On Thu, 18 Feb 1999, Jeff Dunnett wrote:

> Yeah I know most of the Khanasi bloodlines suck. Have you also
> noticed that most of the main Anuirean Regents have god awfully high
> bloodlines. Does anyoen have any ideas as to why this is so?

Well, the obvious thought is that the ancestors of the current regents
partook in a lot of bloodtheft during the Wars of Conquest that formed the
Anuirean Empire. But perhaps that's being a bit too jaded.

It is also possible that their ancestors were vassals of the Emperor of
Anuire, and due to the general stability of the era, ended up not have all
that much to do with their Regency Points, and so ended up dumping a lot
of them into raising their Bloodlines. There may even have been social
reasons for this: social standing being paritally determined by who is
considered "suitable" for marriage for the daughters of the leading
families, due to the dillution effect of bloodlines. Thus, many lesser
families might have seen the easiest way to get ahead was to build up
their bloodlines to be more "acceptable." Also probably helped distinguish
the "civilized" families of Anuire from the "Border Barons" who lived and
held in more distant and more problematic (and therefore less civilized)
regions of the Empire (i.e. Khinasi, Rjuric, and Brechtur).

Take your pick, or assume a bit o' both.

Mark VanderMeulen
vander+@pitt.edu