Guilds

All beings of Rakya can join one of the Guilds once they have undergone the Trial of the Gods and obtained a Sacred Mark. There are two types of Guilds:

* Those where the common trades of society are taught.
* Those where combat concepts are taught.

There are eight Guilds for those with military aspirations and they are formed based on their Gods representatives, These are: Dark Knights; Hunters; Warriors; Thieves; Mages; Paladins; Priests; Samurais. The requirement to be able to join any of these Guilds is to possess the Sacred Mark of each Guild.

## Become a member

It costs eight Silver to join a Guild. It is allowed to belong to more than one Guild although it is not very well seen. An individual can leave his Guild at any time and join another to study another trade, as long as the individual is not a soldier. Soldiers have exclusive Guilds to carry out their work and there is no turning back. Once affiliated, the individual will not be able to leave and join another Guild, unless of course they want to be treated as a deserter and executed.

A Guild protects the rights of an individual, offers a place to learn the trade, and Guild members offer each other protection. Those who want to continue working in a certain profession within Verdana must join the related Guild.

Only a Instructor approved by the Guild can teach someone the Skills and techniques of the Guild.

Anyone who attempted to enter the trade of either goods or services without becoming a member of a Guild would soon find their business deliberately impeded by the relevant Guild. And since everyone knew about this consequence, no one did business with those operating outside of a Guild anyway.

All members of a Guild must abide by the established rules and regulations or risk being penalized. All newly joined members undergo an intensive seven-day course where they are taught the basics.

Members of a Guild must pay to learn new Skills. Although some Skills are only taught to veteran and reliable members.

## Dark Knights Guild

Dark Knights are melee fighters. They are not as effective at keeping enemies busy as a Warrior, but they are able to draw the attention of monsters above them and make them chase them while attacking and dodging with their Skills. A Dark Knight is similar to a Warrior in combat style, however, his class favors mid-range combat more. The Sword Skills used by a Dark Knight are known as the Dark Arts of Battle. A Dark Knight prefers to approach suddenly, only to attack enemies, while remaining out of attack range at all other times.

The Dark Knights have access through their blessing to Dark Magic. Thanks to it, they can summon their Demons and alter their capacity and that of the Monsters through certain Skills such as *Dread Terror* or *Dread Aura*.

## Hunters Guild

Their specialty is archery, so they can attack enemies farther away. Its range exceeds even that of Mages. Despite this, they are also capable in close combat with their knives through the use of their hunting skills. They are experts at setting traps that can be used on both animals and Monsters. Experienced Hunters are Instructors of novice apprentices. If the Instructor is male, he becomes the novice's father. If the Instructor is female, she becomes the novice's mother. She represents the bond between parents and children and is a reflection of the laws of nature.

## Warriors Guild

The Warriors are considered the tanks of the Teams and are one of the two fundamental pillars of a Team. They are the main attacking force of a Team and the first line of defense. They specialize in close combat. They are the ideal front-line brawlers, the tank that takes enemies head-on with might and fury. Warriors require very expensive armor and many Teams pool their money to heavily equip their Warriors. Due to the high cost of high-end gear, it is also typical for Teams to salvage armor pieces from fallen enemies and slowly build a full suit of armor.

## Thieves Guild

They are experts in stealth, so they are very useful in reconnaissance and infiltration. Thieves are not known for fighting their opponents toe-to-toe, they specialize in assassinating and quickly eliminating their enemies before the Team even enters the fray. In open combat, they always try to get behind their opponents to finish them off with a single blow. The Guild is unique in that it does not have a strict set of rules, but rather a code of guidelines that includes:

* Do not carry out the business on the rest of the members of the Guild.
* If you are an Ashen Soldier you cannot do business on the rest of the members of the Frontier Army Reserve Force.
* If you are a Ambarux Soldier you cannot do business on the rest of the members of the Regular Border Army.
* Teams of Ashen Soldiers can only have one Thief per Team.

Thieves have access through their blessing to Shadow Magic. Thanks to it, they can use their Shadow Skills, such as *Smokescreen* and *Shadow Drive*.

## Mages Guild

Mages are the greatest channelers of Magic in Rakya. Mages draw a magical diagram in the air in order to release their spells. A spell can be speeded up or slowed down depending on the experience and skill of a Mage. Preventing a Mage from finishing the diagram causes the spell to be cancelled. Mages specialize in medium and long range Magic.

They can access four different schools, all of them with destructive powers. These are: Hi (Fire), Kōri (Ice), Denki (Electricity), and Doku (Poison), although the latter has a support-type character.

The books carried by the Mages are Grimoires. The knowledge of the Mage is engraved on them. They show on their pages the enchantments, diagrams, and effects of their spells. When a Mage learns a spell, it is recorded on a new sheet of the Grimoire.

They require the use of Mana in order to manifest any of their Skills, but Mages are the ones with a larger pool than anyone.

It is implied throughout the story that a Mage's Grimoire serves him to study Magic itself and experiment with it, allowing the Mages create new and own Magic and record it in the Grimoire. The first clue to this phenomenon occurs when other Mage make an observation to Lucía: "If the Mages Guild claims that there are only four branches of Elemental Magic: Hi (Fire), Kōri (Ice), Denki (Electricity), and Doku (Poison), why the first spell they teach in the Guild (*Magic Missile*) doesn't belong to any of them."

## Paladins Guild

They tend to be a defensive piece, since they have several blocking Skills, so they tend to focus on protecting the most vulnerable members such as Priests and Mages. They can also access the use of the most basic healing Magic, but are unable to use that Magic on themselves.

The Paladins need access to their Mana reserves in order to perform their Light Magic, although, as they are not specialists in the field of healing , their Mana pool is lower than that of Mages and Priests.

## Priests Guild

Its main function is to heal its allies with Magic, and also offer protection and support with its Magic. Priests are the only ones capable of learning the finest healing arts and are the most important pillar of a Team. They are the healers of the Team and are the ones who support their teammates during fights. Unlike Mages, they possess various close combat Skills that allow them to operate on the front line in an emergency. They can only carry sharp weapons if their Guild considers the member suitable for it, until then they can only use canes and staves.

Priests, just like Mages, need access to their Mana reserves in order to perform their Light Magic.

## Samurais Guild

They are an especially offensive piece. They are extremely fast fighters. Despite being strong attackers, they lack the defensive ability of Warriors, who can hold off multiple enemies. For this reason the Samurais are not considered one of the fundamental pillars.

It is said that in order for a member of this Guild to formally complete their training and be considered a Bushi, they must prove their strength, worth and abilities in the Ghost Village. Until then a Samurai will not be fully recognized.

They faithfully follow the teachings of their God through the precepts of Bushidō (the way of the warrior). They are a **Guild** that does not accept to act dishonorably.