"Hon. Guild of Constructors, Architects, et al, v. Wizard's Assoc. of Etoile", filed 51-4-719
Lord Artoro:
Honored Magistrate, thank you for hearing our case. It is time this matter is settled, as it places the lives of ordinary Etoileans in great peril. Magic is a new phenomenon and all are amazed and dazzled at what it can do for our society, yet we of the Guild of Constructors must firmly protest in its unorganized use for construction purpose. Let me be quite frank. The art and science of constructing a building has been painfully learned over the ages, and every technique and skill that is used to put up a new block is vital and necessary to ensuring the building can withstand the test of time. A building built by our Guild is certified to endure for at least one hundred years without reinforcement or repair, barring disaster, and we take pride in the longevity and quality of our craft. We admit that inspections are necessary, but only as a precaution and no more - the building will stand whether or not people are present or absent. To that note, a building that requires magical reinforcement every few days or risk collapse is an absurd public danger. We are happy to unlock the new potentialities that reinforcement magecraft can accomplish in the sphere of architecture, and some of the more artistic pieces are well worthy of study and construction, but we cannot in good conscience abide the Wizard's Association taking it upon themselves, without our partnership, constructing buildings without regard for code or safety. They will be the first ones to admit that magic and its power is poorly understood; why, then, has the Principality been so cavalier as to allow the Association to do whatever it likes? We have a sixty foot high building on the outskirts of town that any architect could tell you will collapse in moments if not constrained by magic, and it is my understanding that the amount of Resonance Crystal in the building demands multiple wizards to reinforce the building daily. This is an untenable situation. We respectfully demand that the Wizard's Association be hereby enjoined against new construction projects, the safe demolition of all buildings that currently require magical reinforcement, and that any further inquiries to the matter of magically aided construction and building be done jointly by our two Guilds to our mutual satisfaction.Lady Tualis:
Honored Magistrate, my thanks for being present today to hear our defense. The Guild of Constructors may have what they believe to be a good cause as reason for this complaint, but Lord Artoro has neglected to mention precisely why the Wizard's Association has had to resort to going it alone. Are you aware, Magistrate, that new construction projects across Etoile have taken longer and longer? In the era of the First Princeps, a new housing block for twenty Etoilean families could be constructed from the ground up and occupied in two seasons. Today? I am aware of a new project of similar size on the Eastern Cut that has been under construction for over five years! Surely this could not have been aligned with the Progress of the First Princeps. If it was tolerable for someone wishing a new construction to waste five years dealing with Guild paperwork, we would not have the attention and business opportunities you have handed to us. Magic reinforcement of buildings introduces a dependence on local wizards to reinforce the magebindings, it is true, but it is no different than the typical maintenance of a normally constructed building. The vaunted imperviousness that Lord Artoro implies for his guild-certified constructions is not so much that it puts his guildmembers out of work - legions of carpenters, masons, and so on toil every day to fill in cracks, repair pilings, and so forth. Buildings left truly alone molder into dust, whether that takes a year or a hundred. Knowing this to be the truth, what is the substantive difference of rotating in a mage or two to recharge a resonator? Should a Guild-constructed building collapse due to negligence or malice, the Constructors would be at fault, and should an Association architecture collapse, we would accept our fault as well. We request the Magistrate void the request of the Honorable Lord Artoro and further make a public declaration to the effect of official Principality recognition of magically-aided construction as safe, cost-effective, and reliable.Lord Artoro:
Honored Magistrate, is this not a bitter libel against our Guild of Constructors? Lady Tualis names me liar to my face, and by proxy the entirety of the Constructors. I invite the Lady to inspect any Guild-certified building in Etoile for fault - the 'legions' of repairmen mentioned are mere inspectors, no more, and most find their living made repairing non-Guild buildings where initial expense was saved, to the dismay of the owners. I will not stand for the work of my brothers sullied in the halls of the Princeps....The transcript continues for many reams. Appeals and arbitration over this case continues to the current day.
Purpose
Soon after the discovery of Magic, it was also discovered that Resonance Mineral could be shaped and magically charged to use as a binder of considerable strength, allowing for the construction of buildings previously physically impossible by conventional building standards. However, as Resonators lose their magical charge over time, they require recharge by an active wizard, meaning that some of the constructions enabled would collapse within a few days if no wizards were on hand to recharge the Resonator bindings.
This petition was filed in front of Magistrate Ihsevai in the Hall of the Princeps, 51-4-719, and the subsequent caselog goes on for hundreds of yards of paper and thousands of hours of argument, into the present. Since this filing, no new magically-aided construction has been approved, pending appeals.
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