<div class="floatright"><strong>Matron Mother Arissa Auvyrahel</strong> (https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=2315046)<br/>(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/40/db/a4/40dba4d8c129634587812a7ad7fd047f.png)</div><em>The Matron is an ex-adventurer who seized control of the house from her older sister by force, and the wealth and influence the house now enjoys was built primarily off of alliances with her former adventuring companions.<br/><br/>The Matron Mother believes beauty is it’s own sort of worship and holds any graceful or beautiful creature or actions above others, less beautiful ones.<br/><br/>The Matron Mother is a greater lover of art and beauty, especially dancing.  Enjoying dancing herself.<br/><br/>Thus one of her loved past times is to turn beautiful women into sex craving toys, both personal use or to house.<br/><br/>The matron mother gets a bit too attached to her pet artists and slave dancers.  She had shed tears to past slave girl dancers whom she had to sacrifice to Lolth (flaw).<br/><br/>Very pragmatic and considers the usual antics the priestesses get up to rather dull though she still plays the game well.<br/><br/>She follows the path of matriarchs for personal and house gain in an unorthodox manner.<br/><br/>The Matron Mother is an ingenious chessmaster and often knows the movements of rivals and enemies both from within and from other houses.<br/><br/>Cultivates alliances with other denizens of the Underdark to expand the Drow nation.<br/><br/>Deep down hates the endless hatred created by Lolth in dark elf society and thus hates her creating a ruinous purposeless cycle (flaw)<br/><br/>Illithids are wary of the Matron Mother.  Along with being a priestess, she has developed formidable psionic gifts and art hunting them waged war against Illithids.</em><br/><br/><strong>Bio:</strong>Arissa was born as the second daughter to her mother since a child she was considered as a weakling by most drow women standards. Physically frail and also her attitude had something that it deadly lacked; ambition. She was settled to be the second daughter and not seek to be first. This irritated both his mother and eldest sister, to point eldest sister tried to kill her by poisoning her. But oddly; none poisons worked. She tried several times but she appeared to be immune to poisons?!<br/><br/>Then one day, the young Arissa kissed as a show of affection one the house slaves...who died horribly, body simultaneously struck with all poisons sister had tried use kill Arissa! Arissa was shocked, traumatized by event, but then another odd miracle occured; when one bodyguard got injured from defending her from assassin she cured him with just a touch. So thus quickly was found out she was favored by Lolth; have innate clerical powers since age of ten. She was much envied, even by sister who had to struggle and form alliances to study in Fane of Lolth and survive there to study, but Arissa had instinctual knowlegde. Arissa felt the pressures and expectations, so she left the house for adventure! Much for protest of her mother and sister when she was merely fourteen at the time.<br/><br/>However, in her journeys in underdark she actually grew strong and stronger; discovering her latent psychic talent and she used all her psychic skills empower and make herself strong. As she fears she perishes if she returns from her journeys as weak! Albeit she is aware of Lolth teachings, she herself felt she did not truly deserve Lolth's blessings and more viewed it as curse she has to bear entire life. She is driven by strong chaotic impulses both by her connection to Lolth and her psychic powers which also likely connect some divine sense to Lolth. However she kept her mind nimble, agile and accepting even unorthodox sort ideals. What is true worship of Lolth and what is true dark elven way? Her adventuring companions were colorful as her ideas; Duergar, Half-Drow, Half-Giant, Human and even Elf. What connected is that they all were psychic one way or another; their psionic minds surpass racial boundaries.<br/><br/>Once Arissa felt comfortable to return, she discovered two things; her mother was dead (killed year or two ago), sister as matron mother. Second; her house has been invaded by Illithids who attempted take over her mind! But thanks resilience of will she fled, manage return to her companions and tell what has happened. A sense of duty told Arissa to do something, going report to clergy of Lolth about the fall of her house but they ignored her pleas; they had hands too busy with priestess wars where noble houses left and right kept entire city as open battlefield (which Arissa had ignored as house remained outside the city). Also if house had fallen illithids, then such weak house deserved the fall.<br/><br/>Arissa, now more than ever alienated by her own people and clergy, moved in chaos of city and then she encountered a illithid blasting psionic energy and attempting devour a female githyanki. Not caring for githyanki, but rather consumed by fury of Illithids ruining all what was left of her home! She assaulted and caught illithid off guard, psionic blast rippled over her but her fury overcame it and managed bring down the illithid with her blade. Gityanki recovered from stupor and introduced herself as Szarkai, owning debt of life for Arissa and respecting her skill how she butchered Illithid. Then by happenstance she explained her situation and why she was driven face such dreadful foe alone, once Szarkai learned this, then she introduced Arissa to group of githyanki hunters, slayers, dedicated to slaying illithids. Arissa plead them teach her to become slayer, and so they did. Trained her and her adventuring companions as all expert killers of mind flayers.<br/><br/>After training bit, she and group and other gityanki slayers joined battle mind flayers, driven by pure fury to their kind and starting with Arissa's house. She slew the mind flayers, but enclave and elder brain held control of all drow in house and thus she made harsh choice; kill all people in her house. Slaves, drows, family, bodyguards, familiar faces, unable freed from mind flayer control. All butchered. Then she continued hunt for illithid enclaves for several decades, growing stronger and powerful and looting the enclaves from treasures. Over time she and her companions started called as<em>Kings and Queens of Emerald Crown</em>. As they learned technique combine their minds, skills and abilities, becoming monstrously powerful and manage defeat many enclaves by themselves. Eventually, wiping out all but one enclave which was smart enough offer absolute surrender oaths to Arissa, turning said enclave illithids to serve her than their elder brain primarily.<br/><br/>After years and decades, Erelhei-Cinlu had just ended priestess wars and city and many houses were in shambles and broken. It was then Arissa made return, restored her house, acquired powerful archmage as her aid to start restore her house. All fortunes she gained as adventurer, including her comrades, they combined wealth and created perhaps most unorthodox lesser noble house; specializing on<em>banking</em>. She created system which ensured even treacherous drow will pay their bets, and in time or are forced to accept to be taken as collateral. So she started drow slaves but other races joined up and archmage Aergrim greatly incluended slave stocks and performed renting slaves on decent cost than just sell them. Also acquire some mighty and exotic slaves indeed.<br/><br/>Some lesser houses tried attack and steal from their wealthy vaults, but they all defeated before Arissa's unlocked full potential as psychic juggernaut warrior whos powers are blessed by Lolth herself! Also she gained acceptance to her banking by church of Lolth (whom she gave generous donation to help restore their temples and churches and city). Soon rapidly her house was wealthy and had connections through it make to top ten in ranking. Just powerful enough attend great eight house meetings cause half of those houses have members who own significant amount of gold or have owed and feel sort obligation to allow her in. Begrudingly. After she became matron mother, she birthed few children. Consort unknown but many suspect Aergrim's being father (and some accuse posibillity of one adventuring companions; the elf which gender is unknown).