Ich Dynasty

The Ich Dynasty is the ruling family of the New Sammichian Empire. In addition to the modern-day Empire, the dynasty also produced monarchs for the Kingdom of Fulfwotz and even the ancient power of Xamichia. It is currently the most well-known, longest-surviving, and largest dynasty in the Shire. Over a dozen independent monarchies can claim distant relation to the influential family. It has ruled for well over two millennia, with relatively-brief periods of having been dethroned. The current Ich dynast is Emperor Sammus Mephistes Inigmax vos Ich II. The family's current seat is at Castle Mugg in Fulfwotz, with its ancestral seat at Niflheim Palace.

The Ichs take their name from Ichira, a province in Xamichia of which they were appointed the governors (or Praetorae) by Emperor Allexedes III of the Telsid Dynasty in the sixth century PRY. The first Ich praetorus was Callistes vos Ichira, commonly hailed as the legendary founder of the dynasty. Through a series of increasingly-convoluted political alliances and schemes, the Vos Ichira family was able to increase their standing and eventually overthrow the Telsid Dynasty, which had been impaired thanks to centuries of inbreeding. In 477 PRY, Thressindes vos Ichira became Emperor of Xamichia. The family's last name was changed soon after, following a rebellion and the razing of Ichira (which was in turn renamed the Niphuline). It was simply shortened to Ich, explaining the unusual nature of the name in Thrennexian conventions.

The Ich Dynasty, despite overseeing Xamichia at its greatest territorial extent as well as during the Mandatux Impiratia period of expansion, were instrumental in its downfall. It was under them that the Xamichine capital of Sarrimus slowly deteriorated and Fulfwotz became the de facto political center of the empire. Notorious Ich hot-headedness and hostility provoked other nations of the Shire who began picking at the massive dominion's borders. The state was threatened by rebellion in dozens of its provinces. In an effort to salvage what she could, Empress Flux dissolved Xamichia in 58 PRY, making the Ich Dynasty the rulers of an independent Fulfwotz. They would rule the Kingdom for nearly two-thousand years until they were deposed following the Revolution of 1681, only to regain power once again in the 1780s. After ruling as Kings and Queens for centuries, then-King Sammus M.I.v. Ich II crowned himself Emperor with the formation of the New Sammichian Empire in 1930.

The Ich family possesses cultural and political influence unrivaled by any other royal family in the world; throughout its lifespan, it has amassed thousands of priceless artifacts as well as an enormous fortune. It is unknown the extent of their wealth, but it is often hypothesized that the Ich Dynasty is the wealthiest family in the world. Their various Imperial Estates across the Shire, the majority of which are privately-owned by the family, retain a combined value of approximately $27 billion in their own right. The family is highly secretive about their affairs, so much about their personal assets remains unknown.

Imperial Estates

Castle Mugg

Castle Mugg is the official residence of Emperor Sammus and all Fulfwotzian monarchs. It is located on an island in Enderfulf Bay, right off the coast of Fulfwotz.

The island was originally the site of a trade depot prior to the hostile Xamichine takeover of Urite-controlled Fulwojka. After the Xamichine annexation of the region, Empress Phaxina I commissioned the construction of a fortress in 99 PRY on the island where she would not be bothered by the sounds emanating from the colony's gold mines while visiting. Initially a square stone keep, the castle was continually expanded as Empress Phaxina spent more time in Fulfwotz. Originally nameless, Phaxina named the fortress Castiliae se Magra after her father, Emperor Magradax.

In the latter days of both her reign and Xamichia itself, Phaxina was residing at Castiliae se Magra year-round and neglected the former imperial capital of Sarrimus. By the time the empire collapsed following the Great Epiphany of 58 PRY, the Ich Dynasty had already taken up permanent residence in Fulfwotz and Castiliae se Magra became the political center of the new Kingdom. As such, the castle was frequented by petitioners and foreign dignitaries. Each successive monarch took it upon themselves to add on to the structure, constructing towers, walls, fortifications, and entire wings.

Villa se Vespania

The iconic Villa se Vespania (translating literally to Vespania's Villa) is the summer palace of the Ich family, located just outside of the village of Ville-de-Vespanne.

The palace was originally the site of a small manor house constructed in 1601, where Queen Cephula had confined her brother Prince Thediapus in the midst of his descent into madness. After his suicide in 1616, it was abandoned while the village of Ville-de-Fleuve was established nearby by the now-jobless former attendants of the estate. It would remain so for over a century until the exile of the Ich Dynasty during the Chancelleric Interregnum. Around 1766, the young Princess Vespania VII (who would soon become Queen of the New Chancelleric Kingdom of Fulfwotz) was diagnosed with Telsid Syndrome, a severe childhood vitamin deficiency-related disease which can be fatal if left untreated. The family's physicians advised a warm, sunny climate to alleviate her symptoms; her mother Princess Amphurna V managed to recover the deed to the land where the ruins of Thediapus' manor stood. The dynastic fortune supplied more than enough funds for the construction of a grander estate; construction commenced in 1767, and Amphurna provided every possible comfort for her daughter. On the property was a small mansion made of marble and yellow sunstone, an enormous garden filled with fountains and reflecting pools, an orangery, and a large greenhouse filled with exotic plants and animals. During Vespania's subsequent reign as Queen, the estate became her favored residence as she often split her time evenly between Fulfwotz and the villa. She initiated a large expansion of the structure in 1811, adding the massive Vasenian and Spiricine wings as well as the large Court of Triumph, transforming it into a fully-fledged palace and the largest of the Ich Dynasty's homes.

Unfortunately, this project eventually became one of the main grievances of the Broken Crown group, who accused the restored monarchy of using state funds to build its lavish palace; in reality, however, the entirety of it was funded by the dynastic fortune. Queen Vespania was tragically assassinated by the Broken Crown in 1817. The palace she so adored became her final resting place as her son King Spiricus built her funerary arch in the palace gardens.

After Vespania's death, the palace continued to be used by Spiricus, yet it underwent a period of neglect during the reign of King Phemenses III who preferred spending his time in Fulfwotz where he could be better exert his influence over the Kingdom's government. It is likely that Phemenses would have taken its caretakers and servants off of the government payroll and allow the palace to deteriorate were it not for the fact that it was the final resting place of his ancestor. Phemenses only visited the residence twice during the entirety of his reign. After his reclusive and hedonistic son King Drefnex eloped with the heiress Cassiopeia Viltvogel in 1900, he absconded to the Villa and resided there for three years until King Sammus II was crowned in 1903. Sammus evicted his father and his wife from the palace, and used the complex to entertain the Kingdom's elite with symphonies, balls, and garden parties. As the Great War mounted, Sammus spent more time away from the Villa. The palace remained relatively untouched by conflict, and King Sammus took advantage of this by sending his brother Prince Matares to the safety of the Villa in order to protect him from the strategic bombing being inflicted upon Fulfwotz. He remained there for several months until the capture of Ville-de-Vespanne by Liberator forces. Matares was placed under house arrest in the palace's Vasenian Wing, while the rest of the complex was requisitioned as a hospital in 1928.

Today, the Villa se Vespania is one of the grandest homes in the Shire and is still privately-owned through the Dynastic Trust. Emperor Sammus still visits the palace regularly, spending the month of June in Ville-de-Vespanne. The palace grounds and portions of its interior are open to the public for the majority of the year while the Emperor is not in residence. The Fulfwotz Philharmonic Orchestra hosts their annual Summer Symphony in the Grand Ballroom every July. In 2015, the palace was placed on real estate website HomeHunt for an asking price of $25,000 as part of an April Fools' joke.