House Kirus

Along with House Sobek, House Kirus is one of the oldest houses in the merchant guild. For generations, House Kirus has been in the business of trading all kinds of intoxicants, mostly alcohol and tobacco. But even the extremely popular puffkraut is among the best-selling goods for House Kirus.

The Beginnings

Drolf von Kiruski founded the house generations ago under the name House Kiruski, because the demand for their goods was high at that time as well. What set House Kirus apart, however, was that there had yet to be a merchant that specialized in selling drugs. Drolf saw the business opportunity and acted on it quickly.

Business blossoms

Drolf was accurate in his assessment that the world needed someone who specialized in selling mind-altering wares. Business boomed and soon he was able to afford his own fleet to increase the amount of goods he could transport. Over time, other merchant houses followed his lead and founded their own houses, which are the same houses we know today.

Outsiders

The more merchants founded their own houses and struck up their own alliances, the moreDrolf von Kiruski found himself on the outside looking in. No one wanted to be aligned with a house that specialized in the trading of drugs. Although House Kiruski made a pretty penny off of its wares, it never won the same level of respect that the other merchant houses had. This was evinced by House Kiruski being prohibited from loading its ships at many ports during the day, thus forcing the cargo to be brought on board and shipped under the cover of darkness.

Changing times

This all began to change when Warne von Kiruski, great nephew of Drolf von Kiruski and current operator of House Kirus, took over. With cunning verbal propaganda, he succeeded in completely revamping the image of his house. Suddenly, his wares were not something indulged in by pirates alone, but were popular and beloved by all. This was aided by the incredibly fine types of rum that Warne offered his patrons – these spirits not only spoke to pirates, but also to the cultured elite. He also changed the name from Kiruski to Kirus, thus making his house’s bad reputation a thing of the past.

Today

Today Warne Kirus is a highly respected businessman, who is seen as exemplary of character. Still, it is the night that brings House Kirus its business, as House Kirus only loads its cargo at night, despite ports rescinding the previous loading ban. This practice is a small jab at the other houses, who made it their duty to humiliate the Kirus family. The family crest is adorned by a bat, as both the animal and the house itself are nocturnal beings.