As aforementioned, four wealthy, well-established local families unofficially rule the trading city of Delzimmer. They can be very dangerous if crossed, (for instance, although none of them officially keep slaves, they employ drugs to enslave certain individuals -- slayers, thieves, and personal bodyservants -- to their wills). Wise visitors learn all they can about these folk, and as with all self-styled nobles, their feuds and intrigues are long, involved, and as ye might say, "Byzantine."
This traditionally haughty, aggressive, and thankfully small in number family runs to black hair, hooked noses set in ugly ("strong," as flattering bards say) faces, and fat, squat, long-armed and bandy-legged physiques. However, 'tis the failing of far too many "outlanders" (as Delzemaer call all visitors) to consider them stupid brutes. They tend to shrewdly act such parts so as to learn more about strangers.
The Belarks dwell in Belarkhuruin (from an old local word "haroon" or "grand house"), a many-spired dark stone mansion set in walled gardens between the Wide Way (Delzimmer's main street) and Gaunthan Street. They breed and sell many stout horses, collect sculptures, and own companies of stonemasons based in several cities of the Tashalar. They also partake of the banking, warehousing, and caravan outfitting trade shared by all four Delzemaer "satrap" families.
The Belarks like gold, have much ready coin on hand, and maintain a strong standing army of well-armed and -trained guards armed with blades of all sorts and hand crossbows equipped with poisoned darts. (Most of the poisons cause sleep or paralysis, but some are more deadly.) Belark livery is crimson, so family members (save for funeral and wedding robes) seldom wears the color. The Belark Hawk badge appears on all family documents, contracts, gates, and servants.
The family is led by their grossly fat patriarch, Oldyle (NE male human Ftr8/Rog5). His heir is Hlonsker (LE male human Ari3/Ftr6), who has two maliciously sadistic younger brothers, Corauth (CE male human Rog6) and Aslyn (CE male human Rog5) who delight in causing trouble for all in Delzimmer. There are also half a dozen wastrel uncles, but no blood-offspring Belark females in the current generation.