The Luxxor Family
The Luxxor Family
The Luxxor family have been prominent nobles in Nalathesh for several generations. They control a small but prosperous stretch of real estate in Nalathesh’s capital, Aridala, and they also maintain a healthy network of international trade.
Unless noted otherwise in their specific entries, the Luxxors bear strong resemblance to one another. They are all humans with dark skin, brown eyes, and black hair. They tend to be on the shorter side and they have firm, heroic facial features.
Mattias and Puri Luxxor maintain the family’s estate and affairs in Aridala, while Mattias’s younger sister Adelaide frequently travels with merchant caravans to Nalathesh’s neighboring nations. Adelaide’s husband, Reza, was a common merchant and took on the Luxxor family name when he married into the family.
Tovarian Doctrine
Erdelan Luxxor and her late husband, Mahdi, privately converted to Tovarianism and worship of the Celestial Council after their prayers to the Celestials were answered with the birth of their twin children, Mattias and Adelaide. Since then, their family has been slowly trying to separate religion and governance in Nalatheshi culture. Because Nalathesh is ruled by a godking, this is a slow and politically fraught process. Mattias and Adelaide remain convinced of their family’s mission. Two of Mattias’s children, Marcus and Reshi, share in this conviction, but Mattias’s eldest son, Lucius, believes that this will spell doom for the Luxxor family.
Tovarianism contains many texts and religious scripts, and is a polytheistic religion that focuses on Tovare and the Celestial Council but acknowledges the existence of other pantheons. At its core, Tovarianism is about investing in the future. An acorn is a commonly used religious symbol, representing how small seeds can develop into grand oaks. Good deeds, nonviolent activism, and forgiveness are often cited as three of the most important “seeds” in this religion, though as in any religion, there are sects and denominations that have other views.
Family Tension
Mattias finds Reza an agreeable enough fellow and likes him personally, but is worried that Reza wants to manipulate Adelaide and use her as leverage to secure more power in the Luxxor house. Adelaide does not believe such claims hold merit, and believes she is clear-eyed enough that she would see if Reza were actually to try any power grabs.
In reality, Reza wants to generate more wealth for all the Luxxor household, believing that a rising tide raises all boats. He holds Mattias in high regard and has no intentions of undermining his brother in law.
Adelaide
Adelaide Luxxor manages the traveling merchant branch of the Luxxors’ family affairs along with her husband Reza, who was wed into the Luxxor family and has a history as an accomplished traveling merchant.. Adelaide is kind and generous with both her time and resources, but she is also pragmatic. If it becomes apparent that someone has been exploiting her family’s resources or profiting from their kindness, she responds with the full force allowed in the Nalatheshi legal system.
Adelaide enjoys her work. From a young age she has shown to be interested in the various different cultures that exist both within Nalathesh and the surrounding nations, which was one of the driving factors for her wanting the family’s trade to cross borders. She is known for her respectful attitude towards other cultures and is quite gifted linguistically. This genuine interest in the nations she trades with makes that other merchants place their trust in her more quickly than they would with most. Adelaide knows this, and has encouraged those who work for her to take time to follow her example, especially because she has drafted up plans to create permanent Luxxor trading posts in some neighboring nations. By creating permanent posts, she hopes to increase awareness of the Luxxor name and steadily build a trading empire. It’s an ambitious plan, but one that is very dear to her.
Company Cover Up
Adelaide handles most of the bookkeeping of the trade and does so with eerie accuracy. Nothing escapes her keen eye, and so she recently discovered that a valuable item went missing from their caravan. She has kept this under wraps, mainly because she is worried that her family, especially Mattias, will point to Reza as the culprit. Reza claims innocence and Adelaide believes him, but it might mean that they have a mole in their company.
Erdelan
Erdelan Luxxor is the eldest living member of the Luxxor family, and has long since ceded management of the noble family’s affairs to her son Mattias and daughter Adelaide. Her hair has gone bleach-white with age, and she has been blind for many years. Despite her age, Erdelan is still very keen, and Mattias and Adelaide often seek their mother’s sage advice. She acts as a matriarch to the family and is treated with respect by all members.
