You are a member of an artisan’s guild, skilled in
a particular field and closely associated with other
artisans. You are a well-established part of the
mercantile world, freed by talent and wealth from the
constraints of a feudal social order. You learned your
skills as an apprentice to a master artisan, under the
sponsorship of your guild, until you became a master in your own right.
Guilds are generally found in cities large enough to
support several artisans practicing the sam e trade.
However, your guild might instead be a loose network
o f artisans w ho each w ork in a different village within
a larger realm. W ork with your DM to determine the
nature of your guild. You can select your guild business
from the Guild Business table or roll randomly. As a m em ber of your guild, you know the skills needed
to create finished items from raw materials (reflected in
your proficiency with a certain kind of artisan’s tools),
as well as the principles o f trade and good business
practices. The question now is whether you abandon
your trade for adventure, or take on the extra effort to
weave adventuring and trade together.
As an established and respected m em ber of a guild, you
can rely on certain benefits that m em bership provides.
Your fellow guild m em bers will provide you with
lodging and food if necessary, and pay for your funeral
if needed. In som e cities and towns, a guildhall offers a
central place to meet other m em bers of your profession, which can be a good place to meet potential patrons, allies, or hirelings. Guilds often wield trem endous political power. If you are accused of a crim e, your guild will support you if a good case can be made for your innocence or the crim e is justifiable. You can also gain access to powerful political figures through the guild, if you are a mem berin good standing. Such connections might require the donation of money or m agic items to the guild’s coffers. You must pay dues of 5 gp per month to the guild. If you m iss payments, you must make up back dues to remain in the guild’s good graces.
Suggested Characteristics
Guild artisans are am ong the most ordinary people in
the w orld—until they set dow n their tools and take up
an adventuring career. They understand the value of
hard work and the im portance of community, but they’re vulnerable to sins of greed and covetousness.
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