Houses

The Great Houses of the Warrior's of Æsir are a recruitment-based lineage system used as a central aspect of WA and its culture. The Houses generally go back to an original member; all House founders were direct recruits of Lord Dane the Proud, who went on to form powerful lineages that were eventually recognized as Houses. Although House founders, such as Saint Dippity Dog and Cammander the Black-Saint, were both recruited as early as 2001, it wasn't until 2005 that the recruitment lineages they had left behind were finally organized into Houses. Except in rare circumstances, House membership is permanent. A Warrior of Æsir will always belong to the House of their recruiter.

Early House Experiments
Although the current House system was first organized in the year 2005, there were earlier attempts to create Houses.

Hope's Last Stand
The first attempt was in the original Hope's Last Stand, where the clan itself was divided into Houses instead of Divisions. The primary Division of Hopes Last Stand was known as Lotlh and it's most famous Lord was Saint Sanctifico the Conqueror. This system was only loosely concerned with recruitment lineages, and people could transfer Houses with ease. These early Houses also had two separate Tribes within them, each led by a Chieftain. This version of the House system was abandoned when Hopes Last Stand was also abandoned.

Pre-Imperial Houses
Later on in 2003, the first attempt at organizing Houses was made in StarCraft. These Houses again were not entirely like the current House system WA employs. Again, the recruitment lineage aspect of Houses had yet to be fully developed and instead Houses operated more as independent clans. Each House was given its own channel, and a senior member was made House Lord or Lady. There was also a special House-less "House" that lacked its own channel and would instead operate everywhere and nowhere. Splitting WA up into 3-4 different channels turned out to be a disaster. Two years would pass before the Warrior's of Æsir would try their hand at establishing Houses again.

Modern Houses
When the Warrior's of Æsir transitioned from a Fleet to an Empire in 2005, Houses were finally brought back into the forefront of WA's structure.

1st Imperial Era
With extensive aid of Skaldi The Kin-Slayer, Emperor Dane the Proud started a genealogical information-gathering campaign that would last for months. Old profiles were dug up, old members were questioned and slowly a lineage chart began to form. From four to five years of recruiting, lineages were unearthed and specific bloodlines became apparent. From this initial survey, the original Great Houses were created. At the time, only Houses Dane, Dippity and Cammander could be reliably traced all the way back to the Emperor. Whereas, Houses Blitzkrieg and Thief stopped at genealogical dead-ends.
 * House Dane
 * House Dippity
 * House Cammander
 * House Blitzkrieg
 * House Thief

In this early period of our present organizations, the only solid ranks that existed within the House organization was Lord and Knight. It was a difficult transition and while there was genuine interest by many members in the genealogy itself, few were actually interest in the Houses themselves. Houses Cammander and Thief showed the most interest in their new identities, both becoming the early powerful Houses. When the first House Wars came around, it was House Cammander that became champion and was awarded the Duchy of Kilroy. This success led the way for House utility and awareness. House Cammander's private House forum was the most used out of WA. Their members generated the most House based media, such as creating new Coat of Arms for House Cammander and Duchy Kilroy. House Thief's success on East Battle.net would cause large feelings of loyalty to House Thief, more than to the Warrior's of Æsir.

As the Imperial Era wore on, Duchy Kilroy would eventually gain the status of Great House, and become House Kilroy. The two Great Houses Cammander and Thief would lose their preeminence as rebellions from their members would lacerate the veins of their lineage. However, as they fell, two new powerful Families would emerge, the Scyldings of House Dane and the Kviglings of House Kilroy. Each of these Families played important roles in the waning months and weeks of the Empire. Perhaps most importantly of them all, Prince Raudsigr Varrling of House Dippity became the first Knight to complete the Ritual, thus laying down the foundation for a new caliber of Knights.

The Empire fell in 2008, and despite many attempts to legitimize and flesh out the roles of the Great Houses, they remained a work in progress.

3rd Fleet Era
While Houses continued to exist and be an important part of many Einherjar's experiences, the concept as a whole was put on the back burner for much of the existence of the 3rd Fleet. Due to political leanings of the Council, the Houses were not seen as a priority. Still, small scale projects and studies were conducted this time, and more Einherjar were Knighted. House Kilroy made large in-roads in the game EVE Online, while Great Houses Dane and Dippity had short-lived successes in World of Warcraft.

2nd Imperial Era
In the 2nd Imperial Era, Houses were finally given more power and definition. Platoons and Divisions were created with the sole purpose to support Houses, and Knight responsibilities were expanded. Furthermore, after more time of searching the past, enough evidence was acclimated to trace the origins of the Great Houses, Blitzkrieg and Thief. Their previously dead-end lineages were revealed to originate from Great House Cammander. These two dying Houses though, were subsequently merged into Great House Cammander as Minor Houses.

Understanding Houses
Currently, there are three Great Houses of WA. Each House represents a unique recruitment branch that can be followed back to an original recruit of the Emperor. Most Houses break into many smaller lineages, these branches are known as Families or Earldoms.

Families | Earldoms
Small, specific branches in a House are called Families, or Earldoms, and are usually led by an Earl. These families are still completely part of their parent House, but often have their own special identities and quirks. They are allowed to create a semi-unique Coat of Arms, color and motto for themselves, so long as they maintain certain themes of their House.

Minor Houses | Duchies
A rare occurrence in WA, should a large enough clan join WA with strong group cohesion, they can, in special circumstances, be made a Minor House or Duchy. A Minor House cannot be independent and is attached to a larger Great House. Which Great House acquires a Minor House is based on the recruiter or the outcome of a House War. The leader of the Duchy, almost always the previous leader of the Clan that joined WA, is given the title of Duke. Minor Houses are can have up to 2 Earldoms, and Earls. A Duke has authority over his Earls and can be granted authority over the other Earls in the Great House if the Lord of that House finds it prudent. Duchies are generally created with the hope that once they stabilize themselves and gain a strong identity within the Empire that they will form into a Great House their own.

Coat of Arms
Each Great House has it's own unique Coat of Arms. This Coat of Arms, or CoA, is used to represent the House graphically in all related matters. A House CoA has images and symbols that are very meaningful for its House. A Coat of Arms will usually include House Colors, Motto, and related imagery. Families can create their own Coat of Arms as well, but these generally must have similar patterns to their House's Coat of Arms.

Recruitment Lineage
The revolutionary mechanism behind our current House system is that of the recruitment lineage. The idea that the person who recruited you is your progenitor, and the people you recruit are you successors. Since the person who recruited you will never be a different person, you will never be able to be in a different House. Your lineage is locked. Even if you leave the clan and return years later, your lineage is counted for your initial recruiter.