Et Eärello Endorenna utúlien. Sinome maruvan ar Hildinyar tenn' Ambar-metta!
"Out of the Great Sea to Middle-earth I am come. In this place will I abide, and my heirs, unto the ending of the world." - Elendil the Faithful

Sea-Faring Númenóreans first built Angrenost in SA 3157, its numbers bolstered in SA 3319 by Exiles from the Fall of Númenór, or as the first generations of Angrenostians would have known it - Anadûnê. While the Númenóreans always prided themselves on historical and genealogical studies, the Great Sundering destroyed many records. The wrath of Eru Ilúvatar upon Númenór was boundless, and felled generations, destroying lineages and two Ages of knowledge. 

How many now living can count their generations from the Awakening of Men in far eastern Hildórien and the crossing into Beleriand? How many tomes in Middle Earth can now recount the lineages of Three Houses of the Edain before the gift of Númenor? How many of the Dúnedain now remain, to harken and remember Akallabêth the Fallen?

The Men who bolstered the settlement of Angrenost struggled with one vital question: What defines Family? Is Family simply he who sired you, and she that birthed you? If you are a solider are not those you bleed with, your comrades at arms, truly your brothers? If you are a laboring man, are not those you sweat with, you struggle with - the ones who cheer your triumphs and empathize with your failures your kin? Can loyalty run deeper than blood?

The forefathers of Angrenost believed so, and chose to create a new identity for themselves - born from their various places of origin and their artisan fields on the Isle, and divided into 12 Great Families. Though perhaps not originally all akin in blood, these kinships were bonded by the common memories of their regions or cities, their dialects, and their knowledge.

Today, few if any in Angrenost, as in Minas Tirith or any of Middle Earth's remaining great cities can claim a truly pure Númenórean heritage, many long since intermarrying with the original inhabitants of Calenardhon or those come from Eriador. However, for the native-born citizens of Angrenost, their now vernacular Surnames stand as testament to their Age old ancestors and the various regions and settlements of Númenor from whence they hailed. What portion of each Family's official history is factually true remains pure speculation and often the cause of many an insipid rumour spread by a rival Family. The debated nuances remain generally improvable - the oldest of tomes speaking of the Founding and the earliest Exile Days kept within the impenetrable walls of Orthanc, or kept only to the eyes of the most trusted of Sages.

Yet, despite any nit-picking debating on legitimacy, the kinship of the Families remains a source of incredible pride to the people of Angrenost, and every native born citizen is counted in the ranks of one of the Great Families, even though various branches of the kinship might have very different lives - from Master Epicurean to fishmonger, from Master Hansard to sweat-stained miner. The social norm is for Family members to find employment within their own circle - completing jobs done by their fathers and their fathers fathers. However, all Families take great pride in their children joining either the Commander's Garrison or his Honor Guard or the ever-illustrious Fellowship of Sages.

The heraldry and banner colors of the various Families mark every home, and every business, a great rainbow of color, and many choose to decorate themselves with armbands, jewelry, or ribbons denoting their line. At present, eight of those Great Families remain, three lost to the Great Plague and ravished by the War with the Witch King, their remaining numbers absorbed into other Families or scattered throughout Middle Earth. 

[Note: Families Eltar, Edalon, Toluy and Nustar are not yet documented below]

Please note that for Closed Beta only THREE FAMILIES WILL BE PLAYABLE: Armen, Orr and Rontil