The Clan Archives

[Dakirennis 959]

 

Dak’ir shuffles around in a dimly lit room below the temple. Books lay about stacked in piles as high as the ceiling in their appropriate categories. She he begins to stow them away into shelves, he notices something…

 

“Here? ...No. Over in this pile? Blessed Ancestors… Must have lost them in the fires.”

The Primarch sighs as he drafts a few quick letters and sends them off through the Dominion and even Oren.

 

“Dearest kin. It appears as though our clan archives have gone missing and I seek to replenish them. Dark elven clans of the Dominion or Oren may submit tomes that detail their clan’s traditions, beliefs, and history so that they may be archived and made available to dark elves seeking a family. Or for those wishing to learn of our people and their various cultures.”

 

 

Spoiler

All righty then. This is basically a place for Dominion and Oren darkies to publicly post their clan's information for recruitment or simply to make themselves known. This isn't really a thread for roleplaying on, just simply to put your info out there. So I ask that any posts not pertaining to that or not of the dominion/oren please be removed.

 

[Dakirennis 959]

Des'Nox

 

 

 

"In midnight clad."

 

 

Family tree
 
 

Spoiler

 

Current Family Members

 

Dak'ir - Dakirennis

Lielle - Criala

Arveldir - DrunkenSnuggles

Aeltis - Cneyele

Syndaria - Birdwhisperer

Yae'vel - Readicti

Arzota - Arzota

Riv'su - Darksoundwave

Rokka'an - _Leric_

 

 

 
 
Origin and History
 
 

Spoiler

Rooting from Asulon, the Maki'ker of Des'Nox are a nomadic clan. While they tended to keep to the elven lands, they were almost hermit like, new members only joining after marrying into the family. As roamers, most children of Des'Nox grew up learning to hunt and craft things that could be sold rather than read and write. This left most of the clan illiterate for a time, meaning that any ancestries were left to memory instead of being recorded. Only until recently have they finally settled down and their history been archived. During Anthos, most of the clan had split up and gone their own ways. What led to this is unknown. Only until the arrival of Athera did they begin to unite once again.

 
 
Traits
 
 

Spoiler

 

Physical

 

Their skin color being about average, sometimes a little darker and their eye color being the common red. It is their ebon hair and height that sets them apart from the normal dark elf. The normal height for males of the clan being almost six feet, four inches. While the women of the clan hover around a flat six.

 

 

Personality

 

A Des'Nox is usually pretty reclusive and a bit stubborn. Tending to either keep to their family or just dark elves in general. It takes a bit of time for them to warm up and actually have a full conversation with another person outside of their comfort zone. But once a friend they are pretty valuable. Most from the family are very helpful and stick to their guns when it comes to doing the honorable thing. As tradesmen they like to take great pride in their work, seeing whatever it is they make as a challenge to create art.

 

 
 
Beliefs and traditions
 
 

Spoiler

 

Religious Views

 

Like most dark elves. The Des'Nox clan venerate their Ancestors. They pray or reflect on the actions of their forebears for guidance. Though recently, some have taken to worshiping the Spirits, believing them to be a true and uncorrupted way of life.

 

Rite of passage

 

In the early to mid teens of young Des'Nox children, they go through a trial to enter adulthood. A simple test of survival and mettle. The clan will simply leave the child or children behind and return for them at a later date. With the only rule really being that you may not follow the clan, some parents will give their child supplies. While helping them is not against the rules, it is more simply frowned upon. For example: Giving your child a knife is nothing compared to giving it a bow and arrows. By giving them supplies, you're seen as not having faith in their abilities to survive.

 

The Night

 

The Des'Nox hold a certain affinity for the night. As they were originally nomadic, the night offered protection from the usual daylight dangers. But to them, the night was so much more. In concealing themselves, using the stars as guides, and even hunting. To them, the night is many things, which is why they hold it in such high regard. They also believe it is where the dark elves came from.

 

"The night. It is a blanket that warms us, armor that shields us. It is what we come from and what binds us all, in midnight clad."

-Der'es Noxius, clan founder.

