There are several notable families who produce most of the soldiers, guardsmen, gatekeepers, etc. of Everway.  These are detailed here.  It should be noted in passing that other familes produce a certain number of warrior types.  The Emerald family has a small House Guard consisting mostly of younger sons and daughters, who's job it is to protect the Royal residence; the Masks produce a goodly number of thugs, leg breakers, and gladiatorial warriors; even the Hosts train some of their members in the martial arts to provide security for their guests.  Almost all of the families of Everway provide a certain number of soldiers for the army as well.  The families mentioned here, however, are the ones best known for their dedication to such matters.

The family is divided into two septs - the Crow family itself (which provides officers for the army and other organizations such as the Keepers and the Watchers) and a larger sept - the Ravens - who provide bodyguards, run (and compete in) the arenas, train athletes, etc.  Of the two the Ravens are actually the more numerous, but the Crows are the more prestigious.  It is likely that in time the Ravens will actually split off from the Crows, becoming a separate family, but this has not happened yet.  In common usage "Raven" is equivalent to "Crow", so when one introduces oneself as "Harbinger Raven" it is understood that the individual in question is a member of the Crow family, not some lesser family called Raven.

Most Crows wear the distinctive uniform of the army of Everway when on duty - a toga dyed black with the family emblem, a  medallion of a crow, suspended from the belt by a cord.  When in the field or on maneuvers they dress as does the rest of the army, in a manner similar to that of Greek hoplites (though with metal breastplates and helmets to indicate their greater status).  Those who serve with the Keepers or Watchers will don uniforms appropriate to their duties, though always with the crow medallion prominently displayed either from the belt or around the neck.  Details of the crow medallion such as the metal used for the medallion itself and the cord, and the style of the crow, indicate rank and achievements within the family.  Members of the Raven sept are more eclectic in their dress styles, often adopting uniforms which are showy or even impractically outlandish, but retain the crow medallion.

Crows are typically brave - some say to the point of foolhardiness.  They are well known for continuing to lead by example in the worst of circumstances, and to act as though unhurt in the face of appalling injury.  Very little seems to faze them.  They are also typically skilled orators, able to rally and lead large bodies of troops.  Finally they have an uncanny ability to "read" the intentions and plans of others on the battlefield.

The Crow family has close relations with the Emeralds, Watchers and Smiths.  As members of the Council they have frequent dealings with all of the other families so privileged.  Overall, like most of the military families of Everway, they get along poorly with the Plumes - the one military family which has kept itself free of their oversight.

TYPICAL CROW
FIRE  3 [weapon of choice]
EARTH  3 [bravery]
AIR  3 [command troops]
WATER  3 [tactics]

(Ravens are a most varied lot, and aren't really military anyway, and so are not described here)

The family is divided into numerous septs.  It is usual for each sept to guard a single gate, but a few septs guard more than one.  The leading sept of the family - the Keepers - guard the western gate, and also the Palace and Council chambers themselves.  Other septs are identified by colors or, in a few cases patterns, prior to the family name (i.e. the Red Keepers or the Striped Keepers).  This designation is not generally used in conversation - one does not, for example, introduce oneself as "Tenacity Red Keeper" but simply as "Tenacity Keeper" with sept identity being determined by colored adornments on the uniform.   As with all families in Everway, the Keepers are matrilineal, and one may find as many women as men within the contingents watching the gates.

Keepers can be identified both by the location where they stand duty (if a person is guarding a gate, he or she is almost certainly a Keeper) and by their uniform, which consists of a loose shirt or blouse and a kilt or skirt.  Under normal circumstances Keepers stand watch unarmored, but will wear leather tunics studded with metal, leather skirts, and leggings in cases of emergency.  Most are armed with medium length spears which can be used either for thrusting or throwing, though there are always one or two on any watch who carry short bows.  Each family also trains some of its faster members to serve as runners, and these carry short swords and 3-5 small throwing knives instead.  A typical gate watch consists of 8 individuals - an older member of the family who acts as the leader, 4 Keepers armed with spears, two armed with bows, and one to act as a runner if needed.

Keepers typically stand watch for 8 hours at a time, and train from an early age to develop the stamina to do so.  Since they generally stand watch and train in the same area each day for many years, they develop a keen sense of the best methods of defending their particular gate against attack.  Keepers understand that in the event of an assault on the city their gates are a weak point in the city defenses, and have planned out their defense for lifetimes.  They have also become adept at picking up on the small signs that indicate potential troublemakers who might attempt to enter or exit the city.

