A Guilder is an organisation of professionals that acts as the outpost of a greater guild within the Baronies. These Guilders take on a variety of different forms depending on which Archetype it is made up of, but the core focus of these bands is bringing together comrades to tackle the Baronies many challenges together, to support each other through these challenges and to grow from them. The lives of many of the Greenweald’s archetypes can be solitary ones, but Guilders often form organically as heroes work and suffer alongside each other. New Guilders may form in response to particular conflicts or issues, but they are hardly temporary organisations. Joining a Guilder echoes the hearth blessings of The Baronies, those of your Guilder are your responsibility and you theirs. Protection, support and truth are expected, if not demanded.

Each Guilder is both blessed and cursed with its role. Having to secure the lessons of the past while at the same time protecting the Weald and their profession. They are equal parts fraternal orders and crisis agencies. It is not uncommon for a Guilder to find the hands of the lost, cursed, injured or hunted at the doors, praying that the members are in. In this, being a part of a Guilder is the natural extent of all the Greenwealds archetypes as it provides more of a chance to feel a part of these larger structures, all the while focusing on the skills, stories and feel that makes your archetype awesome.

Understandably Guilders vary wildly from archetype to archetype but the core of a Guilder is built on the following ideals:

Mastery, Guilders are a place for an archetype to do their work together. To tackle the challenges of the Weald and to combine their power. By that nature they are exclusive to their chosen archetype. Members of a Guilder should always be challenging each other and pushing their skills to the apex of what is possible. Different Guilders of the same archetype may engage in competition and shared training in pursuit of this as well.
Mentor, Guilders are a place where neonates could come to seek training, where even the most experienced could refine their skills and new knowledge can be shared. All the Archetypes of the Baronies mean to perfect their crafts, Guilders are placed to share in that, as such Guilders should include training and the sharing of knowledge in their day-to-day functions. Guilders should actively include training as part of their day-to-day, the Greenwealders are people of order and this should be reflected in their regimens.
Embrace, Guilders are places of understanding The world outside will cut you down plenty without it needing to come from your allies. Guilders tend to be very tight knit groups even within tight knit organisations. Guilders should be knives-out in their play and also focus on the equal bearing of the trials of life in the Weald. Taking time to know and care for your fellow Guilders not only improves your play but also leans into the Greenweald’s haunting feel when the worst should happen.
Outpost, Guilders are not standalone points of light in the darkness, rather they are outposts of larger organisations, those being the Guilds of the Baronies. Each Guilder should know which Guild it is an outpost of, or which Guild it is attempting to support coming to the fore. With this in mind Guilders can become halls of political intrigue and take opportunities to shake the Weald in profound ways. Guilder players should take active steps in the politics of the Guild as to abstain is to show weakness before the Weald is to fall beneath its roots.

It is worth noting that in the past Guilds and Guilders of Wealdsages have been banned from gathering. Following the Night of Silver Blood, more than three Wealdsages gathering in private was a crime, enforced by iron fisted Houndspriests, lest the corruption of Witchmaster Klaus Krieger be repeated. In 223 Baron Valentin Voght confirmed that these laws were left in the past. Once again the Guilders and the Guilds of the Sages can gather, whatever that may mean for the Weald.

Creating a Guilder

Out of Character

When creating a Guilder there are three important decisions the preface everything else:

Which archetype is your guilder based around?

Understandably, the core of the concept is your archetype as this will inform your attitudes, concerns and abilities. More information on the Greenweald Archetypes can be found on this page.

Where is your Guilder physically based?

On the larger level this refers to which Barony your Guilder is based in. You will need to select a Barony that is currently held by The Concord, although your Guilder could have resettled from a lost territory some time ago. Secondly you will need to select a more specific location within that Barony. This will ground your Guilder in the world, will determine what local threats and concerns are more present to you and let you point to the map and say ‘We’re from there.’ This could be as simple as ‘A hidden ruin prison in the Sableheart’ or as specific as ‘On the Southern side of Wolstad among the tanneries and other dirty craftsman workshops is a fortified compound that rings out regularly with the sound of steel on steel.’

Which Guild is your guilder attached to?

