Darkwater

Vassal of Kennex

Words: "Mercy is no virtue, daring is no vice."
Sigil: A warship on black water as victims hands flail from the water around it.
Nicknames: Darks, Pirates

While not the largest of houses, these longtime vassals of House Thrax have long been the terror of the Saffron Chain, keeping the seaborne Abandoned in check who dare to stray in the waters under the dominion of Thrax. While officially House Darkwater has renounced piracy against any civilized house of the Compact centuries ago and respects the passage of shipping from the Lyceum, many of the other houses remain dubious of the explanation that vessels are sometimes lost due to 'shav attacks' as they pass by the Darkwater Watch.

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Ruler: Carita

Land Holdings

Darkwater Watch

Description: One of the oldest holdings in the Mourning Isles, Darkwater Watch existed long before the Reckoning. Positioned not far from the northwestern edge of the Darkwater Deeps, the weather of Darkwater Watch is tempestuous at best. Torrential rains blanket the island regularly, with the occasional major hurricane pushing through.

The port of Darkwater Watch is dominated by the Ravens Mast, a pre-reckoning lighthouse that stands nearly 200 feet over the harbor. Constructed of black and grey basalt quarried from the construction of the Redoubt, this ominous black tower greets every ship that passes into the harbor. Trade in this port comes from all ports, with the advantageous positioning of the island making it a good meeting place for north and south.

The ancestral keep of the Darkwater family, the Redoubt, is a massive fortress carved into the side of Black Mountain. Very little of the castle is accessible from the outside world, as most of it is tunneled into the rock. This keep withstood the reckoning unconquered, sheltering its population for years at a time. Warehouses and living quarters for several thousand people exist in a warren of tunnels and chambers. The work of a thousand years, there are sections of the Redoubt that no man has been inside of in living memory.

During the Pirate War, the forces of the Gyre took control of Darkwater Watch and razed all the settlements save for the Redoubt and Ravens Mast. Lady Carita Darkwater oversaw reconstruction of Darkwater Watch, ending in roughly May 1009 AR, with a new boom economy settling into place.

Landmark: There is a shrine, carefully built from the weapons of the fallen near the funeral pyre that once burned for Lord Darrow and Koraj Marin. Though initially it seemed to be put together hastily, it has somehow fused into a single altar where people can leave offerings. And around the altar are the symbols of each of the Thirteen. And at the base of the altar are symbols - The symbols of the Faith. The symbol of the Inquisition. The symbol of the Sentinel, of a ship. Of a trident, of a hand, a pair of crossed lightning bolts beneath a single flame, and in the center a teardrop.

Next to the altar, a small cairn sits to one side, a stone cairn with a medallion bearing the image of Sentinel, a faceless helm, atop. And in front of the altar, where careful hands dug a small pool, it has widened now and turned into a reflecting pond. Already there are rumors about it - it seems particularly refreshing, that water. One scout has a story already of a wound that closed when he dipped it in the water. And around the pond are flowers the likes of which no one has ever seen - long and slender the buds wind their way up in a spiral and bloom into a variegated red and orange and yellow flower, as though they are made of living fire. And the scent from the flowers fades immediately when picked, but to inhale it is to know peace.

Part of the Seacoast Watch of the Mourning Isles, built in 1013

Has recently become known for the fantastically popular Darkwater Honey, a product that is nigh impossible to keep in stock in the Arx market.