing, both mystical and mundane, gorgon-marked cannith forgeholds use streamlined forms of production to quickly produce common goods, even independent artisans often learn their trade at cannith academies and adhere to cannith standards, the house of cannith builds the tools the other houses rely upon, and it has always been the unspoken leader of the twelve, the war is a time of great opportunity for cannith, every community, civilized and savage wants weapons and warforged, along with mundane arms and armor, the war has raised the house up and the war might tear it down again

the mark of passage

the mark of passage governs motion, allowing its human bearers to move with uncanny speed, the bearer of the mark can even slip through space in the blink of an eye

house orien

leaders

a single baron in each great city

headquarters

journey’s home

the house of passage manages land transportation, the lightning rail is the house’s most dramatic tool, but orien also runs caravans and coaches, dragonshard focus items ensure that the fastest vehicles are those driven by heirs with the mark of passage, but the house also licenses unmarked teamsters, house orien delivers mail and packages and has a branch that handles more covert and dangerous deliveries, orien has dominated transportation for centuries, but now the house is facing challenges, the expanding role of lyrandar airships appears to threatens the house’s business

the mark of scribing

the mark of scribing deals with communication—both the written and spoken word, a gnome who bears the mark can feel words as though they are living creatures, struggling to make their meaning known, the mark provides a range of gifts, it translates languages, but it also allows its bearer to communicate with others at a distance

house sivis

leaders

a single baron in each great city

headquarters

the labyrinth

bearing the emblem of the cockatrice, the gnomes of house sivis facilitate communication, this is seen most literally in speaking stones, magic items allowing a sivis heir to send a short message to another speaking stone, house sivis’s message stations employs these items as the backbone of their long-distance communication network, the house also trains and licenses scribes, notaries, interpreters, cartographers, barristers, heralds, bookbinders, and others who work with words, house sivis has an especially close relationship with house kundarak, as kundarak letters of credit must be notarized with a sivis arcane mark, house sivis takes great pains to maintain the trust of its clients and holds a position of absolute neutrality in all disputes, whether between houses, cities, or even savages, sivis gnomes are typically friendly, curious, and engaging, but that kindly exterior might conceal a scheming mind, gnomes have a natural love of intrigue, and the different families within the house often engage in subtle schemes and feuds, the barons and other leaders of the house, take pains to ensure that these intrigues never threaten the house or its reputation

the mark of sentinel

the mark of sentinel warns and protects, it heightens senses and reflexes, allowing an heir to respond to threats with uncanny speed, it can shield its bearer from harm, whether on the battlefield or the ballroom, the humans that carry the mark of sentinel are prepared for danger

house deneith

leaders

a single baron in each great city

headquarters

sentinel tower

house deneith was born in conflict as war has flowed in its veins for centuries, house deneith governs the mercenary trade, while warriors with the mark of sentinel are among its most elite forces, house deneith brokers the services of a wide range of soldiers, including war bands, goblins, and orc hoards, beyond the battlefield house deneith provides exceptional bodyguards for those who can afford their services, house deneith is also renowned for its sentinel marshals, agents who hold the authority to pursue criminals and enforce the law across the length of the whole length of civilization, the sentinel marshals hold the honor of the house in their hands, being a marshal is a privilege, and it comes with high expectations, despite its might and the desire of some house members to flex their military muscles, house deneith has always maintained absolute neutrality, selling its services to all sides of a conflict, the barons of d’deneith show no inclination of using their massive, chi­mera-marked military forces for their own ends despite being surrounded by aggressive advisors who would like to see a d'deneith ruling all, house deneith is also caught in an escalating rivalry with house tharashk, as it edges into most of house deneith’s core businesses with their blasphemous aberrant marked cadre of mercenaries

the mark of shadow

the mark of shadow lets an elf weave illusions, crafting magic to distract or delight, it also allows its bearer to sculpt shadows, making it easy to avoid detection

