[Updated Lore] House Melphestaus

[Minuvas 2837]

 

SERVUS SUMUS | ALWAYS I SERVE

The Princely Imperial House of Melphestaus
Patron Saint: St. Pius of Sutica

The City Elves of Almaris

Origins

House Melphestaus traces its origins to the first Kingdom of Malin’or, the ancestral head of the family having lived in the time of Malin. History records very little of the family at this time other than that they would eventually depart Malin’or to live with the other Mali’Aheral who departed the ancient Kingdom. However, the family head never bought into ideas of racial purity or the superiority of the Mali’Aheral race and within the family archives remains the original banishment decree of the family from Haelun’or - one which would not be lifted until almost eight centuries later.

During this time the family head, Diamatus Melphestaus, would take the family to the Dominion of Malin - where he would go on to sire a single son, Maelgar Melphestaus, and begin a tradition that continues to this day. Adopting a Mali’Ker, to whom all descendants of this line affix Livarai to their name and a Mali’Ame to which all descendants of this line affix Daemyar to the surname Melphestaus. Upon his passing, Maelgar would become the family head during the family’s time in the Dominion - when the most important event in the family’s history would occur. Godfrey of great human historical account conquered the globe, subjugating all peoples to his banner. Maelgar, like many Elven seeds, clans and houses at this time bent the knee to this human Emperor. Loyalists, Maelgar determined that the age of Elves had passed - the age of men had come upon descendant kind. Rather than fight this current, the family has endeavored since this time to be committed to the betterment of Human kind, serving as the immortal link of their short lives between their ancestors. They have spent the bulk of their time living in the Empire of Oren, but a Melphestaus can be found in almost all Human realms - embracing them as friends, and serving as loyal mentors and comrades.

The family maintains its Imperial nobility, stylizing themselves as Lords and Ladies  - with the family head stylized as a Prince. In addition among its long list of honors, the family has held three knighthoods within the Church of Canon, produced at least two Canonist Priests, produced no less than fifteen written books, holds numerous villas and properties across Almaris, and has produced a Princely cadet house in the last one hundred years.

Notable Family Members

Diamatus Melphestaus. Pater Familia (900 - 1230) 

The Eldest Melphestaus is long in the grave but paved the way for the structure of the family today. Ensuring a singular family head and removing barriers between blood and adopted relatives - all Melphestaus’ were considered of equal lineage. Elven by all standards he spoke the language fluently and had many rivals within High Elven for his non-traditional thinking on other elven races and the mixing of elven sub-races. His greatest contribution to the family was the strong written tradition he imbued on his children.

 

Maelgar Melphestaus. Pater Familia (1230 - 1776, 1876 - Current)

The still living Maelgar served as the Pater Familia, or head of family, for almost five centuries. A talented scientist and clerk, he was misplaced for his time. He ushered the family to safety from numerous Haelun’or raiding parties attempting to return them for punishment, and protected them from dangerous bands of White Rose human supremacists who had a penchant for elven violence. Despite all this, Maelgar still found the time to rise within the middling ranks of the Imperial Bureaucracy - finding him and his family stable pay and a small level of influence within Imperial circles. He would sire three children over 500 years, Minuvas, Thucydides, and Aeyla and later adopting Hieran as a young boy. He would make numerous contributions to the family before falling to a bout of madness at the death of his wife. To include working on the Thanium Bomb in the city of Johannesberg, and formalizing a dialect of language in use by many City Elves often erroneously called ‘Imperial Elven’ - but which simplified the language and made it relevant to those elves who live in human cities. Before passing the head of the household to his son Minuvas, he ensured great wealth and patrician status for the House - though did not share it with his sons until much later in life. He was once again made the family head in 1876, as Minuvas was dispatched to deal with Elven issues for the family.

 

Minuvas Melphestaus. Pater Familia (1776 - 1876)

Minuvas has served as the family head for the last century, propelling the family from wealthy House to great heights of power and nobility in human circles. Luck would place Minuvas in the right place at the right time - having found a patron of the Imperial family, Princess Josephine Augusta, who would sponsor the young Minuvas through the upper echelons of Imperial society. Through his connections and hard work, Minuvas would achieve unimaginable stations of power that his family would have thought impossible a century earlier - he remains the only Elf to ever have held the Imperial Vice-Chancellery and ArchChancellery. He would also elevate the family to nobility, making the Melphestaus family a line of Imperial Princes, without claim to the Imperial throne, - a title Minuvas still holds. Minuvas used his position to advance the rights of Elves across all of Almaris, he ended the practice of ear clipping in Oren, mustered Orenian armies to defend his Dark Elf cousins in Urguan, and enshrined equality of the law for all Elves in Oren during his time. He would even gather and found a city of Imperial Elves, called Ephesius, and expanded this into a full Princedom which encompassed hundreds of Elves from across human lands - providing them a safe haven from the human provocations and racism of the time. Further, the family added two cadet branches - one which was also elevated to Princely nobility under Minuvas’ stewardship.

