![[Guilds.png]] # Overview The guild system is a network of professional organizations that regulates trade, craftsmanship, and commerce across the Shattered Realms. At the apex of this system is the Concordat, a governing body that oversees all guilds and maintains economic stability throughout the realms. ## Structure ### The Concordat The Concordat is the central authority that regulates all guilds. Its primary functions include mediating disputes between guilds and setting standards for quality and pricing across the [[Shard (Realm)|Shards]]. Qualified artisans are issued a Guild Seal, indicating that they are legally allowed to operate under the confines of their respective guild. The Concordat is also responsible for organizing and sponsoring various markets and fairs. ### Individual Guilds Each craft or trade has its own guild, such as the Steelmasters' Guild for blacksmiths, or the Weavers' Guild for textile workers. In addition to protecting the interests of their members, individual guilds are responsible for training their own apprentices, setting prices for goods and services within their trade, and upholding the quality standards of their guild. ### Membership and Guild Seals To legally practice a trade or craft, an individual must complete an apprenticeship under a guild member and pass a series of tests to demonstrate proficiency. Upon doing so, members are awarded a Guild Seal from the Concordat. which serves as proof of membership and qualification, allowing the bearer to practice their trade legally. Many guilds also require membership fees, but this practice varies depending on the guild. ## Pros and Cons of Guild Membership ### Pros 1. **Legal Protection**: Guild members can practice their trade without fear of prosecution. 2. **Standardized Pricing**: Guilds set prices, preventing undercutting and ensuring fair compensation. 3. **Quality Assurance**: Guild standards maintain the reputation of the craft. 4. **Training and Education**: Apprenticeship programs provide thorough training. 6. **Dispute Resolution**: The Concordat mediates conflicts between guild members or different guilds. ### Cons 1. **High Entry Barriers**: Apprenticeships and membership fees can be prohibitively expensive. 2. **Limited Innovation**: Strict guild regulations have the potential to stifle creativity and improved techniques. 3. **Monopolistic Practices**: Guilds can limit competition, potentially leading to higher prices for consumers. 4. **Rigid Hierarchy**: Advancement within a guild can be slow and based on seniority rather than skill. 5. **Geographic Limitations**: Some guilds may restrict where members can practice their trade. ## Consequences of Non-Guild Business Operating a business without guild membership is illegal in most parts of the Shattered Realms. Consequences may include: 1. **Fines**: Heavy financial penalties for first-time offenders. 2. **Confiscation**: Seizure of tools, goods, and property related to the illegal business. 3. **Imprisonment**: Repeat offenders may face jail time. 4. **Blacklisting**: Banned from future guild membership or legitimate employment in the trade. 5. **Social Ostracism**: Non-guild operators may be shunned by their communities. Despite these consequences, some individuals choose to operate outside the guild system, either due to inability to afford membership or disagreement with guild policies. These "shadow artisans" often serve lower-income communities or operate in frontier regions where guild influence is weaker. ## Criticism and Reform The guild system has faced criticism for its monopolistic practices and resistance to change. Some reformers advocate for a more flexible system that encourages innovation while maintaining quality standards. Proposals include: - Allowing limited non-guild operations under strict oversight - Implementing regular reviews of guild regulations to adapt to changing economic conditions - Creating "innovation grants" to encourage new techniques and technologies within traditional crafts As the Shattered Realms continue to evolve, the tension between tradition and progress remains a central issue in discussions about the future of the guild system. # List of Guilds ## The Concordat The joint association of all Kaldic guilds. Its primary functions are to regulate guilds, settle disputes between them, and make any appropriate recommendations concerning guild rights and privileges to the governments of Kald. An exclusive right of the Concordat is to organize and sponsor all fairs and markets in towns and settlements. The Concordat recoup its investment by charging a fee to all who wish to sell their wares in markets and fairs. ## Courtesans' Guild Courtesans offer a wide array of erotic services in houses which bear names such as _House of the Seven Joys, House of Twin Heavens,_ and _House of Floating Luxury_. Courtesans should not be thought of as ordinary prostitutes, as their houses are far above the common brothel in decorum and luxury. The guild is loosely organized. Typically the guild acquires most of its workers through brokers from their impoverished fathers. These girls receive instruction in erotic arts in return for seven years of servitude to their assigned house. After this, a courtesan may retire, join another house, or remain with her present house as a partner. Their services are always expensive and most courtesans retire before age 30, and usually with a tidy nest egg. ## Guild of Arcane Lore A loose association of scholars — commonly worshipers of [[The Dreamer]] and [[The Echoist]]— whose practices and studies include esoteric knowledge. Some may practice magic, while others are students in more mundane and obscure fields. ## Locksmiths' Guild Responsible for the manufacture, installation, and repair of keys, locks and lockboxes. Most guild members are skilled in the workings of any intricate device. They are often consulted in the design and placement of secret doors and trapdoors, which are most often used by the nobility. ## Hideworkers' Guild Members of the Hideworkers Guild have a monopoly over the curing of all types of hides and furs, as well as leatherworking. A master hideworker's establishment may be a tannery where hides are cured or a retail shop where leather products are made. Leather armor and saddles are monopolies of the Steelmasters' and Ostlers' guilds, but they buy cured hides from the Hideworkers. Tanneries are almost always located on the downwind outskirts of cities due to the stink of the urine used in the curing process. Tannery workers will purchase raw hides and furs from almost anyone. ## Masons' Guild Masons belong to one of the most powerful guilds. Some masons are expert architects, highly paid and honored, but most are simple quarrymen, stone layers, and stonecutters. Most towns require that construction within its walls be done by guilded masons and nearly all Kaldic fortifications involve their participation in design, building, and repair. The Masons' Guild has a strict monopoly over all stone quarrying and the preparation of stone. A quarry may be owned and operated by a master stonemason, but most are a joint operation by two or more masters. The best stone in Kald is the whitestone quarried in the Whitestone Mountains of western [Ikoya], transported at great expense to building sites. Few can afford the whitestone that the mountains produce and make due with poorer quality local material. The most famous example of whitestone being put to dazzling use is the city of [Eilanthar]. Most manual labor is done by unguilded locals, hired on a daily basis as needed. ## Miners' Guild The miners guild is one of the most powerful and wealthiest guilds in the realms of Kald. The crown holds the mining rights to almost all land in most continents and either owns the mines directly or leases them out to the guild for a hefty royalty. Silver, tin, copper, iron, lead and salt are the most common metals and minerals mined. Gold is mined within the mountains near [Halstel], but only by the residents of the nearby city. Nobles are rarely pleased to see the opening of a mine on their lands and more than a few gilded prospectors have mysteriously vanished over the years. ## Ostlers' Guild These guildsmen have a monopoly over the breeding, care, and sale of horses and riding animals. A master ostler will be a veteran stablemaster, tackmaster, veterinarian, and breeder. Any competent ostler is highly respected and well-paid. Outside any substantially sized town, there will almost always be a fenced Ostlers' Common where horses are grazed. Most ostlers will charge by the night for the care and feeding of a traveler's horse. ## Steelmasters' Guild The order of Kaldic blacksmiths with a monopoly on the design, manufacture and sale of most weapons and armor, the peasantry being allowed to manufacture their own crude bows and weapons. Steelmasters most commonly serve the nobility. A master weaponsmith will likely own an establish in some town, or be bonded to a noble house. Weapon and armor prices are usually quite high, due to the expertise required to produce such works, though mostly due to the nobility requiring inflated prices to prevent the lower classes from obtaining quality weapons and armor. The Steelmasters headquarters is located in [[Qal'Borden]].