[u][b]Fallen Houses: Status[/b][/u] In the Destiny Universe, recent events have significantly altered the power of the various Fallen Houses in the Solar System. Some of these changes have been instigated by Guardian assassinations, the brief resurgence and subsequent destruction of the House of Wolves, or the various battles and conflicts that have taken place since their arrival at Earth. These changes are listed below: [u]House of Devils:[/u] Status - Extant (Weakened) Once the most powerful of the Houses, recent events have placed serious doubt (at least, in my mind) about the continued survival of the Devils on Earth. The first to battle against humans during the Collapse, these early conflicts caused notable loses, but were ultimately insignificant. During the Dark Ages, a period of over-extension of the Devil's forces in salvage operations or raids (against both tribal humans and Fallen Kings) gave the Devils a reputation for durability, surviving numerous engagements despite to a lack of restraint concerning troop lose. At Six Fronts, the Devils were thoroughly beaten by the City and the embarrassment turned to urgency. With the Wolves, now larger than the Devils and approaching the Reef, the Devils realised that they needed to eliminate this human threat to focus on their new Fallen rivals. At Twilight Gap, the Devils' loses were the worst of all the Houses, as the Wolves did not arrive to provide their support. Forced to deploy heavily and fill a canon fodder role in place of the Wolves' infantry, the Devils lost more respect and power here. The Kings, seeing an opportunity to expand, pushed the Devils closer the City, attempting to weaken both. In the new "City Age", the Devils have been dealt what could be considered a killing blow, in the form of the rapid lose of their Prime Servitor, Archon and Archon-Rising. Their method for surviving dire circumstances; cannibalising failures for Ether, destroyed, the Devil Kell will likely struggle to hold his House together, with no clear solution and 3 major threats encroaching on them. [u]House of Kings:[/u] Status - Extant (Strengthened) The Kings have managed to successfully manipulate both their human and Fallen opposition to better their position. During the Collapse, the Kings only acted where necessary, thus sparing the numbers of troops lost by the Devil's campaign against the human military. Spending this period carefully capturing key locations and plotting to take the Traveller, the Kings began open engagements with the Kings and a shadowy war fought with the Spawn of Crota, to control the dark places they held. Compared to the other Houses, the Kings minimalized their loses at Six Fronts and Twilight Gap by playing a support/sniper role on the field of battle, and avoided mass deployments to ensure survival. Any reputation lost was quickly regained in successful operations against the Devils, who were to weak to fight back after their defeats by the City. After the weakening of the Devils, the Kings quickly began, and aborted, an attempt to gain control of the Cosmodrome. Battles with the Hive led to extermination by Guardians, and a plot to assassinate a Wolves Baron ultimately led to the deaths of three Barons. This may force the Kings to deploy higher-ranking leaders in missions, but they have had their positions vastly enhanced since their arrival on Earth. House of Winter: Status - Extinct (Destroyed by integration with the Wolves) Striking Venus before the Vex arrived, Winter lost a significant number of troops in their battles with human forces. Forced to salvage the ruins they originally planned to sack, they then lost even more forces in preliminary battles with the Vex, who caught them completely by surprised. Despite these failures, Winter is famed for its powerful collection of artillery, including Spider Tanks and Heavy Pikes, and was able to blunt any offensive by the Vex, despite the battles of attrition they fought. Considering themselves in the clear, Winter sent a force, mainly consisting of artillery and wire riflemen, to Earth to assist at Twilight Gap. It is unknown how it happened, but Winter lost their Prime Servitor during this period as well as considerable loses at the Gap, despite a valiant effort against the City's artillery. In an attempt to regain control of their situation, Winter raided the Prison of Elders to seize an Archon to reinstate a Prime Servitor. This Archon was promptly eliminated by Guardians, who then murdered the Winter Kell in his own Ketch, while salvage attempts were also thwarted by Guardians. Completely crippled by the loss of a Kell, Prime and (presumably, as they were forced to steal one) Archon, the House of Winter fell into civil war over the remnants of the Golden Age on Venus. This chaos was manipulated by the revived House of Wolves. Upon arrival, Skolas was quickly able to gain control of the House, and most surviving Winter Fallen converted