Guildmaster {Mercenary}
"While many local citizens first assumed it would be an uproarus and rambunctious place, much like the infamous mercenary groups of the past, locals of Agartha were shocked to find a peaceful and orderly procession leading up to the new Red Blades Guidhall today. While festivites took over in the night hours, it was the noise of celebration and joy, versus anger and vileness. Perhaps this is due to the new era, perhaps it is just the first night novelty, or perhaps its the eternal gaze and firm yet caring hand of the everpresent Guildmaster." --Excerpt from 'Post-War Mercenary Guild opens it's doors!' Published in The Landslide, 979 EEAs the chaos of the Border Wars ended, many soldiers found themselves restless in peace, and just as many realized they had been born in the war and knew naught of peace. So, with that in mind, the concept of the Mercenary Guild was enacted. But, of course, there needed to be a watchdog in place, a firm and steady hand to keep any guilds on the straight-and-narrow, yet truly act towards justice and betterment of society. Thus, the exact letters of the Guildmaster rank as it exists today formed.
Qualifications
There are no strict qualifications to be a Guildmaster. Since the modern form of Mercenary Guilds have only existed for a few decades, many founders are still in control of their guilds.
To get approval from the Council of Mercenary Observance, you must have a guildhall (or verifiably will have one within a year's time), approval from the local government, and be declared of sound mind and body without any active criminal records. However, those last two rules have had a history of gray areas, as many Mercenaries have come out of the Border Wars, which leaves both the aspects of mental health and prior transgressions up in the air.
Appointment
Once a potential Guildmaster has gone through the proper checks, approvals, and payments, they will be officially added to the register of Mercenary Guilds, which allows them to be included in the information network for jobs and assignments. If a new guildmaster is to be appointed as a successor, they must follow the proper paperwork as well or have been previously listed as a vice-guild master in the case of the originals passing.
Responsibilities
It is the duty of the Guildmaster to ensure their members are taken care of, the guild hall is maintained, and jobs are undertaken consistently and safely. It is also the Guildmaster who is in charge of recruitment, the bureaucratic and financial affairs, and any testing that is to be done. They're also the point of contact with the local government.
Benefits
Not only does the Guildmaster have a position of authority over the guild, but they also receive a monthly stipend for their performance so long as a certain threshold of members is active in the guild. They also enjoy the social advantages of being a semi-political figurehead and a social star, as famed as their guild and potentially as much as their greatest members.
Accoutrements & Equipment
While there aren't any particular uniforms for guild members when a Guild has an approved sigil the Guldmaster will not only receive badges with the design for members, but also an honorary cape with the design for when attending cross-guild meetings.
History
After the Border Wars and its subsequent conflicts ended, there were scores of soldiers who had grown used to the life of combat and many who knew nothing else. So, with a world that needed to heal, warriors who needed to fight, and many magical imbalances in the wake of the conflicts, it became natural that an external and pan-eddan force needed to be made.
While the Council of Mercenary Observance first attempted to lead these organizations themselves, they quickly found that they had too limited of scope, and there were too many potentials, and therefore began spreading the concept of the Guilds as we know them today, and approached a key first Guildmaster.
As the Council was situated in Agartha, they went to a titan of charisma and kindness that they knew would be not only an ideal Guildmaster but a perfect poster boy for the concept: the Goliath, Balthazar Blade, an anti-war radical who has spent the years of the Border Wars rallying against the mountain nation's cruel wartime experiments and treatment of soldiers and had been spending the first few years post-war being an influential voice of the community for new reforms to solve just that.
With a few agreements made between him and the Council, especially when it came to the security, safety, and rights of freedom the mercenaries would have, he agreed to their position and became the first Guildmaster of the first Guild: The Red Blades.
Type
Civic, Professional
Status
Active
Form of Address
No official form of address, many casual ones.
Source of Authority
Certified by The Council of Mercenary Observance, operates under county authority.
Length of Term
Until retirement/death
First Holder
Current Holders
Related Organizations
Comments