A Brief History of Umbarth House
by Aaron NowackOn the surface at least, Umbarth House is one of the more pedestrian of the Great Houses. Founded by former employees of House Ithel, its history follows the typical story of slowly gaining power after the fall of the Kingdom, eventually gaining control of the former Duchy of Amsorak. It participated in the bloody civil wars an average amount, with few notable victories or defeats. It attended the Great Merger, was hurt by Lydia Mauntea's takeover, and helped reform the government after her death. Indeed, the only significant contribution to it made to Darokinian history was its role in the formation of the DDC during the civil wars. Though the existence of the DDC provided new lines of communication between the Houses and helped cause the great Merger, House Umbarth allowed the DDC an independent existence, with no more ties to Umbarth than any other House, and Umbarth quickly returned to its relative obscurity. And that's just the way it likes it...
The Amsorak region is almost as independent as Selenica, particularly Akesoli. Umbarth House has traditionally had little desire to rise in the hierarchy of the Republic. Greenleaf Vickers is more interested than his predecessors, but is still one of the most politically inactive of the heads of the Great Houses. However, this is also because he has decided to seek power outside the Republic...
Umbarth House has made contact with a previously unknown nation, and many of its caravans headed toward Slagovich are actually going to the borders of this nation to trade, and also to begin tentative steps toward an alliance. Greenleaf knows that this nation is a large empire, and indeed stretches from the Black Mountains to the City-States. That nation is the Hagiarchy of Hule.
Inside Darokin politics, Umbarth has begun to support actions that could lead to the destabilisation of the government.
Umbarth House Assets
House Umbarth does a tremendous amount of trade with Alfheim. It also does significant trade with Sind, Ethengar, and Glantri. It is the only House beside Linton to trade with Slagovich, and as detailed above it is beginning trade with Hule.
Umbarth House Relations
Al-Azrad: Neutral. The two Houses have no reason for special relations.
Corun: Hostile. The two Houses compete for trade with Ethengar, Glantri, and Alfheim.
Franich: Neutral. The are no significant relations.
Hallonica: Umbarth has little to do with Darokin's third largest house.
Linton: Friendly verging on Neutral. By supporting Linton, Greenleaf hopes to throw the government into chaos.
Mauntea: Neutral verging on hostile due to the slight alliance with Linton.
Pennydown: Friendly. Greenleaf, as a child, was a friend of Elissa's father. Now, he hopes to put Elissa in the position of Chancellor, as nothing would upset the government more. However, unlike Elissa, Greenleaf feels that the plutocracy is wrong, and quietly supports democratic reforms.
Toney: Neutral. Like with Franich, no significant relations exist.
Umbarth House Personalities
Greenleaf Vickers (9th/15th level fighter/merchant, CN)
Greenleaf Vickers was his father's youngest child, and spent part of his childhood with Pennydown House, essentially as a political hostage.
However, he returned to Akesoli and assumed control of Umbarth House after his father and siblings died in a boating accident. His stay in Darokin City convinced him that the Republic was corrupt and eventually doomed to fall, and his primary goal is o ensure that Umbarth House doesn't go down with it, preferably by achieving independence fir the Amsorak region. He knows that this is not likely under the current situation, and so seeks to upset the status quo.
He is tall with black hair and eyes, and his elvish ancestry gives an exotic look to his face.
Samantha Vickers (8th/10th level priest/merchant, CE)
Samantha is Greenleaf's wife, and she is equal in running Umbarth House, and indeed is part of the reason for his current policies.
Greenleaf met her before his stay with Pennydown House, when he took a caravan to Sind. She was one of the guards, and they quickly fell in love, and the rest, as the saying goes, is history. Strangely, she looks almost like a female copy of Greenleaf.
In actuality, she is a female copy of Greenleaf, permanently (and undetectably) polymorphed into that form by Zanzer Tem, one of the Master's advance scouts. Though she professes to be a priest of Ixion, in actuality she follows Bozdogan. She is partly responsible for Greenleaf's questionable actions.