Greater Xavax/Black Swan
Born from Xerarch Selenia's Call to Arms during the war, this exclusive Order is composed of Knights Selenia raised from the common stock of Greater Xavax during the event known colloquially as the Feast of the Black Swan.
The Ordered resulted in a doubling of the Imperium's strength and changed the course of the war in favor of Xavax. These Knights enjoy privacy to discuss realm affairsw amongst themselves and influence policy similar to what one might see in a Republic's political parties. Defining characteristics include Ambition, Industriousness, and Pride. They are, to a man, unswervingly loyal to Selenia for raising them to the peerage.
Contents
Starting Members
Cadewyn, Dolen, Eoghan, Grepthar, Jane, Jonathan, Kieran, Liam, Menylas, Nicolas, Randal, Tsubhia
How to Join
The Feast was a singular event. All knights who arrived to the Phoenix Court after its completion must petition the members of the Order who, if impressed, will sponsor the applicant by writing a letter of recommendation to the Xerarch.
The Golden Mask Tradition
During the Fest of the Black Swan event, all the new knights of the Imperium congregated to drink and dance and welcome each other. On a Whim, Duchess Beck declared that it would be a masquerade and that all should commission masks to represent them. There was one rule, however, a golden rule, as it were...
Royals wear golden masks to events such as these. Typically, a royal operates in such rarefied social circles that they may not wish to be "officially present" at such an event. By wearing the golden mask, they become officially invisible, the rule being that you are not to look a Golden Mask in the eye, acknowledge, or interact with them in anyway or be considered taboo.
During its first iteration, Xerarch Selenia made the tradition famous by arriving in her golden lion mask and leaping from table to table even as patrons ate and drank
THE BLACK SWAN: Description
The Black Swan had actually occupied several addresses over its long a checkered history. In it's oldest days, before the rise of Xavax, it had been little more than a brothel in one of Isadril's slums and ironically named simply The Swan. The entire edifice was later destroyed in a fire from which only the sign had survived, forever blackened by soot and fire, was recovered and reused when the establishment was rebuilt. Over the years, it simply became known by its now infamous moniker.
When Duchess Beck Mozzoni came to own it shortly after Xavax was established, the Black Swan was located in the Merchant Quater catering to middleclass folk before the noblemen of Xavax appropriated it. Xerarch Selenia's appearance there some years ago marked a change in status for the inn, one the Duchess Beck was determined to rise to. She sold the current building and removed the fabled sign, later commissioning a new, larger structure uphill and nearer to the Ducal Castle. The Duchess's staff of realtors and architects worked together to craft something that would stand as a testament to their mistress's deamonor, and to Greater Xavax as a whole. The obtained the deeds to a plot of land in Isadril's High District where well-to-do families lived and shopped above the commoners, but without the patents of nobility that would allow them to live within the castle itself. The area, therefore, was very fine indeed. regularly street laamps bathed the even cobblestone streets in light. Homes and storefronts were faced with brick, sometimes even columned with marble to reflect the wealth and status of their owners. The Duchess's team acquired the deed to one of the larger merchant guildhouses, as well as the warehouse behind it, and set to work. The guildhouse, as with all the buildings in the district, was faced with red brick. It also boasted a large porch where future clientel would be able to sit, drink and eat. A balcony for the second level extended over the porch, and meticulously worked iron railing ringed both the porch and the balcony above, broken only by the fine marble columns that spaced evenly about the facade. The Original Swan tavern sign hung prominently here. Once passed the threshold, the Duchess's artisans had gutted the former guildhouse, replacing the initial interior instead with what one would more traditionally see in a tavern or an inn: Tables that could be easily moved to create a dancefloor littered a common room. To the far left of the Entrance was a stage, to the far right roared a grandfireplace with the swans sigil worked in stone above it. Adjacent to the fireplaces was a wide and well stocked bar next doors leading to a kitchen. On its other side was a staircase leading to the second level and balcony. Most of the furniture were actually artifacts from the previous incarnations of the Black Swan. The Bar had been transported frame for frame, along with the tables, chairs, and other items that gave the place its authentic, rough feel. But there the similarities ended for the Duchess had spared no expense. brass sconces and lanterns, shined to a startling finish, kept the entire common room well lit. Works of iron and other metal decorated the walls. But the greatest addition was found even further within. Opposite the entryway to the Black Swan was a grand door worked in glass and brass. beyond it, the architects had been hard at work creating something far grander.
What had once been a warehouse had been torn down, replaced by a shining floor of veined, pinkish marble and flanked by fluted columns of the same stone. This Grand Ballroom was cielinged in glass, held in place by a latticework of iron. Great floor-to ceiling windows lined the left wall, revealing the harbor and the sea beyond. The windows could be opened like doors o admit patrons to the balcony beyond. At the farside of the ballroom was a raised dais where VIP's might sit and watch as musicians played from a stage along the right wall. The entire room was ringed by fire braziers meant for open, indoor spaces such as this. While the tavern part of the Black Swan was meant for banquets and the commonfolk who were the usual patrons, this Grand Ballroom was clearly for special occasions.
Occasions like tonight.
The project was ambitious, particularly in wartime. The foundations lain were several times larger to accommodate the increased clientele, making it the most popular spot in Xavax for those with means. It's facade, though wealthy by any standard, still fit the aesthetic of the district, lulling the viewer into overlooking it. And of course, it was bigger on the inside. Just as Xavax itself seemed unremarkable to foreigners, but amazing once inside.
EVENTS
Major
The Feast of the Black Swan
9/2016
http://forum.battlemaster.org/index.php/topic,7379.0.html
The Masquerade of Monarchs
12/2016
Minor
The Envoy of Nivemus
1/2016
