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House Lannister
- 141AL: Present Day, Lord Emmon rules from Casterly Rock
- 140AL: Lord Emmon inherits Casterly Rock upon Lord Byren's death and weds Sybelle Tarbeck
- 135AL: Serra Lannister dies
- 131AL: End of the Dance of the Dragons; Lord Emmon appointed as heir to Casterly Rock
- 129AL: Beginning of the Dance of the Dragons; Lannisters side with Aegon II
- 121AL: Tyta, cousin to Lord Byren, is captured in a Ironborn raid; retribution is unattainable
- 112AL-117AL: Emmon's three legitimate daughters and one bastard son are born
- 111AL: Emmon weds Serra
- 107AL: Lord Byren inherits Casterly Rock
- 89AL: Emmon born
- 64AL: Lord Byren Lannister born
The Westerlands commands slightly more troops than places like the Riverlands or the Vale. It is estimated that the entirety of the Westerlands can bring in 50,000 soldiers when all the banners are raised, but this includes the greenest boys, and leaves many castle garrisons desperately weak. The Lannister wealth allows them to command the second strongest land force, in large part because it allows them to field a tremendous mounted force compared to infantry, perhaps as good as 2 to 1. The pikemen of the City Watch in Lannisport are known to be well trained, perhaps the most disciplined feudal foot levy in the Seven Kingdoms. The Lannisters also have a fairly significant naval strength. The Lannisters have 20 or 30 cogs, carracks, galleys, and dromonds at Lannisport, and can call upon their bannermen to fill out their fleets. Each minor coastal house likely has two or three ships to patrol their waters. In total, the Westerland navy is probably close to 50 or 60 large ships, leaving their longships for coastal defence.
House Lannister retains its collective pride and wealth; however, in recent years it has entered a state of political instability. Lord Byren was the last of his direct line. He had two sons, the younger was lost in a devastating battle of the Dance with the Dragons. His eldest and heir passed from an illness that also claimed the mother just a year later. The next closest relative to inherit was Lord Emmon Lannister of Lannisport-a man who's blood connection could only be described as a cousin of some degree. Regardless of this fact, inheritance was passed to Emmon Lannister who inherited just a year past. Lord Emmon had proved to be a man of financial finesse, if also a distant Lord. His rule of Lannisport left the city sitting strongly even after the civil war that threatened to pull the kingdoms apart. Taking Casterly Rock, the lords of the Westerlands held their breath, but as of yet, he has proven to provide stability as well as a viable heir once he has passed. The Lords of the Westerlands have not completely unified around the new Lord Lannister. Trouble brews beneath a golden facade.
Lord Emmon Lannister-52
Sybelle (Tarbeck) Lannister-22
Geremy Lannister-5 months
Children by Emmon's first wife (deceased), Serra (Tarly) Lannister
Jyanna-28: Wed twice to the Tully's, both husbands deceased, one daughter from the second marriage.
Elenya-25
Tyana-23
Emmon Lannister, Lord of Casterly Rock, Shield of Lannisport, Warden of the West
Personality:
Distant towards even his own family, a result of this tends to be that others find him more calculating than he actually is. The Lannister name, especially now that he has risen to Lord of Casterly Rock, is a heavy weight about his neck for he has always felt as if he had much to live up to. He never feels as if anything he has done has been enough. As such, while not depressed, Emmon is a somber man. Nor though, is he prudish or an abstainer. Emmon knows the result of drinking too much and does so as often as any given Lord, but he will not be the one boisterously singing when in the cups.
His driving force, in everything he has done, has been to further the Lannister name, particularly following the aftermath of the Dance with the Dragons. While not exceptionally ruthless, neither is he fully honorable.
History:
The eldest of a large family from a large generation before him, Emmon was the oldest of his parents' six children. His three brothers and two sisters were all of similar age, and for much of his childhood he had both friend's and enemies in those of his blood. With so many children, only Emmon's life was one of security. He would follow his father as Lord of Lannisport and ensure the city continued to thrive for their distant cousins in Casterly Rock. The connections forged between Lannister clans had ensured good marriages and favor bestowed upon Emmon's family in recent years and Emmon was trained to continue that tradition.
His younger brother by only a year, Alton, was sent to the Citadel at a young age. Though their father would have liked to have Alton return to serve them as Maester, upon completion of his study, the man was sent to serve in the Reach. Disgrace and scandal struck when Preston, the second youngest son, abandoned his training as a squire and fled on a disreputable ship to Braavos. Emmon had not yet seen his sixteenth name-day when it was announced to him that Preston was to be treated as dead by the family. Much weight then was put on the youngest son and child, Redwin. Emmon, nine years older, spent a good deal of time with the boy. It was his introduction to fatherhood in a way, and while he took his role seriously, he did not find it enjoyable. Redwin donned the robes of a priest eventually after many years of philandering and drinking. Nearly losing his life to a blacksmith in a backward village's inn seemed enough of a wake up call to not bring more dishonor to his family. It is also whispered that Emmon threatened his brother with a fate far worse if he didn't find something respectable to do.
