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House van den Akker is a Kissut Eronidas family with strong regional ties to Pannor and Anglia, though more recently have established many banks in their name across the Empire and seek to expand their monetary dominion into the Holy City.
House Name - Van Den Akker
Patriarch Dirk van den Akker
House Culture - Kissut Eronidas
Strong Anglian Influence
House Theme - Bankers and Military Officers
House Businesses - Bank van Halluman (Various Locations)
House Province - Pol Hullamun, Pannor
House Colors - Dark Green and Black
Religious Alignment - Dogmatic Unionist
Additional Daiana worship as well.
House Iconography - Corinthian Helmet, Spears, and Tulips
Family Motto - Anaku Sanaku
Most of the family's history before the Cataclysm is forgotten, as the family was rather poor and had no means of recording their history save a few journals from their patriarch that have survived. What is known is that when the family crash-landed in Anglia after the Exodus from Guldar, they were among the first to attempt integration with the native Ailor settlements. The first of their family were simply referred to as "Akkers", which they assumed as a family name, starting as a clan of collective Eronidas farmhands rather than a traditional family. In short, any time before the Cataclysm is only relevant to mention because of their quick integration and trustworthiness amongst the Ailor population, which led to their long-term survival. It is known that the family played a minor role in the Grensenweg, as they were quick to integrate with their Ailor counterparts.
After the Cataclysm, the House helped the Kade family in the Five Family Rebellion, as did most Eronidas during this time, and for that support they were paid handsomely, though not ennobled quite yet. As the establishment of the Empire was primarily for Ailor, it did not make sense to ennoble what ended up being just conscripted soldiers and bodyguards, that ennoblement would come much later. However, after the rebellion, the family organized under its first patriarch, Anu van den Akker. Anu was the only patriarch with a traditional Vasar name as he would be the one to fully adopt a more Anglian culture and purchase land for the family with the money they received during the Rebellion. Anu was known as a meek and humble person who only wished for the best of his offspring, and by the time he took up the role of patriarch, he was already rather old and died shortly after.
Aart van den Akker concerned himself mostly with war and women, marrying five wives and producing several offspring, all of whom joined the Regalian army at the behest of their father. Aart cared little for the rest of the family and sought glory in war, making him a somewhat unpopular figure as he is remembered being brash and foolhardy, but he did accumulate wealth through military service. Aart was also known as a keen artillery expert and bought a sulfur mine near Pol Hullamun, where the family would stay to this day. Aart died in 43 A.C, leaving the house to his youngest daughter Anneke who was twenty at the time of receiving her matriarchy.
After Aart, the rest of the Akker leaders are barely relevant, until the First Skagger War, in which the entire family would conscript with the Regalia's to beat back the Skagger Horde. The patriarch at the time, Bastiaan van den Akker made his own mercenary division that dominated the War, defending multiple ports though also sailing out and meeting Skagger ships, sinking them. The most impressive feat during this time were that none of the family members that fought in the war died because of it, a fact of great pride today among House van den Akker. After this service, they would be ennobled and given the province of Pol Hullamun, where the had lived for centuries before.
Between the First Skagger War and the ascension of Dirk van den Akker, there is little to say about the family, most were portent Officers in the Theomarchs that fought in just about every war for the Empire. Other than that, they were little more than a regional power in Pannor, only really relevant in the military and to Anglia, though not much outside of that. The family was content in being a regional power, constructing a castle in Pol Hullamun in Allest's name after the Third Skagger War, a sprawling fortress that overlooks the sea on the northernmost point of the province. They would also create a larger dock made of stone to facilitate trade, however they really had nothing to export as Pannor is a barren land, their main asset being sulfur mines.
The House would evolve from a regional power to a household name with the ascension of Dirk van den Akker as patriarch, the only member of the family to not join the military in his formative years. Instead, he attended the Narlas College of Commerce in Dragenthal and was a top graduate in Financing and Accounting, two fields that nobody in his family really cared for. Once he was in control, he established five banks on the main Pannor islands, giving low-interest loans to farmers in order to build wealth and expand.
Expand he did, as there is at least one bank in nearly all of the Empire's provinces, with a reputation for being exceedingly secure which has led to wealthier investors. Dirk is happy to expand his banking system as it was largely his idea, sending many of his family members to Dragenthal to learn Commerce and assist in his economic dominion. The patriarch has brought his family to the Holy City to establish a more central bank where plenty of wealth resides, which is the current goal of the family.
Kasteel van Allest - Built shortly after the Third Skagger War, this castle was designed with size in mind, that is to say it was built to be massive and to be expanded on throughout the years. Every Count or Countess of the family has added their own addition to the castle, the most recent being a massive underground vault to store the family's newfound wealth. The castle is built on the northern tip of Pol Hullamun, overlooking the sea and the main Polon of the island below, it has the capacity to shelter all of the residents of the island in case of attack.
Bank van Halluman - The (current) central location for the family's many banks across the empire, this is a large stone building with the capacity to store large amounts of wealth within its walls. It's built with thick fortifications that are meant to withstand cannon fire, however it is susceptible to magic which has become a pain for Dirk in recent years, though generally it is one of the safest banks in the world. There's a whole mercenary company under Dirk's command in charge of guarding the wealth inside this bank, and many of the family members partake in the bank in some way. It is located in the main Polon of Pol Hullamun.
House van den Akker is a family emerging from relative obscurity, establishing secure banks across the Empire to accrue wealth and spending that wealth rather lavishly. While there is still a military theme to this House, given that it is Eronidas nobility, business and social role-play is the main focus with combat and CRP being additive. Knights can exist within the family but it is rare, of course I see the benefit of being a knight so I won't remove that avenue entirely for members, but I also want to add an element of independence. If you do wish to play a knight, a Viridian is your best bet.
The House values intelligence above all, with physical strength being a close second. Dirk in particular favors members who are able to exist outside of combat and who help him run his banks, as that is his main passion in life. The overall theme is more of a conservative, pro-emperor, anti-magic loyalist without fully committing to anything, as they are capitalists before anything else, and money is extremely important. The family is anti-magic, but not purist and Dirk could have his mind changed about magic in either direction, though right now he sees it as a criminal undertaking as it has been used to steal from his banks.
The family also encourages investment within the family to diversify what they have their hands in, as Dirk believes a well-diversified portfolio is very important, and he himself is involved in many things. For that reason, the family is really allowed to spend like a noble, though all purchases go through Dirk, who runs all of the family's finances himself, and he does not like when debts are not paid back. In recent years, Dirk has been known to be something of a loan shark, giving high-interest loans to the uneducated while giving the benefit to the peerage as he wants to be friends with them.
Son of Bas van den Akker, the current patriarch of the family. Unmarried though very interested in starting a family, he was the mastermind behind the family's banking system.
Dirk is the only played character at the moment, I am willing to hear out ideas, though he does have eight sisters, three of which can be played but the other five are meant to be NPCs
House van den Akker is open to staff recruitment only at the moment, to apply seek out Dirk IC, you an set up a meeting with me on discord, my username is thutmose.