the houses of shadow

leader

house phiarlan, a single baron in each great city

house thuranni, a single baron supported by two others in each great city

headquarters

house phiarlan, the demesnes

house thuranni, regalport

elves have carried the mark of shadow for thousands of years, the mark’s bearers established house phiarlan, these elves are expert entertainers, giving them access to all manner of places and people, a bitter feud broke out between the major families of the house, known as the shadow schism, it resulted in a split within phiarlan—and the foundation of house thuranni, as a rule, phiarlan elves are the better spies and thuranni elves are superior assassins, thuranni and phiarlan maintain a peaceful relationship, but rivalries run deep, the barons of the thuranni are said to be responsible for the shadow schism, ruling their houses from their regalport enclaves, they are always accompanied by a shadowy pair, rumored to be the embodiment of shadow itself, the displacer beast serves as the young house’s emblem, the enclaves of house phiarlan, known as the demesnes, are the foremost centers of the arts in the great cities, the barons of the phiarlan lead their houses from those demesne of shadow, the hydra serves as house phiarlan’s emblem

the mark of storm

wind and water welcome the half-elves who carry the mark of storm, some of whom learn to call on the power of the storm itself

house lyrandar

leaders

a single baron in each great city

headquarters

stormhome

house lyrandar has long ruled the seas, their kraken marked galleons harness air and water elementals and are faster than any mundane vessel, control of the sea and river trade gave lyrandar considerable power, now they reach out to the skies, lyrandar airships threaten to undermined the lightning rail’s domination of overland travel, for most of the house’s members, the house is more than a family or business—their private enclaves are the closest thing most of them have to a homeland, the barons d’lyrandars are often ambitious and steer their house to act in what they see as the best interests of those half-elves with the mark of storm

the mark of warding

the mark of warding helps its bearers protect things of value, using the mark, a dwarf can weave wards with mystic force, it also provides its bearer with an intuitive understanding of locks used to protect and seal

house kundarak

leaders

a single baron d’kundarak in each great city

headquarters

korunda gate

if you want to keep something safe—jewels, secrets, prisoners—kundarak is there to help, house kundarak trains locksmiths, security specialists, and more, it maintains the prison dreadhold in each great city, along with a number of smaller prisons, as useful as these services are, it’s the banking that truly defines the house, anyone who makes a living from coin—from bankers to goldsmiths—likely learned their skills at house kundarak, the security of banks bearing the kundarak manticore emblem is legendary, the house also provides a special service to those who can afford it: a system of extra-dimensional vaults, allowing a client to store their goods in one location and retrieve them at any other kundarak enclave, house kundarak has a close alliance with house sivis, like the house of scribing, kundarak has worked to earn the trust of its clients and to establish a reputation for unshakable integrity, the house has no love of renegade dwarves using their marks to turn a profit, and such rogues strive to avoid the eye of kundarak if they value their freedom and their lives

aberrant dragonmarks

the twelve dragonmarks are predictable, and their powers are generally constructive, but there is another kind of dragonmark, which is dangerous to both the bearer and the people around them, aberrant marks most often appear in the great cities but aberrant dragonmarks can appear on members of any race, at any age, regardless of bloodline, no two aberrant dragonmarks are exactly alike—even if they grant the same power, they might manifest in different ways, it usually takes time for a character to learn to control an aberrant mark, and until that time, people might be hurt by it, this factor has led to the general superstition that people with aberrant dragonmarks are dangerous, aberrant marks are feared for another reason, too, long ago, aberrant marks were more common and some held great powers, aberrant leader halas tarkanan could devastate cities with powerful earthquakes and the lady of the plague wielded disease and commanded hordes of vermin, the dragonmarked houses united in an inquisition called the war of the mark, some say this was a persecution of innocents, but most feared the aberrant dragonmarked and stood by as the houses hunted them down, following the war of the mark, aberrant dragonmarks were few in number and relatively weak, but recently aberrant marks have been appearing in greater numbers and or for reasons not fully understood, house tharashk has given them a home as one-third of house tharashk and a purpose as mercenaries while the renegade house tarkanan gathers others in secret for its own aberrant reasons