Lorelei family

The Loreleis, also known as House Lorelei, are a noble family of the Dwendalian Empire. Secretly, the family bears the curse of werewolf lycanthropy.

History
The Lorelei bloodline stretches back about three centuries, and rose to prominence during the Marrow War between the Dwendalian Empire and the Julous Dominion. The Loreleis proved their worth in that conflict and were gifted with a stretch of land in the Cyrengreen Forest upon which Castle Lorelei was built.

Alfarr Lorelei was the first family member to become a lycanthrope, passing this trait down through the generations. Early on, the family considered lycanthropy a curse, but gradually younger generations saw it as a gift to be wielded responsibly. They created a ritual known as "The Taming" to help control the inner beast and used it to help the family. Whilst there had been dark periods in the family history and members who sought to use their power for evil, the Lorelei family always returned to the good and righteous in the end.

At some point in their recent history, Geneviève Lorelei became the heir of the family. She was wild and unbridled, spurning the Taming and instead embracing the animal inside which placed her at odds with her family. Her nature brought her into a whirlwind romance with a drow from Xhorhas, a man the family did not approve of. They had one son - Haldur Lorelei - out of wedlock.

When Haldur was still very young, Lady Geneviève "was murdered not far from Castle Lorelei's grounds and found in a wolven heap." Her lover was taken back to Xhorhas, where he was punished and reintegrated in their society, leaving the young Lord Lorelei abandoned. However, Geneviève's younger sister, Katerine, took the child under her wing, and became his regent, raising him to be a good man who eventually married a woman named Rosalind, who gave him five children before dying.

Lord Haldur, with Katerine's help, raised his own children, and although the two eldest (Aurra and Lucius) were wild and didn't accept all the family traditions, the five Lorelei siblings maintained respect for their father, answering his call when he summoned them to Castle Lorelei.

Known members

 * Alfarr Lorelei: First Lorelei to become a lycanthrope.
 * Grenya Lorelei: Daughter of Alfarr, and first Lorelei to be born as a lycanthrope.
 * At least two sons
 * Katerine Lorelei: Younger sister to Genevieve, and referred to as 'Aunt Kat'.
 * Geneviève Lorelei: Older sister to Katerine, mother of Haldur.
 * Haldur Lorelei: Father of the siblings.
 * Rosalind Lorelei: Haldur's late wife, mother of the siblings.
 * Aurra Lorelei
 * Lucius Lorelei
 * Portia Lorelei
 * Lawrence Lorelei
 * Benicio Lorelei

Family tree
Bold borders denote those with lycanthropy.

Trivia

 * The surname comes from the Old German words lureln (Rhine dialect for "murmuring") and the Celtic term ley (meaning "rock"). An interpretation of the full meaning could therefore be "murmuring rock". In German legend, Lorelei was a beautiful maiden who threw herself into the Rhine River in despair over a faithless lover, becoming a siren who now sits atop a treacherous rock singing to lure sailors to their doom.
 * Lord Lorelei owns a magical sword (+2 Longsword) named Vargr ("wolf" in Old Norse), meant to be eventually passed to the heir of the house.
 * Green is their traditional color, and so is reflected in their clothing.
 * All members of House Lorelei could be trained to be warriors, regardless of gender, and some of them were buried with their weapons and gear.
 * Before the Marrow War House Lorelei was among the prominent families living in Deastok.
 * Although they are part of the Dwendolian nobility, they are not too supervised by the Empire, since both their lycanthropy condition and their worship to Sehanine (a non approved deity) are kept disregarded. The fact that the dangers of the forest keep most of the tax reapers away helps with this matter.
 * The Cobalt Soul (or at the very least Archivist Zeenoth) seems to be aware of the Lorelei traditions to control their lycanthropy using blood hunter rituals, and that information is reflected in some of their documents.
 * By the year 835 PD the Cyrengreen Forest is inhabited by different groups of lycanthropes, some embracing their curse and wishing to spread it, and others who try to contain their beast-like side; it's also the home of the Order of the Lycan. It is assumed that the Lorelei family is also part of the dynamics of those groups, since part of their younger generation is formed by blood hunters, and their ideologies vary between the ones presented by other lycanthropes in the region.
 * During a ball in Jrusar in Campaign Three, Laudna presents herself to Mistress Orlana Seshadri as Lorelei de Rolo.