Moonstar (family)

The Moonstar family was one of the oldest and most prominent members of the Nobility of Waterdeep in the. They made their fortunes as caravan masters and by leveraging their skills as explorers, cartographers, and guides.

Organization
As of 1372 DR, the patriarch of the family was Lord Helve Moonstar with his consort Wylynd. The designated heir was Helve's nephew, Rober. At this point in history, there were thirty-three living members of the Moonstar clan.

Base of Operations
The Moonstar family had a walled compound of two- and four-story buildings on the west side of the Street of the Singing Dolphin in the Sea Ward. It only abutted one other building on the corner with Diamond Street. The rest of the villa and grounds were surrounded by what the locals called Moonstar Alley. The alley and compound were the former site of the High House of Stars, a temple to Selûne that was said to be destroyed by followers of Bane in the. In truth, it was Lord Vanrak Moonstar and the followers of Shar that razed the temple. The undercroft, known as the Vault of Stars, survived the attack and shortly thereafter became Lady Alathene Moonstar's research laboratory and the Moonstar villa was built on the ruins above.

By the 12 century DR, the Moonstar clan had a villa on Net Street in the Dock Ward,      but after the family split into two factions, Lord Vanrak and his cadre moved to Undermountain, eventually settling in Vanrakdoom. Later that century, Lady Alathene moved the family's home to the Sea Ward and converted the old villa into the Blushing Mermaid festhall.

Possessions
In addition to the family villa in the Sea Ward, the Moonstar clan maintained ownership of the Blushing Mermaid festhall in the Dock Ward and Lady Alathene was the proprietress as of 1372 DR.

Relationships
The legitimate part of the family were Selûnites and the sister of Lady Wylynd Moonstar was the leader of the Church of Selûne in Waterdeep. Ties to the Surveyors', Map-, and Chart-makers' Guild and the Master Mariners' Guild were also long-standing. The illegitimate portion of the family—those that followed Vanrak Moonstar—were fundamental in the establishment of the Church of Shar in Waterdeep.

History
The Moonstar family was of Tethyrian stock and one of the oldest noble families in Waterdeep, having been ennobled in the. They were explorers and cartographers and used those skills to become sought-after guides through the wilderness of the Sword Coast. Caravan-mastering was a lucrative profession at which they excelled.

That same year, Lunaven Moonstar (the half-elven grandfather of Alathene ) dedicated an altar and small chapel at the top of his tower to the goddess Selûne. At the time, his residence was just north of the city walls, but about fifty years later the walls were moved to encompass what was then known as the Plinth of the Moon and Stars. In the, Lunaven was killed in an ambush by followers of Malar and they used what they found on his corpse to gain access to, desecrate, and burn his tower. After the Selûnites meted out retribution by a horde of lycanthropes led by three Shards, the Moonstar family donated the ruined tower and its grounds to the city in exchange for a plot of land, again outside the north wall. The city restored the tower and it became an all-faiths temple merely called the Plinth.

In the, a young Lady Alathene founded the Maids of the Midnight Moon, an organization of female sorcerers dedicated to the Lady of Silver.

In the, the young Lord Vanrak was on an expedition to the Black Jungles on the Chultan Peninsula when he and his companions stumbled upon an ancient temple from the Serpentes empire. They were driven screaming into the jungle by what Vanrak described as "a swarm of fluttering nightmares from the Mouth of Dendar", and his mind was assaulted by terrifying visions thereafter. Prayers to Selûne gave him no relief, so he turned to the Lady of Loss and found some respite. He returned home a chastened husk of his robust former self. Shortly thereafter, his father, Lord Andvarran, contracted a mysterious wasting disease that defied all manner of curing, magical or otherwise. He died a few tendays later and Vanrak became the patriarch of the Moonstar family. Blaming the priests of the High House of Stars for his father's death, Vanrak broke with the church and led those that would follow down the dark path of Shar. Those that still venerated Selûne followed Lady Alathene.

By the, the two family factions were openly at odds, with Lady Alathene's followers residing in the High House of Stars and Lord Vanrak's followers holding the family villa in the Dock Ward. On Flamerule 1, Lady Alathene appeared before the Lords of Waterdeep and presented evidence of her brother's criminal behavior, including slave trafficking, arson, theft, and murder, as he amassed wealth and extended his influence over one of the world's busiest harbors. She pleaded for them to rescind his title and banish him from the city. The Lords acted immediately and sent the City Watch to arrest Vanrak, but upon forcing entry into the villa, he and his followers had vanished.

Members

 * Helve Moonstar: Patriarch in the mid–14 century.
 * Wylynd Moonstar: Consort of Helve, younger sister of Naneatha Suaril.
 * Rober Moonstar: Nephew and heir of Helve.
 * Feluna Moonstar: Younger sister of Rober and a werecat priestess at the House of the Moon.
 * Asborn Moonstar: Young noble sent on a suicide mission to Undermountain in order to receive permission to wed Elene Ruldegost.
 * Andvarran Moonstar: Patriarch in the late 10 century. Died of a magic-resistant disease in 1104 DR. Father of Vanrak and Alathene.
 * Vanrak Moonstar: Patriarch in the early 12 century. Broke away from the family and began worshiping Shar, eventually becoming a death knight.
 * Alathene Moonstar: Matriarch in the mid–12 century. Became an archlich bent on destroying her twin brother Vanrak.
 * Lunaven Moonstar. Half-elven grandfather of Alathene. Ambushed and killed by Malarites in 1090 DR.
 * Hormuk Moonstar: Eldest grandson of Alathene. Became patriarch in 1195 DR after she transformed.
 * Helion Moonstar: Half-drow grandnephew of Wylynd and designated heir in 1492 DR.