The house of transport and transit, Orien is a name known across Khorvaire. No other house directly touches as many lives, whether through the lightning rail that once connected the great cities of the Five Nations, the caravans that traverse rural lands, or the couriers who deliver letters and packages virtually anywhere.

House Orien’s businesses have been pervasive (and profi table) since before the fi rst appearance of the Mark of Passage. However, the Last War took a heavy toll on this house—one from which it has yet to recover. After decades of effort, House Orien had spanned the Five Nations with its lightning rail, but the war and the Day of Mourning shattered the house’s intercontinental links. Today, the organization is bent on recovery, but fresh competition from House Lyrandar and the instability of Khorvaire’s new age are challenges the house has yet to overcome.

Symbol

Pretty straightforward: the Unicorn is a swift land creature, a strong image, and it has the ability to teleport

History

House Orien began as a collection of merchants and teamsters, forming caravans that moved around preGalifar Aundair and beyond. They manifested the Mark of Passage nineteen hundred years ago, enhancing their skills with supernatural abilities that swiftly allowed them to dominate the roads of central Khorvaire. The dragonmarks were a celebrated phenomenon by this point, and the extended Orien family established itself as a dragonmarked house in short order.

In the days before Galifar, few except the couriers and caravans of House Orien could cross the boundaries of nations and the holds of minor warlords in safety. With the help of the Mark of Passage and a knack for diplomacy, it became possible for Orien messengers to send information and packages from one end of Khorvaire to the other, with an excellent probability that the goods would arrive intact and in time. Orien caravans also carried human cargo, and as workers and explorers moved across the continent, the house became one of the primary forces driving the commonality of culture that marks Khorvaire today.

Even as Orien’s mundane transportation services connected the Khorvaire of the common folk, the Mark of Passage provided the house with services so exclusive—and so expensive—that few but kings and queens could afford them. In a united Galifar, nobles who might once have fought each other were forced to curry diplomatic favor and entertain their peers at court. However, the vastness of Khorvaire (not to mention the land’s many dangers) made mundane travel for a royal retinue impractical at best. As such, the teleport ability of the greater Mark of Passage quickly became Orien’s most requested (and most profitable) service. Effortless and instantaneous travel between the courts of Galifar helped establish the foundation of communication and trust among the nobility that allowed the new kingdom to thrive.

As its routes stabilized and Galifar grew, Orien took on a royal commission that seemed like little more than a dream at the time: to connect Galifar’s cities with highspeed transport that would allow travel across the kingdom in a matter of days. In 811 YK, the first lightning rail line was established between Fairhaven and Flamekeep. In 845 YK, King Jarot announced his intention to see the lightning rail connect every corner of Galifar, a task that Orien completed in less than twenty years.

With lines of conductor stones spanning the Five Nations, Orien controlled three crown-subsidized lightning rail routes, all running through the heart of the nation in Cyre. From its humble origins on the trails and trade roads of Aundair, Orien had grown to the house that held a kingdom together.

What Orien had built over a lifetime, the Last War shattered in two terrible events. The first of these was in 899 YK, when the White Arch Bridge across Scions Sound was destroyed, most likely by order of King Kaius I. The bridge, which connected the city of Rekkenmark in Karrnath with Thaliost in Thrane, was an indefensible liability for both nations, but when it fell, Orien’s primary east–west link across Khorvaire fell with it. In the aftermath of the war, many have spoken of the need to rebuild the bridge. However, Orien cannot afford the expense of reconstruction, and Thrane and Karrnath have little reason to want their kingdoms linked across the sound once more.

The second and more devastating loss happened on the Day of Mourning. Orien’s three routes met at Metrol, the crossroads of Khorvaire, which was destroyed in the cataclysm that razed Cyre. Orien still maintains that the Cyre lines are intact, but the house has yet to send a commercial coach into the Mournland. Reports from explorers in that wasted land hint that many conductor stones have been stolen, leaving gaps large enough to derail a coach.

