The Fifth House, House KarthDron

The House of Karth'Dron lies just to the rear and left side of the mushroom grove of the first House, Andar-ros. The large ornate gates are fashioned from the blackest obsidian with the silver rings of Kiaransalee adorning them; they are 10' in height and are the only entrance in the inner walled courtyard. The gates are patrolled on the inside of the gates continually by 5 elite House Guards and 5 zombies, symbolizing the balance between life and death that is the worship of Kiaransalee. The courtyard itself is fairly spacious considering the cramped nature of the City and is decorated with numerous unusual florescent lichens and mosses. On either side of the main entrance to the stalagmite, two creatures of flesh stand impassively. Interestingly for a House of the City, the main entrance to the House is left wide open.


Power structure within the House:
Matron Mother Sineath (High Priestess; Yathrinshee)
Wakboth of the Nosferatu (Vampire now destroyed)
Eldest Daughter Gran'gor (High priestess; Yathrinshee)
Second daughter Sh'sieath (sacrificed to Kiaransalee)
Third daughter Babestor'gor (Fighter/ High Priestess)
Fourth daughter Ha'alabu (High Priestess)
House weaponsmaster C'larath (male), consort to Sineath.
House second Thant'hor (male)
House necromancer G'renha (female)

Where Volgath lies in this scheme is unsure as the position of Deathmistress lies outside the normal political structures. Volgath is ultimately answerable to Kiaransalee herself via the Matron of the Ruling House, followed by her own Matron Mother. Only these two can divest their authority for others to command Volgath. Volgath obeys any orders so long as they do not conflict with these 4 underlying tenants of her station:
(1) The service of Kiaransalee is the utmost.
(2) The Yathrinshee and others of her priesthood must be protected at all costs.
(3) The City and the Ruling Council must be protected from all invaders and her laws shall be enforced.
(4) Any wrongs against Kiaransalee must be avenged.

The House has 5 other High Priestesses and 5 other Priestesses. There are 5 other noble females of the House including the necromancer G'renha. There are 5 male nobles including C'larath and Thant'hor. The House has 50 elite troops, 50 foot soldiers, 50 lizard riders and 50 archers. This is only a small fraction of the power of the ruling House Andar-ros and is miniscule for the station of the 5th House.

However, Karth'Dron has been deemed to hold a 'weak' position in this respect as decreed by Kiaransalee herself. As the line of the Deathmistress belongs to the House of Karth'Dron alone, no House would seek to eliminate the personal gift of Kiaransalee by destroying the House to overtake its station; conversely, Karth'Dron must never be in a position to overcome any of the Higher ranking Houses. This has created the 5th House as something of a 'neutral zone' and the House itself is often used as a venue to settle disputes when battle has been ruled out. Also, Drow ledgers in the City often skip the number 5, which is left blank and move onto 4 or 6. The small forces that Karth'Dron do have are often used for City duty or during religious ceremonies. The 3 Dragons of Karth'Dron are often required by the Matron Mother of the ruling House during the most Unholy Days at Arach-Tlabbar as guardians of the Dark Shrine.


The Mewing Vats:
The mewing vats themselves lie deep below the main House chambers and none apart from the Matron Mother, the necromancer G'renha and the Nosferatu Wakboth are allowed to enter the chamber. The vats themselves are supplied with nutrient by long tubes of human cartilage that drip water and minced flesh in to the vats from the preparation chamber above.

Through arcane rituals, the Yathrinshee of Karth'Dron in conjunction with the Nosferatu Wakboth have specialized in their creation of deformed hybrid creatures which are a mixture of undead and live components. These are called the 'House Dragons', and are reared in the mewing vats which lie deep below the main House chambers. Within this essential soup, these nightmares are 'reared' and created by the necromantic powers and devotion to Kiaransalee. These creatures are essentially vampiric, being manufactured from some essence taken from Wakboth himself, but take on part of the physical form of the original flesh that comprised them. Thus if the flesh used in construction is primarily humanoid, the construct normally takes part of the features to comprise the head, etc. Now that Wakboth has been destroyed, the House is desperately in search of another Nosferatu to take his place so that more of these creatures can be formed if necessary. The dragons are mainly spilt into 3 main categories:

(1) Fliers: These are large, manta ray-like creatures that are normally kept at the height of the stalagmite in specially constructed landing bays. The creatures are designed for flight and have limited combat ability. There are currently 5 fliers, one for the Matron Mother and priestesses of the House and for the necromancer G'renha. The second daughters flier was destroyed with her.

(2) House Dragons: These creatures are ferocious concoctions and are used to protect the House from invaders. They are large, some approaching 1 ton and are bred for their aggressive tendencies. Their acidic digestive juices tend to prevent regeneration from their attacks. Only a highly skilled individual can mew a House Dragon (currently the Matron Mother and her eldest daughter have the power). There are currently 3 House Dragons, all of whom are linked to Sineath. One guards her chamber while the others guard the main entrance to the House.

(3) Battle dragons: These creatures are huge. Have the ability of flight and are truly devastating. No battle dragon has been created in the last 3 millennia and some doubt that any now in Karth'Dron could manufacture such a beast. It is rumored that Ashobel, the last great Deathmistress was in the process of creating one during the Great City Wars before she was destroyed, but thats only a rumor.

All these creatures are in telepathic link with the Matron Mother and the priestess who originally manufactured them. The quickest to make are the fliers, which take 12-18 months to grow. House Dragons take several years whereas Battle Dragons take decades, even centuries to mature. All creations are sterile.


Pressing Concerns of the House:
With Wakboth of the Nosferatu now destroyed by his resurrected brother (see Volgaths background) Sineath feels that the House, despite the emergence of the new Deathmistress, has been severely weakened by his loss. Although no House would overtly try to terminate Karth'Dron and risk the wrath of Kiaransalee, the Matron Mother feels it is time once again to ask Kiaransalee's favor in promoting C'larath to the ranks of the Undead.

However, the Ritual of the Passing is never easy and to ensure sucess (perhaps as part of a Quest) the Matron Mother entrusts the new Deathmistress to accompany C'larath on his journey.....