Main > Compendia > Factions > Great Houses of Mercatia > House Cassavar

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Name Origin: Imperial (Latin-influenced) — from cassus (hollow) and avarus (greedy).
Industry: Banking, credit, and high finance. Owns debt on more than half of Mercatia’s merchant companies.
History: One of the oldest Great Houses, founded during the earliest days of the Empire of Acrolon. Their fortune began in moneylending to pirate fleets and later expanded to investment control in nearly every industry. For centuries, they perfected the art of profit without labor.
Dark Age Sins: Predatory debt schemes. During the Long Night, they bankrupted entire districts to seize their assets and forced debt labor camps under fine print contracts.
Change in Ledger: Their upper board was entirely executed. A younger scion, Matienne Cassavar, staged a last-minute betrayal and pledged to break up debt slavery. Though reforms were introduced, many of their contracts remain ruinously aggressive.
Present Persona: The house now presents itself as a benevolent financial partner for young entrepreneurs. Their motto is “Fortune flows to the bold.” In truth, they are still ruthless, but subtler now.