Emmon himself however, was an exemplary son. He did well in his studies, did not spread his seed far and wide as young men often do. He married a sweet and young Tarly girl at 23 with a child conceived their first year of marriage. Two more daughters followed in the next five years.
Emmon became disturbed by his lack of a son and heir. His despair landed him with an infant the following year. A healthy baby boy he admitted to the family was his bastard. Though he had not intended on having anything to do with the child, the mother had died in childbirth. He did not share the mother's identity or why he had bothered to follow the circumstances of the woman. He was not so cruel as to raise the boy in his own home, but sent him instead to be raised by his uncle. He did however, watch from afar the boy's childhood and youth.
Over the course of the next decade, Serra suffered two miscarriages before her final pregnancy ended with a stillborn son. Though still young enough to biologically grow with child, she never became pregnant again. The effects of Emmon's visible affair took a toll on her and their marriage. The couple rarely shared the same bed, and with each child lost, Serra became more frail. Losing the only son she had carried to term seemed a dagger to her soul. Emmon could not handle her grief and distanced himself nearly completely from wife and daughters. Their care was left to the septas and maester who served the household as Emmon focused himself entirely on Lannisport. Serra's later death came after years of seclusion from husband, family, and realm.
Widowed at 46 and having been informed of his standing as heir to Casterly Rock, it was expected that Emmon remarry. He still lacked a legitimate son and was young enough himself to court another wife. Emmon, however, took his time in selecting his next wife. Though by this point he spent much of his time in Casterly Rock, leaving the day-to-day running of Lannisport to his Maester and bastard son, Matthar.
With Lord Byren's advancing age, several lords sought to secure their futures to Emmon's via marriage. The same year that Byren died, Emmon chose his wife from a prominent family. The Lady Sybelle Tarbeck was only 21 and quickly gave him a son. Since the birth of a healthy son, Emmon has spent little time with his new wife, and the time spent is largely only long enough to try and get a second son on her. His trips carry him through the Westerlands in an ongoing campaign to solidify his position as Lord Lannister. He brings his bastard with him on these trips, much to the chagrin of his wife and lords of the kingdom.
Lady Sybelle Lannister (Tarbeck)
Personality:
Innocent and naive but also lonely and resentful. Her overt naivete is often mistaken for coquettishness. She is unhappily married to Emmon though she knows the importance of the union for her family. She believes her affair with Matthar to be true love, and is quite jealous of his affections.
History:
Raised like many daughters in Westeros; that is, to be a good wife for the man she would eventually marry. Sybelle was only a child when open war broke out, though she was sheltered from the worst of it. The war however, did provide ample opportunity for the Tarbecks. Without an heir, and Lord Byren's appointment of Lord Emmon, Sybelle was groomed to become the man's wife. It seemed unlikely at the time, that she would reach a suitable age before he would choose a wife, and as Sybelle had seen the man, she was pleased with that assumption. Lord Emmon was more than old enough to be her father after all.
That hope turned to despair as she grew into her womanhood and her parents still did not pursue other men for her. Lord Emmon was yet unmarried and years of anxiety culminated within the past year when she received word that he had in fact chosen her. She understood the reasoning, her House was powerful and wealthy. Yet she couldn't understand why she, over so many other women, had been chosen at last.
She entered the marriage reluctantly, but performed her duties as needed. Her son's birth gave her some small comfort, as did Emmon's increasing distance. This did, however, leave her feeling even lonelier.
The first time she set eyes on Matthar, she thought she knew what love was, or could be. Their courtship, if it could be called that, escalated quickly. The usually quiet and shy Sybelle felt emboldened, and in combination with what was perceived as a coy act, she found herself seeking him out whenever she could. Knowing it was wrong, but feeling powerless to withdraw from the man, they consummated their relationship soon after she wed Emmon.
Matthar Hill
Personality:
Laid back and easily personable. Roguish with a touch of deviancy. Matthar at times lives up to his name as a bastard while at times can give an air of grace and nobility that make those he is with question his birth. He uses his charm on women and men and is quite proficient at getting what he wants which is often as simple as a mug of ale and a warm body in his bed. He knows he is lucky to hold his position in the Lannister family, but he also knows he is there only because of his blood and not because of his skill. Before coming back to his father's household he had few worries. The past few years have changed this outlook on life, as has his torrid relationship with his father's new wife. While he still portrays an air of carefree youthfulness, new worries have begun to set root.