 

Names

 

The Des'Nox clan has a strange way of naming it's children. They use a combination of syllables from the parent's names as a way of symbolizing the unity between two mates. It's not uncommon for names to be passed down through the generations. (For example: Dak'ir's father was Dak'rezar). Traditionally, the mother's name comes first for their daughters and the father's name would come first for the sons. Full names imply that the member was either a bastard or simply married (or adopted) into the family.

 

Celebration

 

Their pleasures are simple. But celebrating is something the clan frequently enjoys. Weather it be the birth of a newborn, the bond between two lovers, or even a successful hunt. A Des'Nox will turn it into a festivity accompanied by tale telling, drinking and music. They often favour string and percussion instruments.

 

Craftsmanship

 

The vagabond clan did what it could to make a living. While most were adept hunters, coin was still needed for a living. Most clansmen were skilled crafters and tailors. From dresses to wooden toys and even carved jewellery, the clan honed their skill into what they could.

 

Black Stone Bracelets

 

Most notable of their craftsmanship are the simple black stone bracelets most, if not all, Des'Nox are seen wearing. Mainly being something partents gave their children or juveniles gave their allure, it represented their love for that person. They were usually crafted from dark colored rocks, though some including onyx or obsidian. It was thought that the more beautiful the bracelet, the more that person cared. As the clan was poor, it meant aquiring gems or carving stones would either take a lot of time to find or cost them more than they could afford. As it was mainly given to another as a clan tradition, these bracelets were almost never given to those outside of the clan.

 

Magic

 

Most Des'nox either show open distaste or simply do not care for magic, believing it corrupts the mind. However very few have been known to take up elemental evocations.

 

 
 
OOC
 
 

Spoiler

The clan is fiercely devout to itself. A Des'nox taking the life of one of it's own or venturing away from their family is completely unheard of. So I prefer all players who play full blooded member (Those not married into the family) oocly agree that the character can be taken away if I believe they're being played incorrectly. I'm not really a hardass when it comes to that sort of thing, just be chill and loyal to the family is all. 

 

 

 

[Swgrclan 2682]

House Ipos

“Where light casts; a shadow trails in wake.

Where lives passed; borders there do break.

Where death lasts; the fury of a drake.

Where souls fast; atone for our mistake.”

- The Sunless Saying

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Iposian Origin

[ Tales of Yore/Present Histories ]

 

 

 

 

Tales of Yore

 

... the air was choked with smoke and ash.

 

The Elves were weak.

 

They grew in form and number; yet one by one, the enclaves scattered as seeds in the wind. The loss of the Great Father put a burden on their souls, enamoring them with an insufferable need for guidance. They came to rise as humane kings, and shattered the unity once beckoned by Malin. The Wood Elves huddled in their forests, cradled by shade. The High Elves hid in their towers, brought to madness by the Pools. The Dark Elves gathered in their tribes, brought low by Derangement; the darkness of the mind. Ruin took hold of all Elven Men, and the once-was of the one Elven race was broken.

 

It is said that a gathering of descendants of Malin hid away in these times of undoing, fearful of what the world could do to them as it had the rest of their kind. When the forests burned, they shaped forts in the mountains; when the earth made them buckle, they rallied to linger near the peace of the shores; when the waves fell upon their homes, they traversed to the fields; when the raiders sacked their lands, they took to the caves. These nameless Elves, afflicted with struggle, came to know the cruelty of Men and the unforgiving nature of tjhe realm to which they were bound to. When the caves proved to only offer darkness and emptiness, they once more abandoned their place of safety, and looked to the only place they had not gone: the sky.

 

"And behold a great storm; and beasts traversed among clouds and bolts of ire, and cast fury upon mountains and plains."

 

They came to envy Dragons, ken of Dragur. And so they came to kneel before those animalistic creatures - enlording them and knowing them as angels, unshackled and free unlike Men whom were bound to the cold, harsh ground. For five days and five nights, the remnants of undivided sons of Malin prayed to the encircling Dragonkin above in an effort to redeem themselves and gain their favor, and for five days and five nights the nameless Elves prayed amidst a storm which would not die, and mingled with the flight of Dragons in the form of lightning strikes.

