House of Belcarthe

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The Grand Alliance

House Belcarthe, while never extensive, traces its lineage back to the earliest days of Gilneas and further; a fact that many of the House's members and vassals take no small amount of pride in. Legend even holds that the House's earliest members came to know elvenfire during the advent of the Troll Wars.

In those ancient times, and into the modern day, its members have held onto the Old Ways as their tradition and faith, with a reverence for rites of the Harvest and regular animal sacrifice to appease and enlist the aid of those capricious spirits that dwell within the Blackwald and throughout Gilneas.

Presently, Cedric Belcarthe is the head of the House with his wife, Rinnaelle.

## History

### Founding

House Belcarthe was once a family of the name Bal Cadhr, and was believed by historians to be an ancient, tightly-knit coven of witches and warlocks (not to be confused with the class) of greater or lesser blood relation. It wasn't inducted into the archaic peerage established by Aderic I by any overarching martial prowess, but by its knowledge of mysticism, adherence to ancestral faiths, and loyalty to the first Kings and their drive for a singular Gilneas, able and separate from Stromic rule.

The Bal Cadhr coven, for its faithfulness to the burgeoning cause that would one day become Gilneas, was given its portion of land as a sign of trust, near the grounds where Belcarthe Manor stands today in Saelborough. They extended over the modern northern border and encompassed the Belcarthe ancestral barrows, which were cut off by the construction of the Greymane Wall.

In the years to come, others arrived to aid the Bal Cadhr, whether out of nationalistic altruism or by the mindset that standing by the coven would curry favor with the spirits - a notion that the family was all-too-happy to be a proponent of. They would become among the first vassals and townsfolk within Saelborough.

Over time, with the evolution of language, so did the family's name and purpose become altered. The Belcarthes, as they came to be known, were of a singular lineage. When lands were partitioned for baronies, and peers numbered, they were given the territory of Saelborough to settle and develop, first establishing the town of their realm's namesake and growing from there to encompass the surrounding villages of Raven's Wake and Therrend-on-the-Bridge for the barony's benefit in exchange for its protections.

### Modern Day

Through the course of conflicts, familial strife and natural disaster, House Belcarthe maintains its hold of Saelborough and remains a respected group; though only a few might claim to love what the House has done over the years for its lands and its subjects, many remain fearful of its past, and grateful for its diligence not only to serve Crown and Country, but to put its people foremost in all decisions and endeavors.

## Customs and Traditions

Having its origins set in the shrouded past of antiquity, House Belcarthe maintains many of the practices entertained throughout the course of its centuries, far back to the days of the Bal Cadhr coven.

### The Crescent Gift

On the thirteenth day of every month, a black ram is chosen among Saelborough's flocks and taken by House Belcarthe's current head into the Blackwald. They are joined by their immediate family, or other faithful subjects, or they go alone into the foreboding woods wearing a red cloak and wielding a crescent blade honed to a razor edge.

The animal must meet certain conditions - a male, already bred, its gender full and virile, and its wool long and black in entirety. The ram must have at least two horns, and many lines have bred some with four or five. These features, along with any birth defects the ram may possess, are desired due to the belief that the spirits choose an otherwise domesticated animal and twist it in the womb, to mark it and show nature's power over the designs of Men.

Before the yawning entrance of Tal'doren, the ram is ritually cut across its throat and left before the great tree. As it dies, the officiator must give their thanks to the spirits' continued beneficence, and must ask for their aid for vague and specific purposes alike. The animal is left to the devices of the forest and its scavengers - largely ravens, wolves and feral worgen, as a symbolic act of the natural world claiming and accepting the sacrifice.

### Feasts

While anyone can hold a feast, House Belcarthe chooses its feast days in accordance to the solstices and equinoxes throughout the year, while the largest ones are held at the end of the harvest season, once again during Hallow's End, and the last during Winter Veil. If the harvest and Hallow's End happen to coincide for the year, then the feasts are shared on the same day.

Normally these events transpire with families coming together, and the Manor's doors being opened to loyal subjects and welcome peers. Adherents of the Old Ways will honor their spirits and their dead, celebrate births, and tell stories old and new.

And, of course, feasting. Whether by the bounty of shepherds, farmers or fishermen, if it's edible, it's liable to be served.

### Birth

When a child is born unto the House, it's common for the parents to remain present together throughout labor and birth. The father comforts the mother during the process, and an elder witch presides over the event as a midwife and religious presence, offering treatments to aid the mother's birthing and prayers for both mother and child's safety and health.

In modern times, the midwife is normally joined by a priest of the Light trained in childbirth, for religious accommodations and additional medical needs.

The attending persons are to wash their hands three times in salt water, to ensure that the child is handled with pure hands and left unsullied by the world's burdens before greeting its parents. Juniper and sage are burned beforehand at windows and doorways to ward away unwanted spirits.

### Death

When a member of the House dies, the corpse is taken to be washed. Friends and family are permitted to view the deceased once more before the remains are taken for their final preparation. In older times, the departed were dressed in light, red robes and set upon a pyre, which is believed to fully release the spirit and return the dead to the earth and sky.

During the ritual, those who were able to see the dead are called to speak of their life and their connection, and to say their final goodbyes on behalf of themselves and those who were unable to view the corpse. Prayers and offerings are given for the dead and for the spirits to watch and guide them in the hereafter.

More recently, clergy from the Church have presided over the ritual alongside the witches. Luckily, both religions have been willing to work with one another to deliver a proper funeral without squabbling over the departed and their ultimate destination.

When the pyre calms, and the ashes are ground to powder, they're placed within an urn and taken to the ancestral barrow, where a sculpted likeness of the deceased awaits above a sconce made for the container.