Since the war’s end, Orien has managed to go some distance toward offsetting the loss of its profitable lightning rail runs with its other courier and transport services. At the same time, the viceroys of the house are determined to reclaim their former wealth and status, but they know that doing so will require allies. The Five Nations might never again be one, but the house hopes that the leaders of those nations can be convinced of the need to reforge links to each other’s lands.


ECG

The Mark of Passage appeared in the region of Aundair about 1,900 years ago. The merchants and teamsters who developed the mark were experienced travelers who soon discovered their common bond. Initially, there was some competition between the marked families, but members soon realized what they could accomplish by working together.

Through a combination of magic and diplomacy, House Orien secured safe passage for its caravans. As its fortunes grew, the house improved existing roads and developed new ones. In the days before the Sivis speaking stone network, House Orien ran a post system that was used across the Five Nations.

The lightning rail was developed with House Cannith and the elemental binders of Zilargo. This technology revolutionized House Orien’s business, and soon the Trailblazers were laying conductor stones across Khorvaire.

The Last War: The Last War was difficult for House Orien. Bridges were destroyed. Lightning rail lines were broken. And toward the end of the war, House Lyrandar took to the air. House Orien’s dominance in the field of transportation is no longer assured. With this changing situation in mind, House Orien has redoubled its work with teleportation.

Membership

House Orien employs a number of hirelings, but it is rare that such individuals make the leap to house member. Instead, Orien encourages its heirs to have numerous children, even accepting those born out of wedlock as full scions of the house. This policy has given Orien the largest and most racially varied population of any dragonmarked house in Khorvaire; its members include a number of half-elves. Though such children never manifest the Mark of Passage, they have a home and a future within the house.

House Orien prefers that its members focus on skills and talents useful for day-to-day labor, or ones that enhance the powers granted by their dragonmarks. To that end, members of Orien often become artificers, bards, fi ghters, magewrights, or wizards.

The Brelish poet Kessler once called the lightning rail “the spirit of the age.” If that is true, then House Orien’s position as the keeper of that spirit is one it takes seriously. Orien is (or at least was) the center of travel and transport throughout the Five Nations and across Khorvaire. As such, house heirs can be found posted to nearly every corner of the continent.

House artificers continually work to improve the lightning rail and the arcane enhancements of their caravans, including the magically cooled carts that allow food to be shipped virtually anywhere. Bards are the public face of the house, working as stationmasters, ticket brokers, and couriers. Warriors and fighters often act as security on Orien coaches and caravans. Magewrights work as technicians on coach routes or the lightning rail, while wizards and artifi cers research new vehicle designs, invent new magic items, or seek to enhance the natural abilities provided by the Mark of Passage.

As a member of House Orien, your concerns are your house, your guilds, and your person, in that order. Advancement within the house and the guilds is driven by actions that support the health and growth of Orien. However, it is possible to advance in the house without advancing in a guild, and vice versa.

House Orien emphasizes training future leaders, and if real-world experience or a particular course of study might benefit the house, Orien is usually willing to fund a portion of the expenses. This expenditure of resources is seen as an investment, and it is expected that those receiving such aid will repay the house with time and labor.

As a member of House Orien, you have a mix of economic ambition and social concern. The Transportation Guild is as much a public service as a business in Khorvaire and, as a result, you sometimes fi nd the commercial focus of the other houses undignified or shortsighted. Short-term exigencies might force your hand, but your projects require long-term planning. A certain amount of patience is necessary.

House Orien in the World

House Orien is synonymous with travel across Khorvaire. House Lyrandar commands the air, but their ports of call are limited compared to Orien’s. If travel is important in a campaign, little work needs to be done to bring Orien into it. Whether a journey by caravan or lightning rail is simply a means to get to adventure or an adventure in and of itself, the PCs will become familiar with (if not employed by) House Orien before they reach their destination.

