The Dragonmarked

 While you’re going through all these PowerPoints I’m sure there have been several moments where
you asked yourself “what the hell’s a dragonmark?” Well, here’s where I explain them in detail.
 Dragonmarks appear to be slightly-raised bluish tattoos, in reality they are occur and typically manifest
around puberty.
 Dragonmarks are magical in nature and those that possess them can utilize unique magical effects tied
to the type of mark they manifest. They are said to be the blessing of Siberys, the Dragon Above.
 As those who manifest dragonmarks (called dragonmarked heirs) gain power or influence the marks
often grow and spread, becoming stronger as well. These are respectively referred to as the least,
lesser, and greater dragonmarks.
 Particularly rare are the Siberys dragonmarks which can manifest only on those who have no
dragonmark before; these marks are enormous and often cover large parts of the body but the magic
they possess is particularly potent.
 Dragonmarks can appear anywhere on the body and cannot be removed once they have manifested.
They cannot be tattooed over and trying to conceal them with makeup is very difficult given their raised
surface and magical qualities.
 Cutting a dragonmark off a living body is excruciating and many do not survive the process. If
successfully removed this way, a dragonmark will manifest somewhere else on the body within a few
moments.
History of Dragonmarks
 The cause of dragonmarks is rooted deeply in an ancient prophecy that encompasses
all of Eberron.
 Legends about the Age of Demons say that dragons were the savants of demons until
the day they discovered what is now known as the Draconic Prophecy.
 The Draconic Prophecy is the ongoing narrative of existence. It is far from absolute and
shaping major events in the world can alter the Prophecy profoundly. In short, it is a
malleable destiny of all existence.
 Passages of the Prophecy appear throughout the world, manifesting in the shape of
mountain ranges or the passage of stars as often as in prophetic visions or unusual
portents.
 For countless millennia, dragons isolated themselves on Argonnessen to study the
prophecy without the interference of “lesser races,” that is, until 3,000 years ago when
humans and their ilk began manifesting the Prophecy marks now known as
dragonmarks.
 Each of the twelve moons of Eberron are said to be tied with one of the twelve
dragonmarks.
 Dragonmarks Today
 Dragonmarks are usually hereditary and long lines of dragonmarked families have risen to
influential positions because of their unusual talents.
 Dragonmarks are normally confined to certain races: humans, elves, half-elves, gnomes,
halflings, dwarves, and half-orcs.
 Manifesting a mark outside these races (or a particular kind not found in the race) is
phenomenally rare, and the full impact this would have on dragonmarked society (and the
dangers it would pose to the marked individual) must be discussed with a Dungeonmaster
before being considered.
 There are currently twelve family groups who possess the majority of dragonmarks, and the
impact these organizations have on Eberron is stupendous. They are referred to as the
Dragonmarked Houses.
 Dragonmarked Houses
 The Dragonmarked Houses are expansive mercantile families who have amassed enormous influence over
hundreds of generations.
 Among the twelve houses there are eleven recognized dragonmarks, each confined to one house except for the
Mark of Shadow manifested by elves. A schism within the families who possess the mark led to a breakaway
faction now recognized as a separate house.
 Each house manages the affairs of dozens of guilds related to their craft as well as numerous business ventures
in their area of specialty.
 Dragonmarked heirs are typically identified by their house. This means that a half-elf name Johanna d’Lyrandar
comes from House Lyrandar and has manifested a Mark of Storm. This puts them on level with the nobility of
Khorvaire who identify by family line, i.e. Caitlyn ir’Tain.
 In an organization as prolific and public as a Dragonmarked House, losing face is a great disgrace. Members of a
house that have committed heinous crimes in the eyes of house elders are often cast out of the house. During
this process, called “excoriation,” if the disgraced member has a dragonmark, it is cut from the body.
 Excoriates are not welcome in any house enclave and cannot partake in any guild service sponsored by their
house (and often other houses as well). Considering how much of Khorvaire’s economy is dominated by the
houses, this is a severe punishment reserved for only the worst crimes. Lesser crimes can still be met with house
justice and should not be taken lightly.
 This excoriation does not apply to descendants of the excoriate. Their children or children’s children are welcome
back into the house if they manifest a mark or show potential in other ways.
 Not all members of dragonmarked houses manifest a mark, in fact, there are entire family lines within house who
have never had one. Still, manifesting a mark is a surefire way of moving into the fast lane of house hierarchy.
The Twelve Houses

House Medani
 House Medani is one of two half-elf houses.
 Dragonmarked heirs of the house have the
Mark of Detection.
 They sponsor the Warning Guild, who
specialize in personal protection in the form
of precognitive defense.

