Guild of Loremasters

Note: artwork for the crests and insignias is being commissioned. The image of the current crest is merely some concept art. Also, much of the detailed information will be moved into separate articles.

Guild Profile

The Guild of Loremasters is a well-known and respected organization, based in the Five Realms, dedicated to gathering, preserving, and spreading the cultural knowledge of Mirielle. Founded centuries ago during the 3rd Age, the Guild has hundreds of members, a vast collection of records (stored in its libraries and archives), and is instrumental in cultivating constructive and beneficial values in the communities of the Five Realms. Some say that the Guild was instigated by a minor deity known as the Loreseeker who spurred a few of its followers to establish the organization, but, ironically, no historical records of the Guild's origin exist in the Guild's libraries or archives — merely speculations and fanciful tales.

Purpose & Scope

Influence & Status

Allies & Rivals

General Security

In addition to the Guardians and their Guildkeeps, ...

Guild Structure

The Guild is divided into three branches, each with their own role (and hierarchy): Loremaster, Lorekeeper, and Librarian. The branches have distinct, yet complementary, responsibilities that — together — support the overarching mission of the Guild.

The Loremaster branch is responsible for managing the guildhalls and the overall well-being of the Guild itself. This branch establishes policies, handles diplomatic relationships, encourages collaboration and collegial interactions, drives scholarship, oversees training and mentoring, recruits new members, proposes projects (and often directs missions), and guides the strategic direction of the Guild.

The Lorekeeper branch is responsible for field research, keeping oral history alive, and exploration — traveling about the realms gathering and recording stories, tales, customs, traditions, and folklore that is transferred to the Librarian branch for safekeeping. Equally important, the branch is responsible for sharing cultural knowledge with the general populace — carefully choosing the stories to encourage tolerance, thoughtfulness, community, satisfying work, light-hearted fun, and other positive cultural values.

The Librarian branch is responsible for managing the libraries and the organization and maintenance of the Guild's vast collection — centuries-worth of records about history, events, folklore, customs, traditions, myths, legends, and anything that the Guild considers "lore". This includes archiving, copying, cataloging, researching, and analyzing the records as well as providing public and private exhibitions and galleries of selected works, and repairing and maintaining the library machinery.

In addition to the three roles associated with the branches, the Guild has two other roles, Guardian and Steward, both with their own hierarchies. These roles provide protection and support and are distributed, as needed, throughout the three branches.

The Guild is governed by a five-person council, one member from each role.

Roles & Ranks & Specializations

Each role has six equivalent ranks and seven specializations. Guild members in the three highest ranks may specialize, meaning that they are rated (and sometimes well-known) as an expert in that area. Members only specialize in one area, with rare exceptions (approved by the Council).

The master ranks — Elder Loremaster, Master Lorekeeper, Master Librarian, Shieldwarden, Quartermaster — are generally filled by five individuals for each role. Each set of masters are together responsible for the management of one of the Guild Complexes. In special cases, there may be additional masters who are chosen to manage other premises or oversee special projects.

Often, a Guild member will have "of NAME" appended to their official title — indicating recognition (of accomplishments), relative importance (within the rank), and sometimes influence or power. The name is often a region or city, sometimes one of the Realms, occasionally the Five Realms, and rarely Mirielle itself.

Note: Loremasters and Lorekeepers typically have the Lorecrafter profession while Librarians have the Tomekeeper profession. (People with these professions, especially Tomekeeper, do not have to be associated with the Guild of Loremasters.) Guardian Role and Steward Role may have one of many different appropriate professions.

Loremaster

Loremasters are responsible for the overall mission, recruitment, scholarship, instruction, and strategic diplomacy of the Guild. Their responsibilities are evenly divided between internal and external functions. Internally, they ensure the Guild remains true to its mission, oversee the training and recruitment of Guild members, and facilitate in-depth scholarship. Externally, they provide instruction in lore (especially history) for various elite groups, negotiate agreements and alliances with other guilds, and staff diplomatic posts in the capitals and major cities of the Five Realms. Loremasters typically interact with elites and leaders while Lorekeepers more commonly interact with the general populace.

Note: Loremasters travel throughout the Five Realms, but not as storytellers and gatherers — and not as extensively as Lorekeepers. Instead, they connect with traveling Lorekeepers, search for recruits, and cultivate diplomatic ties with other professions, guilds, and aristocracy.

Ranks

• Apprentice — learns fundamental skills of Loremasters, especially scholarship and diplomacy
• Associate Loremaster
• Loremaster
• Senior Loremaster
• Elder Loremaster
• Grand Loremaster — member of the Guild Council, head of the Loremaster role, and strategic leader of the Guild

Specializations

• Scholar
• Strategist
• Instructor
• Diplomat
• Theorist
• Mentor
• Recruiter

Lorekeeper

Lorekeepers are responsible for...

Note: Lorekeepers have greater training in self-protection (and often magical defensive abilities) and tend to travel without any Guardians (except on the most dangerous or critical missions). They are also trained in survival and self-sufficiency so they can more easily journey through long stretches of wilderness.

