Swordsman's Guild
From SCross
The Swordsman’s Guild
~ History ~
- The Guild largely owes its creation to a fencer named Magnus Draco. Born in 960, Magnus became intrigued with the rich history of duelling on Gaia. However, duelling had been declared illegal in most nations. Although his king paid only lip service to the law at best, Magnus saw it as an encroachment on men’s ability to defend their honour. On the other hand, he couldn’t deny that duelling caused a great deal of unnecessary death.
- Magnus sought a solution that would still allow duelling while reducing the number of fatalities. He came up with a ‘duelling guild’ which would legalize the practice while carefully regulating the whys and wherefores. Such a system would allow ‘proxies’ to fight for each other: men willing to duel and who would probably find some other means to kill each other without an acceptable outlet. Thus, men wouldn’t feel compelled to die defending their honour. More importantly, men would need to pay for the privilege, either by becoming Guild members (and contributing the requisite tithes), or hiring a Guild member to challenge and fight for them. Magnus saw this as an important step in reducing duelling while still allowing the practice in a legalized form.
Magnus Draco's views of the guild of his day
- The Swordsman’s Guild is one of the most ‘international’ organization on Gaia. It is open to any fighter who wishes to abide by its rules, which remains loose and easy to adhere to. The Guild rose out of the need to regulate men who wish to kill each other. While it doesn’t try to stop them, it does try to regulate their actions. The heads of many countries have given the Guild the authority to create and enforce duelling law on Gaia, providing them with great power, but great limitations as well. They walk a thin line between strength and responsibility. If the Guild goes too far, its members may ignore it or turn against it. If it does not go far enough, the countries it represents may eliminate its authority. The Guild must incorporate the desires of each nation without falling apart. Some of its members are reluctant participants, forced to abide by Guild law only because their rulers say they must.
- Unlike ‘secret’ societies, the Guild’s members rarely volunteer to join, nor do they all work for a single common cause. In theory, they band together to uphold ‘honourable’ standards of duelling. However, there are as many members who despise that principle as respect it. For every swordsman who values the Guild’s laws, there is another who considers them a burden to work around or ignore.
- The leaders of the Guild have sworn themselves to the task of reconciling all members, and ensuring that fighting remains a respectable custom. They hold to their standards no matter what. The Guild is a unique organization, with the potential to cross national boundaries and establish a common standard. That standard can truly speak to the values and goals of all nations. In many ways, the Guild is the most democratic institution on Gaia. Within its laws, anyone - slave, noble, or peasant - can win justice and honour with the strength of his sword arm. If they can not do so themselves, then they can hire someone to do it for them.
- The Guild allows any fighter willing to live on a blade’s edge to speak his mind and defend his honour. Join them, and discover the honour of the duel.
~ Introduction ~
The Swordsman's Guild Today
- In the Golden Age of Magnus Draco, the Swordsman's Guild found prosperity in the confines of regulation of the Duel alone, and they were able to sustain the massive empire they had created out of a concept alone. It was sad that in recent years, weak leadership and lack of vision caused the guild to slowly grind into a ragtag group of lingering idealists that had little to do but sell them selves out as bodyguards, military advisors, or in the cases of the more nefarious assassins.
- Recently command of the guild fell into the charge of a former Knight of the Order Heron, who took the reins and settled in a new foundation for the guild that has been growing as rapidly as the former. It is said to be a second Golden Age for the guild under the tenants of mercenary work. They are now much more then they once were, falling from the ideal of only the Duel into one of the strongest known mercenary armies in the empire today. While they are often called sell-swords, and other nefarious names, they strongly uphold the honorable traditions of the swordsman, by making use of a blend of the duelist creed, and the knights code of honor. None can deny the clean reputation of the current Swordsman's Guild nor it's progression in the changing world of today.
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