Ancestral enclave of
House Medani.
The Twelve Houses

House Tharashk
 House Tharashk is a unique house shared by humans, orcs
and half-orcs that originates from the swamps of the Shadow
Marches.
 Only humans and half-orcs manifest the mark, but orcs are
often found.
 Their mark is the Mark of Finding.
 They sponsor the Finders Guild which is renowned for its
successful exploration and excavation skills. In addition, the
guild certifies the best inquisitives in the business. If you need
a private eye, look for the Tharashk seal of approval
The Twelve Houses
House Vadalis
 Vadalis is one of several human houses.
 It carries the Mark of Handling. The natural gift is an
innate talent for taking care of animals and magical
beasts. The house is know for it’s excellent quality
livestock as well as its magically-enhanced animals
(bred in recent times for war, but other
improvements are common).
 The house sponsors the Handlers Guild. There is no
place better to buy quality animals than a Handlers
Guild auction. Often even rare creatures such as
pegasi or hippogriffs are available there.

The creatures bred by

House Vadalis are as
strong as they are
unusual.

House Vadalis Enclave

in Aundair.
The Twelve Houses
House Jorasco
 House Jorasco is one of two halfling houses.
 They possess the Mark of Healing.
 Their sponsored guild is the Healers Guild. The
need for good healers, particularly in war time,
means the guild long ago moved out of the
Talenta Plains. Jorasco halflings are among the
most cosmopolitan people in Khorvaire.

House Jorasco Jorasco halflings saved many

healing house in soldiers from corpse collectors
Sharn. during the Last War.
The Twelve Houses

House Ghallanda
 The second halfling House.
 House Ghallandra possesses the Mark of
Hospitality.
 The House sponsors many great feasts and
celebrations. Their enclaves always have
comfortable lodging available for visitors
 They sponsor the Hostelers Guild. An inn
cannot truly say it’s a quality establishment
without inspection and approval from House
Ghallanda.
 In the Talenta Plains House Glallanda
maintains the old tradition of a roving
hospitality caravan for anyone hungry or lost
in the vast expanses of the land.
The Twelve Houses
House Cannith
 House Cannith is the human house with the Mark of Making.
 House leadership is currently is turmoil following the destruction of the
house’s main enclave in Cyre. Many people suspect it was House
Cannith’s constant tampering with magic that caused the Day of Mourning.
 Three factions are currently vying for control of the house.
 First is Baronness Jorlanna d’Cannith, who oversees the house’s efforts in
Aundair, Thrane, and the Eldeen Reaches.
 Second is Baron Merrix d’Cannith who leads the house’s activities in
Breland, Zilargo, and Darguun from holdings in Sharn.
 Third is Baron Zorlan who controls house operations in Karrnath, the Mror
Holds, and the Lhazaar Principalities
 The house sponsors two guilds: the Tinkerers Guild, who experiment with
mundane technology, and the Fabricators Guild, who construct magical
technology.

The House Cannith

Laboratories in
Sharn.
The Twelve Houses
House Orien
 House Orien is another human house.
 They control the Mark of Passage.
 The guilds they sponsor are the Couriers Guild and the
Transportation Guild.
 House Orien dominates land travel. It’s house Orien
who monitor caravan routes and organized the
transportation infrastructure in most cities. House
Orien also runs the Lightning Rail from coast to coast.
 House Orien also offers teleportation circles to anyone
with enough money to pay for their services.
The Twelve Houses
House Sivis
 The Gnomes of House Sivis have a chokehold on Eberron’s paper-based
economy.
 Sivis manifests the Mark of Scribing.
 The sponsor the Notaries Guild and the Speakers Guild.
 Through these guilds, house Sivis not only controls all legal notarization in
Khorvaire, but also has a reputation for the best mediators and barristers.
 House Sivis also shares floor space with House Orien’s communication
business.
 The instantaneous communication provided by Sivis’ speaking stones and
magical messengers means that anyone with some money can send
information across Khorvaire.
 The also provide traditional post offices for people who have little money to
spare.

