Guild Eldritch

> "*The Gods are cruel. Their shadows have grown long, and I do not wish to join them in the shade.*"
> ― Quoth Cerath, Founder of the Guild
>
>

The gift of magic is not one well understood. The godborn children of Starsong are fond of their heritage, but many humans were born without this ancestral magic.

So when a mad Aerrunean experimented on how to give humans the gift of magic and the strength to defend their home, the Guild Eldritch began.

## History

Aerrune has repelled invaders for centuries with its harsh climates and unyielding native populace, but in the 3rd Era (Y - 1060) Oskar daer Gryn brought a surge of Birians with him. These would be the settlers who would forge the capital of Oskvol and become the first Aerrunean humans.

Among them was Cerath, who would later be known as his most common namesake, the Maker-of-Saints. Described as the mad architect of the Pinnacle, his experiments on the reaches of society would have him ostracized until his forces defeated the greatest army of non-humans the world may ever see. In one stroke, Cerath turned the land of Ath-Yolash into stone and with it a countless amount of natives who remain petrified till this day. This region is known as the Council of Stones, and Ath-Yolash as the seat of power for the Pinnacle's construction.

This serves as a reminder to all of the Guild's power and the Pinnacle a testament of their ambition.

## Membership

Unlike other colleges and schools of learning, the Guild Eldritch only accepted humans or foreigners to be Guildsmen. The highest rank among the Guildsmen is the Grandmagister, and they alone know the true nature of the Pinnacle.

There are Seven Rings of the Guild, and most often those without magical competence become Breakers, Speakers and Watchers. All manner of caster could find a home within the Guild.

All members of the Guild Eldritch own a bracelet of hewn leather and bone beads, sewn into the leather. This bracelet must be made of the same flesh and bone of the wielder's own race. The number of bone beads indicate which ring the Guildsmen is from. This serves as a reminder to every Guildsman that they are naught but flesh and bone.

The Guilds art is studied in several rings each with their own speciality. Acolytes choose their own as they advance.

1. The Shapers - The spellcrafters.
2. The Breakers - The knights of the Guild.
3. The Builders - The alchemists and elementalists.
4. The Speakers - The surgeons and healers.
5. The Travellers - The voidwalkers and divinators.
6. The Watchers - The scholars and chroniclers.
7. The Whisperers - The necromancers and animancers.

### Notable Members

* Grandmagister Sholtua - Leader of the Guild Eldritch
* Skivir Vælish Gantvallan - Right Hand of the Grandmagister, known to most as Vælish of the Ashes
* Skivir Gospodar Slythe - Left Hand of the Grandmagister, commander of the Breakers

## Regions

The Guild Eldritch inhabit the Pinnacle, a massive tower located outside of Shadowdale in a land known as the Council of Stones. Their influence spreads across the Greylands. The Guild Eldritch would try to expand to outside of Aerrune, but the Venarium took this privilege from them due to their involvement with the Saint's War.

The Pinnacle is the largest man-made structure in Aerrune, and one of the Eleven Wonders of the World. It is said to hold thousands of doors so that nobody has seen every single room.

## Relationships

While once being apart of the Venarium, the Guild Eldritch split into their own faction due to the actions of Cerath leading to the Saint's War.

The Guild Eldritch knows no love for the original inhabitants of Aerrune. The evidence of this surrounds them in the Council of Stones.

The Guild may bicker with the local lords of the Frozen Court but the Guild Eldritch is the first and strongest defender of the Greylands if any of the natives seek to invade the land.

## Ideals

Described as "unconventional" by other universities of Starsong, the Guild Eldritch was a faction born out of necessity during a vicious, colonial war. The actions of their Founder during the 3rd Era lead to multiple conflicts, most notably the War of the Sleeping, the Spearmen's Reckoning and the Saint's War.

Their ideals are solely focused on the acquisition of further knowledge, and to defend the Greylands.

While Cerath was aligned with the Venarium before the events of the Saint's War, the Guild Eldritch do not hold the same ideals.

### The Seven Rings

1. The Shapers - The most vital arm of the Guild Eldritch, and perhaps held in the highest regard as they create the spells many Guildsmen use throughout their studies.
2. The Breakers - The warriors of the Guild, known for the razing of the Council of Stones and the conquest of the southern lands that would become the Greylands. Their power is focused on their weapons, most notably claymores such as what Saint Wolf-Grin would wield.
3. The Builders - The alchemists and elementalists who study, combine, destroy and create the elements from which the world is made.
4. The Speakers - Hewers and scholars of flesh, they who disjoin the living, rejoin them, create life anew... some wondrous, some terrible.
5. The Travellers - They who chart courses to other worlds, returning with knowledge and plunder untold. Many of them are gifted with divination.
6. The Watchers - The scholars of the guild, this ring is comprised of chroniclers, linguists, magisters and melodists. Their gift lies in words.
7. The Whisperers - The necromancers and animancers of the guild, they who dabble in the essence of the soul. Many are tinkerers, as much of animancy is only achieved through machines.