House Almalexia

The Great House of Almalexia, or just House Almalexia, is a wealthy, glamorous, yet mysterious clan. The House is known to gain most of its wealth by owning and intercepting trade routes, taxing small island communities and selling legal commodities.

The Great House is located in the tropical south of Chilastra, on the island of Wanderhome Island. Their estate is called Scylla.

Politically, they would most likely run Chilastra as a democracy.

Pre-Empire (year 0-282)
Before the time of the Empire, Chilastra was well populated with the native Vedalken people.

Many Vedalken, especially the more piveleged and wealthy, belonged to a Great House that served them with plenty of work, housing and safety. Each House governed large parts of each province they were located in, and in some cases even the whole province.

At this point time, there were six Great Houses. Not much is written about the Sixth House and it's unknown who they were, what their politics entailed, how much influence they had and how they governed their province. The only thing that is known about them is that they were located in the Ashlands, and that they were exterminated by unknown threats. The other Great Houses chose to ignore the Sixth House's call for aid over and over again, until they were no longer heard of. Now they remain only as a rumor and a small bit of history.

Agus Artelianus Prim. (year 282-308)
When the Empire first arrived, many of the Great Houses proposed deals to the Imperials that they would have mercy on them and their territories as much as possible. It was a hefty price to pay for each House, but the ones that paid the most suffered the least, and House Almalexia paid the most in gold.

All Great Houses, except for House Dagoth, remained neutral in the conflict of the Imperial Invasion. House Dagoth were viewed as enemies, however they were not engaged by the Empire due to the harsh environment the House had settled in, far in the north of the Badlands region in Chilastra.

1E (year 400-500)
The Great Houses of Chilastra remained neutral and operated quietly until the First Era was introduced by Emperor Lucien Artelianus. At this point, the Great Houses dared to be open about their business as Vedalken enslavement was decreasing. Most people view the Vedalken as sub-human, unless they're part of the Great Houses, in which case they're treated with respect and dignity.

Many Vedalken pretended to be parts of some of the Great Houses to gain respect in society, but many were easy to disprove due to their poor attire and lack of funds.

2E (year 500-600)
This is where we are today, and all the Great Houses have massive influence over the regions they're located in, so much so that they've slowly risen to equalize power with the Empire. At least that's what many believe.

Beliefs
All the Great Houses of Chilastra follow a different religion than the Imperial Faith of the Eight; a religion called Nirn. House Almalexia specifically worship Kyrian the Bright, God of Wealth.

Traditions
Whenever a child is born directly into House Almalexia (without being recruited in) they are bathed in cold, liquid gold as a way to wish them wealth, health and success in a ceremony known as the Bathing of Kyr.

House Almalexia celebrates Vandari just like all the other Great Houses; a day to celebrate Vedalken existance. It usually falls on the first day of each calendar year.

Political Influence
Hosue Almalexia gains political influence by using their wealth to bribe, lobby and make intriguing deals with people in power, specifically with the Empire, but sometimes also with other factions such as the Morag Tong and other Great Houses.

At this point in time, all Great Houses (except for House Dagoth), are all part of an economic alliance that allows each House to lend money from each other and share taxation across the different regions.

House Almalexia is viewed as one of the finer Houses by the Empire and some believe they have the strongest bond directly with the Emperor himself.

Hierarchy & Ranks
All Great Houses have a hierarchy and ranking system that is similar to all the other Houses. The different ranks in the hierarchy system are as follows:

- Head of House; the one that rules the Great House and oversees the general politics, economy, order and structure of the Great House.

- Left Hand & Right Hand; these two ranks are appointed to the two most loyal members of each Great House.

- Prime Loyalist; this position is appointed to a single person that strictly oversees the Grand Loyalists.

- Grand Loyalists; this rank is given to multiple people within a House, and they serve as council members to work out politics and economics in the House.

- Main Organ; this rank is appointed to a person who will oversee the Spymaster and the Organ.

- Concierge; whoever is appointed this rank is mainly responsible for recruitment into the House and oversee the Master Loyalists, Senior Loyalists and Loyalists.

- Spymaster; this rank is given to someone well-versed in the underworld. Directly oversees foreign correspondance and is responsible for the Spies and Informants.

- Organ; the one who oversees all of the workers and guards within the House.

- Spies; these are often tasked with long-term espionage missions and are often placed around Chilastra to serve as the eyes of the House.

- Informants; these are strictly tasked with inflitrating other factions and sending correspondance to the Spymaster, to send valuable information to the House.

- Workers; this rank is given all workers, who are treated equally. This include field workers, housekeepers and servants, as well as other standard workers.

- Guards; these are the people protecting the settlement that surrounds the general area that is in direct control by the Great House in question.

- Master Loyalists; this rank is given to people that have been recruited into the House and have shown great loyalty and success in missions.

- Senior Loyalists; these have been loyal to the House, and are often sent on diplomatic missions. Senior Loyalists remain this rank and cannot advance any further.

- Loyalists; given to new members that are recruited into the House. Loyalists handle the dirty work others won't do, until they prove themselves and advance in rank.