dragon clans
Dragon Clans
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Dragon Clans
Dragon clans are powerful, rich families that lead and influence dragon society.
There are five clans in the Warfang Council. The four most powerful clans of each primordial element, and in recent history a fifth was accepted into the Council. Scions Aether is a clan of white-scaled dragons whose blood is so elementally mixed, their eggs can be any primordial or derivative element, regardless of their parents or even grandparents' elements. They represent other mixed dragons, as well as dragons of the Wind and Water elements.
There are only a few hundred clans in the realm. Typically, the top four single-element clans represent the lesser clans of their element. Scions Aether represents clans that are mixed.
Most dragons do not belong to a clan. Clanless dragons are also represented by the clans, bringing concerns and desires to lesser clans who carry it up to the leading five.
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What defines a Clan?
Clans are blood-ties. Dragons are only ever born into them, or become honorary members through unity (marriage) and having their children be clan members by blood. The family of the dragon that marries into the clan does not become a part of the clan. Adopted family members are never viewed as genuine clan members, and disowned family members lose clan status. Two unrelated dragons/unrelated families can never start a clan together - clans are not an alliance, but a family wherein every dragon is related in some way.
Arranged unity and reproduction is used frequently among clans.
Due to beliefs of ancestral intervention and destiny, most clans pick eggs that match their clan colors. For example, Stormbringers only pick eggs that are predominantly greys, making up their famously storm-colored scales. The Scions Aether keeps every egg with their blood, but only the fully white scaled hatchlings become full members of the clan.
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How are Clans created?
Clan status is awarded by the Warfang Council (or Tempest Reign/Ocean Delegation for Zephyr Kingdom and Ocean Domain) as a mark on a 'superior' bloodline. This is decided by vote. Clan status cannot be directly applied for, not self-awarded.
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It takes much to be eligible for clan status. The status and wealth of a single dragon is virtually never enough to give their whole family 'value' - it often takes multiple generations of high achievers to earn clanhood for one's bloodline. Exceptions can be made for elementals, generals/chiefs, and guardians. If a single clanless individual attains these labels, they are eligible to be awarded clan status.
It is taboo to assign one's family a clan name and banner without first being awarded the ability to.
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How many dragons are there in a Clan?
Clans with less than ten or even five members are uncommon; given the requirements to attain clanhood, Clans are normally founded with 20 to 40 members. The more powerful clans usually have over one hundred members. The more members in a clan means more wealth, more claws in the Army, the Guard, the Temple, the Justices, etc. Nepotism is rampant in clans. The Stormbringers are said to ‘command half the Warfang Army’ and the Warfang Guard are nicknamed the ‘Frostspear Guard’ for the fact that Frostspears make up much of the high ranks. Numbers alone can help push a clan further towards the top, but if half of a family has achieved very little, that reflects poorly on the clan image.
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Can Clan status be lost?
If a clan has too many members, it will stretch their wealth thin and they risk losing clan status. This can also happen if there are too many members, and most have unimpressive achievements. If a clan falls out of favor, the Council/Reign/Delegation may vote again to remove clan status.
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What are the public view on Clans?
Clans are looked at unfavorably by many, if not most clanless due to their dominance in politics, wealth, and influence. Clan dragons occupy most favorable positions in the army and guard, as well as other high society positions such as the Justices and Guardians. They are also much more likely to get away with crimes with minimum punishment, especially if the crime is against clanless dragons.
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How are Clans run?
Primarily, clans are run by its Matriarch/Patriarch/Atriarch. This is a single individual, most often a direct descendant of their predecessor. Clan Atriarchs decide the clan's priorities, goals, spending, contracts, training, education, etc. This is a lot of work, so bigger clans will have Clan Ambassadors. Ambassadors represent the Atriarch and the clan in social events, in the creation and negotiations of contracts, and when hiring contractors such as tutors, guards, etc. Ambassadors are meant to act, to the best of their ability, as the Atriarch would.