Orien caravans are the cheapest and often most dependable means of travel for adventurers. Even those with the wealth to afford the lightning rail or airship travel soon discover many destinations in Khorvaire that only caravans or coaches can reach.

Though House Orien follows the standard hierarchy of the dragonmarked houses, signifi cant differences exist at the top levels. On the patriarch’s council, each guild has three representatives (two elected by guild members, one appointed by the guildmaster) while the house has another three representatives appointed by the patriarch. Protocol is fi rmly followed at the higher levels. Decisions are rarely made without a quorum present, and a two-thirds majority vote is required for most resolutions. The patriarch almost never makes a decision alone, but presents issues to his council and casts the deciding vote when necessary. It is no surprise, then, that the other houses look at Orien and wonder who is in charge.

Among the middle to lower ranks of the house, the full acceptance of children born out of wedlock (and halfbreed children at that) throws a twist into the traditional dragonmarked sense of aristocracy. Birth order and blood ties to the house are the primary determination of social status. Within the guilds, more upward mobility is possible, since family ties are less important.

The current patriarch of the house is Baron Kwanti d’Orien (CN male human). Though the house enclave in Passage is his primary residence, he spends much of his time on a private lightning rail coach, checking up on enclaves and stations throughout the Five Nations. His current goal is to find a source of income to allow Orien to reroute the broken lightning rail around the Mournland.


NPC Reactions

Thanks to Orien’s part in making travel accessible to the population as a whole, most common folk have an initial attitude of indifferent or friendly to members of the house. Citizens of Passage (where House Orien wields considerable power) have an initial reaction of friendly or helpful. Members of House Vadalis have an initial reaction of friendly to members of House Orien, thanks to the long-standing relationship between their operations.

Holdings

The families that made up House Orien were originally spread across Aundair, but their transformation into a dragonmarked house created the need for a home. They chose a small town that they renamed Passage, building their main enclave and headquarters there. This they called “Journey's Home,” in reference to the amount of time most house heirs would be away from it. Journey’s Home takes up roughly one-third of the modern city of Passage. It employs nearly half the city’s workforce in one capacity or another, with a considerable number devoted to the construction and maintenance of lightning rail carts and caravan wagons. Research into new magical methods of transport and shipping is centered at Journey’s Home, and most spellcasting heirs make their homes there.

All members of House Orien are expected to spend time at Journey’s Home, learning the behind-the-scenes aspects of running the house and guilds as they keep up with the industry Orien has created. Guild hirelings might visit on occasion, but such trips are rare, and usually presage advancement or individual honor.

In addition to Journey’s Home, House Orien keeps enclaves in Sharn, New Cyre, Varna, Korth, Regalport, Krona Peak, Flamekeep, Taer Valaestas, and Trolanport. The house also has outposts and offices in nearly every town on the trade roads and lightning rail routes of the Five Nations and beyond. Most of these offer the services of one or both guilds. Aside from House Vadalis, Orien is the only dragonmarked house to have a signifi cant presence in the Eldeen Reaches.

House Orien maintains a number of lightning rail coaches that act as mobile enclaves for important house members. Used exclusively for house and guild business, these coaches are not held to any timetable, and are given priority on the lightning rail lines over commercial and private coaches alike.

House Orien is one of the most widespread of the houses, with outposts across Khorvaire. It has way stations in many remote villages as well as outposts in the Eldeen Reaches and Droaam. These way stations primarily support the caravans that pass through, but they are also trading posts. The original Orien families were merchants as well as teamsters, after all. Permanent teleportation circles can be found in every major city.

Journey’s Home: House Orien’s base of operations is located in the city of Passage in Aundair. This massive enclave takes up almost a third of the city. Lightning rail coaches, conductor stones, and many other goods are produced here. It is the heart of the house, and all Orien heirs come to Journey’s Home at some point in their lives to learn the ways of the house.