If you have a
brush with the
law, House Sivis’
barristers are
who you call for
legal help.
The Twelve Houses
House Deneith
 House Deneith is the fourth completely human dragonmarked house.
 This house possesses the Mark of the Sentinel.
 Deneith sponsors two guilds, the Blademarks Guild and Defenders Guild, and
also maintains an elite military organization called the Sentinel Marshalls.
 The Blademarks Guild is a professional mercenary organization that provides
employment to all types of heroes for hire. The Blademarks operate in small
contingents and typically deal with dungeon crawling or hunting hostile raiders.
 The Defenders Guild has a large population of House Deneith’s dragonmarked
heirs and is widely respected for its skill and discipline. They operate as
Deneith’s primary army and served in many battles (and on many sides) during
the Last War.
 The Sentinel Marshalls were established by King Galifar I and given to House
Deneith to maintain. They are the elite law enforcement of Khorvaire and the
Treaty of Thronehold has maintained their status as a multinational force for
justice.
 The Last War was kind to House Deneith, and they came out of it stronger than
ever.
The Twelve Houses
House Phiarlan and House Thuranni
 In ancient times it was said that the elves had two distinct dragonmarks, but one
was wiped out. The two elven dragonmarked houses today both possess the Mark
of Shadow.
 26 years ago the Thuranni family split from House Phiarlan and formed their own
dragonmarked house.
 House Phiarlan sponsors the Entertainers and Artisans Guild. The access these
entertainers have t o all walks of life make them excellent spies and informants.
Through the guild House Philaran operates a storehouse of infromation.
 House Thuranni does not sponsor a guild, instead they control the Shadow
Network, a widespread contingent of spies and assasins for hire to anyone who can
afford them.
The Twelve Houses

House Lyrandar
 The second half-elf House Lyrandar are valued members of Khorvaire’s society.
 They have the Mark of Storm
 House Lyrandar sponsors the Windwrights Guild and Raincallers Guild.
 Members of the Windwrights guild are found on every quality ship, where they
can summon winds to guide vessels into safe harbors. The Raincallers Guild
are often commissioned to bring fair weather to farms and celebrations.
 Because of the valued servicese Lyrandar contributed to Aundair during the
Last War, Queen Aurenel granted Lyrandar the island sanctuary of Stormhome.
This is a startling precedent since the Five Nations had long outlawed
dragonmarked houses from owning large estates to limit their influence.
 House Lyrandar has recently moved in on House Orien’s mass transit monopoly with
the creation of Elemental Airships. These airships are expensive but easily the fastest
way to travel in the Five Nations
The Twelve Houses
House Kundarak
 House Kundarak was once the dwarven clan Kundarak in the
Mror Holds, but today the dragonmarked house expanded far
beyond their homeland.
 This house passes on the Mark of Warding.
 House Kundarak sponsors the Baking Guild and Warding Guild.
 House Kundarak uses their magical talent for securing things to
create the most well-protected banks in Eberron. Their talents
have also been turned to creating secure prisons and can be
commissioned to make impenetrable private vaults.
 Because of Kundarak’s widespread influence, it’s perfectly
possible to open a bank account in once city and withdraw money
in another as long as you have proper identification (usually
provided by House Sivis).
 Aberrant Dragonmarks

 There is a widespread stigma against marrying between dragonmarked houses.

 This has its roots in an ancient conflict known as the War of the Mark.
 Before this war, it was common for dragonmarked families to intermarry. If both parents had
dragonmarks it was very likely that the child would produce one too, but the child’s dragonmark
would most likely be what is known as an Aberrant Mark.
 Aberrant marks can also crop up in anyone outside the dragonmarked circle, but those are rarer.
 Aberrant dragonmarks are considered particularly dangerous and often produce magical effects that
cause insanity or illness in their targets. It’s thought that this corruption slowly spreads to the owner
of the mark as well.
 During the war of the mark aberrant-marked fought for recognition alongside the Houses and along
the way many innocents died. Including was a majority of the people of Sharn who died when two
aberrant marks brought plague and death to the city.
 Most aberrant marks were wiped out and laws were passed within the houses to prevent the
reappearance of aberrant marks. This was not totally successful, though, and aberrant marks still
crop up now and again, especially outside the controlled population of dragonmarked houses.