When requirements are met (that being 10 regular attendees of an Archetype to the Summit and a ‘Sanctum’ being constructed in a Barony) a guild will be formed for that Archetype, along with a Concordian title. This guild is a public organisation, that your Guilder would be a private sub-order of. Each Guilder is connected to a larger guild and there may not be a choice if only one is present. The only circumstance where your guilder would be stand-alone would be if the Barony currently lacked a guild of your archetype. All members of your Guilder would by extension be members of that Guild.

While these elements are most important there are many more important discussions to be had, what is the name of your Guilder? Do they have any strange traditions? Any hidden history? All of these and more are worthy of important discussion.

Finally, you must forge your Guilder Oath. The magical and moral words that will bind your members together. Through life and through darkness it is what will guide you. Choose well.

You may submit your Guilder through the Band submission link found Here. Your Guilder may both be a Band and a Sect. A Guilder requires a minimum of three founding members to complete the Bless the Warhost Ceremony to be recognised by both the event and to be a functional Guilder in-world.

In Character

Having a Guilder recognised is a reasonably simple process. A Guilder must be composed of at least three members, at least two of which are fully recognised members of the archetype. Their Guilder Oath must be presented to the Guildmaster for that Region (either in letter or person, although written regardless). Once given the approval by that Guildmaster, you can consider your Guilder recognised.

Joining a Guilder

Like many professional organisations, Guilders will trial new members. While the specifics of this trial may very from archetype to archetype, Guilder to Guilder, there are a few constants;

Trials tend to remain constant rather than individualised. A Krow Doktors Guilder may require a new member to work a whole overnight shift in surgery without panic or breakdown, a Houndspriest Guilder may require the slaying of a particular kind of monster.
Trials tend to be short but difficult. Rarely are they drawn out trial periods, but instead tend to be pass or fail moments. By nature of the professional focus of Guilders they also tend to test important skills and attitudes, they tend not to have hidden meaning or obscured truth.
Guilders are not required to offer a trial. Sometimes the Guilder may be at full size for its circumstance or other reasons. Application may take multiple attempts.

Importantly, Guilders will often include laypeoples who are not of the Archetype the Guilder is focused on. Hunters and alchemists who work with Houndspriests may be a part of the Guilder, bodyguards and assistants may call themselves members of a Krow Doktor outpost. But it is important that no more than half of the Guilder be layfolk, less the overall focus be lost. If you are more interested in a mixed Guilder, perhaps the Haven Band-type is more accurate.

Leadership in a Guilder

Like much of the Baronies, Guilders are led by a single individual. The title varies between Guilders and Archetypes but a title of respect is held by this leader. Examples include:

Huntsmarshall: First Officer or Bountykeeper
Krow Doktor: Bloodkrow or Nightwatch Keeper
Houndspriest: Cromshund or Chosen Sibling
Wealdsage: Crux of the Covenant or The One Who Offers
Ritter: Teachmeister or Blade-Superior

These leaders have absolute control over a Guilder, deciding its direction, membership, traditions and overseeing disputes. Leaders are elected into their position and hold it for a set period of time, often one or two years. For some Guilders re-election may be a simple formality, for others it may be a time of intense politicking and strange rituals.

Guilders may have sub leaders who assist with organising the Guilder, or perhaps oversee particular areas of the Guilders focus. These may be ad-hoc or may occupy a formal structure but it varies from Guilder to Guilder. Importantly, the Guilders Leader still retains overall power, imitating the Barons of the Weald as a whole.

Finally, some Guilders may have a rank structure separate from the apprentice and member differentiations of the larger guild.

Important Notes

It is the intent of the Concord Team that Guilders (particularly when they occur in Baronies without an established Guild) would not become the Guild. The Greenweald Guilds are public organisations that include player characters as well as a multitude of off-screen non-player characters. They represent the multitudes of that archetype in the Barony and the politics such an organisation would have. Guilders, on the other hand, are private groups with a far closer sense of camaraderie and function, made up of the player characters and maybe a handful of offscreen non-player characters (ideally represented by investments). We want to make this understanding clear so that players don’t create a Guilder with the understanding that it would become a Guild later on.