| House Willow of Willow | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Sigil |
Green willow on a black field |
|
Steward |
Extinct House |
|
Overlord |
Formerly House of Vine |
|
Seat |
Willow |
The House of Willow is an extinct household native to the Grasp. A former rival to the House of Vine despite their mutual ancestry, it accepted cadet status following the fall of the House of Grimm. Because of its age and close ties to the House of Vine, many viewed the House of Willow as being quite similar to the House of Lichter. Although not itself a great house, its influence in its region was without question.
Filled with cunning negotiators and skilled marksmen, despite the contention that the House of Willow faced, it managed to survive through several wars before finally coming to an end with the death of Mercer Willow during the War of the Ebontide.
History[]
During the decline of the House of Grimm, the House of Willow was spawned from a splintering with the House of Vine. Acacia, the elder of two siblings, believed that she deserved supremacy over her younger brother, who was a talentless and thoroughly maligned character. However, Bertram proved to be far more easily controlled than his sister and so it was that Holger Grimm chose instead to maintain Bertarm's rights. This action definitely ensured that a female could not inherit her house. Some speculated that this decision was also based on the House of Vine's connections to the Battlemaidens of Blackmarsh and their supposed descent from a female.
Acacia refused to relent though and, after forming a pact with a bog witch, discovered the weakness of Lord Holger. After abducting his young, male lover she threatened to commit him to the very bog they had all come from if he did not bestow upon her a household of her own. Normally quite capable of rational decision, Holger relented and Acacia was granted the House of Willow in the heavily contested region betweee the Grasp and the Dawn.
Acacia's bold and reckless actions created the words "All for Nothing," which exalt the belief that one should seek to gain everything for the price of nothing.
Despite its origin from a woman, following Acacia's death the house followed the rules established by Holger and it was her son, rather than her daughter, that inherited the household.
With the little land that it held, but the great ambition of its people, the House of Willow grew to become one of the most respected houses in the Grasp. After the War of the Talons, it accepted a subordinate position to the House of Vine. At its zenith, it was capable of overriding decisions made in Stranglehold.
Noteworthy Willows[]
- Lady {Acacia Willow, progenitor of the household.
- {Ylda Willow}, the daughter of Acacia, lost her attempted claim to take power from her brother. Beheaded.
- Lord {Ergath Willow}, the son of Acacia and brother to Ylda. Killed his sister after her failed rebellion and refusal to wed him as the Grimms would have.
- Sir {Malcolm Willow}, a knight during the Blackwood Uprising. Died during the Battle of Shadowvale.
- {Harriet Willow}, Malcolm's daughter. The inspiration for the poem "Torn but Pure." A lover of Sir Gunder Rott, she was forced to state she had been wrongfully treated by him once their affair was made public. It is said she blinded herself, though others claim she died in a convent. Regardless, she is a tragic figure in Blackmarsh's lore.
- Lord {Dietrich Willow}, the father of Chauncey and Mercer. A thrifty lord that eclipsed the House of Vine.
- Lord {Mercer Willow}, the proponent for the Spring Campaign. After the failure of the campaign he was exiled to Falomyr and the House of Willow was disbanded. He convinced his cousin, Asher, to fight in Hadrian's War, but did not himself engage. During the War on the Ebontide he accompanied Aldrich Crowe in his second army. Defeated by Vance Pendleton at the Battle of Fringewood.
- Lord {Chauncey Willow}, a proponent for the Spring Campaign. Was defeated by Geoffrey Albrecht in single combat and fled to Willow. When the house was abolished, he took on the name Mercer and lived out his days as a tradesman.
- Sir {Asher Willow} was a commander during Hadrian's War. A middling swordsman, he was executed by Auric Falomyr after being defeated.