History:
Raised by Lord Emmon's uncle, Osmond. Osmond, the youngest son of his generation, married a wealthy merchant's daughter. Although with no noble name, he was guaranteed a wealthy life and was a better fate than could have awaited a son so far from a chance of inheriting. It was also a life far safer than that of a hedge knight. As a result, Matthar grew up in the man's growing family. Of an age with the merchant Lannister's grandsons, he knew a comfortable enough life and learned the trade of his adopted family.
Matthar was rarely made to feel unwanted or unloved. His father was not often present, but he did know the man and knew that the Lord of Lannisport claimed him as a son. There were few hard feelings particularly given that the Lord saw fit to making sure Matthar stayed out of trouble, at least publicly. As a young adolescent Matthar, like many, was prone to over drinking and general debauchery. He considered it a blessing to his father that that was the only trouble he got himself into.
Following Osmond's death and his son Devan's inheritance of the business, matters for Matthar became more complicated. Although it had never been openly discussed, Devan did not care for being his cousin's bastard's watcher. Even if that cousin was the lord of the city. With his father taken by the Stranger, and no one to defend Osmond's unusual care for the bastard, Matthar found himself suddenly unwelcome. Having recently reached adulthood, he also found himself without a home or business.
With a mental shrug, he sent himself to the Lannister's hold in the city. To say his father's people were put off was an understatement, however, he was quietly given a place within the house guards. It seemed no one wanted to remind the despondent Lord that his bastard son had taken up residence. When Emmon finally did notice, he welcomed his son into matters of family and house. Matthar assumed it was because even as a bastard, he was his father's only son. There was a chance to be recognized as a legitimate heir, but found he did not want the titles and responsibilities that came with such things. He was pleased when his father remarried. He was pleased, albeit shocked, when his father's wife began seducing him.
Matthar never uttered a complaint, even at being away from the woman he had taken as a lover. Sybelle was not the only woman-or man for that matter-to share his bed, though he takes care to hide his other lovers from her knowledge. He also doesn't complain or mind when his father has him along to visit the various lords and keeps of Lannister lands. His silver tongue aids his father and always provides new grounds for conquest.
Tyana Lannister
Personality:
Tyana is a woman grown who shares little love for her father or bastard brother. Raised first by her mother but more so by her sisters and septas. She bears the burden, more so than her sisters, of losing her mother to the woman's grief over not producing an heir and the added insult of Matthar's life. She spent much of her life surrounded by women who were raised to be proper ladies, and as such, has become a proper albeit angry, lady herself. She hides the anger, resentment, and pain beneath layers of beauty and calm. She is disillusioned with her place in family and society however. She sees her bastard brother occupying a place in her father's heart she could never fill and has seen her hopes of marrying a kind Florent man dashed by his untimely death. She is as pious as polite society requires, but again, her piety has done little to erode the years of hatred built up. Tyana is a quiet and contemplative woman having learned at an early age that outbursts only earn her scorn. Instead, she buries her feelings and guards her heart closely.
History:
The youngest trueborn child of Emmon and Serra, she grew up with few memories of her father or mother. Her father spent little time with any of his children, and her mother was deep into despair by the time Tyana was old enough to retain memories of the woman. Instead, she was close with her sisters, Jyana and Elenya, as well as the septas who taught and trained her. She had as good a youth as any of her peerage, but a young girl wants for her parents and their affection, and in this she was left with a large void. She rarely left Lannisport, having no brothers to compete in a tourney and a father who was always more financially m inded than martial, she spent nearly all her life behind the walls of their keep.
Her sisters filled this void until they were quickly wed upon their blooming into womanhood. She lost Jyana first and then a few years later, Elenya. They were her closest friends and mother figures. Tyana started to become withdrawn, until she too was offered in marriage to a young Florent man, pretty and charming. Her sixteen year old heart thought itself in love and a wedding was planned for the following year. Word was recieved just a few months later that Terrynce had died in a hunt. A tragic accident they said. She was crushed and pulled back into herself. Tyana was alone and felt little hope of any escape. She assumed she would be betrothed once more, but left no room in her heart for hope that love had anything to do with it, or that anyone would save her.
Years slipped by without any sort of interest. Her father it seemed, had discovered her natural born brother in his household. Her despondency had a cause now, one she could see and know and come to blame. With her father's elevation to Lord of Casterly Rock, Tyana rebelled and stayed in Lannisport with the cousin her father had left to oversee the city's day-to-day.
*Beric, Garlan, and Normund Lannister, cousins and knights
*Steffon and Donnel Tarbeck, knights
*Robert Reyne, squire to Beric Lannister
*Little Joss, master-at-arms and smaller than only his father
*Maesters Oswell [Lannisport] and Raynard [Casterly Rock]
*Jyck "Gristle" Hill, Captain of the Lannisport City Watch
*Lord Rupert Brax, Steward of Casterly Rock
*Ser Jon Westerling, Casterly Rock Castellan
Originally Posted by Commander Kalic
