May 29

May 29 Dragonmarked Houses - House Deneith

Next up in the Dragonmarked House series in the house of battle-scarred warriors and mercenaries, House Deneith. Contracted to fight, protect, and uphold the peace, members of this house maintain a simple philosophy: Follow the letter of the law above all else.

House Deneith

Dragonmark - Mark of the Sentinel
Race - Human
Traits - ASI increase, Sentinel’s Intuition, Guardian’s Shield, Vigilant Guardian, Spells of the Mark
Headquarters - Sentinel Tower (Karrlakton, Karrnath)
Patriarch/Matriarch - Breven d’Deneith
Emblem - Chimera
Guilds - Blademarks Guild, Defenders Guild

History

The Mark of the Sentinel was the first dragonmark to appear, and was used by the noble family on who they manifested to compliment their natural fighting prowess. The Deneith clan was able to conquer most of the region in and around what would become Karrnath. If it weren’t for a famine that struck the area, there is a good chance that they would have been able to establish a kingdom of their very own. Who knows, the House Deneith could have been known as the kingdom of Deneith if it wasn’t for them not being to feed their troops.

Though not a member of the house, Karrn the Conqueror was born in clan Deneith's homeland. He created the nation of Karrnath, which was one of the first human established nations on the soil of Khorvaire. It was then that House Deneith pledged their fealty of Karrn, and helped him wage war in an unsuccessful attempted to unite all of the five settlements of Khorvaire beneath him. Even with Hosue Deneith’s assistance, he was unable to achieve this goal, but it solidified Hosue Deneith as a military force to be reckoned with. Years later Galifar rose to power and became ruler of Karrnath. Galifar was able to succeed where Karrn could not, unifying the Five Nations of Khorvaire. It was after the unification that he charged House Deneith to be the protectorate of the Five Nations.

The Last War was the next rung on the climb to greatness for House Deneith. Having pledged to serve the entire kingdom that Galifar I had created, they would do so even without a king or queen to rule it. This allowed them to be completely neutral during the conflict, but it did not stop them from supplying mercenaries to each of the five nations when such a request was made. It’s interesting because this in stride by the warring nations, knowing that while they may have the forces of House Deneith fighting for them, their enemies were doing the same thing. House Deneith went to great lengths to make sure that the mercenaries from their house did not come into direct conflict with each other, but war is a rapidly enveloping situation and there is one recorded instance of this happening. A Cyran general ordered a group of mercenaries from the blademarks guild to attack a Deneith guarded garrison. When they refused, the general order his Cyran troops to attack the blademarks who refused to fight, which was a very bad idea indeed. These blademarks joined forces with the forces from within the garrison and routed the Cyran troops.

When the war finally came to an end with the signing of the Treaty of Thronehold, House Deneith was granted several concessions not available to the other houses. They were granted an exemption from the Korth Edicts and were only the house among the Twelve allowed to maintain a standing army. Furthermore, members of House Deneith and their forces could travel freely amongst the Five Nations. While nations may have fiercely guarded there borders from their neighbors, House Deneith members were granted free passage in the name of defending the Five Nations from external (and sometimes internal) threats.

Within the House, there have always been two guilds and three primary services that they provide. The House Deneith mercenaries hail from the Blademarks Guild and their reputation as an elite fighting force was cemented during the Last War. Since the rule of Galifar I, the Defenders Guild has protected the wealthy and powerful, which included nobles and kings. Finally, there are the Sentinel Marshals, who uphold the law of the land throughout Khorvaire, are have a storied history.

Sentinel Marshals have been the elite in law enforcement in Khorvaire for centuries. Marshals uphold the code of justice no matter where it may take them, pursuing criminals across national borders and beyond. Centuries prior, King Galifar III commanded the patriarch of House Deneith to form an elite order of officers who would augment the royal guard in maintaining the peace, upholding the law, and bringing those who broke the law to justice. Taking heirs of the house that had proven themselves through years of service within the house, the Sentinel Marshals were assembled and their name invoked respect amongst the people, and fear for those that broke the law. In the years before the Last War, the Sentinel Marshals became the police force to be reckoned with, working to bring those within the kingdom of Galifar that worked outside the law to justice, and eliminating the enemies of the crown outside of its borders.

