House Gotthold

[Medvekoma 2073]

Motivated by the other family threads, I decided to write up a page for our own little slice of paradise, in hopes of recruitment. Or for information if somebody is interested. Whatever.

 

House Gotthold

 

 

"Ein Feste Burg ist Unser Gott."

"A mighty fortress is our god."

 

House Gotthold is a Heartlander burgher family aspiring to join the ranks of nobility. Members are scattered in numerous corners of the Empire and abroad, but a general "Gotthold sense" applies to them all. Originally, the Gottholds were coin counters in Felsen, but a rift and disagreement led to the current head departing to an almost pilgrimage. In the meanwhile, some members remained in Felsen, a few followed the now-matriarch and even more scattered around in Oren, seeking their own fortunes.

 

After the initial fracture, the family defined itself as a prominent weapons manufacturing entity in Valoria, with tiny-tiny influence across Oren. Yet the matriarch is ever-vigilant, ambitious to improve her family and bring them glory while both uncles work steadfast to spread the words of God across Oren and the greater realm.

 

The family is loosely based on RL Austrian culture. While there's no official crest yet (since the family hasn't received the right to bear one yet), the Gottholds proudly dress in red and black, Gotthold's (Krinford's) colours. The Gottholds differentiate themselves from the rest of the world through their devotion to God and their piety, which to outsiders can easily seem overzealous or even stubborn and stupid. Above that, members of the family respect the arts just as much as they invest in the military. The family's main income comes from arms trade that involves weapons, armour, minerals and food. Some additional trade is done by exchanging the extracted stone from Gotthold's mine as well.

 

Notable Members:

 

Karina Victoria Gotthold, former bailiff of Gotthold (formerly Krinford), Holy Dame of the Saint Wilfriche order, acting matriarch of house Gotthold

@ThatcheriteSybil

 

 

Karina serves as the current de-facto matriarch of the house, handling most non-clerical relations and interactions. She was born a coin-counter, was raised as one but left home at the age of 16 to seek her own fortune. She had dreams of finding a husband who'll provide for her, settling down in a countryside manor or even becoming a noble's chancellor herself. Her coins ran out though and she was left with little to eat and no place to sleep, which led her to flee to Aethermoor. Led by hunger, she had to abandon most of her dreams and rely on God's guidance and nothing more. She became a miner, later learning the art of smithing as well. After a total of three years spent mining and forging nails, a change in her life arrived. The Lord's daughter was abducted by horsemen, and Karina was given armour and a sword to be part of the rescue team. She had no idea what would happen, and cowardice took over her both before and during the initial battle.

 

Yet the circumstances favoured her. She was given the shield of the lord of Silesia to hold a shield wall. When the wildmen counter-attacked to take the daughter again, she was told to help the daughter out of the situation, and she did so with a fair sprinkle of heroism. She faced the leader of the horsemen alone, holding nothing but her sword. The daughter was eventually saved, and Karina was one of the few members of the improvised rescue team to remain alive and (mostly) unharmed.

 

For the next three years she was member of the Aethermoor city watch, training with the two-handed sword and specialising her craft on forging weapons and armour. In the meanwhile, she picked up contact with two of her sisters and her uncles, both bishops of the holy sea. When the rebellion broke out, she approached prince John Leopold in Vandoria to promise loyalty. She was appointed as bailiff to the ruined keep and village of Krinford, and begun preparing for the war. Krinford was renovated and eventually renamed Gotthold by the Emperor, nowadays it serves as her keep and forge as well as a place for the family to meet up.

 

Her life turned upside-down, the once cowardly, fat and gregarious coin counter turned into a deeply religious lady often seen as brutish or even crude due to her newfound muscular build (from manual labour) and direct approach to things.

 

Character page

 

Sixtus IV, High Pontiff of the Holy Church of the Canon (formerly Benegar Gotthold)

@Piov

 

 

Born in 1511 in Felsen, Benegar had spent much of his time on the docks, aspiring to be a successful commercial fisherman and maritime merchant. Upon a life of hardship among family, and misfortunes in marital relations, Benegar aspired for deeper meaning and eventually found the call to the Church. 

With the fervent passion for diligence and duty, Benegar Gotthold proved capable enough to ascend the ecclesiastical hierarchy from his humble roots when he was ordained a priest at the age of 24. In the role as a theologian and prelate of the Church, he was instrumental in promoting policies of unity, defending the sovereignty of church in the state, justifying the sanctity of the sacraments, and helping establish an independent Papal State.

His thesis, "Virtutis Ecclesiæ," published in 1562, outlined the vitality and importance of active ministry with virtue in all aspects of the Church. Throughout his career, he had traveled extensively, reaching as far North as Carnatia and as far to the South to the capital of Vandoria. 

In 1563, he was appointed auxiliary bishop of Carnatia and later that year, was elevated to Cardinal by High Pontiff Theodosius. He'd briefly served as Archbishop of Lorraine and then the Holy Lands of Luciensport before he was transferred to his long-term assignment as the Archbishop of Erochland. In his ministry, he personally oversaw the construction of the Cathedral of St Karl Barbanov and currently serves on the Duchy of Erochland's Council.