House Orien in the Game

Any campaign that requires travel across the Five Nations is a perfect candidate for the inclusion of House Orien. Unlike other houses with their overarching plots and politics, Orien’s focus is simply getting from point A to point B—preferably with everyone alive, still in possession of what they left home with, and having paid their fares. The challenges involved in maintaining this status quo are sufficient that Orien has little time for intrigue, except when the schemes of others interfere with the house’s plans.

NPCs in House Orien are pragmatic and results oriented. All the lofty intentions in the world amount to nothing if you cannot make the coaches run on time. Orien is a service industry, and its members have mastered the art of keeping a pleasant, calm expression in the midst of chaos. All members of the house are family, regardless of where they come from. Anyone outside the house is a potential customer, and Orien ever forgets that.

Offerings

The Trade Roads: Centuries before the creation of the lightning rail, House Orien built the major trade roads connecting the Five Nations. Rune-carved stones are buried beneath the surface of these roads. Orien’s caravans and the tack of their messengers’ mounts are inscribed with arcane sigils. A bearer of the Mark of Passage can perform a ritual to increase the speed of a caravan or a mount that travels these roads.

The Lightning Rail: Since its creation in 811 YK, the lightning rail has been the symbol of House Orien. Faster than any caravan, it is a safe and secure method for transporting goods and people across Khorvaire. Only a bearer of the Mark of Passage can control the elemental that powers a coach. Many lightning rail lines were damaged during the Last War, and the house is still rebuilding the network.

Teleportation: Orien’s First Step magewrights are the foremost experts on teleportation in the Five Nations. They developed the Linked Portal ritual, and most permanent teleportation circles in Khorvaire are Orien’s. However, teleportation is still a fledgling science, and many people are nervous about using it; a ride on a lightning rail or a Lyrandar elemental airship might take longer, but it is seen as safer.


Teleportation

House Orien maintains an extensive network of permanent teleportation circles in cities throughout the Five Nations. Outside the Five Nations, circles are somewhat less widespread, limited to the larger cities and national capitals. Orien invests heavily in expanding this service, however, and expeditions to remote regions are under way to allow customers to reach even the most far-flung places.

House Orien ensures its control of the portals by locating them inside sprawling stations that feature fine accommodations—rooms, restaurants, shops, and spas—to pamper customers and protect the circles from unauthorized use. For paying customers, Orien heirs perform the Linked Portal ritual, allowing rapid transportation between any two of the house’s established teleportation circles. The house also allows experienced ritual casters to use its teleportation circles as the origin point for their own rituals, which reduces the component cost of the Linked Portal or True Portal rituals as described in the ritual entries in the Player’s Handbook. Realizing that anyone who has access to the Linked Portal ritual could use them, however, the house closely guards the sigil sequence associated with each one.


Coaches and Caravans

Transportation by House Orien coach or caravan is a great way to cross vast distances without attracting attention. Most caravans consist of long trains of horse- and ox-drawn carts and wagons, burdened pack animals, and their handlers. One doesn’t hire a caravan as much as one pays to accompany a caravan to its destination. Caravan masters usually waive the fee for adventurers who offer their services as guards.

Orien coaches follow scheduled routes within a city or to one of its outlying settlements. Travelers can charter a House Orien coach to other destinations, but a much more economical choice is to book passage on the mail coaches as they make their circuit among the major trade stops in the region.

A typical House Orien coach is an enclosed wagon divided into two compartments, one for the crew and the other for passengers or cargo, drawn by four sturdy horses. Cushioned benches accommodate up to twelve passengers. The coach has a crew of two—a driver and a porter who doubles as a bodyguard.


The Lightning Rail

The kingdom of Galifar commissioned House Cannith and House Orien to construct a means of rapid transportation across the nation. The objective was to expedite the movement of soldiers, goods, and people while avoiding the troubles that plague slow-moving caravans. Each house contributed to the creation of the lightning rail, but it never could have existed without House Cannith’s conductor stones.

