The Tourney at Ashford

House Terrick
Vassals of House Tully :: “Soaring Ever Higher”

HISTORY
In the days of the long forgotten past, the Cape of Eagles rested in the hands of the ironborn. With the pressure of the Andal pushing westward, the ironborn found themselves pushed back to the sea when a knight known as the Silver Eagle, Erreg Mallister, led a large forces of Andals up the Green Fork of the Trident and pushed into the Cape. Although the losses were great, the ironborn were banished from the Cape of Eagles and House Mallister was formed as Erreg made his seat at what would become the town of Seagard. In order to ensure that the Ironborn would never retake the land, Erreg ordered the construction of watch posts along the Cape of Eagles and granted each to a brother or cousin under his banner.

In time, one such watchpost would become known as Hawkspray for the birds that dwelled on the cliffs below it and the spray the crashing of waves upon the cliff caused. While his distant cousin, the Lord Petyr Mallister, rose up against the Storm Kings, the Mallister of Hawkspray decided that the time had come to break free of the yoke of Seagard. Declaring his allegiance directly to the Storm King, he became the Lord Mallister of Hawkspray, claiming all the land on the Cape of Eagles that the Mallisters had held to be his. When King Petyr was slain and the Storm Kings brought Seagard back into the fold, the claim of the Mallisters of Hawkspray was properly recognized by their king.

For countless years, the two Houses Mallister were fiercely competitive with one another while remaining vigilant against the Ironborn. During the days of Aegon’s Conquest, however, House Mallister of Hawkspray fell into the decline; with most of his sons slain during the war, the Lord of Hawkspray was left with only a daughter as an heir. The Lord Mallister of Seagard saw this as his chance and moved to petition the new king to grant him the lands of Hawkspray when the time came. The Mallister of Hawkspray, however, was a crafty fellow; refusing to let his lands fall to his family’s ancient rivals, he made a deal with an Ironborn petty lord who had long troubled the Houses Mallister. Thus, the daughter heir of the Mallisters of Hawkspray married the raider Terrick; the Mallisters of Hawkspray ceased to exist and House Terrick of Hawkspray was born.

Although having an Ironborn lord, the newly reformed house maintained its Andal traditions and so rode the line between two worlds. To the Ironborn, the Terricks were traitors, having abandoned the Old Way, and thus open for raiding from what might have otherwise been their allies. To the Andal houses, they were tainted by the impure touch of the ironborn blood (though most conveniently ignored the mixing their own families had done) and treated the Terricks as lesser for the taint in their blood.

For their part, the Terricks were stoutly loyal to the Targaryen kings and queens. Whenever any would rise against the throne, the Terricks would be amongst the first lords to raise their banners to ride to the aid of the king.

Their mixed heritage, however, would come back to haunt them in the second century; despite having a decent military, it soon became impossible to secure their land from increasing number of Ironborn raids. To help protect his land, the Lord Terrick had to make concessions to his neighbours, the Freys – and, perhaps the more difficult to accept alliance, the Mallisters. Although what the Terricks asked of their new allies was not very taxing to the larger and more prosperous houses, the Freys and Mallisters have both made the most of the situation, constantly reminding the Terricks what they have (and continue) to do for them.

The current lord, Joseth Terrick, chafes under the thumb of his neighbours and looks to find new allies – ones who will demand less of his family – beyond the Green Fork. Lord Joseth has grand dreams and designs for his family – and hopes to one day be able to use his family’s ancient blood ties to lay claim to Seagard itself.

HOLDINGS
Hawkspray, the seat of House Terrick, is an ancient tower clinging to crumbling cliffs that overlooks Ironman’s Bay. Once a watchtower for the ancient branch of the Mallisters that became the Terricks, Hawkspray is named for the birds that nest in the cliffs below the tower. It still maintains the practical aesthetic of its original purpose with the Terricks spending their limited wealth elsewhere. While it’s position makes it fairly defensible, it has also made it practically impossible to construct a castle town, leaving the Terricks isolated from their people.

Being a cadet branch of the Mallisters gave the Terricks gave them a decent footing politically in the Riverlands, one that the lords of Terrick have managed to maintain over the years even while being stuck in the shadows of their more prolific neighbours. Lord Joseth, however, seeks to use his large family to increase the reach of the Terricks, hoping to one day break free of that shadow.

The lands of the Terricks are a long stretch of coast along the Cape of Eagles. Spotted with fishing villages along the coasts and lumbering villages inland, the land is decently populated despite the storms that often break on the cape from the Sunset Sea. While mostly defensible from land (and shielded by the lands of the Freys and the Mallisters), the cape is unfortunately open to attack from the sea.

Because of this, the lands furthest from Hawkspray are plagued by raids from the Iron Islands with the more crafty Ironborn lords demanding tribute in exchange for bypassing the Terrick lands when it comes time to raid (though Lord Terrick believes many of them still raid under different banners). On the positive side, however, this has led to a downside in regular banditry as few are willing to risk the wrath of the Ironborn and the forces of the Terricks.

And the forces of the Terrick are fairly sizable; the lords of Terrick have long ensured their military was sizable and, despite some losses during the Blackfyre Rebellion, the current generation of Terricks is no different. However, whereas previous generations raised their armies only during war, Lord Joseth maintains the army for the purpose of defending the lands closest to Hawpsray. He looks to eventually expand further to be able to protect the rest of his people but obligations to the Mallisters and Frey keep him from developing a larger army.

The Terrick lands aren’t particularly wealthy; most resources gathered within are consumed within the lands. The few extras are often taken by marauding Ironborn or used to rebuild after raids. While Lord Joseth has grand plans for his family, he also recognizes the limitations placed upon him by the family’s lands and so seeks alternative methods of bringing fresh coin to the house’s coffers.