 

Adolf Gotthold, former Archbishop of Erochland

@PariahFolk

 

 

Born in 1507 in Felsen, Adolf occupied himself with the doctrine of the church from an early age. A pious and zealous young man, with a tactical sense and a wroth personality, it was expected of him to become a squire and eventually be anointed as a holy knight- never was it expected for him to pursue priesthood. It was Adolf’s passion for the liturgy and his devotion to GOD that led him to enlist in the front lines of GOD’s holy army, the Priesthood of the Canon. Adolf was ordained in the year 1533, at the age of 26.

His passion for piety, and his disposition to rout all heresy in the church quickly made him enemies within the secular bureaucracy and allies within the ecclesiastical ranks. His many publications on the disease of heresy and infidelity, as well as his theses on healthy change and conflict within the church to promote longevity established his authority on Canon Law. 

His ministry brought Adolf to the North, specifically Courland, where he discovered that even the most devout of peoples, when culturally independent, can turn towards heresy. The abhorrent tendency of the Northerne peoples to betray the Church’s voice and authority disgusted Adolf, and his writings to urge the excommunication of many of Courland’s leaders helped to increase the moral authority of the church.

Working alongside his brother for years to urge charity from the parishioners of the Church, to urge loyalty and sanctity of Theological Canon Law, and his passionate and conservative stance on heresy and infidels has not changed in his many decades as a Priest, if anything, they have only developed further as his authority on Ecclesiastical law solidified, his voice become a common sound in academies and libraries, and his pursuit of purity among all the worlds souls continued.

 

Anastasia Gotthold

@Joyette

 

 

Anastasia had grown up with many siblings, learning and enjoying them at times. But once her older sister had left, She felt empty and craved to fill the void. She yearned to her mother for travel at the age of 13. After months of pleading, she had been approved, but at the cost of taking her mother as well. Together, with her mother, Anastasia had learned of new styles of life, new ideas, mysterious, languages and people. But on the travel, Anastasia was learning of what she wanted in life and what she needed to be.

 

 Unlike her sister, Anastasia grew to become a prominent young woman, taking in all the ways and skills from her friends and her mother. Also, she amassed herself with large amounts of knowledge. Later she returns home to see her family and how they have grown at the age of 16. 

 

Still holding the craving, Anastasia left on another adventure with her mother and sister. Together they learned new skills and abilities of themselves. Here Anastasia learned about her skills in Healing and Archery. But a new craving came, she craved the partnership of a man, someone who could help her in her dreams, provide for her and overall love her. 

 

She now awaits for the future, roaming the streets while she works with Children and helping he poor.

 

Alicia Gotthold

@SerratedCucumber

 

 

Born in Felsen in 1550, during Sun's Smile, Alicia was always a very happy, bubbly, enthusiastic child, and was seldom unhappy. Shortly after her father's death when she was 9, she decided to travel with her sister and mother, this struck her as an opportunity for adventure.

 

Her experiences from her travels have taught her several things, she picked up the ability to paint in Istrai, and has since made it a goal of hers to further this skill. Alicia has devoted the next few years of her life to capturing life through her paintings, her adventures were abruptly stopped after her and her sister, Fionne decided to travel home after an argument with their mother. Alicia soon returned home, and has since been looking into religious practices from her family, though she is not immensely religious, she has a basic comprehension of the subject and of her own faith.

 

Alicia is now looking to better her painting, to bond closer with family than she has in the past, and most importantly, to find a worthy suitor to take her hand in marriage, and she also has the desire to put herself out there as a social figure and attend and help organise events and such, thus meeting lots of new, interesting people. Though she may still only be young, she has very high hopes for the future, her optimism may be disproportionate, given how high her expectations are for herself.

 

Other family members:

 

 

Anastasia Gotthold @QueenBee

Alexander Gotthold @Vellisar

Maximilian Gotthold @GusanoArentonio

 

OOC Information:

 

We've been playing together for quite a while now, the current layout of the Gottholds that is. At the same time, we're open to meeting new people and would gladly accept newcomers as well. If you want to join up, either as member of the house staff or a new Gotthold character, just shoot me a PM over the forums. I'd have you fill in a form or whatever, but I don't believe in bringing bureaucracy like that into the picture. I'll probably interview you through skype (chat) and that's all.

 

If you're interested in interacting with the family, that's more than welcome much alike. We all are pretty fresh to the server and the scene, so any help is appreciated. We're trying each to involve ourselves with the server, but a kick and some help is always nice. This thread is as much of an introduction as it is a family page or announcement.

 

Last but not least, hope you enjoyed the page or at least didn't just go "meh" and close the tab to look at the other freshly posted threads. I'll be trying to update this one so that it's... well, up to date.

[GloriaPreussens 798]

John Godfrey suppresses a hemmorage at these inbred peasants who have turned his home to a slime den

[garentoft 9265]

Dirk Novokain thinks Benegar is a handsome lad

[garentoft 9265]

Maximilian is quite sadly not mentioned here, though soon he shall be.

[Slayy 816]

[Wendigo 786]

Moved to the Archive. It shall be sorted into the appropriate category shortly.