These large, glowing orbs are inert in isolation. However, when placed in a row, they define a pathway of magical energy. Conductor stones are installed on the underside of specially constructed wagons, coaches, and other vehicles. When vehicles so equipped are placed over a preconstructed pathway, the conductor stones on the ground gently and precisely repel the stones on the coach, causing it to float. This phenomenon creates an effectively frictionless mode of travel, allowing the vehicle to move far faster than by mundane means. Conductor stones do not, however, provide propulsion. House Orien and the Zilargo gnomes solved that problem by binding an elemental spirit to a land cart. Combining elemental-bound coaches with long lines of passenger carts, cargo boxes, and other container vehicles gave birth to the lightning rail, so named because a train’s movement across the pathway of conductor stones generates bright displays of sparks.

The lightning rail survives still, and remains as fast as in the past, but the network does have limits. The century-long conflict prevented House Orien from expanding the lines beyond the Five Nations, and transport between the former enemy nations was heavily restricted. Thus, current lightning rail destinations are largely limited to locations within the Five Nations, with a few stops in Zilargo, the Mror Holds, and the Talenta Plains. Now that the war is over, House Orien has begun the process of expanding the lines. It is actively recruiting labor from local nations in order to carve routes to new lands.

Accomodations

Lightning rail passengers choose from three levels of accommodation. Most riders travel in standard class, getting a seat, modest meals, and a bunk in a sleeper cart. The poor (or thrifty) are relegated to steerage class, where an uncomfortable bench is the extent of the amenities offered. Those who have style and coin can opt for first class, enjoying cushioned couches, full-sized beds, fine meals, and attendants to see to every need. The wealthiest travel in their own carts, which they link to the rail for a steep fee.

About a third of every lightning rail train consists of cargo carts used to ship livestock, dry goods, and other materials. Passage in a cargo cart is strictly forbidden, but it happens from time to time. A subclass of people who have no place to go find homes nestled between the sacks and crates of these carts.

Adventure Hooks

  • A group of bandits is terrorizing the coaches that run out of Starilaskur in Breland, specifically those that run past the Dragon’s Crown down to Sharn and also through Sterngate into Zilargo. The local Breland authorities have had no luck finding the raiders, so House Orien is offering a reward of 1000 gold or free lightning rail travel for a year for any group who can find and capture the bandits. The locals seem determined to protect these individuals, though: is it fear or affection that keeps them quiet?

  • While the PCs are traveling, they find a stowaway in their bunk. The young girl is obviously a runaway, around 13 years old, wearing boys’ clothes and with her hair chopped off at odd angles in what passed for a disguise. She gives her name as Mara and begs for their help in getting to Sharn, saying that she’s desperate to reach her ailing father there. What she doesn’t tell them is that her real name is Austasia Wreyna Dimara ir’Wynarn, Princess of Aundair and niece to Queen Aurala ir'Wynarn. Dimara is fed up with life at Fairhaven and wants to become an explorer, but neither her father nor aunt have any intention of allowing this to happen—especially at her age. They’ve discovered that she’s missing and raised an alarm. Will the characters discern the truth in time, or take the fall for kidnapping a royal of the ir’Wynarn line?

  • The PCs are contracted by House Sivis to guard Zellwether d’Sivis, a gnome from Korranberg as he travels via lightning rail to Fairhaven on house business. Zellwether has a private cart at his disposal and very little inclination to roam, so it seems as though it will be an easy task. Zellwether has a secret, however: he is working with Prince Adal of Aundair to frame the queen’s consort, Sivis, and drive him out of court. When assassins attack the cart en route, the characters must defend him if they can, at least until they find out the truth.

Guilds

The day-to-day issues of coordinating lightning rail traffic, hiring and paying caravan crews, and overseeing the movement of goods and passengers are handled by the Couriers Guild and the Transportation Guild. The house acts as a managing company, keeping its share of the profits and overseeing the guilds’ decision-making processes. Most members of House Orien work for one guild or the other. Nonguild members of the house typically deal with the other houses or the governments of Khorvaire.