 

Answering their reverence, the Dragons cast ire upon the Elves, and doused them in fire which could not know any greater heat. The storm stirred and struck upon their ken furious bolts of lightning as mighty as the breath of Dragons. The nameless Elves, caught in this maelstrom of ruination, were not felled by the might of their angels and the essence of storms, but were reformed by it -- their pale skin fell away, shaping their flesh ashen like the soot that clung to them. Fair hair was charred black, but spared singing. The scars of lightning strikes lined their skin, but closed as soon as they were forged. And their eyes were made to burn bright light fire, with a fury that matched the ire of Dragons.

 

The air was choked with smoke and ash. The nameless Elves rose from the cinders of ruination, remade into Men gifted with the blood of Dragons. They knew themselves now as the "Iposian Elves"; sons of Malin, made greater by the skies.

 

The blood of their kin would be avenged.

 

Present Histories

 

In the time of Aegis, whence Lord Vor'kalan still reigned amid his madness, the Iposians were lost to their past ways and sent toward a path of darkness. By the time Iblees scorched the whole of Aegis and formed it into the Abyss by battling the Aengul Aerial, the holding of Tryvarus (of which had been built upon the ashen lands where the first Iposians were made) was lost to the endless chasms, and all mortal Men were shepherded to Asulon. There, Vor'kalan met his doom after convering upon innocents within the Cloud Temple in a bout of insane Ibleesian zealotry, leaving no known heirs to the crown he lost.

 

Decades later, Abdiel Ipos came to rise from obscurity some time after the year 1545, and quickly claimed inheritance of lordship for himself after purging his blood of Vor'kalan's darkness and restoring alleged Iposian Dragonblood.

 

 

The Iposian Way

[ Culture/Traditions/Beliefs ]

 

 

 

 

Iposian Culture

 

As an isolated people, House Ipos established what is considered as "Elven-Humane" ways; they were Elves, and revered their descendants of Malin, but valued the political and societal systems of Horen's kindred. This made rise to the Iposian traditions of Dark Elven knightdom, the ruling mantle of Lords, and the use of the term "House"; much Iposian terminology aligns with Human origin. Furthermore, they regard the Elven dialect distastefully and as but a language barrier, favoring the Common language (which they believe is derived from Elven linguistics) above all.

 

Whereas the Dark Iposians, heralded by Mad Lord Vor'kalan, were shaped to be brutal, grim, shadowed and vile, true Iposians are cited in records as fair, just, honorable and wise, with beliefs aligned with the glorification of Dragons as "angels", the obsession of lightning, the reverence of ancestors, and passive godlessness akin to Xionism. They favored stone and mortar over towering oaks, and expressed this with the construction of Ashen Hold Tryvarus, which was lost with the malformation of the Abyss.

 

Like many Elven families, Iposians are vehemently purist and seek to preserve what defines them as Iposians, being their traits and what they claim to be "Dragonblood". It is common practice to them to seek out other Dark Elves who share similar traits as to further their line and preserve their people, and considered shameful to wed Dark Elves - or worse, Elves of other subraces - as this risks breaching the status of their pure blood. Records of Iposian inbreeding, such as with Humans or other races of Men, are not common for the House, as they all often end with the death of the perpetratour and the culling of halfbreed bastards.

 

House Traditions

 

The Lordsguard

 

Established by Lord Thendral the Just, the Lordsguard are a small band of elite Iposian knights whom take vows of service and dedicate themselves to protecting the ordained Lord of House Ipos and their respective kindred. They are known as ashcloaks, and bend no knee to any but the ordained Lord; and thus cannot be willed to follow any command beyond that of their Lord.

 

Dragonhunting

 

Though it is a lost practice, it is said that Iposians of yore used to hunt Dragonkin in the name of Lord Thrasamund, though whether or not the majority of said hunts were successful is not defined. Few hunts that are noted as successful are written to not have ended in the death of the defeated Dragon, but rather its release, as the Iposians saw no glory in murdering the beings they believed to be angels.

 

Iposian Pyromancy

 

Conceived by Lord Thendral, Iposian Pyromancy is a form of ancient Fire Evocation with spells crafted to emulate the conjuring of lightning bolts. As Lightning Evocation was not yet realized in ancient times, Iposian Pyromancies were made to mimic the nature of lightning with how it took shape during its evoking. Alas, it was in the end Fire Evocation, and while proved to be as powerful and efficient as other Evocation spells, did not truly imitate the might of a storm's essence. Iposian Pyromancy is out of practice, but its methods are preserved in private House records.