to the Wolves. This was not wise, as the Wolves were then massacred in turn. Now, with their leadership destroyed and the bulk of their forces dead, the House of Winter has ceased to be; the only remnants of the House still patrol Venus, trying to salvage what remains in the shadow of the Citadel. [u]House of Wolves:[/u] Status - Extinct (Scattered, then hunted down by Guardians. The only remnants either converted to Judgement, or are in the Prison of Elders) The last of the original House to arrive at the Solar System, the Wolves initially started at the Jovians, but soon left in favour of the Inner Solar System. Receiving the call to battle at the Twilight Gap, the Wolves garrisoned on Ceres and prepared, now being the largest House. The Queen, fearing for the City, decided to stop the Wolves, and had Ceres destroyed with the Wolves on it. The Wolves either scattered onto the Inner Planets or fight the Reef Wars. Internal conflicts and battles with the Awoken led to the deaths of the majority of the Houses' Kells, Archons and Primes. Their leadership either killed or captured, the Queen offered Skolas the Rabid to the Nine as tribute. The Nine then released Skolas back into the Solar System, and the Prison of Elders was breached by Fallen forces, freeing many of the captured Wolves. Now free to pursue conquest, Skolas replaced his Houses' traditional structure with his own private army; the Wolf Pack, and were able to secure various high-powered weapons from the Awoken before arriving on Venus and Earth to seek control over the other Houses. Absorbing Winter, finding alliance with the Devils and hostility with the Kings, the Wolves had expanded up until Guardians, under the Queen's banner, set to destroying the House. Pushed away from Earth by the Guardians and Kings, the Fallen attempted to reverse-engineer Vex technology to bolster their ranks with apocalyptic weapons and more troops pulled forward in time. These attempts failed, despite unexpected success against the Vex. Skolas was recaptured, along with the bulk of his forces, and thrown back into the Prison of Elders. Now firmly secured by the presence of Guardians, no further raid attempts have been recorded as of yet. Forced to either join the House of Judgement (vowing to serve the Queen again) or rot in the Prison, the Wolves have been virtually exterminated; the only survivors now roam the Prison, their allegiances broken and moral shattered. [u]House of Exile:[/u] Status - Extant (Unknown) While their origin is unknown, the House of Exile formed in protest and punishment against and by the other Houses. Fallen leaders angry and soldiers ashamed at Six Fronts and the Gap form the majority of this new Houses' ranks. Forced onto the Moon by the other Houses, the Exiles seek to survive amongst the Hive, salvaging what little they can from the ruins not wracked on the surface. After the Scatter, many ex-Wolves joined the Exiles, who did not as of yet have any real leaders; only ambitious Barons. Their new-found strength allowed them to survive various battles with the Hive and to continue to build their army. Unmolested by the other Houses, the Exiles experienced a period of brief expansion, as their numbers, and Pikes, gave them the ability to push against the Hive on the surface, forcing them back into the Hellmouth. In a bold move, an Exile Baron led a force into the Hellmouth and managed to push the Hive back, so much so that they were seriously challenged to fight back, in an attempt to salvage what laid within. This success was short-lived, as Guardians quickly intervened, scissoring the Exiles against the Hive and destroying them. Despite their failure, news of this unprecedented victory over the Hive spread, and encouraged the House of Devils and Wolves to also infiltrate the Hellmouth, now severely under-manned since the death of Crota. Weakened by their failure, the Exiles have been unable to stop other House from interfering with their efforts. Although still in a reasonably good position, it remains to be unseen whether the Exiles have formed any real leadership, and this might threaten their future on the Moon. [u]House of Judgement[/u] Status - Extant (Weak, but may be growing) Once a great diplomatic force between the Houses, Judgement was almost destroyed when hostilities broke out after the Collapse, as the Devils and Kings fought for Earth. The sole survivor, a Judgement Scribe by the name of Variks, came under the control of the House of Wolves. Understanding their precarious position after the Scatter, Variks pledged loyalty to the Queen and encouraged various other Wolves to do the same, after betraying Skolas to the Crows (the Queen's secret service). Proud in service, Variks refused to bow to Skolas after his return, and formed the Prison of Elders to contain any rebellious Wolves, although it would eventually become an Arena (something present in pre-Whirlwind Fallen society).