Von Musel family

The von Musel family was a noble family that once lived in the city-state of Whitestone.

History
The family settled in Whitestone at some point between 612 PD and 700 PD. The von Musels were in control of one of the great houses of the city, and their relationship with their rulers became closer when a member of the de Rolo family married a von Musel, having a daughter together, Melanie.

When Melanie grew up a marriage was arranged between her and her cousin, and they became the lord and lady of Whitestone. However in around the 730s PD, she created the back gardens of Whitestone Castle, where she grew poisonous plants from Wildemount with which she planned to murder her husband, slowly poisoning him in order to take over the city herself. She was eventually removed from her position for suspected witchcraft and raising of the undead.

By the end of the conflict between Lady von Musel and Lord de Rolo, the de Rolos had acquired the third house of Whitestone, claiming it through Melanie's right over it. Since then, it became a tradition in the de Rolo family to carry her surname, "von Musel".

Known members

 * Unnamed lord or lady von Musel
 * Their de Rolo consort
 * Melanie von Musel, their daughter
 * Unnamed Lord de Rolo, her husband
 * Their descendants who carry the von Musel name

Trivia

 * The von Musel surname is made up of two elements: von is a German preposition meaning "of". Musel, on the other hand, could have different origins: a possibility is that it's a variant of mussel, the common name used for certain types of bivalve molluscs; another option is that it's an Old French term meaning "muzzle".
 * Since the de Rolos have kept the third house of Whitestone for several decades, this suggests that the von Musels became extinct, either after Melanie's scandal or because she was the last one.
 * One way or the other, Melanie's line still carries von Musel blood, as well as the surname.