Erdelan and her late husband Mahdi were once the face of the Luxxor family business. Erdelan tended to domestic affairs, like Mattias does now, while Mahdi handled international trade, something that was passed down to Adelaide. Erdelan wed into the Luxxor family, much to the disapproval of her own family, with whom she had always been on rocky terms. After marrying, she cut off contact with them and instead focused on her new life as a Luxxor, a life that treated her with more kindness.
Now slowly heading for the end of her life, Erdelan has little left to wish for. There is only one thing that matters to her, and that is the continuation of the Luxxor family line. She hopes to live long enough to see her grandchildren entering the business as well and has frequently hinted at them that they should show more interest. So far she rests her hope on Lucius, who has already begun to manage some smaller affairs.
Secret Bloodline
Erdelan talks little of her life before she became a Luxxor, and especially avoids discussing her family. When asked why they disapproved of her marriage, she simply explains that they were miserable people who loved nothing more than to undermine her happiness. The real reason, however, is something she will try to take to her grave. Erdelan is the descendant of a man who murdered a Luxxor noble about two centuries ago. While it was never explained to her what exactly the reasoning was, her family has always told her that the Luxxors are up to no good.
Lucius
As the eldest son of Mattias Luxxor, Lucius takes his noble responsibilities very seriously. This often puts him at odds with his more carefree little sister, and while the two fight a lot, they do so out of care for one another. Mattias has entrusted Lucius with managing some of the Luxxors’ affairs in Aridala. Out of the Luxxors, Lucius is the least interested in Tovarian doctrine, believing that it has the potential to undermine their legitimacy with the godking of Nalathesh.
Lucius is very ambitious and has an immense drive to prove himself to his family, in particular his father. He has a very tight-knit bond with his grandmother and frequently visits her, occasionally consulting her wisdom when he is unsure about a decision that has to be made. Lucius has a vague feeling that neither of his siblings are willing to step up and join the business, which is why he puts a lot of pressure on himself to become a worthy successor. He wants to leave the family business better than he found it.
Undermining the Doctrine
Lucius has serious concerns about his family’s belief in the Tovarian doctrine and is of the opinion that it could cause serious harm to their business. That is why he has been trying to undermine efforts of family members to push for this doctrine. Currently, his family is unaware of these efforts, and Lucius knows it is a massive risk that could potentially jeopardize his credibility.
Marcus
The middle child of Mattias and Puri Luxxor, Marcus is also a playable character in the Legends of MythCraft magazine (vol. 1). Only use the following information if he is not one of the heroes being played by a player at your table. Otherwise, allow your player to know all of the information about the other Luxxors except for their secrets.
Marcus is the most vocal among his family about Tovarian doctrine, which is in essence about leaving people and places better than you found them. He travels throughout Nalathesh and beyond looking for adventure and looking for people or situations that need help.
Marcus has abandoned his title as a noble and is often away from his family for long periods of time. While this is difficult for him at times, his drive to make a name for himself is stronger than his familial ties. He does frequently send letters, updating his family on his whereabouts and his adventures. He often explores in the company of folk who do not share his moral scruples, and he has been known to attempt rehabilitating the behavior of such companions.
Spilled Information
During his travels, Marcus has met with people of all kinds of social classes and befriended a handful of them. Some of them are aware of the Luxxor name, others claim to have never heard of such a family. To the latter, Marcus is more lenient with what he does and does not share about his past, but he worries he has made a mistake. One of his friends vanished on him after they spent a night at the tavern together, and Marcus drunkenly revealed some private information concerning his family. He is unsure if this was valuable information but is too embarrassed to warn his family about it.
Mattias
Mattias is the head of all domestic affairs related to the Luxxor family. He manages his family’s estate, tends to business in the capital, and ensures that traders and merchants who work with or for his family are well provided for. Mattias and Puri Luxxor have three children: Lucius, Marcus, and Reshi, in order from eldest to youngest.
Mattias has a rather serious and stern personality, but is a true family man. Despite his busy schedule, he tries to make time for his wife and children, though as his children grew older, it became increasingly difficult to get all of their schedules aligned. Mattias’s greatest desire is to see all of his children involved in the family business; however, he is aware that this will be a difficult thing to achieve. He is always thinking about ways he could get his two youngest children interested in participating.
Concerning Health
Mattias’s job is a stressful one at times, and it has started to cause physical problems - problems that Mattias has decided to ignore and keep hidden. He particularly deals with heart palpitations and headaches, and while Puri is aware of and has expressed concerns about the headaches, Mattias insists that he is fine.