 

Derangement Denouncement

 

Said to be forged in a pact between Lord Alaric and the Yyrul Coth, the concept of Derangement is tied into Iposian culture as taboo, and it is exemplified by the reign of Mad Lord Vor'kalan. The inherited, dark nature of Dark Elves is therefore scorned by the Dragonblooded whom take to the true ways of the House, and signs of Derangement are aggressively accosted upon detection amid members of the family.

 

Iposian Beliefs

 

Reverence of Dragons

 

Acting as the very foundation of House Ipos, the reverence of Dragonkin is based on mortal envy and the desire to be free of the shackles of Men. As legends go, by being reshaped by lightning and Dragon's flame, the shackles of the Iposians were weakened, and by becoming "Children of Dragons", they were fated to be reborn as their bestial kindred in the final days of mortalkind.

 

Reverence of Lightning

 

Tied with the glorification of storms, lightning is defined as the essence of skies and the elemental embodiment of Dragons. Iposians perceive it as the most powerful primordial force which took shape in the corporeal world, and thus had dedicated centuries toward the acclaimation of magic which would allow them to manipulate it. This was achieved by Abdiel Ipos after his time as a disciple of the ancient magi Richard Tarus.

 

Reverence of Ancestors

 

Similar to the ways of other Dark Elven tribes, of new ages and old, the Elves of House Ipos revered past Lords and shamed outcasted figures like Hilderic and Vor'kalan; using both spectrums as examples of how and how not to act as true Iposian Dark Elves.

 

Godlessness

 

Brought in by Lord Alaric the Lasting, godlessness is a practice rooted in Xionist histories, but not exactly aligned with present-day Xionist agendas. The Iposians upheld a passive form of godlessness because they were wary of the Gods, and rather confided in greater beings which roamed the same realm as them - such as past Lords or Dragons. The darker ages of godlessness, whence it was known as "occultism" and heralded by those known as Old Lords, are not regarded by true Iposians as just, as the extreme antithetical nature of the Old Lords' proto-Xionist beliefs do not align with the intersts of the House.

 

 

The Iposian Men

[ Roster of Iposians/Dragonblood Traits ]

 

 

 

 

Roster of Iposians

 

Lord Abdiel Ipos, First of his Name, Master of Lightning, Dragonblooded, the Godless

(Swgrclan)

 

Lilith Ipos, First of her Name, Wife of Abdiel, Mother of Lendleth, the Netherblooded

(Desires)

 

Erinyes Ipos, First of her Name, Daughter of Abdiel

(cs_office)

 

Lendleth Ipos, First of his Name, Son of Abdiel

(Joe_Blackman)

 

Vor'kalan Ipos, First of his Name, Father of Abdiel, the Dark, the Mad, the Deranged

(Swgrclan)

 

Dragonblooded Traits

 

Eyes of Ardor

 

The Eyes of Ardor are an inherited trait of pure Iposians, said to be the gift of Dragons upon the creation of Iposians by flame. Those with Eyes of Ardor hold an amber, glaring gaze in which its hues reflect the visage of fire, and as said in legends the same fire that had been set upon Lord Thrasamund and his fellow ken. The Eyes of Ardor are the strongest suggestion toward the bearing of Dragonblood and Iposian purity.

 

Aeros Marks

 

Peculiarly, each descendant of Lord Thrasamund came to bear birthmarks which took similar shape to scars formed upon the flesh by being struck by lightning. The meaning of Aeros Marks had been defined by Thrasamund's Chartings, which decipher the location of each inherited mark as to what it means prophetically. Prime examples are the marks of Lord Abdiel and the old Lordsguard Vaelendres. Lord Abdiel, whose Aeros Mark coils around his left hand; signifying a "hold" on lightning, which was indeed eventually claimed, and Vaelendres' mark upon his neck, who in legend is said to have frightened a malformed Drake away from Tryvarus keep by screaming at it.

 

Ashen Skin & Hair

 

As reference in Tales of Yore, Iposians bear black, ashen hair because of being reborn in Dragon's flame without harm, and dark skin because they were made into Dark Elves from the ashes borne of this same Dragon's flame clinging to their flesh. An Iposian without ashen skin or hair can be suspected to be a descendant of lacking purity.

