The 50 Families

[Kenneth New]

The 50 families are a group of around 50 families who are the movers and shakers in American magical society. It costs 2 character points (status) to be a member of one of these 50 families, 3 to be a local leader and 4 to be a national leader.

This thread will be for discussion of the 50 families.

[Kenneth New]

The Montrose Family

The Montrose family is international in power and influence. In the UK, Lord Montrose is not only a hereditary peer in the mundane world, but also a member of the magical government. In Canada, Byron Montrose is the Minister of Magic. In the United States, the current head of the Bureau of Magical Creatures is Absolom Montrose.

The Montrose family is known for being both genteel and aristocratic. They are unostentatious, being comfortable enough in their status not to have to publicize it. They are extremely wealthy, but not in the same league as the Van Stern's and the Da Silva's.

Politically, they are leaders of the Liberal movement, which seeks to protect mundanes from harm and exploitation by mages. They also favor better relations with the fey courts, the goblin clans and the shifter tribes. Their attitude towards the vampire courts is watchful coexistence.

They believe in the inherent dignity of all mages, both new and old blood, but believe that newbloods must assimilate to mageborn culture. They believe in welcoming newbloods and mentoring them in the niceties of mageborn society so that their children or grandchildren will fit in perfectly.

Nigel Montrose (Dorian's father) holds the family seat in Nassau county Long Island, a beautiful and expansive beachfront mansion, obscured from view and obfuscated so that mundanes don't pay it much heed. National power in the family has been shifting from New York to Arlington VA, where Ennis Montrose, the father of Absolom Montrose, lives.

[Kenneth New]

The Van Stern Family

The Van Sterns are powerful mainly in the United States. The famiy has died out in their native Holland, but there is a branch in Germany that has little affiliation with their American cousins.

The Van Sterns have been movers and shakers in New York since it was known as New Amsterdam. Along with the Rothes the Montroses and the Delacourts, they were responsible for creating Nexus New York, the first nexus in the USA.

They are known for being both aristocratic and ambitious. There has never been a Van Stern Secretary of Magic, but they have led the opposition many times. They favor more entanglement with the mundane world - on terms very favorable to the mageborn.

Politically they are leaders of the progressive party, which seeks more integration of newbloods into magical society, the breaking down of social barriers and a businesslike arrangement between mages, mundanes and the other magical groups.

They have invested heavily in the mundane economy and are the driving force behind many new arcane inventions that mimic new mundane conveniences. They created the Arcane Communications Corporation and are joint investors with the Da Silva's in the Magical Wireless Network. Under their leadership, the ACC has taken over the old Magical Post network that once controlled long distance communications.

Their family seat is in the Sterncastle Hotel in Manhatten, where Ayla Van Stern rules as family matriarch. The fertile family has been expanding rapidly in the last generation into Chicago, San Francisco and Houston.

The Van Sterns are one of the wealthiest mageborn families in the USA.

[Kenneth New]

The Black Family

The Black family is known in the UK as the Ancient and Noble House of Black. Their links to ancient mageborn aristocracy are unquestioned by any with even a passing knowledge of history.

In the United States, their family is strongest in Upper State New York and the mountains of Western Pennsylvania. They prefer isolated rural locations where they will be undisturbed.

Politically, the Blacks have always been leaders in the conservative party, believing that the mageborn are a natural elite who should rightly rule over the lesser beings, including mundanes and magical creatures.

The Blacks are wealthy, but not in the same league as the Da Silvas and the Van Sterns. They are also a diminishing family; there are fewer than half as many Blacks as there were in the previous generation.

The Blacks have a reputation for an aristocratic and imperious demeanor. They are used to getting what they want.

[Kenneth New]

The Bellamy Family

The Bellamys have a prestigious name, but not much of a fortune. While they are more than comfortable, they can't be counted among the wealthier families.

Politically, they are allied with the conservative faction. They have a reputation for being both aristocratic and arrogant. Their relatively modest means and their arrogance combine to make them most anxious about preserving their reputation.

The Bellamys will only marry those who can prove that they have no newblood ancestry for four generations.

They were once a more powerful family, but their fortune was tied into mundane forms of wealth. When their family plantations were burned to the ground and all of their slaves were freed at the end of the Civil War, they found themselves in the unenviable position of trying to rebuild their wealth through their magical labor. They live in North Carolina and Virginia.

The current head of the Bellamy family is Cynthia Bellamy. The most prominent member is Fabian Bellamy, currently the number two man in the Bureau of Magical Law Enforcement.

In the Tyana Chronicle, he has four children in the school. From oldest to youngest, they are Ambrose, Brendan, Cassia and Darius. His youngest daughter Esmeralda will start next year.

[Kenneth New]

The Rothe Family

Malachai Rothe was one of the original creators of Nexus New York. He lived to the ripe old age of 204, and died in 1904. His family has spread to San Franciso, Galveston, Chicago and Seattle.

Politically, the Rothes are aligned in the liberal faction with the Montrose family.

Hirriam Rothe, the Nexus Guardian at the Bookstore and the owner of Nexus Publishing, is widely regarded as one of the most powerful mages in the USA. He's infamously capable of transfiguring opponents in the heat of battle, a feat few can match.

Elijah Rothe is the head of the family and is also the Senior Legate representing the USA in the Concilium.

The Rothes have a reputation for scholarly practicality. Most of them are fluent in English, Latin and Hebrew. According to Solomon Rothe, a student at Tyana, Hirriam Rothe challenges each of his nieces, nephews, and grandchildren to answer a question in either Hebrew, Latin, Greek or Aramaic before the family sits down to dinner.

While not extraordinarily wealthy, the Rothes are prominent because of their tradition of service to the Conclave, the Tyana Academy (Alona Seliger is currently the Head Master of the School) and to the Concilium.

[John Niska]

The Delacourt Family

The Delacourt family’s ancestral seat is in France but a large portion of the family emigrated to America with the founding of Nexus New York. In fact, the Delacourts were one of four families that were responsible for the founding of the New York Nexus.

The Delacourt family is very wealthy but not on par with the Van Sterns or the Da Silvas. The main power of the Delacourt family comes from their ties to the Bureau of Nexus Control and the various Portal Authorities around the country. Augustus Delacourt is the head of Bureau of Nexus Control while his sister, April Delacourt is the director of the New York Portal Authority. Jean-Pierre Delacourt is the assistant director of France’s Nexus Control agency.

The Delacourt family prides itself on scholarly ambitions. Schooling is of the utmost importance and most Delacourts pursue advanced studies in one field or another. Augustus’ grandson, Cedric, is currently attending Tyana Academy.

Politically, the French side of the Delacourt family falls in among the Progressives while the Delacourts across the pond tend to err towards the Liberal camp.