Ranks

• Novice — learns fundamental skills of Lorekeepers, especially storytelling and gathering
• Associate Lorekeeper
• Lorekeeper
• Senior Lorekeeper
• Master Lorekeeper
• Prime Lorekeeper — member of the Guild Council, head of the Lorekeeper role, and tactical leader of the Guild

Specializations

• Storyweaver — crafts and performs entertaining narratives, illustrating beneficial community values and bringing lore to "life" in the minds of people
• Sage
• Explorer — searches for lost or lesser-known lore (especially ancient texts, forgotten myths, and obscure cultures) among the lands and peoples of the Five Realms and beyond
• Gatherer — travels throughout Mirielle, collecting and recording lore from different regions and cultures, and delivers this lore to the Librarians for safekeeping
• Mythologian — researches ancient myths and legends, symbolic stories, and popular tales to distinguish probable facts from imaginative narratives
• Folklorist
• Lorespeaker — learns and memorizes the oral myths, legends, customs, and traditions of various cultures from past generations and ensures the oral lore is passed on to the next generation

Librarian

Ranks

• Trainee — learns fundamental skills of Librarians, especially cataloging and archiving
• Associate Librarian
• Librarian
• Senior Librarian
• Master Librarian
• Chief Librarian — member of the Guild Council, head of the Librarian role, and leader of all Librarian operations

Specializations

• Archivist
• Researcher
• Scribe
• Cataloger
• Curator
• Chronologer
• Mechanist

Guardian

Guardians are responsible for overall security, protection, and defense of the Guild. Their responsibilities are divided into two major groups, Wardens and Shields, who protect places and people, respectively. The Wardens protect the libraries (and their occupants), archives, and guild halls. The Shields are responsible for the upper ranks of the Loremasters, the Council members (and their deputies), and — with the exception of Lorekeepers — guild members as they travel about or visit non-Guild places. Guardians often accompany Lorekeepers on dangerous travels or missions, but generally Lorekeepers handle their own protection when wandering.

Note: that the terms Warden and Shield are colloquial terms used to identify the primary type of protection the person provides. These are not their actual ranks or specializations, but simply reflect the focus of their current assignment.

Ranks

• Watcher — learns fundamental skills of Guardians, especially security and observation
• Sentinel
• Guardian
• Senior Guardian
• Shieldwarden — commands their assigned Lorekeep, manages the security needs for the Guild throughout their Realm, coordinates with the other Shieldwardens, and advises and reports to the Ward Marshall
• Ward Marshall — member of the Guild Council, head of the Guardian role, and security leader of the Guild

Specializations

• Bodyguard — provides expert protection for high-ranking Guild members, traveling Guild members, and Guild teams assigned to dangerous missions or projects
• Sentry
• Tactician
• Weaponsmaster
• Scout
• Defender
• Armskeeper

Steward

Ranks

• Clerk — learns fundamental skills of Stewards, especially record keeping and distribution
• Aide
• Steward
• Senior Steward
• Quartermaster
• High Steward — member of the Guild Council, head of the Steward role, and administrative leader of the Guild

Specializations

• Custodian
• Bookkeeper
• Recorder
• Analyst
• Logistician
• Provisioner
• Taskmaster

Governing Council

Rather than a single leader, the Guild is run by a council of five individuals (one from each role). Their reasoning for implementing group leadership rather than solitary leadership is two-fold. One, foster (and impose) collaboration between the branches, roles, and members. Two, mitigate the danger of a Guild leader that could be influenced, intimidated, or bribed to hide or distort the Guild's knowledge of lore. The five-member governing council consists of the following individuals.

• Grand Loremaster
• Prime Lorekeeper
• Chief Librarian
• Ward Marshall
• High Steward

Each of these leaders is chosen by agreement from the senior members of their role. Each year, one of the leaders (by rotation) is independently evaluated by the senior Guild members (across all the roles). This is followed by a confidence vote of all the regular Guild members. By tradition, a leader that loses the confidence vote will step down which allows the choosing of another of the senior members within their role to replace them. In rare cases, a leader may be forced to step down, by the other leaders and the members at large.

The Council holds regular meetings in one of the Major Guildhalls and will assemble for urgent or special meetings as needed.

Guild Premises

The Guild has amassed a great deal of property over the centuries. These are divided into roughly three types of buildings: libraries (and archives), guildhalls, and keeps. There are only five keeps, one at each of the main complexes. But, there are many, many libraries, archives, and guildhalls throughout the realms.

In each of the Five Realms, the Guild owns a main complex consisting of a Grand Library, a Major Guildhall, and a Lorekeep. And throughout the realms, the Guild owns buildings or estates that contain smaller libraries or guildhalls. There are no other keeps, but the Guardians do maintain a presence in strategically placed guildhalls. These guildhalls always include a tower, courtyard, stables, and a wing allocated for Guardian use.

Some Guild locations are designated as archives (or collection points for Lorekeeper findings) staffed by only a few Guild members, but still protected by the Guardians.

Libraries and Archives

Guildhalls and Lorekeeps

Joining the Guild

Seeking, Safeguarding, and Sharing Lore

Contents

Type

Guild, Professional

Subsidiary Organizations

• Curators of Lore
• Guardians of Lore
• Keepers of Lore
• Masters of Lore
• Stewards of Lore

Notable Members

• Bell Bardwell