 

 

The Iposian Legends

[ Iposians of Yore/House Relics/Record of Lords/Prophecies ]

 

 

 

 

Iposians of Yore

 

Vor'kalan the Deranged; Though he roams still as an accursed undead, Vor'kalan was once ordained Lord of Iposians, and drove them into darkness amid the ages of late Aegis and Asulon, causing them to take on sinister features on account of the Ibleesian practices he introduced. With his death and eventual reanimation, he was ousted by his son Abdiel Ipos as an unredeemable outcast of their kind and became known as the Deranged. He is the keeper of Songseeker, and husband to the Dark Elf Faeyin.

 

Hilderic, Lord of Storms; An Iposian of yore, Hilderic was the second son of the second ordained Lord, and rebelled against his kin after his firstborn brother, Alaric Ipos, inherited the Maelstrom Crown. False Lord Hilderic is known in Iposian tales as a man obsessed with taking claim to the essence of storms, lightning, and ruling over the Dragons as one does Men. In the end, after climbing to the top of ancient Aegis' tallest mountain in effort to invite the power of lightning into his heart, he was charred to the very bone after the storm's ire converged upon his being.

 

First Lord Thrasamund; As the first Iposian Lord and leader of the first Iposians, Thrasamund (also cited merely as 'Thras'), established the culture and inherent nature of his kindred, their ways and the meaning of their inherited features. Lord Thrasamund conceived a chart that determined the meaning of every lightning scar, or Aeros Mark, that an Iposian was born with as per the location of said birthmark upon their being, and wrote prophecies regarding the future of his house and their eventual inheritance of the power of lightning, essence of storms. Thrasamund is regarded as a figure as important as Malin to the Iposians, and several records of yore claim he was a legendary warrior whom died after fighting, and allegedly wounding, an ancient Dragon.

 

House Relics

 

Songseeker; A blade ensnared in roots willed upon it by Druidic magic. Given its name after a duel between the Darkstalker Vor'kalan and the Elder Druid Arik, it is carried still by the wayward undead as his weapon of choice. The coiling roots impede upon its edge and are kept alive by the lasting blood of the Song Druid.

 

Crown of Storms; An archaic artifact said to be passed down to every ordained Lord of Iposians, having been forged in the fires of Dragons and the lightning of storms upon the day the Iposians were said to have taken shape. The crown had been lost to time and undiscovered thus far, and yet to be reforged. It is also referenced in Iposian records as the Maelstorm Crown or the Crown of Dragons.

 

Records of Lords

 

Lord Thrasamund, First of his Name, Father of Ipos, Dragonblooded, Dragonreaver, Descendant of Malin and Seeker of Lightning

Time of Reign: Y253 - Y303

Achievements: First of the Lords, charted the Aeros Marks, fought a Dragon and established the hold of Tryvarus.

Legacy: The Iposian Prophecies, the Aeros Mark Charting, the Dragonblood

 

Lord Thendral, First of his Name, Son of Thras, Dragonblooded, Lordsguarded, the Just

Time of Reign: Y304 - Y395

Achievements: Established the Lordsguard, brought Pyromancy to Ipos and ruled justly

Legacy: The Lordsguard and Iposian Pyromancy

 

Lord Alaric, First of his Name, Denier of Usurption, Dragonblooded, the Lasting

Time of Reign: Y396 - Y588

Achievements: Won a conflict against False Lord Hilderic and preserved the Iposians with a rule of 192 years

Legacy: Adopted the Yyrul Cothian denouncement of Dark Elven Derangement into House Ipos and established Iposian godlessness

 

Lord Vor'kalan, First of his Name, the Deranged, the Crownbreaker, the Ruinbringer, the Undoer

Time of Reign: Y589 - Y 651, and later Y1380 - Y1389

Achievements: None.

Legacy: Abandoned the Dragonblood, tainted the Iposians, established Ibleesian Worship, lost the Crown of Storms, shepherded the Dark Iposians, justified the denouncement of Derangement

 

Lord Abdiel, First of his Name, Master of Lightning, Dragonblooded, the Godless

Time of Reign: Y1565 - Present

Achievements: Revitalized the Dragonblood, erased darkness from the line, brought the mastery of lightning to Ipos, fought and won against the Drake Satar

Legacy: None so far.