The House Holdings

[Jago]

*The Ruling Families, as well as the many other Houses of the Chiss, have extensive holdings with Csalpar. These may amount to nothing more than a local building and a handful of their Household Phalanx to represent their presence, but may amount to sprawling districts within the Capital City, encompassing vast swathes of territory that are flush with the House's colors and sigils.

Each House has the permission of the Ascendancy to operate almost autonomously. The only cases in which a House may be infringed upon by another is in matters that affect a Family's livelihood or if the Ascendancy itself would either benefit or come under harm. Because of this, there are many spies throughout every House, each seeking information, blackmail, and weaknesses that can be exploited so that direct force never comes into play. The Families play a dangerous game of politics, all of it under the motive of furthering the Ascendancy.

The most prominent Houses in Csalpar (and indeed in the entire Ascendancy) are the Ruling Houses of Csalpa, Nuruodo, Irokini, and Sabosen, as these make up the current Council of Families. They occupy the most territory within Csalpar and can, as a general rule, get most other Families to see their side of things with little need for politicking. Though neither House is more powerful than the other at the top, it could be argued that House Csalpa clearly has an advantage, as they are responsible for the redistribution of the limited resources Csilla produces and imports.

Access to House Territory is a matter for the House itself to decide individually - the Ascendancy cannot force a House to accept someone within its sphere of influence unless the State needs it to be so. Even then, the House can usually expect some measure of penance or a favor in return for such transgressions. It is in this way that Chiss society functions, where even long dead and forgotten Families continue on within the current Houses - absorbed, but not lost in their lineage.

Outsiders must be wary when dealing with the Families of the Chiss - the inhabitants of Csilla are quite familiar with their political games and maneuvering, but those ignorant of their society and culture can quickly become pawns or liabilities merely to advance the status of a certain Household.*