 

For all this effort, however, he remained highly unpopular in many of the inner circles of Elven society who saw him as a threat to their ancient and storied past. During the Orenian Civil war, known as the brothers war, the Prince-Royarch of Elvenesse ambushed Minuvas and placed him into a severe coma - nearly ending his life. With the fall of the Imperial Crown, it became open season on the city elves of the Empire - who were hunted mercilessly without Minuvas’ protection. The rivalry between Minuvas and Kosher Daesmon is rumored to continue to this day, Minuvas having not forgiven Kosher for contributing to the merciless bleeding of hundreds of Elves in what is known in Imperial Elven circles as the “Elvendom Massacre”. Due to his coma, and events that have drawn him to build bridges with the Elven community - Minuvas has grown absent from the family, and whether he remains the head of the family is not clearly understood. He has sired no children.

Hieran Livarai De Melphestaus

If there were any Melphestaus to rival the titan that was Minuvas, it would be his older brother Hieran. While Hieran never held formal leadership of the family, his explicit diplomatic and martial talent made him an invaluable partner to his brother, Minuvas. There is no story of Minuvas without Hieran. Equal to the meteoric rise of his brother, Hieran would be named the first elven General of the Imperial State Army and later as the Lord-Marshall of Haense. Contributing significantly to the family’s prestige, Hieran expanded the family’s holdings and wealth tenfold.  Of notably less rhetoric and open conflict than his younger brother Minuvas, Hieran has long served as a voice of reason to the family - quietly contributing to the family. Hieran has received numerous military distinctions from many human nations throughout Almaris and he is considered one of the most respected members of the family. He is known in the family, however, as a somewhat absent father. Despite this, his many children have all relied on him at some point in their lives. Among his other more obscure honors is his Knighthood within the Church of Canon.

 

Thucydides Melphestaus

Youngest of the three brothers, Thucydides grew up without the warming education of their mother. Arrogant, ambitious, and manipulative - Thucydides often undermined the larger efforts of the family for his own personal gain. He did, however, bring prestige to the family through his involvement in Imperial Politics - serving as the first elven President of the Imperial Diet, where he frequently and vivaciously debated with Imperial nobility. He earned a great deal of enemies for the family, his brothers often preventing larger violence due to Thucydides actions. He was known to dabble extensively in the arcane, and often disdained the humans for which the family had sought to advise and protect. Thucydides secretly married a Sarkozy and sired a Half-Elf child, briefly being banished from Oren until his brother could convince the Emperor to rescind the decree. The whereabouts of his Human wife and his half-elf child remain a mystery today. For all this troubles, Thucydides had the scientific mind of his father - and amassed a great deal of magic artificery and knowledge. His last known whereabouts are unknown.

 

 

Main Line Branches

House Melphestaus maintains branches of its family across Almaris. Each local family is led by a Patriarch or Matriarch who has relative autonomy to lead the family within their region as they see fit. The Patriarch/Matriarch of the Imperial line is also the head of the entire family. These branches are competitive by nature, supporting local government interests and trying to compete with other branches for the attention of the overall Pater Familis for money, prestige, support and potentially the right to lead the entire family. The entire family will meet frequently, once every few months, for the family to boast of its accomplishments and speak of its honors.

Current recognized branches of the family.

Imperial Line (Princely)              
Balian Line
Haenseti Line
 

Cadet Houses

Cadet houses can trace their line back to the main line of Melphestaus, contributing to their prestige and honor. Unlike members of the main house, however, they no longer require approval for marriages, have no inheritance to the main line, their property and holdings do not belong to the main line. They generally adopt their own distinct rites, moores, rituals and mannerisms. 

 

Princely Clan of Ri’karth De Melphestaus

Clan Ri’karth and House Melphestaus were joined by marriage in the time of Stygian Hollow. Zirath R’ikarth and Minuvas Melphestaus allowed the families to form their own  Clan, absent from control of either Zirath or Minuvas, and authorized them to adopt their own clan banner. Princess Aver’wyn Ri’karth De Melphestaus was the most notable member of the family. When a member of Clan Ireheart threatened to cut the Princesses ears off, Minuvas rallied Imperial forces to a many years war against the Dwarves. While this ultimately led after almost a decade of fighting to an Imperial defeat, Minuvas reinforced to his family the level of commitment he would ensure to protect them.

Seed Arvellon De Melphestaus

  Formed at the request of Wynanya Daemyar De Melphestaus, the seed lives primarily in the Vale. It carries its own unique traditions and mannerisms and holdings separate from the main house. Its household practices are the most divergent from the main house. 
 

Mali’ame of this branch do not necessarily share one name, as per the wood elven custom of joining a seed, or chosen family, which aligns with the interests and values of an individual. There are, however, collective expectations for this branch, as per Wynanya Arvellon de Melphestaus. Each member of the branch must reside in Nevaehlen, where they will learn Wood Elven customs and abide by the Vale’s laws -- which includes surrendering all allegiences to other nations. 
 

Mali’ame of this branch may keep their prior cadet name until their full initiation into a seed, at which point their seed name usurps the previous; such as a Daemyar de Melphestaus becoming an Arvellon de Melphestaus. Seed names are also not always inherited; this branch therefore has a particularly wide variety of cadet names depending on parentage and birthright. 
 

    The Seeds de Melphestaus thus have dual and equal loyalty to their two families. Should the interests of their Seed and the House conflict, it is expected the individual will act in accordance with the customs of the mali’ame as a whole.

 

NOTE: THIS LORE IS NOT COMMON KNOWLEDGE TO ANYONE WHO IS NOT A MELPHESTAUS
 

[Lhindir_ 3436]

Valandos Elverhilin smiles proudly from far, far off.