House Varich

House Varich is one of the sidhe noble houses aligned with the Unseelie Court, originating in Eastern Europe.

History
The house was founded by Varich, son of the Moon and Sun, a courageous young man who refused to marry. His parents asked a sluagh sorceress to find a woman perfect in every way, who could tempt Varich to marry; the sorceress instead crafted a woman from snow, with fine gold wires for hair and a heart made of bloodstained ruby. Varich did indeed fall in love with the snow-maiden, but when they embraced the heat of his body caused her to melt away; the Sun cursed all sluagh from that day forward.

Heartbroken, Varich fell into a deep depression, though he kept the golden wires of his beloved's hair with him and often absently twisted them together. When he found himself badly outnumbered in a battle with a Fomorian sorceress, he used the hair--now a golden net--as a weapon to entangle her. The power his love burned her flesh, and Varich escaped alive.

Like House Aesin in Scandanavia, House Varich were worshipped as gods until the arrival of Christianity. They were among the earliest Houses to flee back to Arcadia before the Shattering, but returned with the Second Resurgence to usher in a new season of the world. Those who found themselves in Concordia were often drawn to traditionally Russian neighborhoods, or to parks and forest preserves that resembled in some small way the wooded Russia they remembered.

Boon and Ban
Members of House Varich are excellent at perceiving and analyzing patterns; given a chance to study someone or something, they can quickly recognize and duplicate patterns. This makes them particularly deadly opponents in single combat, as they can rapidly adapt to their opponent's style.

The Varich can love, but they cannot actually pledge their love to another person, as their founder could not love another after his snow-bride melted. They also must always accept a challenge--if they are prevented from answering one, they will literally waste away until they are unmade.

House Culture
House Varich is strongly hierarchical, but individual lords are absolute masters of their own freeholds--not even a High King can challenge them. They also believe strongly in the need to maintain the patterns of the world, including the cycle of alternating Seelie and Unseelie rule.

This House has a long tradition of using Inanimae servants, though since their return they have found these spirits to be far fewer in number than before. House Varich believes absolutely in their rights as nobles--commoners and Inanimae exist to serve, mortals exist to dream, and the sidhe exist to rule. This pattern is one they have no interest in disrupting.