Von Striga Family
The House of Striga
Striga nobles of a bygone era, clad in the heavily embellished baroque panoply of their time
The Striga are a noble family hailing from the Dragon Isles of Dwilight, and yet are mostly an enigma to the men and women they purport to serve alongside.
Firstly, no one seems to know when they first settled on the Isles, nor where their family home (if they even have one) is located. Also, the noble house as an entity has surfaced, disappeared, and reappeared multiple times in the history of Dwilight with little explanation. These strange phenomena have never been addressed by the active members of the family.
Even stranger still, the Striga are notable for their ethereal features and extreme pallor. Those who have interacted closely with the family have noted that they tend to clothe themselves in heavy garments more suitable for the cold of northern Dwilight rather than the wet and temperate Dragon Isles. Why they do this, and how they avoid discomfort in such garb is yet another mystery surrounding the family.
Finally, the Striga are not an expressive people. Though they do not lack for the courtesies required of noble society, whether in the finery of court or the clamour of battle members of the family are wont to maintain a steely disposition that complements the uncanny inhuman grey of their eyes.
Warfare
When called to war, the Striga don heavy full plate coloured the blackest of jet. A Striga's intricate set of armour will often be paired with a thick, fur-lined cloak. Headgear typically takes the form of a barbute or stechhelm. It is common for Striga to ornament their helms with crests depicting a full dragon, or parts (e.g. wings) of a dragon.
Most Striga wield a blade as their weapon of choice, although the exact make and style of the arms they bear have differed across the centuries. Striga who choose to fight mounted are also proficient in the usage of the knightly lance.
On the battlefield a Striga in full panoply is an intimidating sight: an ominous figure clad entirely in cold black steel, face hidden and cloak billowing in their wake, mount and noble thundering forth towards the enemy as a single monstrous amalgamation.
By contrast, the smallfolk levies that bear House Striga's colours have wargear of generally mediocre quality. The Striga sponsor their foot soldiers with simple blackened steel helms and kite shields, but weaponry must often be sourced by the troops themselves. Cheap polearms such as spears, glaives or bills are the norm. The Striga seem to care little for the survival of these levies in battle. For their part, those that flock to the family's banner seem to be of unaccountably grim, dour or fatalistic disposition.