Keepers are awarded honors for particularly impressive feats of duty in the form of piercings of the left ear.  Piercings of the right ear designate length of active service, one per five years.  It is believed that rings on the fingers of the various hands also have significance, but the exact nature of this is unknown outside of the family.

The family shares close ties with the Crow, Stonebreaker, Watcher families, and intermarriages are not uncommon.

TYPICAL KEEPER
FIRE  3 [spear fighting/bow/running depending on the job of the Keeper]
EARTH  3 [stand watch]
AIR  3 [defense]
WATER  3 [sense criminals]

Members of the Librarians Militant wear the robes of Librarians when not on duty, and are only identifiable by a small pendant which may be worn either inside or outside the robes.  When on duty Librarians Militant wear heavy armor of interlocking scales, and metal helmets.  Traditionally they have carried short, broad-headed stabbing spears, but these are now being phased out in favor of a short sword (similar to the roman spathi] and shield.

As the organization has only a relatively small area to patrol, they know it well, often showing an uncanny ability to winkle out individuals attempting to sneak onto the grounds, or to smuggle documents out.  They are very dedicated to the Library, and it is very difficult to persuade them to do anything that would harm it.  Through their association with the Library most are unusually knowlegable of other Spheres.

TYPICAL LIBRARIAN MILITANT
FIRE  3 [usually spear fighting]
EARTH  3 [loyalty]
AIR  3 [knowledge of Spheres]
WATER  3 [sense hidden]

The various groups wear slightly different uniforms, cut and style indicating the branch of service.  Uniforms consist of shirt, pants, and cloak, all of emerald green in deference to the ruling family; and a light helmet decorated with a tall plume of feathers.  Rank is determined by the type of feathers, their length, and arrangement of the plume.  Those who perform their duty particularly well are entitled to wear medallions and ribbons on ceremonial occasions, but this is seldom seen under everyday circumstances.  Under all but the most dire circumstances (or when ceremony requires it) Plumes wear no armor.  They are almost universally armed with a thin rapier, which they use with great skill and determination when circumstances.  Senior members of the family and high ranking officers wear weapons imported from the Iron Citadel, while even lesser members can select from among the best that the Smith family has to offer.  Plumes serving in the Bureau of State Security seldom wear uniforms, and are more eclectically armed.

Plume family life is difficult and demanding.  Children are trained almost from birth to their duty, and their estates resemble a barracks and training facility more than a place of residence.  Every Plume is expected to be prepared to stand to duty on their 16th birthday.  Those who choose not to serve must leave the family and marry into another.  The family estates are supervised and maintained by the young, the old, and those who are on leave of absence from duty - usually those injured in the line of duty but able to perform light tasks.  Note that in only a few cases does injury result in permanent removal from duty - the family knows that even a crippled individual often has skills which can be put to use in investigation or support positions.  Because of the demands placed on members of the family Plumes seldom accept members of other families in marriage.  Men who marry into the family are expected to be able to stand duty within one year, and any marriage to one outside the family is subject to annulment after one year should the man fail to measure up to the exacting standards of the elders of the family.

Plumes are infused with a sense of loyalty to their family and to the office of the King and the Council very early, and are very resistant to any attempt to sway them from what they perceive to be their duty.  As the appointed bodyguards of the King and other high ranking government officials they are also trained to be aware of their surroundings and to spot any potential troublesome situations before they can develop.  Like the Keepers and the Watchers, they also develop a "sixth sense" that allows them to get a "feel" for who is a criminal and who is not.

The Plumes share close ties only with the Emerald family, though others occasionally intermarry.  No member of the Mask or Weaver families have successfully intermarried with the Plumes for over a generation.  No Stranger or Outsider has done so since the family was founded.