During the Last War, the Marshal’s focus was less on bringing criminals to justice and instead on maintaining the rules and conduct of war. The Marshals also took it upon themselves to enforce the Galifar code of justice, insisting that each of the warring armies observe these universal rules of conduct even during the war. At the end of the Last War, the Sentinel Marshals remained as the enforcer of the code per the Treaty of Thronehold. The right of free passage for House Deneith allowed the Marshals to hunt down criminals throughout the five nations without interference.

The Mark of the Sentinel

The Mark of Sentinel in 3.5e was a series of three feats that focused on spells that revolved around creating and making magical items. The first feat was the Least Dragonmark feat, and the series culminated with the Greater Dragonmark feat. The prestige class in this edition was the Deneith Warden. Among the Sentinel Marshals, there is a select group of dragonmarked heirs whose passion and commitment to upholding the law saw them develop a unique set of skills for enforcing it. The most dedicated members of the house, they are the Deneith wardens.

Least Mark of Sentinel: mage armor 1/day, protection from arrows1/day, shield of faith 1/day, or shield other 1/day; +2 bonus on Sense Motive checks.
Lesser Mark of Sentinel: protection from energy 1/day or lesser globe of invulnerability 1/day.
Greater Mark of Sentinel: globe of invulnerability 1/day.

In the 4th edition, the Mark of the Sentinel allowed the bearer of the mark to accentuate offensive and defensive abilities in combat. The Mark of the Sentinel paragon path was the Deneith Protector. The penultimate members of the defenders guild, these individuals defend there charge using their combat prowess and magical dragon mark powers. The Protector had the following abilities:

Sentinel Action - Use an action path to take an extra action and each enemy next to the protector is marked until the end of their next turn.
Bodyguard Resolve - When dazed or stunned and someone makes a marked attack against the protector, they can make a saving throw against the effect. A successful save and the effect ends before the attack.
Deneith Mark - Mark a target and all marks on the protector end.

Today

The House Deneith is under strain from forces both internal and external. For the first time in history, the house has direct competition for its mercenary and protection services, as House Tharashk has begun to provide such services. While House Deneith has suffered from a reduction in the pool of mercenaries they can pull from (the Last War took a toll on their numbers), House Tharashk has seen their numbers grow, utilizing the service of the monstrous races of Eberron. To make matters worse, they have been recruiting the warforged into these positions, as they are perfectly suited for these roles. House Deneith has started to extend offers to these groups, but they are well behind House Tharashk in their recruitment efforts amongst this population.

Within the house, there is a group of heirs that sees this as the opportune time for House Deneith to ascend to its rightful place of power within Khorvaire. They see the influence and wealth the house has accumulated throughout the years of the Last War as a way to have House Deneith restore the five kingdoms to one nation, a Galifar reborn. With an army that rivals those of the five nations and members of the defenders guild protecting many of the powerful throughout Khorvaire, they see an opportunity to remove the nation’s leaders and use their army to control the land. The current patriarch, Breven d’Deneith is not on board with this idea, calling such a plot utter madness. House Deneith’s mission is to serve the people as they have done throughout history, and as far as he is concerned, will continue to do so while the house is under his stewardship.

In the 5th edition, the Mark of Sentinel is a variant human race. The following traits replace the regular human ASI trait:

ASI - Constitution increase by 2, Wisdom increase by 1.
Sentinel Intuition - When making an Insight or Perception check, roll a d4 and add it to the roll.
Guardian Shield - Able to cast Shield once per long rest. Wisdom is the spellcasting ability.
Vigilant Guardian - Once per long rest, when a creature next to you (5ft) is hit, you may take the damage for them.
Spells of the Mark - Sentinel spells that include Shield of Faith, Counterspell, and Bigby’s Hand. Must have spellcasting ability.

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