Guild System

An order formed around a hidden technology or secret knowledge is called a guild. While the purpose varies considerably from group to group the two main traits of a guild are secrecy and initiation.

Origin
What was originally considered guilds came from the primordial chaos in the early ages of the gods. As the chaos grew and claimed millions of lives, the weapons of the gods were freely used. St. Clotilda created many guilds by imperial and holy decree and entrusted them with divine knowledge. St. Clotilda guided her people to victory and spread the state guilds as she went. The chaos of the gods was sealed away and peace was brought to the empire. Now dangerous knowledge was safeguarded and used against the enemies of humans.

The weapons of the gods were used by St. Clotilda in many righteous crusades against the aliens of the planet. The Rathuun Desert was the result of the Apian Crusade.

The system was refined and expanded over the decades with many new associations being made. The legitimacy and legal rights granted by being a sanctioned guild helped integrate the system. Non-sanctioned guilds were common and frequently petitioned the court to escape their precarious status. While no restrictions were placed on guilds without Imperial sanction, there were also no protections. Patent law existed as a privilege granted by grace of the empress.

Two main forms were established, the first being guilds who were unique, inter-provincial (later international) groups that answered directly to the empress or her representatives. Groups that did not hold exclusive rights, such as radio stations, operated on a local basis and were subjects of the local lord. Some of these common groups expanded outside their home city but were limited in their range. The unsanctioned guilds, such as brewers or tanners, hold specialized but common knowledge. They hold no legal status but may have been granted monopoly rights for a city or region by their lord. A few were sanctioned under unusual circumstances, such as the Brewer's guild of Goldfield. Unsanctioned guilds mimicked the form of sanctioned guilds which helped spread the system. This had two primary effects. First, it was advantageous for guilds to zealously guard their knowledge. Second,

The Clotildans maintained tight control of their numerous guilds actively maintained police forces to enforce laws. While the early Silverbloods were content to leave the guild system intact, a thaw began during the reign of Empress Ella Godsbane. During the high po