Editing Lineage:House Lineages (section)

=House of York=

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Positive Stereotype:  Soldier, entrepreneur, master of animal magic.

Negative Stereotype:  Warlike bully, lost to their own animal nature.

Symbol:  White rose.

Signature Spell:  (Shapeshift) Wolf.  “Putting On the Skin of the Wolf”.

Magical Style:  Medieval English, with Scandinavian influences.

The House of York dominates modern mining and the armies of the west.  Yorks have been influential in European armies since medieval times and have always been a powerful force in armies of the British Empire and the American military-industrial complex.  Indeed, they like to claim to be the backbone of western military force.  They have used their political power to obtain wealth in what they assumed to be its most solid form – mineral wealth.  It is a fair bet that wherever there is a mine run by an English-speaking corporation, York has a controlling interest in it.  Mages of the House of York all study animal magic on the grounds that only by understanding the animal within us can we truly understand the nature of war and conflict  Those closely involved in the mining industry often study Earth spells.

Originally a splinter-House from the House of Anjou in the 14th century, the House of York became powerful enough to contest the English throne in the 15th century.  Though Anjou was dethroned, the crown went eventually to the rival House of Lancaster.  York revolted against the Lancasters before the century was out and finally seized the crown, but did not have the power to keep a firm grip on it and the monarchy remained contested between York and Lancaster until the eventual victory of the upstart House of Stuart over both of them in the 17th century.

York migration to the New World was largely driven by its business interests in cattle and mining and it has strongholds wherever these are or have been major industries.  While it officially supported England and the House of Stuart during the American Revolution, it is well known that it aided the revolutionaries, in a secret alliance with Anjou and Lancaster by which they hoped to take North America for themselves.  They sided with the North in the American Civil War in an effort to hurt the agrarian power-base of Anjou, Capet and Stuart, and sided with the Allies in the two world wars because they didn’t want to lose their holdings in the English-speaking world.  Heavily involved in the oil business, they have long urged American intervention in the middle east to secure supplies there and have been firm supporters of the wars in Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq.  York possessions include the Exxon Mobil and Enron corporations.

Mortal Politics:  Whatever the cost, the US must hold its territories in the middle east.  If the oil supply were to be disrupted, the world would grind to a halt.  The government needs to relax regulations on corporations, particularly environmental regulations.  Taxes need to be lowered in general and people need to learn to stand on their own two feet instead of relying on the government.

Cost:  9

Disadvantages:  “Voice of the Moon”.  Mages of the House of York suffer from Lunacy (10 points) and Nightmares (5 points).  Enemies say that there is a touch of insanity or lycanthropy in their blood.  The York say that it is merely a side-effect of understanding the natural order.  

Skills:  Administration, Folklore (British), Guns (Rifle), Judo, Karate, Leadership, Occultism, Savoir-Faire, Symbol Drawing (Western Hermetic), Survival (Any Wilderness), Tactics.

Spells:  Animal:  Animal Control (Snake), Animal Control (Wolf), Beast Possession, Beast Soother, Possession, Rider Within, Savoir-Faire, Shapeshift (Wolf).
Communication and Empathy:  Sense Emotion, Sense Foes, Persuasion.
Movement:  Haste, Great Haste.


Relations

The Rebellion

The Houses

House of Anjou:  The senior branch of our family may be a little mad, but they are more than a little formidable.  We can’t afford not to work with them.  They would be too dangerous as enemies.

House of Cain:  They think they are mighty in battle.  That’s funny.

House of Capet:  We tried to keep them on the throne of France, but they weren’t strong enough to hold it.  We will not give them our support again.

House of Carolus:  They were powerful once, but their martial strength drained away long ago.

House of Flavii:  Greedy, lazy, effete, cowardly, ruthless and cunning.  They are leaches on western civilization.

House of Hapsburg:  They have failed to secure military support.  In their glory days, they would not have committed such a fatal error.

House of Julii:  They think of the armies of the west as their rightful territory and do not appreciate our presence.  Well we don’t appreciate theirs.

House of Lancaster:  They can never be forgiven for taking the crown of England from us, but they must not be fought too openly and we must join with them for mutual defense against outsiders.

Order of Lilith:  Foul, evil, vindictive things.  They consort with vampires and make an art of curses.

House of Medici:  Money is only power when people are willing to take it.  One of these days they are going to find out the hard way that the gun beats the checkbook.

House of Romanov:  They may have suffered defeat, but they know many secrets.  Only a fool would make a move in the east without consulting them.

House of Stuart:  They need a strong right arm and that is us, leaving us perfectly placed when the time comes for succession.

House of Trastámara:  They have an extraordinary talent for psychological warfare.

House of Ummayad:  I hear that they consort with ghouls.  Such people are not healthy to have around.

House of Warwick:  They have betrayed their allies so many times, they have thrown away any chance of holding ultimate power.

The Rebellion

Order of Boudicca:  I respect them for fighting bravely, but it won’t stop me from killing them in battle.

Order of Copernicus:  Boring, they produce some interesting technologies.

Order of Darwin:  Provided with a bit of discipline, they can be valuable retainers.

Order of Eve:  Natural born prey.

Order of Jesus:  Fucked are the meek, for they shall have jack.

Order of Judas:  Tough little bastards, you have to give them that.

Order of Siddhartha:  “Peaceful” is just another word for “cowardly”.

Order of Solon:  The speak on behalf of the common people without understanding anything about them.

Order of Spartacus:  They have guts.  All they need is proper training and good leadership.

Order of Thales:  Eggheads have to be watched, otherwise they stop inventing useful technologies and start screwing around at random, like these fools.

Order of Utnapishtim:  Why don’t you just get it over with and die out already, instead slowly growing weaker and more pathetic every year?