House Goldcrest

Arms
 **Motto**
 **Main Holding**
 **Holding Status**
 **Nationality**
 **Current Status**
 **Affiliations**
Grand Alliance

Hailing from Saltstone Wharf, a once prosperous port surrounded by verdant farmland and a productive river on the Northern coast of the nation of Lordaeron, House Goldcrest currently lives in exile. The seat of their traditional holdings was nestled upon a spur of land jutting out into the great sea beside the mouth of a river which drained a significant alluvial plain. While further up the river (called the Goldcrest for the crests of golden wheat which covered the gently rolling hills that surrounded it) small farms and their attendant villages dominated the economic output of the region. Once the soil became subject to the tides and the river water grew brackish, salt evaporation ponds sprawled out into the impressive deep water harbor formed by river sedimentation and the wharf itself. Hence the township's name of Saltstone Wharf (often shortened to Saltstone). The Goldcrest served as the regional highway, bringing lumber, ore and stone from the mountains, wheat from the plains down to the town for sale and carrying refined goods back up the watercourse. This also helped House Goldcrest develop a not insignificant shipbuilding and fishing industry, for even if the great firs and pines of the region were considered too light of fare for the hulls of warships? These highest quality of soft woods produced excellent civilian vessels that allowed the local lords to develop trade connections across the region, including offering the tall, straight poles needed to produce decent masts (an always in demand commodity). It was these ships that proved the family's greatest asset during the Scourge invasion and their later flight. While Goldcrest's contribution to Lordaeron's emergency evacuation fleets was little more than a skilled merchant marine, these ships included relatively large carracks meant for grain transport and hence possessed the displacement needed to evacuate large numbers of refugees and the supplies to sustain them.

To this very day, more than one Lordaeronian owes their escape from Scourge talons to the sturdy hull and masterfully crafted vessels born in Goldcrest Bay, and surviving examples are still considered top rate by the captains that continue to man them from re-homed ports such as Stormwind and Ratchet.

## History of House Of Goldcrest

Goldcrest is not an old house, nor is that its original name. The House's founders rose to nobility some time after Saltstone's early settlement. They were a well-off family of merchants whose wealth grew with the port town, eventually giving them status and renown. They were granted nobility for their contributions to Lordaeron's economy, and in part because they were already effectively acting as lords for the estate in all but name. Goldcrest's story is one of building from the ground up, working and earning their way into fortune. It's something they're generally quite proud of, though it has been met with some derision from older nobility.

Much of Goldcrest's early history and lineage is unknown. The first baron, Lord Owen Goldcrest (formerly Owen Greystone), initiated proper record-keeping. The current (or most recent) baron is Lord Theios Goldcrest, who inherited the household around the same time as the Second War.

Following the Third War the port resisted the undead armies longer than most. Some were even heard to say there was some sort of protection over the area, or that it was the Light's blessing for their righteousness. They were able to lend their shipping vessels and supplies to the evacuation effort, saving many lives. But Saltstone was eventually overrun by Scourge forces and its surviving citizens were forced to flee southward. The house was broken, its members scattered or killed. Riches were left behind and many were left destitute, forced to rely on what resources Stormwind would provide to Lordaeron refugees.

Things have been difficult but the former baron has not entirely faded into obscurity. He and his remaining house have been slowly gathering wealth and reconciling resources with the intent of rebuilding and reclaiming what was once theirs. Like many others they support retaking Lordaeron from the Forsaken. But for the moment things are quiet. The armistice holds. In the mean time, Theios is seeking out the former members of his house to aid his cause.

## Saltstone Wharf

Though the city of Saltstone Wharf now lies in ruin, the family and many of its people still retain hope of rebuilding their lost home.

## Wealth & Trade

House Goldcrest was once quite wealthy for a midrange family owing to a number of factors. The household artfully blended effective wide scale agriculture with mining and timber harvesting to fuel both a noteworthy shipbuilding industry, and the capacity to move their wares effectively around the Eastern Kingdom's shores. The use of riverine transport to haul cargo to harbor drastically cut costs, and local salt production and brewing allowed for the preservation of meat and fish and the conversion of excess grain to spirits. Lumber, particularly that for masts was a constant earner along side the sale of finished ships to other families, merchant leagues, and in some cases, governments. Shipbuilding was especially profitable as the growing population of Saltstone Wharf, well fed on grain, fish, and livestock expanded to the point that bronze smelting for nautical fittings and hemp production for rope and canvas were both possible locally, first reducing, and then eliminating the need for expensive imports. That the copper, and much of the tin for this bronze was sourced near the headwaters of the River Goldcrest only added to these margins. This dual income stream of shipbuilding and agricultural product export made Saltstone Wharf one of the more profitable holdings in the North. The steady supply of timber suitable for use as masts in Lordaeron's navy further endeared the household to the Menethil court and ensured favorable treatment with respect to taxes, duties, and tithes. While some preserved seafood was exported, especially early on, by the time of the Third War this were mostly a tertiary income source along side the shipping of salt and specialist forest products. Occasional contracts for exotic native herbs were serviced, but this was not a regular occurrence, especially after the local mage's circle took over such business after its establishment.