Category:East Court
Nickname: The Serpent Court, The Trident, The Court of Wealth.
Emotion: Envy
Heraldry: Blue, Green & Yellow
Symbol: Azure Dragon, Trident
Contracts: Four Directions
Mantle:The Mantle of the Serpent Court is about power and money. With Mantle 1 to 3, one exudes a sense of power, and the courtier may seem larger than she really is, or may appear to be composed of sharp potent angles that dominate the eye. Those of Mantle 4+ are paragons of dominance, seeming to always tower over or overshadow those around them, and stranger still, they give off signs of being made of money: Coins seen in the dark of the eye, a rattling of gold when they walk, a glint of jewels on their teeth or fingernails.
A courtier with Mantle 1+ knows that procuring wealth isn't a cold game of numbers but one involving people, and so he gains an extra die on any Socialize rolls. With Mantle 3+, a courtier finds that his tongue (which may at this point become forked like a serpent's) will do what it must when money is on the line. When making a deal or stirring the envy in another, the character gains a bonus die on all Subterfuge rolls. Those with Mantle 5 wield their wealth like a weapon. Once per day, the character can add his full Resources score to any Social roll as bonus dice.
The changelings of the Serpent Court make no bones about it: Yes, they are greedy. Why shouldn't they be? They come back from a harrowing imprisonment deep in the middle of some madman's nightmare, and they return to this world as something unique, something no longer human. They possess strange and fickle magic that, when harnessed properly, can grant them all the wishes in the world. And that is what this Court does.
It's a twist on the seasonal Spring Court, but with a different shade of desire. The Court of the East ties power with wealth. One cannot have the first if he does not have the latter. By possessing great wealth, the Court of the East believes that all becomes possible if the money is kept in savvy hands. Want to own the temple in which waits a forever-open door to the Hedge? Purchase it. Or secure the employ of someone who can clear it out, take it over. Or have it destroyed. With a sack of gold and a no-limit credit card, what cannot be achieved?
It's all the more interesting that many changelings seem somehow destitute. They seem unable to reconnect with the human world and so they exist away from it, grasping at resources but letting them slip through their fingers like slippery eels. Not so with those of the Serpent Court. They reconnect with the human sphere as best as they can, often gaining quite a bit of temporal power in the process (for that is nominally where the money comes from). Many become experts at navigating that world, often with far greater aplomb than what they possessed before being snatched up and dragged into Faerie by unforgiving Keepers.
The Serpent Court expects its courtiers to possess some manner of wealth. This needn't be some unending cache of precious metals and glittering jewels, but some kind of prosperity is expected (in systems terms, assume that this means Resources 2 with the unspoken promise of trying to increase one's assets as time goes on). Certainly the Court has taken in the destitute, provided they show some signs of talent when it comes to aggregating wealth. A hollow-eyed pauper on the streets of Beijing can be a potential courtier provided he demonstrates the skill and the hunger necessary to join the Court of the East.
How do most courtiers amass their fortunes? The ways for a changeling to make money are as limitless as the blades of grass in the world. Many use their strange abilities such as pledge-making, dream-shaping and Contracts when it comes to making money. One might sell tokens in an open-air Bangkok market Another might sell her beautiful body in the red light district (Patpong Street) of the same city. Magic can garner high prices -- some might sell ensorcellment or fulfill other promises and wishes. One courtier is even said to sell the richest Japanese businessman "pleasant dreams" for what could only be described as a jaw-dropping sum of money
Some refuse to use their magic for money (though one wonders why, given that the Court of the East fully supports doing so). Some simply use their cunning to become excellent in business -- the Court is home to more than a few CEOs, which many changelings find surprising. Others are inventors or market traders For as many ways as there are for a human to make money, changelings have those very same options -- except they have the fickle magic of their kind to back them up. They don't have to hoard their fortunes, either. It is quite acceptable to put that money to work, or even to invest in people by showing generosity to promising people in need.
Winter Masques pg 125-127