[Eberron] What is the place of the Dragonmarked Houses in the setting?

[Dave Turner]

I'm mulling over a new PbP campaign idea surrounding Eberron and the Dragonmarked. I know that there's a new book out and I have plans to get it. In the meantime, I don't want the idea to collect dust. I want to flesh out this campaign idea. Since it's intended for a PbP game, I don't want to deviate too much from the general public understanding of the Eberron setting. I would like players to contribute to the game without worrying about their interpretation of the Houses and mine coming into conflict. I don't know much about Eberron beyond what's in the core book and the Races book. Truth be told, I'm even rusty about what those two books say.

Here are the questions I'm curious about:

1) How influential are the Dragonmarked Houses in the core setting? Are they seen as the de facto rulers of Khorvaire, powerful organizations whose interests must be factored into political and economic decisions, or merely large merchant houses with a magical leg-up on the competition?

2) I seem to recall that there are distinct royal families in some nations that exist alongside the Dragonmarked Houses. Are the Dragonmarked broadly seen as more prestigious or noble or special?

3) Are the Dragonmarked Houses a kind of celebrity-elite of Khorvaire, perhaps akin to our real world celebrity fascination with entertainers and the super-rich?

I'm sure that more questions will arise as the thread (hopefully) attracts responses.

 

[Einan]

1) How influential are the Dragonmarked Houses in the core setting? Are they seen as the de facto rulers of Khorvaire, powerful organizations whose interests must be factored into political and economic decisions, or merely large merchant houses with a magical leg-up on the competition?

They're not de facto rulers per se, but they are power brokers. Think merchant princes and you're not far off. They don't make kings, but they can be a major help or hindrance to one's rule. Also they're multinational organizations, which can be used to expedite travels across borders in a time when there's still a lot of suspicion over the Last War.

2) I seem to recall that there are distinct royal families in some nations that exist alongside the Dragonmarked Houses. Are the Dragonmarked broadly seen as more prestigious or noble or special?

Maybe not as special as the nobility, but definitely up there. Given that a dragonmark is a strange and not completely understood phenomenon, it carries a bit of mystique. I would give them the same status as wealthy families enjoy today.

3) Are the Dragonmarked Houses a kind of celebrity-elite of Khorvaire, perhaps akin to our real world celebrity fascination with entertainers and the super-rich?

They could definitely be such, especially in larger cities where a newspaper thrives. However, they are also more pervasive than celebrities, so while the elite members could be celebrity, the lesser members just could be everyday joes working for a good company.

Hope this helps. And also, keep in mind that it's your world. Feel free to tinker with whatever makes you happy.

Einan

 

[Wrathamon]

Just buy the Eberron Campaign Setting... it talks a length about the Dragonmarked houses.
There are also several online articles on teh Wotc site as well.

You dont need the Dragonmarked book to find out the answers to these questions.

The Dragonmarked book goes into more detail and gives the DM more "hooks" to work with in regards to DM houses.

 

[nameless]

I consider the Dragonmarked houses to be the de facto powers in Eberron. They predate the founding of all the current kingdoms, and while most of the countries on Khorvaire are in tatters after 100 years of all-out magical war, the Dragonmarked houses have had 100 years to profiteer and gather power and favors; they are probably stronger than ever. Common folk probablly don't know or think about that kind of thing. They probably think of the dragonmarked houses as just another noble house who has more money than they know what to do with. But anyone with a little power themselves (i.e. adventurers) will understand implicitly that the houses are the powers behind the thrones.

The nations are primarily poor, full of farmers are nonmagical laborers, or enlisted former soldiers. They have money, but only what they can collect in taxes. The houses are rich, full of magical craftsmen, and people with rare and valuable magical gifts. They each have a monopoly on their respective trades. In D&D even more than the real world, money is power, because more money gets you more magic.