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Then there are Clan Elders. While a clan's Elders do not actively work in managing the clan like Ambassadors to, they play an important role. Clan Elders are the 5-20 eldest, most accomplished members of a clan. While they may have power over other clan members simply by seniority, they have a special power over the Atriarch; the power to relieve them of their position.
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If deemed so by 70% of the clan's Elders, the current reigning Atriarch may be permanently or temporarily relieved as clan leader. The clan will then go to the clan heir, if they are of age. If they are not, a temporary Atriarch will be elected by vote until the heir is ready. If no heir was chosen by the Atriarch, the Elders will then vote on who will take over the family. This is a significant event. A clan's Atriarch is not replaced unless extremely unpopular with the Elders, by either being inept or neglecting clan traditions or values.
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Elders may also vote to reject heirs, contracts, or other decisions of an Atriarch though their eagerness to do so varies from clan to clan. As such, Atriarchs are sometimes at the mercy of their clan's Elders.
dragon families
Dragon Families
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Dragon Families
All Clans are born through notoriety; through work and dedication, a bloodline becomes recognizable in scale and name. Clanhood is the next step.
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But the honorable Clan status is hard to achieve, often requiring centuries of that notoriety, to prove one’s bloodline is truly superior, that it is not merely the product of a few strong or even lucky individuals.
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Before clanhood, families become known, known for their craft or trade standing above the rest. At first, families are known by their elder, and referred to with their name, such as ‘The Voltorn Family’. This naming often persists after that Elder has passed and been replaced as head of the household. This is the case for families regardless of social/economic status.
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Over time, as a family’s notoriety grows, this name can become something akin to clan names in nature. This name is not self-given by the family itself, but by their community. This was the case of Stormbringer and Frostspear, named for their electric power and ice technique respectfully. These names were adopted into their clanhood, but that is not always the case.
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Family names are not as versatile as Clan names. They are normally two words combined (no spaces), such as the examples above, and refer to the family in a way that makes them recognizable to other dragons. ‘The dragons with the spear-ice tail technique’ becomes ‘Frostspear’.
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Families can alter or completely reinvent this name once they attain Clanhood, but not before. Some families may be unhappy with their assigned moniker, but it is never a mocking/negative one (unless the family is infamous, but this is not relevant for pre-clanhood and other respected high-society families).
A rising family will harm their reputation by assigning themselves a name, or by rejecting the name their community gives them and assigning themselves a different one. This is considered unmannerly, juvenile; showing that the family is getting ahead of themselves and not growing with grace.
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When a family is known in communities of several thousands, and recognized by clans, they may feel comfortable to create a family crest.
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Clans, similarly, have crests which are displayed on their banners. Family crests are much simpler and less unique than clan crests may be, with only a few colors split between the crest and its backdrop. These crests, such as with clans, may adorn homes and craft, and be stamped on official parchments, but not worn on the dragon itself, such as in clothing and armor. This is an unwritten social rule; maintaining that dragons wearing crests are always of Clan blood, and thus worthy of utmost respect.
Families do not display their crests on banners, nor in the presence of holy sigils; that is for Clans only.
The Stormbringer Crest is an example of a largely unchanged family crest; after attaining clanhood, Stormbringer only enriched its colors, maintaining the simple shape. The Earthwood Crest was unchanged.
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High Families retain the social hierarchy of traditional families. They do not have founders, or Atriarchs. They look to their elders for leadership. Usually one elder, the most accomplished, is viewed as head of the household. Different families vary in how leadership arises, but generally they try to maintain a leading bloodline of firstborns. The current leader becomes founder if the family is awarded clanhood.
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As such, unlike Clans, high families have no awarded title, persisting purely by their collective accomplishments and presence within their communities. High families strengthen their name with ties to clans especially, as it is the clans, and ultimately the leading clans, that can bestow upon them clanhood through vote.
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