Puri
Puri joined the Luxxor family when she married Mattias. Originally from a merchant family of middling wealth and questionable success, Mattias’s wedding to Puri caused something of a scandal among other Nalatheshi nobles. Although Puri did not initially offer the Luxxors powerful political connections, she has proven a skilled diplomat and she shares the Luxxor family’s conviction about separating the roles of church and state.
Even though she has proven to be a worthy noble and generally fits in with the higher society, there are still many Nalatheshi nobles who give her a side eye. Puri has given up on trying to win their approval and instead focuses on the allies she does have, which are high in numbers. She’s incredibly skilled socially and knows just which buttons to press to get someone on her or the Luxxors’ side, which is perfect for her, as it is her mission to get more people to share the family’s conviction.
Hidden Family
When Puri was younger, one of her sisters went missing and was never found. That was, until a few months ago, when a woman named Larasha approached Puri, claiming to be the missing sibling. Because Larasha is of a lower economic status, Puri was skeptical at first, worrying that this woman simply claimed to be family to get access to her wealth, but after some questioning, Larasha has managed to convince Puri that she is indeed who she says she is. Puri has kept her hidden from the other Luxxors, especially because she helps Larasha financially. She fears that her family will not believe Larasha.
Reshi
The youngest of Mattias’s and Puri’s three children, Reshi has a carefree, sunny personality. She often gets into harmless mischief around the Luxxor estate and occasionally slips out into the markets of Aridala, where she has gotten into significantly more trouble on multiple occasions. Thus far, she has always managed to talk her way out of the messes that she finds herself in, but her parents worry that she doesn’t realize how she may one day find herself in very real danger. Reshi’s charming personality can also come across as naive, and while she always means well it is true that she has no experience with the hardships that many folk suffer on a daily basis.
Reshi often clashes with her older brother Lucius. She thinks he’s too stuck up, he thinks she does not respect her family’s legacy enough, which holds a sense of truth. Reshi is not interested in the family business at all and doesn’t care much for being a noble. If anything, she finds all the etiquette and formalities to be rather boring. On days where she sneaks off to the markets she tries to disguise herself with cloaks or other pieces of fabric, hoping to blend in more. Once she gets in trouble, however, she has no issue using her family name as leverage.
Uncomfortable Pressure
Lately her family, especially her grandmother and father, have been trying to pressure Reshi into showing more interest in the family business. In her response, she claims not to be old enough yet to handle such things, but in reality she doesn’t have the heart to tell them that she’s simply not interested in ever joining the business. On top of that, she met a merchant girl at the markets on whom she has a crush, and the two of them have been fantasizing about running off together once they’re old enough. This is one of the reasons she has slipped out into the market more often, something she is lying about to her parents.
Reza
Reza became part of the Luxxor family when he wed to Adelaide. Reza was already an accomplished traveling merchant, and Adelaide intended to expand the Luxxors’ business dealings to international trade partners, so together the pair quickly compounded the Luxxors’ influence to include portions of Hadla, Falth, Husk, Lesmishan, and of course Bridgemoor.
Reza is kind and earnest, offering his opinion but deferring to Adelaide in matters that directly concern Luxxor wealth and reputation. He knows and respects his place in the family and tries not to overstep any boundaries. Adelaide is the most important person in his life and he treats her like his queen. Just like Adelaide, Reza shows a genuine interest in other cultures and is generally well-liked among his trade partners. He also has a keen eye for what makes something a good trade and is known for taking carefully calculated risks that thus far have proven to be very fruitful.
Reservations
Reza is aware of Adelaide’s plan for permanent trading posts, and while he appreciates her enthusiasm wants nothing more but to generate more wealth for the family, his keen risk assessment has made him believe that this is not a good idea, at least not yet. He has hinted this at Adelaide, but she does not seem to share his reservations. Because Reza wants what is best for the Luxxor household, he has been quietly gathering evidence to support his claim, something he worries Adelaide might get upset about.
Reza has the stats of a Courtier (CC chapter 4) with three ranks in the Nomad profession (choosing the Trader track). He also has a substantial amount of Goodwill (as shown below). Reza is typically protected by at least four ML 2-3 guards, typically Elf Archers or Veteran Soldiers.