 

[megamania]

Here are the questions I'm curious about:

1) How influential are the Dragonmarked Houses in the core setting? Are they seen as the de facto rulers of Khorvaire, powerful organizations whose interests must be factored into political and economic decisions, or merely large merchant houses with a magical leg-up on the competition?

They are not THE powers of the world but they are powerful enough to influence ANY country or ruler. They are "neutral" but always looking to better themselves. Though there are only one head ruler (except for Cannith) per house there are many masters. Each have their own agendas and some of these are more about power and rulership than improving the family.

So they can be whatever you want them to be.

2) I seem to recall that there are distinct royal families in some nations that exist alongside the Dragonmarked Houses. Are the Dragonmarked broadly seen as more prestigious or noble or special?

They are treated as royality, especially the heads. Special care is given to the heads by rulers and authorities. Kinda a diplomatic immunity kinda thing.

3) Are the Dragonmarked Houses a kind of celebrity-elite of Khorvaire, perhaps akin to our real world celebrity fascination with entertainers and the super-rich?

I'm sure that more questions will arise as the thread (hopefully) attracts responses.

In many circles- yes. In some circles- they try to blend in as much as they can. Personalities of individual house members can effect this.

 

[Dave Turner]

Combining Eisen's reply with nameless', I'm starting to get the idea that it might be fun to portray the Dragonmarked Houses as modern-day multinational corporations. I'm tempted to push that analogy a bit further, into the image of corporations found in cyberpunk gaming and stories.

In that vein, the Dragonmarked Houses see national borders as a mere inconvenience in pursuit of their goals. They transcend national boundaries and define their interests on a continental, if not global or even planar, scale. They are, as nameless suggests, monopolies within their respective trades and work hard to keep things that way.

Because the Dragonmarked Houses are, in a sense, an extended family, the Houses are like our real world House of Saud. They control vast economic resources, but their internal workings are not necessarily merit-based. With no shareholders or board of directors to please, family politics are the order of the day.

The House of Saud seems like a good role model for this type of thing. Does anyone else agree?

 

[Remathilis]

The House of Saud seems like a good role model for this type of thing. Does anyone else agree?

Not a bad analogy.

Each house has its own plots and poltics. Some are benign (I can't think of any plots in House Jorasco, the healer's guild) but some are outright nasty (Cannith is split into three subsections, Philaraen and Thuranni are now separate houses).

The big thing is that they are still GUILDS. While house Cannith cornered the market on forging and crafting, lots of smaller crafters and such still ply their trade with little or no hassle. No blacksmith will ever rival House Cannith, so they don't care about the "little man" so much. If they align themselves WITH the proper house (or A house) then they get to reap some of the benefits of being in that guild.

Also, the Houses are politically neutral (they don't bow to any sovereign ruler or church) but are expected to operate without bias. How much thats true depends sometimes...

Lastly, not every house member manifests a mark. Supposedly, its not common. The bloodline is diluted over lots of marriages and such, so anyone remotely related CAN manifest a mark, but doing so is not a requsite for advancement in the house.

 

[Wrathamon]

Combining Eisen's reply with nameless', I'm starting to get the idea that it might be fun to portray the Dragonmarked Houses as modern-day multinational corporations. I'm tempted to push that analogy a bit further, into the image of corporations found in cyberpunk gaming and stories.

That pretty much how they describe it, so going into the cyberpunk style would fit right in and wouldnt be a stretch.

 

[Dave Turner]

That pretty much how they describe it, so going into the cyberpunk style would fit right in and wouldnt be a stretch.

Now that I had a chance to go home and read the core book, they explicitly call the House leader a "chief executive", so that sort of seals the deal for me. A blend of cyberpunk zaibatsu and the House of Saud seems like the way to go. Thanks to all who helped out in the thread.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I like the mixture of House of Saud/multinational corporations, myself, which would also help explain why so many people (in and out of the game) sometimes underestimate them: "Oh, they're just businessmen!"