TYPICAL PLUME
FIRE  3 [usually sword fighting]
EARTH  3 [loyalty]
AIR  3 [spot trouble]
WATER  3 [sense criminals]

(Note that even "average" Plumes are built on 13 points rather than 12.  Consequently at least one of their elements will be a "4" rather than a "3".  Alternately, some may exhibit a 1-point power of some type)

They gained this contract by demonstrating a great deal of resistance to the influence of Battlefield weapons during the time when the gate to Battlefield was first discovered.  As a minor merchant family they (along with many other families) participated in "mining" Battlefield for weapons, but unlike most of the others, the Ripples were not slowly driven mad by the weapons, and proved invaluable in assisting the Plumes and other families in tracking down those weapons which had been brought into Everway.  Their efforts (along with those of many of the other families) succeeded in preventing a civil war from completely destroying Everway much as Battlefield itself had been destroyed, though the Whiteoar family was wiped out at that time, leaving an empty seat on the Council which exists to this day.  In gratitude for their service, as well as in recognition of their unique ability to deal with Battlefield weapons, the High King granted them a contract to seek out any Battlefield weapons which appeared in Everway and return them to their home realm, a contract which the family has held now for several hundred years.

Many believe that the Ripples are survivors from the realm of Battlefield which fled to Everway when their own realm was destroyed.  The Ripple family itself denies this, but there is no denying the fact that the family has strange ways.  Most notably the family it patrilineal - one of a very few families in Everway that is.  This causes considerable difficulty with any prospects of intermarriage.  Given that the family is small to begin with there are persistant rumors that inbreeding is weakening their line.  Also, their prefered weapon, a heavy flanged mace wielded two-handed, is unique to them.  They also appear to be slow-witted and rather dull.  They are average smiths, and manufacture all their own weapons and armor (much to the chagrin of the Smiths).  Overall they have little interaction with other families, save the Plumes and the Crows, with whom they work in tracking down and transporting Battlefield weapons.

TYPICAL RIPPLE
FIRE  3 [mace fighting]
EARTH  3 [resist Battlefield items]
AIR  3 [smithing]
WATER  3 [sense Battlefield items]
0-point power:  Sense taint.  By concentrating a typical member of the Ripple family is able to sense whether someone has handled a Battlefield item.  In order to succeed, the target must be actually suffering from the effects of handling a Battlefield (ie their Fire or Earth must currently be raised, and their Air lowered.  See Battlefield items for more information]

They are a relatively numerous family, with numerous septs named after the district which they patrol (i.e. the "Pyramid Watcher" sept patrols the area around the Walker's Pyramid).  As with most families, however, sept affiliation is not used during introductions, but only as a method of clarification.  Unlike many families there is no "name" sept - no sept which is simply "The Keepers".   Rank and sept affiliation are signified by plaiting of the hair, as well as by decorations worn in the hair when off duty.  This applies to the beards of the men as well as their hair, though only senior married male members of the family are allowed to grow beards.  The easiest way for one to tell the sept affiliation of a Watcher, however, is to note where he or she is - Watchers very seldom leave the neighborhoods where they work, even when off duty.  Consequently there are small estates and houses for the family scattered throughout Everway, and the family's main estate is rather small and unprepossessing, serving mainly as a meeting place for various septs and as a locale at which to hold important family ceremonies and store family relics/items of historical import, etc.

Watchers typically patrol in groups of two, though in some areas of Everway they may patrol in groups of up to 5.  They are easily recognized, as they are the only family that typically goes about wearing armor.  Both men and women wear thigh length shirts of soft leather with steel plates sewn into the lining.  They are universally armed with 6 1/2' long spears with black iron heads.  Armor and shield combined are rather heavy, but because they carry them day in and day out the Watchers are quite used to the load.  Watcher patrols usually last for four hours, followed by four hours of rest while "on call" followed by a second patrol or guard duty, another period "on call", and then 12 hours off.  Because of this particular rotation, Watchers cycle between day and night duty over time.

Because Watchers typically spend almost their entire lives in a single neighborhood of Everway, they come to know every locale and every person in great detail, and are often able (if asked) to recite the history of goings on in the neighborhood for years in the past in great detail.  The heavy armor that they wear almost every day has made them quite strong and able to bear heavy loads.  They are also taught crowd control techniques, both for dealing with irate mobs and for mustering nearby citizens for fire fighting.

The Watchers share close ties with the Keepers, Masks (!), Mothers, Mudbanks, and Smiths, as well as many, many, of the lesser families of Everway.

TYPICAL WATCHER
FIRE  3 [spear fighting]
EARTH  3 [carry heavy loads]
AIR  3 [home neighborhood]
WATER  3 [crowd control]